After solving a few cases, requests to appear on TV kept pouring in.
My manager begged me earnestly, so I agreed to appear once or twice.
Then he kept booking broadcast schedules for me.
"I told you, I'm busy with school."
When I threatened to fire the current manager and hire a beautiful one if this continued, he looked like he was about to cry and finally backed down.
We decided to limit broadcasts to once a month.
'Seriously, I came here to relax, not to work.'
Actually, I didn't care if I didn't make money.
My inventory was overflowing with gold bars.
After school, Ran and Sonoko suggested we go downtown to eat something nice.
So I was taking Conan with me.
"I ended up going to the after-party for Rex Live this Sunday."
"So I was wondering, why don't you and Ran go on a date?"
"Hmm... I get a bad feeling this time too, so I think it's better not to go."
"Why does Sonoko always get invited to weird gatherings?"
"What, really?"
"Ha... It was such a hard time getting this opportunity."
"I guess I should just give up."
A week passed, and the news reported that Tatsuya Kimura, the vocalist of the group Rex, had committed suicide.
It was actually a murder case, and the manager was the culprit.
But since it was an incident caused by both of them acting like idiots due to a misunderstanding, I decided to let it slide this time.
After all, Conan attracts so many incidents and accidents that getting involved in every single one would be incredibly exhausting.
The next day, when I arrived at school, Sonoko grabbed me and shook me.
"Jin! Tell me my fortune."
"I don't know why a murder happens wherever I try to go these days..."
'That's because it's not you, but the Grim Reaper named Conan who is nearby...'
"Hurry!"
"I feel like some kind of curse has been placed on me!"
"Y-yes."
I pretended to give her a quick fortune reading.
Then I gave her a few spoilers from the original story.
"Hmm... Oh~ It says you'll get a boyfriend this year?"
"Wow~ Really?"
"Yeah, and it says something good will happen to your family too."
"I don't know what that is, though."
Sonoko looked up at the sky with sparkling eyes, clasped her hands together as if in prayer, and spoke.
"Heaven must have taken pity on me and is blessing me~"
"Y-yes..."
I reached out my hand to Sonoko.
She hesitated for a moment, then took my hand with a shy look on her face.
"Come on... Jin... people will think this is a classroom..."
I don't know what kind of strange misunderstanding she has.
"I told your fortune, so you have to pay me."
"Otherwise, it won't work."
Sonoko blushed, perhaps embarrassed by her misunderstanding.
After a moment of fluster, she took money out of her wallet and handed it to me.
"Ugh... I get it..."
As expected of a rich girl, Sonoko handed me a large sum.
So I took half and returned the other half.
Time passed, and as today's class was about to end, I noticed Ran had a worried look on her face.
So I asked her.
"Is something wrong?"
"About Jin, Conan... his parents haven't visited even once and haven't contacted me."
"So I'm worried..."
"Didn't you say last time that Conan's parents were being transferred overseas?"
"They'll probably contact you once they settle in."
"Well... it's been so long, you see."
"I was worried you might have forgotten about Conan..."
'Ah!'
'Could this be the episode where Conan's parents come?'
I racked my brain for a moment, trying to figure out how to send that annoying Conan abroad.
No matter how much I thought about it, no idea came to mind.
There was nothing I could do if Conan insisted on staying.
'Still, there must be a way to give him a huge slap in the face...'
"Jin? What are you thinking about?"
"I received some alcohol as a gift from the place where I was hired."
"But since he's still a minor, I was thinking of giving it to you, Detective."
"Is that okay?"
Actually, if I received something like that, I'd just drink it myself.
This was just an excuse to go to the Mori Detective Agency.
"Dad will like that."
"Then let's stop by my house first and then go to the agency together."
"Okay."
I put Ran on the motorbike, stopped by my house for a moment, took out about two bottles of decent liquor from my inventory, put them in a shopping bag, and headed to the Mori Detective Agency.
When I arrived at the office, Conan was playing a game on TV, and Kogoro saw me and greeted me warmly.
"Welcome, son-in-law, hahahaha."
Even though Kogoro called her son-in-law now, Ran didn't say much.
"It's been a while, Detective."
"The fortune telling about the son-in-law was right."
"I've been getting a lot of work lately."
"I guess you really are the lucky charm, hahahaha."
At those words, Conan stopped playing his game and glared at Kogoro.
It was as if I could hear the words "Thanks to whom?" coming from Conan's mouth.
The atmosphere in the office had certainly brightened compared to the early days.
Since they were taking on many cases, the place was well-cleaned.
And Kogoro was no longer slovenly and unshaven like before, but was neatly dressed.
