The Mysterious Call

"Oh?" Furuya Rei sat at an outdoor cafe, intently looking ahead while holding his mobile phone, smiling as he spoke to the person on the other end.
Today, Amuro-kun was dressed very mysteriously, wearing a dark hoodie and a knitted beanie, covering his dazzling blonde hair.
Large sunglasses almost covered half his face.
At a glance, although his face wasn't clearly visible, he was definitely not a mysterious person who would attract attention.
At this moment, Furuya Rei's face held a very gentle smile, as if he were talking on the phone with his most intimate lover.
Passersby who happened to see him all smiled knowingly and nostalgically.
However, if someone got closer to Furuya Rei, they would hear that what he was saying had nothing to do with warm love.
"Kir killed Akai Shuichi?" Furuya Rei suddenly let out a mocking laugh, as if the person on the other end had said something very funny.
He leaned back in the white chair, his gaze still fixed ahead.
"Sister." At this moment, Furuya Rei's voice was very gentle. He said to Vermouth, "Two years ago, you clashed with Akai Shuichi in America. Akai Shuichi even chased you back to Japan. Do you think, regardless of whether he's Akai Shuichi or Rye, he would be so easily killed?"
Vermouth stood before the hotel's huge floor-to-ceiling window, phone in hand, watching the bustling traffic below the hotel. Listening to Furuya Rei, she casually stroked her freshly washed, damp hair.
One finger twirled a lock of hair, and she chuckled softly. "Of course he wouldn't. Lance, do you think Kir is an informant?"
"I don't know either." Furuya Rei stood up, drained the unfinished coffee on the table, one hand in his hoodie pocket, standing near the crosswalk, away from the crowd, waiting for the traffic light. "Catching informants isn't my job. Speaking of which, is Veltins that free? To investigate suspicions about Kir?"
"Of course not, Gin told Kir to do it." Vermouth pulled a chair to the floor-to-ceiling window, sat down, crossed her legs. "The matter of that video still hasn't been investigated, so Gin has also been released."
"He truly lives up to his reputation." The green light turned on, and Furuya Rei stepped onto the crosswalk, his tone unclear whether it was admiration or sarcasm. "Model worker, never resting, mission after mission."
"It's alright. What about you? There's no sign of your Organization missions. What have you been doing lately?" Vermouth felt she hadn't seen her dear Lance in a long time. This great detective was mysteriously busy with who-knows-what every day. Her long-accumulated "Fun with Lance" list hadn't been updated.
"Work, just work." After crossing the street, not knowing what he had discovered, Furuya Rei ran two quick steps, hid around the corner, and peered in another direction. "I'm a detective, I have to do my job well."
Hearing Furuya Rei's slight gasp on the other end, Vermouth was silent. How to put it...
Lance said Gin truly lived up to his reputation. She also wanted to say, Lance truly lived up to his reputation. Not doing Organization missions, but going off to do detective work on his own?
However, Vermouth was still a little curious. "What kind of work? A murder case?"
"No." Furuya Rei firmly denied. "It's an infidelity investigation."
"..."
"Pfft! Hahahaha~ Lance, what are you doing?" Vermouth couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Amuro Tooru was an internationally renowned detective. What was her Lance doing now that no one recognized?
"There's nothing to laugh about." Furuya Rei cautiously saw his target leave, then quickly followed. "Isn't this kind of commission the everyday work of a detective?"
"So you're experiencing the life of a normal detective?" Vermouth wiped away the tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes. Really, if Boss knew Lance was doing this kind of thing recently, he'd probably be so angry he'd get out of his wheelchair, wouldn't he? Vermouth thought with a hint of cursed anticipation.
"Perhaps?" His voice carried a hint of uncertainty. Furuya Rei suddenly glanced behind him, then quickly turned back. "Sister, is there anything else? I'm in a hurry."
"Alright, last question." Vermouth stopped her laughter, her slender, freshly manicured fingers tapping on her fair thigh, her eyes a little sad. "Imahara Syou, do you know him?"
Furuya Rei's face showed a 'just as expected' smile. He deliberately paused, then chuckled softly, "Who's that?"
"I know." Vermouth leaned one hand against the glass door. Her slightly elevated body temperature caused a white mist to form around her hand. "The last time, I know, Lance~"
"I'm looking forward to it, Sister." Furuya Rei smiled, waiting for Vermouth to hang up first.
Then he put away his phone. The target he was following ahead had entered a shop, so it seemed he would have to wait a moment.
Furuya Rei leaned against the wall, like a normal young man carelessly playing on his phone on the street.
However, although his gaze, in the eyes of outsiders, remained on his phone screen, if someone familiar with Furuya Rei were here, like Morofushi Hiromitsu and Matsuda Jinpei, they would definitely realize that Furuya Rei's attention was actually always on what was behind him.
At the end of an alley.
Several children peered out like cats stalking mice, their eyes serious as they looked towards Furuya Rei.
Above them, there was also a dark-skinned teenager with a similar demeanor, looking sneaky, extremely similar to a bad guy trying to trick children.
Edogawa Conan and Haibara Ai stood a little distance away from them.
The little detective's mouth twitched. He was extremely unwilling to admit he knew these 'children' of various ages in front of him.
What was Hattori doing? Why was he following Amuro-san with these three children, eavesdropping? Such amateurish tailing.
He dared to guarantee that with Amuro-san's capabilities, he must have already noticed them with such clumsy tailing skills.
He wondered if the other party knew it was them who were following. From the looks of it, Amuro-san definitely intended to play a trick.
