Chapter 4

In Cupando, a high-end apartment building, Room 303.

Chi Feichi carried Ai Haibara into the room.

Beikawa Ando followed behind, nagging, "Mr. Chi, we should still take her to the hospital and notify her family. Her parents must be thinking something is wrong, letting a little girl run around barefoot in the rain..."

Chi Feichi carried Ai Haibara into the bathroom and placed her in the bathtub.

Beikawa Ando said, "Even if she is unconscious and we can't contact her family, we should still contact the police. Her family might be desperately looking for her right now..."

Chi Feichi took out a large towel.

Seeing that Chi Feichi was silent, Beikawa Ando decided to take action and took out his phone, "Hmm? A call from Senior Fukuyama..."

Chi Feichi placed the towel by the bathtub and looked up.

Beikawa Ando suddenly had a bad feeling, "Chi..."

A chop to the neck.

The world was quiet.

Chi Feichi supported Beikawa Ando with one hand and took the phone with the other, calmly answering and mimicking Beikawa Ando's voice. His face was expressionless, but his tone was full of regret, "Senior Fukuyama, we encountered a bit of trouble, no... cough, cough, we met a lost little girl on the way, she got caught in the rain and fell unconscious with a fever. We were just about to take her to the hospital, cough... yes, she might have caught a cold from the rain, I have a bit of a cold too... please don't worry, Mr. Chi is fine. I've already contacted the girl's parents; they're not in Tokyo, but they're on their way... yes, we'll return once they arrive..."

After hanging up, he continued to take care of the little girl who looked like a drenched kitten.

He helped her take a bath, wrapped her in a towel, and put her in bed.

He would need to buy two sets of clothes for the little girl later, and pick up the books delivered to the building's storage room. He had cold medicine at home, but he needed to buy some ingredients and two bento boxes...

There was a lot to do.

...

Two hours later, the rain gradually stopped.

The lights in the living room and bedroom were on. Chi Feichi sat at the desk, browsing the webpage on his computer screen.

Taking advantage of this rare opportunity to freely access the internet, he checked the information on the deep web.

In this world, bounty hunters existed, but there was no International Investigation Bureau.

If one wanted to take on bounties, they needed to contact the relevant department of a country, register, and obtain approval before taking action.

In the United States, it was the FBI or CIA, and in Japan, it was the National Police Agency's Security Bureau...

There were two ways to register.

One was to go in person. Being a bounty hunter didn't have to be a secret; many bounty hunters were quite public. After going in, the other party would just ask some questions, test your skills, and then record you in their system.

The other was to find the relevant webpage on the deep web, contact the administrator, and register. Both parties would be anonymous accounts, and communication could be done online without meeting in person.

In his previous life, Chi Feichi used the first method.

Without much thought, Chi Feichi abandoned the first method of registration.

He was still a mental patient, and even after discharge, he would have a history of mental illness. It was better to be low-key to avoid being persuaded to quit...

He found the webpage of the police and sent a message to the administrator:

[Bounty hunter registration, activity range: Japan]

The response was quick: [Have you conducted bounty actions in other countries before? If so, please provide your codename and license number]

Chi Feichi: [I have not conducted bounty actions before]

The other party: [There are few bounty hunters in Japan. Why choose to be a bounty hunter in Japan?]

Chi Feichi: [Because I am in Japan]

This... made sense!

The other party replied after nearly half a minute: [Provide a codename]

Chi Feichi: [July]

The other party: [What kind of payment method do you prefer?]

Chi Feichi sent his anonymous bank account abroad: [2219...]

The other party: [Provide a contact method]

Chi Feichi registered a new email address: [8781...]

The other party: [Do you understand the scope of a bounty hunter's activities?]

Chi Feichi: [Yes]

As long as the reward was appropriate, bounty hunters would do almost anything, even delivering food.

In addition, there were treasure hunts and information gathering tasks.

It seemed similar to being a detective, but compared to detectives, bounty hunters also had high-risk jobs like capturing dangerous criminals, or illegal tasks like assaults and assassinations.

The main difference from mercenaries was that mercenaries often acted in groups and emphasized discipline, while bounty hunters were often lone wolves. Even when forming teams to compensate for their weaknesses, the teams rarely exceeded five people.

The other party sent the action guidelines and a data package: [We need to assess your level]

Chi Feichi opened and checked the action guidelines, which were roughly:

- No payment and legal responsibility for harming innocent people or causing the death of criminals.

- If arrested for illegal tasks assigned by them, they would provide some assistance based on the situation. If arrested for personal illegal actions or illegal actions due to third-party commissions, no support would be provided.

- Additional basic rules such as task confidentiality, providing your own tools, and bearing your own travel expenses.

As expected, it was similar to his previous life.

However, he would rather give up a task than take unnecessary risks. Relying on others for help might end up with them just being polite.

The data package contained three bounty tasks:

- A task to gather evidence of crimes committed by members of a violent organization.

