Chapter 574 Karasawa: I doubt that this world is going to give me strength
"Could this island be like Moon Shadow Island, uh..." I thought of those weird dead people with black mud flowing from their seven orifices. , and the music scores flying down like snowflakes, Conan's shell briefly stuck.
Moon Shadow Island will become a big job for the Phantom Thieves in the end, probably because it involves the black industry.
After the search lesson and the statistics of Mouri Kogoro afterwards, except for some minor theft issues, most of them are related to the deceased who died at the hands of Asai Narumi. .
So the joker will focus on Yueying Island, sneak into and participate in the progress of the case, and the mental state of the message is very wrong. The real reason may be the ecology of the islanders.
Simply put, here comes the big life.
And now, joker seems to have entered a similar state again, doesn't that mean...
"If that were the case, the problem wouldn't be so difficult." Tangze supported his head, He sighed leisurely, "Detective-kun, do you think... selfishness and indifference are sins?"
Hearing his question, Conan was stunned and raised his head to pay careful attention to joker's expression. , but only from the edge of the sunglasses, he could see the red eyes refracting in the light.
Calm, indifferent, like a bystander waiting for everything to happen.
Are you asking for his opinion or getting some answers from him? Or is it just a simple discussion and emotion.
If it is the former, then he may have to pay attention to what he says...
"I think it depends on the consequences of this person's actions." Conan observed Joker's face hidden under the mask and said cautiously, "However, it is true that this kind of character is more likely to cause harm to others."
"To what extent can it be called a crime? Is it causing casualties and harming other people's lives, or is it causing damage to people's spirits or property?"
Tang Ze tilted his head and looked out the window towards the dusk sky. Half of it was a riddle, and half of it was a serious emotion.
"If it really causes real harm, then everything can be considered clear-cut between love and hate. You can find a place to hate, and you can find a place to forgive. Unfortunately, reality is not such a simple thing. Those silences and onlookers are more like The endless sultry heat is suffocating, but you can barely breathe, it's painful, but it's not unbearable..."
As Conan listened, he felt something strange. .
Joker’s subsequent laments have gradually moved closer to evaluating a certain specific situation than simply discussing social phenomena. This prose-like lament seems to be lamenting for a specific person. .
"Have you discovered the situation on this island?" Conan couldn't help but ask.
"Well, I feel it very intuitively." Tangze turned his head and said the truth, "Don't you smell that smell? You can't breathe, you can't float, it's like sinking into the deep sea with a storm. …”
This was the scene that Tang Ze felt at a glance when he opened his third eye, and it was also the reason why they were sitting here.
Just like the state that Noah felt when he landed on the island, there is a certain similarity between this place and Moon Shadow Island - referring to the barrier between reality and the cognitive world.
Originally, Karasawa regarded the image space of Tsukikage Island that was eroded by Asai Narumi as a special case, thinking that it might be a phenomenon caused by a mask user who was born with powerful abilities and was under the influence of strong emotions.
Now, after Noah’s analysis, Tang Ze’s thoughts have been shaken.
This may not be a problem with the masker, but maybe it has something to do with the tearing of the impression space.
From this perspective, it does make sense. Since the impression space, or the cognitive world, itself is the spiritual world of human beings and a form of the collective subconscious, then an environment with a closed structure and solidified personnel, such as Moon Shadow Island and American Island, will give birth to small landforms with their own characteristics. , it’s not that it’s incomprehensible.
Just like the difference between P4 and P5, you can regard them as different worldview settings, but you can also regard them as the special environment of P4, a relatively closed village and town, which has formed unique rumors and public opinions. The area under the influence...
However, no matter what the case is, how to explain these things is the part that researchers need to pay attention to.
Tang Ze is just having a headache now on how to clear the level.
As a numerical laggard, he seems to be punished by the mechanism. The world seems to want to give him some strength.
Judging from the fact that he could choke to death even if he opened his third eye, they would have to prepare several sets of diving equipment before entering another world...
Tangze was thinking about how to break the situation. Conan, who was standing aside, became more and more confused as he listened to his thoughts.
What does it mean to feel intuitively? Does it mean that the joker has found the key person, observed the other person's state, and empathized with him?
But no matter what he meant by this sentence, what is certain is that joker has indeed discovered many strange keys.
Conan then concentrated more and more: "Who exactly are you referring to with these statements... If you can't tell me directly, can you give me some hints?"
If you don't want to tell him anything and just want to talk about riddles casually, there should be no need to bring him here directly, Conan thought.
Just make it clear on the phone or in the email. With the tracking abilities of these guys, it is very simple to avoid him. There is no need to bring him here specially.
"You're very motivated. It's good to be motivated." Karasawa looked at his expression for a while and laughed, "It doesn't hurt to tell you something. First of all, Saori Kadori is confirmed to be dead. "
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"One hundred and eighty, two hundred years old, these people really like to exaggerate..."
The miko with her long hair tied up waved the royal coin in her hand twice, and her eyes swept over the unfamiliar faces of the people in front of her, with very helpless expressions.
