"Hey! Itakura, why aren't you answering the email!?"
Vodka!
They immediately identified the caller's identity after hearing the slightly hoarse voice on the phone.
Compared to Conan, Senichi breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing that it was Vodka making the call.
If it was him, it meant that his earlier influence hadn't affected today's plot, and there wouldn't be a terrible situation with ambush members around, ready to kill and silence the two.
However, they still couldn't let their guard down because there was a high possibility that members of the Black Organization were surveilling the villa.
"Don't just stand there in silence, speak up quickly!"
In the brief moment when they recognized the caller, Vodka's impatient voice urged again, "Hurry up!"
"Sorry, sorry." Conan imitated Itakura's tone with the voice changer, as he spoke into the phone.
"I apologize; there was a power outage here just now, and for a while, I couldn't find the phone in the dark...
It seems that the villa lost power due to the heavy snow outside, and I didn't have the chance to open the email..."
"Hmph... What a waste!!" Vodka snorted disdainfully. "Who told you to go to a mountain villa to receive emails..."
"Huh!? You, you guys!!"
Conan pretended to be panicked and said, "C-could it be that you've been monitoring me nearby?"
"Hahaha... all your actions are under our control. I advise you not to play any tricks." Vodka's warning tone echoed over the phone.
If it were the real Itakura, he might have been genuinely scared by the words.
But now...
Conan and Senichi looked at each other and then, with a calm expression Conan pretended to be panicked again, "I, you… I understand. You won't be monitoring this villa all the time, right?"
Meanwhile, Senichi walked straight to the light switch and turned on the lights in the villa.
"How could that be; don't be afraid." Vodka's tone was mocking as he continued, "Enough small talk. Has the thing you were developing earlier been completed?"
Listening to Vodka's unchanged tone...
The two exchanged glances and both breathed a sigh of relief.
Turning on the lights was, of course, a test. Although Vodka claimed to have everything under control, at least at this moment, they weren't near the villa.
Otherwise, at the moment Senichi turned on the lights, he should have been able to see the changes in the villa and taken this opportunity to intimidate Itakura by revealing the villa's situation.
And since there was no response, it proves that the other party was just bluffing Itakura.
"Yeah, it's done," Conan replied in a calm tone.
"Hmm? Is someone with you?"
Just then, Vodka's voice suddenly became harsh. "Speak! What was that noise just now!?"
"Noise?"
Initially, Conan thought that their actions, especially Senichi turning on the lights, had been noticed upon hearing Vodka's abrupt words. He was startled for a moment.
However, he saw Senichi pointing to the nearby door and windows and replied, "Oh, you're talking about the sound of the wind hitting the windows."
"Oh, is that so?" Vodka's tone softened a bit.
"Let's get back to business. I can't use the computer right now. Please tell me the time and location for the transaction," Conan chose to get straight to the point and avoid lingering on the topic.
"Hmph... there's no way around it. Listen carefully; I'll only say it once." Vodka paused and then said, "There's a subway construction site. Do you know it?
It's a new station on the East Capital Metro Circle. Tomorrow night at twelve o'clock, we'll meet in front of locker 0032 on the lowest level of that station. Don't forget to bring the program."
"Sorry, tomorrow won't work for me; it's not very convenient for me."
Upon hearing the time and location provided by Vodka, Conan took out the rehearsed excuse and declined, "There's a game company insisting that there's a problem with the game program I developed for them. They've asked me to inspect it tomorrow morning.
Probably, their branch people will pick me up and take me to Osaka. It will take about two or three days for a round trip. If there's really a problem and it depends on the situation, maybe four or five days are also possible."
"Bastard, I can't wait that long," Vodka impatiently said, "Postpone your lousy schedule."
"No, it's impossible... that game company is making a big fuss. They said if I don't deal with it, they'll sue me and make me compensate..."
Conan adopted a tone of reluctance and said, "If you insist on getting it, you'll have to wait until daytime... But doing so might be disadvantageous for you, right?"
"Then let's make it 4 o'clock!" Vodka said without hesitation. "Four hours from now, bring the program to the location I mentioned earlier..."
"Four, four hours!?" Conan's voice rose considerably. "Are you asking me to travel from Gunma to Tokyo right now!?"
"What's the problem?" Vodka's tone turned cold. "Since the program is already completed, can't you bring it earlier?"
"No, no... I understand. I'll arrive in Tokyo and hand over the program in four hours," Conan said, feigning a shaky and fearful demeanor. "But, but you can't ambush me there... If I see any of your accomplices, I'll immediately cancel the transaction...
Don't even think about trying to snatch it forcibly. Even if you get your hands on it, you won't be able to use the program."
"Hehe, you are indeed a cautious guy..." Vodka laughed but his tone sounded like a mix of praise and mockery. "That's settled then. Let's meet in front of locker 0032 at four in the morning."
"I understand... no problem..." With Conan's slightly nervous yet forcefully composed words, Vodka didn't reply further but promptly hung up the phone.
On the other end, as the dial tone sounded after the call ended, a smile appeared on Conan's lips. "As Detective Senichi said, they took the bait."
"Good acting," Senichi praised from the side. "If I weren't standing in front of you, I really wouldn't have expected you to smoothly transition through so many changes in tone with such an expressionless face."
Conan rolled his eyes in response, indicating that everything was a matter of practice. After all, he pretended to be Kogoro Mouri every day while engaging in detective work and became proficient in voice modulation.
"With this, we can complete the transaction with them before the news of Mr. Itakura's death airs," Senichi said as he felt a temporary relaxation in his mind.
As for why Senichi didn't use his connections to suppress the news of Itakura's death, it was because it wasn't worth it. In other words, the risk and reward were not proportional.