Chapter 112 The world suddenly became fantastical...

Before Conan could even ponder the intricacies of the matter, Nekono Ikuya, as if suddenly remembering something, pulled a small, elegantly patterned wooden box from her pocket. The box's surface was polished smooth and warm, exuding a sense of age and refinement.

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore." He changed the subject, handing the small wooden box to Conan, his emerald eyes gleaming with a mysterious light. "Here, a gift for you."

"A gift?" Conan took the wooden box with a puzzled look. The box was slightly heavy and had a faint woody scent. He glanced at Nekono Ikuya, who simply gestured for him to open it with his eyes, his smile conveying a sense of 'you'll see when you see it'.

"What's all this secrecy about? What are they up to now?" Conan wondered to himself, a mixture of curiosity and anticipation in his eyes as he carefully opened the box.

On the dark velvet lining, an oval-shaped glass bottle sat securely. The bottle was small, but its texture was incredibly clear, almost like glass. Inside, it contained a viscous liquid resembling molten rubies, yet its color was exceptionally clear. As light shifted within, the red liquid seemed to possess a life of its own, swirling slowly, appearing both magnificent and mysterious.

"What is this...?" Conan was completely captivated by the strange object and asked instinctively.

What a beautiful bottle and liquid! Especially the liquid—this magnificent liquid doesn't resemble any chemical reagent in the world; rather, it seems to come from another unknown realm.

Nekono Yuuya curled her lips into a smile and said something surprising: "Something that can temporarily restore your original body. The duration... well, I estimate about 2 hours per drop? The specific effects vary from person to person, you'll have to try it yourself."

Conan's heart skipped a beat, his hands holding the box tightened slightly, and his voice trembled with excitement: "The antidote?! Where did you get it?"

His eyes widened instantly, his tone changed, and he was completely stunned.

No way? How come there really is an antidote? Nekono-nii-san could even get his hands on this?! Even though it seems to be temporary, it's still incredibly powerful.

Conan never expected that he would be able to access a method of recovery so quickly. He thought that they would have to wait until the organization was eradicated before they could find someone to research an antidote.

What he meant was that, regarding the pill he was given, whether its surface effect was a deadly poison that killed without a trace, or its hidden effect was a miracle drug that could reverse aging, it was utterly illogical to think there was a ready-made antidote, especially the latter.

Conan stared blankly at Nekono Ikuya with his wide blue eyes. So where did the antidote come from?

“Antidote? No, this is not an antidote.” Nekono Yuuya tilted her head, a mischievous smile flashing in her emerald cat eyes, her face showing an expression that was somewhere between innocent and cunning.

He gently tapped his temple, his tone carrying a hint of persuasion, "Conan, you need to open your mind. This isn't the realm of science; it's the domain of the mystical."

Nekono Ikuya smiled slightly and spoke clearly:

"This is an age-promoting potion."

"Although a scientific antidote hasn't been developed yet, the mystical potion is enough for you to handle any special situations where you have to appear as Shinichi Kudo, just in case. I believe you'll use it cautiously, right, little detective?"

Nekono Ikuya smiled nonchalantly.

Conan Edogawa: "...Huh???"

A... potion?!

Even more unbelievable!

The young detective felt as if his worldview had been gently pried open by an invisible hand, making a crisp "click" sound.

He has always tried to explain everything that happened to him using scientific principles. Although the mass is no longer conserved when he gets bigger or smaller, what if there are some principles he doesn't know about? So no matter how incredible the rejuvenation is, he firmly believes that there is a scientific logic behind it.

But now, Nekono Ikuya tells him that while science may indeed have caused him to shrink, he can also receive help from the occult.

He looked down at the shimmering potion in the box, then looked up at Nekono Ikuya's emerald eyes that seemed to say, "I'm not kidding," and finally glanced at Akashi Teru, who showed no surprise whatsoever...

Conan Edogawa is in a daze: The world has suddenly become fantastical.

As Sherlock Holmes said, when you eliminate all the impossible, what remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

Shinichi Kudo, whose worldview was shaken, was a competent detective. So after verifying the truth of Ikuya Nekono's words, he quickly accepted everything and went to test the potion's duration with great interest.

That night, after confirming that Conan had fallen asleep, Ikuya Nekono carried two cups of hot tea into the study and handed one of them to Teruaki Akashi, who was standing by the window.

“Alright, the little detective isn’t here, so you can talk now.” Nekono Yuuya leaned against the desk, her emerald eyes shining brightly in the rising steam. “It seems a lot has happened in the month I was gone? I noticed that the way that kid looks at you is different now.”

Akashi Teru, or rather, Morofushi Kagemitsu, took the teacup and, without deliberately maintaining a facade, revealed the familiar expression of Nekono Ikuya.

"It's more than just a lot." He gently blew away the steam from the surface of the tea, a genuine sense of emotion welling up in his eyes.

"Where should I begin..." Morofushi Hiromitsu paused for a moment to organize his thoughts, "First, not long after you left, Conan and I met an organization member called Tequila at the press conference for the new work of Mantendo Company."

One member was extremely careless and casually revealed his and his colleagues' code names during a phone call, leaving Morofushi Kagemitsu wondering how the other party had obtained the code names.

"And then?" Nekono Ikumi asked, drawing out his words. He noticed the complex expression on Morofushi Kagemitsu's face and became interested.

