Chapter 264, Seventy-Third Cycle (94)
Conan Edogawa is watching Sera Masumi's live stream.
Although he couldn't decipher the code like Shuichi Akai, he could still tell that it was Sera Masumi and guess that she was probably going to explain to her "sister outside the domain" by going live.
Just like every time she encountered a case before, she organized and summarized the intelligence and progress like a responsible anchor.
"Look everyone, this is the villa of Agasa Kurisuke, a wealthy man who passed away fifty years ago. It's said that he hid a lot of treasure in the villa. Doesn't it look a lot like the Twilight Villa in those gamers' livestreams twenty years ago? Moreover, before Agasa Kurisuke died, he said that this villa should remain unchanged for at least fifty years, so until last year, not even a single candle decoration in the villa had changed. However, no one has found the hidden treasure yet, and the villa seems to have been demolished now, so we probably can't see this villa in reality anymore. Those mysteries can only be found in the game."
"Hmm? How do I know so much? Hahaha, because I just happened to run into that descendant of Agasa Kurisu! Yes, yes, that handsome guy with curly hair. I won't reveal his identity because of his wishes, but anyway, I learned some unexpected information from him. For example, there's actually a mysterious code that's been kept in the villa for many years, like this: stars, moon, and sun? What does that represent?"
While the chat was buzzing with guessing, Sera Masumi had already exchanged information with her mother using coded language. She then smiled and said she wouldn't reveal the answer for now, muted the live stream, and went to find Professor Agasa and the others who were discussing something.
In reality, their exploration was progressing much faster than she had just mentioned in the comments. It was just that the man in sunglasses said it was to prevent others from suspecting that they were insiders cheating and affecting the game's normal progress, and also because she had things she couldn't show to others, that's why they did it this way.
"So? Have you discussed it? Are we going to go directly to open the mechanism on the second floor now?" Sera Masumi asked.
Professor Agasa had brought the Junior Detective League here a long time ago. Initially, Professor Agasa designed a treasure hunt for them in the villa, but they discovered a different code and used it to find a secret room hidden on the second floor. Most importantly, the secret room contained the body of an old man and a printing plate for counterfeiting money. In the end, they also caught another villain who wanted to steal the counterfeit money printing plate and handed him over to the police.
In other words, they had already deciphered the codes of the stars, the moon, and the sun, and were ready to proceed to the next step at any time.
"Hmm... this..." Dr. Agasa's gaze wandered slightly.
"No, let's thoroughly search the villa inside and out before opening that mechanism." After deciphering the code in Conan Edogawa's live stream, Ai Haibara looked up and said, "After all, games are different from reality, and there are probably some strange settings. Let's investigate everything before we start."
Kenji Hagiwara nodded and smiled, "Yes, I also think this game isn't that simple. It's unlikely to be exactly the same as reality. To prevent any unexpected mishaps, let's be fully prepared before activating the mechanism."
So everything went back to square one, and the group began to examine the villa bit by bit.
Dr. Agasa would mention any clues that came to mind.
"My uncle loves puppet dolls the most. Oh, he also really likes mechanical and mechanical dolls."
“That’s strange. I clearly remember that my uncle’s house should have many priceless antiques and works of art…”
"Ah, this wooden board! I have this wooden board at home too, and I later found something wrong with it. I was planning to have it appraised by an appraiser when I had time in a few days."
"Here's the thing, when I went to hide those toys that I considered treasures, I found a very old wooden board at the bottom of that cabinet. I thought the writing on it was beautiful, so I brought it back as a decoration. But it wasn't actually a wooden board; it was a tightly fitted wooden box. You see, if you slide the lid open, you can see a plate inside that looks very old, so I suspect it might be some kind of precious antique."
Ran Mouri, holding the wooden box, exclaimed in surprise, "Trying to cover it up?"
Under the curious gazes of others, Ran Mouri earnestly explained: "This idiom means that when someone tries to cover up what they have done wrong, their attempt to cover it up only makes the truth more obvious."
"Oh? Trying to cover it up only makes it more obvious..." Sera Masumi looked at Ai Haibara meaningfully.
Ai Haibara pretends to be deaf and dumb.
Shuichi Akai, watching them, couldn't help but send a message in the live stream, using the Akai family's unique code to tell Sera Masumi to stop investigating the time reversal.
"Who are you?!" Sera Masumi's eyes flashed sharply.
The viewers in the live chat, who were being stared at intently by her, were completely bewildered.
