Phantom Thief of Heart!but conan

Chapter 1231 A Bag of Kumail

"So, that guy is Binga?"

Seeing Binga reluctantly leaving the cabin, wanting to speak but hesitating, thinking and thinking but unable to get a word in, Tang Ze restrained his attitude of finding fault.

Seeing that he finally shut up, Vodka slapped his forehead and was speechless for a long time.

He knew that this was the crux of the matter.

It might be a small probability accident that he and Binga recognized the wrong person, but considering Kumail's strength, he could be easily kidnapped by the two of them, so it couldn't be the "misunderstanding" that the other party said.

No matter how you think about it, Kumail must have noticed the identity of this strange member and wanted to be kidnapped by them to test something.

"You can mess around all you want, but don't interfere with our mission," Vodka said unhappily. "Binga's in charge of a matter that's at a critical juncture. Don't mess with him until it's successfully resolved."

The project engineer is already in their hands. The next thing to do is to take advantage of Binga's latent ability, maintain the backdoor program in the system, and further consider how to use the system.

As for Naomi Argento, whether to take her away and control her, making her a missing person completely, or to properly consider whether to release her after obtaining her cooperation, is not something that a pawn like Vodka needs to consider.

But if the communication, or the process of coercion and inducement, goes smoothly enough, Naomi Argento will be willing to cooperate with their work and return to the Pacific buoy. Perhaps the next task will be to squeeze out Makino Yosuke and make her the actual controller of the system, further expanding the scope and ambition of the plan.

By that time, Binga's current identity would be the best nail, which could be placed next to Naomi to confirm that she did not betray him.

Of course, when the time comes, it doesn’t matter whether the actor is Binga or not. Someone else can be replaced to play the role of Grace, but at this stage, Binga cannot be moved.

"So, you mean it can be solved after it's resolved?" Tang Ze tilted his head, as if he didn't understand what he meant, and asked knowingly.

Vodka rolled his eyes and didn't say anything else.

Kumail is very good at speaking. The more you communicate with him, the easier it is to fall into the trap he has set. The best choice at this time is to ignore him.

"So the conflict between Bourbon and Rum has come to light?" Mizunashi Rena put on an interested expression and sat back down at the table. "Rum is the one in charge, after all. I thought you guys would at least cover it up."

"I didn't say that. Rum is our boss, not Binga. Why? Since when did the organization ban infighting?"

"It has to be acceptable for the sake of face."

Tang Ze sneered and said nothing more, while Mizunashi Rena kept watching Vodka's reaction out of the corner of her eye.

Although there had been no rehearsal in advance, since Rena Mizunashi had tacitly accepted Karasawa's role as the conductor, at this time, she would of course use her words to cooperate with Karasawa to create the atmosphere.

Their concerted efforts were all aimed at rationalizing what Tang Ze would do next.

Binga can express his intention to pull Gin down, so it is understandable that Kumail, as Bourbon's subordinate, wants to mess with Binga. After all, in theory, Binga and Bourbon are on the same level.

As for Binga carrying out Rum's mission, so what? They didn't affect the mission.

"Okay, let's not worry about Binga. He should clean up his own ass first." Tang Ze waved his hand, as if to change the subject.

Vodka paused when he heard this.

He seemed to have figured out what Kumail was doing.

The disappearance of an engineer would certainly attract the attention of the police, but it would not cause too much panic. After all, the whole thing was done under the cover of the law, cleanly and neatly, without anyone noticing.

Everything is still unclear about Naomi's whereabouts and safety, why she disappeared, and the kidnapper's purpose.

But Tang Zezhao, a person with a sensitive identity, was violently kidnapped in front of many people and disappeared here, which caused a much bigger stir.

It's not easy for Binga to clean up Naomi's problem alone, and now he's increasing his efforts...

Maybe Bourbon and Kumail don't need to do anything extra, Binga's identity may be exposed and he may be killed by the police. Then they won't have to do anything and the enemy will be eliminated.

