Conan: I'm Really Not Tokyo Ghost Story

After raising his head thoughtfully, Sano pulled himself out of his reverie and continued watching the criminals who seemed to be participating in a World Cup match, having scored a goal and won the game, cheering and shouting jubilantly.

It wasn't until about ten seconds later that these guys finally realized something was wrong and gradually quieted down.

"...I hit it, right?"

Looking at Sano, who was still standing there upright, the criminal who had hit him on the shoulder couldn't help but start to doubt himself.

"Yes, it hit."

Sano nodded in affirmation, clapping his hands gently like a kindergarten teacher and praising, "So you're great! You'll be rewarded later by hanging higher than them."

"..."

A moment of silence fell over the group, and they all felt somewhat numb.

I finally managed to hit one shot, but it was like I missed. What the hell is the point of playing?!

"what!"

A few minutes later, all nine criminals were hung on the streetlights.

Chapter 225, page 224: What outrageous operation?

One of them was hung particularly high, almost as if he were tied to the top.

It looks particularly eye-catching and prominent.

Yes, if we agree to give the other person a reward, then we must give them a reward.

Sano always keeps his word!

After Asai Narumi, who had helped hang the person up, let out a breath, he looked at Sano on the other side, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

As a spectator who had witnessed the entire battle, which resembled a performance by elementary school students, Asai Narumi had a lot to say, but didn't know how to say it, so in the end she could only remain silent.

"Well then, that's settled. If you need any help like this in the future, feel free to call me anytime."

Sano waved goodbye to Asai Narumi and continued with his work.

Then a new day, a new task.

And it was also a long-awaited school assignment.

...Luckily, Sano didn't receive such a task when he was hospitalized in the psychiatric ward.

Otherwise, what to do is a real big problem.

As his injuries have healed well, Sano was discharged from the hospital and returned home a couple of days ago, making him more free and mobile.

So when Sano arrived at school, both Ran Mouri and Sonoko Suzuki were quite surprised.

"Senior, what brings you to school?"

Of course, it wasn't just these two who were surprised; Sano's homeroom teacher was also taken aback.

Because of Sano's current special circumstances and the subtle changes brought about by his incident with Kazato Kyosuke, the newspapers did not explicitly mention his name.

As Sano's homeroom teacher, I did know some of the inside story.

Putting everything else aside, the homeroom teacher knew everything about Sano's injuries.

Although Sano is not in any danger at the moment and has even been discharged from the hospital, this does not mean that his condition is very good.

Even though he was injured like this, he still insisted on coming to school.

That guy Sano...

I've really developed a love for learning!

The homeroom teacher was deeply moved and spent the whole day showing concern for Sano, bringing him tea and water.

Sano was sleeping in class... After all, he was busy catching people last night and didn't sleep at all.

The homeroom teacher would always ask you if you were cold, whether you wanted to close the window, or put on a coat.

Sano acted as if he were some pampered princess, with no dangerous elements allowed within a five-meter radius, as if they were afraid he would bump into something.

Sano was somewhat speechless about this.

...After all, Sano only has one hand that's not very convenient right now. How can it be made to sound like he's completely paralyzed and has a congenital heart condition that could kill him at any moment?

It's so awkward.

Until noon, when the homeroom teacher even tried to take Suzuki Sonoko away and personally feed Sano, he finally couldn't take it anymore, said goodbye, and left first.

Of course, the reason Sano chose to run away was not only because he couldn't resist the homeroom teacher's enthusiasm, but more importantly, because a new task had come up.

[Please rescue the innocent elementary school student who is about to be murdered. Completion will earn you 50 enhancement points. Time remaining for the mission: 1:59:59.]

There's not much to say, it's just about saving a child within two hours.

For Sano, this type of task could already be considered a routine task.

Furthermore, this is a rare instance of a mission during this period offering only a double-digit reward, highlighting the difficulty involved.

Upon reaching a secluded spot, Sano changed his disguise, donned the cat demon headdress, and entered black cat form before heading towards the mission objective.

Then Sano arrived at a high-end apartment.

Speaking of which, isn't today a school day? Or is this mission unrelated to that jinx, Conan?

Sano looked up at the building in front of him, his black tail swayed, and he quickened his pace to stick to the foot of a girl who was just about to enter, meowing softly.

