As evening fell, darkness quietly descended.
Hiro loosened his tie and rubbed the corners of his tired eyes.
Ever since Rei had told him that Ritsu was still alive, he had been investigating everything he could about Lupin. Yet no matter how deeply he looked, he couldn't find any useful leads.
'Ritsu... why are you hiding yourself so completely? You're alive, yet you still won't come to us. Is it because the way Public Security handled your case left you so disappointed?'
He walked toward the parking lot and immediately noticed a man in a black jacket leaning against his car. The moment he recognized the man, his face lit up.
"Class Rep? What are you doing here?"
"I've told you before, you really ought to stop calling me Class Rep. I haven't been one for years."
Wataru laughed with a toothpick in his mouth. Casually draping an arm over Hiro's shoulder, he lowered his voice.
"We've got news about Ritsu."
"What?"
Hiro's eyes widened in disbelief.
Once the shock wore off, questions poured out one after another.
"He's willing to contact us now? Where is he? How has he been?"
The barrage of questions left Wataru smiling helplessly. He knew better than anyone how deeply Ritsu's supposed death had affected Hiro.
As a Public Security officer, he had been unable to secure the honor his closest friend deserved.
"Calm down, Hiro. Akemi passed the message to me through Natalie. I haven't actually seen him."
"Akemi?"
Information about Akemi immediately surfaced in Hiro's mind.
If he remembered correctly, she was Onizawa's wife and, according to Rei, an associate member of the Organization.
Her marriage to Onizawa had most likely been arranged by the Organization.
Because of that, Hiro had recently instructed Kazami to keep an eye on Akemi's movements, just in case the unsuspecting Onizawa ended up in danger.
But now, Ritsu had contacted him through Akemi.
That could only mean one thing.
If Akemi was Lupin's female assistant, then their current public identities became much easier to determine.
Hiro had already investigated every passenger aboard the Sally Beth. There had been several people he considered suspicious.
Now that he knew Lupin had a female partner, he could finally identify him with certainty.
"Richard Ravelle."
"Hm? What did you say?"
Hiro opened the driver's door and motioned for Wataru to get in before speaking further. Starting the engine, he drove off while explaining,
"Richard Ravelle is most likely Lupin. They're both Ritsu. Ritsu is probably using Richard's identity to move around openly."
"At least now we know for certain... he's still alive."
Wataru quietly absorbed the information. A smile spread across his face.
For them, there could hardly be better news. Just thinking that they'd have the chance to see Ritsu again lifted his spirits.
"As long as he's alive, that's enough. Anyway, putting that aside, Ritsu wants you to save Tokiwa Group engineer Yoshiaki and Nishitama City Councilman Iwamatsu."
"Those names don't ring a bell. They're members of that Organization?"
"Yeah."
"Akemi said they're both lower-ranking members. They're being eliminated for betraying the Organization."
After thinking it over carefully, Hiro nodded.
"All right. I'll find a way to get involved in tomorrow's opening ceremony. Class Rep... let's keep this from Jin and the others for now. We'll tell them after everything is over."
"I understand. Then I'll leave it in your hands."
"Oh, and give me a ride home while you're at it."
"What?"
"You're not going to invite me upstairs to try Natalie's cooking?"
"Hahaha! If you've got the time, of course!"
"Come on. It'll save you from having to cook dinner yourself."
...
Saturday, February 23
A navy-blue Bugatti slowly pulled into the outdoor parking lot.
After parking, Ritsu headed toward the KFC in Beika Town 2-Chome. Before he even reached the entrance, he spotted Mitsuhiko waving at him.
Judging from the boy's expression, though, he clearly wasn't in good spirits.
'Looks like something's bothering him. But... he's not Conan. How does a first grader already have troubles? He doesn't look like someone without friends...
Could it be that he's developed a crush on some little girl and wants relationship advice from me, a guy who looks married but is actually a hopelessly single man with zero dating experience?'
As expected of someone with excellent manners, Mitsuhiko greeted him politely despite his worries.
"Onizawa-nii, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to meet me."
"Um, let's get inside first. I skipped breakfast, so I'm starving."
A spicy chicken burger combo and a children's meal later, Ritsu effortlessly carried the tray to a quiet table in the corner.
If they were going to have a serious conversation, somewhere secluded like this was best. Sitting down, he immediately picked up his cola and took a sip.
There was something incredibly refreshing about drinking an ice-cold carbonated beverage first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.
Ritsu noticed that Mitsuhiko hadn't touched any of his food. Raising an eyebrow, he asked,
"Mitsuhiko-kun, go ahead and tell me what's been troubling you. I'll do my best to help."
Lowering his head, Mitsuhiko placed both hands neatly on his knees. He looked exactly like a child who had been called on unexpectedly by his teacher during class.
In a quiet voice, he began explaining.
"Onizawa-nii... I've liked Ayumi ever since kindergarten. But... I think Ayumi likes Conan."
He paused before gathering the courage to look up. Even the freckles on his face seemed unusually serious.
"Onizawa-nii, please teach me. How can I marry Akemi-sensei someday, just like you did?"
"..."
Ritsu instantly stared back with blank, dot-like eyes.
He had never imagined that his random guess would actually turn out to be correct.
He desperately wanted to pull out his phone, open Yahoo, and type into the search bar,
#A man with zero dating experience is asked for relationship advice by a first-grade boy. How should he answer? Urgent. Online waiting#
Having absolutely no idea what to say, Ritsu could only make something up on the spot.
At the same time, he silently complained about a certain someone who kept unconsciously attracting little girls with his excessive charm.
"Love isn't something you can force. But... ss long as the other person is still single, there's nothing wrong with trying to give yourself a chance."
"After all, liking someone isn't a bad thing."
Secretly, Ritsu was rather pleased with his answer.
'Wow. That actually sounded like advice from someone with relationship experience.'
"But... I've also started paying attention to Haibara lately. If I like two people at the same time, does that make me a terrible boy?"
"Onizawa-nii, what should I do?"
'Hold on. That's a lot to process all at once. How did the gossip suddenly involve my own cousin?'
Ritsu wasn't sure whether people destined to remain single shared some mysterious connection with one another.
In any case, he felt that if he couldn't find someone, Shiho probably wouldn't either.
Besides, the person Mitsuhiko liked was a person who didn't truly exist. Sooner or later, she would return to being Shiho.
When that day came, they would inevitably go their separate ways.
Not wanting to crush a child's innocent feelings, Ritsu gently said,
"I think what you feel toward Haibara is admiration. Don't you think she's much more mature than most girls? And very smart? She knows so many things that ordinary people don't."
Mitsuhiko nodded vigorously.
"That's right. Haibara is a lot like Conan."
"So that feeling isn't really romantic love. It's admiration. You could call it looking up to someone strong. Does that make sense?"
As an actual first-grade student, and an exceptionally intelligent and mature one at that, Mitsuhiko quickly understood what Onizawa was trying to tell him.
'So that's what it is... admiration. Now that I think about it, I've always admired how Conan knows so many things that I don't.'
Having finally untangled the knot in his heart, Mitsuhiko picked up his burger with a smile.
"Thank you, Onizawa-nii! When I get my allowance, I'll definitely buy presents for you and Akemi-sensei!"
"Just the thought is more than enough. Now hurry up and eat. And when you get home, change into nicer clothes. You were invited to tonight's opening ceremony too, weren't you?"
"Yep! Anyway, thank you so much today, Onizawa-nii!"
----
Ritsu's identities are gradually being exposed.
Everyone's intelligence is online. It'll be epic!