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

Chapter 678 Female Exchange Student Elena Miyano (1st Update)
Shiraishi E slowly injected the improved APTX4869 into Miyano Elena's vein.

Ai and Akemi immediately gathered around the bed, their eyes fixed on their mother, barely daring to breathe, the air thick with an almost frozen anxiety and anticipation.

A few minutes later, a change similar to what had happened to Akemi occurred as expected.

Elena Miyano's face seemed to have been gently touched by the hand of time; the traces of age quickly faded, her skin became firm and smooth, her contours regained a girlish softness, and her light golden hair was exceptionally dazzling.

Her body was also undergoing subtle changes under the sheets, eventually stabilizing at a youthful appearance of about eighteen years old.

"It worked...the medicine worked successfully..." Ai held her sister's hand tightly, both of their palms were covered in cold sweat from nervousness.

Ai's voice trembled, a mixture of excitement and unease: "The body's reversal is complete... Next... next, Mom should..."

Akemi gripped her sister's hand tightly, her eyes filled with almost praying anticipation, and murmured, "She'll wake up...she'll definitely..."

However, time passes by every second.

After another agonizing few minutes, Elena Miyano remained lying quietly on the bed, her eyes closed and her breathing steady, showing no signs of waking up, except that she looked younger.

Although the brainwave activity on the monitor was more active than before, it was far from reaching the level of a conscious state.

"What...what's going on?" Akemi bit her lip in disbelief, her voice trembling with tears. "Shouldn't...the medicine have worked, and she should have woken up? Why hasn't Mommy woken up yet..."

Even the usually calm and composed Ai was completely flustered at this moment. She let go of her sister's hand, helplessly checking the monitoring equipment next to her, and then looked at her mother's peaceful but unresponsive sleeping face. Her tone was full of confusion and self-doubt: "No... this shouldn't be... theoretically there should be no problem... if the body functions recover, the brain should also... why didn't she wake up? She should have woken up!"

Shiraishi E stood a little distance away, silently watching all of this.

He is not an expert in the biomedical field and cannot offer any professional explanation at this moment, so he can only remain silent.

Ai suddenly realized a terrifying possibility, her face turning deathly pale, her voice trembling: "Could it be... could it be that the brain damage Mom suffered from the medication... was far more severe than I deduced from the records? The reversal drug repaired the body, but it couldn't repair those irreversible nerve damages..."

This speculation was like a bucket of ice water poured over their heads, instantly plunging the two sisters from the clouds of hope into the abyss of despair.

The thought that their mother might never escape her vegetative state, and that even with a youthful body, she would only be able to sleep forever, overwhelmed them with immense sorrow.

Ai's eyes instantly reddened. She turned around abruptly, her voice choked with sobs, "I...I'll think about it some more...Let me think about it alone...There must be other ways...there must be..."

Unable to bear seeing her mother asleep any longer, she stumbled out of the ward.

Akemi's tears streamed down her face like broken beads. Wiping them away, she choked out, "I...I need to go outside and calm down too..."

With that, she followed her sister away, leaving behind a room filled with silence and heavy disappointment.

Inside the ward, only Shiraishi E and the "girl" Miyano Elena, who was lying on the bed as if she were just asleep, remained.

Seeing this scene, Shiraishi E could only sigh helplessly.

Although he passed away, it doesn't mean he was an omnipotent god. Faced with such a complex medical problem, he also felt powerless.

He shook his head, preparing to turn and leave the ward to go outside and see the grieving sisters, hoping to offer them some comfort.

But just as he took two steps, his extraordinary senses made him suddenly stop.

Something is wrong!
He turned around abruptly, his gaze shooting like lightning towards Elena Miyano on the hospital bed.

He clearly noticed that, just a moment ago, Elena Miyano's breathing rhythm had obviously changed!

Although extremely subtle, it has indeed become faster and more rapid than before!
That was definitely not the steady, unconscious breathing that one would expect from someone in a deep coma or vegetative state!
There's something wrong here!

Shiraishi E narrowed her eyes and slowly walked back to the bedside.

He looked down at the still-sleeping girl on the bed, his gaze so sharp it seemed to pierce through any disguise.

He hesitated for a moment, then suddenly reached out and gently grasped one of Miyano Elena's fair and slender ankles, lifting her foot slightly.

Then, he extended his thumb and pressed precisely on an acupoint on the sole of her foot that could cause intense soreness, numbness, and pain, and suddenly exerted force!
"Oh--!"

A short, clear cry, filled with pain and shock, instantly shattered the silence of the ward!
The "girl" on the bed recoiled as if electrocuted, her body curling up from the sudden stinging pain. Her other foot instinctively kicked towards Shiraishi E's hand, trying to escape the hateful attack!
Shiraishi E easily dodged the harmless kick. He stood up calmly and looked at the "patient" on the bed, whose face was contorted in pain, whose eyes were panicked, and whose cheeks were even flushed. He had an expression of knowing that he had already seen through everything.

A meaningful smile played on his lips as he slowly said, "So you really are awake... Ms. Miyano. Pretending to be asleep isn't a good habit, especially since it's made your two daughters so heartbroken."

