Ghost Detectives in the Detective World

"It was a remote-controlled airplane given to us by a strange person. While we were playing with it, Conan suddenly rushed over and said there was a bomb in the airplane."

After Ayumi finished speaking, she hugged Matsuda's leg tightly, her cute little face full of lingering fear.

"Officer Matsuda, if it weren't for Conan, we would have just... would have..."

Before she could finish speaking, the little girl hugged Matsuda's leg and began to sob.

"Alright, Ayumi, don't be afraid, it's all over now..."

Matsuda quickly squatted down, patted Ayumi's head, and gently comforted her.

While comforting the crying little girl, Matsuda was also thinking about the case.

Remote-controlled airplane? Bomb?

Well, since Conan is involved in this case, I might as well just ask him directly.

That kid must have already discovered something!

However, before leaving, Matsuda asked the little girl, who had stopped crying, what the prisoner who gave them the remote-controlled airplane looked like.

"Hmm, that guy was tall, with a long beard..."

Ayumi tilted her head, trying hard to remember.

"...By the way, could you draw him?" Matsuda asked, looking troubled.

If we really go looking for someone based on Ayumi's description of "tall and with a long beard,"

In the end, at least hundreds or even thousands will be found.

After sending the three kids from the Junior Detective League to find paper and pens, Matsuda picked up the wreckage of the model airplane after the explosion.

When the three little ones excitedly brought over the drawn portraits, he glanced at them, then abandoned his attempt to find clues about the culprit's appearance from the three kids, and instead asked another question.

Did you notice the explosion just now? What kind of light did it emit?

"A ray of light? It seemed to be red," Mitsuhiko recalled.

“No, it’s yellow,” Genta immediately retorted. “Even though I covered my eyes at the time, I still saw it beforehand; it was yellow.”

"No, it's red."

"You're wrong, it's definitely yellow."

Mitsuhiko and Genta, neither willing to back down, started arguing again.

However, their answers confirmed one thing for Matsuda.

The person who carried out this bombing was the same criminal who stole the Octokin from the Japanese gunpowder depot!

Because the explosives made by Octogen would glow orange-red when they exploded.

The reason why Mitsuhiko and Genta gave different answers was simply because they observed the explosion's light from different angles and at different times.

That's why it creates the illusion of two different colors of light.

Just as Matsuda was thinking, his phone rang again.

Matsuda knew without a doubt that it was Inspector Megure calling again, and answered immediately.

"Matsuda, we found the child who was injured in the explosion at the scene. It's Conan! He's unconscious and being taken to Midori Police Hospital. You should come too!"

……

Chapter 177 The White Birds Competing for Credit

"Conan is only in a mild coma right now. The doctor just checked him and he's fine."

In the corridor of the Green Terrace Police Hospital, Inspector Megure looked at Matsuda and Shiratori with a relieved expression.

"Luckily, Conan was there this time, so the bomb didn't explode in the crowded neighborhood."

"Yes, if an explosion had occurred in the community, the consequences would have been unimaginable." Shiratori also looked terrified.

"By the way, Inspector, you mentioned before that Professor Agasa called the police, saying that the culprit had contacted Shinichi Kudo?" Matsuda inquired, "Does the culprit have a grudge against Shinichi Kudo?"

“No, the culprit might also have approached Shinichi Kudo because of his fame,” Shiratori immediately objected.

“Whether it’s a grudge or for fame,” Inspector Megure said with a headache, “how many clues do we actually have right now?”

“I’ve already questioned Mitsuhiko and the other two,” Matsuda shook his head, “but we haven’t found any clues.”

Although Mitsuhiko and his two companions drew a portrait of the culprit, it was no longer a human being, but rather a Cthulhu or aberrant being, so it naturally did not help the case at all.

Upon hearing that Matsuda had found nothing, Shiratori became somewhat smug. He smiled and pulled out a notebook from his pocket, opening it...

"I have found quite a few clues. After investigation, we have basically confirmed that the criminal drove a truck with license plate number Shinjuku 331083 when he stole Oktokin. The criminal rented it from a transportation company."

“Shinjuku 331083…” Matsuda murmured.

Looking at the smug-looking Shiratori eager to show off, he said irritably, "Hey, you haven't forgotten that I was the one who provided you with the information on those suspicious vehicles, have you?"

Shiratori's cheek twitched slightly.

Indeed, all he did was verify the information Matsuda sent him one by one.

Ultimately, Matsuda deserves at least the majority of the credit for discovering the prisoner's vehicle.

