Chapter 289, Seventy-Third Cycle (119)

The three real kids from the Junior Detective Club were tricked into playing games at the next table.

Sato Miwako looked at Edogawa Conan and Haibara Ai, who were completely unfazed, and felt a little worried.

Although these two kids are usually smart and calm, which is unusual for children, it's best not to let them hear about topics like male escorts that are inappropriate for children.

Conan Edogawa, of course, objected: "But I already knew about this."

Sato Miwako: "?"

Ai Haibara also raised her hand: "I knew it earlier and more clearly than he did."

Sato Miwako: "..."

"Um, are you really alright?" Takagi Wataru sat down next to the blond youth with concern and handed him the water he hadn't drunk.

"It's really nothing, just an old ailment, nothing serious, it just sometimes gives me a sudden throbbing pain." Rei Furuya smiled as he took the water glass and thanked him.

Upon hearing this, Conan Edogawa's smile gradually faded, and he frowned, looking at him disapprovingly.

Judging from the blond youth's expression and body language alone, he might seem to be fine. However, just a moment ago, his hair and temples were damp and still stuck to his face, which was enough to prove that the pain he had just experienced was not insignificant.

Conan Edogawa took out his phone and tapped on the profile picture of Morofushi Kagemitsu, whom he had just added a few days ago, but before he could even start typing, his hand was grabbed.

He looked up, his gaze meeting the calm purple eyes of the blond youth at close range.

“Don’t tell them,” he said. “They’ll worry.”

"Then don't do anything that would cause worry, really." Conan Edogawa sighed. "No, you still need to go to the hospital for a checkup."

Although I already knew about Furuya Rei's "problem," seeing it with my own eyes was still terrifying.

“It’s really nothing. I’m used to it. I only do those things when I’m sure of my physical condition.” Furuya Rei’s voice was low, but his tone was firm and unwavering. “Some things have to be done, and someone always has to do them.”

Conan Edogawa remained silent, frowning as he struggled with his thoughts.

"What kind of riddle are you two playing?" Ai Haibara squinted, and Miwako Sato also looked suspicious.

Takagi Wataru looked completely bewildered.

"It's nothing, I was just saying that I had no choice but to become a male escort before..." The blond youth turned his head and said with a smile, his expression was very natural, and the relaxed atmosphere also affected the others, who calmed down and listened to his explanation.

According to him, he was actually half-tricked and half-coerced into becoming a male escort three years ago, and he was already involved with the Yamaguchi-gumi from the beginning.

He only resorted to faking his death as a last resort because he had no other choice.

Matsuda Jinpei even helped with this.

They were both by Kiyoko Yamaguchi's side at the time. Although they didn't get along at first, they quickly became friends after realizing each other's true feelings. It can be said that they became friends after a fight.

This year, he visited the Poirot Cafe in Beika Town and became friends with Kenji Hagiwara and Wataru Date, who were with Jinpei Matsuda. They even made a pact to form an amateur band and perform at the Beika Town New Year's Eve concert at the end of the year...

"So, you were actually involved in what Yamaguchi Kiyoko did?" Sato Miwako pressed on, not forgetting her original intention. "You teamed up with Matsuda and the others to impersonate police officers and arrest Yamaguchi Kiyoko, right? You were the blond policeman who caught Pramia and Yamaguchi Kiyoko on the rooftop that Halloween night, weren't you?"

"Hmm." The blond youth scratched his cheek sheepishly. "But I only helped a little bit, at most I was bait, and besides, my past isn't something I should talk about... so could you please continue to protect this secret for me?"

On that handsome face that easily makes people lower their guard and soften their hearts, a gentle yet helpless smile slowly appeared in the sunlight, and then he said slowly, "Right now, I just want to be an ordinary person, and live a peaceful life. Like now, I want to be an ordinary employee in a coffee shop, and occasionally follow Mr. Mori to learn how to become a qualified detective and uphold justice... This kind of life is the happiest for me."

“Of course, no problem!” Takagi Wataru nodded immediately, then sighed, “It’s not easy to be too good-looking… You’ve worked hard too, don’t worry! Since Mr. Date and the others have agreed, I will absolutely not tell anyone else your secret!”

Sato Miwako glanced at him helplessly, then turned to face the blond youth with a serious expression: "Although you said you want to be an ordinary person, you are too deeply involved with the Yamaguchi-gumi. It will probably be difficult for you to live a peaceful life now."

“It’s alright.” Rei Furuya said resolutely. “I believe the police will be able to completely resolve the Yamaguchi-gumi issue sooner or later.”

"Of course, if possible, I also hope that I can be of some help in destroying the Yamaguchi-gumi..."

*

"Huh? Why did I suddenly tell them I was a fox?"

