invisible signal

.Anyway, you are sitting in a warm room right now, so you don't have to worry about food and clothing. "

"When was the last time you ate?"

The Phantom Thief thought about it. "About... 20 hours ago?"

20 hours... It was only then that Kudo realized that it was almost dinner time here.

"Don't move around," he said, "Now, you have two choices. One is to stay where you are overnight to preserve your energy, and the other is to find something to eat first, and we will discuss the next step." He stood up and prepared Also find some food supplements to replenish the overloaded brain, "what do you think?"

"I can't make a fire, and I can't light it." The strange thief sighed vaguely, "Where do you want me to find food?"

"Berries, wild vegetables, insects, small reptiles..." Hearing the voice of the other party retching, Kudo kindly did not continue to give examples.

"Ahem... a detective," the strange thief said in a good-tempered manner, "The problem is not what to eat..."

"It's so late, and it's almost time for large reptiles to act."

"Until then, I don't want to be their dinner."

A brief silence.

"Would you like to take a gamble?" Kudo's voice.

"Please speak."

"The people who leave you in this kind of place probably want you to finish the game," Kudo analyzed. "We want to bet...they just want you to fend for yourself."

"You mean... maybe they're not around here anymore?"

"Not impossible." An affirmative answer.

The Phantom Thief considered for a moment.

"Okay, let's just trust your judgment." Knowing that the other party couldn't see him, he shrugged. "So the best plan now is to build a fire and stand by?"

"If you don't mind going hungry all night..."

"Anyway, the worst result is to be treated as a snack by a large animal, or to be killed by a hunter in the dark. The latter feels better, at least a whole body can be left."

The ghost thief's tone didn't sound like he was joking.

After a while, there was a crackling sound from the communication end.

After the sound of the strange thief was processed by the signal, it seemed a little blurred.

"At least, I don't want to freeze to death tonight."

Too quiet.

At this time, Kudo had finished his dinner with coffee, and went back to his study to continue reading Agatha for a while.Naturally, he hardly read any of what was said in the book.

The phantom thief had been silent for over an hour.

Too quiet.

Not even the sound of the fire burning could be heard.

? !

"Hey! Are you still alive? Hey!" Kudo grabbed the badge and yelled regardless of his image.

It took a while for the other party to respond.

"……Detective?"

"Where's the fire?" Kudo, who was slightly relieved, tried hard to make his voice sound normal.

"...Eh? When did it go off?"

Deeply impressed by the opponent's nerve, Kudo felt that he was about to break out in a cold sweat indoors.

"You fell asleep?"

"it seems that."

"You let the fire go out so unprepared?" Kudo was already on the verge of going crazy. "Aren't you afraid of freezing to death?"

"Isn't it because you're here..." There was still no sense of crisis in the tone.

"...What if I just let it go?"

"You won't." The strange thief concluded in a firm tone.

"How can you be so sure?"

"Even if the opponent is an enemy," the Phantom Thief said with a smile at the end, "you still hope that he will fight you alive, don't you?"

Really lost to him... Kudo Shinichi couldn't help but smile wryly.

"Is the fire lit?"

"It's working."

"Don't let the fire go out again."

"I'll try my best to make myself pay attention."

"That's good," Kudo yawned, "I can't guarantee how long I can accompany you..."

"The night is long, detective." The strange thief's tone was rarely serious.

"What do you want to say?"

"You have done enough to help me get to this point." The strange thief found a comfortable position and sat down by the fire. "Whether your decision is correct or not, I will leave it to God to decide."

"Anyway, when I wake up tomorrow morning, I will see the result."

"If I was still alive at that time, I would be the first to say good morning to you."

"Good night, then, Detective."

"Wait..." Before he could stop it, the communication was cut off by the other party.Now the badge in his hand fell into complete silence, not even the "rustling" sound of the radio.

Kudo looked down at the ceiling. "This self-assertive guy..."

"In this way, how can I fall asleep?"

【Call [-]】

"Good morning, detective~"

"Detective?"

"Good morning?" Raised the tone.

"Good morning..." dropped the tone.

"Good morning ~" cheerful voice.

"Good morning★" the voice of the energetic girl.

"Good morning." The voice of the three-no girl.

