Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Tonight is a special night.

With the full moon shining brightly in the sky, KID's heist to steal the Kaleidoscope Diamond was a huge success.

The thief even stood longer than necessary at his escape point, patiently waiting for a little detective boy he called 'Tantei-kun' realizing that KID's target tonight is not only Queen's Bang, but also another gem.

His white robe fluttered in the wind, making him look radiant under the moonlight.

Unfortunately, there was someone uninvited who came up to him with a cocky laugh.

“Hohoho~! Kaitou KID, this time you will submit and become my slave!” a woman with a snake crown like a pharaoh queen in ancient times appeared.

The woman wore equally strange clothing, with snake ornaments, gold bracelets encircling her arms, and a pearl necklace around her neck. Her face was lightly made up, accentuating her lips with red lipstick.

Kaitou KID, the thief the woman had mentioned turned around. His grin and poker face remained perfectly plastered on his face even as confusion and suspicion crept into his head. “My, it’s an honor to meet you, what brings you up here dressed like that?” he asked, almost mockingly. As if he had never heard the woman’s statement.

“I have come to make you mine, Kaitou KID! Let’s see if you can escape this time! Hohoho~!” The woman turned her wrist and a magic circle appeared beneath the thief’s feet. With a proud and triumphant laugh, the woman chanted a spell and prepared to use it on Kaitou KID who was now frantically trying to get out of her magic circle.

'He will submit to me and be mine!' the woman thought. Only she never knew that her plan would fail miserably when someone else pushed Kaitou KID out of her magic circle just as she finished casting the spell. “What—no!”

Before they could all react, a reddish light shone from the magic circle and forced those there to close their eyes because of the light.

When they opened their eyes, they were already in a large room that looked like a cinema. There were several other people in there as well and the woman started screaming in disbelief.

“Why did it turn out like this?! You can’t play with magic circles!” the woman, Koizumi Akako, pointed at the person who ruined her plan with an angry glare.

The person who ruined her plan was wearing a black hat, coat and suit with white gloves. Almost like the opposite of KID who wore all white. The person also wore a white mask that covered his entire face.

Akako's scream made everyone there turn and pay attention to the masked person and Akako.

Kudo Yuusaku immediately said in an amused tone when he saw the masked man. “Night Baron, eh?”

The man—Night Baron—ignored Yuusaku's words and took off his mask.

“Shinichi?!” / ”Kudo?!” several people shouted, recognizing the face of the teenage detective who had disappeared from the media for almost a year. But the Night Baron—Shinichi, it turned out—also ignored them and only stared at Akako with glowing red eyes and a cold expression.

“I played with a magic circle? Do you hear yourself, Witch?” Shinichi asked. His tone was somewhere between anger and disbelief. “KID is not your slave and magic should not be used to do such things.”

Akako clenched her jaw before suddenly turning pale. “W-what? Who are you?! Why do you have this much power?!”

“I have no obligation to answer your questions.” Shinichi snorted and lifted Conan into his arms as the boy ran to him. “Cancel your magic, Witch. You know the consequences of using the magic circle incorrectly.”

The woman—Akako—tried to cast a spell, but she was shocked and began to panic when her spell didn’t work at all. “… I can’t cancel it… Lucifer! What’s happening? Why can’t I cancel my magic?!”

While Akako was busy asking Luficer—who they couldn't see—Shinichi looked around.

There are both of his parents, Conan, Agasa, the Haibara sisters, Hattori, Toyama, the FBI, Furuya, KID, Chikage, Agasa's friend, Hakuba, Sera, Sonoko, Ran, Kogoro, the police department's 1st division, Nakamori-keibu and his daughter, and Kazami.

“Niichan, what happened?” Conan asked while looking at KID and Akako alternately.

“That Witch tried to enslave KID with her magic.” Shinichi rubbed his cheek against the top of Conan’s head affectionately. For the first time since they had been in the room, Shinichi’s expression softened and the red glow in his eyes faded. “It’s not like her magic would work, but it would be a bummer if what I did was in vain.”

Akako, who was now trembling with a pale face, raised her head when she heard that. “What do you mean ‘it’s not like my magic will work’? My magic never fails!”

Shinichi just stared at the woman, not saying anything until Akako gasped.

"You! Why does he have the same magic as you?!” Akako asked in surprise while pointing at Shinichi for the second time. “His magic isn't as active as yours, as if it's asleep… but how is that possible?!”

“Ano…” someone spoke up and everyone immediately turned to a girl who looked like Mouri Ran, only with blue eyes and messy hair. “Aoko doesn’t understand what Akako-chan and Kudo-san are talking about… can you explain it in understandable language?”

Out of the corner of his eye, Shinichi could see that KID took a step back as if he didn't want to be associated with them at all.

Neither Shinichi nor Akako answered.

“Well? Why didn’t you undo the magic?” Shinichi asked, looking back at Akako with a red light in his eyes.

The woman was clearly shivering. Her voice was almost hysterical as she explained that; “I can’t, my magic can’t undo it! Lucifer said that we can’t leave this room until we finish watching the ‘Archive of Truth’, and we will benefit from this story…”

Shinichi and several others narrowed their eyes when they heard that.

“What do you mean we can’t get out of here?” someone asked, but Shinichi didn’t know who said it because he was focused on a door that looked like an exit.

When he tried to open it, the door wouldn't budge at all, causing Shinichi to lift one of his legs and kick the door off its hinges.

BANG!

But what was behind the door managed to make him freeze and reflexively move Conan away from what he saw.

The blazing fire burned everything as if it wanted to obliterate anyone who dared to approach until the entire place was reddish orange.

Ș̸̩͖̥͗̽̾͒͝t̸̘̅͗̓͘ă̴̺͇̜̜ÿ̷̖́̈͑͛͘̚ ̴̝͙̫̋̃͗̈́ͅͅh̸̢̪̏͆e̴͚̎̎r̵̹͌̎̌e̶͕̒̀ 

Ý̷̡̨̳͙̬̤̥͈͕̳̊̈́́̄õ̷̼̗ȕ̵̱͓͈͖̪̣̠̍͘ͅͅ ̴̡̛̗̼̭̮͙̻̹͔̗͕̔͂̅̃͗̂̓̏̈̀̌̕͘̚͜͝͝c̶͚̝͓̠̦̑̃͆̊̈͆͂̽̓͘a̴͎̾n̶̨̛̛̟͇̥̹̦͖̳̫͉̼͊͌͌̃̓̃̀͘͝͠͝ͅ'̷̧̡̢̛̣̙̭͍̥̜͕̞͖͉̘̼̂͌͊͊̓̈́͊͊̂͐̍͂͝t̷̞͙͇̩̲̱̗̳̜̩̑͋̄́̍͌̉̓̌̿͋̊̈́͠ ̶̡̧̻͉̦̱̦̬͖̣̭͈̮̗̣̦̱̊́̀̈̚g̶̡̨̹̼͕͓͍̯͖̮̞̽̿̈́̕̕͠ͅợ̷̧̛̭̳͖͖͆̔͌͊ ̶̞͉̟̹̝̗͈̹͂̂́̃̕͠ͅơ̸̻͆̋̐͆̏̋̿̌̉̇̿͊́̓̔u̵̢͍͔̲̠͚͎͔͖̣̝̮̫̖̗̓̈́̑̾̑͝t̵̰͈̰̳̜͚͙̤̗̃͐̈́͗͗̓̑̀͑̊͝ͅ ̴̢̫̞̻̦͈͚̦̜̰̲͉̹̬͕̥̱͊͑̿͘͝y̴̡̗̼͍͉̍͌͌̾̽̇̀͒̋̚͘̕͝e̷̢̛̛͉̥͕̹͔̘̤̝̲͚͈̿̐͂̃̓̇̓̃͑̽͑͗͑̾͘t̴̛̲̀̈͛̑̈́̈̏̇͘  

Ÿ̸̡̙͔͇̫̲̺̺̺͔̱͉͓̖̍̓̄͆̿̏̃̄̋̏̌͐ȏ̸̪͚̼̈́̈́̒̐͑͊̄͆́͋͛̑̑͘̕͝ŭ̷̼̝͇͉̈́̀ ̵̡̫͉̘͕̮͎̰̭̗͐̔̀̈́̔͒̾̌̑̀̈̌͛͋͜ͅͅs̴̨̨̛̭͕͙̬͇͍͖̻̩̘̰̜̱̟͊͒̀̄͋͂̋̒̑̾͒̎̉͂͝h̸̖̲̜͍͍͍̠̳͎̲̹̗̭̉͌͂̒̈́͂͋͘ͅͅo̷̢̡̢͔̹̎͛͑͂̾ṻ̵̩̥̞́̈́͑̐͂̚̕͠ḻ̴̡̥̗̫̬̹̱̞͕͇̙̂̈́̀́͝ͅd̶̨̻͖̠̥̫̰̻͍̞̤̮̎̊̈́̍̐͌̋̍ ̸͔͕̖͓̳͉͍̜̝̎̾́̈́͌́s̸̖̥̲̪̻͇̟̗͎͇̑͆̈́͑̓̌̓͠͝ë̴̢͓̜̣̠͈͇̣͖̖͍̰̅̈̽̄̏̽͊̑̅͘̚è̵̡̫̥̬̞̬͓̪̫̜̑̃̑͌̈́̀̏͝͝͠ ̴̧̨̨̦̳̠͓̗̘̥̫̗̱̳́̈́͑̽͂̉̈́́͋͆͑͛̂͒̚͜w̶̺̞̹͓̙͔͌̌̈́̑̿h̷̞͉̒̊̓̏͗̈́̈́͒͋̃̕̕͠à̸͇̱̖̤͙͆̅̀̅̀͆̓̕̕͝ţ̵̡͖̺̦̱͕̣͚̳̩̫͕̼͂̈́̈̈́͒̌̂͂̕͝ͅ ̶̡̠̺̱̼͕̹̤̬͇̣̦͈̍͜h̴̨͔̥̟̞̠̓̐͋̅̈̑̓̂͊́̌̍́̄̔ͅa̵̛̗͇̠̺̻͈̺͕͍͖͌͑̀̋͑̍͗̓͘͠p̵͖̦̫̠̓̉̔̓̑̏̀͘͘ṕ̸̨͎̝̞͚̮̯̞̣̎̂̀̆̚ě̸͔̫̰̘̝̯̪̥͈͕̰̗͌ͅn̶͍̝̳̹͉̿͌͜ͅe̶̤̼̼͂̆̊͌̇̏̊͘͝͝ͅd̸̨̧̗̱̟͙͇̦̩͋̾́̈͌̽̈́̽͗̕͠͠͝ ̸̡̘̣̘͎̲͉͖̻̯̑̑͒́͘t̵͙̪̪͒̃̒̈́́̆́͋̒̓̀͌̐̓̈͝o̸̖͓̦̖͖̓̔͂̀ ̴̨̡̜̩̫̭̲̲̹̟͖̲̼̮̹̦͙̆̓̌̿͑̽͊̀̆͐͠t̴̬̪̠̙̰͒̑͋̆́̓̏̚͘̚͝h̴̨͔̯̫̰̺̤̯͎̃̓̅̓́̃ͅĕ̸̱̦̺͚̘͔̝̟̻͇̘̺̩̪̙̬ ̶̨̟͈̼̥̞̠̙̈́͋̿͊̒̒̈́̆̋͑͠ͅͅG̵̡̨̛̜̤̣͔͚̿̄͒͒͛̊͆̃̒̕͘͠͠͝u̸̲̬͓̥̣̲͉̟͚͒a̷̲̼͋̅͊̿̓̐r̷̨̠͍̖͚̒̍̍̀́̀͠d̴̲̖̭͙̫̰̮̯͙̘̪̖̙̫́̉́͗͊͜ͅï̶̛̗̜̅̃̃́̆́̌̕͠ą̵̨̙̗̠̳͕̮̪̜͌̔̈́̈̾̈́́͛͒̍͌͋̔͐͛̆͠ň̶͈͓̗̲͍́̔̈͌̈̾͛̎́̀̓̀͌̇'̴̨̡̨̲̫̲̱͍̰̟͎͎͉̥͇̲̲͂̊̄̈́̉͆̍͗̕s̷̨͖̻̫̠̠͈̞̼̞̦̞̖̀̆̀̿̓͆͂̂͗̀̈́́̇̋͜͝͠ ̵̜͉̘͙̗̘͓͈̣̝̫̈́͜Ṣ̸̢̘̩̝̩̻͕̬̥͓̦̖͈͍̂̓̄̐̓̊̆̂̇͆̒o̸̜̝̗̦̼̖̯̦̻̓̈́̾̆ų̸͚͉̻̏̒̀ḽ̸̓̚ 

Everyone in the room reflexively covered their ears as the sound echoed.

Ș̸̩͖̥͗̽̾͒͝t̸̘̅͗̓͘ă̴̺͇̜̜ÿ̷̖́̈͑͛͘̚ ̴̝͙̫̋̃͗̈́ͅͅh̸̢̪̏͆e̴͚̎̎r̵̹͌̎̌e̶͕̒̀ 

Ș̸̩͖̥͗̽̾͒͝t̸̘̅͗̓͘ă̴̺͇̜̜ÿ̷̖́̈͑͛͘̚ ̴̝͙̫̋̃͗̈́ͅͅh̸̢̪̏͆e̴͚̎̎r̵̹͌̎̌e̶͕̒̀ 

Ș̸̩͖̥͗̽̾͒͝t̸̘̅͗̓͘ă̴̺͇̜̜ÿ̷̖́̈͑͛͘̚ ̴̝͙̫̋̃͗̈́ͅͅh̸̢̪̏͆e̴͚̎̎r̵̹͌̎̌e̶͕̒̀ 

Ý̷̡̨̳͙̬̤̥͈͕̳̊̈́́̄õ̷̼̗ȕ̵̱͓͈͖̪̣̠̍͘ͅͅ ̴̡̛̗̼̭̮͙̻̹͔̗͕̔͂̅̃͗̂̓̏̈̀̌̕͘̚͜͝͝c̶͚̝͓̠̦̑̃͆̊̈͆͂̽̓͘a̴͎̾n̶̨̛̛̟͇̥̹̦͖̳̫͉̼͊͌͌̃̓̃̀͘͝͠͝ͅ'̷̧̡̢̛̣̙̭͍̥̜͕̞͖͉̘̼̂͌͊͊̓̈́͊͊̂͐̍͂͝t̷̞͙͇̩̲̱̗̳̜̩̑͋̄́̍͌̉̓̌̿͋̊̈́͠ ̶̡̧̻͉̦̱̦̬͖̣̭͈̮̗̣̦̱̊́̀̈̚g̶̡̨̹̼͕͓͍̯͖̮̞̽̿̈́̕̕͠ͅợ̷̧̛̭̳͖͖͆̔͌͊ ̶̞͉̟̹̝̗͈̹͂̂́̃̕͠ͅơ̸̻͆̋̐͆̏̋̿̌̉̇̿͊́̓̔u̵̢͍͔̲̠͚͎͔͖̣̝̮̫̖̗̓̈́̑̾̑͝t̵̰͈̰̳̜͚͙̤̗̃͐̈́͗͗̓̑̀͑̊͝ͅ ̴̢̫̞̻̦͈͚̦̜̰̲͉̹̬͕̥̱͊͑̿͘͝y̴̡̗̼͍͉̍͌͌̾̽̇̀͒̋̚͘̕͝e̷̢̛̛͉̥͕̹͔̘̤̝̲͚͈̿̐͂̃̓̇̓̃͑̽͑͗͑̾͘t̴̛̲̀̈͛̑̈́̈̏̇͘ 

Shinichi took a step back and miraculously the previously broken door returned to its original state.

The sound that had just made their ears ring was no longer audible, leaving silence filling the place until someone asked.

“What… just happened?” Toyama Kazuha held Heiji’s arm tightly.

“It seems like something wants to lock us up here until we see the ‘Archive of Truth’ that Koizumi-san talked about… that’s probably why this place looks like a cinema.” Saguru said. His eyes scanned KID, Shinichi, and Akako in turn as if asking for an answer.

“And on each chair there are our names.” Masumi glanced at Akai out of the corner of her eye, but didn’t approach and poked one of the chairs with her index finger. “Whatever it is, it looks like for now we can only follow the will of this place.”

They all exchanged glances.

“Well then, let’s sit down. The sooner we finish looking at the Archive or whatever that is, the sooner we can get out of here.” Kogoro folded his arms and scanned each available chair to find his seat, ignoring the disbelieving looks from the people around him.

“Hey wait, are we just going to let KID go without catching him?” Ginzo asked while pointing at KID who now had both hands raised.

“We wouldn’t be here if that Witch hadn’t tried to use magic to trap KID into her selfish desires.” Shinichi rolled his eyes and said flatly, still with the red glowing eyes that made some people feel… strange.

“Selfish desires?!” Akako screamed, but Shinichi had already glared at her. Shinichi’s red eyes successfully made the woman tremble, especially because she felt the detective’s power pressing down on her.

“You can’t force someone to like you with magic. Especially if they’ve already firmly rejected you.”

KID frowned when he heard that, but didn't say anything.

“Shinichi-kun, you should stop using that power immediately.” A voice cut through the already sour atmosphere, causing Shinichi to turn to Haibara Ai. “You remember that we’re stuck here for who knows how long, right?”

Before Shinichi could reply, Kogoro’s voice interrupted him. “Found it! Come sit! Oi Megure, the seat behind me has your name, you can sit!”

“Gosh, Tousan!” Ran hissed in annoyance, but didn’t scold Kogoro any further because Sonoko had already pulled her to sit down.

Ai still stared at Shinichi, as if warning him, causing Shinichi to sigh and put Conan down before walking to his seat.

Whether it was bad luck or good luck, Shinichi sat on Heiji's right and KID's left.

“Shin-chan… are you okay?” Yukiko asked worriedly. The woman was sitting right behind Shinichi, making it easy for her to lean over and look at her son.

Shinichi just closed his eyes and nodded, not saying anything but relaxing his body more.

A second later, as if Shinichi had just taken off his mask and make-up, his face worsened. His skin was pale and there were heavy bags under his eyes. His cheeks were sunken and he looked very thin—almost like he was sick.

This surprised KID and Heiji who were sitting next to him.

“Oi Kudo, are you okay?!”

“I’ll—cough! Cough cough!”

“Kudo?!”

“Tantei?!”

KID and Heiji swiftly held Shinichi's body and rubbed his back, while Yuusaku, Yukiko, Yume, Ai, Agasa, Conan and Ran ran over.

“Shit, he’s having a seizure—Hakase! Did you bring the medicine?!” Ai quickly rolled up Shinichi’s sleeve and took the syringe Agasa had given her. “Hold him down, I’ll inject the medicine.”

“Shin-chan…” Yukiko looked like she was about to cry as she hugged Conan tightly to her chest.

Conan also looked at Shinichi worriedly and almost bullied Ai with questions when Shinichi's body went limp and his eyes closed tightly with heavy breathing.

“He's fine, for now. He just used too much magic... and the apotoxin in his blood isn't helping.”

“Apotoxin?!” Megure shouted, hearing it too. “He was poisoned?! By who?! How is that possible?!”

Yuusaku looked gloomy as he answered. “We call them the ‘Black Organization’. But it’s not for me to explain.”

Megure looked like he wanted to deny it, but seeing Yuusaku's expression, he didn't try to ask anymore and sat down worriedly.

“For now, let him rest. You two, if Shinichi-kun starts having another seizure, let us know immediately.” Ai ordered before stepping back and pulling Conan back to their seats with Yume behind them after getting a nod from Heiji and KID.

Yukiko stroked Shinichi's cheek sadly before letting Yuusaku pull her back to their seats.

Ran looked sad and worried, but eventually hesitantly returned to her seat after Sonoko came over.

Agasa also returned to his seat, followed by several other people who had not yet sat down.

After they all sat down, the big screen in front of them flashed and began showing the intro, making some wonder if they were being forced to watch anime.

“I hope this is worth it, or I’ll make that Witch regret trapping Niichan here.” Conan muttered to Ai beside him, making the girl roll her eyes.

“Be quiet, Conan-kun. The movie is about to start.”

.

.

.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

[“The murderer is… you, her husband!”

Shinichi points at an old man in a wheelchair, causing the man to deny it and say that Shinichi was just joking and that he couldn't have done it because his leg was still injured. But Shinichi unapologetically kicks the man's wheelchair until the man stands on his two feet, earning the shock of his servants.]

Almost everyone in the room blinked.

They didn't expect the first thing they saw was Kudo Shinichi solving the case.

Megure, who is handling this case, thinks that this case already happened more than a year ago.

[When the man tried to escape, Shinichi kicked the fallen global ball and used it to knock the perpetrator down.

Megure praises him, and Shinichi with an arrogant smile says that Megure can call 'The Great Detective, Kudo Shinichi' whenever the police are in trouble.]

“Oi, is that really Kudo? The Kudo I know isn’t that arrogant!” Heiji protested, but Conan replied dryly.

“You think of me as ‘Kudo Shinichi’ who shrunk because of poison. All this time you know ‘Kudo Conan’, not Kudo Shinichi. You don’t know how much of a genius my Niichan is.”

These words made Heiji grumble, but no longer protested because what Conan said was true.

[The screen shifts to Shinichi walking with a newspaper in his hand, but instead of a smug smile, his expression is somber, as if he is wanting—looking for something, but has not found it yet.

Two girls complimented him, and the television broadcasted the news. Contrary to what was assumed, Shinichi did not laugh arrogantly. He did not even care about all the compliments directed at him. Very different from Kudo Shinichi who looked and acted arrogantly in front of the media.]

“Hm… so the Kudo Shinichi we’ve seen in the media isn’t actually that arrogant.” Saguru commented. “He probably did it so that no one would dare approach him outside the media.”

“Oh! Aoko knows! What Hakuba-kun meant was that Kudo-san deliberately acted and looked arrogant so that the media wouldn’t dare to pressure him with personal questions?” Aoko asked her classmate.

“Yeah. I do it myself when I’m dealing with reporters who are… a bit noisy.”

[“Another typical case… when will I ever find their trail if this is how it is?” Shinichi muttered before someone hit him on the back of the head and made him yelp.

When Shinichi turned to see who had hit him, he found that it was Mouri Ran, his childhood friend and the girl he had considered as his own sister. “Why are you making such an expression? Are you dissatisfied with your fame?”]

Several people's gazes sharpened when they heard the word 'their' from Shinichi's lips.

The FBI’s exchanged glances, 'how long has Kudo Shinichi known about their existence? Is the teenager referring to the same organization they are targeting?'

“What?!” Sonoko screamed, looking displeased. “She’s your future wife! How can you think of her as your sister?!”

“Huh? Future wife?! Sonoko-neechan, are you drunk? Niichan isn’t interested in Ran-neechan like that!” Conan asked back in an offended tone. “Besides, Niichan has had someone he likes for a long time and it’s not Ran-neechan!”

“What—hey kid! What do you know about love?!”

“I don’t know anything, but I know Niichan. He single-handedly raised me, I know everything about Niichan.” Conan stuck out his tongue with a mocking look at Sonoko when the girl couldn’t reply to his words.

“Eeeeh? Shin-chan has someone he likes? Who? Co-chan, why didn’t you tell me?” Yukiko asked with a small laugh and sparkling eyes. “Mom wants to know!”

Unfortunately, Conan's answer was completely unexpected. "What kind of mother doesn't know that her eldest son is in love?"

Yukiko immediately fell silent with furrowed brows. “Co-chan—”

“Save it. I don’t want to hear it.”

“Conan. It’s not nice to talk to your own mother like that.” Yuusaku reminded.

Conan refuses to answer and makes the atmosphere uncomfortable, but the scene on screen continues.

[Shinichi asks what Ran is angry about, and Ran replies that she isn't angry and it's not like Shinichi took all of his father's work. Shinichi tries to explain that it wasn't his fault and Ran retaliates by hitting the pole until it bends.

“Ahaha…” laughed Shinichi, a little afraid that his sister in all but blood would karate-crush him if he tried to speak.]

“Ugh! Ran! How could that idiot think of you as his sister?! I was so sure he liked you!” Sonoko protested again. “You two are so compatible, like a princess and her knight!”

Ran beside her tried to calm her down. “Sonoko, calm down. Shinchi and I have talked about it, and we really don’t have any feelings for each other… at least after I confessed and he rejected me so gently… I then realized that I was just getting carried away by the expectations of the people around us.”

Sonoko was about to retaliate, but Aoko beat her to it.

“Ah, Aoko knows that feeling too! Everyone also expects Aoko to marry Kaito in the future, just because we look good together and have been together since we were little. But Aoko doesn’t have any feelings for him other than sibling love!”

KID on Aoko’s left nodded as if in agreement, causing Saguru to ask with a smile on his lips. “KID, why are you nodding along?”

KID froze, but shrugged a second later. “I just agree that everyone’s expectations sometimes make us choose choices we don’t want to make.”

Saguru raised an eyebrow, but closed his mouth and looked back at the screen.

[“Ah, the ball!” a kid runs after the ball that bounces near Shinichi and he kicks it at the kid, causing Ran to comment that he could be a national hero now if Shinichi hadn’t quit soccer.

Shinichi just replied that he played soccer just to build up the muscles needed by a detective. Then the teenager started rambling about Sherlock Holmes, the greatest detective in the world and Shinichi wanted to be a Modern-day Sherlock Holmes.]

“Kudo really is a Holmes fan, huh…” Heiji commented, while Saguru nodded as if agreeing with everything Shinichi said.

“Holmes is the best.”

KID and Heiji both rubbed their faces and muttered 'another Holmes maniac' under their breath. When they realized it, Heiji frowned at KID and the thief suddenly got goosebumps as he accidentally remembered something.

[When they reach the intersection, Shinichi waves and says goodbye, but Ran stops him and asks if Shinichi hasn't forgotten about tomorrow.

Shinichi wonders what Ran will do tomorrow, when all Shinichi remembers about tomorrow is how Conan, his beloved little brother, will finally come to live with him in Japan. He also wonders if Ran will be happy if she meets Conan for the first time.]

“You know, Ran, I don’t understand why we never heard that Shinichi had a younger brother.” Sonoko commented again.

Masumi narrowed her eyes. She couldn’t believe that her deductions were wrong. Shinichi and Conan were different people, not the same person. She wondered what was really going on and why Shinichi didn’t shrink like her mother.

Heiji on the other hand was wide-eyed. “Wait-wait-wait! Conan! You’re not Kudo?! Kudo was Kudo all this time? You weren’t the one who reverted to your original age?!”

“Ugh. Hattori-niichan, think about what you just said.” Conan rolled his eyes and quipped, making Saguru snort in amusement and Heiji glance at Saguru in annoyance.

“We never knew either. Shinichi-kun never mentioned Conan-kun.” Megure added, causing Yuusaku and Yukiko to exchange glances.

“At all? Shin-chan always goes back to America every school holiday and sometimes skips his classes in Japan when Co-chan asks for his attention.” Yukiko asked. “He cares about Co-chan very much. There’s no way Shin-chan would never tell about Co-chan.”

Conan snorted, but didn't say anything.

“Co-chan? Do you know the reason?”

The boy still refused to answer, making both of his parents furrow their brows. “… Ran-chan?” Yukiko asked, hopefully.

“… I know the reason. But I don’t think I have the right to tell you.” Ran replied, politely but still not telling them why Shinichi did it, even when Sonoko kept asking.

[Scene changes to Tropical Land, where Shinichi is again rambling about Holmes, sounding like the usual Shinichi, but Ran can hear the impatience in Shinichi's voice and expression. The girl wonders what happened to make Shinichi this happy.]

“Ah-ha! He’s happy because he finally gets to go on a date with you! I told you he likes you!” Sonoko nearly shook Ran, making the girl let out a tired sigh.

"Sonoko, he can't wait to come home and meet me with Conan."

“No-no, I'm sure that he's happy to be dating you!”

Ran massaged her head, looking annoyed at her best friend for the first time. But it wasn't like Sonoko noticed because she was busy imagining things.

[Shinichi then accidentally grabs a girl's hand and reflexively asks if she's a gymnast. Ran asks and warns Shinichi that it's rude to just grab a girl's hand, causing Shinichi to apologize to the person he grabbed.

Unfortunately, the person in front of Shinichi got angry and accused Shinichi of bothering his friend. But after he said that, he kissed his girlfriend instead, making Shinichi look at them unimpressed and think that they had no shame.]

“Hey! You should—”

“SONOKO!” Unable to bear it, Ran finally shouted. “Stop it. Don’t force your fantasies on us. That… that’s not right. Those expectations make us—I think that it’s true, but it’s not. So, please, stop it.”

Sonoko blinked, not expecting her best friend's shout. “I… I'm sorry, Ran. I promise I won't do it again.”

Ran looked relieved. “Thank you, Sonoko.”

[Ran immediately pulled Shinichi when it was their turn and Shinichi went back to his story about Holmes. Behind him, two men dressed in black and wearing fedora hats sat down and kicked a little child.

Unable to stand Shinichi's constant talk about Holmes, Ran throws a tantrum and tells him to stop talking about Holmes because she's been looking forward to this ride. That statement makes Shinichi finally shut his mouth and start thinking that Conan would also love to come and play here someday.]

Several people narrowed their eyes and sat up straight when they saw the two men in black. Especially the FBI, Furuya Rei, Kazami Yuya, KID, Masumi, Heiji and Saguru. The police also stared at the two men sharply.

“Kicking a kid, and they’re very suspicious.” Sato commented. “Anyone would know right away that they’re bad guys. The way they’re dressed really stands out.”

Heiji leaned forward to whisper to Conan. “Hey, is that them?”

Unfortunately, his voice was heard very clearly in this place, causing KID, Saguru and Masumi to immediately turn to look at the Osaka detective. Even Kazuha started to frown.

“What do you mean by ‘them’?”

“Uh, I…”

“Hattori-niichan.” Conan called, slowly turning his head to look at Heiji with a sweet smile on his lips. “Shut up.”

Heiji shuddered and immediately sat up straight again and closed his mouth tightly.

[The rollercoaster starts moving and speeds up until it enters a tunnel. But when they are in the tunnel, Shinichi and Ran hear screams and feel something warm. They can't see anything and panicly ask what happened until they get out of the tunnel.]

“Conan-kun, Ai-chan, Yume-chan, I think you should close your eyes after this.” Megure said to the three little kids there worriedly. “You’re still too young to see it.”

“Megure-keibu is right, you should close your eyes.” Ran added, causing the three kids to reply with a ‘Yes, Ran-neechan’.

Of course, the three of them secretly kept their eyes open.

[When they could see again, the person who had been sitting behind Shinichi had been beheaded. Everyone panicked and tried to get off the train. The two people who were dressed in black and had fedora hats just glanced at each other before turning to leave, but Shinichi stopped them and said that this was not an accident, but a murder.]

Some people paled when they saw the brutality that was happening.

Sonoko, Aoko and Kazuha even screamed in horror. Even Sato, Takagi, Shiratori, Chiba, Nakamori and Jodie paled.

“So brutal…” Furuya commented, then unexpectedly whispered to Akai next to him. “They were literally bathed in fresh blood in that tunnel.”

“Yeah, Shinichi-kun said it was his curse. He can’t live a peaceful life without encountering a murder case or two every week.” Akai replied, whispering along. “The longer he goes without a case, the more brutal the next one he encounters.”

Luckily, no one heard their conversation.

[One of the men wearing a fedora and sunglasses said that they didn't have time for that, but Megure-keibu had already arrived and quickly found Shinichi.

When the crowd recognized Shinichi's name, they immediately cheered and encouraged Shinichi, making him close his eyes tiredly for a few seconds before opening them and smiling arrogantly as usual.

'Poker face, poker face, poker face, poker face, don't let them see how you really feel.' Shinichi thought as if brainwashing himself and got to work.]

“Kudo, he… he never liked this kind of attention, right?” Heiji asked.

“Hm, so my previous theory was correct. He deliberately put on a ‘mask’ in front of the media.” Saguru looked satisfied, but the smile on his lips disappeared when he remembered the two suspicious people who had been on the rollercoaster. “Those two are really suspicious.”

On the other hand, KID thinks that maybe Shinichi once knew his father. Seeing Chikage and Yukiko whispering to each other like old friends, it doesn't seem impossible that they met when they were little. Moreover, Shinichi tries to use a poker face like his father taught him.

[The woman who was the victim's lover started to cry and the man in the fedora hat with dirty silver hair started to get impatient. He told Shinichi to move quickly and made Shinichi shiver when he saw his eyes.

'That's the look of a murderer. He must have killed more than once… who is he? Does he have anything to do with—' Shinichi's thoughts were interrupted when one of the officers said that he found something in the victim's lover's bag.]

All the police officers who were close to Conan and knew Shinichi tensed up. Some of them even opened their notebooks and started taking notes.

Megure wonders what really happened to Shinichi. His gut feeling tells him that whatever happened, it is all related to the two suspicious people.

“I want you to investigate them after we get out of here.” Megure ordered Takagi, Sato and Chiba.

[Shinichi put his thoughts aside and focused on the case in front of him. He thought back to what happened and noticed the other people riding the rollercoaster with him. His gaze suddenly fell on the woman he had accidentally grabbed earlier, the gymnast.

'She's the real culprit.' Shinichi thought and immediately stopped the officers who wanted to arrest the victim's lover. He explained who the real culprit was, even asking the police officers to help him.]

“The necklace is gone.” KID commented, making Masumi click her tongue in annoyance because the thief had gotten ahead of her.

“Yeah, looking at the way he was killed, it’s likely that the string on the necklace had been replaced with fishing wire or something similar.”

“And she could have easily put the knife in the victim’s girlfriend’s bag. She would have been too shocked to notice.”

[When the gymnast asked what the evidence was, Shinichi replied asking where the pearl necklace the woman was wearing earlier was. He even helped two people dressed in black and fedora hats who were suspicious of the accusations of the other victim's friends.

In the end, the woman admitted that she wanted to kill the victim and was prepared to kill herself afterwards. Two hours later, the police found the piano wire in the tunnel and almost all the pearls had been scattered.]

“Nice job, Kudo!” Heiji gave a thumbs up, but then realized that Shinichi was still asleep next to him. “Oh-um, isn’t anyone worried about Kudo right now? He hasn’t woken up at all since earlier.”

“Let Niichan rest. The medicine made him sleep, he will wake up after a few hours… or maybe days. Depending on how much he uses his powers.” Conan frowned and turned his head to look at Shinichi’s still sleeping body. “Besides, he could hear what you guys were saying.”

His words made almost all of them wonder, but Conan didn't explain anything further.

[The scene shifts again to Ran and Shinichi walking away. Ran is crying and Shinichi tries to comfort her, thinking that maybe he should take Ran to his house to meet Conan and make her forget what she just saw.

Unfortunately, Shinichi's plan was immediately stopped when he saw one of the suspicious people on the rollercoaster earlier now moving suspiciously. 'I couldn't see his eyes because he was wearing sunglasses, but the way the two people were dressed was very familiar to them.']

“Oh, so Niichan was planning to introduce Ran-neechan to me.” Conan commented, making Ran smile at him.

“If only Shinichi had said so earlier, we might have met earlier too, Conan-kun.”

Conan grimaced. “Uh, yeah. I don’t think so. I was a… difficult kid before this.”

Ran just tilted her head in confusion, but didn't ask any further.

The FBI’s and Furuya tensed when they received confirmation that Shinichi had known of 'their' existence for a long time.

KID was equally tense. He never knew that Kudo Shinichi had known about the existence of the Black-clothed Assassin Organization for a long time.

[The scene changes again, but this time with young Shinichi and KID standing behind him. In front of them, three men in fedora hats and black clothes point guns at the two of them. KID looks calm, and without warning the thief drops a smoke bomb and takes Shinichi away from there. The sound of gunfire follows them, but KID manages to trick them and drops Shinichi off in a safe place.

When Shinichi asked KID who they were, the thief just put his index finger in front of his lips and smiled. Little Shinichi at that time just looked helplessly at KID who refused to answer him and was now busy stopping the bleeding of the gunshot wound he received on his shoulder.]

When the scene changed, many of them were shocked, especially Saguru and Nakamori.

“KID?! Kudo has been chasing after KID since he was a kid?!” Nakamori shouted before rubbing his head in resignation. “And now his little brother is doing the same thing like him!”

KID silently struggled to maintain his poker face. He never even knew that Shinichi had met KID since childhood. From the way he asked KID—his father—at that time, Kaito knew that the two of them had at least met often. Enough that Shinichi had a fond feelings for the thief under the moonlight.

“KID, are those people after you too?” Saguru asked with a glimmer of worry in his eyes.

“… those guys are still after me. They snuck into the heist several times and tried to kill me, again.” KID—Kaito answered calmly after making sure that his poker face was still intact.

Saguru frowned. “KID, I know you are not the first KID.”

KID smiled. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“How could the police not know about this?! I didn’t know about this! KID, if they tried to kill you, then they are criminals who should be arrested!” Nakamori nearly exploded in anger, causing Kazami to awkwardly pat the man’s back to calm him down.

“Nakamori-keibu, your daughter will kill me with her own hands if you get hurt.” KID replied, making Aoko flinch at the sudden mention. “Besides, catching them isn’t that easy.”

[Back in Tropical Land, Shinichi tells Ran to go home first and he will catch up with her later. Without waiting for an answer, he immediately runs after the suspicious man in black.

Ran who was left behind tried to call Shinichi, especially since her premonition suddenly worsened. 'It's as if… after this I won't be able to meet Shinichi anymore.']

“Ran…” Sonoko whispered, almost crying. “Why didn’t you go after him?”

"I-"

“It would have been worse if Ran-neechan had go after him.” Conan said grimly. “Niichan won't forgive himself if Ran-neechan gets hurt.”

“Conan-kun…”

[Shinichi follows and watches the man meet someone and make a transaction. But there is one thing that is bothering him. '… wait, where is the other man—'

WHACK!

“No more detective games for you!” the dirty silver-haired man hit Shinichi on the back of the head with an iron and made him fall. “Tsk, you let yourself be followed by this brat.”]

“I want you to check on that man and his company!” Megure ordered. The news that Shinichi had gone missing started from that day. After that rollercoaster incident too, Megure had rarely seen Shinichi. Most of them were just KID disguised as the teenager!

Yukiko held Yuusaku's hand tightly. Their eldest son had never explained what had happened, so they had no idea that his condition was this bad.

[The other man asks if they need to kill Shinichi, since their client has already run away. The man who hit Shinichi shouts that they shouldn't use the gun because the police are still swarming the place. He then takes out a capsule and says that it would be better if they use the poison that the organization developed.

“The poison can’t be traced in the body, ha, this will be an unsolved murder!” the dirty silver-haired man laughed as he forced Shinichi to take the pill with water. “But this poison is still under development and has never been used on humans…”]

Conan, Ai, and Yume held hands. Kazuha almost made Heiji's arm bleed because of how hard she gripped him. Sonoko, Ran, and Aoko stared at it all in horror. Even Saguru, Heiji, Masumi, and Akako paled.

KID himself was no better. Seeing the two men who nearly killed Shinichi made him want to go and catch them with his own hands, or at least save Shinichi from the fate of having to drink their experimental poison.

Yuusaku hugged Yukiko who was now crying. His eyes stared at the screen with sadness and fear that could not be hidden.

Even Kogoro looked uncomfortable. Kogoro never liked Shinichi, but he didn't want the boy to die. Especially after finding out that he only saw his daughter as a sister and not a potential girlfriend or wife.

The FBI’s watched with concern, and Megure was almost shaking with rage.

'I was there. Shinichi-kun almost got killed, even though I was so close to him!' Megure thought and started to glare at the two people who tried to kill Shinichi seriously. He would remember their faces and would catch them as soon as they got out of here! “Take note of them and investigate them too!”

[Shinichi couldn't do anything as his body began to convulse and his vision became blurry. He only heard "Goodbye, Meitantei." Before being left behind.

'I can't die… I have to keep my promise…' Shinichi thought, desperately reaching deep inside himself and opening his eyes again—this time they were glowing red and in a blink, he was transported to his bedroom in the Kudo Mansion. 'My organs… feel like they're burning and being squeezed—my bones feel like they're melting…']

“Eh—wait, what happened?! Why is he suddenly in his bedroom?!” they asked in confusion.

KID narrowed his eyes when he saw the red glow in Shinichi's eyes, but his mind was focused on the 'promise' that Shinichi had said. For some reason, his instincts told him that it was a very important promise and related to him.

Masumi next to Conan cursed. For a moment, her mind was drawn to the medicine that also made her mother's body shrink and she suddenly realized how painful the change was. Masumi couldn't even imagine how her mother felt when she was forced to swallow the poison by Vermouth.

[Shinichi started clawing at his neck, as if trying to breathe through the spasms that were gripping his body. Soon, he began to cough up blood and curled up in pain on the floor of his room.

He barely even noticed Conan's presence as he asked in panic while trying to hold his body.

“Niichan!”

The voice cut through the searing pain that was burning through his body, making Shinichi take a deep breath and a second later his body went limp with his eyes closed. Only slight trembling and heavy breathing remained, but no more coughing up blood and convulsions.]

Ran took a sharp breath as tears streamed down her cheeks. “Oh… you look so much like Shinichi when he was little without those glasses, Conan-kun.”

But they all froze when Shinichi closed his eyes with his body limp.

“Shinichi!”

“What…? He’s okay, right?! Did he faint?!”

“Oh, Shin-chan…” Yukiko whispered. They never knew. Shinichi never told them. They never thought that Shinichi would experience something this terrible. Even Ai was silent. “Ai-chan, why…”

“We tried to tell you, you know?” Ai asked. Her voice was as cold as ice even though her hands were tightly gripping Conan and Yume’s hands. “We tried to contact you. But you never answered.”

“Just like you didn’t answer when Niichan had a fever and had to go home.” Conan added. His tone was also as cold as ice. “Niichan fainted on the street and the police had to escort him home. Ha. You didn’t even know. You were busy attending meetings at the hotel and running away from the editors. You even left us alone at home for two days. Unable. To. Be. Contacted.”

Yukiko squeezed Yuusaku’s hand. “Co-chan—”

“Save it. I told you I don’t want to hear it. I don’t need it either.” Conan didn’t even look at his parents. “You guys never there. So why should we tell you if we know you won’t care?”

“But we care! We care about you, you and Shin-chan, Co-chan.” Yukiko began to sob, shaking herself trying to get out of her husband’s arms to go hug her son. “We’re still your parents…”

“We rarely say it, but we love you guys very much.” Yuusaku added, but Conan snorted as if he had just heard a joke.

“Your behavior doesn't show that.”

Jodie frowned and asked hesitantly, half in disbelief. “You left your two sons at home, alone, one of them had a fever and had to be driven home by the police, and you were completely unreachable?”

“Yep.” Conan answered when Yuusaku and Yukiko couldn’t answer her. “I told you, Niichan single-handedly raised me.”

The FBI’s and the police’s exchanged glances when they heard this.

“Kudo-san… it looks like we have to investigate you for child neglect.”

Yuusaku and Yukiko lowered their heads. “… Okay.”

[“Ni-niichan?” Conan asked, increasingly panicked before a transparent hand touched his shoulder.

“Niichan is here, don’t worry, I just left my body temporarily.” Shinichi said. He looked transparent and his eyes were glowing a little red, but he looked fine now.]

The sound from the screen brought their attention back. This time a sigh of relief was heard, but that relief was quickly replaced by confusion.

“OH MY GOD, THAT DETECTIVE OTAKU BECAME A GHOST!” Sonoko screamed in horror, scaring Ran too.

“Hey! Niichan didn't become a ghost!”

“He’s TRANSPARENT, how can that not be a ghost?!” KID shouted along.

“That's one of Niichan's magic! And Niichan isn't dead yet, so don't call him a ghost!” Conan pointed at Sonoko and KID alternately in annoyance. “He only left his body temporarily to escape the pain.”

“So in other words, he became a temporary ghost.” Heiji commented, making Conan glare at him.

“Conan-kun, you know it’s true. Shinichi-kun was already laughing there.” Ai said as she gestured to the empty seat next to Masumi, causing Kazuha to scream in fear and Masumi to blink in surprise.

Conan pouted and looked away, causing Ai to let out an amused sigh. Beside her, Yume was already chuckling.

“Um, are we going to ignore Kudo-kun who is a temporary ghost there?” Sato asked while gesturing at the screen.

“I guess so.” Nakamori grumbled, seemingly unbothered. He was already quite used to this, considering he always faced the insanity of KID’s tricks. So he was sure that what Shinichi did was also just a trick.

Megure massaged his head. The teenage detective always gave him a headache from worry! 'But thank goodness he's safe… although it seems like his health isn't so good because of the poison he forced to drank.'

“Hopefully we’ll get an explanation soon,” Akako muttered, which everyone surprisingly agreed with.

.

.

.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

[Conan breathes a sigh of relief and says that it's been a long time since he's seen Shinichi in this form and asks what happened. Shinichi is a bit hesitant—and a little hysterical since he almost died, again—but eventually tells Conan what he found.

He then asks Conan to call Agasa from his cell phone while thinking that all his plans were ruined because he met them at the wrong time. Now, Shinichi can't stay with Conan because from what he heard earlier, the two men have a connection—and very dangerous because they have an organization and supply to make an unidentifiable poison.]

“What does ‘again’ mean? Has he ever been in a situation like this before?” KID asked, somewhat surprised by Shinichi’s thoughts.

Yuusaku, Yukiko and Chikage exchanged glances.

“Shinichi was badly injured when he attended the KID heist when he was 8 years old.” Yuusaku informed. “That’s why Shinichi knows and is suspicious of them.”

“I thought KID had a ‘no one gets hurt’ policy?” Ran asked, worried since Conan also liked to attend the same heists.

“But we’ve already seen that there are people targeting KID. No matter how great he is, he can’t go out unharmed, especially if he has to protect a child.” Masumi glanced at KID who was sitting expressionlessly.

“You’re right. KID is just one person and they have many henchmen.” Saguru said, quickly lost in thought. “If they have an organization and haven’t been caught yet, even if, if I may comment, they’ve been careless, then their organization must have support and connections… probably high ranking people.”

[When Agasa comes and starts helping Conan lift Shinichi's limp body onto the bed and clean and bandage the wound on his head, Shinichi starts to think that Conan might be able to stay with Agasa, but Agasa explains that Conan should hide, because as a child, he is more likely to be in danger and Shinichi agrees with him.

This makes Conan unhappy, but he understands what Shinichi means. They then go down to the library to talk further and let Shinichi's body rest.]

“Uh, it feels weird seeing Kudo transparent like that.” Heiji commented, causing Ai to reply dryly.

“Then you should be grateful that you can't see Shinichi-kun's transparent form right now.”

Heiji shuddered and turned to look at Shinichi's still sleeping body. "Oi Kudo, I still don't understand what happened but please don't scare me."

Conan snorted when he heard that.

[On the other hand, Ran who just came home found her house a mess and Kogoro was drinking, making Ran scold him. Kogoro just grumbled that she was picky in working on cases. The man then asked where Shinichi was, making Ran remember her bad feeling when Shinichi ran away.

Kogoro says that Ran should forget about him since detectives are useless, which makes Ran reply that Kogoro is a detective himself before calling Shinichi's house. When no one answers, Ran then decides to go check on Shinichi's house and leaves Kogoro to ask how dinner went.

Ran ignores him.]

Several people glanced at Kogoro. Sato and Jodie even openly stared at him in annoyance.

“I hope this doesn’t happen often.” Sato commented with a devilish smile.

“Of course not!” Kogoro argued, while Ran refused to comment and instead stared at her father with judgment.

[Shinichi, Conan and Agasa were discussing when Ran's voice was heard. Immediately, Shinichi rubbed his face and muttered that Ran came at the wrong time and he shouldn't have given his house key to his sister.

He then told Conan to hide and find something to hide his face because their faces were too similar, while for now no one should know that Conan is Kudo Shinichi's younger brother.]

Ran folded her arms. “So that’s why you changed the locks on your house.”

“But Ran-neechan, Niichan didn’t change the locks on his house.” Conan blinked, then stared at the chair next to Masumi for a moment. “Niichan just covered it with magic to prevent people from entering. Did you come a few months after I moved in with you? Because before Subaru-san moved in, the organization that attacked Niichan tried to break in several times and planted a bugs.”

Some people stiffened in horror at those words.

“Is Kudo-kun okay? If they broke in while Kudo-kun was defenseless—!” Takagi didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if they found out that Kudo Shinichi was still alive—albeit in questionable health.

“Calm down, Takagi-keiji. Nothing happened to Niichan, right, Hakase?”

“Yeah, Shinichi-kun has stayed at my house a few times, so they have no idea that Shinichi-kun still lives in the Kudo Mansion.”

[Panicked, Conan hides under Yuusaku's desk and opens his drawer, while Agasa tries to calm down and distract Ran. Shinichi himself can't be seen by anyone unless he wants to in this form, so he helps Conan find their father's spare glasses.

Unfortunately, the glasses have minus lenses and make Conan dizzy, which accidentally knocks him over the table and makes Ran curious. Shinichi frantically tells Conan to take the lenses off, and Conan barely has time to put them back on his face before Ran pulls him out.]

“Wait a minute. So, other than the people he chooses, Kudo-san can’t be seen by anyone?” Aoko asked.

“Yep. Niichan can’t choose many people at once, because his form uses magic. He can’t use too much magic in a short time, and over time it can damage his body.” Conan explained after Shinichi commented that maybe she was worried that Shinichi would do something pervert like Kaito if he had such an ability.

[“Hey, what’s your name?” Ran asked softly. When the girl saw Conan’s face, she immediately froze and almost made Shinichi’s heart stop. “You… you’re so cute!!!” Ran squealed as she hugged Conan.

Conan's expression worsened. He didn't like being hugged by anyone other than his Niichan, but Shinichi's relieved expression made him shut his mouth.

Ran then asks how old he is and what his name is, causing Conan to panic again and glance at Shinichi who is also panicking before seeing the name 'Edogawa Ranpo' in one of their father's books. “Edogawa! Your family name is Edogawa!”]

Ran grimaced, while Yuusaku and Yukiko exchanged glances. Ai herself was already glancing at Conan with full judgment.

“I’m sorry, Ran-neechan.” Conan whispered regretfully. “I don’t hate your hugs anymore…”

“Um, it’s okay, Conan-kun… I’m sorry for hugging you so suddenly, even though you don’t know me.” Ran smiled reassuringly as Conan apologized to her. “But I have to admit, you really are like Shinichi. He doesn’t like being hugged by other people either.”

That statement made Conan pout and grumble under his breath. “Kaasan’s hugs are always painful, but Niichan’s are always gentle. So forgive me if I don’t want to be hugged by other people.”

Heiji, Masumi, Kazuha, KID, Aoko, Saguru, Sonoko, Ran and the Haibara sisters heard the grumbling, but they kept their mouths shut even though some glanced at Yukiko from the corner of their eyes.

The one who was glanced at just tilted her head in confusion, though her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Is there something you want to tell me?”

“… nothing, Kudo-san.”

[“Co-conan! My name is Conan Edogawa!” Conan stuttered to introduce himself, forgetting that in Japan he have to introduce his family name first. “U-uh, I’m from America.” The boy mumbled as Shinichi reminded him that his name in Japanese should be ‘Edogawa Conan’.

Ran smiles and says that his name sounds like it was taken from a famous author, causing Conan to reply that both of his parents are big fans of Holmes and Edogawa Ranpo.

'I wasn't lying anyway, Niichan was the one who gave me the name 'Conan' and he's a big fan of Holmes.' Conan thought, awkwardly trying to return Ran's smile.]

“Kudo-kun has good taste.” Saguru commented, making KID roll his eyes.

The police who knew Shinichi chuckled, as did Ran.

Akai, who lives in the Kudo Mansion and has met Shinichi several times, snorted in amusement.

Sonoko herself groaned in annoyance. “That Holmes maniac! I’m sick of hearing about him—we could probably even pass the ‘Holmes story’ test without reading the book because of how often that maniac rambles.”

[His smile turned into an annoyed smile when Agasa suggested that Conan could live with Ran. 'What does this grandpa mean by just handing me over to a stranger?! Even though this Onee-chan is someone Niichan considers his sister, but still!!!' Conan thought, but he still kept his mouth shut because Shinichi immediately rejected the suggestion.

Agasa argued under his breath that Conan and Shinichi could get information about the two men in black's 'Organization' if Conan stayed with Kogoro. Conan would also be safer since he wouldn't be seen near the Kudo Mansion, making Shinichi fall silent and look at Conan as if leaving the decision to his younger brother.]

“You know, I always found it strange that Agasa-hakase asked Conan-kun to live with us, but not long after he moved in with Yume-chan and Ai-chan himself.”

Agasa grimaced. “I panicked and Conan-kun need a safe place. He looks too much like Shinichi-kun, the organization targeting Shinichi-kun might misunderstand…”

[Conan looked at Shinichi and asked, knowing full well that his older brother could hear his thoughts. 'Will you think of a way for me to still go out and spend time with you? Even if I have to stay with this big sister to get information about the people who poisoned you?'. Shinichi immediately nodded and said that he would think of a way as soon as his body got better.

Hearing that, Conan nodded and said that he would be fine with staying with 'Ran-neechan'. Ran said that she would have to ask permission from her father, Kogoro. But they can both go now if Conan wants.]

“He can read minds?! Isn’t this too OP?!” Akako, who had been watching them silently since the beginning, now spoke up in disbelief. “What can the Demon of Light do with his magic? First teleportation, then exiting his own body. Now reading minds?!”

KID grimaced. If Kudo Shinichi could read minds, then he could find out who the real person behind KID's mask was. On the other hand, Kudo Shinichi's ability could be very useful in helping him uncover Snake's plan.

“I can only read the minds of people I have a relationship with, and that ability is limited because my body can’t bear the consequences.” Shinichi spoke up, causing the detective from the west and the thief under the moonlight beside him to flinch in surprise.

“Niichan!”

“Yes, Conan.” Shinichi’s eyes were still closed and the detective showed no signs of waking up other than his moving lips. “All magic has consequences, Witch. You should know better.”

“You don’t seem to care about the consequences.” Akako bit her lip in annoyance. She was still a bit afraid of Shinichi’s magic which was stronger than hers, but that didn’t mean she would give up so easily.

Shinichi's lips formed a thin smile. "You see, but you do not observe."

His words made everyone there except Conan and Akako look at him in amusement.

[Shinichi grumbled under his breath that Ran could have asked Kogoro first and not taken his little brother away straight away, but Agasa looked at the clock which showed early morning, causing Ran to look at it too and gasp in surprise.

“Oh my, it’s so late! Conan-kun, how about you stay with Neechan for the night? You can’t possibly stay in this big mansion alone!” Ran’s words made Conan want to argue. He wouldn’t stay alone! He would stay with Shinichi! But he couldn’t say anything because Agasa immediately agreed.

Conan really wants to kick that old man.]

“Conan!” Ran gasped in surprise when she saw what Conan wanted to do.

Kogoro was also not impressed with the boy who was staying at his house. “Brat, at least you should be polite to your elders!”

“Ugh. Sorry, Otchan.”

“I know Kudo-kun’s house is big… but to live there alone… isn’t Kudo-kun lonely?” Megure asked, a little worried because the teenage detective lived alone in such a big house. Plus, his health condition was not good now.

“Ha. I guess only someone like Akai Shuuichi would like to live alone in such a big house.” Furuya quipped, causing Akai to glance at him with a puzzled look.

“… I’m used to it.” Shinichi answered Megure.

[The scene changes to Ran walking while holding Conan's hand. Shinichi in his transparent form follows them both from behind, as if guarding them. Ran starts to chat with Conan, making Conan not understand why the girl suddenly asked about someone special.

Shinichi himself immediately stopped walking and covered his ears, saying that he shouldn't hear Ran's secret, especially since he was sure that Ran didn't want Shinichi to know. Conan just glanced at him in confusion, but then understood what his brother meant when he heard Ran explain about the characteristics of the person she liked.]

Some people looked away and tried to pretend they didn't hear, while Ran covered her face with both hands as the screen showed everything she said to Conan that night.

['Ah,' Conan thought. 'She didn't know that Niichan's heart had belonged to that guy for a long time… Niichan only thought of Ran-neechan as his sister.'

An old photo of a young Shinichi and another child who looks like him is seen. They are holding hands and standing side by side. Both of them raise their hands and show their ring fingers which are circled by flower rings. Shinichi smiles a little and the other smiles widely.]

Aoko gasped, while KID was stunned. “It’s Kaito!”

Sonoko and Ran immediately turned to the girl. “Eh?! You know that kid?!”

“Un! He’s Aoko’s childhood friend!” Aoko replied with a wide smile and sparkling eyes. “Aoko didn’t know that Kaito knew Kudo-kun!”

“Heee?” Sonoko asked. “We should bring them to meet together sometime!”

KID ignored Saguru's glances at him and tried to remember his childhood with Shinichi, but he still couldn't remember it clearly. He knew that many of his childhood memories were lost due to trauma, but he didn't expect that Shinichi had met him when they were little.

Yukiko and Chikage who saw it shared a mysterious smile. “Ara, I think now I know who Shin-chan likes~ should we start preparing for the wedding, Chika-chan?”

“Hm~ we will see later, Yuki-chan.”

KID—Kaito almost got goosebumps hearing a smile in his mother's voice.

[Conan, who was five years old at the time, sat on Shinichi's lap with sparkling eyes. He asked who the person next to his brother was and Shinichi answered him with a melancholic smile as if he was missing someone.

“His name is Kaito, Toi-san son, the one who taught me magic tricks. It’s a photo of the two of us when we were 7 years old.” Shinichi answered softly. His hand carefully caressed the old photo and Conan asked if Shinichi missed Kaito. “Well, of course I miss him. It’s been a long time since we last saw each other.”

Shinichi then patted Conan's head and changed the subject, making Conan realize that Shinichi didn't want to talk about it. But of course, little Conan could see the feelings of sadness mixed with longing swirling in Shinichi's eyes.]

Ran stared at the scene with a complicated expression. She never realized that Shinichi already liked someone else—even though she eventually found out when Shinichi rejected her.

Sonoko and Aoko shared a big smile. “We should really get them together after we get out of this. Ooh, it’ll be fun~! Who would have thought that the detective maniac would have a crush on his childhood friend?”

“Aoko agrees! But… Kaito never told Aoko about this, so Aoko doesn’t know how Kaito will react.”

Chikage laughed amusedly. “Oh don’t worry about it, Aoko-chan. I’m sure Kaito will be happy to see Shinichi-kun again. They were very close when they were little. That photo was even taken when Kaito proposed to Shinichi-kun with a flower ring!”

“Shin-chan who accepted Kai-chan’s proposal with blushing cheeks is so cute and beautiful~” Yukiko teased and glanced at Chikage who glanced back at her as if sharing a secret.

'What?' Kaito thought, not believing what he had just heard. He reflexively looked at Shinichi who still had his eyes closed next to him, as if he had fallen back asleep—judging by his chest rising and falling steadily. 'I don't remember anything about this!!!'

“NANI?!” shouted Sonoko. “That detective maniac actually got ENGAGED?!”

“NAIYATO?! OI Kudo! Tell me it’s not true?!?!” Heiji also shouted in disbelief. He seemed to be about to shake Shinichi’s body, but stopped when Kazuha grabbed his arm tightly as a warning.

“No wonder he only sees you as his sister!” Sonoko said to Ran, excited again as if she had solved a very complicated puzzle. “So he already had a fiancé!”

“OI! My Niichan isn’t engaged!” Conan denied. His eyes twitched in annoyance as everyone speculated about Shinichi’s life.

“Fufufu~” Yukiko and Chikage, who were the ones who caused the commotion, just giggled.

[Conan's memory stops when they arrive at the Mouri Detective Agency, the place that is Ran's home and will be Conan's temporary residence.

Ran smiled and said that it felt like she got a little brother, making Conan feel guilty for ignoring the girl the whole way after Ran told him about Shinichi. While the topic of conversation could only stare at them unreadably.]

Ran smiled softly. “Yes, in a way, I got you as a little brother.”

“Hehe, thank you for treating me as your own little brother, Ran-neechan.”

[“Conan, I’ll be back now. I need to check my body. Pandora will neutralize any poison after some time, but this time the effect is unknown.” Conan stiffened when Shinichi’s transparent hand hugged him, but quickly relaxed and whispered back that Shinichi should find a way for them to spend time together. Shinichi agreed and said; “If you’re in trouble, call me and I’ll come.”

The teenager then rubbed Conan's head and stood up again, then instantly changed places and returned to his room.]

“Shinichi-san looks very different from what the media says…”

“Yeah, he looks so gentle it feels weird.”

“Haha, Shinichi-kun only looks arrogant in front of the media. When you get to know him better, he is very different from what he shows.”

The police commented, still somewhat shocked by what they saw and feeling guilty for judging Shinichi only by his appearance without really getting to know him.

[Shinichi's body is now frozen, as if he is in a deep sleep. The door and window of his room are open, allowing Shinichi to climb up onto the roof to calm himself from everything that happened. In this form, Shinichi cannot penetrate anything. He also cannot move anything because everything he holds will be like trying to push against the wall.

The teenager looked up at the brightly shining moon and subconsciously summoned the remaining Pandora gems he stored in his soul. His hand brought the gem out into the moonlight and let his face be bathed in the reddish light that Pandora radiated.]

Kaitou KID froze when he saw what was in Shinichi's hand. "Pandora... has been found?" he asked in disbelief.

“Pandora?” Saguru and Ginzo asked at the same time.

Akako froze as well before looking at KID and Shinichi with fear-filled eyes. “You… you… you guys—”

“Akako-chan?” Aoko asked, worried about her friend.

[Shinichi wondered if the person who killed Toi-san and tried to kill him again was the same person, but only silence and the night wind answered him. 'After all this time… they've appeared again.' Shinichi thought. 'What a shame because I have to hide or people—wait a minute. I have to hide?'

Suddenly, Shinichi remembered Kaitou KID. 'If they think I'm dead and I have to hide so they don't notice, doesn't that mean I can move freely in the shadows? No more media following my every move. No more secretly trying to find and investigate them.']

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY ‘again’?!” KID asked, almost screaming. This time he was really worried about Shinichi's safety. “Since when did you know and become their target?!”

“KID?” Saguru asked, stunned because this was the first time KID had lost his poker face.

“Toi-san? Isn't he Kaito's father…?” Aoko asked. The girl turned to look at Chikage sitting behind KID and asked doubtfully. “Kuroba-san's death… wasn't an accident?”

Chikage’s expression turned grim. The amusement that had been on her face was gone without a trace. “Yes. We knew from the start that it wasn’t an accident.”

Nakamori Ginzo took a sharp breath. “Why didn’t you tell me? All these years—”

“What should we say, Nakamori-san?” Chikage asked. Her voice was filled with bitterness. “There is no evidence that Toichi’s death was not an accident. Yuusaku-kun was unable to find and capture them. So tell me, what should we say?”

“Even Yuusaku-san couldn’t find the evidence?” Megure couldn’t hide his surprise. Yuusaku was known as an amazing detective who could solve any type of case.

“All the evidence was burned in the fire along with Toichi’s death. No matter how good a detective is, it is impossible to find evidence that has been burned to ashes.” Yuusaku spoke up.