This kind of counter-attack is like adding more weights to a tilted scale, which can solve the problem without bloodshed and meets the needs of the conspirator.

Mizunashi Rena laughed unscrupulously twice, as if confirming Vodka's guess. She made a gun gesture and tapped her temple: "He's on his own. I wish him good luck."

Good luck? No, that sounds like a curse...

Tang Ze curled his lips and didn't continue the topic. Instead, he asked, "Is that Pacific buoy engineer, Naomi, here too?"

Vodka didn't bother to hide it anymore and just nodded.

Their original target was Miyano Shiho, and they were using such a special underwater vehicle. It was obvious that the hostages who had fallen into their hands would only be placed here as well.

"She and Shirley were classmates. We suspect Shirley might have come here to look for her."

"You mean, Shirley found out she was working here, so she came looking for her?" Tang Ze asked, then quickly shook his head in denial. "That's impossible. You all can see the powerful locating function of this system, but Shirley doesn't realize it? How could she possibly show up here?"

"This is what the system found." Vodka pulled up the photo of the terrace.

"This is a very small island, very isolated. There are only three flights a day and one ferry. Coming here is like walking into a dragnet. What's the difference between this and seeking death?" Tang Ze made a disdainful expression. "You should ask Binga to continue searching with the system. This might be a trap."

This statement is somewhat forced, but it is logically valid.

In theory, they assumed that Miyano Shiho, who had been able to hide so well, was very careful about her life. In the past, when she was in the organization, she was also a cautious and timid person. It was indeed unlikely that she would run into the trap knowing that the organization might appear.

Vodka pondered this logic for a moment, then looked at the photo in his hand: "You mean, this isn't the real Shirley?"

"Vermouth and I are not the only ones in the world who can change their appearance." Tang Ze did not give a direct answer, but just waved his finger suggestively.

"The Phantom Thieves of Hearts?" Rena Mizunashi quickly replied. In their understanding, Sherry's departure from the organization was likely aided by the elusive Phantom Thieves of Hearts, and even Gin, who was so obsessed with Sherry, was once fooled by Sherry disguised as Joker.

It's perfectly reasonable to link this matter to the Phantom Thieves.

Tang Ze was very satisfied with the supporting role of Rena Mizuno.

That's right, just think about it this way. Wait until Vermouth runs out and does another half-circle disguise marathon. Then when the news that Binga is targeted by the Phantom Thieves comes out, the whole thing will make sense.

Kumail, who was just doing his job honestly, was just caught up in the accident. The whole thing has nothing to do with me.

"Anyway, I didn't see anyone who looked like Shirley in that hotel." Tang Ze stood up. "Where is that girl called Naomi? Take me there."

"Hmm?" Vodka, who was still thinking about Shirley's question and how to send a message to Gin, raised his head. "Why are you going to see her?"

According to their plan, the next step is to wait for Binga to access the system again, wait for Cohen who rushed to Europe to arrive, lock the specific location of Naomi's immediate family members, and use direct personal threats to force Naomi to cooperate with them.

Whether Kumail comes or not, whether he is there or not, it will not affect the normal implementation of this plan. His interference at this time will make Vodka alert.

Could it be that this guy is planning to cut off the source of the problem and ruin the mission to kill Binga?
Tang Ze spread his hands, his face speechless: "Please, you have kidnapped 'me'. If Naomi hasn't seen me, the other hostage, I won't be able to explain it later."

"You have no direct relationship with her, so it's normal to be imprisoned separately." Vodka was still very vigilant.

He was not afraid of letting Kumail and Naomi stay together, because Naomi might cause some trouble. He was afraid that Kumail would kill the woman directly.

In front of this madman Kumail, a weak woman with an academic background would probably die in ten seconds.

The death of the mission target that Binga had worked hard for five years was a small matter, but it would be bad if it affected Vodka.

Tang Ze raised his hand and pointed at his eyes.

