"The Twilight Mansion? Oh, Sonoko gossiped about that place," Fujino said gravely, his voice a low rumble. "Rumor has it, a lot of people died there decades ago."
"You mean... it's a haunted house?!" Ran's face went pale, her eyes wide with fear. "Will there be, like, ghosts or something inside?!"
Conan let out a scoff, a dismissive chuckle escaping his lips. "How can there be ghosts in this world, Ran?"
"There are many unknown things in this world, so maybe there are ghosts after all..."
"Haibara?"
A cool, clear voice cut through the air. Conan turned his head to see Haibara Ai walking towards them, hands clasped behind her back. He grumbled, a hint of exasperation in his tone, "You don't seriously believe in ghosts, do you?"
"Considering we have a shrinking drug, ghosts are..." Haibara Ai shook her head. "Never mind, just kidding."
Then, her gaze fixed on Conan. "So, did you figure out the riddle on that invitation?"
"Of course I did," Conan replied, a subtle smirk playing on his lips. "KID..."
"Oh, looks like Fujino was right too." Haibara Ai pondered for a moment, observing Conan's excited demeanor. "But seriously, why do you get so hyped up when you encounter that guy?"
"Do I?" Conan pouted, then shot a curious glance at Haibara. "What, are you coming along too?"
Haibara Ai shook her head, then turned to Fujino, her voice laced with concern. "Be careful out there."
"Alright! Everyone, hurry up and get in the car!" Kogoro Mouri shouted impatiently. "If we don't leave now, we'll miss the dinner party!"
---
As twilight descended, Kogoro Mouri finally reached Tottori Prefecture after a full afternoon of driving. Ran was asleep in the passenger seat, and Conan, leaning against Fujino in the back, had also drifted off. Fujino's eyes were narrowed, a hint of quiet exasperation in his gaze as he looked at the sleeping Conan.
"Pfft!"
The car sped along, when suddenly, a hissing sound filled the air, followed by a jarring bump. Ran, jolted awake by the sudden movement, rubbed her drowsy eyes, looking bewildered. "Are we there yet?"
Kogoro Mouri slowly pulled the car over to the side of the road, letting out a weary sigh. He switched on the interior light, then called back to Conan, who had also been roused. "Conan, help me check the tire on your side."
"Ahem..." Conan, realizing he had been leaning on Fujino, let out an awkward cough. He craned his neck to look at the tire. "The tire on this side is flat!"
"A blowout?" Ran exclaimed in surprise. Kogoro Mouri sighed, opened the trunk to look for the spare tire, then slammed it shut in frustration. "There's no spare tire at all! What were those rental people thinking? Don't they check the cars before renting them out?!"
Conan mumbled, a touch of sarcasm in his voice, "Well, it's because you're so cheap, Uncle, always renting these special offer cars..."
"Haha..." Fujino let out a dry laugh, glancing at the gas station not far ahead.
It all clicked.
It seemed that Kaito Kid was behind this. The person who rented the car was likely him in disguise, and this car had been prepared in advance. He had to admit, the plan was pretty clever. A flat tire... probably caused by some small explosive device.
But... that's it for the surprise?
---
At the gas station not far away, Kaito Kid, dressed in a gas station attendant's uniform, held a detonator in one hand and binoculars in the other. He watched the car with the flat tire in the distance, a slight smirk playing on his lips.
A moment later, Kogoro Mouri arrived at the gas station. He pushed open the door and asked Kaito Kid, "Hey kid, do you have any spare tires here? Our tire just blew out."
"We do have spare tires here, but they're all in the warehouse," Kaito Kid said, a service-oriented smile on his face as he stepped out from behind the counter. "However, I pulled a muscle in my hand a few days ago, so you'll probably have to get it yourself."
"No problem, how much?"
"Fifty thousand yen."
"That's a rip-off..." Kogoro Mouri grumbled, emptying the cigarette butts from the car's ashtray into a trash can. Reluctantly, he followed Kaito Kid to the warehouse.
"By the way, kid, where are the tires? Why is the warehouse so dark?" Kogoro Mouri pulled open the warehouse door and peered inside.
"Wuwuwu!"
Just then, a muffled cry suddenly caught his attention. He squinted and saw the gas station attendant from earlier.
"Hey, hey, what is this..."
Before Kogoro Mouri could turn around to ask, Kaito Kid's face twisted into a mischievous grin. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and firmly clapped it over Kogoro Mouri's face.
"Wuwuwu!"
Another muffled cry.
However, Kogoro Mouri didn't immediately pass out. Instead, an elbow strike landed squarely on Kaito Kid's stomach.
Kaito Kid: "???"
A wave of pain shot through him, leaving Kaito Kid momentarily stunned. But he quickly recovered, pressed the handkerchief even harder onto Kogoro Mouri's face, and with his other hand, grabbed a wooden stick from nearby, striking him on the head.
With a double assault, Kogoro Mouri finally succumbed.
"Ow, ow, ow!" Kaito Kid clutched his stomach, dropping the wooden stick. He squatted on the ground, his face contorted in pain.
"What in the world is wrong with this old man?!" Kaito Kid thought to himself, recovering slightly before standing up and looking at the unconscious Kogoro Mouri. This was a high-concentration anesthetic! Even a bull should have passed out by now! But not only did this old man not pass out, his stomach even got hit twice. What kind of person is this old man?!
"He's probably developed a resistance from being shot with so many tranquilizer darts," a familiar voice said. Kaito Kid turned around to see Fujino walking up behind him, hands in his pockets.
"Fujino?!" Kaito Kid exclaimed in surprise.
Fujino glanced at the unconscious Detective Mouri, a cool, disdainful expression on his face. "This is your big surprise for me? You're really slacking, kid..."
Kaito Kid: "..."
What kind of expression was that? Why did it make him feel a little guilty? Slacking...? Did he mean something else?
Kaito Kid shook his head, not wanting to dwell on it too much. Then he asked, "What do you mean by 'resistance'? Why is this old man harder to anesthetize than a bull? My handkerchief didn't even work for that long."
"It's probably due to Conan's tranquilizer darts. After being shot for so long, he's developed an immunity to the anesthetic's sleep-inducing effects," Fujino mused. "If I had to guess, one of those darts could take down an elephant. But for an old bull like him, tsk tsk tsk, it's just too weak."
"???" Kaito Kid was dumbfounded, staring at Kogoro Mouri in disbelief. An elephant's dose, and he's even developed a resistance? What kind of superhuman is he? He really wanted to wake the old man up right now and ask him, "Uncle, how in the world have you managed to live until now?!"