Chapter 12
This piece, that piece
Jonah had no intention of mocking him. When he saw the man walking over while talking, Jonah assumed that he wanted to help him fight against the bandaged monster.
But based on Jonah's previous observations, this man didn't seem to have any professional training, and his steps were even a bit unsteady, so he used the simplest method to test him.
Now the result is very clear: Otae Masaru is not someone who can help Jonah.
"you!"
Ota Masaru's face paled as he was taken aback by Jonah's unexpected remark, and he instinctively wanted to explode in anger.
But seeing that Jonah ignored him and put away the cleaver, Ota Masaru's expression changed several times. He didn't say anything more and got up to go to the side to smoke.
Seeing this, Conan Edogawa and Ran Mouri almost laughed, but they held back out of politeness.
Sonoko Suzuki chuckled, but her arm was quickly grabbed by Ayako Suzuki, who was standing next to her, and she swallowed the rest of her laughter.
"Jonah, do you need our help?"
Ran Mouri crouched down beside Jonah and examined the props that Jonah had piled up to the side. She couldn't help but point at the spikes with her finger. The pain in her finger told Ran that these things were not just toys, but real, deadly traps.
"No need, I'll arrange it myself later. Just make sure everyone stays away from the doors and windows."
Jonah shook his head. He was well aware of how dangerous these traps were, and it was best for ordinary people to stay away.
Given Jonah's recent act of testing Ota Katsu with a knife, the others in the villa dared not say anything. Although they were puzzled, they went along with Jonah's idea.
Seeing that his ideas were tacitly approved, Jonah was not proud at all. While everyone was working together to prepare dinner, Jonah began to patrol the first floor of the villa alone to determine where traps needed to be set.
A front door is definitely needed, as is a window in the living room, but a window in the bathroom is too small; an adult couldn't squeeze through... Hmm?
Jonah blinked in confusion as he looked at the back door of the villa.
The tiles in the back doorway were all muddy, clearly indicating that someone had been in and out of the area after it rained. There was also a pair of neatly arranged slippers on the doormat, suggesting that someone had left through there.
Jonah ran through the people he had just met in the hall in his mind and realized that he hadn't seen Takahashi Ryoichi, who was repairing the roof, and Ikeda Chikako, who had been staying in her room because she was in a bad mood.
Although he was puzzled as to why someone would sneak out when they already knew there was danger, Jonah wasn't very familiar with either of them, and he just needed to make sure that Ran and the others would be safe.
"Jonah, are you done with your examination? Come on, we're about to eat."
Seeing Jonah walk back into the living room, Ran Mouri smiled and waved to him. It seemed that in the warm and crowded villa, she was no longer so afraid of the strange man who had attacked her.
Jonah was happier to hear that it was time to eat. He had been running around since arriving at the villa, and he was indeed quite hungry.
The others gradually came to sit down at the table, and Ota Katsu called out to Takahashi Ryoichi, who had just come down from the roof.
With a smile, Takahashi Ryoichi packed away the ladder he had used for repairing the roof and walked towards the stairs connecting the second-floor balcony, chatting and laughing as he prepared to come down for dinner.
"Ah! Who's there!"
The sudden shout drew the attention of everyone at the table, and Ota Masaru quickly asked, "What's wrong?!"
"There looks like someone's near the window downstairs!"
Upon hearing this, everyone turned their gaze to the window below Ryoichi Takahashi's position. The next moment, the bandaged monster, carrying Chikako Ikeda, flashed through the window and ran into the distant forest.
"It's Chikako!"
Upon witnessing this horrifying scene, everyone reacted immediately, running to the window, opening it, and instinctively looking in the direction the bandaged monster had fled.
Without saying a word, Conan Edogawa jumped out of the window in his slippers, grabbed a flashlight, and left.
"Sister Xiaolan, you all stay in the room and take this!"
Jonah immediately took out the nail gun from his backpack, turned it on, and handed it to the bewildered Ran Mouri. He then pulled out the kitchen knife hidden behind his back, climbed out of the window, and caught up with the main group ahead.
Jonah and his group didn't run for long before they found Chikako Ikeda's legs at the edge of the forest. This discovery made everyone present look grim. As they continued their search, they found all the "Chikako Ikeda" scattered throughout the forest.
Even if he was unwilling, he had to accept this reality. Hiroki Kakutani took off his coat, wanting to cover Chikako Ikeda's body, but he hesitated to move when faced with the scattered pieces. In the end, Jonah, with a cold face, gathered the pieces of Chikako Ikeda together in front of everyone's stunned gazes, and then covered them with Hiroki Kakutani's coat.
"What? You mean Chikako, she..."
While waiting for news in the villa, Ayako Suzuki raised her hand to cover her mouth after hearing that Chikako Ikeda had been murdered in such a tragic way, and her eyes instantly turned red.
"That damn bastard is a complete psychopath!"
"All we can do now is close the doors and windows, wait in the room until tomorrow when daytime arrives, and then cross the mountain to find the police."
The crowd discussed amongst themselves, while Jonah began setting up the trap.
After glancing at Jonah's retreating figure, Hiroki Kakutani couldn't help but lower his voice and ask Ayako Suzuki and Sonoko Suzuki, "Ayako, who exactly is that little boy?"
Hiroki Kakutani recounted Jonah's actions in helping to collect the bodies in the forest, and he couldn't understand why a child could be calmer than adults.
"I don't know either."
Shaking her head in confusion, Ayako Suzuki also looked at Sonoko Suzuki and Ran Mouri. Today was also the first time she had met Jonah. At first, she just thought the child was cute and didn't like to talk, but everything that happened afterward surprised her.
"Haha, Jonah is definitely a bit different."
Seeing that everyone's eyes were on her, Ran Mouri chuckled awkwardly but did not give a definite answer.
Ran Mouri wouldn't tell anyone that Jonah had been a child soldier and killed someone. This was to protect Jonah. Jonah's background was already pitiful enough, and he shouldn't be looked at with the same eyes by others.
Ignoring the crowd's discussion, Jonah was busy setting up his trap, but he was accompanied by Conan Edogawa, who looked thoughtful.
"Jonah, you saw those bodies before, didn't you notice anything amiss?"
"Something's not right?"