Lawless Maniac in Conan's World: Tokisaki Kurumi

But Kurumi had no mind to appreciate the beautiful scenery spread out before her.

Rarely, Kurumi was at a loss.

She did not know what choice she should make.

On one side was what Kudo Shinichi had to go through.

And on the other was whether Asai Seijitsu, this kind-hearted woman, should become a murderer with other people's blood on her hands.

With the sound of waves crashing against the cliffs below filling her ears, Kurumi felt as though she had fallen into some kind of "void," where no disturbance from the outside world could affect her.

After a long while, Kurumi closed her eyes. In her heart, Kudo Shinichi and Asai Seijitsu stood at opposite ends of a scale.

It looks like the plan needs to change.

The scales in Kurumi's heart had already tilted slightly.

Kurumi, who had always treated profit above all else as the principle guiding her actions, let out a sigh.

That night, inside the village izakaya.

Having specifically reserved a small private room that afternoon to facilitate her next move, Kurumi checked her watch and found that it was about time for her appointment with Asai Seijitsu.

Several bottles of liquor sat on the somewhat old table. Kurumi had specifically had her subordinates buy these fine drinks from the city that afternoon.

Listening to the men outside the partition boasting and talking nonsense, Kurumi sat on a cushion and silently pondered.

"Doctor Asai? Why are you here?"

With her eyes closed in thought, Kurumi sharply caught the surprised voice of a man outside.

"A friend invited me, Mr. Aizawa." Asai Seijitsu's voice drew closer.

Then, hearing footsteps stop outside the door, Kurumi opened her eyes.

"Sorry, Kurumi. I'm late." Having changed out of her usual white coat, Asai Seijitsu entered through the sliding door wearing a purple sweater, a black tight mini skirt, and beautiful stockings that accentuated the lines of her legs.

She looked every bit the woman.

"It's nothing, Sister Seijitsu. I was rather sudden this time." Kurumi smiled apologetically at Seijitsu. "Please, sit."

With seven parts confusion and three parts curiosity on her face, Seijitsu noticed the unopened bottles on the table.

"Huh? These drinks?" Although Asai Seijitsu was not much of a drinker and could not really recognize high-end liquor, she had lived in Tokyo. The moment she saw the bottles on the table, she could tell that these drinks, which she had never seen sold on Moon Shadow Island, were definitely expensive.

Seeing Asai Seijitsu's astonished expression, Kurumi smiled. "These are famous drinks I brought from Tokyo. I imagine even if you wanted to drink them here, Sister Seijitsu, you wouldn't be able to."

Kurumi was right.

As an adult, Seijitsu had indeed tried many kinds of alcohol while living in Tokyo. But ever since she came to Moon Shadow Island, she had found that most of the alcohol sold here was very ordinary and cheaply priced.

It was not as though Seijitsu could not accept that sort of alcohol.

But there was indeed an obvious gap between the two in terms of taste.

Setting aside the matter of the liquor's quality, Asai Seijitsu was more curious about why Kurumi had suddenly invited her here rather than to the inn or her clinic.

From Kurumi's every move and the way she spoke, that courteous air did not seem like something that came from an ordinary family.

Combined with these fine drinks that even Seijitsu herself would have hesitated to buy, Seijitsu became even more certain that Kurumi was the daughter of some Japanese family.

"By the way, Kurumi, you didn't invite me out just to drink, did you?"

Though somewhat puzzled, Seijitsu asked in a joking tone.

"No~" Kurumi picked up a bottle and easily twisted off the cap. As she poured drinks for herself and Seijitsu, she said, "These bottles are exclusively produced by some friends of mine. Unlike the kind you can only taste in elegant, high-class places, these are more suitable for... occasions like this."

The moment Kurumi finished speaking, the partition door was pulled open from outside.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. This is the sukiyaki you ordered, miss. The rest of the dishes will be here soon!" With a smile on her face, the izakaya server placed a small stove on the table. Then another server placed a pot of ingredients onto the stove and lit the gas canister.

The blue flame began heating the sukiyaki pot.

After the two servers left, Kurumi handed one of the glasses to Seijitsu, who sat across from her.

"Huh? This is beer?"

Noticing the color of the drink and the thick foam that looked almost like a layer of milk froth, Asai Seijitsu did not know what to say.

The bottle looked like it should contain whiskey or something similar, but who would have expected it to pour out beer?

What kind of brain-dead manufacturer was this?

Seeing Seijitsu's expression, how could Kurumi not know what she was thinking?

"It's just their bad sense of humor." Thinking of that liquor merchant connected to the organization, Kurumi instinctively recalled the old man's wild ideas, as well as the hard-to-describe sales results after his designs were put on the market.

Though the man was indeed unreliable when it came to design, purely in terms of craftsmanship, the alcohol he brewed had a unique charm.

That was why he never made much money, yet never starved either.

Kurumi's tone sounded a little awkward. "But you can't judge this drink by its appearance. Its texture and flavor rank among the best on the market."

Hearing that, Asai Seijitsu took a small sip.

When the room-temperature liquid entered her mouth, surprise appeared on Asai Seijitsu's face.

