Crossover anime, and you call this a slice-of-life story?

Yu Ishigami's heart, which had just relaxed, jumped again. He looked at Thor, who was stirring up trouble, and then at Fafnir, inwardly groaning: Oh no! What if Fafnir gets so angry that he transforms?

Fafnir's face turned from black to red, then from red to green. After a long pause, he finally managed to squeeze out a sentence through gritted teeth: "...My curse is meant to demonstrate the power of despair and darkness! It is not meant for such despicable acts!"

However, his slightly wavering gaze seemed to indicate that somewhere deep inside him, he was genuinely considering the feasibility of this operation.

Seeing the chaotic scene, Shangguan Yun suppressed a laugh and decided to give Fafnir, who was on the verge of social death, a way out.

He stepped forward, picked up a book called "The Complete Book of Curses," and flipped through it casually. It contained some basic, low-level spells that were more for pranks, such as "a spell to make someone hiccup continuously for an hour" and "a spell to make someone step in puddles while walking."

Not very powerful, but insulting... it depends on the situation.

“Fafner, your ‘work’… well, it’s quite unique.” Shangguan Yun carefully chose his words. “However, in a place like a comic convention, it might need some packaging and marketing.”

“Packaging?” Fafnir repeated in a low voice.

"Yup!"

Thor immediately perked up, eager to stir up trouble, and blurted out, "Look at everyone else, they're selling cute girl stickers or action-packed battles, but you're seriously selling curses, who's going to buy that! You should say it's a 'Hardcore Magic Art Setting Collection'! Or 'An Introduction to Dark Magic in Another World'!"

Yu Ishigami's lips twitched: "Miss Tohru, please don't teach him anything stranger..."

Chapter 316 Conan and the Detective Boys

Just then, a few young men who looked like seasoned otaku, wearing anime-style T-shirts, were drawn over by the group, mainly by the several beautiful women with different styles and the cute Kanna, and curiously gathered around.

"Wow, this booth...so cool! Is it in the style of K-pop?" A boy wearing glasses noticed Fafnir's outfit and the booklets on the table.

Fafnir snorted and turned his head away, maintaining his aloof demeanor.

Thor's eyes lit up, and he instantly transformed into a top salesman, picking up a copy of "The Complete Book of Curses" and exclaiming in an exaggerated tone, "You guys have excellent taste! This is a limited edition of 'The Art of Curses from Another World,' containing lost runes and arcane rituals! Buy it and study it, and it will definitely make you the most hardcore person in the circle!"

Ai Haibara added expressionlessly from the side, but her tone carried a strange persuasiveness: "From a semiotic point of view, these runes have unique structures and certain research value. As collectibles, they are very rare."

Kanna also raised her little hand at the opportune moment, pointed at the booklet, and looked at the group of otaku with her most lethal innocent eyes: "Kanna, do you think it's amazing?"

The group of otaku were completely bewildered by this combination of punches. Looking at the "unfathomable" Fafnir, listening to the "professional" introduction, and then being bombarded with Kanna's cuteness, they exchanged glances.

"This seems... kind of interesting?"

"It doesn't look like the typical generic products you see on the market."

"Wouldn't it be nice to buy a copy to keep as a collector's item?"

Ultimately, driven by a complex mix of curiosity, conformity, and (mainly) a desire not to appear inferior in front of beautiful women and young girls, they each bought a copy!

Although Fafnir's face was expressionless, the slight upturn of his lips betrayed him.

As Fafnir accepted the money and handed over the books of "Curse," Ishigami Yu stared in disbelief.

So... it's sold?

Is this world really a world that judges people by their looks?!

He felt that his worldview had been shaken.

Fortunately, Shangguan Yun had told him that these curses were just some simple unlucky events, so he put his worries to rest.

Not to mention that even if some ordinary people actually cast the spell according to this curse, it might not work.

Just as the group began to vigorously promote Fafnir's "Complete Book of Curses," attracting more and more people.

On the other side—

"Conan! Hurry up! If you're any slower, the limited edition models will all be sold out!"