Rei Furuya leaned against the wall, looking up at the azure sky, and said in a relaxed tone, "Yeah, although it's different from the original plan, I think it's better to take this opportunity to let Sato and the others know that I'll often be working with you guys. That way, if we run into each other in future plans, we won't have to make any extra explanations, right?"

This explanation does make sense; it wouldn't be good if Sato kept investigating them out of suspicion.

He offered a few more words of reassurance before finally hanging up the phone.

"Mr. Amuro, you're actually lying, aren't you?" Conan Edogawa said, looking up from the side.

Rei Furuya put away his phone, shrugged and smiled at him: "They're already nervous enough, and my experiment failed this time, so it's best not to say anything."

"What experiment?" Conan Edogawa immediately stepped forward nervously.

Jianggu Ling was silent for a moment.

Conan Edogawa grew even more worried in this ominous silence.

The handsome blond-haired, dark-skinned young man was facing away from the bright sunlight, looking down at him. His expression was a little unclear in the shadows, but Conan Edogawa had a feeling that he was somewhat sad.

“Some fates seem unchangeable.” Rei Furuya raised his hand and stuck the note they had used for cosplay on his head.

Conan Edogawa took the note and found it was the same main character card as before.

Looking up again, he saw that the blond youth was holding a prophet's talisman.

"Why? Haven't many things already changed?" Conan Edogawa frowned and pressed on. "Didn't you say before that fate was in my own hands? Didn't I change my original fate this time? And what was the standard?"

Rei Furuya raised his hand and touched the wound on his forehead: "It changed a part, not a little, but not much either. At least not enough to change Morpheus's fate of death."

Now that things have come to this, it's fair to say they've done everything they could, and there's very little they can do to interfere anymore.

The final outcome is becoming clearer and clearer, yet it is also becoming increasingly bleak.

“However, the hope is not zero,” Furuya Rei affirmed.

"So, our efforts were still worthwhile." Conan Edogawa stared straight at him and suddenly said, "If fate really requires Morpheus to die, can Morpheus fake his death, just like everyone else?"

Rei Furuya sighed, squatted down, gently patted the child's head, and smiled helplessly, "In a work, the weight of different characters' fates is different. The fate of a passerby who is not greatly affected can indeed be easily changed, but... Morpheus is a very important and special character, so the result may be different."

Conan Edogawa pursed his lips: "Isn't the protagonist's weight enough to change fate?"

“I don’t know,” Furuya Rei said. “There are too many variables, even the prophet doesn’t know.”

"We have done everything we could."

"Based on the current intelligence, our chances of winning are not high."

"We have no choice but to take a gamble."

*

November 10th.

There are 45 days left until there are zero deaths in the valley.

Conan Edogawa was taken to Nagano by Hiromitsu Morofushi, where he once again visited and participated in the experiment in the basement of that church.

On their way back, they encountered a case.

The case happened to occur on the border between Nagano and Gunma prefectures, sparking a competition between the police forces of the two sides.

During the visit, Officer Misao Yamamura from Gunma Prefecture felt that Midorikawa Hikaru looked familiar, saying that he resembled his childhood friend, Morofushi Kagemitsu. He also asked Morofushi Takaaki, who was standing nearby, and finally took them to the secret base where the two of them had grown up.

Conan Edogawa took out his phone and took a picture of the small secret base, then sent the picture to Rei Furuya.

*

November 16th.

There are 39 days left until there are zero deaths in the valley.

When Ai Haibara finds the time capsule left by her older sister Akemi Miyano from thirteen years ago at the elementary school, Hikaru Midorikawa delivers sushi to Teitan Elementary School.

Rumi Wakasa stood behind the window, watching him quietly with cold eyes.

Faced with the choice between immediately confronting Scotland and continuing to observe and probe Kuroda Hyoue, she ultimately chose the latter when she saw Conan Edogawa staring at the scratched shogi piece on his phone.

Rumi Wakasa gripped the shogi in her hand, recalling once again the events of three years ago when she heard the news of Rum's death.

Rum's death was sudden, and no one expected it. She, who was working hard to train her body and investigate intelligence, was caught off guard.

To confirm this information, she infiltrated the Black Organization and encountered Scotland, who was dealing with Rum's funeral arrangements.

She received two pieces of intelligence from Scotland.

1. Rum is indeed dead, but it is unknown who killed him.

Second, Rum wasn't the only one who killed Koji Haneda seventeen years ago, but she still doesn't know who the other person is.

Of course, Rum wasn't the only one who killed Haneda Koji; Rum's men, and the entire organization were also murderers. She had originally intended to avenge the entire organization, but—

She needs to know who the biggest accomplice is!

We absolutely cannot let that guy get away with this!

*

November 18th.

