invisible signal

"If that's the case, it's too unfriendly." The strange thief said that he hates the guy who puts a cold gun. "If you buy an afternoon tea, I might consider it..."

"Hey, what about the principle?" Kudo didn't bother to complain, "But Lianzai's point makes perfect sense. I don't know if you've heard such a sentence..."

"I love you, what does it have to do with you?"

"……what?"

Kudo, who realized that what he said was wrong, suddenly lost his position, "You... don't get me wrong? This is just an example, an example!"

"Well..." The strange thief felt like his heart was about to stop beating, "I've heard this sentence before... But what does the famous detective want to express?"

"Since the other party is only interested in your ability, what they need you to do has nothing to do with your personal wishes."

"It's very relevant!" Due to the pressure of the environment, the strange thief couldn't refute loudly, "I don't obey, what can they do?"

"Simple, there are countless ways to make people obey without dying," Kudo accidentally entered the state of "criminal plan" again, "Need me to explain it to you in detail?"

"No... no need." The strange thief shrank his neck, "In short, what you mean is that they just want me to do things for them?" His tone was tinged with disdain, "What if I would rather die than submit?"

"Let's deal with it," Kudo said lightly, "You saw it just now."

"..."

"But I'm still alive right now?" The strange thief suddenly recalled the topic he talked about at the beginning, "Since I'm so valuable, why, uh... throw it away?"

"As I said before, there are internal conflicts." Kudo bit his nails, "Maybe there are people you know among them." He paused, "People who know you (accent)."

When it comes to the issue of identity again, even if the strange thief wants to avoid it again, he can't care so much at this time.

People who know their identity on the premise that they are phantom thieves belong to hostile forces, and are unwilling to harm themselves for some reason...

Hell, there are.

"I probably know who it is, although I'm not sure..."

"Oh?" As a detective, Kudo didn't know much about Kaitou's social circle. "What kind of person is it?"

"I've said that I'm not sure..." The strange thief had a headache, "But for you, you are also an old acquaintance."

Hey, it can't be such a coincidence...even if it's a negative coincidence.

"Are you kidding me?"

"So it's just a guess." The strange thief lowered his voice and looked around, but there was nothing unusual. "She is probably the only one who can make such a big move."

If it was her decision, the people under her probably wouldn't dare to disobey it or report it.

"I have a question," Kudo interrupted the Phantom Thief's train of thought, "What's your relationship with her?"

It is no coincidence that the strange thief can be related to the people of the organization.

"Well, she once learned how to disguise herself with her father, and she met a few times when she was a child..." The strange thief still vaguely remembered some scenes, "It can be said that it is... the feeling of a fellow student?"

"I do not know how……"

"The gathering place for every operation is your home. When did you come to my house?" The strange thief rolled his eyes.

"..." Something about the Boy Detective Corps period?Kudo said that he really didn't remember clearly. "I told you, I don't even know your name..."

"Okay, okay, it's not important," the strange thief who noticed that the topic was going in a weird direction stopped, "The most urgent thing is how to get out from here."

"I don't want to hide in this ghost place for the rest of my life."

"Actually, I have a plan."

"Let's talk about it." It's not the time to worry about the past.

"Since they don't use this place as their main base, there will always be people who leave before dawn." He walked to the other side of the building, "Ah, the lights on that side disappeared."

"what do you mean?"

"Even if you can't find transportation, I can politely give you a ride..."

"It's better not to do that," Kudo objected to the plan, "it's too risky."

"How will you know if you don't try..."

"No, no—"

Before the detective could finish his sentence, he heard the sound of some equipment starting up.

It sounded like a mechanical sound of some kind of door being opened.

The strange thief, who was completely unprepared, was startled by the sudden situation, and his exclamation even echoed in the space.

What appeared before his eyes was a small but empty parking lot.

However, before he had time to report the situation, his voice was drowned out by the sound of dense bullets.

The strange thief who suddenly appeared in this sensitive area is really too conspicuous.

Listening to the sound of stray bullets hitting the wall that was close at hand, Kudo gritted his teeth.

very close.

Dangerous, but not fatal.

The plan should have been proposed earlier.

For a moment, he seemed to hear the nervous panting of the phantom thief.

