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

Chapter 259 History is a little girl who can be "dressed up" however you like (Seeking monthly votes and continued reading)

After the “Shaping the Pointer” project was first proposed by the Narrative Department, the executive level, and even the entire CYZ Alliance, placed great expectations on it.

Even if the initial success rate of this plan was—

0.000……0001%
Thirty-three zeros in total, before that one lonely "1".

But it was the "fried dough stick" behind those thirty-three "duck eggs" that convinced the Narrative Studies Department of the feasibility of the plan.

The Time Research Department and the Timeline Reconstruction Bureau dragged the entire alliance "crazy."

"As long as there is that one '1'!"

"As long as there is that one '1'!"

Bai Zichen then laid this slim possibility before everyone, his eyes filled with a kind of fanatical devotion akin to faith:
"We now have the possibility of changing the historical process that has already occurred, but has not yet truly happened!"

The composition of the number "one" is actually quite complex.

It integrates multiple variables—

[Conan Edogawa]'s subconscious disturbances;
His current manifestation of "cognitive split" and "madness";
The "death note" in the [real-timeline];
And the damage that Kudo Yusaku's death caused to the structure of the universe.

Of course, there's also the most crucial element—the CYZ effect.

The alliance has put in a great deal of effort to gradually reduce the number of zeros in this figure.

The Conan Psychological Research Institute played an indispensable role in this process.

Whether it's giving hints to Professor Agasa or interfering with Conan Edogawa's emotions...

It even extended to Kogoro Mouri with limited "explicit hints".

The alliance tried everything to make them "aware" of the problem, but they were never able to pinpoint its root cause.

With the help of many factors, such as Conan's nightmare and the opportunity he later tried to have a "video call" with Ran Mouri.

The league capitalized on this.

And then, at the very moment when Conan Edogawa takes the antidote to APTX-4869 again and transforms back into Shinichi Kudo, he strikes.

Using the magical timeline of [Eternal First Strike], the Alliance's "Moonlight" was projected back twelve years.

And that's why that almost invisible number finally began to rise slowly.

Until—it stopped at a certain value.

……

What are your current observation data?

Ota Akikawa asked the research department calmly.

Bai Zichen's answer was also straightforward.

"At 11%, given the current rate of change in the historical trajectory, we'll be locked in a fierce battle along the story timeline for quite some time."

It will take a long time...

The seventeenth member of the executive committee looked at the plan, his expression neither sad nor happy.

"Can it be sped up further?"

This question caused the voice on the other end to pause for a moment.

"It depends on whether Conan Edogawa can connect the case with the whereabouts of the 'pointer'."

"We can only move forward once he remembers this."

"I see."

As usual, Da Tian Xiaochuan ended the call; this was the umpteenth time he had responded to Bai Zichen in this way.

In fact, he already knew that the outcome would not be achieved in the near future.

The spatiotemporal feedback from Zone Three, and the communication results gathered from the past, present, and future, have already explained:
Any attempt to cross that burning forest, rescue Keiji Aso directly from the "Fire Ritual," and retrieve the "Pointer" is futile.

— All of these have been determined to be "absolutely impossible".

……

At first, it was just a tiny, dark red spark.

It was on that full moon night twelve years ago, in that "burning mansion," that a spark rose and floated from the wooden structure as the sea breeze blew.

Based on those last recorded data.

At that time, the task force member could have easily crushed it.

The tiny sparks drifted down with the wind, curling peacefully around the scorched roots of plants beside the mansion, flickering like smoldering cigarette butts.

They couldn't even burn a hole in the protective suit.

But all the changes began when the alliance first attempted to use the CYZ effect, directly deviating from the acknowledged historical trajectory.

As the "moonlight" continues to shine, and as the temporal structure is disturbed—

The flames began to grow larger as they died down.

These sparks began to—"fractals"—and they began to replicate themselves along the lines of space and time.

Those sparks quickly grew into saplings, and then the flames soared upwards and grew into large trees.

The flames, colored by time and space, formed the canopy of the fire tree, and the fruits that grew fell back to the ground, giving rise to new flames.