Shuichi Akai posted another comment, saying that he was just a passerby, but he couldn't stand it anymore and told her that an adult shouldn't bully a child. The hidden message was his catchphrase, "fifty fifty."
Given the circumstances, he could only reveal part of the information.
Sera Masumi was very clever and realized what was going on in an instant.
She couldn't help but clench her fists in excitement, trying hard not to ask questions in front of the live stream audience. She even snorted and continued acting, saying "Mind your own business," and complained a few times unhappily.
[Brother Xiu? Is that Brother Xiu? Brother Xiu, are you still alive? Where are you?]
However, that viewer's comment did not reappear.
Mary Akai remained silent for a moment, then typed a few words in the chat using a coded message, saying that it might really be Shuichi Akai, but we shouldn't make any rash moves now and should discuss it after the game is released.
But actually, at this time, Sera Masumi and Akai Mary began to suspect that Akai Shuichi was still alive, and Akai Shuichi also confirmed that his mother, Akai Mary, had also shrunk.
Conan Edogawa confirmed that the "sister outside the domain" was actually a shrunken Mary Akai, and that she was an agent of MI6.
MI6 is the British Army Intelligence Service, also known as the Secret Intelligence Service, abbreviated as SIS, and codenamed MI6.
Conan Edogawa sighed inwardly. So far, apart from the Public Security Bureau of his own country, he actually knew people in other countries' agencies such as the FBI, CIA, and MI6, and they were even comrades who were working together to destroy the organization.
The hope of defeating the organization is growing stronger; now only the last piece of the puzzle is missing.
However, the current focus is on uniting all forces, which is no small matter.
The primary breakthrough point and the most important key piece of the puzzle that Conan Edogawa chose was Rei Furuya, who was using the alias Tooru Amuro as Bourbon.
But there are just too many mysteries surrounding Rei Furuya, and it remains to be seen whether this time they will be able to find the answer to the most important truth.
Conan Edogawa was momentarily distracted when he noticed that the truth behind the wooden box in Professor Agasa's hand in the live stream had also been revealed.
The idiom "trying to cover up one's tracks" on the box, along with the signature "Li Jie," suggests that the professor's uncle accidentally broke the plate and glued it back together, even covering it with a paint similar to oil paint. However, it was clearly discovered in the end, so he specially put the plate in this box with the idiom on it, perhaps as a memento and a reminder to himself.
"Is that so?" Matsuda Jinpei suddenly said, "But if it's meant to commemorate and remind myself, shouldn't it be placed in the most conspicuous place? Why hide it at the very bottom of the cabinet?"
Kenji Hagiwara stroked his chin and said, "Yeah, isn't that contradictory? Something doesn't feel right."
Kogoro Mouri suddenly clapped his hands: "I see! I know! So there were other treasures hidden under that cabinet, right? The cabinet was just a cover-up to hide it, and the wooden box was the clue?"
"As expected of Mr. Mori!" Kenji Hagiwara immediately praised.
The group surrounded the cabinet under the clock and worked together to move it, but they found no trace of any mechanism on the floor.
Ai Haibara glanced at Conan Edogawa's live stream, suddenly realized what was going on, turned around and crawled into the cabinet. After rummaging around inside for a while, she actually found the hidden compartment with a "click" sound.
Ai Haibara crawled out of the cabinet with a flat wooden box in her hand and placed it on the cabinet under the watchful eyes of the others.
The wooden box also has a Chinese idiom written on it in beautiful, cursive calligraphy.
Ran Mouri stepped forward and examined it carefully: "Reborn from the ashes...?"
The meaning of this idiom is very simple and easy to understand; it doesn't need any explanation.
The live chat was filled with discussions about whether they had found clues related to time travel in the game, with all sorts of wild guesses flying around.
Just like the wooden box that was trying to cover up the truth, this "rebirth from the ashes" wooden box can be easily opened by gently pushing it in the right direction. The thick wooden board that originally looked like it was tightly sealed will slide open to reveal what is inside.
It was clearly an antique plate, its dark surface entwined with a huge, intricately patterned red bird. The red and black colors were strangely intertwined, conveying the mystery and beauty of thousands of years ago across the vast expanse of time.
"This... this... could this be the real lacquerware?" Professor Agasa exclaimed excitedly. "Do you know that there's a type of antique in China called lacquerware? Didn't I just mention seeing a similar antique plate on an antique appraisal TV show? That lacquerware with cranes carved on it was valued at over 100 million, but I think this one is even more amazing! Do you know what kind of bird is on it?"
