Ghost Detectives in the Detective World

Page 98

"Let's all introduce ourselves first, so we can get to know each other better and make the filming easier later on,"

As Mizunashi Rena spoke, she glanced at the four people who had been seated together to the side.

"Let's start with the four main characters in this competition."

“Then I’ll go first,” Koshimizu said, taking off the headphones she was wearing. “My name is Koshimizu Nanatsuki, I’m a third-year high school student, and I’m from Fukuoka. I guess I’d say I represent the south.”

"However, I have solved very few cases, only a little over a hundred. In terms of detective work, I am really still a novice. Please be lenient with me."

On the way here, on the ferry, Matsuda had already told Ran, Sonoko, and Conan...

Koshimizu is also a participant in this detective reasoning competition. They are told not to reveal Koshimizu's identity to others.

Ran and Sonoko didn't understand why Koshimizu wanted to participate in the competition she designed.

Sonoko even suspected that Koshimizu was trying to win by cheating.

Fortunately, in the end, she and Xiaolan both agreed to keep it a secret.

After hearing that Koshimizu was also a contestant, Conan became even more certain that this detective competition was definitely a prelude to Matsuda and Koshimizu's revenge for the tragedy at Lavender Villa.

At Nichiri Television, the matter of Koshimizu was a program planning issue, known only to a select few.

Therefore, she was not worried about her identity being exposed by the TV station.

After Yue Shui introduced himself, the dark-skinned boy, whose complexion stood out unusually among the crowd, spoke first.

"Heiji Hattori is a fairly well-known detective in the Kansai region, and he's solved quite a few cases..."

Hattori counted on his fingers, then said with a troubled expression, "Sorry, I stopped counting after it exceeded one thousand pieces."

"A thousand pieces?"

"Isn't that too exaggerated?"

Just as everyone was marveling at the sheer number of cases Hattori had resolved,

His companion, Ms. Toyama and Ms. Ye, has quickly uncovered his true colors.

"The so-called one thousand items, you must have included all the times you helped people find their cats and dogs when you were a kid!"

"Hmph, why can't it be counted? Those are also cases I resolved!" Hattori looked at his childhood friend with dissatisfaction.

Seeing that the two were about to start arguing again, Rena Mizunashi quickly looked at the remaining two.

"Gentlemen, it's your turn to introduce yourselves."

"Hakuba Saguru is from Tokyo and has been studying abroad for many years. He should be considered the representative of eastern Japan this time."

After being reprimanded by Matsuda, Hakuba Saguru quickly put away his arrogance. However, he had barely finished his brief self-introduction when...

Hattori exclaimed, "Speaking of detectives in the East, shouldn't it be Shinichi Kudo? One of the main reasons I came here is to have a showdown with him!"

"Well, actually..." Rena Mizunashi hesitated, unable to finish her sentence.

"Hehe, actually Shinichi Kudo is right here!" Sonoko suddenly exclaimed.

Chapter 121 Shinichi Kudo's Woman

"What? Where is Shinichi Kudo?" Heiji Hattori immediately looked around.

The others looked at each other in confusion, all wanting to know where this famous high school detective from Tokyo was.

Conan and Matsuda were completely baffled.

Conan, in particular, has begun to wonder if he gave himself away somewhere and was discovered by Sonoko.

"Sonoko, where is Shinichi?" Ran tugged at Sonoko's sleeve and asked.

"Aren't you Shinichi Kudo?" Sonoko laughed, shoving Ran forward.

"Shinichi Kudo didn't come, but his girlfriend did. This Ms. Ran Mouri is here to compete in Shinichi Kudo's place!"

"What?!" Everyone stared in disbelief.

Conan was speechless. After all that talk, it turns out that what Sonoko meant by Shinichi Kudo was actually this?

"Sonoko, stop fooling around!" Ayako scolded her younger sister.

"Sis, I'm not messing around!" Sonoko pointed at Ran and introduced her to everyone, "This Miss Ran Mouri is Shinichi Kudo's childhood friend and girlfriend."

"Since you all say that Hakuba Detective can't represent high school detectives in eastern Japan, why don't Ran represent Shinichi Kudo in this reasoning competition?"

"Hey, are you really Shinichi Kudo's girlfriend?" Hattori glanced at Ran from side to side. "That guy's taste is awful..."

Before Hattori could finish speaking, there was a loud crack as Ran executed a stylish split kick, shattering the empty chair next to Hattori into several pieces.

"What were you about to say? Whose taste is bad?" Xiaolan asked, her face ashen.

"N-no, I meant to say that Shinichi Kudo has great taste! His girlfriend is both beautiful and impressive!"

