Detective Conan: The Literary Genius is Actually a Great Scientist

The living room was brightly lit, but the atmosphere was somewhat eerie.

Conan was lying sprawled on the carpet, cosplaying as a corpse, occasionally hissing and gasping for breath. The blow to his chest really hurt, like he'd been hit by a dump truck.

Thankfully, the young master's bodyguard's built-in "danger recognition system" determined the other party's danger level to be "weak in combat," and he showed mercy. Otherwise, Professor Agasa would probably be calling the funeral home right now to discuss whether to hold a Chinese-style or Western-style banquet.

Dr. Agasa glanced at Conan on the ground with the meticulous gaze of a scientific researcher.

Yes, he can still breathe and groan; his vital signs are stable.

Confirmed, no problem.

He immediately focused all his attention on the pink doll that Ai was holding in her arms.

Robots!

A robot that can automatically protect its owner and intelligently assess the level of danger is far more appealing to this tech geek than the whining detective on the ground.

"Ai-Ai..."

Dr. Agasa rubbed his hands together, his eyes gleaming: "Is this some high-tech weapon you brought from the organization? Has the organization's technology reached this level?"

Ai shook her head, gently stroking the pink doll in her arms. She was no less shocked than the Doctor and the others. "No, this is a gift from my older brother. He said it can protect me."

"Onii-chan?"

Dr. Agasa was very curious about who could create such advanced technology by hand.

Conan, who was lying on the ground pretending to be dead, secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, it wasn't something from the organization, otherwise he felt that if an organization could create such technology, he would have no hope of revenge in this lifetime.

However, the great detective was still so frustrated he wanted to tear his hair out.

First, there was the scientist who defected from the organization, then the magical shrinking drug, and now a high-tech robot bodyguard... Just how many secrets does this world still hold that he doesn't know?

Can we leave a way out for the famous detective who follows materialism?

With things settled, Ai decided not to stay any longer.

"I should go back now," she said, glancing at the clock on the wall, otherwise Lin Ran and her sister would worry... although she didn't really want to admit that she was worried about the guy who had scared her.

"I'll take you," Professor Agasa said quickly.

"No need, it's very close." Ai shook her head, slung her little backpack over her shoulder, and walked towards the door.

Passing by Conan lying dead, she seemed to remember something and turned back to the great detective who was silently shrinking to the side: "Oh right, great detective, there's one more side effect of aptX4869 that I forgot to tell you..."

Conan's heart skipped a beat: "W-what side effects?"

The tea-haired loli smiled with satisfaction at his anxious expression, which screamed, "Don't come any closer!" and then slowly said:

"It's nothing serious. According to some clinical data, it may... slightly promote the secretion and accumulation of estrogen in the body."

Conan: "!!!"

He instinctively reached out in horror to touch his private parts, his face turning deathly pale in an instant, devoid of any color, and he felt utterly hopeless.

No way...

Does this mean that Shinichi Kudo, the future savior of the Japanese police, not only has to live the body of an elementary school student, but also has to face... that terrible future?

Seeing Conan's devastated and colorless expression, as if he had lost all color in his life, Ai turned around with a sense of relief, walked out of Professor Agasa's house, and disappeared into the night.

Hmm, scaring people is indeed quite fun.

Especially scaring those self-important detectives is incredibly fun and should be a regular part of our daily routine.

……

"hateful!"

As soon as Ai left, Conan, who had been lying half-dead on the ground, jumped up, clutching his still aching chest, and angrily waving his fists at the air in a fit of impotent rage.

"That arrogant woman! And that damn robot!"

Professor Agasa looked at him like this, shook his head helplessly, and helped him sit on the sofa: "Shinichi, you should thank Ai."

"Thank her? Thank her for developing that poison that almost killed me?" Conan retorted irritably.

"That's not how it works," Professor Agasa patiently explained. "If Ai hadn't developed APTX-4869, given the ruthlessness of those men in black, if they had found you at the amusement park, you might not have shrunk, but rather..."

