31: Chapter 31 Conan's Investigation

The afternoon sun slanted into the Mouri Detective Agency, casting a few golden spots of light on the floor.

Mouri Kogoro was sprawled on the sofa, snoring loudly, with an empty beer can by his side. On the television, the famous star Yoko Okino was shown dancing.

Conan stood by the window with his arms crossed, his brows furrowed, and his eyes behind his glasses flashing with a sharp light.

He had just been thinking about Lin Long again—that mysterious man with long blood-red hair and red eyes.

Ever since the incident on Tsukikage Island, this man named Lin Long seemed to have appeared out of thin air, opening an information consulting agency in Beika Town. He kept a low profile but always managed to appear at critical moments.

The bandaged man case at the mountain villa, the gathering of the Suzuki Family... Every time he encountered him, Conan could feel an indescribable sense of oppression, as if he were being watched by invisible eyes, making him feel completely uneasy.

What concerned him even more was that the timing of Lin Long's appearance was too "coincidental"—it was exactly after he was forced to take APTX4869 by the Black Organization and turned into Conan.

Could such a coincidence really exist in this world?

"Conan, what are you thinking about?"

Mouri Ran walked over carrying a plate of washed strawberries. Seeing his worried expression, she asked with concern, "Are you feeling unwell somewhere?"

"Ah, no, no!" Conan snapped back to reality, immediately putting on an innocent smile and revealing his two small canine teeth. "Ran, I want to go play at Dr. Agasa's house. The doctor said he wants to show me a new invention!"

"Is that so? Then be careful on the way and come back early." Mouri Ran didn't suspect a thing, smiling as she rubbed his head and urged him.

"Yeah!" Conan nodded vigorously, turned around, grabbed his jacket, and Ran out, almost putting his shoes on the wrong feet.

He had to find Dr. Agasa as soon as possible to investigate Lin Long's background.

Rushing out of the agency, Conan trotted all the way, passing through several familiar streets, and soon arrived in front of Dr. Agasa's slightly dilapidated yellow house.

"Knock, knock, knock!" Conan pounded on the door, his heart pounding with excitement and nervousness.

"Coming, coming!" Dr. Agasa's honest voice came from inside. Immediately after, the door opened, and Dr. Agasa, with his balding hairstyle and round glasses, poked his head out. Seeing it was Conan, he smiled and stepped aside, "Oh, it's Conan. Come in quickly, I just made a lemon pie."

"Doctor!" Conan rushed into the house, ignoring the scent of dessert in the air. With a serious expression, he grabbed Dr. Agasa's arm, "I have something very important to talk to you about!"

Dr. Agasa was startled by his serious demeanor and adjusted his glasses: "What's wrong, Conan? Did something happen?"

"I need you to help me investigate someone!" Conan's expression was exceptionally grave, not at all like that of a seven-year-old child.

"Investigate someone?" Dr. Agasa was stunned. "Who is it?"

"Lin Long." Conan said each word clearly, his eyes filled with unquestionable determination. "The head of that information consulting agency that has become very famous in Beika Town recently, Lin Long."

"Lin Long?" Dr. Agasa frowned, trying hard to recall the name. "Is that the young man with the very unique hair and eye color? I think I've seen him on the news... Why investigate him?"

Conan walked over to the sofa and sat down, clasping his hands on his knees. His glasses reflected the faint light coming from outside the window, and his tone became heavy: "Doctor, don't you think he's very strange?"

"Strange?" "Yes!" Conan nodded vigorously and spoke quickly, "Ever since I was forced to take the poison by the Black Organization and shrank, this Lin Long appeared in Beika Town for no apparent reason and even opened an agency.

Don't you think the timing is too coincidental? And in the cases I've encountered these past few times, he was always present—the piano curse case on Tsukikage Island, the bandaged man case at the mountain villa, and the gathering of the Suzuki Family... Every time, he acted too calmly, as if he already knew what would happen!"

"And his hair and eye color weren't like this half a month ago. I suspect he might have also undergone human experimentation?" Conan paused, a flash of wariness in his eyes: "I suspect there must be a secret behind this Lin Long. He could be a member of the Black Organization, sent specifically to monitor me; or he could be from another faction wanting to use me to... In any case, we absolutely cannot be careless!"

As the former Kudo Shinichi, he had a keen intuition for danger. The seemingly gentle yet domineering aura about Lin Long, that composure of knowing everything, made him instinctively feel uneasy. This man was like a fog, impossible to see through.

After listening to Conan's analysis, Dr. Agasa put away his smile, his expression becoming serious. He knew of Kudo Shinichi's deductive abilities and was even more aware of the terror of the Black Organization. Since Conan found Lin Long suspicious, they absolutely could not let their guard down.

