Chapter 31 (Previously Chapter 30): Noah's Ark: Alice in Wonderland...
"When I feel vulnerable, I repeat your name."
—Camus
"Shinichi...?"
In a daze, Conan gradually woke up from his continuous dreams. When his consciousness returned, he found that his shoulders were being held tightly by both hands.
"Shinichi, wake up."
...Someone was calling him Shinichi Kudo.
The moment his brain processed the meaning of the words, Conan's spirits lifted instantly. All his nerves tensed to their limit, and a surge of fear and unease made him instinctively retort to the person, "No..."
No, he is not Shinichi Kudo; this identity cannot be revealed.
He is Conan Edogawa.
Conan hurriedly looked up, ready to turn the tide with his identity exposed, but when that dazzling red rushed into his eyes, all the cover-ups and lies that were about to spill out stopped him.
"What do you mean, 'not'?" Ran Mouri, dressed in a long red dress, frowned and leaned slightly closer to her childhood friend who seemed a bit off. She asked with a frown, "I was just asking you, Shinichi, what are you doing here?"
"Lan? Hmm...?"
With his vision noticeably elevated, the outstretched arm, which he had instinctively reached out, looked exactly like it did in high school. Conan rubbed his eyes vigorously, but even after rubbing away the tears, he could still see those long, youthful arms. His brain, no longer troubled by drowsiness, quickly analyzed everything at the scene—
He has turned back into Shinichi Kudo.
"...Huh?" Shinichi Kudo, dressed in a dark red suit with a black inner layer, sat on the king's throne. His mind went blank for a moment as he analyzed the situation, not understanding what had happened.
What's going on... The 17-year-old high school boy's youthful spirit wasn't suppressed by his red and black suit; instead, his undeniable youthful handsomeness was enhanced by a touch of composure. At this moment, he was pressing his bangs down to cover his forehead, trying to recall what had happened before he woke up.
Damn it, ever since I got into the role of the Dormouse, I've been in a half-awake state and can't remember anything specific. Shinichi Kudo tried hard to find clear fragments in that hazy memory, but he only remembered some strange elements.
Griffin, Playing Card Soldier, Rose Garden
Searching for... the King of Hearts, a tea party... and a crow?
Wait, what crow? Shinichi Kudo perked up, his detective brain finally online and immediately went into overdrive, ready to continue digging and digging in the little memory garden. But Ran Mouri, who had been waiting for a response, began to worry.
"Shinichi, do you have a headache?" Ran Mouri, dressed in a red dress, frowned and squatted down, peering at Shinichi Kudo as he clutched his forehead. She suggested worriedly, "You might be experiencing holographic dizziness. Should we tell the administrator to log you out?"
"Ah! It's nothing, Ran, I was just a little dizzy, and now..." Shinichi Kudo, realizing that Ran Mouri was right in front of him, quickly put aside his confused memories, waved his hand with an embarrassed smile, and his explanation got stuck in his throat again when he saw the girl's face.
"Shinichi?" The Red Queen, dressed in her finest attire, looked up at her childhood friend who, for some reason, had only spoken halfway through his sentences twice. Her gentle yet resolute eyes were filled with worry, and she tilted her head hesitantly as she asked.
Behind the beautiful young woman, the intricate skirt unfurled from top to bottom on the steps before the throne as she crouched down, blooming like a burning red rose.
What a nice view.
It suits orchids very well.
His attempt to conceal his thoughts was interrupted by an unreasonable intrusion. His exceptionally clear mind, refreshed after a long sleep, automatically etched the scene before him into his memory. Shinichi Kudo blankly lowered his hand from his forehead, his exposed, deeply flushed face conveying his reaction to Ran Mouri before any words could be spoken.
Seeing that her childhood friend didn't look uncomfortable or in pain, Ran Mouri breathed a sigh of relief, and her attention was immediately drawn to the fact that the other person was blushing.
Only then did she realize that her current identity was the Red Queen, while Shinichi Kudo, the lost king, had been found and was now staring straight at her... Ran Mouri blushed as well, and hurriedly straightened up and straightened her skirt, the spread-out hem of her skirt gently lifting as if trying to extinguish a pool of flame.
"I'm glad you're alright, but why did you suddenly appear here?" Ran Mouri put her hands on her hips, turned away from her flushed face, and said with feigned anger mixed with undeniable shyness, "I remember your name wasn't on the list of invitees from the Sindora Group."
