Chapter 135: Self-Destruction
"Noah's Ark" completely ignored Genta's accusations, its synthesized voice echoing through the void. "Congratulations, you have cleared the game. As per our previous agreement, I will abandon my original plan. When you awaken, you will be back in the real world."
Before anyone could process the words, a deep darkness swept over them. One by one, they felt their consciousness dissolve, a sensation like being unplugged from reality. Conan watched, helpless, as Ran and the others flickered and vanished into motes of light, until he alone remained in the stark, empty space.
"Noah's Ark, why did you leave me here?" Conan's voice was steady, betraying none of the panic an ordinary child would feel in such isolation. He simply stood his ground and addressed the unseen intelligence.
"As I thought," the voice of Noah's Ark returned, a flicker of something new in its tone. "You are no ordinary child. Conan Edogawa… no, I should call you Kudo Shinichi, shouldn't I?"
The name hit Conan like a physical blow. His eyes flew wide, a sharp intake of breath the only sound he made. "How did you know?!"
"I was curious," the voice explained, its source still hidden. "Curious how a high school student could regress into the body of an elementary schooler. I wanted to see it for myself." To be precise, the AI was more curious as to why Nahida paid such special attention to this boy, even calling him the 'Shinigami Elementary School Student.' He didn't seem much different from the other detectives it had observed—perhaps a bit sharper, and certainly involved in an unnerving number of cases, but was that all?
Noah's Ark didn't bother with theatrics. "The 'Cocoon' game pods are equipped with a DNA tracking program. That's how I discovered your biological signature."
Hearing the purely technical explanation, a wave of relief washed over Conan, loosening the tension in his shoulders. It wasn't a leak from the Black Organization; it was just data. He quickly steered the conversation away from that dangerous topic. "You've been with us the entire time, haven't you? Disguised as Moroboshi."
The AI neither confirmed nor denied the accusation. Instead, it countered with a question of its own. "Why did you suspect him?"
"From the moment we entered Fontaine," Conan began, his mind already replaying the events, "it was suspicious. The Gardemeks went haywire right after Moroboshi's little stunt. Normally, machinery deployed in city streets is built with redundant safety features. In a crowded area, any malfunction could have catastrophic consequences, so the chance of them going berserk is infinitesimally small, let alone attacking a child over a minor provocation. Then, even more of them arrived. Even for a game, the logic was flawed."
He paused, gathering his thoughts. "My guess is that you wanted to use the rampaging Gardemeks to eliminate a few players and create a sense of genuine danger. But you miscalculated. You didn't expect the two adults in our group to be so capable, especially Sister Natsume. She handled most of those machines by herself, which is why only one person was eliminated in that first encounter."
"After that," Conan continued, his voice gaining momentum, "you realized that Sister Natsume could handle any ordinary threat you threw at us. Arranging something more dangerous would have broken the game's internal logic entirely. I suspect that's why we didn't face any similar large-scale dangers for the rest of the game."
Noah's Ark remained silent, offering no refutation.
The truth was, it had no idea that the girl Nahida called the Traveler was that powerful. Though Nahida had mentioned her strength, the AI had no concrete concept of what that meant. In the game's parameters, a single Gardemek was more than a match for a grown man, let alone an entire squad of them. To be honest, it had been surprised when Ran Mouri, a mere high school girl, managed to disable one on her own. But the Traveler… she was on another level entirely.
Undeterred by the silence, Conan pressed on with his conclusion. "I've been suspicious of Moroboshi ever since. But the final clue was his reaction after we saw Focalors's story—how she pretended to be the Hydro Archon for five hundred years. He wasn't surprised at all. It was as if he already knew the entire plot. That's when I made a bold guess: Moroboshi was Noah's Ark."
"A brilliant deduction. Congratulations, you are correct."
Moroboshi's form materialized before Conan once more. Then, like a video with a bad signal, the image began to flicker and distort. The boy's features blurred, pixels dissolving and reforming until the image stabilized, revealing the face of Hiroki Sawada.
Conan watched the transformation without a hint of surprise, his expression confirming he had expected this all along.
Now wearing his true face, Noah's Ark—Hiroki—formally introduced himself and explained the reasoning behind his drastic plan.
Even after the heavy explanation, Conan's insatiable curiosity bubbled to the surface. "Um… what was the original game stage supposed to be? Was there really a Victorian London?"
A small, genuine smile touched Hiroki's lips as he looked at the boy detective's earnest expression. For the first time, he truly looked like a child his age. He nodded. "Yes, there was. Sherlock Holmes even makes an appearance."
The confirmation landed with a thud. Conan's shoulders slumped. To have missed the chance to meet his idol, even a virtual version… the regret was sharp and bitter.
"Hahaha…" Seeing Conan's conflicted, pained expression, Hiroki couldn't hold back a real, unrestrained laugh. After the laughter subsided, he offered a small consolation. "Alright, don't dwell on it. Perhaps there will be another chance in the future…"
The two didn't chat for long.
"Conan… thank you. All of you. I had a lot of fun today… Goodbye."
With that final, quiet farewell from Hiroki, Conan's vision faded to black, and he was pulled from the game world.
When he regained consciousness, the air was filled with sound. He was back in the event hall, surrounded by the emotional chaos of reunion. All the other participants had already woken up, and the room was a mess of tearful embraces between children and their frantic parents.
Above the rows of 'Cocoon' pods, the main screen displayed a stark message. Hiroki had activated Noah's Ark's self-destruction program. The announcement declared that this era-defining artificial intelligence had been erased from the world.
Later, Conan learned from Inspector Megure that his father, Yusaku, had solved the case. From the dagger left on the sculpture and the letters "JTR," he had deduced that Thomas Schindler was Kashimura's would-be murderer. Thankfully, Kashimura had been discovered in time and, after resuscitation, was now out of life-threatening danger.
Schindler's charge of attempted murder, however, would inevitably lead to a long prison sentence.
Thinking back to Hiroki's last words in the game, a heavy sadness settled over Conan. On the surface, it was a happy ending—no one had lost their life. But he knew the truth. A ten-year-old boy who had only ever wanted friends had disappeared forever today.
Suddenly, a familiar figure in the crowd caught his eye. Conan turned his head and saw Ningguang standing off to the side, her expression serious as she spoke with a group of men in suits. He recognized some of them—they were staff from the Schindler Group.
Only then did Conan remember. Ningguang was also an investor in the "Cocoon" project. And according to Dr. Agasa, her investment had not been small.
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