Genta, with his round little belly sticking out, rushed forward while shouting back at Conan behind him, clutching the takoyaki he had just bought tightly in his hand, sauce dripping down his fingers.

Mitsuhiko pushed up his glasses and followed behind Genta, stopping every now and then to look at the cosplayers around him, muttering to himself, "That Magical Girl cosplayer was so accurate, and the props were so well made. I wish I could ask her what materials she used."

Ayumi, however, was drawn to a roadside stall selling plush toys and tugged at Conan's arm, pleading, "Conan-kun, let's go see that bunny doll! It's so cute!"

Conan was being pulled and swayed by the three kids, a helpless fake smile on his face, but in his heart he was cursing wildly.

'You guys practically dragged me here, but now you don't care about my feelings at all...'

He originally just wanted to rest at home and planned to go to the base in a couple of days to have his blood drawn and his hair collected. However, he was tricked by the three guys from the Junior Detective Club into coming here under the pretext of "a mysterious case at the comic convention." As a result, not only has there been no case, but they haven't even found a single suspicious clue.

Thinking about how Shangguan Yun had promised to make her grow bigger for three days every month, she realized she hadn't even asked for his address at the time.

The only thing we can do is go to their base and check things out. Hopefully, we won't run into Gin again.

Although he had experienced the events of the mystical side and knew that Gin was dead and that the current Gin existed as Shangguan Yun's artifact, he still did not want to see the man who had knocked him unconscious and shrunk him.

However—now he also has to deal with these three annoying little devils.

"Can you guys please agree on your goals first? One minute you want to buy models, the next you want to ask cosplayers, and then you want to look at dolls. We can't possibly see everything at this rate!"

Conan rubbed his arm, which was sore from being pulled, and said helplessly.

Just then, Mitsuhiko suddenly stopped, staring intently at a stall not far away. His face flushed instantly, and he tugged at Genta and Ayumi beside him, saying, "W-you guys look! The lady next to that stall is so pretty!"

Genta looked in the direction Mitsuhiko pointed and saw Tohru, dressed in casual clothes, greeting customers at Fafnir's stall. Her voluptuous figure and pretty face were so captivating that even children couldn't help but be drawn to her.

Standing to the side with her arms crossed, exuding a cool and aloof aura, and looking to be about the same age as them, along with Kanna in a purple-pink dress with a chubby little face, the kids couldn't take their eyes off her.

"Wow! So pretty! That older brother is so handsome too! The two girls next to him must be about our age, right?"

Ayumi's eyes lit up, and she immediately broke free from Conan's hand, pulling Mitsuhiko and Genta along as they ran towards the stall. "Let's go say hello to them!"

Conan initially wanted to refuse, but his mind was completely occupied with Shangguan Yun's promised "enlargement magic," and he had no intention of greeting the stranger.

But just as he was about to speak, he caught a glimpse of a familiar figure in front of the stall out of the corner of his eye—short black hair, tall and straight, smiling as he watched Thor make his sales pitch. Who else could it be but Shangguan Yun!

Conan's eyes lit up instantly, as if he'd grasped a lifeline. His previous helplessness and frustration vanished in an instant. He quickly followed, thinking to himself, "Great! I've finally run into him again! This time I have to find out exactly when he's going to help me grow bigger!"

At this moment, Fafnir's stall was bustling with an eerie atmosphere.

The group of otaku who had just been persuaded by Tohru, Ai Haibara, and Kanna's "combination punch" were now excitedly discussing "The Complete Book of Curses."

"Do you think the curses in these are really effective? I want to try the 'walking in puddles curse' to see if I can use it to prank my roommate who always steals my comics?"

A bespectacled nerdy guy pushed up his glasses and said with an expectant look on his face.

Another otaku wearing a hoodie with an anime character printed on it immediately chimed in: "I think that 'one-hour continuous hiccup curse' is pretty good. I'm going to use it on that boss who's always trying to get me to drink at the next company dinner!"

