Conan: I'm really not the mastermind behind the scenes

Going undercover is not an easy job.

The danger of the mission, the inner struggle when forced to do things one dislikes, and the various suspicions and tests from the organization.

Shuichi Akai encountered this several times.

The mission was planned to be a sniper kill, and everyone had set up their guns on the rooftop, but the target didn't show up that day, so the mission failed. As a result, everyone who knew about the mission had to be investigated.
Or they might release information about some important intelligence, give several suspects different locations, and then see if any suspicious people are loitering near those locations... and so on, the list goes on.

Therefore, when he saw the extra chapter and recognized the person being described, Shuichi Akai first suspected that there was something wrong with his own identity.

Give him a seemingly ordinary task, then suddenly stop it halfway through to pique his curiosity—he's been in the organization for years, and the members who have worked with him know his style well; sometimes he's very proactive—let him continue to get close to the writer, obtain information that there might be an undercover agent in his vicinity, and then see how he reacts.

"I can't gamble."

Shuichi Akai spoke calmly.

“Especially since this is Japan, not the United States, if I were to be exposed at that time, I would not have any support.”

Rei Furuya paused for a moment, then asked, "And then?"

“I contacted headquarters to check the contact person’s information, had them verify his identity, and then arranged to meet him and observe him from the shadows. He had no problems—at least not in terms of his identity.”

Shuichi Akai's strange use of language made Rei Furuya vaguely feel that something was wrong. Just as he was about to ask for details, he heard the other party continue:

"Since I couldn't find any contact information, I started to suspect that this wasn't a sting operation, that the side stories were real, and that the organization might have noticed this as well... So, I went to Nagano to confirm it in person."

Rei Furuya's eyebrows twitched uncontrollably.

“Nagano?” he said slowly, uttering the name of a place that was very sensitive to him.

"The side story mentions that one of them has an older brother who is a policeman in Nagano Prefecture. Although he graduated from the University of Tokyo, he did not take the civil service exam to become a member of the 'Gold Watch Group'. Instead, he took the most difficult promotion route. Such a special person will not remain unknown, so I planned to go there to take a look. Fortunately, I did not have any mission at the time."

“I found a police officer there who looked a lot like Scotland, especially his eyes.”

"At the time, he was investigating the cause of death of a friend and even went to a bookstore to buy a book written by that friend. The book was based on him, and I skimmed through it and found that it mentioned that he had a younger brother in Tokyo."

"So at that time I was basically certain that Scotland was an undercover agent and his real name was 'Morofushi'."

"..."

Rei Furuya took a deep breath silently.

Just as he was considering whether to suggest to his superiors that they strengthen publishing controls in the future, Shuichi Akai continued, "But on the very day I finished my investigation, I suddenly received another email from the contact person."

"He told me that the organization would be taking action in Tokyo and that I should go back immediately."

Rei Furuya was taken aback. Shuichi Akai took out his phone again, opened his email, and opened the email that he had kept for three years.

[Return to Tokyo as soon as possible; the organization will be taking action in Beika in the coming days.]

The message was sent a few days before Morofushi Kagemitsu was exposed.

Two snipers are lying in ambush near Beika Station, one at the Beika Grand Hotel and the other on the tallest apartment building west of the Beika Bridge. They are suspected of targeting Scotch whisky.

The message was sent on November 7th, the day Morofushi Kagemitsu was exposed.

Under the astonished gaze of the blond policeman beside him, Shuichi Akai's tone remained largely calm:
"This was the last email that contact sent me," he said calmly. "After that day, the FBI sent a new person to take over my duties, and then he disappeared. How he knew the organization was going to take action, how he knew the hunting location and the target so clearly, remains a mystery."

"Now it's your problem, Bourbon."

Shuichi Akai turned his head and looked at Rei Furuya, who was still immersed in the information he had just received.

Rei Furuya snapped out of his daze and met those perpetually calm green eyes.

“Your exposure is related to that author. She died exactly three years ago on November 7th. She was probably silenced by the organization.”

