Substitute

Chronology
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Chapter 1120
Information
Title:	Substitute
Japanese title:	代役 (Daiyaku)
Original release:	November 15th, 2023
Shōnen Sunday issue:	#51/2023
Volume:	105
Pages:	16
Viz Media version
English title:	Substitute
English release:	November 15th, 2023 (Simulpub)

Substitute (代役 ,Daiyaku) is the 1120th chapter of the manga of Detective Conan. It was written by Gosho Aoyama, drawn by him and his assistants and first released in Shōnen Sunday #51/2023 on November 15, 2023 and was reprinted as part of Volume 105 on April 10, 2024. It was released in English by Viz Manga on the same day under the same name.

Characters

Characters
Conan Edogawa Ran Mouri Sonoko Suzuki Kaitou Kid (disguised as Shinichi/background) Shinichi Kudo (Kaitou Kid in disguise/background) Saguru Hakuba Jirokichi Suzuki Ginzo Nakamori Youtarou Kichida (corpse) Masuo Kase Satsuki Kichida Kyuuya Kamiji

Gadgets

Heist Info

Azure Throne
	Chair featuring on of the largest tanzanites in the world

Featured

Gadgets
Voice-Changing Bowtie

Settings

• Japan
  • Tokyo Prefecture
    • Sumida Ward
      • Tokyo Bell Tree Tower

Plot

After appearing before the group, "Shinichi" and Conan explain themselves. They explain that when they arrived, Kid had already left a card saying that "this is not jewel I was looking for today" and that all they found was Kichida's dead body on the Azure Throne, with a silenced pistol at his feet. Since the kid card did not mention the body, they add that Kid was not the culprit and that Kichida was not there when Kid left. Their explanation to cover Kid's lack of alibi is met with contestation from Kichida's acquaintances Masuo Kase, head of technology for Kichida Industries, Satsuki Kichida, his wife, and Kyuuya Kamiji, Kichida's secretary.

Kamiji probes Shinichi and Conan, asking them how Kid and the killer would have managed to get inside, since there was a camera in front of the door. Saguru explains that Kid used a Lubor's lens, which was put over the camera lens and uses a series of cylindrical lenses to distort vertical lines without distorting horizontal lines, creating an effect of invisibility. Thus, Kid used the lens and made it seem like there was no one in front of the door, even though he was inside and the door was wide open. Saguru's explanation surprises Nakamori and Jirokichi, but he says that he does not know when Kid got inside in the first place. He is interrupted by "Shinichi", who says that the old man who talked to the sole security guard to help him find his contact lens was most likely an accomplice of Kid and used this distraction to let Kid slip through and hide in a fake extinguisher case next to the exhibit room's door. After Kichida's team finished their inspection, Kid would come out of his hideout and set the Lubor's lens and get inside the room. Jirokichi interrupts "Shinichi" and asks him how he would have known the password, since only Kichida, Kase and him, and the former replies that the Phantom Thief heard them entering the code and that he would know how many digits were entered by the number of "beep" sounds. He could then figure out the combination quickly by dusting the keypad for fingerprints and see which numbers were pressed on. Advisor Suzuki congratulates "Shinichi" for his deduction, which he brushes off, saying it was a piece of cake, not without Conan thinking that he of course knew that since he was Kid himself. Nakamori then gets frustrated, as Kid was able to sneak in past their security measures again, but Saguru says that he planned this in advance and used the mist generator to make sure Kid would use the Lubor's lens, as it only works efficiently if everything around it is blurry as well. The glowing horizontal lines was also to induce Kid into using the lens and he had predicted Kid would install a fake extinguisher case and made sure the keypad would make sounds. This was all part of his plan to catch Kid red-handed, but he was surprised to only find Conan and "Shinichi Kudo". He invites the two inside the exhibit room to examine the crime scene.

