Speak of the devil, and he appears.
Just as Kurosawa Hoshino was thinking about Hattori Heiji and Conan, the two walked in. Hattori's face was pale, and Conan was wearing a different set of clothes.
"Yo, Hattori." Kurosawa Hoshino greeted him.
Hattori forced a smile and nodded stiffly.
Ran, tidying up the groceries she'd bought, said politely, "Hattori, why don't you stay for dinner?"
"No, I need to get back to the hotel. I'll come find you tomorrow."
"Tomorrow? You're not going back?" Kurosawa Hoshino asked. In the original story, the guy only stayed one day. Looked like he was extending his visit.
"Yeah. Not going back yet." Hattori didn't want to slink away in defeat. He'd arrived with such fanfare, only to lose the case today—a crushing loss, really.
He planned to stay a few more days, see if another case came up, and challenge Kurosawa Hoshino again. He had to win at least once. Otherwise, people might think Osaka detectives were inferior to Tokyo's.
"Alright, that's enough." Hattori pulled his hat low, grabbed his backpack from the sofa, and turned to leave without looking back.
"Hoshino-nii, Ran-neechan, I'm not coming back tonight. I'm staying at Professor Agasa's," Conan said quickly, then chased after him.
They reached the street.
Conan looked at Hattori waiting by the roadside. "Hurry. Give it to me."
Hattori's lips twitched, but he opened his backpack and took out the bottle of baijiu. "Hey, Kudō, are you sure this will turn you back?"
"Definitely." Conan snatched the bottle and clutched it like a treasure. "This time, my growth is one hundred percent related to this liquor. No more talk. I need to go try it. Maybe if I finish the whole bottle, I'll never shrink again."
"But—"
"See you tomorrow."
Conan had no time for conversation. He ran toward Professor Agasa's house.
Hattori took off his hat, watched him disappear, and shook his head helplessly. He turned and saw the coffee shop door open next door. A waitress was staring at him with very suspicious eyes.
"Ahaha." Hattori explained quickly. "Miss, don't misunderstand. That kid was taking the wine to his family. Not for himself."
"I know Conan." Azusa Enomoto's words sent Hattori fleeing in panic.
On the other side.
Conan ran all the way to Professor Agasa's house, sweating and excited.
"Professor... I—"
He was about to tell Agasa about the method he'd found to grow back, when he saw a girl about his age sitting on the living room sofa. Short, light brown hair. A delicate, expressionless face. Sipping coffee slowly.
"Shinichi, you're here." Professor Agasa came out from the next room.
"Professor, who is she? Is she a relative?"
"You mean Haibara Ai... Well, you two talk." Agasa scratched the back of his head, turned to his work desk, and left them alone.
"That's weird." Conan shook his head, sat on the sofa opposite her, placed the liquor on the coffee table, and asked, "Hello. What's your relationship with Professor Agasa?"
The little girl's words made his heart stop.
"APTX4869. That's what made you shrink. Shinichi Kudō, you're lucky you didn't die. You just shrank."
"You—you—you—who are you?"
"Sherry. That was my codename in the organization. Like you, I took APTX4869 and ended up like this. By the way, I also participated in its development."
Conan was stunned at first. Then the last sentence hit him. Rage surged. He jumped off the sofa and lunged at her.
What followed was Conan roaring and venting his emotions on Haibara and her organization.
Haibara, of course, wasn't one to take it lying down. Every time, she hit back with, "What are you barking at, you dog?"—a phrase she'd picked up from Kurosawa Hoshino.
Those six words drove Conan insane.
"Tell me, is this one of your schemes?"
"What are you barking at?"
"You—you—Professor, how could you trust her so easily?"
"What are you barking at?"
"Alright, alright." Professor Agasa approached the two children, trying to soothe them. "Shinichi, Haibara knows that organization very well. Are you sure you don't want to cooperate with her? Besides, she developed the poison you took. Maybe she can make an antidote later."
"No need, Professor." Conan remembered his business. He glared at Haibara, grabbed the bottle of liquor from the table, and said excitedly, "Professor, I've found the antidote! If I finish this bottle, I can turn back!"
Professor Agasa was shocked and pressed for details.
Haibara stayed silent but was curious—was it true or not?
Conan recounted the day's events, then glared at Haibara. "So, Professor, I don't need to cooperate with her at all."
He opened the bottle and chugged half of it, forcing it down even as his face turned red and tears welled in his eyes.
"You... you... look..."
He put the bottle down and tried to speak, but his throat was burning. No words came out.
The living room fell silent. Half an hour passed.
Haibara, who had been somewhat expectant, now looked expressionlessly at the drunk Conan. She considered a possibility. "I think his body has developed resistance to the alcohol. It's not working."
"No... no way." Conan was severely drunk, but his mind was still clear, even as he swayed uncontrollably. "It must be because I didn't drink enough. I'll finish the rest."
"Wait, Shin—"
Before Agasa could stop him, Conan opened the bottle and chugged the rest.
This time, he didn't say a word. He collapsed to the floor.
"Professor." Haibara Ai's voice was calm. "Could you prepare two syringes for me? The larger kind."
"Haibara, what are you going to do?" Agasa asked, puzzled.
Haibara approached Conan and examined him like a product. "Professor, I'm going to draw two vials of blood. If what he said is true, and he really grew larger after drinking this liquor, then his blood has likely changed slightly. I can analyze it. It might help in making the antidote later."
"Uh... Haibara, shouldn't we use smaller syringes?"
"This is a rare opportunity. If we let him drink this liquor again, it might not have the same effect."
"Sigh. Alright."
Professor Agasa looked at the unconscious Conan, shook his head helplessly, silently mourned for him, and turned to prepare the syringes.
The larger kind.