Solving cases with Detective Conan's science? No, I'm a cultivator!

Finally, everyone arrived at the highest point in the park—Demturen Tower.

The tower, standing at 105 meters tall, is the iconic tower of Huis Ten Bosch, and its observation deck offers panoramic views of the grounds.

From there, you can also see the nearby bay.

Standing by the window, Sonoko exclaimed, "The scenery is really beautiful. It must be even more charming at night."

With his hands behind his back, Oga Myo looked down and exclaimed, "The view from here is really great!"

Sonoko asked curiously, "Grandma Otae, aren't you scared?"

Dahe Miao pointed to the passengers below and laughed, "I really like standing in high places. Look, don't the people below look like ants? It feels pretty good."

Junichi Takahashi glanced at his watch and said, "If Ms. Oga likes high places, she could try riding in a hot air balloon, but it's too late today. We can try it another time."

"A hot air balloon? That's something I could try!"

Ohga Takayuki was quite interested in this.

……

hostel.

restaurant.

Sitting in the main seat, Oga Tae introduced to everyone: "This is Mr. Junichi Takahashi, who makes glass in Otaru. I invited him to come along because I wanted to hear about glass."

Junichi Takahashi bowed slightly. "My surname is Takahashi."

Oga Tatsuya said with a smile, "Everyone is gathered here because my son, Shinya, is getting married tomorrow. Welcome, Mr. Takahashi."

The others didn't show any expression, but only Katori Akane across from him caught Kitagawa Taki's attention.

When Akane Katori saw Junichi Takahashi, she froze, seemingly very surprised.

This made Kitagawa Taki suspect that Takahashi Junichi's motives were not pure, and that he might be deliberately getting close to the Oga family.

At this moment, Masaya Oga's uncle, Hideo Mochida, said, "I really didn't expect Masaya to get married first. Mika, you're lagging behind your brother!"

Mika Ohga pouted: "I've never been one to buy cheap stuff."

Kitagawa Taki only has the number "6" to speak of, this older sister really doesn't like her younger brother's wife!

Akane Katori, sitting next to him, looked somber and silently closed her eyes.

Shinya Ohga wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Tae Ohga: "By the way, Mr. Takahashi, why don't you come to Shinya's wedding ceremony tomorrow too!"

Junichi Takahashi exclaimed in surprise, "Eh? Isn't this a bit inconvenient?"

Kitagawa Taki also felt something was strange. This was someone he had just met, and not only did they have dinner together, but he was also invited to a ceremony?

Dahe Chen added, "We all very much welcome you to the ceremony."

Mochida Hideo said, "Shinya will undoubtedly be the heir to the Ōga Group in the future. Attending his wedding will definitely not be a loss for you."

Is this whole family so enthusiastic?

Kitagawa Taki recalled Katori Akane's strange behavior earlier, and his intuition told him that tomorrow's wedding would not go smoothly!

Unable to resist the repeated invitations from the Oga family, Junichi Takahashi agreed, "Then I will gladly accept your invitation. I will be there on time tomorrow."

Ohga said, "Thank you in advance."

At that moment, Masayo Oga took out an exquisite jewelry box and handed it to Akane Katori, saying, "By the way, Akane, you should wear this to the wedding ceremony tomorrow!"

When Akane Katori opened it, she found a ruby ​​ring inside.

She looked at Masayo Oga with some surprise.

Masayo Oga explained with a smile, "This is a ring passed down from generation to generation to the wives of the Oga family."

Tatsuya Ohga added, "Our ancestors started their business in maritime trade in the early Meiji period, and this ring was purchased on their first trip to Europe."

Akane Katori's previous gloom vanished, and she said happily, "Thank you, Mom and Dad!"

But before she could be happy for long, a discordant voice rang out.

Dahe Miao looked displeased: "Isn't it a bit too early to give her the ring now?"

Akane Katori's smile froze instantly.

Masayo Oga asked, puzzled, "But Mom gave me the ring first and made me wear it to the wedding ceremony!"

“Of course you are different. When you married Chenye, everyone thought you were the best choice,” Dahe Miao said. “Give her the ring. It’s not too late to let everyone accept her as a member of the Dahe family.”

Kitagawa Taki and Sonoko exchanged a glance, both of them truly experiencing a farcical drama unfolding in a wealthy family.

They're getting married the very next day, and they're still talking about these pointless things.

In comparison, Sonoko felt that her own home was really great, without so much backstabbing and infighting.