As they step back inside the crime scene, Kid thinks to himself that Saguru should have stayed in London. Before they go further in, the fake Shinichi is stopped by Nakamori, who does his usual face pinching to make sure he is not Kid in disguise wearing a mask. As Kid in disguise screams in pain, Ran and Sonoko watch the scene unfold from the security room. Sonoko is happy that he is not Kid in disguise and lets Ran know that since her boyfriend Shinichi did not call her to tell her that he will be there, she should give him a nice scolding. She fantasizes that if Ran does that, then a love-triangle-like situation will unfold where after Shinichi angrily comes back at Ran for scolding him, then Saguru would defend Ran and create jealousy between the three of them. Meanwhile, back at the crime scene, Saguru states to "Shinichi" and Conan that he found three key points of interest, and "Shinichi" says the same. Saguru then explains that the first thing he noticed was that the victim in the corner of the room, but was later moved to the Throne, which is abnormal, and explains that the second thing he noticed was the weird marks on the toes of his shoes. He then asks "Shinichi" what his third point is since he agreed that his first and second points were the same, and "Shinichi" hesitates to respond. Before he is cornered by a wary Saguru, Conan takes over and by mimicking Shinichi's voice using his voice-changing bowtie while hiding behind Kid in disguise, says that the third point is the weird bloodstain on the curtain, which he does not know how appeared if it was the victim's blood. Saguru agrees that he noticed that too and then leans over to Conan asking him if he noticed anything, but Conan responds by the negative. Conan then tugs at "Shinichi"'s pants and whispers to him to not give himself away and that he can cover for him with his voice-changer. He also notes how he looks really alike to him, the real Shinichi and Kid laughs, saying that they probably share an ancester, while thinking that he did not even need to modify his voice.

While taking a look at the stain on the curtains by himself, Nakamori asks Jirokichi why he installed them. The advisor actually installed them because some visitors thought the view below was scary, so that was why he put them. Saguru also asks about the button next to the door and Jirokichi says that it is the only button to go inside and close the door. The young Sherlockian detective then instructs the group to go to another room, so they can interrogate head of technology Kase and the two who received president Kichida's text message before he died. As he exits the exhibit room, "Shinichi" is met by a pouting Ran, who asks him why he did not tell her he will come, even though he told Conan. "Shinichi" explains that he thought he would have quickly left after catching and would not have had time to talk to her, but Ran says he still should have told her, as they are a couple. As Sonoko stares at the two of them, preparing to watch some drama unfold, Conan, the real Shinichi, uses his voice-changer to tell Ran that every time he sees her face, he longs to stay, but he cannot as he has many cases to solve, which makes both Ran and Sonoko blush. As him and Conan leave the two girls, Kid remembers what the condition was for Conan to cover for him ; to act as normal as possible while being "Shinichi", to raise false alarms with Ran. "Shinichi" and Conan then look at each other, thinking that they acted perfectly, not without Saguru staring at them from afar.

As they walk along the hallways of the Bell Tree Tower, Saguru asks "Shinichi" who he thought the culprit was. Kid in disguise replies that Kase is the prime suspect, as he was close to Kichida when the lights went off, and that something is off about the secretary and the wife and that they are probably having an affair since they shared the same perfume. Saguru sighes, and tells him that he expected more from the "Savior of the Japanese Police". Conan tells Kid secretly not to take him on on that, but Kid responds nevertheless, saying that "suicide" was also a possibility. As Conan looks at him in sheer disbelief, Kid continues by saying that the gun was right at his feet and he could have definitely used it on himself. Saguru shuts him down, saying that the gun had a silencer, and that a person wanting to commit suicide would not use that, and that moreover, a silencer would have left scorch marks on his temple, but there were none. As Conan tries to put Kid back on track by using one of his "that's what they actually mean" lines, Saguru shushes him and corners the "Shinichi" imposter who he really is.

Trivia

• The skyscraper in the night scene on page 2 next to the Bell Tree Tower is the Tokyo Skytree East Tower. Additionally, the view of the Bell Tree Tower from the street on page 8 is from Asakusa Street (see precise coordinates on Google Maps).
• The cover of this manga chapter is an impersonation of the cover of Weekly Shōnen Sunday S September issue from 2019 (see original photo at Twitter - @conan_file).

See also

• Manga
• Volume 101-110
• Detective Conan