With his exceptionally good looks, even as a cat, Sano successfully secured a temporary tool. After sneaking into the apartment, he immediately abandoned the person and went to the floor where his target was located.

Is it in this room?

Upon arriving at the apartment where the target was located, there was still about half of the mission time limit remaining.

Before Sano could decide whether to force his way in or try another approach first, a man wearing a helmet walked out from the end of the corridor.

……helmet??

Sano watched as the helmeted man walked to the door of the apartment where his mission target was located, rang the doorbell, and took out tools from his pocket. He fell into a brief silence.

This is... a car crash?

Did we just happen to encounter the arrival of a dangerous factor?

Never mind, I might as well go in with them and save myself the trouble.

"Ok?"

The helmeted man noticed the cat beside him, clicked his tongue, and was about to kick it when the door lock was pried open. He didn't care and immediately pushed the door open.

Sano seized the opportunity and squeezed through the crack in the door.

The helmeted man cursed "stinky cat" but didn't seem to care. He went inside and locked the door again.

Following the GPS, Sano quickly arrived at a room and saw Ayumi hiding under the bed.

...So it was this little girl.

Ayumi also noticed Sano, the black cat, but she couldn't care less about that now. She just curled up, her face pale, her reddened eyes filled with fear.

As the helmeted man approached from inside the living room, Sano quickly scrambled under the bed and huddled next to Ayumi.

Anyway, there's still a long time before the mission deadline, so there's no rush. Let's wait and see.

The helmeted man entered Ayumi's room, chuckled sinisterly, and said, "Found you, little kid," before opening the wardrobe next to him in an attempt to create tension.

The result, of course, was empty.

"Tsk, are you overthinking it?"

The helmeted man muttered something to himself, then turned and walked out of the room.

Seeing the helmeted man's legs disappear, Ayumi visibly breathed a sigh of relief, then carefully began to climb out, pulling Sano out as well, and hiding him in the wardrobe that the helmeted man had just checked.

Hmm, you're smart enough to know this place has just been checked and it's unlikely to attract attention again.

Is it a bit silly to bring in a cat you don't even know... or even if you did know it, just to avoid the problem?

A moment of confusion after being suddenly pulled out, Sano came to his senses and began to examine whether Ayumi's actions were right or wrong.

If I were just an ordinary stray cat, wouldn't I be exposed if I moved around or made any noise?

He was still too young. In fear, he instinctively grabbed the only living thing to seek a sense of security.

Of course, there is another possibility besides this.

That is, Ayumi wanted to use Sano, the stray cat, so that when the helmeted man was about to discover her, she would let the cat out and pretend that it was the cat that made the noise.

...Although Sano didn't think Ayumi had such a mind.

Moreover, even if Ayumi really had such thoughts, the disadvantages outweighed the advantages, as the uncontrollability was too great.

Sano then turned his attention to an alarm clock and a detective badge that Ayumi had taken into the wardrobe when they moved to a new location.

The latter is understandable; it's probably intended for calling for help. But what is the former for?

Under Sano's somewhat curious gaze, Ayumi first activated her detective badge, then adjusted the alarm clock, pressed a button, and the alarm clock began to chime.

"..."

Damn, Sano thought that after being harmed by Conan, that plague god, so many times, Ayumi had become more experienced and started to get smarter.

Unexpectedly, he still managed to court disaster.

Who are they taking for a deaf person?

What's the difference between this and directly telling the helmeted man outside that there's someone in the closet inside the room?

Sano was completely bewildered by Ayumi's outrageous actions.

It wasn't until the voices of the other squad members echoed through the detective badge that Sano... began to understand, just a little bit, the reason behind Ayumi's actions.

It turned out that Ayumi had caught a cold and had a fever, which also made her hoarse, so she couldn't speak or call for help. That's why the little girl didn't go to school today and stayed home to rest.

...Even so, you can't rely on an alarm clock to contact someone, isn't that putting the cart before the horse?

Chapter 226, Part 225: Come out and get reimbursed, Gin!

Anyway, Sano put himself in Ayumi's shoes. If he were in that kind of environment and situation, he would most likely choose to stay there and wait for the helmeted man to leave.