Detective Conan: Developing a younger version of Ran Eri, and the stunning Yukiko.

Shiraishi's lips curled slightly upwards: "We've found it!"

Shiraishi threw the Phantom Thieves' name card at the two women and instantly entered their mental palaces.

Two palaces, exuding a vulgar atmosphere, stood prominently before Shiraishihara.

"Oh no, two palaces have appeared at once, but I'm all alone. What should I do?"

Just as Shiraishihara was fretting, he was shocked to find that Yukiko Kudo was right beside him.

"Huh?" Shiraishihara was taken aback. "Aunt Yukiko, what are you doing here?"

"Of course I'm here. I've always been by your side."

Yukiko Kudo frowned slightly, then looked around.

"Huh? This place is weird. What's going on with these two schools?"

"These two schools are not real schools, but rather the spiritual sanctuaries of Anzai Ema and Shibasaki Asuka."

"A sanctuary for the soul? What does that mean?"

“You can think of it as a reflection of the souls of Anzai Ema and Shibasaki Asuka. These two spiritual temples embody the inner world of the two women.”

"How amazing... How could such a thing happen?" Yukiko Kudo felt as if she were in a dream.

"If your son can turn back the clock, what else is impossible?" Shiraishihara's words enlightened Kudo Yukiko.

Yukiko Kudo suddenly realized that if something as absurd as her son reverting to childhood could happen, what else was incomprehensible?

Just as Shiraishihara and Kudo Yukiko were talking, they were suddenly surrounded by demonic shadows.

"Ah? How terrifying, what are these things..."

"They are the shadows of demons. That is to say, there is a demon in every temple of the heart, and these are the shadows of demons..."

"Wait, they're attacking."

Before Shiraishi could finish explaining, the shadows had already pounced on them.

Shiraishihara quickly took out the Cat General Demon Mask and waved the Flame Fan to blow away the approaching shadow.

"Don't just stand there. I can only handle one palace; the other one will have to be left to you."

"What!" Yukiko Kudo covered her head, still somewhat confused.

“You took on Fukatsu Harumi’s request on behalf of Kudo Shinichi, so you can’t just dump everything on me and do nothing yourself.”

"Then what should I do?" Yukiko Kudo really wanted to help, but she didn't know where to start.

"Summon your own demon mask!" Shiraishihara reminded Kudo Yukiko, "You were able to enter the Hall of the Soul, which means you are also a Phantom Thief Idol, possessing your own unique demon mask!"

"A demon mask???"

Yukiko Kudo felt as if she had returned to the time when she was filming a movie, and the director gave her a bunch of character settings and asked her to immerse herself in the roles.

No. .

063 Shadows

Chapter 63

"I get it, it's about playing the Phantom Thief Idol..."

"You're not acting, you are who you are!"

"Know it."

Following Shiraishihara's instructions, Kudo Yukiko immediately put aside her distractions and fully immersed herself in the role of the phantom thief idol, just as she had done in her previous film and television productions.

"Phantom Thief Idol Yukiko Kudo is here! Summon my devil mask!"

Following Shiraishihara's advice, Yukiko Kudo cleared her mind and successfully immersed herself in the role.

Immediately afterwards, the demon mask belonging to Yukiko Kudo was actually summoned.

Tsukuyomi: A key deity in Japanese mythology, one of the "Three Noble Children" born of Izanagi, along with Amaterasu and Susanoo. She is widely known as the personification of the moon and night, but many other interpretations exist, making her a god shrouded in mystery.

The cryptic instrument is the Moon Tarot.

"You...you are my Demon Mask? How cool!"

"I am Tsukuyomi. My right hand controls madness, my left hand grips unwavering resolve... So... which one should I start destroying first!?"

"Those are the shadows, destroy them."

"Hehehe... A piece of cake."

Tsukuyomi activated Purgatory Wings, instantly annihilating all shadows.

"Amazing!"

Yukiko Kudo was shocked by the immense power displayed by her demon mask.

Witnessing this, Shiraishihara immediately became dissatisfied.

"System, why are all the Phantom Thief Idol's demon masks so powerful, while mine is so weak!"

"Host, there's no need to be discouraged. The Phantom Thief Idol's devil mask is fixed and has no room for growth."

"I don't believe it! This demon mask called Tsukuyomi is clearly the highest level!"

According to the setting of the game "Persona", Tsukuyomi is already the top-level Devil Mask, and it is impossible for there to be a higher level.

"Host, this is also for your own good. If the Phantom Thief Idol isn't strong enough, he won't be able to be your right-hand man."

"..."

Even so, Shiraishihara was still worried that Kudo Yukiko might use the power of the Devil Mask against him. Although he was the leader of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts, it didn't mean he could completely control the Phantom Thieves within the team.

Shiraishi stepped forward and gently patted Kudo Yukiko's shoulder, his tone noticeably more polite: "Aunt Yukiko, well done. You are now a phantom thief idol and a member of the Phantom Thieves of Hearts. Anzai Ema's Heart Palace is now in your hands."

"Hmm... exactly what do I need to do?"

