Conan: When Shinjiu and Maolilan swap bodies

Ran Mouri grabbed her schoolbag and headed out the door, texting Aoze on her phone as she went.

Mr. Qingze, I saw the news.

Qingze was also watching the news. After thinking for a moment, he replied.

[Last night, in addition to the Japanese Public Security Bureau, the FBI also arrived. The organization deployed Ospreys and killed a traitor.]

What is an osprey?

Ran Mouri, who doesn't pay much attention to military affairs, raised a serious question.

[…search it yourself.]

Ran Mouri searched for information about ospreys as she walked towards the school.

"Military tiltrotor aircraft..."

Does this organization even have this kind of military equipment?

Ran Mouri recalls that using a helicopter required applying for a flight path.

Moreover, armed military helicopters like these are simply not allowed to appear in the skies over Tokyo.

Just how powerful is this organization?

Just then, another message came from Qingze.

Spend more time with your childhood sweetheart; don't let them drift apart.

Ran Mouri was taken aback, not quite understanding what he meant.

Didn't he not like Shinichi very much? Why is he suddenly letting her spend more time with Shinichi?

Even though you don't like him anymore, you grew up together. Don't deliberately create distance between yourself and him. See him more often, catch up, and ask if he's going through anything...

As Ran Mouri read the message from Qingze, her brows furrowed even more deeply.

Something's not right, something's really not right.

This plot reminded Ran Mouri of some less-than-ideal idol drama plots.

She made a phone call right away, her tone somewhat angry.

"Mr. Qingze, what do you mean?"

What does it mean to push her towards Shinichi?!

Qingze was somewhat confused by her tone.

"I'm asking you to keep an eye on his side of the news, maybe even act as a spy for me. If you don't want to do that kind of thing, then forget it."

Ran Mouri's slight anger vanished at his words, leaving her with nothing but helplessness.

"Next time, be more explicit about things like this..."

The idea of ​​not drawing clear lines and seeing each other more often is too ambiguous.

"...What nonsense are you talking about?" Qingze's voice was a little speechless. "I'm just worried that you might have a moral burden about being a spy."

Qingze felt that there was nothing wrong with his writing, except that he might have expressed the meaning a little too tactfully.

After all, espionage is tantamount to betrayal.

If we put it more tactfully, Ran Mouri would be more accepting.

She couldn't understand and insisted that he explain it to her.

"It's alright. Although everyone's goals are different, we all end up in the same place, don't we?"

Ran Mouri had little resistance to this kind of "espionage" behavior.

Their goal was to oppose the organization; they were merely gathering information.

Even if she asks, Shinichi will only tell her trivial things.

Shinichi isn't someone who gets blinded by emotions. His protective instincts led him to conceal his identity for so long, which meant that even if she asked him directly, he would only tell her good news and not bad.

"Why did you suddenly have this idea?" Ran Mouri asked.

Qingze hadn't had this idea before. Even while using her body, he never said he would actively seek out Conan or anything like that.

It's a bit unusual that you suddenly said that today.

"Don't you think he's too special, like a protagonist?"

"Protagonist? Do you mean the kind of protagonist in movies, TV shows, or literature?"

"Hmm. Don't you think it looks alike?"

Aozawa recounted, point by point, the problematic aspects of Shinichi Kudo.

"After being fed a deadly poison, he turns into a child, lives with his childhood friend, has all sorts of magical gadgets, causes cases wherever he goes, and manages to escape from all kinds of dangerous situations... Don't you think that perfectly matches the characteristics of a protagonist?"

"While that's true, the concept of a protagonist only exists in literary works, right?"

The real world never revolves around one person. Shinichi, or Conan, is just a little special, someone who is favored by the gods.

To say that he is the protagonist of the world is a bit of an exaggeration.

"Who can guarantee that there are no protagonists in the real world?" Qingze retorted. "And don't you think you're a lot like the female lead in such a story?"

Ran Mouri smiled and shook her head.

"If he really is the main character, then I should be the second female lead."

The male and female protagonists should be able to fight side by side, complementing each other as partners, adventuring together and fighting enemies together.

Shinichi's enemies are dangerous organizations, and only the female protagonist can be his partner.

Although Shinichi likes her, in Conan's eyes before, she was someone who needed to be hidden from and protected.

She doesn't even know what Shinichi encountered, so how can she fight alongside him?

The comrade-in-arms who shrank with Shin, went to school with him, and stood shoulder to shoulder with him is the real female lead, isn't she?

If the female lead has to be kept in the dark and protected all the time, then she doesn't want to do it.

"You have so little self-confidence..."

Qingze felt that Ran Mouri perfectly matched the characteristics of the female protagonist in most literary works.

She is gentle, kind, caring, and excellent at cooking.

She embodies the ideal wife role for most people.

The fallen leaves of late autumn danced in the wind, and a few curled leaves flew past Ran Mouri's eyes.

She had walked this road to school countless times.

Once upon a time, there was a figure walking alongside her, laughing and joking.

