Chapter Forty-Three: Artificial Satellite (For Real)
Page 1/3
Professor Agasa smiled kindly at her. “He’s a neighbor who lives nearby — a detective, actually.”
“No… that’s impossible. I can’t mistake that kind of aura; he’s from the organization!”
“Shinichi says there’s no way he’s from the organization,” Professor Agasa replied with a helpless smile. “He said he tested him: Morley-kun is a good person.”
(Conan: I’ll take the burden! I’ll be the one to save! So cool, Morley-san, I want to say that too!!)
“Why don’t you rest on the sofa? I’ll go open the door.”
“Professor…”
Ai Haibara watched as the professor went to open the door, quietly slipping behind the sofa and peering out with just her eyes visible.
The visitor was a young man with silver hair, his face bearing a warm smile.
Dressed in a black shirt, a black suit vest, and a sapphire lapel pin.
Seeing Morley’s all-black attire, Ai tensed up.
“Sorry to bother you, Professor,” Morley said, handing over a box of liquor. “I’ve come with a request. This is a small token of appreciation.”
“Morley-kun, you could have just told me what you needed without bringing gifts.” The professor took the box. “May I ask… what is this?”
“It’s a type of sweet wine I enjoyed while teaching in England.”
Ai Haibara noticed the man’s gaze suddenly turn toward her.
“‘Sherry.’”
With a thud, Ai collapsed onto the floor.
“Ai?!” Professor Agasa, forgetting all etiquette, rushed inside holding the box of wine.
Morley closed the door behind him, slipped on slippers, and entered the professor’s house.
Recalling the data he obtained from the organization and comparing it to childhood photos of Shiho Miyano, he cracked a slight smile.
Yes, Shiho Miyano.
Unexpectedly… I hadn’t even started searching, yet I stumbled upon her by chance. What a pleasant surprise.
But why such a strong reaction from her? She shouldn’t have seen me before.
Yet Ai Haibara was unusually sensitive to the organization's aura. Even an undercover agent who only stayed for a short time could be recognized by her.
Morley’s personality was vastly different from the organization’s style; however, having carried out some missions for them, he inevitably carried traces of their demeanor. Plus, his all-black outfit today only amplified that aura.
“And who is this little girl?” he asked knowingly.
“She’s Ai Haibara, a child fostered by me. She’s not well, so I need to take care of her first. Please forgive us…” Professor Agasa smiled apologetically while holding Ai.
“No problem, the child’s safety comes first,” Morley nodded kindly.
The moment Professor Agasa carried Ai into the inner room, Ai’s eyes snapped open!
“Professor!” she gripped the collar of the professor’s lab coat. “He recognized me! They’ve found me! This is only a test; next time, they’ll—”
“Calm down, Ai,” Professor Agasa said with some helplessness. “Morley-kun is a detective with a strong sense of justice. He’s not part of the organization.”
“But if you’re scared, just hide in your room,” he added, putting Ai down and shutting the door firmly.
Professor…! Ai gritted her teeth, mustering her strength to sneak to the door, crack it open slightly, and eavesdrop on the conversation outside.
“Thank you for waiting, Morley-kun,” Professor Agasa said, bringing a cup of tea. “What can I assist you with this time?”
“Well, I’m thinking of installing a surveillance system at home. I heard you’re an outstanding inventor and might know a lot about them. Do you have any recommendations?” Morley offered a casual excuse.
“Oh, I see!” Professor Agasa’s heart settled. There was no way Morley was from the organization; why would a criminal syndicate member ask a regular citizen to install surveillance at their home?
“Then, what kind of features are you looking for, Morley-kun?”
“Are there different functions to choose from? Hmm… I want it to clearly capture human figures.”
Professor Agasa wagged his finger. “Surveillance systems have their intricacies.”
“For example, do you want it to automatically follow people moving within the scene, or to watch a specific valuable item?”
“I see, then follow movement.”
“You’ve come to the right person!” Professor Agasa snapped his fingers. “Most commercial systems aren’t good at that.”
“I think you can use the system I developed. It’s safe and reliable…”
Professor Agasa hurried into his lab, accompanied by the clatter of searching. He returned carrying a dusty box.
He patted the dust off and coughed a few times.
