In the bathroom.
Ran Mouri stood under the showerhead.
The hot water washed away the sweat and fatigue, but it couldn’t cool down her burning cheeks.
She was still feeling ashamed of the ridiculous thought that had just popped into her head.
Taking care of Mr.
Shirakawa like a mother?
What on earth was wrong with her?
Why did she have such a strange idea?
Ran Mouri’s delicate brows furrowed slightly as she washed herself, beginning to think seriously about it.
After some reflection, she finally found a reasonable explanation for herself.
It was because she remembered herself as a child.
During the period when her mother had just separated from her father, her longing for her mother was incredibly intense; she looked forward to her mother coming home every day.
Putting herself in his shoes, Mr.
Shirakawa had lost his parents since childhood.
The longing for his parents in his heart must be a thousand times stronger than hers was back then.
She must have felt that resonance, which was why she subconsciously wanted to care for him and look after him, leading to that strange idea.
Yes, that must be it!
Having figured this out, Ran Mouri breathed a long sigh of relief.
At the same time, she felt a trace of relief.
Fortunately, her parents were only separated, unlike Mr.
Shirakawa’s parents, who were separated by death.
At least they were both still alive.
After a quick shower, she changed into a pair of cute pink pajamas and returned to the kitchen.
Shirakawa was no longer there.
However, the ingredients on the counter had been cleaned and neatly organized into categories.
Ran Mouri could start cooking directly.
Looking at the orderly kitchen, a wave of warmth surged in her heart again.
It really felt good to have someone helping out.
Unlike Dad, and even less like that guy Shinichi, who only ever sat in the living room waiting for the meal to be served.
At dinner time.
Shirakawa, Ran Mouri, Kogoro Mouri, and Conan sat around the dining table.
While eating, Shirakawa seized the opportunity to bring up the previous topic again:
“Miss Ran, I still think Conan looks a bit like Kudo-kun.
Don’t you think so?”
“Hmm, now that you mention it, he does seem a bit similar.” Ran Mouri also took a serious look at Conan and expressed her agreement.
“Does Miss Ran have any photos of Kudo-kun when he was a child?” Shirakawa followed up smoothly.
“There should be some in the photo album,” Ran Mouri thought for a moment.
“We can find them and look together after dinner.”
*Whoosh—*
Cold sweat instantly broke out on Conan’s forehead.
He emphasized again guiltily, “I already told you!
Our family and the Kudo family are relatives, so looking alike is normal!”
He took a sip of beer and grumbled unhappily, “Of all the people to look like, why that self-righteous brat who’s always stealing my spotlight…”
“Dad!” Ran Mouri immediately spoke up to remind him.
“Saying such things in front of Conan is too rude!”
Being scolded by his daughter, Kogoro Mouri didn’t say more and just took another gulp of his drink.
But soon, Kogoro said half jokingly, “Yo, it seems having a young man in the house really makes a difference.”
“At least now when we eat, I don’t have to be choked by the smell of your sweat anymore.”
As soon as those words came out, Ran Mouri’s face turned beet red instantly.
As a beauty conscious teenage girl, being publicly shamed for smelling like sweat was simply a great humiliation.
Moreover, the one saying it was her own father, and in front of Mr.
Shirakawa and Conan!
“Dad, what nonsense are you talking about!”
Shamefully annoyed, Ran Mouri suddenly raised her fist, about to smash it toward her old father’s head.
Kogoro Mouri, who was prepared, leaned back and narrowly avoided it, a provocative smirk still on his face.
Ran Mouri was furious, looking very much like she would continue her pursuit and flip the dining table.
Shirakawa still wanted to finish this meal peacefully.
Seeing the table in jeopardy, he quickly spoke up to change the subject.
“So Miss Ran practices so diligently.
No wonder you could win the Beika City University Karate Tournament.
That’s truly amazing.”
A well-timed compliment successfully soothed the girl on the brink of rage.
Ran Mouri resentfully withdrew her fist, the flush of anger on her face turning into a trace of shyness.
Having escaped disaster, Kogoro Mouri secretly gave Shirakawa a thumbs-up, his eyes full of ‘good brother, loyal enough’ praise.
Beside them, Conan, watching the harmonious ‘family’ atmosphere faintly revealed between the three of them at the table, felt an increasingly strong sense of crisis.
