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

Chapter 226 How strange, why am I crying?
Kogoro Mouri's phone call was the most crucial key to the truth.

"The police will be taking action over there tonight, and they might close the road tomorrow..."

"If you're going to the western outskirts of Beika Town..."

"Conan and Heiji said that Kudo wants them to come tonight..."

Ran Mouri thought to herself, "All of this is related to what Shinichi is going to do."

In any case, something will definitely happen tomorrow, and that thing will make me forget the "truth".

Although many questions remain, such as why the warnings about what would happen tomorrow were issued tonight.

But Ran Mouri no longer has enough time to understand it clearly.

Tomorrow is a very broad term.

Although Ran Mouri thought she would probably forget all this while camping because of something, she didn't dare to take the risk.

After all, what if it were exactly midnight?

Especially the things Kogoro Mouri mentioned—

Conan won't be returning to the agency tonight because of Heiji Hattori, and the police will be taking action tonight...

More importantly, a warning in her heart, Ran Mouri's intuition, was urging her to take immediate action.

And her worries were undoubtedly correct; the time Ran Mouri forgot was exactly midnight tonight.

Because after the second day of the "Shiho Miyano Contest", the universe will directly receive the fourth day.

To avoid the universe discovering any clues, Lin Sheng and Conan have already made a plan.

The "Hoshimi Tower Case" will be skipped along with the third day.

In this way, the fact that Shinichi Kudo learned the "truth" no longer exists.

At the same time, it avoids any possibility of contact with the "third day" in terms of the universe and dual timelines.

That pale sun will forget all of this, and Lin Sheng will, on the day he confesses to the "Star Tower Case" alone, prevent [Shinichi Kudo] from remembering it.

Shinichi Kudo would directly deduce a suitable "third day" that could deceive the universe based on the history of the second day, and then skip it directly by using the "loop" and the uncertain timeline of the "ritual case".

In other words, at the very moment today ended, Ran Mouri's fate of forgetting was already sealed.

Unless she does something in the remaining three hours of the day.

This is very difficult, extremely difficult.

If she holds the belief that "the truth must not be forgotten" as her goal, she is destined to succeed in vain.

Because this was already a predetermined outcome.

Ran Mouri has to figure this out on her own.

She needed to figure out why the warnings in her mind never stopped, and to figure out what opportunities she could truly fight for.

Moreover, she must seize this opportunity and complete it before she truly forgets it, before midnight tonight.

The first thing to do to achieve this is to trust your intuition.

Just like now, the alarm clock that was set in advance is ringing in her ears, and Ran Mouri turns it off immediately to avoid waking up the other people in the villa.

Then she got up and changed into a warmer set of clothes, then put on a thick coat. As the bedroom doorknob turned, a figure quietly slipped out of the room.

Using the dim light from the phone screen, Ran Mouri didn't make a sound; she moved with the agility of a cat.

Going downstairs and through the somewhat dimly lit living room, Ran Mouri finally arrived at that familiar front door.

The cold wind howled outside, and the light from the few streetlights was even dimmer under the thick layer of snow.

She turned on the light on her phone and glanced at it; it was 9:10.

Ran Mouri pressed her hand to her chest, feeling her heartbeat quicken slightly, and took a few deep breaths before finally making up her mind.

She murmured softly, "If you don't reveal what you know, you won't forget."

Waiting in the villa would offer absolutely no chance, especially since all of this is going to happen in the western suburbs of Beika Town…

The door was pushed open a crack, and just as the blizzard was about to blow into the living room through the crack and make everything sway and tilt, it was closed.

Immediately afterwards, to prevent the courtyard gate from making a sound when it was opened, a figure lightly stepped over the high wall of the courtyard and disappeared into the deep snowy night.

……

After jumping over the high wall, Ran Mouri immediately started running along the path beside the wall where there was no snow.

Soon, she arrived at the entrance of the firm and then focused her gaze on the dark gray vintage Toyota sedan parked there.

Ran Mouri knew very well that she would never take a taxi to the western outskirts of Beika Town.

Even on this street where there were almost no pedestrians, she had just turned down two taxis that happened to pass by.

She didn't think those taxis would wait for her for hours on the western outskirts of Beika Town.

Besides——

She now wants to avoid any communication with other people.

To be honest, when Ran Mouri stepped out of Professor Agasa's villa, she was already prepared to forget about it immediately.

After all, judging from what happened at the office at noon, even if it's just a possibility, that threatening force that could make him forget things would still be at work, wouldn't it?

