The boy soldier next to the famous detective

Upon hearing Jonah's words, everyone instinctively ran to Jonah's side, and then they saw a huge figure push through the bushes and walk out with heavy steps.

"It's that legendary black bear, Jubei!"

Upon seeing the black bear, the other three hunters were startled, but quickly raised their rifles to shoot it.

But the black bear was faster than they had imagined. The lead hunter was rushed right in front of the bear, which slapped his rifle into a bent position.

Jonah's fierce display intimidated the other two hunters, and he remained in aiming position, refraining from firing without authorization.

The black bear in front of him was too big. If he couldn't hit a vital spot and incapacitate the bear, Jonah felt he might not be able to stop it, given its speed.

If he were alone, it would be fine, but Jonah also needed to protect the children behind him, which suddenly made the situation more complicated.

At that very moment, Saiga Matsuzuro, who had been knocked down earlier, suddenly stood up, snatched a shotgun from a stunned hunter, stood in front of the black bear, and shouted threats at it, hoping that the black bear would leave as soon as possible.

Jonah didn't understand Saiga Matsusaburo's actions, but he did attract the bear's attention, creating an opportunity for Jonah to shoot.

However, just as Jonah was about to fire, Ai Haibara suddenly walked up to him and shook her head at Jonah.

"Wait a minute, Jonah, look over there."

Following the direction Ai Haibara was pointing, Jonah saw a small bear emerge from the bushes where Ai had been hiding, barking at the larger bear as it trotted towards it.

After the cub appeared, the bear's imposing aura visibly subsided. Ignoring the hunters present, it lowered its head, licked the cub a couple of times, and then turned and left with the cub.

The imposing black bear left, and everyone present breathed a sigh of relief. As Saiga Matsuzuro turned around to return the stolen hunting rifle to someone else, he turned his head and saw the gun barrel pointed at him again.

"Put the gun down."

"..."

Speechless, Saiga Matsuzuro threw his shotgun to the ground, not wanting to get another shot on the head with the butt of the gun.

"Mr. Saiga, did you really kill someone?"

The shopkeeper, regaining his senses, stared at Saiga Matsusaburo in disbelief. Saiga Matsusaburo was an old hunter who had lived in this area for over ten years and was an old acquaintance of the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper simply couldn't believe that Saiga Matsusaburo would do something like murder.

With a sigh, Saiga Matasaburo slowly recounted the whole story.

When they learned that the man killed by Saiga Matsusaburo had used a bear cub as bait to hunt a bear, everyone's faces showed reluctance, and the hunters' expressions were even more unpleasant.

Such actions absolutely violated the hunter's rules. Although it cannot be said that he deserved to be killed, the public's sympathy for the deceased was greatly reduced.

Although Jonah didn't hunt a bear, the two rabbits he caught were served on the dinner table along with the mushrooms the children had gathered.

As they ate the delicious hare, everyone praised Jonah for being so amazing, which made Jonah lower his head in embarrassment.

On the way back, the children, exhausted from running around in the mountains all fell asleep. Conan Edogawa, sitting in the back seat, leaned over and saw Ai Haibara in the passenger seat letting Jonah rest his head on her shoulder to make him more comfortable, and patiently draping a coat over Jonah. He couldn't help but laugh.

"Haibara, you're really good to Jonah."

"Because he deserves me to treat him so well, do you see anything wrong with that?"

Lowering her voice, Ai Haibara glanced at Conan Edogawa and asked in return.

"That's true. Jonah, that kid, certainly deserves to be treated well."

With his hands gripping the driver's seat, Conan Edogawa noticed Ai Haibara's quiet gaze as she stared at Jonah, and suddenly realized something was amiss.

"Wait, Haibara, I'm a little curious, what exactly are your feelings for Jonah right now?"

"What do you want to know from me, you harassing detective?"

Sensing the sarcasm in Conan Edogawa's words, Ai Haibara chuckled lightly and spoke in a sarcastic tone.

"If I said I really like Jonah, and even considered raising him and spending the rest of my life with him, would you be satisfied with that answer?"

"Hey, I was just asking, do you have to react so strongly? Besides, you and Jonah are actually nine years apart in age."

"So what? Jonah and I are the same age now. We grew up together, and it feels good. I've never had a childhood sweetheart before."

"...Haibara, you're not serious, are you?"

Staring at Ai Haibara in shock, Conan Edogawa couldn't tell for a moment whether Ai Haibara genuinely wanted to do this or was just saying it out of anger and to mock him.

"If you say one more word, I'll add something different to your antidote experiment."

With a sly smile, Ai Haibara made the most effective threat to Conan Edogawa.

"Do you think I can turn adults into children? Can I turn boys into girls?"

"...You win!"

Conan Edogawa promptly backed down, sat back in the back seat, and stopped talking. Professor Agasa watched the amusing farce and drove off with a smile.

So neither of the two remaining conscious people in the car, besides Ai Haibara, noticed that after she finished criticizing Conan Edogawa, a blush flashed across Ai Haibara's face as she looked at Jonah, who was sleeping with his head on her shoulder.

"Shiho Miyano, you've gone completely mad!"

......

Jonah was unaware of the conversation between Conan Edogawa and Ai Haibara in the car, but he did sense that Ai Haibara's attitude towards him was becoming increasingly kind.

Jonah didn't think much of it, assuming that Ai Haibara was grateful because he had saved her.

Jonah, however, felt that Ai Haibara didn't need to do this on purpose; in his heart, Ai Haibara had long been his friend.

Jonah had few friends, but he was willing to protect each one with all his heart.

"Jonah, do you know where Conan went?"

On a rainy day, Jonah, who was watching TV in the detective agency, looked up, glanced around, and shook his head at Ran Mouri.

"I don't know. Conan just said he was going out for a bit. He probably went to the convenience store nearby."

"Yeah?"

Ran blinked in confusion, not paying much attention. After all, Conan Edogawa always liked to run around. A little while later, Ran received a call from the Metropolitan Police Department. Inspector Megure said that Conan Edogawa and his friends had witnessed a police officer being murdered and were now being questioned at the Metropolitan Police Department. He hoped that Kogoro Mouri could come and accompany them.

"Uncle, I want to go too."