Can't Think of a Title 3
"Looks like this has nothing to do with Miss Mizunashi's stalker after all. The trail's gone cold." Charlotte sounded a little deflated, but before anyone could offer a word of comfort, she was already bouncing back.
"Still, who would've guessed this whole thing would tie into a beautiful romance between two police officers? Mm, I'm writing this one down — when they get married, it'll make a lovely keepsake."
And with that, before anyone could react — while Editor-in-Chief Takeuchi was still scrambling to stop her — she lifted the hem of her skirt just slightly, drew the camera from the little white pouch strapped to her thigh, and snapped a photo of the three characters written on the glass.
(Assuming Charlotte's skirt is long enough to hide the camera pouch on her thigh — which is also why Conan never noticed her Vision earlier.)
"Xiayu, you know those two officers, don't you? When they get married, I'll give you this photo, and you can be the one to pass it along."
"Oh, sure." Xiayu's expression stayed perfectly calm, nothing like the reactions of everyone else in the room. She didn't see a single thing wrong with what Charlotte had just done. She nodded. "Though I think you'll be waiting a while. It'll be a long time before that gift finds its recipients."
Editor-in-Chief Takeuchi pressed a hand to his forehead as if fighting off a headache. "...Charlotte, haven't I told you not to go lifting your skirt like that? And why on earth is your camera strapped to your thigh again?"
"...Seriously, why do you keep your camera on your leg?" Mouri Kogoro looked equally at a loss. Charlotte's movements had been so quick he'd barely registered them — luckily, he'd managed to avert his eyes in time.
"It's for concealment. Sometimes I have to hide who I am to shoot in certain places, so naturally the camera needs a spot nobody looks at. You get used to it." Charlotte explained herself, then glanced at her fretful editor and added, reassuringly, "Besides, I'm wearing safety shorts underneath. Relax, nothing's going to show."
"That's not what I was worried about... Never mind." Takeuchi Kouichi might have said more, but one look at Charlotte's blank, uncomprehending face made him give up.
Catching sight in the corner of his eye of Charlotte letting her skirt fall back into place, Kogoro turned back around, embarrassed — only to find Conan staring unblinkingly at Charlotte's legs. His hand itched, and he smacked the boy's head at once.
"Brat, haven't you heard that it's a sin to look upon what you shouldn't? What do you think you're gawking at at your age?!"
"Ow! That hurt!"
Conan had been staring at the camera strap on Charlotte's thigh, deep in thought, and the blow came so out of nowhere that he yelped in genuine pain.
Catching the disapproving looks Ran and Xiayu were giving him, he hurried to explain. "It's not what you think! I just thought the camera pouch Charlotte-neechan has is really pretty, that's all...!"
And in fairness, the pouch really was what had caught Conan's attention.
When Charlotte had pulled out her camera, Conan had been about to look away too — but he'd been one beat too slow, and in that instant he'd seen the pouch at her thigh.
Charlotte's movements had been swift, and Conan had caught only a single glimpse, but he was certain: the bead adorning that pouch was a Vision — an ice-blue one, the same shade as the Vision belonging to that Mr. Kaeya from before. As for its setting, the moment had been too brief for him to make out the frame.
Which meant his first guess had been right. This Charlotte had a Vision as well — and was connected to that mysterious organization.
And Xiayu-neechan... she really was deeply entangled with them too.
"It had better be." Kogoro muttered, shooting Conan a sour look.
With that little interlude over, everyone's attention returned to the matter at hand.
"Tomorrow is the Saturday in question." Back home, Mizunashi Rena sat on the sofa, chin in hand, head lowered in thought.
Kogoro sighed. "I suppose there's nothing for it but to do what Xiayu did before — stake it out tomorrow morning and catch the culprit in the act."
With that, he suddenly rose to his feet and declared to Mizunashi Rena, "Tonight, allow the three of us to stay here under your roof. I, Mouri Kogoro, swear that I will catch that lawless fiend and show him to you, Miss Mizunashi!"
Faced with Kogoro's confident grin, the others sat on the sofa exchanging glances, and for a moment nobody said a word.
In the end, Mizunashi Rena did agree to let the three of them stay the night.
As for Xiayu, she went upstairs to rest at Charlotte's apartment. Takeuchi Kouichi, seeing that the threatening-letter affair had been resolved and judging Charlotte to be out of danger for the moment — and with work piling up at the newspaper — left first.
Conan had actually been tempted to tag along to Charlotte's apartment. It was a rare chance to investigate one of those mysterious Vision-holders up close — but the case held the stronger pull for him just now, and he gave it up with a sigh of regret.
That night, at Charlotte's apartment.
"*Yaaawn* — what a day. Finally, it's wrapped up. All that's left is catching the culprit tomorrow." Charlotte stretched her arms overhead, her voice buzzing with anticipation. "Traveler, let's get up early tomorrow too, shall we? Then we can go downstairs and find out who on earth this person is — the one who dared ring an organization mole's doorbell and hasn't been caught yet."
"Sounds good." Xiayu had just finished her bath and was toweling her hair dry. "I'm done, Charlotte. Bathroom's yours."
After watching Charlotte gather her clothes and head off to wash up, Xiayu took out her phone and checked the time. She considered for a moment, then decided she really should give a certain missing person a report on today's events.
After all, this seemed to be the very incident where Kir made her official debut in the story. If Xiayu remembered right, Kir was supposed to assassinate someone later on — but with Conan around, that assassination plan had obviously failed.
And now the FBI had Kir under surveillance. Xiayu didn't know whether the Organization was aware of that or not, but either way, telling her brother about all of it would at least let him keep his guard up.
Truly, what a thoughtful, considerate little sister she was.
Meanwhile, at one of the Black Organization's simulated training facilities.
Two codenamed members — Korn and Chianti — were running sniper drills on the facility's simulation equipment.
Starting at five hundred yards and ratcheting the distance up fifty yards at a time, the two of them competed to see who could land hits from farther out.
Partway through the session, Gin and Vodka walked into the training hall and stopped beside Cointreau, who had arrived ahead of them.
"Since when did you take an interest in other people's marksmanship scores?" Gin asked, brow furrowing. "And another thing — why have you been wearing a disguise so often lately?"
"Nothing to it." Cointreau replied. "Once in a while it pays to keep tabs on the Organization's capabilities — if we ever end up operating together, it gives me a better sense of what to expect. As for the disguise..."