This made everyone present shiver with one question. 'How big of a connection does the killer have if they can fake a murder as an accident?'

“KID,” Saguru called. He suddenly realized that if someone was targeting KID to the point of killing KID’s civilian identity, then he could put a target on Kuroba Kaito’s back for often accusing him of being KID. “Is… is the jewel Kudo-kun is holding the jewel you’ve been looking for?”

“…” KID was silent for a few seconds before sighing tiredly. “I don’t know for sure. But Meitantei said it was Pandora, and the characteristics match what was mentioned.”

[“Heh,” a smirk began to form on Shinichi’s lips. His eyes that reflected Pandora’s reddish light suddenly looked cold and emotionless. He returned the rest of Pandora to his soul before standing up and going back to his room. “It seems like it’s time for the Night Baron to be born from the pages of a novel and become a reality.”]

“So that’s why there were reports of someone dressed in black wearing a mask coming in.” Shiratori commented. “No one has seen him in person, and the surveillance cameras didn’t pick up anything either.”

“You’re right, the police thought the report was just a drunkard’s imagination.” Megure sighed and massaged his head. “Who would have thought that the identity behind the masked person was Shinichi-kun?”

The corner of Ginzo's lips twitched. "At least Kudo didn't steal like KID did."

“But isn’t the Night Baron in Kudo Yuusaku-san’s novel a thief who sometimes commits murder?” Masumi asked. She knew because she had read the novel.

“Niichan would never take someone's life, Sera-neechan!” Conan said with an offended look. “Rather than take their lives, Niichan drugged them and kicked them into prison!”

Sonoko and Ran giggled, as did Heiji and Kazuha. But the police were wide-eyed when they heard it.

“So Shinichi-kun is the one who sent those murderers to the police?!”

.

.

.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

“Killers?” Sonoko asked.

“Yes, it started about a year ago, randomly a handcuffed and drugged murderer was found inside the police station. On their clothes, there were files detailing their crimes.”

“I know that. Rumor has it, they call the people who bring in criminals ‘informants of justice’ because they always catch criminals and provide detailed evidence of the crimes.” Ginzo said. “But that’s outside my division, so I don’t know for sure either.”

Megure took a deep breath. “So far, Shinichi-kun has only sent four criminals. Three of them are snipers and a prison and jewel smuggler, while the other one is a hitman.”

KID froze. 'So that's why Snake's minions have decreased since the last time I saw them.'

[After Shinichi left, Conan and Ran were walking up to the Agency when the Agency door swung open violently and Kogoro ran out of it—almost bumping into his own daughter, Ran—making Ran scream and scold that Kogoro scared them both.

Kogoro didn't care much about his daughter and said that he had a kidnapping case done by people in black, quickly calling a taxi.]

“Uh-oh, I think I know where this is going.” Jodie massaged her head, while the cops let out a long breath.

“You know, many criminals wear black, so it’s hard to distinguish between regular criminals and the criminals Kudo-san is looking for.” Chiba commented.

“Except for KID. That insane thief always wears eye-catching white clothes.” Ginzo grumbled under his breath, making KID giggle.

“By the way… haven’t you guys noticed that the number of murders has increased since Kudo-kun disappeared? Beika-cho, daijobu desuka?” Saguru asked, suddenly remembering that the murders he had heard about mostly came from Beika city.

The police and teenagers living in the Beika city froze.

“Uh, we never realized it. But if you think about it, what he said wasn’t wrong…”

Megure made a pained sound. The fat man looked like he wanted to cover his face with both hands right then and there. “I guess we know what this ‘movie’ is going to show…” he muttered in resignation.

[Conan quickly pulled Ran along to follow Kogoro, thinking that maybe he could get a clue about the people from the organization who tried to kill Shinichi.

He then pretended to be happy to get on the taxi, letting Kogoro and Ran argue over his head. He also sat close to Ran, not wanting to be near someone who reeked of alcohol.

'Just you wait, I will hunt you down and get the strange substance that poisoned Niichan… and after Niichan recovers, we will expose all your evil deeds!']

Ran laughed amusedly, while Sonoko slapped her own forehead. Masumi beside Conan glanced at him with a mischievous and annoying smile. Heiji even laughed without caring about Conan's glare.

“Conan-kun is so cute!” Aoko squealed, while Saguru smiled in amusement.

KID on the other hand was torn and didn’t know whether to laugh or worry about the mini detective. “It hasn’t even been a day since you arrived in Beika and it hasn’t even been a few hours since Meitantei was poisoned, and you already have a case?!” he asked, somewhat hysterical. It was like the case would just fall into Meitantei and Tantei-kun’s laps without them doing anything!

Conan grumbled when he heard it. “Sometimes I wonder if we are cursed because every time we go out, there are always cases following us.”

[When they arrived at the Tani family home, Kogoro immediately went to work and at first glance, Conan was very unimpressed with the way that uncle worked. Especially since Conan was not used to working alone without his Niichan letting him help solve cases, Kogoro considered him a nuisance and chased him away, making Conan feel annoyed.

Conan listened to the Tani family butler explaining the incident, suddenly feeling strange because a servant said that other than the butler panicking, it was actually very calm.]

“Shinichi-kun let you help handle the case, Conan-kun?” asked Takagi.

“Un! Usually if Niichan has solved the case and knows the culprit, he will let me finish and form my own conclusion before making the culprit arrested!”

“Huh? Wait, so Kudo can solve the case faster than you? How fast can Kudo solve the case?” Heiji asked. He couldn’t believe that a kid—a real kid—could match him in solving cases. If Conan was this good, then how good was his brother? He admitted that he had lost to Conan and Shinichi in deduction a few times, but he didn’t expect them to be that much better.

“Hmm… Niichan can usually tell what trick the perpetrator used to kill the victim just by looking around the location. So maybe around five minutes? It depends on the suspect’s explanation and Niichan’s focus.”

Saguru, Masumi, Heiji and KID were stunned when they heard it. Especially when Megure nodded in agreement with Conan's words. "Shinichi-kun will solve the case faster if he is in a quiet place."

[Kogoro assumes that it might have been a rival company, but Mr. Tani says that the kidnapper also demanded money. The Tani family butler looks panicked when he hears this, causing Conan to look at him suspiciously.

Conan then stepped closer to the tree that the Tani family butler pointed at while Kogoro and Mr. Tani were busy discussing. He felt that there was something wrong with the butler's explanation, but he still didn't know what it was.

“Grrrr…” Conan flinched when he heard a growl behind him and immediately ran when he saw three large dogs near a tree.]

“That’s strange.” Masumi commented. “There were three big dogs near the tree. How did the kidnapper escape?”

“And the maids said that the atmosphere was very calm, did Miss Akiko not scream when she was kidnapped?” asked Heiji.

“If I were the kidnapper, I would definitely beat the butler unconscious. Or at least tie him up and hide him so he can’t report the incident.”

“You sound like you’re about to commit a crime, Hakuba-san.” Sonoko chimed in. She was the queen of deduction, Sonoko! She wouldn’t lose to those detectives who were always talking about cases! “But you’re right. Why did the kidnapper show himself to the butler on purpose?”

['Huh?' Conan thought, then pulled Kogoro's arm to tell him, but the man scolded him instead, making Conan even more annoyed and unimpressed with the man. Annoyed, he finally took the ball that was there and started playing, making Ran say that he was similar to Shinichi when the teenager was thinking about something.

Conan commented in his heart that his Niichan would often clasp his hands and sit in silence when he was thinking about something serious, but didn't say anything to Ran-neechan and started thinking about the whole case.]

“Mouri-kun, I think next time you should listen more to what Conan-kun has to say?” Megure suggested. “They usually have points of view that we never even thought of.”

Kogoro grumbled, but seemed to think about it.

Ran's gaze turned a little sad at Conan's comment, while the boy himself now flinched with a regretful expression. "I never knew Shinichi preferred to sit still when he was thinking..."

“Don’t worry about it, I usually do that when I get a complicated case. Playing ball while I’m thinking is just a distraction so I can get more information.” Shinichi said again. This time, his eyes were slightly open although his body language and expression showed that he was still very tired.

Ran gave Shinichi a small smile, causing the teen to return it before closing his eyes again.

['Hm… why did the kidnapper kidnap the girl from her house and let himself be seen? That was too reckless… why not kidnap her when she was on her way home from school? At the same time, the kidnapper disguised his voice and demanded a blank check… why—ah!' Conan smiled as he realized the trick, but frowned again when he saw Kogoro. 'Now how do I make that detective uncle realize it?'

'Ugh. If Niichan was here, he would have solved this case a long time ago.' Conan thought, accidentally kicking the ball too hard and making it bounce near a tree. Conan subconsciously stepped closer to pick it up, but Mr. Tani's three guard dogs barked again and Conan suddenly had an idea.]

“If only we could be there in person, we could check it out right away!”

“Aargh, seeing this makes me so excited! I want to be there and finish it right away!”

“Ho? Can’t you find the trick? This is an easy case, you know.” Saguru smiled arrogantly at Heiji, making the Osaka teenager clench his fists in annoyance.

“You—! Of course I already know the trick!”

“There’s only one answer. There are two culprits.” Furuya said, easily causing the teenage detectives (minus Shinichi) in the front seat to turn and glare at him as if he had just ruined their fun. Beside him, Akai snorted in amusement. “What? You guys said this was an easy case.”

[Kogoro almost scolds Conan again, but Conan points to the ball near the tree and explains that he wanted to get the ball, but the guard dogs wouldn't let Conan get it. His words make Kogoro think again, and Conan adds that the dogs will bark at anyone he doesn't know.

'Come on! You don't want to hear me, but this should be enough for you to understand!' Conan thought, a little frustrated that Kogoro was taking his time thinking again. Behind him, the Tani family butler tried to leave.

“Where do you think you’re going, Mr. Aso?” Kogoro asked, making Conan cheer in his heart.]

Several people cheered as Kogoro stopped Aso from leaving the scene.

“Finally! Good job, Kogoro-ojisan!”

“Hell yeah! Now all that’s left is to find out where Akiko was taken and we can move on to the next place to find out the kidnapper’s motive!”

“Honestly, seeing Conan-kun frustrated because Kogoro-san didn’t listen to him made me frustrated too, no offense, Kogoro-san.”

Kogoro grumbled again, but didn't say anything.

[Kogoro begins to explain what he knows, causing Mr. Tani to get angry and ask why Aso did it. Panicking, Aso kneels down and apologizes before starting to explain his reasons. Kogoro then asks where he hid Tani Akiko and tells Aso to take them. He happily says that the case is closed.

'What—no! The case isn't over yet!' Conan thought, remembering the ransom the kidnapper had demanded.

Just as Conan was thinking about that, a servant ran in holding a telephone and said that it was from the kidnapper. When Mr. Tani received it, the kidnapper again disguised his voice and demanded his 300 million yen.]

“Aso and the kidnapper did not work together. If Aso was the kidnapper, he would not have returned to the Tani family home just to tell Mr. Tani about his daughter’s kidnapping.”

“And their demands were also different. Aso said that the kidnapper wanted Mr. Tani to close his company for a month, while the kidnapper who called Mr. Tani demanded that Mr. Tani give him a bad check for 300 million yen.”

“Not only that, the kidnappers used a voice-changing device, indicating that they had been preparing for some time.”

“Hey, I know this happened about a year ago, but I can’t help but worry…” Sonoko said to Ran.

[Aso frantically says that he has no comrades when Kogoro accuses him. Conan thinks that the kidnapper this time is more brutal, especially when Akiko screams in despair and fear to her father.

Kogoro says that Mr. Tani should keep talking so they can get his location, but the kidnapper hears him and starts threatening him. Akiko then boldly shouts that she is in a school storage room and she can see a large chimney from the window.]

“Aoko understands Suzuki-chan’s feelings. Aoko feels the same way too…” Aoko clasped her hands together and looked at Ran with pleading eyes. “Akiko-chan is okay, right? Did you guys manage to save her?”

“Akiko-chan will be fine, Nakamori-chan,” Ran replied, but then frowned. “You know, Conan-kun, you almost made me faint with worry when you just came to Beika and ran out like that.”

“Huh?”

[A slapping sound is heard and the phone is hung up, making them all worry. Conan glanced at Kogoro who was pulling Aso's collar and stubbornly saying that Aso had an accomplice, making him think that this was not good as the kidnapper was now worried that his location would be discovered.

'We have to find her quickly…' Conan thought, then accidentally saw Tani's guard dogs playing ball and decided that he could look for Akiko with the dogs.

“Eh—Conan?!” Ran called, but Conan didn't listen and Kogoro angrily told her to forget about that brat.]

Ran took a deep breath. “That’s what I mean. He always runs away without saying anything when his mind is focused on something, just like Shinichi.”

“Uh, sorry, Ran-neechan.” Conan muttered, making Ai next to him slap her forehead.

“Stop apologizing. How many times have you apologized only to do it again?” Ai asked in annoyance, making Conan frown. “You almost gave us all a heart attack, you know?”

“Aaaahh okay-okay I understand! You don’t have to nag me, Ai-san!”

“Do you think I’m just going to nag you? You and Shinichi-kun. You two brothers, always making my blood boil with your behavior.”

Conan frowned even more, but Ai ignored him with an annoyed snort.

[Conan almost pulled his hair out in frustration when he remembered that he knew nothing about this city. He had just gotten a clue, but he couldn't estimate the location and he didn't have time to stop and look at a map.

'Niichan! Please help me!' Conan thought, calling out to Shinichi who would surely come.

“Conan? What’s wrong?” asked Shinichi who suddenly appeared beside him, still in his transparent form. “What happened?”]

“Whoa, he really came… wait, Ku—Conan! Does this mean Kudo was Kudo all along because you called him?!”

Almost everyone looked at Heiji with a confused expression because of what he said.

“Uh. Hattori-san, right? Can you speak in sentences that are easier to understand?” Masumi asked.

Heiji’s cheeks flushed red as everyone was watching him, but he still answered in a more normal tone. “Kudo sometimes appears suddenly when Conan disappears, so I thought Kudo and Conan were the same person… when Conan appears, Kudo always disappears, so… yeah.”

“That’s true, if you think about it, Conan-kun is very similar to Shinichi. I also thought several times that Shinichi shrank into Conan.”

“Edogawa-kun also appeared when Kudo-kun disappeared. So it’s not wrong if someone theorizes that Edogawa-kun is a shrunken Kudo-kun, no matter how crazy the theory is.”

“Ano… are we going to ignore the fact that Meitantei can teleport anywhere he wants when Tantei-kun calls him?” KID asked, but the others ignored him.

[“Niichan!” Conan called, then quickly explained that he was looking for a school that could see a large chimney from the window.

Shinichi only took a few seconds to think and look around before saying that the area he could see was Futatsubashi Junior Highschool.

He started running followed by Conan who was riding on one of Tani's guard dogs while explaining that there were no big chimneys around here. The only thing that could be seen from a low ground like school was a giant building that would look like a chimney if seen from the side.]

“He knew it in a matter of seconds?”

Some people gasped when Shinichi started explaining that the only thing that could be seen from the school was a tall building, not a chimney.

“If Akiko-chan only saw one, then the possibility is that what she saw was not a chimney.”

“I’m impressed, Kudo-kun. You thought of that possibility and figured out the location in just a few seconds.” Saguru praised, “if you would like, I would like to discuss a few cases with you.”

“Me too! I can’t wait to have a deduction battle with you, Kudo-san!” Masumi grinned, making Heiji frown.

“Oi Kudo, don’t forget about me. We’re rivals, you know!”

Shinichi kept his eyes closed and simply replied “okay.” Before falling silent again as if he was sleeping.

[Conan begins to explain what happened and Shinichi nods in understanding. As Conan expected, Shinichi immediately solves the case without Conan needing to explain and guide him, unlike Kogoro.

The scene then shifts to the kidnapper calling Mr. Tani and telling him to leave his money on the Hyakuji park bench. After threatening him, the kidnapper hangs up and prepares to kill Akiko for seeing his face, making the girl cry.]

“Hey, wait a minute. He finished it that fast? It’s as if he already knew the answer before hearing the rest of the hint!”

“Haha, Shinichi-kun is always like that! He can always find the perpetrator and the murder trick quickly. Usually he doesn’t say anything until he knows the perpetrator’s motive, but sometimes he also knows who the perpetrator is right away.” Megure praised, making several police officers who had never worked directly with Shinichi stunned.

“I told you, Niichan is a genius!” Conan smiled widely, then looked at KID as if mocking him. “He can even solve KID’s trick with just one look!”

“EEEH?!” Sonoko, Ginzo, Aoko, Saguru and KID shouted.

“KID’s trick in one look?!”

“Hey hey that’s impossible right? How did he figure out my trick with just one look?!” KID demanded. He already knew from what he saw that Shinichi was a genius. But figuring out his trick with just one look? Isn’t that too much?!

“Well, if Niichan was just a detective like me he wouldn’t be able to figure it out at a glance. But have you forgotten? Niichan can do magic too! He learned from the world’s greatest magician, Kuroba Toichi. Isn't it natural for fellow magicians to know the tricks they perform??”

Shinichi next to KID suddenly coughed. “I just think like a thief. I’m not a magician, don’t get me wrong, KID.”

KID highly doubted that. But decided that he would tell his thoughts if they brought it up again.

[The storage room door then opens and Conan shouts for the kidnapper to stop, causing the kidnapper to panic before being attacked by the guard dog Conan had previously mounted. Conan himself runs in and removes the tape covering Akiko's mouth, saying that she is safe now.

Akiko asks who he is, and Conan awkwardly replies that he is Edogawa Conan, a detective.]

“Oh, I'm glad she's okay!”

“Yeah, even though we know she’ll be fine, seeing her in person like this makes me feel more at ease.”

“But still! Conan-kun, you shouldn’t try to stop criminals on your own! You never know what they’ll do!” Ran grumbled, making several of the other police officers and teenage detectives wince.

“Somehow, I feel like Mouri-chan’s scolding will just bounce off that kid’s head…” Sato whispered to Takagi. They—the first division police—had chased Conan too many times, who ran away without saying anything when he solved a case.

[Of course, that's when things got worse because the kidnapper had already defeated Tani's guard dog. The kidnapper then took a baseball bat and tried to hit Conan, causing Shinichi who had been there all along to stare at him with glowing red eyes.

Suddenly, another baseball bat flew and hit the kidnapper hard on the back of the head, knocking him out. At the same time, Shinichi told Conan to take Akiko away and ran.]

Sato frowned. “Conan-kun, next time, please bring at least one or two adults with you. You’re still a child and seeing that kidnapper almost hurt you worries me.”

“That’s right, Conan-kun. After seeing this and what you’ve done for us, you should know that I, Sato, Takagi, Chiba and Shiratori will at least listen and follow you if you find something.” Megure massaged his head, suddenly afraid of his division that would soon be filled with children. ‘If I’m not mistaken, Ayumi-chan, Genta-kun and Matsuhiko-kun are also part of the ‘Shounen Tantei-dan’ group besides Ai-chan and Yume-chan… plus Shinichi-kun… oh my gosh.'

“You were really lucky Shinichi-kun was there with you… well, even in ghost form.” Ai commented.

Beside her, Yume let out a sigh, half annoyed and half resigned. “I didn’t expect you to have just arrived in Beika and already be nearly injured. Please be more careful, Conan-kun.”

“Uhh… I'll try?”

Yume smiled sweetly, giving Conan goosebumps. Believe it or not, Yume was scarier than Ai when she was angry.

[“You can’t defeat that criminal alone. I don’t want you to get hurt.” Shinichi said as the kidnapper who had kidnapped Akiko collapsed. Simultaneously, Shinichi’s figure bent over while clutching his chest, quickly faded as if losing strength. “Ugh—Conan, go and get help… I’ll… OOC for a while…”

“Ni—”

“Conan-kun!” Conan’s body suddenly bumped into someone and it took a moment for Conan to realize that the person he bumped into was Ran. “Are you guys okay?!”]

“'OOC'…? Is Shinichi okay?” Ran asked.

“Out of Commission. This means that Niichan will be unreachable for some time because his body and strength need time to recover. In that form, Niichan can barely use magic and if he pushes himself, his body could become even more exhausted.”

“In other words, there is a ‘limit’ for the Demon of Light using magic. He has more magic than me, a pure witch, but he also can’t use his magic as he pleases or he will die.” Akako smiled arrogantly. “Ha. I can defeat you easily with the right timing!”

More than half of the people in the 'cinema' immediately stared at Akako sharply.

“Witch-san, if I were you, I would be more careful with my words.” Furuya smiled with a look of madness. Beside him, Akai also glared at Akako with an aura of rage. “If you dare to hurt Shinichi-kun even a fingertip… I hope you never find out what I can do to make your life a living hell.”

“You said that Niichan’s magic is greater than yours, that means… even you won’t be able to avoid an attack from a sniper.” This time it was Conan’s turn to stare at Akako with a unhinged smile and empty eyes. “If you dare to hurt Niichan, I will shoot your limbs, one by one, until you can never use your magic again.”

Ai beside him looked indifferent, but her tone and words did not reflect it at all. “Magic or not, if you try to do something weird, I will shoot you with an anesthetic needle and drain your blood, little by little.”

“Shinichi-kun saved us and gave us new life, Witch-san… he has suffered for too long. So if you, a selfish witch, try to hurt him… well, we will make sure that you will never be able to touch him.”

The threat from two dangerous men and three children made Akako shiver, but she kept her arrogant smile. “I didn’t know he was protected by many dangerous people.”

“Ho? So your friend ‘Luficer’ didn’t tell you?” KID asked. He didn’t like hurting others and he didn’t want to deal with Akako, but if that witch tried to hurt Shinichi… “I guess you have your limits when it comes to magic too.”

Akako clenched her jaw. “Kaitou KID…”

“Stop it, all of you.” Shinichi’s voice broke the deteriorating atmosphere. The teenager now opened both of his eyes, revealing a reddish glow within them and stared at Akako expressionlessly. “Every magic has its limitations and karma. Magic also can’t solve all problems. I don’t know why you want to ‘defeat’ me, Witch, but you should think twice if you want to do so. Anisedora hates people like that.”

The girl’s eyes immediately widened. “Anesidora? Anesidora?! Goddess Anesidora guided you?!”

Shinichi refused to answer that and chose to close his eyes again, while the others exchanged confused glances.

[“R-ran-neechan! The kidnapper is in the storage room over there!” Conan pointed towards the storage room where Akiko’s kidnapper was knocked out, causing Kogoro who had just arrived to immediately go into the storage room to catch the perpetrator along with the dog that had previously been beaten by the kidnapper, while Ran untied the rope that was tying Akiko’s body.

A few moments later, Mr. Tani and Aso came in breathlessly and Akiko immediately jumped into Mr. Tani's arms. Mr. Tani was angry because Aso was still there, and Akiko defended Aso because from the start 'kidnapping' was her plan because Mr. Tani was too busy working and Akiko felt lonely.

Conan frowned, not understanding why Akiko had to do something so drastic if she could just tell Mr. Tani that she was lonely and wanted her father's attention. 'Even though Tousan and Kaasan never had time for me, Niichan made sure that I knew that I could call him anytime and he would come, no matter how trivial it was.' Conan thought. 'Looking at Mr. Tani, Miss Akiko should know that her father loves her very much. I don't get it.']

Several people immediately glanced at Yuusaku and Yukiko when Conan on the screen thought about them. Both of their shoulders slumped down sadly when they heard what Conan thought about them.

“Co-chan…” Yukiko whispered with tears gathering in her eyes. She realized that she had given her two sons too much freedom, but she didn’t know that her sons would feel abandoned like that. “Kaasan sorry, after this Kaasan will make sure that Kaasan has time for you guys.”

“I don’t need it. You guys can go back to your busy lives. Niichan and I already have our own families.” Conan snorted, his tone calm but there was bitterness that they could hear. “You guys were never a parent to me. So I don’t need it.”

“Conan,” Yuusaku tried to persuade him, but Conan immediately covered his ears and said that he didn’t want to hear their unreasonable excuses anymore.

Kogoro beside Yuusaku was already looking at the Kudo couple with a gaze full of judgment. Although he knew that he was not a very good father to his daughter, at least he did not just let go of her.

The other adults—especially Sato and Jodie narrowed their eyes at Yuusaku and Yukiko.

“Kudo-san, it looks like the demands on you will increase. We cannot just let this go.” Jodie exchanged glances with James. After knowing this, they certainly would not remain silent. “I hope you will cooperate.”

[After hearing Akiko's explanation, Mr. Tani finally orders Aso to make a plan for a week-long vacation to Australia for him and Akiko. Kogoro then comes with the now-tied kidnapper and says that the case is closed while laughing.

Conan looked at Kogoro in annoyance when Mr. Tani praised him and Kogoro shamelessly said that it was the result of all his experiences. Kogoro didn't even stop laughing and bragging until they were in the taxi.]

Megure sighed. Despite the awkward atmosphere due to the Kudo family issue, seeing Kogoro's unchanged nature since he was a police officer was enough to make him relieved.

“Wait a minute! Wait! Ran, don’t tell me your father became a great detective because of Conan’s help?!” Sonoko asked, this time rubbing the back of her neck in disbelief. “No… could it be that ‘deductive queen Sonoko’ is actually that brat’s work too?”

Conan froze when Sonoko accused him right on target, but luckily Ran calmed Sonoko down by saying that it was impossible.

Kogoro on the other hand narrowed his eyes and started rubbing the back of his neck, suddenly feeling suspicious of the fame he had gained.

['This is the worst day.' Conan complained in his heart. 'I should have lived with Niichan after the people I call Tousan and Kaasan ditched me. But now I have to live with a fake detective like him? I want to be with Niichan, not a stranger I don't even know! Urgh, I want to go back to the Mansion and check on Niichan.'

Too busy grumble and worrying about Shinichi, Conan didn't hear Ran and Kogoro's conversation until Kogoro patted his small back enthusiastically while saying that Conan was his good luck charm because Kogoro had an easier time solving cases with Conan around.]

“CO-CHAN!” Yukiko screamed when she saw Conan’s thoughts. “We never ditched you! Tousan and Kaasan loved you very much!”

"Ha! Tell that to my fake corpse that you guys used to trick Niichan! The fake corpse that, ah, you guys shot multiple times in front of Niichan's eyes."

“Conan—”

“Yuusaku-san, Yukiko-san, what you did back then was too much for a joke and prank.” Yume cut Yuusaku off with a sweet smile. “Shinichi-kun got PTSD and almost overdosed on sleeping pills because of your ‘prank’.”

“And, if you want to know, it REALLY worsens his health.” Ai added. “Why do you think Shinichi-kun’s condition got worse even though I created an antidote for the poison in his body?”

“Yuusaku-kun, Yuki-chan, what kind of prank did you guys pull? A fake corpse? I know you guys have a unique sense of humor, but to make Shinichi-kun have PTSD?” Chikage asked. She didn’t even expect her two old friends to do something like that.

“We just wanted to test them! The organization they are trying to destroy is very dangerous, we wanted to make sure they were ready in case something happened, since they resisted when we tried to take them back to America!”

“Ahem.” Shinichi suddenly cleared his throat, folding his arms and crossing his legs. “Can you stop discussing this now? If this ‘movie’ shows all the events in the past, then you will also see what they did. You can discuss it when the time comes.”

[Conan really doesn't like all this.]

“Yeah. I really don’t like all this.” Conan commented as the others shut their mouths after his Niichan spoke up.

.

.

.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

[Conan opened his eyes and yawned as the alarm clock rang. He got up half-consciously and went to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth before asking permission from Kogoro who was busy eating snacks while watching television.

In his heart, Conan complained again that Kogoro didn't even get a single case and was only busy watching Yoko Okino every day. "Otchan, I'm going out and play..." Conan said, not wanting to be in the same room with Kogoro any longer.]

Kogoro scowled and clenched his jaw. The man looked like he wanted to smack Conan for his comment, but held himself back because he knew that what Conan was thinking was right. Before the boy came, Kogoro only spent his time watching television and eating snacks.

“Mouri-san, please tell me that this don’t happen again.” Sato smiled devilishly. Although Conan had been raised by Shinichi’s hands all this time, the boy was now living with Kogoro and she didn’t want Conan to grow up to be a man like Kogoro.

“Calm down, Sato-keiji. Tousan reads the news more often now and is starting to rarely laze around like that...… well, unless it’s about Yoko-san. Tousan still often watching her.” Ran reassured with a bright smile, as if happy that her father was no longer a ‘jobless detective’.

[Conan slowly walked along the road until he reached the house of the grandfather who had made him stay at Mouri's place, in his heart he was grateful that his brain could remember the road even though he had only passed it once.

When he rang the bell, it was Agasa who opened the door and Conan immediately asked where Shinichi was. Agasa just smiled awkwardly and told him to go down to the lab, making Conan take off his shoes and politely wait for Agasa to direct him.]

“Tantei-kun, do you have a photographic memory?” KID asked curiously. “Remembering the way after only walking once—and you were daydreaming a lot, if I may remind you—it wouldn’t be impossible for you to have a photographic memory.”

“Mn-hm. Niichan has it too. It’s an important skill as a detective, you know.”

“Photographic memory? No wonder you were able to crack KID’s trick so quickly, Kudo-kun, Edogawa-kun.” Saguru sounded very impressed, making KID frown.

“Ah, speaking of photographic memory, Kaito has it too! He always borrows Aoko’s notes and only reads them five minutes before the test, but he always gets a perfect score!” Aoko snorted in exasperated, but there was no hatred in her voice. “Bakaito always says that he has a 400 IQ. Aoko didn’t even know that there was an IQ that high!”

‘More precisely it’s 412 IQ, Ahoko.' KID thought while wincing inwardly, but Conan and Ai turned to look at Aoko. Several others stared with interest.

“400? Not bad. Conan-kun has a 203 IQ, while Shinichi-kun has a 421 IQ. I myself have a 397 IQ.” Ai smiled, as if reminiscing. “But having a high IQ doesn’t mean you can’t have one thing you love, and it doesn’t mean you can do everything perfectly.”

Heiji almost choked and stared at them wide-eyed. “Wha—421?! 421 isn’t an IQ!”

Conan and Ai exchanged glances. “How surprised would Hattori-niichan be if I said that Niichan IQ in deduction is higher than that?” Conan asked dryly, completely ignoring Heiji’s protests as if the Osakan detective wasn’t there and could hear them.

“Well, Shinichi-kun’s IQ in deduction is 698, while you’re at 350, but that’s only in your detective work.” Ai sighed and shrugged as she gestured to Heiji. “How high do you think his IQ is?”

“Nah. I don’t want to count it.”

“Six—698 isn’t a number!” Heiji protested, but Conan and Ai ignored him. Shinichi beside him also didn’t move at all as if he was in a deep sleep even though he had managed to say something earlier. “Oi Kudo! Say something!”

"Something." Conan and Shinichi said at the same time, making Heiji look at them both as if betrayed.

[Conan immediately ran and jumped to hug Shinichi when he saw his brother sitting in a wheelchair. “Niichan!”

Shinichi opened his arms wide and hugged Conan back, gently lifting him and sitting him on his lap. “Hello, Conan. How was your day?”]

They ignore the screen and focus on the interesting information they just got.

“Is there really an IQ that high?” Kazami asked, almost in disbelief at what he was hearing. But as far as he knew, there was someone in America named Adragon De Mello who was born in 1976 and had a 400 IQ.

“Ho, interesting. Are you saying that Shinichi-kun and Conan-kun have two IQs? One for deduction and the other for normal things?” Furuya asked. He believed that the two children could have such high IQs, because he had seen how the two brothers worked.

“Yep!” Conan nodded, still ignoring Heiji who was giving him an ‘I-can’t-believe-this’ look.

KID who heard this couldn’t hold back his eagerness. “You guys have to come to my heist. I insist! I want to have a battle of wits with you, Meitantei! If Tantei-kun is that great, then how great are you?”

That statement unexpectedly made Conan laugh. “Oh, poor, poor KID. You don’t even know what you just said.”

“… Tantei-kun?” okay, KID was starting to feel scared. The boy never laughed at the challenges he gave.

Even the others (apart from Akai, Furuya, Ai and Yume) started to get worried.

“You think Niichan never came to your heist? Tsk tsk tsk, even though Niichan already gave hints in this movie.” Conan clicked his tongue, almost mockingly, making KID shiver.

[Conan looks at Shinichi's still slightly pale face with worry, but obediently tells him about his day when he sees his brother's gentle smile. He then starts to complain about Kogoro's self-willed and untidy behavior. The agency that Ran has tidied up every morning is also a mess because of the snack wrappers and beer cans that Kogoro consumed.

His complaint made Shinichi chuckle and Agasa asked if Detective Kogoro was really helpless. Conan replied that the man couldn't do anything by himself, making Agasa scold Conan a little and said that Kogoro was once a talented policeman.]

“Conan, that’s enough, don’t tease him anymore. He’ll faint in fear.” Shinichi chuckled, then turned to look at KID who was now looking at him warily. “I’m flattered, but I’m not interested in thieves. Although, I admit that I always come to look—just look.”

KID who opened his lips to protest closed his mouth again quietly. “… but I still want that battle.” he said with a pout.

Shinichi hummed softly before falling back to sleep. “Mnh, we’ll see,”

[Agasa then says that Conan shouldn't rush, because when they find out that Shinichi's body was never found, they will come looking for Shinichi on their own.

“By the way, Shinichi-kun, Conan-kun, I tried to call your parents yesterday, but they didn’t pick up at all.” Agasa said, making Conan’s expression darken and Shinichi’s gaze grow cold.]

Seeing that the film in front of them was once again discussing the Kudo family's problems, the others tried to ignore it and went back to discussing the IQ that Shinichi, Conan, Ai and 'Kaito' had.

“I knew the detective geek was a genius, but isn’t that too genius?! No wonder he can take as many absences as he wants and his grades never drop! Why is life so unfair?!” Sonoko protested.

“Ahaha… but Sonoko, we can look at the bright side. Nakamori-chan said that her friend has almost the same IQ as Shinichi.” Ran tried to calm her down.

“Yeah! Kaito and Kudo-kun can meet again and compete in their wits! Aoko wants to see how Kaito will fare against someone who has the same genius as him!”

“Bold of you to assume that the Demon of Light never met Kuroba-kun again after they were separated by dark memories.” Akako grumbled, but only Saguru, Ran and Aoko heard her.

[“… you don’t have to bother, Hakase. They’re busy with their honeymoon. Plus, with the editor always chasing after Tousan, there’s no way they’ll pick up the phone.” Shinichi smiled, as if he was used to it. While Conan on his lap curled up and rested his head on Shinichi’s shoulder.

Noticing the two brothers' mood, Agasa changes the subject and says that he made something for Conan after hearing from Shinichi that Conan needed a tool to defend himself in case Shinichi wasn't there.]

Yuusaku and Yukiko hugged each other, looking as if their two sons had just slapped them. They just realized that Conan and Shinichi looked… very lonely and hurt.

“Ho, so he’s the professor who made those impressive gadgets for you guys?” James asked. He shared a glance with Akai and watched with interest what Agasa had made for Conan.

“The gadgets that cool boy uses are always sophisticated and unexpected. But I just found out that the professor made them.” Jodie commented. If the FBI could use such gadgets, they could do their job much easier.

[Agasa pulls out a bow tie and gives it to Conan who is still sitting on Shinichi's lap. “I made this! A voice-changing bowtie! You can change your voice to someone else's! Old people, children, women, men, everyone! Try it!”

Shinichi watched from behind Conan, while Conan excitedly started fiddling with the bowtie and trying it on. “Aa, Aa~, Aa! Aa Wow this is so cool! Hey Agasa-hakase, can you make even cooler gadgets? Like, you know, a tool that can take out a criminal in one move!”]

Kogoro, Ran and Sonoko narrowed their eyes when they heard about the 'voice changing bowtie'.

“… brat, you didn’t drug me to do your deduction, did you?” Sonoko asked Conan. Her eyes eyed the red bowtie Conan was wearing around his neck suspiciously. “If Hakase can make a bowtie like that, then it’s not impossible that he can make something that can drug someone in seconds without anyone knowing.”

Ran gasped. “Conan-kun? You didn’t drug Tousan and Sonoko, did you? They have two things in common when it comes to solving cases…”

“Sleeping while solving a case…” they muttered, making Conan wince and hide a little beside Ai.

At this point, some of the police were also flabbergasted. “So the one who solved the case behind Mouri-san was Conan-kun all this time?!”

Kogoro rubbed the back of his neck that had been hurting like a sting too often when he was trying to solve a case. He narrowed his eyes at the boy who lived with him, but kept his mouth shut until the ridiculous theory was proven.

[Agasa looks satisfied and says he’ll think of something, while Shinichi sighs fondly. “Remember, Conan, don’t go into danger alone, okay? At least take Ran with you, and call me if you guys get into a really bad situation.”

“Hehe, I will, Niichan! But… even if Hakase could make me something, I think it would also be useless in an Agency that has no work.” Conan pouted again as he remembered what happened in the past three days.

Shinichi just hugged him, not knowing what to say. But Agasa said that if Conan could make Kogoro a great and famous detective, then the cases would flow naturally.]

Ran gasped. “Conan-kun!”

Conan laughed awkwardly, then apologized to them in a low voice. “Uh… sorry, Otchan, Ran-neechan, Sonoko-neechan…”

“Brat! You can’t drug people like that!” Kogoro started to grumble. A vein was forming on his head, making Conan wince even more awkwardly. “You could have told us what you found out instead of drugging someone to be your mouthpiece!”

Conan looked like he wanted to argue, but thought better of it and kept his mouth shut.

Kogoro took a deep breath after ranting. He rubbed the back of his neck—the place where Conan had been using the anesthetic all this time—and asked how often Conan had increased the dosage of the anesthetic.

The question made Conan, Ai, Yume and Agasa freeze. “Uh, we never increased the dose of the anesthetic.”

[The scene changes back to the Agency, where Conan has just come home and Ran greets him, saying that she will cook dinner. Kogoro himself is asleep in front of the television with the table full of trash.

Conan thinks that making Kogoro a great detective will be an impossible task. Especially when Kogoro's alarm goes off and the man gets up in a panic to turn on the television.

“Yoko-chan!!!”]

“Eh? Never? Not at all?” Sonoko asked. She exchanged glances with Ran and said what they were all thinking. “Won’t Kogoro-ojisama build up an immunity if that brat drugs him too often?”

“How strong is the anesthetic? Otousan always suddenly ‘falls asleep’, so the anesthetic Conan-kun used must be very strong.”

Conan looked at Ai and Yume who stared back at him. “We… aren’t sure. The dosage I used was only increased twice—and I didn’t use it on Otchan.”

“Yeah, if we’re talking about the dosage level used, Shinichi-kun’s stun gun has a dosage five times higher than what Conan-kun usually uses.” Agasa explained. The old man looked at Kogoro with worry as he said that. “But Shinichi-kun has never used it on anyone other than criminals…”

“Huh,” Kogoro muttered, still rubbing the back of his neck.

“Ojisan, we should check on you after we get out of here. Continuously passing out from the same dose of anesthetic means you haven’t built up any immunity to it at all.” Ai said, causing Conan and Yume beside her to nod in agreement.

“That’s right, Otchan! You should let Ai-san check you out!”

Kogoro looked like he wanted to argue, but eventually sighed when he saw the pleading gazes of Ran, Conan, Yume and Sonoko. “Do as you please.”

[While Kogoro was busy watching Yoko Okino, someone knocked on the Agency's door and Kogoro grumbled and opened it. The man almost chased his own potential client away when he suddenly turned around and looked back at the woman who would become his client.

“You… you… n-no way… Yoko Okino?!” Kogoro shouted, stuttering that Yoko Okino should be on television, causing the woman to awkwardly say that it was just a recording and that she needed Kogoro’s help.]

“You know, I was quite surprised that Kogoro-ojisama was able to get a case from Yoko-san.” Sonoko commented when she saw the famous actress appear at the Agency’s door. “No offense, Kogoro-ojisama, but you weren’t that famous back then.”

“Plus he almost drove away his own potential client. I still feel bad for Yoko-san for that.”

“Um, you guys don’t want to comment that since Tantei-kun stayed at the Agency, Tantei-baka has been getting cases more often?” KID asked, unfortunately only Saguru and Heiji were listening.

“It’s as if Edogawa-kun is drawing attention to the case to come to him…” Saguru commented.

“Man, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Hakuba’s right. I almost envy you guys, Kudo!” Heiji snorted, causing Conan stare at him flatly.

“Hattori-niichan, you haven’t forgotten what happened when we met, right? A corpse literally fell from the sky, remember?”

Heiji blinked. “… oh, right.”

[As fast as lightning, Kogoro ran in and out shortly after with a neat suit like a gentleman, making Conan ask who the person pretending to be Kogoro was and Yoko looked stunned as she answered that there was indeed someone bothering her.

They then sat down and Yoko began to explain that someone was following and watching her. The woman also explained that it was not a reporter from a magazine. What happened to her was too strange because when she went home, her furniture was in a different place. Yoko also had her photos taken secretly, and she also always got voice calls without anyone talking.]

“Eh?! There was a stalker who had been stalking Yoko-san?!” Kazami asked in disbelief. He knew that life as an idol was tough, but he didn’t expect that an idol as good as Yoko would be harassed like that.

Conan groaned and Ran smack her own forehead tiredly. They both glanced at Kogoro who was now looking at Kazami with a sparkle in his eyes.

'Oh no.’

[Yoko said that someone was chasing her last night, causing her manager to say that they wanted Kogoro to do a secret investigation because if the police found out about this, Yoko's reputation could be in danger. Without thinking, Kogoro agreed. He then asked for Yoko's phone number, address, and signature, saying that Yoko could leave everything to the great Detective Mouri Kogoro.

They then plan to go see Yoko's house, causing Ran to stop them and ask if she and Conan can come along since Ran is curious about an idol's house. Kogoro then allows them to come along, as long as they don't interfere with his investigation.

The scene changes to Yoko's apartment complex and Kogoro excitedly says that he can see why Yoko Okino lives there, causing Yoko's manager to reprimand him and say that Yoko's residence is a secret.]

Kazami looks at Kogoro with envy. He also wants to get Yoko's autograph and meet his idol in person!

“By the way, Ran, don’t you often go to Shinichi-kun’s house?” Sonoko asked Ran beside her. “Both of his parents are famous people too.”

“Mou, Sonoko, that doesn’t count!”

[They enter and go up to the 25th floor. Ran, Conan and Kogoro enjoy the view from the window and Yoko unlocks her apartment door, inviting them in. But Yoko suddenly becomes stunned with a pale expression, causing her manager to ask what's wrong and Kogoro, Ran and Conan quickly push Yoko away to see what's really going on.

They gasped when they saw a man bleeding with a knife still stuck in his back.]

Almost everyone there let out a sigh.

“It’s only been a few days in Beika and he’s already got a murder case.”

“I can’t believe this. Are you two really cursed? Shinichi-kun also always gets cases wherever he goes.”

“Um, are Edogawa-kun and Kudo-san okay? From what you guys said, they always run into things like that…” Aoko squirmed in her seat. The girl’s face was a little pale, making the others worried.

At first glance they knew that Nakamori Ginzo's daughter was not used to murder cases that occurred. The girl was also not used to violence, unlike Sonoko, Kazuha and Ran who were already quite fed up with all kinds of cases that people around them got.

“Ah… don’t worry, Niichan made sure that I understood that the world is never just black and white. Niichan also signed me up for a psychiatrist and made sure that we both had sessions with them after we got a, uh, bad case.”

“Conan-kun, do you guys often get cases like this in America?” Ran asked, suddenly curious about Conan’s childhood in America. “I never knew you went to a psychiatrist… did you guys go when you were ‘staying’ at Sanashi’s house?”

“Yep! But in America, there are more cases of theft and fraud. Niichan and I only often encounter murder cases in Japan. And yes, we left when I went back to Niichan’s house!”

[Kogoro tells Yoko's manager to call the police, but Yoko's manager begs for this case to be resolved in secret. Kogoro says with an embarrassed smile that Yoko's manager is right and that this should be resolved in secret... before going berserk and asking if Yamagishi—Yoko's manager—is insane. He then tells Ran to call the police.

The police quickly swarm the building and Megure asks to make sure of the whole incident, inwardly complaining that he will received someone other than Kogoro. He then asks Yoko if she always has the room temperature this hot. The idol denies it and Megure says that she turned off all the electricity when she left.]

“The room temperature is hot?” Saguru muttered. His eyes were watching the screen intently, as were Masumi and Heiji. “Yoko-san turned off all the electricity when she left the house, but how come the house is hot?”

“The man or the killer must have turned on the heater! But for what?”

[Conan silently began to investigate the entire room and unconsciously replied to the Inspector who Kogoro called 'Megure' that there were several traces of water droplets around the victim's body, then also the chair that was still standing next to the victim's body, explaining that the others were very messy and had fallen over.

Kogoro and Megure looks at Conan, making the boy suddenly realize that Shinichi wasn't there and no one would listen to a child's explanation. "Oh, um..." he mumbled, making Kogoro irritably hit him hard until his head bumped and scolded him.]

“Dried water droplets? Things are all over the place but there’s only one chair standing…?” Masumi narrowed her eyes. She knew this was an old and solved case, but she still wanted to try to solve it.

“Ku—Conan, you never told me about this case!” Heiji looked almost pouting, but his eyes were watching the screen intently, trying to find another clue.

Megure massaged his head, he didn't want kids hanging around crime scenes, especially at murder cases. But he knew he couldn't stop Conan... or Shinichi and the other teenage detectives, for that matter.

[Megure then asked the officer about the cause of the victim's death and the officer replied that his death was caused by a knife stuck in his back, most likely instant death. The knife was Yoko's knife, so Yoko's fingerprints must have been on it.

Megure then asked Yoko and Yamagishi if they knew the victim, and they replied that they were so scared and shocked that they hadn't gotten a good look at the victim. After that, Megure told them to look at the victim's face.]

“They lied.” Saguru said. “Their expressions said they knew the victim… but why did they lie?”

“Maybe because they’re afraid of ruining Yoko-san’s reputation?” Aoko asked, trying to think rationally, but she couldn’t stand the sight of corpses and blood, so she looked away from the screen.

[Yoko and Yamagishi were shocked when they saw the victim's face, and Yamagishi said he wanted to take a closer look. But when the man got closer, he slipped and fell on the victim's body and panicked and immediately crawled backwards.

One of the officers warned him, but Conan focused on Yamagashi's grip on his hand. 'Just now… he took something from the victim's hand?'

Yamagashi put the evidence in his pocket while saying that he didn't recognize the victim, but was careless and let a strand of hair fall. Conan quickly went over and picked up the hair.]

“Probably the killer’s hair. Maybe he fought back before he was killed…” Masumi muttered as she watched the screen, as if she could be there and check it herself. “The hair is long, so whoever the killer is, they’re someone with long hair.”

“And blonde.” Heiji added. “Damn, seeing all this makes me frustrated that I can’t investigate it myself.”

[Conan thinks that the hair is in the victim's hand, and he wonders if Yamagashi is the killer because he tried to hide it. Conan then walks around the room to check for anything he might have missed and finds an earring under the sofa.

Kogoro is still busy arguing with Megure that Yamagashi is the culprit because he has the spare key to Yoko's house. The man even accused Yamagashi of lying and the man was heartbroken because he was rejected by Yoko until Yoko intervened and said that what Yamagashi said was true.]

“Or maybe, he was trying to protect Yoko-san. As detective-san said, the hair in the victim’s hand was long and the only person with long blonde hair was Yoko-san.” Saguru looked at Yoko’s hair and realized that it was the same color as what was in the victim’s hand.

“Ah, we haven’t met before, have we? I’m Sera Masumi, I used to live in London. Nice to meet you!”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Hakuba Saguru. Forgive my curiosity, but you are from London? I’m often called to solve cases there, perhaps you’ve heard of me?”

“Oh sorry, I was busy with internal family matters, so before I came to Japan I rarely handled cases. But I think I've heard your name.”

Saguru looked happy to hear that, making KID sneering. Unfortunately, no one noticed the thief because they were busy looking at the other clues Conan had found.

[Conan tried to pull the hem of Megure's shirt and show him what he found, but Kogoro and Megure just stared at him in annoyance. Seeing that look, Conan stopped talking and without saying anything walked away.

In his heart, Conan complained and thought that if Shinichi was there, his brother would have solved the case and would listen to what Conan said. He then started to get annoyed with his age as a child so that adults wouldn't listen to him.]

Megure winced when he saw his old attitude towards Conan. “Sorry, Conan-kun, but in my defense, children shouldn’t be hanging around a murder scene.”

Conan sighed. “I know, Megure-keibu. But it’s okay because now you’re at least willing to listen to my opinion.”

“Conan-kun, it seems like Megure-keibu didn’t mean that…” Takagi grimace, while Megure beside him was already massaging his head with a resigned expression.

['Wait, an adult…? Ah!' Conan suddenly had an idea and pulled out the bowtie that Agasa gave him. The boy then stealthily hid behind the sofa and fiddled with it before shouting. “Inspector! Look what’s under the sofa!”]

Some people groaned and some others smacked their own heads.

“This case happened at least a year ago, right?” Chiba asked, while Shiratori beside him nodded tiredly.

“Honestly, I don’t want to know how many times Conan-kun has drugged someone and solved a case with that voice-changing bowtie of his.” Megure closed his eyes, knowing that wherever there was a case, there was either Conan or Shinichi OR both of them.

Conan still had the nerve to smile awkwardly when he heard that.

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Tbc.

Chapter Text

[Megure wonders who is talking, but still bends down and looks under the sofa. He quickly picks it up with a handkerchief and Yoko says that it belongs to Yuuko. When Megure asks who it is, Yoko replies that Yuuko Ikezawa is an idol who debuted at the same time as her.

Yamagashi then said that he heard that Yuuko Ikezawa held a grudge against Yoko for taking her role. Hearing this, Kogoro immediately ordered the police officers to arrest her because he was sure that Yuuko was the culprit.]

James Black stared at what Conan was doing with interest. Agasa's innovations and gadgets were really useful! He knew that Akai also used it under his turtleneck when he was 'Okiya Subaru', but he didn't know that the voice-changing device could imitate other people's voices.

Beside him, Camel and Jodie look at the Japanese police officers with pity. They have to deal with a genius boy named Edogawa—or Kudo?—Conan AND also a teenager who is equally genius—or maybe more genius—as a detective who always gets cases wherever they go.

God knows how many cases have fallen into their laps because of the Kudo brothers.

[Scene shifts to Yuuko who exasperatedly says that she is indeed angry that Yoko took her acting spot, but argues that the murder happened in Yoko's apartment so they should have suspected Yoko first.

Kogoro growls angrily and Megure quickly tries to intervene, explaining that the victim's body was found with a knife in his back and they didn't find any fingerprints other than Yoko's. Megure also explains that this place is the 25th floor, where no one can enter unless they have access.]

“Hey, didn’t Yamagashi say that Yoko-san’s spare key was missing?” Heiji asked. “So whoever did it could have gotten in with the access key they stole from Yamagashi.”

“Makes sense… but that’s if someone intentionally stole Yoko-san’s apartment key.” Saguru chimed in. His eyes were still keenly observing the details of what the screen in front of them showed.

Kogoro snorted. “Well, it’s true anyway—”

“Kogoro-san, please don’t spoil anything!!!” Heiji and Masumi shouted at the same time, causing Kogoro to immediately shut his mouth in a sour manner.

[Yuuko laughs and says that it has nothing to do with her since it's her first time here. Kogoro refutes her and asks why Yuuko's earring is there, accusing the manager downstairs of seeing someone who looks like Yuuko wandering around based on evidence.

This irritates Yuuko and she says that this is all ridiculous. They can't accuse her of murder just because of an earring. She demands to be let go home, even provoking Kogoro and Yoko before going to the bathroom.]

Sonoko frowned when she saw it. “Wait, has she been to Yoko-san’s apartment before? How does she know where the bathroom is?”

Her words made the other three teenage detectives—Heiji, Saguru and Masumi—take notice and start paying closer attention to Yuuko.

“You know, Yuuko’s body structure is similar to Yoko’s.” KID commented, making Aoko next to him hiss in annoyance and immediately accuse him.

“You only watch them so you can imitate them and use their identities to trick the police!”

KID immediately raised both hands and moved away from Aoko, making him sit side by side with Shinichi if the armrest between them wasn't in the way. "I didn't mean it like that, Nakamori-chan,"

Aoko snorted and looked away, as if not realizing that she had just attracted attention with her sudden tantrum. This made Saguru, KID and Ran grimance. Even Sonoko frowned because Aoko behavior that doesn't reflect a teenager like her age.

Akako on the other hand scoffed and muttered “foolish girl” under her breath.

[Conan was stunned when he saw Yoko and Yuuko from behind. They both looked similar. He also wondered how Yuuko knew where the bathroom was if she had never been there.

Conan tries to tell Kogoro, but the man looks at him VERY annoyed and Ran pulls him away. The girl hugs Conan to her chest, making Conan want to rebel because he doesn't like being hugged, but Ran's words stop him.]

“But, what KID and Conan-kun said is true. Yuuko-san and Yoko-san look similar from behind.”

“And she’s suspicious. How could she know the layout of Yoko-san’s apartment if she’s never been there before?”

Kogoro sighed when he saw his previous attitude towards Conan. But he refused to feel guilty because a murder scene was no place for a child to roam around, regardless of whether the child was a genius or not.

[“If Shinichi were here, he would have solved this case right away…” Ran then rubbed her cheek on Conan’s head, asking herself worriedly where Shinichi was now.

'Ugh, this sucks. I don't want to hear this. Niichan already said that he only thinks of Ran-neechan as his sister. How can Ran-neechan think that their friendship could be anything more than siblings? Aaah, Niichan, hurry up and tell Ran-neechan so I don't have to listen to this one-sided love!' Conan thought, letting Ran hug him for a while before squirming away.]

“Um…” Sonoko mumbled, a little awkward with what she had just found out a few moments ago. “I now knew that Shinichi-kun’s heart had been in his childhood friend’s possession for a long time, but I wonder why you never told us? If you had told us earlier…”

Ran held Sonoko’s hand with a guilty expression. “Sonoko… she told me when we went to London… and… looking back, don’t you realize that all this time he always distances himself whenever someone has feelings for him? I… I was too blind for not realizing it from the start.”

“NANI?!” Sonoko shouted, almost in disbelief. “London?! That was almost three months ago! Why didn’t you tell me?!”

“I asked Ran to keep it a secret.” Shinichi spoke up. “Just telling her is dangerous enough. I can’t let Ran tell you and have them target you guys just because them overheard you.”

“You think I can’t keep a secret?” Sonoko asked with a bit hurt in her voice.

“It’s not like that. But I couldn’t let them hear what I said to Ran. You didn’t even know you were being tapped, did you?”

Sonoko blinked in surprise before screaming again. “EEEEH?!”

[Elsewhere, Shinichi who was busy with his book suddenly raised his head. “Huh? Is someone talking about me?” he asked himself. Across from him, Agasa who was also busy with his things also raised his head, unconsciously diverting his attention from the gadget he was making.

“What’s wrong, Shini—” Before Agasa could finish speaking, his gadget exploded.

BOOM!

“Ah! Hakase!” Shinichi frantically opened the window and let the smoke out, while Agasa was now coughing with a black face.]

Ignoring the screen that kept running, Conan helped Shinichi explain. “I once found a bug attached to your shoe, Sonoko-neechan. Then every few months at the Agency there’s also a bugs… but don’t worry! I always destroy the bugs of those bad guys ‘accidentally’, hehe.”

His words made the police officers worried. Even Kogoro frowned. “… Brat, why didn’t I know about this?”

“I didn’t know either! Conan-kun, why didn’t you tell me?!” Ran asked with worry mixed with panic. Her face had turned pale because of this unexpected information.

“The bug is always placed in the agency office… don’t worry, they never put it in Kogoro-otchan’s room. Uh, but I don’t know about your room, Ran-neechan.”

Ran took a deep breath, trying to suppress her panic. “After this, you have to tell me how to recognize that terrifying device, Conan-kun.”

“Me too, brat. How dare they try to bug my office?!”

[Back at Yoko's apartment, Yuuko is again angry and says that she was never in Yoko's apartment. She even accuses Yoko of stealing her earring from her while taking a lighter and starting to smoke. Conan with a sweet smile immediately takes the lighter and says that Yuuko is great for knowing that it is a lighter and not a decoration, even though it was her first time there.

Her words made Megure and Kogoro suspicious. They immediately interrogated Yuuko right away. When Yuuko tried to deny it, Conan asked Yoko again where the bathroom was, making Kogoro realize that from the beginning Yuuko seemed to know the layout of Yoko's house even though she had never been there before.

Yuuko, who was constantly pressed, finally admitted that she had been in Yoko's house with a spare key that she stole from the studio, but she did not kill the victim. She only fought back when the victim attacked her. Yuuko also admitted that she bullied Yoko because Yoko stole her work.]

“Hearing what they did makes me feel like this case is not dangerous…” Masumi muttered. She was surprised that they went that far, especially since Conan was able to notice the existence of a bugs in the Agency.

“Yeah. I agree with you. How dangerous is the organization of those two, Kudo-kun? They even dared to bug Mouri-san’s office just to make sure if Kudo-kun was really dead.”

Conan hums, “I guess you’ll find out soon enough, Hakuba-niichan.”

His words did not calm the police, KID and Saguru at all. They instead became even more worried about the danger Conan and Shinichi faced.

Especially KID. He knew his enemy—Snake—was dangerous, but from what he had heard so far, even Snake was less dangerous than the organization that Meitantei and Tantei-kun were after.

[The police managed to find out the victim's identity when Yuuko finished confessing and explained that she made the phone call and took the photo. The woman also infiltrated Yoko's house to look for something that could be used as a scandal. The victim's name is Fujie Akiyoshi, 22 years old and after graduating from Kounan High School, she worked at Kakubeni Corp and recently left the company.

Kogoro asks isn't Kounan High School where Yoko goes to school and Yamagashi denies it, saying that it's a coincidence. But Yoko says otherwise and timidly says that she knew him from the beginning because they were a lovers when they were in high school.

Yoko then explains that Fujie dumped her when they were in High School, but when Yoko became famous, Fujie kept coming and asking if they could be together. Yoko even moved there to avoid Fujie, but she really doesn't know why Fujie is here.]

“Damn, I can’t focus on this case.” Heiji grumbled as he ruffled his hair in frustration. “You never told me about the bugs, Ku-Conan-kun!”

“You can’t keep a secret, Hattori-niichan. How many times have you mistakenly called me ‘Kudo’ in front of people? I don’t even know why Ran-neechan and Kazuha-neechan haven’t noticed yet.” Conan shrugged nonchalantly. “If I told you, you would definitely start searching every corner of the Agency to find it without caring that Ran-neechan and Kogoro-otchan don’t know.”

“Hey! I wouldn’t do that!” Heiji protested. Unfortunately, Kazuha, Sonoko and Ran were not on his side.

“That’s right, I’ve heard Heiji call Conan-kun ‘Kudo’ several times. I thought I misheard, but now that I think about it… you often call Conan-kun ‘Kudo’, Heiji.” Kazuha said while glancing at Heiji with a blank stare.

“Me too.” Ran added, followed by a nod from Sonoko.

[Conan who heard this thought back to the case from the beginning and realized that he was missing something. He looked around the room once again, looking at the chair and the water droplets around the victim's body, then the hot temperature of the room, and also the hair on the victim's hand.

Unintentionally, Conan stared at a mark on the floor, right in the middle of the victim's body lying. 'Wait, that's it! I solved this puzzle!']

Heiji kept his mouth shut knowing they were right (and he knew he couldn't win against them), so he focused his attention on the screen that now showed the entire room.

“They were ex-lovers… don’t tell me, Fujie committed suicide to get Yoko-san caught up in a scandal?!” Takagi muttered. This was an old case, but that didn’t mean that all police officers knew the whole story.

“Judging from the marks on the floor, could it be that the knife handle left a mark on the floor because Fujie-san jumped on it?” Chiba wondered. “The water marks around the victim could be the ice marks that Fujie-san used to embed the knife handle?”

“That could be. Because how did Fujie stab himself in the back without using something to hold the knife in place?”

[Kogoro accuses Yamagashi of being the culprit, and Conan kicks the ashtray on the table and hits Kogoro's head, silently apologizing to Kogoro for hurting his head. He then uses a voice-changing tie and explains his deduction, starting from what Yamagashi could have done, and so could Yoko, but they didn't do that. That makes Megure accuse Yuuko, but Yuuko is also not the culprit.

Conan in Kogoro's voice explains that Fujie killed himself by placing a knife on a block of ice. The evidence is the knife handle marks on the floor and dried water marks around the victim.

Yoko was almost hysterical when she asked why Fujie did it, and Conan answered that Fujie still loved Yoko, but misunderstood because he thought Yuuko was Yoko. Yuuko, who was panicking because Fujie's presence made Fujie think that his love had been rejected, made him want revenge by setting him up.]

Sonoko, Kazuha, Ran and Aoko gasped. "Conan-kun!"

“Ugh… sorry Ran-neechan! Sorry, Otchan! I won’t do it again!” Conan winced and whispered under his breath, making Masumi and Ai who were on either side of him roll their eyes. “If I could… of course.”

“You know, Mouri-kun, I was surprised because that was the first time you solved a case perfectly!” Megure looked like he didn’t know whether to laugh or slap his forehead. The man eventually chose to cover his face with both palms and groan.

“Oh! This is how the name ‘Sleeping Kogoro’ became famous!” Takagi whispered to Sato, making the woman snort in amusement.

[Yoko confusedly says that it's impossible because Fujie dumped her, but Yamagashi finally admits that he was the one who asked Fujie to break up with Yoko. At the same time, one of the policemen runs in with Fujie's diary, which contains how much he suffered when he broke up with Yoko and how he couldn't live anymore.

Megure, who was happy because Kogoro managed to solve the case with his accurate deduction, immediately praised him, making Kogoro blink in confusion because he was suddenly praised. Meanwhile, Conan behind the sofa just let out a tired sigh.]

Kogoro scratched the back of his head and grumbled. “No wonder I always don’t remember anything after solving a case.”

“And all this time he’s been receiving praise and recognition for something he didn’t do…” Shiratori muttered dryly. “But on the other hand, it’s a good thing that Conan-kun is using Kogoro-san to solve the case.”

“Yeah, I agree. His fame as the KID Killer and the leader of the Shounen Tantei-dan already makes him a target for criminals. He doesn’t need to add to his enemies by openly solving cases that adults can’t solve quickly.” Sato beside him nodded in agreement.

God knows how many cases where Sato or Takagi or even Chiba and Shiratori were called to catch pedophiles who tried to approach Conan. That's not including the criminals who tried to kidnap the boy.

Luckily Conan has many people who are protective of him, especially a girl named Fujimine Sanashi who somehow is always there when Conan is in danger. From what they know, Sanashi is Shinichi's cousin and Conan's distant cousin who is supposed to take care of Conan, but has to undergo therapy in America because of poisoning.

[A few days later, when Conan and Ran were walking home from the market, they saw Yoko on the screen. Ran complimented that Yoko was very strong for getting back on her feet after what happened to her.

