GOAL BONUS CHAPTER #7
Sherry had never been the type to be combative. In fact, she was the complete opposite—whenever faced with a life-or-death situation, her mindset would sink into despair, and she'd lose the will to survive.
Now, suddenly thrust into an unfamiliar place, coupled with the looming threat of the mysterious organization behind Xiaobai, Sherry didn't even think about escaping. She never even entertained the idea.
After waking up, she calmly had her meal, gave herself a new name—"Haibara Ai"—and quietly agreed to look at the doctor's new invention when invited.
But as Haibara Ai stared at the bizarre-looking gadgets, trying to figure out how to give them a less judgmental look, the door to the doctor's house creaked open, and someone stepped in.
Haibara Ai turned her head and froze.
…Jiangxia?!
She instinctively ducked behind the doctor, pulling up the hood of her jacket to cover her head.
Why was Jiangxia here? Did the organization send him to track her down?
I can't let him recognize me. If he does, everyone here will be in danger—especially Jiangxia, who could potentially figure out the side effects of APTX4869.
Thankfully, after a quick scan of the situation, she realized Jiangxia didn't seem to have figured it out.
As soon as Jiangxia entered, he walked straight to Dr. Agasa with a clear purpose. It looked like he might've picked up on some news about "Sherry," but not that she'd turned into a child.
With that in mind, Haibara Ai quietly slipped away while Jiangxia was talking to the doctor, hoping to hide before she got caught.
However, just as she took a few steps, she heard footsteps approaching from behind, and the light around her suddenly dimmed.
—Jiangxia had followed her.
Haibara Ai froze, her eyes locked on her shadow on the ground. She clenched her fist, pulling her hood down tighter, bracing herself.
Jiangxia walked up to her, circled around in front of her, and looked down at her for a while before suddenly reaching out.
Haibara Ai closed her eyes in resignation, mentally preparing for a rough interrogation where she'd be picked up by the neck.
But then—she was lifted into the air.
...But there was no pain in her neck.
Confused, Haibara Ai slowly opened her eyes and was stunned to find that Jiangxia had her under his arm, holding her like a ragdoll.
Jiangxia gave her a curious look for a moment, then casually tossed her up.
Haibara Ai yelped, instinctively grabbing Jiangxia's wrist. He caught her again and, with an expression like he was weighing her, carried her around like a toy.
Haibara Ai's panic shifted to numbness. What is he doing?
Could it be that Jiangxia vaguely connected her with "Sherry," but was so baffled by this violation of the laws of physics that he was holding her up to see how much she weighed?
After a few more moments of casual handling, Jiangxia seemed satisfied and set her back down.
The shrunken version of Sherry was kind of cute, Jiangxia thought. And the little reaction she gave was way more interesting than Conan's, though it was short-lived.
He patted Haibara Ai on the head, much to her displeasure.
A shiver ran through her body as if she'd been electrocuted, her whole body screaming "I want to run!" But in the end, she remained stiff, trying to pretend she was just an ordinary child.
Eventually, she realized she had successfully hidden her true identity—Jiangxia didn't suddenly lean in and whisper something like "I found you."
Instead, he just lowered his hand and looked at Dr. Agasa. "Who's this kid?"
Dr. Agasa was about to tell Jiangxia the truth. After all, according to Conan, Jiangxia already knew that "Conan = Kudo Shinichi" and was considered an insider.
But before he could speak, the doctor hesitated. Jiangxia didn't seem to know anything about the Black Organization, and if he introduced Haibara Ai to him, it might raise unwanted questions.
If Jiangxia found out about the Black Organization and decided to investigate on his own, it could spell disaster. Even knowing the existence of such an organization could lead to dangerous consequences.
Taking all this into account, the doctor quickly retracted what he was about to say and adjusted his story. "She's my friend's kid."
Haibara Ai's ears perked up. She was on high alert, nervously eavesdropping on the conversation.
When she heard Dr. Agasa's answer, she let out a small sigh of relief. But she couldn't shake the feeling that something was off—the abrupt change in the doctor's wording had been way too obvious. If Jiangxia pressed further...
But Jiangxia didn't ask any more questions.
He didn't seem to care much about the child and soon left.
Haibara Ai stared at the closed door. "..."
Wasn't that... too easy?
Also, it didn't seem like it was her imagination—Dr. Agasa seemed to know Jiangxia very well.
Recalling everything that happened, Haibara Ai suddenly had an epiphany. Jiangxia had walked straight to Dr. Agasa as soon as he entered, completely bypassing any of the adults in the house. He didn't even bother asking the family members but headed directly to the doctor.
With this new realization, Haibara Ai quickly rushed to the door and peeked outside.
When she looked across the street at the neighbor's house, she froze as if struck by lightning.
…That was Jiangxia's house.
Although she and her courier had never been inside, Sherry had passed by the block not too long ago while investigating Kudo Shinichi. She clearly remembered the beautifully designed single-family house. Wait—hold on a second...
Haibara Ai turned her head to the other side.
And there, unmistakably, was another house she knew all too well—the Kudo Shinichi house.
Haibara Ai blinked in confusion, looking left, then right, utterly bewildered.
Anonymous put me here, in this strange place, but for what? What's the real plan?
Jiangxia didn't linger at the doctor's place for too long.
He played around with Sherry for a while, satisfied his curiosity, and then left Akimi Miyano behind as he made his way home.
Jiangxia slumped onto the sofa and unwrapped a few boxes of ghost mints.
Before long, Miyano Akemi, tired of hanging around her sister, floated back contentedly.
*Goal #1: Top 200 fanfics published within the last 30 days by POWER STONES.
Progress: 3/50(approx) for 10 BONUS CHAPTERS
Goal #2: One BONUS CHAPTER per review for the first 10 REVIEWS.
Progress:0/10*