Dimensional Codex System: I'm really not a cultist!

This cruise ship—strictly speaking, it’s a moving performance venue, should be said to be more ”modern” compared to traditional acrobatic troupes that set up large tents. They’ve converted the midsection of this cruise ship into a performance area, so tourists can board the ship to watch the performances, and once the show ends here, they can sail to other locations for further shows.

Just that...

”There’s no one here.”

Looking at the pitch-black, deserted hall, Miyuki and Kindaichi were puzzled.

”Let’s check backstage.”

Unlike typical Japanese people’s restrained nature, Miyuki was quite similar to Chinese people. If it were Ran encountering such a situation, she would definitely obediently ask around, but Miyuki unabashedly ran directly backstage—however, there was no one there either.

”Why isn’t there a single person here?”

Even Akemi and Little Ai began to question, usually, there should be guards and security in such places, but right now, it seemed like there wasn’t a soul on the entire ship... Well, good thing the ship is docked at the port, otherwise, it might just be a ghost ship.

”Really strange...”

Though feeling strange, the group continued down the corridor.

The entire cabin was dark, without a soul in sight.

”See, it’s because you rushed up without saying anything that it turned out like this.”

Beside her, Kindaichi began to grumble, while Miyuki furrowed her brows, contemplating for a moment.

”Could they be in the preparation room? Do you know where it is?”

”How would I know?!”

”But speaking of which, this place does feel a bit scary... ”

At this moment, Akemi glanced around, speaking uneasily, while Kindaichi laughed.

”If a ghost shows up, I’ll greet it—Hello! Do you think my pronunciation is correct?”

Hearing Kindaichi’s reply, Fang Zheng rolled his eyes helplessly, then fell back a few steps to stand beside Little Ai.

”Just so you know, someone is definitely going to die this time, and it’s absolutely not my fault.”

”Are you suggesting there’s another Grim Reaper?”

Little Ai glanced at Fang Zheng speechlessly.

”Like Edogawa?”

”Haha, Shinichi Kudou is not even close; his path is only halfway. This one’s Grim Reaper’s Aura is passed down through three generations, his grandfather is Kindaichi Kosuke... don’t tell me you’ve never heard that name.”

”...”

Hearing this, Little Ai’s face immediately changed.

”You mean the famous detective from the Showa Era... this boy is his grandson?”

”That’s right.”

Fang Zheng nodded his head.

”So, this time it’s definitely not my fault if someone dies.”

”Then could you kindly tell me why you always run into such people every time you step out?”

”...”

Faced with Little Ai’s soul-searching question, Fang Zheng remained silent for a moment, then sighed deeply.

”Maybe it’s just my unlucky fate...”

Saying this, the group continued onward, and at that moment, a cabin door suddenly opened beside them, and a young girl rushed out from inside. Startled, Kindaichi instinctively pushed Miyuki down, and they both fell to the ground, with Kindaichi’s head buried directly in Miyuki’s chest. Realizing this, Miyuki let out a scream and slapped Kindaichi hard.

Fortunately, she hadn’t practiced in the karate club.

Watching the two interact, Fang Zheng chuckled. If it were Shinichi Kudou and Ran Mouri, Shinichi Kudou would definitely be heading to the ICU next.

However, Shinichi Kudou isn’t as ”shameless” as Kindaichi; that deduction nerd is almost colorblind to women, unlike Kindaichi, who cozies up to a beauty whenever he sees one.

Yeah, if Shinichi Kudou did that, Ran would’ve killed him long ago.

And that young girl was Miyuki’s pen pal, Yang Liling. Seeing Miyuki here, she was quite surprised too, but she was still very hospitable, welcoming them inside.

During their conversation, the group met Yang Liling’s brother, Yang Xiaolong, though he didn’t seem to like outsiders much, as he coldly replied to Miyuki and others before walking away... speaking of which, there sure are a lot of people who speak Japanese here.

Afterward, Fang Zheng and others also met the acrobatic troupe student from Japan, Shiho Nishimura, and the troupe leader, Yang Wang. Although Shiho Nishimura was very friendly to everyone, the acrobatic troupe leader didn’t seem too fond of Miyuki’s group’s arrival, giving a perfunctory response before turning away.

”I’m sorry.”

Watching the leader leave the room, Yang Liling also seemed a bit embarrassed.

”Because we have a new act tomorrow during the performance, everyone is somewhat nervous right now...”

”See, we ended up bothering them after all.”

Upon hearing this, Kindaichi leaned in and whispered something to Miyuki, and Miyuki showed an apologetic expression.

”I’m really sorry...”

”It’s okay.”

In response to Miyuki’s apology, Yang Liling smiled and waved her hand.

”You should come watch our performance too. After the show, I’ll treat you all to a big meal.”

”Fantastic, Shanghai hairy crab!”

Kindaichi raised his hand in excitement at this... how should I put it...

”He doesn’t seem like a detective at all.”

Little Ai also leaned next to Fang Zheng to start criticizing. Throughout the journey, she watched Kindaichi clown around, act silly, and be both lecherous and gluttonous... to be honest, Little Ai felt this guy didn’t resemble a detective at all, especially compared to Shinichi Kudou and Heiji Hattori, the difference was even more pronounced.

