The establishment of the Time Travelers Alliance began in the first year of Conan

Chapter 204 Ran Mouri's Wisdom: Can a Caged Bird Sing Loudly? A Killer Move Across Two Timelines!
Mindset.

This was the biggest mistake the alliance made in this operation.

After all, how can something that has already happened be changed without warning?

Even until Hattori Heiji stepped onto the steps of the Mori Detective Agency, the course of events was almost exactly the same as the results simulated by the Time Sequence Department.

The timeline fitting error is almost negligible.

Heiji Hattori was carrying a stack of newspaper clippings—a gift he had specially brought for Kogoro.

Downstairs at the office, he instructed his secretary and driver to stay in the car and wait, then went up the stairs alone.

Meanwhile, inside the alliance's conference hall—

"The overall prediction curve of the timeline reconstruction design bureau has a good fit of over 90%!"

This data brought a barely perceptible sigh of relief to many people.

"However, it is precisely at times like these that we must not let our guard down."

After Shigenobu Hitomi reminded everyone of something, the atmosphere in the conference hall became increasingly solemn and heavy during this closest possible retrospective.

Everyone knows that the next step is the most crucial part.

Thus, under the "watchful eye" of the Time Display, Hattori Heiji raised his hand and knocked on the door of the detective agency.

"Dong, dong, dong——"

After a moment of silence, the door was opened, and a subtle fragrance wafted out of the room.

Kogoro Mouri stood at the door, his expression momentarily showing surprise.

He recognized the young "police officer" or detective he had encountered before.

"Heiji?!"

……

For Kogoro Mouri, today is another day without any clients.

Before Hattori Heiji knocked on the door, he lay lazily in a chair, covered his face with a newspaper, and yawned listlessly.

"Damn it! Not a single case these past few days. Although I made a lot of money from the last case, nobody's come looking for me, the famous detective..."

Muttering to himself, he lifted the newspaper off his face with one hand and reached for a piece of cake on the table with the other, intending to swallow it whole under the "cover" of the newspaper.

however--

"Dad, don't sneak some! I made a note of how many pieces I made."

Ran Mouri's voice came from the kitchen, accompanied by a rich aroma of pastries.

"And Dad, you promised me this morning that you would clean the house."

Ran Mouri's voice took on a slightly angry tone.

"You're not planning to drag this out again, are you?"

She skillfully whipped the cream, preparing a dessert to take to Professor Agasa's house that afternoon.

Since she had the afternoon off, she simply took the whole day off.

……

This morning, after Conan finished breakfast, he told her and Kogoro Mouri about the "camping arrangements" he had made with Professor Agasa.

Ran Mouri's intuition and luck, and more importantly, her wisdom, told her that this was a rare opportunity!

As the saying goes, even the wisest person can make a mistake, and even the most foolish person can have a stroke of genius.

This is something Ran Mouri has been thinking about for a very long time, something she's been trying to perfect ever since she learned the truth that Shinichi is Conan, and after the Beika branch bombing.

A plan.

At that time, she intuitively grasped the true use of Conan:
"Hey! Conan, are you finally inviting your friends camping?"

"Then I'll skip school this morning and stay home to make some desserts."

During that breakfast time, Ran Mouri carefully considered every word she spoke.

At the same time, she glanced around the messy environment of the office.

Then, Ran Mouri's gaze settled on Kogoro Mouri, who was sprawled in his chair, mouth agape, about to stuff a sandwich with two fried eggs into his mouth in one gulp.

The veins on her forehead throbbed involuntarily, but now she had even more reasons to stay home.

"While you're at it, make sure Dad tidies up the office!"

"But Ran-neechan, we're at Professor Agasa's house—"

"It's fine!"

Ran Mouri decisively interrupted Conan's explanation, and said with a smile, "It's a good opportunity for Professor Agasa and your friends to try my desserts too!"

—This was a solution that Ran Mouri had come up with with great difficulty.

After all, ever since she discovered the truth, a premonition that kept echoing in her mind warned her not to go near Professor Agasa's house.

If we can't even get close to the PhD student's home, then there's no way we can call the PhD student or have a face-to-face conversation.

