As Luca was momentarily dazed, the illusory bubble before him began to rapidly coalesce.
It eventually formed a complete human figure, appearing before him.
"This Ai Haibara??"
Luca's startled cry immediately drew the attention of the person in front of him.
The chestnut-haired girl looked at Luca with a hint of confusion, her crimson lips parting slightly.
"Ai Haibara? Who is that?"
"Uh, no, I mean, Shiho Miyano?"
Yes, the girl before him was none other than Shiho Miyano, whom Luca had last met in that dreamlike World.
Hmm, the 17-year-old Shiho Miyano, not Ai Haibara who had turned into a child after taking 'APTX4869'.
However, upon hearing Luca address her as such, the 'Shiho Miyano' before him, though showing a hint of understanding in her eyes, still shook her head coldly.
"I don't think I can be considered Shiho Miyano."
Hearing her words, the look of confusion immediately shifted to Luca's face.
'Huh? I just saw that face of yours, and you're trying to fool me? I'm sharp as a tack now!'
But the girl in front of him paid no mind to the confusion in Luca's eyes; she simply continued.
"I can probably only be considered a... projection's... copy."
At this point, a hint of bitterness appeared on the girl's clear, cold face.
"Copy?"
Hearing Shiho Miyano say this, Luca immediately thought of the scene where the illusory bubble had coalesced into a human form.
However, the girl before him, whether in appearance or manner of speaking, seemed identical to the original Shiho Miyano.
"Why do you think you are, um, a copy?"
Hearing Luca ask this, the girl before him absently rubbed her fingertips, her voice speaking intermittently.
"It's probably a feeling. I know I possess all of Shiho Miyano's memories and knowledge, and my body and mind are completely identical to hers, but regarding everything she has experienced, I seem unable to empathize, as if I am merely an observer."
As she spoke, the girl gently pulled up her sleeve, revealing a nearly imperceptible scar.
She could clearly remember it as a scar left from playing in her parents' laboratory when she was little, but at this moment, she seemed unable to feel the pain or joy from that time, and even her longing for her parents was very faint.
And, more importantly.
"There seems to be a voice in my mind telling me not to disobey your commands."
After hearing the explanation from this 'Shiho Miyano' in front of him, Luca fell silent for a moment.
It seemed, viewed this way, she did resemble a virtual character projected by the Golden Finger's power.
However.
'While absolute obedience to commands seems like a good thing for me, I can't help but feel a little sorry for her.'
After a moment of hesitation, Luca still decided to say a few words of comfort; verbal comfort wouldn't cost him anything.
"Actually, since your memories are the same, and your mind and body are the same, you can completely consider yourself Shiho Miyano."
"Have you heard of parallel Worlds? I know two people who look exactly alike, and their experiences and memories aren't even quite the same, but they are both unique Gwens. There was no Shiho Miyano in this World to begin with, so you don't need to worry about being a copy!"
To Luca's surprise, just as he thought he had offered good comfort, the girl opposite him shook her head firmly again.
"No, I am not Shiho Miyano. Shiho Miyano's childhood was too bitter!"
...
'So I talked for ages, and it turns out she doesn't want to be Shiho Miyano at all.'
Luca rolled his White eyes helplessly and simply changed the subject.
"You said you couldn't disobey my commands?"
...
"You said it. Then I'll have you, um, never mind. Show me a somersault."
...
The 'Shiho Miyano' in front of him was currently filled with question marks, but due to the influence of that mysterious power, she had no choice but to act.
However, as a frail researcher who had spent her entire life in a laboratory, how could she know how to do a somersault?
After falling backward, she simply couldn't flip over.
At this moment, she could only repeatedly push off the ground with her feet and continuously thrust her waist and abdomen upwards, trying to flip herself over.
It didn't look like a somersault at all, more like a carp out of Water, drowning and flailing wildly.
Seeing this, Luca quickly spoke to stop her.
"Alright, alright, I believe you, please stop..."
Hearing Luca's new command, Shiho Miyano finally stopped flailing and quickly sat up in a messy heap.
At this point, she could no longer maintain her previously somewhat cool demeanor. She was simply panting continuously, rolling her White eyes at Luca in annoyance.
It seemed that even her original sense of bewilderment about being a 'copy' had dissipated considerably.
"Uh, actually, I just wanted to see if my commands could, like Command Spells, forcefully enhance your abilities and allow you to do things you couldn't originally do... Yes! That's it!"
"Um, you know what Command Spells are, right?"
Looking at Shiho Miyano's White eyes, which were practically rolling to the heavens, Luca decisively abandoned the topic.
"Since you said you're not Shiho Miyano, then her abilities..."
"Everything she knows, I know. Our abilities are exactly the same."
This was good news for Luca.
Although Shiho Miyano in the original Conan story was not old, she was already considered a top biological pharmacologist in that World.
Although there seemed to be no major public achievements to her name, the Black Organization allowing her, at only 17 or 18 years old, to be the main research head for a miraculous drug like 'APTX4869' that could make people reverse aging, showed her terrifying talent.
And now, thanks to Big White's abilities, he had just set up a biological laboratory.
If Shiho Miyano were added...
'Directly upgrading the laboratory to a biopharmaceutical company might not be impossible? Hmm, it seems a bit too expensive. For now, it's good to have her help Big White accelerate the research and development of targeted drugs.'
Thinking of this, Luca's gaze towards Shiho Miyano grew even more fervent, making the girl opposite him feel slightly uncomfortable.
"Then, for now, the most important thing is to get you a formal identity."
Such a small matter, given Orange Industries' current scale, could be done with ease.
However...
Looking at her hair color and hairstyle, which were very similar to his own.
'This wouldn't cause outsiders to misunderstand, would it?'
Quickly shaking these random thoughts out of his head, Luca cleared his throat and then asked.
"For your name, should we still use Shiho Miyano?"
"No, I hope my new name is... Sherry!"