Conan: Death is Watching Me

Chapter 163 Kidd: There are still experts?
"Is Inspector Nakamori just going to leave with the Egg of Memories like that?" Gao Mo asked curiously. "If Kid sees it, he'll easily become suspicious, right? Even I can tell the fakes in the exhibition hall are counterfeit."

"If it were me, I would at least arrange for more vehicles to operate separately. Even if Kid discovers us, we wouldn't know where Inspector Nakamori would be hiding."

"what?"

Nakamori Ginzo, who had just stepped out of the room, paused, as if struck by a sudden realization. He turned back to look at Gao Mo somewhat awkwardly, his face showing embarrassment.

"Ahem... Of course I have made such arrangements."

"Huh?" the subordinate exclaimed in surprise. "Really?"

"Of course there is! Hurry up and find a car!" Nakamori Ginzo was furious and embarrassed. Noticing Gao Mo's faint smile, he left with a stiff face.

“That’s right!” the mustachioed man exclaimed, also enlightened. “That’s exactly what I was thinking! This way it’s safer. Even if Kidd sees it, he won’t know where the real Egg of Memories was taken… Hmph, that guy definitely didn’t arrange it that way. He’s shameless!”

"As expected of Mr. Mori."

"a ha ha ha!"

Conan glanced at the smugly laughing man with the mustache and looked up at Gao Mo.

He casually caused Kidd a lot of trouble...

Aside from the Twilight Mansion incident, Kido's only interaction with Kaito seems to be the magician enthusiast incident a few days ago.

They never had a direct confrontation, yet they seemed to have thoroughly studied Kidd.

……

It was 6 p.m.

The sky in Osaka was already dark, and neon lights illuminated the ryotei (traditional Japanese restaurants).

As the drinks went on, the man with the mustache got drunk amidst the compliments, completely forgetting about the 500 million.

Fortunately, because Gao Mo came over, Mrs. Suzuki stopped dwelling on the previous incident.

But this guy managed to get away with it again.

"Good wine! Keep drinking!"

"Mr. Mori, you should drink less. We still have to deal with Kid..."

"It's alright, there are still 9 hours until 3 a.m., plenty of time! As long as I take action, Kidd will be a piece of cake!"

Little Mustache is being unreliable again.

President Suzuki smiled helplessly and turned his gaze to Gao Mo. He tried several times to ask Gao Mo and Sonoko what was going on, to understand Gao Mo's thoughts and the specific situation, but his wife glared at him each time.

"Doesn't Mr. Kido drink?" Mrs. Suzuki asked.

"Kido-san doesn't drink alcohol."

Conan lowered his head, stroking his chin in thought, and upon hearing this, quickly explained on Gao Mo's behalf.

He certainly didn't want Gao Mo to get drunk too.

He wouldn't know who to talk to if anything happened—he certainly wasn't counting on Uncle Mori.

“Mr. Kido,” Nishino’s secretary returned from outside, “we’ve made contact with Miss Natsumi Kosaka. She and her butler happen to be in Osaka. Should we have them come over?”

“Let’s meet tomorrow at the art museum,” Gao Mo said, turning to the Suzuki couple. “We might need to borrow the Egg of Memories then.”

"Is it because of the secret of the Egg of Memories?" Chairman Suzuki asked in surprise. "So it's true?"

"I'm just guessing. I'll have to meet Ms. Natsumi Kosaka to find out the specifics."

Gao Mo was thinking about how to find Shi Kaobing.

First, they used the Egg of Memory as bait, then further incited Scrooge's malice—

The only way to prove Shi Kaobing's identity is through the gun he usually uses.

It was actually a good thing that Scrooge took action against him.

Thinking about this, Gao Mo became even more curious about Kidd's purpose.

Without Kidd's advance notice, the police wouldn't have taken it so seriously, and Scrooge would probably have already started taking action.

Whether the Egg of Memories will be stolen is unknown, but casualties are certainly inevitable.

In a way, Kidd did him a favor.

He was used to death, but he didn't want to cause innocent people to die because of his discovery of the Egg of Memories.

……

"Kido-kun".

After leaving the restaurant, Conan followed Gao Mo through the streets.

“I still feel something is off. When a clock without a second hand engraves the 12th character... why is it the English letter L? It would make sense if it were Russian... but the 12th character in Russian is K, which doesn't resemble a hand.”

Conan frowned in thought.

"And the notice was signed 'The Magician of the End of the Century,' he's never written it like that before. And why is Kid, who always steals jewels, targeting the Egg of Memories this time? That guy should have seen your appraisal report too; it has nothing to do with jewels, as for treasure..."

"Is it possible that you're overthinking it?"

Gao Mo stopped at the intersection, focusing his gaze amidst the neon lights illuminating the street.