Ran Mouri, who was being looked at, looked embarrassed and said, "Well... I'm not really sure."
"It could be a phoenix." A voice suddenly came from behind them.
They turned around and saw a black-haired man dressed in a long robe, resembling the attire of an ancient person.
Name: Zhuge Kongming
[Level: LV4]
Occupation: Police Officer
The man stepped forward and slowly said, "According to the inscription on the box, 'Rebirth from the Ashes,' there's a certain probability that the pattern is a phoenix. Lacquerware is said to have appeared in China thousands of years ago, and the phoenix is a mythical bird that has been passed down since ancient times. It is the king of all birds and is usually considered a symbol of nobility, auspiciousness, mystery, and immortality. There is also the story of 'Phoenix Reborn from the Ashes.'"
The others suddenly realized that even if they didn't know much about the phoenix, they probably knew something about it.
“However,” Zhuge Kongming added, “the story of the phoenix rising from the ashes is a later, more recent one. Strictly speaking, the legend of the phoenix rising from the ashes is not about the phoenix, but about the immortal bird. So this pattern could also be an immortal bird, but the meaning here should be the same, so it’s not a big problem.”
Kogoro Mouri paused for a moment: "Huh? Aren't phoenixes and phoenixes the same thing? I thought they were just different names?"
"No," Zhuge Liang shook his head. "The phoenix is the phoenix, and the immortal bird is the immortal bird; they are divine birds from different cultures. However, they do indeed both have stories of rebirth and the meaning of resurrection. Records of the phoenix say it was created from the essence of the fire element (Li fire) in the Five Elements theory; it is a fire spirit, a sun god bird. Records of the immortal bird, on the other hand, date back to ancient Western times. It is said that every five hundred years or so, it gathers various fragrant branches or leaves, piles them up, and sets itself on fire. From the ashes, a new immortal bird hatchling is reborn, growing for another five hundred years before being reincarnated again, representing immortality and rebirth."
Conan Edogawa's pupils contracted slightly.
Immortality and resurrection? Isn't that exactly what the organization aims for?
"The auction officially begins! Our first item to auction is a jade burial suit, meticulously crafted by a master over ten years according to legend!" the auctioneer on the platform announced loudly. "Legend has it that if gold and jade are placed in the nine orifices, the deceased will be immortal. Such a jade burial suit can preserve the body and even grant the hope of rebirth!"
Conan Edogawa suddenly looked up, staring intently at the sky.
Amidst the cheers of the enthusiastic NPCs, antiques and works of art were auctioned off one after another, with the astronomical prices even causing people to lose their concept of money.
However, it is precisely because money is no longer an issue for those people that they are so obsessed with immortality and resurrection, becoming incredibly fanatical as soon as they are even slightly involved in these concepts.
The flower language of the other shore is the endless immortality of the red spider lily; the jade cicada in ancient China was believed to be able to reincarnate; the key to life and mummies in ancient Egypt symbolized resurrection; Jesus in Christianity, who died on the cross and rose again to heaven; the feathered serpent god who represented death and rebirth in ancient Mesoamerican mythology after self-immolation; the Tai Sui, known as the immortal monster and elixir of immortality; the phoenix, which is said to be reborn from fire every five hundred years; and the ouroboros, representing infinity and cycles...
"Arthur-chan, what do you think?"
Conan Edogawa suddenly turned around and came into close view of a strange white smiling mask.
“…The Dark Baron?” Conan Edogawa took a step back to create distance between himself and the man.
Name: Baron Dark Night
[Level: LV.5]
Occupation: Magician
Level 5, and the game has only been going on for half an hour. This is already the highest level person he has encountered so far.
"What's wrong? Why are you looking like this? Do I look scary?" the man said with a smile. "I just wanted to come and discuss this case with you."
The Dark Baron has sent you a friend request.
[Accept or Reject]
The black-haired boy glanced at the tall man in black in front of him with some surprise, then clicked "accept," intending to directly test the other party's identity.
"Yeah, a little. After all, the Dark Baron in Yusaku Kudo's works is a ruthless killer. Nobody is afraid of him, right?" Conan Edogawa said.
By setting it up so that viewers in the live stream cannot see the player's game interface, it can be considered a privacy measure for the player.
"But I'm not the real Dark Baron. I'm just an ordinary fan who likes the Dark Baron. There's no need to be afraid, is there?" the man said innocently.