"It's just that I've been receiving various gifts while working as an Onmyoji."
"And some good liquor came in."
"Since I'm still a minor, I wanted to give it to you, Detective..."
"Oh, really?"
I placed the shopping bag on the table.
Kogoro then took the liquor out of the bag and looked at it.
"This... is 'Royal Salute 38-year-old' and 'Macallan 25-year-old.'"
"Is it really okay to give something like this to a son-in-law?"
"The two bottles combined would be about 400,000 yen."
"And Macallan 25-year-old is in short supply, so the price will go up just by having it..."
As expected, Kogoro knew a thing or two about liquor.
Even Ran was surprised to hear the price.
"Eh~!! Was that liquor that expensive?"
"Don't worry."
"We have a few more bottles at home."
"Since I've been taking work from the rich lately, they send me a lot of gifts like that."
"Is that so?"
"Hahahaha, I really chose a good son-in-law."
"Well then, I'll gratefully accept it, hahahaha~"
"Have a good rest on your way~"
Kogoro carried the liquor to his room, handling it like a baby.
"Oh, my little darling~ Kiss!"
At that sight, Conan, Ran, and even I looked at Kogoro with disdain.
I looked at the game Conan was playing and said,
"Oh~ This is Tekken."
"Conan, want to have a match?"
Conan looked at me and spoke as if to say, "Do you think someone like you can beat me?"
"Hehehe, do you think you can beat me, hyung?"
"Believe it or not, I'm quite a pro."
"I see."
"Then please go easy on me."
I totally crushed him.
My visual acuity and reaction speed exceed frame-by-frame, so ordinary people couldn't even stand a chance against me.
"This is unbelievable..."
"Hahaha, the world is vast, Conan."
"Damn it!"
"Let's play another round!"
"Sure."
Just then, Ran spoke to Conan with a worried look on her face.
"Wait a minute, Conan."
"I'm talking about your parents."
"It's been a long time since they transferred overseas."
"Don't you even miss your mom and dad?"
"It's fine."
Hearing that, Kogoro also spoke up.
"Good heavens, they are quite something."
"To think they haven't visited even once or even contacted us..."
"You said Professor Agasa entrusted this to you, right?"
"Yes."
"Then, I'll go ask for your parents' contact information."
As the atmosphere took an awkward turn, Conan fidgeted nervously and broke out in a cold sweat.
Just then, the doorbell rang in the office.
Ding-dong~
"Yes~ I'm here!"
Ran opened the door, chatted with the person who had just arrived, and then shouted loudly to us with a bright face.
"Conan!"
"You're here!"
"Huh?"
"Your mother is here!"
A well-dressed woman was standing at the open door.
She entered the office, saw Conan, immediately hugged him, and spoke in tears.
"I'm sorry, Conan."
"How lonely you must have been all alone."
"But now, let go."
"Let's go home with Mom!"
"Huh???"
Conan, flustered, pushed the woman away and said,
"Who are you!!??"
"Oh my, Conan... you're really angry."
"Because I left you alone for so long."
Just then, I stepped forward, hid Conan behind me, and said,
"Who are you?"
"What is your purpose?"
"Eh???"
Ran and Kogoro looked surprised as I stepped forward.
"Jin, what are you talking about?"
"That person isn't Conan's mother."
"She's wearing an elaborate mask on her face and has stuffed her body with padding to deliberately look fat."
"What?? Really???"
"That's right."
"Disguise doesn't work on me."
I looked back at the woman and spoke.
"What is your real identity?"
"Why are you trying to kidnap Conan?"
The woman hesitated for a moment, then sighed and spoke.
"Damn, I've been caught..."
"I never knew the Onmyoji Jin I'd only heard about would be this sharp..."
"I guess it can't be helped."
She tore off her mask and revealed her identity.
She was Shinichi's mother, Yukiko Kudo.
"Oh, ma'am!"
"Yukiko!"
Kogoro was a high school classmate of Yukiko's, and Ran also knew her well, having seen Shinichi's mother a few times when she was young.
Furthermore, Yukiko Kudo was a famous actress.
She was also a beautiful woman who maintained considerable looks despite being 38 years old.
Conan looked surprised to see his mother, too.
"Right, nice to meet you."
"But why Conan?"
"Well... he's a friend's child."
"And since he said he's too busy, I thought I'd take him with me to a foreign country where his parents live since I'm here anyway."
Yukiko tried to come up with an excuse to get Conan out of her way.
I looked back and forth between Yukiko and Conan.
"Huh? That's strange..."
"Jin, what's wrong?"
