Outlaw in Conan's World, Tokisaki Kurumi

Asai Seijitsu.

She was the female doctor who had opened a clinic on Moon Shadow Island a few years ago.

Gentle, beautiful, considerate, kind...

Ever since he first met Seijitsu, Yusuke had felt that he was in love.

Since he already had someone in his heart, Yusuke had let his mother's words go in one ear and out the other.

He had even suspected that, seeing him single for so long, his mother had deliberately talked the other person up just to fool him.

But when the beautiful girl his mother had described really appeared before him, Yusuke knew he had been wrong.

With her graceful figure and those incredibly alluring legs, merely seeing her from behind was enough to throw Yusuke's heart into disarray.

If her back was already this beautiful, what about her face?

Driven by curiosity and impulse, Yusuke suddenly called out.

"Excuse me, can I help you?"

The girl named Tokisaki Kurumi turned around, and Yusuke froze instead.

Beautiful. Undeniably beautiful.

For a moment, he was so astonished that he did not even know how to describe her in words.

She was the perfect blend of an angel's face and a devil's temptation to fall.

"Um, I..." Though she looked to be around high school age, Yusuke, who was at least five years older than her, felt as helpless before her as an innocent boy who knew nothing about love.

"I-I wanted to ask what you would like for dinner!"

The words blurted out of Yusuke in his panic.

Moon Shadow Island Observations (2)

She wore a black mock-neck sweater, paired with black denim shorts and black tights.

Kurumi had loved dark colors like black ever since her previous life, and she still liked them now.

Perhaps that was one reason the system had arranged for her to become a member of the Organization...

Returning to the lobby, Kurumi considered Yusuke's stammering question.

Although the food here tasted fairly good, since she had come as a tourist, she ought to sample some of the local fare.

While scouting yesterday, Kurumi had discovered several small restaurants that seemed to be doing decent business.

Coming from a great foodie nation, Kurumi knew that many delicious foods were hidden away in streets and alleys. They might look simple, but when it came to flavor, they were the most beloved by ordinary people.

"No need. I plan to look around the village for dinner." To avoid making him think she disliked his cooking, Kurumi added, "Seijitsu told me about quite a few places at the clinic last night. I plan to spend more time checking them out today."

"There are quite a few night views to see, so I'll eat outside tonight and take some more pictures afterward."

As she spoke, Kurumi shook the shoulder bag she was carrying, indicating that there was a camera inside.

Upon hearing Kurumi's words, Yusuke had nearly assumed she disliked his cooking.

Fortunately, she only wanted to spend more time outside, which was why she would not be eating here.

For some reason, Yusuke felt relieved.

"I see. There are indeed many beautiful night views on Moon Shadow Island." Trying to hide his embarrassment, Yusuke suddenly realized the key point in Kurumi's words.

"Wait, did you say Miss Asai from the clinic came here last night?"

The mention of the person he had a crush on made Yusuke's tone slightly excited.

Seeing his reaction, the sharp-eyed Kurumi immediately guessed that the boy liked Asai Seijitsu.

And judging from the way Yusuke addressed Seijitsu, he was most likely still secretly in love with her.

In other words, a one-sided crush.

Thinking of that, Kurumi felt both amused at his misfortune and a little regretful.

What a pity. Asai Seijitsu in this timeline isn't a cross-dressing guy...

Otherwise, once this boy learned that the person he secretly loved was actually a man, his reaction would surely have been spectacular.

Kurumi's little wicked amusement came to nothing.

Though she had already guessed the truth, Kurumi put on a puzzled expression.

"Yes. Seijitsu said she works at the clinic in the village," Kurumi replied, feigning confusion.

After confirming the news from Kurumi, Yusuke opened his mouth but said nothing.

He envied Kurumi for being able to call the person he secretly loved "big sister" after meeting her just once last night, while he...

Remembering how his courageous confession had been rejected, leaving them no more than ordinary acquaintances, Yusuke felt bitterness in his heart. At the same time, he was incomparably envious that Kurumi had become so familiar with Asai Seijitsu in such a short time.

This... must be the bond between girls... And they're both from Tokyo, so they probably have more in common.

Damn it! I'm not jealous! Yusuke's heart ached, especially after learning that the two had even soaked in a hot spring together last night. It made him so envious that he wanted to fly to Thailand for surgery immediately.

Uh... maybe I shouldn't have provoked him like that? Watching the almost tangible envy and jealousy radiating from Yusuke, Kurumi somewhat regretted saying that extra line.

Leaving the inn, which was on the verge of turning into a house of resentment, Kurumi found herself unconsciously walking to a white building along the village street with a sign reading Moon Shadow Island Clinic.

Though the building looked somewhat old, the flowerbeds on either side of the entrance, planted with greenery and flowers, showed clear signs of being carefully tended.

Beside a first-floor window on the right side of the clinic hung its business hours.

"Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to noon, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., weekends off?!"

Standing before the board and looking at the clinic's hours, Kurumi felt intensely envious.

Five days on, two days off. Nine to six.

How many corporate slaves dreamed of such a schedule?

Thinking back on her former job, Kurumi could only say that she envied it with her real name attached.

The clinic still had an old-fashioned sliding glass door. Kurumi planned to go in, visit Asai Seijitsu, and perhaps have a chat.

According to what Seijitsu had told her yesterday, she was currently the only doctor working at the clinic.

