Conan was on the move.
And then… he was just on the move. No real progress.
For a full hour, he combed through every carriage of the train. He found several people with black boxes who had visited the dining car, but upon investigation, none were connected to the two men in black.
He spent that hour in silent agony.
How is this possible? What went wrong…
Damn it. They said the bomb would detonate at 3:10 PM. It's almost 2:30 now. I'm running out of time.
Conan returned to his carriage with a face like thunder. Under the curious stares of Kurosawa Hoshino, Ran, and Kogoro, he looked up, his gaze intense.
There's only one path left. I have to tell them everything I know.
Taking a deep breath, his eyes filled with complex emotion as they settled on Ran.
Just as he was about to speak—THWACK!
A blur shot through the air. With a solid thud, Conan yelped and crouched down, clutching his head.
"Oww—! That hurts! Uncle, why did you hit me!?"
Tears welling in his eyes, Conan looked up at Kogoro Mouri—who had just retracted his fist—utterly bewildered.
"Hmph!" Kogoro grunted unhappily. "You brat, you have the nerve to ask? Where have you been running off to for the past hour?"
Hearing this, Conan forgot the pain. The urgency of the situation came crashing back. He quickly lowered his voice. "Uncle! Something terrible is happening, I—"
Before he could finish, the carriage door slid open.
Four or five familiar faces walked in. It was Inspector Megure and his team from the Metropolitan Police Department, all in plain clothes.
"Hmm?"
Under Conan's stunned gaze, Inspector Megure and his subordinates nodded casually to Kogoro Mouri and Hoshino Kurosawa as they passed.
Then, they walked calmly toward the two men in black sitting in their seats.
"Freeze. You're under arrest."
"Police!"
"Don't move!"
In an instant, Conan watched as the two men were swarmed and pinned down by plainclothes officers. The looks of astonishment and confusion on their faces mirrored those of the surrounding passengers.
"Take them away," Inspector Megure waved a hand, glancing at the two men who were still dazed even in custody.
He then walked over to Kurosawa Hoshino and the others, his face breaking into a warm smile.
"Hoshino, it's all thanks to you. If that bomb had gone off on the train… who knows how many casualties there would have been. Don't worry, the bomb disposal unit has already neutralized it. But for safety's sake, we still need to sweep the entire train."
The other passengers, hearing Inspector Megure's words—especially the word "bomb"—were visibly shaken and began asking frantic questions.
Reluctantly, Inspector Megure gave a brief explanation to the crowd.
Seeing their lingering fear, he added, "So, ladies and gentlemen, if you want to thank someone, don't thank me. Thank Hoshino."
Hearing this, a wave of gratitude washed over the carriage. People thanked him profusely; some even took out their phones to record the scene.
Kurosawa Hoshino had no choice but to politely acknowledge everyone.
Once things calmed down and people returned to their seats, he said to Inspector Megure, slightly annoyed, "Inspector, you shouldn't have said that. Now everyone in the carriage knows."
"Haha!" Inspector Megure chuckled, patting his ample belly. "Hoshino, even if we said nothing, this would be all over the news tonight."
Kogoro Mouri nodded in agreement. "Kid, Inspector Megure's right. Even though it didn't explode, this is still a major incident."
"Yeah…" Ran whispered, her face pale. "When I found out there was a bomb… I was so scared."
Conan stood there, completely dumbfounded.
After hearing Inspector Megure's account, he felt like he'd been punched in the gut.
No wonder I searched the whole train for an hour and found nothing.
The person who made the deal was already detained by train staff and locked away separately.
He had worked himself into a frenzy, even considering revealing his true identity to convince Kogoro and the others… only to find out Hoshino Kurosawa had handled everything from start to finish.
The frustration was more bitter than swallowing gall.
That guy…
Conan stared intently at Hoshino, a tumultuous mix of complex emotions churning inside him.
Inspector Megure asked Kogoro, "Given the circumstances, Kogoro, are you continuing your trip, or heading back to Beika with us?"
"Sigh… Let's go back to Beika."
Kogoro sighed, feeling his luck had run out. He didn't want to drag his misfortune to his friend's wedding.
Since Kogoro agreed, Hoshino and Ran had even less reason to object.
Another hour later.
Hoshino and the others arrived at the Metropolitan Police Department in a police car.
The moment they stepped out, they were swarmed by reporters shoving microphones forward.
Clearly, the police department was leakier than a sieve. News of such a big story had reached every media outlet, and they were all camped outside.
"Excuse me! Are you Hoshino Kurosawa? Could we have a moment?"
"Hello! I'm a reporter from TBS—"
"Kurosawa-kun! Over here!"
Hoshino found himself surrounded. He even spotted Rena Mizunashi weaving through the crowd. Bombarded with questions, he didn't know who to answer first.
Fortunately, Inspector Megure, with his experience, directed other officers to manage the reporters, allowing for orderly questioning.
At some point, Officer Miwako Sato appeared beside Hoshino, smiling as she whispered, "Hehe, Hoshino, this scene is even bigger than last time."
"It's just annoying."
"Don't worry, we'll handle it. Just answer a few general questions, then we'll escort you inside."
"Alright."
He didn't dwell on it.
Outside the throng…
Kogoro Mouri watched, green with envy. "Why isn't anyone interviewing me?"
Ran looked puzzled. "Dad, what does this have to do with you? Why would they interview you?"
"Of course it's related! This kid lives across from us, eats our food, and we were traveling together today. I'm a party involved too!"
"Hehe, should I call a reporter over for you?"
"Hmph! Just one? I wouldn't even bother." Kogoro's words were stubborn, but his expression betrayed a flicker of anticipation.
For Kogoro Mouri, as long as a reporter was interviewing him, numbers didn't matter. Even one would suffice.
"I guess that's fine then," Conan said calmly. He'd dealt with this kind of media scrum long ago; facing reporters was old hat for him.
"Hmm?"
His comment drew curious looks from both Kogoro and Ran.
Conan's heart skipped a beat. He quickly corrected himself, "I mean… Hoshino-niisan is really amazing."