The doctor made a throat-slitting gesture.

Conan fell silent.

He certainly understood what the doctor meant.

Rationally, he knew that Ai Haibara was indeed his "savior" in some ways—not only did she not confirm his death, but she also helped him change the data, and she might even be the only hope for developing an antidote in the future.

But emotionally... the thought of being forced to shrink into a primary school student, having to act cute and innocent every day, not being able to recognize Xiao Lan, and having to be constantly on guard against his identity being exposed made it hard for him to feel any affection for that cold-faced "former member of the organization" who also possessed a terrifying robot.

"Doctor, whose side are you on?"

Conan looked down with a resentful gaze.

"Me? Of course I stand on the side of science and truth!"

Dr. Agasa looked righteous and awe-inspiring.

"..."

Upon hearing Professor Agasa's words, Conan rolled his eyes, but thinking back to the powerful fan swung by the pink doll earlier, the great detective's gaze instantly cleared.

Forget it, a good man doesn't argue with a woman, and a good detective doesn't stoop to the level of a robot!

Dr. Agasa found Conan's sudden cowardice amusing, but he didn't point it out. He knew that Shinichi was indeed smart, but sometimes too confident. It would be good for him to occasionally experience the harsh realities of life and temper his character.

He then reminded her, "Shinichi, since Ai defected from the organization, she must have a lot of information about it. If you can build a good relationship with her..."

"Get on her good side?" Conan's face immediately fell when he heard this. He was supposed to go and beg for mercy from that icy, sharp-tongued woman who also wielded "forceful intimidation"?

Let's just send him to fight those men in black!

But... when he thought of that massive, shadowy organization that loomed over him like a dark cloud, when he thought of the possible antidote, when he thought of Ran still waiting anxiously for "Shinichi Kudo" to return...

Conan was torn by inner conflict, struggling for a long time before finally collapsing onto the sofa as if all his bones had been removed, letting out a desperate cry of despair from the great detective:

"I...I understand...I'll try my best..."

……

……

The Lin Residence.

After dinner, Lin Ran watched TV with Mingmei in the living room for a while, then got up and went upstairs to his study to prepare for writing. This was his livelihood; he could be lazy occasionally, but he couldn't slack off often.

In the study, the warm orange light of the desk lamp dispelled a corner of darkness.

As usual, Lin Ran did not start writing immediately. Instead, she picked up a collection of Japanese classical essays and began to read, allowing herself to calm down and gradually immerse herself in the state required for literary creation.

After more than half an hour, once he found his rhythm, he put down his book, spread out his manuscript, picked up the blue fountain pen that Attorney Fei had given him, tested the ink flow, and began to write formally.

After a while, the study door was gently pushed open.

After cleaning up the kitchen, Miyano Akemi sent her sister a message telling her to "come home early" and then tiptoed upstairs, carrying a collection of essays she had picked out from Lin Ran's bookshelf—mainly because the cover was pretty. She sat quietly on the sofa against the wall.

This is a habit she has recently developed.

Rather than waiting alone downstairs, she decided to come up and keep Young Master Ran company. Although they mostly did their own thing and didn't bother each other, just being in the same room and feeling each other's presence made her feel full and at ease.

That feeling was very warm; it was a feeling of "home" that she had never experienced in the organization before.

The young maid pretended to flip through a few pages of essays, but found the writing too obscure and not her type. She simply closed the book, looked up, and openly admired the figure in front of the desk.

The flickering lamplight outlined Lin Ran's handsome profile. His gaze was focused on the manuscript paper. Sometimes he wrote furiously, sometimes he paused to think. His slender fingers held the pen, and he would occasionally bite the pen tip.

"A serious man is indeed very charming..."

As Mingmei held the book, her thoughts drifted away, her gaze became somewhat unfocused, and a gentle smile unconsciously spread across her lips.

After a short while, she gently put down her book, barefoot, like a cat afraid of disturbing its owner, and quietly walked to the desk and sat down in the chair next to Lin Ran.