Chapter 82 The Illusion of the Past 2
Steam rises, creating a moist and refreshing atmosphere. Hot spring water flows into the pool through a bamboo pipe, rippling across the surface.
Gu Ze sat in the hot spring, leaning against the wall of the pool.
"And then I became friends with Araide." He was explaining to Conan why he knew Dr. Araide.
In order to integrate into this main storyline, Gu Ze went to great lengths to alter the original Dr. Araide's memories and then establish a reasonable connection with Araide as a friend.
“In that case, the possibility that Dr. Araide is Vermouth can be reduced,” Conan said, stroking his chin.
He arrived in a hurry and didn't bring a bathrobe, so he could only stand by the hot spring and watch Gu Ze soak in the hot spring.
Gu Ze squinted his eyes and let out a long sigh, lazily enjoying the nourishment of the hot spring water like a cat.
He said slowly, "That's not necessarily true. Don't forget I told you that Vermouth is an organization member who is extremely skilled in disguise."
Upon receiving Gu Ze's denial, Conan's expression darkened. "Can't even you see it?"
"Of course, I'm not a god."
“Then you’ll at least help me, right?” Conan looked at Gu Ze and asked for help. “If you can help me, I’m sure I can find Vermouth faster.”
Gu Ze did not respond to Conan, but simply smiled without saying a word.
"Hey, didn't you want revenge? This is a great opportunity for you!"
Seeing that Gu Ze remained unmoved, Conan had no choice but to resort to other strategies.
"Of course, of course I'll help you." Gu Ze asked, posing a probing question, "Haven't I helped you before? Don't you trust me?"
Faced with the questioning, Conan hurriedly explained, "No, of course I trust you..."
Conan was still chattering away beside him, but Gu Ze didn't hear a single word.
Seeing that it was almost time, Gu Ze stood up decisively, walked ashore, and his muscular figure was on full display.
Water droplets slid down his smooth skin, finally embracing the earth.
Conan calmed down after he dried his hair and the water stains.
"Kurosawa-kun, are you even listening to me?!" Conan said, somewhat annoyed.
"No," Gu Ze rubbed his ears and told the truth.
"But don't worry, I will definitely ensure your and Ai's safety. Don't forget, you're under my protection."
As he spoke, Gu Ze habitually squatted down and ruffled Conan's hair.
The two left the hot spring one after the other, and as soon as they stepped outside, they saw a group of people walking towards them, chatting and laughing.
It's Ran, Sonoko, Jodie, and the fake Dr. Araide, with Amethyst leading the group.
"Why did you guys come down?" Gu Ze asked after greeting them.
"Miss Amethyst said that the divination session is about to end, but the hot springs are always open, so we should hurry up and go," Xiaolan explained.
"Yes, dear guest, our manager, who is also our fortune teller, is about to leave the store, so this is the last time."
Amethyst wore a standard smile, which looked somewhat fake.
Gu Ze turned his gaze to Vermouth and dug a hole for her, saying, "Shin-chan, didn't you say before that you weren't interested in this kind of thing?"
"Haha, I just came to join in the fun." Vermouth made up an excuse and immediately changed the subject. "By the way, have you seen the Red Crystal?"
Red Crystal was a waitress specifically responsible for serving Gu Ze and his companion.
"Never seen her before, what happened to her?"
Seeing that Gu Ze was about to press for more information, Amethyst immediately said, "I'm very sorry, sir, we are temporarily unable to contact Red Crystal. I will now serve as your personal service guide..."
She maintained her smile, but you could always sense that she was gritting her teeth. After all, who would be happy if their colleague neglected their post and they had to do double the work?
"In that case, Brother Gu Ze, why don't you come with us?" Sonoko suggested loudly.
Unable to refuse their hospitality, Gu Ze readily agreed and followed behind them, observing them.
Vermouth chatted happily with Sonoko and Ran, and she would occasionally glance at Conan.
FBI agent Judy occasionally chimed in, then silently observed Vermouth.
Apart from Sonoko and Ran, who were in the right situation, the other three each had their own thoughts and wore masks.
Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!
"Is that the crime scene from back then?" Sonoko asked in surprise, pointing to the dilapidated wooden door not far away, which still had a police seal on it.
"Yes, the divination room is right next door. If you're interested, you can come in for a tour after your divination, and we'll give you a discount..." Amethyst explained earnestly and promoted her services at every turn.
"Uh, that's not necessary..."
After passing the crime scene that could be visited, Amethyst led the six people into the divination room.
The divination room was dark, with no light source, but as soon as the group entered, the dim crystal chandelier lit up instantly.
The room's decor is similar to, or even more elaborate than, the reception area, with a focus on mystery and magic.
Directly opposite the main entrance, there was an area enclosed by a curtain, which was currently drawn back. Inside the area were two chairs and a round table.
