Conan: I Am Surrounded By Undercover

On the night of the seventh day, after the boy returned to the bedroom, Jing Baiye floated in the courtyard as usual.

He was used to such a wandering soul state. No one can see him, no one can touch him, he can only talk to the system, watching everything around him coldly, the joys, sorrows, joys and sorrows of others, it is just a more immersive movie for him.

The boy was not beaten today. His father had been drinking since the afternoon and had no time to take care of him, so he waited until after seven o'clock and it was completely dark before being brought back.

On this day, he still hadn't waited for the person he wanted to wait for.

The boy was not angry, but looked disappointed. He touched the handcuffs in his trousers pocket, bowed his head aggrievedly, and took his sister's hand.

Judging from his expression, Jing Baiye was sure that he would still wait there tomorrow, and at the same time, he was sure that the person he was waiting for would not come.

This is unique to children - naive persistence.

Some things even a slightly older teenager can tell the truth at a glance, but a child can't.

A white lie from an adult, a casual joke, a promise that is said and forgotten in order to coax children because they are troublesome and annoying... will make them believe it.

Most of Jingbaiye's past crimes were arson, poisoning, blasting, theft, murder, etc., and he never committed fraud. He doesn't like to lie, and he's not good at lying. He rarely makes promises, but he's a man of his word.

He sighed, is it too much to lie to the child?

To a boy who has suffered from domestic violence for a long time, promise to save them, let him stay where he is in hope, and then never return.

Gradually shattering after giving hope is worse than not giving him hope from the beginning.

. . . What will happen when the child's hopes are completely shattered and despair is lost?

Jing Baiye stared at the little stars in the dark night sky, and this thought flashed in his heart. For some reason, I suddenly felt a heavy sense of unease in my heart.

He rarely felt this way. Even if he was pointed out as the murderer of Koizumi Mahiru at the time, his first reaction was, "How could the traces of the crime not be cleaned up? Who found it?" He was more surprised, but Not apprehensive about the impending execution.

[Today is the last day of observation, have you made a decision yet? 】

Hearing the system's inquiry, Jing Baiye was about to speak when he heard a frightening sound of glass breaking from inside the house.

He turned his head sharply and looked in the direction of the sound, which was his instinctive reaction - he was all too familiar with this kind of sound. In the previous life, when his father was drunk and crazy, it was the sound of smashing a wine bottle. .

Immediately afterwards, he heard the terrified cry of the girl—

"Run! Bai Ye, run quickly!!!"

There was another sound of something heavy falling, as if someone had tripped, and then the glass door to the courtyard opened and the boy jumped out.

His left hand covered his eyes tightly, and blood flowed from between his fingers. His expression was not painful, but more of fear, and he ran out in panic.

【This is……】

Before Jing Baiye went back through the wall to see how the boy's sister was, he felt a strong pull, pulling him hard in the direction the boy left.

Once the observation started, he could only move within ten meters of the boy. As the boy listened to his sister and ran away, he couldn't stay where he was and had to follow him.

Jing Baiye's whole person... the whole soul took off. Like a kite in the hands of a novice, he staggered into the air, and was pulled behind the boy in a floating manner.

The street was empty, and no one helped the boy, and he had to rush forward alone.

The system was not surprised by this sudden event, it repeated the question just now: [Host, have you made a decision? 】

Jing Baiye looked down at the boy, then looked back at the house behind him, but the girl didn't run out.

He was here, no sound could be heard, but the room exuded an eerie coolness... Perhaps it was the intuition of a criminal with countless blood and sins on his hands, even if he didn't see it with his own eyes, he could still Guess what happens there.

That girl will die, the only difference is how.

[Just him. 】

Jing Baiye turned his head and looked down at the boy who might lose one eye with those complete eyes.

[But after this matter is over, you can talk to him again, okay? 】Jing Baiye discussed in a gentle and indifferent tone, 【At least, let him go and personally send his sister the last ride. 】

【……it is good. 】The system agreed.

Jing Baiye fell back to the ground and saw the boy running to the door of a certain family with a [Black Feather] nameplate hanging on the door.

The car was parked in front of the door, and a man dressed as a butler greeted a woman with a smaller child, and the boy's footsteps attracted them. They looked there together, and the woman widened her eyes in surprise, let go of her child, and squatted down to catch the boy who rushed over.

"Mom, he's bleeding!!" The younger child pointed at the boy's bleeding left eye.

The woman made a decisive decision, shoved the younger child into the butler's hand, picked up the boy and got into the car, left a sentence "Take care of Kuaidou" and hurriedly drove away.

Jing Baiye was forced to take off again. His soul was dragged through the air and moved quickly, and he began to recall the family the boy had turned to for help.

Since he respects the privacy of others, Jing Baiye has never stepped into the boy's bedroom without permission, and will also subconsciously avoid it when he is flipping through his diary or photo album. He can only find out who fits his identity from the conversation between the boy and his sister in the past.

