I'm in Conan, I'm not a gangster

Chapter 552 Why did the ship explode again? (2 updates)
Inside the storage compartment at the bottom of the ship.

"Snapped--!"

The crisp sound of the belt snapping against his buttocks was particularly jarring in the cabin.

Conan jumped up with a loud "Ouch!" in pain, clutching his butt and hopping around, tears almost streaming down his face.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch—! Sonoko-neechan! You hit me too hard!" he wailed, his little face scrunched up, his eyes full of grievance.

Sonoko, hands on her hips, gripped the belt and glared down at him: "You brat! Who told you to always disobey us? Always running off to take risks? Making us worry about you!!"
“If you behave like the other kids, you won’t get hit!” she said, raising the belt again. “Want another one?”

"No, no need!" Conan quickly took two steps back, staring warily at the "weapon" in her hand, inwardly cursing: This woman is even more ruthless than my mother!!

Fortunately, Sonoko was just bluffing him. Seeing that he backed down, she snorted and threw the belt aside: "Hmph, I'll let you off this time. If you cause trouble again, I'll hang you up and beat you!"

Conan rubbed his burning buttocks and glanced resentfully at Shiraishi E beside him.

—It's all that guy's fault for being so talkative!

If Shiraishi E hadn't been fanning the flames and even handed the belt to Sonoko, it would have been a different story.

Why would Sonoko suddenly get excited?

Now look what's happened! He, the dignified high school detective Shinichi Kudo, is being spanked by a female high school student. If this gets out, how will he ever be able to survive in the detective world again?
Shiraishi E noticed his gaze, but instead of feeling guilty, she smiled and winked at him.

Conan: "..."

—This guy definitely did it on purpose!

Ran, seeing that Sonoko had finished scolding her, came over, squatted down, and asked worriedly, "Conan, where are Shinichi and the others? And my dad... are they safe?"

Conan quickly stopped grimacing, rubbed his bottom, and said in a relaxed manner, "Don't worry, Ran-neechan! Shinichi-nii, Heiji-nii, Uncle Mori, and Uncle Yusaku all escaped in the chaos. They're safe now!"

Upon hearing this, Xiaolan's tense shoulders finally relaxed, and she breathed a long sigh of relief: "That's great... I'm glad Dad is alright."

Kazuha also leaned over and asked anxiously, "What about Heiji? Is he injured?"

"Heiji is alright too!" Conan assured him confidently, "He ran really fast, he's not hurt at all!"

Kazuha was relieved and patted her chest: "That's good... If that idiot dares to get hurt, I will definitely not let him off!"

Sonoko chimed in, "Speaking of which, where did they go? We didn't see them at all when we rushed in!"

Conan's heart skipped a beat, but he maintained his innocent smile: "Ah... well, we were all hiding in the ventilation ducts! Of course you couldn't see us!"

He paused, then quickly added, "But we all saw you! Especially Sonoko-neechan, she was at the very front, so—impressive!"

Initiate the sycophancy tactic!

Sure enough, upon hearing this, Sonoko immediately raised her chin triumphantly and put her hands on her hips: "Hehe, really? Actually, I also think I looked pretty handsome back then!"

Conan: "..."

He couldn't help but mentally scream: You actually believed that?! If it weren't for Shiraishi backing you up, you would have been knocked down by Ireland's punch long ago!

He was internally ranting, but on his face he still wore a well-behaved smile and nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes! Sonoko-neechan is amazing!"

Just as everyone was chatting and laughing—

"boom--!!!"

The entire ship suddenly shook violently, and the shockwave from the explosion came from deep within the cabin. Dust fell from the ceiling, and the lights flickered a few times before going out completely.

"Whoa—!" Xiaolan stumbled and almost fell, but luckily she managed to grab the wall for support.

"Another explosion?!" Kazuha looked around in panic. "Is this ship going to sink again?!"

