*Sorry for the delay. Next two chapters will also be delayed by a few hours from the refular schedule.*
The short-haired woman who had just spoken turned out to be Kanou Saizo's daughter. She refused to believe her father was dead. When she saw the ad placed in the newspaper by a certain "Furukawa Dai," she immediately boarded the ship to follow the lead.
As she spoke, Hattori Heiji gradually pieced together the shadowy figure behind all this—the "Shadow Planner." He vaguely remembered hearing about this mysterious figure from his father, Hattori Heizo, ages ago.
Meanwhile, at a nearby table, a man with graying hair and deep-set lines on his face suddenly snapped out of his daze when he heard the name "Kanou Saizo is on the ship." He bolted upright and sharply asked the waiter, "Where's Kanou Saizo's room?"
The startled waiter blinked. "...Room 1."
Without another word, Samezaki Toji shoved his chair aside and stormed off toward the guest cabins. He was the father of the bank employee who'd died in the robbery years ago—and one of the officers originally assigned to the case.
Today was the twentieth anniversary of the "Four Billion Yen Bank Robbery." If they could catch Kanou Saizo before midnight, the stolen money might be recovered, and the criminals finally made to pay the price.
Although still a bit foggy on the situation, Hattori Heiji and Conan instinctively took off after him.
The waiter hesitated for a second, then followed, uneasy.
The four of them rushed off in a chaotic blur. Back in the dining room, the rest of the guests—each one somehow connected to Kanou Saizo—sat in stunned silence. No one felt like eating anymore. They quietly dispersed.
Hovering midair like a livestreaming enthusiast, the Tengu glanced around and floated swiftly toward Jiangxia's room.
...
Room 1 was locked from the inside. Samezaki Toji knocked hard and long, but no one responded.
So the waiter used a spare key to open the door—only to find it completely empty. No people. No luggage. Nothing.
Samezaki's face twisted. He punched the doorframe, then took off again to search the rest of the ship.
Hattori Heiji and Conan had now pieced together the statute of limitations angle and were planning to help—until, as they turned to leave, they passed by the tightly shut door of Room 2.
They paused, glanced at each other, and called to the still-nearby waiter. "Someone staying here?"
The waiter flipped open the registration book and nodded. Usually he'd add, "That's Mr. So-and-so," but this time, the name looked so unfamiliar he didn't even try to pronounce it.
While the waiter squinted at the list, Hattori and Conan had already redirected their attention to Room 2.
Sure, the ocean was noisy, but Samezaki had been practically pounding the door down in Room 1 just seconds ago. If someone really was inside Room 2, they should've heard something. But this guest?
Not a peep.
Suspicious. Very suspicious.
Also—who skips dinner on a cruise? That alone made them a person of interest.
...Could this be the mysterious client?
Hattori Heiji's detective senses tingled. He raised his hand and knocked.
Somehow, he had a gut feeling: behind this door lay something very important.
He knocked for about ten seconds, brows furrowed, just about to ask the waiter for the spare key when—click—the lock turned.
Heiji brightened.
One second later, his face froze.
...Because standing in the doorway was Jiangxia Tongzhi, looking like he'd just been forcibly rebooted from hibernation.
One hand was on the doorknob, the other was still tugging at a wrinkled collar. His hair was a mess. He blinked at them like a confused NPC.
Hattori Heiji choked. "Why are you here?!"
In the back of his mind, Heiji's brain was already crunching through the possibilities. After telling Conan about the commission, he hadn't left Conan's side until the ship sailed—so Conan couldn't have leaked it.
Ran Mouri and Kazuha Toyama could also be ruled out. If either had spilled the beans, they'd definitely be here too. But right now, the only unexpected guest was Jiangxia. The other two mysterious passengers were Kanou Saizo, and one more who didn't match Jiangxia's profile.
So…
Could Jiangxia have received the same anonymous letter?
...Or—
Heiji suddenly thought of his mother, Shizuka Hattori, whom he'd spoken to that morning. She was the only one he'd mentioned the commission to.
Don't tell me...
As Heiji's eyes widened, Jiangxia glanced from Heiji to Conan—who instinctively scooted toward the door—and said, deadpan, "I saw the ad in the newspaper. Thought it looked fun. So I came."
Heiji: "Newspaper?"
Jiangxia: "You didn't see it?"
He rummaged in his backpack, pulled out a newspaper, and handed it over.
Heiji scanned the page, and sighed in relief. Good. His mom hadn't betrayed him.
...Then again, his mom didn't even know Jiangxia. Tsk. He'd been stabbed in the back so many times his brain now worked on pure trauma autopilot.
He pressed his temples and forced his face back to normal.
Then he turned back to Jiangxia, who was still half-dressed and lounging against the doorframe. "Uh, never mind. You should go back to sleep. We're just leaving—"
"You were knocking like the world was ending. Clearly something's up," Jiangxia said, just as casually, and stuck his hand in the doorframe to stop it from closing. His gaze slid past Heiji and locked onto Conan.
Heiji also looked at Conan.
Under this dual scolding stare: "..."
Conan hesitated. Then, as if discussing the weather, he said, "Seems a wanted criminal might've slipped aboard."
"Ah..." Jiangxia smoothed back his hair and stepped out of the room. "Well, I'm up anyway. I'll help."
Heiji stared as Jiangxia naturally slotted himself into their group: "..."
...He was never knocking on strange doors in public ever again.
Who knew what kind of terrifying person might walk out.
...
Heiji still had mixed feelings about this third wheel suddenly joining the Heiji-and-Kudo Dynamic Duo.
But given that Jiangxia was already here—and he himself had been the one to summon this... shikigami—Heiji had no choice but to explain the situation and lay out his reasoning:
"I've just got a feeling. The passengers here are too suspicious. No matter how legendary a thief is, after twenty years, they shouldn't still be household names. But back at the restaurant, every single guest—besides us—recognized Kanou Saizo and reacted like they'd seen a ghost."
Jiangxia nodded along. "So that's why you went chasing after him? To help catch this 'Kanou Saizo'?"
*Goal #1: Top 200 fanfics published within the last 31 - 90 days by POWER STONES.
Progress: 52/60(approx) for 10 BONUS CHAPTERS
Goal #2: One BONUS CHAPTER per review for the first 10 REVIEWS.
Progress:2/10*