But right now, Ran Mouri is standing right here, perfectly fine.

She stood alone under the streetlights emitting a dim yellow light, her gaze fixed on the phone booth—the red one at the street corner.

She knew that Shinichi sometimes called her from there.

Suddenly, some images flashed through her mind—

The Conan who hurriedly found an excuse to leave the agency; the Conan who secretly rummaged through case files in the agency; the Conan who finished breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a satisfied smile...

And what is the corresponding counterpart?

Is it Ran, the one who watched Conan leave from behind the curtains and glass after he left the agency?

Is it Xiaolan, who secretly probed on the phone and quietly put the information she found and printed into the firm's filing cabinet in the middle of the night when everyone was asleep?
Is it Ran, who tried to make different delicious dishes every day after the Beika branch bombing, hoping to make Conan happy for a while?
Ran Mouri hadn't considered any of that; the images that flashed through her mind made her smile involuntarily.

Shinichi was so cute when he was little.

Those memories even went back to the very first day she met Conan—

So, I confessed to Shinichi so long ago!

Those memories even brought a blush to the girl's cheeks, whether from shyness or from the wind and snow blowing across her face, it was hard to tell.

Only at this moment does Ran Mouri look like a high school student.

These memories only fueled her courage and determination, even igniting a raging fire in her eyes and heart.

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

Ran Mouri has never forgotten the note that Kidd handed her.

I've done all of that!

I didn't tell anyone, and no one knew that I already knew that "Conan is Shinichi"!

What else do you want me to do?!
Ran Mouri clenched her fists tightly; she was truly unwilling to accept this.

She had even given up on the possibility of recognizing Conan and Shinichi, and only prayed that she could see Shinichi and hope to offer him some help.

But now, the warning in my heart is like the Sword of Damocles, constantly approaching.

It is indifferent and aloof.

In the void, two timelines intertwine and slowly advance.

Under the cover of "Shinichi Kudo," the two carefully designed "historical inertia"—"Reunion with the Black Organization" and "The Shadow of the Black Iron Fish"—distracted them.

More importantly, the majority of the power in both timelines is focused on the struggle for control of the abandoned pharmaceutical factory in "tomorrow".

Under the pale glow of that sun, they could no longer see that they were about to collide with that predetermined future.

Under the veil of a few pale rays of sunlight, Ran Mouri's movements were drowned out by the raging wind.

The old-fashioned door was very cooperative today; it seemed to have drunk some kind of lubricant and didn't make a sound.

Ran Mouri walked into the office, and her gaze immediately fell on Kogoro Mouri, who was fast asleep, slumped over his office chair.

Kogoro's distinct snoring echoed throughout the office.

"call--"

Ran Mouri breathed a sigh of relief and quietly stepped forward—

Under the dim lamplight, Kogoro's Toyota car key lay conspicuously beside the case file.

Ran Mouri got the key without alerting anyone.

Soon, with the barely perceptible hum of the vehicle's engine,

As it was Xiaolan's first time driving, she murmured the steps she remembered: "Ignition, clutch, shift gears..."

With a roar of the accelerator, the car quickly disappeared at the end of the street.

Because of repeated weather warnings, there is almost no one on the streets now.

"Driving is actually quite simple..."

Even if it's your first time on the road and you have to face such terrible road conditions.

As a karate champion, his excellent motor skills and body coordination allowed the vehicle to only wobble a few times at first before quickly driving straight.

At 10 p.m., as the vehicle stopped far away from the street corner with its conspicuous police lights, we arrived at the western outskirts of Beika Town.

"As expected... something must have happened in the western suburbs of Beika Town..."

Ran Mouri pulled her scarf tighter around her waist, picked up a hat from the passenger seat, put it on, and then opened the car door.

Today's blizzard is a perfect cover; most of the cameras are covered by snow, and Ran Mouri is very confident in her skills.

She easily climbed over the roadside railing, and then she felt herself step on something.

—A button on a child's outfit.

"Are there really people bringing little kids to sneak into the fare-free zone?"

Ran Mouri inwardly condemned this irresponsible behavior towards children, and then she immediately realized that she might be about to do the same thing.

She glanced around nervously, feeling a little guilty.

"If that's the case, it means that this road does indeed lead to the campsite."

With the crunching sound of her snow boots on the snow, Ran Mouri ran towards the campsite, following the map she had already downloaded on her phone.

……

As for Ai Haibara, she's getting colder and colder.

Ai Haibara originally thought that this forest could shelter her from the wind and snow, but she soon realized that she was completely wrong.