[Arthur, Holmes's apprentice: You know me?]
[Dark Baron: Of course~]
[Dark Baron: How could I not know Shin-chan~]
"...But what do you want to discuss with me? What are your thoughts on the current situation?" Conan Edogawa said.
[Arthur, Holmes's apprentice: You've mistaken me for someone else.]
[Dark Baron: Alright, alright, stop playing around, Shin-chan. This is your mother. Something's not right right now. Let's have a serious discussion about the situation.]
[Dark Baron: Have you discovered any secrets hidden in the Twilight Mansion? Is it really connected to the organization?]
"Those things about resurrection and immortality, do you think they have anything to do with the tragedy of twenty years ago? Are those things really all from Karasuma Renya's collection, who disappeared twenty years ago?" the man said.
[Arthur, Holmes's apprentice: Who are you?]
[Arthur, Holmes's apprentice: Stop pretending, you've already given yourself away.]
"Who knows? I'm still stuck in the mystery. Have you made any new discoveries?" Conan Edogawa stared intently at the man's eyes behind the mask, trying to see who the person behind it really was.
Putting aside the fact that they had already agreed not to discuss the organization directly in the game, his parents had already used coded messages in the live chat to say that they both had food poisoning and were not playing the game. Therefore, the Dark Night Baron in front of them could not possibly be Kudo Yusaku or Kudo Yukiko.
But how did the other party know that he was Shinichi Kudo and that he was investigating the Twilight Villa and the organization?
[Dark Baron: Tsk, where exactly did I give myself away?]
[Dark Baron: Okay, I'm done playing. You probably already guessed who I am, right? I definitely have to come to Twilight Villa.]
[Dark Baron: After all, the last time something happened at the Twilight Villa, someone used my name to gather you detectives together. I wonder what the situation is this time. I'm very interested.]
It really is Kaito Kid.
It's not surprising, then all the people he was familiar with from the organization and those who had participated in the Twilight Villa were there.
[Arthur, Holmes's apprentice: Have you finished your own business?]
[Dark Baron: This is also related to what I'm investigating.]
“Look at the stage,” said Kaito Kid.
Conan Edogawa looked up as the auctioneer brought out a huge blue gemstone, introducing it as the "Mermaid's Tear," supposedly salvaged from Mermaid Bay, which, it was said, grants immortality if consumed.
They actually dared to say something like "eat gemstones".
[Arthur, Holmes's apprentice: ...]
[Arthur, Holmes's apprentice: Even in the game, you can't confirm if the gem is Pandora, right?]
[Dark Baron: So, my target and that organization's target is the secret of Pandora in the game. After all, such an obvious slogan is written on the promotional video, it's just too obvious. Anyway, we definitely need to investigate everything related to it, so I've come to cooperate with you! Quickly tell me about your intelligence!]
Conan Edogawa relaxed a little: "I do feel that some things are a bit strange."
"What?" the man asked curiously.
"First of all, have you noticed that some of the players in the venue are acting strangely?" Conan Edogawa said, and immediately began to answer his own question, explaining, "The venue here is decorated quite luxuriously, with many things that ordinary people have never seen or touched in their entire lives. But look, many players are very familiar with this, even used to it, and can chat happily with those big shots in the financial world. The difference between them and ordinary players is very obvious."
Kaito Kid had already tested all the players and NPCs in the venue and remembered who the players were. Hearing this, he looked them over carefully and then said, "It seems so, but that's not surprising, is it? Weren't the fifty game slots given to well-known figures from various industries? Those figures must be familiar with this kind of occasion, right?"
“Is that so?” Conan Edogawa turned to meet his gaze. “But why did most of them just happen to end up in this game location? There are three locations to choose from, aren’t there? There are far too many players here who look like big shots. I don’t think it’s a coincidence.”
Kaito Kid met his gaze, seemed to realize something, and let out a cryptic laugh, but said nothing more.
Since it's still a live stream, there are some things that can't be said.
Seeing that he understood, Conan Edogawa smoothly shifted to the next topic: "Also, there are the characters in the novel 'Running Towards the Sun,' the game plot that is said to be based on the fifth and final volume, the fact that the main characters from twenty years ago gathered together to participate in the Twilight Villa Massacre, which was never described in the original novel, and the time travel topic that appeared several times. All of these point to one possibility."
Hattori Heiji and Hakuba, having overheard something, immediately came over as well.