However, this also became a driving force for her in a sense, and even this intuition became a "clue finder" for her.

After the bombing at the Mihua branch, she replayed that moment in her mind countless times—

Especially the moment when, because of the warning at the time, she took the initiative to hug Conan and avoid the jeep that rushed into the bank.

Although he eventually lost consciousness...

But the strange thing is——

She didn't forget.

She hadn't forgotten that Conan Edogawa was Shinichi Kudo.

For whatever reason, or rather, for everything, Ran Mouri began to think.

Why did I disobey my inner warning that time, yet still not forget it?
Thus, by analyzing the information she knew, Ran Mouri finally uncovered a corner of the "truth":
"That's because I fainted immediately afterward! And people who are unconscious don't show any abnormalities!"

in other words--

"If you don't reveal what you know, you won't forget it."

Then, Ran Mouri remembered the note that Kaito Kid had given her.

The sentence above became the key for her to unravel the mystery.

correct!

From this perspective, the key lies in the matter of "revealing".

Ran Mouri carefully recalled every reaction she knew Professor Agasa had made in the past—

Especially those two phone calls, there was something vaguely off about them.

She even realized the deliberate concealment in the way the professor had acted when he first entrusted Conan to her…

Judging from Professor Agasa's initial behavior when he entrusted Conan to him, he must have known the "truth" at the time!

That's why Dr. Agasa has always been so secretive!

Ran Mouri's reasoning is certainly not correct; in fact, in a sense, it is completely off the mark.

She equated realizing the "truth" and "pretending not to know" with Professor Agasa's reaction.

However, through this flawed analysis, she found the correct approach.

If those who know the truth must conceal it and not show any abnormality...

The key point is:

To reveal the truth, there must be someone to whom it is revealed, right?

It seems that——

Her thoughts raced, and after figuring everything out in her mind, Ran Mouri's gaze fell quietly on a corner of the room.

It landed on Conan, who was holding the phone and whispering something to the person on the other end.

Conan noticed Ran's gaze.

He paused for a moment, then immediately put on a flawless, childlike smile using the "cuteness trick."

"Sister Xiaolan, what are you looking at?"

Ran Mouri didn't answer; Conan's smile only made her more certain of the truth.

She also remembered something else—Sonoko's dream.

That phantom thief... can sneak into people's dreams.

That phantom thief knows magic!
Ran Mouri's thoughts suddenly connected, her heart pounded, and the girl understood the root of it all—

"Could it be... that Shinichi has been cursed by magic?!"

"Moreover, the curse is to shrink him and make everyone around him forget him!"

Given how intelligent Professor Agasa is, he was likely the first person to discover that Shinichi had shrunk, and he may even have been the one who discovered the "loophole" in the curse!
So Ran Mouri also began to use the "curse loophole" that Professor Agasa had discovered, which she had "derived".

Since Professor Agasa is doing this, perhaps the way to remove the curse from Shinichi lies here!
So, Ran Mouri, guided by her inner warnings, began to investigate further, trying to find a deeper connection—

For example, investigating the watch Conan secretly hid in the cabinet, or trying to study the specifics of the magnifying glasses Professor Agasa gave Conan...

Ran Mouri is very close to the truth.

Although a correct conclusion was reached in a completely wrong way.

She soon discovered a problem—

As long as she secretly investigates, a warning will sound in her mind, making her heart race, and that feeling of impending danger will resurface.

but--

If you ask Shinichi about something in a reasonable way, or even openly and honestly, there will be absolutely no problem with it!

Although Shinichi tried to cover it up, the warnings didn't go off.

"This shows that Shinichi is the key!"

"It doesn't matter as long as Shinichi knows or agrees!"

So, this morning, urged by a premonition, Ran Mouri decided to try something—

She tried to persuade Shinichi Kudo to agree to stay, and to get him to agree to let her go to Professor Agasa's house that afternoon.

So, while Conan was still hesitating, Ran's conversation about "desserts" had already piqued the interest of another person—

"You wretched brat! If you won't eat it, I will!"

Kogoro Mouri slammed his hand on the table. "I'll ask for leave for Ran. It's settled then."

He wanted to find another reason to decline, but Kogoro Mouri had already adopted an authoritative adult posture, grinning and patting Conan on the head.

