"Indeed, there's a lipstick mark!! Ahaha, I never expected Miss Xiaxi to be quite skilled at deduction as well. I knew it—the water stains on your clothes and pants, Mr. Sakata, were left from frantically washing away the residual potassium cyanide on your skin. So the culprit is you!"
Kogoro Mori's voice suddenly rang out, and only then did Qianben Xixi realize that everyone had gathered around her at some point, clearly having heard her earlier deduction.
Careless… Qianben Xixi's lips twitched slightly.
"Impossible…" Sakata suddenly fell into a frenzy, muttering to himself incessantly. "It's all that woman's fault, all her fault! I was the one who got together with her first, I was the one who introduced her to the company… Damn it, damn it, she actually got involved with that bald old man Akino… How could she even bring herself to kiss him?!"
Suddenly mentioned, Editor Akino felt his heart clench…
Having just been exposed for an affair with an intern, and now being publicly shamed repeatedly, he only wanted to escape this wretched world.
The case was finally settled. Noda Ryo was cleared of suspicion, the criminal was apprehended, and the investigation entered its final stages. No one had expected the culprit to be Sakata, widely regarded in the company as the most diligent and honest worker. Although the pitiful, honest Sakata's circumstances were deeply sympathetic, murder was wrong, and he needed to face legal punishment.
It was at this moment, when everyone was most relaxed, that Sakata—who had been muttering to himself, lost in his own world—suddenly lunged toward the door, a sharp fruit knife in hand.
Careless—who would have thought he’d hidden a weapon as a backup plan!
"Move aside, all of you!" he roared as he charged out, catching everyone off guard.
"Conan!" Ran Mori shouted, "Be careful!"
At that moment, Conan was the only one at the room's entrance. He had been immersed in the disappointment of missing out on the thrill of deduction, and it wasn’t until Ran’s warning snapped him back to reality that he noticed Sakata charging toward him.
But it was clearly too late. The culprit had seized this opportunity, lunging to take the child hostage with the knife and ensure his escape.
As the assailant’s blade stabbed toward him, Conan’s body tensed, his pupils shrinking to pinpoints, yet he found himself unable to move an inch. He could only watch as the tip of the knife inched closer in slow motion.
Just then, a slender, delicate hand suddenly reached out, grasped the culprit’s wrist, and with a deft twist—accompanied by a pitiful scream—the fruit knife clattered to the floor.
It was Qianben Xixi!
Conan broke out in a cold sweat, collapsing to the floor as he gasped for breath.
"Thank you," he said, still shaken but filled with gratitude, adding teasingly, "It seems even honest people aren’t so honest after all."
Only after watching the police handcuff and lead away Sakata—who was clutching his right wrist and weeping—did Qianben Xixi speak up. "Three strikes and you’re out."
She’d been careless twice today, and she wouldn’t let it happen a third time.
"What?" Conan didn’t understand.
"Nothing," Qianben Xixi shook her head.
"Conan, are you alright?" Ran and the others now approached with concern, relieved to see the child unharmed.
"I’m fine, Sister Ran," Conan replied, blushing as he put on an adorable act.
"Miss Qianben, thank you for your assistance," Inspector Megure approached and said gratefully.
Qianben Xixi was about to say "you're welcome" when the other party continued, "But we still need to trouble you to come with us to the police station to give a statement and cooperate with our work."
Qianben Xixi: …
"Sorry, I actually have something to do. Why don't you let Mouri Kogoro go…" Just as Qianben Xixi was about to make an excuse, a timid female voice sounded beside her.
"Um, excuse me, are you 'White to Shine'?" Uesugi Mi had somehow squeezed through the crowd again. "I'm your editor 'Zongzi Must Be Sweet.' The matter you mentioned must be about signing the contract, right?"
Qianben Xixi was taken aback. She never expected this thin, freckled, cute girl to be her editor.
"I am… yes," Qianben Xixi seized the opportunity. "Inspector Megure, I have to sign a contract today, so I can't…"
"Actually, that's fine," Uesugi Mi quickly said. "You can leave the contract with me. I can handle the signing and entry directly. Don't worry, go ahead and give your statement!"
Qianben Xixi: …
Thank you so much.
In the end, she still couldn't escape giving a statement and went to the police station with Conan and Mouri Kogoro.
The familiar scene, the familiar routine, the familiar Officer Takagi, and the familiar tasteless tea at the police station.
"Is giving a statement really that painful?" Conan found Qianben Xixi a bit strange. Why did she dislike giving statements so much?
"If you had to do something every single day, would you still like it?" Qianben Xixi retorted.
"It's fine. I don't see anything wrong with it," Conan genuinely felt that giving a statement was no big deal. On the contrary, explaining his deductions to the police gave him a great sense of accomplishment.
"By the way, 'White to Shine,'" Conan suddenly teased, "You're not really writing detective novels, are you?"
Qianben Xixi gave him a speechless look. She hadn't even signed the contract yet, and her identity was already exposed in real life. Her luck was truly something else.
"No," Qianben Xixi denied.
"Oh, okay," Conan said disappointedly. "I thought, since you were so good at deduction today, you might also be skilled at writing detective novels."
"Really? I just…" Qianben Xixi was about to explain when she suddenly realized something was off. Although her mind was fairly sharp, she didn't feel particularly adept at deduction—certainly not on par with professionals. So when Conan asked earlier, she thought he had already figured out the case and was just comparing answers with her.
Looking back, it seemed quite unusual. She recalled that the case felt strangely familiar, as if she had seen it before, which allowed her to quickly reconstruct the crime process. It felt natural, like water flowing into a channel.
That sense of déjà vu was creeping up on her again.
Just as she was about to say something, her phone suddenly rang in her pocket. She opened it and saw it was Gin's number.
Should she answer or not? She wasn't really in a convenient situation, but this man was extremely petty. If she didn't answer, he might not say anything, but he'd probably already noted it down in his little book.
"Sister Xiaxi, why aren't you answering the phone?" Conan reminded her. "It's not our turn to give statements yet anyway."
True, Qianben Xixi nodded and finally answered the call.
"Do you have something?" Gin's voice on the other end sounded displeased. "You took so long to answer."
It seemed he heard some noise on Qianben Xixi's end, so he asked warily, "Where are you?"
Qianben Xixi calmly replied, "At the police station. Need something?"
Sensing silence on the other end of the line, she added, "Is there a club activity?"
At least she knows to use club activities as a cover—not too stupid, there's still hope.
Gin then responded, "Yes, there's a shooting event tomorrow. Remember to attend. I'll send the details to your email."
After hanging up, Qianben Xixi saw Conan staring straight at her again, asking curiously, "Your boyfriend inviting you to a club activity?"
Qianben Xixi: "Yeah, want to come? Should be fun."
Conan hesitated for a moment but still shook his head. "Ah, sorry, Sister Natsuya, I have something at school tomorrow."
Yesterday, after school, he and Haibara had spotted that car belonging to Gin—a black vintage Porsche parked right by the roadside.
He had taken the chance to plant a bug in the car while the other wasn't looking and learned that the Organization would have a major operation tomorrow, so he had to decline.
"No problem," Qianben Xixi said indifferently. "Is it a club activity too?"
"Mhm, yes," Conan nodded obediently, putting on a cute act without batting an eye. "It's a club activity. The teacher insisted we participate."