Chapter 190, Seventy-Third Cycle (20)
Teitan Elementary School.
Elementary school students get out of school very early, and the Junior Detective Club usually stays up until it's almost dark before going home. If they encounter a case, staying up all night is also a common occurrence.
Although they are still seven or eight-year-old primary school students.
However, they have other plans this time.
"Conan, is it true that a super handsome waiter came to Poirot's Cafe? I've heard several people talking about it." Ayumi Yoshida asked curiously.
"And I heard that everything he makes is incredibly delicious." That was all Kojima Genta remembered, and his mouth watered slightly. "Just how delicious?"
“Yes, his sandwiches are the most famous.” Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya said seriously, “It seems that no one who has eaten them has given them a bad review. Once you go, you’ll go a second or third time.”
What he didn't mention was that some people were comparing the handsome blond-haired, dark-skinned waiter to the legendary fox spirit and the male prostitute. Although he later curiously looked it up online, he was still too embarrassed to say it, especially in front of Ayumi and Ai Haibara.
Conan Edogawa, with dead fish eyes: "Yeah, his name is Tooru Amuro. He's a detective and he even became an apprentice of Uncle Mori. His cooking is really delicious."
When Amuro Tooru asked for a high fee to become his apprentice, Kogoro Mouri agreed without hesitation. His eyes shone like light bulbs, almost like coins.
Even Conan Edogawa felt sorry for Tooru Amuro because of his money. What could he possibly learn from Uncle Mori? In the end, all the money he worked so hard to earn at the coffee shop every day went to Uncle Mori as tuition? That's so tragic.
The children over there cheered when they heard the confirmation, becoming even more curious about Amuro Tooru's detective identity, and decided to go to Poirot's Cafe right away.
Ai Haibara doesn't usually listen to gossip, nor does she have the habit of going online to read gossip, but as she listened, she started to feel that something was off.
"Toru Amuro?" she asked.
Conan Edogawa was still thinking about Bourbon, who hadn't been heard from in a while, and casually hummed in agreement.
"Blonde hair and dark skin?" Ai Haibara asked again.
Conan Edogawa sensed something was wrong and turned to look at her: "You know her?"
Ai Haibara's expression remained unchanged. After shaking her head, she calmly said, "I don't know him, but I remembered a legendary host named Fox. It's said that he had blond hair and dark skin, so I'm a little curious."
"Pfft cough cough cough—" Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya choked on his own saliva.
Even Conan Edogawa, who knew her real age, was stumped. He never expected that someone with Ai Haibara's personality would use the word "host."
Ai Haibara remained calm, as if she hadn't said anything outrageous.
She was still pondering what it meant for Bourbon to work downstairs from the Mori Detective Agency.
In reality, not many people knew that Bourbon was Amuro Tooru. Only a few people knew when Bourbon first joined the organization, and later Bourbon became a complete mystery.
Later, after their relationship improved, Bourbon rarely hid important things from her, so she knew that their whiskey group had done host duties. But since... it seems that it started this year, Bourbon has become more mysterious, doing strange things and rarely explaining them to her, and even pretending to be stupid.
For example, his sister faked her death, and after he accepted the mission to capture her and bring her back to the organization, he ran over to become Kogoro Mouri's apprentice and worked at Poirot's Café.
“Let’s go take a look together,” Ai Haibara casually echoed the children’s words. “I’m also very curious about what his sandwiches taste like.”
She really hadn't eaten in a long time.
I thought I'd never be able to eat it again...
*
It's currently the time when people are getting out of school and off work, so Poirot Cafe is bustling, but the flow of people is quick, so there aren't any seats available.
Subaru Okiya sat alone at the table closest to the door, next to a glass partition.
While drinking coffee, he subtly observed Amuro Tooru's busy work out of the corner of his eye. He knew how perceptive the blond youth was; he listened more than he looked.
Listen to his footsteps, listen to his movements, listen to what he says.
At such a time, when he saw strange looks coming from outside the window, he naturally noticed them immediately.
Subaru Okiya didn't turn around to look directly, but instead pretended to reach for a tissue and caught a glimpse of the window out of the corner of his eye.
It was the Junior Detective Club. A girl with brown hair at the back lowered her head and turned around. I don't know what she said, but a few children next to her leaned over to ask her with some concern.
The girl with brown hair shook her head, pulled up her hood, and quickly turned and left.