Fafnir sat on a small stool, his face still cold, but the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up slightly, clearly enjoying this feeling of "being recognized." He just pretended to be nonchalant: "Hmph, mortals, it is your honor to feel the power of the abyss."

Thor, watching this scene, laughed so hard he almost fell over, patting Shangguan Yun on the shoulder and saying, "Yun! Look! Fafnir has successfully 'evangelized,' hasn't he? But I never expected his followers to be a bunch of nerdy guys who just want to prank others!"

Ai Haibara added expressionlessly, "From a psychological perspective, this kind of 'curse' with a prank-like nature satisfies people's curiosity and desire for revenge, and it is indeed easy to be popular in the relaxed environment of anime conventions."

Just then, Ayumi rushed to the stall with Mitsuhiko and Genta, looking up at Ai Haibara and Kanna with a sweet smile: "Y-you guys are so cute! My name is Yoshida Ayumi, and these are my friends Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko and Kojima Genta. Can we be friends with you?"

Genta stared at the cotton candy wrapper in Kanna's hand, swallowing hard. "Little sister, what flavor is your cotton candy? Is it good?"

Ai Haibara was startled by the three kids who suddenly rushed over, and instinctively took a step back, a hint of wariness flashing in her eyes.

She's never been good at interacting with strangers, especially such enthusiastic children.

Kanna tilted her head and looked at Ayumi and the other two, blinked her big eyes, and handed the cotton candy wrapper to Genta: "Strawberry flavor, delicious."

Genta's eyes lit up immediately, and he was about to reach for it when Mitsuhiko stopped him: "Genta! You can't just take things from other people!"

Conan arrived at the stall at that moment and immediately met Shangguan Yun's gaze. He quickly squeezed to the front, pretending to be a child, and looked up, saying, "Brother Shangguan! You're here too!"

Shangguan Yun was somewhat surprised to see Conan and his group of kids, but not the Suzuki Group's heiress or Ran Mouri. However, seeing Conan's expression, he guessed what Conan was thinking and chuckled, patting Conan's head: "Conan? You guys are at the anime convention too?"

Chapter 317 Fafnir: Close-up ultimate move?

Wow! Conan! You actually know such a handsome older brother!

Ayumi's eyes widened in shock, bigger than ping-pong balls, and she gripped Conan's arm tightly with such force that Conan couldn't help but grimace.

Mitsuhiko's face was also full of a "betrayed" expression.

"Conan, that's so unfair of you! You kept such a great friend a secret from us all this time!"

As he spoke, he secretly glanced at Ai Haibara, who was standing to the side with a blank expression, before quickly looking away, a suspicious blush rising on his cheeks.

He felt this girl was really cool, but her indifferent expression made him feel a little disappointed.

Genta was even more direct, still chewing on a half-eaten takoyaki, he mumbled, "That's right! Conan, you're so disloyal! And that older sister and that cold-faced older brother, do you even know them? Why don't you introduce them to us!"

As he spoke, he kept his eyes on the half-bag of strawberry-flavored marshmallows that Kanna was holding.

Conan was surrounded by three kids, his ears filled with their sarcastic remarks, and his head was about to explode.

He only wanted to secretly ask Shangguan Yun about growing bigger, but he was caught red-handed by these three guys and accused of "disloyalty".

Sure enough, getting to know these three annoying brats was the worst decision Shinichi Kudo ever made in his life.

"I... I met him by chance!" Conan quickly explained, waving his little hands. "I encountered a little trouble before, and Brother Shangguan helped me solve it. We're not that close!"

"I don't believe you!" Ayumi pouted, directly exposing his lie. "Brother Shangguan just touched your head and called you Conan. They're obviously very familiar with each other!"

As she spoke, she broke free from Conan's hand, ran to Shangguan Yun, and sweetly asked with her little face upturned, "Brother Shangguan, how did you and Conan meet? Does Conan often bother you?"

Looking at the lively and adorable little girl in front of him, and glancing at Conan who was anxiously pacing around beside him, Shangguan Yun deliberately smiled and said, "Hmm, Conan is indeed very 'clingy.' He often asked me for help before. I heard he's also a very good detective."