"Then we witnessed Tequila being blown to pieces on the spot." Morofushi Kagemitsu paused, then laughed and cried at the same time. "The reason? You might not believe it, but this wasn't a conspiracy by someone else against Tequila. It was just that Tequila was unfortunately involved in another person's murder of the trader. He mistakenly took the box containing the bomb that the other person was exchanging with the trader!"

Nekono Ikuya raised an eyebrow, clearly somewhat surprised by the opening remarks: "Is the beginning so dramatic? This codename member died so hastily."

"Yes, it was too hasty." Morofushi Hiromitsu was equally incredulous, and even more incredulous was that "the organization's reaction was so indifferent." They simply blew up the exposed base without doing anything else. "It seems like they've already... gotten used to it?"

Thinking about it carefully, it might be because few members of the organization have good personalities. In the past, when he was undercover, he often heard of peripheral members of the organization being murdered by ordinary people in a fit of rage, or being arrested by the police as suspects because of suspicious behavior. It seems that the members of the organization have always had bad luck.

The codenamed members aren't exactly lucky, but their strength often allows them to easily overcome the dangers brought about by bad luck.

The reason Tequila died so hastily this time is probably because it was too incompetent.

Morofushi Kagemitsu: "..."

Nekono Ikuya: "..."

The death of this codenamed member, Tequila, was so hasty that it was hard to know how to evaluate it. Morofushi Hiromitsu and Nekono Ikuya both fell silent for a moment.

“Next is the Beika City Hotel, Pisco,” Morofushi Kagemitsu continued, his tone becoming more serious.

Although it was Pisco who recommended him for the codename, to be honest, he had never actually met Pisco. He had only heard that Pisco was a veteran of the organization and had a prestigious social standing. However, since Pisco took important intelligence and withdrew from the organization, and the internal power structure was reshuffled, Pisco, who only had seniority and no special skills, gradually lost power.

This is the intelligence that Bourbon gathered.

"The organization sent veteran member Pisco to carry out the assassination mission of Shigehiko Tobuchi. However, Pisco was accidentally photographed by a reporter during the operation, leaving evidence. Gin was ordered to silence him. Conan and I secretly intervened, using the smoke from the fire and the chaos of the power outage as cover. We inadvertently cooperated to help Pisco fake his death and escape. He is now secretly under the control of the Public Security Bureau."

Upon hearing this, Nekono Ikuya commented, "Saving someone from Gin? You guys have some nerve."

He was mainly referring to Conan, who, faced with such a sudden and unprepared event, was able to act decisively and actually help, demonstrating first-rate judgment and action.

“The situation was urgent at the time, and the police couldn’t just stand by and watch someone who knew about the organization be killed,” Jing Guang explained. “But that kid was really brave.”

Moreover, he wasn't reckless; while creating chaos, he effectively covered himself, preventing Gin from finding him and uncovering traces of the Public Security Bureau.

The police came to the Beika City Hotel with the intention of secretly arresting Shigehiko Tomono, but instead of saving Shigehiko Tomono, they unexpectedly arrested Pisco instead.

So it wasn't a wasted trip.

"However, it was during this incident that Conan seemed to begin to doubt my identity."

Nekono Ikuya chuckled softly: "I told you long ago, that child is frighteningly perceptive."

He's a very clever little detective. Intrigued, he asked, "Did he test you?"

Morofushi Kagemitsu nodded: "Yes, he tested me a few times, about my skills and my understanding of the organization's operating style. But I didn't expect..."

His expression became complex, filled with utter astonishment. "During the time when Kiel was captured by the FBI and later rescued by the organization, he suddenly approached me one day and said to me with almost certainty, 'You're Scotland, right? The public security undercover agent who successfully escaped the organization.'"

Hearing this, Nekono Ikumi paused slightly, a genuine surprise finally showing in his eyes. He gave a soft "Hmm": "He pointed it out directly? How did he know?"

This was indeed beyond his expectations. Nekono Ikuya knew Conan was intelligent, but his precision was still surprising.

He must have other sources of information, Nekono Ikuya thought.

Morofushi Kagemitsu also had this suspicion.

“Hmm.” Jing Guang nodded, his brows furrowing slightly. “His reasoning is very rigorous, combining some habits I inadvertently revealed before, as well as his familiarity with the organization and the police.”

"He was very certain, and I suspect he might have information channels we don't know about. Perhaps it's related to the FBI? After all, he seemed to be in frequent contact with that FBI investigator named Judy during that period. It was this combination of scattered information and his own observations that led him to this startling conclusion."

Conan's contact with Jodie occurred at a time when Conan began to suspect Jodie's identity. At that time, Conan seemed unsure whether Jodie was a member of the Public Security Bureau or an organization, so he was somewhat wary of him.

Morofushi Hiromitsu didn't have complete information on Conan's whereabouts. Although Akashi Teru's role with Conan was similar to Black's role with Nekono Ikuya, Akashi Teru is not Black, and Edogawa Conan is not Nekono Ikuya. At least Akashi Teru still has a job with the Public Security Bureau, so he usually only goes to Conan when he encounters a case or needs Akashi Teru's help with other matters.

Hiromitsu Morofushi only learned of Judy's identity as an FBI investigator after the FBI's struggle with the organization over Kiel ended.

During that time, he was busy with police affairs, trying to get Pisco to talk, and arranging for police officers to infiltrate the legitimate financial network that Pisco had revealed. Inevitably, he neglected other matters, especially the things that the clever Conan deliberately concealed from him.

Mentioning the FBI, Morofushi Hiromitsu's tone turned slightly somber: "And then... there was Akai Shuichi. He was shot and killed by Kir at Raiha Cliff."