SailorStar9: So with Chapter 81 uploaded, this is Chapter 82 of this fic. (Sighs) Guys and girls, is it too hard for you to leave a review, instead of just putting this fic up on your favorited list and story alerts?

Pairings: Established!Furuya Rei (Amuro Tooru)/Mizuno Ami

Disclaimers: I own absolutely nothing, except this plot and pairing.

Chapter 82: The Secret of the Insect Man

Time passes...

The Detective Boys, minus Haibara, were traveling to Kuronosu.

"Excuse me, Genta." Mitsuhiko deathpanned. "I've been wondering..."

"That outfit does appear to be traditional insect hunting outfit, but what exactly are you trying to catch with that giant net?" Fumio asked.

"You guys wanna know?" Genta grinned. "Well.. tada!" he showed the group the welcome signboard.

"Insect Man Ranch?" Mitsuhiko echoed.

Seriously...? both Conan and Fumio twitched.

"So, you're trying to catch..." Mitsuhiko trailed.

"I'm going insect man hunting." Genta bragged. "It's every man's dream."

"What was that?" Ayumi wondered, hearing a low drone in the distance.

"That's the cry of an insect man." Genta declared and ran off.

"This way!" Genta led the group past the Kuronosu office building and past the Kabutoya Restaurant.

"Over there!" Ayumi took the lead and led the group around the corner at the post office.

"Past this gate..." Mitsuhiko started, the group stopping in front of the Gaga Shrine.

"Is the Insect Man Ranch?" Genta gulped.

"This sound..." Mitsuhiko peered closer at the excavation workers who were excavating the nearby forest.

"We're sorry!" Genta, Mitsuhiko and Ayumi wailed, fleeing when they saw the adults' glares turn to them.

"An insect man?" the group skidded to a stop when they saw a kid in costume opening up the Kabutoya Restaurant.

"Welcome." Kabuto Koichi greeted the newcomers who had entered the restaurant. "I'm Kabuto Koichi, 13 years old. This is my brother, Kabuto Koji. He's seven."

"So..." Fumio blinked.

"I know." Koichi sighed. "You're wondering why we're dressed like this. And why the adults in the village are doing construction work at the village shrine. It's too much trouble to explain it all." he added, seeing the Detective Boys' unions nods. "So let me perform it for you in a picture-story show. An accurate history of the village operated Insect Man Ranch." having sat the group down, Koichi began his narration. "Once upon a time, about a year ago, an important Japanese government official came to this village. He said, 'I shall build a casino and public bath in the forest surrounding this village.' The adults in this village were overjoyed. But the village mayor was strongly opposed. He opposed the idea because in the forest was the grave of Princess Gaga, who loved all the insects in the world. However, the important Japanese government official ignored the village mayor's protests and went to inspect the forest. And then, he fell victim to Princess Gaga's curse and was attacked by a giant moth. The frightened official fled and the plans to construct the casino and public bath were put on hold. The village mayor decided to build an insect man ranch instead the insect man ranch is an amusement park where children dress in insect costumes. The village mayor paid for these costumes out of his own pocket." he explained. "When the children heard the news, they were overjoyed." he continued his narration. "But the adults in the village were strongly opposed. The village mayor decided to give up on his plan. But later, after retiring from being the village mayor, he bought up the forest with his retirement pay, put up 'Do Not Enter' signs and began construction with bulldozers. That's when the former mayor came to this restaurant. The moment he ordered our famous katsu bowl, the former mayor suddenly died. But then, unbelievably, a map showing the location of Princess Gaga's treasure was found in the former mayor's pocket. The truth was, the former mayor was excavating the forest so he could keep Princess Gaga's treasure all for himself. When the adults in the village heard this, they became obsessed with Princess Gaga's treasure and they began excavating the forest. Meanwhile, the children who the former mayor betrayed were unable to give up their dream of an Insect Man Ranch, so they wear insect costumes and while the adults remain obsessed with Princess Gaga's treasure, do an admirable job looking after things in their absence. And they lived happily ever after."

"Is that picture-story actually true?" Conan asked.

"Of course." Koichi assured. "After all," he pointed to the 'Accurate History' mark on the opening page. "It's an accurate history."

"Welcome." Seta Mitsuo greeted Conan and Fumio when the two boys entered the post office.

"We'd like to see a record of deliveries made to the late former mayor." Fumio requested.

"That should be in those records over there." Mitsuo turned to the left.

"Found it." Fumio turned to the correct page in the records.

I knew it. Conan mused. In other words, the late former mayor wore this moth costume and waited for the officials to come inspect the forest. So the mayor was behind the Princess Gaga curse. Was it really to keep her treasure for himself? He wondered as the two boys exited the post office.

"Nee-san." Fumio, with Conan in tow, ran up to Chono Masako who was sweeping the front door of her family clinic. "Do you work in this clinic.

"Yes." Masako turned to the two young boys. "I'm the only daughter of this clinic's owners; Chono Masako 11 years old, Capricorn, blood type AB."

"We'd like to ask you about the late former mayor." Conan requested.

"Patient information is confidential." Masako tsked. "I can't discuss it with you. But I might accidentally mention something while examining you."

"Cancer?" Fumio echoed when Masako revealed that the former mayor had contacted cancer while she was examining his eyes. "The former mayor died of cancer?"

"That's right." Masako replied. "It was pretty advanced, too. I heard from Daddy that he had only one year left by the time he retired. Of course, the mayor knew."

"Wait, does Princess Gaga's treasure even exist in the first place?" Fumio inquired, as the two walked past the village office. "Excuse us." he pushed the office's doors open when the two boys heard a yell in the back room. "Give us a minute." he sweatdropped, seeing Kusuda Morio dangled from the ceiling with spider webbing.

"Do you know if there's a book here on the village's history?" Conan asked after the freed Kusuda introduced himself.

"That bookshelf over there contains the grade school teacher's research on the village's history." Kusuda pointed.

"According to legend, the grave of the noble Princess Gaga once existed in the forest surrounding the village. It was a large keyhole-shaped tomb." Fumio read the book.. "It isn't here. There's no one mention of Princess Gaga's treasure anywhere."

"Help, Conan, Fumio!" Ayumi wailed from afar.

"Looks like we're too late." Fumio noted, the two boys stopped on the cliff overlooking the construction site." But why are they in costumes?"

"This way!" having distracted the adults, Conan and Fumio led Genta, Mitsuhiko and Ayumi into the forest.

"Guys, calm down and listen to me." Conan shouted to the adults who had cornered them on a tree. "Princess Gaga's treasure doesn't exist."

"And to prove that, there's no mention of the treasure in the village's historical records." Fumio added.

"Then, why did the mayor buy up the forest?" one of the adults asked.

"To make an Insect Man Ranch." Conan answered. "The mayor tried to build the Insect Man Ranch which you all opposed by himself. But then he learnt he wouldn't live to see its completion because he had cancer. So the mayor came up with a plan. He spread the rumor that he was trying to keep Princess Gaga's nonexistent treasure to himself and make sure the fake treasure map would be found after his death. Were there detailed excavation instructions written on the map?"

"Almost obnoxiously detailed." the adult admitted.

"And that's the result of following those obnoxiously detailed excavation instructions." Conan pointed to the revealed grave. "The mayor didn't just leave behind the treasure map and excavation instructions. That's the tomb of Princess Gaga, who loved all insects. They were plans to build a keyhole-shaped tomb. He probably left it up to you to fulfill his dream of building an Insect Man Ranch."

SailorStar9: Any OOC-ness is regretted, by the way. *Sighs* Don't you just hate plot bunnies sometimes? Read and review.