The navy-blue Bugatti crawled through the morning rush-hour traffic.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Akemi checked her makeup in the mirror from time to time. She glanced over at the flawless disguise on the man beside her before finally asking,
"Takashi, are you sure I should keep using the name Miyano Akemi? I don't need a disguise like yours?"
Driving with one hand, Ritsu picked up the iced Americano beside him with the other. After taking a sip, he replied,
"No. Keeping the identity of Miyano Akemi gives us the best chance of deceiving the Organization. But during future missions, I'll personally teach you disguise techniques. You're already good at makeup, so you should pick it up pretty quickly."
"If you teach me a skill like that, won't the Organization be upset?"
"You have to learn it first before we worry about that."
After spending nearly half an hour stuck in traffic, they finally entered the west gate of Teitan Elementary School.
Once he parked in the faculty parking lot, Ritsu straightened his dark navy suit jacket.
Today's objective was simple.
Show his face in front of Conan and the others.
And...
He was rather curious to see what kind of expression a certain shrunken Shiho would make.
'Have I been infected by Akemi's mischievous streak too?'
For some reason, he found himself looking forward to it.
...
Meanwhile, Conan had no idea a new transfer student would be joining his class that day.
Nor did he know the school had hired a new art teacher.
Having absolutely no interest in first-grade elementary school life, he wore his usual half-lidded expression as he pushed open the classroom door.
Only to be greeted by three eager faces. The sudden enthusiasm startled him enough to take a step backward.
"Good morning, Conan!"
"G-Good morning..."
Ever since taking them on that treasure hunt, Conan had somehow become an official member of the Detective Boys.
Listening helplessly to the three children excitedly chatting away, he found himself growing even more dissatisfied with his shrunken body.
'Seriously... Why did I have to go from a high school student to an elementary school kid?
Spending every day hanging around these little brats is torture...'
Conan ruffled his own hair in frustration before collapsing onto his desk.
'If only I'd been a little more careful back then... Maybe I could've escaped instead of being forced to swallow that strange poison.'
"Oh, right! Did you guys hear? Starting today, our class is getting another transfer student!"
"Huh? Really? We haven't had one since Conan transferred here!"
Conan twitched at the corner of his mouth.
'I literally transferred here just a few days ago. Do kids really get tired of the new kid this quickly?'
Yoshida Ayumi, wearing her signature yellow headband, smiled brightly.
"I didn't see the transfer student, but I did see the new art teacher! She's a super pretty big sister!"
"Really?!"
Kojima Genta, whose hairstyle resembled an oversized rice ball, perked up.
"I hope the transfer student is a cute girl too! But if it's a boy, I hope he'll play with us! Right, Mitsuhiko?"
The freckled Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko nodded eagerly.
"Yeah! It'd be even better if they joined the Detective Boys! Then we'd have five members!"
As everyone was gossiping, the classroom door suddenly opened.
Under the expectant gazes of the entire class, a little girl stepped inside.
She had tea-colored hair and wore a dark purple turtleneck sweater beneath a camel-colored coat. Her mixed-race features were strikingly beautiful.
Several of the boys in the classroom immediately blushed.
Conan narrowed his eyes.
'These little kids sure are growing up fast. Back when I was their age...'
"..."
'Actually... I don't think I'm in any position to say that.'
"It's a girl! Yay!"
"She's so cute! She looks like a doll!"
Homeroom teacher Kobayashi Sumiko gently released Shiho, now shrunken into the body of an elementary school student, and walked to the podium with a smile.
"Alright, everyone! Back to your seats! Otherwise, I won't introduce our new classmate."
"Okay!!"
Conan rested his chin in his hand, completely uninterested in the new transfer student.
His thoughts were still occupied by yesterday's incident on Moon Shadow Island. The image of Shinichi Wada surfaced in his mind.
'Who exactly was that man using a fake name? How did he see through Dr. Narumi's disguise so quickly...?
And that blond, dark-skinned guy who was with him disappeared too...'
After confirming everyone was seated, Kobayashi turned and wrote the transfer student's name on the blackboard.
Smiling, she announced,
"Everyone, this is Ai Haibara. Starting today, she'll be studying with all of you. I hope everyone gets along with her!"
"Okay!!!"
Standing at the front of the classroom, Haibara maintained an indifferent expression.
She hadn't come here to make friends.
