Conan: Death is Watching Me

Chapter 304 Vodka: Okay, bro!
Gunma Prefecture, Itakura Takuya wooden villa.

12 o'clock midnight.

The wind and snow had obscured visibility, and it was much fiercer than over in Mihua.

Despite the biting cold wind, Conan, who was in a villa deep in the mountains, was drenched in sweat.

In the case of Itakura Taku, he successfully copied the other party's diary and found the hidden information in the diary. He learned that Itakura Taku had left the unfinished software and the advance payment check from the organization next to the computer in the villa, and that the organization would send an email at 12 o'clock.

Itakura Taku originally planned to use this time to raise funds and escape Japan, but he was unexpectedly murdered by his clients.

"Hey, what's going on?"

Vodka's scolding voice came from the phone, which had been switched to answering machine mode.

"Are you there? Speak up! What happened?"

Conan stared intently at the phone, his face beaded with sweat.

He didn't expect that the emails sent by the organization were password-protected, and that they would disappear if the password wasn't entered within 10 seconds.

His actions just now must have been known to the organization.

"Answer me!" Vodka shouted impatiently. "I know you're in that villa. You're not thinking of running away, are you?"

Conan swallowed hard, switched his voice changer to Itakura Taku's voice, and answered the phone: "Sorry, I couldn't find the phone in the dark. It seems there's a power outage here because of the blizzard, and I couldn't open my emails because of that..."

“Hmph,” Vodka said without a doubt, “who told you to go to a villa deep in the mountains to collect the mail?”

"But how did you know I was in the villa?"

Conan observed the snow and wind outside through the window, secretly wrote in his notebook, then turned on his watch light and asked Professor Agasa, who was sweating profusely beside him, to turn on the light.

“Haha,” Vodka said smugly, “Your every move is under our control, so don’t even think about running away.”

"Have you been monitoring this villa all along?"

"Don't be afraid. We said we wouldn't monitor you anymore, and our people left a long time ago..."

"Okay, I can't use the computer right now, so just tell me the time and place to give you the software."

Conan breathed a sigh of relief.

Although it was a bit risky, the fact that the other party didn't react after the lights were turned on meant that there really wasn't anyone watching them.

“There’s no other way,” the person on the other end of the phone replied. “Listen carefully, I’ll only say this once: the meeting place is Xianqiao Station, which is still under construction. Meet at midnight tomorrow on the lowest level of that station, in front of locker number 0032. Don’t forget to bring that software…”

“No,” Conan interrupted, “I’m not available tomorrow. I have a heart condition, and I’ve already been admitted to the hospital for tests. I’ll probably be hospitalized for three or four days, maybe even more than five…”

"Are you kidding me?"

Vodka snapped at him angrily.

"I can't wait that long. You either postpone your admission or send the software over before 4 p.m. today!"

"4 o'clock? You want me to drive from Gunma to Tokyo in 4 hours?"

"Is it not working? Or did you not even finish the software?"

"N-nothing like that," Conan's acting skills kicked in. "I understand. I'll be at that station before 4 o'clock. But you're not allowed to lie in ambush there. If I see any of your accomplices, you're not getting the software!"

"Hmph, you're really paranoid. Anyway, see you in four hours."

"beep!"

After hanging up the phone, Conan couldn't help but smile, a triumphant and confident grin spreading across his face.

"They've taken the bait. Move the transaction time to 4 o'clock so they won't know that Itakura Taku has been murdered... Doctor, quickly erase all traces of our presence here, and then hurry to Tokyo."

"You really want to make a deal with them?" the doctor stammered.

This is too bold.

“You’re a child now, and I’m a decrepit old man…”

"Don't worry, of course I won't meet with them directly. As long as I confirm that the software disc contains the information used to commit serious crimes, I can notify the police and ask them to ambush at the transaction location."

Conan smiled as he dealt with the marks, his eyes filled with excitement.

"Maybe we can wipe them all out in one fell swoop."

"What if there's nothing on the software CD?" the doctor worried.

“It would be more troublesome if we didn’t have any evidence of their crimes. Without evidence, the police would only send two or three officers at most. If they don’t send a large number of officers, it could actually make things worse.” Conan returned to the Beetle, inserted the CD into his laptop, and sweat broke out on his face again.

"This seems to be the worst-case scenario. The disc also requires a password to open. Although it's somewhat dangerous, we have no other choice now. Let's abandon the capture and gather more clues first..."

Conan, who had been relatively calm, suddenly became serious.

"Doctor, there are less than 4 hours left. We must hurry and get to that station ahead of time."

"Shinichi..."

Dr. Agasa regretted not telling Gao Mo.

That way, Conan might not have had the chance to come to the villa.

“Professor, I’m serious,” Conan seemed to see through Professor Agasa’s thoughts. “I can understand what Kido and Ai Haibara are thinking, but running away and waiting won’t solve the problem. This opportunity is too rare, and besides, I’m not going to confront those guys head-on.”

……

Tokyo.

Gao Mo laid the unconscious Gin down on the front seat, took the phone from his pocket, dialed Vodka's number, and quickly switched to Gin's hoarse, low, and indifferent voice.

"How are you doing over there?"

“Brother, I was just about to have someone inform you,” Vodka said casually. “The delivery time has been moved up to 4 a.m., but the location remains the same—in front of the lockers in the basement of Xianqiao Station.”

"The time has been moved up?"

“Yes, because he didn’t receive the email, I called to ask. The guy said he was going to be hospitalized for the next few days, so I told him to come at 4 a.m.

Vodka confidently reports.

"Don't worry, brother, I guarantee I'll handle this properly. Considering that the guy might be scared and call the police, I've brought in a few more people. After the deal, we won't let that guy leave alive."

“The FBI guys are keeping a close eye on things lately, so the others don’t need to go. I happen to have some questions for you, so wait for me over there.”

"Okay, big brother!"

The vodka on the other end sounded very excited.

At this moment, Gin suddenly showed signs of waking up, his eyelids twitched slightly, and Gao Mo, noticing this, quickly added a punch.

"boom!"

"Big brother?" Vodka vaguely heard some noise. "What's that sound coming from your end?"

"Nothing much, just a dead dog, I knocked it down." Gao Mo punched Gin in the eye again, and this time he was completely knocked out.

“Hey, that dead dog deserves a beating,” Vodka chuckled. “Then I won’t bother you any longer, brother. See you at Xianqiao Station.”

"Beep!"

Gao Mo calmly hung up the phone and glanced at Gin, who had fallen unconscious again.

Does vodka ever act alone?

He had always thought the two were inseparable.

It was still early, so Gao Mo gave Gin an anesthetic injection as a precaution. Considering the guy's strong constitution, he increased the dosage.

Luckily, there was still some tape left in the car, so we used it to wrap up Gin at the end.

There's no need to worry about leaving fingerprints.

His current disguise skills are so advanced that unless you physically examine him closely, it's difficult to find any flaws.

The fingerprints were, of course, also processed.

After confirming that there were no problems, Gao Mo took out his toolbox again, and by the time he left the alley, he had changed his clothes again.

This time it's Gin's appearance.

Same trench coat, long hair, same cold face.

With level 5 makeup skills, level 5 acting skills, and numerous disguise talents, even Gin himself couldn't tell the difference.

It's a pity that Gin's car was in an accident, otherwise he would have driven it directly to Xianqiao Station.

Now we can only walk there, but fortunately it's not far.

(End of this chapter)