Don't...don't worry.

【Final call】

After the strong auditory impact, any remaining sound in the environment seems to be silent.

Prominent, yet non-existent.

Of course, for Shinichi Kudo, he desperately wants to hear any sound other than the silence.

It doesn't matter if you scream, scream, or whimper, as long as it is a sound that symbolizes "alive", it's fine.

please.

please.

"...hiss...ha..."

The silent state after the impact only lasted less than a minute, but under the specific situation of no picture and no information, the same waiting for Kudo's suffering increased exponentially.So when the voice came again, his voice was almost out of control.

"How are you?!"

"Speak! Hey!"

"Hiss...don't make any noise," the Phantom Thief's tone didn't sound too unusual, "They're still nearby, don't expose me..."

A huge sense of peace of mind came over, and Kudo felt his tense joints lose strength for a moment.

"Are you... injured?" This was the last question he wanted to ask.

"..." The strange thief didn't answer immediately, as if he was looking for an excuse.

"It really hurt, right? Where did it hurt?!"

"Ahem, calm down, detective," the strange thief had already discarded the cloak that hindered his actions, "it's not... that kind of injury." Even in such a state of desperation, he still didn't give up the opportunity to tease, "Is it still true?" Well, I react quickly..."

"Where did it hurt?" The detective's question was still persistent.

"...Shoulder," the strange thief said calmly, "it's just a scratch, it doesn't affect the movement at all..."

"Can you be a little more concerned about your own situation?!" Realizing that he was out of control, Kudo tried hard to suppress the trembling of his voice, "I'm... seriously worried."

"So...it's really not that serious," the strange thief pressed the clothes on his shoulders to press the wound, "it's just... a little bleeding."

"Has the bleeding stopped?"

"Don't worry, I won't die..."

"I asked you, did you stop the bleeding?!"

Frightened by the detective's rare and long-lost strength, the monster thief had to hold the badge tightly in the palm of his hand to prevent the sound from spreading while avoiding the search.

"As I said, detective," the pain of the wound has been almost blocked by the nervous system at this moment, "so far, 'survival' is the top priority."

The detective made no rebuttal.The Kaitou's uncharacteristically complete lack of cooperation made him feel something was wrong.

The communication continues to the present, and what the current Kaitou shows is the true sense of self-willedness.

"There's nothing wrong with a little blood loss," the tone of the strange thief didn't seem to be joking, "It looks more like a corpse, doesn't it?"

"What are you talking about..." Kudo said so, but he didn't want to admit the possibility he had guessed.

Pretending, deceiving the other party, hitchhiking... risky, messy, unreasonable.

But it is a plan that can be implemented.

Maybe...he had other plans?

He heard the sound of soil turning over the comm.

"what are you doing?"

"We're here anyway, leave a gift for them," the strange thief didn't stop, "Even if it's a base of this level, it can still be a responsible..."

"Wait for me..." Kudo closed his eyes helplessly as the phantom thief completely ignored his actions.

"Detective," the phantom thief flipped through the soft and damp soil, "I'm just... providing information to the best of my ability."

"It's not necessary at all, that kind of information..."

"Lie." The strange thief looked at the badge in his hand and frowned. "After so long, it should be fine..."

A barely audible soliloquy.

"Well, anyway, with the ability of the doctor, the range of signal detection will definitely be expanded," the monster thief wrapped the badge with the remaining chocolate bag on his body.The voice of the communication became blurred and murmured.

"Don't forget to find the coordinates I buried, detective." There was a smile at the end of the sentence.

"So I said wait!" Kudo squeezed the badge in his hand, "There will be other ways, don't cut off the communication yet!"

"I won't cut the communication," the voice of the strange thief is very relaxed, "in order to be discovered by a famous detective, the output of the signal must be maintained all the time."

"but……"

"Well, I'm a Kaitou?" It was still that damned non-threatening voice, "Is that why you can't trust me?"

"If you really care that much..." The Phantom Thief paused, "Let me think about it... Ah, that's right."

"Do you still remember that promise?" The untimely, excited boy's voice sounded. "Then let's make an appointment—"

"The next time we meet, I will definitely tell you my name."