Chapter 108 Police Academy
"Jing, um, I..." Seeing Zero's hesitant expression on the phone screen, Jing Guang knew: there was still no news about Conan.
This is the 11th day since the little detective went missing.
“Jing, try to look on the bright side. No news isn’t necessarily bad news! Osiris has no reason to kill Conan; he’s just playing a detective game.” Zero gave him a firm look. “Have you lost faith in Conan?”
Jingguang shook his head with a wry smile. The next day, he understood why he hadn't been able to solve the mystery left by Vermouth: the doctor's family had also received a letter.
However, it was mixed in with other advertising flyers and such and went unnoticed, gathering dust in a corner until Conan opened it that night. Unfortunately, Dr. Agasa didn't pay attention to the contents of the letter, and Conan said it was an unimportant letter. But Hiromitsu believed it was most likely the missing final piece of the puzzle, but sadly, he wouldn't be able to get the final clue.
"Zero, I'm just losing confidence in myself. How could I... make such a stupid mistake?!"
"We've been working together for so long, do you think I don't know Conan's little schemes?!"
"Jing, don't blame yourself. Although Conan is not yet an adult, he is already capable of taking responsibility for his actions. This is his personal choice! Since he made this decision, I believe he has a foolproof plan."
“No, I don’t think so.” Jingguang sighed weakly. “I don’t think he had thought things through when he called me on his last night. He was still struggling with what to do. Thinking back on what he said, it was full of holes! At first, he could hold his tongue, but the more he talked, the more incoherent it became. I remember him saying something like, ‘At least while he was playing games with me, I don’t think he had time to issue tasks to his subordinates.’ Conan has two phones, so I guess he was not only talking to me but also chatting with Osiris. He wasn’t thinking clearly when he said that, and unconsciously blurted out what he was doing. Osiris must have said something that threw Conan into a panic, making him decide to go alone. Zero, this is a carefully planned trap.”
"And I was so careless that Conan slipped away right under my nose!"
Jingguang could never forgive himself for the mistake he had made. These past few days, he had been tossing and turning, always imagining the scene when that thin little boy left: he guessed it must have been in the dead of night, a little boy with a bag on his back speeding across the empty streets on a skateboard, and then he might have gotten into a car or other means of transportation or even hidden in a big box, bumping along the way to the destination indicated by the map.
"Will that be his grave?"
"Jing, what do you think is the purpose of Osiris going to all this trouble?"
Jingguang stared blankly at the ceiling, his eyes vacant. "I don't know... Maybe Conan will become an experimental subject like Yuuki. Osiris should be very interested in his brilliant mind, right? Why is it that only his body has shrunk, while his brain remains unaffected?"
Hearing this, Zero couldn't help but shudder and vehemently denied it, saying, "Jing, these are all your guesses, there's absolutely no evidence. Stop scaring yourself! Cheer up, I need you, and Conan needs you too."
Jingguang forced an awkward smile: "I'm sorry for making you worry these past few days. I'm fine, really."
"Jing, don't push yourself. A voice inside me keeps telling me: Conan will be alright. We have to believe in him!"
"Zero, you won't leave me, right?" Jingguang suddenly asked out of the blue.
"Of course not. No matter what happens, I will never leave you without a word."
Just then, the "crying" group suddenly became lively.
"What are you guys doing?" the big golden retriever muttered to himself as he clicked in to take a look: Oh my god, something terrible has happened!
The squad leader reports: According to rumors, there's a "talented person" among this year's police academy freshmen—this guy beat up an instructor! An even more outrageous version says that the police academy student beat up the Superintendent General of Police who was inspecting the school!
"This young man is truly remarkable! Jinpei-chan, I never thought you had such a successor!" Hagiwara excitedly exclaimed in the group chat.
"Damn it! That brat beat me to it!" Matsuda said angrily.
The only dog with a normal appearance and a clear mind asked, "Is the source of this rumor reliable?"
The squad leader explained, "The rumors I heard came from the Ministry of Transportation. It's certain that ambulances were indeed going in and out of the police academy on the day the Superintendent General of Police went to inspect the area."
Golden Retriever: "Ambulance?! Was it that serious?"
Dad: "It's said that many people were injured, but there are many different opinions about the identities of the injured."
Golden Retriever: "Is Instructor Onizuka alright?"
Dad: "I don't know either..."
Cigarette: "Did that guy do all of that by himself?"
The new dad said, "It's impossible! I heard it was a group fight, and the scene was quite chaotic at one point."
Hagiwara, who changed his group nickname from "Friend of Women" to "Akina Mountain Speed King," suddenly spoke up: "Police academy starts in March, so this class has only just started, right? To cause such a commotion right from the start, it's truly unprecedented."
Zero also found the matter quite strange and asked, "Class monitor, why did that student hit someone?"
The new dad said, "The rumors are a mix of truth and falsehood, and I don't know the whole story. Anyway, this matter is being tightly covered up by the authorities, and people are only discussing it in small circles, not daring to make it public."
