Yuji Kudo, the manga artist behind Detective Conan.

"That Ms. Nohara is not simple."

While accompanying his daughter to admire the decorations and stone carvings in the banquet hall, Conan acted as her protector, driving away many so-called young noblemen who seemed to have no redeeming qualities. Conan touched the statue of a deity while talking about Miss Nohara, who had played cards with them earlier.

Putting aside the fact that while everyone else kept their distance from the Kudo family, this woman brazenly approached them, and the fact that she was so interested in Professor Agasa's lame jokes alone proves that she was absolutely against her conscience.

"There are only two kinds of people who would be interested in the doctor's lame jokes: himself and those who pretend to be interested."

Feeling that the stone used to carve the statues was too soft, Conan approached a stone statue's face for a closer look and found half a finger imprint on it. He finally realized that it was made by someone rubbing it little by little with their fingers.

"It's terrifying, so many statues, how much did it cost to build them?"

Even a child who doesn't understand art can tell that the beauty of these sculptures must be the work of a famous artist. Conan naturally began to appraise the decorations in the entire banquet hall and, as was his habit, thought of the scene of an explosion.

"I heard from the Third Generation that you had a lot of fun."

Old Kudo happened to walk in from the doorway, casually punched Higashino hard on the head as he was picking at the artificial diamonds in the mural on the wall, then shook his smoking hand and winked at Sayoko.

"I forgot, someone doesn't want to see the arrogant old man. Looks like I'll just have to go back to my room and get completely drunk."

"Dad!" The girl huffed shyly and ran off to admire other exhibited artworks. Meanwhile, Higashino decisively chose Sayoko over the annoying brat and the old man, as well as his lively childhood friend. So the two, who were of different ages, finally had time to chat for a while again.

"You made me follow that kid just so I could embarrass myself in front of the whole family?" Conan looked at himself suspiciously as he devoured the Wagyu beef patties on a plate. "Or was it just so I'd find out about Rize Kuroba's background? Why didn't you just tell me directly then?"

"I just didn't want you to get involved in this, because I clearly remember being tricked into playing cards with Sayoko."

Old Kudo and Conan strolled slowly to the artificial fountain in the middle of the banquet hall, casually reminding themselves of their past selves.

“I must do it exactly as I remember, or the world will undergo a chain reaction of changes.” Old Kudo looked coldly at Conan. “For example, my daughter might be erased from history, so you’d better not make any rash moves.” “Are you treating me like an enemy? Sayoko is also my daughter…” Conan’s words suddenly caught in his throat, and he stared at Old Kudo in disbelief. “Why do you think I would make any rash moves? Is something going to happen on this ship?”

"What you're saying now is the same as what I said before, but I remember I didn't drink Coke back then."

Old Kudo reached out and snatched the Coke that Conan had just taken from the table, asked the waiter to take it away, and then brought him a cup of milk coffee.

“Now, we should go to Segawa Masakazu’s place, because you need to hear the woman’s conversation with him.”

Conan nodded silently, but in his mind he was still making comparisons. If a murder occurred on the ship, he would definitely take action, but if the course of history was changed, causing Sayoko or countless other people to disappear from the world, that would also be unacceptable.

"Mr. Segawa, in a plate of braised lamb leg in red wine, do you distinguish between the left and right legs? If so, is it the left leg or the right leg? I saw on the plate that it says Japanese lamb."

At the very front of the banquet hall, Ms. Nohara was talking to Segawa Shoichi.

"I'm not sure about that. Perhaps the chefs in the kitchen know, but what does that have to do with eating?" Segawa Masakazu smiled and waved his right hand, saying, "The lamb leg stewed in this big pot may contain lamb from southern Japan or northern Japan. They're just lucky to be in our restaurant today, so what does it matter?"

"I don't think so."

Ms. Nohara picked up a piece with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth: "Let alone the South and the North, even in East Asia and West Asia, a lamb leg is a lamb leg. If you can't tell the difference between left and right, won't people eat in a confused way?"

"Am I confused? Not at all." Segawa Shoichi picked up his chopsticks and, in front of everyone, took the few slices of mutton from Nohara's plate. "I put this meat on the bones on the plate, and the left leg bone becomes the left leg meat, and the right leg bone becomes the right leg meat. It's all up to me where I want to put it, isn't it?"

"You're absolutely right."

(End of this chapter)