A huge wave of fear washed over him. At the same time, Conan's barrage of brain-piercing questions still echoed in his ears.
Okiya Subaru had no desire whatsoever to answer him, but he worried that too long a silence would expose something. So he had no choice but to devote part of his attention to what Conan was saying, then use all those shameless methods from the adult world to keep dealing with every topic the brat brought up.
Okiya Subaru did indeed smoothly deflect those follow-up questions, buying himself some time to think.
But before he could figure out the terrifying question of who exactly had knocked on the door, the child beside him pondered for a moment and suddenly asked, "Brother Okiya, have you heard of the 'Stage'?"
Rumble—
As though a thunderbolt had split down from the crown of his head, Okiya Subaru froze where he sat, feeling as if everything had been shattered.
For an instant, he could not hide his expression. The way he looked at Conan could only be described as terrified.
Conan was stunned too. After knowing Okiya Subaru for so long, this was the first time he had seen this graduate student, who was so skilled at concealing his emotions, lose his composure so badly.
After a moment of bewilderment, he suddenly understood something. "You've heard of the 'Stage,' haven't you?! What does it represent? Who exactly is hiding behind it?!"
But Okiya Subaru did not answer. He remained stiff in his seat like a statue.
Only after a long while did his eyes shift slightly. His voice was incomparably hoarse. "...Where did you hear that term?"
Seeing his enormous reaction, Conan guessed that this was no trivial matter.
Remembering that the Black Organization woman who had delivered the passport had never