Conan's stomach was in knots. Not only was he about to be pestered by Ayumi Yoshida and the other Detective Boys, he also had to worry about whether Ran Mouri might suddenly change her feelings.
Ever since the idol locked-room case they had experienced together, the three kids had developed a strong fascination with detective work, constantly trying to rope Conan into playing detective games at school—games he had always refused. Now that Ran had accepted their invitation on his behalf for tomorrow, she would no doubt have more "ideas" for him.
Tomorrow promised to be another headache.
What made it worse was that lately Ran, aside from asking her father Kogoro Mouri to keep an ear out for news about Shinichi Kudo, hadn't been actively looking for any other clues.
Instead, she seemed to have shifted that energy toward Ichiro Takayanagi—changing the way she addressed him, and gathering information about him from Kogoro, the police, and even her mother, Eri Kisaki. This change made Conan's heart sink.
After the last two cases, his performance had been too flawless, and combined with Ichiro's earlier warning, it had led not only to Kogoro cutting off Conan's close interactions with Ran, but also to Ran herself deliberately keeping her distance.
Of course, her kindness toward him still existed—but only because he was supposedly the child of Dr. Agasa's friend, and because of his current appearance.
As Ran went to prepare dinner, Conan drew back his gaze from Ichiro's place across the street. He wasn't entirely sure what kind of person Ichiro really was.
If Ichiro were just an ordinary moneylender, how could he have possibly sensed Conan's hidden identity? But if he weren't ordinary, why would he so casually let someone like Yuko Ikezawa live at his place?
During a past case, Conan had inferred that Yuko's financial situation wasn't good and that she smoked cheap cigarettes. Yet yesterday, when he happened to see her leaving Ichiro's place, she seemed like a different person—more refined, smoking a better brand, and holding a key to Ichiro's front door.
Whatever deal existed between Ichiro and Yuko might just be what Conan suspected… and it was precisely why he didn't want Ran visiting him. Unfortunately, in his current state, he had no way to stop her.
He could reveal his true identity and show his past deductive brilliance to convince her—but that would risk the entire Mouri family being targeted by the Black Organization. That was something Conan could never allow.
Forget it. If Ichiro really wasn't a good person, Ran would eventually realize it herself after spending time with him.
…
That evening at dinner in the Takayanagi household, Reika and Kaoru Tohsaka didn't bring up Vermouth's visit. Instead, Ichiro himself brought up Kaoru's schooling.
"Tomorrow, when Inspector Megure comes by, I'll have them take you two to Teitan High School and get Kaoru's enrollment settled," Ichiro said before asking, "By the way, what's Kaoru's current academic level?"
"I've always taught her myself. If possible, I'd like her to start directly in first-year high school," Reika replied confidently.
Back at the family estate, Kaoru had always disguised herself as a boy. Attending school openly as a girl would have exposed her identity and put her at risk from Takayanagi Musashi.
But now things were different. Musashi was dead, and the mother and daughter had moved to Tokyo. She could attend school as herself at last.
"I didn't expect you to be a little prodigy, Kaoru. If you pass the entrance tests, then first-year high school it is," Ichiro decided. Seeing Reika's hesitant expression, he added, "Don't worry. I'll have a policewoman escort you to Teitan High."
Hearing this, both Reika and Kaoru sighed in relief. Kaoru immediately smiled and said, "Ichiro-oniisan, I'll study hard and not embarrass you."
"Good. I might really need your help in the future," Ichiro said, not dampening her confidence—after all, the more capable the people around him, the better.
"Ichiro, do you think I should find a job too?" Reika asked.
With her daughter's schooling handled by Ichiro's connections, Reika herself had little to do.
"No need. Just help out here in the afternoons—I happen to need someone like that," Ichiro refused her idea.
Afternoon work? Probably just making tea and handling small tasks.
"Alright, I have no problem with that," Reika agreed.
(End of Chapter)
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