Conan Edogawa glanced at them and said, "Right here in this venue, among those original NPCs, there must be time travelers who have already started changing the original plot."
Hakuba Saguru narrowed his eyes slightly: "I see. So, Kudo Jun, who is suspected to be the protagonist of the fifth novel and game, is most likely a time traveler? His goal is to save his fallen comrades? But he hasn't shown it because there's a villain who also time-traveled watching from the shadows?"
Isn't this just like the plot of the church deep in the mountains of Nagano?
Heiji Hattori blinked: "I see, that's quite interesting. But what is our mission as players? Is it to find the villain who traveled through time and defeat him?"
“Following the usual pattern of novel authors, things shouldn’t be that simple,” Conan Edogawa said, hinting at something. “I have a feeling there are some hidden dangers and secrets, especially those about resurrection. Let’s investigate the truth behind this game instance first.”
Hakuba Saguru and Kaito Kid seemed to realize something, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.
Still bewildered, Hattori Heiji: "?"
Heiji Hattori starts frantically sending private messages to Conan Edogawa.
Conan Edogawa simply told him to wait a little longer, as it wasn't the right time to explain.
"So what are you planning to do next?" Kaito Kid asked.
Conan Edogawa turned to look at the blond child running around the room and said, "The best way is naturally to follow the game's protagonist through the story; that's the most accurate way."
Conan Edogawa had already planned it out: first, he would build a good relationship with Kudo Yui to gain his trust and cooperation, and then work with the protagonist to unlock the Twilight Villa mechanism that they had already solved.
Moreover, just in case, it would be best if their Twilight Villa solved the mystery first, and then Professor Agasa's villa activated the mechanism.
After all, no one knows what will happen after the mechanism is activated.
It's unclear whether the development of the past and future will influence each other...
"Stop!" The blond child's eyes widened, and he said warily, "Don't come near me."
Conan Edogawa stopped in his tracks.
"I don't know who you people are, but I don't need your help. You're acting weird, so leave me alone." The blond boy frowned, clearly annoyed by the other players.
This is also the main reason why no one can get close to him now.
Just now, another player tried to forcibly grab him and interrogate him, but Ishihara Yujiro and Oki Masaru, who had actually been protecting the child from the shadows, rushed out and grabbed him, angrily kicking him out of the villa.
As a well-known police officer, Yujiro Ishihara was personally invited by the organizers, and his authority here seems to be quite high, so even if his child runs around everywhere due to tantrums and curiosity, no one cares.
Nine-year-old Kudo Huai is clearly not an easy person to get along with; he's practically a hedgehog with its quills raised to protect its soft underbelly. Currently, even his adoptive father doesn't seem very close to him; only Okiya has managed to win him over through daily care and interaction.
However, it wouldn't be too difficult to cooperate with Kudo Huai in the short term.
If he really is a 29-year-old policeman who traveled from twenty years in the future, then it's even simpler.
However, just in case, Conan Edogawa muted the live stream before coming over and threw the blue eyeball live stream ball that was floating in the air and could only be seen by the players behind him, so now we can be a little bolder and test the waters.
"I'm not a bad person. I'm Holmes' apprentice, you can believe me." Conan Edogawa squatted down to be at eye level with the child and softened his voice, saying, "Kudo-kun, I just think you're very smart. I overheard what you said earlier and wanted to ask if you know anything about the inside story. You know, I'm a detective who came here specifically to investigate the Twilight Villa massacre twenty years ago. I already have some information, and we can exchange it."
The blond boy's expression softened somewhat because of his attitude and words.
Conan Edogawa pressed on, cautiously approaching a little closer. Finding no one agitated, he smirked and said, "I know you were pretending to run around playing hide-and-seek with them, but actually you were searching and researching things in the villa. Don't be nervous. I just want to exchange information with you. I also know some secrets that others don't. I mean, we can cooperate, and I'll keep your secrets and won't ask unnecessary questions."
The blond boy's purple eyes flashed sharply for a moment, then he snorted and muttered, "How do I know if you have the information I want?"
Conan Edogawa leaned close to his ear and whispered, "I know what the code for Twilight Villa means."
"..."
The blond, dark-skinned child gave him a deep look, then slowly nodded and extended his hand.
Conan Edogawa held the child's hand and couldn't help but laugh.
Great, the cooperation is achieved.
*
White Horse glanced at the time.
It's 11 PM in real life, but 3 AM in the game.
Only two hours had passed in reality, but ten hours had passed in the game.