Jing Baiye remembered that the boy mentioned Kuaidou, saying that he recently went to see his father's magic tour outside the city, so he hadn't seen each other this week.

Friends... Jing Baiye showed his first smile in the past few days.

He doesn't understand family, love, or other more complex feelings, but he knows what a friend is - friendship is the only emotion he has ever experienced, and it was taught to him by Peiko and Fuyuhiko.

The woman raced to the hospital at a speed fast enough to be chased by the traffic police, and went through all the formalities for the boy. Jing Baiye took a closer look and found that the name written on it was Heiyu Qianying. It was the kind aunt that the boy said, the kind aunt who would feed him snacks and juices.

She watched as he was rushed into the operating room by the doctor. After a while, she went to the safe passage to call someone.

It took a long time for the operation to end, and when the doctor came out to inform Kuroba Chikage, the system's neutral voice with no emotion sounded——

[The seven-day observation period ends. You can move freely until I communicate with him and make a contract. 】

"The boy's condition is very bad, his left eye was stabbed by a piece of glass, this eye may be completely blind..."

【……I see. 】

Jing Baiye said softly, not knowing who to answer.

...

The boy was hospitalized with a bandage on his left eye. Jing Baiye did not leave the hospital, and stayed by his side as if there were still distance restrictions.

While he was hospitalized, Kuroha Chikage and Kuroha Kaito would come every day.

Chikage Kuroba prepared food suitable for the wounded for him, and communicated with the doctor to inquire about his condition.

Kuroba Kaito is only five years old, and as a kindergarten child, he can't do much. He was lying beside the bed, using the simplest magic trick his father gave him, turning flowers into flowers for the boy to see.

"Look, it's a red rose!"

"Gypsophila, my mother said its flower language is innocence, it suits you very well..."

"Do you like lily of the valley?"

"This is Rose, isn't it beautiful?"

"If you don't like flowers, I'll turn you into a cactus? Cacti are easy to care for."

Kuroba was chattering, and before he knew it, the boy's hospital bed was full of flowers.

Hearing that the boy didn't answer, Kuroba Kaito's voice gradually became quieter, and he poked the boy who said nothing.

"I can change flowers to show you every day. Don't be sad, okay? ... Your eyes are bad, you can't cry like you used to. I'll play with you in the future."

The boy raised his hand and touched Kuroba Kuito's head, and forced a smile on his face.

Then he asked, "Where's my sister?"

After the boy was hospitalized, no family members came to visit. The medical expenses were paid in advance by the Kuroba family. From his parents to his sister, no one came.

Jing Baiye looked up at the door. Heiyu Qianying, who had just answered the phone, was standing in front of the hidden door. She heard the conversation between the two children. The hand holding the doorknob trembled, and the other hand clenched involuntarily. .

She stood for a while, as if it took a lot of effort to force the door open.

She was followed by several people dressed as police officers.

【…】

Jing Baiye realized something.

Kuroba Chikage took a few deep breaths, walked quickly to the boy, and gave him a smile. Jing Baiye stood on the other side of the bed and saw that there seemed to be water glittering in her eyes.

"Bai Ye, someone is looking for you." She turned her body slightly, trying to suppress the trembling in her voice, "It's you... the police uncle you admire."

The boy's only intact eye lit up!

He raised his head, looked at the police officers expectantly, glanced at their faces one by one, froze for a moment, and then lowered his head in disappointment.

Jing Baiye had a panoramic view of his reaction.

No wonder he was holding the handcuffs. The one who made the agreement with him was a policeman? He heard the police coming and thought it was the man who had made an appointment with him.

It's a pity it's not, they didn't come to save him, or even on the contrary, they came to...

Knowing this, Jing Baiye looked down at the boy and saw that although he was a little disappointed, he still asked politely in a low voice, "Are they here to save my sister and me?"

One of the policemen stepped forward, looked down at the boy condescendingly, and focused on his appearance.

"It looks very similar, I guess it is..." Jing Baiye heard the policeman mutter.

"Can he be discharged now?" Another police officer asked Kuroba Chikage in a completely business-like tone, "We need him to confirm the identity of the body."

He didn't keep the volume down, the boy heard him completely.

"………………?"

The boy raised his face, the whole person was dumbfounded, and froze there motionless.

With a blank expression, he turned to Kuroba Chikage who was speechless, but it was her reaction that confirmed the most terrifying conjecture in his heart.

Jing Baiye ignored what the others said, and his gaze shifted from the policeman to the boy's only intact right eye.

The light in his eyes was about to go out.

...

The police pulled the boy, used the door to isolate Kuroba Chikage who was an unrelated person, and took him into the morgue alone.

