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

"Next time we see Rum, we won't be able to just spy on him." Subaru Okiya turned his head to look at Amuro Toru, who was holding the Poirot sign outside the car with a serious expression on his face. "But there are also wolves who have bitten the organization's vitals just like us."

Amuro Toru rested his fingertips on the wooden sign at the entrance of Poirot Café. The evening breeze, carrying the aroma of coffee, didn't dispel the solemnity in his eyes. Subaru Okiya's voice came clearly through his headset, and his other hand quietly reached into his pocket.

The microphone given to him by Kudo Yuki was hidden there, and he heard every word of the conversation in the car just now.

"Wolf pack?" Toru Amuro looked towards the corner of the street, where an inconspicuous black car was parked. It was the car that Date Ko and his team used for perimeter security.

He responded softly into the microphone on his collar, "Are you talking about Ida and the others, or... the people on Mr. Wuwu's side?"

Subaru Okiya stared out the car window, his lens reflecting the warm yellow light of the cafe. "It's all true. Rum is under attack from both sides. Karasuma Renya suspects him of tampering with the 'ES Amber Project'. We have his fingerprints and pass, and even Wakasa-sensei has evidence in the Haneda Hiroshi case. He's like prey being targeted by a pack of wolves. He can't escape for long."

He looked up at the rooftop directly above the cafe.

The brim of Wakasa Rumi's baseball cap was pulled down low, and her figure holding a sniper rifle was hidden in the shadows, with the muzzle pointing towards the street corner.

Okiya Subaru's tone darkened slightly. "Besides, not everyone is a friend. Wakasa-sensei only wants revenge himself, so he might act alone at any time."

The corners of Kudo Yuki's mouth curled up slightly. "You can't stop Wakasa-sensei's temper. But the sniper rifle in her hand is much more stable than we thought."

Conan's gaze moved between Okiya Subaru, Amuro Toru and Wakasa Rumi, and finally landed on Kudo Yuki.

He began to ponder Rum's core characteristics: [The left eye that looked like a prosthetic, the voice that fluctuated, and even the rumored different body shapes. There was still no definitive answer, and his sister had clearly been hiding something.]

"Sister," Conan took a half step forward, speaking with the clearness of a teenager, yet revealing his seriousness, "The secret you didn't tell me before, is it about Rum?"

Kudo Yuki tilted her head and paused for half a second before she slowly spoke, "Yeah, I'll have to react quickly this time. How did you deduce that?"

Conan rested his fingertips on his chin, his eyes behind his glasses gleaming with astonishing brightness, as if he had already strung the clues together into a complete chain. "Sister, last time in the old department store in Kanagawa, you deliberately said that Rum had a habit of piercing orchids, saying 'I'll expose it when the time is right.' Now the wolves are surrounding us. The secret you're hiding must be related to his flaw."

Conan then completed the chain of reasoning: "And when you said 'let others clean up the mess,' your eyes flickered towards Mr. Amuro for half a second—you knew he could hear you, and you had already connected Cohen's actions with Rum's selfish motives."

A smile flashed in Kudo Yuki's eyes, and she reached out to ruffle Conan's hair: "As expected of you, you didn't even miss the details of his eyes. It seems that you have already gone over these clues in your mind several times."

Shushu jumped back into Kudo Yuki's pocket and heartlessly imitated her tone, "Xiaoxue, you should release that video. Once the news is released, people will definitely wonder, 'Why is Wakita Kanenori always associated with suspicious vehicles?' Then, we won't have to do anything; curious people will come after us and ask questions!"

Kudo Yuki was so amused by its lifelike imitation that her fingertips paused. She reached out and gently poked the little ball of fur in her pocket, responding telepathically, "You're good at coming up with ideas, but aren't you afraid of shooting yourself in the foot?"

Shushu immediately retreated into his pocket, his voice more confident than ever: "What are you afraid of?! Rum is almost being cornered by the 'wolf pack'. Once this video is released, it will just throw him off balance. We can also take this opportunity to check his backup lab!"

Amuro Toru's eyes flickered with a smile as he listened to Shushu's righteous voice, but it was quickly replaced by a solemn expression. He whispered into the microphone, "Xiaoxue, make the video public, lest Rum become desperate and destroy all the clues to the backup lab."

Kudo Yuki toyed with the mouse's fur in her pocket, her eyes flicking to Amuro Toru's hand, clutching the sign—clearly worried that Rum might become desperate and destroy the clues. She chuckled into the microphone, "I'll release the video right now, so Rum's tail can show off a little more."

