Yoshino Village, internet booth.
"I failed again!" Shiori clenched her fists in front of the keyboard and turned to Takumi in frustration. "Did you post the message?"
"No." Takumi shook his head and smiled uncomfortably. In front of him, the screen read: "Access denied. Only verified members."
Shiori had convinced him to join the holy war. And in the process he had put him —without consulting him— in an online community with a suspicious name: The Alliance of Older Sisters Who Love Shotas.
As an author, pretending to be a simple fan was already strange... Being a part of that was even more so.
"Shiori..." Takumi opened the chat and read in a low voice, "Was it really necessary to join the Big Sisters Alliance? I'm a boy, you know."
"It doesn't matter." She didn't even look at him. He kept pounding F5. "I am the administrator. As long as I don't say anything, no one will know who you are."
Takumi rubbed his forehead.
Shiori continued, without any remorse:
"There is everything in that alliance. Crossplayers, hardcore otakus, independent mangakas... and now you. Come on, upgrade! This damn membership mode is insufferable."
Despite the fact that the connection of that cabin was fiber optics, the restricted mode of the forum blocked access as if it were an invisible wall.
Takumi leaned back.
"I think it happened. We have already taught them a lesson. It's not worth continuing."
Shiori stopped typing for a second.
"I guess..." Sighed. Then his eyes lit up again. "I know! If we can't enter the forum, we go to Twitter. From there we can also push."
He opened the group chat and wrote furiously.
Until suddenly it stopped. Frozen.
"Hackers...? What the hell...?"
On the screen there was a new screenshot. It was the same one Kurosawa had seen.
Takumi read silently.
"If they don't apologize, we will take control of the forum. Detective Conan's squad of hackers has entered the war."
Shiori was speechless.
Takumi stood up.
"Shiori... That's illegal, right?"
"Yes." She frowned, visibly uncomfortable. "Most young fans don't know this, but hacking is a crime. Even if the reason is... emotional."
"Then they should stop."
Shiori bit her lip.
"I know. But hackers are cunning. No one knows who they are. And it's not a government forum... I don't think the police will get involved."
But Takumi was not calm.
At that moment, his cell phone vibrated on the table.
Ding-ling-ling...
"I'll go out for a moment."
He answered from the hallway. A familiar voice spoke without preamble.
"Takumi, I need your help!" It was Kurosawa. He sounded alarmed. "Your fans are going to make a mess online! You have to calm them down."
"You mean hackers?"
"Do you know that yet?"
"Yes. I'm connected." Takumi frowned. "But... is this going to affect us? We have nothing to do with them."
"Technically, no. But that won't stop the media if this escalates." Kurosawa lowered his voice. "It could ruin the publishing house. And so do you. Everything you've built."
Takumi was silent.
"I want you to say something. Even if it doesn't work. Just by showing your position, you're already on the right side."
'Show position...'
Takumi understood.
It was not to stop the war. It was to make it clear to the public that Mirai-sensei did not approve of that path.
And if he did it right, he could even turn it into a pro-manga moment.
"It's okay. How do I prove that I am the author?"
"We have your official account. I'll send you the credentials."
The call was cut off.
Seconds later, a text message appeared on the screen. User. Password.
Takumi stared at him.
It was time to talk.
Not as a fan. Not as a spectator.
Like Mirai-sensei.
Takumi returned to the cockpit. Shiori and her companions were already completely immersed in Twitter.
The main trend was a fiery hashtag:
#MysteryAssociationApologizesToDetectiveConan
Within minutes, that message had gone viral. Several groups of fans left the forum and had concentrated on networks.
'How do you organize so quickly...?' Takumi, still confused, took advantage of Shiori's oversight and entered the official website of Hinotori Publishing.
Wrote:
"Thank you for your love for Detective Conan, but the holy war has gone too far. I hope that everyone can express their opinions more rationally. "Mirai"
It was short, sober. He couldn't take the risk of Shiori finding out. As soon as he sent it, logged out, reopened as a visitor... and waited.
Only a few seconds passed.
And chaos broke out.
nekodetective27 "The author appeared on the sofa!"
sassydeduction "Uwaaa, Mirai-sensei-sama, I see you! I'm such a fan!"
ilikemike "Does anyone have water? Because I'm going to faint. MIRAI-SENSEI HAS SPOKEN!!"
Comment 4 | melonlogic "Is it real? Is it human? Did I dream it?"
The chat exploded. In parallel, the notifications from the private group began to sound like shrapnel:
"Emergency! The author posted on the official website!" "Stop the attack and come NOW!" "Someone confirm if this is real, please!"
Shiori looked at the screen. And suddenly, he turned abruptly:
"Takumi... the official Hinotori site... was it you?"
"Ah!?"
Takumi swallowed. His mind panicked.
"You were the one who stole Mirai's sofa!?" Shiori looked at him in disbelief. "How did you get in so quickly!? Only professional bots can do that!"
Takumi looked at his monitor.
In fact, the author's comment appeared anchored... but signed as a visitor.
'Uff...' I had unintentionally deceived her.
"No, it wasn't me." He answered awkwardly, and refreshed the page.
500 responses.
Once again.
800.
"This... it is a massacre."
Takumi put his hand to the back of his neck. 'Is all the energy of holy war being transferred here?'
He looked at the names: Conan Support Squad, Mirai Personal Guard, Anti-Heresy Committee, Elder Sisters Alliance, TeamKogoroLovers...
It was a digital tsunami.
'How do they move so fast? Are they human?'
Just then...
Boom!
A red warning, with a huge exclamation point, flashed on the monitor.
Takumi jumped.
"What was that...?"
He was about to check the CPU tower when Shiori slapped off his hat.
"Takumi, get out of here right now!"
He stood up. His voice was no longer firm. She was nervous. He was practically shaking.
"What happened?"
"That was a warning from the server. They're tracking IPs!" Shiori paled. "If the police come, it doesn't matter if you launched the war or not... we have to go!"
Before he could say anything, Shiori turned... and with a ferocious kick, he broke down the metal door of the cabin.
CLANG!
The wind brushed his ear.
Takumi didn't move. He didn't even blink.
He only thought one thing:
'Like this... the internet breaks.'