This man named Shirakawa had only been here for two days and was already nearly integrated into this home.
This was not a good sign.
In fact, Shirakawa noticed it himself too.
The atmosphere between him and the Mouri father and daughter was unusually close.
This kind of experience was something he, with his social anxiety, had never imagined.
After some thought, he attributed it all to the fact that the Mouri father and daughter were naturally kind and took the initiative to show him goodwill.
Plus, he already had some understanding of the main characters in the Conan world and knew their personalities, so there was no pressure in getting along.
After dinner, Shirakawa took the initiative to stand up and gather the dishes to wash them in the kitchen.
“Mr.
Shirakawa, you’re being too polite.
Just leave it to me.”
“No,” Shirakawa shook his head, his face filled with sincere gratitude.
“Uncle Mouri and Miss Ran have helped me so much, I really don’t know how to repay you.”
“If I don’t help out with some chores, I’ll truly feel uneasy.”
This response of wanting to repay kindness made Ran Mouri feel a sense of resonance, as if she had found a kindred spirit.
She stopped preventing Shirakawa and just smiled gently.
“Then I’ll go back to my room and look for the photo album first.”
However, before leaving the living room, as if suddenly remembering something, Ran Mouri stopped in her tracks as if possessed, turned to look at Shirakawa, and subconsciously asked:
Mr.
Shirakawa, I…
shouldn’t have the smell of sweat on me anymore, right?”
After asking, she saw the slightly surprised expression on Shirakawa’s face and realized too late that she had actually spoken her thoughts out loud.
Aaaah!
So embarrassing!
Extremely shy, Ran Mouri covered her face again and rushed out of the living room without looking back, running toward her room.
In her panic, Ran Mouri didn’t even notice that she had accidentally bumped into a small figure who was about to sneak past the kitchen door.
With a ‘thud,’ Conan was sent flying and his back of the head slammed solidly into the side of the sofa.
Shirakawa noticed the commotion.
Seeing Conan sent flying, he couldn’t help but marvel in his heart.
Ran’s combat power is truly terrifying, and this kid Conan’s luck, or rather his ability to take a hit, is indeed ridiculously good.
Conan, who was seeing stars from the impact, rolled on the floor and climbed up dizzily.
He scrambled into Ran Mouri’s room.
After recovering, he immediately used his appearance to his advantage, blinking his innocent big eyes and asking in a naive tone, “Sister Ran, how did you and that Brother Shirakawa meet?”
Ran Mouri was completely off-guard and naturally told him the truth about their experience at the amusement park yesterday.
As she spoke, she added a somewhat disappointed comment as if talking to herself:
“Speaking of which, since we separated at the amusement park yesterday, there’s been no news from that guy Shinichi.
I don’t know where he Ran off to.”
Hearing this, Conan immediately felt a sense of disparity in his heart.
He tilted his head pretentiously and said in a tone of feigned confusion:
“Huh?
Didn’t Brother Shinichi say that Sister Ran is the most caring person?
Why did you only think of Brother Shinichi just now?”
In this seemingly innocent question, he secretly hid his complaint that Ran Mouri didn’t seem to care about his ‘life or death’ at all.
As a result, his complaint directly opened Ran Mouri’s ‘chatterbox.’
“Care about him?”
Ran Mouri also started complaining, listing the various ‘misdeeds’ of the mystery obsessed Shinichi Kudo.
“That reasoning idiot, he forgets everything as soon as he sees a case.”
“He’s either skipping class or being late, or he’ll be chatting and suddenly get a phone call and disappear!”
“I don’t even know how many times this situation of having no news for several days straight has happened!”
As Ran Mouri spoke, her brows furrowed unconsciously, clearly showing long-held resentment.
“I tried calling just now too, but his phone has been off.”
“I don’t even have to think about it to know he must have run off somewhere to solve a case again!”
This list of ‘crimes’ left Conan speechless, completely unable to refute them.
Because most of what Ran Mouri said was the truth.
By this time, Shirakawa had finished washing the dishes, wiped his hands dry, and was about to head to the living room.
Just as he reached the door to Ran Mouri’s room, he happened to hear the latter half of her conclusion.
Standing at the door, listening to the young girl’s complaints, he laughed inwardly.
Oh, Shinichi Kudo, Shinichi Kudo.
No one cares that you’ve gone missing, and it’s entirely your own doing.
You deserve it!