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

Kitagawa Taki looked at Hattori Heiji and Toyama Kazuha, who was sitting to the side and dared not look at him.

Hattori Heiji explained, “A man claiming to be the village chief of Sukusato sent me a letter saying that he had found clues to the Tokugawa family’s buried gold and asked me to help dig up the treasure.”

Kitagawa Taki asked curiously, "Why would you ask me about something like this?"

He had no interest in such an elusive treasure.

If Hattori Heiji wanted to invite someone, he should have invited his best friend Conan instead.

What Kitagawa Taki didn't know was that Hattori Heiji had already asked Conan to come, but Conan was sick and couldn't go.

Hattori Heiji grinned, revealing a set of bright white teeth: "I've inquired about that village. I heard there's a legend about the monster Nue there."

"Oh?"

Kitagawa Taki immediately became interested. He had never heard of the monster Nue before, but this was an opportunity.

Where?

"Shizuoka Prefecture." Hattori Heiji knew Kitagawa Taki would definitely be interested.

Kitagawa Taki nodded, then asked, "Is it okay if I bring one more person?"

Upon hearing this, Kazuha Toyama turned and asked, "Ran?"

Kitagawa Taki smiled at her: "No."

Kazuha Toyama frowned. It wasn't Ran. Could it be another woman?

Hattori Heiji said, "It's alright, I've already spoken to the village chief and said that we'll probably send four or five people."

"Alright, when do we leave?"

Hattori Heiji glanced at his watch: "Call the person over here, we're leaving now."

Kazuha Toyama tentatively asked, "That person... do we know each other?"

“It’s possible we know each other.” Kitagawa Taki took out his phone, found Mizunashi Rena’s number, looked up at Toyama Kazuha, and teased, “What, Kazuha, are you so concerned about my affairs?”

Hattori Heiji's face twitched. Why did he feel that Kitagawa's words had a hidden meaning?

Kazuha Toyama was filled with shame and anger. She glanced at Heiji Hattori and hurriedly denied it: "I-I didn't!"

She only cares so much about who that person is because of Xiaolan.

The call connected. "Hello, Rena, it's me. I have a request..."

Reina?

It really was a woman!

Xiaolan, sigh...

Kazuha Toyama sighed inwardly. Although she really wanted to help Ran see Kitagawa Taki's true colors, she was helpless because she still had something on Kitagawa Taki.

Even though Kitagawa Taki was the one who did the bad thing, she couldn't help herself and now she feels very awkward around Kitagawa Taki.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

station.

Kitagawa Taki didn't drive; they took the Shinkansen.

Kazuha Toyama covered his mouth, looking at the beautiful woman in front of him with some surprise: "Are you Rena Mizunashi?"

"Hello." Rena Mizunashi nodded and greeted him with a smile.

Kitagawa Taki introduced Hattori Heiji and the other person to her, and explained what had happened.

"I see. I'm somewhat interested in yokai, so I asked Kitagawa to call me when he has a request like this. I'm sorry to have troubled you." Rena Mizunashi bowed slightly.

Kazuha Toyama quickly replied, "No, no."

It turned out she had misunderstood; the two of them had no such relationship at all, and she couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.

……

Upon arriving in Shizuoka Prefecture, I was picked up by village head Takekuma Densuke in his car.

Takekuma-dono laughed and said, "Mr. Hattori, oh my, it's a great welcome to you and to your friends. I hope you can find some gold, as this is a matter of life and death for our Sukusato Village!"

Kitagawa Taki asked, "Village Chief, I've heard there's a legend about a nue here?"

"Oh, that's true. We'll talk about the details when we get there!" Takekuma-dono kept everyone in suspense.

Around 3 p.m., the group finally arrived at the hotel arranged by the village chief.

Hattori Heiji looked at the "old-fashioned" hotel in front of him and complained, "Are you kidding me? Are we really going to stay in this run-down hotel?"

Takekuma-dono said with a smile, "The exterior is a bit lacking, but it's big enough, and the inside has been cleaned up."

He looked at the pool not far away and said, "Many tourists used to come to admire the beauty of the Black Gold Pool, so this hotel was actually not bad. It's just that it declined after that accident."

It happened! That unexpected event occurred!

Kitagawa Taki had a premonition that something was about to happen.

Kazuha Toyama asked curiously, "What was that accident?"

"Sixteen years ago, a foreign member of the Tokugawa gold mining team died in an accident while digging."

An old man with a white beard walked over; it was none other than the archaeologist, Michiki Danzawa, whom the village chief had invited.

Hattori Heiji asked, "There's an excavation team? Is the Tokugawa family's treasure really buried here?"

Danzawa Michiki nodded: "That's right, Sunpu Castle, where Tokugawa Ieyasu lived in seclusion and passed away, is located in Shizuoka Prefecture."