“Is it really reliable…” Morley doubted deeply.
“This is the surveillance device and control program I developed. Morley-kun, you have a computer at home, right?”
?
I only know about the Lingtai brain; is a computer an electronic brain?
No, I think I’ve seen it somewhere…
“Computer?” Morley pondered, then his eyes lit up. “Right! The kind of computing device usually found in large laboratories?”
Page 2/3
Professor Agasa smiled. “That was before. Now even individuals can have computers.”
“Anyway, once you have a computer installed, you can come back to install the surveillance system.”
“Would you like to see how it works now? I already have a set installed at home.”
That’s why you came!
Professor Agasa demonstrated himself. He walked around within the camera’s range, and the camera swiveled to follow him, maintaining focus.
“Can I have a try?”
“Of course.”
Morley approached the camera, casually taking a few steps before secretly activating his information erasure.
“Strange…” Professor Agasa frowned at the screen.
Morley turned off the information erasure quietly.
“Huh? It’s working again…”
“What’s wrong?” Morley was curious about the effect.
“Sorry, I probably can’t give you this set. It might be broken somewhere… strange…”
Professor Agasa rewound the footage. Initially, Morley’s image was clear, but after a moment, his face became blurry, distorted, and noisy, then returned to normal after a few seconds.
“Looks like I need to fix it. Sorry, Morley-kun, you might have to look for something usable on the market.”
No matter; I wasn’t really planning to install it anyway.
After confirming the information erasure worked, Morley wasn’t in a hurry to leave.
“By the way, that little girl just now… is her name Ai Haibara?”
“She seemed really scared of me?”
“Ai is a bit shy,” Professor Agasa smiled helplessly. “Don’t take it personally. Girls can be like that sometimes. Look at how well Conan gets along with you.”
“I see…” Morley nodded, then stood. “I didn’t bring a gift for Miss Ai since I didn’t know she was here.”
“I’ll bring her one next time. Well, I’ll take my leave now.”
“Thank you very much for your kindness—”
After Morley left, Ai sighed in relief and came out of the room.
“So, see? I told you he’s not a bad person,” Professor Agasa tidied up the tea set.
“It’s not so clear yet. But…” Ai lowered her gaze, deep in thought.
Judging by the feeling just now, that man should be a field agent of the organization.
But his build and appearance don’t match anyone. She even considered if he might be the new assassin Konjaku, but after careful comparison, Morley is shorter and looks different.
And among the field agents, is there anyone who “studies mathematics” and is naive enough to ask a civilian to install surveillance at their home…
Absolutely none.
Once, Ginji did an investigation into the organization’s research department, and those field agents had headaches just from looking at experimental logs—none of them had a studious personality.
But that feeling… what exactly is it…
…
Morley was very interested in the computer Professor Agasa mentioned.
After leaving the professor’s house, he planned to head to the Mioka Library for research. However, a call came through.
“Hello, Suzuki-san?” Morley answered, opening his car door.
“Just call me Sonoko~” Sonoko Suzuki sounded overly familiar. “Morley-kun, do you know the Phantom Thief Kid?”
“Well, then I’ll call you Sonoko.” Morley rolled down the window and lit a cigarette. “I know who he is.”
“You don’t know, right? Phantom Thief Kid… you really know?!”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t you know what he looks like?” Sonoko held the phone to her chest, dreamy. “He’s been active for over ten years, maybe a handsome middle-aged man?”
“No.”
“Huh? How do you know he’s not?” Sonoko sensed something was off.
“I’ve seen him,” Morley recalled Kid’s traits. “He’s skilled in disguise; appearance means nothing to him. But from my observation, he looks young, about twenty.”
“And he’s quite polite.”
“So, he has the youthful charm of a handsome young man, yet the elegance of a middle-aged gentleman?” Sonoko fantasized but quickly got back to business. “Phantom Thief Kid recently sent a notice saying he’ll steal my family’s heirloom, the black pearl ‘Black Star.’”
“The police have set up surveillance, but they’ve never caught Kid. I’m a bit uneasy…” she complained. “Also, although Mouri-san was invited, his methods seem unreliable, so I want to ask you for help.”
