Conan: I'm a zaibatsu in Tokyo

"Don't run away~ Let's play the 'Miracle Sorrow' dress-up game together!"

Ooka Momiji held up the latest model camera, the camera flash blazing brightly.

She was wearing a light purple kimono and was chasing after Ai.

"Ooka Momiji! What are you doing!?"

Xiao Ai was panting heavily as she huddled in the corner of the sofa, her hands gripping the hem of her clothes tightly.

That was a spring limited edition that Hongye specially ordered from France.

The entire piece is a highly saturated fluorescent pink, covered with colorful rainbow stripes.

The worst part is that the onesie has two long rabbit ears sticking up on the hood that sway with movement, and there's even a fluffy round tail attached to its rear.

On an ordinary seven-year-old child, it might be called childlike fun.

Wearing it on Ai Haibara, who has the soul of an eighteen-year-old, is practically a public execution.

Hongye gracefully stepped over the building blocks on the ground, a business-like smile on her face.

"This is your older sister's love for you. Look, the colors of the rainbow symbolize your colorful future; these bunny ears symbolize your lively personality..."

I'm not outgoing at all!

Ai wanted to curse in her heart, but she had to maintain a cool and aloof expression on her face.

“Miss Hongye, if you don’t put your phone down, I’m going to send the photos you took of me to Zhengyi.”

Hongye paused for 0.1 seconds, then smiled even more brightly: "Oh, send it to Zhengyi? He'll think you're very cute."

Ai even thought she had misheard.

It's like you don't usually play 'Miracle Sorrow' with Zheng Yi.

She had heard that Zheng Yi had the game 'Miracle Ai' developed because he enjoyed playing dress-up games with Ai.

Her fingers flew across the screen as she opened the photo album: "Look, during the last picnic, your face was covered in charcoal ash, and you were holding a burnt corn cob. Your eyes were so expressive!"

I've set that photo as my wallpaper, and the title is "The Princess in Distress."

Ai looked down at her current appearance.

Fluorescent powder, rainbow stripes, rabbit ears.

This is no princess in distress; she's clearly a clown who just escaped from a circus.

"Give me the camera." Ai stretched out a small hand.

"No way." Hongye took a step back, dodging Xiao Ai's grab.

"Unless you cooperate with me to shoot a set of 'Good Morning, Working People' themed photos. I've already asked Iori to prepare the props. The next set is a corporate slave office lady style, with mini suits and briefcases."

"I'm eighteen!" Ai said through gritted teeth.

Hongye nodded and said, "Yes, I know, that's why I wanted to take some photos of you in a corporate slave style."

Ai's bottom twitched, and her little tail trembled.

I bet you don't know!

Seeing Ai's indignant expression, Momiji seemed to have suffered a great injustice.

She pursed her lips tightly, her eyes were slightly red, and beneath her long eyelashes, her gaze was filled with unspeakable grievances, making it difficult to tell who was in the wrong.

“You used to call me Sister Hongye, but now you call me so formally,” Hongye said softly.

Hongye sniffed, her hands, which should have been dominating the karuta tournament, were now holding a silk handkerchief, gently pressing down on non-existent tears at the corners of her eyes.

Ai: "..."

Ai's hand, which was originally about to snatch the camera, froze in mid-air.

She looked down at the fluorescent pink rainbow bunny ear bodysuit she was wearing, and then at Hongye, who looked like a resentful woman who had been seduced and abandoned.

Is this reasonable?

This is unreasonable!

I was the one who was forced to dress like this!
Why does it feel like I'm the one who bullied you right now?
“I didn’t.” Ai took a deep breath, trying to use logic to overcome the magic. “I just didn’t want to take pictures.”

"Is it that you don't want to take pictures, or that you don't want to take pictures with me?"

Hongye suddenly raised her head, her peach blossom eyes sparkling as if they were about to burst open.

"Is it because I took you to Kyoto last time and made you wear that twelve-layered kimono? Or is it because I thought you looked so cute in your sailor uniform that I took five hundred extra pictures? If you don't like them, I can delete them..."

Although I've already backed them up to the cloud and even printed them out to make an album for my bedside table..."

Xiao Ai felt a throbbing sensation in her temples.

"Then do you know I'm already eighteen?" Ai asked back.

