Kamen Rider: I, Conan, am Faiz

"Jijiyo~Hahayo~Ichitomodouyo, the enemy is the Iron Dragon from Hell..." (Guess which Kamen Rider this is from)

Just as Conan was following Reiko Akiba closely, a group of singing children suddenly came towards them. The leading child was wearing a red dragonfly helmet. He looked like a Kamen Rider who was very popular in the past. I think his name was... 3?

"When you meet pedestrians on the road, you should greet them politely."

"Yes~"

Led by the leading child, a group of children stood neatly on the side of the road, and when Reiko Akiba passed by, they greeted her in their childish voices.

"good afternoon."

"Good afternoon, remember to go home early."

In response to the children's greetings, Reiko Akiba gave a simple response and also gave some instructions. Then Conan happened to pass by a group of children and also gave some instructions.

"It's getting late. Go home and do your homework quickly. Otherwise, you'll be in trouble if your teacher calls your parents tomorrow."

After saying that, Conan continued to follow Reiko Akiba, keeping a distance from her.

After watching the two people walk away, the children immediately started discussing curiously.

"Are they mother and son? Why are they so far apart?"

"Could it be that he was scolded by his mother?"

"I don't think they are mother and son. They look more like the older brother and sister next door. I saw them like this after they had a fight before."

"Wow~ This is a plot that only exists on Dad's computer! I didn't expect to see it with my own eyes! I'm so happy!"

Although they were at a considerable distance, the conversation was easily heard because the group of naughty kids were not hiding at all and Conan was a wolf named Ophino.

[Really? Kids nowadays are too mature, aren't they? And their parents are too careless to let their children see that kind of thing.]

"Hey, it looks like you little brat are really planning to follow me to the end, right?"

Looking back slightly and seeing Conan still following behind her, Akiba Reiko couldn't help revealing a hint of amusement in her eyes, and then continued: "By the way, I don't seem to know your name yet. Can you introduce yourself?"

"Edogawa Conan is a detective."

The corners of Akita Reiko's mouth slightly lifted up: "I see, no wonder you're holding on to me. Detectives are really a bunch of stubborn guys."

"Hello..."

"I'm sorry, I'm just telling the truth."

Following Reiko Akiba along the way, after an unknown amount of time, the surrounding urban landscape gradually disappeared, replaced by the beautiful scenery of nature.

Reiko Akiba introduced: "This is a holy place I discovered before. Every day before a major performance, I would come here to be baptized by nature to adjust my state, because only by devoting myself to nature wholeheartedly can I sing real music."

Reiko Akita closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then she raised her neck like a swan and sang loudly: "Amazing grace, how sweet it is, my sins are forgiven~"

After simply singing the beginning, Reiko Akiba ended the song, and Conan behind her responded with applause.

"Clap clap clap."

"Amazing Grace, this song is a great test of the singer's skills. Miss Lianzi, you really live up to your reputation."

Conan didn't say any polite words. In fact, although he was hopelessly tone-deaf, he also possessed absolute pitch, so he was very sure that every note of Reiko Akiba's singing was just right.

Facing Conan's praise, Akiba Reiko couldn't help but smile, but her tone was pretending to be normal: "I didn't expect you to have such artistic taste, but you are also the first one to listen to my concert without paying for the ticket, but just consider it as a small thank you for saving me."

"Then should I be grateful~" Conan shrugged his shoulders slightly, and his half-moon eyes appeared again.

"Dilili!"

The phone rang, and Conan immediately picked it up and put it to his ear: "Hello, this is Officer Takagi, is there something wrong?"

The next moment, Conan's expression suddenly became serious, then he closed his eyes and nodded slightly: "I understand, thank you for your hard work, Officer Takagi."

"What happened? You look a little unwell."

As Conan hung up the phone, Reiko Akiba asked with a worried expression.

"Two more victims have turned up, violinist Shida Osamu and viola player Sone Hisao. They were both first-year graduates of the Domoto Music Academy. The head and tail pipes of the flutes were also found at the two crime scenes. It has been confirmed that the same murderer committed the crime."

"It's actually the two of them!"

Upon hearing this, Reiko Akiba's pupils suddenly constricted, and then she slowly sat down on the ground, her expression filled with deep complexity.

"You do know something, don't you?"

Seeing Akiba Reiko's reaction, Conan vaguely confirmed his inner guess, and then put his hands on her shoulders and asked earnestly: "Ms. Reiko, now four people have been killed. The murderer is likely to commit crimes again. Whether we can successfully catch the murderer may depend on your decision."

Reiko Akiba's expression was obviously very conflicted, but looking at Conan's serious expression in front of her, the legendary soprano finally closed her eyes and slowly began to tell the story.

"I... Actually, I once had a fiancé, named Hikaru Soma. He died in a traffic accident three years ago during a camping activity due to drunk driving. The four people who were killed were the ones who camped with him at the time. They were the ones who gave Soma alcohol. Because of this incident, Sensei Domoto expelled them from the sect in anger."

After getting this key information, Conan seemed to see hope of solving the case, so he hurriedly asked: "Ms. Reiko, do you know if Mr. Soma has any friends or relatives? This case might be committed by one of them for revenge!"

Akita Reiko shook her head slightly and said, "Soma was from a single-parent family. His mother died after the incident because she couldn't accept the shock. As for his friends... I'm afraid they were only the four people who were killed."

The clues stopped here, and Conan fell silent for a moment.

"I'm sorry, I can't help you..."

Seeing Conan looking troubled, Akiba Reiko was suddenly filled with self-blame. At this moment, she no longer had the cold and aloof aura that she had before, like a queen. Instead, she looked like a little girl who was at a loss.

Curling up slightly, Akiba Reiko choked up as she said, "I... I only know how to sing. Singing is my dream, but I can't do anything else. I... I've kind of regretted choosing music as my dream..."

"What nonsense are you talking about? Pull yourself together!"

"Ok!"

Frightened by Conan's sudden shout, Reiko Akiba saw that the little boy in front of her showed a maturity far beyond that of an adult, and even... seemed a little sad.

"You know, dreams are like curses. Those who give up halfway due to setbacks will be trapped in this curse forever and cannot extricate themselves."

"you……"

Reiko Akiba's expression was full of surprise as she did not expect Conan to say such a meaningful statement. The next moment, she saw Conan smiling and stretching out his hand in front of her.

"Tomorrow is the concert to officially open the concert hall, so try your best and don't let your dreams go to waste. After all, you only live once."

Looking at the little hand in front of her, Reiko Akiba was stunned for a moment, then she showed a warm smile from the bottom of her heart.

"Then you'd better go home and recuperate now. Tomorrow will definitely open your eyes."

The moment she finished speaking, Akiba Reiko reached out and held Conan's hand tightly. The shackles that had been weighing on her heart for many years disappeared without a trace at this moment.