If you're not tall enough, a stool will do.
After inserting a coin into the public telephone, Conan stood on a small stool and dialed Onizawa's cell phone number.
Among all the police officers he knew, the one he trusted most was Inspector Onizawa. He was convinced his teacher wouldn't dismiss what he said just because he was a child.
"We discovered that the director of Beika Library is suspected of trafficking hero—"
Before he could finish the sentence, the line suddenly went dead.
Conan frowned and called into the receiver a few times before realizing something was wrong.
'Did Director Tsugawa not go very far? Did he notice Ayumi turning on the lights and come back to the library?'
Then, footsteps echoed from downstairs.
Realizing the situation had taken a turn for the worse, Conan quickly motioned for the Detective Boys to stay silent.
Despite the danger, Haibara remained remarkably calm. She quietly pointed toward the library reading room.
At the moment, that was the best hiding place. Anywhere else would leave them with no route of escape.
The children tiptoed into the reading room, deliberately leaving the door open to create the illusion that no one was inside.
The decision proved to be the right one.
After returning to the library, Tsugawa cut off the public phone line from the control panel before climbing the stairs with an iron rod in hand. When he noticed the reading room door standing open, he turned instead and inspected the restrooms first.
Keeping his voice low, Genta whispered,
"Hey, Conan... what do we do now? I'm really hungry."
'Seriously? You're thinking about food right now?' Conan thought helplessly. 'If we're found, we're dead.'
As the "only" dependable older person present, Conan reassured everyone in a whisper.
"Don't worry. When the call suddenly disconnected, Inspector Onizawa definitely realized something was wrong. He'll come rescue us. We just have to stall for as long as possible."
Standing quietly with her hands behind her back, Haibara frowned in thought. This incident presented the perfect opportunity to test Onizawa's identity.
'If he really is Augier, then things are going to get troublesome. I need to make Kudo keep his distance from him.'
After confirming that neither restroom on the second floor was occupied, Tsugawa took out his phone and dialed a number.
"You lot search the first floor. Split off a few people and dispose of Tamada's body while you're at it."
"Director Tsugawa," the man on the other end replied with obvious displeasure, "We're not your subordinates. Watch your tone."
Tsugawa hadn't expected them to care about something so trivial at a time like this. Suppressing his irritation, he forced himself to sound polite.
"My apologies, Yamazaki-san. I'm just a little anxious. The police searched the library earlier today."
"Hmph. Fine. But afterward, we're taking a larger commission. You don't mind, do you?"
"Heh... not at all."
Tsugawa hung up, his face darkening.
Now he hated the little mice hiding inside his library even more. The thought of Tamada's corpse still lying on top of the elevator shaft made him grin.
As he slowly tapped the iron rod against the walls, he called out in an eerie voice,
"Little mice... stop hiding. Uncle's here to take you home."
.
Hearing his voice getting closer, Ayumi immediately threw herself into Conan's arms. She was still just an elementary school girl.
Of course she was terrified.
Tears were already welling up in her eyes. Neither Genta nor Mitsuhiko had the luxury of being jealous of Conan anymore.
Both silently looked toward him, asking with their eyes what they should do next.
Keeping his voice barely above a whisper, Conan quickly explained his plan. Afterward, he turned to the unusually quiet and expressionless Haibara.
"Haibara... can you stay with Ayumi?"
"Mm. Leave it to me."
.
After circling the second floor, Tsugawa finally realized he'd been fooled.
The little brats had deliberately led him astray.
'Playing tricks on me? Fine. I'll kill every last one of you.'
Holding the iron rod, he stepped into the second-floor reading area with a smile that couldn't have looked less friendly.
"Kids... I know you're in here. Come on out. I'll take you home~"
The bookshelves were arranged in neat rows.
Only after walking all the way to the final aisle did Tsugawa notice that one of the movable bookshelves had been pulled out.
"Hmph. Clever little brats. All the more reason not to leave any of them alive."
"...Hm?"
He noticed several books wedged beneath the bookshelf on the left.
"So they wanted to topple the shelf onto me? What a childish little trick."
"NOW!!!"
Hidden behind the bookshelf, the children all threw their combined weight against it.
The bookshelf toppled exactly as planned. But what happened next was painfully awkward.
Tsugawa was simply standing beside it with his iron rod. He had effortlessly avoided the falling shelf. His expressionless old face practically had two words written across it:
"Is that all?"
"Hahahahahaha..."
Looking at the five children huddled against the corner of the wall, Tsugawa immediately recognized them.
They were the overly curious kids he'd run into that afternoon, especially the bespectacled boy leading them. He had almost ruined everything.
"Hehehe... children's thinking really is too simple." Grinning wickedly, Tsugawa slowly approached them.
"Don't worry. I won't let any of you be lonely. Uncle will make sure all five of you keep each other company underground."
Haibara noticed the bookshelves were about to fall exactly as Conan had planned. Remaining perfectly composed, she kept her hands behind her back and said coldly,
"Adults can be surprisingly simple too. Haven't you ever played with dominoes?"
"...What?"
Tsugawa froze.
By the time he understood what she meant, the bookshelves behind him had already begun collapsing one after another.
Crash!
The chain reaction buried him beneath multiple bookshelves, pinning him to the floor. At his age, taking such a heavy fall was enough to knock him unconscious on the spot.
"Yes!!!"
Even Conan couldn't help cheering like an ordinary child.
But then he remembered what Haibara had said.
'This transfer student really is strange... Ayumi was so frightened she burst into tears, so how is Haibara this calm?'
Noticing Conan staring at her, Haibara asked flatly,
"What? Something wrong?"
"Ah... no."
Conan quickly shook his head. "Come on. Let's get out of here before—"
At that very moment, a commotion erupted at the entrance. A gruff male voice shouted,
"Hey! Tsugawa! What the hell are you doing?"
"...Huh?"
"What's with these bookshelves?"
'There are more of them?!'
Conan and the others immediately panicked. They hurried back behind the bookshelves to hide.
Haibara also realized how serious the situation had become. But she was trapped in the body of a child.
Even if she used the self-defense techniques she'd learned while in the Organization, they would be useless against an armed adult.
The man tightened his grip on the pistol in his hand and frowned.
"Hey! Tsugawa! If you're alive, answer me! Quit playing dead!"
Ring... Ring... Ring...
A phone suddenly rang.
The man stopped walking with an annoyed sigh and answered it, giving Conan and the others a brief moment to breathe.
'If this keeps happening, we're all going to die of fright before anything else...'
"Nagai? Why're you calling me?"
"So his name's Nagai..."
The man froze.
Realizing someone else had spoken, he barked,
"Who the hell are you?!"
"Me? Why don't you come downstairs and see for yourself?"
The call ended immediately.
The man sensed something wasn't right. But with a gun in his hand, he wasn't afraid. A vicious grin spread across his face as he hid the pistol behind his back and walked toward the exit.
'Looks like there are quite a few rats running around tonight. I'll bury every last one of them here.'
----
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