Chapter 227: A Familiar Face
Everyone soon learned that on the night of the fire, the three tenants of the Mokuba-sou apartment building had all happened to be away, and were thus unharmed.
Based on what the Detective Boys had overheard from Sugiura Kaito the day before, it was all but confirmed that the fire had been deliberately set. The culprit was almost certainly the suspicious tenant Kaito had mentioned in his diary, which meant the perpetrator was one of the three people now standing before them.
Since the "Yellow Person" had supposedly returned to the apartment last night, the arsonist was very likely this same individual from Kaito's writings.
"Officer Yumi, what can you tell us about these three tenants?" Conan Edogawa asked, looking up after a moment of deep thought.
Officer Yumi gestured for her colleagues to bring the three men over.
As the strangers approached from a distance, Qiqi felt the air beside her change. Haibara's breathing grew shallow and rapid, and a fine tremor ran through her small frame.
Qiqi found it strange. Haibara was usually so calm and composed, rarely showing such a pronounced reaction. The little zombie turned her head, her expressionless face tilting as her violet eyes filled with quiet doubt.
She carefully observed Haibara's posture and expression. Her friend's gaze was locked onto the three approaching figures, her face a mask of stark fear and tension. Haibara's lips trembled almost imperceptibly, and her hands, hidden at her sides, had clenched into tight fists. Every sign pointed to an intense, overwhelming sense of dread directed at those men.
Although Qiqi didn't understand why Haibara would be afraid of three strangers, she didn't ask. Instead, she simply mimicked the way Ayumi had comforted her before, reaching out to take Haibara's hand in a gesture of support.
However, Qiqi had clearly misjudged the effect of her own body temperature. The sudden, cold touch of her fingers against Haibara's skin made the girl jump.
As the three tenants drew closer, the unease in Haibara's heart had swelled into a tidal wave of terror. Her internal "Organization Radar" was screaming, sensing an oppressive, suffocating pressure emanating from the trio. The feeling made her body go incredibly stiff, as if bound by invisible chains, rendering her almost immobile.
Just as her mind was shrieking in silent panic—'I have to run, I have to get away from here before everyone...!'—a cold hand suddenly clasped hers. Her heart leaped into her throat. For one horrifying second, she thought a member of the Organization had noticed her, that they had already seized her.
If her body hadn't been completely frozen by fear, Haibara would have instinctively ripped her hand away the moment she was touched.
Fortunately, she didn't have time to react. After that initial spike of terror, she registered that the hand holding hers was small, clearly the size of a child's, and even felt a little chubby.
Running a quick mental inventory of who was standing beside her, Haibara immediately realized it was Qiqi.
She risked a glance to the side and saw Qiqi gazing up at her, her eyes filled with a quiet, earnest worry. The sight sent a surprising warmth spreading through Haibara's chest.
Though Qiqi often seemed to have a delayed reaction to the world around her, the fact that she had picked up on Haibara's emotional state so quickly confirmed a thought she'd had before: Qiqi was an incredibly perceptive and sincere child.
Whether it was the shock pulling her back from the brink or the simple comfort of Qiqi's presence, the suffocating pressure that had been crushing her moments ago suddenly vanished.
Haibara's tense mind abruptly relaxed, leaving her feeling dizzy and a little lost in the sudden absence of fear.
By now, her unusual reaction had caught the attention of the other children. They all turned to look at her, their faces etched with concern, asking if she was feeling unwell.
Hearing their worried chatter, Baizhu crouched down, his expression gentle. He reached out and placed the back of his hand against Haibara's forehead, carefully checking her temperature. After confirming there was no fever or any other obvious ailment, he let out a soft sigh of relief.
A kind smile graced his features as he spoke to her in a warm, soothing tone. "Little one, if you feel unwell anywhere, you can tell me at any time. I am a professional doctor, and I promise I will make sure you recover as soon as possible."
Haibara stared quietly at Baizhu, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. For some reason, his simple, caring gesture reminded her of her older sister.
When she was sick in the past, Akemi would do the same thing—press a cool hand to her forehead and look after her with that same gentle concern.
Facing Baizhu's kind and worried gaze, Haibara gave a slight, dazed nod.
By then, the three tenants had arrived before the group. From right to left, they were introduced as Mr. Ryuhei Hosoi, a carpenter; Mr. Subaru Okiya, a graduate student; and Mr. Ginya Makabe, a freelancer.
Which of these three was the "Yellow Person"?
Officer Yumi was about to have her subordinates take the men aside for individual questioning, but before she could speak, she heard the man standing next to Conan—the one who claimed to be a doctor—address one of the tenants.
"Excuse me," Baizhu began, his voice tinged with a hint of hesitation as he looked at the graduate student. "Mr. Okiya, have we met somewhere before? You seem somewhat familiar."
Subaru Okiya—who was, in fact, the supposedly deceased FBI agent Shuichi Akai—had been standing calmly amidst the small crowd. His gaze had been subtly fixed on Ai Haibara, even as he maintained a general awareness of his surroundings.
When he first saw Baizhu, whom he recognized as Rena Mizunashi's primary physician from the hospital, walking alongside Conan Edogawa, a flicker of surprise had risen in his heart. He had dismissed it as a minor coincidence, however, keeping his focus primarily on his target: Shiho Miyano.
But Subaru Okiya had never expected Dr. Baizhu to suddenly speak to him, let alone ask such a direct question. A knot of apprehension tightened in his gut. Had the doctor noticed something? Had his disguise been compromised?
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