"It's got to be Ayumi! She's the one playing this melody!"
Immediately after, Mitsuhiko's voice came through the detective badge.
"The kids are all supposed to be in school today, aren't they? Why would she use the badge to contact us?" Dr. Agasa leaned in, puzzled.
Tsuneo, holding the barbecue tongs in one hand, furrowed his brow.
This feeling…
Could something have happened to Ayumi again?
"Is that you, Ayumi?" Conan's voice cut through.
No response came from Ayumi. Instead, a male voice announced, "Today is the fifth, 10:30 a.m."
"Today is the fifth, 10:30 a.m."
"It's the Kamen Rider alarm clock!" Genta recognized the automated announcement.
"Oh, that's right! I bought those for everyone!" Dr. Agasa nodded, recalling the purchase.
The alarm clock would announce the date and time when you pressed the button on its head.
"I've got a really bad feeling…" Tsuneo glanced at Dr. Agasa, who was still explaining the product, and twisted the badge's dial to join the conversation.
"Isn't Ayumi at school today?" the repairman asked.
"Ah! It's big brother Tsuneo!"
Genta and Mitsuhiko sounded eager to chat during their break.
"That's right, her cold got worse, so she didn't come to school today," Conan replied to Tsuneo's question before addressing Ayumi again. "Ayumi, if you can't talk, knock once for yes, twice for no."
A few seconds after the famous detective's words, a single knock echoed through the badge.
"It's really Ayumi!"
"She's probably just bored at home and wants to chat with us!"
Genta and Mitsuhiko shared their thoughts.
Hearing this, Tsuneo set down the barbecue tongs and turned to Dr. Agasa and Mingmei, who was organizing ingredients nearby.
"I need to get to Ayumi's house, fast."
"What's wrong?" Dr. Agasa asked, confused.
At that moment, Conan's voice came through the badge again. "I'm getting a weird vibe, too. It makes sense if she can't talk and is using the alarm clock to communicate, but that time announcement was five minutes behind the actual time."
"And today isn't the fifth."
"Ayumi, are you in some kind of trouble?"
Tsuneo had already started the car. "Don't be scared. I'm on my way."
A series of rapid knocks came through the badge.
Conan, sitting in the classroom, stood up abruptly, his expression shifting.
"Tsuneo, do you know something? What's wrong with her?"
The repairman floored the gas pedal, a cold smirk on his face. "She'll be fine, but someone else is about to have a problem!"
Tsuneo had a hunch, though he couldn't be entirely sure it was that case.
But this was Beika Town—anything out of the ordinary could hide a crisis.
Just two days ago, one of his old clients was killed by a burglar. Now Ayumi, home sick with a cold, was sending this eerie signal.
If nothing was wrong, that would be the real surprise!
"Heh, I thought it'd take a while to track you down, but you've delivered yourself right to me!"
Tsuneo's voice through the badge was chillingly cold.
"C-Conan, who's big brother Tsuneo going to catch?" Mitsuhiko stammered, unnerved.
It sounded terrifying…
"Is he going to catch Ayumi?" Genta shivered.
If I played hide-and-seek with this guy, I'd be scared to death.
"No way," Conan shook his head, holding the badge. "Ayumi, are you in danger?"
"If you are, knock once. If not, knock twice."
The famous detective suddenly considered a possibility.
If there was one person Tsuneo was itching to catch, it'd be the burglar who made him cross out another client's name!
A few seconds later, two knocks came through the badge.
"See? She's just bored and reaching out to us, right?" Mitsuhiko sighed in relief.
He'd nearly been spooked by Tsuneo's reaction.
At least they had a clear answer now.
Those earlier frantic knocks probably meant "no," too, right?
DING-DONG-DING~
The school bell rang.
"Oh no, this period's in the music room!" Genta suddenly remembered. It was music class, not in their usual classroom.
"We've gotta hurry, or Ms. Kobayashi will get mad—and she's scary when she's mad!"
Mitsuhiko felt a surge of urgency.
"Let's go!"
Genta shouted, dragging Mitsuhiko out of the classroom.
Conan stared at the badge in his hand, frowning, unmoving. Xiao Ai stood nearby, arms crossed, watching silently.
…
Inside a high-rise apartment building.
"This kid's got some fancy gadgets," a tall figure in a motorcycle helmet and a dark blue jacket said with a sinister chuckle, staring at the small figure curled up in the corner of a cabinet.
Ayumi sat trembling, her face pale with fear as she looked at the man.
He found me…
…
"Tch, all this cash adds up to just 75,000 yen? Living in a fancy high-rise like this, and you're this broke?"
The burglar sat on the living room sofa, counting the bills with a scowl of dissatisfaction.
Ayumi, her hands and feet bound and her mouth taped shut, stared at him in terror.
"Well, guess it's time for me to go!" The burglar stood, a cruel grin spreading across his face as he stepped toward the little girl by the wall.
Ayumi suddenly remembered—the owner of that French restaurant was killed just as the burglar was about to leave. Her body began trembling uncontrollably.
Big brother Tsuneo, Conan-kun, why aren't you here yet?!
RING-RING-RING~
The phone rang.
The burglar froze, instantly on guard.
Soon, with no one answering, it switched to the answering machine.
"It's me! I'm near your place right now, so I figured I'd swing by to repay that five million yen I borrowed last time. Just picked it up from the bank."
"Yup, the grant for my invention came through."
"Are you out shopping or something?"
"I'll head over in a bit."
Dr. Agasa's voice left a long message.
A spark of hope flickered in Ayumi's eyes.
This call had to be Conan and the others coming to save her!
"Five million yen…"
A greedy smile spread across the burglar's face.
No way was he passing up that kind of money!
It sounded like this kid's grandpa—some old guy, no problem!
Heh, piece of cake!
With that, he pulled out a collapsible baton and headed for the door, ready to grab the five million, too.
"Ayumi, are you okay?"
Suddenly, a strange voice echoed from the living room behind him.
(End of Chapter)
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