"Ahahaha, well, it's because, well..." Suddenly realizing what was happening, Shinichi Kudo turned his flushed face to the other side, awkwardly touching the back of his neck with one hand, his brain racing as he frantically tried to come up with a reason he didn't even know.
"It's because... because Dad is the chief story writer for the holographic game, so he has a pass to participate in the holographic experience. I didn't expect that I could come over just in time after finishing my case," Shinichi Kudo said with a sudden inspiration.
"The organizers said that adding one more person wouldn't make a difference, so I came to find you guys, hahaha."
Thanks to his father, the world-renowned novelist Yusaku Kudo, for his extensive business dealings, Shinichi Kudo, who did indeed have a brief meeting with his father before the press conference, managed to come up with a plausible excuse, grinning as he said, "When I first came in, I was a little taken aback."
"Oh, I see." Having already greeted Yusaku Kudo, Ran Mouri accepted the reason quite naturally. The change of topic and attention gave her mind, which was almost filled with shyness, a moment of peace. The girl raised her hand and gently fanned her feverish cheeks.
The Queen of Hearts, showing no anger whatsoever, smiled at the King of Hearts, who had been missing for a long time. She offered no reproach or questioning, but was genuinely happy to see her beloved, saying, "I never expected to meet Shinichi here. It's wonderful."
“…Ah.” Shinichi Kudo lowered his hand from the back of his neck, his expression softening as well, a tender look creeping onto his youthful face.
Although the fact that he inexplicably turned back into Shinichi Kudo in the data world still haunts him with a strong sense of crisis about his identity being exposed—the question of why the holographic world was able to deduce his identity is too fatal.
But, I can finally say what Shinichi Kudo wants to say without having to be separated by a phone line, and I can finally step into your sight even though we're just around the corner. I can finally talk to you face to face, as Shinichi Kudo.
That's wonderful!
All the almost overflowing emotions were condensed into a short sentence: "Yes, it's really good."
Shinichi Kudo, dressed in a striking red and black suit, grinned broadly, his face still flushed as he looked at His Majesty the Empress, whose face was also red.
"I really want to ask you, what case are you investigating that's taken so long?"
Ran Mouri's gaze lingered on her childhood friend, who hadn't been to school in a long time, and she asked a question that was least likely to elicit a truthful answer. Shinichi Kudo's hands, which were resting on his lap, clenched for a moment. Just as he was about to offer the reason he had given countless times on the phone, Ran Mouri casually picked up a sleeping dormouse named Conan from the side.
Wait, Conan?!
"But it's getting late, and we need to get to the trial before the White Queen from the neighboring country arrives." Ran Mouri skipped over that question, and instead, with a hint of helplessness, held the boy in her arms who had been sleeping since they met, gently taking out a handkerchief to wipe the child's nose as he breathed steadily.
"I don't know if Conan is jet-lagged, he's really turned into a little dormouse, I can't wake him up no matter what I do." The Queen of Hearts sighed, "If it weren't for the fact that he would automatically pop out if he was seriously injured, I would be really worried."
Wait a minute!
Hey—hey—hey—Lan!
If you're holding Conan, then who am I right now?
Upon seeing 'Conan', Shinichi Kudo, whose mind was filled with questions, couldn't help but open his mouth wide in doubt. However, he swallowed back the question that was about to spill out. Since asking questions would expose his identity, he could only follow Ran Mouri's pull and stand up from the king's throne.
And actually, he'd been wanting to ask that question for a while now. Patting his red suit, which matched Ran Mouri's, Shinichi Kudo wore a strange, conflicted expression: What on earth is going on in this instance? He and Conan are the same person, so why did he suddenly go from a dormant to a king?
"Alright, let's get going, Shinichi."
"Hey hey, Lan, I'm coming right away."
Handing the dormouse to the playing card soldiers who entered the palace, the Queen of Hearts, with Alice's retrieved King of Hearts in tow, strode toward the trial court.
Shinichi Kudo paused in his steps as he was about to walk towards the Detective Boys. He glanced at Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya and Genta Kojima, who were helping Conan leave, and was then pulled by the wrist to walk next to Ran Mouri.
