Chapter 668: An Untimely Halloween Party
The "bang" of the door interrupted Karasawa and Suzuki Sonoko who were talking, and the two of them looked at the door at the same time.
"What's wrong, Xiaolan, are you feeling uncomfortable somewhere?" Suzuki Sonoko stood up with concern and approached her best friend.
Mao Lilan kept her head down, unable to see her face clearly, which made her a little worried.
When touched by her dry and warm palm, Mao Lilan seemed to wake up suddenly, raised her head, and happened to meet Tang Ze's eyes.
Instinctively dodging, Mao Lilan couldn't control her tone of panic: "No, it's okay, maybe it was washed by cold water..."
Recalling what she just saw, she bit her lower lip, Then he looked at Judy, who was lying on the table, and his heart was in a state of confusion.
Why, why is there such a photo, and why is it posted in the bathroom of Teacher Judy’s house?
This is Teacher Judy’s bachelor apartment. This was confirmed when they proposed to hold a farewell party at her house. In other words, those densely packed photos posted behind the mirror all belong to Zhu. Teacher Ti.
What is she doing, collecting information about Karasawa? What about the writing on her photos and Conan's photos?
Especially, regarding Goro Akechi...
When their eyes met again, Karasawa briefly thought about the direction of Mao Lilan's misunderstanding, and chose to bend his eyes, showing a gentle and friendly smile.
Seeing so much information at once, Mao Lilan's CPU was probably overloaded. No matter what emotions he showed, she would only understand them according to her own ideas.
Sure enough, Mao Lilan, who received his smile, arched her back slightly, showing an obvious defensive posture.
Calm down, you have to calm down. Shinichi has already said that the matter needs further investigation. Before reaching a conclusion, you cannot show any exaggerated abnormalities.
So Mao Lilan quickly adjusted her expression, stood up straight, and calmly comforted Suzuki Sonoko as if nothing had happened: "It's really okay. I'll find some hot drinks to drink..."
Mao Lilan tried hard to control her eyes. He didn't look at Tang Ze more to avoid raising questions from the other party, but he was still worried in his heart.
If I remember correctly, Karasawa has always had great trust in Goro Akechi. When Karasawa was in trouble, Akechi would come as soon as possible if his assistance was needed.
Why, why was such a scene photographed...
————
"What's wrong, Shinichi? Is there any emergency?"
Seeing Conan's serious face after hanging up the phone, Dr. Agasa asked.
Conan turned to look at Haihara Ai, who was wearing a mask and sitting sickly on the sofa. Just as he was about to speak to explain, he suddenly stopped.
No, the doctor’s house is being monitored by members of the organization, so these questions cannot be asked now.
"It's okay. Xiaolan said that the school's English teacher was resigning and that I didn't even have the chance to take her class. It was a pity."
With this explanation, Conan silently pressed the screen of his phone, typed in the memo, and handed it to Haibara Ai sitting opposite to read.
Haiyuan Ai lowered his head and saw a line of content displayed on the phone with white text on a black background.
【Do you know when Goro Akechi met Karasawa? 】
Well, this question is quite interesting.
Hai Yuan Ai thought for a moment, thinking of Belmod on the other end of the monitoring line, and sorted out his thoughts for a while.
From Belmode's perspective, does she know why Shirley defected?
"Where did we just talk about Kudo?" She spoke muffledly under the mask and started typing on her mobile phone.
【Why do you ask? Is there anything wrong with Goro Akechi? 】
"As I said just now, someone is investigating Uncle Maori, or in other words, investigating me." Seeing that Haibara Ai quickly understood his intentions, Conan also started to use distraction.
While typing, his expression was not as peaceful as when he spoke. His brows were deeply furrowed and he pronounced the word "Sichuan".
Regarding Karasawa and Akechi Goro, he had had doubts before.
From Karasawa's mouth, he clearly learned that Goro Akechi was the illegitimate son of Shigehiko Tonguchi, a politician who had been confirmed to have colluded with the organization and was finally silenced.
Not long after Karasawa arrived in Tokyo, Goro Akechi arrived in Japan from the United States and began his journey as a famous detective in Tokyo.
Considering only various skills and intelligence, Akechi Goro did a pretty good job as a detective. Being famous in front of the public may be achieved through face, but it is not that simple to gain a certain degree of trust from the police.
So while investigating the case files related to the Karasawa family, he asked Yusaku Kudo, who was currently in the United States, to collect relevant information.
The strange thing is that Goro Akechi, who acted in such a high-profile manner, seemed to be extremely low-key during his stay in the United States, and could not find any news or information related to it.
This is far from the current state of Akechi Goro. Either he has a reason to keep a low profile in the United States, or... his current performance is just an illusion.
While investigating the Pisco case, Akechi had also come into his suspicions. The main reason why he was not included as a suspect in the end was because of Tang Ze's protection.
But that was before Souji Okita brought the news. Now they have been able to confirm that there is something fishy about Karasawa's memory.
Can we doubt that his inexplicable coexistence of resistance and trust in Goro Akechi may be the sequelae of a similar situation?