"Good morning!" the voice of the hot-blooded boy in Kansai.

"Wake up, Shinichi!" Mao Lilan's voice.

"What?" Kudo Shinichi suddenly woke up from his deep sleep when he heard the voice of his childhood sweetheart.Looking around blankly, he was the only one in the room.

There was still a gloomy gray outside the window.

After the communication was cut off last night, he still didn't dare to fall asleep.No one knows when that strange thief will suddenly resume communication.The nights are long, and in the darkness of the open more dangers lurk than we imagined.

Kudo, who stayed on until midnight and did not fall into a deep sleep, was always paying attention to the movement of the badge in his hand.It's a pity that the communication was cut off. Even if the strange thief didn't speak, he couldn't judge the situation from the sound on the other side.

In order to stay awake, Kudo didn't go back to the bedroom, but chose the uncomfortable way of resting on the table.This will give him the illusion of falling asleep in class.Students can probably understand the thrill of waking up immediately at the slightest sign of trouble.

However, sleepiness overwhelmed reason.Even Kudo Shinichi himself didn't know when he fell asleep last night.

"Detective, good news," the tone of the strange thief can be described as joyful, "We made the right bet. After a night, I'm still alive~"

"And, I'm also the first one to say good morning to you as promised."

"...What happened to Lan's voice just now?"

"I just chose the most effective way to wake up."

"...Tell me about your situation." Kudo, who hadn't slept all night, couldn't help but yawned again.

"Still the same, damp, cold, no sunshine..."

"I'm not asking about the weather," Kudo said, getting up and putting on his indoor coat. "No signs of large animals passing by? No signs of human activity? No other corpses left here?"

"……No."

After a night of rest, the Phantom Thief, who had never felt any sense of crisis, had almost forgotten the potential dangers around him.

"Can you move?"

"At your command."

"Today we will start to use the daytime to explore the surrounding area," Kudo rubbed his temples to wake himself up. "are you ready?"

"Yeah, if you ignore that I haven't eaten in 24 hours..."

Oops, forgot about this one.Kudo, who stayed in the warm and safe room, felt like an irony in his situation.

What kind of embarrassment will it be when people's most basic survival needs cannot be guaranteed?

"If you don't mind, you can start with berries," Kudo suggested, "and then try other creatures step by step..."

"I refuse." The strange thief's attitude was very firm. "At least until my food reserves are settled, I won't touch those things."

"……grain reserves?"

"Yeah," a crisp "gaba" came from the communication side, "it's a good habit of mine to carry chocolates with me."

"Those guys didn't 'confiscate' this thing, what a mistake..."

"Detective, which side are you on?" The strange thief stopped chewing.

"No, no, I just sigh..." Kudo found a reason to excuse himself, "Do normal people carry chocolate with them all the time?"

"You think I'm a normal person?" The strange thief's tone was full of regret, "Then there will be no ordinary people in this world."

However, I have to admit that the monster's sweet food control attribute saved his life at this critical juncture.

Chocolate, high-calorie, high-protein, high-fat sweets, also contains a small amount of vitamins, which are indispensable emergency supplies in unexpected wild survival (limited to this article

"Have you replenished your energy?"

"Supporting for 6 hours is probably no problem."

"You seemed to say that...the left foot was seriously sprained?"

"Yes, but it shouldn't affect the action..."

"You just let your left foot go overnight?" Kudo realized that this phantom thief might be more nervous than he imagined.

"I heard that proper bandaging can effectively enhance mobility," the tone of the strange thief became very sincere. "Can you check for me, is there a correct way to bandage?"

"Are you sure you can do it?" With that said, Kudo had already opened the webpage to check the information. "Do you have any bandages?"

There was the sound of fabric being ripped from the communication side.

"Ah, what a pity, the cloak is no longer usable."

"Don't...underestimate...the magician's hand."

【Call [-]】

"Fixed?"

"Perfect." The Phantom Thief patted the fruit of his labor proudly, "Uh, it hurts..."

"Let's start when you're all ready." Kudo closed the webpage, "Before leaving, I'll ask you one last question."

"All ears."

"Where did you get this badge?"

"..."

"If you don't explain it clearly, the plot itself is a major bug."

"