“But what puzzles me is why only Scotland was exposed at the time?” Shuichi Akai said. “The side story mentions both of you. In terms of appearance, you are more obvious than Scotland, but at the time only Scotland was exposed as an undercover agent. Bourbon died on a foreign mission that day—at least before I withdrew from the organization, I never heard anyone mention that you were also an undercover agent.”

When his exposure was mentioned, Rei Furuya's expression turned sour.

But Shuichi Akai has already said so much, so even if it's just to continue extracting information from the other party, he has to reveal a little more.

"The member who discovered the Scottish undercover agent's identity was codenamed 'Anishet'."

Rei Furuya took a deep breath and slowly began to speak.

“She’s the daughter of a high-ranking member of the organization, and that high-ranking member has a terrible relationship with Rum. Gin introduced Scotland to her, and then they worked together for a while, but I never saw her at all.”

He told the truth.

Shuichi Akai carefully observed Rei Furuya's reaction.

“Bourbon, I expect you to answer my next question truthfully,” he said abruptly. “—Is your exposure related to that cartoonist in the chat room?”

Jiang Guling's body stiffened slightly.

He glanced at the FBI agent beside him, a chill creeping back into his eyes: "Why do you think that?"

“After joining that fan chat room, I tried to check the real identities of each group member.” Shuichi Akai steered the conversation back to the chat room. “Although this isn’t the FBI’s domain, it’s not difficult to check a few people.”

"During the sensational Redhead serial murder case, a cartoonist who greatly admired the author posted a comic she had drawn for free in a group chat. The story was one that the author had published before, about a girl who acted as bait for the police and fell in love with a policeman."

"And she died shortly after that."

"—Because she acted as bait for her policeman boyfriend, and due to inadequate police protection, she unfortunately became the sixth victim."

Akai Hideichi looked back at Ryoya Rei.

The latter looked at him expressionlessly.

“Although she’s dead, her account is still in use, so I’ve been paying more attention to it,” Shuichi Akai said. “Her tone is similar to before, but if you listen carefully, you can still see the difference; her new tone is more lively. I think it’s her twin sister using her account.”

"This is not normal. According to my investigation, the sisters had an extremely good relationship. If she saw the previously published comics, she would realize that her sister was probably used as bait because of the influence of this author's story... If that's the case, why would she continue to use the things that indirectly caused her sister's death?"

"Is it considered her sister's keepsake, a way to preserve her sister's past idols and friendships? Did someone else persuade her to continue using it? Or is she lying in wait, investigating or plotting something?"

Shuichi Akai shared his analysis.

"The younger twin was a well-known journalist. She was seen being taken away by police at the airport on November 7th, and then suddenly died at the Metropolitan Police Department."

"Scotland was exposed, you used the excuse of mission failure to evacuate, the author died, and her death all happened on November 7th three years ago—there can't be that many coincidences in the world, they are definitely related."

Shuichi Akai spoke with certainty. Rei Furuya fell silent again.

……

Why was he exposed?
Three years ago, after Furuya Rei finally returned to Japan, he naturally thought about this question.

His first stop was the Metropolitan Police Department, where he saw the lifeless body of Jona Kotomine and heard Hiro's superior mocking him for dragging his childhood friend down. Then he went to the hospital to visit Morofushi Hiromitsu, who was injured during the escape, and together they slowly reviewed the events.

The apparent reason for Morofushi Kagemitsu's exposure was that the target he shot was still alive, but the real reason was that Anisette discovered his identity.

The reason for zero exposure during the descent...

“I have never been in contact with Aniset.”

Rei Furuya held the phone; the SIM card had been removed. There was an email on it informing him of the Scotch Whisky undercover agent's identity, but not his own.

He's already run back to the police station, but the organization still doesn't know he's an undercover agent.

“But she knows you.” Morofushi Hiromitsu’s voice was tinged with coldness. “That day I saw her reviewing surveillance footage at the base. She knew your code name and could recognize you in the footage.”

Today's series of events is a trap deliberately set by Anisset after he discovered that the Scotch whisky was an undercover agent.

What about zero descent?

If, as Morofushi Kagemitsu said, Anisette also knew Bourbon—or at least recognized his appearance—then did she also harm him?
Rei Furuya's gaze fell upon his personal journal.

