Conan: I'm a zaibatsu in Tokyo

In the high-end clothing store, the air is filled with the unique scent of new fabrics.

Zheng Yi leaned back lazily on the leather sofa, casually flipping through a fashion magazine, watching the models in it vigorously show off their figures.

Her figure isn't good either; it's only slightly better than Shiho's.

Shiho and Momiji are picking out clothes.

Because if Momiji is at home, she will keep an eye on Shiho and keep asking her when she will transform.

It made her very uncomfortable, so she had to ask Masakazu to take them out to spend money so that Shiho could have some peace and quiet.

"What do you think of this? I think you'll look adorable in this style!" Momiji turned around and looked at Shiho expectantly.

Shiho said coldly, "These are children's clothes."

Just then, Shiho's body suddenly swayed violently, and the clothes in her hand fell to the ground with a "thud".

A wave of intense dizziness washed over her, accompanied by excruciating pain as her bones and muscles were forcibly compressed, causing her to let out a soft groan.

"Well……"

Her face turned deathly pale instantly, and cold sweat seeped from her forehead.

She subconsciously looked up at Zheng Yi on the sofa in the distance.

As soon as Zheng Yi closed the magazine, he immediately understood what had happened.

He stood up, took a long stride, and strode over to the two girls in just a few steps.

Seeing Shiho swaying precariously, he pushed her towards Momiji who was standing next to her.

"Red Leaf, here you go."

Koyo instinctively opened her arms and caught Shiho as she collapsed.

Before she could even figure out what was going on, Masakazu had already casually stuffed Shiho's backpack into her arms.

"Haven't you always been curious to see Shiho transform?" Shoichi said. "Now's your chance. Enjoy it."

"Huh? Wait! Enjoying? What are you doing—"

Before Momiji could finish speaking, Masakazu had already opened the fitting room door with one hand and gently pushed it with the other, shoving Momiji, who was carrying her schoolbag and Shiho, into the small fitting room.

Hongye held the burning hot and gradually shrinking body in her arms, her whole being in a state of complete malfunction.

She stared wide-eyed at Shiho in her arms—no, to be precise, at the "creature" in her arms that was undergoing a bizarre transformation.

"Uh...ah...this?"

Hongye's voice trembled slightly, and she could feel the body in her arms trembling in an extremely strange way.

Shiho was speechless at this point.

The medication took effect, leaving her completely weak and unable to move, so she could only lean limply against Hongye.

Her vision began to blur, and she could hear Hongye's rapid heartbeat mixed with her own gradually weakening breaths.

"It's so...hot..." Shiho managed to squeeze out a breath from her throat.

Hongye stared wide-eyed as an unbelievable scene unfolded in her arms.

First, let's talk about hair.

Her hair is getting shorter.

"Wow... what kind of magic is this?"

Hongye exclaimed in surprise and instinctively reached out to grab the hair.

Then came the unusual sound of bones making noises.

"Crack...knock..."

A faint sound of bones contracting was particularly clear in the quiet fitting room as Shiho's body shrank rapidly in Momiji's arms.

Her originally long legs appeared to shrink rapidly under the short skirt, her slender waist became even thinner, and her whole body seemed to be forcibly compressed by an invisible hand.

Hongye felt as if she were holding a deflated balloon.

"Mmm..." A soft whimper escaped from Shiho's lips.

Hongye suddenly lowered her head, her heart pounding violently.

The features of that face, which originally had the air of a mature woman, were changing at a visible speed.

The sharp jawline became rounded, and the high bridge of the nose became smaller.

In just over ten seconds, Shiho disappeared, and in her place appeared a little girl wearing a loose shirt with a flushed face.

Hongye stared blankly at the little person in her arms who looked only seven or eight years old, her mind completely blank.

"Little...Little Ai?"

Hongye stretched out a finger and carefully poked Ai's cheek.

Soft, warm, and very elastic.

This is not an illusion.

"Waaaaah—"

Hongye covered her mouth, her eyes shining as she looked at Xiao Ai in her arms, trying her best not to cry out.

"I've really turned into a child! Is this a dream? Is what you're saying true?!"

She looked at the shirt hanging on Ai's body like a dress, then at the schoolbag on the ground.

