Ruth wore a look of mild resentment as he reached out to toss a few more logs into the fire beneath the pot. Inside, the fish soup bubbled incessantly—a rhythmic, simmering sound that was surprisingly therapeutic.
"As for me, I'm definitely going to eat every kind of eel rice in the entire world!" Genta's dream remained as refreshingly simple as ever.
As for who he would become in the future? It was highly likely he would just take over his father's restaurant.
"Then I want to…" One by one, the children raised their hands, eager to share their aspirations.
Once Ruth finished his meal, his gaze drifted, gradually growing profound for reasons unknown. He scanned the group before his eyes finally settled on Tsuneo.
In truth, most children at this age simply thought their parents looked impressive and instinctively wanted to follow in their footsteps. Coupled with the flattering words of the adults around them, they were often praised to high heaven. No seven- or eight-year-old would ever say they wanted to grow up to do bad things.
"What are we doing after we finish eating?" Genta asked, patting his stomach as the conversation wound down.
"From today onward, we're rotating the dishwashing duties. We also need a few sentries for tonight. Ruth, assign them their tasks," Tsuneo said, turning toward the sailor.
First, they would start with honest labor.
"Understood," Ruth nodded.
"Mister, you seem a bit different than you were a moment ago." Genta, acting in his capacity as vice-captain, narrowed his eyes and frowned.
"Do I?" Ruth looked bewildered. How was he different? Come to think of it, why had he just spaced out like that? It was truly strange.
"You're welcome to come and play anytime!" Tsuneo turned his head, offering a small, knowing smile.
As I thought, that move just now was some kind of possession technique, the "Repairman" thought, having noted that strange glint in Ruth's eyes.
"???"
Ruth couldn't help but feel that his captain was acting a bit... mystical.
"I can't hear the Professor's voice at all anymore," Mitsuhiko said, standing at the edge of the broken bridge and staring up into the misty, grey sky.
"It's Noah's Ark's doing," Conan stated firmly.
Not long ago, Dr. Agasa had attempted to give them a hint, but the communication had been forcibly severed. To make matters worse, the stone bridge they were standing on had collapsed. Kikukawa Seiichiro, the son of the famous Kyogen performer, had nearly fallen to his death; Conan had managed to grab him just in time.
In this London game world, being injured meant immediate disqualification. In a sense, it was far more dangerous than the other stages.
"Who could the character be who's supposed to help us?" Mitsuhiko scratched his head in frustration. The Professor had been cut off mid-sentence, which was a real headache.
"Didn't the police already say? Jack the Ripper has appeared. We need to contact Inspector Lestrade immediately," Conan said with a confident smile.
"Inspector Lestrade?" Ran blinked, startled.
The name belonged to a character from Arthur Conan Doyle's novels, yet because they were being told that this was the "real" London from a hundred years ago where Jack the Ripper existed, she felt a sudden surge of cognitive dissonance.
"It seems this game world has blended elements of fiction into the historical reality of late 19th-century London," Haibara added, having reached the same conclusion. After all, the person who provided the creative vision for this stage was a mystery novelist.
"In that case, the character who can help us is...?" Ran nodded, a realization dawning in her heart.
"Exactly. If Inspector Lestrade exists here, then that man must be here as well!"
"Sherlock Holmes!" Conan's face was alight with excitement. Now that he knew fictional characters were in play, he had plenty of room to maneuver.
"Really?!"
"If Holmes is here, no stage will be too difficult for us!" Ayumi and Mitsuhiko cheered, their spirits instantly lifted.
With their objective clear, the group began their journey toward Baker Street.
"Moroboshi? Moroboshi, what's wrong?" Seiichiro Kikukawa asked, lightly shaking the boy's shoulder. Moroboshi had suddenly frozen in place. "We need to keep up."
"I'm fine," Moroboshi Hideki replied, shaking his head. A faint, inscrutable smile played on his lips.
The journey from Whitechapel to Baker Street was not short. Spanning several districts, the children had to explore cautiously on foot.
"I heard they found another victim in the alley off Marylebone Street!"
Nearby, two patrolling constables were in deep conversation.
"Two incidents within an hour... that makes four now, doesn't it?"
"What a terrifying monster."
Conan signaled for the group to stop, listening intently as the officers exchanged information.
"Another death?" Ayumi whispered, her voice trembling. The world Noah's Ark had constructed was chillingly atmospheric.
"Though London at the end of the century was hailed as the final era of peace and prosperity for the British Empire, the reality was a time of extreme wealth disparity and rampant crime," Haibara remarked.
"I remember Shinichi once saying... if you compare Sherlock Holmes to the Light of the Era, then Jack the Ripper is the shadow lurking in the darkness," Ran recalled.
"Then let's hurry toward that Light. Baker Street is almost here!" Conan's anticipation was palpable.
As the group moved forward, a man in a trench coat carrying an accordion approached them from the opposite direction.
"Beware of Jack the Ripper, he waits for you on the night road... If you do not wish to die, what must you do?"
"You, too, must be drenched in blood!"
The man sang the eerie nursery rhyme, the wheezing notes of his accordion fading as he disappeared into the fog.
"What does that mean?" No one dismissed him as a simple madman; instead, they began to dissect the lyrics.
"Drenched in blood..."
The Great Detective knit his brows. Whose blood? Jack the Ripper's? Or their own?
"Four participants have been eliminated so far—specifically in the Roman Colosseum and Solomon's Treasure!" a staff member reported immediately upon seeing four of the "Cocoon" capsules dim and sink into the floor.
In reality, the elimination rate was quite low, considering there was no walkthrough and the players were all children around ten years old.
Thomas Schindler's expression was grim. On one hand, the chairman didn't want the children of so many powerful elites to come to harm during his launch event; on the other, he wanted them eliminated as quickly as possible—especially those in the London world.
And then there was that fellow who had blackmailed him for hush money!
At that thought, Chairman Schindler cast a subtle, sharp glance toward Tadaaki Kashimura. In the end, that man was the crux of the problem.
"Tsuneo should be fine, right?" Inspector Megure asked. Though his face was solemn, he still held deep trust in the young man.
"Yes. For now, unless there's extreme weather at sea, there shouldn't be any trouble," Yusaku Kudo nodded.
Tsuneo's physical capabilities didn't seem to have been nerfed within the game. Pirates were brutal, certainly, but their actual combat prowess was debatable. Once those men hit the shore, nine out of ten were drunks, and the tenth was likely up to no good.
However, aside from pirates, there were rumors of regular armies from virtual nations in that world. That was something they would need to watch out for.
[Chapter End]
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