The icy wind cut through the gaps in the trees like a knife, carrying swirling snowflakes that made her teeth chatter uncontrollably.

"boom!"

With a muffled thud, an unusually heavy tree branch snapped off under the force of the snow and gale, crashing heavily in front of Ai Haibara.

Ai Haibara was constantly aware of any movement around her.

The moment the piercing creaking sound rang out overhead, she instinctively leaped backward, her petite figure staggering backward in the snow, narrowly avoiding the thick branch.

However, the snow clinging to the branches cascaded down like a waterfall, knocking her and her walking stick made of branches to the ground. The forest trembled under the roar of the blizzard.

Clenching her teeth, Ai Haibara struggled to climb out of the snowdrift.

By the time she struggled to push away the branches pressing down on her and brushed the snowflakes off, her shoes were already soaked.

However, the voices of Ms. Miyano and Akemi Miyano echoed in her heart.
"Shiho...you must live on."

These sounds made Ai Haibara's eyes turn cold and stubborn again. She pursed her lips, which were already cracked from the cold, and forced herself to ignore her body's protests.

She silently repeated to herself, "I can't stop..."

The broken branch was an opportunity. Stepping on the fallen branch, Ai Haibara raised her head and looked ahead through the space above her.

In that instant, she saw several faint lights flash across the horizon, and a clearing at the edge of the distant woods was brightly lit.

These are police officers carrying equipment who are heading to the abandoned pharmaceutical facility; they are preparing to raid the so-called "abandoned pharmaceutical facility."

The unusually bright police lights guided Ai Haibara through the streets.

"That location is near the campsite..."

She murmured to herself, picked up her walking stick, stuck it in the snow, and used it to support herself as she continued walking.

"Just a little more... just a little more..."

……

For Professor Agasa, the timeline mask he was wearing spontaneously fell off as Ran Mouri drove off the street and headed towards the western outskirts of Beika Town.

He immediately realized that something was wrong.

Since he and Ran are currently in the villa, his return to normal means that Ran Mouri has been "reset".

Then, Professor Agasa discovered that Ran was missing.

He immediately sent an inquiry to the league, but received no response.

Something has happened.

This was the first thought that came to his mind.

Dr. Agasa was unaware that Ran Mouri was fully aware that she would forget.

He simply realized that Ran Mouri didn't actually have a good reason to go to the campsite early.

Now, he was driving his yellow Beetle on the highway, extremely anxious, praying that nothing would happen to Xiaolan.

"Xiao Lan, please don't do anything foolish!"

Then, very quickly, the car stopped in front of layers of roadblocks and signs.

After Ran Mouri got out of the car, her car, which was parked on the side of the road, was quickly spotted by a police officer.

A wider search and blockade has begun.

In the "Hoshimi Tower Case," the history of Professor Agasa driving to the Hoshimi Tower is filled in with the last loophole.

Two historical periods seem to overlap here.

The yellow Volkswagen Beetle, located on the fifth basement level of the Star Viewing Tower, advanced along the intact path forcibly constructed by the CYZ effect.

Despite the blizzard outside the window and the shouts of the police officers who had noticed him and were calling for him to stop the car for inspection.

Dr. Agasa gritted his teeth and embedded the mask into the car.

After activating the vehicle's "timeline stealth" mode, he drove through the roads provided by timelines that the police had not yet discovered.

There's no time left!
Furthermore, if GSSRA gets involved, the [real timeline] is very likely to notice this!

Judging from the mask's feedback, Xiaolan realized that she had "forgotten" something.

Dr. Agasa has figured it out: in history, under the cover of the CYZ effect—

As long as he resolutely refuses to get out of the car, he will take Xiaolan back to the villa with him.

As long as I eventually erase this memory from my mind, everything can be made up!
The machine began to extract every last bit of the CYZ effect from the mask that Lin Sheng himself had made.

Ignoring the surrounding obstacles, Professor Agasa drove his vehicle "through" the fences and trees toward the campsite.

but……

Ran Mouri has now done something "foolish".

After Ran ran into the woods, she soon heard the sound of searching behind her and saw some people in the distance, using flashlights to search for something.

So she slipped into the denser thicket and chose a more secluded and deserted path—

The road where Ai Haibara got lost.

In the dark thicket, Ran Mouri had a vague sense of unease.

The snowflakes that fell on her sometimes seemed to transform into the scorching midday sun.

The icy, biting wind that blows against your face sometimes seems to transform into—a warm breeze.

Ai Haibara's "historical inertia" still exists; the path she lost is destined to be hidden in the cracks of time.

