Chapter 68 asks, "Ryusei won't disappear so easily, right...?"

With Matsuda Jinpei with them, there was no way anything could go wrong. The three of them slowly made their way upstairs.

"Don't let Xiao Jinping's good looks fool you, he actually calls everyone 'little kid'."

Kenji Hagiwara, while climbing the stairs, didn't forget to spread rumors, only to be met with a familiar, face-splitting punch.

"ah!"

Skillfully leaning back to absorb most of the force, the young man looked pained and raised his hand to cover his nose: "Hagi's handsome, high, and perfect nose! What should I do? It looks like I broke it, Xiaozhenping!"

The curly-haired youth swiftly withdrew his hand, flicked his arm, turned away disdainfully, and sneered, "Don't cover it, there's definitely no bleeding."

After hitting him so many times, how could he not know the force?

"..."

Watching the two interact, Conan Edogawa looked blank, his crescent-shaped eyes darting past the two childish policemen as he craned his neck to find the other three.

The young detectives, wearing deerstalker hats, were gathered around a corner table, their faces serious.

Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya even brought out a notebook that he only used for class.

"Hey, hey, hey, you three didn't cause any trouble, did you?" Conan Edogawa rushed over.

He knew all too well how curious these three kids were; they had accompanied him to murder scenes several times to observe the bodies, even more daring than he had been back then.

Fortunately, things weren't quite as he had imagined. The juvenile detectives were obediently huddled together, listening to a peer speak.

"...The skin is covered with nerve cells, one type of which is called 'low-threshold mechanosensitive cells C,' and hairy skin is no exception. If a hair clip is deliberately removed from the head, one should feel it. There are water stains on the hem of this girl's clothes, roughly in irregular horizontal stripes, and judging from the height, they should be the same as a children's sink..."

The girl who was speaking raised her hand and tucked her brown sideburns behind her ear, calmly saying, "So, did you go to the bathroom to tidy yourself up and take off your hair clip not long ago?"

The unfamiliar little girl, with two tiny pigtails, swung her arm as she wiped away her tears. Upon hearing this, she nodded affirmatively, "Yes, that's right."

The next moment, she was on the verge of tears again: "My hair clip, it's definitely been picked up by someone!"

The crying attracted the attention of many people around. Ayumi and Genta immediately rushed over and frantically tried to comfort the little girl: "Don't cry, don't cry!"

Unexpectedly, the little girl, overcome with emotion, went from soft sobbing to wailing.

"Oh dear, I just can't do anything with this brat," the tea-haired girl jumped down from her seat, walked up to the little girl, took the ginkgo leaf hair clip from her hair, stood on tiptoe, and pinned it to the little girl's head.

After doing all this, she took a step back, confirmed that the position was just right, clasped her hands together and said with satisfaction, "Here you go, Happy Children's Day."

The girl with pigtails was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter through her tears.

This drew starry-eyed glances from Ayumi and Mitsuhiko, who exclaimed in admiration, "Amazing!!"

Witnessing this scene, Kenji Hagiwara slowly turned his head and sincerely said to Ryusei Kitagawa, "Ryusei... I suddenly think that you're quite good this way."

There was no attempt to talk to children about the hundred ways the murderer could dispose of the body, nor was there any attempt to shock people with Furuya's body, which was very reassuring.

The seemingly random sentence left Kitagawa Ryusei completely bewildered.

Upon recognizing the speaker, Conan Edogawa gasped, his expression resembling a chicken being strangled. He grabbed Ruki Kitagawa's clothes and frantically backed away, his voice low as he whispered, "It's her! It's her!"

That child laborer from the black-clad organization!

His retreat was so conspicuous in the crowd that the girl with tea-colored hair spotted him immediately.

Kitagawa Ryusei, expressionless, pulled the nearly torn Peter Pan collar shirt back from the boy's hand: "Here's a piece of advice for Conan-kun: you should be more polite to women."

He stepped forward: "Although we met this morning, good day, Ms. Haibara."

"Are you out playing with your sister?"

Conan Edogawa fell into a long silence: ...

Kenji Hagiwara was heartbroken and almost beat his chest in frustration: I just said that Ryusuke makes people feel at ease!

