Even Conan, so nervous that he was breaking out in a cold sweat, failed to notice that Kurumi had already described herself as an orphan whose parents were both dead.
After a long while, only when Kurumi continued walking forward did the pale-faced Conan finally come back to his senses behind her.
Who... who exactly was she? Why did I feel like she saw right through me?
Conan's heart, which had nearly stopped, began pounding rapidly. In that brief moment of distraction, it was as if the person before him had not been a beautiful girl, but a reaper of life surrounded by the wails of the dead.
What Conan did not know was that, when Kurumi had bent down to speak to him just now, the invisible King Crimson had reached into Conan's chest and gently gripped his beating heart.
The feeling of Conan's heart stopping, as well as the illusion he saw, had probably been hallucinations created by his brain as he neared death.
Up ahead, Kurumi was in an excellent mood after teasing Conan.
That ghost-struck expression of his in particular made Kurumi feel that bullying him was an exceptionally enjoyable thing to do.
Meanwhile, in the surveillance room.
During the time the two had spent lingering in the hallway, Kubota, who had already caught the police's attention, was forcibly handcuffed and taken to a police car.
Although Kubota was merely the prime suspect in the murder of Manaka, his theft and sale of artworks was an undeniable fact.
Therefore, while the police could not determine whether Kubota was the murderer, he could not escape the charge of theft.
After the police took Kubota away, Mouri Kogoro was also ready to take his daughter and Conan home to rest.
"Uncle, where are Inspector Megure and the others?"
Running into the relaxed-looking Mouri Kogoro in the hallway, Conan instinctively sensed that something was wrong and hurriedly asked.
"Inspector Megure took the suspect away, of course." Mouri Kogoro stretched. "All right, let's head home too. I'm exhausted!"
"We're going home, Conan!" Thinking the culprit had been caught, Mouri Ran happily looked at Conan, only to find him staring down the hallway with shock and unease.
There, Kurumi and Director Ochiai were chatting and laughing as they walked in his direction.
As the two passed each other, Conan noticed Kurumi silently mouth a sentence to him.
We will meet again.
Kudo Shinichi.
New Plan
Words could be invisible killing blades.
The day after the museum murder case, Kurumi lay on the sofa at home, watching television through another idle and boring day. She did not care in the slightest how much psychological trauma her parting words had caused Conan.
The clean, tidy living room was warmed by the heater, driving away the chill that had hung over it.
Still dressed in an oversized white T-shirt, with her fair, bare legs exposed, Kurumi casually rested her feet on the armrest of the sofa and listlessly pondered what she should do next.
Kurumi did not know what Conan was doing now, but based on her guesses, she could more or less imagine that he was probably restless because of what she had said.
Or perhaps he was sitting there with two dark circles under his eyes, analyzing whether she was an accomplice of the black-clad men who had attacked him at the amusement park that night.
Otherwise, how could she possibly know Conan's true identity?
If he analyzed things from that angle, then the problems Conan faced would only become greater.
Was Kurumi knowing Ran a coincidence? Had Kurumi been hiding the fact that Director Ochiai was the real murderer? Was there some sort of deal between them? Did Kurumi knowing his identity mean that he was in danger?
To a certain extent, all the questions Conan considered were exactly as Kurumi had guessed. They had already sent his young heart into his throat.
"Restless" might have been better replaced with "unable to sleep or eat" to describe Conan's state of mind.
But none of that was Kurumi's concern.
The main reason she had deliberately said those words before leaving last night was simply that she wanted to see Conan's reaction afterward and satisfy her own twisted sense of humor.
Secondly, she was giving this guy, who recklessly charged into every case he encountered and did not even know how to hide his identity as a child, a small lesson on behalf of her big sister Vermouth.
Thinking back to the intelligence and personality Conan displayed whenever he encountered a case, which completely mismatched his appearance as a child, Kurumi felt that if he did not have protagonist plot armor, who knew whether someone else would have noticed something amiss and brought disaster upon him.
So rather than letting Conan continue recklessly courting death without limit, it would be better for her, his kind big sister, to teach him how to keep a low profile.
Besides, her big sister Vermouth also greatly admired that young couple and was even jokingly called Kudo Shinichi's real mother.
So, because of her relationship with Vermouth, Kurumi believed she should look after that hotheaded kid to some extent.
At the very least, she could not let those dangerous people in the organization discover him.
Otherwise, if Vermouth found out that Kurumi had failed to protect him despite knowing Kudo Shinichi's true identity, her butt would probably be swollen again.
The moment she thought of Vermouth's terrifying appearance, radiating that overwhelmingly sadistic aura, Kurumi felt a faint ache in her rear.
"What a pain!!!"
That pain came with a vague sort of pleasure. Whenever she recalled it, Kurumi wondered whether Vermouth had broken her over the past few years...
Some day later.
On a bright and breezy day, Kurumi stood on the deck of a small yacht heading from the pier to Moon Shadow Island, enjoying the gentle sea breeze. Her loose black hair rose in beautiful arcs in the wind.
Her perverted system was not particularly reliable, and it occasionally issued embarrassing missions that made Kurumi blush and her heart race.
Yet in some respects, the system reminded her of several key Conan storylines.
Kurumi simply did not know how the system determined what counted as a key storyline.
Perhaps it was anything that benefited her?
Like obtaining those Maple Leaf Gold Coins for the organization.
Or perhaps it was for the memes?
Like making her look at the Mona Lisa.
It might even have wanted to avert a future tragedy.
For example, Aso Narumi, the cross-dressing man on Moon Shadow Island.
At the thought of what happened on Moon Shadow Island, it could be considered one of the early storylines that had become a childhood nightmare for many.
Moreover, that case changed Conan—or rather, Kudo Shinichi's—principles of how he handled matters at a fundamental level.