Except for one person, because she had actually already "run into" that crack once.

After hearing a dull "bang" sound from not far away...

It's gunfire!
Ran Mouri immediately realized this.

At the same time, her heart was pounding, and her body tensed up, adopting a defensive posture.

Ran Mouri immediately connected what Kogoro Mouri and Shinichi had said before.

"As expected! Shinichi is at the campsite tonight!"

Her intuition told her that the place from which the voice came was important.

So, after mistaking the sound of a tree branch breaking for a gunshot, Ran Mouri carefully concealed herself in the shadows of the woods and quietly approached the source of the sound.

Then, she saw——

A child lay on the snow, with a broken tree branch behind her.

"Little friend! Little friend!"

Without any hesitation, Ran Mouri rushed towards the child, just as she had done in the Star Viewing Tower—

She rushed towards the person she had once saved.

She carefully lifted Ai Haibara from the cold snow.

"Good ice!"

Ran Mouri's voice trembled slightly. Realizing the child was about to freeze, she immediately took off Ai Haibara's wet coat and shoes and wrapped her inside her own coat. (Like this)

As the warmth gradually spread, some faint pulses began to regain their vitality.

In her somewhat hazy consciousness, Ai Haibara heard a voice.

"Little friend, how are you feeling now?"

Ai Haibara opened her eyes groggily and instantly realized that she was being tightly wrapped up, as if she were hiding in a warm boiler.

Her vision was a little blurry, but everything seemed to be around her.

Instinctively, she felt herself being carried through a grove of trees.

"Hmm, I feel much better..."

She responded weakly, and then she immediately realized that her clothes had disappeared, along with the box marked with coordinates in her hand.

"The clothes...the things inside are very important..."

Ai Haibara murmured unconsciously, and Ran Mouri felt her struggle in her arms.

"I'll go find it for you! Little friend, please don't move, okay? There might be danger around here!"

She suppressed her anxiety, quickly turned around and walked towards the spot where she had thrown down the clothes. Then, in the dim light of her phone screen, she saw—

The white coat that Ai Haibara was wearing didn't fit the child's size.

And those familiar clothes and backpack.

Ran Mouri's pupils contracted sharply; she immediately understood why all of this had happened.

A child who has shrunk, a campsite, Conan's camping plans, the police's search...

Everything was a sign of some kind of destiny.

Ran Mouri didn't say anything.

She silently picked up the things Ai Haibara had asked her to retrieve and stuffed all the clothes into that familiar backpack.

Then, carrying the backpack, she wrapped Ai Haibara tightly in her coat, turned quickly, and ran towards the edge of the woods, heading towards the campsite.

A yellow Volkswagen Beetle was already parked there.

Ran Mouri stood there, stunned.

Now she knew that the curse of oblivion had found her.

Professor Agasa cannot leave that car.

In the darkness, he rolled down the window and watched the blurry figure walking towards him. He immediately warned Xiaolan to be careful not to reset herself.

"Xiao Lan! Don't think or say anything! Get in the car quickly, let's go back to the villa first!"

Ai Haibara still felt dizzy, and she tried to think through everything that had just happened with the little she had left.

Then, Ai Haibara felt some warm liquid dripping onto her face.

—These are Xiaolan's tears.

Dr. Agasa saw large tears streaming down Ran's face, and then he saw Ran take a child out of her arms.

Professor Agasa's pupils immediately contracted sharply.

Yes.

The time period that APTX-4869, given to Shiho Miyano, was located on was the night Shinichi Kudo shrank, wasn't it?
And that day, she gave Shinichi that child—

For Ran Mouri, her gaze was fixed on the bespectacled child she had seen hiding behind the desk.

At that time, Professor Agasa handed Conan over to him.

A silent sadness flickered in Ran Mouri's eyes.

Ai Haibara, nestled in Ran's arms, heard Ran Mouri speak softly, her voice broken and unusually choked with emotion.

"Professor Agasa, I wonder... could I ask you to let this child stay at your house for a while...?"

Her voice trembled as she spoke, overcome with grief.

But she lowered her head, choking back tears, and continued, "This...this child's family...was hospitalized due to an accident, so they asked me to take care of them..."

"As you can see, I can barely even take care of myself..."

Ran Mouri couldn't continue speaking, and she began to sob softly.

Amidst her sorrowful sobs, Ran Mouri finally revealed her last wish to Professor Agasa.

"So, Doctor, could you please take good care of him?"

Then, midnight arrived.

(End of this chapter)