As an accomplice and a police officer, this morning marked the first time Kitagawa Ryusei met Sherry.

Before this, they rarely spoke to each other, relying entirely on Akemi Miyano to relay messages.

Having already obtained the fake identity prepared by the police, the girl, now known as Ai Haibara, had a cold expression. Her gaze swept briefly over Rukawa Kitagawa to ascertain his basic condition.

She crossed her arms and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "What do you mean by asking me today if APTX is considered poison?"

According to the original plan, she was not to enter the laboratory until tomorrow, but this morning the police called her to examine the person in front of her.

Upon seeing the shrunken Kitagawa Ryusei, Ai Haibara's mind was completely blank except for confirming that the other person's vital signs were normal. It wasn't until she and another police officer left that she remembered what the other person had asked her.

Kitagawa Ryusei nodded firmly and said, "If I'm not mistaken, the danger of drug A lies in the enormous burden that the heart bears when human cells regress to a juvenile state, which normal people simply cannot withstand."

Otherwise, it's hard to imagine what kind of poison could be undetectable by the National Police Agency's Scientific Investigation Division, which possesses the most advanced technology.

"I would like to poison the medicine and kill Vermouth and Karasuma Renya in one fell swoop, but unfortunately, although my people are not good at research, they still have some knowledge of toxicology."

The girl deliberately made her tone full of regret, but her eyes were probing as she looked at the policeman in front of her: "You're right. Drug A, based on my parents' version of the 'silver bullet' that pursues eternal youth, has abandoned safety and developed in the direction of rejuvenation, but it is far from being effective enough for clinical trials."

Then she changed the subject: "...What, officer, are you also interested in going against time?"

Unconcerned by her suspicions, Kitagawa Ryusei succinctly and frankly stated, "I'm not interested."

Reversing time and maintaining youth were not as appealing to him as the indelible poison.

He was just expressing his feelings because he was distressed about his current situation.

If he's right, his heart's workload disappeared after the [Trayastrimsa Heaven] was triggered, and the effect of the drug A just reached its critical point. The supernatural ability's slow reaction made him shrink with a "crunch".

At the time, the combination of drug A (which I don't know if it counts as a debuff) and superpower was stuck in Kitagawa Ryusei's body, almost causing him to develop a superpower singularity.

He even sensed that the supernatural power hadn't disappeared; there were two forces vying for control within his body.

Therefore, this state certainly cannot last long.

Ai Haibara was unaware that Ruki Kitagawa's thoughts had already wandered to another world. She turned her head to look out the window, her gaze falling on the children skipping and jumping with their parents downstairs. After a long pause, she finally spoke:

"Regardless of the drug's original purpose, since the organization is using it to eliminate enemies, it's no different from poison. I've already handed over all the information I have about the organization to the police. Please take control of these people as soon as possible, and don't give them any more opportunities to extend my sentence..."

Upon hearing this, Kitagawa Ryusei followed her gaze and asked with interest, "You don't regret being restricted in a different place?"

Among the mostly family-oriented group, the girl with tea-colored hair spotted Miyano Akemi, who was disguised and alone.

She stood downstairs, holding two pink cotton candies in her hands, and waved to the little girl in front of the French windows.

“Once Pandora’s box is opened, there is no way to close it,” Ai Haibara said, stepping past the policeman in front of her and carefully picking up two beautifully packaged small cakes from the table and holding them in her arms. “It’s all about losing freedom, but at least I don’t have to worry about the safety of my loved ones or about my research results being used for evil.”

"As public officials, you can certainly guarantee that, can't you?"

After saying this, she didn't wait for a response, but politely said goodbye to Kitagawa Ryusei, put on the baseball cap on the table to cover her hair, and strode outside with a clear goal in mind.

Having been trying to eavesdrop but being surrounded by the Junior Detective League, Conan Edogawa finally broke through the encirclement and arrived next to Ruki Kitagawa.

He had a series of questions, but he knew that if Kitagawa Ryusei didn't want to tell him, there was no point in asking. In the end, he could only ask to confirm, "Ryusei-nii, were you talking about something related to the organization just now?"

