Natsume opened the mission panel and saw that the world mission now read [Completed]; the rewards had already been distributed.
She exhaled in relief. Thank goodness—she'd almost feared that finishing it that way wouldn't count.
Meanwhile, Shinichi Kudo noticed the blonde woman had vanished, but he didn't dwell on it. What really bothered him were the two Men in Black who'd ridden the Roller Coaster with him; their eyes held a chilling disregard for human life, as if they'd killed many before.
Just then, one of those Men in Black sprinted past. Unable to ignore it, Shinichi gave chase, glancing back to tell Ran Mouri to head home without him.
Beside him, Ran could only watch him leave—her shoelace had snapped at that exact moment.
The gears of destiny began to turn.
As expected, Shinichi paid for his recklessness: they forced the poison down his throat.
After Gin fed him the organization's new drug and erased every trace, rustling sounded from the grass; a silhouette appeared not far away.
The poison blazed through Shinichi's body—his bones felt as if they were melting. Most of his consciousness was gone; he couldn't sense anything around him.
Alhaitham watched the iconic scene of Conan's birth, counting the seconds while observing every detail. Reverting to childhood was something even Teyvat's adepts seldom achieved.
'After ingesting APTX4869, bodily reaction begins at 35 seconds, marked by severe pain. Pain lasts 1 minute 28 seconds; transformation starts, body shrinks, physiology reverts to childhood—observed regression roughly 10 years. Change lasts about 15 seconds; no notable reaction after completion.'
At that point Alhaitham produced an unused syringe he'd taken from the Amusement Park infirmary, knelt, slid the needle into an inconspicuous spot on Shinichi's inner arm, and drew a full tube of blood.
He stored the sample and walked off, leaving Shinichi lying there.
He'd already heard voices; someone would find the boy soon—no need for extra interference.
Natsume had no idea what Alhaitham had done to the protagonist; she was busy checking the mission rewards.
Besides some Mora and EXP booklets, the payout gave her a personal ID and the deed to a house.
Perfect—she'd worried about where to sleep once night fell; now she had papers and a roof. Time to message Alhaitham to head home.
She'd noticed the system's info function could send messages to specific people. Only two contacts appeared: Lisa's icon was gray—probably not yet summoned—while Alhaitham's glowed.
She tentatively sent: "Meet at the Amusement Park gate." Moments later came the reply—"Got it." So two-way communication worked.
After waiting a short while, Alhaitham appeared. He had no intention of recounting what he'd just done; that was his own affair and wouldn't affect her. Telling her now would only add pointless worry.
She glanced at the address—10-39, Block 5, Beika Town—and realized it was near the Mouri Detective Agency.
She recalled the agency sat at 1-39, Block 5; the system's gift was only a few doors away.
When they arrived, sure enough the building stood diagonally across from the Mouri Detective Agency; from here she could just make out the big characters on its window.
It was a detached three-storey house, set slightly apart from its neighbors. The ground floor fronted the street—perfect for a small shop. With no plan yet, she left it empty.
The second floor held two bedrooms—master and guest—barely spacious, but enough for two tonight.
The third was a tiny attic whose window looked straight down the street toward the Mouri Detective Agency. She could tell, vaguely, how many people were inside.
She refused to buy a telescope; that would feel creepy, and Conan was sharp. If he spotted a lens flash and guessed someone was spying, she'd have no excuse.
After the quick tour she headed to the second floor to rest. She'd meant to take the smaller guest room; a tall man like Alhaitham would find it cramped.
But when she arrived, he was already settling into the guest room.
"It's your house; the owner doesn't sleep in the guest room. Besides, I only need space to rest and read," he said.
She didn't argue—she could tell he meant it.
Lying in bed, Natsume finally had time to grill Paimon about system details. Between card-drawing, role-playing, and missions, she'd never gotten a proper explanation.
One question nagged her: where would future summons live?
Two people fit; with Lisa she could still squeeze—share the master bed if needed. Any more and they'd be on the floor, which she couldn't bear.
Paimon looked puzzled. "Traveler, didn't you know? Summoned characters already have their own residences. Only you, as an outsider, lacked ID and housing—hence the mission rewards."
Natsume was stunned; she'd assumed every summon started as an undocumented resident like herself. Turns out she was the only illegal one.
Paimon scratched his head, embarrassed. "Sorry, I forgot to mention. When a character card manifests in the real world, the world-consciousness adds an appropriate identity. After all, we're helping it out; it chips in, hehe."
"The fabricated background mirrors the character's own history to avoid suspicion, and people around them gain vague memories—'I know this person,' but nothing specific."