Likewise, it was one of Kudo Shinichi's regrets.
But putting aside the subject of Kudo Shinichi, Kurumi was quite interested in Aso Narumi, that cross-dressing man.
Though more than anything, she probably found it regrettable.
The music that continued playing within that mansion as it burned fiercely until death had indeed left a deep impression on Kurumi.
Therefore, in response to the mission issued by the system this time, Kurumi packed her luggage and boarded a boat at the pier as a tourist, planning to enjoy rural life while thinking about her next move.
After sailing for some time, Kurumi, standing at the bow, could already see the pier of Moon Shadow Island with her naked eyes.
At that moment, a burly man in a black suit emerged from the cabin.
"Ma'am, we will arrive soon."
As field operatives under Vermouth in the Black Organization, they treated the organization's higher-ranking members with utmost respect.
Even when the person standing before him was a girl who appeared to be no more than sixteen years old.
The man knew very well that every member of the organization with an alcohol-based codename was ruthless and vicious.
Furthermore, as Vermouth's subordinate, the man had once worked with the girl before him, whose codename in the organization was Bloody Mary, to complete missions.
Her swift and strange methods had made people like them wary of underestimating this seemingly harmless girl.
"Very good." Without looking back, Kurumi continued gazing at Moon Shadow Island in the distance.
Kurumi's cold attitude did not surprise the man in the slightest.
Or rather, they had long since grown accustomed to it.
"By the way, ma'am, will you need our assistance this time?" Assuming this was a murder mission, the man pulled a cruel smile.
They had not gotten their hands dirty in quite some time.
They were itching for it.
Kurumi shook her head. "No. This will be a solo operation."
With that, Kurumi took a note from her pocket and held it in her hand.
"The person on this paper will be released from the Metropolitan Police Department in a while. Once he gets home, take him to the 'Ferry Crossing' and have the people there take him away."
The man respectfully accepted the note from Kurumi. At such close range, when he came into contact with her fair and flawless right hand, his heart could not help trembling.
"I understand. Does he merely need to remain alive?" Suppressing the inappropriate thoughts in his heart, the man gave a slight nod.
"Just don't kill him."
Kurumi on Vacation
After handing the paper containing Kubota's information, which she had obtained from Director Ochiai, to an organization underling, Kurumi stepped off the yacht after it docked, pulling a suitcase filled with daily necessities and spare clothes.
Kurumi had come to Moon Shadow Island as a tourist for two reasons. First, to complete the system's mission to save Aso Narumi's life. Second, she wanted to use this opportunity to make Conan, that rash little brat, change his reckless personality.
This case, which had left such a deep mark on Conan's detective career and even changed his belief in being sharp and aggressive while solving cases, was something Kurumi had thought over carefully. In the end, she decided not to interfere too much.
Another thing giving Kurumi a headache was that she did not know the exact time when the plot would occur, so she could only use the stupidest method: arriving at Moon Shadow Island early and waiting for her prey.
As for why Kurumi did not simply have someone watch the Mouri household and rush over once the Mouri family left?
The main reason was that Kurumi did not want the organization to notice that family too early.
Especially the relationship between Mouri Ran and Kudo Shinichi. Anyone in the organization could learn with a little investigation that they were close childhood sweethearts.
If someone asked Kurumi why she was keeping an eye on the Mouri family, she would not have an easy explanation.
Holding a map of Moon Shadow Island that she had acquired in her left hand, Kurumi planned to find an inn, check in, and then go sightseeing.
Though Moon Shadow Island was not large, its beautiful scenery and rural lifestyle, completely unlike that of a major city, gave people a relaxed peace far removed from urban bustle.
Breathing in the island air, Kurumi, determined to have a good time here, felt her mood brighten considerably.
Since tourists often came to the island for sightseeing, the native locals were not too surprised when Kurumi appeared before them with a suitcase in one hand and a map in the other.
However, because of Kurumi's outstanding looks and alluring figure, passing men could not keep their eyes under control and secretly glanced at her several times.
This is what men are like! Kurumi sighed inwardly as she took everything in.
Back when she had been a man, she too would look at beautiful women passing by with an appreciative gaze, so she understood what those men who kept looking at her were thinking.
Of course, their eyes belonged to them, and Kurumi could not control that.
But if they developed improper thoughts about her and tried to act on them, Kurumi naturally would not show mercy to those lust-driven fools.
She might not possess the overwhelming strength of King Crimson, capable of punching through someone's chest with one strike, but after all these years of training, Kurumi herself was no pushover.
Dragging her luggage along according to the map, Kurumi found the inn in town.
There were no towering buildings or luxurious facilities like those in a major city. The inn before Kurumi looked quite simple from the outside.
The three-story inn did not look out of place amid the surrounding rural setting.
But that was only natural.
After all, this was the countryside, so the architectural style naturally had to suit the local atmosphere.
There could not possibly be a hotel dozens of stories tall suddenly rising among a cluster of houses, with neon lights flashing at night.
That would have created a strong sense of disharmony in the place.
Kurumi stepped into the inn and entered the lobby. Its simple yet carefully designed decor raised her impression of the inn by a notch.
"Welcome!"
Seeing the glass front door pushed open by a girl pulling a suitcase, the proprietor, who had worked in the business for decades, politely yet warmly rose from behind the counter.
"Are you here to stay, miss?" the friendly-looking man asked.
Judging from Kurumi's beautiful appearance and the things she carried, the sharp-eyed man immediately saw that every piece of clothing she wore was genuine merchandise.
Though he was an honest innkeeper who would never do something as immoral as gouging customers.
That did not mean the proprietor would not offer wealthier guests warmer and more attentive service than others.
Before you continue