Detective Conan: The System Takes Me to Zero's World

Ai Huiyuan suddenly stood up and pulled out a dusty iron box from the bottom shelf. The metal hinges made a slight "click" sound when she opened it. Inside was a stack of yellowed letter paper with curled corners.

"This was the only thing I had with me when I fled the organization. It was a letter my mother left me. It mentioned that 'the color of hydrangeas will remember the secrets of the soil.' She was teaching us how to avoid danger."

Miyano Akemi took a closer look and suddenly pointed at a line of words: "'When blue overwhelms pink, that's when the truth comes to light' - is Mom saying that once we find all the areas with blue hydrangeas, we can piece together a complete and safe route?"

Conan quickly took out a pen and paper and, based on Mingmei's simple map and the contents of the letter, outlined a winding route: "From the east entrance, follow the blue hydrangeas, bypass three clusters of pink flowers, and you'll reach the cherry tree with the mark. This route avoids all areas where there may be traps."

Kudo Yuki took a photo of the route map and filed it away. "I'll send it to Kagekawa and Wakasa Rumi so they can familiarize themselves with it in advance."

She looked at Amuro Toru and said, "Shall we go check out the location again before we take action tomorrow night?"

"No," Amuro Toru immediately rejected it. "Rum's people are likely to have spies around the old house. Any unusual behavior of ours will be noticed. Kazami will send a drone to conduct reconnaissance at three in the morning, when security is least relaxed, and will be able to capture the latest on-site conditions."

Subaru Okiya had been silently studying the map when he suddenly spoke up, "The stairs in the south bell tower have been in disrepair for a long time, and three of the steps are loose. You need to be careful when moving around. Also, the lightning rod at the top of the bell tower can be used as a signal tower. I'll install a miniature signal booster there to ensure communications aren't interfered with."

Kudo Yuki nodded in thanks: "Thank you for your trouble."

The discussion gradually died down, and the only sounds in the living room were the soft sound of pens scratching across paper and the chirping of insects outside the window.

Kudo Yuki handed the last copy of the route map to Okiya Subaru and tapped her fingertips lightly on the edge of the table. "That's about it. Any later will arouse suspicion."

Amuro Toru folded the map off the whiteboard, folded it into a square, and stuffed it into his coat pocket. "I'll have Kazami send the drone reconnaissance results before five in the morning. Meet at Café Poirot at seven tomorrow night. We'll leave an hour early."

"Haibara, Akemi-sister." Conan looked at the Miyano sisters and placed the encrypted communicator on the table. "Take this, the channel is already tuned. Call us anytime if anything happens."

Ai Huihara picked up the communicator, her fingertips touching the cold metal shell, and suddenly looked up at Kudo Yuki: "Be careful of Vermouth, her disguise... can even imitate her breath."

Miyano Akemi carefully folded the letter and put it back into the tin box, then handed it to Huihara Ai: "I'll leave the clues about my parents to you."

"Don't worry." Amuro's voice was steady and powerful, "We will bring it back."

Subaru Okiya stood up and walked towards the entrance. As he picked up his coat, he said to Akemi Miyano, "The clock tower has a view in the direction of the safe house. I'll keep an eye on the movements over there."

Miyano Akemi was stunned for a moment, then nodded slightly - she vaguely guessed that this "Mr. Subaru" was Akai Shuichi, but did not point it out.

When we left Dr. Agasa's house, the streets were already dark.

Shushu nestled in Kudo Yuki's pocket, snoring softly, probably because he was too busy during the day.

Amuro Toru started the car, the light from the dashboard reflected on the side of his face, the lines were softer than usual. "As for the loose steps that Subaru Okiya mentioned earlier, I asked Kazami to check the old house archives, and there is indeed a record of it. He is quite attentive."

"After all, I have to protect my cousin." Kudo Yuki looked at the street lights passing by outside the window, "Some debts must be repaid slowly."

The car drove through the quiet street, and the tires made a crackling sound as they rolled over the fallen leaves.

Conan sat in the back seat, looking over the simple route map repeatedly in the light of his phone screen, when he suddenly remembered something: "Mr. Amuro, is the power supply system at Miyano's old house still usable? If it's at night, lighting will be a problem."

Amuro Toru glanced at him in the rearview mirror. "Kazami checked, and the power went out three years ago. I've prepared night vision goggles, which I'll send to you and Xiaoxue later. Don't use your phone's flash, it'll give away your position."

"I understand." Conan nodded, his fingertips circling the location of the cherry tree on the screen. "By the way, how deep is the iron box buried? Do I need to bring any tools?"

"Akira said that when they buried it, they only dug half a meter deep," Kudo Yuki turned around and handed Conan a mini folding shovel, "This is enough, it's light and not conspicuous."