Conan thinks that idols always need their fans and Yoko is just trying her best to hide her sadness. He doesn't know what to say, but Ran suddenly cries and says that she can't do and be as strong as Yoko.]

“Ran…” Sonoko whispered to her best friend who was now looking down with a sad smile. “You’re not weak, you know? You’re strong! It’s that Detective’s Otaku fault for making you worry! He didn’t even say anything!”

“Sonoko-chan is right, Ran-chan! You are strong! If there is anyone to blame, then you should blame Kudo-kun!” Kazuha chimed in, causing Heiji to elbow her for blaming Shinichi.

“Hey! Don’t blame everything on Niichan!” Conan protested. Beside him, Ai nodded.

“Shinichi-kun did the right thing by not telling you. Remember, he doesn’t know how dangerous they are yet. The best solution for that is to not tell anyone until he can be sure that they won’t hurt you because of your own negligence.”

“I understand that Shinichi-kun didn’t say anything to protect you. They had wiretaps in your house and you didn’t know about it. Logically, what Shinichi-kun did wasn’t wrong… but emotionally… I also understand why you’re mad at him.” Yume looked down with a sad expression. Even the girl looked conflicted.

“I guess, if you want a scapegoat, you should blame the organization that made Shinichi like this, hm? I know it’s not my place to comment, but if you look at it from both perspectives, you’re both right.” Yuusaku tried to explain, making Sonoko and Kazuha shut their mouths.

Ran herself just nodded and thanked her friends for trying to support her.

[“I can’t sleep just because Shinichi disappeared… I’m pathetic, huh?” Ran asked, making Conan feel uncomfortable. He understood Ran’s feelings, because he also felt the same way when his Niichan fainted because he used magic to save him.

'I understand that Niichan can't let anyone know that he's alive, but Ran-neechan looks so worried… I guess I have to persuade Niichan to contact Ran-neechan.' Conan thought before smiling at Ran and saying that he wanted to visit Agasa's house before going home. “Ran-neechan can go home first! I'll be fine!”

"Eh? Ah, okay, be careful on the road, Conan-kun!"]

“Oh Ran…” Sonoko hugged Ran as if trying to calm her bestfriend. “You’re not pathetic!”

“Hehe, yeah, I know that now. Thank you, Sonoko…” Ran replied, and then her eyes lit up when she saw that Conan was the one who persuaded Shinichi to contact her. “Oh… so that’s why Shinichi finally contacted me? Thank you for persuading him, Conan-kun…”

Conan's expression was blank for a few seconds before he nodded. "You're welcome, Ran-neechan."

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Tbc.

Chapter Text

[Conan awkwardly introduces himself in front of the class, causing the other kids to try to pronounce his name and laugh at him for his 'weird' name. Conan almost takes a step back in surprise, but stops himself at the last second.

His new teacher then says that they will spend first period showing Conan around the school. Hesitantly, Conan accepts.]

Some people gasped when they saw the sudden change in scene. Others squealed in excitement at Conan who introducing himself in front of the class on his first day of elementary school in Japan.

KID even cooed when he saw Conan standing in front of the class. “Tantei-kun is so cute!!!”

“Co-chan!!! Oh if only I could have taken a picture of him back then!” Yukiko squealed with sparkling eyes.

Conan rolled his eyes, grumbling under his breath that he had been embarrassed enough having his photo taken repeatedly by Yukiko when he entered elementary school in America.

['UGHHHH! SO BORING!' Conan groaned in his heart as the lesson started and realized that everything was so easy. He found it all boring, especially since his Niichan had taught him the subjects up until the first grade of junior high school.

“Thank goodness there’s sports today…” Conan muttered as he played with the soccer ball. He ignored the girls who complimented him and impatiently tried on the super shoes Agasa made for him.]

Ran cringed when she heard Conan's thoughts. She knew that her adopted brother was above average in intelligence, but she didn't expect that Conan had learned everything up until the first grade of junior high school.

“Shinichi-kun taught you subjects up until the first year of junior high school? And you understood the subjects, Conan-kun?” Takagi asked in disbelief.

“Well, the subjects aren’t that hard. Besides, Niichan also added other knowledge that could be useful in cases. Like the contents of encyclopedias, historical records, and tricks that pickpockets usually came in handy.” Conan explained. “Oh, and our hobby of reading also helps me remember and understand it all.”

“Ho, so that’s why Cool Boy can understand and solve cases so quickly.” Jodie didn’t know whether to be impressed or worried by Conan’s above average abilities. The kid was already in enough danger from frequently finding murder cases, he didn’t need criminals targeting him because of his genius brain.

['Um, this is my first time trying it… so I'll set it to medium… well, okay, let's try it!' Conan thought excitedly. He took note of his surroundings and kicked the ball, making sure that he aimed it at the goal away from the kids his age.

'Here I—Huh?” Conan was shocked when the ball he kicked became bright and suddenly shot up so—super fast, punching through the goal net and hitting a tree, causing the tree to collapse and break in two.

The teacher and his new friends were stunned, while Conan fell to the ground in shock. “I-Impossible…”]

KID shivering on his seat. He lost count of how many times Conan kicked the ball at that terrifying speed towards him.

Agasa laughed proudly, while several police officers smiled awkwardly.

“So from there Conan-kun can kick the ball until the criminals faint…”

“I suddenly felt sorry for the person who was the target of the soccer ball…”

Heiji and Saguru reflexively glanced at KID who was now smiling shakily.

“Did Shinichi-kun teach you, Conan-kun? I remember Shinichi-kun also often kicked something to knock out criminals who tried to escape.” Megure asked.

“Un! I copied it from Niichan!” Conan chirped proudly. “Niichan has a better aim than me, but now my aim is also better thanks to KID and the criminals who want to be my targets!”

“Ha-ha. Not funny, Tantei-kun! Your soccer ball is terrible!” KID immediately protested, making several people snort in amusement (especially Ran, Saguru, Heiji and Aoko).

[Conan walks out of the school gates thinking that he should be careful with his shoes, still a bit shocked by the force of the kick his shoes made.

“Conan,” someone called and Conan realized that Shinichi had come to pick him up as promised, albeit in a transparent form. “How was your day?”

'Niichan!' Conan immediately ran over and walked beside Shinichi, then began to tell him everything that happened on his first day of school.]

“Aww~! So cute! Shin-chan picked up Co-chan~! Why can’t I capture this?!” Yukiko screeched as she tried to turn on her phone. “Yuu-kun! Give me your phone and let me take a picture of them!”

Yuusaku resignedly handed over his phone, but it wouldn’t turn on either, causing Yukiko to pout and turn to her next victim. “Chika-chan, can I borrow your phone?”

Chikage took her phone and tried to turn it on, but it didn’t work. “That’s weird, do electronics not work here?”

The question made the others try to open their phones, but the result was the same, their phones wouldn't turn on.

"What happened…"

[Shinichi listens to Conan with a smile on his lips until they accidentally meet Kogoro who looks suspicious. Conan greets him, making Kogoro hiss in surprise and tell him to be quiet, saying that he is doing this for his job.

The Kudo brothers stare at the person Kogoro is following curiously, while Kogoro sends Conan home and ask him to tells Ran that Kogoro will be gone for a while, so there's no need to make dinner for him. Afterwards, Kogoro continues his 'observation', almost tripping over a trash can and making a scene, causing Shinichi and Conan to look at each other wondering if Kogoro is sure that the person he's following doesn't notice the man.]

The scene continues as if unconcerned with the panic that is starting to occur.

“Don't tell me this room blocks us from the outside world?”

“Damn! Then what will happen to us? Are we going to be in here forever without being able to get out?”

“Koizumi-san?” Saguru asked the witch beside him. After all, the one who told them that they couldn’t go out before finishing the ‘movie’ was Akako. “Do… do you know anything about this?”

Akako pursed her lips, seemingly concentrating for a moment before answering. “Don’t worry, we could be here for hundreds of years and not a second has passed in the real world. I’m sure you’ve noticed that you haven’t felt hungry, thirsty, or even needed to use the bathroom since earlier.”

“In other words, we are in another dimension separate from Earth?” KID asked, causing almost everyone to turn to look at him. “What? I am looking for a gem that can grant immortality. Something like this is normal—even if it has only been a theory and a myth.”

"If it's true that we are in a separate dimension from the real world, then it makes sense that we can't access technology here... Shinichi also couldn't force his way out of here even if he used magic." Yuusaku hums, looking too calm and relaxed in this uncertain situation. "Maa, I've never been in another dimension. This is an interesting experience!"

[The scene shifts to the Himatsuri festival held in Gunma Prefecture, Akaoni village. Hundreds of people are burning a giant log until some people notice that there are human bones burning inside. Immediately, panic and screams of horror are heard.

Back at the Agency, Kogoro is laughing and saying that his job is so easy. He gets 500 thousand yen just for following someone for three days. Ran smiles and says that Kogoro finally got a job.]

“But what about Niichan? His condition has been unstable since earlier. If this is another dimension, he should be fine.” Conan asked as he turned to look at Shinichi who was still in the same position as before. The teenager also didn’t move at all as if he was really asleep, even though previously he had sometimes chimed in on their conversation.

Akako shook her head. “All I know is that he’ll be fine. I don’t know why he’s still getting worse, since the ripples are obscuring Luficer’s vision.”

“In other words, something is blocking your vision of Shinichi-kun.” Ai nodded, then looked at Conan. “This is just my theory, but is it possible that Shinichi-kun’s soul is too weak that it’s causing him to be like this? You remember, he once said that he was ‘sleeping’ and ‘going into the subconscious’ to recover?”

“That… is possible. But he was awake just a moment ago, why now…”

“Maybe it was beyond his will. Didn’t Shinichi-kun say that Anesidora-san could forcibly lock him in the subconscious if Shinichi-kun’s soul approached Thanatos again?”

Yume's words made everyone there worried about Shinichi. Especially because of the name Thanatos, a name that symbolizes the personification of death, a god who takes human souls to the underworld after death.

[Kogoro snorts arrogantly and says that people have finally realized his genius. That makes Conan roll his eyes, but Ran says that Kogoro's work has been good since Conan came to live with them. She even thinks that Conan brought them good luck.

“By the way, how long do you want to keep this kid? I haven’t heard any reason why he should stay with us.” Kogoro asked while looking Conan up and down.]

“But looking at Shinichi-kun now… yeah, I can see him approaching Thanatos, again.” Ai decided after taking a closer look at Shinichi. “He’ll be fine. You can still feel your connection, right?”

Conan nodded, not completely relieved but at least more relaxed after hearing that.

“Wait, wait, what are you talking about? The subconscious? Can you explain it in understandable terms?!” Heiji asked, ruffling his hair in frustration. “What connection are you talking about, Ku—Conan?!”

Ai, Yume and Conan exchanged glances and silently decided that they would not explain it now because the 'movie' still playing in front of them would explain it in due time.

“Just sit back and watch, Hattori-niichan. You’ll understand in time.”

Heiji opened his mouth, ready to protest, but then realized that what Conan said might be true. So he closed his mouth again.

[Ran said that she met Agasa the day before and Agasa said that Conan was supposed to stay with his older sibling, but his older sibling got into an incident and now has to undergo therapy and can't take care of Conan. Their parents are agents and are finishing important work, so they can't be contacted. That's also one of the reasons why Conan came to Japan.

Kogoro tsked and asks that Conan will stay with them as long as he wants, causing Ran to retort that Kogoro should feel sorry for Conan for having no place to go.]

The others still weren't completely relaxed, but some started to pay attention again to the screen that was now explaining about Conan's 'older sibling’. After all, they couldn't go anywhere until the 'movie' in front of them finished playing.

“My gut feeling says that Sanashi-chan is actually Shinichi-kun in disguise.” Sato sighed and put her head in her hands, looking like she was tired of all this.

"Eh?! Sanashi-san?!" Sonoko startled when she heard those words. "Isn't she Shinichi-kun's older cousin on his mother's side?"

Masumi, Kazuha and Sonoko then turned to look at Yukiko who was now giggling. Heiji did the same, looking at Shinichi who was next to him and Yukiko alternately.

“… yeah I can see Shinichi-kun in Sanashi-san. Sanashi-san’s face is literally Shinichi-kun’s face, just different hair color and eye shape.”

“… her face also doesn’t wear a mask, I remember she often pulled her own cheeks during the inspection at the KID heist.” Ginzo added. “So Kudo must have only used a wig to disguise himself… but his voice, attitude and face became completely different, like a completely different person.”

“Well, Nakamori-keibu, you haven’t forgotten who his mother is, have you?” Chiba asked, glancing at Yukiko who looked very bright after hearing that Shinichi’s acting was good enough to fool the police.

[Conan grumbles in his heart that he has a place to go and he can come home anytime to his Niichan, but keeps his mouth shut when Kogoro looks at him suspiciously after commenting that the man wants to talk to his family since his family just threw him away while rubbing his head.

“I feel like I’ve seen you before… I think it was around when Ran was in elementary school…” Kogoro mumbled, causing Conan to panic because he knew that he looked a lot like Shinichi when he was a child. Luckily, the news on television saved him.]

“Well… you two are exactly the same, especially if you don’t wear those glasses, Conan-kun.” Ran confirmed.

Conan just grinned happily when he heard it.

Kogoro on the side grumbled when he saw Conan's grumbling in his heart. "Brat, I will still talk to your family, especially your parents who left you alone like that. I know Ran and I are not strangers to your family, but we are still strangers to you. I don't think it's good if you just trust us without getting to know us first." He said while glancing at Yuusaku and Yukiko with gaze full of judgment.

They still had the audacity to grin awkwardly when they heard Kogoro's sarcasm.

[Kogoro immediately turned around and almost shook his own television when he heard that the man he had been following for three days had been found burned to death.

Ran asks if Kogoro knows him and Kogoro replies that he was right behind the man for three whole days until yesterday, leaving Ran and Conan wide-eyed.]

“Oh, I know this case.” Shiratori eyes lit up in recognition. “This is the case involving the five hundred million yen insurance money, right?”

“Yes, how did you know?” Megure asked.

“I’ve heard the officers talking about it. They said the guy was caught and somehow went… a bit crazy.”

“A bit crazy?” Saguru asked curiously.

Suddenly, Ran giggled. “Oh, oh! So that’s what it means.”

“Ran? Do you know something?” Sonoko asked excitedly. “What? What? What happened? Oh wait! Don’t tell me! I’ll analyze it myself!”

Ran tried to hold back her laughter when she heard that. “Just watch, you’ll understand.” She said as she received confused looks from most of the people there.

[The scene changes again, this time showing Ran and Conan waiting in front of the police station. Conan is playing soccer with a smile on his lips, thinking excitedly about what case is happening this time and he can't wait to find out. Ran beside him just looks at him in confusion and wonders why Kogoro is so late.

On the other hand, Kogoro yelled in surprise when Megure said that Negishi Masaki, the victim, had a life insurance of five hundred million yen and the one who received the money from his life insurance was the victim's friend, Abe Yutaka.]

“Oh, I can see that he’s the killer. Seriously, that’s a common occurrence. Someone kills because they want their victim’s property.” Kazuha snorted. “Heiji comes across similar cases so often that I’m tired of hearing about them.”

“Kazuha is right. Usually it’s a simple case. Sometimes they blame someone else for their own actions, but sometimes they don’t deny it at all.” Heiji folded his arms and watched Abe smile ‘innocently’. “The tricky part is when they intentionally give the insurance to someone else, making that person the prime suspect.”

[Kogoro angrily points at Abe saying that he was the one who hired him, but why is Abe the one who got Negishi's insurance money. Abe then replies that it was just a game. They have known each other for 20 years since college and when they were drinking together, Negishi asked him to make a bet on who would live longer, starting at five hundred million yen, and Abe accepted but didn't expect that their bet would end in just three months.

Megure then asks why Abe sent Kogoro to follow Negishi and Abe replies that Negishi said that he was being followed and would be killed soon. Abe admits that at first he thought that Negishi was just joking, but his behavior was strange, so Abe took it seriously and asked Kogoro to investigate Negishi for three days to make sure.]

“Oh, he used Kogoro-ojisan as an alibi…” Masumi stared at the screen intently, trying to pay attention to Abe’s movements. “Yep. That guy must have killed Negishi to get the insurance money.”

“The question is, how? Abe Yutaka used Mouri-san to create an alibi, so how could Abe kill Negishi who was followed by Mouri-san for three days straight?” Saguru wonders as he opened his small notebook and began to scribble.

[Abe then excuses himself, saying that he is the leader of a small business and is usually busy. The man then says in a mocking tone that he would appreciate it if they could find out who killed Negishi, causing Kogoro to hiss in anger. “Damn it. He has a perfect alibi.” Kogoro mutters in annoyance as Megure comments that he can’t think of anyone else who would kill Negishi other than Abe, but Abe has an alibi so they can’t suspect him.

Kogoro then walks out of the police station and starts ranting all the way, causing Ran to ask why Kogoro didn't arrest him and her father replies that Abe had a perfect alibi. Furthermore, Kogoro is very annoyed that the man used him to create the alibi.

When Kogoro began explaining the timeline of Abe's departure and him following Negishi, Conan felt that there was something strange about it, but remained silent until they returned to the Agency and Kogoro began pouring over the folders containing photos of Abe during his vacation to Kyushu.]

“In a case like this, the answer is very simple.” Furuya muttered to Akai beside him. “Just like you faked your death and I disguised myself as you to lure your FBI colleagues out, Abe could have used someone else to pretend to be Negishi.”

Akai laughed lowly when he heard that. “I’m flattered that you would go that far to make sure I’m not dead, Furuya-kun.”

“Don’t be happy, you FBI dog!” Furuya hissed, making Akai laugh even harder with amuse dancing in his eyes. “What’s so funny, Akai Shuuichi?!”

“No, no, it's just fun to see you lose your cool like that, Furuya-kun.”

"Ahem. Can you stop flirting with each other as if the world only consists of the two of you?" Jodie asked while elbowing Akai.

Furuya's cheeks immediately turned red and through gritted teeth he hissed. "We're not flirting with each other."

Jidoe looked at him skeptically, but nodded not wanting to drag things out. “Sure.”

[The photos are numerous and Kogoro says that Megure allowed him to borrow them, explaining to Ran and Conan that Abe has all the alibis, even when the possible time of Negishi's murder occurred.

Conan looked at the photos Kogoro had arranged and realized something was strange. “Otchan, look at those photos! This guy must really like watches that all his photos have watches in them!”]

“Ooh, someone has the same hobby as Abe.” KID commented with an annoying grin.

Saguru just rolled his eyes and focused on the photos on the screen, ignoring KID's comment. "Maybe he did that to tell the time...?"

“Or maybe, he just liked watches.” Heiji added. “That doesn’t matter. Abe clearly went to Kyushu and hadn’t returned when Negishi was killed. What about Negishi’s photo?”

[Kogoro was shocked to realize that after Conan told him. But his focus shifted to Conan who was not like ordinary children. His instincts told him that Conan was a special child, because every time Kogoro felt stuck, Conan always gave him a hint. He wondered who Conan really was, but Conan suddenly noticed another folder that was still closed and jumped down from the head of the sofa he was climbing on.

“Otchan, what’s in here?” Conan asked as he lifted another folder that Kogoro had kept upside down, causing the photos inside to fall out and mix with the photos of Abe that Megure had lent him.]

Sonoko laughed dryly. “Ha-ha. Little pipsqueak is no ordinary child. After all, he attracts trouble wherever he goes. Moreover, he is Shinichi-kun’s little brother.”

Conan pouted, but didn't deny it at all because it was all true.

Yume and Ran giggled at Sonoko's sarcasm.

“But no matter how brilliant Conan-kun is, he’s still a kid.” Aoko frowned worriedly. “I don’t think a kid should be involved in and look into cases that should be solved by adults…”

Her words made Ran and Sonoko look at her with pity. “Nakamori-chan hasn’t fully realized it yet huh…?”

“Hah! Be my guest. That little pipsqueak is always and I mean is always attracted cases. Be it murder, theft, even riddles. I’m sick of it.”

“Yes-yes, I'm sorry my cursed luck often ruined your 'girls outing day' Sonoko-neechan.” Conan rolled his eyes at Sonoko's grumbling, not entirely feeling guilty since he knew she secretly loved the riddles they sometimes came up with.

Aoko looked even more worried because of that, making her look at Saguru for help, but the teenager also shook his head to indicate that he didn't want to interfere.

[Annoyed, Kogoro smacks Conan's head, causing the boy to hide behind Ran who scolds Kogoro not to hit Conan. Kogoro then clicks his tongue and starts smoking, telling Ran that the victim's ID was found in a field near Yagura in Himatsuri. The shape of the teeth also matches the data, so the body must be Negishi.

Conan's attention immediately focused on the information and he felt that everything was too deliberate. But he still couldn't find any clues that could narrow down the trick used by Abe.]

“Mouri-san… you shouldn’t smoke around children often.” Sato, who saw Kogoro start smoking, immediately smiled devilishly.

“You should tell Akai Shuuichi that too. He always smokes like he can’t breathe without it.” Furuya, who was still resentful because of Akai’s previous teasing, immediately added. “Conan-kun, Ai-chan, and Yume-chan are also often with him.”

“Yes, yes, Furuya-kun, I know you’re jealous because the kids often play near me. We can plan a vacation with them after we get out of here if you want. There’s no need to use drastic measures.”

“That’s not what I meant. Did you hit your head? Why are you like this?!”

“A-hem! Can you stop your domestic quarrel now and focus on what’s on the screen?” asked Jodie who elbowed Akai again, making Furuya fold his arms and look away as if he didn’t want to deal with them anymore.

Akai in the middle of Furuya and Jodie just smiled at his FBI partner, looking too happy with what had just happened and making Jodie hiss in warning. “Shuu, stop teasing him!”

“Hmm.”

[Conan almost glaring at the photos scattered on the table before his eyes noticed two similar photos. “Eh, this?” he muttered in surprise. He looked for other photos and found that in the photos on Monday and Tuesday, Negishi used his right hand as his dominant hand. But on Wednesday, Negishi switched to being left-handed. “Don’t tell me…”

Unfortunately, before Conan could finish his thought, Kogoro had already smacked him again and told him to stop playing around. Kogoro then said that the killer must be Abe, because he also had a motive. Megure had previously said that Abe's company had a debt of three hundred million to pay.]

“Hey Ku-Conan, are they always like that?” Heiji whispered to Conan in front of him. “Didn’t you say they hated each other?”

“I never said that and you better focus on the case on screen, Hattori-niichan.” Conan rolled his eyes and diverted Heiji’s attention. He didn’t want to get involved or comment on the relationship between the two agents.

“Ah, so the Negishi-san that Mouri Kogoro-san followed on Wednesday wasn’t the real Negishi-san.” Saguru nodded as if he had guessed it. “This explains Negishi-san’s time of death on Thursday and his transformation on Wednesday.”

“Oh, I see. Abe killed him on Wednesday morning before he left for vacation, hid the body, and then made sure he had an alibi during that time.” Masumi grinned happily. “He’s smart. Negishi’s appearance doesn’t help either since anyone could easily copy him.”

“There! What did I say. Heiji is used to seeing cases like this. The motive is always the same,” Kazuha smiled and turned to Heiji who was still staring at the screen in annoyance. “Hey! What’s with that expression?!”

[“I bet he’ll use the Nagashi insurance money he got to pay off his debt, then use the remaining two hundred million to go abroad!” Kogoro said, frustrated that the culprit was definitely Abe, but they couldn’t catch him. “He’ll hand over his work to the employees on duty and go on vacation. And he’ll be leaving tonight, at 9 o’clock sharp!”

Conan was shocked when he found out that they only had 3 hours. He thought that he didn't have any more time and decided to go to a public telephone and use it to call Kogoro with Megure's voice, then tell him to come to the airport. After that, he also did the same thing to Megure with Kogoro's voice.]

Heiji shook his head, not answering Kazuha's question and returning his focus to the screen.

“Oh so it was your doing?! Do you know we almost got into a misunderstanding because of you, brat!” Kogoro growled and pinched the bridge of his nose as if he had a headache. “I don’t know why no one suspected you after all this time.”

“Ha-ha-ha…” Megure laughed dryly—the man looked like he was about to sob when Kogoro reminded him of the cases Conan had solved. “I don’t know if I should retire or not after I get out of here…”

Conan scratched the back of his head, laughing awkwardly. “Ooops… sorry Otchan, Megure-keibu…”

[Scene changes to the airport, where Kogoro, Ran and Conan are waiting. Conan thinks that the plane is about to take off and they don't have any more time, so he secretly escapes and goes to lure Abe out to the parking lot.

At the same time, Megure and Kogoro meet. They are both confused because of the phone call Conan made earlier. Ran behind them looks left and right and looks for Conan worriedly.]

“You went alone? Isn’t that dangerous, Conan-kun?” Kazuha asked worriedly. “And did you break Kudo-kun’s words? Didn’t he say not to go after criminals alone?!”

“That’s right, brat! Didn’t Shinichi-kun say a while ago ‘at least take Ran with you’? Ran was there! Why didn’t you ask her?!” Sonoko scolded. Ran beside her nodded in agreement.

“I’m not weak, Conan-kun. You know how often I beat up criminals, right? Even though you didn’t know it at the time, I’m sure you knew that I was a karate champion.”

“A child shouldn’t be fishing and dealing with criminals! You should hand him over to the police!” Aoko added, looking determined to make Conan rely on the police.

Conan refused to react or answer other than a twitch of annoyance that was clearly visible in the corner of his eye.

[The scene shifts back to Abe walking alone in the parking lot. The man looks around until a voice begins to explain what he is actually doing. The voice also explains how Abe made an 'alibi' using Kogoro. When Abe finally finds out the source of the voice, he is shocked to see Conan sitting on the hood of the car.

Abe then laughed and admitted it, that he, Abe Yutaka, was the one who killed Negishi. The man even had time to rufling the top of Conan's head with a mocking expression. But Conan just smiled and said innocently that he would tell the police about Abe's confession while taking out the voice recording he had just taken.]

Almost all members of the first division police groaned when they saw the scene just now.

“Conan-kun!” Sato scolded. “You shouldn’t provoke criminals like that! You don’t know what they’ll do to you if you provoke them!”

“I was there, you knew I was there, why didn’t you wait for the police, Conan-kun?” Megure asked in an incredibly tired tone. He felt a cold chill run down his spine as he realized that this was just the beginning. “It seems… I really have to retire after this. This is more than I can handle!”

Takagi rubbed Megure's back to calm the inspector down even though he was also starting to have a headache because of the actions of the genius boy who unfortunately they loved like their own child.

[Hearing the recording of his own voice, Abe panicked and tried to strangle Conan, but Conan jumped back and a girl suddenly appeared, swatting Abe's hand away, then hitting him right in the throat. The girl had long, high-tied, brownish-blonde hair, almost making Conan think that Yukiko was in front of him.

When the girl turned around, Conan realized that the 'girl' was his own brother and couldn't hold back the sound of surprise that escaped his lips. “EEEEH?!”]

If earlier all the members of the first division police force groaned, this time almost all of them sighed and some even simultaneously slapped their foreheads.

Heiji even turned his head to look at Shinichi as fast as lightning and pointed at him tremblingly. “You, you, you—”

Shinichi didn't move. He didn't even twitch. As if he had truly fallen into a deep sleep.

Ran, who was previously giggling, now turned into a laugh. “Oh my gosh, hahahahahaha~”

“Ran! You know this?!” Sonoko screeched and looked at Ran with an expression full of disbelief. “I was still skeptical at first, Sanashi-san is so different from Shinichi-kun!”

“Aoko didn’t expect Kudo-kun to actually disguise himself as a girl… and you said that he was just wearing a wig?” Aoko asked with an… inexplicable expression on her face.

“Shin-chan is so pretty!!!” Yukiko gushed as she shook her husband’s arm excitedly, “Yuu-chan, Yuu-chan, look at our son!!! He’s so pretty!!! Oh I wish I had a picture of him… kyaaaa!!!”

Yuusaku could only resigned, while Chikage beside Yukiko giggled. “Your son is beautiful, Yuki-chan. If Kaito saw this, I’m sure he would blush so hard.”

KID who was sitting in front of Chikage could hear those words and he couldn't help but feel his cheeks heat up—a mixture of his mother's teasing and Shinichi's beautiful face.

[“Finish him off, Conan!” Shinichi shouted, and Conan reflexively turned on his super boots and kicked the tire of a nearby car towards Abe, causing the man to be hit and pass out instantly.

Soon after, the police started to swarm the place and they found Abe still unconscious with a tape recording continuously playing on his back. They wondered who did that, while Conan and Shinichi just watched from behind the car.]

“RANN!!!” Sonoko, who was still in disbelief, started shaking Ran when her best friend wouldn’t stop laughing. “You knew Sanashi-san was Shinichi-kun from the start?!?!”

Ran’s cheeks were almost sore from laughing, and she slowly tried to stop her laugh for answering Sonoko. But she couldn’t hide the amusement in her voice completely. “Oh no-no, but yes, I suspected it at first. And Shinichi told me the truth at London.”

“And you didn't say anything?”

“I feel like my theory is ridiculous. You know that I originally theorized that Shinichi shrank into Conan-kun. Plus, neither of us would have thought that Shinichi could act.” Ran patted Sonoko’s hand with a guilty smile. “And…”

[Conan then asks why Shinichi is there and what his appearance is all about, causing Shinichi to sigh. He says that this is his disguise, Fujimine Sanashi, named after their deceased cousin. He had a feeling that Conan was in trouble, so he came to check. His words make Conan laugh awkwardly, but he still lets Shi—Sanashi hug him tightly.]

Sonoko frowned as she watched the scene continue. “Oh… did you believe Sanashi-san is not Shinichi-kun because they showed you a photo of them when they were little?”

“Yes, Shinichi once showed me a photo of him and Sanashi-san when they were five and eight years old.” Ran agreed, but her gaze turned sad as she remembered what happened to the real Sanashi. “Although, Shinichi said that the real Sanashi-san died when she was nine years old from poisoning.”

"Oh... I'm sorry,"

The mood turns a bit grim when they learn that the real 'Fujimine Sanashi' is long dead, but quickly becomes lively again when the police realize what Abe's 'crazy' words they heard were meant.

[The next day, Kogoro grumbles and curses Abe for using him as an alibi, but luckily they are able to find the Negishi impersonator who was only ordered by Abe to wander around dressed like that without knowing anything.

“But what’s interesting is what he said afterward…” Kogoro muttered, remembering that Abe rebelled and shouted that he was defeated by a girl and a child. Kogoro then glanced at Conan who had fallen asleep in the middle of watching Kamen Yaiba, making Ran chuckle and say that it was impossible.]

“Everything makes sense now.” Megure seemed to have no idea what else to say other than repeating the same thing. He look traumatized. Poor man.

“Right, now I understand who Abe was referring to.” Shiratori added dryly. “Kudo-kun, Conan-kun, you two are truly public nuisance—or should I say ‘police nuisance’?”

Conan smiled sweetly and whispered to Ai beside him. “What if they find out what we’ve all done so far? I think they’ll all faint from high blood pressure.”

“Or die of a heart attack.” Ai replied, looking far too amused for the stressed and headache-ridden cops because of them. “Seriously, you two are impossible.”

“And you are part of it.”

“And I was dragged into your impossibility.”

Tbc.

Chapter Text

[Conan reads the newspaper with a frown on his forehead, causing Shinichi to raise an eyebrow and ask what is worrying Conan. He is once again sitting on a wheelchair—because his health has dropped again and the poison that has poisoned him has weakened his immune system. Using ‘magic’ yesterday to disguise himself and save Conan also did not help his health to recover quickly.

“Niichan, is it just me or are there more criminal cases here than in America?” Conan asked while pointing at the news in the newspaper, especially the news about the one billion yen bank robbery whose perpetrators have not been found.]

“You know, Edogawa-kun, at this point, I’m going to believe that you two are cursed.” Ai commented, causing Yume beside her to yelp in surprise and Conan to snort.

“Ai-chan!” Yume scolded.

“Well, considering all the cases that come my way even when I don't do anything… yeah, maybe we really are both cursed.”

[Shinichi blinked, a bit surprised by the question. “Hm? That’s true… ever since I came back to Japan, it feels like there’s a case every day, from the simple to the complicated.”

Conan's expression brightened and then said that it was a good thing because he could hone his detective skills, making Shinichi shake his head fondly.

Later, Agasa comes with his own glasses gadged and asks Conan to try them on, making Shinichi skeptical and Conan starts to fiddle with the glasses Agasa gave him. Agasa tells Conan that he can press a small button on the side of the glasses.]

The police and FBI stared at the glasses Agasa gave Conan with interest.

It's no secret that Conan can always find someone 'accidentally' and look into places that are impossible to see without telescope.

KID on the other hand blinked and touched his monocle carefully. It was the same monocle that Sanashi had returned to him on the second day of the Purple Nail heist. He had lost it on the first day because of Conan's soccer ball, and Sanashi had returned it to him on the second day.

His monocle had become more advanced since then. It could now see in the dark and could also zoom in and out on what he saw from a distance. He knew Tantei-kun's glasses could do the same—perhaps even more so than his monocle.

[Suddenly, the left lens turned dark with a map image. There was a red dot that was blinking and kept moving, making Conan ask what it was. Agasa replied that it was a transmitter he had installed on a stray cat and from its position, the cat was probably in a trash can two kilometers from his house.

Shinichi and Conan make impressed sounds and Agasa explains again that Conan can stick one of the transmitters on someone and Conan will be able to find them wherever they are as long as they are within a 20 kilometer radius. Conan accepts the transmitter Agasa gives him and comments that it looks like a sticker.]

Not just one or two people were amazed by the sophistication of the glasses that Conan was wearing.

“First the voice-changing tie, then the super shoes, then the glasses and the advanced transmitter. What else did Hakase make for you?” Shiratori asked tiredly. “A listening device? A belt that can shoot out soccer balls? A tranquilizer watch???”

Agasa laughed awkwardly because everything Shiratori said was true. “Well… hahaha, all my inventions are used by Conan-kun and Shinichi-kun to protect themselves…”

Megure let out a pained voice. “Shinichi-kun too?”

KID glanced at Shinichi who was still motionless beside him in fear when he heard that and he promised that he would never be Shinichi's enemy. If Conan's kicking power was already terrifying, what about Shinichi's? Plus, the detective had real magic!

Ginzo looked at the stressed Megure with pity. “Oi Megure, it seems like KID isn’t the only one causing headaches for the police… I’ll give you some advice on how to deal with them; “don’t take them too seriously.” That’s the only way we can stay sane in the face of their insanity.”

Megure now looks really serious about his early retirement plans after hearing his colleague.

[At the agency, a girl with two braids and round glasses begs Kogoro to find her father, leaving Kogoro somewhat stunned. The girl then explains that her father works away from home in Tokyo, but has been missing for a month. The girl's father also quit his job at the taxi company, and the girl also asked the police to look for him, but they couldn't find him.

Kogoro nodded and said that they could start right away when the girl said that she was absent from her school in Yamagata to look for her father. He started asking the girl to explain and the girl brought out a picture of a man with a cat named 'Kai' in his arms. The girl's name was Hirota Masami and the girl's father was named Hirota Kenzou. He loved cats and had three other cats named 'Tei', 'Gou' and 'Ou'.]

“Oh, Masami-san…” Ran murmured sadly. “I never knew what happened to her since her father died…”

Yume, Ai, and Conan exchanged glances.

“She’s fine, Ran-neechan, don’t worry.” Conan said to Ran, wincing secretly because Yume’s true identity would soon be revealed.

Yume nodded, her eyes looking at Ran with guilt and regret. “Ran-nee, you don’t have to worry about Masami, Shinichi-niisan saved her and gave her a second chance.”

Ran looked at the three children in confusion mixed with suspicion when she heard Yume's explanation and saw Yume's gaze. "... I guess I'll find out after this, right?"

“… yes.” Conan and Yume muttered at the same time.

[Conan watched their conversation and thought that searching for missing persons was not his specialty. He then thought that if Masami's father had a transmitter on his body, he would be able to find him immediately. 'That's it! I'll try this thing on Ran-neechan to see how well it works!' Conan thought and started to approach Ran from behind to attach the transmitter to her arm.

Unfortunately, Conan trips over a cable and falls right next to the girl who is Kogoro's client. Kogoro starts to throw a tantrum, making Conan laugh awkwardly even though he is panicking because the transmitter in his hand is gone. He quickly looks around and realizes that the transmitter is now attached to Masami's watch which he accidentally hit when he fell.]

Sonoko began to emit a terrifying aura, while Ran let out a tired sigh.

“Oi, brat!” Sonoko hissed, looking like she wanted to shake Conan and scold him right then and there.

“SORRY, RAN-NEECHAN!” Conan yelped before Sonoko could get up from her seat and shake him.

“Conan-kun… ugh I don’t know what else to say…” Kazuha glanced at Conan with exasperated mixed with tiredness. The girl started massaging her head, looking like she couldn’t believe what she had just seen.

[Before he could take back his transmitter, Conan was stunned when a tear fell and wet the watch Masami was wearing. Masami then said shakily that her mother died when she was little and her father was her only family left. The girl started to sob and made Kogoro, Ran and Conan feel sorry for her.

Masami just came out of Kogoro's detective office when night had fallen. The girl lowered her head and said that she would contact Kogoro every day. Ran then calmed her down and said that her father was a great detective and he would find Masami's father quickly.]

“Wait a minute. If Conan-kun accidentally attached the transmitter to Hirota Masami’s watch, doesn’t that mean Conan-kun can track her whereabouts?” Megure asked. He remembered this because the case involved a billion yen that was robbed from a bank. “The only perpetrator of the robbery who hasn’t been found is Hirota Masami, the other two have been killed.”

“And how did you know that Shinichi-kun saved her, Yume-chan?” Masumi asked suspiciously. “As far as I can see, you and Ai-chan weren’t living with Agasa Hakase at that time.”

Saguru and Heiji looked at Masumi and Megure in turn, “robbery?”

“The three of them—Hirota Masami, Hirota Kenzou, and Hirota Akira are the criminals who committed a bank robbery of one billion yen. Of the three perpetrators, only Hirota Masami’s whereabouts are still unknown. The one billion yen itself had already been found and returned when Akira was found murdered.” Kogoro explained, making the other police officers blink as they remembered the case.

“Strangely enough, most of the money was untouched—aside from the few million yen that Kenzou used—and was returned via anonymous phone call.” Megure added. “But hearing what Conan-kun said earlier… were you the one who told me where Masami kept it, Conan-kun?”

[Kogoro asked the police, even went to the taxi company where Hirota previously worked. He also went to several pet shops to ask about Hirota. But he still couldn't find any clues even though a week had passed. Kogoro apologized to Masami who called him and told Ran that this was the third time today.

'Hirota Kenzou isn't a social person… even his old coworkers don't know where he is, nor did he tell them that he has a daughter. I even checked all the Pet Shops, but there was no trace of him.' Kogoro thought, getting frustrated at not being able to find Masami's father.]

“Uuh…” Conan winced and glanced at Yume and Ai, “Masami-san told me herself…”

“…and you know where Hirota Masami is now.” Takagi said, easily deducing from what Conan and Yume had said. “…because Shinichi-kun saved her and hid her somewhere, and—possibly—gave her a new identity.”

“Shinichi-kun must have had a reason for helping criminals.” Sato massaged her head, but her eyes were as hard as iron. “I hope he had a good reason.”

[At the same time, Conan was watching the horse racing on television and suddenly realized that the name 'Goukaiteiou' was similar to the name of Hirota's cat. He quickly grabbed a nearby book and started to write down 'Goukaiteiou', but then shook his head and thought that it was impossible.

Ran, who was passing behind him, read what Conan wrote and was listening to the television, making her grab Conan's notes and say that Hirota must love horse racing since he named all his cats after horses. The girl then excitedly said that they could find Hirota if they went to the racetrack, ignoring Conan behind them who was still skeptical.]

“So, uh, Kenzou was one of the three criminals who robbed the bank, and he betrayed two of his partners so one of them asked Mouri Kogoro-san to track him down?” Saguru asked to be sure. The teenager was scribbling in his notebook as if he could find Masami’s current location from there.

Heiji opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Conan glared at him and hissed viciously. “Hattori-niichan, shut up.”

Heiji obediently closed his mouth again and pouted like a child, causing Kazuha beside him to raise an eyebrow suspiciously.

“Hey,” Masumi whispered beside Conan. “Do you… really not know anything about a medicine that can shrink someone?”

Conan just glanced back at her and didn't say anything, making Masami look at him suspiciously but let it go easily.

[Scene changes to the Tokyo horse race, where Ran says excitedly that this is her first time there and that they should hurry and find Masami's father. Behind her, Kogoro grumbles that he's not here and Conan still looks skeptical about all this. Kogoro then asks how they're going to find Hirota in the crowd, but Ran accidentally spots someone behind them and points at him with a bright expression.

Kogoro and Conan both thought that this was ridiculous with wide eyes, but the evidence was right before their eyes. Ran then said that she would call Hirota, but Kogoro stopped her because Hirota should have disappeared. If the man got scared and ran away, they would all lose track of him so they had to follow him to his house.]

“Your luck is truly amazing…” Kazami muttered, causing Ginzo to snort. “And you found it with just that little clue…”

“You know, if I were Hirota, I would take the money out of Tokyo. If possible, out of Japan. Masami and Akira don’t have the access and ability to find someone outside of Tokyo considering the way they used detectives to search for Hirota.” Ginzo folded his arms and stared at Hirota on the screen sharply. “Ha, how confident is he to think that the two comrades he betrayed will never find him?”

[Scene changes to show a breathless Masami thanking Kogoro and saying that she could fly because she was so happy when Kogoro asks how the girl got to the Agency so quickly when he just told her. Masami impatiently asks Kogoro where hier father is, causing Kogoro to reply that Hirota is in a cheap apartment in Nerima.

Conan looks at Masami in confusion and tugs at Ran's sleeve, asking if Ran sees the difference between this Masami and the previous one, since this time Masami is wearing makeup and her clothes look more mature. Ran who is happy that Masami's father has been found only explains that Masami must be dressed up because she will meet her father today.]

“Dress up? Did she have time for that when she said ‘she could fly’ to meet Hirota?” Sonoko asked in disbelief. “I mean, okay, now we know that she’s not actually Hirota’s daughter, and that they were actually robbers, but back then… her lying was terrible.”

Kazuha shook her head. “Ran-chan, you’re so positive. But if I were there, I definitely wouldn’t have noticed it either! Not everyone can tell a lie at a glance.”

“Aoko also agrees with that. Mouri-chan must have felt relieved when Masami’s ‘father’ was found. If Aoko were in Mouri-chan’s position, Aoko wouldn’t have suspected Masami right away just because she was dressed up.” Aoko nodded in agreement, making Ran smile at her.

[Masami cries and runs to hug Hirota as they drop her off at the cheap apartment Hirota lives in. The man looks so shocked he can't speak, even when Kogoro tells him he shouldn't have made his daughter worry so much. Masami then pulls her father along to bow and thank Kogoro before nagging him that she wants an explanation.

Kogoro smiled and said that they could leave the case to him and it would all be solved in a snap of his fingers. His words made Conan frown and think that Kogoro didn't do anything, since the one who found Hirota in the first place was Ran. When the boy looked at Kogoro, he accidentally saw someone wearing sunglasses watching them from behind a pole. Kogoro also noticed it this time and asked who it was, but the person had already turned around and left.

At night in Hirota's apartment, his four cats yowl around Hirota's hanging corpse.]

“Yeah. Look at that shocked expression. It’s so unnatural.” Sonoko rolled her eyes, then tsked when she saw the murdered Hirota. “And he was killed not long after Masami found him. How suspicious.”

Conan, Ai, Yume, Masami, Kazuha, Heiji, KID, and Ran stared at Sonoko as if the girl had just grown two heads.

“Why are you guys looking at me like that?” Sonoko asked after noticing the many stares directed at her.

“You… forget it,” Heiji muttered, to which the others nodded.

Sonoko opened her mouth, ready to protest, but the changing scene on the screen stopped her.

[The voice of the operator at the Agency is heard, causing Conan to ask Ran who she is calling. In his heart he hopes that Ran is not calling Shinichi, because his brother is a bit tired after wandering around at night with his Night Baron identity. Ran explains that she couldn't call Masami, even though she wondered what happened after she met her father, but the girl was completely unreachable.

Kogoro said that Masami wrote down the number herself, so it couldn't be wrong. But Kogoro never called her, because all this time it was Masami who contacted him. The man tried to calm Ran down by saying that maybe Masami was still in the apartment with her father.]

“Wait a minute… Night Baron? Night Baron ?! Meitantei is the one behind Night Baron?!” KID asked in disbelief. He pointed at Conan and Shinichi in turn, shaking and shrieking. “I know that Sana-chan is Meitantei, but he’s also Night Baron?!”

“KID?” Saguru asked in surprise. He didn’t expect the international thief who always kept a poker face in any situation he was in to scream like that.

KID took a deep breath as if trying to calm himself down and looked back at Saguru. “Do you remember the Nightmare case? He was the one who saved Nightmare from death. The cotton mattress that was under Nightmare when you found him? That was Night Baron’s doing. He was also the one who pulled me before I could… take off Nightmare’s mask.”

Not only Saguru, but Ginzo and Aoko were also stunned when they heard it.

“Then the Sun Halo case? Nakamori-chan thought that he was my accomplice, but he was actually Night Baron and he was working with Tantei-kun at that time.” KID explained. This time he looked at Conan with a mixture of surprise and understanding. “No wonder you wanted to work with him.”

Aoko gasped. “He pointed a gun at Aoko! And Kudo-kun is a detective?! How can a detective be a criminal?!”

[Conan nonchalantly comments that maybe her father ran away again, causing Kogoro and Ran to blink. Kogoro says that it is a possibility, since the last time they saw him, Hirota looked very shocked.

Hearing this, Ran shouted for them to stop joking around and she got a bad feeling about this. The girl then immediately ran and said that she was going to Hirota's apartment, making Kogoro and Conan quickly follow her.]

“Nakamori-chan—”

“You’re so selfish.” Conan interrupted in annoyance. “Back then, KID got hurt protecting you—who was unconscious—from the broken glass. Then you retaliated by trying to pull off his disguise. Ha. No wonder my Niichan threatened you with a gun.”

“Tantei—” KID tried to intervene, but Conan didn’t want to stop his words.

“You can’t do anything. You just scream, scream, scream and scream. Then you demand, demand and demand to other people to solve your problems. You just rely on other people to solve your problems, problems that you created yourself.”

Aoko opened her lips in surprise, but she didn't have time to say anything when Conan continued his speech.

“Not everyone who points a gun is a criminal. Niichan was just trying to protect KID—who was injured —from an ingrate like you.” Conan practically spat out the word. His eyes stared at Aoko who was rapidly turning pale with a sharp—almost hostile—glance. “The world is never black and white, Nakamori-san. The world is full of shades of gray.”

[Upon arriving at the apartment, Kogoro, Ran and Conan are shocked when they hear from the landlady that Hirota is dead. The landlady found him hanging last night and it caused quite a commotion. The woman then grumbles that this story will ruin the reputation here, but Kogoro cuts her off and asks her about what happened to Hirota's daughter, Masami.

The question made the old woman ask back in confusion and explain that Hirota was a rather strange man. He paid the rent for a whole year with new money and told her not to ask any questions. Then, as if it had just occurred to her, the woman said that Hirota's daughter might have been murdered somewhere, because the Inspector who came to examine Hirota's body said that it was a murder.]

“Okay, Tantei-kun, enough, stop right there.” KID tried to intervene again when he saw Aoko’s eyes starting to water as if she was about to cry. “Nakamori-chan doesn’t know.”

“Then she must learn to no longer have such shallow and naive thoughts,” Conan replied while looking away.

Akako and Saguru were also no help at all as Akako just glanced at Aoko coldly and muttered 'foolish girl', while Saguru looked like he didn't know what to say to the information he had just heard.

“You can’t categorize someone just by what they do. Would you yell at a murderer who killed a pedophile who tried to rape their daughter that they are a criminal? Would you say that someone is a criminal because they did what they could to protect themselves?” Ai asked more calmly as Conan pursed his lips, clearly fed up by the conversation they had just had.

Aoko fell silent and lowered her head, sniffling quietly and making the atmosphere awkward.

[Megure at the police station later confirmed that Hirota was indeed strangled to death before being hung from the ceiling. They also found fingerprints that did not belong to the victim on the rope and the ceiling. Megure also said that the motive was probably money, since everything of value in Hirota's apartment was gone and all that was left were the man's cats. The perpetrator has not been found, but judging from the handprints around Hirota's neck, the killer was a large man. A 'giant man'.

The police don't find the victim's daughter, but they do find a pair of glasses near the crime scene. Kogoro picks them up and says they are Masami's glasses. He then asks if Masami was killed too, but Megure says they haven't found her body yet and it's likely to be found somewhere.]

Ginzo looked at Aoko with sadness in his eyes. He knew that he didn't spend much time with his daughter because of his busy schedule as a police inspector and he also protected her too much from the cruelty that happened in his job, but he never thought that what he did would make his daughter not realize how different other people's views of the world were from her own.

What Edogawa-kun said was true. The world is never black and white. Even if there are rules to be enforced, sometimes those rules are also bent for a reason. That's why even in the police force, they are never completely black and white.

The others pretended not to hear the one-sided argument that had just taken place between Conan and Ginzo's daughter. They knew that what Conan and Ai said was true—even if they wished that Conan and Ai would have said it in a more subtle way.

Ran and Sonoko exchanged glances, they didn't know whether they should comfort Aoko or scold Conan for his sharp words.

Conan folded his arms and muttered to himself that Aoko was lucky that Conan said it. If Shinichi had said it, the girl would have definitely cried because the way Shinichi said it would have been more brutal and harsh.

KID who heard it could only wince. He knew that he was being too protective of Aoko and the girl was too childish—innocent like a child in this world full of evil. But that didn't mean Conan could say those harsh words in front of Aoko's face without caring.

[When Kogoro comes out of the police station and starts explaining to Ran what really happened, the man in sunglasses who was watching them earlier hides behind a pole again and starts following them from a safe distance.

Conan begins to feel uneasy because his gut feeling tells him that someone is following them, but since the person has no bad intentions, he has a hard time figuring out who is doing it.

Ran on the other hand was almost in tears because she was worried about Masami who might have been killed, even though she tried so hard to find her father. Kogoro frantically tried to comfort and calm her down, saying that the police would help them find Masami.]

Saguru awkwardly offered a handkerchief to Aoko who was now sobbing softly, but the girl shook her head and chose to look at him with a scared and sad expression.

“Do you guys see Aoko… as that kind of person…? Childish, ungrateful…” Aoko pursed her lips and clenched her skirt until her fingers turned white, as if what she was about to say would hurt her. “… stupid and… always getting you guys into trouble…?”

KID and Saguru didn't know what answer would satisfy Aoko, but Akako easily lifted the burden off their shoulders.

“Yes. Nakamori-chan. They—I see you as that kind of person. A foolish girl who can only rely on Kuroba-kun or Hakuba-kun, without being able to stand on her own two feet.” Akako snorted and folded her arms, her gaze cold and expressionless, and it made Aoko’s tears fall down her cheeks. “But, Nakamori-chan, anyone can learn. It’s not too late for you to start.”

"… learn…?"

“Standing on your own two feet, looking at the world maturely, not being a bigoted person who judges others just because they do ‘bad’ things… you can start from there, you know?” Akako shrugged and pointed at the screen in front of them with her chin, “You can start from this movie.”

[Conan thinks that they can't give up yet, but wonders what to do since they have no clues. He hopes for a clue when he suddenly remembers that he accidentally installed a transmitter in Masami's watch.

Shocked by the important thing he forgot, he quickly hides behind a telephone box and activates his glasses. Conan is somewhat grateful that Kogoro and Ran have not yet realized that he is no longer following them, so he can go follow the transmitter which is still moving—a sign that Masami is still alive.]

Aoko stared at Akako as if she was seeing her for the first time for a few moments before nodding determinedly. “Aoko… Aoko will try.”

Saguru looked at Aoko with a gentle smile and KID nodded in agreement, causing Aoko to look at the thief strangely, but no longer throwing a tantrum like before.

[But then Conan frowned when he didn't realize the direction of the location his glasses were pointing, making him annoyed because he couldn't remember all the streets in Tokyo. If he followed the direction of his transmitter to the northwest without knowing the location, he might get lost.

“What trouble happened this time, hm? Why didn’t you call me?” someone suddenly said in Conan’s ear, making him flinch before realizing that it was Shinichi in disguise. “My gut feeling told me something would happen to you if I didn’t stop you, Conan. Geez, what should I do to you, hm? My beloved little brother?”]

“Oh thank goodness! I thought you would run after the transmitter without caring where it was going, Conan-kun!” Ran rubbed her chest in relief and smiled at Conan who was scratching his head awkwardly. “Thank goodness Shinichi was there.”

“You know, Conan-kun, maybe I should add a map to your glasses so you don’t get lost anymore…” Agasa muttered as he took out a notebook and pencil to write it down. “Mmm… maybe it could work like a GPS on a cell phone and be placed in the same lens as the transmitter finder…”

With that, the awkward atmosphere that had been there before slowly disappeared and was replaced by comments about Agasa's advanced gadget. Some even joked that Shinichi had some kind of sensor on everything related to Conan.

[Conan laughs awkwardly at Shinichi—Sanashi’s nagging, making the ‘girl’ sigh. Conan then begins to explain to Sanashi about what happened briefly and how the transmitter pointed 4 kilometers to the northwest. Hearing this, Sanashi immediately says that the location is in Shinjuku.

Sanashi then grabbed Conan's hand and said that she would take him by teleportation because it would take too much time if they had to run to Shinjuku—plus with Sanashi's poor physical condition, they wouldn't get there in time if they ran.]

“Brat, do you know that you made us worry by suddenly disappearing like that?” Kogoro asked in annoyance. The man even massaged his head as if he had a headache. “At least let us know next time if you want to leave like that.”

“Uh…”

Kogoro sighed and glanced at Yuusaku beside him, grumbling that he knew that his parents wouldn't care if Conan left without permission, but here, he should at least ask permission before leaving or Conan would give Kogoro and Ran a heart attack or high blood pressure from worry.

Yuusaku looked uncomfortable with the accusation, but kept his mouth shut because he knew it was true. Conan himself now turned to look at Kogoro with a look that was hard to interpret.

“I’ll try, Otchan… sorry for making you worry…”

[In a second, they were in an alley in Shinjuku and Sanashi followed Conan who started running following the direction of his transmitter. They weaved between buildings and streets until they arrived in front of a Panchinko building. Sanashi frowned when she saw it, she felt something was wrong. But Conan had already run inside and looked for Masami, so Sanashi followed him.

Sanashi thought that Masami might not be an innocent girl like Conan described while keeping an eye on her little brother who was running around inside the building looking for Masami. She immediately approached when Conan accidentally bumped into a big man who scolded him to stop running around immediately. Sanashi bowed in apology when she heard it and Conan immediately hid behind Sanashi's legs, whispered that his glasses battery was dead.]

“Hey, it’s Akira.” Megure said, surprised that Shinichi and Conan didn’t meet Masami, but Akira. “Did they meet there?”

Heiji and Masumi groaned at the same time when they heard that Conan's glasses had run out of battery. "And he was so close! Why did the battery run out at a crucial moment?!"

Agasa laughed awkwardly. “Sorry, sorry, I just created it back then, so there were a lot of things to fix. Now, Conan-kun’s glasses’ battery lasts longer. They’re also waterproof and can see in the dark.”

“That’s very interesting, Hakase-san. If you would mind, could we talk after we get out of here? I would like to propose a partnership.” James, who heard how Agasa’s glasses were now more advanced, became interested. They could use them to help their agents work better!

“Oh! Of course, you guys can come to my house anytime, because it wasn’t just me who made it. Yume-kun also helped me!” Agasa smiled widely and said proudly, making Yume laugh shyly.

“I still have a lot to learn, Hakase,” Yume said, though a smile formed on her lips.

.

.

.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

[Sanashi lets Conan run around looking for Masami for a while longer before a attendant complains and picks Conan up like a naughty cat, almost kicking him out if Sanashi hadn't stopped him and taken him from the attendant’s hands. They then leave from there and head back to the Agency on foot. Along the way, Conan explains what happened to his Niichan in full.

This time, Sanashi—Shinichi easily drew a conclusion. According to him, Masami was not Hirota's daughter and Masami probably worked together with the 'giant man' to take Hirota's money. If that was true, then Masami, Hirota and the 'giant man' were probably the gang that robbed the bank a week ago because their body characteristics matched the description of the criminals who robbed the bank.]

“I have to admit, pipsqueak running around like that are pretty amusing to watch.” Sonoko giggled, causing Ran to blink and giggle as she watched Conan pop up everywhere looking for Masami.

Heiji laughed when a attendant got annoyed with Conan and lifted him up like he was lifting a naughty cat, making Conan glare at him with a mixture of annoyance.

“Amazing, Kudo-kun can come to such a conclusion with just a few clues?” Saguru muttered. His eyes were watching ‘Sanashi’ who was explaining her theory about the ‘giant man’ and also Masami.

“I told you, Niichan is a genius. It’s just that he often wears the mask of an ‘arrogant detective’ in front of others, so no one knows that he’s actually that genius.”

[Possibly, Hirota betrayed his comrades and ran away with the money they stole, because from what Conan explained, Hirota was hiding and didn't want to be found in a cheap apartment. Moreover, Masami was a bit suspicious with her make up and rather mature clothes on the day they found Hirota, Masami gave off an impression of being impatient and in a hurry, but the woman forgot that she was supposed to disguise herself as a woman—an innocent girl.

If Masami was really an innocent girl who was worried about her father, then she wouldn't be wearing make up and rather mature clothes, especially when she said that she was absent from her school in Yamagata just to look for her father. Not to mention the new bills that Hirota used to pay for his apartment rent for a whole year.

“Of course, my theory isn’t necessarily correct.” Sanashi commented as she escorted Conan to the Agency. She ruffled Conan’s hair and smiled. “Now go up and say that you just came from the professor’s house, they must be worried because you suddenly disappeared.”]

“Oh, isn’t our Shin-chan amazing, Yuu-chan? He guessed it so quickly and correctly!” Yukiko whispered to Yuusaku and smiled proudly. “He’s so much like you.”

“And Conan is just like you,” Yuusaku replied to his eccentric wife. “They’re our children, so they both have traits from both of us.”

“Oi, oi, seriously. With just a few clues like that, he was able to solve it? His theory was spot on too!” Heiji was flabbergasted, still not believing what he was seeing. “Then all this time… was he intentionally hiding his intelligence when we were competing to solve cases?”

Shinichi didn't answer, of course. The teenager was still sleeping as if undisturbed by his surroundings.

“Maybe yes, maybe no. Remember what I said? Niichan will solve cases faster in a quiet place, where he can think without being disturbed.” Conan hummed and turned to Heiji who was looking back at him with a complicated expression. “You… don’t have to feel like he’s unreachable, Hattori-niichan. Deep down, he’s still a human being who can make mistakes.”

“… he doesn’t look like that to me.” Heiji muttered, but he refused to say anything else.

[As Sanashi said, Kogoro scolds him and asks where he has been all this time. Conan smiles awkwardly and says that he just came from the professor's house and someone he knows escorted him back to the Agency. He then sees Ran pensive in front of the window, making him relieved that he didn't completely lie. But he is worried about the girl's gloomy expression, so he asks Kogoro what happened.

Kogoro said that Ran had been like that since they got back. The girl didn't even pay attention to what Kogoro said to her because she was too worried about Masami. Kogoro grumbled as he drank his beer.]

“You know, Conan-kun, I was too worried about Masami-san back then, but now that I look at it, the way you guys lied was terrible. You should have come from the right side of the Agency if you just came from Hakase’s house. I saw you coming from the left.” Ran rolled her eyes affectionately, making Conan pout.

[Ran suddenly calls out to Kogoro and points to someone outside the window, saying that there is someone wearing sunglasses who is acting strangely and has been watching them for a long time. Kogoro and Conan approach and gasp when they realize that the man is the man they saw around Hirota's apartment. The man looks suspicious, with a big body and sunglasses. Moreover, he is following them openly like now.

Kogoro immediately tells Ran to stay where she is and Kogoro will catch him to find out where the man hid Masami, but Ran has other plans. The girl opens the window and jumps out, making Kogoro and Conan stare wide-eyed. After all, their Agency is on the second floor!]

Masumi whistled in awe and the police and FBI also stared wide-eyed.

“You jumped from the second floor of the Agency?!” Sonoko screamed, making Ran smile awkwardly.

“That’s not that high…” Ran mumbled awkwardly.

'What do you mean not too high?!' thought Kazuha, Heiji, Sonoko, Saguru, Kaito, Conan, and Aoko.

[Ran quickly chases after the suspicious man while asking where he kidnapped Masami, leaving Kogoro and Conan who are now running down the stairs. Ran jumps again and kicks the man's car window when the suspicious man tries to escape using the car.

Kogoro arrives when Ran manages to pull the suspicious man out of the car, causing Kogoro to immediately take over and start shaking the suspicious man. The man then says that he is not a criminal, causing Kogoro to get even angrier and ask who he really is.]

“Ran-chan…” Megure rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. “Please don’t chase after a criminal by yourself like that.”

His words were nodded by the other policemen, making Ran's cheeks turn red.

“But Megure-keibu, who would dare to fight Ran-neechan?” Conan asked with a sweet smile that didn’t fooling anyone. “Anyone who faces Ran-neechan’s karate will definitely be hospitalized.”

“Geez, Conan-kun! Don’t tease me!” Ran’s cheeks turned even redder, making some people chuckle.

[The man shakily said that he was also a detective and he was wondering if Kogoro was also asked to do the same thing as him, to search for Hirota. The man then reached into his coat pocket and showed a photo of the person who asked him to do the search. Conan's eyes immediately widened when he realized that the person in the photo was the person he had bumped into at the Pachinko building.

Because of the commotion, they finally went back into the Agency and Kogoro started interrogating the 'detective' man. The man ran away because he was scared by Ran's expression, making Kogoro snort and accuse his face of scaring others while pulling off the sunglasses the man was wearing.]

“But why did Conan-kun find Akira there and not Masami? Did they meet somewhere in the Panchinko building?” Megure muttered.

“Ah, that’s because the watch Akira-san is wearing belongs to Masami-san.” Conan explained, making the others nod in understanding. “I still don’t understand why Masami-san gave his watch to Akira-san.”

“Akira broke his watch when he killed Hirota. So Masami gave her watch to Akira to calm the man down.” Yume answered calmly, causing more than one person to turn to look at her.

“And how did you get that information?” Saguru asked curiously, but Yume just smiled bitterly.

“I think you will know the answer soon.”

[Seeing the real face of the 'detective' man without his sunglasses, Kogoro burst out laughing while Conan stared at him in surprise. The man's eyes were big with long eyelashes, almost looking beautiful if only his body was a woman's instead of a big man with a mustache.

Ran scolds Kogoro and they both return to focusing on the stories of their two clients which are not the same. Kogoro was asked by Masami, Hirota's daughter to look for him, while the man was asked by someone who claims to be Hirota's younger brother. They both say that Hirota is their only remaining family, making this case seem strange.]