- A task to capture a serial killer.

- A task to protect a target.

Gathering, capturing, and protecting—three directions, serving as initial assessment and evaluation.

If he couldn't complete any of them, the other party might keep his registration information for a while, and he could still take on bounty tasks independently, but they probably wouldn't contact him again until he proved his capabilities.

The truly challenging and lucrative bounties were often handled internally...

The protection task had a three-day duration but offered the highest reward.

The investigation and capture tasks had no time limit.

Logically, he should prioritize the protection task, and the investigation and capture tasks could be done later.

Especially the capture task, where only a photo and basic information were provided. Who knew where the target was hiding?

Finding the person would take some effort.

But the target of this capture task was special... Koyabu Iichiro!

He had some memory of this plot. Who wouldn't want to earn some money and reputation easily?

As long as he found Koyabu Iichiro before Conan...

However, considering the timeline, Ai Haibara had already defected, and Koyabu Iichiro's capture was likely to happen in the next few days. The time was tight. Should he take this opportunity to make a move?

Chi Feichi looked at the unconscious Beikawa Ando on the sofa. He had already fooled the mental hospital, but when Beikawa Ando woke up and he returned, he would likely face more observation and psychological counseling.

There was some movement from the bedroom.

The half-open door was pushed open, and Ai Haibara looked into the living room, standing at the doorway.

She had woken up earlier but found herself in a new, warm brown pajama set with a black ball tail, which made her feel complicated.

What was this cute pajama set for?

No, the real question was, who changed her clothes?

She remembered encountering two men, mistaking them for organization members, and almost losing hope. One of them carried her, and then she fainted...

Before coming out, she had comforted herself: Maybe the two men brought her back, and their sisters or friends... in short, a girl bought and changed her clothes. Yes, only a girl would choose such a pajama set and be so considerate, even buying... matching brown bear slippers... and matching underwear...

Then, opening the door, she saw no girls in the living room, and her heart sank.

"Awake?" Chi Feichi looked up, temporarily locking his computer, and went to the kitchen to boil water. "There's a bento box on the table. Eat first, and take the medicine later."

Ai Haibara watched Chi Feichi go to the kitchen, holding back her questions, and silently walked to the table, picked up the bento box, and sat on the sofa, eating quietly.

His calmness left her at a loss for words.

Moreover, if he asked about her family, she would need to think of a way to cover it up.

However, Chi Feichi didn't ask...

After the water boiled, he poured a cup and placed it on the table with the cold medicine he had found earlier, then returned to his computer.

Ai Haibara ate while secretly looking at the sleeping Beikawa Ando on the opposite sofa.

His coat sleeve had dried rain marks but wasn't taken off, and his tie was pressed under his shoulder, not like he had fallen asleep naturally.

However, his chest rose and fell, indicating he was breathing and alive...

Looking at Chi Feichi, who seemed to be downloading something on his phone and had no intention of speaking...

Somehow...

Ai Haibara felt as if she were alone, "I'm staying with relatives. If I don't go back, they'll worry."

Chi Feichi: "I'll take you after you take the medicine."

Ai Haibara: "..."

Silence.

One person eating, one person watching the download progress on his phone.

About a minute later...

"Did you change my clothes?" Ai Haibara asked.

"Yes," Chi Feichi admitted, "I also gave you a bath."

"Did you buy the clothes too?" Ai Haibara's expression was uncomfortable.

Chi Feichi didn't look up, "Yes, besides the pajamas, I bought two sets of daily wear for you. You can choose one to change into when we go out. Your previous white coat only had a T-shirt underneath, which was soaked and dirty..."

Ai Haibara's ears turned red instantly. After shrinking, her old clothes wouldn't fit, but why did a man have to be so meticulous, even buying underwear for her...!

She could have bought them herself when she woke up...

Another minute of silence.

Ai Haibara recovered, "Thank you..."

Chi Feichi: "You're welcome."

Ai Haibara: "..."

Another minute of silence.

Ai Haibara: "What's wrong with him?"

Chi Feichi: "Ether."

Ai Haibara: "..."

Was it so hard to say two more words?

Fortunately, she understood, meaning he used ether to knock him out...

This time, Chi Feichi added an explanation, "It's better for him to sleep for a while."

Ai Haibara remembered hearing them talking about going somewhere when she was half-conscious, "I seem to have caused you trouble..."

"It's not a big deal," Chi Feichi said, "I have something to do anyway."

Seeing that Chi Feichi didn't elaborate, Ai Haibara didn't press further, looking at him, "Aren't you curious why I was out in the rain alone?"

Chi Feichi: "Not really."

Ai Haibara: "Nothing you want to ask?"

Chi Feichi: "No."

Ai Haibara: "..."

Speechless stare.

Chi Feichi: "..."

Calmly returned her gaze.

Ai Haibara lowered her head and continued eating.

She lost!