Conan: I'm Really Not Tokyo Ghost Story

Page 165

The reason why the research institute is important is precisely because of Shiho Miyano, or rather, the projects she is in charge of are important.

Gin must have arranged for outsiders to visit his cell at irregular intervals to "check on" his situation.

When they check again, news of Shiho Miyano's disappearance will immediately reach Gin's ears.

That will be the real trouble.

The organization's members, skilled in tracking, will launch a frantic search for Shiho Miyano.

During this period, any clue that Shiho Miyano made would be seized upon by the other party, and once found, the only result would be death.

Furthermore, during Shiho Miyano's escape, anyone she came into contact with was silenced by the organization.

Given the organization's immense power, Shiho Miyano did not intend to call the police or seek official assistance.

Firstly, it was useless in Shiho Miyano's eyes, and secondly, it would cause too many innocent lives to be lost.

In conclusion, the only teammate Shiho Miyano can currently think of who would share her hatred of the enemy and who shouldn't be so easily eliminated is only one person—

It is highly likely that Shinichi Kudo has shrunk in size, just like himself.

Although it seems unlikely that Shinichi Kudo will stay at home any longer, Shiho Miyano is also clueless. In addition, she has just shrunk in size and has been constantly rained on, so her head feels like it has a fever.

We can only take it one step at a time and go to their house first...

That was what Shiho Miyano originally thought.

He only saw the black figure standing across the street watching him after he walked out of the alley.

Shiho Miyano's heart involuntarily tightened.

Although her vision was blurred due to the rain and the haze, Shiho Miyano could still make out that the man was wearing a black coat, holding a long-handled black umbrella, and was facing her, staring at her.

They arrived so quickly? It really isn't working...

Shiho Miyano's pupils contracted slightly. Her ingrained calmness tried to keep her mind running, but at the same time, intense fear began to grow within her. The two contradictory forces repelled each other, causing her already cold hands and feet to tremble uncontrollably.

After instinctively taking a step, Shiho Miyano finally couldn't hold on and collapsed to the ground.

Ok?

Why did it fall over?

Seeing this, Sano, who was standing on the other side of the road, tilted his head.

To be honest, while it was within Sano's expectations that Shiho Miyano would shrink, it was unexpected that she could escape.

According to Sano's thinking, if Shiho Miyano shrank, she would be a crucial experimental subject, so it was impossible for her to be killed.

Its existence is mostly to make it possible for the organization and Conan to have a deeper connection. After Miyano Shiho, she will either turn into a villain with considerable strength or be redeemed and join the main group.

But if he were to appear in front of Conan now, it would be equivalent to clearing his name.

...Of course, none of the above makes any difference to Sano.

If I had to point out the difference, it would be that even if Sano ignores Shiho Miyano now, she would most likely be rescued by Conan by "accident" and they would team up.

and so……

Go home and sleep!

However, just as Sano turned his gaze away from the fallen Shiho Miyano and took his first step, the system prompted him to complete a mission.

[Please ensure Ai Haibara's survival. Completion will earn you 30 enhancement points. Mission time remaining: 1:59:59.]

...And who is Ai Haibara?

Sano glanced at the mission objective on the system map, which was just across the street from him.

Oh, so that's the pseudonym of Shiho Miyano after she was shrunk down.

But Shiho Miyano has only just shrunk, so how come she already has an alias?

The system has "foreseen the future" again... or rather, it's been peeking at the script.

If I were taken away by Shiho Miyano now and given a different name, would I still be Ai Haibara in the next related mission?

That said, when the previous mission was triggered, Sano thought he would be asked to save Shiho Miyano.

After all, saving the older sister and then the younger sister is the normal plot... although that's not the case in the end, and although it has reappeared now.

Wouldn't it have been better to just rescue Shiho Miyano herself from the start, thus avoiding all the trouble?

...If you want to make Shiho Miyano's shrinking a fait accompli, you can request it in the mission, asking yourself to rescue her and forcibly feed her the medicine.

Sano stroked his chin and pondered for two seconds. Realizing that a certain fake loli was still lying on the cold ground getting soaked in the rain, he stepped across the street and grabbed Miyano... Ai Haibara.

"Slippery!"

Unexpectedly, because the white coat had been soaked by too much rain, and because its owner had changed from Shiho Miyano to Ai Haibara, the other person immediately slipped out like an eel when Sano lifted it up.

"..."

Sano instantly switched identities, and after confirming that no one was watching, he breathed a sigh of relief—if someone had seen this scene, he might not have been able to explain himself even if he had a hundred mouths.

With a helpless sigh, Sano bent down again, wrapped Ai Haibara in his white coat, and carried her home on his shoulder.

