The morning breeze blew gently, stirring the sheer curtains by the window.
Traffic flowed steadily along the street below, presenting a lively scene of everything flourishing.
On the fourth-floor balcony, Fujino stood by the windowsill, looking down at the view below.
A moment later, he stared blankly at the "Saturday the 22nd" displayed on his phone screen.
He had known all along just how strange this world's timeline was.
But seeing it for himself, Fujino could not help but remark, "Just as expected of you, Conan World!"
After sighing over it, Fujino shook his slightly muddled head and stretched hard. Only after hearing a crack did he slowly head toward the bathroom.
After a series of rushing water sounds.
Fujino emerged from the bathroom, instantly feeling far more refreshed.
But when his gaze swept over the filthy, cluttered room, his brows furrowed again.
It was a typical single man's room.
Yet Fujino's wonderful morning mood vanished in an instant because of it.
"I should tidy up the room."
Fujino sighed.
Today, he had enough time to clean this hundred-square-meter bedroom. It was Saturday, meaning he did not need to go to school, nor was there any makeup workday.
In the blink of an eye, half the day passed.
As the sun set, Fujino lounged on the sofa and wiped the sweat from his temples.
"A big room really is exhausting to clean."
Fujino glanced at his bedroom, which was comparable in size to someone else's three-bedroom apartment, and could not help sighing.
Cleaning this bedroom alone had already taken an entire day.
As for the other rooms... forget it. He could not be bothered.
Knock, knock, knock!
At that moment, someone suddenly knocked on the door.
"Who would come looking for me this late?"
Fujino was puzzled when he heard it.
It was almost dark already. Other than someone he knew, no one should be coming by, right? Clients generally came during the day.
With that question in mind, Fujino opened the door and saw a woman standing outside, bundled up so tightly that almost nothing showed.
She wore a red bodycon dress beneath a black coat. Her face was hidden behind a black mask, and she looked rather furtive.
"You're Detective Fujino, right?"
The woman was not polite at all. As soon as she finished speaking, she walked into Fujino's freshly cleaned room, looked around, sat on the sofa, and said to him, "I have something I need your help with."
Was that any way to ask someone for help?
Fujino's mouth twitched.
After confirming that this was not some new kind of scam meant to cause trouble, but an actual client, Fujino relaxed and sat on the sofa opposite her.
"A friend referred me here."
The woman spoke softly. "I heard you're very good at keeping secrets."
"Of course."
Fujino nodded slightly at her concern. "As a detective, I have the professional ethics to keep my client's identity and the details of the commission confidential."
In the detective world, Fujino was nicknamed Saburo the Desperate. He took cheap jobs others would take, and for the jobs others would not take, he worked himself to the bone.
Thus, in just one year, Fujino had built a good reputation among detective clients.
His usual commissions basically all came through word of mouth. There was no need for him to put up a sign or distribute advertisements.
"That's good."
As soon as she finished speaking, the woman removed her mask out of trust, revealing her face.
"You're... Yuko Ikezawa?"
Fujino studied the girl before him and spoke in surprise.
That was right, not a woman, but a girl.
Though Yuko Ikezawa looked mature, she was actually only twenty-two years old. Her mature appearance was merely due to how she dressed.
"What, are you a fan of mine?"
When Yuko Ikezawa saw that Fujino recognized her, she immediately became interested and teasingly said, "Want me to give you a signed poster, little brother?"
"No."
Fujino shook his head, refusing without hesitation.
"Tch."
Yuko Ikezawa clicked her tongue at that.
He was not her fan?
Damn it, she had thought he was kind of handsome, too.
Putting away her thoughts, she felt somewhat disappointed. She then took a photograph from her pocket and handed it to Fujino. "I want you to investigate the person in this photo."
Fujino took the photo.
The girl in the photograph appeared to be around twenty. She wore a pink trench coat, had long brown hair, and was very beautiful. She radiated an innocent air from head to toe—a pure, beautiful young girl!
"This is..."
Fujino studied the girl in the photo. She looked familiar, and only after a moment did he remember. "This is Yoko Okino?"
After confirming the target of the investigation, Fujino frowned. "So, Miss Ikezawa, you want me to investigate Yoko Okino?"
"That's right."
Yuko Ikezawa nodded. "It would be best if you could uncover some scandal about her."
"I understand."
A playful smile appeared on Fujino's lips at her words. He then deduced, "If I'm not mistaken, Miss Ikezawa, the reason you hired me is because you resent Yoko Okino for stealing your TV drama role, isn't it?"
"Why are you asking so many questions?"
Yuko Ikezawa shot Fujino a glare and said bluntly, "Five hundred thousand yen. Can you take this job or not?"
"It's a little difficult."
Fujino scratched the back of his head. "After all, Yoko Okino is a popular idol. Investigating her would be... Besides, if this gets exposed, it might not matter much to you, Miss Ikezawa, but I'd be the one who couldn't show my face."
"What exactly do you mean?"
Yuko Ikezawa narrowed her eyes.
Was this guy threatening her?
After a moment of silence, Fujino said, "You need to pay more."
"Huh?"
Yuko Ikezawa looked surprised, with a trace of resentment in her eyes.
If he thought the money was too little, he could have just said so. Why make it sound so mysterious?
She had thought this guy was going to threaten her.
Who would have thought he simply wanted more money?
After remaining silent for a while, she said directly, "Final offer: six hundred thousand yen. How about it?"
She understood that ordinary detectives would not accept this kind of commission. Six hundred thousand was already the limit of what she could offer. If that still was not enough, then she could only give up.
"Boss, you're so generous!"
Fujino put away the photograph and hurriedly poured Yuko Ikezawa a cup of black tea. "Please enjoy, boss."
"..."
Yuko Ikezawa could not help feeling speechless.
Good lord, this guy changed his attitude faster than turning a page.
Was it really reliable to hire someone like this to investigate Yoko Okino?
All of a sudden, Yuko Ikezawa felt as though she had boarded a pirate ship.
Just like that, Fujino accepted Yuko Ikezawa's commission and received sixty thousand yen in cash.
Originally, Fujino had wanted to refuse. After all, following a popular idol carried far too much risk.
But Miss Ikezawa was offering far too much money!
Six hundred thousand yen was no small sum. That was true for Yuko Ikezawa, and it was true for Fujino as well.
Just as Fujino was about to put away the deposit, someone knocked on the door again.
Fujino was puzzled once more when he heard it.
Could another job have come in?
Fujino stored the deposit in the system, then rose from the sofa and opened the door once again. There, he saw a girl standing outside wearing a dark red hat and a pink trench coat.
Fujino recognized the girl. She was Yoko Okino, the very person Yuko Ikezawa had just hired him to investigate.
Well, well. The investigation target had come knocking herself!
But then again, why did this scene feel a little familiar?
Before you continue