Chapter 47 Working Together

"What do you want to talk to me about?" Amuro asked with interest.

Hagiwara and Matsuda in the video chat room couldn't help but prick up their ears.

“Let’s go back to Mr. Furuya’s childhood!” Conan replied.

Amuro was taken aback: This little detective actually dug up my embarrassing childhood memories?!

Conan cleared his throat and began his story: "I asked Ms. Azusa, the employee at Poirot Cat Cafe, and the restaurant staff where Mr. Furuya used to work, about you. Although they all said you were a sunny, cheerful, and talkative person, I noticed that you never mentioned your family to anyone. You knew nothing about your parents, siblings, or anything like that. Family matters should be the most common topic of conversation, but you deliberately avoided it. There must be a reason for that, right?"

Seeing that the other person remained silent, Conan answered for him: "Mr. Furuya's family of origin must not have been very happy, right? He may not even have a home anymore."

Amuro frowned slightly. Conan, having received an affirmative answer, continued, "Not only that, I've also noticed that Mr. Furuya's behavior is a bit strange. Despite driving a luxury sports car, he works as a waiter in a restaurant for a meager salary. And the sandwich you made for me last time was made with very cheap bread. I think this is closely related to your childhood experiences, isn't it? Because of your family's poverty when you were young, you had to scrimp and save and do odd jobs to earn money. Even though you're not short of money now, you still haven't been able to shake off the habits from your childhood."

Indeed, compared to Shinichi Kudo, who grew up in a wealthy family, Rei Furuya's background is undeniably tragic.

Ling did have a tough time when he was young, and it wouldn't be wrong to say that this is the root of his love for doing odd jobs.

However, he did not feel that he was too miserable, because he met good people and his lifelong best friends during his childhood.

Amuro's face showed a hint of nostalgia, which Conan mistook for an affirmation of his deduction.

"During my conversation with Officer Takagi, I discovered something strange: for a long time, Officer Takagi believed that Officer Date was the top student in his year at the police academy. This wasn't out of flattery; it was a rumor that existed back in school. I suspect one possibility is that Mr. Furuya dropped out midway and Officer Date got first place in the graduation exam, while another possibility is that Mr. Furuya's grades were never recognized by the public. Considering your inexplicable expulsion, I think the latter is more likely."

"Sister Chisato also said that she remembered you just because you're blonde and mixed-race. I imagine Mr. Furuya has faced a lot of criticism because of his appearance since he was a child, right? Coupled with his poor family background, he was often ostracized and bullied. Even when he went to the police academy to train people to represent the law and justice, this situation did not improve, but instead got worse."

"That fire was a turning point in your life. I think Mr. Furuya must have suffered extensive burns, right? Because every time I see you, you're always wrapped up tightly. If the other times were because of the cold weather, then what happened at the forensic hospital this summer really doesn't make sense. It would have been much easier to pretend to be a cleaning lady in short sleeves, so why did you cover yourself up so much and pretend to be a forensic doctor? I guess you didn't want people to see your scars?"

This passage contains many minor errors, but Amuro doesn't have much room for rebuttal.

The only thing that made him laugh bitterly was: I have injuries, but they are not extensive burns!

Conan frowned and continued, "You asked me to investigate Inspector Kawabata, which indirectly tells me that you also suffered injustice. I think the most likely scenario is that the fire wasn't caused by the perpetrator, but rather by one of your classmates causing an accident. The hostage may have died, and you suffered severe burns. Given your family background, you definitely couldn't afford the medical expenses, so those classmates pooled their money to pay for it."

"You don't need to repay the money, the only condition is that you can't reveal the truth, because it concerns the future of other people. If you tell the truth, they won't be able to graduate. And because of your serious injuries, you can't continue your studies either. Later, by chance, you went to work for that master who dreamed of immortality and was very generous, and began all sorts of criminal activities."

"Sister Chisato told me that she had never been kidnapped or threatened. So I'm guessing that the fire was accidentally started by either Officer Matsuda or Officer Hagiwara, right? You used what you had on them to threaten them, didn't you?"

Amuro listened in stunned silence. If he hadn't been the protagonist of the story, he would have almost believed it to be true.

Conan, however, interpreted this as a sign of remorse and angrily shouted, "Mr. Furuya thinks he's in a similar situation to Inspector Kawabata, but let me tell you: you're completely different! I feel sympathy for Inspector Kawabata, but I only feel hatred and disgust for you!"

“I know you’ve been hurt, I know you’ve suffered injustice. But that’s no excuse for harming other innocent people! You’re a bully, a violent criminal trying to drag everyone down with you. You think you can get my sympathy? No way!”

The detective's voice echoed in the dark underground passage, like ripples on the surface of water, each word repeating itself several times in Amuro's ears.

Amuro was stunned by the shout, blinking his eyes but unable to utter a single word.

Conan continued his tirade with exasperation: "Since Mr. Furuya entered the academy as the top student, you were the one who took the oath as the student representative seven years ago, weren't you? Have you forgotten the promise you made back then? Didn't you say you would keep your word? You've held on for so long, why did you have to give up at the last minute? Is this really the life you want? Look back at the path you've walked, you were number one in the police academy!"

Looking back?

Throughout his nearly 30 years of life, Rei Furuya has always moved forward and never looked back.

He did not drop out of school because of his tragic childhood, nor did he wallow in self-pity because of the ridicule of others. He was not discouraged by setbacks, nor did he hesitate to move forward because of confusion.

If it were someone else, they might have been tripped up by the various difficulties and obstacles on the road to growth, or they might have fallen into too many traps and temptations.

The person who has come this far, from a mixed-race orphan who lost both parents to a pillar of the public security police force, is named Rei Furuya.

Amuro realized for the first time that he was quite capable and lucky: he had dodged enemy bullets and avoided the eyes of the mole.

