BWDC:SDDK Chapter 50: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, the Bat Follows Behind
Beep, beep, beep.
The alarm clock sounded right on schedule. Conan sat up from his bed, his eyes bleary with sleep.
He scratched his messy hair absently and pressed the snooze button.
Today, he had to stake out the Beika Branch of the Yotsubishi Bank to plant a tracking device. He needed to get up early; otherwise, if he missed Hirota Masami arriving for work, he'd have to wait until she clocked out just to figure out which car was hers.
Conan yawned and glanced at the spot next to him.
He shared a room with Mouri Kogoro, while Mouri Ran had her own separate room. However, Kogoro was nowhere to be seen.
This wasn't surprising. If the old man had stayed up all night drinking and watching Okino Yoko concert collections only to be woken up by an alarm before dawn, Conan would likely have at least three massive bumps on his head by now. Since the "Mouri Divine Fist" hadn't been unleashed, it meant the man wasn't in the room.
"Tracker, tracker..."
Conan muttered to himself as he rummaged through the cabinet Kogoro had assigned to him.
Soon, he groggily pulled on his perennial small blue suit, stuffed two trackers into his pocket, and went to the bathroom to wash up. Once finished, he headed down to the second floor to check the office.
Sure enough, Mouri Kogoro was sprawled across the office sofa, surrounded by various bottles and cans. He was slumped back, his necktie snagged around his head—clearly, he had been so drunk he'd tried to pull it off and failed.
This wasn't just the two bottles of wine he'd brought home.
Conan, now much more awake, twitched his lips. Even without the power to foresee the future, his consistent experience told him one thing: when Ran woke up, the old man was going to pay for this. They might actually have to call Aunt Eri this time to put the squeeze on him.
Conan shook his head, pulled a few bottles of mineral water from the fridge, and arranged them neatly in a circle around Kogoro. Then, Conan closed his eyes and clapped his hands together as if performing a funeral rite for the old man.
Having cleared his conscience, he swiped some of Kogoro's spare change and made his escape. Though the breakfast shops weren't open yet, the 24-hour convenience stores were an option. Since it was free money, he might as well use it.
Creak.
With the sound of the door closing, the Mouri Detective Agency—where the sun had yet to rise—fell silent once more.
Yotsubishi Bank, Beika Branch
The bank was still a long way off from its official opening hours. Theoretically, Conan didn't need to be here this early. However, unsure of how much prep time the staff needed before opening, he chose to grab breakfast and find a spot to stake out, waiting for Hirota Masami to appear.
Chewing on an onigiri from the convenience store and sipping a fruit juice fortified with iron, Conan sat near the bank, contemplating life.
Truthfully, he felt the reason Ren Ichimonji asked him to come plant the tracker instead of doing it himself wasn't necessarily out of trust—it was more likely that Ren simply couldn't get up this early.
Conan checked his watch and sighed, continuing to gnaw on his rice ball. It was day one of missing Ran's homemade breakfast, and he was already feeling it.
The cold wind whistled.
Finally, a vehicle drove toward the parking lot near the bank. It wasn't Hirota Masami's car, but the driver was wearing a formal suit, appearing to be one of the bank employees. This meant the staff's arrival time had finally begun!
Conan quickly finished the rest of his breakfast and repositioned himself. Before long, other cars arrived in succession.
Hirota Masami appeared in Conan's line of sight, though she looked like a completely different person from her previous glamorous appearance, having changed her clothes and hairstyle. This habitual offender—who was currently attempting a bank robbery for the second time—carried an unexpectedly heavy "office worker" vibe.
Conan almost didn't recognize her until a nearby employee greeted her by name.
"I'll be relying on you again," one of the staff members said with a smile, chatting about upcoming work arrangements.
Though he didn't hear everything, Conan could tell that Hirota Masami was deliberately maintaining good relations with her colleagues. This was likely a step in the preparation for the robbery.
Conan didn't wait long. Once Hirota Masami entered the bank, he executed a quick slide under her car. He placed the two trackers—one under the front seat area and one under the back.
Clambering out with ease, he stood up and brushed the dust off his clothes.
--- That took care of that.
Next, he had to meet the rest of the Junior Detective League at the Tokyo Budokan. Although Conan had intended to tell them yesterday that he wouldn't be joining them, his internal alarm had gone off the moment he heard Kogoro mention that Ren Ichimonji was going to the concert with Ran and Sonoko.
He had to go see what was happening. If there was any danger, it would be a disaster.
As for the lack of sleep... Why sleep now when you're destined for an eternal slumber later? He could just go to bed early tonight.
"Still, I'll have to wait a bit for a taxi," Conan muttered, standing by the roadside.
Thinking about the two trackers Ren had insisted he install, he felt a bit puzzled. Since both his tracking glasses and Ren's device received the same signal, one tracker should have been enough. What was Ren's logic for wanting two?
"It's not like his tracking device is different from mine..."
Conan adjusted his tracking glasses. The display showed two trackers within range, no issues there. He was probably overthinking it. He'd just try to catch a nap in the taxi.
"Looks like Conan has arrived at the Yotsubishi Bank."
"As expected of the Holmes of the Heisei Era, he's quite the diligent worker."
Ren Ichimonji, having just woken up, pulled out his tracker with a relaxed tone. However, a glance at his screen revealed something different from Conan's glasses.
Conan's glasses showed only two trackers. Ren's device showed three.
Conan had indeed only taken two and activated two. In theory, there shouldn't be a third signal in that area.
However...
Last night, when Conan had tried to slide past and Ren had grabbed him by the collar to lift him up, Ren had conveniently tucked a third tracker under the back of Conan's suit collar.
Now, that tracker was doing its job perfectly.
"I'm only doing this to ensure your safety," Ren whispered righteously.
After all, wherever Conan went, a funeral followed. Ren couldn't be by Conan's side at all times; if the kid ran into trouble, Ren could use the tracker to find and save him.
It definitely wasn't just a "Plan B."
End of Chapter
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