This is simply magic!
Ai leaned weakly against Momiji, her clothes now soaked with sweat from the fever she had just developed.

Looking at the shocked and speechless Hongye, she said softly, "Now you know that Zhengyi and I didn't lie to you, right?"

Hongye nodded.

Although they weren't lying to me, Hongye still couldn't accept this anti-scientific phenomenon.

Did all that meat and bones just vanish into thin air?
The fabric clung damply to his skin, and the shirt became unusually large as his body shrank.

Shall I help you take it off?

"I...I can do it myself." Ai's voice was so weak it sounded like a mosquito's buzz.

Hongye stood to the side, holding her schoolbag, her eyes somewhat unfocused.

"Um... Shiho... oh no, Ai?" Momiji's voice was also a little unnatural, and her cheeks were slightly red.

"How about... you go first... um... I'll turn around?" Hongye said tentatively, turning her body slightly to one side, but she couldn't help but glance over there out of the corner of her eye.

"it is good……"

She trembled as she reached out her hand, which had shrunk to the size of a child's, and tried to unbutton the first button of her collar.

However, the exhaustion brought on by the transformation made her fingers completely unresponsive, and the small seashell button slipped between her fingertips, impossible to grasp.

"hiss……"

She was so anxious that fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead again.

Xiao Ai gritted her teeth and tried to unbutton the shirt again, but her fingers slipped and not only did she fail to unbutton it, but the force she used caused half of the wet shirt on her shoulder to slip down, revealing a large area of ​​pale and slightly reddish skin.

"Or... I can do it."

Hongye took a deep breath, her face flushed, and walked over.

"No need, I can manage on my own. Let me rest for a while, and I'll recover my strength soon," Ai said.

Just as Hongye was hesitating, she heard Zhengyi shout from outside, "Are you guys ready yet?"

Hongye gritted her teeth and reached out her hand: "I'll help you, just bear with it, it'll be over soon."

Her fingertips touched Ai's collar, and through the damp, cold fabric, she could clearly feel Ai's burning body temperature.

"Click".

The first one is unlocked.

Hongye's breath hitched, and she quickly looked away, but her fingers dared not stop.

"Um... you need to take it off..."

Hongye whispered a reminder, then slowly peeled the heavy, wet shirt off Xiao Ai's body. Hongye hurriedly grabbed a dry towel from the side and wrapped it around Xiao Ai's body, making sure her wet body was completely covered.

"It looks like peeling an egg."

Ai buried her face in the towel, not daring to look up.

"Help me take the clothes out of my backpack," Ai said.

"okay."

Hongye swallowed hard and hurriedly took the clothes out of her schoolbag.

Ai spread her pink dress out on her knees, struggling to pinch the hem and try to slip her arms through the sleeves.

But his arm fell limply halfway up, the oversized shirt slipping down to reveal a round, thin shoulder and a youthful collarbone.

The scene was both innocent and strangely alluring, causing Hongye to catch her breath.

"Let me help you get dressed," Hongye said.

"Need not."

Ai bit her lower lip, trying to push away Koyo's outstretched hand, but her strength was like a child's whining to Koyo.

"Hey, don't be so stubborn, Ai-kun."

Hongye helped Xiao Ai up and was about to take her hand.

"Let go... myself..." Ai's voice trailed off, her eyes welling up with tears. "I'll be fine after I rest for a while, I don't need your help."

"Okay, okay, it's up to you, it's up to you." Hongye said perfunctorily, but her hands moved extremely quickly.

She gently helped Ai up, and like a porcelain doll, carefully slipped her left arm through the cuff.

"Okay, that's all," Hongye said softly.

Looking at the little girl she had dressed up herself, Hongye reached out and gently pinched Xiao Ai's chubby cheeks, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.

"What an adorable doll!"

Hongye stood up, picked up the weak Ai in her arms, and carried her out of the fitting room.

Seeing the two of them come out, Zheng Yi raised an eyebrow: "The miracle you witnessed, is it the same as you imagined?"

Hongye took a deep breath, her chest heaving.

She looked down at Ai in her arms. Just a few minutes ago, she was a mature Shiho, but now she had become a primary school student wearing a pink dress.