She had come to seek Shinichi's help.
And...
To observe whether shrinking into Conan's body had produced any side effects.
And then, a commotion arose outside the classroom.
The door opened again.
Standing outside was a kindly elderly man with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Kobayashi-san, I almost forgot to tell you. Your class has a new art teacher as well. Since your assistant homeroom teacher position is vacant, why not have her fill it?"
Haibara instinctively looked toward the doorway.
The moment she did, her expression froze in utter shock.
Standing outside the classroom... was her own older sister.
Miyano Akemi.
'H-How...? What's going on...?'
Akemi's gaze also landed on Haibara.
A look of surprise spread naturally across her face. Her acting was convincing enough that even Ritsu, who remained hidden just outside the doorway, felt like applauding.
"Wow! Pretty big sister!"
"Awesome! We finally have an assistant teacher!"
Kobayashi quickly ushered Akemi onto the podium.
"Then please introduce yourself to everyone."
Akemi placed both hands gently over her abdomen and gave a polite bow. Wearing a warm, approachable smile, she said,
"Hello, everyone in Class 1-B. My name is Miyano Akemi, your new art teacher. I hope we'll all get along from now on."
"Please take good care of us, Miyano-sensei!!"
Seeing the timing was perfect, Ritsu decided it was finally his turn.
Hands tucked casually into his pockets, he walked into the classroom. Before he could even speak, Genta suddenly leaped to his feet.
"Ah! You're that super awesome police officer!!"
"You're right! Why is Onizawa-nii here?"
Conan, who had been lost in thought, looked up in surprise.
He blinked rapidly.
'Did something happen at school?
Even if the Metropolitan Police were here to give a crime-prevention lecture, they wouldn't send Onizawa-sensei...'
Ritsu deliberately stepped between Haibara and Akemi, positioning himself squarely in the middle before smiling.
"Hello, everyone. I'm Onizawa Takashi from the Violent Crimes Division Three of the Metropolitan Police Department's First Investigation Division."
"I was only here because I was worried Akemi might be too nervous to get along with all of you."
"But now... I can relax."
The precocious Ayumi immediately picked up on the hidden meaning. Relying on what she proudly considered a girl's intuition, she grinned and asked,
"Onizawa-nii, you and Miyano-sensei aren't... boyfriend and girlfriend, are you?"
Ritsu silently gave Ayumi a thumbs-up in his heart.
'That's exactly what I was waiting for someone to notice.'
Scratching his cheek awkwardly, he smiled.
"Ah... yeah. I won't interrupt class anymore. See you, everyone."
Conan instantly understood.
'So Sensei's mysterious girlfriend is the new Miyano-san.'
A small smile appeared on his face.
'Sensei's girlfriend is really beautiful.'
Meanwhile, Haibara, still standing at the podium, lowered her head.
Her fists slowly tightened.
'Did my sister find herself a boyfriend during the two months we were apart? But if she has a boyfriend... wouldn't the Organization discover it?'
Or...
Her eyes followed Ritsu as he left the classroom.
'No... I can't sense the Organization's presence from him at all. Am I just overthinking things? Or is the Organization using my sister to establish ties with the Metropolitan Police...?'
Kobayashi crouched down beside Haibara and smiled.
"Haibara, there are still three empty seats. Which one would you like?"
Coming back to her senses, Haibara pretended she hadn't recognized her sister. Without answering, she simply walked toward the empty seat beside Conan.
It was the most convenient place from which to observe her little laboratory mouse.
Conan hadn't expected the cold, aloof girl to choose the desk next to his. Politely, he greeted her, "Haibara-san, nice to meet you. Let's get along."
"...Likewise."
After sitting down, Haibara lifted her gaze toward Akemi, who was leaving the classroom.
'My sister definitely recognized me. After all... I look exactly the same as I did when I was little.'
Then... a certain sentence suddenly resurfaced in her mind.
—"She'll be fine. Before long, you'll be calling me your brother-in-law."
'Wait... That was Augier who said that!'
Haibara's face gradually turned pale.
'So... does that mean Augier and Takashi Onizawa are actually the same person? Or was Augier simply joking with me?
That man lies so effortlessly that it's impossible to know which of his words are true.'
"..."
'Looks like there's only one way to find out. I'll have to get close to my sister or get close to Onizawa...
Only then can I confirm whether they're really the same person.'