Megure, standing to the side, didn't seem to care about his two subordinates vying for credit. He simply asked with delight, "Have you found the license plate number? So where is the car now?"

"There's no news yet, but the license plate number has been handed over to the Ministry of Transport, so we should have a result soon."

Shiratori glanced down at his notebook and continued.

"The intelligence from the transportation rental company indicates that the descriptions of the perpetrator and the children are basically consistent, confirming that they are the same person. However, there is a possibility that the perpetrator was in disguise, so..."

“Based on this alone,” Matsuda shook his head, “we cannot be certain that there is only one culprit.”

"Matsuda, do you mean... the prisoner had accomplices?" Megure quickly asked.

“It’s just a possibility,” Matsuda explained, shaking his head. “After all, it’s only been a little over a day since he stole from the Japanese warehouse, transported the octogen, turned it into explosives, and then carried out the two bombings today. If he did all of this by himself, then this guy must be incredibly difficult to deal with!”

His words were clearly demoralizing, especially seeing Inspector Megure and Shiratori's dejected expressions. Matsuda could only offer words of comfort first.

"In any case, we now have a lead, and the culprit is starting to surface. As long as we continue the search along the leads, more and more information about the culprit will be revealed, and we will definitely be able to catch him!"

"Our priority now is to split into two groups,"

Matsuda instructed Megure and Shiratori,

"One team is trying to contact Shinichi Kudo. Since the culprit has already contacted him, they will definitely contact him again later."

"The other team is doing their best to track down the truck and its route, which might lead them to the criminals' hideout."

“I’ll continue investigating the vehicle,” Shiratori said first, “After all, I’ve been the one investigating this.”

Matsuda naturally understood Shiratori's little scheme.

Shinichi Kudo hasn't shown up for over a month. If we choose the first group, who knows when we'll be able to get in touch with him?

However, the vehicle information is controlled by the government. With enough effort and time, they can thoroughly investigate where the truck went before and after.

“Then I’ll take charge of contacting Shinichi Kudo,” Matsuda nodded.

Conan is the protagonist of this world. Even if you do nothing, as long as you follow him, you will definitely be able to catch the criminal in the end.

My promotion to police inspector is practically a done deal.

Watching his two subordinates divide the work so clearly in an instant, Inspector Megure felt a surge of satisfaction.

"You two must work together well, you absolutely must..."

Before Inspector Megure could finish speaking, the door to Conan's hospital room suddenly opened, and Mitsuhiko ran out.

The three of them peered through the crack in the door and saw that Conan had already sat up on the hospital bed.

Megure lifted his foot to walk inside, but Matsuda quickly grabbed him.

"Inspector, let's wait until the doctor has examined you before we talk about it."

"Yeah, that's true. After all, Conan is still a child. We don't want any potential problems to arise."

Megure nodded, agreeing with Matsuda's concerns.

After Mitsuhiko and the doctor finished examining Conan and left the ward, Matsuda and the other two immediately went over to him.

"The child is fine now, but he still needs to rest well for the next few days."

After giving his instructions, the doctor left immediately.

Unable to contain himself any longer, Inspector Megure pushed open the door.

"Conan, we need you to tell us the details of what happened."

According to Conan, he was asked by Shinichi Kudo to go to the Green Park to retrieve the bomb, but he received a message from the culprit there.

Then they ran to Mihana Station to find a bomb that would explode at 13:00.

After Conan arrived at the scene, he told Shinichi Kudo everything that had happened.

Then, the clever high school detective, relying solely on his account, determined that the bomb had been taken away by an old woman.

Then Conan bravely sacrificed himself, risking his life, and finally managed to take it out of the children's park and throw it into an open space before the bomb exploded.

Then the bomb exploded!

Conan himself was knocked unconscious by the aftershocks of the explosion.

That's basically what happened.

After listening to Conan's retelling, Inspector Megure pondered for a moment.

"So that's how it is. You took the bomb with you on your bike to avoid the explosion affecting others..."

"Although they successfully prevented the bomb from exploding in the crowd, this was still incredibly reckless," Shiratori couldn't help but say. "That Shinichi Kudo actually dragged such a young kid like Conan into the case!"

“That’s true, Brother Kudo really did…” Megure also looked disapproving.

Conan, standing nearby, was worried that if the two of them protected him closely, it would be inconvenient for him to move around.

Chapter 178 The Prisoner's Purpose

He quickly interjected, "Inspector Megure, Shinichi's phone is with me. The criminal will definitely contact him again, but we shouldn't be able to use phones here at the hospital, right? What if the criminal has another plan..."