Anisette gets her hands on the book and quickly discovers that Hiro is an undercover agent, proving that she is also in the chat room.

Was it Jona Kotomine's own will to print and distribute a large number of her personal magazines, or was Anisette instructing her to do so behind the scenes?

Yanfeng Qiao Na did this because she hated him. The reason she hated him was because he killed her sister.

The reason he encountered her sister and was forced to kill her was...

Goldwasser's red-haired mistress.

He was on Rum's mission to find a red-haired mistress of Godivaser who had come to Japan, which is why he and Binga were constantly searching in various bars in Tokyo, and that's how they met her.

"..."

A chill crept up Rei Furuya's tailbone and spread throughout his body.

He couldn't quite describe how he felt at that moment. It was as if he was half asleep when he suddenly felt suffocated, and when he opened his eyes, he was caught off guard and met the gaze of a venomous snake coiled around his neck.

You don't know where it came from, or how long it has been watching you so intently, or what it plans to do next.

At that moment, it felt as if ice was flowing through my entire bloodstream.

……

On a street in Shibuya, the door of a Mazda parked on the side of the road is open.

Furuya Reige Station stood nearby. He gazed at the street through the rain, a heavy feeling settling in his heart.

He didn't get much useful information from his conversation with Shuichi Akai. Instead, his painful past from three years ago was dredged up and laid bare before him once again.

Shuichi Akai didn't even know Aniset existed. However, even the Public Security Bureau didn't have much information about her, since Aniset could disguise herself, and it was impossible to be sure if her appearance and voice were real.

Furthermore, recalling the past three years, he finally remembered why Pramia's eyes looked familiar.

...Because it was the same look in Kotomine Jona's eyes.

Three years ago, Yanfeng Qiao Na died suddenly in the interrogation room. She was bitten to death by a venomous snake that appeared out of nowhere. Her eyes were still wide open before she died, and they did not close until she breathed her last.

When Furuya Rei went to see her body, he saw those eyes filled with hatred.

Even though they're not innocent, how can they show that kind of look when they're being hurt...?

Rei Furuya thought with a touch of self-mockery.

The passenger door opened, and Shuichi Akai walked around the front of the car to his side.

"Now that it's confirmed that Jona Yanfeng is connected to the organization, the FBI can request the company behind her to retrieve all the records from this chat room."

Shuichi Akai put down his phone and said to Rei Furuya.

Rei Furuya's heavy mood eased slightly.

This was the only good news the FBI brought him: the chat room was developed by a well-known American internet company, and the Japanese Public Security Bureau had no right to apply for an investigation, but the FBI, which has several limited investigative powers within the United States, certainly could.

Now, excluding Shuichi Akai, only "Artemis" remains in the chat room. Even if she doesn't tell the truth, obtaining her records would be a significant gain for the Public Security Bureau.

At that moment, another figure emerged from a building not far away. He was carrying a heavy iron box in one hand and paused for a moment when he saw Rei Furuya and Shuichi Akai.

Matsuda Jinpei glanced at the two of them, then turned to Furuya Rei, asking in confusion, "Why haven't you left yet?"

"Something came up..."

As Furuya Rei was explaining, a dark shadow suddenly swept past his head.

It was that eagle. It flew away from the ribbon and swooped down on Matsuda Jinpei.

Matsuda Jinpei reacted quickly, instinctively raising his other hand to protect his face, but the next second, he felt his collar tighten.
The eagle actually grabbed his tie and tried to drag him towards the ribbon.

"What's wrong with this eagle?!"

Matsuda Jinpei was baffled. He reached out and grabbed his tie, but couldn't pull it back. Instead, he was pulled forward and stumbled.

When Furuya Rei saw that the eagle had bullied his subordinates and then turned on his comrade, his eyebrows twitched violently. As he went to help, he didn't forget to scold Akai Shuichi: "Aren't you going to do anything about it?!"

Shuichi Akai was also somewhat puzzled.

Since he borrowed the eagle yesterday, it has never attacked anyone. The incident underground doesn't count, since it was the bespectacled police officer who pulled out his gun first.

So now it is...

"Is there another bomb here?"

He looked at the hawk flapping its wings in a fit of rage and realized something. (End of Chapter)