He did not fully mobilize his strength to change his pupil color, so at this moment, those light blue eyes only lit up with some golden lines as he moved, as if some light source was about to break through the thin layer of color and shatter.

"Isn't your mission to tame her, make her cooperate with the organization, and master the system?"

Vodka felt a little scared when he looked at him like this, and nodded quickly without hiding the requirements of their mission.

"If you had let me come earlier, there wouldn't be such a need. Is there anyone in this world who is better at this kind of thing than me?" Tang Ze grinned and put his hands behind his back. "Okay, tie me up and take me over. The 'victim' can't act too relaxed."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Kidnapped Tang Ze? Are you saying that someone from the organization kidnapped Tang Ze?"

"Yes. I'm sorry, Mr. Akai, we couldn't protect him..."

Conan answered with difficulty, clenching his fingers and his voice was dry.

There is no worse moment than informing the victim's family of this situation.

Shuichi Akai's voice on the other end of the phone was even trembling slightly. Since they met, Conan had never seen this calm and composed former FBI ace express such emotions.

Conan couldn't help but feel guilty, attributing this to the other party's concern for their loved ones.

Shuichi Akai chose to leave the FBI and become a secret independent investigator for the sake of Karasawa and Haibara Ai.

Although there are considerations of further supporting Mizunashi Rena, Shuichi Akai also believes, after analysis, that his current situation makes it easier for him to make decisions on his actions. As a defector, he attracts attention too easily, making it difficult to conduct covert investigations.

But Conan knew that none of these were enough to motivate him to take such a risk.

Protecting the people he has always wanted to protect but has not been able to protect is the biggest motivation for Shuichi Akai's actions.

The calm and almost cruel thinking mode and action strategy are reserved for the enemy. They are honed by Shuichi Akai through years of experience. Shuichi Akai himself has always been emotional, affectionate and righteous.

Now, the relative he cares about most has met with an accident...

"This is not your problem." Akai Shuichi on the other end of the phone was in a completely different state than Conan imagined. He was holding his forehead with his hands, his face full of helplessness. "Nothing will happen to Tang Ze. His identity is very special. The organization can't touch him at will. On the contrary, it's you, Detective-kun, and you and Shiho, please pay attention to your own safety."

Although he hasn't heard Conan's retelling of the specific situation at the scene, Shuichi Akai can already be sure that this incident is most likely a misunderstanding.

Of course, it was for Binga. Tang Ze was very likely doing it on purpose.

Since the people in the organization wanted to see Tang Ze, there was no need to take such a big risk to kidnap him in public. They could just call him.

Unless the organization's approach to the Tang Ze family changes and they intend to completely destroy Tang Zezhao's identity, which seems unlikely given their current unwavering research strategy.

Maybe Tang Ze discovered what these people were doing, and then deliberately moved the original target of kidnapping away and took over himself.

Considering the reputation Tang Ze had made in the organization, when they really returned and Binga and the others opened the sacks, wow, there was a bag of Golden Legends and Kumel, they were scared to death.

"Me and Haibara?" Conan was stunned for a moment after hearing Akai Shuichi's unexpected turn of events. "Are you talking about the cross-age recognition system?"

"Yes. Actually, Binga didn't need to target Karasawa. His target was clearly the Pacific buoy. Perhaps he turned around and kidnapped Karasawa to cover his tracks." Akai Shuichi chose a relatively easy-to-accept explanation to express the fact that Karasawa was unlikely to be the target. "His target must have been the missing Naomi."

Shuichi Akai, who has worked in the FBI for many years, knows only too well how amazing this system is and how advanced the technology is.

He has been following this clue for a long time since Interpol contacted Naomi and started building this system. What is happening now is just the fulfillment of his worst guess.

"The fact that they were able to approve such a large budget to build a large-scale facility directly in the ocean shows that its accuracy has reached a fully usable level. You and Shiho's secret could be exposed at any time. From now on, it's best for you all to wear masks when you go out to avoid having your facial information easily captured by surveillance equipment."

(End of this chapter)