BONUS CHAPTER#6
Kaito Kid was a little taken aback.
His biggest worry today was that the Tengu would suddenly show up and start a massacre, turning the mountain into an all-you-can-eat buffet… But instead of Brother Tengu making an appearance, someone else troublesome had come along.
While Kid was lost in these thoughts, he suddenly noticed Jiangxia seemed to catch his gaze and turn to look straight at him.
Their eyes met, and Kid immediately reacted.
He put on his friendly red herring smile and, copying the others, asked, "This is…"
Naoko Kuroda sidled up again, pushing her glasses up her nose and smirking mischievously, "That's the 'Disciple of the Magician' who's always chatting with you."
"...The Disciple of the Magician? Him?!" Kidd was shocked.
Wait—Isn't the Disciple of the Magician supposed to be a girl? Could his previous guess have been wrong? The name always felt awkward—not because a girl was pretending to be a boy, but maybe because a boy was pretending to be a girl??
Then Kidd remembered something—the 'Disciple of the Magician' had once written to ask his name, and he'd given "Katsuki Doito."
If the recipient was Jiangxia pretending to be a cute girl, then with this detective's usual lightning-fast puzzle-solving skills, he must have already pieced together the information to realize "Kaito Kid" was the real identity. So why was Jiangxia still pretending to be a fangirl? What's this detective actually up to?!
The word "Fishing!" flashed in Kidd's mind.
He secretly scanned the area for signs of a police helicopter swooping down or some trap at Jiangxia's suggestion…
But all he heard was the faint whistle of mountain wind outside.
Thoughts swirled in Kid's mind for a moment before settling back into calm.
Because he suddenly remembered—he wasn't here to steal anything today, nor did he have irrefutable proof that he was the phantom thief. Even if the cops showed up, he wouldn't be scared at all…
While Kid continued to keep a close eye on Jiangxia,
Nearby, Sonoko Suzuki was also watching Katsuki Doito.
Her thunderstruck expression from before had softened into a suppressed giggle as she saw Katsuki Doito's confused look. Online relationships really aren't reliable, but at least this time she brought Jiangxia along! Is this what they call good deeds being rewarded…
Ran Mouri vaguely noticed that Katsuki Doito's gaze toward Jiangxia wasn't very friendly.
She was about to quietly ask what was going on when she suddenly saw Sonoko inch closer to Jiangxia, then stare intently at his back.
Ran's curiosity piqued, "What's wrong? Does Jiangxia have something stuck to his back?"
Sonoko happily exhaled, covering her eyes with a slight, exaggerated flair, and whispered, "Ah, my eyes feel so much better now."
Ran: "…"
She raised her hand and patted Sonoko's head.
Is this the joy of a lovesick fool? Truly simple and unpretentious.
…
Kogoro Mouri paced around the villa, noting it was sturdy and clean, the attendees seemed harmless, and there were several women present—so this gathering was unlikely to cause trouble.
With his daughter's fighting skills and Jiangxia nearby, he felt a little reassured and was ready to leave.
The kids had their fun, and he could enjoy his grown-up time—Ran wouldn't be around tonight, so he could finally cut loose at the New Year's party!
Kogoro Mouri left in high spirits.
As he reached the door, a sudden sneeze from behind made him pause and turn.
It was Conan, shaking his head, dizzy and disoriented, trying to stand straight again.
Kogoro immediately walked back, scooped Conan up with one hand, and carried him along.
He almost forgot this kid had a nasty cold.
…
Conan only came to his senses after being carried out the door. He struggled, wanting to stay, but was ultimately dragged away mercilessly as a patient needing bed rest.
The two crossed the suspension bridge quickly, returned to the car, and drove down the winding mountain road back toward the city.
Conan sat in the passenger seat, thinking of the three people left behind in the villa, feeling a faint, imaginary jealousy bubble and steam inside.
At the same time, he was deeply worried. With Jiangxia's unpredictable constitution, he always felt this gathering wouldn't end normally, and danger might be lurking…
Conan sighed wearily and lazily switched on the car radio, hoping for a distraction.
Just then, a news report came on.
The announcer read clearly: "...A body, beaten to death, was discovered in an apartment in Beika Town. The victim was 41-year-old Tsutomu Nishiyama. A mysterious message was left on the computer screen next to the body: [This is the first one—by: Shadow Master]..."
"It is understood the deceased was very active online and was scheduled to attend an event called the 'Magician Enthusiasts' Gathering' today. Police are currently contacting all relevant participants."
As they listened, the smiles on the two faces in the car faded away.
A moment later, the stunned Kogoro finally snapped out of it. He slammed the wheel, spun the car around, and sped back the way they came at twice the speed.
…
After Kogoro and Conan left, Jiangxia slipped past Kid, who was still on guard for who knew what, and headed upstairs to put away his luggage.
His room was on the third floor.
As he took off his jacket and looked out over the mountain forest through the window, Jiangxia suddenly remembered Conan's heroic feat in the original timeline.
The culprit had, as part of their murder plan, habitually tried to burn down the suspension bridge leading here.
Conan, after hearing the news, rushed back and found the bridge ablaze. Panicking, he dashed onto the bridge and, just before it completely collapsed, sprinted across the raging fire to the villa side—just in time.
Thinking about that, Jiangxia suddenly felt uneasy.
If things kept going like this, Conan might end up making another death-defying leap, just like in the original timeline.
And if this ghost-collecting device—usually pretty reliable—had even slightly worse luck, Conan could get roasted halfway, or fall off the bridge entirely, or worse: get roasted then fall into the icy river, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside...
The image made Jiangxia shudder.
Then he thought of his two ghosts—the Parent Ghosts and the Tengu. One was fireproof, the other could fly, perfect for rescue duty.
But he quickly gave up on the idea.
Unlike the mermaid's conveniently waterproof attribute, the Parent Ghosts' fireproofing only applied to themselves—it couldn't cast any "anti-roast" buff remotely to Conan.
And using the Tengu to fish Conan out if he fell off the bridge? Better to break the bridge in advance.
Conan dared to risk death because, in the original timeline, he believed he could barely make it across.
But now, if the bridge were completely broken, there'd be no way he could fly dozens of meters across. That wouldn't be heroic rescue—it'd be a suicidal leap off a cliff.
*Goal #1: Top 200 fanfics published within the last 31 - 90 days by POWER STONES.
Progress: 13/60(approx) for 10 BONUS CHAPTERS
Goal #2: One BONUS CHAPTER per review for the first 10 REVIEWS.
Progress:2/10*