Bombers—among the most dangerous criminals. Unlike killers, they don't stain their own hands with blood, but they're even more ruthless. A single bomb can claim far more lives.
The black smoke Mouri saw came from a supermarket. Many were dead, dozens injured.
Police cars and fire trucks howled through the streets. Not long had passed since the Tokyo Tower terrorist attack, and now another bombing. Truly a troubled season.
Megure Jūzō's face was dark. So many major incidents in such a short time—this was on the police. They had failed to protect public safety.
The blast was devastating. Reporters arrived even before police or firefighters, racing to broadcast the scene. The sight was horrific. The bomb had gone off in a trash bin in the main hall, blowing out surrounding shops. Storefront glass shattered everywhere. Victims were nearby shoppers. The injured were those caught in the radius. Many more were cut down by the shockwave and flying shards.
"A bomb. I knew it was a bomb. Where's the bomb squad?"
"They're already on their way."
"Good. Start evacuating the crowd. There may be more explosives. Until the bomb squad arrives, no one enters—no exceptions. Surround the entire mall." Megure's orders came fast. "After the medics pull people out, they can't go back in either. Wait for the bomb squad to clear the danger. Only then can the investigation team go in. Damn bomber."
Police, firefighters, doctors—in times like these, they had to stay calm and charge forward.
"Ran?!!" Conan had originally been on his way to investigate Araide. But halfway there, the deafening blast reached his ears. He instantly guessed the bombing was at the mall. And he remembered—Sonoko and Ran had gone shopping there today.
Forgetting everything else, Conan sprinted toward the explosion site at full speed.
Chaos everywhere. Residents, hearing the reports, rushed to the scene. They feared their loved ones were among the victims. But their panic only made things worse. The more people, the greater the disorder.
"Damn it, why are there so many people?" Megure hadn't expected this. When he arrived, he couldn't even get close. The mall was completely surrounded by frantic residents.
"There are reporters. They already went live. The moment people saw it, they ran here to check on their family."
"Fools. We don't even know how many bombs there are. If the crowd stays packed like this, it'll be a disaster. Get them to back off. Tell them we'll release the casualty list as soon as possible!" Megure barked. He understood their fear, but safety came first.
Conan arrived, too. The mall was in ruins. He tried calling Ran, but no one picked up. He called Sonoko—same result. His chest tightened with worry.
He searched through the crowd, scanning frantically. No sign of Ran. No sign of Sonoko. If they weren't here, his only option was to check the hospitals.
Confusion. Panic. And more confusion.
"Inspector Megure! The bomb squad just found another device. They're preparing to defuse it!"
"Good." Finally, some stability. Once the bomb was disabled, the investigation could begin.
But the bomber was still there. Hidden among the crowd, watching. Every move the police made was under his eyes.
'Stupid cops. Did you think this was the end? No. This is only the beginning.'
What the bomber wanted was simple—to prove the police were nothing but useless trash. They had no ability to protect Tokyo. They were pathetic, powerless worms. In short, it was all about revenge against the police.
He dialed the police station: "Hello, the bomb in the mall was mine. I'll give you 3 seconds to find the location of the next bomb."
Click. He hung up.
When Megure heard the message, his mind jumped back to a bombing extortion case from 3 years ago. It was the same thing—the bomber gave 3 seconds to reveal the next bomb's location. Because of that, Officer Matsuda, one of Megure's men, didn't defuse the bomb immediately. Instead, in those last 3 seconds, he sent a text revealing the location of the next device. He died in the explosion.
Matsuda had also been Officer Sato Miwako's boyfriend. His final text—part warning, part confession of love—was still saved in Miwako's phone.
"Could it be…? Could it be the same bomber from 3 years ago, back again?" Megure looked toward the mall.
Boom—!
The shockwave tore through the street. Civilians at the front were struck by flying debris. Countless injuries.
Conan was blasted off his feet, though luckily not hurt.
It was clear—the bomb squad hadn't even waited until the last 3 seconds. They hadn't defused the bomb at all. Instead, it detonated while they were still working on it.
Inspector Megure pulled himself up: "Ambulances!"
A second explosion. More wounded. But now the bigger problem—where was the next bomb?
All of Tokyo was in chaos. News of more bombs spread quickly. Even the police didn't know where the devices were hidden. All they could do was search every crowded public place—stations, supermarkets, hospitals—everywhere.
But manpower was nowhere near enough. It was like searching for a needle in the ocean.
At the same time, Division One formed a special investigation team to reopen the unsolved bombing case from 3 years ago. If they couldn't find the bombs, they'd hunt down the bomber.
"Conan!" While Conan was still worrying about Ran, Ran appeared, running up to him. "Weren't you supposed to be heading to the professor's place?"
"Ran-neechan, you're safe?" Conan let out a breath of relief. "But I kept calling your phone—why didn't you answer?"
"Because my phone was dead. I forgot to charge it when I got home yesterday."
Sonoko chimed in: "Scary, right? A bombing! Lucky we detoured to that cosmetics shop on the next street."
"Yeah, it looked really dangerous. Conan, let's just go home."
"Ran-neechan, Sonoko-neechan, you two head back first. I still need to go to the professor's." Ran was safe now, so Conan could throw himself fully into investigating. "Bye! I might not come home tonight."
"Be careful, Conan." Ran sighed as she watched him go. "Honestly, I don't know who this child takes after. Never lets anyone worry less."
"Ran, I know it's dangerous, but there's another place I need to go."
"Where?"
"The bookstore. School starts again with mock exams, remember? I need to study during the break or I won't be ready."
"Oh, right! I need to buy reference books too. Sonoko, let's go together."
Conan spotted Detective Takagi's car. He knew right away this was his chance to investigate. Without a word, he slipped into Takagi's vehicle.