But that made sense. Moon Shadow Island was not very large to begin with. For minor illnesses and injuries, Seijitsu and two part-time nurses were more than enough to prescribe medicine and administer IV drips.

As for serious illnesses or accidents, the clinic could do nothing.

They could only take a boat to the city across the water.

Pushing open the glass door and entering the clinic, Kurumi smelled disinfectant.

She frowned slightly. She did not like the smell.

"Hello, is there something you need?"

Just as Kurumi was looking around, a woman in her twenties wearing a white coat emerged from a room inside and asked.

"Ah, is Doctor Asai here?" Kurumi asked.

The woman shook her head. "Sorry, Doctor Asai went to a villager's home at noon. She hasn't returned yet."

Then she added, "Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

"No, not at all." Kurumi waved her hand and explained, "It's nothing important. Since she isn't here, I'll leave for now."

With that, Kurumi turned and walked out of the clinic.

Kurumi had originally wanted to probe Asai Seijitsu for more information, but since Seijitsu was not here, there was no point in staying.

"Forget it. I'll deal with lunch first." With that thought, Kurumi followed her memories from yesterday toward that ramen shop.

Half an hour later, Kurumi emerged from the ramen shop feeling that she had wasted her money.

Over the past few years, Kurumi had earned quite a bit through her missions. She could even be considered a moderately wealthy woman. Yet whenever she spent money on something she felt was not worth it, she still felt uncomfortable.

For example, taking Japanese taxis.

And this ramen shop that had looked fairly busy...

The ramen tasted truly awful. Compared to ordinary ramen shops, everything from the noodles to the ingredients had an appalling texture.

Still, not wanting to waste food, Kurumi closed her eyes and finished the unbearably salty ramen.

"Ugh..." Kurumi wanted to complain, but the lingering saltiness in her mouth made her feel that buying a bottle of water to rinse her mouth out would be a better idea.

A Change in Mindset

Group 48874979

She ran to the convenience store next door and bought a drink to wash away the salty taste. Only after downing nearly half the bottle in one go did Kurumi finally feel a little better.

Remembering the taste of that ramen, every feature on Kurumi's little face nearly twisted together, making her look comparable to King Crimson.

Kurumi felt that the ramen shop owner had practically ruined her good mood for the day.

Having wasted money and made herself miserable, Kurumi radiated an aura of irritation. The anger in her heart had even turned her plan to admire the scenery into a desire to find somewhere to vent.

If this had been during a mission, Kurumi would have unhesitatingly used King Crimson to give the target three whole pages of rapid-fire punches, battering them with crazed ora ora like Star Platinum beating up Lovers.

But she could not do that now.

With a sorrowful sigh, Kurumi, as a well-trained senior member of the Organization, quickly adjusted her mindset and prepared to head up a nearby mountain to look out over the sea.

However, just as Kurumi was about to follow the several most famous viewing spots Seijitsu had told her about last night, a burst of commotion suddenly came from the village.

"Hm?"

Judging by the sound, a large number of villagers seemed to be gathering.

Driven by a bit of curiosity, Kurumi decided to see what was happening in the village and why it was so lively.

As she entered the village, Kurumi noticed around thirty or forty villagers in the distance, holding banners and wooden signs as they headed toward the village civic hall.

Are they going to protest? Looking at the villagers' formation and the information she had gathered about the village so far, Kurumi roughly concluded that they were going to hold some kind of protest against the village chief.

As for what exactly they were protesting, Kurumi had no interest whatsoever in knowing.

Having decided it was none of her business, Kurumi was about to leave when she spotted Asai Seijitsu, wearing a white coat and carrying a bag, walking over from the other end of the alley.

Perhaps because she had long grown accustomed to it, Asai Seijitsu showed no surprise at the gathered crowd.

Instead, she amiably greeted some of them.

It was clear that Asai Seijitsu was truly well-liked in this village.

If Kurumi had not known part of the story, she would have thought Asai Seijitsu was merely a gentle female doctor, rather than a murderer who wanted to avenge her family by killing those who had caused their deaths.

Thinking of that, Kurumi felt regret again.

Remembering their conversation in the hot spring that night, and the completely unfeigned gentleness and kindness she had felt from Asai Seijitsu, Kurumi began to waver slightly about her plan.

Do I really have to let a doctor who should be healing the sick and saving lives take other people's lives just so that Kudo Shinichi, that hot-blooded idiot, can grow? Kurumi wondered.

It was like when she had helped Director Ochiai at the art museum.

Though those had all been missions issued by the system, whether to complete them had always been entirely up to Kurumi.

Perhaps because she felt regret for what those people had experienced, Kurumi had helped Ochiai with the thought, Let them handle it themselves. I only need to clean up afterward.

Kurumi knew that, at the time, she had still acted personally because of the mission and her own wicked amusement.

She had not considered the thoughts of the people caught up in the story at all.

It could even be said that Kurumi had always been satisfying the pleasure she gained from placing herself high above everyone else from the very beginning and looking down on all living things.

But now, after coming into contact with Asai Seijitsu, Kurumi could sense that what Seijitsu displayed was not an act. She genuinely loved being a doctor, as well as the tranquility of rural life far from the city.

Honestly, this really is a difficult problem... Hidden in the alley, Kurumi watched Asai Seijitsu leave and felt her thoughts becoming muddled.

With a heart full of worries, Kurumi arrived at a cliff somewhere on the mountain.

From here, she could take in the entire sea at a glance.