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

Chapter 208 Shiho Miyano killed Gin! (Seeking monthly votes)
After experiencing speeding and numerous sharp turns, countless bumpy rides along the way.

With a screech of brakes, the car carrying five people came to a sudden stop.

—We've finally arrived at the backyard of the funeral home.

"Ah—I...I'm finally alive!"

With trembling hands, Kogoro Mori reached for the car door handle and yanked the door open.

Then, pale-faced and with vacant eyes, as if he had just escaped a life-or-death ordeal, he shakily crawled out of the carriage that had just been like a "cradle of hell."

The others weren't much better off—

Amidst the continuous shaking and dizziness, the first thing everyone did upon getting off the bus was to put their hands on their foreheads, trying to steady themselves on the cold cement ground and allow their bodies to recover from the discomfort caused by the instability.

After resting for a few minutes, Hattori Heiji spoke up: "Then Mr. Mori and I will go in and check on the situation."

Heiji glanced at Vermouth, whose face was still somewhat pale, and then his gaze met Conan's, who had been winking at him.

"Maria, why don't you take Conan to the rest room in the funeral home to rest for a while? But remember not to let him run around."

Heiji Hattori and Kogoro Mori left first.

Only after confirming that they should be far away did Vermouth put away her feigned distress and then take Conan's hand to walk into the funeral home.

The moment Conan stepped into the corridor through the back door, he immediately tried to slip away.

He immediately looked up and said in a well-behaved tone, "Maria-neechan! My head is spinning! I need to go to the bathroom!"

"Do you need me to take you there, Conan?" Vermouth asked gently.

Conan gave a slightly timid smile, then deliberately replied in a childish, defiant tone, "I can go by myself! I won't run around!"

Conan's words prompted Vermouth to subconsciously say the following:
"Be careful! To find the restroom, go to the right end of the corridor..."

By the time she came to her senses, Conan had already disappeared from her sight.

Then, she heard Conan say in a well-behaved tone:
"Maria-neechan! My head is spinning! I need to go to the bathroom!"

"Do you need me to take you there, Conan?"

The same lines, the same tone, the same smile—it was as if everything was being reenacted.

She kept saying it subconsciously, and Vermouth knew that she had just been reset again.

Something was wrong just now, and the league had to rewind the timeline by a few seconds—even less than ten seconds.

This certainly consumes a lot of the CYZ effect, but it is undoubtedly necessary.

In just a few seconds, the story timeline amplified Vermouth's character traits, particularly her tendency to "evacuate immediately after completing a mission."

The storyline involves another forced intervention against her, Vermouth.

The moment she subconsciously lets Conan leave alone, the black cell phone hidden in her bosom will vibrate slightly.

Then, you'll immediately receive a message from the Boss, informing you that Gin and Vodka are nearby to meet you, and then, you'll be able to escape smoothly...

This is an almost instinctive script-driven inducement, a "retreat path" arranged for her by the [story timeline].

In this way, Vermouth can escape from the funeral home, and so can Gin and vodka—

[Story Timeline] It was known that it was disadvantageous to place three members with names related to alcohol at this location, especially on GSSRA's territory.

As long as the members of the Black Organization are removed from the case, the [story timeline] is confident that the case can be quickly "closed".

In this way, the advantage that the [real timeline] had just gained disappeared.

That's how it should have been, but the league reversed the outcome.

"One...two..."

She counted silently in her mind.

"three!"

The instant she silently counted to three, Vermouth suddenly called out, "Wait! Conan!"

This time, Vermouth's story timeline is faster than usual.

She spoke almost at the same time the Boss sent the evacuation text message.

At that moment, just as the Alliance had predicted, the [Real Timeline] immediately seized upon this flaw.

Conan stopped in the corridor and turned around, just in time to see "Miss Maria" stiffen slightly.

Immediately afterwards, Conan caught a glimpse of a light that shouldn't have been there, flashing in her arms.

—In the deathly silent corridor of the funeral home, in the gloomy and dimly lit hallway, that faint light was particularly glaring.

Conan immediately noticed this.

Shouldn't Miss Maria's phone always be in the bag on her shoulder?

I saw her put her phone back after she finished making the call.

What was that thing that just lit up in her arms?
"It's another phone!"

Conan froze instantly, his pupils contracted sharply, and he forced himself to calm down, subtly glancing around out of the corner of his eye—

They came in from the back of the funeral home. This secluded corridor leading to the main building was dark and narrow, deserted, and even had some junk piled up at the doorways of the abandoned rooms along the way.