The three kids all turned to look at Conan, their eyes seeming to say, "Just as I thought, you've been secretly taking on side jobs behind our Junior Detective League's back."

Conan wished he could disappear into a crack in the ground.

Meanwhile, Ai Haibara frowned slightly as she watched the three noisy kids huddled around the stall. She subconsciously moved to the side to create some distance.

She was never good at dealing with strangers, especially energetic and curious children. The thought of being bombarded with questions and dealing with their noise gave her a headache.

"This is really troublesome."

Ai Haibara silently complained in her heart, her face still showing that cold expression, with a hint of resistance in her eyes.

She glanced at Conan, who was surrounded by kids, and secretly rejoiced: if she hadn't met Shangguan Yun, would her life have been as miserable as this guy's?

Tohru noticed Ai Haibara's subtle movements, leaned closer to her, and chuckled in a low voice, "Ai, you don't seem to like children very much? Actually, I think they're quite cute!"

Ai Haibara glanced at her expressionlessly and said indifferently, "Being cute won't put food on the table; it will only bring unnecessary trouble. I'm not good at interacting with children, and I have no interest in getting to know them."

After she finished speaking, she turned around and pretended to study the "Complete Book of Curses" on the stall, but in reality, she wanted to avoid the attention of the little devils.

But the more she tried to hide, the more easily she was noticed.

After Ayumi greeted them, she was quickly drawn to Ai Haibara's aloof demeanor and pulled Mitsuhiko and Genta to her side: "Y-you... hello! My name is Ayumi, what's your name?"

“I…I am Mitsuhiko, it’s…nice to meet you.”

"My name is Genta! My favorite food is eel rice!"

The three kids chattered away like three little sparrows, constantly asking Ai Haibara questions.

Ai Haibara was completely stumped by the questions and instinctively took a step back, looking at Shangguan Yun.

Shangguan Yun also noticed that Ai didn't like to interact with children, but he didn't force her. So he stepped forward and said, "This is my younger sister, Ai Haibara. Ai is a little shy and doesn't like to talk to people."

Ai Haibara cast a grateful glance and silently moved behind Shangguan Yun.

She didn't respond to the little devils because she knew that if she paid them any attention, she would be entangled by them.

The final result will be just as tragic as that guy Conan's.

She'd rather spend a few days doing research at the base than be surrounded by a bunch of kids chattering away.

The three kids sensed Ai Haibara's indifference and her unwillingness to be friends with them, and were somewhat disappointed, but they wisely refrained from trying to get closer.

As for Kanna, she didn't reject the kids' enthusiasm, but sometimes her responses left them speechless.

When asked if they liked butterflies, and the other person replied, "Are butterflies those flying, tasty things?", the group silently took a few steps back...

Conan's lips twitched, realizing that this little girl was no normal person either.

Just as Conan was pondering how to fool the kids away and secretly inquire with Shangguan Yun, Mitsuhiko's gaze was suddenly drawn to the "Complete Book of Curses" displayed on the stall.

His eyes lit up, and he reached for a book, flipping through it: "Wow! What's this? 'Anotherworldly Curse Art Collection'? A curse?"

His voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just enough to attract the attention of Ayumi and Genta.

Ayumi immediately leaned closer: "A curse? Mitsuhiko, what does that mean? Is it something like magic?"

Genta also came over. Although he didn't understand, he became interested when he saw the strange runes and mysterious patterns on the booklet: "It looks amazing! Is there eel rice in it?"

As Mitsuhiko flipped through the booklet, he read aloud, "Look, here are spells like 'Spell to Always Step in Puddles While Walking,' 'Spell to Hiccup for an Hour,' 'Spell to Always Drop Snacks on the Ground,'... Wow, there's even a 'Spell to Always Miss a Test by One Point!'"

"What a... what a vicious curse!"

Ayumi and Genta both gasped in surprise; these curses were simply terrifying to elementary school students.