Did Guchuan end up buying that suit of armor after all?
"Shin... Shinichi!"
"What is it?" Conan looked at the trembling professor.
"This armor is moving!"
"What!?"
Conan turned around and saw the suit of armor raise the blade in its hand.
Conan's mind went blank. All he could think of was the painting called "Divine Punishment" and the scene of Curator Ochiai killing Boss Manaka.
Bang!
The blade smashed into the ground beside Conan, sending a spray of sparks flying.
Poor Professor Agasa had already fainted from fright. Conan dropped onto the floor in terror and hurriedly fired the Anesthetic Needle Professor Agasa had just made at the armor.
But the needle was blocked by the armor, which showed no reaction at all.
The blade was raised again. Conan got to his feet to run, but the armor kicked him into the wall, and he had no idea where his watch had been flung.
Staring at that gleaming blade, Conan shut his eyes in fear.
"Ah!"
The pain he had imagined never came.
Conan slowly opened his eyes and saw that the armor had set its blade aside and removed its helmet, revealing a familiar face beneath it.
"Guchuan!?"
"Good evening." Guchuan held the helmet in his arms.
After turning on the room's lights, Guchuan thoughtfully helped Conan to his feet.
"You went too far! How could you pull a prank like that?" Conan looked at Guchuan, still shaken.
He had really thought he was about to be killed.
"I went too far? Was breaking open my lock and barging into my Collection Hall not going too far?" Guchuan shot Conan an annoyed look.
"Ahaha, Professor seems to have fainted." Conan changed the subject and ran over to Professor Agasa with concern.
Guchuan walked up to Professor Agasa, crouched down, and checked his pulse.
"He's fine. He just fainted from fright."
"Guchuan, I didn't expect you to know how to take someone's pulse." Conan asked curiously.
"I know a little about everything," Guchuan said shamelessly.
Conan curled his lip, clearly not believing him.
"Guchuan, all these pistols you have here weren't obtained legally, were they?" Conan suddenly asked.
"Yep." Guchuan admitted it readily.
"I don't chase women, gamble, or do drugs. This is just my little hobby." Guchuan casually picked up a pistol, fiddled with it for a moment before tossing it aside.
Conan's mouth twitched. Your attitude doesn't exactly make it look like you treasure these things!
"This is illegal, you know."
"Breaking into my Collection Hall is illegal too, you know." A smile curled across Guchuan's lips.
"Shin~ichi Ku~do."
Conan was not surprised to hear his real name.
"So you really figured it out."
"Do I need to explain my reasoning?" Guchuan asked.
"No. I already know." Conan replied.
Guchuan nodded. Good, he could fill in the blanks himself.
"So, why did a high school detective come looking for me?" Guchuan asked.
"I only came to tell you that I became small because of a mysterious organization. If you reveal the secret that I shrank, it might draw that organization's attention, and they could kill you to silence you." Conan's expression was grave.
"Oh, okay." Guchuan nodded perfunctorily.
"Don't just brush it off!"
Seeing that Guchuan did not care, Conan became a little anxious.
"I'm not joking."
"I understand." Smiling, Guchuan slung an arm around Conan's shoulders.
"Conan, have you ever taken a bath with your sister Ran?"
"What nonsense are you talking about!" Conan shoved Guchuan away, his whole face red.
They had been talking about something so serious. How had he suddenly steered the conversation toward something so absurd?
"Don't be shy." Guchuan grinned wickedly.
"No, I haven't."
"You definitely have."
Damn it, how did you deduce that?
"If I turned into a child, I'd definitely do things that adults can't conveniently do too." Guchuan patted Conan on the head.
"I didn't do that on purpose. Ran, she..."
"You don't need to explain. I understand." Guchuan cut him off.
Damn it, you don't understand anything at all!
"Guchuan, that organization is really terrifying." Conan decided to steer the conversation back.
"So you want me to help you deal with that organization?" Guchuan asked.
"That's right." Conan nodded.
"Your father is a high-ranking official in Japan. I want to use you to let Japan's upper ranks know that there's a criminal organization like this operating in Japan."
Then you really came to the wrong person.
Guchuan kept staring at Conan until Conan grew embarrassed.
"Guchuan Yuan isn't a good official. For all we know, he might be in cahoots with that mysterious organization."
"What?" Conan clearly had not expected Guchuan to speak of his father that way.
Conan knew absolutely nothing about the affairs of Japan's upper ranks. If Guchuan said so, then his father was not someone reliable.
Damn it, this just made things even trickier.
"This is my address. Come find me if you need help. But don't come to me if you want me to contact the higher-ups. I won't be able to help with that even if you do."
Guchuan handed Conan a slip of paper.
"2-20, 2-chome, Beika Town, Tokyo? Isn't that right next to my house?" Conan cried out in surprise.
I remember the place next door was supposed to be empty.
"That's right. I originally wanted us to be neighbors, but I didn't expect you to go live with your childhood sweetheart instead." Guchuan teased.
"You don't live with your father?" Conan asked.
"No."
Conan glanced at Guchuan, then began thinking.
"Did you learn what kind of official your father was, and that's why you didn't want to live with him?"
Guchuan blinked without saying anything.
"Those illegal things you did before were actually your way of provoking your father, weren't they?"
Guchuan still did not speak.
"You couldn't change your father's thoughts or actions, so you could only vent your dissatisfaction in your own way. No wonder you've been living such a painful life."
Guchuan neither shook his head nor nodded.
He was also considering whether he should accept the persona Conan had imagined for him.
"Your mental illness also appeared because of your father, didn't it?" Conan continued his confident analysis.
In that instant, he understood why Guchuan was always acting so strangely. His gaze toward Guchuan even carried pity.
Unable to bear seeing his father's corruption, he had gone abroad early and refused to return. Even after coming back to Japan, he had refused to see that father of his.
So Guchuan was actually an upright person.
"Ow, where am I?"
At that moment, Professor Agasa woke up.
He rubbed his eyes and saw Conan and Guchuan standing together.
"I remember there was a suit of armor that could move just now?"
Before you continue