Regardless of whether Kidd's actions were related to Scrooge, he still had to repay this favor.

And in the previous incident involving the magician enthusiast, it was thanks to Kid that he was able to escape before the police arrived, saving him some unnecessary trouble.

"Complex?" Conan looked up in confusion.

“It means exactly what it says,” Gao Mo thought, his mind forming a mental framework. “Could the so-called 12th character be the 12th character in the announcement letter?”

"what??"

Conan stared wide-eyed, frozen in place, as if a crow had flown overhead, repeatedly yelling "Idiot!"

What a fool!
I've been completely misled by Uncle Maori, he's using both English and Russian letters...

Why didn't you think of the notice itself?

"Wait a minute, the 12th character in the notice is... 'he'?"

Conan's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly checked the hands of his watch.

"It's not 3 AM at L, but 7:20 AM at E... Less than an hour left! I have to hurry to the castle tower..."

"It's not the castle tower." Gao Mo called out to Conan.

"what?"

"The glowing sky pavilion... it should refer to the Tower of Babel. Doesn't the top of the Tower of Babel glow at night? The top of the tower looks like a weather forecast display screen."

Gao Mo gazed at the brightly lit, tower-like building in the distance.

“I roughly know why he chose that location. On one hand, it would draw the police's attention to the castle tower near the art museum, and on the other hand, it would be easier to observe the entire situation from the top of the tower, since Inspector Nakamori would be moving the Egg of Memories…”

Gao Mo paused slightly as he spoke.

Because he was busy capturing Scrooge, he naturally paid less attention to Kidd.

If he were Kid, how would he find the true location of the Egg of Memories?
Osaka's city streets are complex, and coupled with the dispersed operation he suggested to Nakamori... even with his eagle-eye vision, it was difficult for him to capture all the information.

The Tongtian Pavilion is very tall, but it doesn't overlook the entire city.

Tracking a location at the top of the Tower of Babel is virtually impossible.

Kidd wouldn't choose such a stupid method... unless he could pinpoint the exact location from the top of the Tower of Babel.

"call!"

Gao Mo looked at the surrounding neon lights, his gaze slightly narrowed.

light……

It turned out to be the case.

No matter how the process changes, as long as you grasp the result, that's enough.

Kidd knew Inspector Nakamori very well, so from the beginning he didn't consider the middle and went straight for the finish line, directly searching for the location of the Egg of Memories.

"Although I'm not entirely sure, but..."

Gao Mo called out to Conan again.

"That guy seems to be planning to cause a power outage in Osaka. Once Inspector Nakamori generates his own power, he will be able to pinpoint his location. He chose Tsutenkaku Tower to observe the power generation."

"What?" Conan exclaimed in surprise, "Can you contact Inspector Nakamori?"

"We probably can't get in touch with them now."

Gao Mo closed his mental palace.

"If possible, go to Tsutenkaku and stop Kid. There's still time... Tell her for me that even phantom thieves have their limits. If it were his father, he would never do something like causing a power outage in the city. This is no joke; it could kill people."

Magicians shouldn't cause trouble for the audience, and the same goes for phantom thieves.

"A magician? Father?" Conan was puzzled but impressed.

It seems they've learned something incredible.

Yes, Kidd from 8 years ago is indeed quite different from Kidd now.

Kid is clearly much younger now. "Kido-san, aren't you going?" Conan asked anxiously.

Now is not the time to think about anything else; we must stop Kidd quickly.

Whether it's to stop the theft or to stop that guy from causing trouble.

"I can't catch him by myself..."

"Stop him, that's enough. There's no time for other arrangements right now."

Gao Mo had little interest in capturing Kidd.

This guy's bounty is only $50, which is not only not cost-effective, but it's also likely to cause a lot of trouble.

Besides, he and Kidd are practically friends.

This small reward is really unnecessary.

After watching Conan walk away quickly, Gao Mo shifted his thoughts away from Kaito Kid.

The one who truly deserves his attention is still Skobing.

Because of the police operation and the lingering mystery of the "treasure," Scrooge is currently behaving himself, probing further to resolve this trouble as soon as possible.

Think of a suitable way to capture him, and then let Furuya Rei collect the bounty.

……

Osaka Castle Hotel.

After Ran and her group returned, they couldn't find Kogoro Mouri and Conan, only Kogoro Mouri, who was brought back unconscious from being drunk.

"I want more..."

"Really, Dad!"

"Let him sleep," Hattori Heiji said, exhausted and lying on the sofa in the guest room, not wanting to move. "That brat probably went to find Kid with Kido-san... These kids all want to be detectives these days."

"But……"

Xiaolan felt uneasy.

Ever since she drew the most inauspicious fortune slip, she has been unable to calm down.

There are many things to worry about, but if we're talking about something that fits the worst omen... it's probably Shinichi's safety.