Then Kid will descend mysteriously from the sky, elegant in pure white suit; Morley-kun in night-black trench coat, cold-faced, shielding her behind. The two battle for her, and the victor gently embraces her… hehe…
“Sonoko? Hello?” Morley’s voice snapped her out of her daydream. “Is the signal bad?”
“Ah! Cough cough, the signal was a bit bad just now,” Sonoko coughed to cover her embarrassment, forcing down her scattered thoughts. “So, Morley-kun, what do you think?”
Page 3/3
“I said before, I have nothing much going on lately, so I can help,” Morley put out his cigarette. “Maybe you didn’t hear me because of the bad signal.”
“Then it’s settled!” Sonoko snapped her fingers. “The exhibition will be held at the Mioka Museum from March 31st onward. You must come, okay?”
“Oh, and I’ll send you the notice Kid left. Please help solve the riddle—”
With that, Sonoko hung up.
Morley took out his phone and checked the message Sonoko sent.
[April Fool]
[When the moon separates the two]
[I will stealthily seize the famous dark star]
[Riding the waves, I shall take it]
[Phantom Thief Kid arrives]
Morley was silent. These days, even thieves have to leave riddles?
The moon separates the two…
Artemis placed Orion in the sky? But Orion gradually disappears in April.
Chang’e ascended to the moon with medicine? But that tale doesn’t mention a specific time.
Indian moon god Chandra was cursed by neglected wives, causing the moon’s phases to prevent him from seeing his beloved wife? But these days should be a crescent moon; Chandra wouldn’t lose power entirely…
No conclusion.
Morley frowned, tapping his forehead.
Forget it, I’ll investigate the scene tomorrow.
The next day, Mioka Museum.
“Old man Mouri,” Morley greeted, “Is the police deployment really this tight?”
“Indeed.” Kogoro Mouri looked out the window.
Hundreds of officers surrounded every exit of the museum, giant spotlights on standby, several helicopters patrolling above. In short, a net of steel.
“After all, it’s an internationally famous thief who has never failed,” Kogoro nodded seriously, but soon revealed his true nature. “But with me, Detective Kogoro Mouri, in charge, this little thief will be caught in no time, hahahahaha—”
“Detective Mouri’s confidence puts me at ease,” Sonoko’s father, Shiro Suzuki, head of the Suzuki conglomerate, walked over from the hallway, praising him.
The two began to praise each other, while Morley crouched and poked Conan.
“Mouri-san is so confident,” he whispered to Conan, “Has he solved the riddle?”
Conan chuckled awkwardly. I haven’t even solved it yet; counting on Kogoro Mouri is a bit…
No! Conan suddenly gasped, “Morley… Morley-kun, have you solved it?”
Morley shook his head.
“I just can’t figure out the part about the moon separating the two.”
“Is it literal or symbolic?”
“The famous dark star might be the first letters of the pearl’s name, Black Star, but what does BS stand for?”
BS… Could it be?!
Conan dashed to the window.
Using his watch, he gauged direction and soon smiled triumphantly.
“Conan, you solved it?” Morley quietly asked.
“Yeah.” After solving a riddle, a detective’s urge to share is hard to suppress. Conan immediately explained his deduction: “BS can refer to Japan’s Broadcast Satellite system. The moon separating the two means the moon is between the satellite and the sun, causing BS broadcast interruption from midnight to 4 AM.”
Morley nodded, feigning understanding but inwardly puzzled.
Artificial satellites?
He really hadn’t thought of that.
When he first heard the term, he imagined a huge iron-gray mechanical star, flickering with signal lights, with various spaceships taking off and landing…
He wondered: no massive celestial body in the sky? How’s gravity handled? If it were solved, why are ground vehicles still the most common transport? Couldn’t figure it out.
Later, he learned they were small human-launched satellites in orbit.
“And riding the waves refers to satellite radio waves, meaning Kid will appear from the BS broadcast direction. Looking from here—” Conan confidently raised his hand, pointing southwest. “That’s the rooftop of the Kaito Hotel!”
Morley pondered and nodded. “Makes sense.”
But this kid… no cover at all?
An elementary schooler, how do you know a satellite passes a certain position at a certain time and its relation to the sun and moon?
Is this common knowledge nowadays?