“I thought…you were lying to me,” Hongye said, her voice carrying both the excitement of witnessing a miracle and the bewilderment of having her worldview forcibly reshaped.

She stretched out a finger and carefully poked Ai's cheek.

Soft, warm, and it even frowns.

"This...this defies common sense!" Hongye said. "Can science explain this? So many bones and flesh, did they just evaporate into thin air?"
How could the human body possibly withstand such compression without dying? It's practically magic! No, it's more absurd than magic!

“Very scientific.” Zheng Yi’s answer was concise and clear.

He straightened up, walked up to Hongye, and said, "The end of science is theology, Hongye, you know what I mean."

As he spoke, he naturally reached out and took Ai from Hongye's arms.

"Hey! What are you doing—" Hongye instinctively wanted to hug her doll tighter.

"Don't make a sound." Zheng Yi supported Ai's back with one hand, and gently flicked Ai's smooth forehead with the fingertips of his other hand.

"Well!"

Xiao Ai frowned, turned her head away from that annoying hand, and let out a soft, nasal snort of dissatisfaction.

"Look, her reaction is still so cute."

Zheng Yi withdrew his hand and looked at Xiao Ai, saying, "See, she hasn't reacted yet."

"What reaction?" Hongye asked, looking completely bewildered.

Zheng Yi turned his head and said, "Now that she's Ai Haibara now, and I've bullied her, she should act cute and cry, instead of ignoring me with a cold face."

It seems she's become lax and can't even manage the emotions arising from her two different physical conditions.

"Humph."

Ai let out a very soft snort from her nose, turned her head to the side, looked at the row of empty clothes racks, and ignored Zheng Yi.

As more and more people learned of her identity, there was no point in continuing to pretend to be Shiho.

Seeing Ai's utterly hopeless expression, Masakazu wasn't angry at all; instead, he laughed even more heartily.

"Hongye, would you like to try reliving your childhood?" Zhengyi suddenly changed the subject, looking intently at Hongye.

"Huh?" Hongye was taken aback. "What do you mean? Does that mean I can too?"

“Of course,” Zheng Yi said. “Ai is not an isolated case. There are quite a few people in this world who have successfully reversed aging. And you can turn back to your original age anytime you want.”

"How about it? Don't you want to experience escaping this troublesome high school student identity and becoming a carefree elementary school student again?"

Hongye's eyes lit up instantly.

Returning to childhood?

"Is this... really possible?" Hongye swallowed, clearly tempted.

Just then, a cold voice broke in.

"Don't listen to his nonsense."

Ai leaned against Shoichi's arm and said, "This drug is actually a poison. Shrinking people is just a side effect. In most experimental cases, people were directly poisoned to death."

The air froze instantly.

The light in Hongye's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a face full of black lines and anger.

"Zhengyi!!!" Hongye shouted through gritted teeth, "You really have ill intentions! Are you trying to poison me?!"

"Oh, don't get so excited." Zheng Yi waved his hand, looking completely innocent.

Don't give me that!

Hongye's chest heaved with anger. She glared at Zhengyi, then suddenly realized another problem.

"Wait... something's not right."

Hongye looked around and saw that the once bustling clothing store was now empty, without a single soul in sight.

Where are the other people in the store?

Zheng Yi said, "I've already kicked them out."

"Clear them out?"

“That’s right,” Zheng Yi said. “Otherwise, it would be hard to explain if we saw two women go into the fitting room and then come out carrying a child.”

"Then... what about the surveillance footage?" Hongye asked.

“I had already hacked into this store’s surveillance system long before you entered the fitting room. The footage from that time has already been deleted.”

"You guys seem to have quite a bit of experience," Hongye said.

Ai said in Shoichi's arms, "Okay, you can put me down now."

"You have energy now?"

"Ah."

"I don't think you have much strength to resist."

Seeing the two interacting, Koyo suddenly snatched Ai from Masakazu's arms.

She looked at Masakazu and said, "Although Ai looks eight years old now, she's actually eighteen-year-old Shiho inside. Shouldn't you be a little more mindful of your physical contact like this?"

Ai nodded, then said to Momiji:

"You should also be mindful of boundaries when you make physical contact with me; don't put your hands on my butt."

"Oh." (End of Chapter)