She stared intently at Hongye, trying to convey the authority of a former scientist from the Black Organization with her aloofness.

“I’m eighteen! I’m an adult! I have dignity, I have intelligence, and I also…”

"Anything else?" Hongye tilted her head, interrupting her with a curious look.

"besides……"

"And what sense of shame! Have you ever seen an 18-year-old high school girl running around the living room wearing clothes that look like fluorescent markers come to life?"

After hearing this, Hongye's expression instantly became even more aggrieved than before.

She slowly put down the camera, clasped her hands in front of her chest, and sighed softly.

That sigh contained helplessness at the fickleness of human relationships, heartache at the misplaced sincerity, and a sense of desolation, like the line from the poem: "I offered my heart to the bright moon, but the bright moon shone on the gutter."

"So... that's what you were thinking?"

Hongye's voice lowered: "I always thought that although you are old, your heart is still that of a child who needs to be cared for."

Ai felt like punching someone; she felt that Momiji's words were very sarcastic and sarcastic.

Just then, footsteps sounded at the door.

"Wow, it's so lively here?"

Zheng Yi swaggered in, a bottle of soda in his hand and a lollipop in his mouth.

He immediately spotted the fluorescent pink rabbit huddled in the corner of the sofa, radiating an aura of despair, and the red-eyed red leaf standing beside it, as if she had just been crying.

Zheng was taken aback for a moment, then a knowing look appeared on his face.

"Hongye, what happened to you..." Zheng Yi looked Hongye up and down, then asked Xiao Ai, "Why did you make your Aunt Hongye cry?"

Ai: "..."

She looked down at the fluorescent pink bodysuit she was wearing, which looked like a spilled rainbow candy, and then touched the two rabbit ears on her head that had drooped down from her earlier struggle.

"Aunt?"

Hongye: "..."

Hongye's attempt to fake a cry, which she was still building up, froze instantly. She took a deep breath, turned around, and stared intently at Zhengyi with her tearful eyes.

"Zhengyi, your mouth is truly annoying," Hongye said through gritted teeth.

Zheng Yi shook his head, disagreeing with the idea.

He even thought his words were very effective; with just a few casual remarks, he resolved the conflict between Momiji and Ai.

"I'm just telling the truth." Zheng Yi shrugged, walked up to Ai, and squatted down.

"However, this outfit... is very creative. The fluorescent pink makes the skin look fairer, the rainbow stripes are festive, and the bunny ears... well, although it's a bit cliché, it's practical."

"Practical?" Ai shrank back warily. "What do you want to do?" "What do you want?" Zheng Yi pointed to the rabbit ears on Ai's head. "If you go out at night, you don't even need a flashlight. As long as you run ahead, these ears will reflect light. They're practically a walking traffic safety sign."

Ai: "..."

Ai could feel the veins on her forehead throbbing.

Zheng Yi turned to Hongye and asked, "Where did you buy these clothes?"

"I designed it myself."

“The design is excellent,” Zheng Yi said. “I can open a clothing company in the future and sell clothes like this.”

"Huh? Is that alright?" Hongye asked, staring at Zhengyi.

"Why not?" Zheng Yi praised Hongye loudly, "Hongye, I feel that you have a great talent for fashion design. You can boldly develop in this direction, especially children's clothing."

Hongye nodded, looking genuinely encouraged.

"No!"

Just when the two were having a good time, Ai Haibara poured cold water on their mood, saying, "I feel that Momiji doesn't have much talent in costume design. She should focus on karuta instead."

Zheng Yi asked, "Do you think I understand?"

When Ai couldn't speak, it meant that when Shoichi said those words, it meant he was about to start acting unreasonably.

You should start listing your business achievements, saying how successful you are in business and how insightful you are.

"I am..."

Sure enough, Zheng Yi started boasting about himself while counting on his fingers.

Ai naturally didn't believe in Shoichi's judgment, but Momiji did.

“Then I really can learn about this,” Hongye said.

Zheng nodded and said, "Believe me, you have a talent for this. Once my clothing company is established, I'll make you my chief fashion designer."

Hongye's eyebrows are curved upwards, indicating she's in a good mood.

Xiao Ai's eyebrows were bent downwards, indicating that she was in a bad mood.

Hongye held Xiao Ai's hand and said, "Xiao Ai, how about being Hongye's model from now on?"

