Seeing that receding silhouette, Heiji frowned. He had the strange feeling that the woman was familiar.
"Heiji, get in the car."
Kazuha's call came from outside.
"Yeah, I'm coming."
It was still the pink BMW, Heiji was still the one driving, and Conan was still the one sitting in the passenger seat.
Heiji drove very steadily, one hand on the steering wheel and the other resting on the door. Involuntarily, he thought again of the silhouette from a moment ago.
Conan glanced sideways at Heiji: What is this guy, Hattori, thinking about?
"Heiji, can we stop by the bank first? I want to withdraw some money."
Today was Sonoko's birthday. As the second young lady of the Suzuki Corporation, money, naturally, could not be lacking.
There was a bank right ahead. Heiji turned and went straight in.
[This bank...]
Conan's expression suddenly darkened. Masami Hirota's death was something he had always felt very guilty about.
"Shiyou Bank?"
Seeing the bank, Heiji was also surprised. He didn't expect to have such an affinity with this place.
"Ran, Kazuha, and Conan, go wait for us at the pastry shop over there. I need Heiji to be my bodyguard."
"Okay, but hurry up, don't make us wait long," Kazuha said.
"Alright, alright. There aren't many people, we'll be quick. Heiji, let's go."
Heiji shrugged and followed Sonoko with resignation.
"Heiji, how much money do you think I should withdraw?" Sonoko asked, looking at Heiji expectantly.
Heiji was frozen for a moment and looked at her helplessly: "Hey, young lady, how am I supposed to know how much money you have to withdraw? You don't think I'm a god and that I can deduce that too, do you?"
"That's not it... Well, whatever, I don't want to talk to you."
Sonoko seemed to want to say something more, but held back and walked into the bank.
"Wow! Isn't this the second Miss Sonoko of the Suzuki family? Welcome!"
The manager of Shiyou Bank, Kazuo Ebirō, approached Sonoko enthusiastically. If he managed to get this big fish to become a VIP member, he wouldn't have to worry about his results.
"Hello, I've come to withdraw money," Sonoko said naturally.
"Of course, of course. Second Miss Sonoko, would you mind coming to the VIP room to chat for a moment? I assure you I won't take up much of your or your boyfriend's time."
Sonoko was about to refuse, but upon hearing the manager's words, a flash of joy crossed her beautiful eyes: "Alright. Heiji, let's go."
However, Heiji shook his head: "You go, Sonoko. I'll wait for you in the lobby."
VIP rooms in banks were not unknown to him; they had long since lost their mystery for him.
"Well, but don't sneak away halfway through."
Since she had already agreed, Sonoko couldn't back out, but she also didn't want Heiji to leave early.
Heiji nodded and sat down directly in the lobby, picking up a nearby newspaper to read.
It turned out the headline was still about the Queen Sallybeth incident.
The newspaper praised him to the skies, saying he was the reincarnation of Sherlock Holmes, that his intelligence was comparable to Einstein's... Heiji was speechless as he read it.
The media all over the world is the same.
Heiji knew very well that the next time he made the slightest mistake, they would pounce on him with fierce criticism. The media are a bunch of weather vanes; he would be a fool to trust them.
"What is this newspaper on about? Didn't they fail to catch the Night Baron? They just found the Dark Star by chance, and yet they praise this Heiji Hattori so much."
Heiji smiled slightly. There was no need to pay attention to the opinions of the ignorant.
Click, clack, clack~~!!!
The crisp sound of high heels was heard, followed by a light fragrance and a faint smell of medicine.
[The smell of chemical products?]
Heiji frowned, put down the newspaper, and looked at the newcomer.
Shoulder-length orange hair, an exquisite face with beautiful clear eyes that emitted a cold gaze, and thin pink lips slightly curved, like a queen's smile, cold and haughty.
Her tall figure, around one meter sixty-five, was wrapped in a blood-red dress that enhanced her curves. The dress came to ten centimeters above the knee, revealing long, white, and slender legs, shod in a pair of matching blood-red high heels, which swayed with each step.
She was a beautiful woman, but her temperament was like ice, extremely cold.
"Hello, I'd like to ask..."
"Excuse me, miss, if you wish to conduct any business, please take a number and wait for your turn," the bank teller said politely.
The woman was frozen for a moment, then silently took a number, glanced around the lobby, and sat down directly next to Heiji.
The smell of chemical products became more intense.
The more Heiji looked at her, the more familiar she seemed...
The woman, who had her head down, felt Heiji's gaze and slowly raised it to look at him...
Their eyes met!
"Miss, you do not seem like an ordinary person."
Heiji looked at her calmly.
"Is something wrong?"
A cold voice, a tone indifferent to everything, like a haughty queen.
"You give off a faint smell of chemical products, and although your hands are white and delicate, you still have traces of medicinal powder on your nails. Your posture when you sit is straight, without leaning against the backrest, and your hands rest naturally on your legs. It is evident that you work in a laboratory, in the chemistry area."
Heiji deduced with confidence. It was the first time he had bothered to talk so much to a stranger.
The woman responded with an indifferent sound and continued to stare at the electronic screen.
[So cold and distant.]
Heiji could see that the woman was not faking it. That coldness emanated from within her, without the slightest artifice.
SCREECH~!!!
A silver three-wheeled car braked sharply at the entrance. The doors opened and three men rushed out of the vehicle. They all had their faces covered and were carrying submachine guns.
They entered and fired directly at the glass partitions, which shattered. This way, there was nothing left separating the lobby from the counter area.
The bank was filled with screams of panic.
"It's a robbery! If you don't want to die, shut the fuck up!"
When one of the masked men spoke, the lobby instantly fell silent. Everyone was trembling with fear.
Satisfied with the people's reaction, the masked man turned to another robber: "Close the main door."
That robber went directly to a counter and pointed his submachine gun at the female employee: "Close the main door."
A glint shone in Heiji's eyes. He discreetly looked at the bank employees and a cold smile formed on his lips.
Clank, clank!!!
The main door was an explosion-proof security shutter. It slowly lowered, trapping everyone inside.
Once the door was closed, of the three robbers, one stayed at the entrance, another in the staff corridor, and the leader, with his back to the counters, looked at Heiji and the others with arrogance.
"We just want money. You'd better behave and not try anything funny, or I'll blow your head off with one shot."
"Hey, what do you want to do?"
A large black bag was thrown to them: "Fill this with money, quick!"
That robber remained with his back to the employees behind the counter.
A glint of insight flickered in Heiji's eyes. This group of robbers was very interesting.
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