"It's settled then!" This gluttonous, forgetful uncle made the decision for Conan.

He rubbed his hands together with an expectant expression, then added somewhat ingratiatingly:
"Um... Xiaolan, just... just leave me a few pieces of cake..."

"I will never steal food!"

It seems that this matter has been settled.

Conan could only offer an approving smile—he had decided to make the trip himself at noon.

……

However, from the perspective of the alliance and the dual timelines, all of this is completely irrelevant now.

After all, interfering with Ran Mouri after the second pointer is often the most difficult, but also the least rewarding.

The same applies to the story timeline; the storyline has long since abandoned any further significant adjustments to her—

Trying to confine Ran Mouri to her "character design" to a certain extent is already the limit.

Even this time, Ran Mouri's actions, which seemed out of character, were interpreted as her concern for Conan, or an attempt to alleviate Shinichi Kudo's worries.

To be precise, her behavior was interpreted as "normal behavior" by both the dual timelines and the alliance.

Both sides believe that this is an attempt by the other side to use Ran Mouri's actions to prolong the "sense of everyday life" in reality.

In this way, the importance both sides attach to it remains the same as always.

As long as we consistently adhere to our monitoring strategy and remain vigilant to see if the alliance or the dual timeline might take any inappropriate actions, we should be fine.

After all, what kind of waves can a caged bird locked in a "persona" stir up?

But they overlooked one point.

This judgment ignores the fact that it can sing loudly and can wake its sleeping owner with its voice, telling him that a thief has sneaked into the house.

The canary, whose beak was bound with wire and unable to sing, had been quietly trying to break free of the rope.

Nobody cares—

Has she worn a gap in the middle of that seemingly wrapped wire?

Has she been secretly gathering strength, waiting for the moment when she can truly sing out loud?

And the moment she truly began to sing—

The sound emanating from that cage must have been an exceptionally beautiful and resonant song.

……

Whether it's the alliance, the dual timelines, or even the universe itself.

All three parties agree that the key to this battle must be the duel between the detectives.

The real key to victory lies not in Kogoro Mouri, not in Ran Mouri, and not in those so-called "daily interferences".

In the competition for Hattori Heiji and Kudo Shinichi.

Just like the league's prediction—

"I was asked to come by Kudo."

Hattori Heiji then presented his prepared explanation and handed over a collection of case studies to Mori Kogoro.

"I've already heard from Kudo that you, Detective Mouri, usually—"

"Hahaha! Not at all, actually I—"

The phrase "Detective Mouri" instantly made Kogoro Mouri raise his head with extraordinary pride and let out an arrogant laugh.

However, his laughter lasted less than two seconds before it was abruptly cut off by Hattori Heiji's next words—

"...I love solving mysteries. These are three case collections I specially gathered. If you think they're too easy, I can..."

He saw Hattori Heiji sincerely stuff the three case collections from his waist into his hands, and heard Hattori Heiji's voice echoing in his empty mind.

Kogoro Mouri's smile froze.

He looked down at the three case files in his hand, his mind blank.

"Uh……"

Then, the next second, he hurriedly tried to change the subject, "So it was that brat Kudo who sent you?!"

Kogoro Mouri's loud voice gave Ran Mouri, who had been keeping an eye on what was happening in the living room, an opportunity.

She immediately turned off the stove and ran to the living room without even putting down the blender she was holding.

"Did Shinichi send you here?!"

Ran Mouri's gaze made Heiji Hattori instantly feel a sense of pressure.

He swallowed hard, but quickly regained his composure.

Kudo had already taught him a "universal excuse," and all he had to do now was use that excuse to circle back to the original point.

After listening to his long explanation and narration—in order not to lose face in front of his daughter, Kogoro Mouri, unusually, accurately summarized Heiji Hattori's long argument into a single sentence.

"Well, so that means Shinichi got delayed because of the case, so he had to ask you to check on Conan, right?"

"That's it."

Hattori Heiji nodded, then adopted a businesslike demeanor.

"But aren't you that famous detective from Osaka?"

Kogoro Mouri frowned, unusually noticing the problem. "I remember that kid also—"

"I met Kudo in Osaka when we happened to be working on the same case."