"Well, after all, the specific age was not mentioned in the news mentioned. Everyone on the island said they didn't know..." Hattori Heiji, standing in the shrine, said while looking around This small shrine.
Half new but not old, the houses are very clean, fallen leaves are swept in the corners, and the building surrounded by trees has a rare sense of tranquility.
The incense does not seem to be very prosperous, but it is probably due to the coming and going of tourists. It is not particularly deserted. It seems to be enough to sustain life.
"Ha, those guys..." Shimabukuro Kimie shook her head vigorously and said loudly, "I was born on June 24, the second year of Meiji. My great-grandmother is exactly one hundred and forty years old this year!"
Karasawa, who was standing at the end of the crowd and looking around, suddenly turned his head in the direction of Shimabukuro Kime after hearing this.
It appeared, it finally appeared, the lines that clearly marked the time!
The second year of Meiji is 1869, which means that in terms of setting, they are now around 2009.
Although it is very clear that Ke Xue’s world is basically Miss Conch’s world view, if time goes backwards, it is still in the same year, and with the addition of stitching elements, it must be the same as what Karasawa remembered. There were many differences in 2009, but he still smiled with satisfaction.
I am so touched, so touched, that he can finally write the year on his calendar.
"These things are clearly written in the household registration information. On a small island like ours, there is a 'village chronicle'." Kimi Shimabukuro said distressedly after tapping the palm of his hand twice with the rod of the coin. "Maybe we have lived longer, but it's really not that exaggerated. Really, in order to attract tourists, everyone likes to make our family mysterious..."
No, one hundred and forty Older years can't be called longevity at all...
The corners of Conan's mouth twitched, and he popped his head out from Mao Lilan's legs. He cautiously observed Shimabukuro Kimie's expression, and then looked at the tension behind her. door to the room.
“So, you haven’t eaten mermaid meat before?” Mouri Kogoro couldn’t help but asked curiously. "Mermaids don't exist in this world, right? Isn't this definitely a lie?" Shimabukuro Kimie covered her mouth and said bluntly.
Unexpectedly, unlike the nagging islanders who love to talk to mermaids no matter what, Shimabukuro Kimie would directly address these issues and reject the biggest selling point of the Dugong Festival without hesitation. Hattori Heiji opened his eyes. Big eyes.
"Well, when other tourists come, will you tell them directly like this?" He said, lowering his head in confusion and looking at his dress.
Other than asking about Saori Kadori's situation along the way, there is not much difference between them and other tourists on the island, so their identities as detectives should not be revealed.
"Of course, there's nothing wrong with this. Our family worships the shrine here, and it would be disrespectful to distort the faith randomly." Shimabukuro Kimie glanced at the group of two and a half, and climbed up the stairs. The tourists slapped their foreheads with a headache, "But for those who didn't take it seriously in the first place, they just came to ask for good luck, and for those who believed deeply, the more I said this, the more they became I believe that it is true..."
"People only believe what they want to believe." Hattori Heiji, who understood her embarrassing situation very well, nodded, thought of the letter, and asked. , "So, is Saori Kadori the one who believes it? Since you grew up together, she should know the truth very well."
"She did treat those things as a joke in the past, but starting a few years ago, she became a little..." Shimabukuro Kime was embarrassed to choose the words for a while, unable to find a euphemism, so she simply shook her head and gave up. " Anyway, there are really no so-called serious consequences for losing the arrow. She is just scaring herself."
"The dugong arrow was given to the people attending the festival by your grandma. "Really?" Mouri Kogoro has not completely let go of the legendary question, "Since mermaid meat does not exist, why do you name that kind of arrow?"
He was directed to the shrine to ask the witch. When Saori Kadori disappeared, Mouri Kogoro stared at those strange guardian ema for a long time, always worried that what he saw after climbing up the mountain might not be a shrine dedicated to mermaids.
Considering the strange painting style of those products, the mermaid style should also be...
Mouri Kogoro, whose thoughts completely diverged to the Cthulhu style, even came to the shrine and found that Even though everything is normal here, I still don't feel completely reassured.
This kind of fanatical repeater atmosphere can be considered to be flattery caused by commercialization, or it is completely reasonable to say that it is a strange cult belief.
"Because that kind of arrow was not originally called that." Shimabukuro Kime raised her finger and explained seriously, "My deceased mother explained to me that it was originally called 'The Curse of the Forbidden City. "Arrow" is a kind of amulet that can ward off evil spirits and represents the power of destroying evil. However, because my grandmother was famous for her long life, people on the island began to use homonymous words and began to call it "Dugong Arrow". '."
"Hey, your mother..." Mao Lilan looked at the small shrine in front of her, but it was several hundred square meters, and she couldn't help being surprised.
According to this statement, the Shimabukuro family has very limited manpower to take care of this place. The pretty and pleasant young girl standing in front of her may actually be burdened with a heavy workload.
After all, cleaning and taking care of the shrine is one of the duties of a shrine maiden.
