Disclaimer: Detective Conan is not mine. This fanfic is a translation.
Enjoy Reading!
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By the time Ritsu returned to the lab, it was already past 2 a.m. He headed toward Laboratory No. 5, hoping that Shiho had already gone to sleep at this hour.
But things rarely went the way he wished.
As soon as he opened the door, he saw Shiho dozing off at her desk. Hearing the noise, she lifted her head, rubbed her eyes, and asked, "You're back?"
"…Yeah."
Hearing something off in his voice, the perceptive Shiho immediately noticed the subtle way he was trying to conceal his right side. Guessing what had happened, she said, "The first aid kit is in the third cabinet, at the bottom."
As expected, he couldn't fool her.
"Yeah… it's just a minor injury," Ritsu said awkwardly.
"Really? Then take care of it here. Let me have a look at the wound."
"…Then I'll trouble you to help me treat it."
Shiho rolled her eyes, took the first aid kit, and placed it firmly on the lab bench. "Take it off. Let me see."
Hearing those words come from a young girl felt… a bit odd.
Ritsu hesitated. Should he just expose his shoulder, or take it all off? Seeing his lack of response, Shiho grabbed a pair of scissors and stepped in.
Snip, snip.
In two swift cuts, his perfectly fine long-sleeve T-shirt was turned into a sleeveless one.
"Oh my, and this is what you call a minor injury?"
A fifteen-centimeter-long wound stretched across his shoulder, shocking to look at. Fresh blood was still seeping out, and there were even shards of glass embedded inside. Fortunately, no major blood vessels had been damaged.
"Well… compared to a gunshot wound, it's better?"
"Heh. Serves you right."
Shiho took out a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and began cleaning the wound. Seeing him endure the pain without even flinching surprised her a little, he must have suffered similar injuries before.
After rinsing it several times, she picked up tweezers and carefully removed the glass fragments, her movements gentle, as if afraid of causing him more pain.
"You can use a bit more force. Being too gentle… kind of tickles."
"Oh."
Once the wound was cleaned, Shiho turned to the cabinet, took out absorbable 5-0 sutures, and began stitching.
Watching her carefully sew up the wound, Ritsu couldn't help but say, "There's no need to use cosmetic sutures, right? It's just my shoulder, even if it scars—"
"Say one more word and I'll stitch your mouth shut."
"…"
Ritsu immediately shut up.
Because he had a feeling she might actually do it.
Some people, no matter their age, were just born with a queen-like personality.
After patiently finishing the stitching, applying medication, and wrapping the wound with sterile bandages, the treatment was finally complete.
"How did you get cut by glass?" Shiho asked.
Looking at his now sleeveless shirt, Ritsu threw on his torn, bloodstained jacket and said, "Ran into the police during a mission… got cornered, so I had to break a window and escape."
"So you got cut during that?"
"Yeah."
"Serves you right."
"…"
He had no comeback. She wasn't wrong.
He hadn't wanted to steal any confidential files in the first place. Speaking of which… he still hadn't delivered the USB to Gin.
Standing up, he walked toward the computer, trying to raise his right arm to use the mouse, only to realize Shiho's meticulous bandaging made that impossible.
"Miyano, can you help me with something?"
"You're injured. Can't you just go back to your room and rest? What are you doing here?"
"I want to see what's on the USB. I risked a lot to get it, at least I deserve to know what's inside, right?"
"…Fine."
Shiho was also curious. She crouched down, plugged the USB into the computer, and helped him navigate the files.
There wasn't much on the drive. One password-protected folder immediately stood out. Looking at the six-digit password prompt, the two exchanged glances.
"You don't know the password?" Shiho asked.
"Miike Fumitake's company has tight security, so the password probably isn't overly complex. Most likely something related to an important date or event."
After sharing his guess, Ritsu pulled out his phone and searched for key dates, such as the company's founding or listing date.
"Found it. Try 720215."
Shiho typed it in.
Incorrect.
"Then try 790901."
This time, it worked.
The locked folder opened.
"Didn't expect you to have detective potential. Do you usually read Sherlock Holmes stories?" Shiho teased.
"Heh. I won't become Sherlock Holmes. With what I'm doing now… I'd be more like Professor Moriarty," Ritsu said self-mockingly. After all, he now stood on the opposite side of Holmes.
Shiho chuckled. "Now that you mention it, it does fit, the Napoleon of crime. Just be careful Holmes doesn't push you off Reichenbach Falls."
"Thanks for the warning. I'll avoid waterfalls from now on."
They stopped joking and turned their attention to the screen, finally seeing what Gin had wanted him to steal.
The first twenty or so images were transaction records, bank transfers.
Only toward the end did they understand the truth: Miike Software hadn't gone public so quickly due to successful development. Instead, Miike Fumitake had secretly colluded with arms dealers, selling weapons on the black market and laundering money.
Truly rotten to the core.
"This is the organization's favorite trick. That Miike is probably panicking right now," Shiho said. While she didn't approve of the organization's methods, she had no sympathy for criminals like him.
"Even if he knows the files were stolen, he won't involve the police. He'll likely claim nothing was lost."
"Of course. If the police saw these, he'd spend the rest of his life in prison."
"Exactly. That's why the organization can do whatever it wants. People like him make for long-term profit."
Shiho shook her head. "You still don't understand Gin well enough. He prefers one-time deals, cash for goods."
"Wouldn't it be better to string them along? Miike won't stop this business anyway."
"You'd have to ask Gin. I don't know. Maybe it's safer this way. The other party is more willing to pay, and it avoids pushing things to the point of mutual destruction."
"Careful as ever."
With someone like Gin running the operations division, it was no wonder the National Police Agency had gathered so little information.
Smart and cunning.
Like a loach in muddy water. One moment of carelessness, and everything slips away.
Buzz.
The phone on the table vibrated. Ritsu picked it up and saw a message from Gin.
[Gin: 3-4 Sekido-cho. Moonlight Bar. Bring the USB.]
"I have to head out. Gin's calling me."
"Mm. Be careful. I assume you've studied basic medicine, so I won't repeat wound care instructions."
"…Got it."
As he headed out, Ritsu couldn't help but think.
It was already 3 a.m., and Gin was still working.
No wonder his hair was silver, was it from overworking for the organization?
Being a subordinate to a workaholic like that… was truly exhausting.