During this time, Sano was constantly observing his surroundings, making sure there were no members of the organization's outer circle.

...Although judging from the mission's rewards, Sano didn't think the mission would be difficult enough to require him to clash with the organization, caution was always the right thing to do.

As expected, Sano returned home safely without any problems.

However, after placing the "burden" on the ground, Sano discovered that the mission was still not marked as complete—meaning that the factors threatening Ai Haibara's life had not yet been resolved.

Could it be that members of an organization have followed the trail here?

Sano frowned slightly. He had been watching surveillance cameras and pedestrians on his way back, and it was raining now, so it shouldn't be possible.

...So, am I supposed to stay here and guard this guy until the mission deadline is over?

It's also possible that this fake little girl, like her sister, is planning to court disaster, so she's going to be another big con artist.

That doesn't seem right either.

Since the other party has already escaped from the research institute, it proves that the other party still wants to live, so why would they want to do something reckless?

...Forget it, why think so much? Let's just try it and see if it works.

Sano considered for two seconds, then pulled Ai Haibara's head out of the white coat and slapped it twice across the face.

...If the older sister has a personalized wake-up service, how can the younger sister not have one?

Sano is a man who always values ​​fairness and never shows favoritism!

what?

I had already fought her back in the research institute, and I fought her more and more fiercely than Miyano Akemi.

...Well, we can just make it up to Miyano Akemi later.

Sano looked at Ai Haibara, who had been slapped twice but still didn't react, and raised an eyebrow. "Oh, she's sleeping quite soundly."

After two more slaps, Sano finally realized something was wrong.

It seems this fake loli isn't unwakeable, but rather unable to wake up.

Upon closer inspection, it's noticeable that Ai Haibara's face is very red... not the kind of red from being hit, but rather... a natural red, right?

However, Ai Haibara's lips were unusually pale, and her breathing was hot and disordered. Sano touched her forehead, which was so hot that it could almost be used to fry an egg.

...So, Ai Haibara could indeed die due to her own factors, but not because she wanted to commit suicide or do something reckless, but because her body wanted to kill her.

Sano fell silent; the problem was that he didn't know how to resolve the current situation.

Logically speaking, a fever should be brought down—that's how it's portrayed in TV dramas—but in Sano's memory, he was always forced to wrap himself in a blanket when he had a fever, supposedly to sweat it out and get better.

That's why I said I hate kids!

After sighing, Sano could only make a phone call to the hospital to ask how to deal with the child's fever. If possible, sending the child to the hospital would be the best course of action, but this might attract the attention of the organization and cause unnecessary trouble. Moreover, it wouldn't be enough time to meet the mission deadline.

After receiving the hospital's answer, Sano immediately began the treatment.

After a flurry of activity, Sano finally managed to complete the mission just before the time limit expired, successfully receiving the completion notification.

This also means that Ai Haibara is out of danger of death.

"Damn, even nannies aren't this tired. It seems that even having a daughter isn't all that great."

Looking at Ai Haibara lying on his bed, her breathing now steady, Sano, who was sitting on the floor, leaned against the wall, lit a cigarette, and drifted into a daze.

...Speaking of which, wouldn't this count as picking up another little girl and bringing her home?

Although it's fake.

But what should I do next? Am I really going to raise this fake little girl?

...Although this young lady is technically a puppet in the organization, she is quite important and probably the kind who never lifts a finger.

What's more, now that its body has shrunk, it can't take care of its own eating, drinking, and toileting needs, and it can't earn money but still has to spend money. Keeping it around would only make it a mascot, which would be a huge loss.

But reporting a child as missing doesn't seem like a good idea... I might as well just hand it over to the Mori Detective Agency. Anyway, Conan will probably do everything he can to protect this teammate.

Sano took a puff of his cigarette, then suddenly pulled out the system to enhance it.

Including the thirty enhancement points from Shiho Miyano's alternate identity, Ai Haibara, it's just enough for one enhancement.

Sano, in particular, is feeling quite good right now.

Maybe we can get a double yolk, with two consecutive A grades?

Seven hundred enhancement points gone – Although the number of enhancements required increases with each enhancement attempt, the rewards from recent missions also seem to be increasing, which is quite in line with the usual pattern.

"Random enhancement in progress. Congratulations, host, your sunglasses have been enhanced successfully..."

Sano: "..."

Seriously?

I just complained about how Vodka always wears sunglasses, and now he's gotten sunglasses for himself.

They're getting better and better at creating hilarious moments, aren't they?

Sano mentally complained as he pulled out a pair of round-framed sunglasses from the pile of dusty accessories in the corner, and the image appeared before his eyes.

Enhancement item name: Sniper Sunglasses.

Grade: B.