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

He looked at Rum: "You know me?"

Rum's tone was somewhat exaggerated: "Of course, the famous exorcist detective, Mr. Kitagawa, right?"

"I wouldn't call myself famous," Kitagawa Taki waved his hand, then asked, "Speaking of which, are you new here? I've never seen you before."

Rum nodded and introduced himself: "My name is Kenjiro Wakita. I'm a new chef. I injured my eye and the previous waiter was in a car accident, so I'm doing some waiter work for now."

Kitagawa Taki thought to himself, "The poor waiter was probably hit by someone from the brewery."

"By the way, could you two tell me about some of the cases you've solved before? I've been very interested in deduction since I was a child!"

As he spoke, Wakita Kanenori added a condition: "I can give you two a discount, which will be deducted from my salary!"

Kogoro Mouri's eyes lit up, and he began to speak at length.

Kitagawa Taki, while chatting quietly with Ran, was secretly observing Wakita Kanenori.

It's unclear what was going through the mind of this second-in-command of the Black Organization to come up with such a bizarre disguise.

During his conversation with Kogoro Mouri, Rum kept subtly trying to find out about him.

He didn't stop until three more customers came into the shop.

"Come on, Brother Kitagawa, let's have a drink!"

Kogoro Mouri raised his draft beer and clinked glasses with Taki Kitagawa, then gulped down most of the glass in one go.

Seeing this, Xiaolan complained, "Really, Dad, you should drink less!"

Kogoro Mouri waved his hand: "What's the big deal? I'm just having fun today!"

Kitagawa Taki asked Ran curiously, "How much did you win in the horse racing lottery?"

"One million yen." Xiaolan lowered her voice, a little embarrassed: "Actually, Dad probably found that lottery ticket."

Just then, the door of the sushi restaurant was suddenly pushed open.

A plump middle-aged woman stormed in, shouting aggressively, "Who stole my bag? I know who it was!"

She scrutinized each person's position with a critical eye.

Then, ignoring Wakita Kanenori's attempts to stop her, she walked straight into the store and went into the restroom.

A few seconds later.

"found it!"

The woman came out carrying a blue handbag.

Kenshinori Wakita stepped forward: "Hey, what's going on?"

"My handbag was stolen on the tram a little over an hour ago. I only managed to find my way here thanks to the location tracking on my phone!"

As she spoke, the plump woman opened her handbag, inspected it, and then let out a groan:

"It's gone! My horse racing lottery ticket is gone! That was a million-dollar prize!"

Kogoro Mouri, who was leisurely drinking, felt a jolt in his heart when he heard those words.

“About an hour ago, shortly before Mr. Kogoro arrived, none of the customers who came after that have left,” Wakita Kanenori analyzed. “The thief is still in the shop!”

Kogoro Mori swallowed hard, his eyes darting around nervously.

Kitagawa Taki found it amusing; Kogoro Mouri really didn't have Ran's luck, even picking up a lottery ticket could cause so much trouble.

Ran glanced at Kogoro Mouri, then at the pitiful old woman, and was about to step forward when she was pulled back by Taki Kitagawa.

Wakita Kanenori, arms crossed, said with great interest, "How about we have a competition? Let's see who can find the thief among the last three guests first!"

"This..." Kogoro Mouri opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

Ignoring the two's reactions, Kenjiro Wakita was about to ask the old woman for clues when he was interrupted by a voice.

"There's no need to compete!"

"Eh—" Wakita Kanenori let out a strange cry and turned to look at Kitagawa Taki. "Has Mr. Kitagawa already found the thief?"

Kitagawa Taki looked at a person in the corner: "Hey, you bespectacled uncle, could you take the contents of your briefcase out and let me see?"

"Why should I! I didn't steal it!" The bespectacled man looked a little nervous and hugged his briefcase tightly.

Kogoro Mouri breathed a sigh of relief and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

“This is a famous detective.” Kenjiro Wakita stepped forward and threatened, “If you don’t want to, we’ll call the police and let them search.”

The bespectacled man's expression shifted, but he eventually took the contents of his bag out on his own initiative.

They're all very ordinary things; there's no horse racing lottery involved.

"See? Is that it?" the bespectacled man said, starting to put the item away.

Kenjiro Wakita glanced at Taki Kitagawa.

Kitagawa Taki said unhurriedly, "The hidden compartment in the briefcase."