“Ooh, was he born with such long eyelashes? I know some women who would kill to have long eyelashes like him.” KID whistled, causing Saguru to glance at him in surprise.

“Are you sure you didn’t want it?”

KID shrugged in mock offense, “Of course I don’t! What do you think of me, Tantei-san?”

Saguru snorted, but didn't reply because he knew he would lose the argument.

[Conan thought that maybe his Niichan's theory wasn't wrong. Especially since the 'detective' guy said that someone from the taxi company where Hirota worked told him that every night, Hirota would drive on the same road without any passengers at a reckless speed. He thought that Hirota might have done it to practice escaping the police.

Kogoro said that it was probably just a stress release and started asking what kind of person recruited the detective. The 'detective' guy explained that the guy who recruited him was named Hirota Akira. He was rather large, like a giant at over 190 cm tall.]

“Relieving stress by speeding while driving? At night for days on end? Sounds like he’s planning something to me.” Sato snorted, making Takagi, Megure, Shiratori and Chiba grimance.

They all knew about Sato's reckless driving, but of course, they didn't dare comment directly to her face.

[Kogoro was shocked and immediately shouted that based on the palm print on Hirota's neck, the person who killed Hirota was a very big man. Kogoro quickly connected the clues he got and concluded that Akira was the one who killed Hirota.

Unfortunately, when Kogoro asked about Akira's address, the detective in front of him shook his head and said that the phone number and address that Akira gave were fake. He also actually came to Kogoro's Agency because he thought that Kogoro knew something.]

“Oh no. I think I know what’s going to happen; pipsqueak is going to leave, without permission, again.” Sonoko groaned, while Ran beside her laughed dryly.

“I can see that we’ll all get used to Edogawa-kun always leaving without permission like that once this is all over.” Saguru commented. “Luckily, I guess Kudo-kun has always been there for him.”

“Niichan always knows where I am!” Conan confirmed with a bright smile. “Seriously, you guys don’t have to worry too much about me…”

[Conan thinks that if Akira and Masami worked together to kill Hirota who betrayed them, then the transmitter on Masami's watch must have been transferred to Akira. That's why Sanashi and Conan didn't find Masami in Panchiko's hall, but Akira.

Slowly, Conan stepped back and went outside. He had to find Akira and he was about to use his glasses when he realized that the batteries were still dead. He then groaned and turned around to head towards Agasa's house.]

“Tantei-kun, if someone you know suddenly disappeared without permission and then you got news that the person was dealing with a criminal, how would you feel?” KID asked. The thief looked like he wanted to rub the bridge of his nose when he heard Conan’s completely unsettling words. “Yeah, you know you’ll be fine, but what about them? Do they know?”

Conan looked at KID and narrowed his eyes, “I don’t want to hear that from you.”

Ai smacked his head for that and started scolding him, making Conan pout.

“Alright, alright, I’m sorry, okay? I’ll try to tell you guys if I want to go solve a case. I get it, so stop nagging me!”

[Conan impatiently waits for his glasses to finish charging, causing Agasa to tell him not to rush. Shinichi next to Conan listens to his little brother's grumbling and says that he should be patient. Calmness, self-control and perseverance are the things that Holmes does. Conan is still young and criminals can easily take advantage of him, so he should be patient and make a plan. Conan pouts when he hears this, but immediately brightens up when Shinichi says that he will go with Conan to catch Akira.]

“Conan-kun, please, you are not the police. This kind of thing should be left to the police. Why are you trying to catch him yourself?” Megure asked in a tired voice. The man even looked like he was about to cry. “I have told Shinichi-kun so many times, why are you following in his footsteps?”

“You heard what Shinichi-kun said, you are still young and there are many criminals who will take advantage of you. Don't do that again, Conan-kun.”

“But this happened a long time ago… I know about it now.” Conan pouts even more as the police start to scold him. He then turns to the back seat with puppy eyes since Shinichi can’t help him. “Dad, tell them.”

Akai who saw it looked back at Conan with amusement, “What do you want me to say, boya? They’re nagging you for your own good.”

[Not long after, Shinichi—Sanashi was already sitting behind the wheel with Conan beside her. Shinichi had gotten his American driver's license since he was 17 and the car they were riding in now was Yusaku's rarely used one, so they weren't exactly breaking any rules. Furthermore, technically 'Sanashi' was already 20 years old.

Conan gave directions to Sanashi who was driving at full speed, making the child wince because his Niichan's driving was similar to their mother's. Therefore, it didn't take long for them to arrive in front of a hotel.]

“Aww, Shin-chan inherited my driving skills!” Yukiko gushed out with happiness. “Look, Yuu-chan! Our Shin-chan drives so well!”

Yuusaku who saw his first son inheriting his wife's driving ability could only laugh dryly. In his heart, he secretly hoped that Conan did not inherit that crazy driving ability.

“Okay, please remind me not to get in the car if Shinichi-kun is driving.” Sonoko massaged the bridge of her nose. “At that speed, I wonder why he didn’t get a speeding ticket.”

“I asked the same thing, and I'm a police officer.” Shiratori muttered.

[“Nii—neechan, something’s strange! The target isn’t moving! He couldn’t have taken off his watch and left, right?!” Conan asked in panic, causing Sanashi and himself to immediately get out of the car after parking it carelessly and enter the hotel. Sanashi asked the receptionist, easily using her magic to take and show Akira’s photo.

The receptionist said that Akira was in room 802, causing Sanashi and Conan to immediately run in front of the elevator. Unfortunately, they were blocked again by a woman carrying four large suitcases. Sanashi frowned when she saw her, but Conan impatiently pulled her up.]

More than one person narrowed their eyes at the woman carrying the suitcase as Shinichi furrowed his brows at her.

“She's Masami-san, right?” Ran asked Conan who nodded.

“Shinichi-kun immediately suspected her? Just by looking at her?” Sonoko was taken aback. “Isn’t that too paranoid?”

“Yeah, if I was there, I wouldn’t have even noticed before it was too late. Her disguise was too… ordinary for someone in a hotel.” Masumi looked irritated as she said this, as if she didn’t want to admit it, but did it anyway.

[They quickly arrived at room 802 and Sanashi felt that something was wrong. She tried to open the door—which was unlocked—and found Akira dead in a sitting position. The beer can he had been drinking from was still dripping, causing Sanashi to come closer and smell it, saying that it smelled like Postassium cyanide.

Sanashi and Conan looked around the room where there were empty big suitcases lying around and Sanashi immediately picked Conan up and ran out. She even used teleportation to get to the first floor immediately. “Shit! Conan! We have to catch up with that woman who was carrying the four suitcases!”]

“Niichan realized it the second after smelling the beer can and seeing the scattered suitcases. That’s how fast he was able to solve the case with all the evidence.” Conan smiled proudly.

“And he solved it right away while you were still digesting the information? How high is his intelligence?” Saguru asked. He himself was not sure that he could match Shinichi’s speed in solving cases.

“In solving cases? Didn’t we just talk about Niichan’s IQ a while ago? He has a 698 IQ in solving cases.”

“If you’re curious about your IQ, you can take a special detective test. I can tell you where to take the test if you want.” Ai offered as Saguru looked interested.

“Oh, I want to. I’m curious about my IQ in solving cases.”

“Me too! I’ll do the test as soon as we get out of here.” Masumi was also interested, making Heiji not want to lose to the two detectives and nod along.

[Conan looked confused for a few seconds until all the clues were digested in his brain. He immediately came to the same conclusion as Sanashi—that the one who killed Akira was Masami and the one billion yen they robbed was now in Masami's hands. Conan then thought that Sanashi's theory was all true and started to get annoyed because he didn't realize it immediately when he saw Hirota's unnaturally shocked expression.

They ran out of the hotel and realized that Masami had just left in a taxi. Without wasting any more time, Sanashi took Conan into her car that was still in its place and started the engine, trying to catch up with Masami's taxi.]

“And Shinichi-kun’s theory was right from the start. Seriously, if I didn’t know that Hirota and Masami weren’t really father and son, I would have also thought that Hirota was just too shocked when he saw Masami.” Chiba took a deep breath and try to calm down.

“By the way, should we suspended Shinichi-kun driver license for parking his car carelessly and driving at above average speed?”

“…”

“…”

“… we’ll think about that after we get out of here. My gut feeling is that Shinichi-kun has committed traffic violations many times.”

“…understood.”

[While following Masami, Sanashi asks Conan to call Megure and Kogoro to tell them about what they both found. She also gives Conan a burner phone so that their calls can remain anonymous. Having nothing else to do but sit around waiting, Conan takes it and uses his voice-changing bowtie to call Kogoro and Megure.

The taxi Masami was riding in took them to the port, causing Sanashi and Conan to immediately search for Masami around the cargo hold which had narrow roads and ample hiding places.]

Kogoro slapped his forehead. “You again, brat!”

“…” Megure couldn’t even say anything anymore. The man just let out a long sigh and massaged the bridge of his nose with a permanently stressed expression.

Conan just smiled hesitantly, this time looking worried that he would be scolded again.

[On the other side of the harbor, Masami walks among the cargo and meets two men in black. They say that they appreciate Masami's, no, Miyano Akemi's efforts. In front of them, Akemi remains calm and asks what the purpose of the sleeping medicine they gave Akira is. The man in black and with dirty silver hair just snorts arrogantly and answers that it's their way, the organization's people.

They then demand to see the money that Akemi stole, but Akemi says that it is not there and that she left it somewhere. She then demands back their promise that they will let Akemi and her sister out of the organization when this job is done.]

Everyone's attention immediately focused on the two people who had previously poisoned Shinichi.

“Miyano… Akemi? Is that Masami-san’s real name?” Ran muttered. “She has a little sister…?”

Ai in the middle of Conan and Yume squeezed their hands together when she saw Akemi who boldly demanded a promise from Gin. “Neesan…”

“Organization? So they really do have someone powerful behind them?” Takagi asked while watching all of Gin, Vodka and Akemi’s movements. The man even took out his notebook again and started writing down everything he saw.

On the other hand, Akai secretly clenched his fists as he watched Gin and Vodka facing Akemi. Seeing all this made him want to grab a gun and shoot Gin in the head for using Akemi to chain Shiho.

Furuya beside him wasn't any better. He had known Akemi since they were kids and seeing her desperate to get out of the organization to the point of trusting Gin of all people made him angry at himself for not being able to help the girl.

[Akemi said that if they brought her sister here, she would tell them where the money was, but the dirty silver-haired man said that it was impossible, because Akemi's sister was one of the best brains in the organization. Unlike Akemi, her sister was a very important member.

Those words made Akemi angry and the dirty silver-haired man in front of her now pointed a gun at her, saying that this was Akemi's last chance.

Unexpectedly, Akemi just smiled and said that if they killed her, then they would never know where the money was. The dirty silver-haired man grinned and prepared his gun, saying that he had warned Akemi that this was her last chance.]

“Damn, she provoked them instead.” Saguru muttered. “I don’t know if Miyano-san is suicidal or just too desperate to get out of the ‘organization’ they mentioned, but I admire her guts.”

Ai's squeeze slowly turned into a grip when she heard the mutter. She had known it and she had heard it from Yume, but none of that had prepared her for this, seeing and hearing firsthand as Gin broke his promise to Akemi and killed her.

“Her younger sibling is a very important member…? Isn’t this a trap?! If her younger sibling is one of the important members, there’s no way they’d let Miyano-san and her younger sibling go free!”

“That guy doesn’t look like he’ll keep his promise… what a bastard.” Masumi cursed.

“Will Akemi-san be okay? You said Shinichi saved her, so she should be okay, right?” Ran asked worriedly.

Conan stroked Ai’s hand that was gripping his and answered Ran’s question softly. “She’ll be fine, Ran-neechan.”

[Sanashi immediately pulled Conan into her embrace and covered his mouth when she felt something dangerous in front of them. This feeling was the same feeling as when she met the man in black in Tropical Land. Moreover, the sound of gunshots that was heard along with the sound of the ship, made her worried about Masami, but more worried about Conan.

She looked behind the cargo and saw that there was only Masami standing there swaying, so she put Conan down and ran over just as Masami fell to the ground.]

“Akemi-san!” Ran shouted anxiously.

At the same time, Yume pulled Ai who looked like she was about to cry into her arms and whispered in her ear that she was okay now.

“Shit, shit, shit! They shot her?!”

“Damn. As far as I remember there were no reports of gunshot victims that night. So Shinichi-kun must not have taken her to the hospital.”

“And judging from the way she was holding her stomach, I estimate that Miyano Akemi-san was shot in the stomach.” Sato narrowed her eyes, “such a wound… there’s no way Shinichi-kun didn’t take her to the hospital.”

"Niichan didn't take her to the hospital." Those words caused a commotion, they all immediately stopped and looked at Conan in disbelief.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

“Conan-kun, what do you mean Shinichi-kun didn’t take her to the hospital? If a wound like that isn’t treated right away—”

“I know. I was there.”

"So—!"

Conan turned his head with a sharp gaze as if to tell them all to be quiet. “Miyano-san is safe. I’m sure the screen in front of us will show how she survived the gunshot wound.”

[Panicized, Sanashi and Conan immediately turned Masami onto her back. Sanashi then realized that Masami had been shot in the abdominal aorta, causing severe internal bleeding. At a glance, she realized that Masami would not be saved if she didn't do something.

Sanashi clenched her jaw and tore her sleeve before stuffing the cloth into Masami's mouth. She climbs onto Masami's lap and straddles her, then tells Conan to hold the woman's shoulders, saying that this will hurt.]

Ai's breath hitched when she heard it. Her eyes watched Akemi's body on the screen with horror and her hands again sought Conan and Yume's hands to ground her.

“Abdominal aorta… even if an ambulance comes, her chances of survival are almost zero.” Jodie glanced at Akai who was squinting at the screen in front of them. Her partner’s aura was now filled with killing intent.

Furuya also narrowed his eyes at Shinichi who was now holding Akemi's body. He knew that Akemi was safe, but what happened after that? "Shinichi-kun... what are you going to do...?"

[Sanashi had never used her magic to do this, but Masami would really die if she didn't try. She placed both hands on Masami's gunshot wound and began to concentrate, guiding her magic to find the bullet embedded there before forcing Masami's cells to regenerate when she managed to pull the bullet out.

Masami writhed in pain. The woman even tried to scream and struggle. But Sanashi's body and Conan's hands held her back from moving. Tears were already streaming down Masami's cheeks. Her expression showed as if she had just experienced a very painful torture.]

Ran covered her mouth palely, as did Sonoko, Kazuha and Aoko who could only freeze in their places.

Akako, on the other hand, was stunned to the point of her jaw dropping. “How powerful is his magic that he can save people from the brink of death?! He went against the fate written by Thanatos! How can he still be alive now?!”

Akako's screech made them all turn to look at her. Unlike before, the Witch now looked on the verge of hysterics.

“What do you mean ‘going against the fate written by Thanatos’? Miyano-san isn’t dead yet! Meitantei would be ‘going against fate’ as you said if Miyano-san was dead and Meitantei insisted on resurrecting her!” KID, who knew a little about magic—because he worked as a magician and searched for the jewel whose myth would grant immortality—protested immediately.

“Shut up! You don’t know anything about magic! Do you understand what he just did?! Magic has consequences. Something as big as that must have very high consequences! He’s lucky if he’s still human after this!”

[Masami's screams as she was drowned in the wad of cloth made Sanashi pour more of her magic into Masami's wound, trying to close it with magic immediately. Her eyes were now completely glowing red, a sign that she was using all her power to heal Masami.

The operation almost felt like hours to Sanashi, but when the reddish light began to close the wound on Masami's stomach, she knew that she had succeeded in saving Masami's life and could finally breathe a sigh of relief.]

“He’s still human! Are you accusing Meitantei of being a monster?!”

“Ha! His body may still be human! But his soul? What about his soul? As far as I know, people who can perform such miracles are no longer human! If you don’t believe it, look at his eyes! Those red eyes aren’t just because he used his power, but because he also borrowed Thanatos’ ability to ensure that woman’s safety!”

“You two, calm down.”

The cold air along with immense pressure enveloped them, making all of them especially Akako and KID freeze.

Shinichi now opened his eyes—eyes that were glowing red like on the screen—and stared blankly at Akako. “Everything… will be revealed when the time comes.” After saying that, Shinichi closed his eyes again and remained motionless.

[Unfortunately, because Sanashi had never done this before, she didn't know what the consequences of her magic were on Masami. She just realized that the reddish light that began to spread throughout Masami's body was not normal and that it was slowly shrinking Masami's body.

Masami's screams still haven't stopped, making Sanashi and Conan panic again. The girl writhes and tries to scratch her own body until Sanashi and Conan try to hold her down. Conan asks what they should do and for the first time, Shinichi doesn't know either.]

Akako opened her lips, ready to reply, but then closed them again and looked away. The witch looked unconcerned, but Saguru and Aoko could see the subtle trembling in the girl's hands.

The others were still in shock and didn't understand what Akako had screamed earlier, but they chose to focus on the screen that now showed Akemi writhing in pain and starting to shrink.

It could be said, they were all horrified and shocked by what they saw.

[The two of them could only hold Masami and watch her suffer until the red light—Shinichi's magic—completely disappeared from Masami's body, who now looked like a ten-year-old child. Her previously black hair had also changed to reddish brown, making Shinichi afraid to find out what his magic had done besides saving Masami's life.

His thoughts were immediately interrupted when his heart suddenly throbbed painfully. He quickly realized that his body was not strong enough for the magic he had just performed and almost unconsciously he immediately brought Conan and Masami to teleport to Agasa's house.]

Ran whipped her head sharply towards Yume. “Yume-chan…?”

“Holy shit. So you shrank because of magic, not apotoxin?!” Masumi and KID gaped, while Heiji looked at it all as if his world had just fallen apart.

Furuya froze where he sat. He had a suspicion that Haibara Yume was Miyano Akemi shrunk, but he didn't expect that it was Kudo Shinichi who shrunk her into a child.

The police on the other hand exchanged glances. They didn't know what to do with the information they had just received. On one hand, Akemi was a criminal. But on the other hand, people would think they were crazy if they arrested a little girl and accused her of being a criminal who had robbed a bank.

They still couldn't believe what they were seeing.

“Wait-wait-wait! Then, is Ai-chan also…?”

Those who were still unaware of the other side effects of APTX 4869 exchanged confused glances when they heard it.

Ai, who had not let go of Conan's hand and gotten out of Yume's embrace, could only stare at Ran with fear in her eyes. The only thing that calmed her down was the presence of Conan and Yume on her right and left and also the knowledge that Shinichi would not let anything happen to her.

Ran who saw the fear was shocked and covered her lips. She tried to avert her gaze from Ai, making the little girl grateful.

[This time, it was Sanashi's turn to writhe on the floor of Agasa's house with a painful scream coming from her throat. Her hand was squeezing her chest, where her heart was and she could faintly hear Agasa and Conan's worried voices before losing consciousness amidst the pain.]

“Oh, Shin-chan!” Yukiko grabbed Yuusaku’s hand beside her when she heard and saw her eldest son who was now writhing in agony on the floor.

Yuusaku hugged Yukiko back, even though his eyes didn't leave the screen. The man couldn't help the feeling of uselessness that crept into his heart as he could only watch his son in pain without being able to do anything.

Conan clenched his jaw and gripped Ai's hand back. He had been through this before and he now knew that his Niichan would wake up in a week, but none of that could erase the fear that gripped his heart when he heard Shinichi scream like that.

[Shinichi opened his eyes again a second later and took a sharp breath, clutching his chest. He coughed a few times before realizing that his heart was no longer throbbing painfully. This time, he was sitting on the couch in his home's library. His eyes were glowing red, though not as bright as before. There was a woman sitting across from him, wearing a sleeveless white dress and a soft orange shawl.

The woman had a very beautiful face, with round eyes, full lips and a high nose. Her cheeks were pink like a peach. Her hair was a soft brown and was tied up with a leaf crown around her head. Her eyes were blank, empty, but her expression left a gentle impression.]

Akako gasped. “Goddess Anesidora…”

Everyone who saw it wondered in confusion why Shinichi was suddenly on the library sofa and a woman was sitting across from him.

“So beautiful…” Aoko and Kazuha whispered in admiration.

Conan gaped when he saw the woman his Niichan always talked about.

Goddess Anesidora, a goddess who was formed from soil like a human and was sentenced to life to guard a 'hope' which was later named Pandora's Box. It was the goddess who guided and taught Shinichi everything related to magic and life. It was also the goddess who held Shinichi and 'threw him into the underworld' when Shinichi's karma had accumulated too much.

[Shinichi took a deep breath to calm himself and stared at the woman for a moment before nodding in greeting. “Anesidora.”

The woman—Anesidora—nodded back and said that Shinichi had used his magic too much to save a human who had nothing to do with him. As a result, Shinichi's body was unable to fight the poison because his strength was almost gone.

This made Shinichi start to question what exactly his magic did to Masami. He knew that magic and science could never mix, but he still wanted an explanation for his questions. Why did Masami shrink? Why did her hair change color? What else did his magic change?]

“Is she… Pandora’s true form?” KID asked doubtfully. “I’ve heard that Pandora has consciousness, that’s why she cried when she was under the meteor shower that happens once every 10,000 years.”

“To be more precise, Pandora is the name humans gave her.” Akako explained, half in awe and half in disbelief. “The Goddess Anesidora is a special goddess. She is different from the others because her body is made of earth, like humans. She was born with the breath of Hephaestus and was then bestowed with gifts by the other gods.”

“Like a human…?”

“They call her; half goddess and half human, a bridge between the gods and mortals.” Akako exhaled, her eyes still refusing to leave Anesidora on the screen. “They say that the Goddess Anesidora was given the task of guarding ‘Hope’, so that humans would not lose it and could continue to move forward.”

“So that's where the legend of 'Pandora's Box' came from…” Chikage muttered in awe.

[Anesidora didn't answer. Instead, she leaned toward Shinichi and slowly opened his shirt, causing Shinichi to freeze. She then lifted Shinichi's shirt to the left, revealing his left chest, which was now covered in red cracks—like glass that had been cracked by a gunshot. Anesidora then began to explain that the magic inside Shinichi's body was continuously trying to neutralize the poison in his body. But because Shinichi used his magic excessively, the magic that was supposed to fight to neutralize the poison became weak, causing his body to be on the verge of destruction.

The crack above Shinichi's heart is proof that Shinichi is close to death again. His karma from using magic is also piling up, especially after using that much magic. This makes Shinichi say that he can't let Masami die just because his body is poisoned and is afraid of the karma he will get.]

Several people gasped when they saw the crack in Shinichi's chest.

“Wait a minute, why is his body like that?” Camel asked in confusion.

“And what does it mean that ‘the magic inside Shinichi-kun’s body is continuously trying to neutralize the poison’? Does that mean that the poison he drinks will be neutralized as long as he doesn’t use magic?”

“So he doesn’t need an antidote? If his body will gradually neutralize the apotoxin…” Ran muttered. “But he said he needed an antidote…”

“He needs an antidote because he can’t stop using magic. He can minimize its use, but he can’t stop using it completely. Not to mention the karma that continues to burden his body, making it impossible for him to act freely.” Ai took a deep breath and began to explain what she knew.

[Shinichi then asks for an explanation of what his magic did to Masami, causing Anesidora to sigh and fix Shinichi's clothes before answering that the magic Shinichi used forced Masami's cells to regenerate immediately.

Technically, doing so would restore the cells lost due to the injury. But because the magic Shinichi used was too powerful and Masami's body was not used to the radiation of magic, the magic that should have regenerated cells in one place instead spread throughout her body and replaced other cells, causing Masami's body to undergo cell renewal in a short time. That's why her body shrank, because every cell in her body was replaced with new cells. The color of her hair and possibly some of her facial features also changed because of this. Masami was lucky that Shinichi's magic didn't turn her into a baby.

Masami was also lucky that that was all her magic did and it didn't grow cancer in the woman's body.]

“Restoring cells lost due to injury… it’s like a miraculous treatment that can save someone’s life when they’re on the verge of death.” Jii gasped in disbelief. “It’s truly like a miracle…”

“Like a miracle… yeah, Akemi-san, or Yume-chan? Luckily what Shinichi-kun did didn’t cause cancer in her body.”

Masumi glanced at Shinichi who was now silent again as if asleep for a few moments before looking down and whispering to Conan. “Hey, is that why he didn’t shrink like your friend when he forced to drank apotoxin?”

[That explanation made Shinichi furrow his brows, then wonder if the magic inside him was also capable of neutralizing poison as long as he didn't use it for anything else. He theorized that if his magic worked like 'immune cells', then it should be able to fight poison or other 'intruders' in his body as long as it remained free-flowing and wasn't used for anything else.

Anesidora confirmed his words. Shinichi's body was deteriorating and the poison in his body could not be neutralized immediately because Shinichi had been using his magic lately. She estimated that Shinichi should not use magic for at least a whole year—because the poison flowing in his body had strange characteristics.]

Conan gestured at the screen which gave Masumi the answer.

“Oh… then why didn’t Ai-chan use, I don’t know, Kudo-kun’s cells? Blood? to make the antidote? If she did—”

“What makes you think I haven’t tried it?” Ai asked sharply. “What makes you think we don’t have the apotoxin they used? Making an antidote isn’t as easy as you say! I tried it, and do you know what happened to the lab rats that received the antidote based on Shinichi-kun’s blood?”

Masumi swallowed nervously. She wasn't sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

Ai's lips formed a thin line with a serious expression. "They exploded. Less than a minute after I injected them with the antidote, they exploded."

Yume and Conan grimanced as they remembered what happened when Ai first did it. It was a disaster that they didn't want to repeat again. On the other hand, Masumi paled.

[“The poison in your body is burning your cells, but at the same time, they are regenerating them and forcing your body to produce new cells. In theory, the poison is not harmful to you. But the magic in your body detects that the poison is disturbing and damaging your body, so they are trying to fight it.” Anesidora explained , making Shinichi rub his cracked chest.

Shinichi then asks how long he has to stay there with Anesidora until the crack in his chest disappears because he is worried about Conan and Masami who he brought to Agasa's house.

Anesidora folded her arms and said that Shinichi should stay here for a month.]

“So in other words, the poison Kudo-kun drank would have killed him if he didn’t have magic?” Saguru asked in confusion. He still didn’t understand how a poison that could make someone ‘evaporate without a trace’ worked.

“Not necessarily.” Ai shook her head and took a deep breath. “The poison has side effects, but the chances are very small. Maybe one in a thousand… a side effect where the person who drinks it doesn’t die, but shrinks into a child.”

"What…?"

“You heard Anesidora-san’s explanation about Shinichi-kun’s magic forcing Neesan’s cells to renew themselves until her body shrank. APTX 4869 also has the same theory as that.”

"So Shinichi-kun still has the possibility to live even without magic in his body." Takagi confirmed.

“That’s right. Although his body will shrink into a child if that happens.”

[A month in the 'subconscious world' means a week in the 'real world'. Shinichi was about to protest when Anesidora interrupted him by saying that he should be grateful that she didn't keep him for four years. She explained that four years and four months in the 'subconscious world' was enough time for Shinichi's magic to completely neutralize the poison in his body.

Hearing that, Shinichi's mouth immediately shut tightly. Although Anesidora's offer was quite interesting to him—because he was already quite frustrated with his body's health that had been collapsing more and more since being poisoned—but four years in this realm was a very long time. Not to mention that something could have happened to Conan while he was 'asleep'.

Resignedly, Shinichi picked up one of the stacked books and began to make himself comfortable in his seat. He had a month to kill.]

“Four years and four months… if a month in the ‘subconscious world’ is equal to a week in the ‘real world’, then it would take a full year for Meitantei’s magic to completely neutralize the poison in his body.” KID quickly calculated. “Yeah, I understand why Meitantei refuses to do it.”

“… why do I feel like you’re making fun of me?” Conan asked the thief.

“Who? Me? I would never!” KID dramatically scoffed.

Conan refused to believe the teenager's words.

[Anesidora stared at Shinichi blankly, not saying anything until Shinichi, who was uncomfortable, stared back at her. “You have to be careful, Kudo Shinichi. Your karma is starting to pile up too much. You have to clear it up soon, or you’ll lose control.”

Shinichi froze for a moment before turning his attention back to the book he was reading. “I’ll take care of it after you free me. Or do I need to go down to the Underworld?” he asked as if he didn’t care.

The goddess in front of him just shook her head and said that Shinichi's karma had indeed accumulated a lot, but not so much that he had to pay for it by going down to the Underworld. "Just... take care of it before what happened back then happens again. He gave you a chance to live, so you shouldn't do that again. You were lucky that your little brother woke you up just in time."]

“What do you mean by ‘losing control’? And what kind of karma did Shinichi-kun get?” Megure asked worriedly.

Akako's eyes widened when she heard the word 'Underworld'. "So, my guess was right... he's not fully human anymore..."

“What do you mean by that?”

“The Underworld is a place where souls are tested after death. It weighs what we did while we were alive and decides whether we will enter the cycle of reincarnation or be destroyed and remade.” Akako explained, now with a hint of fear in her voice. “But how can one human judge another?”

Akako continued without caring whether the others were listening or not, as if she was talking to herself. “The answer is no, humans cannot judge other humans. Therefore, the demon of light is no longer fully human.”

Conan bit his lip when he heard Akako's words. He knew that his Niichan's soul was no longer human since that time. Shinichi even told Conan everything. But hearing it said in front of everyone made him uncomfortable.

Because this all felt like ripping off the bandages covering Shinichi's wounds, opening them wide open for everyone to see what was inside.

For the first time, Conan felt that 'The Archive of Truth' was truly invading their lives.

[On the other hand, Conan frantically shakes Shinichi's limp body, causing Agasa to say that he will call an ambulance, but Conan quickly rejects it because Shinichi's body and Conan's hands are still covered in Masami's blood. This makes Agasa frustrated, but tries to calm down and feel Shinichi's pulse.

“His pulse is weak, but not dangerously so. Conan-kun, what happened?” Agasa asked, silently sighing in relief and helping Conan lift Shinichi onto the couch. The man then also lifted Masami’s small, unconscious body onto the other couch and checked her pulse.

Fortunately, he didn't find anything wrong with the little girl.]

“I don’t know whether I should praise you or reprimand you for that, Conan-kun.” Furuya commented. He was trying to ease the tension that had arisen from Akako’s previous remarks, even though he still didn’t fully understand what the Witch was saying.

“He’s right, although I understand why you didn’t want to take Shinichi-kun and Yume-chan to the hospital at that time, but at least they both need to be checked by a doctor.”

“Wait a minute.” Ran suddenly narrowed her eyes at Conan, Yume and Ai. “I hardly ever receive any information that you go to the hospital, Conan-kun. Given the dangerous situations you often find yourself in, I never take you to the hospital unless you are really badly injured.”

“Uh…”

“… was Ai-chan the one who took care of you guys?” Ran asked. Judging by the surprise on Conan and Ai’s faces, she already knew the answer. “It all makes sense if Hakase and Ai-chan took care of you and Shinichi, Conan-kun. I know Ai-chan is too smart and knows medical information. It’s not hard to put it all together.”

[After confirming that Shinichi was just exhausted and now asleep, Conan begins to explain what happened to Agasa, but he also doesn't know what happened to Shinichi's magic that made Masami shrink into a child.

Agasa listened to Conan's explanation while taking a basin of water and a cloth to clean Shinichi and Masami's bodies which were still covered in blood. He also checked Masami's stomach which now had no scars, as if the girl had never been shot even though her stomach was full of blood that was starting to dry.]

Conan and Ai exchanged glances before the little girl exhaled and nodded. "That's right. Shinichi-kun and Conan-kun wouldn't have gone to the hospital if it wasn't urgent. They don't trust anyone to take care of them besides me and Hakase."

“Now it all makes sense. Conan-kun also often refused when we suggested taking him to the hospital.” Sato and Takagi nodded. “He would only agree if Sanashi-san was there.”

“Neechan won’t let anything happen to me.” Conan raised his eyebrows as if dare them to refute his words.

[Conan refuses to go back to the Agency and chooses to call Ran to tell her that he will stay at Agasa's house. He doesn't want to leave Shinichi alone without knowing if his brother is really okay. Agasa of course allows it and asks Conan to get Shinichi a change of clothes and also lends Shinichi's old clothes to Masami.

Luckily, Masami wakes up shortly after and frantically tells Conan the location of the stolen money, almost begging him not to let the organization use the money, leading Conan to call Megure anonymously to tell him the information he has.]

Megure took a deep breath. “Thank you for confirming it.”

“But still—it’s all too much. I can’t even wrap my head around all this information.”

“Honestly? Same with me.”

“Me too. This too much information we get in less than a day.”

[After that, Masami started her story about an organization that used black clothes and its higher-ups had code names. The person who shot her was Gin, he had long dirty silver hair and wore a fedora hat. Usually Gin was accompanied by his right-hand man, Vodka. Masami also introduced herself as Miyano Akemi, one of the low-level members of the organization. She robbed as an assignment from the organization with the promise that Akemi and her sister could be free, but Gin only used her.

Conan impatiently asks what information Akemi has about them, but unfortunately Akemi is only a low-ranking member, so she doesn't have much information other than the characteristics of the members of the organization who have code names.]

“Gin and Vodka.” KID muttered. “They use liquor as code.”

Saguru raised an eyebrow when he heard that. “Not the one who tried to kill you?”

“Nah. They use animal code. But I can’t pass up the possibility that their organization is related…”

Furuya frowned. He was contemplating whether to tell them or not. Unfortunately, Akai beside him had already spoken up.

“The organization has two branches. The first branch has an animal code, while the second has a color code. I don’t know much about them, because each branch works differently.” Akai said calmly, as if he was discussing daily agendas. “Gin and Vodka are the core organizations that rank higher than the two branches.”

It was silent for a few seconds before some of the people in front of him turned their heads and cursed.

“There’s more of them?!”

Tbc.

Chapter Text

Furuya and Jodie beside Akai almost punched the man for revealing the information so easily.

“Akai Shuuichi! Do you know how confidential that information is?!” Furuya hissed in annoyance.

But Akai remained calm, as if not causing a commotion between the police and the teenage detectives. “Sooner or later they will find out. This place tears apart all the secrets we have and shows them, Furuya-kun. I don’t know what this place wants, but I’m sure that this place at least wants us to be united and not step on each other’s tails.”

Furuya opened his mouth, ready to retort, quip, rage—anything. But in the end he closed it again because what Akai said made sense.

“Wait, if you think this place will show us all the secrets we have…” Jodie clenched her fists, “does that mean this place will show us all of our past?”

“That could be it. Although it seems like this place prefers to show Boya and Shinichi-kun’s secrets.”

The others whispered again in shock at the theory. Some felt anxious, and others didn't know whether to be angry or worried.

Furuya suddenly turned his head and grabbed Akai by the collar. “So you’re saying this place will also show what really happened back then?” he asked through gritted teeth.

Akai rubbed the hand that was gripping his collar and slowly removed it from his shirt. His gaze this time was full of regret. “Furuya-kun.”

The blonde bit his lip and looked away, but still let Akai hold his hand.

[Two days have passed and Shinichi has not regained consciousness until Agasa finally called a private doctor he knew to make sure that there was nothing wrong with Shinichi. The results of the examination itself only showed that Shinichi was severely exhausted. The doctor suggested that they should take Shinichi to the hospital for treatment, but because Conan was worried that Shinichi's identity would be discovered, they ended up giving him an IV drip at Agasa's house.

Akemi herself helps out as much as she can. The girl can't go out because she doesn't have an official ID yet—even though she asks Conan and Agasa to call her 'Yume'. The woman who shrinks into a 10-year-old girl periodically sends information about Shinichi's condition to Conan and also helps Agasa tinker with his equipment.

The girl said that she never knew she liked this kind of thing, so Agasa started teaching her little by little about the technology he created.]

“Severely exhausted…? Didn’t he get enough rest? Is this why Sanashi-san often collapses too?” Ran asked. She decided to focus on what was really happening to Shinichi, because even though Shinichi had explained most of it to Ran, he still hadn’t explained it in detail.

Ran felt bad because she thought that this was a chance for all of them to find out what really happened to Shinichi, but she stomped those feelings down.

[Conan is daydreaming and thinking of an excuse to stay over at Agasa's house again when a little girl—Yoshida Ayumi—comes up to his table and asks him to go ghost hunting. Conan wants to refuse her right away, but another big boy—Kojima Genta—gets in front of him and tells Yoshida not to invite him.

Conan agreed with Kojima's words wholeheartedly, unfortunately Yoshida in front of him insisted and said that they couldn't hunt ghosts with just two people. Yoshida then explained—recounted—rumors about the old mansion in Yonchou-me and also her experience last night when she passed by the mansion.]

“Ah, so this is how Shounen Tantei-dan was formed.” Sato smiled fondly. “Ayumi-chan was the one who first invited Conan-kun… that little girl is really kind.”

“Hahaha, too bad Conan-kun doesn’t seem to like it.” Shiratori also commented.

“You can’t blame him, his brother is lying in bed and hasn’t woken up for two days. If I were that kid, I would also reject them and go straight home.” Ginzo snorted, making Shiratori roll his eyes.

[The girl suddenly screamed, making Conan annoyed because her scream hurt his ears. But he didn't have time to speak because once again someone beat him to it and said that it was just a made-up story. Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko—the boy who was sitting reading a science book—then started saying that there were no ghosts in this day and age, making Kojima go berserk and grab Tsuburaya's collar, saying that Yoshida couldn't possibly be lying.

Kojima then told Tsuburaya to come with them to prove his words while Yoshida herself held back tears and looked like she was almost shaking Conan when she asked if Conan believed her. This made Conan want to say that he didn't believe her either, but he didn't want to deal with a crying Yoshida. So he nodded reluctantly.

Seeing him, Yoshida's expression brightened and they—Yoshida and Kojima—arbitrarily decided that they would go to the rumored terror mansion.]

“Wait a minute, that terror mansion they were talking about… wasn’t that the time when Ran-kun called the police because Mitsuhiko-kun went missing while investigating an abandoned house that had been abandoned for over five years?” Megure asked.

“Oh! I’ve heard of it! It was the case where the host’s killer was found in that house, right? The case went unsolved for five years, and it turned out the killer was his own family.” Chiba confirmed, making Megure nod.

[Conan complained about this when he got home from school to Yume and Agasa. Shinichi hadn't woken up yet and Conan didn't want to waste his time hanging out with annoying kids after school. He also didn't want to have to deal with the law and the police if the kids damaged or lost something on other people's private property.

Yume who heard it became worried and asked Conan to invite his teacher or Ran to come with them to the 'terror mansion'. After all, a place that has not been maintained for years could be a nest for bad people hiding something. Conan agreed because that way he wouldn't suffer alone with annoying children.]

“Brat!” Sonoko snapped in annoyance. “So you invited Ran so someone could babysit them?!”

“Sonoko!” Ran tried to calm her best friend down and looked at Yume with relief. “I’m glad you suggested I go with them, Yume-chan.”

“Yeah, I’m glad I suggested it too. We don’t know what would have happened to them if you hadn’t come with them, Ran-neesan.” Yume awkwardly returned Ran’s gaze with a small smile. She still felt guilty towards Ran because of the Hirota Masami case.

“You know, I’m torn between agreeing with what Edogawa-kun thinks and being interested because a five-year cold case was finally solved because of them.” Saguru grimaced.

The police who were there agreed with these words wholeheartedly.

[The next day, Ran, Conan, Kojima, Tsuburaya and Yoshida are standing in front of the mansion Yoshida mentioned earlier. The other three kids are looking at Ran with hostility, but Conan refuses to leave without Ran with them and Ran is worried after Conan tells her that there are kids who forced him to join them in breaking into other people's private property.

In his heart, Conan thought that this was all ridiculous, especially since Kojima, Tsuburaya and Yoshida were carrying a lot of stuff as if they were going to the evil witch's castle. He himself didn't bring anything except Ran.]

Masumi snorted in amusement. “Complaining, eh?”

Conan shrugged, “If I have to suffer with them, then I will bring someone else to suffer with me.” He suddenly smiled mischievously at Ai, “Thank you for suffering with me all this time, Ai-san.”

Ai responded by hitting Conan's shoulder, while Yume on the other hand giggled when she heard it.

[Tsuburaya then tries to shake the iron gate of the mansion, but it won't open, making Conan hope that they will give up. Unfortunately, Kojima says that he found a secret way to get inside. He takes them into a narrow alley full of tall weeds next to the mansion and shows them the secret way, making Conan immediately feel that something is strange.

Kojima then opened the side door of the mansion and they found it unlocked. Hesitantly, they stepped inside as thunder rang out, startling Yoshida and running until she bumped into a gargoyle statue. This made her scream loudly and made Conan even more annoyed by all of this.

'I want to go home and hug Niichan.' Conan thought miserably.]

Their attention was immediately drawn to the information, especially the teenage detectives there.

“Secret passage?”

“Well, I mean, it’s a mansion? Every mansion has a secret passage!” Sonoko tilted her head in confusion. “I’m sure Shinichi-kun’s house has a secret passage too.”

Conan nodded. “The Kudo Mansion has five secret exits. Two of them were built by Otousama, while the other three were built by Niichan. Neechan’s house also has a secret exit.”

“Hakase’s house has them too.” Yume added, causing several people there to stare at them in surprise.

“But, the unlocked door worries me. I know we all know that this is the past and the case in that house has been solved, but if I were there at that time, I would have felt the same way as Conan-kun. There’s something strange about it.”

“Yeah, empty houses usually stay locked, unless the house has been empty for really long and everything inside is broken.”

[Ran and Tsuburaya try to calm Yoshida down by saying that it's just a statue, causing Yoshida to start whining in disgust at the dirt and dust stuck to her hands and feet. Conan's patience is running out when he hears this and he desperately holds himself back from commenting. Luckily, they find a bathroom with running water, allowing Yoshida to clean her hands and feet.

They then wandered around the large mansion until they went up to the second floor. At this point, Kojima, Tsuburaya and Yoshida's attitudes began to warm up to Ran. The further they went inside, the more Conan felt that this manor was strange until they entered a room whose door opened by itself.

'Strange… the floor is clean even though everywhere else is full of dust. There are also no signs of rain or wind here, so the window must have just been opened.' Conan thought, ignoring the other three kids and Ran who said that the wind from the open window had caused the door to this room to open as well.]

“The bathroom still has running water. The mansion is getting weirder, like someone is living in it.”

“Well, we all know that the mansion is still inhabited by the wife and children of the deceased host.”

“But why did they clean that room? As Conan-kun said, the room and other places are full of dust. Only that room looks clean.”

“Maybe there was something there? At that time, we were more focused on Mitsuhiko-kun who had disappeared, so we didn’t have time to search the entire mansion.” Megure rubbed his chin, trying to remember what had happened at that time. “But we did find a lot of oddities inside before finding the wife and son of the house owner inside.”

[Tsuburaya then said that he was going to the bathroom, making the others wait in the room they found. While Kojima and Yoshida were busy chattering that the owner of this mansion must be very rich, Conan pulled the corner of Ran's shirt and whispered that there was something strange in this mansion.

Ran, who heard his explanation, became increasingly worried and decided to go look for Tsuburaya, but before the teenager could get out, Tsuburaya's screams were heard from downstairs and surprised them all.

Reflexively, Conan pulled Ran and ran towards the source of the scream.]

Sato and Takagi rubbed their heads when they saw it. “Why is it that wherever those kids go, they always get into trouble?”

“Correction, wherever Tantei-kun goes, he always gets into trouble.” KID folded his arms and sighed. The thief thought for a moment before correcting himself. “No, wherever Tantei-kun and Meitantei go, the two of them always get into trouble.”

“Well, didn’t Ai-san say it before? We’re both cursed.”

KID waved his hand, making Conan itch to kick his soccer ball at the thief.

[The four of them then started to wander around the lower floor, but still couldn't find Tsuburaya until the sky turned dark. Worried about Tsuburaya's whereabouts who was still missing, Ran finally decided to call the police, making Kojima and Yoshida refuse.

Their refusal made Conan's patience finally snap and he started scolding them until Yoshida cried and Kojima felt guilty. Conan refuses to apologize and refuses to comfort Yoshida. He was tired and he wanted to go home. He doesn't want to deal with any of this and what matters most is that he wants his Niichan.]

Some people winced when they heard Conan's anger. They knew that Conan had a habit of speaking bluntly, just like Shinichi. But they didn't know that Conan also did the same thing to his friends because so far Conan had always been more patient with his friends.

“Tantei-kun, maybe you could be a little more, uh, gentle with them.” KID commented, sweatdropping at Conan’s bluntness.

Conan shrugged. “I tried to be patient with them and I was too tired to deal with their behavior at the time. So forgive me if I couldn’t control myself.”

Heiji looked at Conan strangely. “I thought you would find out what happened before calling the police?”

Conan shrugged again. “I told you, I’m tired and I don’t feel like dealing with it.”

[The police came because of Ran's call and they immediately started searching. Kojima's parents, Tsuburaya and Yoshida were also called, causing Kojima and Yoshida to be scolded by them, while Tsuburaya's parents urged the police to find their son immediately. The police then found other suspicious things, such as a kitchen that looked like it had just been used with fresh ingredients, then several boxes full of candles and oil, and several pairs of clothes that had just been washed.

They began to suspect that someone was living in this place and decided to check it out thoroughly until they found Tsuburaya sleeping on the unkempt grass. They also found an underground staircase that turned out to lead to a cell containing the son of the man who owned the mansion who died five years ago.]

“A cell in the basement…?” Aoko murmured palely. “He’s a prisoner in his own home?”

“For five years locked in a cell by his own mother… it’s a miracle that he’s still sane.” Saguru sighed in pity. “But why did his mother lock up her own son…?”

Masumi touched his chin, “Maybe because the wife of the house owner is the real murderer? If that’s true, then the mother wouldn’t want her son to come out and tell the police what really happened?”

"No, the son is the murderer." Conan explained. “His mother locked him up to protect him.”

[In the end, the wife of the house owner was found and arrested after confessing the crime her son committed against her husband. They said that finally the case that had been unsolved for five years has been solved. Kojima's parents, Tsuburaya's parents and Yoshida's parents also thanked and praised Conan for telling the adults that he felt unsafe and asking the adults to come with them.

Conan just winced and hid behind Ran's legs. He didn't like being the center of Kojima, Tsuburaya and Yoshida's sad gazes because their parents were praising Conan instead. Luckily, Ran explained the excuse Conan used before that this had happened to his classmate in America and ended up in a lawsuit.]

“Huh? Something like this has happened in America?” Takagi asked curiously.

“Uh-huh. My classmate once went into this house and found a jewel necklace! She showed it off in class, but a week later the police came to her house because apparently the owner wanted the necklace back and this house wasn’t empty.” Conan explained with a bright smile. “Unfortunately, my classmate had already lost the necklace. So the owner sued them for damages.”

“Your classmate lost her jeweled necklace? Are you sure it was lost and not stolen?” Sonoko asked skeptically.

“Well, the police found out that her parents had sold the necklace to splurge. Then the kid dropped out of school and I don’t know what happened next. But from the gossip, her parents were arrested and she moved in with her aunt.”

[After everything was done, Ran allowed Conan to stay home from school because it was already early morning. She was worried that Conan would get sick because he ate late and didn't get enough rest, making Conan take the opportunity to ask Ran to let him stay at Agasa's house.

Ran unexpectedly readily agrees, making Conan a little suspicious but the teenager simply says that she doesn't trust Kogoro to look after Conan while Ran is at school. Her reasoning is reasonable enough and Conan lets his suspicions drop. He lets Ran take him to Agasa's house—where the old man is thankfully still awake and fiddling with his gadgets—and briefly explains what happened.]

Kogoro scowled, but doesn't argue when Ran says she doesn't trust him to look after Conan.

“You’re still awake at that late hour?” Jii asked Agasa.

Agasa laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of his head. “Well… I was too busy tinkering with my new invention that I lost track of time.”

Ai sighed. “You should pay more attention to your health, Hakase.” She said, causing Agasa to protest half-heartedly.

Conan playfully nudged Ai and whispered “hypocrite.” to his friend, making Ai roll her eyes.

[When Ran finally came home from Agasa's house, without wasting any time Conan immediately went to clean himself and climbed onto Shinichi's bed, carefully curling up next to his Niichan and placing his head on his Niichan's heart. He watched Shinichi who still hadn't woken up for a few moments before closing his eyes and hoping that his Niichan would wake up soon.

Unknowingly, the boy fell asleep from exhaustion, missing Shinichi's twitching fingers and his body moving curled up against Conan, as if trying to protect him from the rest of the world.]

They were silent when they saw Shinichi who was still sleeping on the bed. The teenager didn't even wake up even though Conan climbed onto his bed.

They then glanced at Shinichi who was currently also sitting motionless with his eyes closed as if he was in a deep sleep. This made them a bit worried. But remembering that Shinichi had just opened his eyes a few moments ago, they all decided to let Shinichi remain 'asleep'.

“Oh,” Conan whispered when he saw that Shinichi was still moving and curling up to him even when his brother was ‘held’ in the subconscious. “Niichan…”

Ai squeezed Conan's shoulder to reassured him, “he'll be fine.”

Conan looked down with a sad and worried look. “Yeah. Thanks, Ai-san.”

Tbc.

Chapter Text

[The scene suddenly changes to a cruise ship with Ran admiring the view from the deck. She is accompanied by Conan, who grumbles beside her, saying that Kogoro is messing up their return schedule. Luckily, they are able to board a ship chartered by a large family.

Conan asks Ran who rented the entire ship, and the scene changes again, highlighting a girl crying not far from them.

Worried, Ran asked if something was wrong and the girl wiped away her tears while saying that she was just remembering her parents who died in an accident some time ago.]

Conan was stunned for a few seconds before groaning and rubbing the bridge of his nose tiredly as he realized what the case was about to be. Beside him, Ai raised an eyebrow until Yume explained the case that would befall to her sister.

Ran on the other hand gasped. “Oh! Natsue-san!”

[The girl said that it was a happy day, but she ended up crying. Then a young man stepped up and called the girl 'Natsue', causing Natsue to turn around and hug the young man's arm—Hatamoto Takeshi—saying with a happy smile that they just got married today. They tied the knot on Hatamoto Island, the island that Kogoro, Ran, and Conan had just visited.

Ran immediately gets excited and congratulates them, but wonders why it has to be Hatamoto Island, leading Natsue to explain that most of the island belongs to the Hatamoto family and they are there to honor their ancestors as a tradition.

“Hatamoto…? I think I’ve heard that name before,” Sonoko muttered.

"Aren't they the wealthy family whose old leader was murdered by his own grandson a year ago?" Takagi asked doubtfully. "I remember reading about them."

“Ah! I remember! It was quite a tragic case, I think. A young man, too shy to confess his love, ended up killing his own grandfather because the old man turned out to be a bastard.” Sato nodded and explained.

Megure, beside them, stroked his chin. “If I’m not mistaken, the one who solved the case was Mouri-kun. Rumor has it that he solved it before the ship reached Tokyo and revealed the real killer with his incredible deduction skills!”

“Uh.” Ran grimaced upon hearing that. “Keibu, it seems we all know who really solved the case… judging by Tousan’s lack of memory and what we saw earlier…”

This time, it wasn't just Kogoro who was massaging the bridge of his nose in tiredness mixed with stress.

[Their conversation was interrupted by an old man's angry shout. The man pointed at Ran and Conan angrily, saying that only the Hatamoto family should have chartered the boat, but instead some strangers had boarded it too. His hostile glare made Ran and Conan subconsciously recoil in fear. The man then went on to scold a middle-aged man—who turned out to be his son-in-law, Kitaro—for bringing some strangers onto their boat.

Natsue tries to calm Ran and Conan down by saying that her grandfather—Gozou—has been in a bad mood since returning from the island. Her statement is supported by her uncle who suddenly appears from behind Natsue. The man—Jouji—says that Gozou didn't like his cooking at the wedding because he was still a beginner. Jouji then turns the conversation to the flowers in Takeshi's jacket pocket.

“Uh-oh, now I understand why they call Hatamoto Gozou-san a bastard. He sounds old-fashioned and stubborn, the type who won’t listen to anyone.” Takagi grimaced.

And he wasn't the only one to do it.

“Well, what else? He lives in luxury, and from what I hear, he only loves his youngest granddaughter, Hatamoto Natsue.” Shiratori shrugged. “You know how rich people are when they think they can do anything.”

[The scene changes back to Hatamoto Ichirou, an art student who is drawing Natsue with his pencil not far from Ran, Conan, Natsue, Jouji and Takeshi. Behind him, Gozou grumbles loudly and says that Kitaro should have told Ichirou to listen to Gozou and give up on his dream. Gozou then calls Takeshi and tells him to come to Gozou's room because he wants to talk.

After that, the old man left, leaving an unpleasant atmosphere because of his attitude.]

“What a horrible person,” Sonoko cursed in annoyance. “And he did all that on his own granddaughter’s wedding day?! What a selfish, smelly old man!”

“Uh-huh. It’s his favorite grandchild’s wedding!” Kazuha joined in cursing Gozou.

“Somehow, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone in his family wanted to kill him.” Masumi crossed her arms in an exasperated expression. “He seems like the type of person who doesn’t listen to other people’s opinions.”

[Behind Kitaro and Ichirou, Mariko, Gozou's eldest daughter, says that they must be patient because Gozou will not live long. The middle-aged woman says that after Gozou dies, all the inheritance of the Hatamoto family will belong to them.

Someone snorted and said that Mariko's plan would not work out because they—Hatamoto Akie and Hatamoto Tatsuo—heard from the butler that Gozou allocated all the company's assets.

Akie is Natsue's older sister and the daughter of Gozou's eldest son, while Tatsuo is her husband.]

"Great, even his own daughter wants the old man dead so she can get his fortune." Kazuha shook her head and let out a long sigh. "There's bound to be a case. All the signs are there."

"Well, I'm not surprised there's a split over the division of the Hatamoto family's wealth. They're extremely wealthy and one of Japan's oldest families. Rumor has it they're still related to the Japanese imperial family. But there's no evidence to support that, so people think it's just gossip." Ai shrugged and commented after hearing the general gist from Yume. "Who knows if the rumors are true or not."

“Huh. That makes sense, since they even have an island named after them. I mean, my family could also afford a private island—if Otousama didn’t already have one—with Niichan and Otousama’s wealth, but even then, we still wouldn’t be able to change the name of the island.”

“Yeah, Jirokichi-ojisama couldn’t change the name of the island he bought even if he wanted to.” Sonoko confirmed, as if not at all surprised by Conan’s statement about the Kudo family being able to—or even owning—a private island.

[Akie then whispers in Mariko's ear about Gozou's plan, causing Mariko to stare in shock. Tatsuo then embraces Akie and spits, mockingly saying that 'he' has a lot of debt. Akie beside him laughs sarcastically and says that there are still 24 hours before they arrive in Tokyo and before that, Mariko must act.

The scene then shifts back to Takeshi who now enters Gozou's room and greets him politely, causing Gozou to praise him, saying that it was his politeness that attracted Natsue to Takeshi.]

Almost everyone besides Yuusaku, Yukiko, Sonoko, and Conan sweatdropped upon hearing the conversation. They all knew that the Kudo and Suzuki families were influential and wealthy, but they didn't know just how wealthy they were until they learned that they could afford a private island.

Yuusaku and Yukiko chuckled at the dumbfounded expressions of the people around them.

Akako glanced at Shinichi out of the corner of her eye and cursed under her breath. 'I didn't know he was that rich. Could it be that the goddess Anesidora helped him acquire all that wealth?' she wondered irritably. 'If the goddess Anesidora helped him, then that would explain how easily he acquired it.'

[Takeshi scratches his cheek in embarrassment, prompting Gozou to remark that Takeshi resembles his father, Zaiki Isao. This leaves Takeshi speechless, and Gozou continues before asking what the young man really wants.

Unbeknownst to both of them, someone was eavesdropping on their conversation from behind the wall.]

“Yep, a total bastard. No wonder someone ended up killing him.” Sonoko folded her arms and rolled her eyes, feeling a little sorry for Gozou dying at the hands of his own grandson, but not really caring. After all, the old man was long dead.

“And what’s worse, someone was eavesdropping on their conversation,” Saguru added. He squinted at the person eavesdropping on Gozou and Takeshi’s conversation, but the person’s figure was completely invisible and their face was in shadow.

“Why can't we see who's eavesdropping on them?” Masumi wondered.

“You’re right… is it because this place censored it until we find out who did it?” Heiji guessed.

"But we all know who Gozou's killer is. So why is the perpetrator who overheard their conversation being censored?" Ran asked, confused.

[The scene changes back to Natsue explaining the Hatamoto family tree to Kogoro, Ran, and Conan. Almost everyone in the Hatamoto family is present at Takeshi and Natsue's wedding, except for her parents. Natsue then says that she will formally introduce them after dinner.

Ran then wonders where Takeshi is, making Natsue worry as he is in Gozou's room. Akie, passing by, suggests that they might be discussing something suspicious, prompting Natsue to reprimand her.

Saguru and Aoko turned to Akako for answers, but the Witch just shook her head, a sign that she didn't know either.

“I think we need to look further to get more accurate data,” KID interjected. “If Witch-san doesn’t know, then there’s a chance Meitantei doesn’t know either—considering that the only person who knows what really happened besides Witch-san is Meitantei.”

The others looked at each other when they heard KID's suggestion.

"What KID-kun said makes sense. For now, we'd better pay attention," Yuusaku spoke up. "Besides, we don't know how long we'll be stuck here."

KID's fingers twitched as if he didn't know whether to be happy or annoyed that Yuusaku supported him and called him as if they were friends. Luckily, the others distracted him by agreeing to his suggestion to stay alert, as KID had suggested, at least until they could all get out of this place.

“Is it just me, or are the only people who seem nice in that family Natsue-san and her husband?” Jodie suddenly muttered, rolling her eyes when she saw Natsue’s own sister also saying and acting like a jerk.

“It seems like their family isn’t on good terms, especially since everyone seems to be there just for Gozou’s inheritance.” Kogoro shrugged, wishing he had a cigarette. All this information was giving him a headache.

[They all get ready to eat and Natsue suddenly asks if Ran has a boyfriend, causing her to reply that she doesn't, but she has a person she likes. Beside her, Conan grimaces awkwardly and begins to squirm uncomfortably. Ran explains that the person she likes is very smart and good at soccer, and is also ready to help her whenever she needs it when Natsue asks.

Conan forces a smile when Ran turns to him, wondering when this one-sided love will end. He is also worried again about his Niichan who still hasn't woken up yet.

It's been six days since they rescued Akemi—Yume-nee, and Shinichi is still unconscious. Ran is also still upset because 'Masami' hasn't been found, causing Kogoro to take them on a trip to Hatamoto Island to distract them.]

Ran grimaced as she saw her past pathetic behavior. She didn't even notice that Conan seemed uncomfortable with the conversation and continued to talk about Shinichi with Natsue.

'Looking back now, do I really know Shinichi?' Ran suddenly thought. Because Ran had just realized that she didn't know much about Shinichi. She knew that Shinichi liked soccer and mysteries, but Ran didn't know much about Shinichi. She never even knew that Shinichi had a younger brother before Shinichi himself admitted it in London. That was because Shinichi couldn't stand Ran's one-sided love anymore, which he considered a 'burden'.

Heavens, even Shinichi never said anything about his engagement to Kaito-san!—even though it was just a childish joke, but Shinichi seemed to take it seriously… and Ran didn't know anything about something this important.

She sighed, suddenly feeling sad that Shinichi seemed to distrust her and not consider her a friend—even though Ran realized that she herself had broken Shinichi's trust by falling for him and acting as if she were restraining the detective.

[Conan secretly opened his phone to send a message to Yume and asked about Shinichi's condition. He listened to Ran, Natsue and Kogoro's conversation with one ear because his eyes were focused on the phone screen that showed his conversation with ‘ ☁👩🏼‍ 🔧'.

Conan lifted his face again and looked around when ‘ ☁👩🏼‍ 🔧' replied that ' ☀🌻' was still unconscious. That was when he realized that their surroundings had become silent when Ran said that Shinichi and Kogoro were detectives.]

“Emoji? You saved Yume-chan and Shinichi-kun’s contacts with emojis?” Sonoko asked, amused. “Hey, what emoji did you use for me?”

Conan rolled his eyes. “Microphone and money, Sonoko-neechan. And in my defense, I only use emojis for contacts with people close to me.”

“Ooh, I’m curious about your contact information, Tantei-kun~!” KID grinned. “What emoji did you give me?”

“How dare you assume that I saved your contact, let alone give an emoji to your contact name?”

KID gasped dramatically. “How cruel! You’re so cruel to me, Tantei-kun!”

Conan rolled his eyes again and cursed 'Idiot Thief.' under his breath.

[Natsue then calms them down and explains that her grandfather, Gozou, hated detectives. The old man said that detectives were weird and that the Hatamoto family was forbidden from watching or reading detective novels. Natsue says that she hopes they can keep this a secret from Gozou.

The scene changes to the Hatamoto family's butler, Suzuki Kenji, who knocks on Gozou's door, but gets no answer and finds a flower in front of his room.

Back in the dining room, Takeshi walks in with a pale expression and sits down next to Natsue, saying he was thinking about something in his room. Natsue anxiously watches Takeshi, then curiously asks where the flowers in his pocket are. Takeshi, confused, looks at his pocket and wonders why the flowers are gone.

“Hating detectives, huh?” Heiji raised an eyebrow. “Sounds like he hiding something big to me.”

“Uh-huh, didn’t Akie-san’s husband say earlier that ‘he’ had debts? Maybe Gozou-san had a lot of debts and ended up committing fraud. He’s not the only rich person who’s ever done that.” Kazuha beside him folded her arms.

“Or maybe he just doesn’t like people meddling in his affairs,” Kogoro grumbled. “He seems too proud to commit fraud. So maybe his children did it.”

Some people blinked when they heard it.

"Huh, that's true. If I'm not mistaken, his daughter, Mariko, lived a life of luxury and once secretly tried to bribe to get her son released. Unfortunately, her actions were discovered by the police, resulting in a light sentence and a stern warning." Megure rubbed his chin, trying to recall that old case.

[Suddenly, a scream was heard, causing Jouji, Kogoro, Conan, and Ran to immediately run to the source of the sound. Jouji shouted that the sound came from Gozou's room and they found Suzuki who had fallen down sitting in front of Gozou's door.

Jouji frantically asked and approached Gozou's open door. He, Kogoro, and Conan were shocked to see Gozou dead, stabbed in the stomach.

Kogoro immediately steps forward and checks on Gozou, stating that he's dead. The remaining Hatamoto family members watch from the doorway, and Natsue hysterically tries to get in, but Kogoro forbids her.

Almost everyone there gasped when they heard the screams and saw Gozou's body.

“Yep, truly cursed.” Ai nudged Conan with an amused look, “looks like you’ll have to meet a Miko, Edogawa-kun.”

Conan rolled his eyes. "I've done it before and they just told me to follow death and soothe their souls. Niichan also did and saw the same thing, remember?"

