Don't Speak Ill of Others Behind Their Backs

Haibara Ai panicked for a moment, then quickly calmed down again. No matter what, it was just a cute cat. It couldn't talk, couldn't tattle, and certainly wouldn't think there was anything wrong with someone kissing its paw...

But she still felt guilty. She slowly set the cat down, unconsciously sitting properly before the black cat with her hands on her knees. After clearing her throat, she tentatively said, "Um... hello?"

Anonymous was mysterious and nearly omnipotent in Haibara Ai's eyes—especially after she had seen Miss Anonymous leap from a speeding Shinkansen while clutching a bomb, only to later appear before everyone completely unharmed.

With such a precedent, perhaps even a cat could...

Unfortunately, perhaps out of consideration for her fragile, science-loving heart, the cat did not do anything frightening.

It, too, sat primly in front of Haibara Ai, studying the vast panic concealed beneath her calm expression. Then it turned its head away and yawned.

Watching this, Haibara Ai secretly breathed a sigh of relief. This Anonymous cat really did not look like a victim of harassment... no, a victimized cat.

"..." Come to think of it, she really had let her imagination run wild. She had actually worried that a cat might possess a human mindset... Even Anonymous had to follow the laws of science. Miss Anonymous's survival back then had perhaps been the result of some exquisite technique or miraculous tool.

Haibara Ai thought it over and found it perfectly reasonable. She secretly nodded. It seemed she really had overthought things just now.

—Rather than having joined Anonymous, this cat was more likely being kept by some member of the Anonymous Organization. Its owner probably thought it was amusing, so they had added a Pattern Seal to the cat as well. As proof...

Haibara Ai slowly,