As the man's words fell, the scene suddenly became incredibly quiet.
At this moment, time seemed to hit the pause button. Horikoshi, who had been laughing wildly just before, appeared frozen as if a camera had captured and fixed his expression in an instant.
Horikoshi slowly lowered his head and his eyes were filled with shattered despair.
"Hey! Be careful when dismantling things!!" the director shouted towards the ceiling. "How many times have I said it? Why are you still so careless?!"
"It seems that's how it is." Senichi chuckled lightly. "Perhaps the same was true for the incident back then.
Only, what caused the fan to fall that time wasn't a person but an earthquake."
After all, Japan was a country with frequent earthquakes, and each vibration naturally damaged the walls. Although Japan paid attention to these things during construction, ceiling fans weren't as earthquake-resistant as buildings.
After all, they were suspended from the ceiling, and the swaying caused by earthquakes over time could eventually lead to them falling.
However, this unexpected incident did not result in a tragedy. Instead, it happened at a specific time, in a specific place, and hit a particular person.
Horikoshi of that time was probably just a simple case of "Chunibyo."
Immersed in various adventures and powers, fantasizing about all kinds of fake enemies, he spent his days indulging in his own fantasies.
The beloved teacher was in danger, prompting this "Chunibyo" teenager to impulsively step forward, fantasizing about using "superpowers" to save the person he cared about.
If we follow the cold reality, what awaited him might have been a harsh beating from the cold hands of reality, followed by the cure of "Chunibyo."
However, in the world, various coincidences and accidents always occur. On that day, the fan coincidentally fell in sync with his performance.
He became the hero who saved his friends and teacher.
Afterward, this news spread uncontrollably in society, and he immersed himself in the immense temptations of fame and wealth.
His life changed on that day.
Perhaps, with the growth of age, his "Chunibyo" had completely disappeared, but looking back, he could no longer turn back.
He, who no longer believed in reality, could only continue to live under the name of a "superhuman."
"So, from beginning to end, I was just a false hero."
Horikoshi laughed again, but this time the laughter was filled with indescribable mockery and bitterness. "Turns out, I'm not a hero at all."
As the handcuffs closed, this man who had lived half his life in falsehood would perhaps face the most cold and brutal reality in the latter half of his life.
When Shiratori led Horikoshi away, Senichi looked at the director beside him with a smile that was more of a smirk. "The person on the ceiling just now, was he a prop master?"
"Huh? Uh, yes," the director, caught off guard by Senichi's sudden question, stammered and nodded. "Y-yes, he's the prop master in charge of the set. I'm really sorry; he always causes trouble by being too meddlesome."
"Oh? Really?" Senichi looked up at the ceiling with a sly smile. "Then why is this prop master carrying a camera on his shoulder?"
Upon hearing Senichi's question, there was a commotion from above the ceiling. Soon, a man carrying a camera came down and bowed ninety degrees with the director. "Really sorry!! We didn't inform you beforehand and went ahead with the live broadcast of this deduction!"
"Is that so?" Senichi, with a wry smile, took out his phone from his pocket and called Haruka.
"Oh, Mr. Detective, what an exciting deduction," came Haruka's cheerful laughter on the other end of the call.
"So, you knew, huh?"
Hearing Haruka's words, Senichi said with no small amount of annoyance, "If you saw it, why didn't you tell me?"
"Such live broadcasts make the deduction more authentic," Haruka chuckled. "And even if I informed you, the order from above was to continue the broadcast. Better to keep it from you, so you wouldn't be all tied up after knowing about the live broadcast."
"Now that you've sorted it out, I'll hang up." Senichi smiled without much kindness. "Remember to treat me to a meal next time."
Before the other person could say anything else, Senichi hung up the phone directly and waved his hand at the two who were still bowing, indicating for them to get up.
"I ask you, did you intentionally make that ceiling light fall at the end?" Once the two stood upright, Senichi turned to the cameraman on the side and asked.
In response, the cameraman, with an awkward smile, scratched his head and said, "At the time, I felt that if it fell, it might have a better effect, and it just happened unintentionally."
"You rascal! Who allowed you to take matters into your own hands!" The director scolded the cameraman on the side, but seeing the smirk on his face, it was clear that he was just putting on a show for Senichi. Perhaps he not only didn't mind the cameraman's sudden improvisation but also secretly praised it as a "clever move."
"I knew there wouldn't be so many coincidences." Senichi sighed at the words and waved his hand, And then he turned around to leave.
The final effect even startled Senichi. After all, just as the superpower was being demonstrated on one side, the "light" on the ceiling directly dropped down, creating quite an impactful scene.
However, Senichi only thought that the cameraman was sly but didn't feel any sympathy for Horikoshi. The actions of the latter were not worthy of sympathy.
As for the final result, it indeed ended dramatically, just as the cameraman had predicted.
"Hahaha! I knew it! All kinds of superpowers are fake!"
Rintaro Okabe quickly walked up to Senichi with a hearty laugh. "Detective, thanks for helping out this time. Your logical reasoning is excellent. How about coming to my research institute? I have an experiment."
"Smack!"
Makise Kurisu didn't hesitate to slap him on the back of his head, causing him to stagger. She bluntly said, "He's a promising detective; why would he go to your research institute to do odd jobs?"
Ignoring Okabe beside her, Makise Kurisu also bowed slightly to Senichi. "Thank you. This is the business card of our research institute, with our contact information. Feel free to call anytime you need."
"I'll take the business card."
After taking the card and putting it in his wallet, Senichi then took out his own card and handed it to both of them. "This is mine. Similarly, if you need help, feel free to contact me.
Of course, I don't particularly like it if you approach me with just anything."