"Conan, Ai-chan, hurry up and come over." Yoshida Ayumi turned her head to look, didn't see Edogawa Conan and Haibara Ai, and immediately panicked, searching everywhere, before realizing her two teammates were very far from them, being extremely uncooperative.
She spoke softly but ensured Edogawa Conan and Haibara Ai could hear, then called out to the two.
Edogawa Conan was speechless. He was about to go directly to greet Furuya Rei, but unexpectedly, Haibara Ai next to him gently tugged his sleeve, pulling him towards the four people with messy tailing skills, while saying, "Come, come."
"Hey, Haibara?" Edogawa Conan looked at Haibara Ai, very confused.
Haibara Ai retracted the hand that was pulling Edogawa Conan, turned her head to look at him, "I also want to know what Brother Tooru is doing."
No, in fact, she already knew. The moment they spotted Furuya Rei, to ensure Furuya Rei wasn't on an Organization mission, to ensure his safety, and whether she could appear at this moment, Haibara Ai immediately sent a message to Furuya Rei.
What she didn't expect was that the other party also immediately noticed them, and even noticed the other kids' intention to follow.
She had to admit, Brother Tooru was indeed Brother Tooru. Even Kudo and that Osaka high school detective combined couldn't compare. She was completely overwhelmed by the other party's performance. A strong sense of pride suddenly welled up in Haibara Ai's heart.
However, if Brother Tooru was just doing detective work, with no danger around, she would also love to participate. After being dragged out by Brother Tooru in the middle of the night to steal from Gin, Haibara Ai felt she hadn't seen Furuya Rei in a long time.
They were clearly in the same country now.
Unexpectedly, Brother Tooru sent her a message saying he wanted to tease Kudo and them a bit. She shrugged. What could she do when faced with an older brother who liked to play like a child? Of course, she would fulfill Brother Tooru's wish.
So when Edogawa wanted to go find Brother Tooru, Haibara Ai immediately pulled him back.
Hmm, this had nothing to do with her wanting to see Edogawa get scared.
Moreover, Haibara Ai was also very curious about how Brother Tooru would scare Edogawa Conan and them, especially since Edogawa had already realized Brother Tooru had spotted them.
Of course, Edogawa Conan thought Furuya Rei knew someone was following him, but Haibara Ai didn't tell Furuya Rei.
Sometimes, in life, a little more interesting surprise makes it more meaningful, doesn't it?
Unconsciously, Haibara Ai, who didn't know where she learned to be mischievous, stood behind Yoshida Ayumi and the others, waving playfully at the bewildered Edogawa Conan.
Edogawa Conan stood silently for a moment, feeling that he also really wanted to watch the fun. Whether it was Amuro-san or Hattori, they could both make him happy.
Thus, the little detective quickly made a decision, swiftly walking to Haibara Ai's side. Under his glasses, his eyes were filled with the two words 'watching a play,' which others couldn't discern.
Furuya Rei's figure vanished from everyone's sight.
After a moment, Hattori Heiji quickly led the children in pursuit.
His target was still in the shop, so it was fine for Furuya Rei to leave for a moment. 123 would monitor the surrounding situation and remind him if anything unusual happened.
Furuya Rei turned into a small alley.
Hattori Heiji led the way, looking into the alley, but couldn't see any trace of the blonde hair they had been following all the way.
The Osaka high school detective's eyes and brows furrowed tightly. He couldn't understand how Furuya Rei had disappeared so quickly.
The children who followed him also peered in curiously.
Haibara Ai felt her body lighten. She suddenly flew up. Turning her head, she saw Furuya Rei, who was clearly ahead of them, had run behind her, picked her up, and placed her aside.
The moment her feet touched the ground, Haibara Ai blinked.
Then, one by one, a total of three children were picked up.
The three children of the Detective Boys, still bewildered, hadn't even had time to speak before Furuya Rei covered their mouths with one hand.
The blonde youth placed his right index finger to his lips, blinking at the three children, signaling them to be silent.
The children excitedly covered their mouths and nodded repeatedly.
Furuya Rei entered the alley. Hattori Heiji and Edogawa Conan were still checking for traces in the alley, especially Edogawa Conan. He carefully observed the remaining traces, intending to find out where Furuya Rei had hidden to scare them.
That way, he could, in turn, scare Amuro-san.
Just thinking about it made him happy.
However...
The ground in the alley looked like it hadn't been walked on for a long time.
Could Amuro-san have been erasing his traces as he walked?
But they had followed quickly. There wouldn't have been enough time.
Edogawa Conan propped his chin, a little confused.
Furuya Rei stood behind the two, his footsteps so light that he made no sound.
The four children behind them hid behind the wall, still in a cat-stalking-mouse posture, observing the events about to unfold in the alley.
He pulled out two guns.
One real model gun, one fake model gun.
One was placed on Edogawa Conan's nape, the other on Hattori Heiji's back.
"Are you... that detective's accomplices?" A hoarse voice rang out. Furuya Rei imitated Gin's usual murderous tone, unleashing his killing intent without reservation.
The effect was excellent.
The two in front, as expected, stiffened. They wanted to turn around, but the object pressed against them exerted more force.
Edogawa Conan and Hattori Heiji felt the objects on their heads and backs.
They were guns, feeling as if they had silencers.
The sound of the guns being cocked was clearly audible.
Unbelievably realistic.
They hadn't thought this was a prank by Furuya Rei.
They had originally intended to turn around and mock Furuya Rei with disdainful looks, thinking such a trick couldn't scare them.
But the sudden killing intent and the terrifyingly realistic guns...
They were doomed.