-----
-----
Okinawa. A certain hotel.
Kogoro Mouri sat on the bed, phone clenched in his hand, completely hollowed out.
"Uncle, still can't get through?"Conan took out his own phone and tried calling Mouri Ran again.
As expected, all he got was a busy tone.
In that instant, his heart sank into an icy abyss.
"Sigh… I just hope Ran's okay. If anything happens to her, Kisaki Eri will rip my head off and use it as a toilet."
Kogoro was restless, feeling like the sky was collapsing, like his life had plunged into endless night.
He joked about being afraid of Eri's wrath, but no one loved Ran more than he did.
"Ran has good fortune. She'll be fine. She's skilled to begin with, and Steven was with her. Even if they ran into the Silver-Haired Devil, they should've been able to escape safely."
Yukiko tried to comfort the two of them, who were deep in despair.
"This is your fault. Why didn't you wait for Sister Ran before leaving? If she's really okay, then why has there been no word from her or Steven for almost eight hours?"
Conan stared at Yukiko, a flicker of resentment flashing in his eyes.
The moment they learned Ran might have encountered the Silver-Haired Devil, he and Kogoro had rushed like mad to the abandoned building. All they found were shattered ruins and corpses after a brutal battle.
When they tried to go in and search, the FBI stopped them cold.
Even now, there was still no related news.
But it was easy to imagine.In a clash that looked like a world war between the FBI and the Silver-Haired Devil, even someone as capable as Ran might not survive.
"I…"
Yukiko hesitated, overwhelmed with guilt.
Who would ever want Ran to disappear?
The moment gunshots rang out in the alley, Yukiko's first instinct had been to drive over and pick them up. But by the time she reached the entrance, the area had already been sealed off by the FBI. She couldn't get in at all.
No matter how famous a celebrity was, they could never overpower official authority.
In the end, powerless, she could only return to the hotel and tell Kogoro and Conan what little she knew.
"This isn't anyone's fault. It's just a trial Ran was destined to face."
"Yukiko, please leave. I want to be alone. If there's still no news by morning, I'll go to the Metropolitan Police Department myself and demand answers from Officer Hyoue Kuroda."
Mouri Kogoro really wished he were in Tokyo right now. One phone call—that was all it would take to squeeze some internal intel out of Megure Juzo.
If the Metropolitan Police knew Mouri Ran was missing, they'd probably mobilize everything they had to find her.
…
Red-light district. A bar.
"Boss, Vermouth got away clean."
"Oh? Did she now? That's impressive."
Gin raised an eyebrow, setting his glass down as Vodka hurried over to report.
"It wasn't really her skill," Vodka said honestly. "Steven happened to show up and saved her life. Otherwise, with Vermouth's abilities alone, there's no way she could've escaped from Shuichi Akai."
Shuichi Akai—that had been Shuichi Akai's codename back when he hadn't been exposed inside the Organization.
His strength was unquestionable. His sniping skills were unmatched.
"You're sure Akai Shuichi showed up?"
Gin paused mid-motion as he lit his cigarette, a strange smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
Searching high and low only to stumble on it without effort.
He'd come to Okinawa to deal with a traitor—and ended up with a bonus prize.
"Absolutely certain. But this time, Akai took a serious loss at Steven's hands. The FBI agents involved in the operation—more than twenty were killed or injured in the explosions."
"Steven…" Gin murmured. "I'm getting more and more interested in him. Have we fully verified his background?"
After Vodka confirmed, Gin couldn't help but be impressed by Steven's sheer strength.
And rightly so.
In the Detective Conan world, there were probably fewer than ten people who could face Akai Shuichi head-on and come out on top.
Back then, Gin had approved Akai's recruitment precisely because of his exceptional all-around abilities.
"Checked thoroughly," Vodka said. "Same as before. Steven is a wanted criminal by the FBI. His social circle is practically nonexistent—no family, no friends, no fixed address. Completely alone."
Vodka had dug deep. There were no inconsistencies in Steven's identity.
"Which means it's highly unlikely he's an undercover agent sent by some country. No government would sacrifice dozens of local police and FBI agents just to cover for one spy entering the Organization. Even the big shots wouldn't think that was worth it."
"Notify Vermouth," Gin said decisively. "I want to meet Steven. Time and place—we'll decide later."
The Organization had been riddled with moles lately, giving Gin a splitting headache.
The only subordinate he fully trusted was Vodka—and even then, the guy wasn't exactly bright.
As for Vermouth, Bourbon (Rei Furuya) , Kir, and the others… capable, sure, but each one had a hundred schemes in their head. One slip, and they'd slip out of control. Who knew—maybe the next one exposed would turn out to be another undercover agent.
Steven's appearance felt like fate.
Strong enough. Ruthless enough.
And most importantly—his identity checked out.
"Yes, Boss!"
…
Veterinary clinic. A suite upstairs.
Steven sat cross-legged, eyes locked on the data panel floating before him.
"Each achievement comes with a corresponding title. Upon acquisition, it boosts one or more of the host's attributes. The magnitude of the boost depends on the difficulty of the achievement."
"Titles are equipped by default. The host may choose to unequip them."
[Outlaw: Earned by directly confronting a joint manhunt by local police or the FBI, killing more than five participating members, and escaping unharmed.]
[Attribute Boost: While equipped, increases base strength and sniping range. Also grants a Bomb Control buff, allowing free control over explosion timing, power, and visual effects.]
Judging by the description alone, it was clearly no joke.
Since it was equipped by default and boosted his power, only an idiot would unequip it.
"Everything else makes sense," Steven muttered. "But what exactly do they mean by 'explosion effects'?"
He plucked out a single hair and experimented, dialing down the explosive force while shaping the effect based on his imagination.
Pop!
It sounded like a bowl shattering.
The burst of flame took the shape of a skull—just like he'd pictured—and lingered in the air for three seconds before fading.
"I love this title. Practical and fun," Steven laughed. "Did this scam system finally grow a conscience for once?"
Ding-dong—
The sudden doorbell snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Coming—who is it?"
Creak—
The door opened, and Steven froze.
Standing there was Vermouth.
She was draped in a bloodstained coat. White lace barely concealed her dangerous curves. Her abdomen was wrapped in bandages—clearly, the bullet had already been removed.
"What, never seen a woman before?" Vermouth rolled her eyes and walked straight in.
"Seen plenty," Steven said with a grin, closing the door behind her. "I've even measured you by hand. Do you realize how dangerous you look right now?"
When he'd changed Ran's clothes and cooled her down earlier, he'd already been stirred.
He'd finally managed to suppress it—only for Vermouth to pull this.
She had to be doing it on purpose.
"....."