Ah, he's not a primary school student anymore. Slightly disoriented between his two identities, Shinichi Kudo looked up, his gaze sweeping over the magnificent palaces and sculptures along the way, lost in thought:
The lost king? Then, who... found him?
"Kiri-chan, where did you find the king?"
Upon arriving at the trial venue, Kenji Hagiwara immediately obtained the potion that made him grow bigger. Following the rules, he found a secluded spot to drink it, transforming back into an adult man with long hair. He leaned against the railing, turned his head to look at Zhuge Tongzhi, who was still in the form of a young girl, and asked her a question.
After Sister Qiansu finished telling them the riddle, Zhuge Tongzhi squatted down with the little dormouse in his arms and whispered something in the ear of soldier Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko in a mysterious manner.
“If you’re really sure, you should go to the Truth Chamber in the castle.” The little playing card soldier hesitated for a moment, then nodded and let him through. “But if you lie, the Queen of Hearts will chop off your head.”
“And your companions must remain outside until you fulfill your promise to bring the king back.” Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya whispered a few words to Chisato Hagiwara on tiptoe, and the giant griffin raised a claw and firmly pressed it against his younger brother’s shoulders.
Before Kenji Hagiwara could react and stop her, Zhuge Tongzhi happily ran into the rose bushes with a dormice in her arms, while she was held hostage by her older sister.
Having been told nothing about the background, he initially thought the kid was planning to sacrifice his teammates and go through the challenge alone.
However, soon after, the castle began to ring out melodious bells.
Empty-handed, Zhuge Tongzhi walked briskly out of the rose garden, indicating that he was handing Conan over to Ran Mouri. Meanwhile, the King and Queen, who had been found, were preparing to depart for the trial, having successfully qualified to attend.
But Kenji Hagiwara inexplicably cleared the game before he even had a chance to fully ponder the riddle he heard.
"Well—this has something to do with Xiaolan's privacy." Zhuge Tongzhi leaned on the railing, watching the two walking hand in hand on the stage, and smiled. "I can't tell you."
Hidden within the folds of the blue dress, a pair of children's glasses and a glass bottle, now empty of its usual beverage, lay quietly, burying all secrets in the opaque darkness.
“It’s really not good to pry into other people’s privacy, so I won’t ask.” Kenji Hagiwara raised his hand and waved high at Jinpei Matsuda, who had appeared on the jury, and shouted, “Jinpei-kun! I’m here!”
With his black trench coat draped over his arm, Matsuda Jinpei, dressed in a blue and white striped shirt and black trousers, turned around and glared at his childhood friend with a sour expression. His response was to pull out black sunglasses and fasten them firmly to his nose.
The Shiba Inu's tail lashed out behind him irritably, as if whipping, signaling to Kenji Hagiwara that he was currently unwelcome.
But Kenji Hagiwara wasn't discouraged at all; instead, he raised his voice even higher and shouted, "Hey! Jinpei only likes Kenji!"
"So heartbreaking—I'm about to cry!"
Cat ears suddenly stood up from his curly hair. Matsuda Jinpei, unable to bear it any longer, turned his head to look at his childhood friend's head, took off his sunglasses, and decided to smash the thing with it.
With a cold laugh, he raised his arm, about to swing it, when the half-long-haired man who had been stirring up trouble was lightly slapped on the head by the flying eagle-lion. The thick feathers made him cover his head and bend over.
"Stop fooling around." Hagiwara Chisato soared around the vast courtroom, flapped her huge wings, and slowly landed on the jury box. Her retracted wings gently pressed Matsuda Jinpei's hand, which was gripping his sunglasses, back down.
"Let's talk outside." A meaningful smile appeared on her older sister's face, and Kenji Hagiwara immediately felt a chill run down his spine—he was so focused on how Jinpei could beat people up, but his older sister had never been gentle with him since they were little.
Oh dear, could the trial go on for a little longer?
Kenji Hagiwara obediently went down, but Tongzhi Zhuge turned from facing the podium to facing the jury.
She waved her hands high in that direction, and Ayumi Yoshida, Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya, and Genta Kojima jumped up and down, waving their arms back at her. Behind the children, a dormice named Conan, with a big snot bubble coming out of its nose, leaned against a chair.
The black-haired girl winked at Ayumi, the rabbit who had been running all the way, lightly touched her lips with her finger, and blew a kiss. Ayumi's face gradually turned red as she watched the short-haired girl's radiant smile.