Subaru Okiya pretended to notice the Junior Detective Club and looked at them, receiving smiles and waves from the children. Then, the children quickly came in from the door and sat at his table.
They had become quite familiar with each other since they went through a case together last time.
"Is Mr. Subaru here to eat sandwiches too?" The perceptive Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya noticed that he still had half a sandwich left on his plate.
Subaru Okiya nodded: "It lives up to its reputation, you can give it a try."
A handsome blond waiter walked over with the menu, causing several girls nearby to squeal and chatter excitedly as he went.
Shuichi Akai thought to himself that he still couldn't understand what Bourbon was thinking; he was being too high-profile.
"Conan-kun, did you come with your friends today?" The blond youth greeted the children with a very friendly and gentle smile. "Hello, my name is Amuro Tooru. It's nice to meet you. May I know your names?"
Not only did the young women who were already paying attention to him fall in love with him instantly, but even several children quickly changed their address from "Mr. Amuro" to "Brother Amuro".
Who wouldn't like someone who is good-looking, gentle, and capable?
And the sandwiches he makes are absolutely delicious!!!
"Mr. Amuro is so popular," Conan Edogawa muttered to himself. "Looks like we don't need to worry about him running out of money after paying Uncle Mori's tuition."
Subaru Okiya, who was standing next to him, didn't want to say anything.
He finished his coffee.
Let's go back.
*
Teitan Junior High School.
"Are you still not planning to participate in club activities today, Orikasa-kun?" a classmate he was on good terms with asked him.
Orikasa Ai nodded and smiled apologetically, "Sorry, I'm not feeling well, you guys go have fun."
Stepping out of the school gate, with no one else around, the smartwatch on my wrist finally emitted the Noah's Ark voice: "Polo Coffee Shop seems quite lively today, shall we go check it out?"
Ai Orikasa was about to nod and say, "Let's go take a look," but when she turned the corner, she saw Ran Mouri and her group talking.
Teitan High School and Teitan Junior High School are not far apart, but Ran Mouri shouldn't be going home via this road unless they are going to the Kudo residence.
"Ran, you've gone too far! A handsome waiter came downstairs from your building and you didn't even tell me!" Sonoko Suzuki grabbed Ran Mouri, who looked utterly helpless, and faked tears. "And he even became Uncle Mouri's apprentice! No way, you have to introduce me to that blond, dark-skinned, exotic hottie right now, ahhhhh—"
“Sonoko…” Ran Mouri sighed, “Alright, shall we go to Poirot Cafe now and grab something to eat? Mr. Amuro should be there today, but you’d better stay calm and not scare him.”
Sonoko Suzuki was happy, but Sera Masumi hesitated.
"Aren't we going to Shinichi's house today?" she asked.
Sonoko Suzuki waved her hand dismissively: "I'm not going. Who wants to go to that jerk's house? The most important thing right now is that handsome blond guy with dark skin, hehehe..."
"Then I won't go," Sera Masumi said with a straightforward smile. "I'm already full, so I won't go."
Ran Mouri was a little surprised: "Sera, aren't you also curious about Mr. Amuro?"
"I am somewhat interested in Mr. Mori's apprentice, but I really can't eat today. It wouldn't be right to go without ordering anything, so maybe next time." Sera Masumi shrugged, her cute little tiger teeth showing when she smiled, and she didn't seem unhappy at all. She quickly said goodbye to the two and left.
Ai Orikasa hid in the corner and didn't go out. After Ran Mouri and Sonoko Suzuki left, he sent a message on his phone and followed Sera Masumi who was leaving.
*
Akemi Miyano received a reminder message from Hiroki Sawada and had to cancel her original plan to go out to buy groceries.
It would be bad if we ran into Sera Masumi and Akai Shuichi...
Just as she was pondering what to eat for dinner, a lone girl with tea-colored hair ran into her line of sight.
Akemi Miyano's gaze froze instantly, fixed on the girl outside the window.
Shiho seemed a little off; she appeared frightened, worried, and uneasy.
The girl with brown hair, carrying her schoolbag, didn't go home. Instead, she stood at Professor Agasa's door for two seconds, then turned around and walked directly into the Matsuda residence next door.
Several police officers are present at the Matsuda residence when it's lively, but usually only Miyano Akemi is there, making it both the safest and most dangerous base for the Sakura Squad.
Ai Haibara tiptoed and knocked on the door.
Akemi Miyano had already put on her disguise mask and transformed back into Sakiko Tamagawa.
