Chapter 232

Conan Edogawa was completely bewildered. Before he could even ask, the police officers started chatting amongst themselves.

"The time the class monitor's case was solved before him, that guy was the one who called himself Detective Conan, right?"

"Yes, a colleague in Osaka said he also encountered a detective who claimed to be Conan."

"Didn't that cult that caused quite a stir a couple of years ago? I think it was a detective named Conan Edogawa who solved the case there."

When Takagi Wataru heard this for the first time, he exclaimed with some emotion, "Wow, so many detectives named Conan!"

Date Wataru, embarrassed, said, "It could be the same person."

Kenji Hagiwara said, "It's certainly possible, but if it's just a coincidence of names, considering they're both detectives, it doesn't seem too strange. After all, Sherlock Holmes, written by Conan Doyle, is so famous that if someone's name is too embarrassing to use, they might just use a slightly similar one..."

Matsuda Jinpei complained, "But this is too much! Can't we find a different character to fleece them? Why doesn't anyone call him Poirot?!"

"I have seen a coffee shop called 'Poirot' before..."

Conan Edogawa: "…………"

So he's not only not the first detective named Conan, but he might not even be the second or the third!

Although he hastily came up with a fake name because Ran suddenly discovered him and asked for his name, he was actually quite satisfied with it afterward, feeling it exuded a detective vibe—but it turns out he had the same name as someone else!

For a moment, Conan Edogawa was filled with disappointment.

Kenji Hagiwara glanced at Conan Edogawa, whose mood had suddenly plummeted, and comforted him with great emotional intelligence: "However, we can't be sure about others. Maybe it's just a pseudonym. But it's your real name. You don't need to compare yourself to others."

Conan Edogawa, who was dealt the final blow: "…………"

Thank you for your comforting words, but I am using a pseudonym as well.

If this were a game, I probably could only name my character Edogawa Conan 12345.

Conan Edogawa forced a smile, trying to change the subject and stop talking about this sad thing: "Are all the older brothers detectives? Have they been keeping an eye on these people? They came so fast."

Takagi Wataru, who was tying up the prisoner, said, "Eh? No, Matsuda-senpai is from the explosives disposal unit. He just happened to be looking for Hagiwara-senpai..."

Kenji Hagiwara said casually, "Since we're already here, it's good that we're all together... Alright, Conan-kun, you can go downstairs with the other kids. I'll take you downstairs to Sato, who's waiting there, and she can take you home..."

"Ah, wait! Wait a minute!"

Conan Edogawa suddenly remembered something very important and hurriedly interjected, "That person just now said that he asked a 'consultant' to help him decipher the code, but that 'consultant' sounds a bit strange... Do you know what it is?"

At that moment, three of the four policemen had very subtle expressions, while only Takagi Wataru looked completely bewildered.

"Advisor? What advisor?" Takagi Wataru asked, completely bewildered. "I only know that our Metropolitan Police Department has advisors..."

Conan Edogawa is ashamed.

No, these are completely different things... How could a consultant from the Metropolitan Police Department be associated with this kind of criminal!

Kenji Hagiwara felt there was no need to explain to the children; this was an unspoken understanding within the First Investigation Division. Therefore, he replied perfunctorily, "I don't know—alright, alright, it's getting late, you really should go home."

Conan Edogawa noticed the strange behavior of the police officers, and his eyes suddenly sharpened, but he changed his tone and asked in a coquettish manner.

"Hey, haven't you guys heard? That 'advisor' is supposedly amazing. They say he can decipher a code in a second just by glancing at it!"

Kenji Hagiwara subconsciously followed the line of thought for a moment: "Hmm, that guy is indeed quite good at deciphering codes..."

Conan Edogawa: "...???"

It's one thing that this policeman actually knew about that "consultant," but his reaction...

—That ability to decipher the code in a second, does it seem normal to you?! Is that "advisor" really that amazing, like they're cheating?!

"So you did know about the [Advisor], didn't you? Tell me about it!" Conan Edogawa struggled to twist his body, trying to stare at Kenji Hagiwara who was pushing him forward.

Kenji Hagiwara, exasperated, continued to stall, "If the kid doesn't come home soon, his family is going to call the police... Huh?"

Because Kenji Hagiwara unknowingly walked to a place where the moonlight was brighter, illuminating Conan Edogawa's face, and this face immediately made Kenji Hagiwara fall into deep thought.

"Hmm... I feel like you look familiar..."

Conan Edogawa: "...!!! Haha, that must be your imagination. I just have a pretty average face..."

"It's not my imagination, it really looks familiar..."

Matsuda Jinpei had already tied up the prisoner and came over curiously to take a look: "Huh, really, he looks so familiar..."

Conan Edogawa was drenched in sweat. He didn't seem to have seen them much when he was Shinichi Kudo. Could it be through the newspapers...?