“Yeah, yeah,”

Luckily, only Yume heard it. Masumi didn't hear their conversation because she was busy paying attention to the details on the screen.

[After a while, Kogoro tells his analysis that Gozou's death occurred approximately 40 to 50 minutes ago. He then begins to interrogate Suzuki as the person who first discovered Gozou.

Suzuki had been busy preparing dinner, and Ran and Natsue had helped him by sitting at their table, setting the food down. Gozou's door was locked from the inside when Suzuki called out to him, so he opened it with the key Gozou had given him when they left earlier.

Kogoro then concluded that this was a confined space murder as none of the windows could be opened and the only entry point was the door which was locked from the inside.

Akie then shouted that Gozou had committed suicide, but Natsue vehemently denied it. Tatsuo, unexpectedly, laughed sarcastically and said that Natsue just didn't understand that Gozou was involved in dirty business and that most of his cases involved corruption. His words caused Natsue to become hysterical, and the others to stare at him in disbelief.

Saguru adopted a thoughtful pose. “So that’s why he doesn’t like detectives. He’s involved in dirty business and is so paranoid that he thinks every detective he meets will uncover his secrets.”

“Ah. I seem to remember this case.” Nakamori Ginzo nodded. “A prominent family that ran a fraudulent business. Akie-san defrauded several people she dated, Mariko forged contracts, and Jouji and Tatsuo had a significant debt with the bank.”

The others almost gaped when they heard it.

“… wow, I can't even say anything anymore.”

“Yeah, even Kitaro also committed tax violations, but his case is still relatively minor compared to the others,” Ginzo added again.

[Kogoro looks around and says that Gozou couldn't have committed suicide, because if Gozou really did commit suicide, there should be one thing with Gozou right now, namely the weapon he used to stab himself in the chest until he bled to death. But, from what they saw there was no knife in the room.

Tatsuo snorted and suggested that Gozou was probably using an ice tip, as is common in mystery novels. Akie supported her husband's argument, saying that Gozou wanted to play a trick on them and create a climate of recrimination within the Hatamoto family because he hated all of them—except Natsue.

The others began to nod, making Natsue even more hysterical, but Conan suddenly said that this was indeed a murder case. Kogoro began to get annoyed with Conan for interfering again, but Conan ignored him and told them all to look at the blood droplets on the door frame. The boy said that if Gozou had committed suicide, then the blood droplets wouldn't have gotten there and that it would make more sense if Gozou had been stabbed when opening the door.

His words made Kogoro realize what was really happening and he quickly deduced that when Gozou opened the door, someone stabbed him. He was a bit confused about who locked the door, causing Conan to kick his shin and stare at Gozou's body. Kogoro watched Gozou for a while and realized that it was Gozou himself who locked the door.

“Huh, but those blood drops are weird,” Heiji muttered. “Why aren’t there any blood drops outside Gozou’s door? It’s like someone deliberately wiped them away.”

“Yep, what Conan-kun said makes sense. The killer probably wiped the bloodstains outside the bedroom door to slow down the investigation… or to stall for time so no one would find out that Gozou had been murdered.” Masumi agreed. The girl almost rolled her eyes when Kogoro wondered who had locked the door.

Luckily, she didn't say anything.

Some of the police officers there also asked the same thing as Kogoro on screen, making them a bit embarrassed for not realizing such an obvious thing.

Kogoro pursed his lips as he realized how long it had taken him to realize such an obvious thing. Furthermore, he only realized it after Conan had hinted at it.

[Kogoro explains what happened, but then realizes that in a situation like that, anyone could be the culprit. The ones with alibis are himself, Ran, Conan, and Natsue, who were gathered at the dining table at the time. Suzuki also has an alibi because he was setting the table at the time. So the culprit is someone who wasn't in the dining room at the time.

Suzuki is then asked to describe what he saw, leading him to say that he screamed loudly and everyone ran away. He also finds a flower in front of the door, leading Natsue to say that it was the flower she had placed on Takeshi's jacket.

“Uh-huh. If Takeshi-san killed him, wouldn’t that be too obvious since Gozou clearly called him out for a talk in front of everyone? No, I don’t think he did it.” Sonoko narrowed her eyes. “Someone is trying to accuse him of killing Gozou… maybe to ruin his relationship with Natsue-san? Natsue-san seemed to care for Gozou. She was the only one in the family who was sad about Gozou’s death… unless Natsue-san was faking it too.”

Conan, Ai, Yume and Ran stared at Sonoko as if they had never seen her before.

“Sonoko, have I ever told you that you have detective skills? Beyond Conan-kun’s anesthetic needles, of course,” Ran asked with a look of disbelief mixed with awe.

“Uh…?”

Ai laughed dryly at Sonoko's confusion. "You guessed it right at first glance, Suzuki-san."

Sonoko blinked. “But… but that’s so cliché! Just like most dramas!”

[Everyone immediately looks at Takeshi, and Akie says that Takeshi was late to the dining room. Ichirou also adds that Takeshi looked pale. Of course, Takeshi denies this. But Mariko then says that Takeshi shouldn't be lying, as she heard him arguing with Gozou when she passed by the room.

“I almost fainted when I heard that he was Zaiki Isao’s son!” Mariko screamed, pointing at Takeshi.]

The corners of Conan's lips twitched. “Then do you know who did it, Sonoko-neechan?”

“… brat, we all know it was Ichirou who did it. Why are you still asking… wait a minute.” Sonoko’s face suddenly turned a little green. “He loves his own cousin…?”

Conan, like a little devil, smiled angelically and chirped, “Yep!”

This time it wasn't only Sonoko whose face was a little green.

“…you know, I know cousin marriage is legal in Japan, but I still can’t help but find it disgusting,” Saguru muttered. As a half-Japanese who spent part of his childhood in England, he had a different perspective than most native Japanese.

“Uh-huh, you’re right. I mean, I know that law has been around for a long time, but information technology is much more advanced now—especially in the health sector. If they’re having a cousin marriage, aren’t they worried about their offspring having disabilities?” Ai frowned, making Conan beside her look at her with sparkling eyes.

“Exactly what I thought! I mean, isn’t that still considered incest? Uh—I guess it’s fine whether they’re male-male or female-female, they can’t produce offspring. But they can,” Conan said, pointing at the screen in front of them.

[Kitaro then explains that Zaiki Isao was the head of PT. Zaiki who committed suicide after his company was taken over by Gozou ten years ago. From what Kitaro heard, Isao had a child who was left in a daycare, but he didn't know if Takeshi was Isao's son.

His words shocked Natsue, who frantically questioned Takeshi, prompting Takeshi to admit that he was indeed Zaiki Isao's son, Zaiki Takehiko. This left everyone wide-eyed.

“Okay, okay, enough, Conan-kun, Ai-chan, I don’t want to hear anymore.” Sonoko’s expression was still a bit green and the girl looked a little pale, making Conan and Ai finally shut their mouths, while Yume looked at her with pity.

“Very good. Not only is someone trying to ruin Takeshi and Natsue’s wedding, but Takeshi is also hiding such an important fact from Natsue.” Jodie tsked. She tried to defuse the tension that had soured over the information they had just learned. “Why couldn’t they have been honest with each other before they got married? I don’t understand.”

“I agree. I would feel incredibly betrayed if I didn’t know before we got married, especially if I found out from someone else. It would feel like I wasn’t trusted by my own partner to know.” Sato nodded in agreement with Jodie, somewhat relieved that they could talk about something else.

[Kogoro quickly accuses that in order to carry out a mission of revenge, Takeshi approached Natsue to enter the Hatamoto family and wait for the opportunity to kill Gozou. Takeshi denied those words, but Natsue, who didn't believe what she heard, immediately cried and ran away, making Takeshi want to chase her, but was held back by Jouji.

They then started arguing and blaming Takeshi, causing the young man to shout that he wasn't the one who killed Gozou.

Behind them, Conan takes another look at the murder scene and notices that the bloodstains on the floor are strange. He then asks Suzuki about the fallen flowers and finds some bread crumbs in the pool of Gozou's blood near the door.

Megure slapped his forehead as Kogoro quickly accused Takeshi. He knew he was like that sometimes, but seeing this somehow made him feel embarrassed.

Beside him, Takagi laughed awkwardly. “Uh, I guess this is where we learn not to accuse someone too quickly…?”

Kogoro, in front of Megure, merely snorted when he heard that. “Anyone with any sense would immediately accuse Takeshi. Of all the people present, he had the clearest motive for killing that old man.”

Chiba laughed dryly, “What Mouri-san said was not wrong…”

[Conan again asks Suzuki about the type of bread at Takeshi and Natsue's wedding and who made it. Suzuki replies that there were some French dishes and that Jouji made them. Everyone ate them, except Gozou because the old man hates Western food. Conan then mutters that Jouji must have brought his own knife, which Suzuki confirms. The waiter also explains that Jouji always carries his favorite knife.

“Hee…” Conan then watched the others argue, not saying anything else.]

KID tilted his head, “Interesting. I bet one of Jouji’s knives went missing and the culprit threw it into the sea to destroy the evidence.”

“Uh-huh. And Conan-kun found something related to bread at the crime scene, perhaps… among the bloodstains? Most likely, breadcrumbs.” Chikage smiled slightly. “Am I right, Tantei-kun?”

“Bingo, Chikage-san!” Conan chirped with a smile before freezing. “Oh, um, is it okay if I call you that, Chikage-san? Or would you prefer to be called Kuroba-san?”

“Mmn, how about 'Chika-chan'? Shinichi-kun called me that when he was little and often played with Kai-chan~”

Conan blinked, glanced at the grimacing KID, then grinned brightly at Chikage. “Okay, Chika-chan!”

On the other hand, Saguru and Aoko giggled when they heard Chikage's affectionate nickname for her son. This made KID—Kaito want to pout and whine at his mother, but he held back because he wasn't Kuroba Kaito right now.

[They then lock Takeshi inside the storage room, causing him to start banging on the door and screaming that he's not the killer. Tatsuo then taunts him that Takeshi is just a dirty murderer and that he'll turn Takeshi over to the police once they arrive in Tokyo.

Akie asks Kogoro if there's enough motive and evidence to imprison Takeshi, and Kogoro confirms it. The man then explains the motive and evidence. Unfortunately, they haven't been able to find the weapon Takeshi used to kill Gozou, as it was likely thrown into the ocean.

“But how come there were breadcrumbs at the crime scene?” Chiba asked, not understanding how it could have happened. Behind him, Camel opened his mouth to ask the same question.

“Did you see Ichirou drawing Natsue-san earlier? To draw that well, he definitely needs an eraser. Not many people know this, but some types of bread can be used as erasers.” Furuya explained, glancing at Camel as if he wanted to quip, but refrained since Camel wasn’t the one asking.

Camel closed his mouth again silently, somewhat relieved that he wasn't the one who asked.

"Oh! That's why Conan-kun asked about the types of bread there are!" Kazuha nodded her head.

[They all then walked back together, leaving Takeshi now locked up. Akie resumed her conversation with her family, casually bringing up the inheritance rights that would fall to her aunt, Mariko. She even suggested that they should thank Takeshi for killing Gozou.

Mariko laughs at this, confirming and boasting that as the eldest daughter, the Hatamoto company will belong to her husband and that Ichirou will be able to do whatever he wants after this. Mariko even adds that all of Gozou's grandchildren will have some the inheritance when Tatsuo accuses Mariko of wanting to control the inheritance.

“Urgh, they really are a trashy family. Someone just died from murder and they’re already talking about inheritance rights?” Sonoko hissed in disgust.

"No wonder she's happy. She forged contracts, remember? If she gets the inheritance money, she can shut up the people she cheated," Masumi said with a shrug. "By the way, what happened to the inheritance money in the end?"

“Ah, Natsue-san decided to renounce her inheritance rights and leave the Hatamoto family. According to Natsue-san, they’re dividing half of the inheritance equally among the remaining family members and the other half among the company’s shareholders,” Ran said, remembering the message she’d received from Natsue two weeks after the incident on the ship.

"Huh, I wouldn't be surprised if the rest of the Hatamoto family still didn't get the luxury of that inherited money. They'd be too busy paying off debts and covering up the dirty work they did." Heiji shook his head.

"Not to mention they'll have to deal with the law. Even with the inheritance money, the fees they have to pay could wipe it all out." Saguru agreed, though he didn't like having to agree with Hattori Heiji.

[Jouji then intervenes and tells them not to talk about the inheritance money when Gozou was just killed, but Mariko rebuffs him and quips that Jouji shouldn't act so sanctimonious because she knows that Jouji came to Gozou to borrow money for his restaurant, but Gozou immediately rejected him.

Her words shocked Kogoro, Ran, and Conan, but Mariko continued as if she didn't care about the three of them. The middle-aged woman said that Jouji also only wanted money, so he should also be relieved that Gozou was dead.

It wasn't just one or two people who winced when they heard Mariko and Jouji's argument.

“They… are truly money-crazed,” Aoko whispered, a mixture of horror and disbelief. “How can they feel relieved when one of their own family members was murdered?”

Saguru shook his head. “They don't like Gozou-san. That's why. They're relieved to no longer have to listen to Gozou-san's curses and tantrums. To them, inheriting his inheritance is just a bonus.”

“Well, even if their inheritance money is immediately used to pay for their dirty work, just like Hattori-kun said,” Sonoko tsked. “In the end, they won’t be able to live in luxury anymore.”

[Suzuki interrupts their conversation and explains that Gozou has already made a will regarding the distribution of the inheritance. He will even announce it in a few days at headquarters. This causes Akie and Mariko to shout that it's impossible and that all of the inheritance will go to Natsue.

Tatsuo punches the wall when he hears this, cursing and wondering why he married Akie if it was going to turn out like this. Akie is shocked and begins to retaliate when Tatsuo admits that he married Akie only for Gozou's inheritance.

Seeing that things were getting heated, Kogoro quickly intervened and said that everyone should go get some rest now. Hearing this, Jouji smiled sarcastically and said that Gozou had been playing a joke on them before laughing loudly and walking away. Conan watched him leave with a complicated expression, while Tatsuo behind him thought that this was no joke and that he would not give up on Gozou's inheritance.

Jodie massaged her head. “I don’t know whether to commend Gozou for taking the precaution to save his treasure before he was killed or pity the old man for having a family full of parasites.”

“Besides Natsue-san, I don’t think anyone in the family genuinely likes Gozou. Even Tatsuo married Akie to get his hands on Gozou’s inheritance.” Heiji folded his arms and tilted his head as Conan continued to watch the Hatamoto family members leave with a complicated expression. “Ku—Conan-kun, what are you looking at?”

Conan shrugged. “Nothing. It's just that they all acted as if Gozou's death was no big deal—even though he was killed because of 'one of their family members'.”

“That’s true… they were too quick to blame Takeshi and dismiss any other possible culprits. Perhaps it was because they had a bad relationship with Takeshi’s family in the past?” Saguru narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.

"Aren't they just relieved that Gozou is dead and they can enjoy his inheritance to the fullest and use it to pay off their debts? I'm sure they're actually grateful to his killer for killing him. No offense, but judging by the way they've been interacting since earlier, that's the most likely thought." Sonoko shrugged, though she herself seemed uncomfortable with the topic.

[The scene shifts back to Natsue, who is pensive and sad on the deck. Behind her, Ran calls out to her and asks why she is alone on the deck. Natsue simply replies that she is thinking.

Ran hesitantly asks if Natsue is thinking about Takeshi, and like a dam breaking, Natsue starts crying and says that she trusted Takeshi, but the others say that Takeshi married her to have a chance to kill Gozou. This makes Natsue not want to trust anyone anymore.

The girls there were sad when they heard Natsue's words. No one wants to feel betrayed by someone they love, especially someone they thought they knew inside and out.

[Ran looks at Natsue sadly, but then smiles and says that she trusts Takeshi, because she doesn't think he's a bad person. Natsue realizes that Ran is trying to comfort her, so she smiles gratefully even though tears are still streaming down her cheeks.

Conan was startled when he heard the sound of water and groans. He tried to ask Ran about the sounds he heard, but neither Ran nor Natsue heard anything. Conan narrowed his eyes and immediately ran away, shouting that he was going to investigate the source of the sounds.

“Thank goodness Ran-chan was there to comfort her…” Kazuha muttered in relief.

But of course, her relief didn't last long when she saw that Conan heard something.

“Oh no. He’ll find another victim soon.” KID groaned and looked like he was going to rub his face, but stopped inches away when he remembered that his hat and monocle would get in the way.

“And he just left again! Unsupervised!” Takagi closed his eyes in resignation before straightening up and returning his attention to the scene on the screen.

[Surprised, Ran automatically runs after Conan. Natsue also follows them down to the lower deck, hesitantly asking what's wrong when she sees Ran and Conan frozen.

In front of them, Tatsuo lay lifeless with his head covered in blood and his eyes wide open.

Natsue screamed.]

“Somehow I feel like we’re starting to get a feel for how things are going to get worse as this movie goes on.” Ginzo massaged his temples, which were starting to throb painfully.

“Huh, somehow I’m suddenly worried that we’ll all always have signs of something happening once we get out of here.” Shiratori shook his head resignedly. He hadn’t solved cases with Conan very often, but he knew that at least Takagi, Sato, and Megure had seen ‘Kogoro’ or Conan find cases everywhere they went.

[Kogoro examines Tatsuo and says that he died of a severe concussion, causing Akie to cry and hug Tatsuo's body. Natsue asks who could have done such a cruel thing and Mariko says that Takeshi couldn't have done it since he was still locked in the storage room.

His words made Conan startled and immediately ran towards the storage room where they locked Takeshi. Panicking, Kogoro and Jouji followed behind him.

The storage room was unlocked when they arrived and Takeshi was not in it.]

“Huh?! The storage room is open?! But how did he get out? That type of lock can't be opened from the inside!” Masumi leaned toward the screen to get a better look around the room.

“Unless he forced it open and damaged it. But there were no signs of damage to the door…” Saguru thought for a moment before coming to the same conclusion as Masumi and Heiji. “The killer must have unlocked the storage room door to accuse Takeshi.”

[They then return to the deck where Tatsuo was killed and explain to the others about Takeshi's disappearance from the storage room. Kogoro then asks Ran, Conan, and Natsue to explain what they saw when they found Tatsuo's body.

Ran explains to Kogoro that while they were talking upstairs, Conan heard a strange noise coming from the lower deck and ran to investigate. When they went down, they found Tatsuo's body. Conan also explained the sounds he heard when Kogoro asked. Kogoro then concluded that the heavy sound Conan heard was probably Tatsuo being hit, while the sound of water was probably the sound of something being thrown overboard.

“Tatsuo was probably killed after seeing Ichirou throw the knife he used to kill Gozou into the sea. Otherwise, why would Ichirou kill Tatsuo? Unless… Ichirou also had a grudge against Tatsuo.” Sato cupped her chin and tried to recall Ichirou's confession report, but came up empty. “Hey, who handles their family files?”

“If I’m not mistaken… Akabane Rihatsu-san. You know, the officer who retired due to marriage and now lives in Australia with her husband?”

“Ah! Rihatsu-san! I remember her, she often helped fix computers when Ishigami-san was unavailable.”

"She also often brings her homemade bread to the station. It wasn't very good at first, but it eventually got better. I'm sure she practices making it whenever she gets the chance."

While the police officers present were busy praising Rihatsu, the scene on the screen continued.

[From all this, Kogoro easily deduced that Takeshi was trying to exterminate the entire Hatamoto family. He then ordered everyone to remain gathered together in one room to prevent any more casualties.

They then gathered in the dining room to wait for time to pass. Akie mourned Tatsuo's death and blamed Natsue for bringing Takeshi into the family and causing him to kill their family. Mariko, hearing this, snorted and said that if Natsue's husband had killed Tatsuo and Gozou, then all the inheritance would have gone to Natsue.

“That… makes sense, but it’s also completely wrong,” Ai said upon hearing Kogoro’s conclusion. “If Takeshi intended to do it, why would he kill them one by one? Why not just kill them all with, I don’t know, poison, maybe? Or a bomb, or even a gun. All of that would be easier and quicker than killing the entire family one by one.”

“Yeah, he could have sunk the entire ship and only saved himself. Why would he have gone to the trouble of killing them secretly if he knew he would be the first suspect if they found their family’s bodies?”

Almost everyone there stared at Sonoko as if the teenager had just grown three new heads.

“… what? That all happened in the drama! Why are you guys looking at me weird?!” Sonoko asked defensively.

“Sonoko…” Ran couldn't even say anything anymore.

[Conan listens to the Hatamoto family's heated conversation and can't help but remark that Takeshi hasn't been proven to be a criminal. This surprises everyone, and Conan innocently explains to Kogoro that when they checked the storage room where Takeshi was locked, the door was already unlocked.

“That type of lock can’t be opened from the outside, so Takeshi-san wouldn’t be able to open the door!” Conan said, causing Kogoro to think back to the storage room door and realize that there was no sign of it being forced open. He suddenly realized that someone could have been an accomplice to the murder.]

Trying to ignore Sonoko's err, incredible imagination, they returned their focus to the screen.

“Conan-kun is right, the suspect is not proven to be a criminal until everything is revealed.” Masumi nodded, followed by Saguru and Heiji.

“We can’t just jump to conclusions and arrest innocent people.” Takagi nodded in agreement.

“But back to Tatsuo’s death. I think Ichirou killed him because Tatsuo accidentally saw him and learned the truth,” Furuya commented, reminding them of the door lock, which showed no signs of damage.

“Oh, you’re right. I think Ichirou did what Kogoro-san said before and tried to throw the knife he used to kill Gozou into the sea. Unfortunately, Tatsuo saw him, and Ichirou ended up killing him too before unlocking the door where Takeshi was locked.”

“Yeah, that's the most plausible scenario.”

[Kogoro reconfirms everyone's alibis and says that apart from Natsue, Ran, and Conan, no one else has an alibi. This causes Akie to go berserk and say that her husband was just murdered. Mariko snorts again upon hearing this and immediately accuses Akie of being the one most relieved that Tatsuo is dead.

Mariko then points at Akie and shouts that she knows she's seeing another man. Her words make Conan stare blankly at her, thinking she must be a gossipy old aunt. Akie and Mariko are now arguing again, again bringing up the inheritance, leaving Natsue frantically trying to break them up.

“Hey! Gossip is a source of information, you know?!” Sonoko said in disapproval.

Conan rolled his eyes, "Yeah, that information isn't necessarily true. In fact, most of the information from there tends to be exaggerated and even completely different from what actually happened."

Sonoko pouted, but couldn't retort to Conan's words. After all, it was true.

[Ichirou, behind them, ignores his mother and Akie's argument. The young man is more focused on opening his sketchbook and looking at the drawings he made. Ran and Conan, who pass behind him, become curious and see that the model Ichirou used for his drawings is Natsue.

Seeing the beautiful drawing, Ran immediately praised it, but Ichirou immediately flinched and closed his book as if he didn't want anyone else to see it. Hearing Ran's praise, Akie immediately accused Ichirou of possibly killing Gozou and Tatsuo out of revenge.

Mariko immediately defended Ichirou, prompting Akie to snort and continue provoking Ichirou. She also accused Kitaro of having a motive for killing Gozou. Ichirou, constantly provoked, finally shouted that he didn't kill Tatsuo and Gozou.

Fed up with the family bickering, Kogoro yells that they'll be in Tokyo in half a day and if Takeshi is still alive by then, he'll have nowhere to run and they'll find out. Kogoro doesn't want anything to happen again, so he tells them to calm down.

“He’s too relaxed after getting his hands dirty with blood.” Sato hissed angrily.

“Or maybe he was so panicked that he tried to calm himself down by looking back at his sketches.” Kazami intertwined his fingers and stared at Ichirou on the screen, who was so focused on the sketchbook in his hands that he was oblivious to his surroundings. “He was even ignoring the chaos around him.”

Nearly half of them let out a long sigh when they saw the chaos. “And they’re fighting again.”

“I guess the only time they don’t fight is when they’re talking about the inheritance that will fall into their hands.” KID muttered half-disgustedly, making Aoko and Saguru turn their heads in disbelief.

KID ignored the stare and continued, "Speaking of inheritance, I wonder what happened to Hatamoto Island. Did they also divide up ownership of that island?"

“Oh! I know! If the heirs relinquish their ownership, the property automatically reverts to the state! So Hatamoto Island is no longer the Hatamoto family’s property, unless the original heirs request it back—but that would be a very long and drawn-out affair,” Kazuha explained enthusiastically.

[Ichirou then stands up, saying that he's going to the restroom and that he'll be fine because he's not a coward like his father when Kitaro worries about him. Behind them, Conan asks Suzuki about something that might have happened between Kitaro and Gozou.

Suzuki then explained that Kitaro had always hoped to leave the Hatamoto family. Kitaro himself had stated that he had no ambition to become a company manager, infuriating Gozou. However, Suzuki reasoned that even if Gozou rejected Kitaro's wishes, Mariko still wouldn't forgive him for turning down the opportunity to become a powerful figure.

“Somehow, Aoko feels a little sorry for Kitaro-san,” Aoko said sadly. “Kitaro-san doesn’t seem to care much about Gozou-san’s wealth. Aoko think he’s only holding on for Ichirou-san and because of pressure from Mariko-san.”

“Well, we’ve seen Mariko-san and Akie-san constantly talking about the inheritance. It’s clear that they want that wealth no matter what.” Saguru gently patted Aoko’s shoulder to comfort her.

"Plus, he's also involved in a tax case. Although I suspect it was his wife's doing, too. Kitaro seems too cowardly to do it," Sonoko added after hearing Aoko and Saguru's words.

[They all sat in silence and waited until Jouji suddenly spoke up. Kogoro blinked in surprise when Jouji spoke to him and tried to get him to think from another perspective with the question; “what if the one who unlocked the storage room door was Tatsuo himself?”

His question naturally left everyone wide-eyed. Jouji then reiterated his thoughts, explaining that Tatsuo was anxious about the inheritance and then opened the door to come up with a false story to get Takeshi off the hook if he handed over Gozou's inheritance to Tatsuo. Then, Takeshi, pretending to agree, followed Tatsuo and hit him from behind.

Jouji's explanation was quite reasonable and Kogoro thought about it seriously again.]

“That’s right, what he said makes perfect sense. Tatsuo-san also seems to want the inheritance.” Camel cupping his chin with his thumb and index finger, seriously thinking that if he were there, he would definitely agree with that statement. “But still, I don’t think he would be so stupid as to let Takeshi walk behind him.”

“People will do stupid things when their minds are controlled by money.” James shook his head pityingly. “You know there have been many cases like that.”

“Yeah, you're right.”

[Kitaro suddenly calls Kogoro and says that Ichirou hasn't returned from the restroom, even though it's been 20 minutes. Mariko immediately becomes worried and accuses Takeshi, causing Kogoro to calm her down and say that he'll go check.

Just as Kogoro stepped outside, a blackout occurred, sending everyone into a panic. Mariko was heard running away, while the others screamed in panic and bumped into each other. Unable to bear it, Kogoro called Ran and Conan, telling them to go to the restroom where Ichirou was, while he would go to the power room.]

“Blackout? Why would he turn off the power?” Saguru asked suspiciously. “We can’t see anything except their voices. If it’s really that dark, no one else can see anything.”

“That’s right, how did you get to the toilet and power room when it was that dark?” Masumi asked.

“Ah, I was relying on the wall and guessing where Ichirou-san was,” Ran explained. “Besides, there are only two toilets at that floor. We found Ichirou-san in the one closest to the dining room.”

[Someone suddenly screams and Jouji says it's Ichirou's voice. Conan and Ran run in the darkness until Conan suddenly bumps into something hard and falls to the ground. A second later, the lights come back on and he realizes he's in front of the bathroom door where Ichirou is.

Jouji, Kitaro and Mariko blocked the entrance to the toilet, but Conan could see that they were stunned.

In the middle of the toilet, Ichirou was lying with his thigh bleeding.]

Kogoro snorted arrogantly, “of course, I can still tell the way in such darkness!”

Unfortunately, his boastful words were quickly belied by the dry words of his own daughter, Ran. “Tousan tripped twice and bruised his shin before he could turn on the light.”

“R-ran!”

Ran ignored him and returned her attention to the screen in front of them. “Oh! I didn’t know you fell, Conan-kun! Are you okay?”

“Un! Nothing hurts, don’t worry, Ran-neechan!” Conan gave Ran a sweet smile, making KID and Heiji who saw it frown.

“Favoritism.” KID hissed under his breath. He wasn’t jealous! He was just… annoyed that Tantei-kun never gave him that sweet smile! ‘Uh, even though Sanashi-chan—Shinichi sometimes gives me that pretty smile… but this is different! It’s like Conan-kun doesn’t acknowledge me as the person who often helps him!’

KID nearly lost his poker face when he thought about how Conan only gave that sweet smile to certain people. Luckily, he managed to keep it together when he realized that Tantei-han had never gotten Conan's rare smile either.

[Mariko and Kitaro immediately panicked, and Ran immediately tied Ichirou's thighs to stop the bleeding. Natsue ran away, shouting that she was going to get the first aid kit. When Mariko asked who did this to Ichirou, the young man replied that he didn't know because the lights had suddenly gone out. He couldn't see his attacker because it was pitch black.

Conan frowned upon hearing Ichirou's explanation, but didn't say anything as Mariko screamed and pointed to Jouji's bloodied knife lying near Ichirou. Jouji examined the knife and confirmed it was his, but he gave a plausible excuse before Mariko could accuse him of trying to hurt Ichirou.

“So Ichirou-san injured himself to dispel suspicions on him.” Saguru nodded in understanding.

“A very obvious method,” Masumi grinned smugly. “But if I didn’t already know who the real culprit was, I guess I’d still find the knife lying there strange.”

“You’re right… the knife used to kill Gozou disappeared, but the knife used to stab Ichirou was left behind?”

“Huh, he must have wanted to throw the knife away, but he injured himself and couldn't run. So he left the knife he used to make it look like he was attacked.”

“Seriously?” Sonoko asked upon hearing all that. “That’s so cliché! Anyone who watches dramas will immediately recognize that method!”

Ran and Yume beside the girl could only sweatdrop and laugh dryly. 'Sonoko(-san), no one here loves drama more than you…’

[Kogoro behind them said that it was unnecessary and told Ran and Natsue to treat Ichirou, while the others should follow him to the power room.

In the power room, Kogoro shows off a kind of timer device that someone uses to cause a blackout. He then explains how it works, causing the others to stare at him seriously. Kogoro tells the others to wait in the dining room to avoid any further incidents, and he will go find Takeshi with Ran, Suzuki, and Conan.

“So he spent 20 minutes setting up the device and shutting it down. That’s pretty clever.” Sato narrowed her eyes, unimpressed by it all.

“He was smart enough to plan it, but I think he was worried that Takeshi would show up and prove his innocence. If that happened, Ichirou would automatically become a suspect.” Yuusaku folded his arms and smiled. “He didn’t think his plan through enough, and now he can’t walk.”

“Huh, that’s right, besides Gozou-san, Tatsuo-san, and Ichirou-san, there were no other victims or assaults after that.” Ran suddenly realized. “While we were looking for Takeshi-san, Jouji-san and Kitaro-san said they both went to the bathroom for about 10 minutes, but nothing happened to them or in the dining room other than a few other arguments.”

Heiji rolled his eyes, “there are only two possibilities. First, he feels safe because he was ‘attacked and became another victim’ and second, he doesn’t do it anymore because he can’t move freely.”

[The four of them then start to tour the entire ship, but still don't find Takeshi until Conan points out that there are still places they haven't looked, like everyone's rooms. Kogoro considers it, then decides to listen to Conan's advice and says that they will look at everyone's rooms, starting with Mariko and Kitaro's.

Kogoro, Ran, Suzuki and Conan checked the contents of Mariko and Kitaro's room but didn't find anything strange. Takeshi wasn't even there. Kogoro then asks Suzuki about Mariko and Kitaro's compatibility as husband and wife because their personalities are very opposite.]

“Isn’t the answer obvious? Your second possibility is plausible, but what weapon would he use to do it if he were to do it again?” Saguru asked with a dry smile, making Heiji growl in anger.

“Hattori-niichan, Hakuba-niichan, please don’t fight around Niichan. Especially you, Hattori-niichan. You’ll disturb Niichan’s rest.” Conan quickly broke up the two detectives before they could get into a real fight.

"But—"

“Hattori-niichan, do I need to tell Kazuha-neechan that?” Conan asked suddenly with a sweet smile and a dark gaze.

Heiji shuddered and slowly close his mouth. Beside him, Kazuha glanced at him suspiciously, but didn't say anything.

Ran and Sonoko also looked at Conan curiously, but they held back because Conan looked annoyed by Heiji and Saguru's argument.

Saguru himself wisely muttered an apology and returned his attention to the screen in front of them.

[Suzuki explains that Mariko and Kitaro have had a good relationship since childhood because they are both cousins, making Kogoro, Ran and Conan stare in amazement. Conan then wonders to himself; are Mariko and Kitaro not afraid of having a child with a disability—because according to the book he read, relationships between cousins and siblings usually often produce children with disabilities. Moreover, with Gozou's strict personality, Mariko and Kitaro are gambling with their child's fate.

They all then checked Jouji's room. This time, they found Jouji's knife bag. Two knives were missing from it. Kogoro concluded that one of them was found when Ichirou was stabbed, but the other was still missing, and it was possible the culprit had thrown it into the sea.

In an instant, several people's faces turned green again.

Ai immediately estimated and answered Conan's question on the screen. "Mariko and Kitaro are first cousins, so Ichirou already carries an inbreeding coefficient of about 6.25%. Now, Ichirou wants to marry Natsue—his own first cousin on Mariko's side. Under these circumstances, the inbreeding rate in their offspring will rise to about 9.37%. The risk of birth defects in the general population is about 3%, and with inbreeding this high, the risk could approach five to six percent."

Masumi tilted her head. “Inbreeding coefficient, huh? So the same gene reappears twice, makes the risk increasing. Is that what you mean?”

Sonoko crossed her arms. “Five to six percent is one in twenty babies. That sounds high, but it’s still quite a small percentage.”

Kazuha frowned. “So even though it seems safe, there’s still a big risk, is that it?”

“Well, we don’t know if Mariko or Kitaro’s parents also engaged in intercousin marriage. If they did, the risk would increase even further. But five to six percent is already double the average risk.” Ai shrugged nonchalantly. “I’m sure they were aware of the consequences, but they did it anyway.”

[Next, they check out Ichirou's room, and Ran eagerly steps inside upon seeing the painting. Kogoro scolds her for barging in, but Ran doesn't listen and starts flipping through Ichirou's sketches.

Conan also looks at the paintings and realizes that all of the models are Natsue. He flips through the sketchbooks and sees that there is not a single picture that doesn't have Natsue in it, making him frown. Conan then sees charcoal and bread on the easel of Ichirou's paintings, making him suddenly realize who the real culprit is.

Sato grimaced in disgust, half-horrified. “I never understood why anyone would want to marry their own cousin.”

“Honestly, me too. I mean, there are plenty of other people in the world. Why marry your own cousin?” Takagi agreed, his face still a little green from the conversation that had just taken place.

"Mostly because of tradition. Others are because they don't want other people's blood to enter the family," Ai explained further. "There are even several studies that show an increased risk of birth defects in communities that have traditionally intermarried."

“Oh, I think I’ve read about it. If I’m not mistaken, a study in Bradford, England, found that the birth defect rate in babies born to first cousins was around six percent—twice the national average.” Saguru tried to recall. “I don’t remember much of what was written, but that was mostly it.”

“Mn-hm. Similar cases have been found in the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of South Asia, where the practice is carried out across generations. The effects are more pronounced in small, closed communities—the same genes will be passed on again and again, until even a rare disease becomes common in the family.”

They all ignored the scene on the screen in front of them in favor of this horrifying new information. Most of the people there were Japanese, and this was the first time they truly realized the dangers of the law legalizing marriage between cousins.

As modern societies, they begin to recognize the dangers of such marriages—thanks to advances in healthcare technology worldwide. But they haven't fully realized how severe the effects would be until now.

[Kogoro tells them to go outside and they start searching the other rooms, but Takeshi is not in their room or Natsue's, Akie's room is the only one left so now they search in it. Unfortunately, they still don't find anything until Conan, who was playing around opens the closet door, making him shocked when he sees what's inside and quickly makes him close the closet again.

Conan then asks Suzuki about the theory he had in mind, and the old butler confirms it with surprise. This makes Conan certain about the culprit's motive, but he doesn't know how to tell everyone before they arrive in Tokyo.

"You know, legalizing marriage between cousins might be seen as an effort to increase the birth rate. But I think we should consider the consequences more seriously." Agasa took a deep breath and sighing.

“Hakase is right. With the high death rate—as I'm sure you've already noticed—I think the law is more focused on increasing the birth rate than its consequences.” Conan agreed.

He knew he was of Japanese descent, but he'd spent six years in America. Furthermore, Shinichi had always provided him with various books, so he understood the implications of cousin marriage, even if he didn't fully understand the scientific explanation behind it.

"Furthermore, if this continues, won't Japan's population eventually decrease? There are certain recessive genetic diseases that can affect fertility, not to mention other rare diseases," Ai added.

“Huh, that’s true…” Furuya furrowed his brows. He was half-Japanese himself, but the thought of Japan’s dire future due to a law that didn’t consider long-term consequences irritated him. “I have to tell the higher-ups about this,” he muttered.

[Suddenly, Conan remembers the watch Agasa gave him a few days ago. He calls Kogoro into Akie's room and shoots him a tranquilizer, causing him to fall asleep immediately. Conan then apologizes with a mischievous expression to Kogoro, then goes out and asks Ran to call everyone to Akie's room in 10 minutes.

Ran agrees and Conan immediately runs away, taking Jouji's knife bag, Ichirou's sketchbook, and also moving Kogoro onto the sofa facing the ocean. He also uses his voice-changing tie to sound like Kogoro's and hides between Kogoro's legs when the door to Akie's room opens, revealing the rest of the Hatamoto family.

“I don’t think it’ll happen anytime soon… but with the current birth and death rates… ugh, I think we should tell the higher-ups about this and have them reconsider the consequences.” Megure massaged his temples and groaned tiredly. “I’m not usually like this, but right now I really want to drink myself to death and forget all this.”

“You’re not the only one,” Ginzo grumbled. “I’m this close to banging my head against the nearest wall and wishing I could forget all this information.”

The FBI’s could only stare at the police officers in front of them with pity—even though they themselves were feeling a headache from the information they had just received.

'And this is just the beginning.' They all thought with dread.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

Without any regard for the audience who really needed a moment to process all the information they had just been given, the scenes on the screen continued to play.

[When Mariko asked why Kogoro asked them there, 'Kogoro' said that he finally understood who the criminal was and what caused all this to happen. This shocked them all and Jouji, Mariko and Akie immediately accused Takeshi, as if they were absolutely sure that Takeshi was the culprit behind everything that happened.

'Kogoro' then calmed them down and told them not to rush. He then asked them to re-enact the events. Murder number 1 was Gozou, and judging by the bloodstains on the door, 'Kogoro' thought Gozou was stabbed outside, but ran inside to escape his attacker, where he ultimately died. In front of Gozou's room was also a fallen flower.]

Conan let out a long sigh and leaned slightly against Ai as his 'secret' was revealed in front of everyone. His hand gripped Ai's tightly, as if trying to find comfort.

If Shinichi were to wake up, Conan was sure that he would immediately get off his seat and hide in his brother's comforting and safe arms.

In the middle seat, Kogoro massaged his temples with a stressed expression.

He knew that all his accomplishments were Conan's work behind the scenes, thank you for telling him the truth, Archive of Truth! But he couldn't help but feel ashamed for his repeated wrong deductions—he remembered that every time he accused someone, the back of his neck would always feel like it was stung by something and his memory would stop there. Then when he came to, it turned out that 'he' had already solved the case and everyone was praising him.

['Kogoro' points out that if it really was Takeshi who did it, then there would be other problems. Gozou was supposedly stabbed outside his room, but there was no blood in the hallway. Jouji, who heard this, immediately said that Takeshi could have cleaned up Gozou's blood before leaving.

Kogoro again stated that he wasn't saying there wasn't any blood spilled in the hallway, but rather that Takeshi's flowers fell after the blood was cleaned up. He then explained that the killer could have dropped the flowers when stabbing Gozou and fled in panic. But the killer stayed and cleaned up the hallway afterward. If the flowers had fallen while the killer was cleaning up, they would have noticed.

So this all leads to one conclusion, the killer deliberately dropped Takeshi's flowers in order to pretend the deed was committed by Takeshi.]

Luckily, no one commented on Kogoro taking Conan's achievements.

“Ah,” Megure, Takagi, Sato, Shiratori, Chiba, Kazami, and Camel nodded in understanding and listened attentively to 'Kogoro's' explanation. They were still a little shaken by the information they had received earlier, but they chose to pay attention to what was about to happen.

“I don’t understand.” Kazuha frowned and studied the flower Conan was referring to on the screen closely. “Why aren’t there any bloodstains on the flower Ichirou dropped?”

"Well, it's possible that Takeshi dropped the flower somewhere else and Ichirou accidentally found it. Then, he committed murder and intentionally dropped the flower Takeshi found after cleaning the hallway," Masumi replied.

Beside Kazuha, Heiji also nodded, confirming Masumi's statement. "That way, the flowers won't have blood stains."

['Kogoro' then continues about murder number 2, Tatsuo was beaten to death and the murder weapon was not found and there was no evidence left behind. There is no evidence that his death was premeditated, like murder number 1. If the same person committed the crime, then murder number 2 was not included in the killer's plan. Tatsuo was killed by something in Jouji's knife bag, namely one of the knives that was missing and still not found.

Jouji is shocked, but quickly understands what 'Kogoro' means and says that one of the knives was thrown into the ocean by the killer. 'Kogoro' confirms Jouji's words, explaining that what Conan heard on deck was the sound of the killer throwing away the knife used to kill Gozou and hit Tatsuo.]

“You know, after finding out that the one behind ‘sleeping Kogoro’ all this time was Conan-kun, it feels weird hearing him speak with Mouri-san’s voice…”

“Yeah… moreover, he can imitate Kogoro-ojisama’s accent so accurately. I never even noticed that before!” Sonoko snorted before sitting up straight, “but it does explain where that snotty kid disappears to every time Kogoro-ojisama makes his deductions.”

Ran blinked. She had just realized it too. “That’s why Conan-kun always disappears! He often hides behind Tousan, too! I often scold him because I think he’s bothering Tousan…”

KID grinned when he heard that, “but it turns out he was the one who actually solved the case.” He teased Ran and Conan.

['Kogoro' invites them to imagine what would have happened, where the killer threw the knife into the sea, but Tatsuo saw it and the killer killed Tatsuo to silence him. Akie and Mariko then protest about Takeshi disappearing from the storage room, making him the most suspicious person. 'Kogoro' rebuts them by saying that it is impossible for Takeshi to get out without someone unlocking it.

If following 'Kogoro' hypothesis, murder number 2 was not planned by the perpetrator, then Takeshi was still locked in the storage room when it happened. Then because Takeshi who had been so carefully set up by the murderer would be proven innocent, then the killer unlocked the door to make it look like Takeshi committed the murder.]

Ran's expression turned complex. She frowned for a moment before letting out a long sigh and apologizing to Conan for scolded him so much.

Conan could only blink and stare at Ran as if he didn't understand why she was apologizing to him. "Uh, it's okay, Ran-neechan…" he muttered, half-confused.

“Wait a minute,” Megure said suddenly. “So as long as Mouri-kun doesn’t go into ‘sleeping Kogoro’ mode, then the one who solves the case is Mouri-kun himself, right?”

“Eh?” everyone who heard it immediately blinked in surprise.

“I mean, Conan-kun always solves cases using Mouri-kun’s name, but he always drugs him, so Mouri-kun is known as ‘Sleeping Kogoro’. But if Mouri-kun doesn’t sleep at all when solving cases, that means the one who solves the cases is Mouri-kun himself, right?”

[Mariko and Akie ask why Takeshi ran away if he wasn't the killer and they still don't know where Takeshi is now. This makes 'Kogoro' call Takeshi out and tell him to stop running.

Slowly, Akie's closet began to open and Takeshi came out of it, making 'Kogoro' tell Takeshi what happened after he came out of the storage room.

Takeshi stuttered and began to tell the story of how he thought something had happened to Natsue when he heard her screaming from the deck. He tried to get out, and then the door opened. Then, when he went out onto the deck and saw everyone gathered around Tatsuo's body, he thought he was going to be accused of murder again, so he disappeared, and ran all over the ship, randomly opening Akie's room door and then hiding in a closet.]

“Huh, that’s true. Tousan solved cases without going into sleep mode several times,” Ran said, remembering. “Conan-kun was there too, but he was always within my line of sight.”

“Kogoro-otchan is actually a cool detective when he focuses on the case.” Conan smiled. He understood that Megure was indirectly trying to encourage Kogoro.

Kogoro just let out a long sigh, but didn't say anything.

[Jouji strokes his chin and says that the person who stabbed Ichirou was someone else and not Takeshi. Of course, his statement makes Mariko go berserk and scream; who did such a terrible thing to her Ichirou.

Kogoro interrupted her and said that things didn't go as the killer intended. The killer initially wanted to accuse Takeshi, but someone would ask who opened the storage room door. This would keep his bubble of safety up until it would be popped. Therefore, the killer frantically thought of a way to avoid being accused. That's how incident number 3 happened, where Ichirou was stabbed in the pitch-black room.

However, with incident number 3, the killer dug his own grave.]

Seeing Kogoro say nothing made the atmosphere a little gloomy. They all knew how Kogoro always prided himself on being a great detective and believed he could bring justice with his deductions.

Knowing that all this time his 'great deduction' was just a mask that Conan was wearing must have made him depressed and made him question his own abilities as a detective.

How could it not be? A child was able to solve complex cases that he, as an adult and more experienced detective, was unable to. Knowing this would surely make anyone feel down.

Yuusaku glanced at Kogoro who was silent and expressionless beside him worriedly, but he didn't dare say anything because he realized that Kogoro himself had long disliked him.

['Kogoro' continues calmly and asks Ichirou about what he said after being stabbed. The room was pitch-black, so he couldn't see the face or figure of his attacker, and there was no light at all. When Ichirou confirms this, 'Kogoro' counters by saying that if Ichirou couldn't see anything, then his attacker couldn't see anything either. But the attacker managed to stab Ichirou perfectly, and the weapon was dropped at the scene, unlike murders 1 and 2.

Akie quickly grasped the meaning of 'Kogoro's' words and in shock said that the one who stabbed Ichirou was Ichirou himself. 'Kogoro' confirmed Akie's words and added that the one who killed Gozou and Tatsuo was also Ichirou. Ichirou created the darkness because he didn't want to identify the person who stabbed him, because if he said that it was Takeshi who stabbed him and somehow Takeshi was proven innocent, then Ichirou's words would be a lie and he would be a suspect.]

Ran bit her lip in worry. She felt sad that all of Kogoro's achievements were just a sham, but she was sure that Kogoro was even sadder than she was right now.

Seeing Ran's anxious expression, Sonoko reached out and held her best friend's hand. She understood how Kogoro felt—especially since Sonoko felt the same way. Her brilliant deductions were apparently just a tool Conan used to mask his genius brain. And Sonoko had repeatedly boasted that she could defeat Shinichi!

Conan has already said that Shinichi is far more of a genius than he is. If young Conan is already this genius, able to solve complex cases, then just how much of a genius is Shinichi?

They all couldn't help but wonder if Conan and Ai's earlier talk about Shinichi's IQ was true and not just a mere bluff. They had also seen how Shinichi guessed the perpetrator of Hirota Masami's bank robbery even before all the evidence was accurately gathered.

[Mariko shouts that what 'Kogoro' said is just an assumption and not based on evidence, making 'Kogoro' raise his hand and show a handkerchief with bloody bread crumbs in it, saying that it was found near Gozou's body after he was killed. He explains that Ichirou was an art student and before Gozou was killed, he made a charcoal sketch on the deck. For his sketch, Ichirou used a piece of bread to use as an eraser. Some bread crumbs must have accidentally fallen in the folds of his clothes and they fell when Ichirou stabbed Gozou, that's why there are bread crumbs on Gozou's blood.

Kogoro continued, explaining that Gozou was stabbed and quickly closed the door, preventing the killer from performing any tricks quickly because Gozou had closed the door. This caused Mariko, who was about to protest, to shut her mouth again. Kogoro then stated that the killer didn't plan to drop breadcrumbs when killing Gozou.]

“Speaking of lifting hands, I’m impressed you were able to pull Tantei-baka up and sit him on the sofa in such a short time, Tantei-kun.” KID grinned as if he couldn’t read the mood. “With that little body of yours, I guess it’s a miracle you didn’t run out of breath after pulling and lifting Tantei-baka up.”

Kogoro snorted unexpectedly. “He can knock a grown man unconscious in a second, and we’ve all seen how his soccer ball kicks can hurt someone. I’m surprised you’re impressed by that, considering you’ve been the victim of that kid’s soccer balls so many times yourself.”

The corner of KID's lips twitched, but thanks to that, the atmosphere became a little better.

“But I agree with what KID said. It’s a miracle you can speak so calmly and not pant after all that activity, Edogawa-kun.” Saguru grimaced as he said this, as if he couldn’t believe he was agreeing with KID.

[As if not wanting to believe it, Mariko says that Ichirou has no motive, causing 'Kogoro' to hold up Ichirou's sketchbook and say that he didn't realize it either until he found something in Ichirou's room. The problem isn't the sketchbook, but the subject of the sketch that became Ichirou's motive for killing Gozou.

Quickly, Akie snatched the sketchbook from Kogoro's hands and started flipping through it together with Mariko, making them suddenly realize that all the models Ichirou used were Natsue.

As if unable to bear it, Ichirou screamed, snatched the sketchbook from Akie's hands and fell to his knees with the sketchbook hugged to his chest.]

KID grinned at Saguru, making Aoko who was between them shift away from the insane thief and almost sitting side-by-side with no room with Saguru.

“By the way, how long has Ichirou been watching Natsue to be able to draw so many sketches?” Jodie asked. “Drawing sketches like that takes quite a while.”

“That’s true… and that’s just one sketchbook. Who knows how many sketchbooks Ichirou has?” Camel furrowed his brows uncomfortably. “Doesn’t that mean Ichirou’s been stalking Natsue for a long time?”

The women and girls who heard this also furrowed their brows. Some even made disgusted expressions. "I know I'm late to say this, but what he did was really creepy."

['Kogoro' continues that Ichirou loves Natsue and 'Kogoro' asks Suzuki the butler that because Ichirou couldn't tell Natsue his feelings, he went to Gozou.

Ichirou started crying and said that it was true. He went to Gozou to ask him to let him marry Natsue, but Gozou wouldn't let him and not long after that Gozou allowed Natsue and Takeshi to marry just to mock Ichirou. Ichirou couldn't forgive him because Gozou didn't allow Ichirou to marry Natsue and also Takeshi who stole Natsue from him.]

Remembering their conversation a while ago about the consequences of marriage between cousins, almost everyone there cringed in disgust when they saw that Ichirou actually wanted to marry Natsue, his own cousin.

“Is he gone for real?! Of course Gozou wouldn’t let his beloved granddaughter marry his other grandson, her own cousin!” Sonoko hissed in disgust. “I know love isn’t wrong, but there should be boundaries when loving someone, or it could become an unhealthy obsession!”

Ran, Yume, Aoko, Saguru, KID, Ai and Conan looked back at Sonoko as if the girl had suddenly grown an extra pair of arms.

Sonoko ignored the stares and continued ranting, commenting on Ichirou's insane behavior. "And what's with that 'Takeshi stole Natsue from him' thing?! Wasn't Natsue not his to begin with?! Natsue isn't an object you can claim as you please!"

[Conan, who was at Kogoro's feet, grimaced as he heard Ichirou's hateful shout. He didn't know whether to feel pity or disgust for the Hatamoto family—especially Ichirou. After all, he was the child of a cousin, and he wanted to marry his own cousin. Ichirou must have a brain problem because how could he not think about the possibility that his child's disability would be even greater in the future?

'Ugh, I don't want to think about that. We'll be in Tokyo soon and I miss Niichan…' Conan thought as he shook his head. He sighed and opened his phone when someone sent him a message. When he read the message, his whole face lit up like he just got a new toy.

☁👩🏼 ‍ 🔧 : ☀🌻 awake.]

“I agree with pipsqueak. Ichirou’s brain was probably messed up from the start. I’m sure Gozou wouldn’t let his beloved granddaughter suddenly get married just to spite Ichirou.” Sonoko looked torn between wanting to massage her temples, claw at the screen in front of them, or pull out her own hair. “Could it be that Natsue and Takeshi have been dating for a long time and they just so happen to be getting married right when Ichirou is trying to use Gozou’s power to steal Natsue from Takeshi?!”

Ran grimaced. Sonoko's words were only going to get wilder if she left them alone, so she tried to change the subject. "S-Sonoko, I think that's going too far?"

Sonoko opened her lips to deny those words and defend her theory, but Ran spoke again before she could say anything.

“Ah, thank goodness Shinichi’s awake… so that’s why you ran straight to Hakase’s house as soon as we finished giving our testimony to the police?” Ran asked Conan, successfully making Sonoko shut her mouth again with a grumble.

Conan nodded. “Uh-huh! I was so worried about Niichan!”

[Two weeks after the Hatamoto family case, Ran received a letter from Natsue, making her scream happily and immediately open it.

The content is how Natsue apologizes for the Hatamoto family ruining their vacation and tells how the Hatamoto family slowly begins to recover from the shock after the deaths of Gozou and Tatsuo. Natsue also explains how she and Takeshi decided to renounce Gozou's inheritance and leave the Hatamoto family. They then begin a new life on a ranch in Hakkaido.

A photo is shown, showing Natsue sitting on the back of a cow and Takeshi smiling in front of her. They look very happy.]

The corner of Ran's lips twitched, and Conan winced at the sudden change in scenery. Ran now looked uncomfortable, a faint blush coloring her cheeks, while Conan looked like he wanted to facepalm and groan at the top of his lungs.

“Ah, thank goodness they’re starting a new life!” Takagi, oblivious to Ran and Conan’s change in mood, smiled benevolently. “They look happy.”

“Thank goodness Takeshi-san’s past and the misunderstandings that occurred didn’t ruin their marriage!” Yukiko smiled broadly as she hugged Yuusaku’s arm beside her. “Their love must be very strong, right, Yuu-chan?”

Yuusaku just chuckled and agreed with his wife's words.

[Ran was just about to close the letter when her eyes accidentally read Natsue's additional message at the bottom of the letter.

'Ran, greetings to your detective boyfriend.'

The message made Ran blush, while Kogoro and Conan who saw it just exchanged confused glances.]

“Oh-uh,”

Almost everyone looked away and pretended not to see Ran blushing like a teenage girl in love on screen.

They would have thought it was cute before, but after finding out that Shinichi didn't like Ran that way and Ran herself had confirmed that what she felt was just based on what was expected from the people around them, what they saw this time made them all feel awkward.

Kogoro snorted and grumbled about how the pretentious detective boy was unworthy of his overly kind daughter.

Nobody listened to him.

[Ran then wonders what happened to Shinichi since they haven't been talking lately, making Conan flinch and panicking saying that Shinichi must be busy with a case. Ran immediately denies it by saying that it's been too long and Shinichi hasn't been to school either, even though normally Shinichi would have solved the case easily. She then mutters that maybe Shinichi's abilities are getting worse, making Conan want to facepalm.]

Ran groaned loudly this time and covered her face with both hands. She couldn't bear to see her past foolishness displayed in front of everyone any longer.

Sonoko, beside her, compassionately rubbed Ran's back. Her face paled slightly as she realized she wouldn't be able to escape this either. Considering all the antics she often got up to, she could only hope this place wouldn't be the center of attention for her too often.

KID, who was behind them, suddenly froze. “Tantei-kun,” he called, a hint of anxiety laced in his voice. “Tantei-kun, please tell me you guys—no, Meitantei can’t tell who I really am at a glance.”

Conan froze as well before cursing under his breath. He stared at KID with the same worry in his eyes, causing KID to bite his lip in fear. His poker face cracked for a few seconds before returning to its original state as if nothing had happened.

Beside KID, Saguru and Aoko stared at him in shock. They hadn't expected this place to reveal KID's true identity—especially Shinichi, who had discovered the real identity behind KID from their first meeting.

On one hand, they were eager to uncover the identity of the man named KID. But on the other, they knew that what this place was doing would truly reveal all of their pasts, and that terrified them.

[Someone then pressed the bell and Ran immediately opened the Agency's door, revealing someone who made her and Conan's eyes widen.

“Yukiko-san!” Ran greeted, making the person in front of her smile slightly and shake her head, quickly saying that she wasn’t Yukiko-obasan, but her niece, Fujimine Sanashi, and she had come to discuss about Conan.

Ran blinked in surprise when she heard that and immediately invited Sanashi in. Conan on the other hand immediately ran and jumped into Sanashi's arms when he saw the 'girl', quietly whispering in her ear about what his brother was going to do this time.]

Yukiko would have screeech in disapproval if what KID had ask hadn't made her anxious. The woman glanced at Chikage, who was now staring at the screen in front of them with a frozen expression, but her hands, which were clenched into fists and trembling slightly, betrayed her true feelings.

Hesitantly, Yukiko took Chikage's hand and tried to smile reassuringly when the woman didn't reject her.

[Sanashi whispered back that she found a way for Conan to spend time with her, although not too often and Conan still had to stay at Ran's house for some time until she was sure that the Kudo mansion was safe from their surveillance.

Conan was too relieved to protest, so he just smiled broadly and refused to get off Sanashi's lap when Kogoro and Ran asked her to sit on the living room sofa. Sanashi then began introducing herself, saying that she was Conan's distant cousin and Shinichi's cousin.

Kogoro and Ran watched Sanashi intently before Kogoro began to ask what Sanashi was really thinking, leaving a child as young as Conan alone in a foreign country. Ran also joined in suspiciously asking why Shinichi never told her about Sanashi, causing Sanashi to raise her hand for them to calm down.]

“That’s true. But isn’t that too risky? Fujimine Sanashi appeared right after Kudo Shinichi disappeared. They might suspect that Shinichi-kun is impersonating Sanashi-san.” Megure, who hadn’t really heard KID’s conversation with Conan in front of him, wondered.

“Not to mention Sanashi-san who refused to live in the Kudo mansion and preferred to occupy a simple house right behind the mansion.” Shiratori also expressed his concerns.

Conan glanced at KID once more before taking a breath and answering the two police officers' questions. "There's a reason why Niichan has been acting arrogant all this time. That's one of the reasons. If you know someone who's extremely arrogant, you'd never think that person would disguise themselves as a sickly girl with a gentle nature."

Megure, Takagi, Sato, Shiratori, and Chiba blinked when they realized it.

“That’s true, I myself never imagined that Shinichi-kun would disguise himself as a girl, let alone as his own cousin.” Megure rubbed his chin, “anyone who knows Shinichi-kun from the media would say that he’s a genius, but he’s so arrogant that it makes some people uncomfortable with him…”

“And if the ‘genius’ the black organization thinks is the same as the one we do, then they would immediately dismiss the possibility of Kudo-kun impersonating his own family, let alone a girl.” Sato almost gasped at this realization. “Someone as arrogant as Kudo-kun would never disguise himself as a girl.”

“Kudo-kun really is hiding in plain sight, huh? But we easily dismissed that possibility simply because we felt it was too obvious.” Takagi let out a long sigh. He didn't know whether to be impressed or disbelieving of Shinichi's plan of 'hiding from the organization that wanted to kill him'.

[Sanashi answers Kogoro's question first, explaining that Conan's parents are agents currently working undercover on a major case, so Conan must leave America to minimize the threat to himself and his parents. Initially, Conan was going to stay with Sanashi, who was also going to Japan to start a new life. But something happened and now Sanashi can't be with Conan completely.

Ran asks what happened to her, causing Sanashi to look down slightly and act as if she's hesitant to tell them the reason before finally taking a deep breath and honestly saying that she was poisoned by an experimental poison, causing her health to plummet and requiring therapy every now and then. The poison that was forced on her was created by an organization that Conan's parents are currently infiltrating, so Sanashi can't just go to another doctor or hospital due to a confidentiality agreement.

The ‘girl’ also explained that what she just said was classified information, so they shouldn’t just tell it to anyone else. Ran and Kogoro solemnly agreed, though a sliver of suspicion remained in their hearts.]

Ran covered her lips with her hand. She didn't know how to feel right now. She couldn't even describe the feeling swirling inside her chest.

On one hand, she knew that Shinichi had never completely lied to her from the start. But on the other hand, she was reminded again and couldn't help but feel sad that Shinichi didn't fully trust her to keep the secret.

Watching her first interaction with 'Sanashi' on screen, Ran noticed a few things she hadn't noticed before. Like 'Sanashi's' skinny arms and gaunt cheeks. Not to mention the slight eye bags that were still visible, even though Ran was sure Shinichi was wearing makeup as 'Sanashi'.

“Is it just me, or does Sanashi-san look tired there?” Sonoko whispered to Ran who agreed with her.

“Shinichi-niisan is too busy to fully rest,” Yume, sitting beside Sonoko, tried to explain. “After waking up from his coma, he’s been busy fixing his identity as ‘Fujimine Sanashi,’ taking care of his schoolwork, tidying a house, and ensuring the security of the house he choose. He didn’t use his magic in front of me, but I’m sure he did it secretly behind me and Hakase’s back.”

“And that’s not even including the information he wants from you,” Ai added. She learned from Yume that Shinichi had been trying to track down ‘Sherry’ ever since ‘Yume’ was rescued, but he hadn’t been able to find her until then.

[Sanashi then took a deep breath and looked Ran straight in the eye, as if to show her seriousness and explain that Shinichi never told anyone about Sanashi because since childhood Sanashi was often targeted and poisoned. It would be safer for Shinichi and Sanashi if the public did not know about their relationship. Sanashi even almost died from the poisoning she experienced when she was 9 years old. Not to mention that Shinichi has a magnet for trouble, it would be dangerous if the public knew that they were related.

Sanashi—Shinichi didn't even completely lie about it, except for the part where Sanashi survived the poisoning at the age of 9.]

"He just woke up after a week of being unconscious and went straight to work?" Saguru asked in disbelief. "And you let him?"

“To be honest, Shinichi-kun can be very stubborn if there is something he believes must be resolved immediately…” Agasa sighed and shook his head tiredly.

“Yeah, we tried to stop him. But even Conan-kun’s threats couldn’t stop him!” Yume frowned, her eyes filled with disapproval. “Although he was calmer and less stubborn when Conan-kun came to visit…”

“…Ah,” Ran muttered, suddenly remembering something. “…Conan-kun, is that why you often ask permission to go to Hakase’s house back then?” She asked with guilt in her voice.

Conan nodded. “Ran-neechan, it’s okay, you didn’t know at the time. I understand why you didn’t want me to go to Hakase’s house every day… especially since I refused to let you pick me up or drop me off.”

Ran opened her lips, wanting to argue, but stopped and closed them again with a nod.

