Chapter 280, Seventy-Third Cycle (110)
October 25th.
Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.
"Achoo!" Kazami Yuya suddenly sneezed.
"You caught a cold?" Furuya Rei asked on the other end of the phone. "It's almost November, you should start paying attention to keeping warm, so you don't catch a cold at this crucial time."
"No... I don't think so." Kazami Yuya rubbed his nose. "It just seems like my nose is a little itchy, but I'm fine."
"Compared to that, catching the criminals is more important." Kazami Yuya flipped through the data on his computer. "Mr. Furuya, those two escaped prisoners seem to be the bomber who was arrested seven years ago. Ah! One of them even escaped three years ago? What's going on with them? How can they keep getting prisoners to escape?!"
"Let's submit a report to the higher-ups, saying that the prison does indeed need some reforms," Furuya Rei said.
“Yes!” Kazami Yuya replied immediately.
After saying that, he scrolled to the very end of the file and exclaimed in surprise, "The person who arrested those two bombers before, wasn't he your colleague, Mr. Furuya?"
I don't know where Mr. Furuya is on the other end of the phone. It's very quiet, but there's a faint sound of wind, which slightly obscures the emotion in his voice.
“Hmm.” Furuya Rei didn’t say much, but instead changed the subject and asked, “You don’t need to worry about things here anymore. Go and focus on the handover of Pramia.”
"Prumia?" Kazami Yuya was taken aback. "I remember she was captured around the same time as you, Mr. Furuya, right? Three years ago? Three years have passed, and now she's being handed over? To whom?"
How could he not know about such a major international criminal transfer case as the Pramiya case?
"It was decided this morning..." Furuya Rei briefly explained the situation to him.
Although both jurisdictions have jurisdiction over transnational crimes, local laws are generally applied first, with further negotiations depending on the specific circumstances.
...Of course, this is the rule on the surface; in reality, the ownership is determined by the different strengths of the two countries.
Furthermore, Pramiya's true identity remains uncertain; all that is known is that he initially operated in Russia and then committed crimes worldwide.
Therefore, when Pramiya was captured, Russia, which had suffered great harm because of her, was the first to propose taking her back for further processing.
However, the United States then intervened, stating that Pramiya had also caused countless disasters in the United States, and that Pramiya was not necessarily Russian, so he should be taken away by the FBI.
Ultimately, in the end, Pramia remained in the Japanese prison for serious offenders caught in the middle.
Because this country has a near-absent attitude towards the death penalty, even the notorious Pramiya was not executed, but sentenced to life imprisonment and has remained incarcerated ever since.
Until about two weeks ago, the United States began to urge them to transfer Pramiya to the FBI.
Upon hearing the news, Russia immediately began vying for control of Pramie as well.
After two weeks of back and forth, the authorities finally agreed to the US's request and will hand over Pramiya to the FBI in three days.
Kazami Yuya: "..."
Sometimes, I really feel hopeless about the people in power.
*
October 26th.
Russia.
The heavy snow covered everything, creating a frozen wasteland, but it couldn't extinguish the anger in their eyes.
"Damn the FBI!"
Within an organization called "Nadunichtokiti," someone directly swore.
"What exactly do they want?!"
"It's been three years! Why are they suddenly taking Pramia away again???"
"Chief! I don't believe the Americans can do anything good! There's definitely something wrong with them taking Pramia away! We absolutely cannot let them take Pramia like that!!!"
"That's right! The FBI wasn't exactly enthusiastic about arresting Pramiya before! They were clearly in cahoots with Pramiya!!!"
"Prumia will definitely collude with them to continue destroying this world!!!"
"We can't let Pramia go!!!"
In the angry crowd, the blonde woman with scars on her face remained silent, but her blue eyes were as cold as knives, and her expression was terrifying.
“Elena,” the bearded brown-haired man stepped forward and said, “Just as they said, I also think it’s very abnormal for the United States to take Pramia away after three years. Maybe there’s something they want about Pramia. And given the United States’s inertia and Pramia’s abilities, Pramia may very well continue to hide in the shadows and roam free after escaping from prison.”
The blonde woman looked up at her brother: "Oleg, what do you want to do?"
Oleg paused for a moment before saying, "Don't worry, I won't do anything reckless. I just want to find someone who might be able to help us."
"Who?" Elena asked.
Oleg took a well-preserved business card from his pocket and handed it to her.
