Watching the numbers on the display keep dropping, the faces of the group gradually turned pale. Cold sweat kept forming on their foreheads and dripping onto the ground.
Heiji sat off to the side, calm and indifferent, and even closed his eyes.
Not just the others—even Sato Miwako and Ran gradually went pale too, their eyes flickering with a hint of panic.
00:02:50!
Gulp…!
Someone tried to swallow, but their throat was so dry there was no saliva—so it turned into a painful dry gulp.
"I can't take it anymore… help!"
Finally, someone collapsed, sitting on the floor and screaming in fear.
Like setting off a chain reaction—
The whole group broke down. Some sat on the ground crying loudly. Some hugged themselves, trembling uncontrollably. Others started praying, begging for a miracle.
00:02:20!
Only a little over two minutes left until the blast.
Sato Miwako gave a small, bitter smile. She turned to Heiji, suddenly wrapped both arms around his arm, and rested her head on his shoulder.
"I really am a bad luck magnet."
No tears—just despair in her voice, and heavy regret.
[Shinichi… looks like you'll never be able to stand me up again.]
Ran lowered her head and laughed at herself: Maybe… he doesn't care at all.
She glanced at Heiji, and a bit of envy flashed in her eyes: With a guy like Heiji around, Kazuha and Sonoko must be really happy.
Heiji glanced at Sato Miwako and gave a faint smile.
"What color do you like?"
Sato Miwako froze, confusion flashing in her eyes.
"What color?"
Heiji asked again.
Sato Miwako thought for a moment, looked down at the red scarf around her neck, and a small warmth rose in her heart.
"Red, I guess."
Heiji nodded and walked toward the bomb.
"Heiji, what are you doing?"
"Disarming it."
Heiji smiled faintly.
Sato Miwako froze, then hurried after him.
Even if we die, we die together.
Ran hesitated for a moment, then followed too.
00:01:50!
The numbers on the bomb's screen kept dropping fast.
When Heiji touched the bomb again, the people from earlier didn't even look anymore.
They were already past panic—only despair was left.
00:01:20!
Less than a minute and a half of life.
"Ran, lend me your scissors for a moment."
Ran quickly handed him the small scissors, staring at him with worry and curiosity.
"Heiji, what are you going to do?"
"Cut the wires."
"Cut the wires?"
Sato Miwako and Ran exchanged looks, shock showing on both of their faces.
"Heiji, you're really going to disarm it?"
Ran's question finally brought a flicker of life back into the crowd's eyes, but the moment they looked at Heiji, they sank again: What can a high school student do?
Heiji took the scissors, and his eyes changed.
"Miwako. Ran. Don't let anyone get close to me."
Both women stiffened. Their expressions turned serious at once—his tone was too sharp to ignore.
00:01:01!
[Less than a minute. I need to speed up.]
Heiji removed the bomb's cover. Under it were tangled wires everywhere. He raised the scissors and prepared to cut the first wire—
00:00:50!
Suddenly, Heiji moved.
Sato Miwako and Ran's eyes widened, staring at him in shock.
[So fast… how is he moving that fast?]
Even knowing Heiji had disarmed bombs before, Sato Miwako didn't understand why his hands could be this quick.
Watching his movements, the crowd stared too—the fear in their eyes slowly turning into hope.
"Twenty seconds left."
No one knew who whispered it, but everyone's attention snapped to the display.
00:00:19!
Breathing tightened. Hearts jumped into throats. Sweat poured down like rain.
Heiji's eyes stayed steady. His hands didn't shake. He stripped wires, cut wires, and kept going without even a second of hesitation. Broken wires piled up in his hands.
Finally, only one red wire and one blue wire remained.
Heiji stopped.
00:00:09!
That pause made everyone's faces go white, but no one dared to speak.
Heiji, however, wasn't rushed at all. He turned to Sato Miwako and smiled faintly.
"Last wire. Miwako, you choose. Red or blue?"
Sato Miwako's pupils shrank. Shock flashed across her eyes.
"I… I don't know."
"In that case, looks like we're still going to die."
Heiji casually pulled his hands away from the bomb, like it didn't matter.
00:00:08!
Anxiety flashed across Sato Miwako's face.
"Heiji, you definitely know. Cut it—now."
Heiji shook his head.
"I don't know. I need your choice."
00:00:06!
The others went pale again. Cold sweat streamed down. Despair returned all at once.
Sato Miwako bit her lip so hard it started to bleed.
The timer kept dropping.
00:00:04!
00:00:03!
She glanced at the red scarf around her neck, and determination flashed in her eyes.
"Blue. I choose blue."
A small snip.
Time seemed to freeze.
00:00:01!
The number on the display stopped.
Everyone froze—then joy exploded through them.
"We're saved! We're saved!"
People shouted, cried, and laughed all at once. Some broke down in tears from relief.
Sato Miwako stared at Heiji, completely stunned.
"I told you—you're not a bad luck magnet. We're alive because of you."
Heiji smiled lightly.
A tall, soft body suddenly threw itself into his arms, hugging him tightly.
Ran stared at Sato Miwako, crying hard in Heiji's arms: Could it be… Officer Sato's date is Heiji?
Heiji raised his hands and hugged Sato Miwako, letting her cry.
"From now on, you're not a bad luck magnet. And you're not allowed to say that again. We all got saved because of you. Otherwise, wouldn't that mean our group's luck is even worse than yours?"
His voice was low, with a trace of gentleness.
Suddenly, Ran's eyes widened in shock: Officer Sato actually kissed Heiji on her own!
Beside a bomb whose timer had stopped, a couple pressed close, tasting the sweetness of relief; a woman's heart had fallen.
Outside, chaos still ruled!
"Impossible… how could it not explode? Impossible."
Moriya Teiji muttered blankly, his face full of disbelief.
"Ran is fine… Ran is fine."
Mouri Kogoro was in high spirits.
Inspector Megure let out a deep sigh of relief. The casualties had finally been kept as low as possible.
[Twelve-oh-three has passed… was the bomb disarmed?]
Conan sat against the fire door and let out a long breath. His foot still throbbed with pain, but he felt unbelievably relieved.
Half an hour later, Heiji's group was rescued.
"So it was Hattori. Good thing you were here—otherwise it could've been much worse."
After hearing it was Heiji who disarmed the bomb, Inspector Megure bowed to him seriously.
"Ran is fine… thank God. Ran is fine!"
Mouri Kogoro cried hard beside Ran.
Heiji gave a faint smile.
"Inspector Megure, I think I need medical help."
His back still burned.
Sato Miwako quickly called for an ambulance.
[Phone found.]
Ran looked down at the recovered phone. The corner of her mouth curled into a bitter smile.
Shinichi… he didn't call.
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