”It just shows he has a big heart, which isn’t necessarily bad.”

In response to Little Ai’s criticism, Fang Zheng gave a hearty laugh. In fact, Kindaichi Kosuke indeed pursued the civilian detective series, different from the noble and elegant characters like Kogoro Akechi and Sherlock Holmes. The Kindaichi family has always followed the civilian route, showing extraordinary wisdom when solving cases, but usually behaving no differently from the friendly uncle next door.

Moreover, Kindaichi Kosuke had an excellent trait, which was having a very good relationship with the police, something rarely seen among detectives. Whether it was Sherlock Holmes or Kogoro Akechi, down to Shinichi Kudou, frankly speaking, their relationships with the police weren’t great. Both had a sort of ”I’m second only to heaven” attitude, and thought the police should just focus on catching criminals, leaving the case-solving to them.

Only Kindaichi Kosuke enjoyed a harmonious cooperation with the police, never overshadowing them. When the police faced difficulties, they would actively seek his help. Unlike other detective stories where the police had to ask other detectives for help as a last resort only when they couldn’t solve it themselves.

In this regard, Kindaichi Kosuke knew how to get along better than his fellow detective colleagues.

Having a big heart might be a necessary trait of the Kindaichi family. Without such a strong mentality, facing so many frustrating cases might lead to doubting the world and becoming depressed.

Afterward, everyone watched the acrobatics troupe’s practice at Yang Liling’s invitation. It had to be said, those acrobatics were indeed outstanding. Not only Kindaichi and Miyuki, but even Little Ai and Akemi applauded the performance enthusiastically. After practice, Yang Liling treated everyone to a big meal.

Although Kindaichi eagerly wolfed down the Shanghai hairy crab he longed for, Fang Zheng wasn’t fond of seafood. Still, he got to taste the dumplings he wanted. Yang Liling also introduced several friends from the acrobatics troupe to them, making all guests and hosts enjoy the meal together. After the feast, Fang Zheng called a car to take everyone back to the hotel to rest.

Overall, everything went smoothly — of course, most importantly, there were no dead bodies.

The next day, everyone arrived at the acrobatics troupe to watch the scheduled performance. Compared to the previous practice, the actual show amazed everyone even more. Especially the sword-swallowing act nearly made Little Ai’s eyes pop out.

”Wait, that’s a real sword, right! Swallowing it won’t cause digestive system damage?”

”I don’t dare to watch anymore!”

Akemi covered her eyes, shivering alongside Miyuki, and Kindaichi was also dumbfounded, unable to say anything.

Then Yang Liling’s appearance surprised everyone more. She was performing a fire hoop act while riding a tiger!

”Sister, look, look, that’s a real tiger! And it’s not tied up!”

”Oh my, she’s riding on a tiger... how amazing is that?”

The usually composed sisters Akemi and Little Ai seemed to lose their usual poise, especially Little Ai, who turned back into a child, clutching Akemi and screaming loudly. Fang Zheng, on the other hand, watched this scene with a smile, quietly taking a photo with his camera.

Yes, this acrobatic show was definitely worth seeing.

The final act was a special feature of the performance called Mermaid Chronicles. To put it simply, four actors performed inside a tank, swimming freely like mermaids. Though it may not seem as thrilling as other acts on the surface, given the difficulty of maneuvering effortlessly underwater, the challenge of this performance was substantial.

Finally, the performance ended perfectly amid the audience’s applause and cheers. Fang Zheng and his party went backstage intending to congratulate Yang Liling on the successful show.

Upon reaching the backstage, the members who had performed were either chatting or resting there. Judging from their expressions, they were also quite excited about the success of this show.

”Ah, it’s you guys.”

Seeing Fang Zheng and others arrive, Shiho Nishimura, a Japanese exchange student in the troupe, warmly greeted them.

”What’s going on?”

”Yes, we came to find Liling, wanting to congratulate her on a successful show.”

”About Liling, she’s gone to the director’s office now, saying she wants to ask about the audience’s impressions of today’s performance.”

However, just as Shiho finished speaking, suddenly, a piercing scream echoed.

”What happened?”

Hearing the scream, everyone froze in place, and Fang Zheng felt a pang in his heart. Then he hurriedly rushed towards the source of the sound, with others quickly following Fang Zheng to the back of the stage.

When they arrived on the scene, they found Yang Liling collapsed on the ground, looking ahead in terror. As everyone raised their heads and looked in the direction she was staring, they saw that behind the desk in the room, the troupe leader Yang Wang was sitting against the wall in a strange posture. Above his head was a large bloodied character — ”Spring.”

Ah, I knew it would unfold this way.

Unlike the aghast acrobatics troupe members, Fang Zheng sighed helplessly.

Then he stopped Yang Xiaolong and others who were trying to rush into the room.

”No one is allowed to enter the room! Everyone stays where they are without moving!”

As he said this, Fang Zheng glanced at the still-collapsed Yang Liling.

”Call the police.”