Like edelweiss, they are propelled by the flamboyant winds, their flames rushing towards the brightest part of the moonlight, spreading out like ferns.

Those fractal flames are, at the same time, part of a larger flame.

And the time frozen in that day is their infinite fuel.

They will burn away every entity that tries to change "history".

……

In the past, the alliance has never confronted the history that "has already happened".

All operations are based on one principle: "Strike before the incident occurs."

The alliance, through Shinichi Kudo and by using the pale sun itself, intervenes in the structure constructed by Shinichi Kudo.

Even on this point, the dual timeline and the alliance both use the same approach.

But this time it's different.

This marks the first time the alliance has attempted to directly intervene in a historical inertia that has already been 'recognized,' confronting the 'established case' itself head-on.

This is undoubtedly an extremely dangerous thing.

Even the words "dangerous and terrifying" are insufficient to describe it.

Because this is almost a provocation against Shinichi Kudo.

The true names of those apparent flames were given by the [Reality Analysis Department] as follows:

"Flame of Time".

Its essence, the already acknowledged "reasoning structure," is a spontaneous counterattack against everything that "attempts to deny its" existence.

As long as you remove the [Case Causality Observation Device] issued by the Alliance, which is the device commonly known as "goggles"—

The Moonshadow Island you see will be a peaceful, serene, and picturesque island.

You can even see a straight, flat road leading from the dock to Keiji Aso's residence.

The roadside was lined with lush greenery, a gentle breeze blew, and seabirds called out.

Aside from the mansion that was actually burning at the end of the road.

Everything seemed like paradise.

You might think that all you have to do is run in and rescue them, and everything will be different.

Until you are "swallowed" by that firework, until you are "burned" by that flame, becoming part of the "case".

Just like the ashes Hattori Heiji had seen with his own eyes—the ashes of every GSSRA soldier who died on Tsukikage Island, who died in the "case".

The case concluded with the death of Keiji Aso.

And everyone who tries to overturn this outcome but is instead swallowed up is adding fuel to the fire of this death.

The "Flame of Time" burned ever brighter.

As Hattori Heiji saw it, it had practically turned into a "forest of flames".

However, Hattori Heiji's arrival was certainly not a coincidence.

The moon went to great lengths to send him back twelve years ago to "dip" in the past, just so that he could also absorb some of that "aura".

According to the original plan, Heiji Hattori would return to the present after his memories were erased, carrying his "detective's" instinct for the "truth".

And he leads [Conan Edogawa] to find the "truth" that the Alliance wants.

This was originally a meticulously planned and watertight scheme.

Until—the story timeline retaliated.

The storyline involved a case that occurred in the center of the forest.

Honestly, this messed everything up.

……

How did the clues to everything come about through the [story timeline]?

How exactly did Karasuma Renya manage to send Amuro Tooru and the others back to the full moon night of 12 years ago?

The specific principles and methods behind it are now impossible to verify.

It only proves one thing—

That is, trying to change the timeline, especially the timeline of the Conan universe, is such a dangerous and unpredictable thing.

"The causal and temporal connections have never been so fragile and chaotic."

These are Bai Zichen's original words.

Just like Professor Agasa said.

Only those in the Time Research Department can understand the time and causal mechanisms within the [loop].

If you insist on asking—

"I'll tell you that the [story timeline] will drop a case because it has learned what's happening 'now'."

"And this is because Karasuma Renya sent the [Red Team] spies back 12 years ago, and the way he did it was by having them investigate the 'Red Fire Festival'."

"And why would they investigate the 'Crimson Fire Ritual'?"

"That's because in the 'present' past, Karasuma Renya needed to give the medical ship a reason to go to Tsukikage Island for treatment."

“However,” Bai Zichen added, “this reason is because Karasuma Renya was created in the 'present' future.”

"The reason why the case occurred in the [story timeline] is because we tried to modify the [historical process]."

"And the reason why we can change history is now because the 'Red Fire Festival' is what led to Keiji Aso's death."