Elena took it and slowly read out the name on it: "Matsuda Jinpei..."
Someone nearby peeked out and exclaimed in surprise, "Does that look like a policeman? What country is he from?"
Those around frowned: "Police? What's the use of calling the police? Those cops are all useless!"
Oleg shook his head slightly: "Do you remember three years ago when we went to Japan to hunt down Pramia? I almost fell into a trap and was killed by Pramia. It was this policeman and his companion who saved me, and they were the ones who captured Pramia."
The image of the blond, dark-skinned youth who spoke fluent Russian flashed through his mind, along with his four partners who had worked seamlessly with him back then, and the man's gaze hardened.
“I think we can try to cooperate with them,” Oleg said. “They probably wouldn’t want to hand over the criminals they’ve caught to the FBI.”
"..." Elena frowned and pondered for a few seconds. "No, I don't trust the police in that country. And if they're unwilling to hand Pramiya over to the FBI, they won't hand him over to us either."
Oleg: "Ereshkigal..."
“However, it is possible to try working with only those five people, just the five of them, not the police station over there,” Elena continued. “And during that time, you must follow my instructions; you absolutely cannot act alone again.”
Oleg's face lit up with joy, and he nodded earnestly: "No problem!"
Elena turned around, looking at everyone with a sharp and murderous gaze: "What do you all think?"
Everyone immediately fell silent.
“I plan to go to Japan, and during that time I will try to cooperate with the police officers who captured Pramia,” Elena said, then suddenly raised her voice, adding sharply, “But this time I will absolutely not let them bring Pramia back alive!”
The crowd immediately erupted in excitement: "Yes! Leader!! We will follow you to kill Pramia!!!"
Elena gritted her teeth: "This time, we must kill Pramia!!!"
The crowd shouted, "Kill Pramiya! Kill Pramiya!! Kill Pramiya!!!"
Elena stood on the platform: "Three years have passed! Don't forget our organization's name! Don't forget our sole objective!!!"
The crowd roared, "Nadunichtokitti! Kill him without hesitation! We will absolutely kill Pramia to avenge him! Revenge!!!"
"Hurrah!!!!!"
*
October 27th.
Teitan Elementary School.
"Edogawa-kun, Edogawa-kun? Edogawa-kun!"
"Huh? What?" Conan Edogawa snapped out of his daze and turned to see Ai Haibara looking at him with a curious expression.
"What are you thinking about? You seem so lost in thought. Has something happened lately?" Ai Haibara frowned.
"No, no." Conan Edogawa quickly waved his hand, then sighed helplessly under the gaze of the brown-haired girl. "Okay, actually there's something I really don't know whether I should tell you or not."
Ai Haibara crossed her arms.
“Last month’s holographic game, ‘Running Towards the Sun,’” Conan Edogawa said, covering up the red butterfly he had unconsciously drawn on the table.
Ai Haibara's expression suddenly changed, and her eyes immediately became tense and alert.
"Yes, it's about the organization." Conan Edogawa confirmed her guess and said, "After leaving the game, I received a very important piece of information from Mr. Carmel."
"What?" Ai Haibara clenched her fists. "What does this have to do with me?"
In an instant, a picture flashed through her mind of a research institute in the holographic game that shared the same name as the place where her parents had once worked.
"Don't worry, the organization hasn't found you, and it's not really related to you," Conan Edogawa reassured her, then his expression turned serious as he said, "It's about Scotland."
Ai Haibara remained tense, asking nervously, "Scotland? Is it related to Bourbon?"
Conan Edogawa shook his head: "There's a new clue about Scotland's true identity. Mr. Carmel overheard Vodka and Chianti talking in the game, saying that Scotland is now using some messy disguises, has changed his identity and is following Bourbon around, wearing glasses, and looks quite funny."
Ai Haibara paused for a moment: "Glasses..."
She turned her head and looked out the window, where she could see Yuki Amami playing with the children below.
Their incredibly popular and handsome PE teacher wore an inappropriate pair of black-rimmed glasses, which, to be honest, could be considered somewhat comical.
She turned around, met Conan Edogawa's gaze, and after a few seconds of silence, said, "I don't think he is."
Rumi Wakasa, carrying a pile of documents, staggered down the corridor and was almost knocked over by a child running by while playing. She screamed in fright, and her glasses almost fell off her face.