"Seeing Yukiko without her mask, I feel like I can see a mother-son bond between her and Conan..."
"Am I mistaken?"
At my words, Yukiko and Conan were extremely flustered.
"N-no way..."
"You must be mistaken, hahahaha..."
I pretended to be deep in thought before speaking.
"That's strange..."
"I wouldn't be mistaken..."
"If I read souls, it would definitely be..."
When Conan saw me looking so thoughtful, he hurriedly grabbed Yukiko's hand and tried to leave.
"I'm going to be right back after talking to Auntie and my parents for a moment."
"Y-yes, I'll be right back in a bit!"
As Conan pulled Yukiko's hand, signaling them to hurry out, she hurriedly said goodbye and rushed outside.
Seeing this, Ran asked me with a serious expression,
"Is it true?"
"That Conan and Aunt Yukiko have a mother-son bond?"
"I don't know yet."
"I might have been mistaken."
"I think I'd know for sure once I read both of their souls."
Just then, Kogoro spoke to me.
"Son-in-law, you received a nice gift, so stay for dinner."
"Understood."
Hearing that, Ran said to me,
"Jin, do you want to go grocery shopping with me?"
"I'll make something delicious for you today."
"Sure."
Ran and I rode our motorcycles to the village market and started buying various ingredients.
Perhaps because I had received expensive liquor as a gift, I intended to buy some expensive meat as well.
But seeing Ran hesitate for a moment, it seemed like I was overspending.
"This is what I want to eat, so I'll pay."
"Jin, we're treating you..."
"No."
"I want to eat this, so I can't burden you just because you're a guest."
I bought enough meat for five people to eat their fill, paid, and returned to the office.
Conan and Yukiko had also returned, presumably having finished talking.
However, Conan didn't look very happy.
"You're hungry, aren't you?"
"Just wait a moment."
"Ran, I'll help too."
I prepared a meal next to Ran using the ingredients we bought.
I put a lot of care into making it, utilizing my ability.[Cooking]
Since there were quite a few people, we decided to eat at the office table.
So I placed the dishes one by one.
Kogoro said, drooling.
"Oh, that looks delicious!"
"Hahaha, more is coming, so please wait a moment."
"It's nice to see the future couple cooking together, hahahaha."
Upon hearing this, Yukiko's expression darkened as well.
There was a reason for this; Yukiko knew that Shinichi had liked Ran since childhood.
That is why she cherished Ran and treated her like her own daughter.
Consequently, she was hardly pleased by Kogoro's words.
"Hey, you know, fortune telling can be right or wrong, right?"
It seemed Yukiko had also heard the prediction that I would marry Ran.
"That's how ordinary fortune tellers or charlatans do it."
"My son-in-law is different."
"He even used Yin-Yang magic to catch the culprits in a few cases recently."
"But..."
Yukiko was about to say something, but I brought the food over and placed it on the table, saying,
"This is Bulgogi, a Korean-style meat dish."
"Oh, son-in-law, I didn't know you could cook a dish like this?"
"Hahaha, I just cook at home as a hobby."
With that, I prepared a few more dishes and placed them on the table, and the meal began.
Yukiko marveled at the food I had made.
"Wow, it's so delicious."
"I'd even like to learn how to make it."
"Right? There's nothing a son-in-law can't do, hahahaha."
"You are exaggerating."
As Kogoro continued to brag about me without any sense of tact, Ran blushed with embarrassment.
And Conan looked unhappy despite enjoying the delicious food.
After finishing the meal, I prepared a simple dessert and tea.
After eating the dessert, Yukiko said,
"Even the dessert is delicious."
"It felt like I was eating at a high-end restaurant run by a famous chef."
"Phew, thanks to my son-in-law, I really enjoyed a good meal for the first time in a while."
"And since Conan doesn't want to leave Japan, I was thinking of asking for a little more."
"That's a bit..."
Kogoro looked troubled at those words and seemed about to refuse, but
"This is child support."
"It's from Conan's parents."
Yukiko handed Kogoro a bankbook.
"Wow! 10 million yen!"
Seeing that, Kogoro's eyes sparkled, and he said with a smile,
"Hahaha, tell her I'll look after her forever."
"Alright."
"Then I'll leave it to you."
With that said, as Yukiko was about to leave, we also went outside the office to see her off and say goodbye.
After seeing Yukiko off, Conan looked at me and said,
"I won't lose!"
"Huh? What?"
"Ahahaha, Tekken!"
"Hahaha, yeah, practice hard."
'With this, even if I can't send her abroad, I guess I've at least dealt her a blow?'