Heiji Hattori answered without hesitation, "Besides, the newspapers always say 'Kudo of Kanto, Hattori of Kansai.'"

As he said this, he deliberately scratched his head sheepishly, pretending to be a little shy:

"At the time, I was thinking of competing with him in solving cases. You could say we became friends after a fight. I even remember that case was on page 33 of the third case collection. It was because..."

Heiji Hattori spoke casually, as if these were all the most ordinary memories.

Everything was done so flawlessly, which is precisely where the league's true confidence lies.

You can even see from the numbers in this case just how much attention the league pays to detail—

This is precisely where the league's confidence comes from; every factor that can be considered has been taken into account.

This is also why the Alliance is certain that the dual timelines cannot be detected; it all seems so natural.

Any factors that might interfere with the alliance were all disguised under the brilliance of Shinichi Kudo through various methods.

Except for Ran Mouri.

She lowered her head, and her eyes, hidden in the shadows, became sharp because of Hattori Heiji's words.

But that doesn't matter.

What happens next is exactly the same timing sequence as the simulation.

Meanwhile, Kogoro Mouri listened casually to Heiji Hattori's narration while nodding.

"Conan isn't here right now. He went to Professor Agasa's house after school at noon."

He glanced at the clock on the wall—13:19 PM—and then deliberately adopted a Maori-style thoughtful expression.

"However, Xiaolan told him to come over at noon to pick up some pastries, so if you want to see that kid, you should only have to wait about ten minutes."

At this point, the alliance had already begun to stir.

From this moment on, future development will truly only involve a simulated route.

How much deviation is there between the simulation results and those from the timing section?

"2%!"

The calculated data was quickly projected onto the most prominent position in the lobby, and the percentage was also enlarged and labeled.

"The tolerance range is within 5%! As long as the timeline fitting error does not exceed 5%, the plan will proceed smoothly!"

“Very good,” Shigenobu Hitomi nodded slightly, her tone becoming unusually serious, but with a hint of expectation.

"Have the team at the funeral home start preparing!"

"At the same time, have the Ministry of Red Magic and Akako Koizumi prepare! We need to try to contact Shiho Miyano at any time!"

The alliance's plan is about to succeed.

Thirty-three minutes later, Gin and Vodka will successfully infiltrate the funeral home using "disappearance".

And just as they found Akemi Miyano's "body" and completed the facial scan—

The member of [Eternal First Strike] disguised as GSSRA will immediately time jump and parachute into the corridor outside the morgue.

The task force will then mark the two individuals using the same method as when they raided the pharmaceutical facility.

Then, while activating the reality stabilization anchor, they sounded the internal alarm of GSSRA and attempted to retrieve Akemi Miyano's body.

"The real timeline will seize this opportunity and try to get GSSRA soldiers to stop Gin and Vodka."

The research director of the Timeline Reconstruction Design Bureau then presented the meticulously designed timeline—

The RSI fluctuations caused by the dual timelines spiked rapidly within minutes, then plummeted at a certain point.

"Operation GSSRA is doomed to failure."

"Because we will shut down the reality anchor and withdraw the [Eternal First Strike] when the competition between the two timelines reaches its most intense point."

"In this way, without the anchor provided by the Alliance, the 'disappearance' of the [story timeline] will take effect immediately, achieving our goal at the same time."

"This would force Gin to abandon his plan to take away Akemi Miyano's body and instead leave after scanning the facial features we provided."

"In this way, Vermouth's 'persona' can only be disguised as a 'Mingmei provided by the Alliance,' and she herself is unaware of this."

A contingency plan provided by the Department of Magic Research was incorporated as a key factor into the simulation of this timeline.

"Shiho Miyano has a habit of taking afternoon naps, and she also makes use of the flashback phenomenon."

"This gives us an opportunity."

For the alliance, they needed a perfect reason to remind the world of the existence of "Akami Miyano" and the reality that she was dead.

What better way would you get Conan to take this matter seriously once again?

"Even if Heiji Hattori's brief conversation with Conan Edogawa only evokes a fleeting memory of 'Akami Miyano' in him, that's enough."