Cause and effect are self-recursive. To clarify this entire network of relationships, the Time Research Department and the Time Sequence Department worked continuously for three days and three nights, modeling, simulating, and inverting the derivation…

Of course, they still haven't been able to fully explain it.

However, one fait accompli can no longer be ignored:

The cause of Aso Keiji's death has changed!
Just as the alliance's deviation from the [historical process] reached 3%, Shigenobu Hitomi, located in the [core layer], was surprised to discover:

All records from Earth, including the historical maps captured by the Time Display, began to point to a completely different cause of death.

Keiji Aso died because of the "Red Fire Festival".

But how is this possible?
As is well known, in the original "Moonlight Sonata Murder Case", the murderer Asai Narumi (the son of Aso Keiji) sought revenge.

It was because twelve years ago, on a full moon night, four prisoners:
Hideo Kawashima, Tatsuji Kuroiwa, Ken Nishimoto, Isamu Kameyama.

They trapped the Aso family in their mansion, then set it on fire and killed them to silence them.

Their motive for arson should have been:
Keiji Aso, a famous pianist, had been bringing back drugs through his performances in the past. After he requested to quit the drug trade, he was silenced to prevent him from revealing the drug dealing.

but now--

Where does this "Red Fire Ritual" come from?

Yes, the new timeline did indeed "shatter" the historical inertia at that time.

Those "future" timelines attempt to prevent the birth of new timelines by using "historical inertia".

This refers to the "Red Demon Village Fire Festival Murder Incident".

But this should have happened after the new timeline was created.

They have become part of the new timeline, so how did the story timeline from twelve years ago know about them?

Oh, so it's because the "future" alliance is trying to change the "still certain" [historical inertia] in the "past".

It's because Karasuma Renya from the "future" is actually part of the story's timeline...

In other words, the story's timeline uses our own actions as a justification when it resists us.

—Did you understand?
You can't possibly unravel this entire cause-and-effect loop.

The more you try to "trace" the cause, the more it loops back to the starting point like a Möbius strip.

If it weren't for the [core layer]'s [loop computer], which faithfully recorded everything before the changes, it would be impossible to know what would happen.

At this moment in this world, everyone will "naturally" remember that Keiji Aso died in the 'Red Fire Festival'.

Just as it always has been.

After all, that old naval dock, those records that can be found in the village mansion...

And then there are the fragmented and broken memories from the mouths of those elderly people—

For example, a partially damaged submarine stranded on the shore, its serial number no longer legible...

The Alliance's process of rewriting history itself faithfully serves as complete evidence that all of this happened.

Moreover, once this happens, you can't go back—

How powerful is the story timeline from twelve years ago?

Look at those dead GSSRA soldiers, and you'll understand why the "Fire Ritual" burned ever brighter twelve years ago.

[Story Timeline] Let's try to leave that "pointer" twelve years in the past.

During this process, the position of the third pointer has become increasingly clear.

Just like what Asai Narumi wrote in the letter he requested from Conan:
"On the night of the next full moon, shadows will begin to disappear again on Moonshadow Island..."

Only what [Conan Edogawa] acknowledges is the true "pointer".

But the problem is:
For Conan, who doesn't understand the structure of time and its operating rules,

What exactly is a "pointer"?

The answer is obviously:
Those things that history has already "determined" for him.

Keiji Aso died because of the "Red Fire Festival," which in turn was caused by the "Full Moon Shadow."

look--

It's all a closed loop now.

……

Therefore, when discussing the third pointer proposal, the execution layer put forward an almost stringent bottom-line requirement:

"Because only Keiji Aso knows what a pointer is and where it is hidden."

"In other words, we should ideally—or even have to—have Keiji Aso leave behind a pointer that can be seen in the future."

"At least leave behind direct information about where the pointer is."

And this requirement is also the most difficult—

In some ways, it's even more difficult than actually traveling through "time".

The elimination of several teams in the league has already proven this point.

"Because what we have to do—"

Da Tian Xiaochuan's voice resounded throughout the entire executive hall, filled with unwavering resolve.

"On this day, a 'story timeline' was left behind that could not be altered for twelve whole years!"