Since shrinking to such a long time ago, Conan Edogawa has felt more than a little bit of regret—

Instead of going through all the trouble of gathering information about the organization on their own, why didn't they just pester Kitagawa Ryusei from the beginning to cooperate with the authorities?

He's a victim of organized crime! Where's his basic right to know?!

In this situation, when will I ever be able to turn back into Shinichi Kudo...?

His detective career, his high school studies, his romantic escapades—all of these belong to high school detective Shinichi Kudo.

Upon suddenly meeting those bright blue eyes, Kitagawa Ryusei immediately understood what he was thinking and felt a pang of regret.

They have successfully completed the stage of solving the case and collecting evidence of organized crime; otherwise, this kid could have been really useful.

Asking Conan Edogawa to help with the remaining work would be too much of a stretch.

Kitagawa Ryusei, unsure whether to comfort the young detective or himself, reached out and patted him on the shoulder: "We've already gathered information on the organization's members, and we'll definitely bring you along next time. For now, Conan-kun, just be prepared and go back to being your famous detective."

After saying that, the little detective Kitagawa Ryusei stood there blankly, digesting what she had just said. She threw the ice cream, which had turned into sugar water, into the trash can and walked over to Hagiwara Kenji and the others as if nothing had happened.

He looked up, stretched out his hands with his fingers spread, and asked with a tense expression, "Does anyone have any tissues?"

While talking, Kitagawa Ryusei didn't notice that her fingers were covered in ice cream liquid, and now her fingers were sticky and uncomfortable, causing her to frown.

Kenji Hagiwara paused for a moment, then gasped, almost overwhelmed by cuteness. He pinched his childhood friend's philtrum with one hand and shook Matsuda Jinpei back and forth, saying, "Jinpei, let's adopt Rukawa! Please! Please! We'll just tell the police we found him on the street!"

Where else can you find another adorable creature that is quiet, mature, provides emotional support simply by feeding it, and most importantly, doesn't have a guardian yet?

Unsurprisingly, before he could utter a second word, three clearly targeted fists flew straight at Kenji Hagiwara.

Every punch hits the target squarely.

"Aww!"

Matsuda Jinpei's forehead creased with a "well" shape: "Get this straight, this is a fellow student, not a pet, Hagi!"

Kitagawa Ryusei even jumped up and swayed twice—the other time was for Furuya, who wasn't present.

There's no need to keep so many records of the same period, is there? He kept reflecting on this in his mind.

*

Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.

Yoichi Sekiya is an ordinary policeman who only wears two outfits: a business suit and home clothes. Whenever he is on duty, he always keeps his hair neatly styled with hair gel, carries a briefcase with him at all times, and has never made a mistake in appearance and discipline inspections.

Because he was not a professional, he started from the lowest level of patrol after graduation. He worked for 20 years and gradually became a police inspector. He only needed to work for a few more years to be promoted to police superintendent.

This is the highest position he can reach.

As usual, Yoichi Sekiya packed his briefcase and prepared to leave work. With a smile, he politely responded to the greetings of his juniors all the way to the parking lot and found the parking space he had used that morning.

"Yes, I don't have any social engagements today. I'm going home for dinner," he said, taking out his keys to open the door, phone tucked to his ear, just like any other busy office worker.

Before the car door could even open, Yoichi Sekiya paused, squinting as he looked at the reflection in the car window.

The next moment he threw down his briefcase and keys and ran away!

"Stop! Hands up!"

"Yoichi Sekiya, you're under arrest!"

Upon seeing this, the people hiding all around immediately rushed out from all directions.

A figure, seemingly prepared, nimbly leaped out from the shadows of another car and kicked the man in the back mid-air.

Guan Gu Yangyi lost his balance and fell forward, desperately trying to grab the phone that flew out of his palm.

The phone fell to the ground, slid several meters along the ground, and was stopped by a leather shoe.

Sekiya Yoichi was stunned. When he looked up, all he could see was the owner of the leather shoes' gray suit and dazzling blond hair.

The person picked up his phone, looked down at him, and raised his hand.

The hand gesture was one he was very familiar with and had used many times before: "Target captured, assemble and call it a day."