The air seemed to suddenly turn cold, and Conan could hear his own heartbeat vibrating in his chest.

Meanwhile, the woman directly in front of him, "Ms. Maria," deliberately wore a meaningful smile.

Conan broke out in a cold sweat instantly.

Why would Ms. Maria need another phone?
Moreover, he had been in Maria's arms the whole time, and the bumpy ride to the funeral home hadn't even made him realize it—

The secretary kept this a secret very well, and no one found out!

In the dimly lit corridor, Conan felt that Maria's gray suit seemed to blend into the shadows somewhat... somewhat.

"Da da da……"

In the dimly lit corridor, Conan heard the sound of high heels clicking on the marble floor getting closer.

Each sound felt like a blow to Conan's heart.

He immediately suppressed his instinct to run away and forced himself to put on the look of a naive, confused child.

"Maria-neechan?"

At the same time, he quietly tucked the arm with the watch behind his back. Without a magnifying glass, he only had one chance, as long as he could get close to Miss Maria...

Then, Conan felt his wrist being immediately grasped by a cool yet gentle hand—

The hand that was being held was the one with the watch on it.

Maria's gentle voice sent a chill down Conan's spine.

"Let me take you there, Conan."

Vermouth lowered her head, her beautiful, almost perfect face close to Conan's, revealing a smile that seemed to be one of indulgence.

"After all—if I don't take good care of you, I won't be able to explain it to Director Heiji."

Vermouth then took Conan's hand tightly.

Then, she used her other hand to quietly wipe the cold sweat that had just seeped from her forehead.

Vermouth was, of course, very nervous!
If she weren't better than anyone at feigning naturalness and composure under pressure, she almost reacted the moment Conan put his hand behind his back—

If I get hypnotized here, everything will be over!

Fortunately, the story's momentum continues, and the tranquilizer dart is usually reserved for Mr. Kogoro.

Conan breathed a sigh of relief.

"Indeed, no matter what, I'm still a child. Who would be wary of a child for no reason?"

But he had already raised his vigilance to the highest level, and—

“In that case, perhaps I can use Maria to find Heiji and the others. After all, it seems that Maria is also likely a spy who was assigned to investigate this case.”

Hattori Heiji undoubtedly made a "great contribution".

Because he had just deliberately given Conan some information in the car, and "accidentally" mentioned the various "spying" and "temptations" he had received in the "official organization".

Conan now believes that Maria is a spy sent to him by Heiji's enemies in GSSRA.

"It seems there are quite a few people targeting Heiji in that organization he joined..."

Conan and Vermouth walked hand in hand toward the restroom.

Although this may have been just the calm before the storm, everything now seems to have calmed down again.

……

The stabilization of the situation brought a huge sigh of relief to everyone in the [Cycle] team.

The invisible pressure that had just filled the air made it almost difficult for the lawmakers to breathe.

[Story Timeline] Vermouth's sudden reset was completely unexpected.

Shigenobu Hitomi immediately turned to the Time Investigation Department's communication screen: "How's the situation with the dual timelines?"

"Don't worry, they still haven't discovered this time travel. Our time travel was very short, and judging from the current situation of the time display device, the [Story Timeline] has already determined that this was the work of the [Real Timeline]."

"After all, almost everyone in the funeral home was an imposter from GSSRA. The [real timeline] had ample motive and reason to take action against Vermouth."

Even the subsequent simulation results obtained by the research department quickly gave the alliance some advantages.

Bai Zichen projected the most likely development:

"We've timed our time back perfectly—taking advantage of Conan's now deeply ingrained wariness of Vermouth, the present day is sending more people to check on the area around the funeral home."

"As expected, the two timelines will soon clash again."

"Without any further intervention from the alliance, the two timelines will not notice us, or rather, the [story timeline] will only think that we are targeting Shiho Miyano."

This is true.

In the story timeline, and even in the dual timeline, they have been working together to try to fight against the attack from another aspect of the alliance.

……

For Shiho Miyano, sleep has become a luxury these days, and sleepless nights have become her norm.

Just like last night when she tossed and turned, unable to sleep. In a sense, this is the League's fault, because in the League's first few "rewinds," the League was trying to use Red Magic to contact Shiho Miyano.

This undoubtedly requires Shiho Miyano to be able to fall asleep.

