The Pirated Onmyoji of the Detective World

"Actually..."

Although it was a little awkward, Conan still explained to Yuu Aragaki what the people had just been doing.

Ayumi and the others, who had expected to be criticized, all hung their heads, looking dejected.

After all, it is wrong to take these shopping receipts without someone's consent.

"Oh?" Unexpectedly, after listening to Conan's explanation, Aragaki Yu praised the group with some curiosity, "It's really a very creative game, truly amazing."

It must be said that these kids in the Junior Detective Club are indeed quite creative in some ways.

These kinds of simple games that require some brainpower and have no cost are much more meaningful than video games, aren't they?

When this is mentioned, Yuya Aragaki inevitably thinks of Yoto Hime, who is still lazing at home playing games.

It's one thing to play by myself, but even Yuki-onna and the others were forcibly kept behind by Yoto-hime.

Honestly, judging from this, Yaodao-hime isn't even as good as these kids!

"what?"

Conan, Ayumi, and the others were clearly somewhat surprised by Aragaki Yu's reaction.

Just as they looked at Aragaki Yu with surprise, they found that he was also looking at the stack of shopping receipts that Conan had just stuffed into his hand, muttering to the list on the top receipt, "Betty knife, plastic cutting board, grater, dustpan, gloves, rope, black plastic bag..."

The first part of the receipt looks normal, but the second part looks a bit strange.

Even Conan subconsciously raised an eyebrow, after all, knives, gloves, and ropes are indeed things that make one very suspicious.

However, these items could also be household goods that someone bought after moving, which is quite possible.

Just as Conan was trying to dispel his doubts, Aragaki Yu's next words made his heart skip a beat.

Yuu Aragaki flipped to the second receipt and said with a slight surprise, "Oh? It seems this person isn't feeling well, he even went to the pharmacy. Let me see what he bought... Croney?"

Upon seeing this thing, Aragaki Yu's expression suddenly turned strange.

Conan's emotions also became noticeably agitated. "Aragaki-nii-san, what did you say? Croney!? Let me see him!"

At this moment, Conan, who seemed to have forgotten his identity as a child, jumped up and snatched the receipt from Aragaki Yu's hand. Looking at the pharmacy receipt, he confirmed, "It really is Croney!"

Unlike Yuu Aragaki, who watched Conan's tense expression with amusement, Ayumi, Mitsuhiko, and Genta were clearly startled by Conan's sudden action.

Genta asked with some confusion, "Conan, what's going on? What exactly is this drug called 'Ke'?"

At this moment, Conan's expression became somewhat serious, but he still explained in a scientific manner: "It is a colorless or white crystal. People usually use it for skin disinfection and sterilization, but the problem is that it also has a special use."

"What special use is it?" Conan successfully piqued the curiosity of the Junior Detective League members.

“Cronane is extremely poisonous!” Conan said, stroking his chin.

The juvenile detectives had seen quite a few cases, so when they heard this, they all got excited. "Is this poison?"

"Oh, no, usually it's used as bait to make mole dumplings to scare away moles," Conan muttered, looking at the stack of receipts in his hand. "And the ingredients needed for mole dumplings... are the same ones Genta just mentioned!"

"So that's how it is!"

Hearing Conan say that, the children visibly relaxed.

Genta chuckled and scratched his head, saying, "This person must have bought these things to scare away moles!"

However, Conan was not very satisfied with this answer. He glanced at Genta with some helplessness and said, "Genta, do you think there would be moles in big cities?"

"Y-yes, that's right!" Genta awkwardly stopped scratching the back of his head, but then became embarrassed again. "But Conan, what is a mole...?"

"Forehead……"

Genta's ignorance was so profound that not only Conan, but even Mitsuhiko and Ayumi were almost stunned by his lack of knowledge.

“But then again, it’s really unlikely that moles would appear in a place like Beika Town, but you might have a chance to see a few rats.” Aragaki Yu also helped Genta out of the predicament at this time.

Chapter 558 Could it be that Xiao Lan...

“In that case, it must be used to disinfect the skin!” Ayumi interjected with a smile. “As for potatoes and onions, they can be used to make cream soup!”

Yuu Aragaki nodded in agreement, then smiled and gently patted Ayumi's head as she leaned in, watching her happy expression.

Then, he looked at Conan with some curiosity, squinting his eyes as he asked, "But Conan, how do you know about something like Croney? I don't think elementary school textbooks teach about this!"