Her fingertips lightly swiped across the phone screen, and the video image with a black border instantly filled the screen.

As soon as Toru Amuro sat down next to James, his eyes, like Subaru Okiya's, were locked on the silver crow logo.

In the picture, the door of the black car slowly opened, and Rum's figure finally shed all disguises.

Rum raised his hand and put the silver-gray wig on his head, pinched a pair of dentures with his fingertips and inserted them between his teeth, and finally pressed the single eye patch onto his left eye. The whole set of movements was so smooth as if they had been practiced thousands of times.

"You can leave now." Rum spoke with a cold and hard tone that had never appeared on Wakita Kensuke before.

After the bodyguards withdrew, he turned and lifted the curtain of Iroha Sushi Restaurant. The moment he stepped through the door, his tone suddenly changed to the familiar, slightly deliberate gentleness: "Boss, please save me some mackerel sushi today."

Conan's breathing suddenly hitched, and his pupils behind his glasses shrank slightly in shock. "This voice, this disguise, completely confirms my suspicion that Wakita Kanenori is Rum."

Subaru Okiya tapped his fingers lightly on his knees, a sharp glint in his eyes. He had already sensed the suspicion of Kenshinori Wakita from the clues in the Haneda Koji case. Now that the video evidence was in front of him, all his speculations became facts that were set in stone.

Kudo Yuki pressed the send button and sent the video to Wakasa Rumi.

Wakasa Rumi's phone vibrated in the shadows. She lowered her eyes and clicked on the video. The sniper rifle shifted slightly as Wakita Kensuke changed his clothes in the picture. His eyes under the brim of his hat were as cold as ice.

Until she heard the familiar phrase "mackerel sushi," she clasped her knuckles around the gun, her fingertips almost digging into the metal casing: "It was this voice, this disguise. Back then, outside Haneda Hiroshi's room, I heard the exact same tone through the door."

She tapped out a short reply on the screen:

See you tomorrow night at the Poirot Café.

After sending the message, she put away the sniper rifle, passed the edge of the roof like a black shadow, and disappeared silently into the night.

James's eyes shifted away from the video on his phone screen, and he asked with a hint of inquiry, "The video was released at the perfect time. Miss Kudo, when was this secret discovered?"

Kudo Yuki's fingertips were still on the send button. When she raised her eyes after hearing the words, the ease in her eyes had faded, and a layer of calmness appeared in them. "The first time I became suspicious was at the Maori Detective Agency. Rum spoke to me as Wakita Kensuke. Miss Okino Yoko and Conan were also present. Rum's left little finger curled up unconsciously.

That gesture occurred when the old man asked me to meet him at Iroha Sushi Restaurant to exchange information. That wasn't just a habit; it was a reflex formed by wearing the custom prosthetic eye for a long time and adjusting the facial muscles.

James's gaze shifted from Kudo Yuki's face to the deepening night outside the window. His tone carried the caution typical of an FBI executive, "From the small actions taken by the Mori Detective Agency to identify the suspect, to now using the video to confirm the identity, your patience has been greater than I expected."

Kudo Yuki rested her elbow on the edge of James's car window, her fingertips casually scratching the window frame. Her tone was nonchalant yet accurate, "Rum was so eager to abandon his Wakita Kensuke cover this time. The core reason was that Wakasa Rumi approached him, and he wasn't sure how to deal with it head-on, so he had to flee to avoid the spotlight."

She looked in the direction where the helicopter disappeared in the distance, a glint of understanding flashing in her eyes. "As for that moment on the helicopter, he left without even fighting, and the result is obvious. He was forced to forget about the follow-up plans, thanks to Mr. Subaru's timely appearance."

James first glanced at Subaru Okiya's calm profile before turning to Kudo Yuki. "'Thanks to Mr. Subaru for showing up in time'—you seemed certain he could intercept Rum's helicopter. Can you explain the reason for this certainty?"

Judy walked over from the Poirot Café, coffee cup in hand, her eyes inquiring, "I'm curious too. We FBI members were still discussing this at the time. Why was it Shuichi who predicted Rum's evacuation route?"

Cameron, standing aside, added, "And there are Rum's bodyguards on the helicopter. Did you know his security arrangements?"

Subaru Okiya nudged his lenses with his fingertips, the warm light reflecting off them as faint specks of light. "First, based on the backup transport routes for the ES Amber Project—Miss Kudo gave me some of the blueprints before—Rum, in order to conceal the location of their lab, will only use encrypted routes within the organization. Second, my father fought Rum before, and he's very wary of him."

