Thanks to the encouragement from their peers, Conan and the others quickly helped Ms.Yūko in calming down the other four children.
The crying in the room ceased, and finally, it became quiet.
Now, Hattori Heiji and Conan finally had the opportunity to carefully examine the room.
The walls, with their upper part white and lower part blue, were already tattered and blackened. There was a cold and dimly lit ceiling light and a pile of miscellaneous items.
The only things without dust were a long table, two long benches, and a television, apparently prepared by the criminals.
The large and messy room had a lot of space, and there was even a smaller room next to the children.
Hattori Heiji first looked at the window in the main hall and, as expected, when he opened it, it revealed a sealed wall.
There were also surveillance cameras installed in the corners of the room, allowing the criminals to monitor them from outside.
After inspecting the small room, they found that there were many futons piled up in the corner, apparently prepared for them to sleep.
In addition, there was a small heater. When they tried to turn it on, it started running. Hattori Heiji and Conan beckoned the children to enter the small room to keep warm.
After all, it was Christmas, and the night was cold. With the guidance of Ms. Yūko and the three little ones, the other children entered the small room.
"Come on, you should come in too..."
Seeing Ryōsuke sitting dejectedly on the bench, Hattori Heiji invited him to enter the small room.
Upon hearing the call, Ryōsuke seemed to remember something. He looked at Hattori Heiji and Conan with a glimmer of hope in his eyes and whispered, "I'm Ryōsuke Ito. Just call me Ryōsuke."
By observing their cooperation in the car, Ryōsuke couldn't help but be amazed. He thought that even as an adult, he wouldn't be able to remain so calm in such a situation.
It was hard to believe that a child and a teenager could handle it with such composure. Moreover, he had witnessed how they comforted the children earlier. Whether it was the dark-skinned boy or the glasses-wearing boy, they showed no signs of fear. This gave Ryōsuke, who was filled with despair, a glimmer of hope.
"It's not a big deal, really. In Kansai, I'm a somewhat famous high school detective," Hattori Heiji pointed at Conan. "This kid here is called Conan. Don't let his age fool you, he's also quite capable."
"A detective?" Ryōsuke exclaimed in surprise, his face filled with anticipation.
"And us!"
Ayumi, Mitsuhiko, and Genta ran over upon hearing the conversation. "We're the Detective Boys! Big brother, don't worry, we'll definitely save you!"
"Oh... I see..." Ryōsuke responded.
Watching the innocent words of the three little ones, Ryōsuke couldn't help but feel a mixture of emotions. But being interrupted like this actually dissipated some of the darkness in his heart.
They pulled Ryōsuke into the small room, and Conan asked him, "By the way, how did you end up on this bus?"
"I was actually in charge of the late-night cleaning job," Ryōsuke said with bitterness. "I was supposed to find a blue bus... Who knew I got on the wrong one..."
God knows how devastated he was. As soon as he got on the bus, he saw the man in a leather jacket sitting at the back. Realizing something was wrong, he seemed to have boarded the wrong car. Then that blonde guy appeared out of nowhere, pointing a gun at his head.
"What do those guys want to do in the end!"
Ryōsuke became somewhat overwhelmed as he scratched his head and vented his frustrations. "And where exactly is this place? Why do I have to encounter something like this?"
Upon hearing this, Hattori Heiji and Conan both patted him, trying to console him.
This guy... seems to have some bad luck, huh...
He was originally supposed to be with his wife, who was about to give birth. It would have been fine for him to stay with her, but his wife was a good and understanding woman, telling him to focus on work and reassuring him.
But as a result of his bad luck, he ended up boarding the wrong bus and now had to face this situation.
Why? It was supposed to be a joyous occasion, about to welcome a happy life as a family of three, so why did it turn out like this?
"After changing the bus in Bird Arrow's garage, we traveled a long distance again."
Just as Ryōsuke was lost in his thoughts, Conan's calm and analytical words reached his ears.
"Based on the obvious uphill sensation we felt earlier, combined with the long distance we traveled, we should be in some abandoned building in the mountains."
"Huh? How do you know that we switched buses at Bird Arrow?" Ryōsuke asked, looking confused after hearing Conan's words.
He had only vented his frustration casually and didn't expect anyone to answer that question. But this kid named Conan actually provided an answer?
Could it be just a made-up story? Ryōsuke expressed doubt.
"Ah, the confirmation came from the clue in the garage where we switched buses," Conan explained with a smile.
"During the bus switch, Hattori created a brief moment for me to observe the surroundings, and I saw a promotional flyer sandwiched in a newspaper. Those kinds of advertisements are usually distributed to the surrounding areas centered around storefronts, which means that the location of the bus switch warehouse shouldn't be too far from the shops."
"Amazing... Truly worthy of a detective..." Ryōsuke wore a stunned expression. "Just in that brief moment, you obtained such crucial information?"
And they had no chance to communicate on the bus at all, yet the two of them were able to cooperate so seamlessly. Moreover, the key to the execution of this plan was a child...
What kind of extraordinary teammate is this?!
Ryōsuke initially thought that Hattori Heiji's claim that Conan was a detective was probably exaggerated, but he didn't expect it to be true.
Now Ryōsuke's spirits were directly uplifted. Seeing a glimmer of hope for escape, he excitedly said, "So, what do we need to do next? Please give me instructions!"
Even Conan and Hattori Heiji hadn't anticipated that their reasoning would directly boost Ryōsuke's morale to such an extent, making them unexpectedly gain an ally.
"Calm down," Hattori Heiji looked at the excited Ryōsuke and gestured for him to calm down. "For now, we need to figure out the current situation. Before that, let's try not to go against their intentions, otherwise, they might do something harmful to the children."
"I understand."
In this desperate situation, Ryōsuke felt fortunate to have two reliable allies. He believed that following their instructions would be the right course of action.
After the children's emotions stabilized, Hattori Heiji called Ryōsuke over and distributed the food boxes to the children, preparing for a meal.
Since they hadn't eaten due to the ice performance opening, it was essential to ensure that the children had enough energy in this tense environment.
After all, it seemed like they wouldn't be able to leave anytime soon.
--------------------------------
Please consider supporting this translation project by becoming a P@treon member, if possible!
Your support is greatly appreciated!
Available on my P@treon page for just $4!!
Early access to the following translations:-
~Marvel: Little Genius (MLG) - +138 advance chapters & 4 Chapters/Day
~Famous Police Detective in Detective World (FPDDW)- +65 advance chapters & 2 Chapters/Day
p@treon.com/Lightreaper457
--------------------------------