"You make a valid point." Dr. Agasa nodded, "We certainly cannot rule out the possibility that he is connected to the Black Organization. Alright, I'll help you check!"

"That's great, Doctor!" Conan's eyes lit up, and he immediately stood up. "Let's go quickly!"

"Don't be in such a rush, follow me to the laboratory." Dr. Agasa turned and walked toward the stairs leading to the basement, "The computer setup there is more powerful and can find more information."

The two arrived at the basement. It was more of a small data center than a laboratory—several high-performance computers were placed against the wall, screens flashing with complex code, and the area was piled with various electronic components and hard drives.

Dr. Agasa sat in front of the computer, skillfully powering it on and connecting to the network. His fingers tapped rapidly on the keyboard, making a "clattering" sound.

"I'll start by checking public information to see if I can find his identity records."

Conan leaned toward the screen, staring intently at the scrolling pages, not daring to breathe. There wasn't much information about "Lin Long" on the search engine; most of it was news about his agency taking on a few big cases, accompanied by a few blurry photos taken recently—in the photos, Lin Long was wearing a black suit, his long blood-red hair particularly striking in the sunlight, and his red eyes looking into the lens, carrying an inexplicable sense of oppression.

"Strange, besides these, there is actually no other information." Dr. Agasa frowned. "No graduation school, no previous work history; it's as if... he just popped out of nowhere."

"I knew something was wrong!" Conan gritted his teeth. "Check his identity information again and see if there are any registration records!"

Dr. Agasa nodded, his fingers tapping even faster on the keyboard, and complex database interfaces popped up on the screen. Dr. Agasa used the technical means he had accumulated over the years to easily infiltrate the Metropolitan Police Department's identity system and began querying Lin Long's household registration information.

A few minutes later, a file page for Lin Long popped up.

"Found it!" Dr. Agasa's eyes lit up, and he immediately began to decrypt it. "His ID card information... the registered address is 2-chome, Beika Town, which is the address of his agency. However..." He paused, his brows furrowing even tighter: "This ID card was only reissued half a year ago, and the reason for registration was 'lost ID card.' The processing was handled by a company called 'Kaito Information Consulting,' and the documents were very complete, looking like there were no issues."

"Half a year ago?" Conan's pupils shrank suddenly. "That's exactly the time I became Conan!" This was definitely not a coincidence!

"Doctor, check that 'Kaito Information Consulting'!" Conan said in a deep voice. "There must be a problem!"

Dr. Agasa immediately began to investigate "Kaito Information Consulting," only to find that this company had been deregistered three months ago, and the information for the legal representative was also forged. It turned out that after Lin Long entrusted a middleman to help handle the identity proof, he had the Black Samurai handle that middleman and his so-called information company entirely.

"As I thought!" Conan clenched his fists, his eyes behind his glasses flashing with a cold light. "He is deliberately hiding his identity! Reissuing his ID card half a year ago was just to give the identity of 'Lin Long' a legal shell!"

A mysterious person with no past, no background, yet possessing powerful energy... This made Conan even more certain that Lin Long was definitely not simple.

"Doctor, check his source of funds again! Opening an agency and buying a manor must require a large amount of capital. Where did his money come from?"

Dr. Agasa nodded and began to hack into the banking system. But Lin Long's account information was encrypted layer by layer, as if blocked by an invisible wall, and he couldn't break through despite trying several times.

"It's no use, I can't find it." Dr. Agasa shook his head, a look of surprise on his face. "His account security level is extremely high, even stronger than the firewalls of many large companies. I can't get in at all."

Conan's brows furrowed even tighter. If even Dr. Agasa couldn't find the source of funds, it could only mean that the power behind Lin Long was extremely strong, perhaps even... more mysterious than the Black Organization.

"It seems this Lin Long is even less simple than I imagined." Conan said in a low voice, his eyes becoming grave. "Doctor, please carefully check all information related to him again, don't miss even the slightest clue. I will also pay more attention to him on my end and try to find a way to get close to his agency to see if I can find any leads."

He had to figure out Lin Long's true purpose. If Lin Long was from the Black Organization, he had to be prepared in advance; if it was hard to tell whether Lin Long was a friend or foe, he had to remain vigilant at all times and absolutely could not let Ran fall into danger.

"Alright, I understand." Dr. Agasa nodded and continued to work busily at the computer. "As soon as there is news, I will tell you."

Conan stood in place, looking at the photo of Lin Long on the screen, his heart filled with mixed feelings. He had a premonition that this man named Lin Long would become a huge variable on his path to confronting the Black Organization.

Is he an enemy? A friend? Or... an existence even more dangerous than the Black Organization?