[“I know our arrival was quite sudden, but I believe I asked Agasa to look after Conan for a while since Shinichi couldn’t look after him.” Sanashi shook her head and raised her hand again when she saw Ran open her mouth. “What we didn’t predict was that Shinichi accidentally found out about their movements, so now he’s in America and helping Conan’s parents as a detective. Don’t worry, he’s not in danger because he’s not directly involved in the field. As for school, we’ve arranged for him to get grades from assignments that will be sent through the post office.”

Ran looked at Sanashi with disbelief mixed with sadness, then asked in a low voice why Shinichi didn't tell her, causing Sanashi to reply that Shinichi didn't want to worry her too much.]

“Huh, even though he wasn’t completely lying back then, he still lied and made Ran worry. Seriously, I don’t know what you see in that pretentious brat, Ran!” Kogoro grumbled. He was annoyed that Shinichi and Conan lied to him and Ran, even though he understood the reason behind their lies. Plus, as Sanashi had said before, he wasn’t completely lying.

Kogoro let out a long sigh and massaged his temples in stress. He was really craving a cigarette right now.

Sonoko and Kazuha on the other hand shouted in annoyance at Sanashi who hid the truth from Ran.

“You’re making her worry even more by disappearing all of a sudden like that, you idiot! We don’t even have your phone number and you always call from a pay phone!” Sonoko hissed.

“I understand that Kudo-kun doesn’t want to put Ran-chan in danger by knowing information about the Black Organization, but making Ran-chan worry won’t help either.” Kazuha looked down sadly. She glanced at Heiji beside her and couldn’t stop the question that was spinning in her head, ‘if that happened to Heiji, would he do the same to Kudo-kun? Even if he knows that I will definitely help him…’

[Sanashi massaged the bridge of her nose when she saw Ran who looked upset and sad because of disappointment, she didn't want to deal with this now because she still had a lot to take care of, so she tried to change the subject by looking at Kogoro and returning to discussing Conan's future residence. She wanted the truth about Conan and Sanashi's parents being poisoned to be kept a secret until they could find the antidote and destroy them.

The 'girl' also suggested that Conan stay with Kogoro and Ran because, aside from Kogoro being a detective, Agasa was not prepared to take care of children. Sanashi even offered to pay Kogoro five million yen a month to look after Conan while Sanashi had to undergo therapy.]

“If Ran-neechan knew that Niichan was facing the Black Organization at that time, what do you think Ran-neechan would do?” Conan asked suddenly.

Almost everyone there froze.

Conan turned to Ran, as if trying to get her to spit out the answer she already knew. “I asked, what would you do if you found out that Niichan was trying to destroy that dangerous organization, Ran-neechan?”

Ran fell silent with a pale expression. She suddenly remembered that she had once demanded that Shinichi end his investigation and return home. She had urged him to surrender and return to Japan… without knowing how dangerous the organization that nearly killed Shinichi was.

“I… I…” Ran bit her lip and clasped her hands tightly on her thighs. “…”

“You’ll surely demand that Shinichi-kun forget about the case and return. Ignoring that he’s been tracking them all this time, and the danger that his return would pose to those around him,” Ai replied with the words that were already on the tip of Ran’s tongue. “Then, after learning how dangerous they are, you’ll pressure Shinichi-kun to take you with him.”

[Kogoro looks at Conan who is calmly sitting on Sanashi's lap and thinks that Conan is acting as if he is not at all worried about his future residence.

Seeing the doubt in Kogoro's eyes, Sanashi explained that Conan would not stay with them forever, only when Sanashi can’t look after Conan and after the therapy that Sanashi was undergoing was finished, they would no longer need to look after Conan.

Conan smiled sweetly at Kogoro, enthusiastically remarking that since he'd moved in with Kogoro and Ran, he'd encountered so many interesting cases that he hadn't gotten bored. This prompted Kogoro to finally give in and allow Conan to stay with them until Sanashi fully recovered. He then grumbled under his breath that another kid wanted to pretend to be a detective.

The corner of Sanashi's lips twitched when she heard that and she wanted to retort, but the sound of the bell stopped her.]

“No offense, Ran-neechan, but you’re selfish. How many times have you been kidnapped? How many times have criminals managed to poison you? Niichan’s enemies are cunning people, Ran-neechan. Maybe you could win if you relied on your karate. But in the face of poison? A sniper’s bullet? You never even realized that KID was disguised as Niichan before it was too late.” Conan’s voice softened even though the words he spoke were the exact opposite.

“Frankly, you’ll only add to Shinichi-kun’s burden if you find out. Even Shinichi-kun finally agreed to talk to you because you kept demanding it, right? And I’m sure he still didn’t tell you everything.” Ai let out a long sigh. She was both a scientist and the Kudo brothers’ therapist. She had seen how Ran’s insistence and demands had made Shinichi resent their friendship even more—to the point of wanting to destroy and cut it completely.

She had seen and knew that Ran's feelings made Shinichi feel disgusted and burdened, even though all his emotions were already burdened with the Black Organization. "...you've been friends since childhood, after all. He knows how you'll act."

Ran was now on the verge of tears, her hands trembling. After all, what Conan and Ai had said was true. After all, Shinichi had never told Ran that he possessed magic. She also didn't know that he had a fiancée—the person he loved to this day. She… she hadn't known anything about him all this time.

"Ran," Sonoko whispered worriedly beside her. The girl couldn't say anything either. She couldn't even get angry, because what the two kids said was true, and she realized she had been adding fuel to the fire.

[Ran immediately gets up to open the door, while Conan leans on Sanashi's chest and says excitedly that there might be a new case they will get.

Not long after, Ran returned with a man carrying a bunch of toy boxes in his hands, saying that he came for some consultation. Conan, who heard this, immediately looked at Sanashi with sparkling eyes, making Sanashi laugh a little and ask Kogoro's permission to let them in on what the man wanted to consult.

Kogoro surprisingly just exhales and allows them, but warns Conan and Sanashi not to disturb him.]

“But… but why didn’t Kudo-kun tell Mouri-chan? Aoko thought… Aoko thought what Kudo-kun did was wrong.” Aoko opened her mouth hesitantly when she saw how upset Ran looked. “What kind of friend doesn’t tell a friend and keeps their problems to themselves?”

The corner of KID's lips twitched and his fingers clenched for a moment before relaxing again as if nothing had happened.

Conan hissed as if the words were an insult to him, but Ai immediately covered his lips so he couldn't say anything.

“Isn’t it our duty as friends to help each other? Aoko thought, if Kudo-kun told Mouri-chan what really happened and explained it, Aoko thought Mouri-chan would be able to understand it… how is Mouri-chan supposed to understand what Kudo-kun is thinking if Kudo-kun doesn’t say it at all?”

“I—” Ran swallowed hard, knowing that Aoko was trying to comfort her, even though what she said was completely wrong and unkind. Ran wasn’t stupid, and she knew that Shinichi and she had been unknowingly hurting each other all this time. But if she rejected Aoko’s words of comfort outright, she would embarrass her. So she tried to smile and thank Aoko.

“Thank you, Nakamori-chan, but what Conan-kun and Ai-chan said is true…” Ran swallowed again and forced her lips to admit the bitter truth that had been happening all this time. “I think Shinichi does have the right to not tell me anything… after all, I’m nothing to him—besides he thinks of me as his own sister… who I may have ruined with my feelings for him.”

“Ran-chan…” Kazuha murmured sadly. After all, she had always felt that her situation with Ran was very similar. Falling in love with their childhood best friend, who was a detective and had never been seen loving anyone else but them… this made Kazuha wonder again if what she knew about Heiji was only a small part of the real him.

[The man came because for the past two years he has been receiving money along with some toys every month. All the return addresses are fake and he feels uncomfortable with it all. He has a child who just turned five, and he has checked all his friends, acquaintances and family, but none of them have done so. The man has always received one million yen every month, and this month brings the total to 25 million yen.

The man was really uncomfortable with what he got every month, his son was delighted to get a toy every month but he didn't dare touch his money.

Kogoro then asks if he has any clues, but the man shakes his head, making Conan ask innocently that maybe it all came from his old patient.]

Ran took a deep breath and straightened her back. The determination in her eyes surprised everyone who saw it. “I want to be better. No, I will be better. After everything Shinichi has endured… I want to help him even just a little. And if… and if I need a slap in the face every step of the way, then so be it.”

The expression on Ran's face showed such determination and sincerity that the others were speechless.

KID suddenly snorted in amusement, “puftt, yeah, if you and the rest of us get a slap in the face with every step—or perhaps every time the truth behind Kudo Shinichi is revealed—then so be it. After all, we’re all watching his life story right now. I doubt any of us won’t know the secret Meitantei are hiding after we all get out of here.”

Conan hissed again and removed Ai's hand from his mouth. "It's not like we have the power to stop them. Whoever did this didn't even ask permission from the people they were about to display like kebab filling."

[His question made Kogoro and Ran look at Conan who was still sitting on Sanashi's lap with a joyful expression. Conan ignored them and confirmed that the man who was their client was indeed a surgeon, then said that it was not strange for one of his old patients to send him a gift.

The man said that he was thinking the same thing and that he had asked every patient he could remember, but none of them had done so. This made Kogoro and Ran stare blankly at him for a moment until the man said that he hadn't told them he was a surgeon.]

Masumi, who had been silent all this time, chuckled. “Yeah, I agree with Ran-chan and Conan-kun. Besides, like Shuu-nii, ahem, your Dad, Conan-kun, said, this place tears apart all the secrets we have and shows them, regardless of whether we give our consent or not.”

“And as KID said, I don’t think we’ll just learn about Kudo’s secret once we get out of here.” Heiji let out a long sigh and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “I just hope this place doesn’t reveal our embarrassing secret.”

After those words, the previously gloomy atmosphere began to lighten. Some even joked that it would be fun to see their friends' antics, which they had been hiding. Others also returned their attention to the screen, finally relaxing a bit after all the bad times that had occurred.

[Kogoro and Ran immediately looked at Conan in surprise, making Conan explain that he knew it from his index finger which had a line mark, because usually when performing surgery, the surgeon presses the fine thread firmly with the index fingers of both hands.

His explanation made the man nod in agreement and say that there had been an emergency surgery earlier. The man then praised Conan, causing Kogoro to snort and say that Conan only knew trivial things. Ran protested and said that Conan was great, just like—

Ran's words stopped abruptly and the girl continued in her head that Conan was just like Shinichi.]

“Uh, well, I’ve been wondering about that to be honest. Tantei-kun has the exact same face as Meitantei. But how come he only wears glasses and no one notices?” KID asked.

“Excuse me?” Conan replied with a look of ‘what the hell, KID?’

“You’re excused,” KID replied without any remorse. “Back to the question, Mouri-chan clearly feels that you resemble Meitantei. But how did you avoid her suspicion? After all, you know, Mouri-chan has been friends with Meitantei since childhood?”

Conan looked torn between wanting to facepalm and strangle the insane thief. He took a deep breath and said a silent prayer before finally giving in and answering KID with throbbing eye. "Because Niichan is Niichan, and I am me."

Almost everyone who heard him tilted their heads in confusion, but Ran and Agasa laughed. Sonoko also laughed after realizing what Conan meant.

“I understand why we never fully suspected that Pipsqueak was Shinichi-kun shrunken down. Besides being a crazy theory, Pipsqueak’s personality and demeanor are different from Shinichi-kun’s.”

[A flash of memory of Shinichi accidentally holding a woman's hand and immediately knowing her job while in Tropical Land appears, making Ran look at Conan who has now taken one of the toy boxes and leaned his back against Sanashi's chest suspiciously.

Sanashi hugged Conan from behind and let Conan play with the box he took, making Ran immediately dismiss her suspicions and think that it was impossible.]

“Look!” Sonoko added, pointing excitedly at the screen in front of them. “Shinichi-kun would never sit like that. He prefers to sit alone like an adult.”

“And Conan-kun always acts like a kid his age. Shinichi… since he was little, Shinichi rarely acts like Conan-kun. Even though Conan-kun is more mature than kids his age, he still has a childish nature. Different from Shinichi.” Ran agreed even though her cheeks were now colored with a faint dusting of pink. “Although I have to admit that sometimes Conan-kun is so similar to Shinichi that I suspect him.”

[Kogoro takes out a cigarette and asks if there's anything else that could be a clue, prompting his client to pull out an envelope that arrived that day. This delivery was a bit different because usually the money always comes in a large package along with a toy, but this time all he got was an envelope with money and a strange letter inside.

“The 25 million yen has been paid. I am coming to collect my side of the transaction…?” Kogoro muttered in confusion. He asked his client what he meant, but the man didn't understand either.]

“Has anyone ever received a report about this?” Megure asked the police and detectives beside him. He didn’t remember receiving a report like this, and considering that Shinichi, Conan, and Kogoro were involved in this case, he wasn’t sure they wouldn’t end up with a body or two.

Takagi, Sato, Shiratori, Chiba and even Ginzo looked at each other and tried to remember the report they received.

“No, I don’t remember it at all.” Shiratori muttered.

Kogoro, standing in front of Megure, sighed. “That’s because he didn’t intend to report it to the police. This case ended without a body, in case you were wondering.”

His words caused several people to glance at him in surprise and concern. They weren't used to Kogoro speaking so wearily, as if he were exhausted.

“Kogoro-kun, are you okay?” Worried about his friend, Megure leaned forward and asked in a low voice.

Kogoro simply nodded, causing Megure to furrow his brows but decide not to press him further. If Kogoro didn't want to say it now, he would when he was ready.

[On the other hand, Conan and Sanashi exchange glances. They both notice that the toy boxes are strange because they don't have barcodes. Conan then calls Kogoro and asks why the toys don't have stripes, leaving Kogoro confused as to what he means until Sanashi explains that Conan meant the barcodes.

Kogoro immediately inspects the boxes and realizes that Conan's words are true. He also notices that some of the toys are defective. This leads his client to say that some of them have been like that since he received them. Kogoro then refutes his client's claims about the sender sending him used goods, saying that the sender sends him a million yen every month, so he must be rich and can afford new ones.]

Almost all the detectives there leaned forward as if doing so would make everything look more detailed.

“Don't have a barcode? How is that possible?”

"Maybe the person who shipped those toys printed new boxes without barcodes. Counterfeit products usually don't have barcodes either, but still, if you look closely, you'll see that they've faked the barcodes by making them damaged or invisible at a glance," Masumi muttered.

“Hm, that makes sense.” Heiji, who heard Masumi’s muttering, nodded even though his gaze remained fixed on the screen.

[Conan thinks that the sender couldn't have been just playing a prank because it's all too complicated. On the other hand, Ran watches Conan suspiciously and thinks that it wasn't her father who solved the puzzle, but that Conan was controlling everything. The girl becomes even more suspicious that Conan is Shinichi.

Kogoro tries to calm his client, Ogawa, down, but Kogoro still can't figure out who did this to Ogawa. Conan then asks Kogoro if he thinks the sender is trying to buy something from Ogawa, since the letter mentions a transaction.

They were shocked to hear this, but Sanashi interrupted before they could speak, asking if anything else had happened to Ogawa since this case was a bit similar to what her acquaintance had experienced.]

Jodie snorted in amusement at Ran's suspicion. She had never worked directly with Shinichi, but seeing Conan's genius all this time, she was increasingly convinced that Kudo Shinichi shared similar traits with Conan.

“Right. Maybe he’s trying to buy something from Ogawa-san… but what is he trying to buy? 25 million yen isn’t a small amount, after all.” Saguru frowned suspiciously. His mind raced through the possibilities of what a mere surgeon might want to buy. ‘Or maybe Ogawa-san isn’t what he seems…?’

“Acquaintance?” Chikage asked Yukiko, making both the woman and Yuusaku frown as if trying to remember.

Yuusaku's expression then brightened. "Ah, maybe she meant Dr. David. The only one who has any resemblance to this case is Dr. David."

[Sanashi then explains that an acquaintance of her is a surgeon, just like Ogawa. But even though they are doctors, they still can't resurrect the dead. This doctor acquaintance of her, David, once failed to save a teenager's life, earning the teenager's parents a grudge. They forget that even doctors are still human, not gods who can control death.

Sanashi shook her head as her words began to wander. She then continued, explaining that the deceased teenager's parents had terrorized David's family for three months before kidnapping and murdering his young daughter. When they were arrested, they shouted that David now knew what it was like to lose a child.]

Yukiko gasped, her expression saddened. “Oh, I remember that case. Poor Doctor David… he waited so long to have his little girl.”

“Yeah. Luckily, he and his family managed to overcome their grief… many people were worried that he would commit suicide because he was so devastated by his daughter’s death. Thankfully, that didn’t happen at all.” Yuusaku patted Yukiko’s hand to comfort her and also shared what he knew about David with the others.

Akako on the other hand grumbled under her breath. “Humans will never can resurrect the dead. Humans won't even be able to escape the fate of death! All this only shows that he is not human!”

No one heard her, of course. Ran was too focused on a detail she hadn't noticed before, and Saguru was too busy thinking about the possibilities.

[Ogawa paled slightly upon hearing this, but still shook his head and said that apart from money and toys, he hadn't been bothered at all. Then, as if remembering something, he also added that every year for the past two years, he had also received flowers from Tanaka—the man who had sent him money and toys every month. But unlike the money and toys, the flowers were only sent to him once a year on August 3rd.

Kogoro then asked what kind of flowers they were, and Ogawa replied that they were Morning Glories. This made Kogoro furrow his brows and ask again if anything happened on August 3rd, but Ogawa again shook his head, not knowing.]

“Something must have happened on August 3rd. There’s no way the sender would send something like that once every year on the same date if he always sends money and toys every month.” Heiji pinched his chin and thought. “Hey, Ku—Conan. How many cases have fallen into your lap unbidden like this?”

Conan snorted. “More times than I can count.”

Heiji looked at him with half envy and half pity. After all, not all cases have beautiful victims. Some are so gruesome that they're not suitable for minors to watch.

Damn, even he, a teenager who had seen and handled murder cases many times, still felt horrified by some of the brutal cases he handled.

[Conan then idly flips through the toys and suddenly his eyes fall on a storage file that has the name 'Ogino Tomoya'. He picks it up and shows it to Sanashi behind him, making them both come to the same conclusion.

“Oji-san, what’s your son’s name?” Conan asked the surgeon in front of him. “Is his name Tomoya? I saw his save game name! But why doesn’t he have the same surname as you?”

His words made Kogoro and Ogawa jump in shock. They both immediately checked the other toys and found that besides the new toy, the others had the name 'Ogino Tomoya' written on them.]

“Ogino Tomoya? Could that be the culprit’s name…? But why would they send the toy to Ogawa-san?” Takagi wondered before dismissing his deduction. “Wait, maybe it’s as Sanashi-san said… Ogawa-san failed to save someone, and that person’s family is seeking revenge…”

Sato beside him nodded in agreement. “Judging by those toys, the perpetrator—Ogino-san—must have intended to harm Ogawa-san’s son… because Ogawa-san failed to save their son’s life?”

“But why did they wait so long? They could have killed Ogawa-san’s son without having to send him toys and money… and flowers for the past two years,” Saguru wondered. As much as he hated killing, especially children, he couldn’t understand why Ogino didn’t terrorize or kill Ogawa’s son immediately when they found out he had a son.

“That’s true, they could have easily sent money, toys, and made Ogawa’s son happy.” Masumi furrowed her brows, trying to think of a reason behind Ogino’s behavior.

[Ogawa furrowed his brows, then suddenly said that he remembered the name. Ogino Tomoya was the appendicitis patient who died three years ago due to being brought to the hospital too late. Ogawa then said that the child's father seemed unable to accept it, causing the man to suddenly freeze with a deathly pale expression. "You don't think that Ogino Tomoya's father would do the same thing as this lady told you a moment ago, do you?!"

Kogoro immediately jumped to his feet and told Ogawa to check on his son. He then asked if Tomoya died on August 3rd, causing Ogawa to nod and frantically call the kindergarten where his son was supposed to be.

They all waited tensely for Ogawa's call until Ogawa's son's kindergarten teacher said that Yuuta had just been picked up by his father.]

Almost everyone there straightened their backs and leaned forward in surprise.

“I didn’t receive any reports about this. That means Ogawa’s son is safe… right?” Megure asked worriedly.

His question was followed by shakes of the head and worried expressions from his division mates.

“I don’t recall any reports of a kidnapping involving a victim named Ogawa Yuuta.” Takagi shook his head. His expression was torn between worry and confusion. “Could it be that Ogawa-san refused to report it and decided to resolve it peacefully?”

[Conan and Sanashi immediately stood up and asked where Ogawa's son's kindergarten was, making the man palely answer that his school was not far from the Agency, more precisely, about six blocks from there.

Hearing this, Sanashi immediately ran out followed by Conan. Behind them, Ran, Kogoro and Ogawa follow.]

“Six blocks from the Agency… each block is roughly 50 to 70 meters on each side. Their running speed is probably 150 to 200 meters per minute. Considering any obstacles, they’ll probably arrive in three to four minutes.” Ai calculated. “That’s enough time for Ogino-san to drag Yuuta-kun far enough away and kill him.”

“Plus the time they spent running around looking for Yuuta-kun and Ogino-san.” Saguru tried to estimate how long it would take them to find Yuuta, and what he found made his face turn slightly pale. Especially after hearing what Ai had said. “That much time… it’s a miracle Yuuta-kun is still okay.”

[The scene changes to Beika Park, where a man wearing a fedora and glasses hands a gift to Ogawa's 5-year-old son, Yuuta. The young Yuuta immediately accepts it and thanks him. He then becomes absorbed in unwrapping his toy and doesn't notice Ogino pulling out a knife behind him.

Ogino then said in her heart that Tomoya must have been lonely all this time, so she would send him a friend so he wouldn't be lonely anymore.]

More than one person cursed loudly when they saw it.

Heiji almost stood up from his seat, as if to run and stop Ogino. “Damn it! Get away from him!”

Sonoko snorted and shouted in annoyance when she heard Ogino's words, "What do you mean Tomoya-kun has been lonely all this time and you want to send him a friend?! Are you crazy?! There's no way your son will be happy in the afterlife if you become a murderer!"

Ran, Aoko, KID, Yume, Saguru, Kazuha and Masumi also nodded at Sonoko's words.

The others grew frustrated as they saw Ogino standing near Yuuta with a knife in his hand. They knew it was a long time ago, but that didn't stop the uneasy and unsettling feeling in their hearts.

[Sanashi, Conan, Kogoro, Ran, and Ogawa ran frantically looking for Yuuta. They searched around Yuuta's kindergarten and the nearby park, but there was no sign of Yuuta until Ogawa accidentally saw his son busy unwrapping his toy with Ogino holding a knife, ready to kill Yuuta.

They were all too far away to stop Ogino and Conan frantically turned to the two children playing soccer. Conan quickly put on the shoes Agasa had made for him and kicked the soccer ball at Ogino, sending the knife in Ogino's hand flying and one of the trees the soccer ball hit exploding. At the same time, Sanashi jumped from the top of the fence and used her momentum to stomp on the still shocked Ogino, knocking his body down.]

More than three people cursed when they saw Ogino who was ready to kill Yuuta, while Kogoro, Ran, Conan, Sanashi and Ogawa were still too far away to be able to stop him.

But a few moments later, they were all stunned when Sanashi and Conan did something beyond common sense.

Even Akako couldn't keep her jaw in place. If this were a manga panel, Akako's jaw would have fallen inelegantly to the ground.

“… I’m amazed that Ogino-san’s hand didn’t break after being hit by Conan-kun’s soccer ball…” Takagi muttered with a mixture of awe, horror, and disbelief.

“Huh,” Megure raised an eyebrow curiously. “I wonder if Ogino should go to the doctor after this. Even though Shinichi-kun seems pretty light, being stepped on from that height must be painful.”

Sonoko sighed as she watched Shinichi, disguised as Sanashi, perform the jump. She turned to Ran and whispered, half-jokingly, "I bet he learned that from you."

Ran's cheeks flushed red when she heard that. "Mou, Sonoko! Don't say that!" she groaned in embarrassment. She still remembered how moments before they had all seen her jump down from the second floor in pursuit of the 'criminal who injured Masami'.

[Sanashi then uses her body weight to pin Ogino to the ground and gives Ogawa the chance to pull his son away from Ogino. Ogawa, pale and trembling, confirms that it was indeed Ogino who sent the toys and money, causing Ogino to scream angrily at Ogawa for killing his son due to a surgical error three years ago.

Ogino bitterly asks Ogawa if he can understand the grief of losing a child. He then confesses everything, that he was the one who sent his son's old toys, that he waited three years just to send Ogawa's son, who is now the same age as Tomoya, directly to him.]

The disbelief that had filled everyone's hearts was quickly replaced by grief. After all, Tomoya was still a child. He was too young to die.

But they all also understand that Ogawa—a doctor—is also just an ordinary person. They have no power over a person's life or death. If the gods had willed it, what could they, humans, do?

Even if they could avoid death and bring someone back to life, they would have to pay a heavy price. They still hadn't forgotten what Akako—a Witch—said about Shinichi bringing Akemi—Yume back from the brink of death.

'People who can perform such miracles are no longer human—they become monsters in the eyes of the world.'

[They were all stunned by the confession until Yuuta suddenly wriggled out of Ogawa's embrace and said that he understood that Ogino was the one who always sent him toys. Yuuta then thanked him and said that he would take good care of the toys, causing Ogino to see Tomoya's reflection in Yuuta's face.

Slowly, the man broke down and finally admitted that he had known from the start that it was not a surgical error.

Kogoro then tells Ran to call the police, but Ogawa stops him and says that he understands Ogino's feelings, because before he was a doctor, he was a father. They were both fathers.]

No one commented. They all understood how hard Ogino felt. Even though most of them didn't have children of their own, they knew that losing someone they'd grown up with every day would be incredibly painful.

Imagine someone you know—someone you hear and see every day passing away… as if all the time in the world isn't enough to carve out memories of that person.

For those left behind, death means no longer seeing their smile, no longer being able to share their laughter, no longer hearing their voice. In some cases, those left behind will even slowly lose their memories of that person.

"I didn't report this because Ogawa refused to press the issue further, and Ogino already regretted his actions. The two of them had a talk to resolve the situation, and Ogino seemed much more relieved afterward. So I decided not to do anything," Kogoro explained briefly, causing Megure behind him to nod in understanding.

[Seeing that Ogino no longer had any intention of fighting back and Kogoro had secured Ogino's knife, Sanashi slowly got off Ogino's body and let Ogawa help Ogino up.

Everything was ending well, until Sanashi suddenly felt a burning sensation in her heart.

THUMP-THUMP-THUMP.

Reflexively, her hand clutched her heart and tried to control her breathing, but the pain in her chest began to spread to her shoulders, back and neck, making her start to feel short of breath and almost fall if Ran didn't hold her. It wasn't as bad as when she first drank the poison and not as bad as the pain she felt after saving Yume, but it still made her lose her balance.]

Before they all had time to breathe a sigh of relief, they froze again when they saw Sanashi on the screen suddenly clutching her heart and her body having the effect of being enveloped in flashes of light: thin white and blue lines running from her chest to her shoulders, back, and neck—even her face as if there was a visual electric current running through her bones.

“Wait, wait, wait! What's that effect?! It wasn't there at all before!” Sonoko, as the drama club president, automatically noticed the 'visual effect' happening. But the question was, why only now?

“It looks like a heart attack,” Heiji muttered, wincing. Because along with the effect, Sana—Shinichi’s heartbeat could be heard very loudly from the screen.

"But why only now? Why not before?" Kazuha asked in surprise.

Unfortunately, all their questions may not be answered until Shinichi wakes up.

[Vaguely, Sanashi heard someone say 'heart attack' and 'hospital'. She was also somehow currently sitting back in a chair, trying to catch her breath and ignore the pain to think.

She had never had a heart attack before, and aside from using her magic to transform into 'Sanashi', she hadn't used any magic at all today. She hadn't done anything strenuous either—

'Oh shit, a heart attack just from running and jumping off the guardrail?' thought Sanashi in annoyance.]

Yukiko covered her lips with a look of disbelief mixed with sadness. “Oh, Shin-chan…”

She couldn't imagine what her son must have felt at that moment. After all, Shinichi exercised regularly—especially playing soccer—to keep his body fit. To suddenly be unable to even run… Yukiko desperately wanted to hug and comfort her eldest son, to tell him everything would be okay, even if it was a lie.

Yuusaku embraced Yukiko in his arms and rubbed her shoulders when he realized that tears had gathered in his wife's eyes.

On the other hand, Ran grimaced. “…he really wasn’t lying about his condition…”

[Someone called out to her, and Sanashi realized in horror that Ogawa, Kogoro, Ran, and Conan were gathered around her with worried expressions. Sanashi gulped and opened her mouth to tell them to back off and not worry about her, but her voice came out very weak.

“I… don’t… worry… I’m fine… I just need… a little rest…” Sanashi closed her eyes and regained her breath. Fortunately, the pain in her heart slowly subsided and she was able to think clearly again.]

Ai tsked. “Crowding around someone who’s about to pass out from a heart attack like that is bad, you know? They’ll feel even more cramped. Give them some space.”

Agasa furrowed his brows when he saw this. “I wonder why Ogawa-kun didn’t ask you guys to stop crowding Shinichi-kun. As a doctor, he should know this.”

“Huh,” Ran muttered as if realizing something. “That’s true. But maybe Ogawa-san is still torn between panic and panic because his son is fine but just experienced an assassination attempt?”

"But he still should have asked you to back off a bit. He's a doctor, after all." Ai sighed and shook her head, choosing to let Ogawa's behavior slide this time. She couldn't do anything to change the past. Moreover, she hadn't even met Conan and Shinichi at that time.

[Ogawa as a doctor is still worried about Sanashi and asks her to check herself into the hospital, making Sanashi want to refuse, but Kogoro's firm gaze, Ran's worried expression, and Conan's pleading gaze stop her.

They then took her to the hospital where Ogawa worked, but fortunately, they found nothing wrong with her other than fatigue. So, Sanashi was quickly allowed to go home and rest.

Ogawa bowed and thanked Kogoro for solving his case, making Kogoro laugh proudly.]

“Well, at least he checked himself into the hospital like he was supposed to,” Heiji grumbled. His friend could be so stubborn sometimes!

On the other hand, the people in the back row were shocked because the doctor at the hospital didn't find anything wrong with Sanashi's body other than fatigue.

“They didn’t find anything…?” Shiratori asked, stunned speechless.

“Anything? Like, I don’t know, a strange substance or something? Strange cells? Or something that doesn’t fit? They didn’t find anything? Even with technology this advanced?” Ginzo blinked in disbelief and horror as he realized how dangerous APTX 4869 was.

Akai, Furuya, Jodie, James, and Camel exchanged glances (Furuya immediately looked away when he met Akai and the FBI glances). They knew that victims of apotoxin would leave nothing behind, but they didn't know that the poison could even evade inspection.

“Huh, if the hospital couldn’t find anything inside Meitantei’s body, how did you find a cure, Scientist-san?” KID asked curiously, making the others realize that there was one person who at least understood the true effects of APTX 4869 and had even (if what the girl said was true) managed to create a temporary antidote.

[The scene then shifts to the Agency's living room, where Sanashi holds Conan's head as he falls asleep due to exhaustion, rubs his head soothingly, and explains to Kogoro and Ran that the heart attack she had earlier was probably a side effect of the poison she drank.

Kogoro and Ran were shocked to hear this. Ran even worriedly asked what Sanashi would do now, prompting Sanashi to reply that she would return to America to see her doctor and try to check for any other side effects, at least until an antidote could be found.]

Ai pressed her lips together for a moment until Yume and Conan gently squeezed her hand, as if to remind her that she wasn't alone and that nothing would happen to her.

“They won’t find anything as long as they don’t look in the right places,” the girl finally explained after looking at Yume and Conan on either side of her. “For example, things like tooth structure, or scars. Kids my age should have baby teeth, but I already have permanent teeth. And I still have gunshot and cut scars on my body.”

KID hummed. “So, they have no way of knowing the effects of apotoxin because everything looks normal.”

“And also,” Akako interjected. “The Goddess Anesidora’s power could have intentionally hidden it from the doctor who examined her.”

“But why…?” Aoko asked, confused. She didn’t understand why Anesidora’s power had to hide the poison within Kudo-kun. Wouldn’t it be better to keep it hidden so Kudo-kun could receive treatment and recover more quickly?

“Hmm… what do you think would happen if the world learned that the Demon of Light possessed magic? The power to revive people from the brink of death, even make them young again?” Akako asked with a smile and a sarcastic look. “At best, he’d be accused of being insane. At worst, he’d be kidnapped and locked in a laboratory for the rest of his life to be studied.”

The faces of several people who heard those words immediately turned pale.

[Ran then asks incredulously that Sanashi would leave Shinichi alone here, making Sanashi tilt her head in confusion. The girl then asks if Ran thinks Conan is Shinichi, making Ran's cheeks turn red and Kogoro snort. The man seems uninterested in the silly conversation and tells Ran that he's going out for a drink.

Sanashi shook her head as she watched Kogoro leave and told Ran that she would call Shinichi now if Ran didn't believe her. Sanashi then took out her phone and dialed. They waited until on the fourth ring, 'Shinichi' picked up the phone and asked worriedly, "Neesan? What's wrong? Did something happen?"]

Ran didn't know whether to feel horrified or ashamed at that moment. On the one hand, she'd never thought that far ahead—she'd never considered that Shinichi had been hiding his magic to protect himself. On the other hand, she was ashamed of her behavior. How could she try to get Sanashi to admit that Conan was Shinichi when Sanashi was Shinichi himself?

Sonoko cleared her throat and suspiciously asked what exactly happened. “Sanashi—I mean, Shinichi-kun and Conan were there at the time. Was there a third person helping them?”

Everyone knew she was trying to lighten the mood, which had just worsened. It didn't help much, but the teenage girl tried.

“Well, considering Agasa-hakase made a voice-changing tie for Conan-kun, I’m sure someone could use it and pretend to be Shinichi-kun to trick you, Ran-kun.” Megure shook his head and really wished he could rest now. He didn’t know how much more facts his brain and heart could take.

'Haaah, Shinichi-kun's life is really stressful…' Megure thought sadly.

[Sanashi smiled slightly at Ran, who was getting increasingly red with embarrassment, and replied, 'Shinichi'. "I'm fine, Otouto. Conan too. But I have to go back to America tonight to see Olivia. I just had a heart attack just from running. The test results showed that I was just exhausted, but…"

The scene shifts to the other side of the phone where Yume is wearing a voice-changing tie and answers the phone in Shinichi's voice. “Oh… I'll pick you up at the airport, Neesan. Let me know when you arrive. Ah! I have to go now, say hello to Conan and Ran, Neesan! See you later!” She then hangs up before 'Sanashi' can answer.]

The corner of Yume's eye twitched when she saw herself appear on the screen, but she didn't say anything and maintained her angelic smile.

Heiji blinked, “Who’s Olivia? And I thought it was Hakase who answered the phone?”

"Olivia is a doctor Niichan knows in America," Conan answered, focusing his attention on the screen in front of them. He had fallen asleep during this conversation, and even though Shinichi had explained it to him, he still wanted to know the details he had missed.

“Huh, a good reason to hang up the phone in a hurry.” Masumi shrugged with a mischievous smile, making Yume glance at her with a smile as if agreeing with the teenage girl’s words.

[Back at the Agency, Sanashi rolls her eyes and closes her phone. She then opens her bag and takes out a house key. She places it on the table between them and explains that it is Sanashi's house key for Conan to use. Her house is behind the Kudo mansion, because Sanashi is tired of the big empty house. So she doesn't want to live in Shinichi's house and has bought a simple house to live in.

Ran's cheeks were still flushed with embarrassment, but the girl quickly took and kept Sanashi's house key to give to Conan when he woke up later as Sanashi slowly lifted Conan's head from her lap.]

"Actually, he didn't buy it. The empty houses behind the Kudo Mansion were already purchased in our names," Yuusaku explained before anyone else could ask. "That's why he was previously busy tidying up and choosing one of the existing houses."

“That’s right~! Yuu-chan bought them so he could someday create a secret passage like in a mystery novel!” Yukiko beside him nodded enthusiastically, the gloomy atmosphere forgotten. “One of them even served as a secret storage space for his manuscripts! We hid it and sent the editor a riddle with its location before our honeymoon abroad!”

Yukiko then giggled, making almost everyone there sweatdrop and suddenly feel sorry for Yuusaku's editors.

"So that's why Meitantei can enter and exit two different locations without anyone knowing…" KID muttered to himself. "Besides teleporting, he can also enter through Sanashi-chan's house and exit through the Kudo Mansion…"

Aoko, on his right, turned her head when she heard KID's mumbling, but it wasn't very clear. "... Did KID say something?" she asked hesitantly.

KID just grinned and shrugged, refusing to answer Aoko's question.

[Ran then escorts Sanashi out, slightly worriedly asking if she'll be okay alone. Her concern makes Sanashi smile reassuringly and say she'll be fine before getting into the taxi she had called earlier.

Contrary to what she said, 'Sanashi' did not go to the airport, but returned to Agasa's house to rest and find out what really happened to her body.

Meanwhile, Ran, who was just about to cook dinner, suddenly remembered that she hadn't asked for Sanashi and Shinichi's numbers. This made her panic, but she quickly regained her composure when she realized that Conan must have both of their numbers and she would just have to ask him later when he woke up.]

“Speaking of numbers,” Takagi furrowed his brows, “how does Shinichi-kun ensure that he answers with the correct identity? Wouldn’t it be incredibly troublesome if someone called Sanashi-san’s phone while she was out in public as Shinichi-kun?”

Furuya's lips twitched at the innocent question. "If you're used to having two identities, it won't be a problem... and you can just turn one off when you're busy."

“And Niichan usually places 'Sanashi's' phone in his subconscious. That's why she's often unreachable,” Conan added. “But 'Shinichi's' phone is also often used by Ai-san and Yume-nee when he has to go out as Neechan. So if something urgent comes up, we can contact each other.”

“Huh??? Shinichi-kun’s phone is in Ai-chan and Yume-chan’s hands?” Sonoko asked in disbelief. “He let you guys open his phone???”

Conan tilted his head and gave Sonoko a strange look. “You sound like Niichan is hiding something, Sonoko-neechan. Niichan has nothing on his phone except for cases and evidence related to the cases he’s working on… besides, I often play with his phone and there’s nothing strange inside.”

'Well, aside from the photos of him with Kuroba Toichi-san and Kuroba Kaito… and the photos of him with me. Besides, Niichan's phone is protected by Anesidora magic and is impossible to hack.' Conan added in his heart.

Sonoko and even Ran, Kazuha, KID, Saguru, Heiji, Aoko, and Masumi were speechless after hearing it.

There was only one thing on their minds after hearing that explanation. 'Does Kudo Shinichi not have any secrets stored in his phone like most teenagers?!'

Tbc.

Chapter Text

Megure sweatdropped when he heard Conan's explanation about Shinichi-kun's cell phone. "Conan-kun, people don't usually let others check and use their cell phones freely."

Conan blinked innocently with confusion in his eyes until Ai beside him explained what they were all worried about.

“Shinichi-niisan—ahem, Shinichi-kun is a teenager, Edogawa-kun. And usually, teenagers have secrets on their phones—that’s why most of them wouldn’t lend out their phones carelessly.”

"Ai-chan's right, Conan-kun, and we only use his phone with his permission. Sometimes he's even the one who asks us to check it," Yume added when she saw Conan furrow his eyebrows in confusion.

“Oh…” Conan muttered after hearing Ai and Yume’s explanation.

The conversation led some others to think that perhaps Shinichi didn't trust his own phone and preferred to keep his secrets hidden in his subconscious—or even in his brain.

[The scene changes to Kogoro shaving his beard on the train. Ran is in front of him, scolding him, saying that no normal person would shave on the train on their friend's wedding day. Kogoro protests, saying that he slept late because he had a meeting with a client.

Ran rolled her eyes and just agreed with her father's words, nimbly fixing Kogoro's tie and changing the subject to say that she had never been to Kyoto. She couldn't wait to see it, making Conan, who was sitting next to her eating his bento, nod in agreement.]

Kogoro blinked as the scene shifted to him. He rubbed his chin, wondering what was going on when Ran on the screen reminded him. His gaze sharpened immediately, as whatever was happening on that train, Conan was definitely involved.

“Shaving on the train? Seriously, Mouri-san?” Furuya muttered. The corner of his lips twitched in annoyance, making Akai, who was watching, snort in amusement. Furuya immediately hissed and glared at him for a few moments before ignoring him again.

[Kogoro asks why Conan is coming with them and whether Sanashi has returned, making Conan swallow his food before saying that Sanashi's doctor has forbidden her from leaving for a while for a more in-depth examination. Hearing this, Ran immediately asks about Sanashi's condition, but Conan also doesn't know anything because every time he calls Sanashi, the 'girl' only says that she feels fine.

Conan then excuses himself to go to the restroom, not wanting Ran to keep asking him about Sanashi—or worse, Shinichi. His older brother has to go into hiding now, and if anyone hears that Kudo Shinichi is still alive, his older brother's life could be in danger.]

“His doctor? Didn’t he go to any doctor?” Kazuha asked, confused. From their previous conversation, she realized that neither Conan nor Sanashi would be willing to be examined by just anyone.

"Oh, that was me. I told him not to go out because he'd been looking really bad for a few days. So Hakase and I forced him to rest." Yume answered the question with her angelic smile. "Conan-kun helped out too."

Conan nodded. “Yeah, although I can’t meet them in person because it would make Ran-neechan and Kogoro-otchan suspicious.”

Ran sighed when she heard that. “Conan-kun…”

[Conan waited for the train door to open and when it did, his body immediately froze because he saw two people dressed in black now in front of him. Quickly, he remembered Yume and Shinichi's explanation about the characteristics of people named 'Gin' and 'Vodka'.

"They both always wear fedora hats. Vodka always wears sunglasses and Gin has dirty silver hair that reaches his waist. Where there is Gin, there is Vodka. You could say Vodka is Gin's right hand man." Yume's imagination explained to Conan and Shinichi who were staring at her seriously.

'It's them.' Conan thought and suddenly he felt fear in his heart when Gin and Vodka looked at him. 'His gazes are cold... like he has no feelings... it's the gaze of a cold blooded, cruel killer.']

Everyone froze when the train doors opened and suddenly Conan was face to face with two members of the black organization.

"SHIT!" Megure cursed, hitting his armrest. His face paled when he saw Conan alone, facing the man who poisoned Shinichi. His fellow police officers beside him were no different.

KID, Saguru, Masumi, and Heiji stared in shock. KID nearly lost his poker face and nearly grabbed Conan's small body from the chair in front of Shinichi and shook him.

“Seriously, how bad is your luck that you actually ran into them by chance like this?!” Sonoko said in a half-hysterical, half-horrified tone. “Wait, this means they’re both on the same train as you!”

Ran's face, which was already pale when she saw Conan facing Gin and Vodka, became even paler when she realized that.

[Vodka yells at Conan to get out of the way, causing him to automatically move out of their way. Quietly, Conan takes a breath to calm his racing heart and begins to think that this is his chance.

“No. I don’t want you near them. Don’t go near them and don’t do anything, Conan. They’re dangerous and I don’t want you on their radar.” Someone suddenly whispered in Conan’s ear, making him flinch in surprise.

Unbeknownst to him, behind him was now squatting a young man in his twenties with messy, shoulder-length blond hair and golden eyes. The young man stared at Conan sternly, making Conan wince.]

Someone cursed, and Takagi almost became frustrated as he tried to stop Conan. “No! You can’t go near them! Call the police, don’t act on your own!”

Yukiko gripped Yuusaku's hand with worry on her beautiful face. Oh, how she wished she had been there to stop her second son!

Ai turned to Conan with a pale and terror-filled expression, but said nothing.

Conan saw the same stares directed at him from Ran, Sonoko, Kazuha, Aoko, Saguru, Masumi, Yume, KID and Heiji, making him wince.

“Oh thank goodness someone stopped him!” Sato breathed a sigh of relief when she saw someone stop Conan’s impulsive actions.

“Wait, but who is he and how does he know what cool boy is going to do?” Jodie muttered.

“And why did he warn Conan-kun as if he knew how dangerous Gin and Vodka were?” Shiratori asked suspiciously.

“He looks like an American,” Kazami said with a furrowed brow. ‘Maybe the FBI? But how does he know Conan-kun?’

[Conan asks in a low voice why Shinichi is here and what's with that face, causing the blond young man in front of him to chuckle and introduce himself as 'Jonathan Kylen'. The young man then says in a louder voice, asking if Conan is lost.

Conan pouts, but quickly follows his brother's lead and shakes his head before running back to his seat, causing Ran to stare at him in confusion.

Secretly, Conan watches from the corner of his eye and sees that 'Jonathan Kylen' is sitting right behind Gin. The young man has a book open and pretends to read it, but Conan knows that the young man is trying to listen to Gin and Vodka's conversation.]

More than half the people there were gaping.

“HE'S SHINICHI-KUN?!”

Heiji slapped his forehead and groaned, “I should have realized that from the start!”

Ran let out a long sigh. She really didn't know what to feel right now, especially when she saw Shinichi disguised as someone else and deliberately approaching Gin and Vodka.

[Some time later, Gin and Vodka looked at the clock and stood up, then left with the black suitcase they had brought earlier. Conan saw that his brother was following the two in his transparent form and waited a moment before following behind them. From the warning glance that Shinichi gave him, Conan knew that his brother knew he was following them.

Of course, Conan also knows that Shinichi will allow him to follow them as long as he keeps his distance and is careful.]

“Boya,” the usually stoic Akai hissed dangerously. He wouldn’t have commented if the boy was facing a common criminal, but this was Gin. A cold-blooded killer who wouldn’t hesitate to kill a child. “You didn’t follow them and make them aware of your presence this quickly.”

Conan grimaced and looked pitifully at the man he considered his own father. “But Niichan was there… and I kept my distance…”

Unfortunately, Akai refused to back down. From the warning look Akai gave him, Conan knew he was in big trouble when Akai found out what happened next.

“Edogawa-kun, could you please stop giving me high blood pressure?” Ai asked, massaging her head. “Why are you always looking for trouble?”

[Gin and Vodka walk up to the second floor, where the dining room is located. Conan wonders why they're there and guesses that they probably came to meet their puppet politician. Too busy watching Gin, Vodka, and Shinichi (who is still transparent), Conan doesn't notice that Ran is standing behind him with an irritated expression.

Conan flinched when Ran suddenly grabbed his arm and scolded him for not being able to sit still and instead playing in the dining room. The scolding made several people glance their way and Conan struggled to hold back fear when Gin's cruel, cold, and terrifying gaze fell on him because of Ran's harsh scolding.]

“Shit.” Masumi cursed when she saw Ran standing behind Conan and ready to scold him.

Ran let out a horrified sound, her expression a mix of horror, fear, and guilt. “Oh Conan-kun… Conan-kun… I’m sorry, oh what did I do…?”

Even Kogoro's expression paled. “Oh Ran…”

Ran nearly cried when she saw Gin's cruel, cold, and terrifying gaze fixed on the two of them on the screen. "Oh, what was I doing back then…? Why did I have to scold him so harshly in public…?"

Conan ignored the burning gaze on the back of his head and focused on calming the panicked Ran. “Ran-neechan, Ran-neechan, I’m fine! We’re fine! Nothing happened, remember?”

[Ran then pulled Conan away from there and the last thing Conan saw was Shinichi looking at him with a mixture of relief and worry. Conan himself didn't know whether to feel relieved or annoyed because Ran had messed up his observation plan and made him miss a crucial clue—even though he knew Shinichi would tell him later.

But of course, Conan wasn't at a loss and took a piece of gum from his pocket, quickly chewed it and took the listening device Agasa had given him from his glasses before wrapping it in the gum. After that, he stuck the gum under the chair Gin was using.]

“Boya,” Akai hissed again, this time his tone full of warning.

“Uh… I’msorryDadI’lltrynottodoitagainIpromise!” Conan said so quickly that his tongue almost slipped. (I'm sorry Dad, I will try not to do it again, I promise!)

Akai didn't say anything and just narrowed his eyes as a sign that he would tolerate Conan's past behavior for now.

“You know, I would have scolded Conan-kun if what just happened hadn’t made me nearly faint with worry.” Sato exhaled and tried to calm herself. Beside her, her teammates did the same.

“But nothing happened to me except Ran-neechan who nagged me continuously…” Conan muttered, making Ai beside him immediately pull his cheek mercilessly and making Conan yelp. “OW-OW-OW HAI-HAN HESS HETT HOO OFF HE!” (Ow-ow-ow Ai-san please let go of me!)

Ai tightened her grip for a few moments before releasing him completely with an incredibly annoyed expression, making Conan's courage falter and the boy could only rub his throbbing cheek in silence.

[Ran suddenly scolds him again and makes Conan flinch again in surprise. Ran then gives him instructions while taking the gum she just put in and wrapping it, then throwing it in the ashtray where Vodka is sitting. Conan tries to stop her, but Ran won't listen to him and pulls him towards their seats.

A moment later, Gin, Vodka, and Shinichi returned. Shinichi stopped and stood beside Gin's chair, quickly turning to Conan to make sure he was okay before raising an eyebrow to ask what Conan was doing.]

Several people flinched when they saw Ran scolding Conan again. They didn't know whether to feel sorry for him or worried about what Conan had just done.

Ran clasped her hands together in front of her chest as if in prayer. Tears were gathering in her eyes, ready to fall down her cheeks. She also bit her lip, her expression incredibly pale as she watched what she was doing on the screen.

When they saw that Gin, Vodka and Shinichi were back, they all tensely stared at the screen as if they didn't want to miss anything.

[Conan mentally explains that he installed a wiretap inside a piece of chewing gum thrown away in the ashtray of Vodka's chair while pressing the button on the left side of his glasses. Agasa's shadow explains the function of his new glasses—where the wiretap is on the right end and the earphone is on the left end by adjusting the sound frequency, allowing Conan to listen to the conversation from the wiretap.

Shinichi nodded and told Conan to look ahead and put on a poker face as Gin and Vodka began to chat. Conan's heart nearly stopped when he heard Vodka mention the gum in the ashtray, but thankfully they left it alone.

From the corner of his eye, Shinichi stared at him with a look of horror mixed with a look that Conan would never repeat this again.]

Akai growled for real this time and narrowing his eyes. “I hope you’ve told him what you did, boya. Or I will.”

Conan flinched in his seat and anxiously looked over at Akai. “Um, technically, I already told him…”

Akai furrowed his brows upon hearing this, causing Conan to panic and explain that when he told him, things were bad for them so he probably didn't notice it too much.

“Uh. I know we should be worried about Conan-kun right now, but who is this ‘him’ you’re talking about?” Takagi asked, curious and confused.

“…”

“…”

“… um, you don’t have to say it if you don’t want to…” Takagi mumbled awkwardly when no one answered him.

Conan took a deep breath and glanced at Furuya beside Akai before answering. “You’ll see who we’re talking about soon, Takagi-keiji.”

[Secretly, Conan glanced at where Gin and Vodka were sitting. He then noticed that the suitcase they were carrying was a different color than the previous one, making him wonder what they had just done.

His question was answered when Vodka said their transaction went smoothly, prompting Gin to hiss and say he was talking too loudly. Vodka calmed him down and grumbled that Gin was always careful.

Conan and Shinichi exchanged glances when they heard their code names.

'So they were the ones who shot Miyano Akemi.' They both thought.]

“They switched suitcases… so they really were making a transaction beforehand.” Shiratori muttered, while Sato beside him was already growling angrily.

“That member named Vodka seems too stupid to be a high-ranking member of the organization,” Kazuha said with a frown. She had learned a little about these things from those around her—especially Heiji, who often encountered similar cases with Yakuza gang members.

“But from the looks of it, it seems like Gin really trusts him. So far, the two of them have always been together,” Masumi added as she watched Gin and Vodka. ‘They weren’t the ones who poisoned Mama…’ she thought to herself.

“Vodka is Gin’s right-hand man. But don’t get me wrong, even though Vodka seems ordinary, Gin trusts him and he always carries out Gin’s orders perfectly,” Akemi—Yume explained to Masumi. “Well, even though Vodka is sometimes a bit oblivious to his surroundings and often makes Gin angry…”

[Vodka smirks and pats the white suitcase they were carrying, saying that they got 400 million just to return the black suitcase and wonders what's inside. Gin replies that it contains information about gold and if it's used well, then 400 million is nothing.

Gin then laughed coldly, giving Conan goosebumps, and then Gin continued saying that they might as well go back to their seats, look at the view and laugh to themselves, because this was their last view.]

“Gold?!” the police and teenagers who were there immediately shouted in surprise.

"If the information about the gold is true, then Gin is right. 400 million is nothing. But why would they trade such valuable information for just 400 million?" Sonoko muttered in disbelief. "I mean, they could have used it for themselves!"

“She’s right, why would they give that information to their client for just 400 million yen?” Shiratori folded his arms and tried to understand what the two members of the organization were thinking.

“Wait a minute,” Megure said suddenly. “I seem to remember this case.”

[Vodka asks what Gin means, and Gin replies that the man is no longer of any use to the organization. The briefcase they returned was filled with gunpowder, and if it were to be shaken, the bomb would detonate immediately. The information inside the briefcase was extremely important and had come at a high price, so they wouldn't do anything reckless.

Gin then snorted and said that the bomb was set to explode at 3:10 AM. This shocked Vodka, but Gin reassured him by explaining that they would accidentally detonate it themselves. Then, after ten seconds, their bodies and the train they were on would be blown to pieces.]

The police officers immediately turned their heads toward Megure when the inspector said that. But before Megure could explain, the screen in front of them already provided the answer to their questions.

"Don't tell me this is the case where a woman was conned out of 400 million yen by a fake investment agent?!" Sato asked, slapping the armrest of her chair. "I've always wondered how a seemingly intelligent career woman like that could be fooled by a fake investment agent like that!"

“Not to mention they tried to kill her. The case has always felt strange, but since we have no further evidence, we can’t do anything—especially since the woman’s testimony is completely unhelpful,” Megure added, massaging his temples. “Takagi-kun, please take note of this.”

“Yes, Inspector Megure!” Takagi quickly opened his notebook again and wrote down what they knew for now.

Masumi, hearing this, couldn't help but lean over to Conan and whisper, "Want to bet on how many more cases there will be before his notebook is full?"

Conan, still afraid of Ai beside him and Akai staring intently at him, simply shook his head silently. Suddenly, he wasn't in the mood to play around.

[Conan couldn't hold back his shock and opened his mouth to scream in surprise, but Shinichi had already covered his mouth with his hand and made Conan palely swallow back his scream. Shinichi then told Conan not to do anything, especially not to get close to Gin and Vodka.

As if knowing that Conan would protest, Shinichi continued that he knew who the person they were meeting was and that he already had a plan to stop the bomb they planted. But Shinichi had to wait until Gin and Vodka got off the train, because they couldn't afford the possibility that they would activate the bomb as soon as Shinichi moved.]

Ran and Kogoro paled as they realized how close they were to death, while KID clenched his fists in worry.

“Tantei-kun! You didn’t attract their attention by screaming!” KID couldn’t keep the anxiety from his voice. “If Meitantei is even a little late, their attention will be drawn to you!”

“He’s right, Conan-kun! If Kudo wasn’t there, who knows what would have happened to you?!” Heiji, just like KID, couldn’t keep the worry from leaking out of his voice.

Kazuha cupped her hands, “luckily Kudo-kun was there and stopped Conan-kun in time…”

“Yeah, but I still don’t agree with the way he let Conan-kun tag along on the investigation.” Ginzo narrowed his eyes at Jonathan as the young man said that ‘he’ already had a plan to stop the bomb that Gin and Vodka planted.

Kazami beside him sighed. “You’re right, although I agree with Kudo-kun’s plan to wait until those two get off the train.”

[As soon as they arrived at Nagoya station, Gin and Vodka got off the train, making Conan want to chase after them, but he knew he couldn't. Especially since Ran was watching him closely and Shinichi, still in his transparent form, was staring at Conan sternly and warningly.

Shinichi then returned to his body and 'Jonathan Kylen' opened his eyes. The young man briefly glanced at Conan and smiled slightly, making Conan wonder what the smile meant before realizing that Shinichi hadn't stopped Conan from going with him to meet Gin and Vodka's 'client'.

Quickly, Conan shot down from his seat and ran, making Ran yell in surprise and chase after him.]

“It’s good that you can restrain your urge to seek trouble, Edogawa-kun.” Ai stared at Conan with narrowed eyes, making Conan wince.

'Seriously, woman is so scary!' Conan thought, shivering slightly as Ai clenched his hand as a place to vent her irritation. He then really shuddered when he remembered Yume-nee's angry smile which would be far more terrifying than any scolding.

“At least Kudo-kun was there to stop Edogawa-kun’s rash actions…” Saguru rubbed his face in stress before returning to the case currently unfolding on the screen.

“The fuck?!” Sonoko cursed when she saw Shinichi didn’t stop Conan from coming with him to meet the client Gin and Vodka were talking about.

“Language!” Saguru and Aoko reflexively reminded.

“Japanse. What the hell is that, Shinichi-kun let that brat follow him?! Is he crazy?!” The teenage girl looked like she wanted to grab Shinichi—Jonathan—by the collar on the screen and shake him.

Ran beside her could only sigh and close her eyes. Her face was still a little pale, but the teenager was starting to respond normally to Conan's actions on the screen. "So that's why you suddenly ran away back then..."

[Conan purposely runs between the snack bar attendants, causing Ran to be blocked and looking for him in confusion and annoyance. After Ran passes his hiding place, Conan jumps out and realizes that there are only 25 minutes left before the explosion. He then runs in the opposite direction from Ran and looks for Jonathan.

Luckily, Jonathan was waiting for him near the machinist’s compartment, chatting with two officers while holding something in his hand. The officers' expressions changed from disbelief to suspicion, then turn pale. They immediately said they would speak to the machinist and call the police.]

“Urgh, sometimes I envy your small body.” Heiji muttered, making Kazuha elbow him.

“I don’t know whether I should scold Shinichi-kun or praise him for using the most rational way to save the passengers from the bomb planted by Gin and Vodka.” Shiratori now looked tired and resigned as the realization that this was all just the beginning began to hit him like a wave.

Chiba beside him laughed dryly. “Yeah, even though he used a fake ID and a fake badge wallet to do it.”

Ginzo snorted. “Well, it works, so I guess it’s no big deal.”

Aoko, who heard her father's words, didn't know whether to be horrified, disbelieving, or angry, while KID was so shocked that he turned to Ginzo with a shocked expression that he almost couldn't hide.

Luckily no one noticed because all their focus was on the screen in front of them.

[Jonathan simply nodded and said that he would secure the 'suitcase' along with one of the officers. They then went to another carriage with Conan following them silently from behind. He wondered where Gin and Vodka's 'client' was before remembering that when Gin and Vodka returned from the transaction, Vodka said that he could finally have a smoke.

Conan quickly concluded that their 'client' didn't like cigarettes.

Forgetting that Conan was originally going to follow Jonathan and one of the train attendants, he looks at the train's layout and recalls Gin and Vodka's conversation. He then realizes that the only place on the train where they can see the scenery is on the 2nd floor.]

Some groaned, while others stared at Conan on the screen with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. The detectives, on the other hand, watched and tried to determine where Gin and Vodka's clients were.

“He chose to stop and try to solve the puzzle himself instead of following Kudo-kun away.” Kazuha let out a long sigh, though a small smile formed on her lips. “Acting like a true detective.”

The girl then looked at Heiji beside her, who was focused on the screen, causing her to sigh again and mutter, “He really does look like Heiji.”

Yukiko giggled. “That’s my son! He looks so much like Yuu-chan!”

Hearing this, Kogoro simply glanced at Yuusaku and Yukiko. He looked like he wanted to say something, but ultimately didn't.

[When he realized where Gin and Vodka's 'client' were, Conan immediately ran to the 2nd floor of carriage 7. He arrived when the officer and Jonathan were talking to a woman who looked annoyed with them.

The woman refused to let go of her black suitcase and made Jonathan sigh before showing something from inside his pocket.

Whatever it was, the object made the woman immediately fall silent with a pale expression, allowing Jonathan to take her suitcase. The three of them then exited carriage 7 and headed for a quieter location. Conan silently followed them and saw Jonathan pointing at something near the suitcase lock. Jonathan then explained that what was there was the trigger.]

“Jonathan—or Shinichi-kun—looks just as annoyed as Gin and Vodka’s client. I wonder what they were talking about before Conan-kun arrived…” Camel muttered as he saw the woman who was Gin and Vodka’s client finally willing to let go of her suitcase after Jonathan showed her his fake badge wallet.

"I'm more curious about how Shinichi-kun got that badge wallet. From his face, he looks American... so either he faked our country's badge wallet, or he faked Japan's badge wallet..." James hummed.

“But America has no authority in Japan! We can only operate after Kuroda allows us.” Jodie frowned, “on the other hand, if Jonathan uses a Japanese badge wallet, he will definitely be suspected because his face really looks like an American, no offense intended, Amuro Tooru-san.”

Furuya just smiled coldly even though the FBI could see the corners of his lips and eyes twitching in annoyance.

“But how did Shinichi-kun know about the bomb? I mean, we all know he can do magic and he’s a genius, but a bomb? How did he know for sure that it was the trigger?” Sonoko asked, completely oblivious to the cold war going on in the back seat.

“Huh, that’s right, does Kudo-kun have any knowledge of how to defuse bombs?” Saguru asked curiously. He turned to where Shinichi was sitting as if hoping for an answer before realizing that Shinichi still had his eyes closed and hadn’t moved an inch.

[The woman then shakily said that she had instructions to call someone at 3:10 a.m. to open the suitcase. Hearing this, Jonathan explained that the trigger was set so that when the woman called, the bomb would explode within ten seconds.

Both the officer and the woman turned pale when they heard this. The officer who had come with Jonathan even stepped away to speak to his colleague on a walkie-talkie. Seeing the officer retreat, Conan took the opportunity to quietly approach and listen to what Jonathan had to say.]

Yuusaku and Yukiko exchanged glances. “I don’t remember teaching him how to defuse a bomb or how a bomb works.”

“Maybe Shin-chan taught himself? He’s a curious kid, and Anesidora probably helped him out?” Yukiko asked, trying to remember. No, they never taught Shinichi how bombs worked—though they taught him many other things, from driving cars to boats and helicopters and planes. “We should add bomb-assembling and defusing lessons to Co-chan and Shin-chan when we have time, Yuu-chan!”

“I agree, although I think Shinichi would have taught Conan already if he had known it all along.” Yuusaku chuckled, a hint of pride and amusement in his voice.

The corner of Conan's lips twitched and his expression seemed to show that he wanted to snort or make fun of his biological parents, but he held himself back and his parents couldn't see his face.

Saguru, Sonoko, Aoko, Kazuha, Ran and Heiji stared at Yuusaku and Yukiko with grimances on their lips.

Masumi and KID, who also have eccentric parents (Sera Mary is an MI6 agent and Kuroba Toichi is the first KID, not to mention Kuroba Chikage is a former Phantom Lady) just nodded as if it was a normal thing.