Xiaolan's face was pale, and she murmured, "Why does the boat always explode every time I take a ride..."

Shiraishi quickly regained her balance and calmly analyzed, "This has nothing to do with you. It's probably their Irish accomplices destroying evidence. They don't want the things in the lab to be discovered."

Sonoko, seeing the floor already tilting, jumped up and down in panic: "Now is not the time to analyze! If we don't leave now, we'll sink with the ship!" Shiraishi E nodded, and without saying a word, she picked up the unconscious Ireland and said in a deep voice: "Follow me!"

After saying that, he strode towards the exit, his speed unaffected, as if he were carrying not a strong man, but a bag of cotton on his shoulder.

Kazuha stared in disbelief: "Shiro-Shiroishi-kun is incredibly strong! He can carry someone and run this fast?!"

As Sonoko ran, she chuckled mysteriously and said, "What's so special about that? He can pick me up and Ran at the same time, and then—"

"Sonoko!!!" Ran's face flushed red instantly, and she slapped her on the back of the head. "What kind of time is this to be talking nonsense!"

Sonoko covered her head, not angry at all, but instead winking at Kazuha: "Hehe, I'll tell you about this later~"

Conan followed behind, looking completely bewildered: "...?"

—What are they saying? I can't understand them.
He subconsciously glanced back into the depths of the cabin and vaguely saw a figure in the shadows—it was Heiji.

Heiji, hiding in the shadows, waved to him, signaling him to hurry up and leave without worry.

Conan pursed his lips, ultimately said nothing, and turned to follow the others onto the yacht.

The yacht sped out to sea, away from the sinking gambling ship.

The gambling ship behind us exploded again, flames shooting into the sky and thick smoke billowing out!

As Xiaolan and her friends watched the gambling ship begin to burn, they couldn't help but worry about the people still on board.

Ran almost instinctively cast a pleading look at Shiraishi E, and said pitifully and embarrassedly, "E—"

Before she could finish speaking, Sonoko interrupted Ran, saying, "Emi, come on! Let's make some terms!"

As she spoke, she leaned close to Shiraishi E's ear and whispered something.

Ran couldn't hear clearly; she could only barely make out what Sonoko was saying, thanks to the sea breeze, such as "Go and save them," "The three of us will thank you," and "I'll take care of Kazuha's side."

But just hearing this part of the content made Xiaolan blush and feel very embarrassed.

She thought Sonoko was really something else—she could even come up with such a terrible idea!

However, Xiaolan did not feel rejected at all; on the contrary, she thought, "It's fine this way."

She also felt that it wasn't right to ask Shiraishi E to save people.

She risked her life to save her father time and time again.

This made Xiaolan feel very burdened, as if she was always indebted to them.

But if she followed Sonoko's method, she felt less guilty!
Shiraishi E's eyes lit up after hearing about Sonoko's deal!
He felt that no man could resist such tempting offers!
He said, "Really?"

Sonoko snorted, put her hands on her hips, puffed out her chest, and said, "When have I, Sonoko, ever gone back on my word!"

“That’s true.” Shiraishi E had to nod in agreement; Sonoko’s reputation was completely with him.

Besides, even if Sonoko hadn't mentioned it, he would have gone to save them anyway.

After all, they've all shrunk, and they're all valuable experimental data!
"Alright! I'll go rescue them right now! You guys wait here." Shiraishi E said, jumping directly from the yacht into the sea and swimming straight towards the sinking gambling ship.

If it were anyone else, Conan would definitely call them an idiot and tell them to go and die.

But if it were Shiraishi E, he would loudly remind her, "Brother Shiraishi, don't rush to save people!"

"Let's go check the lab first; maybe we can still find something useful!"

After he finished speaking, he felt three malicious gazes from the yacht.

Conan chuckled twice and quickly explained, "Shinichi and the others will definitely be alright! They're so amazing, so skilled!!"

(End of this chapter)