Ai Haibara: I Think You're Dreaming

"Really..."

Conan looked as if he had expected this. "I knew how you knew so much, so he's also a member of the organization!"

"You're wrong. Strictly speaking, he didn't participate in any of the organization's operations."

Ai Haibara shook her head slightly. "The organization took a liking to his skills and wanted to train him... That's true, but that was all in the past. After some testing, the organization found that he was not cut out for it, and in the end, they had no choice but to give up and send him to me as a clinical test subject for that drug."

"What did you say?!"

Conan frowned, his expression darkening slightly. "Isn't that just human experimentation?"

"That's not wrong. After all, someone like him, who has no relatives and is controlled by the organization, will eventually be squeezed dry and become a expendable tool for the organization..."

Ai Haibara remained calm, already used to the detective's overreaction. "Those who are threatened by family members are more useful. They can be threatened to act as suicide agents, or to prevent them from betraying the organization, and then secretly executed in the end."

"Isn't it inevitable that they all have to die?"

"You should have this awareness from the day you join the organization."

Ai Haibara's tone turned serious as she spoke, "For the organization, only the dead can keep its secrets. You should know that, right?"

"..."

Conan nodded slightly in agreement.

He was also hit on the head after hearing the organization's secret.

If they hadn't been presumed dead, they probably would have been hunted down.

"But speaking of which, Numabuchi is quite lucky."

Ai Haibara crossed her arms. "Before he even started the experiment, he had already killed the guards watching him and escaped. If his file hadn't been sent to my lab, where I saw his photo and physical test records, I wouldn't have known about him."

Conan exclaimed in surprise, "They got away?"

"He probably felt the organization's magic, which is why he killed the organization member guarding him and ran away."

Ai Haibara lowered her eyes and said, "To be honest, I also feel a little sorry for him. Because he was afraid of being hunted down by the organization, he mistakenly killed three people in a row... In fact, the organization never sent anyone to hunt him down."

"Just like that, you let them go?"

Conan was taken aback. "Didn't you say the organization would hunt down traitors to the bitter end?"

"That depends on the person."

Ai Haibara explained with her arms crossed, "He had already killed a lot of people before joining the organization, and he didn't have much contact with the organization after joining. In addition, he was already insane when he was captured and had been sentenced to death. He was going to die sooner or later, so the organization didn't waste the police's resources to get rid of him."

She paused, then gave a self-deprecating laugh, "Compared to someone like me who knows the organization's secrets, he's just a nobody. Killing him would be a waste of resources for the organization."

"This is truly inhumane..."

Conan cursed under his breath, then couldn't help Ai Haibara, "But speaking of which, what about someone like me? Could it be that the organization doesn't even want to continue hunting me down?"

He suddenly thought of something terrible.

If he, like Numabuchi, was actually just making things up in his head the whole time...

That would be a huge joke!

Ai Haibara: "..."

I think you're thinking about peaches.

After a moment of silence, she rolled her eyes at Conan: "Someone like you, the son of a world-renowned mystery novelist, a high school Great Detective, stumbled upon the organization's operation. Do you think the organization will let you off like they would a lowly henchman?"

Conan: "..."

It seems that being born into a privileged background isn't always a good thing.

"But speaking of which, I remember you mentioned this before."

Conan looked at Haibara: "You said that you have a sixth sense or something when you encounter people from that organization. Didn't you notice him when he was hiding in the tree just now?"

"Hmm... to be honest, I also feel something's not right. This time, I didn't feel anything at all."

Ai Haibara lowered her eyes slightly and said softly, "Before that incident happened to my sister, I also sensed something similar. It might be some kind of danger signal..."

As she spoke, she gave a wry smile, "Perhaps it's because I've been living this ordinary life for too long that I've even forgotten what danger feels like."

"Isn't this pretty good?"

Conan glanced at her, chuckled, and teased, "To be able to integrate into normal life and live a normal life with Fujino, whom you care about, I'm honestly a little envious."

"..." Ai Haibara's eyebrows twitched involuntarily.

If you want to comfort her, just offer normal comfort!

They always have to bring up some random, irrelevant thing.

Damn it, why do I feel like punching him?

"Empty!"

At that moment, Fujino suddenly turned around and made a half-hearted gesture towards everyone. "I heard the sound of the Detective Badge, and Mitsuhiko seems to be up ahead."

Conan paused in his tracks.

I almost forgot about Fujino's exceptionally good hearing!

Did you hear what I just said?!

"I heard that too!"

Genta nodded. "It's right ahead!"

Conan couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

If Genta heard it, then everything will be fine.

Fujino probably didn't hear what was just said.

After deceiving himself for a while, Conan gradually became cautious. He followed the winding river path, parted the bushes, and then saw this scene.

In the spacious meadow traversed by clear river water, Numabuchi Kiichiro, with Mitsuhiko on his side, cautiously watched the group.

"It's Numabuchi Kiichiro!"

Everyone gasped in surprise and shone their flashlights over.

"Bai... Baiduman!"

Numabuchi Kiichiro, like a frightened bird, turned pale and took two steps back, cautiously looking at Fujino: "They've caught up again... I... I already said I had nothing to do with them."

"...?"

Upon hearing this, everyone turned their gazes toward Fujino in confusion.

Fujino: "..."

You seem to have that serious illness!

Please don't expose my true identity in front of everyone!

"Sasasa..."

Just then, a sound suddenly came from the bushes nearby.

The crowd was drawn by the sound, and then they saw a... Beika Batman jump out of the bushes?

"Ah... two Batmans!!"

Numabuchi Kiichiro looked around and then suddenly sat down on the ground, completely terrified and at a loss for what to do.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Mitsuhiko jumped out of Numabuchi's arms and ran quickly towards the group.

"Mitsuhiko, where have you been?!"

"They didn't even reply to the badge, we were so worried!"

"So, is your hand injured?!"

After a moment of worry, the group pulled Mitsuhiko over and chatted with him for a while before opening his clasped hands.

A faint green light slowly emerged from his hand, radiating a dim glow like a grain of rice in the dim night.