“Ah, he looks a bit like Mr. Kudo.” Kenji Hagiwara was the first to think of it, and the more he looked, the more he thought it looked like him. “Look at these glasses, they look like the same style as Mr. Kudo’s.”

Conan Edogawa: "...?! Um, I suddenly remembered that it's so late and I haven't gone home yet. My family must be worried. Um, I can go down by myself. Goodbye, officers!"

When his father unexpectedly dragged him down, Conan Edogawa was so frightened that he quickly made an excuse to leave.

Fortunately, Kenji Hagiwara and Jinpei Matsuda didn't think much of it; they simply remarked that the child looked remarkably like someone they knew.

Takagi Wataru and the squad leader woke up the prisoners first and escorted two of them down, while Matsuda Jinpei and Hagiwara Kenji were responsible for escorting the remaining Italian.

Taking advantage of the fact that the Italians couldn't understand Japanese, Matsuda Jinpei started to complain.

"Han Chuan really knows how to pick his time; he always calls us to work overtime in the middle of the night."

Kenji Hagiwara: "Today is already pretty good, it's only just started to get dark... His schedule is always a headache."

“Otherwise, he wouldn’t have resigned.” Matsuda Jinpei pondered. “But I think he made the right decision to resign; he clearly happier being a consultant.”

"...because the prisoner just delivered himself to him for him to play with."

Kenji Hagiwara thought of the inmates who had been so badly deceived that they didn't even realize it was Shinryu Kanakawa who had reported them, and couldn't help but feel a bit exasperated: "How can I put it? Even at this point, no one has suspected that he betrayed them... Shinryu's aura is just too good at deceiving inmates..."

Matsuda Jinpei chuckled: "After all, not everyone who consulted him got in... those who didn't get in will always speak well of him."

Although Hanchuan Shenliu's group always attracts some dangerous individuals, many of these potential criminals actually give up on crime after talking to Hanchuan Shenliu.

Matsuda Jinpei had been curious about how Sugikawa Shinryu managed to do it for a long time. After all, based on his understanding of Sugikawa Shinryu, that guy's words would only add fuel to the fire, and he couldn't imagine any words of persuasion coming out of that guy's mouth... Just imagining that scene would make him want to vomit.

You should definitely check it out if you get the chance.

After Conan Edogawa was taken home, he was first comforted by Ran Mouri in her arms with concern, and then Kogoro Mouri hit him on the head and scolded him for "making Ran worry so much".

Conan Edogawa, snapping out of his excitement at deciphering the code and catching the culprit, as well as his contemplation of discovering a new mystery called "Advisor," also felt a pang of guilt.

He had to make several vows before he was finally let go.

When Conan Edogawa woke up the next day, he was still thinking about the "advisor".

Considering that Kogoro Mouri was a policeman before, and although he's not exactly a professional detective now, he should still be well-informed, Conan Edogawa cautiously approached Kogoro Mouri, who was reading a newspaper, and asked him a question.

"Hey, Uncle, have you ever heard of a 'consultant'?"

Kogoro Mouri asked absentmindedly, "What kind of advisor?"

"That's right, some prisoners might go there to ask questions..."

"Oh, a crime consultant."

Conan Edogawa's eyes lit up: "Uncle, you really know?!"

"What's there not to know? It's Moriarty from Sherlock Holmes..."

Conan Edogawa's eyes instantly went dead: "It's not that..."

Just then, the phone rang. Kogoro Mouri was too lazy to answer it, so he gestured to Conan Edogawa, who was right next to him, to answer it.

Reluctantly, Conan Edogawa picked up the microphone. Just as he was about to speak, he heard a voice that was clearly being altered by a voice changer.

"I am Keiji Aso from Moonshadow Island... There are still two days until the full moon. The money has been transferred to your account. Please come..."

Moon Shadow Island?

What's going on? So mysterious, and using a voice changer!

Conan Edogawa relayed the message to Kogoro Mouri with a puzzled expression, and Kogoro Mouri immediately understood.

"Oh! The one that sent the letter before... I almost forgot about it." As he spoke, he rummaged through drawers and cabinets and found a letter.

The text on the letter was all cut out from newspapers, and the author's handwriting was not visible. This was done entirely to conceal their identity.

The letter expressed the hope that Kogoro Mouri would go to Tsukikage Island to investigate the case on the night of the full moon.

"They didn't send any money back then, so I thought it was just a prank letter. I didn't expect them to suddenly send money this time... Moonshadow Island, huh... Okay!"

Kogoro Mouri perked up: "Let's go to Tsukikage Island in a couple of days!"

--------------------

Bonus chapter

.

Hagiwara comforted him: At least you're really called Conan, and other people will look at you as a fake.

Shinichi: Thank you for the comfort, but I'm also using a pseudonym.

.

Takagi: We have an advisor in the Metropolitan Police Department.

Conan: That's completely different.