With a soothing, gentle smile on her face, she opened the door, half-squatted down, and naturally reached out to catch the brown-haired girl who rushed towards her.
*
Subaru Okiya returned to the Kudo residence.
Although there was no one else in the Kudo residence, he maintained his disguise, only changing his appearance back to that of Shuichi Akai.
The gentle smile faded quickly from her fair face, and even her warm pink hair could not soften the sharpness and coldness in her green eyes.
Of course, when he discovered that it was his own younger sister, Sera Masumi, who was secretly watching him from outside, all the coldness turned into helplessness.
After drawing the curtains, Shuichi Akai ignored the black-haired girl peeking at him from outside and sat down at the table to start organizing information.
Bourbon was ordered by the organization to capture Sherry.
But Bourbon didn't seem very proactive on the mission, and aside from pretending that he had Vermouth disguise herself and then walk around in front of the FBI a few times, he made almost no contact with anyone else.
Until a few days ago, he suddenly approached Kogoro Mouri, not only becoming Kogoro's apprentice and going with him to see the scenes of various cases, but also starting to work every day at Poirot Cafe downstairs from the Mouri Detective Agency under the identity of Tooru Amuro.
What exactly does Bourbon want to do?
How much did he know about Shirley's situation?
Which side is he on?
What about Scotland? What is Scotland doing? Will he come with Bourbon? If he also senses something is wrong, what will he do?
Shuichi Akai lightly tapped the three photos on the table with his pen, gazing thoughtfully at their faces and the pile of documents beside them.
Matsuda Jinpei, the ace bomb disposal officer of the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit, is said to be able to defuse any bomb without difficulty, and can handle most bombs in three minutes. Even if it's not a bomb, he can defuse it. He has immense destructive power and a not-so-good temper, but he is actually a very gentle and responsible police officer. He has made the news because of his involvement with the Yamaguchi-gumi.
Kenji Hagiwara, a detective in the First Investigative Division, possesses remarkable insight and interpersonal skills. He is extremely knowledgeable about vehicles and has solved many difficult cases. His cheerful and outgoing personality makes him popular with women, and he is highly regarded within the Metropolitan Police Department. He and Jinpei Matsuda are childhood friends.
Wataru Date, a detective in the First Investigative Division, is physically strong, incredibly agile, and a formidable fighter. He can apprehend even the most burly criminals instantly and is known as the "hard-boiled detective who's practically indestructible." He is engaged to a loving fiancée named Natalie Reima.
All three are 29 years old, are very good friends, and were classmates at the police academy.
Bourbon met them not long ago after their lovers turned into siblings...
Shuichi Akai paused for a moment, involuntarily thinking about his relationship with Akemi Miyano, and then subconsciously looked up at the Matsuda residence next to Professor Agasa.
It was already dark outside, so of course he didn't see anything and quickly withdrew his gaze and attention.
Why does Bourbon always encounter these kinds of things?
Shuichi Akai pressed his brow slightly, then thought, no, Bourbon had actually met Jinpei Matsuda and Kenji Hagiwara back when he was with the Yamaguchi-gumi.
So, they're on good terms now, with the three police officers frequently visiting Poirot's Café to chat and show him affectionate gestures. Is it because Bourbon said something to them? How did he explain his past identity as a male prostitute and a fox spirit?
Or perhaps... they actually knew each other from the very beginning? Were they exchanging intelligence through their conversations and gestures?
However, Shuichi Akai was still unsure which side Bourbon was on. Moreover, the three policemen had frequented Poirot's Café before Bourbon started working there, and their acquaintance seemed to stem from the case and Bourbon's status as Kogoro Mouri's disciple. It was entirely plausible that Bourbon wanted to take the opportunity to get close to the police and obtain information.
Shuichi Akai put down his pen, turned and left the study. He went outside for a walk, and finally came back in with a bottle of wine and a glass with an ice puck on it.
Under the pale moonlight, the golden bottle displays the logo of four red roses and the name of bourbon whiskey.
Shuichi Akai sat in a chair and poured bourbon into a glass.
He took a sip, then raised his glass towards the moon.
The ice pucks collided inside the glass, making a crisp sound.
The glistening liquor and the man's glasses reflected light, making his smile appear mysterious and dangerous.
Shuichi Akai still believes that Bourbon is also an undercover agent, a partner with the same goal as him, but he simply dislikes him.
Then let's just test the waters.
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