"What could a little kid like Conan possibly show you?" Sonoko declared with characteristic confidence after learning that Gustave's group had come to sightsee in Beika Town. "Come on, follow me! Ran and I know where all the really interesting places are!"
"Are you sure that's appropriate?" Gustave asked diplomatically. "After all, Conan did invite us as his guests."
"Don't be silly! Conan's friends are automatically my and Ran's friends," Sonoko waved dismissively. "Just tell us what you'd like to see, and we'll show you the best spots in town!"
She turned toward Conan with a look that brooked no argument. "You don't have any objections to that, do you?"
Faced with Sonoko's warning glare, Conan could only manage a weak smile. "No, no problems at all."
He knew better than to oppose Sonoko when she was in full social butterfly mode. If he dared object now, his life would be miserable long after Gustave and the others returned to their own world.
And so the group found themselves on an impromptu guided tour of Beika Town, with Sonoko and Ran providing far more detailed commentary than Conan's earlier brief explanations. Their enthusiasm was infectious, and even Tezuka seemed to be enjoying the cultural immersion.
Unfortunately, they were dealing with a deadly combination: Conan + Ran + Sonoko operating outside the relative safety of school grounds. The danger multiplier was almost inevitable.
They'd been sightseeing for less than an hour when Yang Chan tugged at Gustave's sleeve with obvious urgency.
"Big Brother Gustave, I need to use the restroom," she whispered quietly.
"Of course, sweetheart. Let's find the nearest facilities."
The closest option was a large shopping mall, so the entire group headed inside. Ran kindly offered to accompany Yang Chan to the ladies' room while Sonoko remained in the main concourse with the others, ostensibly to keep them company but actually to continue her shameless flirtation with the attractive visitors.
Within minutes, Ran emerged from the restroom with Yang Chan in tow, both looking refreshed and ready to continue their tour.
That's when everything went sideways.
BANG!
The sudden, explosive sound echoed through the mall's atrium, causing everyone to freeze. Most shoppers looked around in confusion, probably assuming someone had dropped something heavy or a store gate had slammed shut.
BANG! BANG!
"Gunshots!" Conan's voice cut through the confused murmur of the crowd. "Someone's firing a gun!"
His experience with firearms was far more extensive than any seven-year-old should possess. While he'd missed the context of the first shot, the second and third were unmistakably the sound of a pistol being discharged.
Chaos erupted immediately. Shoppers began screaming and running in all directions, creating a dangerous stampede as panic spread through the confined space.
"This way! Stay away from the crowd!" Gustave commanded, instinctively moving to shield Yang Chan while quietly generating an electromagnetic barrier behind their group. He guided everyone toward a less congested area near the mall's service corridors.
BANG! BANG!
Two more shots rang out, and this time the direction was clear—they were coming from the basement level.
"Something's happening down there," Conan announced with the grim determination of someone who'd witnessed far too many similar situations. "I need to investigate!"
Before anyone could stop him, he was already sprinting toward the emergency stairwell.
"Conan!" Ran called out in alarm, immediately giving chase.
"That little maniac is going to get himself killed!" Eiji cursed, following suit without hesitation.
What had started as a group trying to avoid danger suddenly found themselves being led directly toward it by their resident trouble magnet.
The basement level was largely deserted, most shoppers having fled upstairs during the initial panic. In the center of the shopping area, two figures in black ski masks and wielding pistols had taken cover behind a pillar, using what appeared to be mall security staff as human shields while facing off against two plainclothes police officers.
"Officers Takagi and Sato," Conan muttered from their concealed position behind a decorative planter. "What are they doing here?"
The answer was both simple and frustrating. Earlier that morning, the Metropolitan Police Department had received an anonymous tip about an armed robbery planned for a shopping mall gold store. The information had been vague—no specific location, no timeframe, just a warning before the caller hung up.
In most cities, such an incomplete tip might be filed away pending additional information. But this was Beika Town, where anonymous crime tips had an unsettling tendency to prove accurate. The police had no choice but to deploy officers to the area's major shopping centers, spreading their limited resources thin across multiple potential targets.
Officers Takagi and Sato had been assigned to this particular mall, disguised as a couple and keeping watch over the largest jewelry store on the basement level. They'd been maintaining their surveillance for hours without incident when Takagi had stepped away briefly to buy Sato some coffee.
That's when two armed men had burst into the gold shop and immediately fired a shot, striking the store owner's son who'd been conducting a routine inventory check. The subsequent shots had been warnings, demanding that staff empty the registers and display cases of all cash and valuables.
Takagi and Sato had reacted quickly, calling for backup while drawing their weapons, but the panicking crowd made it impossible to get a clean shot. By the time the situation stabilized enough for them to act, the robbers had secured two large bags of loot and were attempting to escape—until Takagi's intervention had forced them to take hostages and dig in for a standoff.
THUNK!
"Ow!" Conan yelped as someone rapped him firmly on the head—the second such assault he'd endured that day.
Looking up, he found Gustave looming over him with a disapproving expression, while Ran, Sonoko, and the rest of their group clustered behind him, all wearing varying degrees of exasperation.
"Heh, sorry everyone," Conan said sheepishly, finally realizing how reckless his behavior had been. "I didn't mean to drag you all into this..."
"Conan," Ran said firmly, crouching down to his eye level, "when dangerous situations like this happen, you absolutely cannot run toward the trouble. Do you understand me?"
It was a conversation they'd had countless times before, with Conan nodding agreement and then promptly ignoring her warnings at the next opportunity.
"I understand, Sister Ran," he replied dutifully, then immediately turned back to observe the ongoing standoff, completely proving her point.
"You there!" Officer Takagi called out in his best authoritative voice. "Put down your weapons immediately and release the hostages! This building is surrounded!"
The demand was tactically necessary but practically useless, as everyone present understood.
One of the robbers briefly exposed himself from behind his human shield, just long enough to locate Takagi's position before ducking back into cover. Then he raised his pistol and fired a shot in the officer's direction.
"That's my answer!" the gunman shouted. "Keep running your mouth and the next bullet goes into a hostage's leg!"
"You can't—" Takagi began.
BANG!
The robber's threat wasn't empty. The moment Takagi opened his mouth, another shot rang out, followed immediately by a hostage's scream of pain.
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