"cough!"

Conan, who had just been earnestly explaining things to everyone, was also taken aback upon hearing this. He was startled and completely forgot that Yuu Aragaki was also by his side. He was used to hanging out with the group of kids in the Detective Boys.

Seeing the suspicious look in Aragaki Yu's eyes, Conan broke out in a cold sweat. He quickly came up with a quick explanation: "Actually, Uncle Mori once encountered a case where this drug was used to poison stray cats!"

"I see!"

Although Conan's expression was full of flaws at this moment, Yuu Aragaki nodded as if he suddenly realized something.

After all, having known Conan's identity for a long time, he just wanted to scare the kid a little bit every day.

However, unlike Ayumi's thoughts, Conan, who had witnessed countless cases, naturally imagined a scenario based on the items on these receipts—

Kidnapping, poisoning, burying the body...

Thinking of this, Conan's expression turned grim. At this moment, he could no longer blame Aragaki Yu for having doubts. He nervously explained to everyone, "I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen. We must find that person as soon as possible."

The children, who had nothing to do to begin with, naturally had no objections to Conan's suggestion.

Yuu Aragaki glanced at the receipts in Conan's hand and suggested, "I think we might be able to find clues about that person from the stores listed on these shopping receipts."

"Yeah, that makes sense." Conan nodded in response, and at the same time found the pharmacy receipt. "3:20 PM, Kobayashi Satoshi Pharmacy, manager is Arai Masako."

The other receipts, though from different locations and at different times, were all undoubtedly recent shopping records in the area.

After careful consideration, Conan quickly decided to investigate the pharmacy called Kobayashi Satoshi.

"Hey, Aragaki-nii, aren't you coming with us?"

Just as Ayumi was about to turn around and leave with Conan and the others, she noticed Aragaki Yu standing there motionless, carrying a bag.

Conan, who was originally at the forefront, turned around after hearing these words.

“Go ahead, but if you linger outside for too long, the things you buy won’t be fresh!” Aragaki Yu explained to the children. “Of course, if you notice anything wrong, you can let me know immediately.”

The soy sauce and onions in the bag don't matter, but the fish and shrimp will definitely be affected in quality if they stay outside for too long.

When he gets back, he'll inevitably get a lecture from Ai Haibara, since she's putting in a tremendous amount of effort to show off her skills to her sister.

If Yuki-onna, this portable refrigerator, were with her, it would be fine, but the problem is that she just happened to be left at home by Yoto-hime to play games with her.

Thinking about this, Aragaki Yu's resentment towards Yaodao-hime intensified.

As for the safety of these children...

With Conan around, is there anything to worry about?

That would definitely be extremely dangerous!

Ah, no...

Yuu Aragaki wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead and silently dismissed the impolite thought from his mind.

By this time, he had roughly recalled the cases that Conan and his friends had encountered because of these shopping receipts.

The other party was not a vicious criminal.

Although I didn't buy the Kroni for any skin disinfection purposes.

But it was only because a dog would bark incessantly at him whenever he took a walk on his favorite route.

So, having been quite frightened, he had long harbored the idea of ​​killing the dog.

It just so happens that the other party recently read about the uses of mole balls in a book, and then yesterday afternoon when passing by the family that kept dogs, they happened to hear that the whole family was going to travel and stay overnight, so they hurriedly bought those things to kill the dog.

These petty thieves are easy for Conan to handle.

It just takes some time to investigate, collect evidence, and find the other party's whereabouts.

These are also the things that Aragaki Yu finds most troublesome.

Instead of wasting time worrying about these things, you should go back and see what delicious food Ai Haibara has made.

Besides, even if they catch such criminals, the police won't give much of a reward!

Even the food supplies for Yuki-onna and her companions, such as Daruma, are not guaranteed.

Yuu Aragaki has little interest in things that don't offer any reward.

.........

Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko all wore expressions of regret.

To be honest, the three of them really liked Aragaki Yu, their older brother.

I was originally planning to take this opportunity to show off the Junior Detective League's abilities in front of him.

As for Conan, he glanced at Aragaki Yuu a couple more times with some suspicion.

Normally, Aragaki Yu is quite interested in these kinds of cases, but this time he seems to be completely uninterested.

Could it be that he has something more important to do that he can't do?

At this moment, Conan also suddenly had doubts.

However, his doubts immediately vanished after he saw the shopping bag that Aragaki Yu was carrying.