Conan: I'm Really Not Tokyo Ghost Story

He didn't seem like an ordinary passerby; otherwise, he seemed like that kind of person.

A strange sense of incongruity?

Sano couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong with it.

Hmm... Could it be that he was actually an assassin, just using a roundabout method?

"Big Black, go keep an eye on things."

Under Sano's arrangement.

Big Black went to the hospital to monitor Hanako, while Little Black, Little Girl, and Little Fatty were picked up by Yellow Hair—but this part was divided into several layers.

On the surface.

From the perspective of the affirmative side, it's not surprising that the blond-haired guy, as a neighbor, would come to help.

Not to mention, the relationship between Sano and Kokushi is still somewhat ambiguous.

From the opposing perspective.

Sano and Kuroneko knew each other and had helped each other before, under these circumstances.

What's so strange about paying someone to do something?

In secret.

At the Black Cat Zoo, everyone thought it was Black Reaper, or that the Yorozuya directly commissioned the project and applied to their boss for collaborative protection... Although the people at the zoo didn't know whether the Yorozuya's commission had an employer behind it or some other situation, the Yorozuya was in a similar situation, assuming that the other party had taken the initiative.

Because Sano did not explain the details to either side at all.

Only the blond-haired guy, while surprised by the person he was supposed to protect, felt... well...

That's roughly the idea.

Of course, even so, there is still a risk of leakage, but that's something for the future.

Who cares.

What matters is the present moment, the things at hand.

Sano logged onto the computer and, after a series of operations, arrived at the European section of the professional assassin platform.

Chapter 637 The Out-of-River Dragon and the Local Snake

Soon, Sano found the so-called bounty, which was actually a public mission without specifying the target. Whoever could complete it would get paid, similar to an official wanted poster, the only difference being...

The real purpose of an arrest warrant is to remind the public of the danger posed by the wanted target.

The desire to arrest people relies on the public's sense of crisis and sense of justice.

For a bounty to be effective, it can only be done with money, just like this.

The top row of zeros and the last dollar sign.

It really does look a bit dazzling...

Sano himself was almost tempted, wondering if he should hand himself over for the money.

cough.

Of course, that won't work.

Because the employer doesn't want him alive, even if Sano wants to capture himself.

Therefore, it is impossible to reach them by touching them.

Closer to home.

This so-called bounty notice, apart from a bounty amount that looks frightening, only contains a photo of Sano's face and a sentence.

Explanation of the content of "regardless of life or death".

The information is indeed too limited, unless you're in Japan or someone who happens to know about the existence of Sano, the famous high school detective.

It's unlikely they'll be coming here anytime soon.

However, besides this, another thing that Sano was particularly concerned about was this photo.

Despite being very careful about protecting Sano's privacy in all reports involving him.

But if someone is determined, they can always get their hands on the photos.

However, this photo is neither a passport photo like those in official archives, nor was it taken secretly while Sano wasn't paying attention...

Of course, judging from the photos, they were taken secretly.

In the photo, Sano appears to be standing by the roadside waiting for someone, wearing a black hoodie with the hood up, if it weren't for the face inside that looks a bit off.

Sano suspected that someone had secretly taken the photo of him while he was wearing a rye vest.

The key point is the background, which is unfamiliar but feels very distinctive.

After thinking for a moment, Sano pulled up the photo and immediately searched for the location. He then discovered that the place in the background appeared to be a famous town in Europe.

...without a name, only a photograph, clothing and appearance never seen by her original identity, and European regions never visited by her original identity.

Hmm... if we exclude this photo, it's a picture of Sano's original form before he came.

I have this feeling.

It seems that the person for whom the bounty is actually placed is not actually himself?

Sano frowned, gently rubbing his left thumb against his index finger. Was it simply because they looked too alike, or was it a disguise, deliberately attracting hatred for him?

However, this part is too deep.

Sano's current tasks are dealing with the impending assassin and the root cause—his employer.

However, there was very little information available.

Aside from the three police officers who acted on impulse, the first wave of over a dozen people were all taken back to the Metropolitan Police Department by Inspector Megure's men after the two attacks.

The interrogation yielded no results.

It's not much different from the second wave, except that their identities are different.

Therefore, all Sano could do was wait, wait for more and more assassins to arrive, and for them to become more and more powerful. Only then could he wait for an assassin who might be of a higher rank and know some inside information, and then follow the clues to find the source.

"Dong dong."

The knocking sounded, and Sano immediately closed his laptop and quietly crouched by the door to avoid being shot dead by the person outside.

"who."

"It's me, Sano."

The voice sounds familiar... could it be Wataru Takagi?

"What's up."

"Ah, the officer also thought your method of using the outside as bait to lure targets was good, but it was too dangerous for you to do it alone, so he arranged for a few of us to lie in wait nearby. We've already persuaded all the residents in this area to leave, except for those we couldn't contact. The only place willing to let us use their houses is Mr. Amuro's downstairs, so I'm planning to stay in your house as your bodyguard..."

"No need, stay away, don't expose yourself."

Sano was too lazy to say anything more, so he ended the conversation and went back to bed.

...To be honest, Sano doesn't really want the police to get involved right now.

The reason, of course, is that it's in the way.

As mentioned before, Sano does not trust the Metropolitan Police Department's capabilities.

Let alone these rookies, even Amuro Tooru's Japanese Public Security Bureau...

Apart from Amuro Tooru, Sano also had no expectations.

If these people were here, they might not only fail to help Sano, but they might also hold him back. For example, in some situations, he might have to rescue people instead of being rescued, or he might be unable to reveal something deeper.

A little troublesome.

Or maybe I should just take matters into my own hands, kill these guys, and then frame those assassins... Sano couldn't help but think of that, but it was just a thought.

Even if Sano really wanted to frame someone, he would only do so when the assassins actually took action and he was truly forced to.

Otherwise, it's not about lightening the burden, but about adding trouble for yourself.

"Erhei, I'm leaving you to keep watch."

After giving him some instructions, Sano went straight to sleep.

As the old saying goes, there's no such thing as being able to guard against thieves for a thousand days, only to be a thief for a thousand days.

Although Sano usually maintains a half-hearted vigilance, he still becomes alert at crucial moments, but this is the situation.

It wasn't much better than usual.

With numerous aliases and identities, including those of the organization, the police, the FBI, the CIA, and various other forces that Sano has offended, it's no surprise that he has many enemies. If he were to suddenly expose something or discover a fatal flaw, leading to an attack, it wouldn't be surprising.

In comparison, the Japanese assassins were drawn to the country by the bounty of zero.

It just seems a little lacking.

Furthermore, he felt at ease having Erhei watching Sano—in fact, he had originally considered whether to have Erhei hide on the little girl's body to keep watch instead of Erhei, but then he thought again that the assassin's purpose was to assassinate.

There's no guarantee they won't poison you, so it's best to keep it on yourself.

With Xiao Hei keeping an eye on things over there, that's enough.

And beneath this tranquility...

Two days passed just like that.

Over the past two days, things have been calm on the surface for Sano.

Of course, in reality.

Several waves of assassins have already come.

However, before these rookies could even get close to Sano, they were handcuffed by the police lying in ambush, and they didn't even manage to cause much of a commotion.

To prevent Conan and his gang from getting involved outside of the police force, Sano, citing reasons such as "preventing riots" and "preventing the fish from taking the bait," instructed the police to temporarily maintain secrecy and told the public that nothing was wrong.

"Master, there's a commotion outside!"

While fast asleep, Sano was once again woken up by Erhei's exclusive wake-up service, who bit his ear.