Judy's hand holding the coffee cup paused slightly, and a flash of sudden realization appeared in her eyes: "So you guys were sure he would take this path... What about Gin?"

Amuro Toru stroked the lines on the inside of the car door, his tone becoming more cautious. "Gin isn't just keeping tabs on Rum. He can't hide his concern for Vodka. If anything happens to Vodka in the lab, he'll definitely blow his cover. Gin might be even harder to control than Rum."

James's phone suddenly vibrated. He answered the call and heard the agent's steady report: "Mr. James, we've completed a five-kilometer patrol. No suspicious vehicles, signal interference sources, or hidden signs of any members of the organization have been found."

James tapped his knee lightly with his fingertips, his gaze sweeping across the people inside and outside the car before finally returning to Okiya Subaru. His tone carried the decisiveness of an FBI official, "Collect. Everyone evacuate along the original route. Keep communications open, and report any unusual activity immediately."

Subaru Okiya nodded slightly. He did not miss the cautious look in James' eyes when he hung up the phone.

Judy and Cameron put away their coffee cups in tacit understanding, turned around and walked towards the taxi at the corner without any delay.

Toru Amuro and Yuki Kudo got out of James' car.

Suddenly, I heard Shushu's angry voice in my pocket: "Huh? Disbanding already? I thought I could have another fight with Rum's minions!"

Kudo Yuki lowered her head and poked the small ball of fur in her pocket, responding telepathically, "Now is not the time for a head-on confrontation. Rum has just revealed his true colors, and he must be watching us from the shadows. It's safest not to disturb him."

Amuro Toru heard this conversation, a smile flashed across his eyes. He reached out to help her straighten the corner of her clothes that was lifted by the evening breeze, and whispered, "Shushu is very talkative, but if it really encounters danger, it will be the first to hide deep in your pocket."

Conan opened the car door and walked in front of Kudo Yuki. When he looked up, his eyes behind the glasses still had a hint of sharpness. His fingertips unconsciously stroked the detective badge in his pocket. "Sis, after sending the video, Wakasa-sensei only replied 'see you tomorrow night'. Could it be that he wants to make a separate plan against Rum?"

Just as Kudo Yuki was about to speak, the rat in her pocket spoke up first, "What are you afraid of? Didn't Xiaoxue agree with her long ago that 'revenge is revenge, but don't disrupt the lab investigation'? Besides, Amuro Toru is here."

Before he could finish his words, Kudo Yuki gently pressed his fingertips back into his pocket, leaving only a rustling sound.

Amuro Toru raised his hand and ruffled Conan's hair. "Wakasa-sensei's only target is Rum, and he won't deviate from that direction for the time being. But we have to keep a close eye on Gin first. He's openly helping Karasuma Ren'ya monitor Rum, and secretly investigating Vodka's whereabouts. If he finds out that Vodka is being used as an experimental subject, he'll probably turn against the organization."

The evening breeze carried the caramel aroma of Poirot Café into the night. Just as Kudo Yuki followed Amuro Toru and took two steps, she suddenly felt a slight numbness and soreness in her ankle.

She subconsciously slowed her pace, her fingertips quietly grasping the lamppost by the roadside, but was instantly noticed by Amuro Toru beside her. He lowered his eyes to glance at her slightly curled ankle, and before she could explain, he leaned over and picked her up horizontally.

Kudo Yuki exclaimed, and subconsciously put her arms around his neck, rubbing her cheek against his warm collarbone, and the tips of her ears instantly became hot: "Toru! What are you doing? We're still on the roadside!"

"You've twisted your ankle, and you're still holding on?" Amuro Toru's voice was close to her ear, with a hint of helpless doting, and his fingertips gently rubbed her red earlobe. "Do you want me to support you as you limp back home, and let passersby stare at Poirot's boss and laugh at you?"

Shushu poked out his little head, rubbed his furry head against the palm of Kudo Yuki's hand, and laughed heartily: "That's right! Amuro Toru holds you so firmly, it's much safer than walking on your own!"

Amuro Toru heard it clearly, lowered his head and raised an eyebrow at the little ball of fur: "You have good taste."

Conan followed behind and couldn't help rolling his eyes at the intimacy between the two. However, he still slowed down his pace and deliberately fell a few steps behind to block the sight of the occasional passers-by.

Subaru Okiya was sitting in the car, seeing this scene through the window. A faint smile flashed across his eyes behind the lenses, and he gently started the car.

He had to check the route map of the "ES Dark Amber Plan" again before tomorrow to ensure that the meeting between Wakasa Rumi and Kudo Yuki was foolproof.

To be continued...