The car stopped at the alley near Poirot Café. Amuro Toru turned off the engine and said, "I'm going to check on the store first. You guys come in through the back door."

As he pushed open the car door, he turned back and warned, "Don't walk around after you go in. Xiaozi is still at the front desk. Be careful to cover up."

Kudo Yuki took Conan around to the back door and unlocked the door with the spare key.

Only a few wall lamps were left on in the cafe. Azusa Enomoto was napping on the bar with an unfinished milk tea in front of him.

"Shh——" Kudo Yuki made a gesture to keep quiet and pulled Conan into the kitchen quietly.

Amuro Toru had already changed into an apron and was cleaning the molds at the sink. Seeing them come in, he lowered his voice and said, "Miss Xiaozi, I asked you several times where you had been. I said you were called by the doctor to help move things."

Conan stuck out his tongue and said, "Fortunately, Mr. Amuro rounded up quickly."

Kudo Yuki leaned against the door frame, watching Amuro Toru's busy back. She quietly transferred the potion into her pocket, her fingertips stroking the outline of the glass bottle. "We're going to take action tomorrow night. Do you want to take this with you?"

After washing the last mold, Amuro Toru turned around and saw the bottle in her hand. His eyes narrowed slightly. "Healing Spirit Potion? Why did you think of bringing this?"

Kudo Yuki didn't elaborate, "It's always a good idea to bring it with you just in case."

Amuro Toru took the bottle and said, "The effect of this thing is too obvious. Don't use it unless it's absolutely necessary. It will easily arouse suspicion."

He put the potion into his coat pocket and said, "It's safer for me to keep it."

Azusa Enomoto's voice came from the front desk: "Mr. Amuro? Are you still busy?"

"I'll be there soon!" Amuro Toru responded loudly, winking at Kudo Yuki and Conan, "You guys go back to the secret weapon base first, I'll take Miss Xiaozi home."

Kudo Yuki brought Conan to the base.

Conan sat down on the sofa, took out his phone and sent a message to Mao Lilan:

Xiaolan, I'm sleeping at the doctor's house and will be back early tomorrow morning.

Not long after, Mao Lilan's message came back:

Got it. Don’t play too late and remember to go to bed early.

It was followed by a good night emoticon.

Conan put down his phone and breathed a sigh of relief: "Finally, I got through it."

Kudo Yuki poured him a glass of warm water and said, "Rest here tonight. We need to get enough rest before the action tomorrow night."

Conan yawned and said, "Then I'll go to sleep first. I have to get up early tomorrow."

He curled up on the sofa, and soon the sound of even breathing could be heard.

Kudo Yuki sat at the table, opened her laptop, and called up the three-dimensional model of Miyano's old house - this was made based on the map drawn by Amuro Toru and the old photos provided by Dr. Agasa.

"Blue... pink..." Her fingertips slid across the touchpad, and suddenly she found that the positions of all the blue hydrangeas connected together formed an arrow pointing three meters northwest of the cherry tree.

"Isn't the box right under the roots of the tree?"

Shushu crawled out of her pocket and lay on the keyboard: "The iron box that Mingmei mentioned is actually buried where the hydrangea arrow pointed. Miyano Elena deliberately misled."

Kudo Yuki's mind trembled—Shushu's intuition never failed. She immediately marked the new location on the model and, comparing it to the previous route map, discovered a cluster of blue hydrangeas right there. "Miyano Elena is truly cautious, even keeping a secret for her own daughter."

She sent the new coordinates to Amuro Toru, along with a sentence:

The location of the box may have changed, so find it according to these coordinates.

Toru Amuro's message was quickly replied:

Got it, I’ve kept it in mind.

Kudo Yuki closed the computer and rubbed her swollen temples.

The moonlight from outside the window shone through the glass, casting mottled shadows on the floor. She knew that tomorrow's cherry blossoms would be the key to everything.

At this moment, far away on the other side of the city, Rum was watching the image of Miyano's old house on the surveillance screen, a sneer on his lips. The phone next to the screen vibrated. It was a message from Vermouth:

Falling cherry blossoms are beautiful and suitable for burying secrets.

Rum replied with one word:

and so on.

What he was waiting for was not only the hard drive, but also the prey that would come to his doorstep.

As the night deepened, Kudo Yuki gently tucked the blanket around Conan and turned back to the bedroom.

In the moonlight, Shushu curled up on her shoulder, his chubby little paws resting on the windowsill: "Xiaoxue, there's something new going on over there at Rum!"

"Kazemi just sent a message saying the surveillance signal on the west side of the old house was suddenly interrupted for three minutes." Amuro Toru's voice trembled with electricity. "It's not an equipment failure, it's human interference."

Kudo Yuki frowned: "Is it Wakasa Rumi? Or is it Rum's people testing me?"

