The heavy clunk of the backup generators kicking in echoed through the building, followed immediately by the hum of returning lights. Ningguang stepped through the grand double doors of the exhibition hall. Even for a woman of her boundless composure, the sheer absurdity of the scene before her forced a rare, speechless pause.
A chaotic dogpile of uniformed police officers formed a writhing ring around the central gem display. At the very center of the madness, Inspector Nakamori had both hands clamped ruthlessly onto the cheeks of Kogoro Mouri—who had somehow materialized in the hall amidst the blackout. The two grown men were stretching each other's faces like rubber, screaming muffled accusations that the other was Kaitou Kid in disguise.
It took a remarkably diplomatic explanation from Lyney, backed by the deadpan, exasperated testimony of Conan Edogawa, to finally separate the two. Only then did the bruised and panting men accept the truth: the phantom thief had failed his heist and vanished into the night.
Despite the theatrical interlude, the jewelry exhibition was declared a resounding success.
The next day, however, Conan found himself hitting a brick wall. He had casually cornered Sonoko, hoping to fish for more information regarding Lyney, Lynette, and the enigmatic Ningguang. His shoulders dropped when Sonoko cheerfully informed him that the magician siblings had already boarded a flight out of Japan for their next international tour. As for Ningguang, she had swiftly delegated the Japanese branch's operations to her subordinates and flown to the United States to oversee a new corporate acquisition.
The real shock came a moment later. Before departing, Ningguang had casually gifted the 'Starlight Brilliance'—the exhibition's centerpiece gem that Sonoko had been fawning over—directly to the teenage heiress. It was framed as a simple token of gratitude for the Suzuki family's logistical support.
'A gem worth over fifty million yen... just handed over like a box of chocolates?'Conan's eye twitched as he processed the sheer financial weight of the gesture.'Just how deep do the pockets of this group go?'
"So, Shinichi, the trail has gone completely cold. What exactly are you still working on?"
Dr. Agasa leaned over the cluttered coffee table in his living room, peering curiously through his round glasses at the boy drawing on a notepad.
Conan didn't look up. His pencil scratched rapidly across a fresh sheet of paper. "No, the trail isn't cold. Lyney and Ningguang might have left the country, but the others connected to these Visions are still right here in Beika. We shift our focus to them."
"But..." Agasa rubbed his chin, his thick mustache twitching with worry. "Shinichi, you mentioned seeing the people carrying these gem-beads interacting directly with members of the Black Organization. If you start digging into their lives and they catch on... what if they accidentally leak your snooping to the Organization? The men in black will turn their sights right back on you."
"I've already factored that in," Conan replied, finally setting his pencil down. "That's exactly why I am dropping the investigation into the individuals themselves."
It was a tactical retreat. Up to this point, every single person he had spotted carrying one of those mysterious elemental gems possessed an utterly flawless background. Their identities withstood the most rigorous scrutiny. He had even asked his father to pull strings overseas and run background checks. The results? Spotless. Aside from carrying similar accessories and occasionally crossing paths, there was zero criminal or suspicious linkage between them. Staring at their public profiles would yield nothing but frustration.
"Instead, we investigate the one obvious common denominator: the gems they all carry." Conan picked up the paper and spun it around, sliding it across the table toward the inventor. He tapped the eraser end of his pencil against three distinct sketches.
"I've cataloged three distinct types of metallic casings—or borders—surrounding these Visions," Conan explained, his voice dropping into its familiar, analytical cadence. "Lisa, Noelle, Mona, Klee, and Kaeya all carry the first type. It has a winged, almost crest-like design. Xiangling and Ningguang share the second type, which is more geometric, like a diamond or a square frame. Finally, Lyney and Lynette share the third, a highly ornate, symmetrical casing."
He circled the sketches. "Given that close associates like Klee and Kaeya share one design, and the siblings Lyney and Lynette share another, we can tentatively deduce that the casing shape denotes a specific faction, regional origin, or internal hierarchy. It's not a definitive rule yet, but the pattern is there."
Conan then slid his pencil down to the lower half of the page, where he had drawn several circles with complex symbols inside them. ", I've observed six distinct colors among these gems in total, each containing a unique insignia. Based on the visual cues, I suspect these gems represent classical elements. For example, red is Fire, dark blue is Water, light blue is Ice, and purple is Lightning. However, I still haven't locked down the exact nature of the yellow and cyan Visions. The actual purpose behind carrying these elemental artifacts also remains a total mystery."
"But digging into magical artifacts isn't exactly standard detective work," Conan muttered, aggressively scratching the back of his head, messing up his hair in sheer frustration. "In short, Doctor, I need you to run these casing designs and elemental insignias through every obscure database and registry you can find online. See if these symbols pop up anywhere else in the world, or if anyone else has been spotted wearing them."
He suddenly stopped scratching, his expression hardening. "But put a pin in that for now. We can chip away at the Vision mystery slowly." Conan hopped down from his chair, walking around the table to press the drawing firmly into Agasa's hands. "Right now, we have a much more immediate threat. The Black Organization."
