Ming Ke Theater Chapter 065

When James saw her smiling face, to be honest, if he didn’t know the inside story, he would definitely take her for a bad guy. Although the FBI’s reputation had always been bad, he felt that Judy didn’t have to tarnish her profession like this.

Judy simply closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and waited for this segment to end and the next to begin before opening them again.

【……

At the bustling football stadium, Professor Agasa once again took the Detective Boys five out to play. This time, they were watching a football match between the Tokyo SPIRITS and Tokyo Noir teams. Just as the final whistle blew, a Tokyo SPIRITS player scored with a header, sending the ball into the net and winning the Tokyo Grand Championship.

Satisfied that their supported team had won, the six left the stadium, chatting casually along the way.

Conan suddenly remembered something he had asked Professor Agasa to do and quickly pulled him aside to ask about Chris Vineyard. Professor Agasa didn’t provide any valuable information because there was very little about her online.

“I heard that, besides filming locations, her first official media appearance was exactly one year ago,” Professor Agasa whispered to Conan.

“That day?” Conan repeated, which day?

“It was the day of her mother Sharon’s funeral. Didn’t the Japanese news also report on it?”

Conan remembered; indeed, there was such a thing. Professor Agasa said, “I heard that some third-rate tabloid reporters even snuck in and pestered her with very intrusive questions. She remained tight-lipped until someone, exasperated, asked her, ‘Did you do something unspeakable, so you’re afraid for others to know?’ The result was that she, with her back to her mother’s coffin, curled her lips into a smile and said evasively, ‘A secret makes a woman woman.’”】

“I feel like I’ve heard that sentence somewhere before?” Sonoko Suzuki said.

Makoto Kyogoku replied, “On the bus, Ms. Judy said it.”

“Ah…” Sonoko Suzuki looked at the grim-faced Ms. Judy. “Could it be that she really… No, you two are both here, so it can’t be the same person. What’s going on?”

Makoto Kyogoku thought for a moment and said, “I think Ms. Judy is probably here for that person. It’s not strange that she knows that person would say that.”

Sonoko Suzuki felt he had a point.

Judy’s gaze swept over the two of them, clearly hearing their conversation. The reason behind it was roughly similar to what the boy had said. Vermouth, she would definitely catch her.

【……

They had to take the train, so they couldn’t stand in front of the TV to watch the BIG Osaka team’s match anymore. Before leaving, Ai Haibara glanced at Bigho, the BIG Osaka team’s center forward, on the TV. He was moving around in the penalty area, breathing heavily to adjust his breath.

They squeezed onto the train, unexpectedly finding it packed with fans. What was worse was that Akono Kakutake, the extremely rude old man they had encountered in front of the TV earlier, was also on board.

Ai Haibara didn’t care about any of this. Instead, she pressed her ear close to Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya, who had a radio and could hear the live broadcast in real-time.

“Mitsuhiko, what’s the score in the match?” Ai Haibara asked.

Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya was flustered by her sudden movement and stammered in response, “Ah… Oh, the current score is still zero-zero. It seems the first half is almost over.”

“And then? Is BIG Osaka’s number nine still in the penalty area?”

Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya replied, “Player Bigho is still there, but because the audience’s boos are too loud, it’s hard for his teammates to pass the ball to him.”

Ai Haibara said, “If the game starts again, will you tell me?”

Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya was, of course, willing.】

Ran Mouri said, “So this is when Ai-chan started liking Player Bigho.”

Shinichi Kudo muttered softly, “She probably felt a sense of empathy.”

【……

The train braked as it arrived at Beika Station. Too many people were standing in the carriage, and the braking caused them all to sway to one side. At the moment of braking, Conan, with his sharp eyes, saw something happen near Akono Kakutake.

Many people got off at this station, and the train quickly emptied. Conan and the others stood in place, and soon after the crowd receded, they saw a person lying in a pool of blood. It was Akono Kakutake.

Conan immediately narrowed down the scope of suspects and asked the station staff for cooperation in finding people. The Tokyo police also quickly arrived to control the situation, and it was the usual faces: Inspector Megure and Detective Takagi. They questioned the three suspects who were found but temporarily couldn’t determine who the murderer was.

Ayumi Yoshida scanned her surroundings, “Huh? Where’s Haibara?”

Usually, they would all stay at the scene. Could it be that Conan had told her to do something?

Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya knew the answer to this question. He said, “She just said she was going to the restroom.”

Genta Kojima was more concerned about the football match and looked at Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya, asking him about the situation, but saw that he wasn’t wearing headphones.

Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya said, “It was chaotic when we got off the train. The radio seems to have been lost at that time. I can’t find it on the train or the platform.”】

“I finally understand. You can’t be too arrogant, or you’ll become a target,” Sonoko Suzuki concluded with great wisdom. Her reason for saying this was simple: she had encountered countless cases where people with similar personalities turned into corpses in the blink of an eye.

“I’m perfectly fine this way, not arrogant or overbearing at all,” she said.

Ran Mouri smiled and said, “Of course you’re great, Sonoko.”

Shinichi Kudo said, “Yeah, if you had a spoiled rich girl’s temper, I definitely couldn’t stand it. But your current personality…”

Sonoko Suzuki was happy to hear the first part of his sentence, but she felt that the rest of his words definitely wouldn’t be anything good.

“Hmm? What’s wrong with my current personality?” Sonoko Suzuki interrupted him.

Shinichi Kudo recalled this woman’s earlier threats to teach him a lesson once they got out and immediately dared not tell the truth, hastily changing his words: “Your current personality is very endearing, that’s what I wanted to say.”

Sonoko Suzuki snorted twice, not bothering to argue with him.

【……

On the other side, Ai Haibara, who had just come out of the restroom, was standing in front of a large screen, watching the BIG Osaka team’s match with many other people nearby. She saw Ryusuke Higo shoot, and the ball directly hit the goalpost.

Seeing this scene, Ai Haibara couldn’t help but feel a pang of anxiety for him.

“You and Player Higo are really alike,” Conan, who had come looking for her, found her standing there and said from behind her.

“Noir means black in French,” he said. “A traitor who left the black team, Player Higo’s situation is the same as yours. He also left his original team for unavoidable reasons.” He explained the grudges involved. At that moment, Ryusuke Higo was tripped, and loud cheers actually erupted from his own team’s fans.

The commentator expressed concern for Higo’s predicament: “He’s completely surrounded! Does Higo really have no place in Japan anymore?”

After seeing this scene, Ai Haibara couldn’t bear to watch any longer and quietly walked away.

What she didn’t know was that shortly after she left, Higo scored, and Conan also gained inspiration from him to solve the current case.】