Now, she walks here alone, and that figure has not appeared for a long time.

She laughed into the phone, "If I were the female lead? How could I not like the male lead?"

Qingze propped his legs up on the coffee table, put his phone on speakerphone to the side, and turned his head to look at the sunlight streaming in through the window.

"Perhaps it's because nothing is absolute."

------

P.S.: Some people said there was a problem with this chapter and even came to criticize me, so I have to say something.

Regarding the question of Xiaolan telling Qingze that she is not the female lead.

She's on the phone with Qingze, understand?

Her subtext was, "I'm not Shinichi's heroine; I want to be your heroine."

She said that being able to fight side by side is what makes a heroine, because she wants to fight side by side; she doesn't want to be an ignorant person being protected.

If the price of being the female lead is to always be passively waiting, then she doesn't want to be the female lead.

Her implication to Qingze was: I am working hard to learn and grow, and I will fight alongside you.

(If Sonoko were to bring up this topic, her answer would be: I don't want to be that kind of leading lady.)

Do you understand that conversations vary depending on the person?

As for whether Ran or Ai is more popular, that's just casual discussion, please don't involve the content of this book.

We're all adults here, so please stop creating fandoms in fanfiction, okay?

I think anyone who clicked on my book and made it this far is unlikely to be a fanatical idol fan. (laughs)

The topic of "protagonist" was brought up by Aozawa in casual conversation, or perhaps it was after Aozawa encouraged Ran Mouri to spend more time with Shinichi Kudo. (Please also consider the context for reading comprehension.) Ran Mouri doesn't believe in the concept of male or female protagonists. Throughout the story, she conveys one thing to Aozawa:

I don't want to be his leading lady.

What about Ran's self-denial, what about me containing Haibara, containing Ran... I give your reading comprehension a zero.

(Regarding the Conan x Ai pairing, let me reiterate: I will not write about this pairing, nor will I pair them together.)

Shinichi's love for Ran is obsessive; it's impossible for him not to like her. Ai is also proud; she couldn't possibly love someone who has another woman in his heart—that would be demeaning to herself.

(For Ran, if she doesn't like someone anymore, she just doesn't like them anymore. She would hope that Shinichi would give up his feelings for her and stop focusing on her.)

She doesn't take pride in being liked. She hopes Shinichi will look forward. Even if she doesn't like Shinichi anymore, they will still be good friends who grew up together.

He hopes that Shinichi will have his own "female lead" instead of being stuck in the past and pursuing a "female lead" who has already become someone else's "female lead".

There will be more scenes like Ran praising Haibara later in the story; she wants those around her to find their own happiness. However, Ran's thoughts are not the author's, so please don't overinterpret them.

Chapter 218 The New Employee at the Coffee Shop

The conversation on the phone went on and on, and Ran Mouri unknowingly walked to the school gate.

Seeing that Xiaolan was engrossed in talking on the phone, Sonoko silently appeared behind her, and then, taking advantage of Xiaolan's inattention, suddenly patted her shoulder and jumped out from behind her.

Ran Mouri was startled and glared at her with a hint of anger.

"What are you doing? It's scary so early in the morning."

"You were so engrossed in watching the phone call that you didn't even notice I followed you the whole way..."

Sonoko Suzuki, arms crossed, looked at him with a mocking gaze: "Who were you talking to on the phone? What were you talking about, the male lead, the female lead..."

"Just chatting with a friend."

"Oh~ friend~ let me guess, it's Qingze, right?"

Her teasing gaze made Ran Mouri feel inexplicably embarrassed.

Seeing that she had tacitly agreed, Sonoko Suzuki leaned forward, suddenly bringing her face close to the phone, and said into the other end of the line:

"Mr. Aozawa, our school is having a school festival next week, and Ran will be dressed up as Sailor Moon. You absolutely have to come!"

Ran Mouri immediately covered the receiver and hung up the phone.

"What nonsense are you talking about? I clearly haven't agreed to it yet!"

"Hmph, don't think I didn't see it. You've already wavered under my constant persuasion!"

Sonoko Suzuki took her arm and began to explain her grand plans for the school festival:

"I've already ordered the clothes. I'll also do your hair and makeup, and you'll definitely make a stunning entrance, guaranteed to make him swoon..."

Hearing the call end on the other end, Qingze chuckled.

"This Suzuki Sonoko is really persistent."

I've been nagging him to cosplay Sailor Moon for a while now, and he still hasn't given up on that idea.

He remembered that Sailor Moon's outfits were all summer sailor uniforms, but it's almost winter. Is he sure he won't catch a cold wearing this?

He checked the time, stood up from the sofa, and went to check on Curaçao's condition.

Curaçao had already woken up and opened her eyes when she heard the door open.

Qingze walked to the bedside with his hands in his pockets, looking at the person lying on the bed with a peaceful gaze.

"Congratulations, you survived."

"Yes, they survived..."

Curaçao stretched out a hand from under the covers, her hand wrapped in bandages. She looked back and forth, seemingly experiencing the unreality of being away from the organization.