Agasa blinked, nearly dropping the paper. "Huh? Shinichi, are you saying you've finally found a solid lead?"
"Yes." Conan's eyes narrowed behind his oversized lenses. He quickly recounted the chaotic events of the recent memorial service. He detailed how, during the police lockdown, the executive known as Pisco—operating under the civilian guise of Kenzo Masuyama—had produced a purple handkerchief.
"He shouldn't have had that handkerchief," Conan stated coldly. "The rules of the service dictated that he had already used his. The fact that he had a spare meant someone slipped it to him. His accomplice was in that room."
He held up his fingers, counting down. "Only seven people received those specific purple handkerchiefs at the door. Excluding Pisco himself, that leaves six suspects. And the most glaringly suspicious person on that list is the actress who vanished into thin air right after the murder—Chris Vineyard."
Conan paced a slow circle on the rug. "Think about it. Her mother, Sharon Vineyard, studied the art of disguise under the exact same world-class magician as my own mother. Chris and Sharon are mother and daughter. The media loves to push the narrative that their relationship is strained and bitter, but I'm not buying it. If Sharon mastered disguise, it's highly probable she passed those skills down to Chris."
He stopped pacing, his expression grim. "Recently, Haibara has been on edge. Her internal radar for the Organization has been going off constantly, sensing their presence nearby. On top of that, Officer Takagi let slip that all of Uncle Kogoro's recent case files were stolen from the precinct—only to be secretly returned a few days later, completely intact. I suspect Chris Vineyard is already here. She's likely using a disguise to infiltrate our daily lives and observe us from the shadows."
Reaching into his pocket, Conan pulled out a second slip of paper and handed it over. It contained a web URL. "This is the address for Chris Vineyard's official online fan club. I need you to scrape their forums. Gather any intelligence, sighting reports, or schedule updates her fans might be discussing. We need every scrap of data we can get."
"I see..." a voice drawled from the doorway. "But Kudo, don't you already have a highly suspicious foreign woman hovering right next to you?"
"Oh, come on, who are you even talking about?" Conan retorted instinctively.
Wait.
That heavy Kansai accent definitely didn't belong to the Doctor.
Conan whipped his head around toward the hallway. Standing there, leaning casually against the doorframe with a trademark baseball cap pulled low over his dark skin, was the Detective of the West.
Conan's jaw dropped. He pointed an accusing finger. "Heiji?! What the hell are you doing here!?"
Dr. Agasa chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "Ah, well, you see... I actually called Hattori and asked him to come over. You've been carrying so much weight on your shoulders lately, Shinichi. I thought bringing in someone you trust to bounce ideas off of might help break the case wide open."
"Hey, don't sweat the details!" Heiji Hattori barked out a laugh, striding into the room with a wide, mischievous grin. He crouched down next to Conan, roughly nudging the smaller boy's ribs with his elbow. "After all, we're best buddies, aren't we, Kudo? If you're in a bind, the great Heiji Hattori is obviously gonna cross the country to bail you out!"
Conan stared at him, his eyes half-lidded in absolute deadpan. '...''Are you kidding me? We're talking about a ruthless syndicate of international assassins, not a weekend fishing trip. Why do you look like you just won the lottery?'
"Anyway, getting back to my brilliant observation," Heiji continued, ignoring Conan's glare as he stood back up. "Kudo, didn't a strange foreign woman suddenly pop up in your orbit recently?"
"Oh!" Dr. Agasa's face lit up with realization. "Are you talking about Ms. Jodie?"
"Doctor, wait—!" Conan hissed, reaching out, but it was too late. The name was already out in the open.
Conan shot a venomous sideways glare at the Kansai detective. Heiji was already grinning from ear to ear, enthusiastically suggesting they launch a covert raid on the English teacher's apartment immediately.
Conan sighed, rubbing his temples. Just as expected. He knew the moment Heiji caught a whiff of the Black Organization, the hot-blooded idiot would dive in headfirst. Conan had deliberately kept Heiji out of the loop to protect him from the syndicate's crosshairs. But now that the cat was out of the bag, there was no stopping him.
"Fine," Conan relented, his voice tight. "We'll go check out Ms. Jodie's apartment. But we do this my way."
As Heiji practically skipped toward the front door to get his shoes, Conan lingered behind. He grabbed Dr. Agasa's sleeve, pulling the older man down to his level.
"Doctor," Conan whispered, his tone dead serious. "Do not breathe a word of this to Haibara. None of it."
Agasa frowned. "But Shinichi..."
"She puts up a cold front, but she's not as unbreakable as she pretends to be," Conan interrupted softly. "The Organization terrifies her. I don't want her living in constant fear while we chase shadows. Just keep her out of it."
Just a few feet away, hidden entirely by the shadows of the slightly ajar hallway door, Ai Haibara stood in absolute silence.
She had heard every single word.
Her small hands gripped the fabric of her skirt. She slowly lowered her head, letting her strawberry-blonde bangs fall forward to hide her eyes.
"Idiot..." she whispered to the empty air.
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