However, players' perception of time is actually still two hours. The time jumps in the game are irregular, and they haven't even figured out the pattern yet, so it's very chaotic.
However, as long as you grasp the main thread, you can also find some other patterns.
By following the protagonist, Kudo Jun, and gradually finding clues to unravel the incident, you can figure out the timeline of what happened.
An hour ago, Conan Edogawa successfully connected with Huai Kudo to explore the villa together, and now he is mainly responsible for the main storyline of the protagonist.
On the surface, to others, it's probably just a kid having a conflict with his adoptive father who's a policeman and a teenager cosplaying as Sherlock Holmes playing a detective game.
However, the passage of time was entirely under their control.
Or rather, time moved with Kudo Jun's actions. After they completed a task, time would suddenly jump forward a significant amount. While they were still discussing the investigation, time almost stood still, and no one else disturbed them.
Hakuba Saguru did not act with them; he simply watched them through a live stream.
With so many people, their target would be too obvious, so they acted separately.
It's 10 PM in real life, but 1 AM in the game.
Conan Edogawa and Huai Kudo quietly left the bustling venue and went to the second floor first.
Most of the rooms on the second floor were designed by Karasuma Renya himself, and everything is still the same as it was twenty years ago.
There were bloodstains that hadn't been washed off in the crack of the door, a strand of blood-stained hair under the carpet, bloodstains in the middle of the deck of cards stuck together, marks on the pool cue, and a blood-written note found under the piano.
Everything was like an accelerated version of the investigation of Twilight Villa; the entire investigation was completed within an hour.
It's 11 PM in real life, but 3 AM in the game.
Meanwhile, twenty years later, Professor Agasa and his team also searched the entire villa but found nothing unusual. They decided to activate the mechanisms to see if there were any further clues.
Meanwhile, Conan Edogawa stared at the chess game that was halfway through on the table, lost in thought.
"What's wrong with this chess set?" the blond boy next to me asked, leaning over the table.
“…No, I was just thinking about something else,” Conan Edogawa said.
There are still mysteries surrounding Koji Haneda's case that remain unsolved.
Let's put that aside for now.
Conan Edogawa took a screenshot of the chessboard and saved it. He turned to the screen and said, "It seems like there's nothing left on the second floor. It looks like the auction downstairs has temporarily ended and people are having supper. Shall we go downstairs and take a look?"
"Yes." The blond child nodded.
The villa was brightly lit, and the corridors were covered with carpets, so that people could walk on them without making a sound.
However, because other NPCs and players frequently come and go, the noise from their conversations is still quite loud, creating an eerie yet harmonious atmosphere of silence and liveliness.
"Hey, Arthur, why did you become a detective?" The blond boy walking ahead suddenly turned around and asked.
Conan Edogawa paused in his tracks: "Then why do you hate the police?"
“I don’t hate police officers.” The blond boy frowned. “I just don’t like people around me becoming police officers, and I don’t like getting on good terms with them.”
Because they die too easily.
Conan Edogawa laughed: "I understand, so you don't like detectives either?"
What were the feelings of this child when he said those words?
In his future self, all the important people around him are police officers and detectives.
He clearly values them so much.
Although they all eventually died.
The blond boy glanced at him and said, "Anyway, in my opinion, it's all the same—it's all about dying."
But even knowing it was suicide, you still stepped into the darkness without hesitation.
Conan Edogawa shook his head helplessly: "We can't be so absolute. If we don't dare to do anything just because we might die, then what's the point of living? After all, you can choke to death while drinking water, you can choke to death while eating, and you can get hit by a car while walking. You can't just do nothing, can you?"
"That's sophistry. How can you compare them?" The blond boy frowned, his round face showing displeasure. "Fine, you still haven't told me why you became a detective."
Conan Edogawa tilted his head and smiled: "I thought I made it obvious? Because I really like Sherlock Holmes and I love solving mysteries."
"Just out of interest?" the blond boy asked seriously.
“Yes, that’s my initial intention.” Conan Edogawa nodded, then quickly added, “But now that we’ve come this far, upholding justice and finding the truth are also very important to me. Don’t exclude me just because you care about me or think it’s for my own good. I was dragged into this incident by my own will, and I have to solve this mystery, or I’ll never have peace of mind for the rest of my life.”
The blond child: "..."
The blond boy glared at him fiercely: "Do you even realize how serious this is? This is no joke, it's a real death sentence, and even the police can't solve this case right now, do you understand?"