Therefore, dealing with the [story timeline] is equally simple: just make sure Shiho Miyano can't dream.

Its methods are simple yet cruel:

Whenever Shiho Miyano's eyelids grew heavy and she was about to fall asleep, someone would knock on her door under the pretext of "checking that she was safe."

Then, the urgent knocking and questioning sounds were like a knife, precisely piercing her fragile sleepiness.

This torture pulled Shiho Miyano back to her senses from the brink of death.

Depriving someone of sleep is undoubtedly one of the most terrifying punishments, and it becomes even more so when fear is added as a seasoning in the story timeline.

The uncertainty of when the next knock will sound is like a spicy seasoning, tormenting Shiho Miyano's spirit with exhaustion and unease.

Even after realizing this, the Alliance immediately stopped this attempt, but the [Story Timeline] still did not give up on it.

Once a possibility arises, it will not disappear.

[Story Timeline] They were always on guard against the Alliance's possible use of dreams.

At the same time, it believed it had found the weakness of its "prey"—

After all, human physiological responses are hard to defy, and physical weakness and fatigue can lead to mental harm.

Thus, the storyline attempts to gradually crush the girl's mind and destroy her will through fear, pain, and endless exhaustion.

This cycle continued until Yamazaki Whiskey arrived, his voice low and cold, filled with undisguised anger.

"Is this how you 'take care' of Sherry's safety? I can call Miyano and ask her what she has to say—"

The effect of this statement was immediate.

Yamazaki immediately seized control of the "story timeline".

After all, he had met Ms. Miyano before, and within the organization, his relationship with Ms. Miyano was considered "good".

Naturally, Yamazaki "should" have Ms. Miyano's phone number.

More importantly, at this moment, inside the pharmaceutical factory, Gin, Vodka, Bourbon, Vermouth... almost all the influential members of the Black Organization were absent due to Vermouth's delay.

Yamazaki became the only member here with a name for a drink who hadn't betrayed the group.

A true "little black".

Moreover, this identity has been recognized by the prophetic machine and the universe.

This is certainly very sad.

But this also means that even if he really reveals his identity and tells others that he is an undercover agent of the alliance, in the logic of the universe, he is still a member of the "Black Party" and still a "Little Black".

This means that as long as Yamazaki doesn't do anything that clearly contradicts his "Kuro" identity—

At least in "minor matters" such as "how to deal with traitors," Yamazaki had indisputable command authority.

As long as Yamazaki doesn't directly let Shiho Miyano escape, and doesn't do anything that violates "Kuro's" logic.

There's nothing we can do about the [story timeline], and there's not even a [real-world timeline].

Finally, the knocking stopped.

The room fell silent again, and Shiho Miyano curled up on the bed. She had almost lost consciousness from the torment, and her tense body slowly relaxed.

Instinctively pulling the thin blanket over herself, Shiho Miyano drifted off to sleep like a tired little animal.

This was a long-awaited afternoon nap... and a long, bizarre nightmare.

As soon as Shiho Miyano fell asleep, the battle for control of her dreams began immediately.

This is the most crucial aspect of the ongoing conflict between the alliance and the two timelines.

Department of Magical Research - Department of Red Magic - Bureau of Consciousness and Dream Research.

All the researchers were already on high alert, and in the center of the room, Ms. Miyano stood on a meticulously drawn ceremonial cloth—

The fabric was covered with intricate magic circles, and the gems, fixed in gold and inlaid, shimmered with a cold, eerie light in the dim light.

This is what Kaito Kuroba and Akako Koizumi have been busy with "today".

The phantom thief and the witch cannot enter the [loop], while Ms. Miyano cannot come to reality, and the magic circles with added time crystals are completely unusable—time crystals cannot work across [loops].

"Therefore, we must have the minister draw it himself, and it will be a purely magical ritual, with perhaps a little bit of CYZ effect added."

Thus, the new head of the Red Magic Ministry, Akako Koizumi, became a human ritual setup machine—she was responsible for repeatedly drawing up the rituals.

Kaito Kuroba is the deliveryman, responsible for sneaking into Professor Agasa's house undetected, thanks to his phantom thief-like agility and, most importantly, his "persona".

He then followed the shortcut left behind by the Alliance, which Dr. Agasa had told him personally, and placed the drawn ritual within the radius of the [Gate of Cycles].