"Use the power of the demon mask to defeat the demon in the Palace of the Heart and steal the palace's secret treasure, which is evil heart."

“No problem. Phantom Thief Idol Yukiko Kudo will definitely not disappoint you.” Whether Yukiko Kudo truly understood or was just pretending, she wore her devil mask, Tsukuyomi, and rushed into Anzai Ema’s Heart Palace with great enthusiasm.

Shiraishi had initially worried that Kudo Yukiko, the phantom thief idol, was unreliable, but now it seemed he had been overthinking it. However, he felt he needed to be more wary of Kudo Yukiko using the devil mask against him.

After leaving Shibasaki Asuka's Heart Palace, Shiraishihara received a new Devil Mask.

That was a demon as ugly as Shibasaki Asuka's heart.

Black Slime: This is an evil will that cannot form a solid form and eventually degenerates into an amorphous monster.

Just like its name suggests, it is a lump of black, sticky mud that only knows how to prey on prey, causing its body to grow larger and fatter.

Its unique ability is: a suffocating plague.

At the same time, Yukiko Kudo also emerged from Ema Anzai's Palace of the Heart, her face still showing a look of lingering enjoyment.

"Shiraishihara, do you know? I gave Anzai Ema a good beating in her heart palace. Anzai Ema was terrified by me."

"Uh... I can imagine that scene." Shiraishi Hara couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.

No. .

064 Hairy all over

Chapter 64.

Although Shibasaki Asuka and Anzai Ema are bad, their inner strength is not as strong as it appears.

After Shiraishihara and Kudo Yukiko each stole their evil hearts, the two regained their kind nature.

The two knelt before Rie Akechi, weeping and confessing, begging for her forgiveness.

The two arrogant and domineering women who were just moments ago suddenly changed their personalities, leaving Rie Akechi completely baffled.

At first, Rie Akechi thought they were acting, until they publicly apologized to the public in the newspaper and turned themselves in to the police, confessing to their past illegal and criminal acts. Only then did Rie Akechi believe that they were genuinely repentant.

Rie Akechi thought to herself, if Sakurako Suzuka were still alive, she would surely forgive Asuka Shibasaki and Ema Anzai for their sincere repentance. This would be the best possible ending.

……

After her trip, Yukiko Kudo returned to Tokyo and stayed alone in the Kudo family's large villa, feeling a sense of regret.

Originally, she planned to impersonate Shinichi Kudo and confess her feelings to Ran, thus confirming their romantic relationship.

But when it really came down to it, she backed down.

The reason was that she had a premonition that her confession would probably not be successful. If it failed, she didn't know how to explain it to Conan.

What's worse, someone left an indelible impression on her, one that she could never shake off.

At noon, after school, Conan didn't go straight home, but went to Kudo's house instead.

At home, a variety show was playing on the television. Yukiko Kudo, dressed in a cool sundress, sat on the sofa, holding the remote control, seemingly deep in thought.

So much so that she didn't even notice when Conan ran right up to her.

"Mom, what are you daydreaming about?"

"Huh? Shin-chan, when did you get here?"

Yukiko looked at her chubby-faced son and was slightly surprised.

"We just arrived."

"Oh."

"How's it going?"

"How about what?"

"You said you were going to disguise yourself as me and confess your feelings to Xiaolan to solidify our relationship. Did that work out?"

Conan asked nervously.

“There was no chance at all… I felt the situation was not good, so I gave up…” Yukiko Kudo said with a bitter expression.

"How could this happen?" Conan's face darkened. "Was it Shiraishihara who sabotaged things?"

"Not really... Shiraishihara not only didn't cause any trouble, but he also helped me cover for him..."

"That's impossible... I think Xiaolan should have feelings for me..."

"If that's the case, why haven't you confessed your feelings to Xiaolan yet?"

Yukiko Kudo was very frustrated. If it were her son, he would have confessed to Ran long ago. Given Ran's personality, no other man would have had a chance to get involved.

"Ah, this..." Conan said awkwardly, "I was thinking of waiting for Ran to confess to me..."

Conan is not wrong. In Japanese schools, it is quite common for girls to confess their feelings to boys.

"Don't think I don't know. You're the one who always stands Xiaolan up on dates. How can Xiaolan dare to confess her feelings to you if you keep doing this!"

No one knows a son better than his mother. Yukiko Kudo knew that her son was somewhat arrogant and that the stagnation in his relationship with his childhood friend was definitely his fault.

"I have my reasons..."

Conan thought to himself that he couldn't entirely blame himself for the cases that kept happening when he was on dates with Ran.

However, he dared not tell his mother this, otherwise she would definitely give him a good scolding.

"Shin-chan, what other excuse are you trying to come up with?"

Yukiko Kudo glared sternly at Conan, who felt a chill run down his spine and could only obediently apologize.

"sorry."

No. .

065 won't work.

Chapter 65

"In short, my plan to impersonate you and confess to Xiaolan won't work."

Not only do you have a lot of problems yourself, but the conditions aren't right either. Plus, Ran has become smarter now and seems to be able to see that I'm not the real Shinichi Kudo.

"What should we do then?"