"Mr. Amuro!? Are you really awake?"
As soon as news of Amuro's consciousness spread, Conan rushed to his hospital room, accompanied by Kogoro Mouri, Ran, and Sonoko Suzuki. When they entered, Amuro was staring vacantly into space, motionless. He noticed Conan's voice and turned his head with agonizing slowness.
His eyes were hollow, stripped of their usual spark, sending a chill down Conan's spine. Amuro opened his mouth to speak, but Conan never imagined the situation had deteriorated this far.
"Who are you, boy?"
The diagnosis was "Total Amnesia," a rare hysterical dissociative disorder often triggered by psychological trauma. Dr. Kazato delivered the news. Since Amuro had no known relatives, there was no family to contact or visit him. Despite this, his room was never silent or somber; a steady stream of friends and acquaintances came by in shifts.
While he retained his general knowledge and common sense—meaning he could still function in daily life—leaving him to live alone in this state seemed cruel. Inspector Megure, who had arrived at the room, briefed Kogoro Mouri on the current state of the investigation.
"Mr. Amuro likely realized that Detective Sato was the killer's next target."
With a deductive mind rivaling Conan's, Amuro (or rather, Bourbon) had anticipated the culprit's arrival. Given his high physical capability, he had undoubtedly planned to apprehend the criminal right there. Kogoro bowed his head, his brow furrowed in grief.
"And so the criminal caught him off guard...!"
"If Mr. Amuro hadn't intervened and stopped the culprit at that moment, Detective Sato's life—and Miss Ran's, who was with her—would have been in grave danger."
"You fool, you were far too reckless!"
Amuro continued to stare at Kogoro in a daze. The willpower and vitality that usually defined him had vanished, replaced by nothing but profound confusion and bewilderment.
"Amuro... I'm sorry. Do you remember me?"
"No... Was I really a detective?"
"Yes. You worked as my apprentice. And this is my daughter, Ran."
"Miss Ran?"
"I'm Ran Mouri. It feels a bit strange; Mr. Amuro always used the polite boku to refer to himself, but now he's using the much coarser ore."
Amuro tilted his head in surprise. He seemed unable to grasp the situation, knitting his brows and scanning the room with uncertainty.
"Me? ... Did I really speak so politely?"
"Yes. You also worked part-time at Café Poirot, right below the agency. Everyone loved you as a waiter."
"Detective... part-time work..."
He repeated the words as if they were foreign terms he had never encountered before. In that moment, Conan finally understood the identity of the person before him: it was Furuya. Given his true background, it was no surprise he felt uncomfortable being called a "detective." Furthermore, his preferred pronoun had always been ore.
"You might remember something eventually, and living alone like this isn't a good idea. How about staying at my house for a while?"
"! ... I am deeply grateful for that offer. Honestly, I have no memories, and I was worried about how I'd manage daily life if I went home now."
"Then it's settled. Once the tests regarding the explosion are finished and you're discharged, I'll come pick you up. Agreed?"
"Thank you, Mr. Mouri. I'll prepare dinner for everyone to show my gratitude. I still have my basic skills, and I want to see how well I can move and work on my own."
"Oh! That would be wonderful! Your cooking is second to none—unlike Eri's!"
Late that night.
Conan slipped quietly into Amuro's room. He approached the man, who lay in the darkness with his eyes closed, seemingly fast asleep. He called out in a low whisper:
"Mr. Amuro... No, Bourbon."
"───What is it, Conan-kun?"
Amuro's eyes snapped open, fixing Conan with a mysterious, glowing gaze. Conan breathed a sigh of relief, realizing his deduction was correct.
"...The one who lost his memory is Mr. Zero (Furuya), isn't it?"
"Exactly. I am perfectly fine, so nothing is stopping me from staying active."
He smiled playfully, adding that he could suppress the current "primary persona" and keep him inside whenever necessary. Conan asked cautiously, "How is Zero doing now?"
Even though this was an accident, the person before him was now a member of the Black Organization, free from the oversight of the primary persona, Furuya. The entity created to be a criminal was now roaming free.
"The primary persona is asleep. Is that all you wanted?"
"Mostly. I wanted to confirm that Bourbon's memories were still intact and to understand the balance of power between you and Mr. Zero."
"How boring. Are you leaving so soon?"
He pouted like a child. This impulsive, childish behavior was proof that he was a recently formed persona. If what he said was true, he was effectively younger than the children in the Junior Detective League.
"What about your head injury?"
"The MRI hasn't shown any abnormalities yet. Total amnesia from a head injury... I've really landed myself in it. It's my fault."