There are 37 days left until there are zero deaths in the valley.

Tottori Prefecture.

The Karasuma Group's company building still stands in the deserted mountains.

The blond youth first went to report the information he had recently gathered to the BOSS, Karasuma Renya.

Some of those involved in the Pramie incident are genuine, but others are a setup by their adversaries, who want to take advantage of this massive wave to crush their enemies in the chaotic depths of the sea.

For this reason, the group that joined the Immortality Project shortly after the holographic game is currently struggling to keep up with their own problems.

They were being watched by the police, which restricted their freedom of movement. They couldn't immediately make contact with the organization and would likely have to wait until the Pramie incident had completely subsided and they were cleared of suspicion before they could resume their previously agreed cooperation. They hoped to receive help from the organization.

Karasuma Renya seemed to have calmed down during this time, and was not so angry as to attempt to resuscitate her again upon hearing the news.

He even smiled.

The old man's hoarse voice, accompanied by the cawing of crows, became even more eerie.

“It’s alright, the plan will continue,” he said. “It’ll be quick, we’re almost there…”

The blond youth didn't show much expression on his face. After confirming that the BOSS had no further instructions, he prepared to leave.

But as soon as he stood up, Karasuma Renya suddenly remembered something and said, "By the way, Bourbon, after you finish the Pandora experiment, remember to go to the Brain in the Vat and bring Vermouth back."

The blond youth paused, but without asking any further questions, he respectfully replied, "Yes, BOSS."

He went outside, took out his phone and sent a message to Vermouth, but there was no reply.

He figured the other person was probably still busy, so he decided to finish his own work first.

After the holographic game "Wheel of Fate" was completed, and they basically solved the organization codenamed "Animal," Karasuma Renya also obtained a lot of information about Pandora, and immediately elevated the status of the Pandora experiment once again.

He even moved the laboratory to Tottori Prefecture, placing it alongside two other major immortality project laboratories.

Countless precious gems have been scavenged from all over the world and sent to the laboratory, numbered over a thousand, but so far there has been no progress.

Today was no different. The blond youth pretended to work hard but actually slacked off and completed the task halfway. Four hours later, he leisurely went to the "Brain in a Vat" laboratory in the next building to find Vermouth.

"...How did you become like this?" He looked at the weak, pale blonde woman in surprise, frowned, and stepped forward to support her. "I was wondering why you ended up here before I came. What did they do to you? You didn't participate in the Brain in a Vat project, did you?"

Although Vermouth was also considered an experimental subject before, she belonged to another immortality project—[APTX4869].

Has Karasuma Renya become so desperate that he's starting to have Vermouth do two experiments at the same time?

“…We’ll talk about it later.” Vermouth shook her head slightly, her face grim.

"The BOSS sent me to pick you up..." The blond youth glanced at the ubiquitous surveillance cameras, said nothing more, and led the person out of the laboratory.

Only after getting into the car did he ask in a low voice, "Are you alright?"

"Still alive." Vermouth tied up her sweat-dampened blonde hair, a simple action that took almost all her strength. She could only lean against the chair, panting, and recount the day's events in fits and starts.

The organization's plans were already not going smoothly, and the Digital Life Project also encountered many problems during the last closed beta test of the game "Wheel of Fate".

Researchers discovered that the awakened "brains" and machines, as well as the fantasy world and the real world, had some bugs that reduced the likelihood of the plan again and even damaged several "brains".

Upon hearing this devastating news, Karasuma Renya nearly fainted from anger on the spot.

There was no other way; given the circumstances, how could he possibly be willing to try the not-so-safe digital life project like any other ordinary person?

He could only focus his attention even more frantically on other experiments.

The Pandora experiment is one.

The APTX4869 experiment is also one.

He even went so far as to consider combining several experiments together, and Vermouth was the first and only option.

She almost had to undergo brain surgery.

“This is insane.” The blond youth shook his head.

Vermouth turned to him and said, "You should be careful too, Bourbon. You're not safe either."

Furuya Rei was taken aback and looked up at her.

"?" Vermouth looked at him with a puzzled expression, puzzled by his strange gaze. "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing." Furuya Rei smiled at her, her eyes crinkling. "I just think again that you really suit red."

Vermouth: "?"

Vermouth went to look in the mirror: "I...didn't wear lipstick today?"

*

November 21st.

There are 34 days left until there are zero deaths in the frost.

This day is Matsuda Jinpei's birthday.

Furuya Rei hadn't decided what birthday present to give him this year, but Matsuda Jinpei had given him a big gift first.

"Unit Zero!"

The curly-haired, sunglasses-wearing youth stood with his hands on his hips in front of the blond robot, proudly raising his chin and smiling.

"It's finished!!!"