Yoko Okino: Am I That Old?

"By the way, could you stand in for him at the press conference later? I don't think he'll wake up anytime soon."

As he spoke, Fujino glanced down at Thomas Schindler, then turned to Kashimura and said, "This is all part of Noah's Ark's plan. Kashimura, you don't want Noah's Ark's wishes to be disappointed, do you?"

"Hiroki... is that really how it is?"

Kashimura started to imagine things. If he were to carry out Hiroki's wishes alone, it would indeed be quite difficult, especially since he had almost been killed by Schindler just now...

Hiroki must have anticipated this, which is why he made arrangements in advance and hired this detective for help, right?

Kashimura suddenly understood, nodded to his accomplice 'Thunder King', and gave him a reassuring look. "I understand, don't worry!"

"That's good."

Fujino pushed open the door, dragged the old man who had been electrocuted, and walked down the corridor.

After glancing around and confirming that no one was around, he quickly darted to a dead-end alley around the corner.

He pulled Poké Ball from his pocket and threw it at Old Deng.

"Biu"

"Boom!"

A flash of inspiration struck.

[Flash Old Man Thomas Schindler successfully captured by the Master Ball!] (Mirage)

Fujino slowly walked forward, picked up the Poké Ball, and put it into his Pocket Dimension.

The downside of the Pocket Dimension is that it cannot store living things; it can only store inanimate objects... Of course, you can store things that have been killed, but there's no need for that.

After knocking someone unconscious or stunning them with Poké Ball, you can throw it out and experience the feeling of a Pokémon trainer capturing a Pokémon.

Unfortunately, you can't brainwash people with Poké Ball.

It would be much more interesting if it could brainwash people.

As I emerged from the basement, the banquet lights were already on.

Fujino looked over and immediately spotted Yusaku Kudo.

Well, you can't ignore it, since that area is the most eye-catching in the entire venue.

He was surrounded by wealthy young ladies and ladies who wanted his autograph and were trying to strike up conversations with him.

"But can writing novels really bring such high popularity?"

Fujino looked at the novelist surrounded by women and couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

"Fujino- kun?"

Yoko Okino peeked out from backstage and called out to Fujino, "Over here!"

"Um?"

Fujino hesitated for a moment, then slowly walked forward.

"I never expected you to attend this banquet..."

Yoko Okino, dressed in a white tuxedo, was clearly surprised to see the detective appear.

She's here, simply put, at the invitation of the organizers to warm up the atmosphere.

It was a large banquet after all, and although the consensus was unclear, some large companies would always invite some celebrities to attend.

As a popular idol, she was naturally among those invited.

After a brief conversation, Yoko Okino said with a hint of regret, "Where did you go Fujino- kun? I had prepared a new song for this dinner party that's about to be released."

"I just chatted with a friend from the organizer for a while... Well, it's a new song, we can listen to it after it's released."

Fujino was somewhat interested in Yoko Okino's new song, but that was about it.

Then, he suddenly remembered something and asked curiously, "By the way, how are Miss Kaoru and Makuma doing? I haven't heard from them lately."

"Those two..."

Yoko Okino gave a maternal smile, then leaned closer and whispered, "Actually, they're already planning to get married. After all, it's such a big deal, so it can't be told to outsiders..."

She paused, then chuckled softly and said, "Speaking of which, they're getting married soon, and Xiao Xun asked me to thank her and invite you to be their best man."

Is that so?

Fujino chuckled softly, "I won't be a best man, but I'll be there for the wedding."

"Well?"

Yoko was taken aback. "Why?"

"Well, maybe it's because I'm a reserved person and don't like being on camera."

Fujino thought for a moment and gave a reason, but it wasn't really true.

He was just worried that if he were to be a groomsman, he would randomly pick a lucky audience member at the wedding and send them away.

It would be disheartening if someone committed a murder on their joyous occasion.

"That's true..."

Yoko Okino nodded, indicating that she was aware of Fujino's character design.

"Everyone, thank you for waiting. The game demo session will begin shortly. Please proceed to the demo area of the cocoon!"

Suddenly, the host's voice came from the side. Fujino looked up, then took out his badge, hung it on his chest, and flicked it. "Let's stop here for now. Let me know when the wedding is. I'm going to play some games now."

"So you're eligible to participate in the game too..."

Yoko Okino was surprised again, but not at all. "In that case, let's go together. I was just thinking of checking out the latest Game machine anyway."

"I really didn't expect this..."

Fujino looked at him suspiciously. "You're interested in games too?"

"..."

Yoko Okino silent for a moment, a hint of resentment in her eyes: Am I that old?

What's wrong with liking to play games?

He's only twenty-two years old, still a young man!

Compared to others, he looks about three or four years older.

Why does it feel like she's being associated with Yukiko Kudo, who's considered a mother figure, in the other person's eyes?

"Miss Yoko?!"

When Mori Kogoro saw Fujino and Yoko Okino coming over, he immediately noticed the idol he had always admired.

He completely and selectively ignored his younger brother.

"I just happened to run into Miss Yoko. She was also planning to come and take a look, so we came together."

Fujino glanced speechlessly at Mori Kogoro, who looked like a lecherous old man, and changed the subject. "But the game seems to be about to start, let's hurry up and go to the exhibition hall."

"Okay, okay!"

Uncle Mori was overjoyed. This time, without the cubs to protect Yuko Ikezawa, he was determined to have a good chat with his idol.

And so, with Mori Kogoro taking the lead, the group followed silently behind, while Ran glared resentfully at her smug father.

The venue for 'Cocoon' was spacious, with a red carpet covering the floor. Directly in front was a huge stage, on which the main character of the day, the Game machine 'Cocoon', was displayed in tiers.

In front of the stage with the giant egg, there are hundreds, even thousands, of seats. Even if all the guests tonight were seated, it might not be enough to fill the seats.

Mori and a few other adults went upstairs to find seats, while Fujino, along with the children, Ran, and Sonoko, headed to the entrance area for the Game machine at the very front.

Wearing badges, they passed through the inspection gate and, led by staff, entered the 'Cocoon' Game machine and put on helmets.

"Helmet donned... Cockpit self-test complete... Cockpit shut down... Connecting host hardware, coupler connected, coordinates reset, fade-in system startup, power settings complete!"

After a series of reports in what sounded like Misato Katsuragi's voice, the game pod started up, rotated, and settled into position.

"This scene gives me the feeling of piloting EVA?"

Wearing a headband, Fujino leaned against a backrest that resembled an insertion chamber, his hands resting on a green, glowing device. With a strange expression, he said, "Won't it go berserk when the power runs out?"

"Game, start!"

"Buzz!"

As the game started, streaks of light began to flash around the game pod, followed by a blinding beam of light.