[Xiaolan saw a strange photo and felt uneasy, so she called me.
Why is there a photo of Goro Akechi pinching the neck of Karasawa with his face covered in blood in Teacher Judy's house? 】
————
With a cigarette in his mouth, Belmode sat surrounded by electronic devices, listening to the conversation coming from the headphones.
Two crisp voices belonged to children, but their tone was solemn and low, and the content of the conversation was extremely serious.
"My identity is probably no longer safe, Haibara, you should consider leaving Miwa Town."
"I thought about doing this, Kudo, but I can't do it. It's impossible for me to leave here."
"Why do you say that? Haiyuan, I understand that you tried to find me when you left the organization, because the two of us may be the only guys in the world who survived after taking that drug. But now , our situation is very dangerous, you should probably consider other options."
"I'm sorry, Kudo."
"Do you insist on not leaving here?"
"Yeah."
"Yes, because of Karasawa? I heard him mention it before that you and he seem to be distant relatives."
"..."
There was silence on the other end of the monitor. On this side, Belmod sneered, picked up the empty can at hand, and slowly squeezed it tightly.
The soft metal slowly gathered into a ball amidst the weak screams.
She really wanted to persuade coolguy to stop talking. That stubborn and naive woman had her own innocent ideas and would not be easily shaken by other people's words.
This is what happened when I was in the organization.
Accepted her parents’ vicious terrorist research, yet she adopted that innocent attitude; she was born in the organization since she was a child, destined to be with darkness for the rest of her life, but she still had some sweet dreams of family love and freedom. .
If she had not shown her talent from the beginning, considering the importance of her parents' research, the organization might have given her a good death.
If she had calmly accepted the fate of becoming a demon and become a truly cold-blooded executioner, she would still be a popular person in the organization, and her sister would not have become a high-ranking person just because of her double-mindedness. Following in the footsteps of the Karasawa couple.
This is Shirley, this is Miyano Shiho, this is that family, hypocrites who always create misery, but are able to ignore themselves so much...
"What an inappropriate guy. Don't you think so?" , Kumail?"
The man standing behind her, leaning against the door, shrugged noncommittally, ignoring her inexplicable resentment, and just said lightly: "What did you ask me to do? "I heard from Gin that you have called Calvados to Japan." Belmod kicked the ground at his feet and turned his swivel chair behind him.
She took her time to observe the young man's slightly impatient expression, and laughed hoarsely: "Are you jealous of the accomplice? Don't worry, he is just an insurance. The real plan It’s impossible to tell him.”
The chestnut-haired boy leaning against the door raised his eyebrows, but his expression remained unchanged: "If you let him be responsible for the sniper work, then he will naturally have a panoramic view of everything."
Belmod made a light noise again. Laugh, understanding what Kumail is dissatisfied with.
Belmod’s core need to hunt down Shirley is the temporary antidote in the opponent’s hands.
In order to prevent the organization from discovering the fact that Shirley has become smaller, she must kill Miyano Shiho when he returns to his original form and bring back her 18-year-old body. The exact information about this is , which Kumail brought to her.
Now, she has called Calvados who is completely out of condition, which is tantamount to leaking the information. Only the two of them know the information. Kumail can still bear the patience to accompany her here to monitor. , it has already given her enough face.
"That's why I called you again." Belmod narrowed his eyes and spoke murderous words from his bright red lips, "Calvados, there are so many things."
Regarding matters related to Tang Zezhao, Calvados is mainly responsible for handling them.
At that time, due to the sudden death of Karasawa and his wife who almost died together, she was still in Europe, enduring nausea and busy with matters related to the aftermath of the experiment, tracking down the lost data, and consciously found Calvados, who had an opportunity to offer courtesy. He took the first step to recommend himself and rushed to Japan.
For Tang Zezhao, her feelings are very complicated.
Theoretically, this child who caused part of her tragic beginning should undoubtedly become a thorn in her side just like Shirley.
But on the other hand, unlike the Miyano couple who are strangers to her and who are equal to abusers in her eyes, she has a more complicated relationship with the Karazawa couple who are forced to stay in the organization and try their best to fight for the right to speak.
Although it sounded extremely sad to say this, she had to admit that in the past ten years, the attitude of Tang Ze and his wife was one of the few gentle and kind words she had ever experienced.
This experience is very strange. The guy who is injecting lethal drugs into your body has an inexplicable look of compassion on his face, seeming to empathize with the pain you are feeling. He looks so funny, ridiculous and hypocritical. .
Her complex and divided emotions lasted until the other person died, so much so that whenever she saw Tang Zezhao's face that was very similar to Karasawa Ikawa, she felt like she wanted to strangle the other person to death immediately, but at the same time she was filled with inexplicable sourness. The mood will come to my heart.
Just like now, when she looked at Kumail's fake face.
But before she could clarify these thoughts, Tang Zezhao had already become a sacrifice to the organization.
Calvados speculated on her thoughts without authorization and imposed a brutal punishment on that person, which not only destroyed Tang Zezhao's spirit, but also completely destroyed his life at a social level.
