"Of course! Of course!"
Mouri Kogoro swallowed his food, took a long sip of his drink, wiped his mouth, and immediately came to Yukiko Tanaka, a smile on her face.
"Please follow me."
"Please, follow me," Yukiko Tanaka said, smiling slightly as she gestured politely and led the way.
Aizen asked, "Master Mouri, do you need me to go with you?"
"No, I can do it alone. You stay with Ran and Conan."
Mouri Kogoro waved his hand. He clearly wanted to spend some time alone with the beautiful Miss Tanaka Yukiko and didn't want Aizen tagging along.
Seeing her father walking away with a beautiful woman, Ran Mouri pouted unhappily but said nothing.
Aizen, Ran, and Conan soon finished their meal. After tidying up the tableware, the three stood aside.
Ran, eager to pass the time, started playing a guessing game with Conan called "Who Does What." The two took turns guessing each other's professions.
As expected, Conan's deductions were flawless, his guesses were always on point.
Seeing this, Aizen smiled and said, "Conan, if we didn't know each other, could you tell what I do for a living?"
Then he stretched out his hand and added playfully, "Want to take a look at my palm?"
Conan studied Aizen's hand. It was smooth, fair, and free of wrinkles, almost like a woman's hand, well-maintained and revealing no clues.
Conan looked at Aizen's palm, only to see that it was 190 white and smooth, without any wrinkles, just like a woman's palm, which was very well maintained and it was impossible to tell anything from it.
Resting his chin on his hand, Conan thought for a moment before saying, "Aizen-san often works with cakes, and I bet he's a boss. You can tell from his clothes, they're expensive, the kind that most people couldn't afford."
Ran gasped in surprise. "Conan, how did you know Aizen works with cakes? I couldn't tell at all!"
Aizen raised an eyebrow with interest. "Oh? Then tell me, Conan. I'd love to hear your reasoning."
Conan scratched the back of his head and chuckled. "It's nothing special. Aizen-san lives downstairs from the office, and I've eaten his cakes several times, so of course I know he works with them."
"Oh, I see," Ran said, a little disappointed. She had thought Conan had used some clever deduction.
Ran said a little disappointedly. She had thought there was some way to tell.
Aizen sighed helplessly, he hadn't expected Conan to tease him.
Conan smiled faintly. In truth, there was no way to guess Aizen's profession from his hands. No one could, or so he thought.
"Aizen!" Ran suddenly called, pointing toward a man nearby. "Do you know what that man does? The one on the left, the guy receiving the business card. He looks important, but the other man seems so respectful toward him. I think he must be someone powerful, maybe the son of a big conglomerate."
Aizen chuckled. "You're wrong, Ran. He's not the son of a conglomerate."
As he spoke, the man took out a business card but dropped something under the table. He quickly bent down to pick it up.
Conan noticed that he inserted a small battery into what looked like a remote control.
The man sensed their gaze and glanced at them briefly before turning away and handing his card to the person in front of him.
"Such a keen sense,"
"What sharp observation," Conan murmured. "I agree with Aizen-san. That man isn't some rich heir, I think he's a secretary for a politician or someone similar."
"It seems you don't know," Aizen replied. "He's actually the secretary of Congressman Masao Takada. I've seen him on TV a few times. I think his name is Tsuneaki Niikura."
"Is that so?"
Mouri Ran sounded disappointed. She'd guessed wrong again.
Conan then noticed another man leaning against the wall, watching the guests suspiciously. His behavior seemed off.
"Little boy, would you like a photo as a souvenir?"
A woman wearing bunny ears and holding a camera smiled at Conan.
"Sure! Ran-san, let's take a photo together!"
Seeing an opportunity, Conan grabbed Ran's hand and ran toward the suspicious man.
Ran didn't refuse. "Aizen, come with us," she called.
"Okay!" Aizen replied, walking over to stand beside her with his arms crossed.
Click!
The camera flashed, and the photo printed instantly, clearly a high-end banquet printer.
"Here you go, little one," the woman said, handing Conan the photo.
Conan took it and breathed a sigh of relief, the man he had been watching was captured in the shot.
Moments later, the lights in the banquet hall went out, leaving only the stage illuminated. The host stepped forward and announced,
"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome tonight's special guest, Congressman Masao Takada of the House of Representatives!"
A spotlight swept over the crowd and landed on Masao Aizen.
Clap, clap, clap.
A round of applause filled the room.
"Congressman, please follow me," Secretary Tsuneaki Niikura said, leading the way.
Masao Takada followed behind, nodding politely to guests on either side.
Ran asked in surprise, "How did they find Congressman Takada so quickly in the dark?"
"They must have known his position in advance," Aizen explained, smiling.
Bang!
Before Aizen could finish, a gunshot echoed through the hall. In full view of everyone, Congressman Masao Takada collapsed, clutching his chest.
Seconds later, the lights came back on. Screams erupted as panic swept the crowd.
Aizen quickly shielded Ran, who turned away, unable to look at the body.
Conan instinctively looked toward the suspicious man, but he was gone. Glancing up, Conan spotted a shadow slipping away on the second floor. Without hesitation, he ran after it.
"Aizen, Conan ran outside," Ran said anxiously.
"It's safer out there," Aizen replied calmly. "Let's find Master Mouri."
Ran nodded and followed.
When they reached the scene, Mouri Kogoro barked, "Aizen, call Inspector Megure immediately."
"Got it," Aizen replied, pulling out his phone and stepping aside to make the call.
After handing the injured Ishimoto Seiji to Tanaka Yukiko, Mouri Kogoro crouched beside Masao Takada's body to inspect it.
Moments later, he stood and said grimly to Arakura Tsuneaki, "There's no saving him. Congressman Takada is dead, shot through the chest."
"The congressman will not die in vain," Tsuneaki Niikura muttered, stepping aside to make a phone call of his own.
Kogoro turned as Aizen returned. "Did you reach Inspector Megure?"
Aizen nodded. "Yes. He's on his way. He asked us to secure the scene and make sure no one disturbs it."
"Good," Kogoro said firmly. "Stay alert and keep an eye on everything, just in case."