"Let me see..."
"Yoshiki, you have a straight figure, so something like this will look great on you."
"The suit he wore at the book signing was very handsome."
"Take one of these white and black shirts, and pair them with some nice ties."
In a men's clothing store, Eri Kisaki was enthusiastically giving fashion advice to Hayashi Yoshiki—she stood before him, hand on chin, inspecting him like a professional stylist.
Every time he tried on a shirt, she handed him a jacket. Sometimes she had him test different shades of the same style.
Hayashi Yoshiki was cooperative.
Partly because Eri Kisaki genuinely had good taste, and partly because she personally seemed to favor formal attire herself—which was obvious from the way she always dressed.
"Let's go with these for now."
After selecting the most flattering outfits, Eri Kisaki nodded in approval, then turned to him and asked, "Yoshiki, is there anything else you'd like to look at?"
"Mm, I'll just grab a couple of T-shirts. Sometimes I want to wear something a bit more casual."
"Good."
She called over a shop assistant.
Once all the clothes were packed, Eri Kisaki paid with her card.
But money wasn't a concern for either of them—Eri Kisaki was doing quite well, and so was Hayashi Yoshiki. In truth, she was happy to treat him.
Hayashi Yoshiki was only a few years older than Ran.
This made Eri Kisaki wonder—if she had a son, maybe she would have dressed him like this, too.
"Ran said she'll be here around 4:30, so let's go to the café and wait for her."
"Okay."
Hayashi Yoshiki had no objections.
The café was only ten minutes away.
After sitting down and ordering, the two chatted casually. Before long, they spotted Ran Mouri approaching the entrance.
The moment she saw her daughter, a bright smile lit up Eri Kisaki's face. She waved at Ran, then scooted over slightly on the sofa to make room for her.
"Mom. Yoshiki-nii."
Ran's tone was soft and a little shy.
She had just come from school and was still wearing her Teitan High School uniform: a white shirt and tie under a blue blazer, with a blue pleated skirt.
At 16, she didn't wear makeup yet, but her pure features had clearly inherited her mother's beauty—especially those bright, gem-like eyes.
"Come sit. Ah—who's this little one?"
Eri Kisaki smiled as she spoke, then noticed a small elementary school-aged boy trailing behind Ran.
"This is Conan. He's staying with us for now. He's one of Shinichi's relatives," Ran explained with a helpless smile. "When he heard I was going out, he insisted on tagging along."
"I see..."
Eri Kisaki thought he looked a bit familiar, but didn't give it much thought.
"Hello, Yoshiki-nii."
Conan looked up with a smile at Hayashi Yoshiki.
Hearing that deliberately sugary voice, Hayashi's grip on his coffee cup tightened slightly. Still, he returned the smile politely.
Ran sat next to her mother, and Conan took the seat beside Hayashi Yoshiki. They all wore smiles, but inwardly, emotions were brewing.
(So the "date" Ran mentioned… really was with him?)
Conan felt a pang of heartbreak.
He had seen Ran excitedly preparing to go out, and when he asked, she said she was "going on a date"—it had hit him like a bolt of lightning.
He had only just become a child… and now his childhood sweetheart was being charmed by a handsome older guy?
How could he bear it!?
"So, Ran-san is here on a date with Yoshiki-san?"
"Huh?"
Conan's words made Ran's eyes widen. When she noticed Hayashi Yoshiki look slightly taken aback as well, she blushed furiously.
"Don't talk nonsense, Conan! The 'date' I mentioned was with my mom!"
"Ah, I see!"
Looking at the mother-daughter duo seated across from him, Conan finally felt a bit of relief.
But then, Eri Kisaki spoke:
"Well, I did arrange today's outing, Ran. But if you're interested, you two should spend more time together. After all, you're cousins."
"But Yoshiki-nii must be really popular, right?" Conan chimed in immediately, voice rising slightly. "It must be hard to even get an appointment with him. Even Ayumi from my class hasn't stopped talking about Yoshiki-nii since that day."
"Don't jump to conclusions based on a single impression."
Hayashi Yoshiki found it amusing to watch Conan, who appeared calm on the outside but was likely screaming internally.
"Well, Yoshiki's lifestyle is quite clean and healthy," Eri Kisaki added, nodding approvingly.
"…"
Conan was at a loss for words.
Then Hayashi Yoshiki looked directly at him.
"You know, you really do look a lot like Kudo Shinichi."
"—!"
Conan's body stiffened instantly.
He forced an awkward laugh. "That's because... I'm related to Shinichi-nii!"
"Now that you mention it, I do remember. This child... really does look just like Shinichi did as a kid," Eri Kisaki said with surprise.
"Right? I thought the same thing when I first saw him."
"Exactly the same?" Hayashi Yoshiki asked.
"It sure seems like it," Ran nodded, a bit uncertain.
As Conan felt cold sweat bead on his forehead, Hayashi Yoshiki calmly pulled out a notebook and pen and began scribbling notes.
Trying to change the subject, Conan asked with a strained laugh:
"Yoshiki-nii, what are you writing?"
"I just came up with an interesting story idea: A famous detective suffers an accident during an experiment and reverts to his 8-year-old body. In order to return to normal and expose the organization behind it all, he starts solving cases as an elementary school student—"
"That's so cool!" Ran exclaimed, her eyes shining.
"It does sound intriguing," said Eri Kisaki, thinking critically. "But a child detective might be better suited for a younger demographic."
"Right. So it might not work as a novel—maybe a comic would be more appropriate." Hayashi Yoshiki nodded, then looked over at Conan with a soft smile. "What do you think, Conan? Sounds good?"
"…Ahahaha, I-I don't know…"
Please stop!!
Can mystery novelists not have such terrifying imaginations?!
Conan sat there drenched in cold sweat, eyes wide with horror as he looked at Hayashi Yoshiki—whose expression was still gentle, but whose pen had paused mid-sentence as he carefully observed Conan… before continuing to write again.