Elena Miyano cried out in pain, quickly pulling her foot back. Like a startled fawn, she curled up in the corner of the hospital bed, wrapping herself tightly in the pillow and blanket, leaving only her large eyes, filled with fear and wariness, staring intently at the strange yet exceptionally handsome man in front of her.

Her voice trembled noticeably as she asked fearfully, "Who...who are you? Where is this place? Why did you bring me here? Why...why am I here?"

When Shiraishi saw Miyano Elena's panicked and completely unfamiliar reaction, which resembled that of a young girl, his heart skipped a beat. He realized that the situation was probably more complicated than he had expected—it seemed that she had not only awakened, but more like... lost her memory?

He didn't answer her question immediately. Instead, he pulled up a chair and sat down a distance from the bed, trying to appear non-threatening. He softened his tone and said, "Before introducing myself, perhaps we should talk about you... Do you remember who you are? Do you remember... what happened before?"

Elena Miyano remained timidly hidden behind the "fortifications," her eyes darting around, avoiding eye contact with E Shiraishi, and stammering softly, "I...I..."

She seemed to want to say something, but was too afraid and unfamiliar to speak.

Shiraishi E could tell that the "girl" in front of her not only looked younger, but her mind and personality seemed to have regressed to a very timid and shy state.

To ease her tension, Shiraishi E stood up, walked to the water dispenser next to her, and slowly filled a glass of warm water.

With his back to her, he said calmly, "Don't worry, I'm not a bad person. If I really wanted to harm you, you wouldn't be lying here so safely and comfortably right now."

He gently placed the water glass on the bedside table and then returned to its original position.

Hiding behind the covers, Elena Miyano carefully considered what the other person had said, and logically it seemed impeccable.

She looked at her clean hospital gown, sensed the harmless environment around her, and then at the handsome man sitting there quietly... Her guard finally relaxed a little.

She carefully reached out and quickly scooped the glass of water into the blankets, then whispered her thanks: "...Thank you."

"You're welcome," Shiraishi E replied gently.

He wasn't in a hurry to go find Ai and Akemi immediately.

The situation suddenly changed, and he had to figure out how much Elena Miyano still remembered.

If she has lost all her memory, suddenly telling her that you have two adult daughters would probably cause her a huge shock and confusion.

He pointed to the various sophisticated medical instruments in the room, trying to steer the conversation: "Do you... recognize what these things are?"

Elena Miyano followed his finger, her professional medical knowledge almost instinctively coming to mind. She subconsciously replied, "These are... high-end nursing equipment. That's an air mattress with a massage function to prevent bedsores... That's an automatic circulatory limb movement device to help maintain muscle function... And there's a vital signs monitor... These are all very expensive..."

She even furrowed her delicate brows slightly, pointing to one of the instruments: "But these models... I don't think I've seen them before. Are they the latest models?"

Hearing her speak these technical terms fluently, Shiraishi E felt somewhat reassured, at least she still had a reserve of professional knowledge.

He nodded and added, "That's right, these are all the latest models. And these devices... have been serving you for a long time."

"For me?" Miyano Elena was stunned.

“Yes.” Shiraishi looked into her eyes and said slowly, “Because before you woke up, you were in a… vegetative state. For many years.”

"A vegetable?!" Miyano Elena was startled by this statement, her face filled with disbelief.

She instinctively wanted to refute it, but her gaze swept over the historical data records remaining on the device screens and the parameters that were clearly set according to the needs of long-term bedridden patients. All the evidence seemed to silently prove this unbelievable fact.

She had no choice but to believe it. Her rosy lips parted slightly, her eyes filled with shock and confusion: "So...I...I really did become a vegetable? I slept...for many years?"

“That’s right.” Shiraishi confirmed her guess, then posed the most crucial question: “So… do you remember what happened before you lost consciousness? What was the last thing you remember?”

Elena Miyano held the glass of warm water tightly in both hands, as if trying to draw warmth and courage from it.

She furrowed her brow and began to dig into her deeply buried memories.

After a moment, she said uncertainly, "Well... I remember... it was after class... on my way to my part-time job... I think... I ran into some thugs who looked really fierce... I was scared and tried to run away... while running, I tripped and fell, and I think I hit my head on something... and then... then I don't remember anything..."

When Shiraishi E heard these words, she was completely stunned!
"What? After class? On the way to work?" He almost thought he had misheard.

Elena Miyano was startled by his reaction. She looked at him timidly, then thought about it carefully for a moment before nodding firmly: "Yes...it was after class, on my way to my part-time job!! I remember it very clearly!"

A storm of emotions surged within Shiraishi E. He suppressed his shock and pressed, "Where...do you go to school?"

Elena Miyano seemed to find the question a bit strange, but she still answered honestly: "University of Tokyo... I'm an international student in the medical school... I just started my freshman year this year..." Her tone even carried a hint of freshness and naivety from just stepping onto the university campus.

Upon hearing this, Shiraishi E immediately realized—the situation was bad!
Elena Miyano has more than just amnesia!

She has lost almost all of her memories from adulthood!

Her cognition and memory are completely stuck at the time when she first entered the University of Tokyo as a freshman!
The Elena Miyano who was an organization scientist, married with children, and involved in the development of APTX4869 simply did not exist for her!

Right now, she is a complete, eighteen-year-old female international student, full of confusion about the future yet also with a touch of longing...

(End of this chapter)