Conan's corpse picker

Chapters 3738 & 3751 [Capturing Bourbon] Requesting monthly votes (`)

“A ring, a proposal…” Hashimoto Maya frowned. “Looks like I’ll have to avoid couples in the amusement park.”

As he spoke, he moved his chair a little further away from the couple at the next table.

Across from him, Mrs. Sakihara seemed to have a completely different understanding. She curiously glanced over there: "I never thought that someone like Mr. Kurosawa would actually go on a date... So he likes this type of girl."

"?" Hashimoto Maya glanced at her as if she were an idiot: What are you thinking! They're all Uzo's subordinates, and you still have such naive ideas?

"How could Uzo possibly date a policeman, let alone propose? He's definitely plotting something terrible," Hashimoto Maya thought to herself.
"Even if he really did have someone he liked, he wouldn't propose in an amusement park and just happen to be seen by us."

Anything involving "Uzo" or "Tsai" is bound to be more complicated than it seems.

These details can only be understood intuitively, not explained in words.

Hashimoto Maya glanced at the lawyer's wife across from him, but didn't offer any explanation: although he felt a little sorry for his naive colleague, he could have an easier time if his colleague was less capable—the competition among capable subordinates was always like this; when it came to life and death, there was no room for compromise.

However, when it comes to capable assistants...

"Why did these kids suddenly show up?" Hashimoto Maya had to become wary. Compared to the easygoing Mrs. Sakihara, these innocent-looking little devils were the real formidable competitors. After all, it's common knowledge that people tend to be more lenient with children because they have enormous potential for growth... and on top of that, these children are exceptionally active, even more so than adults.

"Should I do something?"

Hashimoto Maya's instincts told him that all he wanted to do was run away from the amusement park as fast as he could, and then drive back to his peaceful, secluded island.

But reason prevailed. Seeing the group of little curly-haired boys in the open-air café, he could only sit stiffly in place, pondering how to roll up his own.

"What should I do when my boss is 'on a date'?" Hashimoto Maya pondered. "Create a romantic atmosphere? Create a hero-saves-the-damsel-in-distress scene? Or should I play the role of Watson, stepping in to rescue her when needed?"

After some thought, and mustering her courage, Hashimoto Maya finally...

They decided to stay at a distance and observe from the shadows.

"It's not that I'm not enthusiastic about my work, it's just that I know absolutely nothing about this script."

Reason and instinct were temporarily evenly matched. Hashimoto Maya picked up a newspaper to cover her face and muttered to herself, "If I rush to help without understanding anything and accidentally create negative results, I'm doomed."

"No rush, let's take a look first."

……

In the coffee shop.

Amuro Tooru looked through the fluffy hood at the three brats who pounced on him like wolves and tigers, then suddenly transformed into good students and politely retreated, his head full of question marks.

"..." What are these three elementary school students here for?

"I thought I'd have to put in some effort to get rid of them and avoid accidentally knocking off my hood, but they just left on their own?"

After a brief moment of confusion, recalling the scene he had just witnessed, Amuro Tooru suddenly remembered something.

—Oh, right, those children seemed to glance to the side before they left.

Amuro Tooru followed their gaze and saw a green wall—the lower half was a sparse wooden fence, and the upper half was a densely growing plant, giving it a very natural feel.

From an adult's perspective, the upper half of the plants would block their view. But a child... could see several seats behind the fence.

Who's behind them?
Glancing at the security camera in the corner of the cafe, Amuro Tooru whispered into the microphone, "What's behind that green wall to my right?"

Upon hearing this question, Kazami Yuya quickly looked at the surveillance footage he had just hacked: "There are three tables, two of which are empty, and the one in the far corner is occupied."

He zoomed in on the image, trying to make out: "That person was completely still, with their back to the camera, so I couldn't see their face."

But this figure... why does it look a little familiar?

While he was pondering it.

In the coffee shop.

When Amuro Tooru heard "motionless," and recalled the methods Uzo used to commit murders, his heart skipped a beat: Could there be a dead person hiding there? No wonder he could scare those children.

After a moment's hesitation, relying on his clear alibi, he took heavy steps and casually strolled behind the green wall.

I looked up and saw someone I never expected.

—Jiang Xia!
On the coffee table in the far corner, several desserts and coffee were laid out. Beside the table, his familiar subordinate was leaning back in his chair, fast asleep, clutching a newspaper that was about to slip from his hand.

Toru Amuro: "...?"

Where did you come from?!
His eyes twitched, and he instinctively wanted to turn around and find another place, but as soon as he lifted his heavy bear leg, it quickly fell back to the ground.

Amuro Tooru looked at Jiang Xia suspiciously: "..." Just like Kazama said, he didn't move at all.

Is it sleeping... or dead?
Remembering the many enemies Jiang Xia had incurred by solving the case, and thinking of those despicable colleagues in the organization who coveted this genius, Amuro Tooru's heart skipped a beat, and he strode over.

As he got closer, he lifted the blanket-like newspaper and Amuro Tooru breathed a sigh of relief: his chest was still rising and falling, he was breathing.

"Looks like he's asleep." His brow twitched. "To sleep anywhere in this crowded place, does this guy think Tokyo is safe?"

He stretched out his hairy arm and pushed hard, trying to shake the person awake.

However, Jiang Xia remained sound asleep, showing no sign of waking up.

"..."

I really envy him for being able to sleep so soundly.

It was the same when I traveled back then.

Thinking back to how Jiang Xia usually collapsed onto the sofa at Amuro Detective Agency and slept soundly until someone boiled a kettle of water and the kettle kept beeping, Amuro sighed deeply, thinking that this was truly a dangerous habit.

……

What is that teddy bear doing?

The detectives who had been keeping watch noticed something was wrong. Officer Takagi, recalling the situation when he entered, asked in confusion, "I remember this bear, it was in charge of handing out balloons at the door, how did it suddenly end up in the coffee shop?"

Moreover, instead of diligently handing out balloons, he sneaked into the coffee shop and seemed to be tinkering with something behind the green plant wall.

Officer Shiratori also discovered the strange bear.

After a moment of confusion, he suddenly remembered something: a drug dealer was going to make a deal at this amusement park today!

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.

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