The bespectacled man's expression changed drastically, and he froze on the spot.

Now everyone could see that he had stolen the lottery ticket.

"I...I admit it." The bespectacled man lowered his head and took out the horse racing lottery ticket.

Leaving aside the aunt's confirmation and the subsequent police report.

Kenjiro Wakita walked back to Kitagawa Taki's table and asked curiously, "Mr. Kitagawa, how did you determine that it was his?"

Kitagawa Taki frankly admitted, "I could tell."

Wakita Kanenori exclaimed, "I see! Kitagawa-san's observation skills are truly amazing. It seems I still have a lot more practice to do!"

Then he added, "Mr. Kitagawa, I would like to become your disciple. What do you think?"

Kitagawa Taki looked puzzled. "This isn't a good idea."

Wakita Kanenori laughed and said, "It's nothing, after all, the accomplished are my teachers!"

Kogoro Mori's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down. Seeing this, he encouraged him from the side, "Brother Kitagawa, I think you should just agree to him! That way, we'll both have disciples!"

Kitagawa Taki thought to himself, "At least you took in a handsome guy. What kind of nonsense is it for me to take in an old man as my disciple?"

"Alright then," Kitagawa Taki reluctantly agreed.

Rum, oh Rum, you've delivered yourself right to my doorstep.

Chapter 482 A Dreamlike Day

Two more days have passed.

Kitagawa Taki received a message from his "insider," Yukiko, informing him that Eri Kisaki's mood had improved considerably.

Yukiko Fujimine: [Eri is at home now, she's all yours!]

Therefore, there's some truth to the saying "beware of fire, theft, and your best friend."

……

Eri's family.

Eri Kisaki had no idea that she had been betrayed by her best friend again.

She had just finished showering and was only wrapped in a bath towel.

Hearing the doorbell ring, she instinctively assumed that Yukiko had returned.

However, through the video doorbell, they saw that the person who came was Kitagawa Taki.

Her hand froze, and memories hidden deep within her surfaced once more.

She originally thought that after these few days of adjustment, she could face Kitagawa Taki with a calm mind.

But when that moment came, she realized she couldn't do it at all.

"Eri, I know you're here. If you don't open the door for me, I'll have to find another way."

Kitagawa Taki's unreasonable voice came through the video doorbell.

Eri bit her lip and said, "Wait for me."

She needs to change her clothes.

A few minutes later, Eri Kisaki opened the door and stepped aside to let Taki Kitagawa in.

Kitagawa Taki's gaze lingered on her for a moment. She was wearing a beige loungewear set, the neckline of which covered her completely. Her skin, which had just been showering, still had a faint red tinge, and her hair was slightly damp.

Eri Kisaki took a deep breath, composed herself, and said in as calm a tone as possible, "Kitagawa, let's talk."

“Sure.” Kitagawa Taki seemed to have expected this, and there was no surprise in his tone.

Eri Kisaki stood in the living room with her arms crossed, the cool lighting making her appear even more aloof.

"From now on, you will still be you, and I will still be me. Our relationship will be the same as before."

Kitagawa Taki's tone was unexpectedly calm: "Okay."

Hearing Kitagawa Taki's straightforward answer, Eri Kisaki breathed a sigh of relief, but also felt a slight sense of disappointment that she herself could hardly perceive.

Kitagawa Taki suddenly smiled and said, "That's for the best. If you keep hiding from me, Ran might notice something's wrong."

Hearing Kitagawa Taki mention Ran, Eri Kisaki felt a pang in her heart. "Ran...is she alright?"

These days, she even makes excuses to decline Xiaolan's invitations to go out.

"Ran is fine, but Eri, what about you?" Kitagawa Taki looked into Eri's eyes.

"Don't call me that again, I'm fine." Eri Kisaki turned her head away, avoiding Kitagawa Taki's gaze. "You can go now."

To her surprise, Kitagawa Taki not only didn't leave, but instead took a few steps forward, almost touching her body.

Are you really alright?

Eri Kisaki instinctively took a step back. "Kitagawa, you!"

We were just talking about something, and now you're suddenly doing this? What do you want?

“I’ve made it through all these years, I know how to take care of myself. Beichuan, remember, the person you should care about is Xiaolan.” She composed herself and tried to adopt the demeanor of an elder.

Kitagawa Taki sighed: "So, caring about you and caring about Ran have to be separate?"