[Unfortunately, the woman's connection to Gin and Vodka was minimal and she knew nothing other than the suitcase they promised was supposed to contain information about the gold. Hearing this, Conan couldn't help but feel disappointed because the clues they got about Gin and Vodka were so few, it was as if they had simply disappeared into the mist.

Conan then prepared to leave when someone grabbed his hand again with a scolding that made his ears hurt.

“CONAN-KUN! WHAT ELSE HAVE YOU DONE THIS TIME?!”

'Damn it.' Conan cursed in his heart.]

“You know, I remember that we tried to investigate that fake investment agency, but we didn’t find anything.” Shiratori stared intently at the screen as if it had just offended him. “We then assumed they had escaped and tried to find similar reports, but we still couldn’t find anything.”

Takagi sighed. “It’s just like Conan-kun said, eh? It’s as if they just disappeared into the mist…”

Several people flinched when Ran's harsh scolding was heard. One of them also gasped dramatically when he heard Conan swear.

“Tantei-kun! Language! What would Meitantei say if he heard you swearing?!” KID clutched his chest and acted as if he had just witnessed his son harassing a woman.

Conan hissed at the thief and if looks could kill, then KID would be dead by now.

Ha, what a bad joke.

[Afterwards, the police arrived and the train was stopped for a while. Jonathan used the thread and cell phone trick to prove that the suitcase was the woman's by placing the suitcase away from anyone around, tying a thread to the handle, then tying a ringing cell phone to the other end before pulling the thread until the phone was close to the suitcase which was now lying innocently.

The police and the woman watched with a mixture of anxiety and skepticism, until ten seconds after the ringing cell phone was near the suitcase, the suitcase exploded and several people screamed.

Seeing the evidence before their eyes, the police immediately arrested the woman and the train started moving again.]

“What a clever trick. Using string and a cell phone to prove that the bomb was actually planted in the suitcase.” Jii watched with interest. “But it’s a shame that any evidence inside the suitcase will be destroyed with the explosion.”

“Well, they were going to kill her anyway, so why bother putting anything other than a bomb in the suitcase?” Chikage said beside him.

“You do have a point, Chikage-sama.” Jii nodded, thinking that what Chikage said made sense. He then scolded himself for missing such an obvious detail. ‘Ah, I really am getting too old for this…’

Some police officers there sighed when they saw some curious people coming to see what was happening even though the train officers had blocked them.

"Thankfully, they accepted the police's explanation that the woman was a victim of a fraudulent investment agent... although now that I look at it, that excuse sounds utterly ridiculous." Megure massaged the bridge of his nose tiredly. The man looked like he had a headache as all the truths began to emerge one by one.

"What else could we do? That was the most plausible excuse at the time. Plus, we couldn't find the real culprit. We would have caused panic if we told the truth—even though we didn't know it at the time." Ginzo shook his head, knowing full well how people react when they feel threatened.

[In the end, they were late for Kogoro's friend's wedding and Jonathan himself disappeared into the crowd as if he had never been there. It was a truly awful trip that Conan didn't want to repeat while his brother was still in disguise.

The following day, Conan visited Agasa's house and immediately asked what Shinichi had shown the train attendant that had made them listen to him. Shinichi, suddenly questioned, blinked before chuckling. The teenager then snapped his fingers, and a badge wallet appeared in his hand.

Conan gaped and quickly snatched the wallet from Shinichi's hand. Inside was the name 'Jonathan Kylen' and an American police badge. He then looked at Shinichi with a 'seriously? You tricked them?' expression and Shinichi replied with a 'but it works, right? They're willing to listen to me' gesture.]

“Well, I can’t blame him. Who would want to repeat that awful trip?” Sonoko snorted. “I’m sure Ran wouldn’t want to repeat it either. Besides taking care of her father, she also has to take care of a snotty kid running around like it’s a playground!”

Ran just laughed dryly when she heard that, she didn't know how to respond to that statement, but she agreed that she didn't want to repeat that trip at all.

Although… considering the Mystery Train case, Ran was sure that she had experienced incidents like this more than once—even if she hadn't realized it.

When the scene changed to the living room of Agasa's house, many people subconsciously leaned in to see what was actually in Shinichi's badge wallet.

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“… American, huh.” Akai muttered, the only one who managed to snap out of his daze faster than the others.

“What…? But how?! Why?!” Furuya beside him nearly screamed in disbelief, though he managed to keep his voice low. “And the Japanese police believed him just like that?!”

Jodie and James pressed their lips together and tried not to say anything even though they were very amused by this.

Amuro Tooru, also known as Furuya Rei, has always disliked them and tried to get them deported from Japan at every opportunity. So seeing him upset that his fellow countrymen—the Japanese police—trusted Shinichi's fake badge wallet without further questioning was incredibly amusing.

[Conan… didn't know whether to be annoyed or impressed with his older brother. He chose not to comment and demanded that Shinichi make him chocolate chip cookies with extra marshmallows as an apology for making Conan get scolded by Ran.

Shinichi just rolled his eyes, but still stood up to use Agasa's kitchen as his place to make Conan's request.]

This time it was Sonoko who screeched. “THAT DETECTIVE MANIAC CAN COOK?!?!?!”

Ran beside her flinched at Sonoko's shrill screech, but she couldn't blame her since she didn't know Shinichi could cook either. Although… considering that the Sanashi they knew was actually Shinichi in disguise, it wasn't that strange that Shinichi could cook.

However, Sanashi has cooked for them several times, even baking delicious cakes and cookies. (Although most of them are made specifically for Conan).

“Haaah, I don’t know why I didn’t realize it sooner even though I already knew Sanashi-san was Shinichi…” This time, Ran closed her eyes in resignation. It looked like she was about to get more than a few slaps from reality—and also learn more of Shinichi’s secrets than she thought.

.

.

.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

“Can’t Kudo-kun cook?” Masumi asked curiously. She had never met Kudo Shinichi in person (if she ignored their first encounter when they were children), so she had no idea what Kudo Shinichi was really like other than what she had read online.

“That detective maniac can’t possibly cook! If it weren’t for Ran always helping him make a bento, I think he would have starved to death in that big Mansion alone!”

“Hey!” Conan snapped in disapproval. “Niichan always cooks lunch for me, you know? He’s probably annoyed that you’re always bothering him, so he didn’t tell you!”

“You brat!” Sonoko hissed in annoyance, making Conan stick his tongue out at her.

Yume, among them, chuckled angelically. “Shinichi-niisan only cooks when Conan-kun asks, Sonoko-neesan. But I have to admit, his cooking is quite delicious. Especially his cookies. I’m sure you’ve tried the cookies that ‘Sanashi-neesan’ makes, right?”

Sonoko couldn't deny it. Sanashi's baked food was always delicious, and she wasn't petty enough to deny it.

KID, who heard that, silently gulped and drolled. He subconsciously remembered the jar full of cookies that Sanashi had given him. 'Yeah, the cookies were really delicious… thinking about them makes me want to eat them again…'

[The scene changes to show the school closing time at Teitan Elementary School. The three children who had previously invited Conan to enter the 'terror mansion', Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida, are busy arguing about something, piquing Conan's curiosity.

With some hesitation—because Conan still remembered that when they last spoke, he scolded the children so harshly that they cried—Conan approached them and asked what they were arguing about.]

Their chat immediately stopped and their focus shifted to the screen in front of them.

Some even smiled when they realized that this case would most likely starred by the young detectives.

[Yoshida then immediately asks Kojima and Tsuburaya to let Conan decipher the code for them, causing Conan to see the code they were referring to and with one glance immediately decipher it. Conan curiously asks what will happen if they decipher the code, and Yoshida excitedly says that they will get a Kamen Yaiba figure.

The girl, without being asked, immediately explained that she and her father had gone to a special Kamen Yaiba event at Tokyo Tower. There was a code corner there, and the writing there said that if they could crack the code, they would receive a figure.]

Ran gasped when she heard that. Her expression quickly brightened. “Ah! I think I know about this case!”

Sonoko immediately turned around and asked in a mischievous tone, "They dragged you again, huh?"

Meanwhile, Saguru, who had been listening, raised an eyebrow curiously. "Case? So wherever the kids go, they'll always encounter cases?"

“Correction!” Sonoko interrupted. “Wherever Edogawa—ahem, Kudo Conan and Kudo Shinichi-kun go, they and everyone around them always encounter cases.”

Conan who heard this pouted and Ran snorted in amusement.

Meanwhile, Megure furrowed his brows and stroked his chin. He felt a familiarity with the location that would likely be the location of this case. “Hm… maybe we should take a longer look… Takagi-kun, Sato-kun, please note anything we might have missed.”

“Yes, Inspector Megure!”

[Conan listens to Kojima and Tsuburaya arguing until they both turn to Conan and demand that he tell them the answer of the riddle. Conan sweatdrops and replies that the correct answer is “Daisekai kimiha tensai da”. He then explains to an angry Kojima that the password is in tanuki, so they have to take out all the ‘ta’ words.

The three kids stared at Conan blankly until Yoshida squealed and praised Conan. They then busied themselves talking to each other, leaving Conan with an awkward smile watching them get lost in their own worlds.]

“It’s a very easy riddle… I’m sure anyone can solve it.” KID sighed as if he was bored with the riddles for children.

Aoko's cheeks flushed red as KID seemed to be laughing at her. But the girl simply clenched her fists and kept her mouth shut. She wanted to be better, and she didn't want to throw a tantrum like a child just because of KID's annoying remark.

“You’ve been forgotten again, huh?” Ai, beside Conan, teased him cruelly. The little girl was still upset about Conan’s earlier carelessness.

“Yeah-yeah, you weren’t there with me, so we can’t be forgotten together.” Conan rolled his eyes, but then winced when he saw Ai’s sharp gaze.

[Kojima then invites Yoshida and Tsuburaya to go to Touto Tower tomorrow Saturday so they can get a Kamen Yaiba figure, but when Yoshida asks who will take them there, Kojima and Tsuburaya's enthusiasm immediately disappears. Conan who hears this just tilts his head and goes back to packing his bag.

Then, as if suddenly remembering, Yoshida asks if there's anyone who can take Conan, making Conan think that Ran and Sanashi could take them. He then replies that he'll ask his older sister and his guardian first.]

Sonoko facepalmed. “So this is how all this babysitting started. Pipsqueak pulled you in to be their babysitter, and you pulled me in to be their babysitter too. And that’s not even mentioning the mess they’ve always caused!”

“Ahahaha… Sonoko…”

“Well, at least Conan-kun is more mature than kids his age. Ai-chan and Yume-chan don’t need to be watched as closely as those three, either.” Masumi snorted lightly in amusement, but her gaze seemed to be watching Yume and Ai closely.

Yume just chuckled like an innocent angel and Ai smirked, making Masumi's gaze sharpen but she decided to keep watching for a while longer.

[The scene changes to Saturday where Ran tells Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida to gather again at the viewing platform. Since they have met Ran before, they easily agree to Ran's words. Not far from them, Conan and Sanashi are watching them while holding hands.

Yoshida then turns to Conan who is still standing next to Sanashi and says that his two big sisters are very beautiful. Kojima also whispers in Conan's ear and says that Ran's boobs are very big, unlike Sanashi's which are flat.

Conan reflexively holds himself back from kicking Kojima because of his rude words.]

"Aww, so cute!" Kazuha and Yukiko cooed when they saw Conan and Sanashi holding hands.

Aoko also nodded enthusiastically when Yoshida said that Conan's two sisters were very beautiful. From what she had seen in this room, Ran was also very strong. And even though 'Sanashi' was actually Kudo Shinichi in disguise, he was also very beautiful—Aoko didn't even know a man could be that beautiful with just a wig and light makeup.

KID is not included, of course. Kudo Shinichi's disguise skills are far above KID's! Aoko is sure of that! Moreover, Kudo-kun doesn't use a latex mask to transform his face when he becomes Fujimine Sanashi, but his face turns out to be so beautiful! No one would even guess that Fujimine Sanashi is actually a man, let alone Kudo Shinichi!

Some people then choked when they heard Kojima's comments about Ran and Sanashi's breasts.

“Speaking of breasts,” Masumi blinked curiously. “Does Kudo-kun wear fake breasts? Or is he not wearing anything at all?”

Sonoko, Aoko, Ran, and Kazuha immediately confronted Masumi with reddened cheeks. What did the girl just say?!

Ai snorted in amusement, “Not at all. He refuses to wear fake breasts. That’s why her chest is always flat.”

The corners of Sato and Jodie's lips twitched at that. "And I'm sure the reason no one questioned it was because she was too beautiful to be suspected of being a man."

This time, it was the corner of KID's lips that twitched. "But his body already resembles a woman's… his chest also looks more like a woman's flat chest than a man's."

[Sanashi beside Conan bowed slightly, then with a cold smile and an annoyed aura told Kojima that it was very rude of him to say something like that about Ran. This made Kojima shudder and immediately apologize for his rude words. Kojima then quickly invited Tsuburaya and Yoshida to go get the figures and watch the Kamen Yaiba show.

The three of them then ran away, leaving Ran, Sanashi and Conan who were still standing there because Conan was not interested in Kamen Yaiba and Sanashi wanted to enjoy her time with Conan. While Ran on the other hand noticed her surroundings which were full of lovers, making her suddenly remember that she had come there once with Shinichi.]

Conan turned and hissed at KID like a stray cat when he heard his comment. “Stay away from Neechan and Niichan!”

KID pouted, “Sana-chan and Meitantei are the same person.”

“That means you are not allowed to approach either of them at all!”

Saguru… Saguru didn't know what to do other than question Kuroba's sanity—okay, never mind, since when was Kuroba sane? That was a question with an obvious answer! Maybe Saguru should question Kuroba's sexual orientation instead of his sanity…?

Aoko beside him wasn't much different. She was just staring at KID with her mouth open and closed, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.

“What are you guys talking about?! Stop talking about Kudo like he’s not here!” Heiji snapped. He turned to Shinichi as if expecting the teenager to protect himself, but Shinichi remained the same as before, motionless with his eyes closed.

Seriously, they would have thought that Shinichi was dead if it weren't for the way his chest was still rising and falling with his breaths.

[As if noticing Ran's sudden deterioration, Sanashi tapped her on the shoulder and asked if she wanted a snack. This brought Ran out of her thoughts and she agreed. The three of them then spent some time trying out the various sweets on sale—though it was more accurate to say that Conan and Ran were the only ones doing so. Sanashi mostly watched them both with a cold cup of coffee in her hand.

The scene then changes again, with Yoshida nearly crying because she lost her Kamen Yaiba figure. The little girl explains that she left her bag in front of her when she went to the bathroom. When she returned, it was gone and replaced with another bag.]

Kazuha sighed, “can't you guys stop arguing and focus on watching?”

Masumi smiled sweetly, “We’re not arguing, just sharing opinions. Anyway, somehow Kudo-kun looks completely like a young woman with just a little makeup and women’s clothing—although I’m sure we all know that his attire is more unisex than an average young woman’s.”

Sonoko clapped her hands, “That’s right! As far as I can remember, Sanashi-san has never wanted to wear skirts. She’s also always wearing oversized jackets or wide t-shirts… although I won’t complain because her fashion sense is better than when she was Shinichi-kun.”

Ran's lips formed a smile that looked more like a grimace when she heard that, “Sonoko, they're the same person.”

Her best friend simply waved her hand dismissively. Her eyes were focused on the scene playing on the screen, causing Ran to sigh and return to looking at the screen.

[Ran trying calms Yoshida down and explains that the bags must have been mixed up, causing Yoshida to whine. Kojima then pours out the contents of the bag and looks at what's inside, ignoring Conan who tries to stop him. The bag doesn't contain much, just a flashlight, a map, and binoculars. Kojima then notices something tucked between the sheets of the map and takes it out, revealing some strange code-like drawings on the paper with one of them labeled "ORO".

A man in a suit and sunglasses suddenly called out from behind them while showing the bag he was carrying, causing Yoshida to immediately point at it and say that it was her bag.]

“Huh,” Megure muttered as he realized what case was about to be presented before him this time. “No wonder I feel a bit familiar with that place.”

"Treasure... is this related to the 15,000 Maple Leaf gold coins stolen from Italy?" Ginzo asked, carefully examining the code on the screen. He had heard that the thief who stole the 15,000 Maple Leaf gold coins from Italy had hidden the stolen gold behind a picture code.

The case was supposed to fall under his division, but at that time someone called Megure and asked him to catch a suspicious person which then led to him accidentally finding 15 thousand stolen Maple Leaf gold coins.

“Yeah. It just so happened that my team was the one handling it at the time.” Megure let out a breath, half tired and half proud. “Sanashi—cough—Shinichi-kun was the one who cracked the code first, with Conan-kun and his friends not far behind.”

[The man apologized and explained that he was so busy that he accidentally grabbed the wrong bag. He then bowed and left. Sanashi and Conan watched him leave with blank expressions, but the suspicious glint in their eyes couldn't be hidden.

They all then exit the tower and Ran invites them to eat, saying that if they want snacks then she will buy them for them. Kojima, Tsuburaya and Yoshida then excitedly ask for some heavy food, making Ran sweatdrop.]

“Speaking of Italy, that guy looks like a foreigner.” Masumi looked at Ran who was a few seats away from her as if asking the girl to confirm it.

“Kudo-kun and Edogawa-kun also seemed to suspect that man from the start,” Saguru said when he saw that Sanashi and Conan were staring at the stranger’s departure with a flash of suspicion.

“Well, that guy was acting strange—and the contents of his bag were even stranger. He didn’t look like an archaeologist or an adventurous person,” Conan explained without being asked, shrugging casually. “Besides, what kind of person would want to go around in such formal attire?”

“Says the kid who always wears a mini-suit everywhere. Ha,” Sonoko grumbled under her breath, making Ran and Yume giggle.

[Suddenly, the man from before came back and asked if they found a small paper in his bag before he took it, making Conan open his mouth to answer, but Kojima beat him to it and said they didn't know anything about the small paper.

The man looked in disbelief and rudely pulled the bag Yoshida was carrying and checking its contents, making Ran kick the side of his glasses until they were destroyed using karate while Sanashi's hand immediately moved and stopped a few centimeters from the man's eyes. Sanashi stared at the man coldly, as if saying that she would really stab both of the man's eyes with a jeet kune do move if he still bothered them.]

Some people became wary when the strange man from earlier returned and asked about a paper.

“So he was looking for the 15,000 Maple Leaf gold coins!” Takagi gasped. “I don’t approve of Genta-kun’s actions in this matter, but I’m grateful he hid the piece of paper he accidentally obtained.”

Sato beside him massaged her temples, “yeah, imagine if that guy got back the paper containing the location of the 15 thousand Maple Leaf gold coins.”

Masumi suddenly whistled as Ran and Sanashi were moving together and scaring off a strange man who was bothering them. “Cool. I didn’t know Kudo-kun could do Jeet Kune Do! We should spar sometime!”

Heiji was flabbergasted. “H-huh? Kudo can defend himself? Uh, I mean, if he can defend himself like that, why does he only use his deadly kicks to take down criminals?!”

Shinichi didn't answer, of course. So the responsibility fell on Conan.

“Because it’s more efficient,” Conan answered curtly. He didn’t even give details of who, when, and what Shinichi could do besides Jeet Kune Do.

On the other hand, a softness was visible in Akai's eyes. He knew exactly who inspired Shinichi to learn Jeet Kune Do. He also knew that Shinichi possessed other martial arts skills besides Jeet Kune Do—and that Shinichi had learned them simply because he was impressed by the people he saw.

[The man quickly scrambled away, looking horrified by Ran and Sanashi's threats. Yoshida immediately smiled broadly and said that Conan's two older sisters were very strong, causing Conan to smile back slightly and take Sanashi's hand again.

Behind them all, the man who had run away entered an alley not far from them and met two other people who were also wearing sunglasses.

The scene then changes to Ran calling her father, explaining that they'll be back around 8. Sanashi herself is texting Yume, asking what they'd like for dinner. Meanwhile, Kojima whispers to Conan if he wants to see something cool before showing him a small piece of paper filled with strange drawings.]

“Niichan is the best Niichan.” Conan confirmed Yoshida’s words on the screen, making KID cough and mutter ‘is Tantei-kun a brocon’ and ‘why didn’t I realize that’ under his breath. “Did you say something, Thief?”

KID just waved his hand as if he didn't say anything.

Kazuha suddenly slammed her armrest when she saw the strange man who had been bothering Yoshida earlier meeting with two other men wearing almost identical clothes to the previous man. “Urgh! I can already guess where this is going. They’re going to stalk Ran-chan and the kids, then force them to hand over the treasure map they took!”

Some people sweatdrop when they hear it.

“But, don’t the people around them find it strange? I mean, why are they all wearing sunglasses? Plus, they’re standing in the shadows of the building. Anyone can see that they’re weirdos—or maybe even criminals?” Aoko wondered, prompting the others to ask the same question.

[Conan was shocked when he saw the paper and asked Kojima to return it to the previous man, but Kojima refused and told Conan to be quiet because he was the one who found the treasure map. His words stunned Conan. He didn't understand how those code-like drawings could be called a treasure map.

Kojima then invited Tsuburaya and Yoshida to go treasure hunting tomorrow, causing Conan to sigh and glance at Sanashi, who was staring back at him with amusement in her eyes. The girl's lips even twitched from holding back laughter. Conan mouthed 'traitor' at his undercover-as-a-woman-brother before pouting, causing Sanashi to snort in amusement.

They passed an electronics store and the screen focused on the news about the boss of the infamous Italian burglars, Dino Capane, being successfully arrested, but his three accomplices were still missing until now, as were the whereabouts of the 15 thousand Maple Leaf gold coins that were still missing.]

“Honestly? I don’t understand how a small piece of paper with strange drawings on it can be considered a treasure map.” Saguru sighed. “But I was surprised that Edogawa-kun tried to get Kojima-kun to return something that wasn’t his, despite his suspicions about the paper’s original owner.”

Conan just shrugged. “I don’t want to get into any trouble… With Niichan having to go undercover and his condition not yet fully stable, I don’t want to add to his stress.”

The corner of KID's lips twitched when he heard that. He wanted to sneer at his little Tantei-kun, but he held back, understanding that all the cases surrounding Conan and Shinichi were beyond their control.

Heiji, on the other hand, lacked KID's self-control. "Ha. Like that'll keep you from getting into trouble, Conan-kun," the Osaka teen said dryly, causing Kazuha beside him to smack him.

“At least I’m not looking for trouble.” Conan rolled his eyes, but the defensive tone in his voice couldn’t be hidden.

Ran gave Heiji a disapproving look, making the teen flinch and mumble an apology to Conan who again just shrugged as if he didn't care.

They then gasped and some of them even tensed up when they saw the news that the boss of the infamous Italian burglars, Dino Capane, had been arrested.

“So they are criminals from Italy!” Aoko gasped.

[The next day, Conan, Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida gathered at Beika Park. The other three brought various treasure hunting equipment, while Conan only brought a bag containing the chocolate chip cookies Sanashi had baked for him the night before. He felt he didn't need anything else and was confident that he could rely on his brain, causing the other three to stare at him in disbelief and annoyance.

Kojima then asked if they were all hiding anything about this 'operation,' saying that adults would only spoil their fun. Conan couldn't help but chuckle dryly at Kojima's words. He knew that Sanashi had heard Kojima's words yesterday and that his older brother would be following them from a safe distance to keep an eye on them.]

“No, wait—you’re not letting those kids go off alone unsupervised when there’s a criminal likely to be watching them, are you?” Jii asked worriedly. They were still kids, after all—even if Edogawa Conan had some awesome gadgets and acted more mature than his peers.

“Oh no, don’t worry, Ran-kun and Sanashi-kun followed them. In fact, they were the ones who called me to capture Capane’s three remaining subordinates.” Megure immediately reassured them.

Some people immediately breathed a sigh of relief when they heard that the children were not wandering around without an adult supervising them.

Ran snorted in amusement when Kojima asked if they were hiding their plans from the adults. “Really, with Shinichi always knowing what Conan-kun is up to, I shouldn’t have to worry about your safety…”

Sonoko folded her arms and let out a long sigh. “But you’ll still worry.”

“Yep! You know how Shinichi has no self-awareness when he comes across a case he finds interesting.” Ran shook her head, “Conan-kun is the same way.”

[Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida then enthusiastically declared that they would follow the current code, but after only a few steps, the three of them were at a loss as to where to go. Conan, behind them, slapped his forehead and let out a long-suffering sigh. He suddenly wished that Yume could come with them so that Conan wouldn't have to suffer alone.

Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida started arguing, forcing Conan to intervene and point to the first code, saying that they were going to the place where they got the map yesterday.

The three children immediately became excited again when they heard this and they immediately ran to the terminal to catch the bus to Touto Tower.]

Some people chuckled when they saw the innocence of the children.

Ai snorted in annoyance, “don’t drag Neesan into your suffering, Edogawa-kun.”

Yume just chuckled when she saw what Conan was thinking about bringing her along. “Ai-chan, it’s okay.”

“You heard what Yume-nee said.” Conan smiled mischievously at Ai, who narrowed her eyes sharply at him. “Besides, now you’re suffering along with me.”

Those who heard the remark laughed, especially when they saw that the other three children started arguing and Conan had to mediate between them.

“Co-chan is so cute~! My little leader~!” Yukiko squealed under her breath. She rarely saw her youngest son interact with his peers due to work, so seeing this scene was a precious memory for her. She only wished she could capture the moment… too bad they couldn’t use electronics here.

If she could, Yukiko would have taken so many photos of Conan and Shinichi from the start that her phone's memory was full.

Yukiko and Yuusaku often grieve over not being able to spend much time with their two sons due to work and… the projects they secretly investigate. They admit that they sometimes focus too much on their work to the point of neglecting Shinichi and Conan, but as long as they're both okay, Yukiko won't complain.

'Although… judging by Co-chan's reaction earlier, it seems he won't like our excuse.' Yukiko thought, suddenly feeling a little sad that Conan refused to be near them—Yukiko suspected that the reason Conan was silent when she hugged him was because the boy was too worried about Shinichi to ignore everything around him.

[Inside the bus, the four of them sat in the back seats, allowing Conan to observe the other people who boarded the same bus as them. He saw two girls who boarded after them, followed by a lover.

Conan was immediately shocked when he saw that one of the two girls on board was his own brother. He then realized that the other girl was Ran. In his heart, he immediately wondered why Shinichi also invited Ran in his 'stalking the kids on a treasure hunt' plan.]

Ran smiled as she watched the next scene unfold. Beside her, Sonoko gasped dramatically. “You came with them too?!”

“Kudo-kun invited Ran-chan too?” Kazuha asked, surprised and a little excited. “It’ll be fun!”

On the other hand, the police could only sigh fondly, more or less amused by what Shinichi did to follow Conan—plus, he brought Ran with him.

Yukiko almost shook Yuusaku's arm in excitement. Oh, how she wished she could tag along with Shinichi and Ran on their treasure hunt with Conan and his friends!

[Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida are unaware of Ran and Sanashi's presence as they are busy discussing the treasure and what is actually written on the paper. When they ask Conan, he answers that it is probably an abbreviation, causing Tsuburaya to happily say that he knows what the word "ORO" written on the 'map' means.

Tsuburaya then explained that it was an abbreviation of the words 'ookii-rich-otakara', which means 'big rich treasure'. Yoshida and Kojima immediately praised Tsuburaya for being able to read English. They then began to imagine what they would do if they found the treasure on the map.]

“That’s right, what does ‘ORO’ actually mean?” Kazuha asked, remembering that they had no idea what the word ‘ORO’ on the map meant.

“Hm, since the thief is from Italy, the word ORO should refer to an object…? Maybe treasure?” Masumi guessed while looking at Conan beside her.

“Almost right, the word 'ORO' in Italian means 'gold'.” Ai answered when Conan had just opened his mouth, making Conan frown at her.

[Kojima said he wanted to eat Unaju all over the world, Yoshida said she wanted to go on a thousand-week vacation around the world, while Tsuburaya said he wanted to buy a space shuttle from NASA and go to space. When they asked what Conan would do with all that wealth, Conan dryly replied that he would put it in the bank, prompting Kojima to quip that he had no imagination.

Conan grimaced and said to himself that his family was already quite wealthy, so he never thought about such things.]

Almost everyone there sweatdropped when they saw and heard the children's imaginations about the treasures they would get.

“Ahahaha, we’re lucky that they’re good kids and willing to return what doesn’t belong to them…” Takagi said dryly. “Although I think Conan-kun is still skeptical about all of this…?”

Megure took a deep breath and reminded Takagi of what they'd been talking about a while ago. “Well, considering his family is already quite wealthy, he doesn't need all that.”

KID and Akai, on the other hand, laughed out loud when they heard Conan's plans on what he would do with the wealth he would gain.

Furuya and Aoko, who were beside KID and Akai, even stared at them in astonishment. (Although Aoko quickly averted her gaze when she remembered that KID had been insane from the start.)

Conan could only frown when he heard their laughter.

[On the other hand, Ran and Sanashi who were listening to the children's conversation exchanged amused glances. Ran then thought that she was glad that Sanashi had invited her, because even though she couldn't have fun and directly help the children find the treasure, she could still watch and follow them as they deciphered the code on the 'treasure map'. Plus, Sanashi brought a camera and promised that she would share the children's photos with Ran.]

Yukiko's eyes lit up. “Ran-chan! You have their photos?! Can I borrow them?! Oh-oh-oh! What if I copy them?” she exclaimed excitedly. She finally can have those precious photos!

Conan's pouting lips immediately formed a straight line upon hearing this. He was clearly holding back a hiss when Yukiko asked for the photos Shinichi had shared with Ran.

Ran, sensitive to Conan's expression, could only grimace. "Uh, I don't remember if Sanashi-san gave me the photo or not... it would be better if you asked Sanashi-san directly, Yukiko-san."

“But Ran-chan!” Yukiko’s lips immediately curved downwards upon hearing the rejection. “Shin-chan definitely won’t give it to me~! So you’re the only one I can rely on~! Please~?”

“Err, I’ll try to find it after we get out of here… if I don’t find it, then Sana—Shinichi owes me.” Ran smiled awkwardly, a bit worried about what was really going on in Shinichi’s family that Conan always disliked Yukiko and Yuusaku.

She more or less knew that Yuusaku and Yukiko were always busy and didn't have much time with Shinichi, but she didn't know how bad their relationship was because of it.

[After they arrive at Touto Tower, they are again confused by the remaining symbols on the paper. Kojima sees the moon on the paper and says that the treasure is in a place where they can see the moon, but Tsuburaya shakes his head and explains that the moon's position is always changing, so they can't use the moon as an accurate location.

Kojima impatiently tugged at Tsuburaya's collar, causing Conan to massage his head and start ignoring them to focus on the paper in his hand. Yoshida, who saw this, asked if Conan had noticed something, as Conan looked very serious.]

“Maybe it’s a symbol of nighttime?” Heiji asked. “The moon could mean a lot of things—time, or it could even refer to places themed or named after the moon? Like ‘Tsuki’ or ‘Moon,’ or maybe it could even mean the letter C.”

"Maybe it also refers to a fortune-telling stall? I remember there was a fortune-telling stall around there!" Sonoko added. The girl refused to ask Ran, wanting to solve the puzzle on her own.

“But as Tsuburaya said, the position of the moon is always changing, and not every night the moon will be visible.” Masumi hums, “What do the symbols underneath mean anyway?”

Saguru tapped his chin, “If I’m not mistaken, I remember there was a street called ‘Tsukimi’. Maybe that’s the street you’re referring to?”

“But that doesn’t make sense. If the moon symbol on the map means Tsukimi Street, then what do the other symbols underneath mean, the shop signs on Tsukimi Street?” Kazuha wondered. “Oh, it seems like Conan-kun has found something?”

The teenagers' attention immediately returned to the screen which was now showing Conan.

[Conan explains that the symbol under the tower looks like an abbreviation for something, because it looks like a hat, then underwear, then a bowtie and if they put them together it would point to a clothing store.

Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida immediately perked up and ran off before Conan could continue his statement that it was just an assumption. Unfortunately, he was left behind because the other three kids had already entered a nearby clothing store and started messing it up and down.]

Sonoko snorted, “yeah, like a gold thief would hide their thousands of precious gold coins in a clothing store.”

Conan was about to open his mouth to reply, but Ai's hand clamped over his mouth, preventing him from speaking. "Shh, Edogawa-kun, let them speculate and solve the puzzle without any spoilers from you."

Almost everyone held back laughter when they saw Conan being abandoned by his friends before he could tell them it was all just an assumption. His dumbfounded expression was so hilarious that some of them smiled fondly at the boy.

"Huuuft, I know they often make a mess, but not to that extent!" Takagi let out a long, tired breath.

Megure beside him wasn't that patient and groaned openly after remembering all the things he had to go through because of those kids.

[Not far away, Sanashi and Ran giggled as they watched Conan stare at his friends' departure with a dumbfounded expression. Sanashi even took a few pictures and showed them to Ran, making the girl laugh.

Meanwhile, Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida ransack every clothing store they come across, causing the owners to kick them out for disrupting their business. Conan on the other hand doesn't want to be scolded by adults, so he always waits for Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida outside the store.]

Yukiko screamed loudly, “Kyaaahhh! I want those picture! I have to get those picture! Yuu-chan, Yuu-chan, look at our little boy! He’s so cute and sweet~!”

Yuusaku could only smile resignedly as his wife shook his arm so hard that his entire body shook.

Kogoro turned his body away from Yuusaku who was now shaking with grunts, though his eyes were still staring at the screen in amusement.

Well, it wasn't every day that Kogoro got to see the pretentious little kid so stunned. Furthermore, his expression was quite interesting.

Sonoko and KID laughed out loud, “BUAHAHAHAHA—LOOK AT THAT EXPRESSION AHAHAHAHA!”

“Oh, Tantei-kun, if only I could get that photo, buahahaha!”

Sonoko and KID's laughter made Conan hiss like a kitten, making Ai deliberately pat the top of Conan's head and scold him like he was a naughty kitten.

Conan slapped Ai's hand away from his head and finally whined in annoyance. “Gah! Ai-sannnnn!”

“Tsk-tsk-tsk, behave yourself, Edogawa-kun, we're all looking at something interesting.”

Her comment made Yume on the other side finally burst out laughing.

[Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida ran to every store until it was late afternoon, but in the end they still couldn't find anything. Kojima then complained that he was hungry, but Conan who saw the bookstore asked them to go to the bookstore for a while, making Kojima grumble, but in the end Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida still followed Conan.

The three children then became busy with their comic books, while Conan was behind them flipping through a language book because the word 'ORO' had been bothering him from the start. He was sure that there was no word for 'ORO' in English, so he looked for it in French, Russian, Chinese, and Korean, but still couldn't find it.

He was about to give up when his eye accidentally caught an Italian book. He immediately checked it and was surprised to find that 'ORO' is Italian for 'gold'.]

“Every store?!” Sato, Megure, Takagi, and Chiba nearly screamed. “Until the afternoon?!”

“Gosh, it’s a miracle we weren’t called in to clean up the mess those kids caused.” Takagi had now lost all sense of amusement and covered his face with both hands with a long groan.

Chiba, Sato and Shiratori want to do the same thing.

Megure, who had already given up, could only pat Takagi's back understandingly.

“And this is just the beginning of the formation of the ‘Little Detectives’…” Takagi wailed, seemingly unable to contain the trauma of the reality that had just been presented before him.

The FBI couldn't help but feel sorry for the police. After all, they, too, were often swept up in the chaos surrounding Conan.

Their gazes immediately sharpened when Conan on screen found out what the word 'ORO' meant.

[Sanashi deliberately stopped talking to Ran and glanced at the small alley outside the burger shop they entered. At first, Sanashi only had her eyes on Conan and his friends while chatting casually with Ran. But she had a bad feeling, so she looked around and realized that the man they had threatened yesterday was again watching Conan and his friends with two other men.

Ran noticed her gaze and immediately widened her eyes when she saw the man from yesterday. Worried, she wanted to go straight to Conan and his friends' table, but Sanashi stopped her because those people definitely wanted something from Conan and his friends. So they should wait and watch a little longer.]

Everyone there blinked in surprise when the screen's focus suddenly shifted to Sanashi and Ran who were chatting.

“They’re still following Edogawa-kun and his friends?!” Saguru gasped.

“Those bad guys! They’re really persistent! Stalking kids from morning till night?! Can’t the police catch them?” asked Aoko, worried for the four children’s safety.

“Wait,” KID leaned towards Conan’s chair and asked in a pretentious tone, “does this mean you were followed by five people at once and you didn’t notice?”

“Is that disbelief I hear in your voice?” Conan replied dryly. In his defense, he still couldn’t distinguish between gazes and his instincts weren’t yet trained. “Technically, I knew that Neechan and Ran-neechan were following me from a safe distance.”

Yume smiled softly upon hearing Conan's argument. "And Shinichi-niisan's instincts are sharper than yours, and he won't let anything happen to you, hm, Conan-kun."

“Exactly. So I don’t have to worry too much. At the time, I was more worried about the mess those kids would make, to be honest.” Conan, who hadn’t seen Yume’s smile at first, answered enthusiastically, but after seeing the gentle smile that hid irritation behind it, he immediately wilted and grimaced. “Uh, sorry Yume-nee, but I never do that anymore?”

The corner of Yume's lips twitched, but the girl didn't say anything.

[Conan, on the other hand, was busy with his language book and notes. He tried converting the symbols into words, in both English and Italian, but he still couldn't find the answer. Frustrated, he messed up his hair until Yoshida saw something through the window.

“Ah! That signboard is the same as the second symbol!” Yoshida exclaimed, causing Tsuburaya and Kojima to also look at the ‘treasure map’ and realize that what Yoshida said was true.]

“Signboard?” the teenage detectives and police officers present exclaimed in disbelief.

Megure, who had already noticed this before Sanashi, was also stunned. 'So Ayumi-kun was the first to notice… but how did Sanashi-kun know about it too? Had she secretly seen the map the children were holding?'

"So we just have to follow the signboards until we find the treasure? That seems too easy to me," Kazuha said suspiciously. "I mean, how many signboards with those symbols are there in one place?"

Heiji, beside her, nodded in agreement. “They’ll just be going around in circles if they only rely on the signboard… and with all the shops there, it’s nearly impossible to find the right signboard on the map.”

[They all then quickly finished their meal and went out to explore the streets. Conan even excitedly started flipping through the road map Tsuburaya had brought, then told the others that the moon symbol might refer to Tsukimi's street.

Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida then ran towards Tsukimi Street, followed by Conan. There, they found an inverted triangle symbol, exactly like the one on the paper. Conan then realized that all the symbols pointed from Touto Tower towards Tsukimi Street, and then the symbols pointed towards—

'Gold!' Conan's lips formed a wide smile as he and the other three children ran. His eyes also sparkled when he thought that it all led to gold.]

“Ah, Edogawa-kun also thought that the moon symbol on the map was the code for Tsukimi Road.” Saguru nodded in satisfaction, “I guess we’ll see if my theory is correct or not.”

“We already knew that the symbols under the moon and Touto Tower were probably signboards, but like Kazuha-chan said, it all seemed too easy.” Sonoko let out a long sigh, “even a normal person could find the treasure as long as they realized what the symbols meant.”

Conan sneered bitterly and muttered under his breath, “Easy for you to say, but not for us who are wandering around looking for the location of those signboards.”

[Behind them, three men followed them with smirks. Unfortunately, behind the three men, Sanashi and Ran had already called the police after confirming with Megure that the three men were Dino Capane's accomplices who were caught yesterday. The two of them then continued to follow the three men until the police arrived to ensure that they could not escape or harm Conan and his friends.

On the other hand, after they found the fourth symbol, Conan thought that the sixth symbol was where the treasure was hidden, so they had to find two more symbols before reaching the aquarium, where the symbol after 'ORO' was located. Kojima of course ignored that and excitedly ran down the path followed by Tsuburaya, Yoshida and Conan.]

“Ah! Thank goodness they called the police!” Aoko exclaimed in relief. “So that’s why it wasn’t Tousan who found the stolen gold, but Megure-keibu?”

“Thank goodness Ran-chan and Sanashi-san followed the kids.” Sato breathed a sigh of relief. After all, Conan-kun and the others were still kids! At least Ran and Sanashi had some self-defense skills.

“Dino Capane hid his treasure in an aquarium?” Masumi frowned, “while that sounds plausible, wouldn’t someone quickly notice something was wrong? I mean, what if the fish tank was dirty and needed cleaning?”

"And the aquarium is also a place where many people will visit. It would be hard to keep the news under wraps if the gold got out." Sonoko hummed, silently imagining how much gold there was and what kind of commotion it would cause if it were found in the aquarium.

[They kept running, but couldn't find the star symbol and they were already in the aquarium. This confused Conan and he looked back at the path he had taken, but nothing seemed wrong and the fifth symbol should be around there.

Conan was just about to invite Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida to search the area again when his body froze. He glanced back and saw the man searching for the 'treasure map' Kojima had taken yesterday. The man was accompanied by two other people, making Conan suddenly feel suspicious.]

Heiji ruffled his hair in frustration when he saw that Conan couldn't find the symbol on the map. "I wish I could have been there and helped him find the clue!" he groaned in annoyance.

His statement resonated with all the teenagers present. They also felt frustrated at being able to watch without doing anything.

“There must be something we missed… why can’t they find the fifth symbol?” Saguru muttered as he doodled on his notebook. He tried to remember the path Conan had taken on the screen, but couldn’t find anything.

They all froze and held their breath as Conan on screen realized he had been followed.

“Shit. Where were we? Why didn’t we come sooner?!” Sato looked so frustated and looking like almost pulled at her own hair, half anxious and half angry. “Megure-keibu!”

Megure raised his hand, “calm down, Sato-kun. Nothing happened to those children.”

[Nearby Conan and his friends, the news from the electronics store is once again announcing information about Dino Capane. The news mentions Italy and the gold coins, as well as Capane's three accomplices who have yet to be apprehended. Naturally, this makes Conan immediately realize that the three people behind them are the accomplices in question.

Conan's brain immediately thought quickly and realized that if the person who wrote the 'treasure map' was an Italian, then the moon symbol next to the Touto Tower symbol would be—

Before Conan could finish his thought, the cell phone in his pocket vibrated.]

“Moreover, Ran-san and Sanashi-san are there,” Takagi also tried to intervene. “We all know that Ran-san and Sanashi-san won’t let anything happen to them.”

Sato took a deep breath, “I know! I know that… but still seeing those kids being targeted by criminals and not being able to do anything makes me feel helpless…”

Her words made them ponder. Yes, they knew and realized that it was over. But that didn't stop their worry and the growing sense of helplessness that grew in their hearts, unable to do anything every time danger loomed over Conan and his friends.

They can only watch, like spectators who have no ability to change the ongoing show.

This all raises a question in everyone's mind, 'when will they all get really fed up with all this and try to rebel out of the place that is trapping them?'

Unfortunately, even Akako, a Witch, couldn't answer. So all they could do now was sit there and endure it. After all, even if they tried to rebel, what could they do? Even Shinichi, the man Akako feared, couldn't do anything and had fallen asleep.

[Conan immediately took it and opened it in surprise. He then found a message from Sanashi that the police were moving to surround the three people who were following them and Conan had to keep his friends there until the police could ensure that the three people could not escape.

Conan breathed a sigh of relief and looked around until he found a sign pointing to a landfill. He innocently pointed out that the sign resembled the sixth symbol.]

It wasn't just the police who breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that the police had moved to arrest Dino Capane's subordinates.

“I don’t like Conan-kun using himself as bait—even if his three friends didn’t realize it at the time.” Furuya frowned, “even if the police are there, it’s still dangerous, Conan-kun.”

Conan opened his mouth to calm Furuya down, but Ai had already covered his mouth. “We don’t want to hear your rebuttal, Edogawa-kun.”

With an irritated look at Ai, Conan complied.

[Tsuburaya denies it, but Conan casually remarks that they probably missed it. Kojima, as before, impatiently runs to the dumpster. They then start searching through the trash, but find nothing until Conan again suggests that the garbage truck probably already took the treasure. He then snatches the 'treasure map' from Kojima's hands and crumples it into a ball before throwing it away. Afterward, he tells them to go home since it's already 7:00.

Unbeknownst to Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida, the three men, who had previously approached to pick up the trash Conan had thrown out, were behind them. They tsked and cursed at Capane before turning to leave, but the police had surrounded them on every side, preventing them from going anywhere.

From one of the alleys, Megure appeared and ordered their arrest.]

Heiji raised an eyebrow and asked in an unimpressed tone when Conan said that the garbage truck had taken his treasure. “Seriously? The garbage truck took his treasure?”

Conan pulled Ai's hand away from his lips and groaned. “Oh shut up!”

“I thought you were smarter than that.”

“Yes-yes-yes, said the person who always made up some ridiculous excuse every time he accidentally called out the name 'Kudo' in front of Kazuha-neechan and Ran-neechan.”

Immediately, Heiji's cheeks turned bright red. “Hey! I did it for you!”

“And you wouldn’t have had to if you had kept your mouth shut in the first place.” Ai said dryly, making Conan giggle and Heiji press his lips together in annoyance—especially since KID, Ran, Sonoko, Kazuha, and Masumi were laughing along with him.

[Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida trudge back to Touto Tower, unaware that three criminals have been following them all day. Conan, the only one who notices, turns around only to meet Sanashi and Ran's gaze, still following them from a safe distance.

Sanashi smiled mysteriously and waved, while Ran looked at Conan with relief. Conan didn't understand what she meant until Tsuburaya suddenly pointed to the neon sign above the camera shop, excitedly saying that it looked like the one on the 'treasure map'.]

“You shouldn’t look back, Tantei-kun. They’ll realize you know they’re following you if you look back so blatantly.” KID frowned when he saw Conan look back without caution.

Saguru nodded along when he heard KID's words, before freezing as if he had just realized that he had agreed with the thief's words.

Sonoko snorted, always agreeing with KID-sama's amazing remarks. "You're lucky it was Ran and Sanashi-san you saw back then, brat!"

All the feelings of amusement that Conan felt previously evaporated and were replaced with feelings of annoyance when Sonoko teased him. "Yes-yes-yes, Sonoko-neechan, I was an indifferent fool and too careless. Not anymore, seriously!"

“Ha, tell that to the behavior you’ll display while we’re all here, brat!” Sonoko replied with a mixture of annoyance and exasperation. She really want to pull the brat’s cheeks until he begged for mercy.

“Back to the treasure, how did Sanashi-san know where it was?” Sato asked curiously. From what Megure had said earlier, Sanashi knew where the treasure was before Conan and his friends.

Megure hummed, “Sanashi-kun got a copy of the treasure map from Conan-kun. She said she had her suspicions and invited Ran-kun and me to check it out.”

Those who heard it could only be stunned.

Jodie even asked Ran, who was sitting in the front seat. “And she wasn’t use anything, Mouri-san? A theory, perhaps? She knew it at first glance?”

[Kojima and Yoshida immediately noticed and agreed with Tsuburaya. They perked up again and said that maybe they should have followed the neon sign from Touto Tower. Conan was immediately taken aback by this and turned back to Sanashi and Ran, who were now laughing before they were both called away by Megure.

Conan narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but averted his gaze when Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida pulled him back to search for treasure. They even demanded that Conan hand over the 'treasure map' he had drawn while they were eating.

Resigned (and a little excited), Conan reaches into his pocket and produces a 'treasure map' he's redrawn.]

Hearing Jodie's question, Ran tried to remember before saying hesitantly, "She always takes pictures of Conan-kun and his friends whenever she gets the chance, but when they were taking a break at the burger shop, I left her for a while to order food for the two of us... maybe that's when she thought about and solved the treasure map Conan-kun sent?"

“Neechan said that she had her suspicions and she confirmed her answer when she followed us back,” Conan added.

“So that’s why she kept looking around when we followed you back after the criminals were captured.” Ran shook her head. “I still can’t believe she didn’t say anything and then suddenly told Megure-keibu that she already knew where the treasure was.”

"Let me guess, when you ask her how she knew, she'll say that Conan gave her a copy of the treasure map and she asked Shinichi-kun who then asked her to pay attention to the neon signs around Touto Tower." Sonoko who was quite close to Shinichi and Sanashi (even though she just found out that they were the same person) said dryly.

Ran could only smile, which looked more like a grimace, in response.

[They follow symbol after symbol, but again they can't find the fifth symbol until Yoshida calls them to look at the ferris wheel which shows the fifth symbol. After confirming that the symbol matches the ferris wheel, they go back to looking for the sixth symbol.

The neon sign that matched the sixth symbol turned out to be an apartment, and they only needed to find the seventh symbol to solve the puzzle. Unfortunately, there were no matching neon signs, nor were there any aquariums nearby. Fortunately, Tsuburaya mentioned that there was a river nearby.

Kojima then guesses that the symbol means fish in the river, and before Conan knows it, he is already left behind, again.]

Kazuha blinked as Yoshida pointed to the Ferris wheel displaying the fifth symbol. "Who would have thought the fifth symbol would be a Ferris wheel? No wonder they couldn't find it before."

“And the sixth symbol with the letters ‘ORO’ points to an apartment… doesn’t that mean the treasure is in one of the rooms in that apartment?” Kogoro snorted. “I don’t understand why those brats don’t just head straight to the apartment and look for the treasure there.”

Conan opened his mouth to argue, but stopped and thought back to what Kogoro had said before closing his mouth in embarrassment.

“Let me guess. You haven’t thought about that at all.” Heiji teased with a hint of amusement in his voice when he saw that Conan remained silent and didn’t refute Kogoro’s words.

"Well, you can't blame Conan-kun... look, those kids have abandoned him again!" Ran tried to defend Conan... even though the corners of her lips twitched in amusement betrayed her.

KID snorted in amusement, but didn't say anything, even as his shoulders shook with laughter as Tantei-kun's friends left him alone. Tantei-kun's expression was so cute that he wanted to take a picture!

'That would be very effective blackmail material… ppfftt—' thought KID.

[Conan followed them and nearly faceplamed when he saw Kojima stubbornly trying to dig something out of the water. He thought that all the symbols there showed things visible at night, so the last fish symbol couldn't possibly refer to the river.

Conan accidentally sees a shadow above the river. He is stunned for a few seconds before laughing out loud and announcing that he has found the fish symbol they have been looking for. He then explains what he found and asks them all to follow him to the sixth symbol.]

Kogoro massaged his temples as he watched one of the snotty kids try to dig in the water. “Again, I don’t understand why those kids don’t just head straight to the apartment and look for the symbol there.”

Megure let out a long sigh. "They were lucky they didn't slip on the slippery rocks and get swept away by the tides."

“But what kind of neon light was that last image? Seeing as the fish image has sharp corners, could it be—ah. I see.” Masumi suddenly grinned at the same time as Conan on the screen laughed loudly, followed by Heiji and Saguru.

“Oh, I see. So to see the final symbol, it requires the right place and time.” Yuusaku nodded in understanding, causing Yukiko beside him to look at him with a demanding look.

Seeing his wife's gaze, Yuusaku gave in and began to explain to them all that if they looked at the river from the apartment the sixth symbol pointed to, then they could see the seventh symbol from the reflection of the lights from the bridge.

Yukiko, Kazuha, Sonoko and Aoko were speechless when they heard it.

“That easy?” Kazuha asked in disbelief. “The location of the treasure can be found that easily?”

“It was that easy, if only they had gone straight to where the ‘ORO’ was without having to look for the last symbol first.” Ai smirked slyly, making Yume playfully pinch her cheek as she warned her.

“Hey! It’s not easy for us who have to run around here and there!” Conan interrupted and looked almost annoyed, making Kazuha smile dryly.

[The four of them climb the stairs next to the apartment to the top floor, then Conan tells them to look out the window, towards the river. Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida follow Conan's request skeptically until they see what Conan means by the fish symbol. Conan then also shows the location of the gold by looking at the fish symbol in the river and the map until a coin falls from above his head.

Noticing a shadow above his head, Conan noticed the rope connected to the shadow and stepped closer to try to untie it, causing several gold coins to fall back from the ceiling.

Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida who saw it immediately cheered happily until the sound of applause could be heard. This made the four of them startled and turned towards the door they entered through, quickly seeing Megure, several police officers, Ran and Sanashi standing there with proud expressions.]

“Wait a minute, is that an old, almost completely abandoned apartment?” Takagi asked his coworkers. “Wouldn’t it be dangerous for them to climb up there? Look, even the stairs don’t look sturdy anymore!”

“And there could be bad people using that place as a hideout.” Furuya frowned. He didn’t like the picture his mind was giving him of the children getting hurt just from playing in an old apartment.

“Rather than that, I’m more worried because it’s too late for them. Isn’t their family looking for them? Well, I understand if Conan-kun doesn’t care—his older brother is with him! But what about the other three kids?” Kazami wondered.

When the screen showed that Conan was standing right under a sack of gold coins tied to the ceiling, several people gasped.

Kogoro was one of them. “Brat! That’s dangerous!”

"He's right, Conan-kun! What if the sack had fallen right on top of you!?" Sato almost screamed and shook Megure who seemed to have just realized how dangerous Conan had done. "Why did you let him stay there?!"

Conan gaped. He'd never even thought about it. "But I'm fine…?"

KID sighed (how many times had he sighed since they were all locked in this room?) and prepared to explain to the boy, but Saguru beat him to it.

“Edogawa-kun, the fact that some gold coins fell from there suggests that the rope holding the sacks up there might not last much longer, either because Dino Capane didn’t tie it properly or because the rope itself is no longer strong. That’s dangerous.”

“Oh…” Conan muttered, just realizing that he could get hurt if he stood down there when the rope broke.

"Luckily you guys were already out from under that sack when the police came." Yume looked a little pale after hearing what might have happened, making Ai squeeze her hand and Conan look down, feeling guilty and horrified that he only realized it now.

But there was no point in him apologizing now. It all happened a long time ago.

[A while ago, after Capane's three henchmen were captured, Megure wanted to immediately search the area for the hidden 15,000 Maple Leaf gold coins. But Sanashi stopped him, saying that she already knew where the 15,000 coins were hidden. She would tell Megure the location, but Megure had to let Conan and his friends find the coins.

“Just think of it as a way to please them. After all, they were the ones who found the key to finding the gold coins,” Sanashi said, making Megure agree.]

“Wait, so you guys were there first?” Masumi asked Ran and Megure.

"Did you guys check the sack of gold? Is that why it fell out so easily?" Heiji asked.

Megure looked away in shame and regret. “We checked it out before Sanashi-kun told us to let it stay up there.”

Yuusaku hums, "Shinichi wouldn't let anything dangerous happen to Conan on purpose. He must have put up some sort of safety, and if I may guess, with his magic, to ensure that the sacks wouldn't fall if Conan was under them."

[Back on the top floor of the apartment, Megure, Ran, and several police officers applauded. They praised Conan and his friends' intelligence in finding the stolen gold coins. This prompted Kojima to shout that the gold coins were theirs because they were the ones who found them. Behind him, Tsuburaya and Yoshida nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, Sanashi stepped closer and reached out to ask for the coin Kojima was holding. Sanashi then calmly explained that the coin wasn't a real gold coin. She even pointed out that the coin Kojima was holding actually just a chocolate coin.]

“You know, that makes sense,” Camel said. “Only a few coins fell out even though they tried to remove them before.”

“And we’ll go back to Conan-kun’s words and what Shinichi-kun said earlier. He wouldn’t let anything happen to his little brother.” James beside him nodded.

Ran and Aoko simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

“Yeah, Shinichi wouldn’t let anything bad happen to Conan-kun if he could help it.” Ran looked down slightly with a nostalgic smile, her mind unavoidably remembering what Shinichi had done to protect her and Sonoko, without either of them even realizing it.

Several people's gazes then focused on the trick Sanashi used to exchange gold coins for chocolate.

“She used magic just to exchange real gold coins for chocolate?” Aoko asked curiously.

“Huh, I don’t think so…? But how did she get the chocolate coins that fast?” Kazuha squinted, trying to get a clearer look—but still couldn’t figure it out.

["These chocolate coins were stolen from their owners by a greedy thief and I'm sure they want it back. So you guys have to return it to them." Sanashi said, making Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida whine. Sanashi rolled her eyes when she heard the whining and told Megure that maybe they could ask the owner to give some chocolate coins as a reward for Conan and his friends who found the coins.

Megure, who understand what Sanashi meant immediately nodded and said that they could ask the owner of the chocolate coins, but first, they have to return them.]

"No, I'm sure she didn't use magic to exchange the gold coins for chocolate," Heiji replied casually, then scratching the back of his head. "Don't forget she's learned magic tricks."

“It’s actually a very easy trick. She just needs to make sure the coin that appears from her hand is well hidden.” KID smiled interestedly, ignoring the murderous glare from Heiji beside Shinichi. “But chocolate coins aren’t easy to find in a short time, could she have bought them before going to that apartment?”

Ran tried to remember that day after hearing KID's words, but couldn't find anything. "I guess she bought it before? I don't remember any shops selling chocolate coins there, and even if there were, neither of us went to a chocolate shop…"

“So Fujimine-san—uhm… used magic to exchange the gold coins for chocolate coins…?” Aoko asked, half confused and half awkward. The girl didn’t know whether to call Sanashi by her real name or her alias.

“Huh, Neechan never said anything about this.” Conan frowned, easily ignoring the doubtful tone in Aoko’s voice. “But judging from her hand movements, Neechan didn’t use her magic.”

“Hm, she could have used her magic to make the chocolate coin appear before approaching and performing that trick?” Agasa said lightly. “So she used a little magic to get the chocolate coin!”

Megure blinked. “Eh, that makes sense.”

[Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida reluctantly agreed, and two police officers would drive the children home. Megure also offered Sanashi, Conan, and Ran a ride in the police car so they could get home faster. The three of them then looked at each other and agreed to the inspector's offer.

When they were in the police car and on their way home, Sanashi asked Conan who was leaning against her about what they had found and done today, making Conan pout and say that Sanashi already knew what he had done.

Sanashi snorted softly before explaining that she still wanted to hear what Conan had been up to all day.]

Almost everyone groaned and breathed a sigh of relief as yet another case was solved.

They then started half-paying attention to the screen and half-talking to each other, wondering when they would be allowed to move from their seats.

“I know we don’t get tired, but it really takes a toll on me mentally if I have to sit still like this for a long time!” Sato complained.

“I agree. Sitting still like this isn’t my style,” Heiji and Saguru agreed simultaneously and froze when they realized what they had said together.

KID giggled when he heard that and got a sharp look from the two teenage detectives.

"Hey, but Aoko is getting tired from sitting and watching all this," Aoko said with a deep sigh. "Is it possible for us to get some time to rest?"

Sonoko crossed her arms and put on a thoughtful expression. "That's right… even though our bodies aren't tired, our minds are exhausted from watching this all non-stop."

Everyone agreed with her words, and almost everyone there simultaneously turned to look at Akako, who had been silent for a long time.

The Witch stared back at them and without saying anything just shook her head.

This left them all a little disappointed, but that was to be expected. So they went back to chatting with each other and watching the screen.

“She’ll be a good parent.” Jodie muttered under her breath with a small smile as she watched Sanashi still asking and coaxing Conan to tell her what he did that day, making Conan look like a child his age. “I can see that she raised cool boy wonderfully.”

[Ran joins in supporting Sanashi and gently encourages Conan to tell what he and his friends found, prompting Conan to begin telling the story of how this whole 'treasure hunt' began. It's slow at first, but he gradually becomes enthusiastic about telling everything he experienced throughout the day.

Sanashi and Ran smiled, listening to Conan chatter and occasionally chiming in until the child fell asleep from exhaustion.

Some people who were still watching the screen smiled softly when they saw Conan starting to enthusiastically tell what he did with his friends that day.

Heiji, on the other hand, stared at the boy with an unreadable gaze. He suddenly felt like he had just fully realized that Conan was still a child, despite his genius that made him actually think that he was Kudo Shinichi that shrunk by APTX 4869.

[The next day, Kojima, Tsuburaya, and Yoshida each received a bag of gold coins filled with chocolate from Sanashi, who explained that the owner had agreed to give them a bag full of chocolate coins each. This made them cheer happily, while Conan just rolled his eyes as he just watched them and munching on the chocolate Sanashi had bought him.]

“Aah, I want that chocolate too~” KID muttered with a pout on his lips. “Where did Sana-chan buy it?”

Conan just shrugged, while some people started to give KID strange looks. "Ask Neechan yourself. I don't know, but that chocolate isn't from the store we went to."

KID remembered their little trip to America and how Meitantei had treated him to all the chocolate he wanted. He knew the chocolate Meitantei had given the kids was from another store, so he shrugged and leaned forward curiously. “How does it taste? Sweeter? Softer?”

"What are you? A chocolate maniac?" Conan asked dryly, but still answered all of KID's questions about chocolate in detail.

The others then looked at Conan as if they didn't recognize the child, while KID listened to Conan's words as if everything he said was a very important secret.

Tbc.

Chapter Text

“Are they both too genius to be sane or am I the only one who is weird because I can’t understand what they are talking about?” asked Sonoko when KID and Conan’s conversation about chocolate flavors was no longer understandable to her.

Heiji, on the other hand, seems torn between teasing Conan about his favorite sweets and wondering why the detective boy would even respond to KID's insane questions. Eventually, after the conversation about chocolate flavors becomes unintelligible, he gives up and blames KID's insanity for contaminating Conan.

“Please, for the sake of all your sanity, ignore what that insane thief said,” Saguru advised, massaging his temples and closing his eyes. He wasn’t going to lose his sanity to Kuroba’s insanity, thank you very much.

The teenagers were about to breathe a sigh of relief and thank whoever was in charge inside the Archive of Truth when the screen in front of them began to show a new scene.

[The screen then blacks out before changing to another scene. This time, Ran, Sanashi, and Conan are walking through the forest with backpacks on their backs. Ran looks around while looking at the map in her hand, saying that they should be close to the villa.

Conan asks if they're lost, causing Ran to grimace and reassure them that they're not lost, just going the wrong way. Beside them, Sanashi sweatdrops. The two siblings then realize they're truly lost. Sanashi then snaps her fingers, and a compass appears in her hand. She looks at the map in Ran's hand and says that they should be almost there, as the directions match the map.

Sure enough, two hundred meters later they found a suspension bridge that led directly to the villa.]

Sonoko's expression immediately brightened and she excitedly turned to Ran, "Is this the case I think it is?"

Ran blinked as another scene appeared on the screen. She gasped in surprise as she realized what kind of case was about to occur. “Oh! This is the bandaged man murder case that happened in your villa!”

Sonoko squealed slightly, “Oh-oh-oh! Look, you really would have gotten lost if it weren’t for Sanashi-san! Seriously, Ran! My family’s villa really isn’t that hard to find!”

“Ahahaha…” Ran could only laugh dryly when she heard her friend’s comment.

[As they begin to cross the bridge, Sanashi stares blankly at the deep ravine beneath the suspension bridge, prompting Conan to grab her attention. Conan then remarks that the bridge is incredibly high and that he doesn't understand why anyone would build a villa in such a remote location.

Ran just laughed awkwardly at Conan's words, while Sanashi snorted in amusement. They continued walking until they realized that besides the three of them, there was another person walking on the bridge. The person was almost at the other end of the bridge, and Ran, always friendly to everyone, called out to them.