At the round table sat a woman dressed in a wizard's robe, her upper face hidden by a large hood, while her lower face was marked by her striking purple lipstick.
With a gentle wave of her hand, the silver ornaments on her wizard robe jingled and clanged.
"Welcome to the tarot room, lost traveler! Tarot can guide you and dispel your confusion."
The store manager's voice was deep, husky, and seductive, sounding very much like a charlatan.
"This is our store manager," Amethyst introduced.
"So, who wants to go first?" the store manager asked the group.
“Uh… I don’t need it.” Judy waved her hand.
Meanwhile, Vermouth shook her head, and Gu Ze was even less interested; only Ran and Sonoko were eager to try.
"Ran, Ran, you go first." Sonoko Suzuki pushed Ran inside, "Go and ask her where your husband went."
"Sonoko, what nonsense are you talking about?"
"Of course it's that Kudo guy..."
"Sonoko!" Ran said shyly, quickly stopping Sonoko from continuing.
Conan blushed immediately upon being mentioned. What on earth was Sonoko saying?
The curtain was drawn, completely isolating the divination area.
After Xiaolan went in, it would take her a while to come out. To liven up the atmosphere, Zishui took a fortune stick from the shelf next to her.
"Hey everyone, how about we draw some lots during this time? It's free!"
"Okay, okay, I'll go first." The lively Sonoko quickly took the lottery box, very eager to start.
She shook herself, and soon a stick was flung out.
Amethyst picked it up and congratulated him, saying, "It's a very auspicious sign. Your luck will definitely be very good in the next few days."
"yeah!"
Next, the fortune-telling tube passed through everyone's hands, and unsurprisingly, everyone drew a good fortune, until it was Gu Ze's turn...
"Clang!" The wooden strip fell and collided with the ground.
Gu Ze bent down to pick up the fortune slip he had drawn, and everyone else turned to look.
A red character for "death" was carved on the wooden strip...
"Hiss—" Everyone gasped.
"How could it be this character!"
Amethyst's expression changed drastically. She quickly pulled the slip of paper from Gu Ze's hand, hid it behind her back, and apologized repeatedly, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it was our oversight."
The curtains weren't very soundproof, and the shopkeeper seemed to have heard the commotion outside. He swung his jingling robe and lifted the curtain.
"What happened?"
"This guest has drawn a death lot!" Amethyst was on the verge of tears.
"Didn't I tell you to pick out all the bad draws? How come there are still some left out! What are you all doing?!"
The shopkeeper took off her hood, revealing her face, and loudly reprimanded her, completely losing her previous air of a hermit.
"Heh, so there's some behind-the-scenes manipulation involved," Conan thought to himself.
"If you keep making mistakes like this every day, how am I supposed to keep this shop running!" The shop manager strode over angrily, his silver jewelry adding to the uproar.
The store manager walked up to Gu Ze, quickly changed his expression, and said gently, "I'm very sorry for the very unpleasant experience you had. To express my apology, would you like to try it again?"
"Uh... never mind, I don't believe in these things."
"I'm so sorry..." The shop manager apologized repeatedly with amethyst, promising to give Gu Ze some compensation, and the little incident was finally over.
After the garden finished its divination, everyone finally left the divination room.
"Ran, what was the result of your inquiry?" Sonoko leaned closer to Ran and asked curiously.
"Yes, it's said to make me keep my eyes open and not be deceived."
"No way, is Kudo kid out there messing around?"
Shinichi Kudo's reputation has been damaged.
Just as the six people were walking down the corridor, the surrounding lights suddenly went out, plunging everything into darkness, and they were forced to remain in the corridor.
"What's wrong? Is there a power outage?"
"What a terrible day!" the shop manager muttered as he pushed open the door to the fortune-telling room.
"Little Purple, go check the circuit quickly."
"Okay."
"Bang! Thud!" The sound of a heavy object hitting the ground suddenly rang out, reaching everyone's ears.
"What's that sound? It seems to be coming from the room next to the divination room."
Sonoko clung tightly to Ran's arm, a chill running down her spine as she recalled that the place had once been the scene of a murder.
About five minutes later, the store was restored.
"Let's go check it out!" Conan's detective instincts kicked in.
Everyone present heard the voice and felt that something was wrong.
The store manager swallowed hard, took out his keys, and opened the door.
The old wooden door was opened, the lights came on, and everything inside came into view.
The room was decorated in a Japanese style, with tatami mats on the floor and bookshelves all around, but all the books on them were gone, and one bookshelf was lying on the floor.
The deceased was a woman, dressed in a red uniform that resembled amethyst. She lay there with a ferocious expression and an odd posture.
On the tatami mat beneath her was a six-pointed star array, with a white, burning candle placed at each point of the star, hot wax dripping down the candle.
"Aaaaaaaahh ...
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