Perhaps because of the cold, or perhaps because of fear, the boy was shaking all over. The policeman pulling him was like taking a piece of evidence without life and any emotion. The policeman standing beside a certain bed saw them coming and lifted the white cloth that was covering something in front of him.

"Let him recognize it, and the case will be closed when his identity is confirmed."

The policeman threw the cloth aside and sighed: "Nowadays, children always love to run to the water's edge. There have been several cases of children accidentally falling into the water."

Jing Baiye first approached the corpse, and at a glance confirmed her identity and the cause of her death.

The exposed arms were covered with bruises after being beaten, and the soles of her feet were twisted to an extent that a normal human body could not achieve. Both legs should have been completely broken. This was not a fatal injury. What really killed her was the obvious pinching on her neck. Mark, she was strangled to death.

This is all an accident. Isn't it wrong for him, who worked hard to clean up the traces in the past, but was still caught and executed?

Or is it that people in this world are not very sensitive to this aspect because the environment is too peaceful and safe?

Jing Baiye began to think about the difference between the two worlds, and the boy who was favored by the system stood where he was, reluctant to step forward.

From his reaction, Jing Baiye knew that he must have recognized it, but to his surprise, this little crying bag, who used to cry for a long time because of trivial matters, did not shed tears immediately.

...Maybe the stimulation was too great, and he couldn't cry for a while.

"Is that your sister, Jing Baiyu?" The policeman patted his head and asked.

The boy stood there, biting his lip.

"Don't obstruct our work willfully." Seeing that he didn't cooperate, the policeman frowned, raised his hand and glanced at his watch, "There's still half an hour to get off work..."

"No, I don't want...that's not my sister!!!"

The boy shouted, almost breaking his voice. He wanted to step back, twist the door and escape, but was picked up by the policeman next to him.

"Be gentle with children." The policeman beside the corpse couldn't help but persuade.

He added: "Maybe it's too far away for him to see. Hold him closer and let him take a good look."

【…】

Jing Baiye walked through the door of the morgue and came to the corridor. Chikage Kuroba, who was accompanying her, was still there. She pulled the policeman beside her and looked very excited.

"This girl was killed by her father! Their two children have been living in the violence of their father. I have called the police in the past, do you have a police record? Go check it out, just check it out - you can Know how those two beasts treat them!!"

"Or go ask that kid, his words are the most effective testimony!!"

"Ma'am, please calm down. Our police will handle this case, please don't interfere with the handling of the case."

The policeman pulled her hand roughly, "We are looking for Mr. Transit, he has a broken leg and is hospitalized, and his wife has been taking care of him. They said that this child is a liar, and they may slander them for killing this runaway. Little girl, this time he pushed down the bottle and caused him to fall."

【…】

There was farce inside and outside the door, and Jing Baiye felt like a hapless man who bought the wrong ticket and was forced to watch a bad movie.

[...Host, are you sure you want to sign a contract with this boy? 】 The system asked dryly.

Jing Baiye turned around and looked at the morgue, not knowing how the police let the boy "take a good look" at his sister's body, and finally his cry could be heard inside.

The boy used to cry, mostly because of grievances, grievances for why his parents didn't like him, grievances for why his father trampled on his treasure, grievances for why the person who made a promise with him didn't come back...

Only this time, it was heart-wrenching, almost hopeless pain.

Jing Baiye floated back to the morgue, and looked down at the boy with the same name as him with an almost emotionless look.

Since the injury to his left eye has not healed, the intense emotional fluctuations and movements caused his wound to burst open, with tears on one side and blood on the other.

In the eyes that once glittered for treasures and promises, there was no light in sight.

...

A few days later, the boy with his face still bandaged was sent home by Kuroba Chikage.

"Are you okay?" she asked in a low voice.

"He's still in the hospital and can't beat me anymore." The boy shook his head. "I heard that Uncle Thief is coming back. Go back... Thank you for taking care of me these days, Aunt Qianying."

He came home alone, ignoring his mother who hurriedly left with a thermos after opening the door for him~www.NovelMTL.com~ went to the bedroom on the second floor.

Jing Baiye hesitated for a moment, said "sorry" softly, and entered the boy's bedroom for the first time.

To be precise, it was the bedroom for the two of them. The boy and sister used to live in it. On the single bed on the right, there was still a girl's dress that was not put away. There were several old dolls on it, lying on the side. against the wall.

Seeing his sister's relics, the boy's mouth slumped and he almost cried again, but he finally held back.

He walked to the table and suddenly saw something, his expression was blank, and then his eyes suddenly turned fierce, with an uncontrollable anger and deep hatred.

Jing Baiye recognized it at a glance - it was the treasure that the boy had to find when he went to the garbage dump when we first met, the pair of toy handcuffs.

The boy grabbed the toy handcuffs and walked to the trash can at the door. With the best strength he could use, he violently threw his once treasure inside.

With his sudden movement, it seemed that some drops of water fell from his face.

"fraud!!"