Out-of-control players in the world of Detective Conan

……

In a high-end hotel.

"cheers!"

Qi Ming and his group were raising their glasses to celebrate the successful completion of the play... though they weren't sure if it really counted as a success.

The school festival ended today.

Qi Ming didn't know what Karasuma Renya said to Inspector Megure, but the police simply drove away all the tourists, teachers, and students on campus, and then... set off firecrackers inside.

Set off firecrackers for a week.

And I definitely won't be able to go to school this week.

Upon learning that the school would be closed for a week, both students and teachers couldn't help but smile—a happy smile, of course.

"Speaking of which, Xiaolan has improved a lot in terms of her lines today compared to yesterday. She's even better than those big stars and actresses!"

Sonoko Suzuki drank the juice in her glass in one gulp and smiled at Ran Mouri.

"No, it's just that I'm feeling better today."

Ran Mouri shook her head, then sighed and said.

"But I really didn't expect that something like this would happen in our theater."

"..."

Upon hearing this, everyone's initially high spirits dampened slightly.

Seeing that her words had made the atmosphere awkward, Ran quickly changed the subject and looked at Qi Ming, who was eating and drinking heartily.

"By the way, Mr. Qi Ming, what did Inspector Megure and that Matsushita-pants officer talk about with you today?"

"that?"

Seeing Qi Ming raise his head in confusion, about to speak, Ran Mouri realized something was wrong.

What an idiot I am! If Inspector Megure called Qi Ming in, then they must be talking about that kind of thing!

No, we need to change the subject!

Unaware that his daughter already knew many things, Kogoro Mouri thought that revealing things about curses and ghosts would shatter people's moral compass, so he quickly poured some wine and smiled at Qi Ming.

"Mr. Qi Ming, I'd like to propose a toast to you!"

"Okay, let's have one."

The topic was changed, and Ran Mouri breathed a sigh of relief when she saw how quickly her father reacted.

Qi Ming downed his drink in one gulp and then said, "The two of them kept me here mainly to discuss this cursed case."

"..."

The entire room fell silent for a moment, and the atmosphere was even colder than before.

What is the curse case?

Sonoko Suzuki, Ayumi Kenta, and Mitsuhiko tilted their heads and looked at Qi Ming curiously.

Kogoro Mouri's lips twitched.

Didn't he just change the subject?

Conan and Heiji Hattori exchanged a glance, feeling rather helpless.

And you mean you're the one who's cursing?

"Brother, have some vegetables."

Seeing the atmosphere turn cold, Ai Haibara immediately placed a slice of meat near Qi Ming's mouth.

"Oh, you've learned your lesson, now you even know how to feed the vegetables."

"..."

Ai Haibara placed another piece of meat near Qi Ming's mouth, successfully silencing him.

Meanwhile, Ran Mouri explained the situation to the puzzled Sonoko Suzuki and the seemingly confused Conan and Heiji Hattori, and then moved on from the topic.

As for Ayumi and Mitsuhiko, they were just kids, so we could just brush them off.

"Oh, you guys are so kind, school's out again, I have to go back to work tomorrow."

Kogoro Mouri took a sip of his drink and complained a little, even though his freelance work made every day feel like a vacation.

Sonoko Suzuki's eyes darted around before she made a suggestion.

"How about we go on a trip the day after tomorrow? We're just staying at home anyway."

"Great!"

Before Ran Mouri could even speak, the three children started shouting excitedly.

"...What's so good about it?"

Sonoko Suzuki rolled her eyes at the group, finding it somewhat amusing.

"It's our school that's on holiday, not yours."

The children paused for a moment, then lowered their heads dejectedly.

Perhaps because they were rather simple-minded, they were inexplicably thinking—

If someone dies at their school, will they get a holiday?

The atmosphere became lively again, and everyone ate and chatted while the television screen on the wall began to broadcast the news.

"Next, we will broadcast a news report: A serious traffic accident occurred today on the Beize Overpass in Xiang'an City. Also today, a gas explosion occurred on Guangfu Road in Xiang'an City..."

Kogoro Mouri's eyelids twitched, and he couldn't help but retort.

"It seems like we've been seeing a lot of news reports about gas explosions lately. Shouldn't we conduct a city-wide screening?"

Hearing the news broadcast on TV, Ai Haibara didn't need to say a word. She pointed at the screen and then turned to point at Qi Ming.

Seeing this, Qi Ming also raised his chin and pointed at himself with his thumb.

"..."

Ai Haibara sighed deeply.

She also learned the identity of the policeman named Matsushita Pants, who, like Karasuma Renya, possessed a game perspective.

The bloodstains in the monitoring room and the Panasonic pants he wore when returning from outside the monitoring room were enough to identify him.

Ai Haibara couldn't help but think of the conversation between Karasuma Renya and Qi Ming last time, and recalling it made her want to laugh a little.

I wonder how the mastermind behind the scenes of that old era would feel upon hearing this news.

"Recently, the National Tokyo Institute of Microbiology in Nishitama City was attacked by a group of seven armed men. An investigation has revealed that a type of bacteria with an extremely high mortality rate was likely taken away by the armed group."

Perhaps because the police notified the TV station, the case committed by Qi Ming was not described in detail, and after the briefing, the next news item came.

Qi Ming leaned back in his chair and let out a burp, looking at the content displayed on the screen with some emotion.

"The world is really unsettled these days; there are terrorists everywhere."

……

Base 1.

With nothing else to do, Gin, Vermouth, and Vodka returned to the base. However, as soon as they stepped through the gate into the central hall, all three of them froze in surprise.

The once simple, steel-like base has become somewhat flashy.

The dome's spheres of light shimmered with various colors, and the original cold-colored cement walls were replaced with some kind of screen that played back and forth various geometric stripes.

The floor had been replaced with a transparent glass panel, decorated with all sorts of bizarre and incomprehensible ornaments, and played hip-hop music from who-knows-where, the heavy drumbeats sending a jolt through their hearts every time they sounded.

Vermouth, somewhat bewildered, parted her red lips and muttered to herself.

"Have we come to the wrong place? Is this our base?"

"...I shouldn't have gone the wrong way."

Gin frowned.

He started his journey from the base to school today, but he was thinking that the original base wasn't like this.