If Conan is Shinichi...

"I'm going back."

Ai quietly left the Mori room.

There wasn't a soul in the hallway; only the soft echoes of footsteps.

Suddenly, a sense of being spied on came from behind, but when I turned around, I couldn't see anything.

At this time, most of the guests were still out sightseeing.

"Little sister," Pu Siqinglan said gently, opening the door like an older sister, "Are you alone?"

"No……"

Xiao Ai's eyes trembled slightly as she stared at Pu Siqinglan for a while before quickly lowering her head.

"My older brother and sister are in the guest room."

This woman...

"Is that so?" Pu Siqinglan smiled and bowed. "What is the relationship between the little sister and Mr. Kido...?"

"Isn't this Miss Qinglan?" Sonoko called out from behind, "What's wrong with Ai?"

"This child seems a little shy."

Pu Siqinglan looked apologetically at Xiao Ai, who seemed somewhat afraid of her.

"I wanted to talk to Mr. Kido, but it seems he went out."

“Kido-san went to catch Kid,” Sonoko invited. “Miss Seiran, please come in and sit down. We’ll go find Kido-san together later.”

"That's fine, I'm bored by myself anyway."

"Speaking of which, Miss Qinglan's eyes and hair are both gray..."

"My eye color is probably inherited from my grandfather."

The corner of the stairwell.

Gao Mo leaned against the wall and only revealed himself after Pu Siqinglan was pulled into the room by Sonoko, his eyes slightly narrowed.

"Miss Ran's Chinese name is 'maoli lan', Kazuha's is 'yuanshan heye', and Sonoko's is 'lingmu yuanzi'..."

A broken Chinese accent came from the guest room, making Gao Mo frown repeatedly.

"'Lingmu Yuanzi'? Why is it only my name that sounds so strange?"

"Miss Qinglan is amazing! Besides Japanese and Russian, she's also so fluent in Chinese... and she's a great beauty too!"

"A stunning beauty? Where's the stunning beauty?"

The drunken man with the mustache perked up his ears at the mention of a beautiful woman, and as soon as he opened his eyes, he was captivated by Pu Siqinglan's long, slender legs under her super-short cheongsam, and stared at her for a moment.

"So sexy... As expected of Miss Qinglan, how about we go for a drink together?"

"father!"

"Kido?" Ai stood by the corridor outside the guest room, her face grim, unsure of what to do, when she suddenly noticed Gao Mo. "You're back..."

"Shhh."

Gao Mo shook his head.

"Don't alert them yet."

Regardless of whether Pu Siqinglan is Shi Kaobing or not, the arrest operation certainly cannot be carried out in the hotel.

……

"call--!"

Under the night sky, Tsutenkaku Tower in Osaka shines as brightly as a lighthouse.

Tourists thronged the ground, but no one noticed the white figure standing against the wind at the top.

She was still dressed in that gorgeous white gown, her cape fluttering in the evening breeze, and a white dove perched on its wings.

It was 7:10 PM. There were 10 minutes left before the official operation.

A grand magic show is about to open in Osaka...

"Humph."

Kaito Kid chuckled as he looked down at the city's night view, his binoculars revealing a large police presence deployed at the castle tower.

The joint operation between the Metropolitan Police Department and the Osaka Prefectural Police was limited to this extent.

Inspector Nakamori's sudden change of tactics surprised him somewhat, but that was all.

Top magicians wouldn't allow uncertainties to affect their performance.

He was still the better one, having made thorough preparations from the very beginning.

He even went to a shrine to draw a fortune stick for this reason.

Kidd held a piece of paper that swayed in the wind, his white gloves gripping it.

"Xiao Ji—the plan will be seen through."

Ha, not at all.

And what good is it if the plan is exposed?
If he were to be seen through, he...

"From the lion of dusk to the maiden of dawn, when the clock without a second hand strikes the twelfth character..."

The chanting that suddenly came from the escalator below made Kidd's smile freeze.

That brat named Conan?

“You completely tricked me. It’s neither English nor Russian, but the 12th character, へ, which means 7:20 p.m.

“It’s a wonder you managed to find your way here,” Kidd said, loosening his fingers from the slip of paper. “I wasn’t playing you guys; you just overcomplicated things.”

"call!"

The wind intensified at the top of the tower, and Kid looked down at Conan, whose figure had been revealed below.

"But why would a glowing sky pavilion come here? It should be the Tower of Heaven, right? I even prepared a grand opening ceremony there."

“Someone asked me to pass on a message to you,” Conan said, hands in his pockets, without giving a direct answer, “Magicians shouldn’t cause trouble for the audience. Your father would never do something like causing a power outage in the city.”

"Eh?"

Kidd's fingers, which were holding the remote control, froze completely.

(End of this chapter)