The alliance even considered the possibility that the "story timeline" might use the "character settings" of Shiho Miyano and Vermouth to try to forcibly confirm that the fake face was indeed Ms. Miyano.

“Magic is transcendental, and we will try to implant an absolutely realistic dream into Shiho Miyano during that period of time.”

"Furthermore, this time we will have Akemi Miyano herself as the core of the ritual, personally warning and reminding her of what she needs to do next."

"In this way, Shiho Miyano will deliberately reveal her suspicions and try to negotiate with Vermouth."

"We will try to involve Yamazaki in this negotiation, and the final result will be that both sides compromise—"

"Vermouth will agree to let Akemi Miyano meet with her, but Shiho Miyano must promise to advance the development of APTX-4869."

The next few contingency plans and programs were highlighted in red, emphasizing the critical nature of this step.

"Yamazaki will ask both sides to show some sincerity in the negotiations."

"In this way, Shiho Miyano can return to the [historical trajectory] she once skipped—"

"Under Yamazaki's guidance, she will be assigned a very simple task: to confirm whether Shinichi Kudo is alive or dead."

"Once Shiho Miyano arrives at the Kudo residence, the alliance can immediately adopt a 'forceful attack' strategy."

……

Just like how Professor Agasa is now surrounded by the Detective Boys with curiosity.

"Professor Agasa! Where are we going camping tomorrow?!"

"Doctor! Can I try out Conan's skateboard too?!"

Dr. Agasa smiled and waved his hand, signaling everyone to be quiet, before solemnly announcing:

"Tomorrow, we're going camping in the western suburbs of Beika Town!"

Then, Professor Agasa quietly pulled Conan aside and whispered:

"Based on my observation, figuring out the specific name of the next pointer must be related to astrology."

"Isn't there a Star Viewing Tower on the western outskirts of Beika Town? The instruments and records inside could very well be..."

Conan instantly understood what the professor meant.

His eyes lit up, and he exchanged a glance with the doctor, their eyes conveying a look of trust and affirmation.

"Great! I remember there's a Star Tower there. That way, besides being bored in the camp at night, we can go up to the tower and look at the stars and the moon!"

He then adopted an expectant and eager expression, deliberately emphasizing his words to stir up everyone's interest:

"I heard that telescope can see very far, even clearly showing the craters on the moon, and even Jupiter!"

"Wow~~!"

Ayumi, Mitsuhiko, and Genta Kojima then exclaimed in surprise.

So, everyone unanimously voted to stay overnight at Professor Agasa's house and then take Professor Agasa's car to camp in the western suburbs of Beika Town early the next morning.

After completing all of this, as planned, Professor Agasa reminded Conan that there was one more thing he had forgotten.

"Conan, don't forget, you need to go to Ran's place to pick up some pastries at noon."

Professor Agasa turned his head to the side and quietly added, "Don't forget to take plenty of lemon pie!"

……

This way, Conan will have an excuse to stay at Professor Agasa's house tonight and discuss with him how to crack the secret of the pointer tomorrow.

This means that tonight, when Shiho Miyano went to the Kudo residence to check on Shinichi Kudo's life or death, Conan and the Detective Boys were right next door to her.

This is also why the alliance is determined to have Conan and the Detective Boys stay overnight at Professor Agasa's house tonight.

"Even if it is unwilling, the story timeline must act according to the historical inertia determined by the Alliance at this time. The closer Shiho Miyano is to Conan, the less likely the two timelines will cause any major disturbances."

"As long as Shiho Miyano takes APTX-4869 as planned when she goes to the Kudo residence for the inspection, and makes a commotion so that Conan knows about it."

after all--

Throughout the entire storyline and the real-world narrative, every action and reaction absolutely conforms to their own inherent operating rules.

after all--

From beginning to end, whether it's Shinichi Kudo, Heiji Hattori, Gin, Vodka, or even Vermouth.

Every aspect and every detail of the entire process was taken into account.

"It wouldn't matter if the [story timeline] sent out more members of the Black Organization, or even members with names of alcohol, to monitor Shiho Miyano's actions throughout, out of its own inability to do so."

