6:05 PM.
A navy-blue Bugatti rolled into the underground parking garage of the Beika Grand Hotel.
After finding an empty space and parking, Ritsu warned Conan not to leave the car.
He needed to confirm whether these people were connected to Rum.
If they were... then he absolutely couldn't leave any survivors.
And he also needed to find a way to get Conan out of Tokyo, perhaps by having his parents take him back to America.
Because he knew very well that Japan was the Organization's true stronghold.
Walking toward Parking Space No. 30, Ritsu remained wary of potential Organization lookouts nearby. To avoid appearing suspicious, he even pulled out his phone and pretended to be searching for a vehicle while making a call.
His gaze settled on Space No. 30.
At first, he assumed the transaction was taking place there. But when he noticed the tiny number "1" painted beneath it, he immediately realized the truth.
The location wasn't the parking garage at all. It referred to Room 301 inside the hotel.
If something happened inside a guest room, the hotel's security cameras could easily capture footage.
And right now, he was acting as Onizawa.
'Looks like I'll need to be careful and disable the third-floor hallway cameras first.'
...
Meanwhile, inside the Bugatti,
Conan had already unfastened his seatbelt and was preparing to get out. To his surprise, Ritsu suddenly started walking back toward the car.
'Why did Sensei come back?'
Ritsu had returned to retrieve his portable laptop.
Noticing the loosened seatbelt, he asked, "Conan, why'd you take off your seatbelt?"
Then he narrowed his eyes.
"Don't tell me you're planning to sneak off and follow me."
"No!"
Conan quickly raised one leg and protested. "It keeps rubbing against my neck! It's uncomfortable!"
"I see."
Ritsu reached over and rubbed Conan's round little head twice. "Just wait here like a good boy. I'll come back and take you home."
He deliberately added, "I'm even leaving the car keys here."
As he patted Conan's head, a thought suddenly crossed his mind.
Conan was actually much better than Kudo. At least he wasn't nearly as smug.
He knew how to act cute. And his head felt surprisingly nice to pat.
A perfect one-hand-sized head.
After Ritsu left, Conan's adorable expression immediately disappeared. With half-lidded eyes, he fixed his messy hair and pouted.
"Seriously... Why does everyone love messing with my hair?"
Once he was sure Ritsu wasn't coming back, Conan slipped the car keys into his pocket and climbed out.
His short legs carried him toward Parking Space No. 30. When he saw the number 1, he immediately understood why his teacher had returned to the car.
The transaction wasn't happening in the parking lot at all.
Ritsu had specifically come back to warn him not to wander off. Naturally, Conan ignored that warning completely.
He hurried toward the elevators and rode one up to the hotel lobby.
After poking his head around and confirming that Ritsu wasn't anywhere nearby, he sprinted toward the guest elevators.
...
Meanwhile,
Ritsu was seated in the hotel's lounge area, using his portable laptop to infiltrate the hotel's network.
To be fair, Vodka really was talented when it came to hacking. The decryption software he'd developed worked extremely well.
For simple surveillance systems like this one, his program only needed three minutes to gain complete control.
Using Organization technology against the Organization... Did that count as blackmailing the black market?
Soon, every camera feed on the third floor appeared on his screen.
As he was about to freeze the footage, a short figure appeared in one of the elevator camera feeds.
Ritsu nearly cursed out loud.
'Why is Kudo here?!'
"This brat... I should've locked him inside the car."
He immediately shut the laptop, stuffed it into his shoulder bag, and stood up.
After confirming there were no Organization lookouts nearby, he headed for the emergency stairwell rather than the elevators.
Because he knew exactly how Organization members operated.
During missions, they never used elevators openly.
...
Completely unaware that someone was monitoring his every move, Conan had already reached the third floor.
Using his scarf to cover part of his face, he was about to check the hotel directory for the location of Room 301 when voices drifted over from the left.
Quietly sneaking toward the corner, he peeked around it.
One of the guest room doors stood open. Inside the room stood the black-clad man dressed as the Night Baron.
Outside was a tall man whose face Conan couldn't clearly see. The man carried a metal briefcase.
"Why are you so late?"
The Night Baron sounded annoyed. "Did you bring the goods?"
"...Traffic."
The tall man handed over the case. "Here's what you wanted."
'Just as I thought.'
This must be the transaction target the black-clothed man intended to kill.
Conan was trying to figure out what to do when the freight elevator at the end of the hallway suddenly opened.
