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

Karasuma Mochizuki was in no hurry to deal with the Takeuchi family's underhanded tactics.

She's been busy for so many years and just wanted to relax for a while. Anyway, their behind-the-scenes experiments are nothing to worry about, so it won't cause any problems if she intervenes later.

However, she still left Tokyo for Gunma and settled in Annaka City, where the Takeuchi family lived. Her purpose was not to investigate the Takeuchi family, but to keep her older sister company.

Yangzi still doesn't know that her grandfather is still alive, nor does she know that her husband and sister belong to an organization. She lived a peaceful and uneventful life as a wealthy wife until recently when she was diagnosed with cancer and is currently undergoing treatment.

After reading the report, Karasuma Mochizuki knew that with the current level of medical care, her sister probably didn't have much time left.

She doesn't see it as a regret.

Yoko lived a life that most people could only dream of. When they discussed this topic, her sister even smiled, unlike Karasuma Renya, who had an almost twisted obsession with living.

Looking at her older sister, whose face was haggard but whose eyes were unusually peaceful, a certain voice echoed in Karasuma Mochizuki's heart.

—Indeed, it was the right thing to keep those things from my sister and daughter and let them live in the sunlight.

She alone can bear all that filth.

"...It's a pity."

Yoko Takeuchi changed the subject and let out a sigh.

"The two criminals who disrupted the auction and caused my brother's death have still not been caught, which is my biggest regret."

Karasuma Mochizuki was unable to give a direct answer.

Just as she was trying to find a different topic, her phone suddenly rang.

The pace of development has been rapid in recent years. Karasuma Mochizuki is almost sixty, but unlike other elderly Japanese people, she is not reluctant to accept new things. As soon as smartphones came out, she immediately switched to one and even prepared two: one for work and one for personal use.

She communicates with her sister and daughter using the second phone, and with Godivaser using the first phone.

The second part is playing now.

The caller ID showed it was her daughter. For some reason, Karasuma Mochizuki had a bad feeling. She got up to apologize to Yoko, told her to rest well, and then left the room.

She found a quiet corner and answered the phone: "Hello?"

There was no immediate response from the other end; a few seconds later, Karasuma Sakura's voice came through:

"Mom, I want to go back to Japan."

Karasuma Mochizuki was taken aback. She took out another phone and glanced at the calendar, finding no important holidays or birthdays recently: "So sudden?"

"Yes," Karasuma Sakura replied. "Do you still live in Tokyo?"

“I’m at the Takeuchi family home in Gunma right now. Your aunt is very ill, and I’m keeping her company.”

There was a pause on the other end, a hint of hesitation in the voice: "You..."

"what?"

Karasuma Mochizuki listened carefully, but she couldn't tell if her daughter hadn't spoken afterward or if her voice was too soft for her to hear clearly.

"No, it's nothing." Karasuma Sakura smiled and continued, "I'll be back in a few days."

Should I send someone to pick you up?

"Need not."

How many days will you be staying this time?

“I don’t know either.” Karasuma Sakura said after a moment of silence, her voice devoid of emotion. “It will probably take a long time. I will bring Hina back with me this time. She’s not in good health and will have to go straight to the hospital after she arrives.”

Upon hearing this, Karasuma Mochizuki finally realized something was amiss.

Not right.

She knew how much her daughter loved Hina. In the past few years, her daughter would come home to visit, but each time she came alone and didn't stay for long because she was worried about her child who was not in good health.

This time it was unexpected...

A sense of fear crept into her heart, and Karasuma Mochizuki desperately suppressed the thought. She said in her usual calm tone, "I've heard people say that medical care in America is expensive and useless. It would be good for Hina to have a change of environment."

"By the way, is Perrin coming with you this time? If he is, I'll arrange a bigger apartment for you."

She asked, seemingly casually.

This time, Karasuma Sakura remained silent for an even longer time.

"...He won't come," she whispered. "We're divorced." Karasuma Mochizuki was speechless.

She realized something was wrong, very wrong. She felt something breaking down rapidly, and she almost wanted to tell her daughter to stop talking.

But Karasuma Sakura's voice still came from the other side, every word clear and distinct:

"Mom, if the person you love hides a lot of things from you, would you choose to forgive them?"

"If...if everyone around you is lying to you, would you forgive them?"

The phone fell from Karasuma Mochizuki's hand and landed on the ground.

The phone is in good condition and wasn't broken. Even now, with the screen facing up, it still shows that it's in a call.

But Karasuma Mochizuki could no longer hear the sounds coming from there.

She got it.

This was the only thought in Karasuma Mochizuki's mind at that moment.

—Her beloved daughter, whom she had specifically warned her son not to let her get involved with the organization's filth, probably already knows about those things.

why?
Karasuma Mochizuki felt bewildered.

How did her daughter know? Where did things go wrong?

Who exactly told her that?

……

Let's return to reality.

Hiding behind the machine, Conan Edogawa quietly moved his numb legs, feeling as if he had just heard a very, very long story.

After their divorce, Karasuma Sakura took her daughter back to Japan and checked into the newly built Takeuchi General Hospital.

The girl, Haruna Karasuma, had very serious complications, and heart surgery became the only treatment option. However, her fragile body prevented her from surviving the surgery, and she ultimately died on the operating table.

This undoubtedly caused Karasuma Sakura even more pain.

“She didn’t know her father had a genetic disease, and she herself carried the gene, so her child might have problems.” Karasuma Mochizuki’s voice was full of pain. “I didn’t tell her when she was pregnant, and she always thought it was her husband’s fault.”

Conan Edogawa sighed silently.

She was already living in deception, and her equally clueless daughter was her pillar of support. But her daughter couldn't survive the surgery and died. Then she discovered that she was the one who caused her daughter's illness...

This is undoubtedly an apocalyptic event.

In despair, Karasuma Sakura chose to commit suicide. However, she had always been protected too much and lacked any experience in hurting others. Her self-harm was not 100% successful, and she fell into brain death.

“It’s all my fault,” said Karasuma Mochizuki. “So I will resurrect her and bring her back into this world.”

All the clues finally came together.

Because the organization's research focuses on achieving physical immortality, excluding the resurrection of the brain-dead, Karasuma Mochizuki can only conduct his research secretly in this semi-abandoned old base. He cannot use the organization's experimental subjects and can only "manufacture" materials outside himself.

At the same time, she was well aware that this research was progressing slowly, so she, who was always open to new things, turned her attention to other fields.

For example, artificial intelligence.

"Two years ago, Karasuma Renya noticed a genius in America named Sawada Hiroki. At that time, he finally discovered Goldwasser's ambition, so he sent Rum to kill Sawada Hiroki to prevent the boy from falling into Goldwasser's hands."

"I asked Rum to try his best to bring that little genius back alive. Whether he succeeds or not, I will consider it a favor I owe him."

“Glen, who went on the mission, was unaware of the inside story. The security there was extremely tight, and he ultimately chose to kill Hiroki Sawada directly.”

"Although that mission failed, it doesn't matter. His company, Syndora, has other talents in the field of artificial intelligence, and that talent happened to be back in Japan at the time..."

Karasuma Mochizuki finally brought up Itakura Taku, when the voice from the other side interrupted him.

It was Aoyagi Akimitsu who spoke, and he said slowly and deliberately in Gin's voice, "You seem to really dislike your son."

Conan Edogawa's brow twitched.

He didn't know what kind of personality Gin was, but this tone was clearly wrong; one shouldn't speak so dismissively of the leader.

It was as if they were waiting to see what kind of joke unfold. (End of Chapter)