Finally, Shinya Ohga couldn't hold back any longer. He suddenly stood up and said loudly, "So, according to Grandma, no one acknowledges Akane as my wife?"

Akane Katori gently tugged at Shinya Oga's clothes, signaling him to keep quiet.

Dahe Miao seemed to have given in, "Then let her wear it."

……

After finishing their strangely awkward dinner, Kitagawa Taki and Sonoko went out for a walk to digest their food.

"Miss Akane is quite pitiful!" Sonoko said with some emotion. "But thankfully, Shinya and his parents treat her well."

Kitagawa Taki remarked, "Being the wife of a chaebol family isn't easy!"

Sonoko said, "Besides feeling that the two families are not well-matched, Grandma Ami is also unhappy that Miss Akane is two years older than Shinji."

Sonoko sighed and said, "I hope that tomorrow's wedding won't end up like today."

Kitagawa Taki didn't share his guesses with Sonoko; everything remained uncertain.

Chapter 152 Showdown

"Alright, stop thinking about it. Now it's our time."

As he spoke, Kitagawa Taki embraced Sonoko.

Sonoko gave a soft "hmm".

"Isn't that supposed to be a fireworks show?" Kitagawa Taki pointed to the large number of tourists gathered on the riverbank not far away.

"Yes." Sonoko looked up.

"Shall we go over and take a look?"

The two found a spot to sit down on the riverbank.

Sonoko nestled in Kitagawa Taki's arms, but sighed softly to herself.

She had originally planned to ask Kitagawa Taki about Ran, but now she couldn't bear to shatter the beautiful scene before her.

She was afraid that if she spoke out, she would lose Kitagawa Taki and Ran.

Sonoko has known Ran since kindergarten and knows Ran very well, so she naturally noticed Ran's unusual behavior a while ago.

Thinking about it carefully, Lan started acting strangely, especially around her, ever since that bombing of the municipal building.

Perhaps it was from that time that Lan began to like this bad guy?

Thinking of this, Sonoko looked up at Kitagawa Taki.

Under the light, his sharply defined face stood out, as if it had been meticulously sculpted.

Noticing Sonoko's gaze, Kitagawa Taki lowered his head and asked, "What's wrong?"

Sonoko snuggled closer to Kitagawa Taki and murmured, "It's okay, Taki, hold me tight."

Kitagawa Taki took the opportunity to hug Sonoko. He could tell that Sonoko was troubled, but since she didn't want to talk about it, he wouldn't pry.

Sonoko took a deep breath, feeling Kitagawa Taki's presence, and closed her eyes.

That's it...

After a while, Sonoko was woken up by Kitagawa Taki.

The fireworks show has begun.

Fireworks rose into the sky, blooming in the darkness and reflected on the calm water.

"So beautiful!" Sonoko exclaimed.

……

After watching the fireworks show, it was almost eight o'clock.

The two planned to take a less crowded route back to the hotel, but they ran into an acquaintance on the way.

“Isn’t that Ms. Akane, and Mr. Takahashi?” Sonoko tugged at Kitagawa Taki’s hand.

Kitagawa Taki turned his head and saw Katori Akane and Takahashi Junichi talking to each other downstairs in an empty building. They were too far away for Kitagawa Taki to hear.

Sonoko asked curiously, "What are those two doing here?"

In just a short while, Junichi Takahashi and the other person had separated.

Junichi Takahashi walked into the darkness, while Akane Katori seemed to have spotted Taki Kitagawa and Sonoko, and ran away in a panic.

Sonoko asked, "Taki, could they be..."

Kitagawa Taki knew what Sonoko wanted to say—whether Katori Akane had cheated on him. He shook his head. "Not necessarily."

Sonoko hesitated, "They definitely know each other, but neither of them said it before..."

"You're not thinking of telling Shinya Ohga directly, are you?" Kitagawa Taki said. "I think we should find out from Akane Katori first and let her be honest with Shinya Ohga herself, since they're getting married tomorrow."

This reminded Kitagawa Taki of the famous Sherlock Holmes story "The Dancing Men," a tale in which tragedy resulted from concealment.

The wife's former fiancé came looking for her, but she was worried that her husband would mind, so she chose to keep it a secret. In the end, the situation escalated and led to her husband's violent death.

Hopefully, this couple won't go down this path...

Sonoko smiled. "That's right, Taki is so thoughtful."

A dozen minutes later, the two returned to the hotel.

The rooms were naturally arranged by the Oga family, and the best rooms were prepared for Kitagawa Taki and Sonoko, which were even right next to each other.