Akina Mountain Speed King: "Doesn't this just prove that there's a reason behind it, that they have something to hide?"
Cigarette: "But even if the Superintendent General of Police really was beaten, would he be so afraid of losing face that he would go to such lengths?"
Dad: "The rumors I heard weren't about the Metropolitan Police Department blocking the news to save face, but rather that someone seemed to be printing some pamphlets or something."
Golden Retriever: "Could it be that he's been brainwashed by someone with ulterior motives?"
Dad: "Very likely! Those freshmen are only around 22 years old, their values are immature, and they're full of youthful vigor. Who knows what they might do on impulse!"
Golden Retriever: "That makes a lot of sense. Back in the day, I often broke school rules and fought with Matsuda!"
Cigarette: "@Golden Retriever, you sound pretty proud of yourself? You want to fight, don't you?"
Just as the conflict between the new police academy students was still shrouded in mystery, two senior police academy students were about to fight again.
Hagiwara cleverly remarked, "@Cat Demon Group Leader, aren't you going to show up and discuss this on such an important occasion?"
Jing Guang, understanding perfectly, sent an emoji: "Sticking".JPG
The picture shows a waiter wearing cat ears affectionately hugging and rubbing against a kitten.
This photo is incredibly cute, so much so that Matsuda couldn't help but exclaim, "You blond rascal, I never thought you could be this adorable?!"
The golden retriever was shocked: "W-when was this filmed?!"
The cat demon replied in a serious tone, "I took this picture when I passed by during the Poirot Cat Cafe's anniversary sale."
"Was Jing really not there on purpose to stake out and take photos secretly?"
The golden retriever fumed inwardly, then puffed out a few breaths, making its bangs stand up like crazy.
"Alright, alright, Jing's finally starting to feel better, I'll let it go this time—"
At this moment, the class monitor returned and brought up the topic of this year's police academy students again: "I have heard some new information. It is said that those students who committed the crime are currently on probation at the school."
Golden Retriever: "Since they weren't locked up in a detention center, it doesn't seem like the problem is that serious, right? Are the rumors just exaggerated?"
The father said, "It's said that the incident involved too many complicated relationships, so he was only given a punishment of being placed in solitary confinement at school. I also heard that the Ministry of Public Security is in charge of this matter."
Golden Retriever & Cat Demon: "What?!"
Cigarette & Akina Mountain Speed King: "Do you two really need to get so worked up?"
Golden Retriever: "Ahem, mind your own business! Come to think of it, isn't the class monitor the one who's most eager to gather information?"
Dad: "Because this matter is really serious! Think about it, those involved in the riots are all future police officers who will maintain order and uphold justice. But they knowingly broke the law and committed such a shocking act. How can this not be worrying? Even if they were manipulated or brainwashed by someone, if future police officers are so easily instigated, how will they fulfill their duties when they take up their posts?"
These words silenced everyone.
Hagiwara, who initially approached the situation with a detached, gossipy attitude, retorted: "Class monitor, you can't make definitive statements! Think back to what happened to me. I was condemned by everyone, and the online opinion was completely one-sided. But was the truth really what they thought? Now, back to this incident, all we know is that someone was taken to the hospital when the Superintendent General of Police went to the school to inspect the work. We don't even know the details yet, so we can't just jump to conclusions, can we?"
The squad leader replied, "Yes, you have a point. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions. But logically speaking, this was most likely started by the students, right? The Superintendent General doesn't come to inspect every year. It's a rare opportunity, and the instructors definitely want their students to make a good impression on their superiors. As for the Superintendent General himself, he's seen it all before, so he has even less reason to hold a grudge against a bunch of greenhorns, right?"
Akina Mountain Speed King: "That's true. But their secretive attitude is very suspicious. The fact that the Ministry of Public Security is involved makes me feel like there's some big secret going on..."
Cigarette: "If you ask me, what's the point of us just staying here? If we want to find out the truth, why don't we just go and meet the guy who hit the Superintendent General? Anyway, that guy's locked up at the school, he should be a big shot by now, so it'll be easy to find him, right? Hagi, wanna bet?"
Akina Mountain Speed King: "Jinpei-chan, what do you want to bet?"
Cigarette: "I bet that guy didn't actually hit the Superintendent General?"
Akina Speed King: "I don't think so. The Superintendent General of Police definitely has bodyguards. I guess he had that idea at most, but he was taken down before he could succeed."
Cigarette: "I actually think he really did hit me."
Akina Mountain Speed King: "So, what's the bet?"
Cigarettes: "Whoever loses has to buy the other person's cigarettes for the rest of the month!"
Akina Mountain Speed King: "Hmph! Let's bet then, who's afraid of who?"
"Speaking of which, Zero hasn't fulfilled his promise since he lost the bet with Matsuda last time!"
Jingguang suddenly remembered this matter, but out of concern for his childhood friend, Jingguang did not remind Matsuda: How could he bear to let Rei get beaten?
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