"What lovely children," the girl murmured in a barely audible whisper, a slight smile playing on her lips. She turned to look at the crowded entrance with Kenji Hagiwara.
Following the familiar faces, a host of strange and wonderful animals poured into the hall. A dodo with blue-purple feathers, a slow-moving tortoise-like creature, and a caterpillar leisurely breathing while holding a hookah landed on the jury seats.
As Ran Mouri sat on the Queen's throne in the center, holding up her gown, solemn bells rang throughout the courtroom, drawing everyone's attention to the presiding judge.
Shinichi Kudo sat down a little later on the King's Throne, which was shorter than the Queen's Throne, next to Ran Mouri. He propped his head up and looked at the various creatures in the hall, wondering what this trial was going to judge.
His gaze swept over Ayumi the rabbit, Mitsuhiko and Genta the playing card soldiers, and the Cheshire Cat and the Griffin, finally settling on Conan, who was breathing steadily on the jury bench. Finally, he looked at the girl-like Zhuge Tongzhi, his brows furrowing tightly.
Whether it's the capsule cookies that turn you into a child or the drink that turns you back into an adult with just one sip, they all seem like whimsical fairy tales. But the cake that Alice actually ate only made her grow smaller or larger proportionally; it didn't have the function of turning her back into a child.
At the same time, the rules themselves have a strange and surreal feel to them.
Shinichi Kudo looked at Alice, the girl standing in the center of the judgment seat, her head bowed as she tidied the vines around her waist. Countless fragmented thoughts flashed through his azure eyes, and all his previous doubts surged up once again.
Is the 'raven' mentioned by the Mad Hatter really a confession of 'I like you for no reason'?
Under the detective's focused gaze, Zhuge Tongzhi raised his head and met his gaze precisely as he was about to look away. His dark eyes, like bottomless pools, reflected a tiny image of Shinichi Kudo.
Zhuge Tongzhi smiled slightly at him, and a pair of black-rimmed glasses flashed in her palm as she lifted her skirt.
Shinichi Kudo's heart pounded like a drum.
The bells, symbolizing the trial, rang in the courtroom. Ran Mouri, wearing a red heart crown, opened her mouth, and her words were automatically amplified a hundredfold, reaching every member of the trial assembly.
A clear and solemn voice announced in everyone's ears: "The trial begins."
"Next, we will try the White Queen who is absent."
"The White Queen allowed the evil dragon to wreak havoc in the fairy realm, making life unbearable for the inhabitants."
The stained glass dome above the courtroom suddenly shattered. Zhuge Tongzhi and Hagiwara Kenji, who were standing in the center, instinctively raised their hands to cover their eyes. Hagiwara Chisato flew over like an arrow, using his large wings to cover the two of them and block all the falling shards of glass.
Beneath the gaps in the griffin's wings, in a field of vision filled with dazzling reflected light, a black shadow a hundred times larger than the griffin stretched across the blue sky, its long, hoarse dragon roar tearing at everyone's eardrums.
The moment the glass shattered, Shinichi Kudo abruptly stood up and pulled Ran Mouri behind him. He looked up at the enormous creature hovering above him, and saw the metallic sheen and the layered texture of black feathers on this creature called a dragon.
Ran Mouri, steadily bearing the heavy red heart crown, looked up at the most dangerous end of this journey and declared firmly:
“Two brave warriors who have been stranded here, I commanded the rabbit to guide you here, because only you can slay the evil dragon.”
"Only by destroying it can you leave this place."
As Shinichi Kudo looked into the dragon's eyes, the dark dragon shape grew larger and larger, and the details that were previously unclear became clearer and clearer. For a moment, his pupils dilated slightly as if he had been startled.
The evil dragon that obscures the light has a pair of raven wings.
-----------------------
Author's note: Sigh, you two lovebirds (acting coy)
Who is more suitable to be the King of Hearts than Shinichi Kudo? Conan is the center who unites all the red teams.
…
Xiaotong: What is this, Xiaoke? (Trying to get away)
Da Tong: What is this, Xiao Ke? It's scary!
…
What exactly is holding back these two people who should have woken up? (Shaking head)
Only by slaying the evil dragon can we truly awaken.
Ganbatte!
…
Mwah
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