He shook his head and shrugged. Perhaps he had been careless, thinking he couldn't lose to a criminal of that caliber, and this was the result.
"You saw the killer, didn't you?"
"I did. It's that psychiatrist, Kazato. I didn't expect him to have the nerve to show up as my attending physician. It's a pity I couldn't tear him to pieces."
"...You didn't expose him because you prioritized Mr. Zero's treatment?"
"Exactly. If I appeared publicly, they'd think I didn't need medical care."
Amuro laughed cheerfully. "Oh, and by the way, let's not bring up the fact that two of us existing in one body is a condition that needs treatment itself, alright?"
Faced with his evasive manner of speaking—the kind that made you lower your guard without realizing it—Conan decided to make a definitive point. He took a breath and said:
"...That's because the persona of 'Bourbon'—you—was necessary for the infiltration mission, wasn't it?"
The smile vanished instantly, replaced by a terrifying, cold void. Then he laughed mockingly, like a predator that had spotted its prey.
"Go on."
"...I finally managed to confirm it through Mr. Akai. Your name is Rei Furuya. You are a Public Security officer, and you've been undercover in the Organization for five years."
"..."
"You said before that your persona was born five years ago."
"And what of it?"
The timing of Bourbon's birth matched perfectly with the start of the infiltration. It couldn't be a coincidence.
"Rei Furuya was known for his sharp personality, but also for his high sense of justice. ...When you plunged into the Organization's shadows, you must have been forced to do things that violated your humanity and mocked your sense of justice."
"..."
"Perhaps Rei Furuya, the officer with that strong sense of justice, felt despair at what he had to do."
So much so that he created another persona to protect his heart. A long silence followed. The man born as Bourbon neither confirmed nor denied it; he simply closed his eyes.
"I don't know the details either. The primary persona doesn't want to talk about it."
"Don't you share memories?"
"We do. That's why I struggled so much at first. When I wanted to work as an Organization member, I had no idea what to do or how to act."
His tone was light, but Conan could imagine the weight of the pain he had faced. To be in that Organization where his life was in constant danger, without ambitions or principles to guide him. Driven only by necessity, forced to kill just to survive. Conan couldn't stop himself from asking:
"Don't you feel resentful?"
"About what?"
"That you were born as a criminal and tasked with killing against your will."
Bourbon looked surprised, as if he had heard something unexpected.
"It can't be helped, can it? I was always more resilient to these things than he was. Besides, if I stopped completing the mission here, I'd be ashamed to face the primary persona."
"...I see."
Bourbon's words held no lies. He was carrying out his assigned task with a purity resembling a child following instinct. It was a clear distortion, a deep-seated problem that Conan couldn't simply fix. Bourbon waved his hand dismissively to shift the conversation to the future.
"Anyway, I'll leave things to the primary persona and withdraw. I can't move properly."
"What do you mean?"
"My limbs feel numb. The primary persona doesn't seem to feel it, but I can't walk normally."
Conan held his breath. This was a grave issue. Even if the MRI showed nothing, limb paralysis was fatal for an Organization member who relied on strength. Noticing Conan's concern, Bourbon continued in a light tone to reassure him:
"It seems to be improving gradually, and I think I'll recover within a week."
"But what if the killer targets you again now!"
"That's where you come in. I'm counting on you, Conan-kun. I can't turn to the Organization in this state. If Vodka or Gin found out, it would be a disaster."
Bourbon sighed, remarked that the hospital where Kazato worked might be burned to the ground.
"It's late. I'll have you come back tomorrow to discuss the details."
Bourbon pulled up the bed covers and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he had returned to being Rei Furuya.
"...Ah."
"───Strange, when did... Are you Conan-kun?"
"Yes. I'm sorry for coming so late, I just felt a little lonely."
"I see. That's alright. You can stay as long as you like."
"...Thank you, Mr. Amuro."
The following day.
The case of the serial police shootings was suddenly handed over to Public Security as their jurisdiction.
"We can't accept this! So many of our colleagues have died!"
"This is a direct order. You have no right to refuse."
Detective Sato was arguing furiously with an unknown Public Security officer wearing glasses. However, Inspector Megure intervened and stopped her, forcing her to back down.
As Sato glared at the Public Security officers marching toward Amuro's room, she grabbed Detective Takagi.
"What is wrong with them! I am likely the killer's next target!"
"D-Detective Sato, that hurts!"
Conan slipped away quietly from Sato's side, running off unnoticed while everyone was preoccupied. When he rounded a hospital corridor corner following the Public Security officers, he found the officer with glasses standing there, as if waiting for him.
"Mr. Furu—Mr. Amuro is waiting for you. Please, follow us."
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