Then he died at the hands of Kumail.
So until now, she still couldn't tell how she felt about Karasawa's family, but for Calvados, her patience had reached its limit.
Because the other party indirectly revealed a piece of information - he knew what a painful and humiliating suffering Belmod had experienced at the hands of the Tangze couple.
This is something she absolutely cannot tolerate.
"I came to you, in addition to asking you to be responsible for controlling the plan, there is also..." Belmod raised his eyebrows, did not understand what he said next, just smiled meaningfully .
So Kumel, who was standing opposite her, just gave a meaningful smile.
"I understand what you mean." Xingchuan Hui grinned and took off the disguise mask on his face, revealing his own face. "It is natural that a sniper needs an observer. "
Seeing the face belonging to Goro Akechi under his mask, Belmod finally nodded with satisfaction and expressed his final judgment.
"That's it. I hate all misfits, and that sounds perfect for a full-moon bloody banquet. What do you think, Kumail?"
————
"Improper Halloween Party? What are you doing? It's only now, isn't Halloween until the end of October?"
"That's why they wrote, 'untimely' at the beginning." Mao Lilan held out the invitation. I opened the letter and expressed helplessness.
It sounds like a boring prank, or a weird way to play like a costume party...
Maori Kogoro's interest was greatly reduced. He picked up the bowl and took two bites of rice: "So, besides this, what else is written on this invitation?"
"The letter said..." Mao Lilan unfolded and folded it. After reading the beginning of the letter, he looked a little embarrassed, "Well, the other party said, 'Your Excellency, incompetent detective Mouri Kogoro, on the upcoming full moon night, we solemnly invite you to attend this terrible party. '"
"Huh?" Mouri Kogoro almost choked on the rice and wiped the sprayed rice particles.
Mao Lilan studied his face for a while, and then read on: "Of course, regardless of whether you are present or not, the dying lamb will curse his fate of being sacrificed. And the sinner, will he be intoxicated? In the pain of death, there is no way to escape? "
"What and what?" Mouri Kogoro couldn't stand it anymore and picked up the letter, frowning and continued reading for a while. Two line letters.
The tone of the letter was not only cryptic, but also full of provocation and disdain, so much so that the honorifics used seemed like ruthless ridicule.
"It's a challenge to a famous detective, right?" Thinking he had seen through the opponent's trick, Mouri Kogoro turned over the back of the envelope and stared at the signature under the paint.
"Vermouth...is a foreigner, right?" Mao Lilan, who had read it in advance, guessed its English pronunciation while reading it, and reluctantly read it out.
————
“Vermouth? I’m sorry, Xiaolan, I’ve never heard of this name...”
Dr. A Li held up the receiver of the landline phone and looked at Conan across the table.
"But will Maori go? This kind of party sounds more like an occasion that young people would like to have fun. And it's tomorrow, so I won't be able to catch up on time."
"Dad, he said he wanted to go, what else could he say? Accepting challenges bravely is the passion of Tokyoites..." Mao Lilan glanced at Suzuki Sonoko and Maori Kogoro who were busy behind him, "And he was also asking Sonoko to help him prepare his look. "
"Is he going to wear makeup?"
"Yes, the invitation says that since it is a Halloween party, participants must dress up as monsters and wear Wearing black formal wear to a party or something.”
"Hey, Xiaolan, are you going too?"
"I..." Some fragmentary pictures flashed through her mind, and Mao Lilan bit her lower lip.
She did want to go, but when she thought of the photos behind Judy's mirror, and of Tang Ze and Conan who seemed to be under surveillance for unknown reasons, she hesitated.
We can't let go of Teacher Judy's affairs...
"How can I go? It sounds like monsters and ghosts!" Mao Lilan took a breath and answered loudly.
"That's right..." He couldn't help but hold the receiver further away from his ear, and Dr. Ali echoed in a low voice.
Realizing that his realization was a bit exaggerated, Mao Lilan cleared his throat and readjusted his volume: "Anyway, I called here to ask, has that guy received the invitation? Since the invitation will be sent to From my dad’s side, Shinichi may have received it too. I remember that you are helping to take care of his mailbox now.”
“I haven’t paid attention to it recently. I’ll check it for you later. " Dr. Ali looked at Conan who raised his finger in front of his lips to signal him not to say anything, and reluctantly replied, "If I find it, I'll call you later..."
Conan, who had unfolded the letter and was reading it carefully, put down the invitation card wrapped in folded letter paper and also turned to the lacquered side with his signature.
He carefully observed the signature on the letter, groped carefully with his fingertips, and felt some subtle concave and convex pen marks.
After frowning and studying the envelope for a moment, he picked up a pencil from the table and swiped it in the direction of the pen marks.
Under the curvaceous Vermouth, a line of invisible writing is revealed in the gray and black smear.
Only shadows and darkness can highlight the invisible murderer behind the scenes... It is an image that fits the imagination.
"Kummel." Putting down the pencil, he showed the envelope in his hand to Haibara Ai, "This person must be a member of the organization. After all, like Vermouth, it is the name of the wine."
(End of this chapter)