As the car wound deeper into the mountains, the destination drew closer.
Mouri spotted a yellow Beetle parked on the roadside ahead. "Doesn't that car look kind of familiar?" he asked, his face a mask of confusion.
"That's just like Dr. Agasa's car, isn't it, Conan?" Ran asked the elementary schooler in the passenger seat.
It was a rare model. Could it belong to someone else heading to the meetup?
Conan nodded, a grin creeping across his face.
Mouri parked near a small suspension bridge leading to the villa. The group of four crossed it and knocked on the villa's door.
A middle-aged man in a brown sweater opened it with a smile, instantly recognizing Sonoko. "You must be the magician's apprentice, right?"
"Huh?" Sonoko froze, caught off guard.
She'd thought her disguise was flawless.
Wait a second—that balding old man behind him looked way too familiar!
"Dr. Agasa?" Ran stepped beside Sonoko, her expression one of shock.
So that was the doctor's car.
"Hey there!" Dr. Agasa looked just as surprised, greeting the group with a warm chuckle.
"You all know each other?" asked Aragi Yosuke, the 46-year-old man who'd opened the door, glancing curiously between the old man and the kids.
"Yup," Sonoko nodded. "But how'd you know I was the magician's apprentice?"
At her question, the others in the room—including Dr. Agasa—burst into laughter.
"Your usual chatter probably gave it away," Aragi said, turning to the group. "Right?"
"Exactly," Dr. Agasa nodded. "On the way here, Tsune mentioned that the magician's apprentice reminded him a lot of Sonoko."
"Tsune bro is here too?" Sonoko asked.
"Yup, he's upstairs chatting with Mr. RedHerring."
In a second-floor bedroom of the villa, RedHerring—aka Doi Takki—was not the dashing prince Sonoko had imagined. He tipped the scales at well over 200 pounds, sporting a middle-parted haircut like Mitsuhiko's and a kind, approachable smile.
"Talk about unexpected," Doi Takki said, his voice shifting to a familiar tone as his identity was revealed. He grinned at the Dark Knight munching an apple by the window.
"Rearrange the letters of that alias, and it's obviously Kaito Kid. What's so surprising?" Tsune said casually, gazing out at the snow-draped scenery.
A villa by a suspension bridge, out in the middle of nowhere with no signal—classic setup.
"No, I just didn't expect you to show up here," Kid shook his head. He hadn't pegged Tsune as someone so into magic that he'd trek to the boonies for a meetup like this.
"And no one would expect a famous magician like you to be here either," Tsune smirked. "Got any tricks planned for today?"
"I'm just curious why a dead man is still chatting online," Kid said, his chubby face turning pensive.
The user named DeceptiveChild was none other than the retired magic master, Harui Fuden—except he was supposed to be dead.
Yet recently, that name had popped up in the chatroom again.
Tsune finished his apple and pulled a banana from his pocket. "Revenge killing?" he suggested between bites. Wasn't that the obvious guess?
"Would she really do that…?" Kid murmured, thinking of Harui Fuden's granddaughter, whom he'd just met.
"Looks like the guests are all here. Time to head downstairs for the show." Tsune glanced out the window, watching Mouri cross the bridge and drive off. For some reason, he'd dragged that famous detective along, but if anything happened, he'd probably rush back.
"I'm not exactly thrilled about this kind of performance," Kid sighed inwardly, lumbering after Tsune with his bulky frame.
At the villa's entrance, the group was busy introducing themselves when they noticed the repairman descending the stairs first.
"Tsune bro!" Sonoko called out.
"Where's RedHerring?" she asked, her face brimming with anticipation.
Show yourself, Mr. Doi Takki!
"Right behind me!" Tsune pointed over his shoulder with a grin.
Sorry to disappoint, but if you peel away that layer of bulk, you might find something surprising!
"Hey there, you're the magician's apprentice, right?" Doi Takki plodded down the stairs, scratching his head with a friendly smile.
It was clear he and Sonoko had exchanged private messages online—they seemed familiar.
Sonoko's jaw dropped, her mental image of a movie-star heartthrob shattering instantly.
"Haha, don't you already have a pretty great guy chasing you?" Tsune teased, patting her head to snap her out of her daze.
"It's been days since we last talked," Sonoko muttered, her expression flat. That spark of romance had all but fizzled out.
"Oh?" Tsune raised an eyebrow. "If you're still interested, I can give that guy a call and set him straight."
Ever since their sparring match, Tsune and Kyogoku Makoto had gotten along surprisingly well. Tsune admired the guy's relentless drive to seek out stronger opponents and push his limits.
If Tsune's own progress hadn't been so steady, he might've been out there training just as hard.
"Huh?" Sonoko's face flushed red.
Interested?
Ran, picking up on her best friend's feelings, chimed in with a smile. "We'll leave it to you, Tsune bro!"
Sonoko, still blushing, didn't protest.
"Looks like our magician's apprentice has a lot on her mind!" teased a woman in a navy dress and light blue cardigan. Tanaka Kikue, 28, had shoulder-length hair and a mole by her lips that added a unique charm.
Her username? DeceptiveChild.
"That's just how it is at her age," nodded a young man in a light gray suit. Hamano Toshiya, 27, was neither handsome nor plain, blending in with his unremarkable build.
His username was VanishingBarney.
In the chatroom, he'd posed as a girl, even cheekily discussing lingerie with other women.
And the girl he'd chatted with? Right there in the room.
Kuroda Naoko, 25, wore glasses like Conan's and was above average in looks.
Let's just say Barney wasn't losing out here.
Besides those introduced, the villa's owner, Aragi Yosuke, had hired a helper for the event. A quiet young man in a black turtleneck with a bowl cut, Sugama Kiyohiro, 23, barely spoke a word.
Doi Takki frowned, glancing at Tsune. Something felt off.
The Dark Knight had seen the guest list. The chatroom's leader, EscapeKing, and that ShadowMage weren't here.
So why had Tsune said all the guests had arrived?
"Oh, right!" Dr. Agasa clapped his hands, remembering the gift he'd brought. He bent down, grabbing the cooler.
"We heard RedHerring really loves fish," he said, moving to open the lid and show the chubby Doi Takki.
Doi swallowed hard, a bad feeling creeping up.
Tsune's lips curled into a smile.
Yup, it's exactly what you love.
(End of Chapter)
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