Ai released Momiji's hand and said coldly, "You should call me Shiho-neechan."

I'm a year older than you!

Looking at her own clothes again, Ai had absolutely no expectations for Momiji's aesthetic sense.

Who would like such messy clothes?
However, Ai clearly underestimated Momiji's obsession.

Of course, Zheng Yi also played a role in this.

For this young lady from Kyoto, once she sets her sights on something, nothing can stop her.

Whether it's the opponent on the karuta tournament or the elementary school student in front of them trying to rebel.

From that day on, Kyoto became the source of Ai's nightmares.

Momiji didn't give up because of Ai's rejection. Instead, it was as if her Ren and Du meridians had been opened, and she transferred all the focus she originally used on competitive karuta to the bottomless pit of "costume design".

Hongye sat in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, holding a sketchbook filled with drawings.

Ai was tied to the dressing chair. Looking at the woman in the mirror who was grinning at the blueprints like a pervert, an ominous premonition welled up in her heart.

"Iori! Bring over that box of cute pet-themed soothing series!" Momiji excitedly commanded.

The butler, Iori Muga, pushed a cart in with a blank expression.

The cart was piled high with fabric.

There are fluffy plush toys, delicate pink lace trims, and silk fabrics printed with Hello Kitty and strawberry patterns.

"This is the first set, Lazy Afternoon Kitten."

Hongye picked up a bodysuit covered in long gray fur, with two three-dimensional cat ears standing up on the hood, and even a wagging tail at the back.

“I think this furry texture can soothe the trauma you experienced as a scientist facing the Dark Organization,” Hongye said with a straight face, spouting nonsense.

Xiao Ai looked at the clothes and felt a wave of nausea wash over her.

"I won't wear it," Ai replied coldly. "I'm not a pet."

Hongye said with a smile, "Besides, I've already sent a message to Zhengyi, and he said he really wants to see your 'cat look'."

Upon hearing the name Shoichi, Ai's body stiffened.

That bastard is definitely someone who loves to stir up trouble.

Ten minutes later.

Ai was dressed in that 'Lazy Afternoon Kitten' onesie.

The gray plush fur wrapped her up like a little rice ball, the cat ears on her hat twitched with her movements, and the tail behind her swayed gently with her breathing.

"Perfect!"

Hongye raised her camera, and the flash went off wildly.

"Snap! Snap! Snap!"

The shutter clicked like a machine gun.

"Alright, this set is done." Hongye checked the photos with satisfaction. "Next up is the second set, 'Sweet Strawberry Bunny Girl'."

She took out a pink tutu from the box, the skirt of which was decorated with three-dimensional strawberry ornaments, and a pair of long bunny ear headbands.

"This is to pay tribute to your childhood," Hongye said affectionately. "These strawberries symbolize the sweetness of life, and the bunny ears symbolize your liveliness and cuteness..."

"Shut up." Ai closed her eyes in despair.

And so, the entire afternoon passed.

Ai was forced to try out various outfits, including a lazy afternoon kitten, a sweet strawberry bunny girl, a dreamy unicorn princess, a soft and cute Winnie the Pooh, and even a pure little angel outfit made of white plush and pink bows.

Every time she changed her clothes, it was a lashing out at her soul.

"Finally... it's over."

Ai still had a few rabbit furs still hanging on her body, her hair was a mess like a chicken coop, and her eyes were as empty as a broken rag doll.

Hongye happily sorted through the photos in her camera, unable to suppress the smile on her face. "However, I think these photos still need some professional advice."

Ai's heart skipped a beat. "You're going to send it to Masakazu?"

“Yes.” Hongye nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Xiao Ai's world has collapsed.

She scratched at Hongye for a while, forcing her to delete the photos.

But it was all in vain, because Hongye was quick and had already sent it to Zhengyi.

Ai glared angrily at Momiji, then went to find Masakazu to try and delete the photos.

But Zheng Yi is not afraid of being scratched.

He looked at his scratched arm and even asked if Ai's nails hurt, how inconsiderate of him.

He said in a serious tone, "Although you feel ashamed now, these will be wonderful childhood memories when you grow up."

Ai was furious, her face turning bright red.

Then, her body heated up and she began to transform. (End of Chapter)