"Akashi, Aunt Yumi has passed away. It's disrespectful to keep staring at her. You shouldn't be looking at her at all! If you really want to look at someone, just look at your sister instead!"
Inside the women's bath, the ever-generous Ran took it upon herself to personally redirect the little boy's gaze, tilting his head toward her.
She absolutely refused to let her Akashi be led astray, turning into some morbid child obsessed with corpses—like a certain bespectacled kid.
And so, to prevent Akashi from ending up like Conan…
Ran decided she had to make a small sacrifice.
No, wait.
This wasn't a sacrifice.
Akashi was just a child!
This was nothing!
However, in the midst of all this, the succubus shota suddenly felt a strange warmth in his nose.
He reached up to touch it—only to see a streak of red on his fingertips.
Blood.
Ran panicked instantly.
She rushed forward, pulling him into an embrace, letting his little head rest against her.
That only made it worse.
Scarlet dripped faster.
More and more.
Akashi, on the other hand, was completely calm—even thoughtful.
Does this count as my own bodily fluid?
Can I use it for my skill?
But after considering it carefully, he sighed inwardly.
No, it doesn't work like that.
There must be some restrictions.
While he pondered over his abilities, Ran was completely focused on stopping the nosebleed.
She quickly cupped warm water in her hands, gently rinsing Akashi's nose over and over until, at last, the bleeding stopped.
Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief.
"Akashi, you nearly scared me to death!"
She still had no idea she was the real cause of his condition.
The next moment, still flustered, Ran instinctively smacked the shota's bottom under the water.
Unfortunately, with Akashi's enhanced physique, her slap felt more like a gentle pat—almost affectionate.
Ran, completely unaware, tried her best to put on a serious expression.
She had to educate this child properly!
"Akashi, listen to me carefully. Next time you're thirsty, you absolutely cannot do what you did in the steam room!"
"That water is dirty! You can't drink it!"
In her mind, Ran simply thought that her little brother lacked common sense.
So, adopting her most mature and responsible tone, she did her best to educate him like a proper big sister.
Unfortunately…
This was not the kind of place where education worked.
Or rather… this environment was only suitable for a very different kind of education.
Meanwhile, Akashi looked aggrieved.
"But I was really thirsty!"
His expression was one of pure innocence, as though he had been gravely wronged.
Then, he muttered in a grumbling tone:
"Sister Ran is so stingy. She wouldn't even give me a little bit of water."
"It was obviously so fragrant and sweet, but she lied and told me it was dirty!"
Boom.
In a single moment, a critical hit.
Ran's face turned scarlet.
Steam practically rose from her skin.
Her mind was on the verge of short-circuiting.
He's just a child! He's just a child!
She tried desperately to convince herself.
But no matter how hard she tried, her thoughts kept spiraling in the wrong direction.
Too many critical hits today.
From the car ride…
To the hot springs…
To the steam room…
And now, right here in the bath.
This little brat kept telling the truth!
And the truth was the sharpest knife.
She had tried so hard to keep everything hidden—only for him to blurt it out in a single sentence.
Her face burned.
This beautiful high school girl, utterly humiliated, finally snapped.
"You little brat—come here!"
Sensing danger, Akashi immediately activated his Lv1 『 Swimming 』 skill!
Like a slippery little fish, he effortlessly slipped out of Ran's grasp, cutting through the water like a pro.
Waves splashed everywhere as he escaped—grinning the whole time.
Ran immediately swam forward, determined to catch Akashi and teach him a lesson.
The hot spring pool instantly became lively, splashing with waves as the playful chase unfolded.
Meanwhile, Kogoro, standing in the corridor outside the guest rooms, had no idea his daughter was having fun elsewhere.
He had just returned from questioning the two elderly attendants and confirmed that no suspicious person had entered the hotel.
As expected.
The bearded detective clenched his fist and punched the wall.
"Of course, it wasn't an outsider."
"If it were really a robbery, there'd be no need to go through the trouble of staging a suicide after the murder."
His voice was low and full of suppressed anger.
"The one who killed Yumi was here for the class reunion today. One of my college classmates."
His knuckles tightened.
"Damn it… No matter who it is, I'll catch you!"
The death of an old friend had completely changed Kogoro's demeanor.
Standing nearby, Conan couldn't help but sigh.
For once, he decided not to use his tranquilizer dart on his uncle.
It was best to simply give him some hints and let him solve the case himself.
After all, this case involved his former classmate—someone he deeply cared about.
If he were to pass out under anesthesia again, he would eventually wake up and start asking questions.
And that would be hard to explain.
With that thought, Conan focused even harder on solving the case.
But just then, he noticed something strange—
Ran was missing.
Not just Ran, but Akashi and Haibara as well.
His brow furrowed as he turned to Kogoro.
"Uncle Mōri, where's Sister Ran?"
Already irritated, Kogoro scowled and smacked Conan on the head.
"How should I know? They have nothing to do with the case! Stop bothering me!"
Conan winced, rubbing the fresh red mark on his forehead.
That was uncalled for…
Muttering under his breath, he walked away.
As he rounded a corner in the corridor, something caught his eye—a statue of a military general.
A Japanese warlord, standing tall despite being pierced with arrows, frozen in an upright stance even in death.
Seeing this, Conan's mind suddenly clicked.
A thought struck him like lightning.
He pressed a hand to his chin, deep in contemplation.
That's it!
At that moment, he completely forgot about Ran.
Meanwhile, back in the women's bath…
Ran finally caught Akashi!
Of course, this was intentional on his part.
After all, with his supernatural swimming abilities, he could easily dodge her forever if he wanted to.
But you can't tease her too much.
Sometimes, you just have to let Ran win.
And so, as part of her punishment, Ran grabbed the little troublemaker, pulled him onto her lap, and delivered a spanking.
Akashi wriggled slightly, but before he could escape, Ran used her weight to pin him down and began her attack.
Slap!
Slap!
The little succubus wasn't sure whether this was a lesson… or a reward.
With his enhanced physique, the so-called punishment felt like nothing.
In fact, Ran wasn't even willing to hurt him—she only gave him a few light taps before gently letting him go.
"Next time you say something so rude, I'll spank you again. Understood?"
Akashi looked up at her, eyes full of confusion.
…That's it?
Who was she trying to fool?
Why not do it a few more times?
Of course, naïve Ran didn't pick up on the meaning behind his gaze.
Instead, she took his hand and led him out of the bath, their wet footsteps tapping against the cobblestone floor.
Akashi clicked his tongue, shaking his head.
Not satisfied.
But Ran had already moved on.
Originally, she had only come here for a quick rinse and to change into fresh clothes.
Naturally, she didn't take long.