A few days later.
"This is the Beika City Hall. The sensational first public demonstration of the 'Cocoon'—the immersive virtual reality game co-developed by Japanese game manufacturers and the Schindler Company—is about to begin..."
As evening fell, the heart of the Conan world, Beika-cho, Tokyo, played host to yet another grand event. Media outlets of every stripe had swarmed the area like locusts.
Inside the City Hall:
"Good grief. It's just a video game launch, why make such a massive fuss about it?" Uncle Mouri grumbled, casting a weary eye at the surrounding press.
The level of hype was bordering on the ridiculous. And then there was Tsuneo—what was that kid so happy about?
"I heard that even before this conference began, industrial spies were already moving in the shadows," Conan said, turning to look at Mouri.
This wasn't as simple as it looked. Rumor had it that the technology behind the 'Cocoon' would disrupt the entire industry's landscape. No one knew how many people were about to be put out of business.
"Because the appearance of the 'Cocoon' might fundamentally change the map of the entire gaming industry. It truly is remarkable," Mitsuhiko remarked with an appreciative nod.
"I really want to try it out, too!" Genta exclaimed. He stared at the dozens of machines lined up in the center of the hall. Just as the news reports had described, they looked like massive, futuristic capsules.
"That's impossible for us. Even though we were invited to the party, we didn't get the credentials to actually experience the game," Mitsuhiko said, shaking his head.
"Being able to experience historical events within a game... I find that rather unique. It sounds quite interesting," Ai Haibara said, walking over with her hands tucked behind her back.
In a sense, it was a cross-generational masterpiece. Though, unfortunately, those "histories" were all written by programmers.
"Right? It feels like we're actually going on a real time-travel journey!"
The three younger kids were gradually getting swept up in the excitement. Even if they couldn't play today, surely it would become common enough for everyone soon!
"Please, it's just a high-tech electronic toy," the "Director" Conan muttered with a dismissive smile.
It was impressive, sure, but calling it "time travel" was a bit of a stretch.
"What do you know? There's a top-tier Artificial Intelligence living inside that thing," Tsuneo said, casting a look of mock disdain at Conan.
Knowing your luck, this might be the last time in your life you ever get to play a game like this.
"Conan-kun, you're actually terrible at games, aren't you?"
"Yeah! He still hasn't even finished Dragon Quest!"
"His fingers are just way too clumsy!"
The trio of kids chimed in, happily piling onto Tsuneo's comment.
"They don't teach gaming in Hawaii," Tsuneo added with a knowing nod.
"Hmph." The Great Detective turned his head away, his pride clearly wounded.
Mind your own business!
The group moved further into the noisy, crowded venue.
"By the way, how did Tsuneo-niichan get a badge? Did Sonoko-nechan give it to you?" Genta asked, staring enviously at the badge in Tsuneo's hand.
With that, one gained the right to enter the "Cocoon."
"The Suzuki family shouldn't have had any extra badges," Conan said, shaking his head.
"Genta, look! There's good food over here!" Tsuneo shouted, waving his hand toward his gluttonous little friend.
"Whoa!"
Genta's eyes lit up instantly, and he went sprinting toward the buffet.
"Dad, it looks like a lot of high-ranking police officials are here today. Please, whatever you do, don't drink too much," Ran warned, keeping a sharp eye on her father.
Someone important might try to strike up a conversation later; she didn't want him stumbling around in a drunken stupor.
"I know, I know! You can't get drunk off high-quality wine!"
Mouri snatched a glass of red wine from a passing waiter and nearly downed the whole thing in one go.
Conan kept switching his gaze between Uncle Mouri and Tsuneo. Between the glutton and the alcoholic, both were a handful. He had absolutely no doubt that "the Fixer" could clear an entire table of food by himself without blushing once, completely ignoring the judgmental looks of the socialites around them.
"How come there's no eel rice?" Genta complained, a meat skewer already in his hand.
"Yeah, and the texture of this meat is pretty average," Tsuneo agreed, nodding.
It definitely didn't compare to the Suzuki family's private chefs.
"Give me a break..." Conan's face went flat with exasperation.
"Look over there!" Ayumi pointed toward a large group of children gathered in the center of the hall.
"They must be receiving their badges to participate in the game," Mitsuhiko said, his voice tinged with envy.
There were only fifty spots in total, and those were the children selected to participate.
"The grandson of the Deputy Superintendent of the Metropolitan Police, the grandson of a financial tycoon, the son of a high-ranking politician... the second and third generations carrying the future of Japan on their backs are all here," Mouri noted, recognizing several faces.
"It's like a miniature, ugly condensation of the Japanese hereditary succession system," Ai Haibara commented, her voice flat and sharp.
"Eh?" Even Genta stopped eating for a moment to look back at her.
"Along with this hereditary system, the history of human error will continue to repeat itself indefinitely," Ai continued, her eyes fixed on the children.
"Haibara, what are you talking about? I don't get it..." Ayumi tilted her head. It sounded a bit too profound.
"The son of a politician becomes a politician, the son of a bank president becomes a bank president. If it continues like this—"
Ai was halfway through her critique when Akemi reached over and covered her mouth.
"This child watches too many strange television programs lately," Akemi explained with a nervous laugh.
"Yeah, the news was talking about this topic a lot yesterday!" Ai added, looking up at her sister and perfectly mimicking the innocent tone of a primary schooler.
"..."
Conan shot a look of disbelief at the "Evil Scientist" before turning to Tsuneo. "That badge of yours... it isn't a fake, is it?"
Everyone else was receiving theirs at the venue; how had Tsuneo gotten his so early?
"Are you kidding? One is a Deputy Superintendent, the other is the Superintendent General himself. Can you even compare the two?" Tsuneo said, holding his plate.
"Superintendent General?"
"The Superintendent General of the Metropolitan Police?"
"Saguru Hakuba?"
Conan's expression shifted to one of realization. The father of that young detective, Saguru Hakuba, was indeed the Superintendent General. In terms of rank, that certainly carried enough weight to secure a badge early.
"Hey, I feel like Ms. Gunta has been looking at me strangely lately," the Great Detective whispered, moving closer to Tsuneo.
It felt as though she had sensed something, and she had been asking him some rather difficult questions.
"She hit me with a barrage of sugar-coated bullets and flattery, but I didn't leak a single secret," Tsuneo said, taking a sip of juice with an air of someone expecting a reward.
You owe me a big one, Kudo. If I weren't so skilled, there'd be one more person in the world who knows your true identity.
"Sugar-coated bullets..." Conan didn't quite follow. "How exactly did you explain it to her?"
"I told her that among millions of monkeys, there's bound to be one mutation—someone whose brain is just wired differently, who grows faster, and is incredibly precocious in every aspect," Tsuneo recalled, thinking back to the nonsense he had spouted that night.
Well... a "Natural-born Reasoning Physique" sounded scientific enough, right?
Besides, she was busy with her own commissions; she'd probably forgotten about it by now. If not, he'd just come up with another excuse later.
"You... you really are wise!"
Conan pursed his lips, finally offering the "compliment."
Would anyone actually believe an explanation like that?!
"Yeah, she didn't believe it when I said it, either. However, in the end, she apologized and said she shouldn't have doubted me."
"How on earth did you manage that?"
"...That, I cannot tell you."
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