"I know, I know." Conan Edogawa couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth, finally daring to reach out and ruffle the child's golden fluffy head, his eyes crinkling as he smiled, "Thank you for your concern, I'll be careful."
What an unexpectedly awkward yet meticulous personality!
"You—!" The blond child was startled, his round purple eyes widening in disbelief, before he grabbed the hand away in shame and anger and threw it away.
He was angry and wanted to say something, but he held back. In the end, he could only grit his teeth and say, "I don't care about you at all," before turning around and walking downstairs with his head down.
The comments on Conan Edogawa's side were instantly flooded with a huge amount of cuteness and tsundere.
Conan Edogawa coughed, trying to suppress the smile on his face, before pretending to be serious as he chased after them to apologize. He happened to run into Yujiro Ishihara and Masaya Oki, who were looking for the children to eat. He was stared at for a while with suspicions that he was bullying the children.
Conan Edogawa broke out in a cold sweat from being stared at. He quickly waved his hands and explained guiltily. He was stared at for quite a while before he was allowed to go to the restaurant to eat together.
Everyone else just ate something casually in the venue, but only those with special status were allowed to enter a special restaurant to eat, and the food there was anything special.
Among them are even creatures that are rumored to be immortal, such as the Tai Sui and the immortal jellyfish.
...Are these things really edible?
Conan Edogawa looked up at the Phantom Thief Kid across from him.
He and Kaito Kid are the only two players who can enter the restaurant.
Conan Edogawa was brought in because of Kudo Yui, while Kaito Kid was brought in because he had solved a major case and saved the life of a high-ranking official before coming to the villa.
Therefore, it seems strange that Jun Hayami and Jun Shibata, who are now just ordinary college students, are here.
"Kudo-kun." Conan Edogawa turned to the blond boy next to him and whispered, "Do you recognize those two people near the door? The one with sunglasses and long hair."
The blond child raised his calm purple eyes and glanced at the two of them, saying, "I don't know them. What's wrong with them? Is there a problem?"
This holographic game was incredibly realistic, yet Conan Edogawa couldn't detect a single flaw on his face.
"No, I just think they look like ordinary people. I wonder how they were invited in here?" Conan Edogawa said.
The blond boy looked thoughtful: "There is indeed a problem. We can keep an eye on them later."
"What are you talking about?" Chong Ya suddenly turned around and asked.
Conan Edogawa and the blond child both stiffened for a moment before turning their heads naturally to meet the black-haired youth's curious, clear blue eyes.
"It's nothing, we were just discussing whether eating those strange foods would cause poisoning," the blond boy said seriously.
Conan Edogawa gave an awkward but polite laugh: "Just kidding, just kidding."
"...You guys really have a good relationship," Chongya remarked.
Yujiro Ishihara also looked over, a look of relief mixed with jealousy on his face: "It's really rare. I've never seen Xiao Huai become familiar with someone so quickly before. It seems you two really hit it off. Young man, your name is Arthur, right? Thank you so much. Xiao Huai now has a friend to play with, which puts my mind at ease. You have no idea how much this kid likes to cause trouble. He often comes back covered in injuries every day, which really worries me."
Conan Edogawa glanced at the blond child who seemed to be choked and didn't know how to reply.
Then he received an angry glare from the blond boy, along with a silent "Don't talk nonsense."
Conan Edogawa couldn't help but laugh, and said seriously to Yujiro Ishihara and Masaya Oki, "Yeah, I also think we get along very well."
"Don't worry, I will definitely protect him and won't let him get hurt again," he said.
Kudo Jun is the final protagonist, so he'll definitely be fine.
Under the table, the blond boy kicked him in embarrassment and anger.
"Who needs your protection?" The child pursed his lips, lowered his eyes, and whispered, "You should protect your own life first..."
*
It's 11:20 PM in real life, and 4 AM in the game.
After dinner, the auction will continue until sunrise at 6:00 AM, and then resume at midnight.
Meanwhile, Conan Edogawa and Yui Kudo wanted to investigate the wine cellar on the first floor and in the basement of the villa.
"Who are you?" The blond child looked warily at the masked man following behind them.
"His name is Baron Dark Night, he's a magician, and also a colleague I know well," Conan Edogawa reassured him. "He's someone I can trust."
With a flick of his wrist, Kaito Kid revealed a key between his fingers and chuckled, "You want to go to the underground wine cellar, right? I have the key."
The blond child: "..."
So Kaito Kid joined the team.
