The establishment of the Time Travelers Alliance began in the first year of Conan

Chapter 56 When will I truly confess? (Chapter 50 and 51 are related to the work)

It's definitely a good thing for the league to be able to get through a cycle safely.

Even if the equipment suffered heavy losses, supplies and time were never a problem for the alliance with countless [cycles] waiting.

As long as the loss of personnel is minimized.

Of course, if we say that the saddest people in this [cycle] are the three first-grade students of Teitan Elementary School who secretly tried to follow Conan's actions.

When Miwako Sato stopped the driver who was convinced by the abnormal RSI effects of the three children, their own subconscious imagination made things develop as the alliance expected.

What's more, as a police officer and a member of the red team, Sato Miwako was not affected at all by the pitiful looks of the three children.

"Where are their adults?"

Then, as the disguised member of Group D began to stammer for an excuse, Officer Sato, who became suspicious, asked to search the vehicle.

"Open the car door, and you three kids, sit still!"

The subsequent result was not surprising at all, as some contraband and knives were found in the trunk.

Officer Sato, noticing something was amiss, immediately called for backup.

"Emergency, repeat, emergency,"

She immediately drew the gun from her waist and asked the suspect not to move, and with her other hand she took the walkie-talkie.

"I found a suspicious vehicle carrying a large amount of contraband and knives on Beika 4-chome Odori Street."

"There are three children who have been abducted in the back seat. They need support. They need support."

As for what happened to these three children later.

Lin Sheng could only express sympathy and a hint of amusement—

The Alliance may not be able to deal with Conan and those guys with too high RSI now.

The three of you have RSI values barely over 100, and sometimes even less than 101. How can you fight against the alliance?
Lin Sheng only hoped that the parents of these three children would not punish them too harshly after hearing Officer Sato's description at the police station.

Of course, this successful intervention gave Lin Sheng some ideas.

He wasn't sure if it was because he had let Sato Miwako join that the interference was successful, or if it was because the [story timeline] didn't confront the alliance head-on at this point—

After all, the time when the Junior Detective Team was established and appeared in anime and comics is different.

But one thing is clear now, the [Story Timeline] is indeed very weak now, and the interference it can bring to the alliance has now dropped to a lower level.

……

It is snowing heavily today. Xiaolan is now pulling Conan to the office to prepare dinner.

It has been three days since the last incident with Yoko Okino.

Although the bustling streets around her were not as desolate as the path outside the office, Xiaolan's heart seemed to be shrouded in a thick fog.

Shinichi still hasn't come back and the phone call is still unreachable.

My eyes fell on the big screen in the store next to me. Yoko Okino was singing, and the silver stage lights made her figure particularly dazzling.

She was still wearing the same pink outfit she had worn to the office, but she didn't use the big red hat to cover it up.

"Look! It's Miss Yoko!" Xiaolan showed a warm smile and pointed to Yoko Okino on the screen to Conan.

"You know what? Conan," Xiaolan was obviously quite satisfied with the final outcome of the case.

"More importantly, this is the first time I've felt that Dad is really amazing! His reasoning is exactly the same as the police's final investigation results!"

"By the way, Miss Yoko finally decided not to sue Mr. Fujie," she said, her tone filled with a hint of envy and a touch of sadness, as she then thought of something.

"She's really amazing. She was able to stand up quickly even after encountering something like this. She's really strong!"

Xiaolan's voice dropped and the smile on her face gradually disappeared.

Instead, that hint of sadness instantly became more intense.

Xiaolan wiped her eyes and tried to hide her tears, but a tear still slipped quietly and dripped onto the back of her hand that was holding Conan's.

She had been looking for Shinichi for three whole days.

For three days, she went to the police station almost every day after school to ask if there was any new situation.

Thinking of this, Xiaolan's voice became a little choked.

"But I can't do it..." Tears slid down from the corners of her eyes mercilessly, "Shinichi has only been missing for a few days, and I couldn't sleep at night because of worry..." She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with her fingers, her voice trembling, even a little sobbing.

"I'm really useless... Really..."

"Xiaolan..."

Conan stood there. He had never seen Xiaolan so vulnerable before, and the idea of telling Xiaolan the truth came to his mind again.

But in the end Conan still told himself this -

"I'll tell you the truth when I find a way to change back!"

As he spoke, Conan looked forward with determined eyes, as if he was making a promise to himself.

But he probably never will.

……

Time passed silently, and it was obvious that the predictions of the Abnormal Climate Science Department were wrong, because this time the real timeline lasted for a full seven days.

Now even a week has passed, there is still no news, and even the police have failed to provide any effective clues.

"Strange... I called the police but there's been no response, even though Shinichi gave them so much help before."

Xiaolan has been thinking about Shinichi in her heart, "Why him..."

Whenever Xiaolan thought of this, she couldn't help but want to cry.

Every time I hear the police’s indifferent response of “Sorry, we have no news yet” or the busy tone on the phone.

Xiaolan felt as if her heart was being weighed down heavily.

And on this night when there is still no new news, she is sitting alone in the office with the lights off.

The table was littered with beer cans, and Kogoro Mouri, who was obviously drunk, was sleeping on the table as soundly as a dead pig.

Conan has agreed to stay at the doctor's house for a day today.

"Why didn't you stop Shinichi...why..."

Xiaolan was curled up in a chair, and her tone was unconsciously filled with a hint of self-blame and powerlessness.

"Come back soon, Shinichi..."

"Ding-a-ling-ding-a-ling--"

A sudden ringing of the phone broke her thoughts. The ringing of the phone was particularly harsh in the quiet night.

Sniffing, Xiaolan walked to the table and picked up the phone:
"Hi, Mouri Detective Agency."

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a few seconds, and suddenly a familiar voice came, "Xiaolan...it's me, you know?"

The glass of the telephone booth was covered with a thin layer of frost, and Conan could even see the hot air he exhaled condensing into blurry marks on the transparent glass.

Conan held the microphone tightly in his hand, using the excuse of staying at the doctor's house for one night.

He was finally able to speak to Xiaolan with his own voice in this phone booth.

"Shinichi!" Xiaolan's eyes instantly became moist, her heart skipped a beat, and her eyes suddenly lit up. "Shinichi, where are you now?!"

With a hint of hidden guilt, Conan's explanation reached Xiaolan's ears through the telephone line.

"Someone asked me to handle a very troublesome case. I will be back after I finish it. Don't worry about me..."

……

The call lasted a long time, as if it would span the entire quiet snowy night.

But the time for a call is limited after all.

"I just, I just,"

Xiaolan finally just sniffed lightly, suppressed the sob in her heart, and spoke in a low voice.

"Shinichi, no matter what... I'll wait for you to come back."

Whether it is Kudo Shinichi or Xiaolan, they miss each other so much at this moment.

Unfortunately, the story never goes as planned.

(End of this chapter)