"[Shinichi Kudo] is now back in the original timeline with that skateboard, and no one can defeat him now that he's been strengthened."

The research director in charge of the interpretation project even chuckled.

"After all, we've only pushed back the timeline of Ai Haibara's appearance and her acquaintance with Conan Edogawa. Whether it's the storyline or the real-world timeline, as long as they interfere with this point, they're going against themselves while simultaneously facing off against Conan, who possesses immense firepower."

"This could even directly lead to our additional objective: lowering Shinichi Kudo's psychological assessment of the brewery, thereby reducing the available power of the story timeline in subsequent loop cases."

Anyway-

Victory is decided.

……

"Then I'll wait for him for ten minutes."

Ten minutes, a time that is neither short nor long.

In the past ten or so replays, there have never been any problems with those ten minutes.

But not this time.

As has always been emphasized—

Order is important, and chronological order is extremely important.

Chronology implies cause and effect, the direction of timeline development, and the order of the story.

To give a very simple and obvious example:

Put on your socks first, then your shoes; that's only natural.

But if you put on your shoes first and then your socks, things get... a little weird.

Just like what the dual timelines are going to do, the alliance's plan only requires a clever modification to the order of time—

Everything will be completely the opposite.

As Conan Edogawa stepped out of Professor Agasa's house and began walking towards the agency, the [story timeline] proactively removed the disappearance of Gin and Vodka.

The alarms inside the funeral home immediately went off.

"Big brother!! What do we do? It seems like we've been discovered?!"

Gin was actually quite calm; it was just his usual bad luck.

He pulled out his classic Beretta M92F and threw away the so-called "optical invisibility cloak" he was wearing.

He knew this thing wouldn't be reliable.

“Vodka, go scan that woman’s face,” Gin’s voice was frighteningly calm. “I’ll cover for you outside.”

……

In the center of the execution hall, the mission success rate curve not only did not decrease because of this incident, but immediately jumped to 99%.

But all the members of the executive branch had already realized that something was wrong.

This has never happened in the past 17 regressions.

However, at this point, the league had not yet realized the seriousness of the problem.

They believed it was just an accident, and some members of parliament even breathed a sigh of relief because of it.

On the first day, we backtracked a full 99 times, while on the second day, we only backtracked 17 times.

Everyone immediately got into the zone.

Members of parliament responsible for communication with the research and operational levels have begun having researchers and task forces start analyzing and investigating.

"This is not normal! Have the timing department and the time research department immediately use the time display device to find the cause!"

"The same goes for the Reconstruction Design Bureau; immediately simulate the possible future branches of this [historical progression]."

"Magic Research Department, immediately contact [Eternal First Strike] using red magic and have them try to find out what caused this."

"At the same time, we need to have the team that went to the funeral home upload their TDD records. Although the chances are slim, we need to verify whether there was a problem with their previous movement."

But Hitomi Shigenobu sensed something was wrong; she felt a sense of unease.

Why is the success rate increasing instead of decreasing?

This is like two Go masters playing against each other, and then in a decisive final game, they see their opponent place the first stone on the center point.

From the perspective of the timeline itself, each step taken is the optimal solution at that moment, which is like...

"This is like the [story timeline] voluntarily giving up resistance and willingly allowing us to proceed with our next actions—"

The moment the thought crossed his mind, Shigenobu Hitomi's pupils contracted sharply.

She immediately pulled up the emergency contact button with the Research Department, her voice filled with urgency and franticness:

"Activate the Time Tracing Device immediately!"

"The two timelines likely already know that they have been rewound!"

but--

It's too late.

It was around the same time that gin and vodka were discovered.

Vermouth completed the final step of this reversal, just as the Boss had sent her at 0:0:0 this morning.

The phone that Hattori Heiji's secretary was holding rang, and then Vermouth's pupils contracted sharply.

Conan, who had already run close, saw the door of the car parked in front of the agency being opened.

A woman dressed as a secretary, her face filled with anxiety, jumped out of the car and rushed towards the second floor of the office, shouting:
"Mr. Heiji—"

"Hirota Masami's body has been stolen!"

P.S.: Four chapters in one, 8k-word long chapter! Please vote with monthly tickets!!! (ω)

(End of this chapter)