Hattori glanced at the broken chair beside him and quickly waved his hand to explain.

"I'm not that guy's girlfriend!" Xiaolan snorted angrily.

“This…” Rena Mizunashi looked at Matsuda, “How about we do as Ms. Suzuki suggested?”

"Okay, then let's add one more person. Ran, you can represent Kudo." Matsuda nodded in agreement.

When it comes to representing high school detectives in eastern Japan, Hakuba Saguru is certainly not qualified, as most of the cases he solved were outside of Japan.

In Japan, especially in Tokyo, when it comes to fame, Hakuba Saguru is worlds apart from Kudo Shinichi—it's like comparing heaven and earth.

Matsuda didn't really care how many people participated, but having Shinichi Kudo as an extra participant was a bonus.

Even his girlfriend would definitely add some hype to the Detective Koshien program.

And gimmicks mean increased viewership.

Every increase in viewership means one more person will learn of Kana Mizuguchi's innocence, which is undoubtedly a good thing for Matsuda to complete his mission.

"Officer Matsuda, I really can't do it," Ran hurriedly shook her head. "I know absolutely nothing about deduction!"

"Aren't you Kudo's girlfriend? You could easily contact that guy by phone,"

Hattori said, "Even if that guy can't make it in time, he can still deduce things over the phone."

“Well… I’d like to call him first and ask him,” Xiaolan said hesitantly.

"Then hurry up and go!" Sonoko nudged her friend. "I guarantee that as long as that mystery fanatic knows there's a detective competition here, he'll definitely agree to participate, even if he can't participate in person!"

"Um,"

Xiaolan nodded, took out her phone, and walked outside.

Oh no… Conan quickly clutched his stomach.

"I have a stomach ache!"

"Then hurry up and go to the toilet!" Sonoko scolded him with a look of disgust.

"You little rascal, you're not allowed to dirty our floor!"

Seeing that Ran had already started dialing, Conan didn't have time to talk back to Sonoko and hurriedly ran into the bathroom next to the living room.

He had just gone inside when his phone rang. Conan quickly pressed the answer button.

"Hey?"

"Shinichi? Your voice sounds strange." Ran paused for a moment on the other end of the phone.

"Ah? Oh..."

Conan quickly adjusted the voice changer in his bow tie, then coughed lightly twice.

"My throat was a little sore just now."

"Is that so?" Ran didn't doubt it, and then briefly explained the situation at the Detective Koshien.

"Officer Matsuda and Ms. Rena Mizunashi both hope that you, Shinichi, can participate. You..."

“I agree, Ran,” Conan replied from the restroom. “Send me your findings via email, and I’ll call you once I have the results.”

"Alright then, by the way, you..."

Xiaolan wanted to say something more, but all she heard was the "beep beep" of the phone being hung up.

"Damn it!" Xiaolan stomped her foot angrily, then walked back into the house with a displeased look on her face, nodding to everyone.

Shinichi agreed.

"Great!" Hattori cheered excitedly. "Although I can't have a face-to-face match with Shinichi Kudo, it's nice to have a friendly competition over the phone beforehand!"

"Is that guy named Kudo really that amazing? He can actually make Heiji so happy..." Kazuha said with a hint of jealousy.

"Hey, you wouldn't be jealous of a man, would you?" Sonoko said with a strange expression.

"Who, who's jealous!" Kazuha blushed instantly and stammered in rebuttal.

"By the way, Sonoko, where's Conan?" Ran put away her phone and looked around.

"That kid had a stomachache and went to the toilet,"

Sonoko casually pointed in the direction of the restroom.

"Alright, since it's decided that Ms. Ran Mouri will represent Shinichi Kudo at the Detective Koshien tournament, then she will be the representative..."

At this point, Rena Mizunashi looked awkwardly at Hakuba Saguru beside her.

"It's alright, I'll represent the overseas side," Hakuba Saguru said calmly.

"In the end, reasoning ability determines victory, and I'm sure I'll win!"

As Hakuba Saguru finished speaking, his gaze lingered on Matsuda.

Clearly, although he had apologized for his rudeness earlier, he was still somewhat unconvinced by Matsuda's reprimand.

"That's fine. Miss Ran Mouri will replace Shinichi Kudo and become the representative of high school detectives in eastern Japan, while Saguru Hakuba will become the representative of high school detectives overseas."

After Mizunashi Rena finished speaking, her gaze shifted to the last high school detective who hadn't yet introduced himself.

Both Koshimizu and Matsuda's eyes were fixed on him.

"Is it finally my turn?"

The last person tossed a strand of long hair past his ear, first complaining, then saying with a hint of smugness,