Walking toward him was...
The overweight woman who had kidnapped him.
'Damn it! I'm surrounded! What do I do now?!'
Caught between the two groups, Conan's face turned pale.
His fists clenched tightly. He had finally escaped from the villa. He had finally discovered where the black-clothed man's accomplices were hiding.
'Damn it!'
If they caught him now, he was dead.
'What do I do? Calm down... But what am I supposed to do?!'
Click.
The nearby emergency exit door suddenly swung open. Conan turned toward the sound. A man in a black suit burst through.
It was Ritsu.
Without hesitation, Ritsu slammed the overweight woman against the wall and pressed a revolver against her neck.
"Sen—"
Conan almost blurted it out.
"Onizawa-nii?!"
Hearing the commotion, both the Night Baron and the transaction target immediately rushed over.
As Ritsu prepared to snap the woman's neck before anyone could react, she frantically shouted,
"I'm Kudo Yukiko!!"
"...?"
Ritsu's hand froze.
At the same time, the Night Baron hastily tore off his mask. Afraid that Ritsu wouldn't recognize him, he awkwardly explained,
"Hello, Onizawa-san. I'm Shinichi's father, Kudo Yusaku."
Then he laughed nervously. "This was actually a test for Conan."
Ritsu and Conan stared at each other. Then both spoke in perfect unison,
"A test?"
The overweight woman quickly freed herself from Ritsu's grip and peeled off her disguise. A breathtakingly beautiful face emerged beneath it.
Yukiko waved awkwardly.
"Okay... maybe we went a little overboard this time~~"
...
Both Ritsu and Conan felt their brains completely crash.
Just moments ago, Ritsu had been worried that rescuing Shinichi might expose his undercover identity.
He had even resolved himself to eliminate everyone involved if they turned out to be Rum's subordinates.
Meanwhile, Conan had been terrified that the black-clothed men's accomplices would silence him forever.
He had also worried that his sensei would get dragged into danger because of him.
And now?
It turned out his own parents had staged the entire thing as a prank.
Ritsu's expression darkened.
He genuinely couldn't understand it. Did all parents enjoy tormenting their children?
At this point, he had every reason to suspect that Shinichi had been picked up from a trash can.
"So this ridiculously tall creepy guy..."
Conan pointed accusingly. "That's Professor Agasa, right?!"
"Hahahaha! That's right, Shi—Conan-kun!"
Professor Agasa proudly showed off his latest invention.
As expected of a genius inventor. Only a weirdo like him could come up with something this bizarre.
"You've got to be kidding me!"
Conan stomped his foot angrily. "I'm still just a kid, and you're all bullying me!"
With his back to Ritsu, he desperately shot warning glances at the three adults.
Yusaku chuckled.
"It was actually Shinichi's idea. He said he wanted to scare you a little."
Then he looked toward Ritsu.
"Onizawa-san, your appearance tonight was completely unexpected. Sorry for dragging you into this farce."
Ritsu waved his hand. As long as it was a farce, everything was fine.
If it hadn't been a farce, that would've been the real problem.
"Hmph. That wasn't funny at all." Conan rolled his eyes and tugged on Ritsu's pant leg.
Putting on an adorable expression, he said, "Onizawa-nii, take me home."
"I don't want those bad guys taking me back."
Ritsu sensed someone watching him. Looking up slightly, he noticed Yukiko winking at him.
Lowering his head again, he said, "You should let your relatives take you home."
"My girlfriend just called and asked me to pick her up."
"Eh?"
Conan looked disappointed. "Okay..."
Ritsu smiled and headed toward the guest elevators. Before leaving, he even offered a polite bow.
Once the elevator doors closed, Yukiko smiled.
"Honestly, I stuffed so much padding under my costume just to play that role. I'm going to the restroom to touch up my makeup."
Then she pointed at her husband and son.
"You two have a nice chat."
"Tch."
Conan crossed his arms. "I don't want to talk to either of you."
His mouth said one thing. His curiosity said another. Squinting at his father, he asked, "You knew I was hiding in the storage room from the very beginning, didn't you?"
"That's right."
Yusaku smiled. "Your deductive ability barely passes. But you're still not observant enough."
He bent down, picked up the discarded mask, and gently pushed Conan toward the room.
"Come on. Let's go inside and analyze everything properly."
As he closed the door, he exchanged a glance with Yukiko.
'His appearance tonight was unexpected.But from here on... it's your turn, dear.'