"Ah, my mother and my father had an accident when they went to sea five years ago and could not come back. My grandparents also disappeared while going to sea. So, now only my great-grandmother and me, my great-granddaughter, are left to depend on each other. " Shimabukuro Junhui nodded and said calmly.
Yuanshan and Ye shrank their necks, a little bit understanding why some people believe in the mermaid legend.
This sounds completely like eating mermaid meat or something, causing some kind of curse to be retaliated by mermaids as soon as they go to sea...
"Don't worry, everyone, this is the same as mermaids. It has nothing to do with anything." Shimabukuro Kimie, who noticed her reaction, didn't even move his eyebrows. He looked like he was used to it. "We who live on the island must frequently rely on ships to enter and leave the island. We have made hundreds of voyages. There was an accident. I can only say that we are not lucky. I lived in Tokyo for several years when I was in school. I often traveled by boat, so there was no problem."
"Sorry, that's not what I meant. ..." Realizing that their reaction might be unpleasant, Yuan Shan and Ye hurriedly apologized.
"It's okay. It's normal to have this kind of association. You belong to the part that can communicate, so you are already good." Shimabukuro June folded his hands in front of him and smiled tolerantly.
Hattori Heiji helped Toyama Kazuha, and looked up and down at Shimabukuro Kime, who was wearing a miko uniform, and couldn't help but feel a little sad.
This miko lady seems to have dealt with many similar problems and endless questioning, so much so that she doesn’t mind recounting some pain over and over again...
It’s not easy. .
Obviously, the developed tourism industry on the island does not bring all business opportunities to the local residents.
At least judging from this shrine maiden, she has been through a lot of troubles.
"You want to inquire about Saori, well, I think she may have stayed on the island and not come back." Seeing that they had no new questions, Shimabukuro Kimie took the initiative to tell her what she had learned. "She lost her arrow and fell into a state of extreme panic. She even came to her hoping that my grandma and I would find a solution for her. No matter how I explained it, she firmly believed that she would be cursed because of it. This may also be because of me. "It's my responsibility."
"Didn't you explain to her the origin of the arrow and the problem of mermaids?" Thinking of the scrawled letter, Hattori Heiji felt that her statement was quite credible, but he still Asked a question.
“I explained it to her, and even told her the truth about the so-called curse... Since the island attracted many tourists due to reports three years ago, in order to avoid arrow damage, or get The people who use the arrow really believe that it can bring immortality, so much so that they are angry with us when it cannot do it. We have always said to the outside world that if the arrow is lost or doubts its power, the power will not be effective, and it will also anger the mermaid and bring about Disaster...
“These are all lies, just some cunning ways to avoid trouble. Not worth mentioning. ”
Shimabukuro Kimie said, closing her eyes gently.
"Jun Hui, you are so stupid. The reason why you think so is because you don't actually believe in the power of the goddess, right?" A slightly sharp voice suddenly sounded.
"Sumi, why are you like this..." Shimabukuro Kimie looked at the speaker and showed a wry smile.
"She has eaten mermaid meat. She has really eaten mermaid meat. As a descendant of the goddess, how can you question this power?" Ebihara Hisumi argued.
"Sumei, I have said it many times, there is no need to pursue this kind of pursuit...forget it." Seeing the stubborn look of the other party, Shimabukuro Kimi relaxed in the breath he just raised, "No one More than I wish that was true.”
Conan quickly looked at Shimabukuro Kimie's expression, and then at Hisumi Ebihara, whose eyes were wide with a mixture of enthusiasm and longing on her face, and he made a quick assessment in his mind.
Since Joker told him that even if Saori Kadori was not harmed by others, her abnormality must be related to the truth of this so-called mermaid legend, then it seems that these people who are directly related to her and the legend are all It's worth following up.
Capturing the obsession on the face of his former friend standing in front of him, Shimabukuro Kimie couldn't help but reveal a trace of sadness, and then quickly restrained it in the blink of an eye.
Yes, some trivial tricks deceive the people who should least be deceived.
How great would it be if everything were true? What a happy thing that is.
The dream of immortality, the legend of mermaids, the power to defeat evil, and...
The miracle of immortality.
Mom...
"?" The moment Shimabukuro Kimie lowered her head to adjust her emotions, Karasawa, who felt a faint vibration, almost immediately turned his attention to her. .
A sharp, high-frequency sound, perhaps beyond the frequency range that human ears can hear, was like a scream, screaming through his ears at an extremely fast speed.
The wind on the island, which was already carrying the moisture and smell of sea water, suddenly became a little stronger at this moment. It was like a faint sound, like the roar of rolling waves, hitting people's ears. Together with the setting sun that had already set in the west, it seemed that it was suddenly blown away. A layer of blue water mist shrouded the body, and the light shining on the body weakened a little.
It was as if the island was falling into slumber as night fell, but Karasawa frowned when he noticed the change.
The barrier between reality and the cognitive world seemed to be weakened again at the moment when her mind fluctuated.
(End of this chapter)