When the person—man turned around, the three of them were stunned—almost horrified because the man had bandages all over his face. The man then ran away, leaving them still in a mix of fear and shock.]

Sonoko's spirits were slightly dampened when she saw Sanashi on the screen staring blankly down the cliff. She couldn't help but feel a chill run down her spine when she realized what Sanashi would do if Conan hadn't pulled her hand away.

Kazuha, Aoko, Masumi, Ran, Sato, Takagi, Jodie and Camel also gasped when they saw 'Sanashi's' blank stare.

“What… what was she just about to do…?” Saguru asked in disbelief. “Did she want to do what I thought…?”

Even KID was frozen in shock where he sat. He often saw Sanashi sitting on the edge of a tall building's roof, sometimes the girl would lean back and look out at the crowd below. But if she was like this every time she saw something from above—

“She’s fine, just got a little relapse due to stress…” Conan tried to calm everyone who was shocked and a bit horrified by what Sanashi would do if Conan didn’t divert her attention.

When Sanashi on screen snorted in amusement at Conan's words, they all nearly got whiplash from Sanashi's speed in controlling her emotions.

“KYAH—!” Kazuha and Aoko screamed in a mix of horror and surprise when they saw a man with bandages all over his face appear. Both of them reflexively grabbed the people beside them—Heiji and Saguru.

[Upon arrival at the villa, Suzuki Sonoko, Ran and Shinichi's classmate, greets them with a half-grumble at Ran for being late. The girl then shifts her focus to Sanashi and Conan, calling Conan cute and Sanashi very beautiful and resembling Kudo Yukiko.

Sanashi just laughed awkwardly, even though she agreed in her heart that her face was indeed a copy paste of her mother's.

After introducing herself to Sanashi and Conan, Sonoko then starts grumbling that if Conan were with them, they wouldn't be able to go ahead with the passion. They went there because they wanted to meet cute guys and it would all be so dreamy and romantic.]

Sonoko wasn't even in the mood to pretend to groan and tease Conan. She felt too unsettled by Sanashi's blank stare earlier.

Yukiko on the other hand put aside the strange look from 'Sanashi' earlier and squealed happily when Sonoko on the screen said that Conan was very cute and Sanashi was very beautiful like her.

The woman even shook Yuusaku again when Shinichi also agreed that his face was a copy paste of her!

The police officers sweatdropped when they heard Sonoko's words on screen. They knew she was a passionate teenager when it came to romance, but they hadn't expected her to be so dramatic.

“Conan-kun, is Shi—Sanashi-san often like that…?” asked Ran, who also still felt unsettled by Sanashi’s earlier gaze.

Conan exchanged glances with Ai before answering in an almost gentle tone, “He’s fine, Ran-neechan. He doesn’t think like you guys think, really!”

[Sanashi, Ran and Conan sweatdropped. Conan even gave Sanashi a judgmental glance as if saying 'is-this-one-of-your-friends?', making Sanashi roll her eyes and reply with a 'unfortunately' look.

Ran and Sonoko then chatted about 'those cute guys' while Sonoko explained that they arrived here a long time ago, while Sanashi and Conan observed the interior structure of the villa.

“Oh, by the way, is there someone with their face wrapped in bandages here?” Ran asked suddenly. She then explained what they found when they crossed the bridge, making Sonoko frown and shake her head. Sonoko then told them to put their stuff in their room on the 2nd floor.]

Sonoko, Ran, KID, Heiji, Kazuha, Masumi, Aoko, and Saguru gave Conan an 'explain-what-you-mean' look, making Conan let out a long sigh. “Nee—Niichan likes heights.”

“Oh~ Does that mean she’d like it if I took her on a romantic night flight together?” KID asked mockingly. But a second later, he was already yelling with his fists clenched tightly. “You know perfectly well that’s not what any of us want to hear, Tantei-kun!”

Conan tsked. “Niichan likes heights, or rather, the feeling of falling from a height. That blank stare means he’s captivated on it—falling from a height, I mean. As long as I can distract him, he’ll be fine.”

“And why would he do it just because he ‘likes it,’ huh?” Sonoko asked in disbelief. “And didn’t you say earlier that he ‘just had a little relapse due to stress’?!”

“Oh he must be doing it to relieve stress~! We all have our own hobbies to relieve stress~!” Yukiko smiled and said cheerfully, as if her eldest son staring into the depths of a ravine as if he wanted to jump into it and never be seen again was no big deal.

Several people looked at her with strange looks mixed with disbelief. Even Kogoro, beside Yuusaku, opened his mouth and closed like a fish, looking so shocked he couldn't speak.

Megure and the others furrowed their brows and silently gestured to Takagi to note this down separately.

'I don't know if what she said came from her eccentricity or from her indifference to her first son… ' Megure and several others thought.

[Sanashi is stunned when she hears this and asks calmly—though already panicking inside—about their rooms. Sonoko, oblivious to Sanashi's panic, says that Sanashi, Ran, and Conan will be in one room, because the two room at the downstairs of the villa is used as a storage room and one of them has a moldy wall that hasn't been repaired.

The corners of Sanashi's eyes twitched and she resigned himself to not sleeping for two whole days. She then asks Ran to never change clothes in the room before telling her because she doesn't want to see another girl's body.

Ran confusedly nodded in agreement, then without knocking opened one of the doors.]

“How could you—” Heiji was just about to rebuke Yukiko, but Conan cut him off.

“Hattori-niichan.” Conan said in an emotionless tone that made Heiji’s hair stand on end. “Shut up. It’s none of your business.”

“But—” Kazuha tried to join in, but Conan just turned his head and stared at them with an expressionless face and a blank stare that somehow looked very scary.

“Shh,” Conan whispered as if he were whispering a secret. His index finger was raised in front of his lips, as if he were soothing a child on the verge of tears. “Look, the movie keeps going.”

Yukiko and Yuusaku exchanged glances as they saw this happening before their eyes.

“Co-chan looks so cute~! Right, Yuu-chan?!” Yukiko whispered with a giggle. But her grip on Yuusaku’s arm tightened slightly, betraying her discomfort. “He’s making it impossible for Hei-chan to argue with him!”

Yuusaku just smiled and nodded, even though the corners of his eyes twitched when he felt the surprised and angry looks from some of the people around them.

…especially from Mouri Kogoro beside him.

[Ran immediately comes face to face with someone changing clothes, causing her to immediately apologize and close the door again. She then opens the other door and finds the same thing twice, causing Conan and Sanashi to stare at her tiredly.

Luckily, the fourth time Ran opened the door without knocking they finally found the room they were going to occupy.]

“I don't understand why Ran-san didn't knock on the door first before opening it.” Ai commented with a snort. “Even if Ran-san did it accidentally the first time, she continued doing it three times.”

“…more than that, I’m more curious about the doors to Sonoko-nee’s villa. Why aren’t any of them locked?” Yume asked in surprise.

The others realized that the Haibara sisters were trying to dispel the previous unpleasant atmosphere, so half-reluctantly, they returned their attention to the screen in front of them.

“But what she said wasn’t wrong… why didn’t they lock the door…? Especially since they were about to change clothes?” Sato crossed her arms and snorted. Even though her words supported Yume, her gaze wasn’t on the screen, but on the Kudo couple sitting in front of her.

Perhaps, if looks could burn someone, Yuusaku and Yukiko might have been burned by the sharp gaze that Sato had shot at them.

The woman more or less began to understand why Conan had been so rude to his own mother a while ago. And she wouldn't have blamed him at all if what had just happened before their eyes were a common occurrence in their family.

[After resting for a while, they all gathered in the dining room to chat and introduce themselves. Besides Ran, Sonoko, Sanashi, Conan, and Ayako—Sonoko's older sister—there were four others named Oota Masaru, Sumiya Hiroki, Takahashi Ryouichi, and Ikeda Chikako.

Ran introduces herself and apologizes for what happened earlier, making them laugh and say it's no big deal. They then start chatting like old friends, making Ayako smile sadly and say she wishes Atsuko were there too.]

Sonoko wrinkled her nose at the sight of Oota. She remembered how she'd once longed for him before she discovered what a coward he was. “Ugh. Now that I look at it, what's so good about Oota-san? Makoto-san is more handsome than him!”

Ran nearly sweatdropped when she heard Sonoko's words. "Sonoko... you know that at that time we haven't met Kyogoku-san yet."

[Her words made everyone suddenly went silent. Chikako even slammed the table and said that they should stop talking about Atsuko because they came there to relax in the middle of a busy time, so Ayako should stop talking about someone who died two years ago.

Oota makes fun of Chikako's celebrity-like behavior, prompting Ayako to intervene and say she'll make dinner. Takahashi then stands up and awkwardly says he'll fix the roof since the weather forecast says it's going to rain tonight.]

“Atsuko?” Saguru asked in surprise. “Is she one of your older sister friends, Suzuki-san?”

“Yeah, she…died by suicide,” Sonoko replied. “Urgh, you’ll find out later…I’m sure Sanashi-san and that kid asked my sister about it.”

Saguru just nodded his head in thanks and returned his gaze to the screen.

“Hmm~ they don’t seem to be getting along.” KID hummed after taking a deep breath and making sure that his poker face was still in place and not broken at all. His voice was steady, as if he wasn’t THAT frustrated with what his Meitantei and Tantei-kun were doing. “This is their reunion, isn’t it?”

Sonoko, unexpectedly, only awkwardly answered KID's question. "Ah—un, it was their first reunion after graduation…"

KID just smiled mysteriously when he heard the answer.

[Seeing Ayako and Takahashi leave, Chikako also stood up and walked away without saying anything. When Hiroki asked her, she replied irritably that she was going for a walk. This worried Hiroki, who also stood up to chase after Chikako.

Not long after they left, it started to rain, making Ran a little disappointed because she also wanted to take a walk around the villa.

Sonoko tugged on her arm and whispered excitedly that she thought Oota was her type, cool and collected. She even glanced at Oota smoking by the window with a lovestruck eyes.]

“That woman looks arrogant.” Jodie commented when Chikako snapped at Hiroki.

"Doesn't she work as a director…? That kind of attitude won't help her in the entertainment world," Camel said in surprise. "Could it be that she did it because they're her friends and wouldn't reveal this to the public…?"

“Huh, it could be like that… but I don’t remember there being a director named Ikeda Chikako…” Chiba who heard the conversation rubbed his chin and tried to remember, but only drew a blank.

“That's right… maybe she's a new director?”

"But this incident happened about a year ago. Shouldn't she have a name if she's really a director?"

"Oh! Maybe she's using a pseudonym?" asked Agasa, who had also been listening to the conversation behind him. "Some people use pseudonyms in the entertainment industry because they don't want their privacy disturbed, right?"

Sonoko who overheard the conversation was just about to explain that Chikako was a victim of the bandaged man when the screen showed herself staring at Oota with a lovestruck expression.

Ran beside her sweatdropped, while Masumi and Conan snorted in amusement. KID even chuckled, making Sonoko feel like her face was burning.

[Sanashi rolled her eyes and Ran sweatdropped when she saw Sonoko. Conan himself was not interested in the conversation and pulled Sanashi's hand while raising his other hand—a sign that he wanted to be carried.

'If they're all going to spend their time separated like this, then it's better if we both leave Ran-neechan and Sonoko-neechan with their gossip and go to our room to read the book Niichan bought me yesterday… and I can spend some quality time with Niichan. Everyone's happy!’ Conan thought with a sweet smile as Sanashi lifted him into her arms.

From the amused glint in Sanashi's eyes when she looked at him, Conan knew that his bro—ahem, sister knew what he was just thinking.]

“Ha-ha. He acts like a baby in front of Sanashi-san, but acts like a little shit in front of everyone else.” Heiji, who saw that Conan was acting like a sweet child in front Sanashi, couldn’t help but tease the boy.

Hey! That's not fair because Conan always bullies him and acts like a devil when he's with him, but acts sweet like an angel when he's with Sanashi!

Conan just stuck his tongue out at Heiji in response.

KID who heard it nodded in agreement, how could Conan be cruel to an innocent thief like him and only be sweet to Meitantei?! Tantei-kun's attitude towards Sana-chan and Meitantei was even sweeter than his attitude towards Mouri-chan!

“He’s so sweet to Sanashi-san…” Sato smiled fondly at Conan on screen. “It makes me feel like his sweetness all this time is nothing compared to his cuteness around Sanashi-san.”

“I agree with you.” Takagi folded his arms and nodded. Conan was a sweet boy… despite his sometimes annoying attitude. But the sweetness he displayed in front of them was nothing compared to the sweetness he displayed in front of Sanashi and Shinichi.

[Sonoko then starts teasing Ran about Shinichi, causing Sanashi to sigh and silently turn away with Conan in her arms. Unfortunately, someone suddenly calls out to them.

Oota looked at them and asked if they wanted to walk with him, causing Sonoko to smile happily—unfortunately, Oota walked over to Sanashi instead, leaving her stunned. Sanashi, on the other hand, smiled dryly and shook her head, politely declining Oota's invitation, saying that her friend, Sonoko, would be happy to go.

The young man looked disappointed, but then glanced at Conan in Sanashi's arms before turning his attention to Ran and asking her.]

“Ah.” Several people smiled awkwardly and tried not to say anything as Sonoko, who was on screen, teased Ran again about Shinichi. Luckily, it didn’t last long because someone called out to them.

Masumi tsked when Oota suddenly invited one of them to walk with him. “Tch, playboy.”

“Isn’t it still raining out there? Why is he suddenly asking her out?” Kazuha asked in confusion, making Heiji groan silently.

The sound of “ah.” was heard again, while several others let out long breaths.

“And of course he’s after the prettiest one,” KID muttered under his breath in annoyance. “I would have pranked him if I were there.”

He suddenly felt annoyed with the person who tried to flirt with his Sana-chan!

“Does he think that Sanashi-san will just leave Conan-kun to go with him?” Furuya asked in half-annoyance when Oota glanced at Conan as if the boy was a nuisance and immediately ignored him.

Kogoro nearly vomited blood when Oota turned his gaze to Ran. “Ran! Don’t let that pathetic man take you!”

Ran could only grimace as she remembered what would happen after this.

[Conan narrows his eyes at Oota and hugs Sanashi's neck tightly. He scowls at Oota who immediately grabs Ran's arm and walks with her in the rain without waiting for Ran's answer. On the other hand, Sonoko doesn't accept this and grumbles to herself that she was the one who saw Oota first. Sonoko then grabs Sanashi and forces her and Conan to follow Oota and Ran.

The corner of Sanashi's eye twitched and she wondered why she had to get dragged into all this, but since Sonoko had already pulled her along, Sanashi and Conan (who was still hugging Sanashi's neck like a baby panda) had no choice but to go along with Sonoko to stalk Ran and Oota.]

“WHAT?!?!” Kogoro roared in anger when he saw his daughter being dragged away like that. “This is coercion! Ran, why didn’t you refuse him?!”

“Mouri-kun, calm down… considering your daughter’s personality, I’m guessing she’s too polite to refuse so rudely…” Megure, behind Kogoro couldn’t help but sweatdrop at his former coworker’s outburst. After all, this was in the past, and there was nothing they could do about it.

Sonoko let out a long groan and covered her face with her hands as the scene on the screen showed what she had been thinking in the past.

“I still don’t understand why we had to tag along with you to stalk them, Sonoko-neechan,” Conan said, furrowing his brows. “I mean, as much as I hate to say it—Oota-san was after Neechan, right? Then why did you create a scenario as if Neechan couldn't accept that Oota-san invited Ran-neechan and ended up choosing to stalk them?”

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…Conan-kun, have you watched too many dramas?” asked Sonoko in disbelief.

“… doesn’t Sonoko-neechan always create scenarios like that?” Conan asked back with a look of incomprehension.

Ai smack his head without mercy.

“OW! Why did you do that, Ai-san?! What more could I have done wrong to you?”

“You watch too many dramas, your way of thinking has become dramatic.”

“Wha—Hey! I’m not being dramatic!”

[Along the way, Sonoko grumbled under her breath that Ran already had Shinichi and she wanted Oota for herself, making Sanashi and Conan stare at her with a mix of tiredness and exasperation. They were both already half-contemplating turning around and going back to the villa because they didn't want to listen to Sonoko's nagging any longer.

Meanwhile, Oota and Ran are walking along, chatting casually about love. Oota even gently suggests that Ran should leave that heartless man and find someone else. This silences Ran. Realizing this, Oota smiles slyly and says that he can show Ran what real adult love is like.]

Upon seeing this, Sonoko immediately covered her ears and squeezed her eyes shut. “La-la-la-la! I don’t want to hear this! Aaaah!”

Ran could only laugh dryly and pat Sonoko's back to calm her down from her embarrassment.

Some people narrowed their eyes when the screen's focus shifted to Oota and Ran walking together.

“His pretend gentle voice makes me nauseous.” Kazuha cursed in disgust.

“Aoko doesn’t like this, Oota-san seems to be planning something bad!” Aoko said while looking at the screen with a worried expression.

“FUCK! GET AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER!” Kogoro cursed and almost jumped out of his seat if Megure hadn’t tried to hold his shoulders from behind.

On the other hand, Sato and Jodie smiled creepily. “There are so many assholes in this world.”

“Agreed, I can guess that Oota will be the first one to scream like a girl when something happens.”

[Oota embraces Ran and brings their faces close, but before the man can do anything, lightning strikes and makes Ran scream in surprise and runs away from Oota who is now cursing.

Sanashi stared at Oota coldly with a mixture of disgust before running after Ran, leaving Sonoko alone.]

Ran grimaced even though her cheeks were red when the scene showed her closeness to Oota.

In the back seat, Kogoro would have sworn again if Megure hadn't covered his mouth and held him still.

“Oh thank goodness lightning struck!” Kazuha breathed a sigh of relief, while Heiji beside her shivered in fear when he saw Sanashi's gaze on Oota.

[Ran ran until she was in the middle of the forest. When she realized it, she started shouting for Oota, but no one answered her. Worried, Ran started walking while looking left and right for a way out.

Suddenly, someone stood behind Ran and was ready to kill her using an axe.

Luckily, Ran realized it in time and reflexively moved to avoid the axe that would have killed her. But when she saw who had attacked her, Ran screamed loudly and fell to the ground in fear.]

“Wait a minute, how big is the forest there?” Saguru asked suddenly. “It would be dangerous for Ran-san to be alone in the forest.”

“Moreover, Ran-chan almost got lost earlier,” Masumi added. After a few seconds, she added again. “But Kudo-kun and Conan-kun chased after her, so I don’t think we need to worry.”

“Gasp!”

“Ran!”

“KYAH!”

"AH!"

They all suddenly screamed when the bandaged man appeared behind Ran almost killing her with an axe.

KID bit his lip and cursed under his breath. “That costume is worse than a half-finished Halloween costume.”

[The man with bandages all over his face who attacked Ran slowly stood up and approached Ran as if taking his time to kill her. Unfortunately, Sanashi and Conan arrived first and saw him. Behind them, Sonoko followed, asking why Ran was screaming.

When he saw Sanashi, Conan and Sonoko, the bandaged man immediately ran away leaving them.]

“Ran! Get out of there now!” Kogoro shouted in frustration. “Why aren’t you standing up?!”

Almost everyone there breathed a sigh of relief when Sanashi and Conan arrived.

"Oh thank goodness they came!"

“They came at the right time, thank goodness!”

“Although I regret that the bandaged man escaped, I am relieved that Ran-san was unharmed.” Furuya folded his arms, silently thinking about who the bandaged man’s first victim would be and how serious this case would be.

[When they reunite at the villa, Sonoko frantically recounts Ran's experience, shocking Ayako. Sonoko then asks Hiroki, Chikako, and Oota about the man, as they were also in the forest. Unfortunately, they haven't encountered any such man at all.

Oota claims he's busy looking for Ran, while Hiroki and Chikako start arguing because Chikako provoked Hiroki. Ayako immediately tries to intervene, making Oota snort.]

“One of them must be the culprit… but it could be a third person’s plan.” Kazami looked at Hiroki, Chikako, and Oota on the screen with suspicion.

Ginzo, beside Kazami, nodded in agreement. “We can exclude Chikako, since the perpetrator is clearly a man. So all that’s left are Hiroki, Oota, and Takahashi.”

“But why is Ran-chan the only one being targeted?” Masumi asked, suddenly realizing that the bandaged man had only shown himself to Ran, Sanashi, and Conan from the start. “Does anyone have a grudge against Ran-chan?”

“But what’s the reason? Ran-chan just met them that day! There’s no reason for them to hold a grudge against her!” Kazuha asked worriedly.

“Maybe Mouri-chan ruined someone’s face in with her karate and they decided to take revenge.” KID chuckled, making Ran turn to him with a strange expression. “Hm? Why, Mouri-chan?”

“Oh, no. It’s just that what you said is the same as what Conan-kun said back then, KID-san,” Ran said, shaking her head in amusement.

Hearing this, Conan and KID both blinked their eyes in surprise.

[Sonoko then asked Ayako because she thought that the man ran towards the villa, but Ayako was busy preparing the ingredients for dinner, so she didn't see him. Takahashi was the same, because he had been on the roof all this time and he didn't think that the man would come to the villa.

"Speaking of weirdos, I saw one on the bridge when I arrived. I couldn't see his face, but he was really creepy. He was wearing a black cloak and a tulip hat…" Takahashi said.

His words made Ran say that the man was the one they saw on the bridge and attacked her. Sanashi and Conan nodded beside her, as they were the ones who saw the man try to attack Ran.]

“Oh, so my theory that he was only after Ran-chan was wrong. If he was only after Ran-chan, he wouldn’t have bothered to show himself in front of everyone.” Masumi furrowed her brows. “But somehow, I still feel strange about this.”

“If what Takahashi said is true, there is a possibility that everyone there will be targeted,” Saguru added.

“Do you remember anything about this case, Megure-keibu?” Shiratori asked Megure. Among all of them, Megure is the one who most often deals with cases involving Kogoro, Ran and Conan.

Megure hums, “I don’t remember ever dealing with this…”

“Ah, the one who handled this case wasn’t Megure-keibu.” Sonoko confirmed, “if I’m not mistaken, his name at that time was Iru… Iruki?”

“Iruki?” Sato asked, surprised. “We don’t have a partner named Iruki… perhaps you mean Haruki? Or perhaps Iruma?”

“Ah! Yes! Iruma-san! He’s the one handling this case!”

[Hearing this, Oota said that he saw someone in a black robe when he came. Hiroki also said the same thing, but he didn't see his face and thought that he was someone who lived nearby.

Ayako refuted Hiroki's statement, saying that while some people lived far away on the other side of the bridge, they would have to cross a mountain on this side of the villa. This naturally caused panic, leading Hiroki to ask Ayako to call the police.]

“But what Conan-kun said before is true… why would anyone build a villa in such a remote and inaccessible place…? I don’t understand how rich people think.” Kazami let out a long sigh as the screen showed Ayako leaving to contact the police.

“Plus, it’s hard to get a signal in that place. I guess you’ll have to use a landline to contact the outside world.” Yume hummed, “I guess it wouldn’t be bad if Hakase and I could create a communication device that could connect us wherever we are…”

“Oh! Oh! And it has to have a camera! And a voice recorder too! If anything happens, we won’t have to keep relying on Niichan to find us!” Conan immediately added his request, making Ai push his face away.

“Creating innovations like that isn’t easy! Don’t just go around making things difficult for Neesan!” Ai snorted, “plus, you already have a detective badge!”

Conan pouted when he heard that, making Yume chuckle and say that she would think about it.

[Sonoko whispers to Ran with a dreamy expression that this is all like a movie. She then starts spouting nonsense and squealing as she imagines that Oota will save her from a terrible killer.

Ran, Sanashi, and Conan could only stare at her with exasperated looks.

Meanwhile, Ayako called everyone when the phone was unusable. They also couldn't use their phones because there was no signal at the villa. This scared Takahashi, who started screaming that the bandaged man had cut them. He then ran out onto the bridge.]

“I—” Sonoko stared at the screen, which now displayed her imagination in such detail, leaving her stunned with a mixture of embarrassment and amazement. “How did this place know about my imagination?!”

Masumi whistled, “it really is like a real movie.”

“It’s just that the actors in this movie are ourselves… huh, I hope this place won’t reveal some of the organizational secrets we sometimes think about.” James knew that the chances of that were slim, but there were some things that only the top brass of the FBI were allowed to know!

KID raised an eyebrow as Takahashi started shouting. “How did he know the bandaged man cut the wire?”

“He’s scared, scared people always imagine unreasonable things.” Saguru denied, but didn’t completely ignore what KID said.

KID just hums in response.

[Worried, the others followed Takahashi outside and found that the man had stopped at the end of the bridge before stepping back as if frightened. When the others looked to see what was wrong, they realized that the bridge connecting the villa to the other side had collapsed.

Oota casually suggests that the bridge might have fallen on its own, but Conan denies this and points to the posts used to hold the bridge's ropes together. They're all torn up, and someone must have cut them with a blade.]

Sonoko and Ran exchanged glances. As people who knew how the case unfolded, they realized that Takahashi had deliberately led them to this conclusion to scare them.

Starting from informing that the telephone cable was cut to the bridge being damaged.

“You know, after I look back at all this and know what’s going to happen, it all seems like a cheap horror story.” Sonoko whispered to Ran, knowing that the detectives around them wouldn’t like it if she gave away any spoilers about the case.

“So the bandaged man destroyed the bridge to lock them in the villa.” Takagi said, “but when did the bandaged man have time to do that…?”

“Eh?” Ran, Sonoko and Conan immediately turned to look at Takagi when the man said that.

"That's right, he must have rushed back to the villa to hide his clothes. So maybe he still had time to cut the telephone wires, but to destroy the bridge?" Ginzo asked. "Given the size of the ropes and the bridge posts, destroying them would take some time."

“And during that time, someone might have seen the bandaged man damaging it.”

"Or hear something—damage that severe is bound to make quite a lot of noise. Especially if it's done repeatedly."

[Takahashi becomes increasingly hysterical until Chikako screams that it's all ridiculous. The woman then explains that it was all done to scare them and that all this fear is what the man wants to see from them. After that, the woman turns and goes into the villa followed by a worried Ayako.

Chikako snorted when Ayako worried about her. She sarcastically remarked that they could wait until morning to cross the mountain. Besides, the bandaged man everyone was afraid of was probably hiding in the forest.

After saying that, Chikako suddenly realized that there was a piece of paper slipped under her door. When she picked it up and read it, her face suddenly paled and she immediately told Ayako that she was going to rest now and that she didn't want to eat dinner.]

“That’s true, but…” Sonoko looked at Ran in confusion. “We didn’t hear anything.”

“I didn’t hear anything strange either.” Conan furrowed his brows, trying to remember any other details he might have missed during the on-screen incident. “If he had indeed destroyed the bridge while we were all away from the villa, Ayako-san should have at least heard something.”

"Furthermore, the bridge isn't too far from the villa. We should have heard something strange when he damaged the bridge."

“Huh? Wait, Chikako, Hiroki, Oota, Ran-chan, Sonoko-chan, Sanashi-san, and Conan-kun were outside the villa at that time—although we don’t know how far Chikako and Hiroki were from the villa, but other than them, you guys didn’t go too far from the villa, right?” Takagi confirmed.

“So there was no one in the villa besides Takahashi and Ayako.” Furuya hummed, “I think we can narrow down the culprit from there. And—oh, looks like the first victim is about to fall.”

“So cold, Furuya-kun,” Akai quipped, half teasingly. “But you’re right, someone might hold a grudge against that woman for her arrogance.”

“Just like I hold a grudge and can’t wait to kill you with my own hands, Akai Shuuichi!” Furuya hissed in annoyance, but Akai only replied with a smirk that made his blood boil.

Jodie on the other side of Akai could only let out a long sigh and wonder if she should drag Akai to the doctor to get his head checked after all this was over.

[The scene cuts to Ran, Sonoko, Sanashi, and Conan helping Ayako prepare dinner and set it on the dining table. Ayako feels guilty that this reunion is all so tense and uptight, leading Sonoko to say that Ayako started it by bringing up 'that' story.

Conan and Sanashi exchanged glances, then Sanashi bluntly asked if they were referring to Atsuko. Conan added that Ayako had mentioned something that happened two years ago. The question left Ayako speechless for a moment, until the woman quietly explained that Atsuko was a member of the film club, but she committed suicide two years ago. They found Atsuko hanging at HQ, and from then on, everything fell apart.

Ayako then asks Conan and Sanashi not to ask about that anymore, making them both nod.]

Masumi secretly glanced behind where Akai was sitting and wondered if this was Shuu-nii's real figure. The girl then turned to glance at Conan beside her, who had been busy recalling details he might have forgotten about this case.

"Hey," she called to the boy who called her older brother 'Dad'. “Are… they always like that?”

Conan blinked and glanced at Masumi before giving a quick glance at what was happening back there. “Oh. Their relationship… um, it’s hard to explain. Niichan said they have some thirst for each other and had a three-way relationship…? I don’t understand, but what I do know is that Dad always had a thing for Amuro-san.”

Masumi's cheeks flushed red and she almost yelled if she hadn't remembered where they were. "A-a three-way relationship?!"

Ai made a dying sound in her throat. “I don’t want to know this! There’s too much information, Conan-kun! Now shut up and focus on the screen!”

[Oota and Hiroki then appear and say that all the food looks delicious. Hiroki then asks about Chikako and Takahashi who haven't shown up yet. Ayako replies that Chikako went to bed early, while Takahashi is fixing the roof.

Just then, Takahashi appeared on the second-floor balcony and took off his raincoat, saying that the roof had been repaired. He was just about to descend from the second floor when his gaze suddenly fell on something outside the villa.

Takahashi then shouted that there was someone below near the window.]

KID, who was listening in on the conversation, almost whistled if he hadn't remembered what had just happened in his heist before Akako trapped him and forced them all into this place. He wisely kept his mouth shut again, but filed the information away for future blackmail.

“Repairing the roof? In that kind of weather?” Saguru asked, not hearing the conversation between Masumi and Conan and more focused on what the screen in front of them was showing.

Their focus sharpened again when Takahashi shouted.

[As everyone's gazes were fixed on the window, a man in bandages passed by quickly carrying Chikako, leaving them all stunned until Oota and Hiroki scrambled to open the window. Unfortunately, it was too dark outside to see where the man was going.

Conan and Sanashi quickly ordered everyone to move aside and jumped out of the window to chase after the man. They each held a flashlight and went straight in the direction the man had gone, causing Oota to shout that the boys would follow Sanashi and Conan, while the girls stayed behind and locked the door.]

“—!”

“He kidnapped her?! So the bandaged man was really the third party and not one of them?!” Kazuha pursed her lips in worry. She knew there was nothing they could do, as they were looking into the past.

“Is Chikako-san okay…?” Aoko asked shakily. She didn’t even know if she wanted to hear the answer.

Ran and Sonoko exchanged glances.

“Nakamori-chan,” Ran tried to say gently, “Chikako-san was the only victim of the bandaged man.”

Aoko's breath caught in her throat. “O-oh…”

Saguru, without saying anything, patted Aoko's back awkwardly, while KID glanced at Aoko with a worried look.

“Conan-kun!” Takagi shouted in surprise as Conan and Sanashi immediately jumped up and chased after the bandaged man through the rain and darkness of the night. “Chasing a criminal like that—that’s dangerous!”

Megure sighed and shook his head, seemingly tired of reminding Conan. “Conan-kun is always like that…”

[The five of them ran into the forest and found a severed leg. Not far from them, Takahashi screamed and pointed at a severed hand in a trembling manner. Hearing this, Oota told them to split up, but Sanashi and Conan refused, saying it was dangerous.

They then started looking around and making sure that they weren't too far from each other.

Not long after, Hiroki tripped over something and realized it was Chikako's body. He then tried to pick her up—only to see her head roll off her neck.]

KID, Aoko, Kazuha, Ran, and Sonoko screamed in shock and horror when they saw a piece of a leg suddenly appear on the screen.

“She was mutilated?!” Heiji said in horror. “How much did the bandaged man hate her that he mutilated her body?!”

“I agree with Sanashi and Conan. It would be better if they didn’t split up. The bandaged man might still be around.” Kogoro nodded in agreement when Sanashi and Conan refused to let them split up.

When Hiroki tripped over something, Conan immediately remembered what was about to happen and quickly shouted, “Everyone, close your eyes!”

But it was too late, the screen had already shown what happened when Hiroki tried to lift Chikako's body.

“KYAAAAAAAA!” Aoko, Kazuha, Ran, and Sonoko immediately screamed loudly.

KID couldn't even maintain his poker face and covered his mouth with his hand—trying to hold back the unbearable nausea from the scene they had just seen.

Someone pulled him closer and KID couldn't do anything but accept it.

“Breathe, KID.” The same person whispered and KID just realized that Kudo Shinichi had already pulled him into a tight embrace. The detective’s hand was also rubbing his back, making KID—Kaito realize something else.

His nausea quickly disappeared and his body easily relaxed in Shinichi's arms.

"I-"

“Shh, it's okay,” Shinichi draped half of his Night Baron cloak over Kaito's shoulders and he immediately calmed down.

Kaito didn't know when the armrest between them disappeared when he realized his body was now completely pressed against Shinichi's without any barrier. But he was grateful that Shinichi had calmed him down and saved him from the embarrassment of vomiting in a place like this.

[Ayako, Ran, and Sonoko scream in disbelief when Oota, Hiroki, Takahashi, Conan, and Sanashi return to report that Chikako has been murdered and her body parts are scattered throughout the forest. This makes Ayako cry, feeling that it's all her fault, but Hiroki comforts her, saying that the one to blame is the bandaged man who took Chikako away right before their eyes.

Sonoko asks worriedly what they'll do if the man comes back, and Oota replies that they should lock all the doors. The man says that Chikako is in danger because she's traveling alone, and they should forget about her to get enough sleep.]

Hesitantly, Kaito reached out and wrapped his arms around Shinichi's slender waist, slowly hugging the detective back and resting his head on his shoulder. When Shinichi showed no signs of discomfort or resistance, Kaito let out a long sigh and settled more into Shinichi's embrace.

The others were too tense and uncomfortable from the previous scene to notice them. So Kaito took the opportunity to remove his hat and replace it with his white robe to cover his head before placing his head back on Shinichi's shoulders.

Kaito blinked when he felt Shinichi's warm cheek on top of his head, but he didn't move from his position and let Shinichi's body slowly relax completely—almost like he was falling back asleep.

“Hearing it is so different from seeing it…” Sonoko whispered shakily. Her hands were still tightly gripping Ran beside her, horrified by what she had just seen.

Ran nodded shakily. She couldn't find her voice at all because—even though she had seen such horrific scenes many times due to her father's work as a detective and the various cases that had come their way, she was still unfamiliar with this.

'How could someone be so cruel?' Ran thought in horror.

“How could he tell everyone to go to sleep and forget what happened to Chikako?” Heiji asked in disbelief. One of his hands was holding Kazuha's to calm her down, but his ears were still listening to the conversation on the screen.

[Oota's words made Hiroki growl in anger, but Ayako quickly broke it up and asked them all to check once more before resting so they could go down the mountain in the morning and call the police.

In the end, they all checked and locked all existing windows and doors.

Conan and Sanashi, as usual, checked several places until they realized that Chikako had left through the back door—as if she didn't want anyone to see her leave the villa—when they found slippers at the back door. They also found strange thread marks on the balcony.]

“What he said wasn’t wrong,” Shiratori said, recovering from his daze. “Mountain roads aren’t easy.”

“But leaving a dismembered body on the mountain overnight… It would be a miracle if Chikako’s body was still intact the next day.” Megure shook his head. He didn’t remember this case—and even if he did, he wouldn’t be able to recall the details.

“That’s true… but it was raining that night. Chikako’s body should be fine because of the cold… although the water could also damage her body.”

When Conan and Sanashi found Chikako's slippers at the back door, everyone's attention returned to the case in front of them.

“Oh, the victim’s slippers at the back door and the thread marks on the balcony… how strange.” Yuusaku hummed, his brain quickly trying to solve the case on screen. “But there’s still one piece of evidence missing…”

[The two of them then meet Ran and Sonoko who tell them to go rest before turning off the lights. Conan and Sanashi exchanged glances and followed Ran and Sonoko up to the second floor, before Sanashi took the opportunity to tell Ran to go in and change clothes first.

Ran stared at her incredulously, but Sanashi just smiled awkwardly and reminded her that she didn't want to see another girl's body. In her mind, Sanashi—Shinichi begged Ran to let him be and not be stubborn about telling him to come inside to change together.]

“Hey, wait-wait-wait! If Sanashi-san was Shinichi-kun all along, doesn’t that mean he’s been near us all this time?!” Sonoko asked as if she had just realized something. Her initial horror was quickly forgotten in favor of a new one. “Ran! He didn’t do anything strange to you, did he?!”

“Huh…?” Ran asked in confusion before her cheeks quickly turned red as she realized what Sonoko meant. “A-ahh! No-no! He never did anything to me! In fact, I was the one who always felt weird because he never wanted to change in the same room!”

“Fufufu~ I raised my son as a gentleman! Right, Yuu-chan?” Yukiko giggled happily. “He didn’t even take the chance Ran-chan unknowingly gave him~!”

Conan turned his head with a disgusted expression on his face, but chose not to say anything as his focus shifted to KID, who was now cuddling with his Niichan. “…”

Ai, realizing what was happening behind her, amusedly pulled Conan's chin back to look at the screen in front of them. Conan reflexively followed Ai's tug, though his expression remained dumbfounded.

[Sanashi almost breathed a sigh of relief when Ran accepted her reasoning. She quickly picked Conan up and jumped down to the first floor the second after Ran closed the door to check the front door. They confirmed that there were no Chikako slippers at the front door—which meant the slippers at the back door were indeed Chikako's.

“I’m going to check Chikako-san’s room tonight. Are you coming?” Sanashi asked, heading back up to the second floor before Ran could realize they were both missing. “Maybe we can find another clue.”

Of course, Conan immediately agreed.]

"Woah—! Jumped down from the second floor?! And she wasn't hurt?!" Kazuha almost screamed.

“Well, we know that Mouri-chan also jumped from the second floor of the agency and is fine…” Chikage said.

“And what’s more, she once jumped from a high fence,” Jii added, somewhat impressed by Sanashi’s abilities.

“Ah!” Ran exclaimed when she heard that Sanashi and Conan were planning to check Chikako’s room. “Are you planning to leave me alone in the room?”

Conan blinked, finally snapping out of his daze. He also just remembered that they'd forgotten about that plan because of what happened next. "That's right, Neechan promised to take me!"

[The scene changes to Conan sitting in a daze, Sanashi checking her bag, and Ran locking and closing the window blinds. Ran smiles at the dazed Conan and says that if that man comes again, she will beat him up, so Conan doesn't need to worry.

Conan smiled awkwardly when he heard that. In his heart, he thought that Ran would be afraid when facing the man, just like in the forest before this—Conan blinked when he realized that the man was attacking Ran.

“Ran-neechan, why did that person attack you?”]

Ran gasped. “Conan-kun! Mou! I was trying to cheer you up!”

“Hahaha…”

[Ran says she doesn't know and Conan teases her by explaining that maybe someone has a grudge against Ran because his face was ruined by her karate, making Ran exclaimed in annoyance and tell him to go to sleep.

Sanashi, who had been watching with her 'The Famous Five' novel in her hands, chuckled. She then climbed onto the bed and leaned against the headboard, letting Conan snuggle up to her.]

“Pfft, KID actually said the same thing as you.” Ai teased Conan amusedly, making several people (Masumi, Sonoko, Ran, Heiji, Kazuha, Aoko and Saguru) glance at KID.

And immediately did a double take. “K-KID?!”

Kai—KID just waved his hand indifferently at them and went back to cuddling with Shinichi. He felt sooo comfortable.

“Oi! Get your sticky hands off from Kudo!” Heiji quickly raged, but Kazuha held him in place.

“Oh come on, Heiji! Let them be! Isn't Kudo-kun okay with that? Even an international thief like KID would be uncomfortable with what we saw earlier!”

“But… oi, Conan-kun! Are you okay with this?!” Still not accepting it, Heiji asked Conan for help. But he should have known better than to ask that little devil for help.

“Meh. As long as Niichan doesn’t complain, just leave him be.” The boy said after a quick glance at KID and Shinichi. ‘Besides, KID—Kaito-niichan must have almost vomited after seeing Chikako’s severed head. Even though he’s a criminal, I’m sure he’s never encountered such a brutal murder.’

Heiji stared at Conan as if he were an alien, but eventually shut his mouth after Kazuha pulled his arm with a warning look.

Meanwhile, Saguru and Aoko watched KID and Shinichi's closeness with frowns. For some reason, they felt completely unfamiliar with KID. His behavior wasn't the KID they knew.

[No one spoke until Ran woke up again and awkwardly asked Sanashi and Conan if she could sleep with them. Conan woke up too and asked if something was wrong, while Sanashi looked at Ran with amusement in her eyes.

Sanashi finally took pity on Ran who was starting to squirm in her spot and gently ruffled Conan's head before getting up from her spot as well. "Conan, sleep with Ran-san, will you?"

Conan caught Sanashi's eyes and nodded. He ignored Ran's stuttering and moved to where Sanashi had been sitting before, then he patted the empty side of his bed while looking at Ran as if telling her to get on the bed.]

Ran on the other hand watched KID and Shinichi with a suspicious look, but kept her mouth shut and returned her focus to the screen in front of them.

“So you are afraid!” Sonoko said amusedly, for some reason choosing not to comment on KID-sama and Shinichi-kun’s closeness.

“Mou, Sonoko! Who wouldn’t be afraid after experiencing something like that?”

The police and FBI watched the scene with amusement, though Sato and Jodie smiled in relief that Shinichi—Sanashi chose to get out of bed and let Conan sleep with Ran.

Even though Shinichi disguised himself as Fujimine Sanashi, a girl, he was still a teenage boy inside. Sleeping with a girl his own age in the same bed was unethical, even if they weren't doing anything. Especially if the girl in question didn't know about it.

[Sanashi then moved onto the bed Ran had left and as if realizing that Ran still felt bad for her, she simply smiled reassuringly at Ran before starting to open her lips and read the book she was holding.

Slowly, Ran and Conan were swept away by her voice and began to fall asleep. Conan blinked a few times to stay awake and began to think about the mystery of the murder that had just occurred, but his eyes betrayed him.

Too bad the bandaged man wouldn't let him sleep that night.]

“It’s a good thing he doesn’t sleep in the same bed as my daughter!” Kogoro grumbled, “even sleeping in the same room is not allowed!”

Ran could only laugh awkwardly, though she was secretly grateful that Shinichi was a gentleman who would not hurt her or take advantage of her.

Their bodies immediately tensed when the narration suddenly said that the bandaged man would not let them sleep that night.

[Sanashi froze and turned to the window when it happened. A hand reached in and unlocked the window before letting itself in like a ghost in a cheap horror novel. The man looked surprised to see Sanashi still awake, but his eyes quickly fell on Ran and, ignoring her, raised his axe and tried to kill Ran.

“Conan! Ran! Wake up!” Sanashi shouted, throwing the book she was holding at the bandaged man. She immediately kicked him in the side when he was distracted by her throw.]

Aoko made a horrified sound in her throat and her hand reflexively gripped Saguru's arm beside her.

“Shit! He broke the window and unlocked it!” Takagi cursed, quickly becoming worried about Ran, Conan, and Sanashi. “Is Sanashi-san okay?”

“And Ran-chan is being targeted again!” Sato gasped in surprise when she realized this. “But why…? What did Ran-chan do to deserve being targeted by the bandaged man?”

“So my previous theory was correct.” Masumi clenched her jaw. “But who did it? Why did he target Ran-chan?”

At the same time, Yuusaku made a soft 'ah' sound, indicating that he now knew why the perpetrator attacked Ran and who it was. "All that's left is to find out the killer's motive…"

[Conan, who had woken up upon hearing Sanashi's scream, froze when he saw the bandaged man trying to attack Ran again, ignoring Sanashi who was still standing and trying to stop him. He snapped out of his daze when Sanashi snap at him and told him to wake Ran up.

Sanashi dodged the bandaged man's axe swing and struck him in the heart, causing him to stagger and cough. Not missing the opportunity, Sanashi punched the man hard in the jaw, causing him to fall to his ass.

At the same time, Conan shouts using the full volume of his voice-changing tie and manages to wake Ran up.]

“… I’m amazed that Ran-san can still sleep soundly in a situation like that,” Furuya muttered when he saw Ran who was still sleeping as if not disturbed by the commotion around her.

“Kyaa!” Kazuha and Sonoko screamed in horror as the bandaged man attempted to attack Sanashi with his axe before refocusing his attack on Ran.

“Ran!!! Why won’t you wake up?!?!” Sonoko now started shaking Ran’s body in frustration.

Ran, pale as she realized what kind of danger she was in, could only swallow in horror.

“Hm?” Furuya’s gaze sharpened as he watched Sanashi’s movement as she struck the bandaged man’s jaw. “She can boxing too?” he muttered in surprise.

Sonoko and Kazuha, even Shiratori and Ginzo cheered when Conan managed to wake Ran up.

[Seeing that Ran woke up, the man scrambled and immediately ran out of the window. Sanashi was about to chase after him, but her heart suddenly ached so bad and made her clench her jaw because—why did she have another heart attack at the wrong time?! And Conan, who saw that something was wrong with Sanashi, immediately ran over to his sister.

Ran, who was still half-conscious, saw the bandaged man trying to escape and immediately screamed, waking up the entire villa.]

“Hell yeah! Go after her, Kudo-kun!” Kazuha clenched her fists, but her expression quickly turned to worry as Sanashi on screen began to shake and collapse. “Oh no, another heart attack?!”

Masumi also cursed, “Shit! He managed to escape!”

Saguru, who was now half-focused on the screen and half-consoling Aoko, quietly breathed a sigh of relief. “But thank goodness you guys weren’t hurt… Besides Sana-uhm, Kudo-kun had a heart attack, of course. Is he okay?”

[The entire villa quickly gathered in Ran, Sanashi, and Conan's room to check what had happened. Conan saw Sanashi still trying to catch her breath with Ran beside her, and obediently explained what had happened to the others. He also pointed to the hole in the window that had allowed the bandaged man to unlock it.

Hiroki and Oota checked outside and they suspected that the bandaged man climbed to the second floor using a tree.

Conan listened to their conversation and found it strange because the bandaged man hadn't left any mud on the balcony or on the floor of their room. If he had come in from outside, with the heavy rain still falling—there should have been mud.]

“He was fine after a while,” Ran replied, still a little nervous but relieved that no one was seriously hurt. She vowed never to sleep like that again in a unfamiliar place—just in case something like this happened again in the future.

“Climbing to the second floor using a tree? In the middle of the night with such heavy rain?” Kogoro asked in disbelief. “Seriously! Your assumptions are completely absurd!”

The others agreed with his statement, especially when the screen showed the room floor clean of mud.

“The perpetrator must be one of them. But who…?”

[Conan turned to Sanashi who stared back at him with knowledge, as if his brother had already solved the case—'Wait a minute.' Conan's thoughts suddenly stopped when he realized that Sanashi already knew who the culprit was. He couldn't help but be astonished because even though he had known for a long time that his brother was a genius, he didn't understand how he could figure out and solve this case with clues that weren't even complete.

Hiroki then told everyone to go to the dining room and wait until morning, making them quickly change clothes and go down to the dining room.

When they went down to the dining room, Sanashi who was standing with Ran supporting her saw the choker that Chikako had previously used in Ayako's pocket. She then asked Ayako why the choker that Chikako had worn was in her hand.]

They were all speechless as the screen showed Conan's monologue about Shinichi already knowing who the culprit was.

“Oi, oi, I get that he’s a genius, but that fast? That fast?!” Heiji asked in a tone that was… almost hysterical. “I haven’t even found the culprit yet!”

“Same here,” Masumi tched, annoyed. “And Conan-kun is right. How can Kudo-kun solve a case with incomplete evidence?”

“Actually,” Yuusaku cleared his throat with amusement in his voice. “The evidence is complete, you just need to put it all together to find out who did it.”

The teenage detectives—Masumi, Heiji, and Saguru froze, looking at each other, before starting to seriously deduce.

“The choker Chikako is wearing now is in Ayako’s pocket? Wasn’t the choker still around her neck when the bandaged man kidnapped her?” Saguru asked the other two teenage detectives.

[Ayako explains that after Sanashi and the others followed the bandaged man, she saw the choker lying at the entrance. This makes Conan, who was listening, immediately think back to all the clues he got, but he still can't come to a conclusion. He then asks Ayako if Chikako was acting strange because the last person who saw her was Ayako.

The young woman blinked in confusion and tried to recall what had happened. She then explained that Chikako had read a letter that had been slipped under her door. After reading it, Chikako's face turned pale and she immediately said she wanted to rest.

Conan frowned upon hearing this and wondered why Ran was targeted twice if her target was Chikako from the start. He then recalled everything Ran did when she arrived at the villa and realized there was a reason why the man targeted her.]

“You’re right, how did that choker end up lying at the entrance? And Ayako-san found it when the others ran out to chase the bandaged man.” Masumi thought back to the evidence they had gathered so far and felt like she was close to the answer, but she couldn’t quite reach it. “Mmngg…”

“So the target was Chikako from the start…” Jodie said, somewhat confused by the killer’s sudden change of plans. “But why did he try to attack Ran-san?”

“Everything Nechan did…” Heiji thought about it for a moment and came to the same conclusion as Conan in the past. “So that’s how it is—!”

Masumi blinked, then grinned, followed by Saguru. “I understand why the bandaged man targeted Ran-chan/Ran-san!”

[Sanashi watched Conan busy thinking and trying to solve the case while keeping her eye on Takahashi. She immediately knew who the culprit was when she saw Takahashi coming into their room from the left, even though Takahashi's room was to the right of theirs. She also noticed that Takahashi was touching his jaw as if he had just been hit. In addition, Sanashi—Shinichi remembered that Ran had brazenly opened the door when Oota, Hiroki, and Takahashi were changing clothes, allowing her to see Takahashi's true form.

That was enough for him to draw conclusions and figure out how Takahashi killed Chikako, and also how the man created an alibi by showing the bandaged man with Chikako in front of them all.

Conan suddenly asks Ran about what she saw, causing Oota to grumble that Conan is suspicious of them and Ran apologizes to the man awkwardly before falling silent as she feels something is wrong.]

“He realized it even when he was like that?” Kazami asked in astonishment.

“That’s why he could immediately identify the culprit! Takahashi indirectly made himself a suspect and had Sanashi-san confirm it through his behavior.” Ginzo nodded in understanding.

"But we all saw the bandaged man carrying Chikako into the forest. And Takahashi was on the second floor at the time," Chiba wondered. "How could he be in two places at once?"

“That’s easy,” Furuya smiled until his eyes formed crescents moon, “the clue is in Chikako’s choker.”

His words made the police, even Kazami, wonder. But Akai beside him snorted softly.

“Seeing that woman's severed head, the man carried her head out of the villa by hiding it in his stomach, eh?”

[Lightning suddenly strikes, causing the lights to go out and everyone panics until Ayako goes with Ran and Conan to get a candle in the kitchen. The others wait for a while until the sound of shattering glass is heard from the second floor veranda.

Meanwhile, Ayako, Ran, and Conan were walking back to the dining room, wondering what was going on when they heard the sound of something breaking. They hurried back when Ran felt something and reflexively kicked whatever it was, breaking it.

The three of them froze when they realized that Ran was being targeted again with an axe. Luckily, the axe had now broken in half, so the bandaged man couldn't use it anymore.]

“Hiding Chikako’s head in her stomach—” Takagi immediately covered his mouth with a pale expression.

“But that makes sense.” Sato didn’t even blink, making Takagi and Shiratori beside her wonder just how tough the woman guts was. “If Takahashi was indeed hiding Chikako’s head in his stomach, that would explain how Chikako’s choker ended up at the entrance.”

Heiji quickly agreed with Sato's statement. He had also had the same suspicions. "I agree with Sato-keiji. Plus, it would be easier for him to just carry Chikako's head than her entire body."

“And if Takahashi did indeed intentionally attack Ran-chan before Ran-chan remembered his true form to silence her forever, then it all fits!”

[When the lights came back on a few seconds later, the three of them immediately ran as Sonoko's screams were heard. Conan and Ran arrived first and saw that one of the windows on the second floor had been shattered. Sanashi stood in front of it, and Conan quickly climbed up to get a closer look.

Hiroki and Oota also come over to investigate, and Hiroki suspects that the bandaged man broke the window and entered from the outside. Oota also adds that the bandaged man climbed onto the veranda through a tree like before. Unfortunately, their suspicions are wrong because Conan sees that the window lock is already open, indicating that the man broke the lock from the inside, went out onto the veranda, and then broke it from the outside to make it look like he entered from the outside.]

“But there’s still one lingering question… what was his motive for killing Chikako?” KID asked suddenly. The thief had been silent the entire time, making everyone almost forget about him. “Why did he have to kill her so brutally?”

Saguru looked at KID with a tinge of worry. Was it just him, or did KID's voice waver slightly at the end of his sentence? "I suspect Atsuko's is his motive."

“Their friend who … died two years earlier?” Aoko asked in surprise. “Why did Hakuba-kun suddenly bring up Atsuko-san’s name?”

“Hmph, human hatred knows no bounds. Their evil surpasses even that of demons.” Akako, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up. “Chikako did something to Atsuko, driving the poor girl to suicide and instilling hatred in the heart of the man who loved her.”

[Conan noticed the broken window and suddenly his gaze fell on the thread marks on the balcony that he had found earlier with Sanashi. 'So that's it, I understand now… but how do I tell them—!' Conan's thoughts stopped when he saw Sanashi's smile. “Neechan…”

Sanashi chuckled and nodded. Her gaze was filled with pride for Conan. She then led Conan down to the first floor to gather with the others and clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. "Everyone, Conan and I now know who did it."]

“So my guess was right, he used a trick to distract them all and create an alibi for himself.”

“Um… I don’t understand how the trick works…” Aoko said awkwardly. “What does the thread marks have to do with the trick Takahashi used…?”

Sonoko and Ran exchanged glances again.

“That's right, Conan-kun didn't explain how Takahashi-san did that trick.”

“Well, we all had enough evidence that the trick he pulled was simply forgotten… we also didn’t think to ask how it worked.”

Conan took a deep breath and glanced at KID as if trying to get the thief to explain his trick, but since KID didn't return his gaze and was still busy cuddling with Shinichi, Conan finally turned to the other teenage detective beside him.

“Sera-neechan, would you mind explaining the trick?” Conan asked with a pleading look.

[Sanashi's words of course took them all by surprise. Oota even immediately doubted Sanashi's words, making her look at the man with an icy gaze and said calmly that even though she was not a detective, she was still the older sister and cousin of Kudo Shinichi, a detective. She then gestured for Conan to start his deduction.

Conan took a deep breath and began to explain that in addition to targeting Chikako, the bandaged man also targeted Ran. The question is, why? He then also pointed out that when Ran was attacked in her room and the bandaged man ran away when Sanashi hit him, there was no trace of mud left behind, even though it was raining heavily outside.]

The corner of Masumi's eye twitched. "...I feel like I'm being scammed. But fine. I'll explain. First, Takahashi tied a string—probably a piano string or something—to the balcony railing. After that, he arranged Chikako's head and the bandaged man doll."

“Oh, I get it! He used the swing and gravity to make it look like his doll was running into the forest while carrying Chikako!”

“But it’s quite a risky trick,” Saguru said. “If he doesn’t retrieve the doll in time, or if it doesn’t move as he wants, his actions will be revealed immediately.”

Masumi snapped her fingers, “right! But if he takes too long, the others will get suspicious too.”

“And because he was in a hurry, he missed the small object that was still attached to Chikako’s neck when he killed her.” Agasa, who was also listening to the conversation, nodded.

[Oota and Hiroki start to argue when they realize this, especially when Conan says that the culprit is one of them. They can't believe Conan's words and Oota also reminds them that they all saw the bandaged man carrying Chikako into the forest, making Conan roll his eyes and explain that it was a trick that could be done with bandages and piano strings.

Slowly, Conan raised his hand and pointed at Takahashi, who had been silent and pale all along. “Takahashi-san, you’re the one who did it.”]

“Ah,” they were all surprised when the screen suddenly showed a trick Takahashi did with piano strings and a bandaged man doll.

“Huh, I don’t remember the boy explaining this?” Sonoko asked in confusion.

“Same here, as far as I remember, Conan-kun never explained this and only said that the bandaged man we saw in the window was just a trick of bandages and piano strings.” Ran also said, as confused as Sonoko.

“That’s so strange… could this be an effect like before?” Kazuha asked. “You know, the effect like Sonoko-chan’s vivid imagination. Or the effect when Kudo-kun had a heart attack.”

“It could be… I don’t remember explaining the trick in detail either.” Conan pondered and tried to recall what he had said at that time.

[Takahashi laughs awkwardly and says that Conan must be joking, causing Sanashi to smirk and ask why Takahashi's jaw would have bruises if he wasn't the culprit. "I'm sure I hit the 'bandaged man' in the jaw and solar plexus before he ran away. That punch must have left a mark... so how did you get it? If you're still stubborn about saying you weren't the culprit... how about you show me your stomach?"

The man refuses and reminds them that he went with everyone to the forest and he didn't bring a body with him, but Conan refutes that and says the proof is Chikako's choker that Ayako found when they all went chasing the bandaged man into the forest. He also explains that it would be impossible for Takahashi to bring Chikako's whole body, but if he only brought the head, then Takahashi could do it.]

“Mmh, yeah. I never explained it in detail. This place must have used my imagination to help show how Takahashi’s trick worked,” Conan said after reflecting.

“By the way… what was that move Sanashi-san did when she hit Takahashi? No, wait, forget that, it’s not important! This screen also shows flashbacks several times without completely changing the scene… like an edit?” Sonoko’s attention was slightly diverted before she returned to focusing on the small clue she had encountered.

“If you put it like that… does this mean there’s someone behind the scenes creating all of this?” Camel quickly became alert, followed by Jodie and James.

“Like a director, you mean?” Akai assured stoically as if what they had just realized was no big deal.

[“The reason why the ‘bandaged man’ attacked Ran-neechan three times was because she saw your real body when she went to the wrong room. That’s why you attacked her, to silence her forever.” Conan sighed and looked at Takahashi’s face, which was changing from pale, green, blue, and then red with anger. “I’m guessing you did it because of something related to Atsuko-san. If you still want to deny it, then you can show me your stomach and I’ll admit that my deduction was wrong.”

Takahashi growled before shouting that he was the one who killed Chikako. The man then began to explain his reasons through gritted teeth. Halfway through his explanation, Takahashi began to cry bitterly, but returned to his hateful expression as he explained how he had chop Chikako's throat, the one who destroyed Atsuko's dreams.]

"But how does this 'director' know what we're thinking? And how does the person behind this know all our secrets?" Jodie asked, her voice trailing off with panic.

“Whoever is behind this, we still don’t know their true purpose.” Megure stroked his chin and looked at the teenager Shinichi had called ‘Witch’, but the girl remained silent, a sign that she also didn’t know who was behind this.

“Witch-san said that we would benefit from this story.” Yuusaku pondered, “but so far I still don’t understand, what kind of ‘benefit’ is meant besides exposing my sons’ private lives and secrets in front of everyone?”

"I understand that this place is trying to show something and also clear up any possible misunderstandings. But I agree with Yuu-chan. What kind of 'benefits' is this place actually referring to?"

“That’s true… if what Yuki-chan said was the benefit of this place, I don’t think it’s worth exchanging the secrets of everyone here for that benefit,” Chikage said. There was a hint of coldness in her voice, making KI—Kaito shiver and unconsciously clung to Shinichi a little tighter.

[Hiroki tries to calm him down, but Takahashi refuses to listen and takes off his clothes, causing the cloak and bandages he used to disguise himself to fall off. Afterwards, Takahashi takes out a knife and threatens Oota and Hiroki to stay away before pointing the knife at his own neck, saying that he will live with Atsuko and become a messenger of justice who avenges Atsuko.

Sanashi glared at him as she saw Takahashi about to commit suicide in front of them. “Then why did you attack Ran-san? You committed a crime to avenge Atsuko-san, yet you attacked Ran-san. Do you know why you attacked Ran-san?” Sanashi stepped closer and grabbed Takahashi’s wrist before saying in an icy tone, “It’s because you’re afraid. You’re afraid of being a criminal, so you attacked her so that what you did wouldn’t be proven. You aren’t any kind of messenger of justice now. You’re just a murderer fostering some bad blood.”]

At this point, their focus was no longer on the screen.

They were busy discussing clues about this place—which they had just realized.

“Koizumi-san, are… are Lucifer didn’t say anything about this…?” Saguru asked hesitantly.

Akako's finger twitched, but the Witch didn't say anything for a few seconds. "...The 'benefit' this place refers to is 'knowledge'. And address him as Lucifer-sama! You mortals shouldn't be using my servant's name carelessly!"

“Knowledge…” Ai narrowed her eyes. “This place wants to give us knowledge… but whether the knowledge this place means is Pandora’s box or not, we can’t know.”

“You mean we don’t know whether the knowledge in question will help us or harm us.” Masumi folded her arms and thought for a moment.

She more or less understood what Ai meant. If the organization that had killed her father, shrunk her mother into a child, and forced Shuu-nii to fake his death was truly that dangerous and powerful, then the information—or knowledge— they would gain from this was a double-edged sword.

'Moreover… as far as I know, there are civilians here. Are they allowed to know this dangerous information…?' thought Masumi as she glanced at Ran, Sonoko, Kazuha, Aoko, and the people she didn't know (besides Kogoro) who were sitting in the third row.

[Those words made Takahashi's body go limp and he dropped the knife he was holding before falling to his knees and crying loudly. Ayako and Hiroki quickly but hesitantly approached him and began rubbing Takahashi's back as if trying to calm him down, while Oota remained frozen where he had fallen.

On the other hand, Sanashi turned and crouched in front of Conan, proudly patting the boy's head and telling him that he had worked hard. Conan responded by hugging Sanashi's neck and nuzzling her, making Sanashi smile softly and lift him up in her arms.

At the same time, the morning light appeared and the rain began to stop, signaling the end of the long night.]

“Tch! Whatever you may be thinking, there’s only one thing for certain; this place has no intention of harming you.” Akako tsked and looked away, but anyone who saw her would notice that her hands were trembling slightly.

“If that's the case, there's only one thing we can do now…” Heiji said, clenching his fists.

“We have to see the end of this story.”

"Even if this place reveals every secret and past you have?" Ai asked sharply, as if questioning their sanity. "Even if the secret that one of you holds will hurt you?"

Kaito tensed before relaxing again when he felt Shinichi's gentle hand on his shoulder. He silently buried his face in Shinichi's shoulder, as if he didn't want to see or imagine what was about to happen because—because sooner or later, KID's civilian identity would be revealed.

“Then we just have to accept it, right? I’m sure we all have our reasons for lying.” Sonoko smiled and clenched her fists. “Just like Shinichi-kun didn’t tell me his secret to protect me and himself, I’m sure the secrets we keep are also for the protection of others.”

Tbc.