What he said was cold, but it was the cruel truth.
If Naomi had no value to them, they would never have gone after her family and friends. And if something happened to them, it meant Naomi was still alive.
Shuichi Akai's tone was steady, with no trace of emotional fluctuation. Conan understood it, though. This was no easier a subject for him.
"What else? Their control center is already investigating. I have a feeling that if we don't act fast, something's going to happen."
If Binga was among those suspects, he might reveal some flaw today that he normally would not.
Even outside observers like them had narrowed the suspect pool this far. Could someone among the other employees in the center have already noticed something?
With outsiders and police present, at such a sensitive moment, even small doubts were not easy to voice.
That would be tantamount to an accusation—and tantamount to acknowledging the Japanese police's authority. A system that ought to be built on facts and logic could be turned into a complete mess by office politics.
What Conan feared was not failing to find Binga. What he feared was someone having already spotted the signs but choosing not to tell anyone else.
After Conan briefly described the situation at the scene, Shuichi Akai agreed. "Your thinking is correct. We both know their style. The moment even a hint of suspicion is exposed, Binga will definitely kill to silence anyone and protect himself."
Having received confirmation, Conan slowly let out the breath trapped in his chest, but he did not feel any more at ease.
Given his identity, he could not issue any warnings.
To many detectives, he, Mori Detective's assistant, might be a precocious little detective who could go toe-to-toe with Kaito Kid and influence the