"And what about her?" Conan Edogawa asked.
Ai Haibara: "...I don't think she is either."
Conan Edogawa didn't comment on her opinion, but simply nodded and said, "Then there's only one left..."
"Conan-kun! Ai-chan!" Ayumi Yoshida ran into the classroom, laughing and shouting happily. "I have some amazing news to tell you all!"
"Ms. Kobayashi heard from Officer Shiratori—" Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya followed behind.
"Officer Sato and Officer Takagi—" Genta Kojima popped up around the corner, trying to catch up.
"They're getting married!!!" the three children shouted in unison, extremely excited.
Conan Edogawa and Ai Haibara were both stunned: "Huh? Really?!"
"It's true." Their homeroom teacher, Kobayashi Sumiko, walked over apologetically. "Keep your voices down, everyone. They said not to tell anyone about this, and they only invited the five of you. I only heard yesterday that they were inviting you to the wedding, and I thought you had already received their wedding invitations..."
"An invitation? Has the date already been set?" Ai Haibara's eyes widened.
“Yes.” Kobayashi Sumiko smiled. “It’s three days from now, on October 30th, which is right after Halloween.”
Conan Edogawa: "???"
"That's way too fast!!" He almost jumped up.
Ai Haibara was also a little confused.
To be honest, the idea of people around her getting married was completely outside her worldview, and she felt both amazed and bewildered at the same time.
It wasn't until she was about to go home after school that she remembered the topic that Conan Edogawa hadn't finished talking about.
"Wait, who was the last person you mentioned?" She turned and followed Conan Edogawa.
“I’m going to see him now.” Conan Edogawa turned to ask, “Do you want to come along? You can use your intuition to see if there’s any reaction.”
Ai Haibara: "...Am I some kind of organization's radar?"
“And even though I had a strong reaction when I first left the organization, I’m often unsure now.” Her voice suddenly softened. “I think… I’m gradually integrating into ordinary people’s lives…”
Conan Edogawa laughed upon hearing this: "That's a good thing."
Ai Haibara: "..."
She eventually followed along and ended up standing in front of Poirot's Cafe.
When Ai Haibara arrived here, she naturally understood who the last person he had guessed was, but she wondered why he didn't go to the Iroha Sushi restaurant next door.
"Ahem, before we go any further, we should at least greet Mr. Amuro first," said Conan Edogawa.
Ai Haibara: "..."
Conan Edogawa pushes open the door of Poirot's Cafe.
He had breakfast here and learned from Mr. Amuro that he would be taking the day off tomorrow, so tonight was his last chance.
It was already six o'clock in the evening, almost dusk, and there weren't many customers in the coffee shop. Amuro Tooru and Enomoto Azusa were each holding a pumpkin carving.
"Are these pumpkin lanterns carved for Halloween?" Ai Haibara curiously leaned closer and discovered that they were not just ordinary Halloween pumpkin lanterns, but also various other styles, all of them lifelike.
Amuro Tooru's craftsmanship is ridiculously good; this pumpkin carving is so skillful it could enter a competition.
Conan Edogawa picked up the menu that seemed to have just been written next to them and glanced at it, somewhat surprised: "So many pumpkin dishes! Even for Halloween, does it have to be almost entirely pumpkin?"
It's truly amazing that you can create so many different designs from pumpkins! No wonder it's Mr. Amuro!
—But is this the time to do something like this?
Upon hearing this, Enomoto Azusa immediately gave an embarrassed smile, while Amuro Tooru said helplessly, "There's nothing I can do. We bought too many pumpkins, so we can only try to use them up as soon as possible."
Enomoto Azusa, who was standing next to her, also sighed: "And Amuro-kun will be taking leave later, so I'll be the only one in the shop again. I need to learn how to do it quickly."
All right.
Conan Edogawa subtly tugged at the blond youth's sleeve under the table, giving him a look that said, "I have something important to tell you."
The blond youth blinked, about to say something, when the phone in his pocket suddenly rang.
"Excuse me, I need to take this call," he said with a smile.
Conan Edogawa nodded, watching his retreating figure, wondering whose phone call it was.
After all, the phone call Mr. Amuro received was definitely not ordinary—
"Mr. Furuya! Something terrible has happened!"
Kazami Yuya shouted in panic on the other end of the phone.
Kiyoko Yamaguchi has escaped from prison too!!!
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