Because the loop structure of the third pointer case only encompasses the two full moon nights twelve years ago and two years ago.

"Only within this cycle can we utilize the constancy of the CYZ effect to make it exhibit properties that it does not possess."

"Only then can we retaliate through the 'case itself'."

In the past, the League has tried to have [Eternal First Strike] use its "stealth" to remain hidden until "the future where the League has appeared" after the first full moon night.

But twelve years is just too long...

Such a long time interval is too deep and too heavy.

It felt as heavy as digging out a bottomless well in the "time" of the Conan universe.

No matter how strong the will, no matter how elite the tactical support, or how advanced the TDD or timing equipment, it is impossible to climb out of that black hole of twelve years.

The scene at the time even caused the commanders to mutter to themselves in a daze:

"Heaven and earth will punish us... truly, heaven and earth will punish us..."

After numerous feedback messages from the data center at the action layer, the phrase "Try again" gradually faded from being mentioned.

Those alliance members couldn't even leave that island.

The "Moon Shadow Island," which overlapped with every moment of those twelve years, used "cases" to target members who left the "loop" and headed to the next day.

But once you're caught up in a "case," what's the point of having the best equipment or the most comprehensive alliance support plan?

In the timeline of "Detective Conan," "twelve years ago" is not just a bygone era.

It is a "historical background" that can change at any time, depending on the needs of the story's timeline in the past and on the needs of Shinichi Kudo in the future.

It's just a "story background".

At that moment, the real timeline was insignificant and minuscule, or even nonexistent.

[Story Timeline] They could crush the Alliance's every attempt almost without any cost.

"Perhaps we can try to learn from what the [story timeline] did in the past."

Dr. Liangliang from the CYZ Research Institute presented a bold vision to the executive team—

One of the methods he learned and summarized from the Alliance Library's study of the Möbius strip timeline war.

"Since we can't preserve information from the past until twelve years in the future—"

"Then let's have the 'people of the future' go to the past to 'claim' that information!"

……

Furthermore, to ensure that this would be part of the "Moonshadow Island Case," the Alliance "went with the flow" and sent Vermouth and others to that day as well.

And that's where the downside of "Karasuma Renya" becoming part of the [story timeline] becomes apparent—

Because at this moment, Vermouth, who betrayed the "Black Organization," is also on that island two years ago.

As for Vermouth, who is from the "future," even after receiving help from the Alliance, the story timeline cannot directly "reset" her.

As for killing her—

Just like the case of "Yusaku Kudo's death", Vermouth's "character setting" certainly does not include death.

Moreover, doing so will directly alter the history of the "future" in the story timeline.

In other words, it will match the result of its own creation.

The "destruction" resulting from the acknowledgment of a "already altered" history through the constancy of the CYZ effect.

Two years ago, on a full moon night, when Asai Narumi was also on the island.

Dr. Agasa then led the children to that point in time.

Their mission was very clear:
By utilizing the "counterattack mechanism" inherent in the [story timeline], and with the opening of the "second movement," a gate connecting the past and the future can be built on the island.

"The castle gates will be the key to finding the pointer."

"At the same time, we can take this opportunity to truly change history while shaping a pointer that leans toward a 'good ending'."

As for how the Alliance managed to send Professor Agasa alone to the point in time two years ago...

The past, present, and future have never been so intertwined.

Just as Bai Zichen just emphasized to Da Tian Xiaochuan—

"Only when Conan Edogawa actively recalls this matter can the deviation of the historical process truly continue to increase."

Therefore, the alliance made use of [Conan Edogawa's] "memories".

Right now, on Moonshadow Island.

Asai Narumi took the initiative to recall that full moon night two years ago.

As he softly began to speak, Conan Edogawa's thoughts drifted back to two years prior—

Everything happened so naturally.

Just like the goals that the "upgrade faction" within the league had hoped to achieve in the past.

What did Asai Shigemi say?

Conan Edogawa will "remember" that it happened.

After all, in Conan Edogawa's view—

Since it "happened in the past".

That is history—something that has already happened, is unchangeable, and cannot be shaken.
(End of this chapter)