On the coast.
Heiji Hattori and Conan rushed to the scene, where a large number of panicked villagers had already gathered.
Naoko Kuroe's body lay silently on the rocks, a similar hemp rope wrapped around her neck, a dugong arrow clutched tightly in her hand, her expression contorted, as if she had seen something terrifying before she died.
"This...this is the mermaid's curse!"
Some villagers shouted in terror.
"Another strangulation..."
Hattori Heiji crouched down to examine the body, his brow furrowed: "The time of death is no more than an hour."
Conan adjusted his glasses: "The culprit is the same person."
"hateful!"
Hattori Heiji slammed his fist on the rock: "Who... is it...?"
At that moment, they both thought of one person—
Yuzuru Hanyu.
"That guy... definitely knows something!"
Hattori Heiji gritted his teeth, recalling how Hanyu Nan had mysteriously disappeared for a while after Ebihara Toshimi died, which made him even more convinced that the guy was inextricably linked to the two murders.
Conan sighed: "The question is, will he tell us?"
Hattori Heiji: "..."
--Won't.
That bastard will definitely just smile and say, "Who knows?"
.........
While Heiji Hattori and Conan were still struggling to find clues, Nanami Hanyu and Master Shizuka had leisurely returned to the inn.
The advantages of being rich were on full display at this moment.
Kogoro Mouri and his two friends could only squeeze into a small, ordinary room downstairs.
Meanwhile, Yuzuru Hanyu booked the entire top floor of the hotel.
Japanese-style room in a hotel.
The paper door was gently pulled open, and in the darkness, Yu Sheng Nan quietly peeked inside. He saw a tea-haired loli sleeping peacefully under a thin blanket on the tatami mat in the center of the room.
Her peaceful sleeping face looked especially lovely in the moonlight, as if the hustle and bustle of the world had nothing to do with her.
Beside her little head, a fluffy little Eevee was curled up, its tail covering its face, purring softly, fast asleep.
"It's safe, Master. They're already asleep."
The paper door closed again, and Yuzuru quietly withdrew.
Looking at her clumsy disciple's eager expression, Ikeba Shizuka's gaze fell on the Empress on the table beside them, whose eyes had been following their movements in the fish tank ever since they returned.
There's another one here.
"Well......"
Yuzuru rubbed his forehead, realizing he had forgotten about that.
The next second, the fish and the fish tank appeared in the Japanese-style room.
"Bang!!!"
The ugly fish was found to have been moved.
How dare they change my position without permission? This is a blatant provocation against my majesty! It's outrageous and utterly presumptuous!
It swam angrily around in the fish tank, splashing water everywhere, expressing its dissatisfaction.
Top floor of the hotel.
The hotel's top floor and interior.
As soon as Yuzuru threw the Ugly Fish Empress, fish and tank together, into Ai's room, he turned around and pounced on Ikenami Shizuka, wrapping his arms around her slender waist tightly.
"Master~" He lowered his head and nuzzled her neck, his voice deep and slightly coquettish, "Finally, it's just the two of us left..."
Chibo Jinghua's ears felt slightly hot from his touch, and a faint blush crept onto her cheeks. However, she maintained her elegant posture, gently pressing the folding fan in her hand against his forehead and pushing him away slightly.
Then, the beautiful woman in the kimono gracefully knelt before the low table, her slender fingers lifting the teapot, pouring clear tea into the cup with a pleasant sound.
"What's the rush?"
She glanced at her restless apprentice and smiled slightly: "Check your homework first."
Upon hearing this, Yuu Nan couldn't help but groan, "Master~ why are you checking my homework at a time like this...?"
"Smack!"
The folding fan tapped him on the head, neither too hard nor too soft.
"You're restless and agitated." Ikeba Shizuka took a sip of tea, her gaze passing over the rim of the teacup to Hanyu Nan, her expression serious. "It seems you've indeed been slacking off these past few days."
Yu Sheng Nan rubbed his head with a wronged expression, but his eyes were fixed on his master's graceful figure wrapped in mourning clothes—the black fabric made her skin look as white as snow, and the collarbone that was faintly visible at the neckline was so beautiful that it made people want to take a bite, exuding an indescribable temptation.
"What are you looking at?"
Chi Bo Jinghua smiled faintly, then swished open her folding fan to shield her disciple's burning gaze: "Go, fetch the sword."
Yuu Nan was on the verge of tears: "Master wants to have a match with me?"
"Let's see if you've been slacking off these past few days."
Chibo Jinghua rose, her wide mourning robes billowing in the wind like butterflies spreading their wings. She took a wooden sword from her luggage and twirled it in her hand: "If I lose..."
She raised an eyebrow, a hint of danger in her eyes: "You'd better go to sleep quietly tonight."
Now that things had come to this, Yuzuru Nan also drew a training sword from the dark space, his fingertips tracing the familiar patterns—this was the gift his master had given him when he became an apprentice.
"What if my disciple wins?" he asked with a wicked grin as he approached.
Instead of retreating, Chibo Jinghua advanced, lightly lifting his chin with her wooden sword: "Do as you please."
Four words made Yuzuru's breath catch in his throat.
If you had told me this sooner, who would still be sleepy?
"It's a deal!"
.........
Under the dim yellow wall lamp, soft and ambiguous light permeated the entire room, casting a dreamlike veil over everything.
This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