Three minutes after Shiho Miyano fell asleep, the magic circle suddenly lit up. The gemstone burst forth with dazzling light, and then, Ms. Miyano, who was standing in the center of the magic circle, vanished into thin air, leaving only a barely perceptible ripple in the air.

"Great! Success on the first try!"

"Quickly record this fluctuation! We can handle the subsequent analysis and the development of new rituals..."

But before the ceremony participants could cheer, before this brief joy could even spread, it came to an abrupt end in the next second—

They then saw Ms. Miyano reappear in the magic circle.

Everyone could see the gloomy and terrifying expression on Ms. Miyano's face, like dark clouds before a storm.

Her eyes were cold and sharp, carrying an indescribable anger and hatred.

Yes, Shiho Miyano found herself having nightmares again.

It was that familiar, suffocating dream again, like an invisible net that trapped her tightly, making it impossible for her to break free.

She returned to that cold and damp rainy night—

The uneven cobblestone path underfoot, the rain falling with the biting wind, and the cold, deep night were like a giant curtain...

Shiho Miyano felt her heart pounding like a drumbeat—an invisible tension and fear, like cold tentacles, wrapped around her limbs, tightening around her more and more.

In her dream, she finally escaped from that cold laboratory.

Then came that familiar yet urgent voice in her ear, her own inner voice, urging her on like an alarm bell:

"Run away! Run away!!"

That voice, which seemed to be her last instinct for survival, drove her to stagger away into the distance, urging her to run towards the deep, dark alleyway that stretched out like a mass of ink.

Then, the instant she ran into the alley, the even colder, damp air filled her lungs, and along with her soaked clothes, it drained her strength.

Just as Bruce Wayne of Batman is forever trapped in the alley where his parents fell, Shiho Miyano was also mercilessly left in this dark alley after this dreamlike illusion shattered.

Then, the sound from behind made her body involuntarily start running, trying to escape this nightmarish scene once again.

Then came the long escape...

Finally, just like the ending that has been repeated countless times, it was still the same alleyway, and still a tall figure blocking the way.

The raindrops blurred her vision, and Shiho Miyano couldn't see his face clearly, but his long, silver hair, which shone brightly in the darkness, still gave him away.

Gin.

Her long silver hair stood out like a ghost in the darkness.

Then, that indescribable sense of fear extinguished all of Shiho Miyano's hopes, freezing her entire body, heart, and even soul.

Shiho Miyano couldn't even hold on and collapsed to the ground, slumping onto the cold, damp bricks.

She saw Gin slowly walk up to her, watch as he raised the gun in his hand, and saw him put his finger on the trigger.

She could even see the mocking look in Gin's eyes and hear his voice, as cold and deadly as a venomous snake.

His deep voice carried a hint of mockery.

"Ah~~ Sherry~"

Then, Shiho Miyano took out the gun from her pocket and fired at Gin.

In this dream, Gin died.

This turn of events was so sudden that even the story timeline was completely unprepared.

In its preconceived notion, Shiho Miyano is always the helpless prey—how could that be?!

But as I've said before, deep down I still hold onto a faint hope that Ms. Miyano and her sister might still be alive.

But deep down, in the corner of her subconscious, Shiho Miyano had already accepted the cruel reality—

She knew that Ms. Miyano and her sister were probably no longer alive.

This was ultimately just Shiho Miyano's dream.

Thus, the dream woven for her by the [story timeline], a scene not only filled with the fear that Shiho Miyano could never escape, also planted another seed—

Hatred, irreconcilable hatred.

Deep-seated hatred is a poison.

The fiery and deadly poison flowed into her soul, warming her body in her dreams.

Even after Shiho Miyano "drank" the poisoned wine brewed from hatred, she discovered a pistol made of "hatred" at the bottom of the glass.

Her weapon of retaliation is also the key to her breaking free from the nightmare.

[Story Timeline] We have to revert this dream back to its original state.

This is also why Ms. Miyano suddenly fell out of her dream.

At that time, she had just broken through those annoying organization pursuers in her dreams, although Shiho Miyano's impression of her made her almost invincible in the dream.

However, the story timeline uses Shiho Miyano's "worries" about her unknown fate to create a labyrinth that traps her.

When Ms. Miyano overcame all these obstacles, she saw Shiho lying on the ground in the distance, wearing only a thin, soaking wet garment.

Then, a faint gunshot rang out, breaking the silence, and the dream ended.

"Absolutely unforgivable!"

—This was Ms. Miyano's only thought after the ceremony.

(End of this chapter)