"More like the former." Amuro Toru's breathing came through the tiny earphones. "She needs to confirm the time of our action, but she doesn't want to expose herself."

Shushu suddenly jumped down and picked up the miniature headphones on the table.

After Kudo Yuki put it on, she heard Amuro Toru talking to Morobushi Keimitsu on the phone: "The operation will remain unchanged at 7:00 p.m. tomorrow. Set up anti-surveillance equipment in the clock tower in advance to avoid the three loose steps on the south side. Okiya Subaru is right. The files record that a maintenance worker fell three years ago."

"Got it." Morobushi Kagemitsu's voice paused. "As for Akemi... Manager Kuroda said we need to move to the second safe house tonight to prevent Rum from getting desperate."

Kudo Yuki's heart tightened.

The letter in Miyano Akemi's hand is the key. If it is intercepted by Rum, all plans will collapse.

She was about to speak when she heard Subaru Okiya's voice through the headset. It was Toru Amuro who started the multi-party call: "I just went to the clock tower and saw that the base of the lightning rod had been pried open. It seems that someone tried to install a monitoring device."

"Is it Vermouth?" Conan woke up at some point and sat up, rubbing his eyes. "She's the best at this."

"That doesn't seem like her method." Kudo Yuki walked over to the sofa. "Vermouth's disguise even replicates the direction of the screws, leaving no obvious marks. It must be Rum's people, deliberately leaving flaws to make us suspicious."

Amuro Toru chuckled. "That's perfect. Let Kazami install a reverse tracking device in the lightning rod. Since they want to monitor us, we'll give them a 'big gift'."

The phone hangs up.

Conan hugged his knees and thought: "Sister, why do you think Auntie Miyano Elena hid two clues in the letter? Which one is real, the blue hydrangea arrow or the cherry blossom tree?"

"It's all real." Kudo Yuki pulled up a 3D model and pointed three meters northwest of the cherry tree. "Here used to be pink hydrangeas, but they were destroyed by heavy rain last year and replaced with blue. Miyano Elena accurately calculated that the soil would change the color of the flowers—she's teaching us that danger and safety can interchange over time."

Shushu tapped the clock tower on the screen with his chubby little paws.

Kudo Yuki suddenly realized: "That's right! The lightning rod on top of the clock tower will cast its shadow exactly where the box is hidden during a full moon. Miyano Elena used the moonlight as a mark."

Conan took out his notebook and wrote down: "Tomorrow night there will be a full moon! In other words, all we have to do is follow the shadow of the lightning rod at midnight."

"Smart." Kudo Yuki ruffled his hair, "But we have to arrive early. Rum must have calculated the time accurately."

Amuro Toru pushed the door open and came in, holding three black backpacks in his hands: "Night vision goggles, compressed biscuits, and flares are all ready."

He handed a backpack to Conan, "There's a backup communicator in there. The frequency is different from the one you have, to prevent interference."

Conan unzipped his jacket and saw a pen-sized anesthetic needle inside: "Mr. Amuro, this is..."

"In case you run into someone from the organization." Amuro Toru's eyes darkened. "Try not to use it, but you must carry it with you."

Kudo Yuki's phone suddenly vibrated.

The text message from Vermouth was a photo of the old Miyano house under the cherry blossom tree, with a text attached:

When the cherry blossoms have fallen, the soil will spit out what has been hidden for too long. Rum's "gardeners" have buried "fertilizer" under the roots of the flowers. Remember to ask your little detective friends to bring a shovel - after all, the "surprises" you dig out with your own hands are more interesting, aren't they? - Vermouth: Absinthe

The expression with the red lip marks at the end of the text was very similar to the ambiguous chuckle she always gave before hanging up the phone.

"She really knows how to pick the right time." Kudo Yuki put her phone back into her pocket and looked up at Amuro Toru. "'Gardener' and 'fertilizer', this suggests that Rum has set up manpower and traps."

Amuro Toru paused when he heard this. "Vermouth's news is half true and half false, but the part about 'something under the flower roots' is probably true. Rum must have been tampering with the cherry tree."

Conan came over and pointed at the photo on his phone: "Look at the trunk of the cherry tree. There is a very faint scratch on the left side, which is the same position as the one Sister Mingmei drew before. But Vermouth deliberately took this angle. Is she reminding us of something?"

Shushu poked his little head out of Kudo Yuki's pocket and pointed his chubby paw at a cluster of inconspicuous blue hydrangeas in the corner of the photo: "There's a metallic reflection there."

Kudo Yuki enlarged the photo and indeed saw a bit of silver light between the petals.

"It's a micro camera." She sneered. "Rum can't wait to see us caught."

Amuro Toru buckled up the last backpack and said, "Just right, let them be proud for a while. Subaru Okiya has already prepared a signal jammer. As long as we get close to the old house, all surveillance will be ineffective."

To be continued...