Historian Yasuharu Someji walked over from the other side and interjected:

"There is also a legend that an old couple hid Tokugawa Ieyasu, who was almost captured by Imagawa, in this Black Gold Forest. After he pacified the country, he rewarded them with many gold coins."

With a smile, Takekuma Densuke introduced, "There's a children's rhyme circulating in the village: 'The morning sun shines brightly, the evening sun glows, inside the iron urn, there are a thousand pieces of gold in two thousand vats.'"

Novelist Masuko Fumie exclaimed, "If there really were two thousand iron urns filled with a thousand gold coins, that would be such a dream!"

Kitagawa Taki curled his lip. If there really was that much gold, how many tons would that be?

Kazuha Toyama said, "That would require two million gold coins! If that's true, that would be fantastic!"

"To me, the two ladies are more like glittering treasures!"

A young man with a buzz cut suddenly appeared out of nowhere and tried to put his arm around Rena Mizunashi's shoulder, but Rena Mizunashi easily dodged it.

Seeing that he had failed, he then approached Yuanshan and Ye, who were standing nearby.

Just as Hattori Heiji was about to make a move, Kitagawa Taki was faster. He grabbed the young man's hand and twisted it slightly. "Your hands don't look very clean."

Tsurumi Hajime was in excruciating pain, grimacing as he cried out, "My hand... my hand is going to break!"

Kitagawa Taki let go, and Tsurumi Hajime stumbled and fell to the ground in a sorry state.

He shook his hand, stood up, a smile appearing on his face, and said, "Is she your girlfriend?"

It was as if he wasn't the one who had just made a fool of himself.

Kitagawa Taki ignored the shameless guy. He wasn't a bloodthirsty person, but if this guy didn't know what was good for him, he wouldn't mind taking another life.

But Hattori Heiji was displeased when he heard this. He grabbed Tsurumi Hajime by the collar and said, "Hey, kid, who are you?"

The village chief quickly came over to break up the fight and separated the two.

Hajime Tsurumi straightened his collar: "I'm a reporter who seeks out legends of yokai (supernatural beings).

Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he moved closer to Rena Mizunashi, excitedly asking, "Is this Rena Mizunashi from Nichiri TV?"

Chapter 396 This isn't right, is it?

Tsurumi Hajime extended his hand to Mizunashi Rena.

Unlike him, a third-rate reporter from a third-rate newspaper, Rena Mizunashi was a fairly famous reporter and host.

But Rena Mizunashi seemed not to see Hajime Tsurumi's outstretched hand. She hugged Taki Kitagawa's arm and said indifferently, "Hello."

Kitagawa Taki felt the soft touch on his arm and found the boy in front of him slightly more agreeable.

Kazuha, who was behind them, widened his eyes. This...this isn't right, is it?

Tsurumi Hajime, having been rebuffed, showed no embarrassment and continued, "Miss Mizunashi, are you also here for the legend of Nue?"

"That's it."

As soon as Mizunashi Rena finished speaking, a dog barked behind them.

Then a golden retriever ran over and jumped on Tsurumi Hajime, very enthusiastically.

Takekuma Donsuke said, "This is the dog of the murdered team member. After that, it was adopted by the villagers and stayed in the village."

He then stepped forward and opened the hotel door: "Alright, everyone, please go inside!"

The village chief led the group to their respective rooms. Just as he had said, the inn was old, but still large enough, and everyone had their own room.

……

night.

On the table.

Kitagawa Taki brought up the topic from earlier in the day again, "Mr. Village Chief, what exactly is the legend of the Nue?"

Takekuma-dono recounted: "It all started with that excavation team. Charles Abel, a foreigner who could only speak a few words of Japanese, did not die on the spot, even though he encountered a collapse accident in the cave."

When the other team members arrived, he was trapped between the rocks. He seemed to have something to say, but he had injured his throat and could not speak. One of the team members handed him a notebook and a pen.

He wrote three letters in his notebook—nue (険)!

The village chief glanced at everyone and continued, "It's that monster from the folk tales, with the head of a monkey, the body of a raccoon, the limbs of a tiger, and the tail of a snake. It appears amidst billowing black smoke and emits terrifying screams!"

Kazuha Toyama swallowed hard. Although she already knew about the legend, she was still a little scared to hear it being told so late at night.

Rena Mizunashi, on the other hand, rested her chin on her hands, looking quite interested.

Kitagawa Taki asked, "So you mean the Nue is in that gold-digging hole?"

He came to Shizuoka Prefecture for two reasons: first, because of this possible yokai, and second, because of Rena Mizunashi.

Takekuma-dono nodded. "That's right. Everyone should get some rest tonight. Tomorrow, we'll all go and dig up the cave for gold."