From the moment he received orders from the organization to enter the police academy, this scene appeared countless times in Yoichi Sekiya's dreams.

He was exposed.

"Impossible...you couldn't have found me! What went wrong?!"

Even with his hands cuffed, he kept looking back, his gaze fixed on the unmoved young man.

He screamed hysterically, "Where?!"

No one answered his question.

These former colleagues even gagged him like a criminal to prevent him from making a sound.

Kazami Yuya straightened his clothes, which were disheveled from kicking someone, and stepped forward to report: "Mr. Furuya, including those who are not in Tokyo, the first batch of undercover agents have all been apprehended."

The blond youth nodded, handed the phone, which had already ended its call, to a member of Team Zero, and reminded him, "Well done. You must keep an eye on the key targets that Director Kuroda has identified for monitoring, and keep track of their movements."

“Okay,” Kazami Yuya quickly replied.

Seeing Furuya Rei walk out, he didn't forget to inquire about his superior's next schedule: "Mr. Furuya, are you going to a coffee shop or to meet with people from the organization? Is there anything we need to prepare?"

In just a few words, Furuya Rei, taking advantage of his long legs, had already walked quite a distance.

He waved his hand in refusal: "No need."

He needs to finish these things quickly and go home.

Although Hiro was there to prevent any trouble, Furuya Rei couldn't help but want to go back and see Kitagawa Ryusei.

...

Unfortunately, no matter how quickly he worked, it was already late at night when he got home after finishing all his work.

Furuya Rei guessed that Kitagawa Ryusei was already resting, and tiptoed to the door of the master bedroom on the second floor.

The door opened silently, and only a glimpse of gold could be seen slipping in through the darkness.

Rei Furuya carefully moved to the edge of the bed, trying not to make a sound.

There was a bulge on the king-size double bed, and there were no signs that the person on the bed had moved.

The blond youth used the light filtering through the curtains to get a clear look at the person in front of him.

The miniature version of Kitagawa Ryusei lay on her side in the middle of the bed with her eyes closed and eyelashes drooping, while the blanket was kicked to her feet.

The child's face has rounded features, making him look inexplicably well-behaved.

Rei Furuya's heart softened, and he suddenly felt much of his fatigue subside.

"I thought you were going to be busy all night again, why are you back at this hour?"

In the silence, the child's voice was tender and clear.

Kitagawa Ryusei rubbed half her face against the pillow, opened her eyes, and there wasn't much confusion in them.

They were not surprised by his arrival.

Furuya Rei's gaze remained fixed on Kitagawa Ryusei, and finally, unable to resist, he bent down and reached out to pinch the soft flesh on his cheek.

He asked gently, "Did I wake you up?"

Kitagawa Ryusei sat up in bed, casually brushed her hair behind her ear, and shook her head: "No, I didn't sleep. I was thinking that I might turn back to normal tonight, so I couldn't sleep."

"Eh—"

The blond youth's gray-purple eyes widened upon hearing this, his voice betraying his regret: "Are we going to turn back? I haven't seen enough..."

"Sorry," Kitagawa Ryusei said, looking at her right hand, which had shrunk a bit, clenching and unclenching it, her tone as playful as she had just learned from Edogawa Conan during the day: "The limited-time event is about to end, there won't be a chance for a comeback."

Feeling insecure because he couldn't do anything, he couldn't wait to turn back.

Despite the regret, Rei Furuya actually hopes that he can recover to his original healthy state as soon as possible.

Since Kitagawa Ryusei couldn't sleep, he decided to wait with him.

After a brief silence, the blond youth seized the last moment, lifted his smaller boyfriend off the bed, wrapped him in a blanket, and skillfully rolled him into a long strip of sushi before setting him down.

Afterwards, he patted him on the head.

Caught off guard, Kitagawa Ryusei struggled to free himself, his hands and feet wrapped in the blanket, and was stunned by the slap.

"Zero, what are you doing?"

He didn't know what was going on, and just as he was about to look up and ask, he met the gaze of the blond youth.

Rei Furuya's gaze was deep as he earnestly asked, "Ryusei, someone as good as you wouldn't easily disappear from this world, right?"