They also encountered other players along the way.
Many players are the type who like to wander around, and it's not surprising to see players anywhere. It's even normal for a player to suddenly pop out of a trash can.
However, few players were able to find the hidden clues and unlock the lock.
Another group, such as Shuichi Akai, simply sat and watched their actions in the live stream while keeping an eye on the investigation by their own FBI.
Amidst the chaos, the three secretly entered the underground wine cellar and discovered a red butterfly-shaped pattern on the wall.
After the three of them finished exploring the entire first floor, more than half an hour had passed in real time, while almost two hours had passed in the game.
It's almost midnight in reality, but it's almost 6 AM in the game.
Professor Agasa was also ready, standing under the chandelier, ready to turn the mechanism at any time.
Conan Edogawa made his decision and observed that the auction had reached its final, crucial moment: the day's highlight item, a Buddha statue worth two billion yen.
While everyone else was gathered at the venue, Conan Edogawa, carrying the blond child, and Kaito Kid secretly entered the restaurant.
"The next clue should only appear after this mechanism is activated."
Conan Edogawa placed the blond child on the table, gesturing for him to turn around and look at the clock hanging behind him.
The code they've deciphered is one they already knew; what follows is the true hidden secret, and the subsequent developments are completely unfamiliar. Conan Edogawa has no idea what dangers he will encounter.
However, he suspected that it would involve the organization's true core secrets, so he had to take the risk.
Moreover, since Hiroki said that and everyone is here, there shouldn't be too much danger.
"First of all, the first line of the code, 'Two travelers looking up at the night sky,' refers to the hour and minute hands pointing to the zero point at the top of the sky simultaneously."
The blond child stood on the cabinet, nodded with a serious little face, reached out and grabbed the hands of the clock, slowly moving it to zero.
"Then there's the blood letter and the playing cards... so next, let's turn the pointer back from zero..."
Once we find the organization's secret with this child, we can truly gain his trust and then work together, right?
Where will the next game set be? What will the main content be?
"Click—"
A crisp sound rang out, and the clock fell off the wall, startling the blond boy.
As expected, Conan Edogawa caught the heavy clock and showed him the chipped paint on the back: "Look, this clock is made entirely of gold."
"Is this the treasure that Karasuma Renya was looking for twenty years ago..." the blond child murmured in amazement.
"That's not all." Conan Edogawa placed the clock directly on the ground, stretched out his hands to the blond child on the cabinet, and said, "Did you hear some collapsing sounds that are getting louder? That's the sound of the entire building's outer layer falling off. Get down first, it's going to shake violently soon, be careful not to fall."
Before he could finish speaking, the whole house began to shake violently.
The blond boy instinctively moved his hands away and squatted down against the wall, grabbing the edge of the cabinet to steady himself.
Screams erupted from the crowd outside.
They clearly thought it was an earthquake and began to flee.
Only the players who had been watching Conan Edogawa's live stream excitedly rushed over, while Yujiro Ishihara and Masahiro Oki also went in the opposite direction to search for the child.
"Boom boom boom—"
Conan Edogawa turned his head in surprise and saw that after the outer layer of the wall next to him fell off, a dazzling golden wall was revealed, and with the sound of a mechanism being activated, a dark tunnel was slowly revealed.
His eyes lit up.
It seems this is the next entrance to the game!
If nothing unexpected happens, it should contain the secret of time travel within the game, or the secret of immortality that those important figures are frantically pursuing.
It could even be a core secret of the organization, or a secret hidden by Mr. Amuro and his team.
The truth is right before our eyes!
The comments section was filled with frantic shouts, urging them to hurry up and explore the tunnel, excitedly speculating whether there were ghosts or terrifying experiments inside.
Conan Edogawa also got excited and turned to the blond child on the cabinet, smiling, "Kudo-kun, come here quickly, we're going to try the next level!"
The blond child, who had been staring intently at the dark tunnel, snapped out of his reverie upon hearing this and leaned closer to him: "Okay..."
"Bang--"
A golden bullet pierced the air, instantly penetrating the blond child's head. A large amount of scarlet blood gushed from the horrifying hole, flying past Conan Edogawa's eyes and splattering onto the dazzling golden wall.
His smile froze instantly, and he instinctively caught the falling blond child.
Inside the magnificent golden castle, Conan Edogawa stood frozen, holding the lifeless child in his arms, his mind blank, unable to react.
"..."
"..."
"..."
"ah?"
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