He couldn't help but sigh softly, "I never imagined I'd come this far!"

Seeing that the other party's expression had softened, Conan seized the opportunity to advise, "Stop, Mr. Furuya. It's not too late!"

Amuro, however, asked with a mischievous grin, "What if I don't stop?"

Conan immediately pulled out his tranquilizer watch and aimed it at the other person. Amuro was startled and jumped back, causing the tranquilizer dart to miss.

"If you knock me unconscious, who's going to defuse the bomb?"

"The doctor will come looking for me."

"If persuasion fails, they actually have a backup plan?"

Amuro nodded approvingly. Although he didn't think the backup plan was very clever, it was better than nothing.

Seeing the young detective glaring at him angrily, Amuro thought he was about to be blown away if he didn't explain himself clearly, so he said, "Your reasoning is quite brilliant, but there's a fatal flaw. All your deductions are based on the premise that I'm a bad person. Is it possible that I'm a good person?"

The flashlight beam shone on the little detective, so bright it was almost blinding.

That captivating brilliance is something Amuro has tried his best to conceal over the years. But occasionally, when necessary, it still needs to be seen.

"You're a good person?" Conan stood frozen in place as if struck by lightning.

It sounds like an insult, but coming from Conan, it's a genuine question, adding to the irony.

Hagiwara, who was eavesdropping on the proceedings on the Metropolitan Police Department rooftop, laughed until tears streamed down his face. Meanwhile, Conan's earpiece was filled with Matsuda's maniacal laughter, and even Hikari, the developer of the video chat software, heard it all on the backend monitor and laughed until his stomach hurt.

Amuro felt like punching someone when he heard that!

Conan then realized he had made a serious mistake, and he lowered his head in deep thought.

As the countdown timer ticked away, a sudden thought struck him, and he exclaimed, "What does the Rising Sun Flag mean?"

Seeing that the other party had finally gotten the hang of it, Amuro replied with satisfaction, "The national flag naturally represents the country."

"You're ZERO?!" Conan exclaimed in surprise.

Hagiwara and Matsuda clearly didn't understand the double meaning in those words; they were simply wondering who had leaked Furuya's nickname.

Amuro was surprised: How did he know I was a member of Team ZERO?

However, this issue can be discussed later. Amuro asked solemnly, "Edogawa-kun, may I ask you to be my assistant this time?"

However, Conan's answer was unexpected: "Let's deal with the bomb first!"

So Matsuda instructed Conan, and Hagiwara instructed Amuro.

Although the gaps in the wall are small, tools like screwdrivers can still be passed between each other.

With the remote assistance of two bomb disposal experts, Amuro and Conan, through their tacit understanding honed from numerous confrontations, turned what should have been the most thrilling and exciting part into the least noteworthy episode of the entire bombing case.

However, an accident still occurred.

As the countdown reached "3-2-1-0", Amuro and Conan simultaneously cut the last thread.

Just as Amuro was looking at the still screen with satisfaction, Conan exclaimed in horror, "It...it's still moving!"

"What?" Amuro's mind went blank for a moment, and almost instinctively he wanted to break down the wall in his way. "Run, Conan!"

But then he heard a little boy giggling from the other side, and Amuro realized he had been tricked.

"You little rascal, how dare you lie to me!"

Then Amuro was once again mercilessly mocked by his classmates, which angered him so much that he left the group chat: How outrageous! Laugh to yourselves!

"Zero has lied to me so many times, can't I just retaliate a little?" Conan retorted defiantly.

"Shut up! That's not the name you're supposed to call me."

"Huh? Only Hino-nii-san can be called that?" Conan muttered with some disappointment. "Okay, then I'll just call you Amuro-nii-san."

Amuro was utterly shocked to hear this: I was actually "sold out" by Kei?!

He then received even more shocking news from his class monitor:

The prisoner committed suicide; he jumped from Tokyo Tower and died.

Seeing Conan packing his things to leave, Amuro reminded him, "Don't go up yet. There are too many onlookers up there. Let my companions disperse the crowd before we leave."

Conan nodded, thinking: What if I get filmed by some internet celebrity or live streamer after I go up there? That would be the end of me.

Conan wanted to take this opportunity to ask a few questions, such as: Since Amuro Tooru is an alias, then Hino Akira must also be an alias, right? What is Hino's real name? Is he also a member of ZERO?

Unexpectedly, Amuro found a clean spot to sit down and said, "I'm a little sleepy, I'll take a nap first, you should rest too!"

"Huh?" Conan stared at Amuro, who had fallen asleep in an instant, and pondered: Just how sleep-deprived are you?

Energetic Conan spotted the cell phone in Amuro's pocket and decided to repeat his old trick.

Unfortunately, his arms were too short to reach it, so he tried to use pliers to grab it out.

Amuro noticed and lightly slapped the restless little paw, causing Conan to cry out in pain.

"Keep your voice down, stop making a fuss." Amuro said, moving to a more secluded spot to continue sleeping.

Now Conan couldn't reach it no matter what, so he had to catch up on his sleep.

Unlike last time, Conan slept soundly in the dark this time.

After an unknown amount of time, Conan was woken up by Amuro.

The two returned to the ground through their respective entrances.

After Conan climbed up, he found that there were indeed no crowds gathered, and he couldn't help but marvel at the police's excellent methods!

He spotted the doctor's yellow Beetle in the distance, but upon getting in, he received a small surprise:

Strawberry Cream Puffs!

"Did Hino-nii give it to you?" Conan asked in surprise.

The doctor nodded and replied, "He said this is your payment."

Conan couldn't wait to try one, and the sweet taste burst in his mouth, refreshing his heart and soul.

"If this is the pay for being a police assistant, then it's an amazing deal!"