"The texture... really is excellent!"

Even without a connoisseur's palate, Asai Seijitsu could tell as an ordinary person that this beer not only had a genuine bitterness, but also a rich, mellow fragrance within that bitterness. Its aftertaste was truly remarkable.

Asai Seijitsu sighed from the bottom of her heart.

Seeing the white beer foam on Asai Seijitsu's lips, Kurumi suppressed the wicked thought rising in her heart and smiled. "Right? It is one of that master's proud works, after all."

Hearing Kurumi's words, Seijitsu became even more curious. If Kurumi's friends could know a master with such skill, which family's young lady was Kurumi exactly?

But Seijitsu knew that, for now, it was better not to ask that question.

A few minutes later, the cooked sukiyaki gave off a rich fragrance.

All the dishes Kurumi had ordered had also arrived.

"By the way, Kurumi, why did you suddenly ask to see me?" Remembering Kurumi's unyielding attitude when she spoke to her that afternoon, Seijitsu was curious.

After all, they had known each other for less than a day in total. They should not have been this familiar with each other.

Though they did share the fact that they were both from Tokyo.

"As for that..." After giving it some thought, Kurumi offered the excuse she had already prepared.

"There are some things that are difficult for me to say, because they involve certain matters." Kurumi began steering the conversation with deliberately vague words. "In short, on this island, the only person I can trust right now is you, Sister Seijitsu."

Although Asai Seijitsu did not know the joke about riddlers needing to get out of Gotham, Kurumi's ambiguous words still left her confused while making her heart itch with curiosity.

But even more than that, she felt something indescribable.

Both nervousness and a faint sense of happiness.

"Could it be that you're a detective here to investigate a case, Kurumi?" Asai Seijitsu asked tentatively.

"A detective?" Kurumi drained the beer in her glass in one go, then looked at Seijitsu, who had stopped using her chopsticks and was staring at her. "You could say that in a sense, but I'm not a detective."

I'm someone who trips detectives up, Kurumi said inwardly.

Hearing Kurumi say that she was not a detective, Seijitsu did not know whether to feel happy or disappointed.

"Then why do you say you can only trust me here?" Seijitsu asked. "And if you wanted to ask me for information, wouldn't this place be even less safe?" As she spoke, Seijitsu pointed outside. The continuing clamor showed just how chaotic the place was. "What about eavesdropping, for example?"

"No." Kurumi smiled and shook her head. "Precisely because it's here, our conversation is less likely to get out."

The moment she heard that, Seijitsu guessed the reason.

Because it was too noisy outside, even if someone wanted to eavesdrop, they probably would not be able to hear anything.

"Besides, since we are both from Tokyo, we're practically fellow townspeople. Naturally, we'll have plenty of common topics."

"Especially since we're both women."

Though she knew that was true, Seijitsu still instinctively lowered her voice. "Then what do you want to know, Kurumi?"

Exceptionally curious about Kurumi's identity, Seijitsu truly could not imagine what Kurumi had come here to investigate.

"To investigate... an arson case..." Kurumi said quietly.

Clatter! The chopsticks in Seijitsu's hand fell onto the table.

The moment Kurumi revealed why she had come here, Seijitsu's eyes widened. Her uncertain, startled expression was full of disbelief as she stared at the beautiful girl before her.

Everyone had secrets.

Things... that could not be told to others and could only be buried in the heart.

Asai Seijitsu.

This female doctor from Tokyo was no exception.

Seeing the beautiful doctor in front of her hurriedly pick up the chopsticks she had dropped on the table, Kurumi, now playing the part of an actress, showed a puzzled expression. "Sister Seijitsu, what's wrong?"

"No, nothing. I was just a little surprised..." Asai Seijitsu forced a smile as she explained. "As for fires, Moon Shadow Island has had quite a few over the years, but none of them caused any casualties."

"Except..." Asai Seijitsu's tone was hesitant, as though she were wondering whether she should mention that incident.

"It was the fire in which the pianist, Mr. Aso Keiji, died." Seeing that Asai Seijitsu was still clinging to hope and trying to avoid the subject, Kurumi stated it directly.

"!"

The faint hope in her heart was instantly shattered. As though Kurumi had exposed her deepest secret in a single sentence, Asai Seijitsu froze where she sat.

Pretending not to notice Seijitsu's obvious abnormality, Kurumi turned her gaze toward the fragrant sukiyaki on the table.

"I didn't expect you to be here to investigate that matter, Kurumi..." Asai Seijitsu looked somewhat hesitant.

To keep Kurumi from focusing on her recent loss of composure, Asai Seijitsu deliberately acted curious and instinctively tried to find out why Kurumi wanted to investigate the matter. "I don't actually know much about the fire either. It seems that the villagers here consider it taboo."

"Could it be that you think something was wrong with it because you said the fire was man-made, Kurumi?"

Kurumi glanced at Seijitsu, who appeared calm on the surface but still could not hide her guilty unease, and cooperatively said, "According to what I learned before, Mr. Aso Keiji and his family of three all died in that fire. According to the police report at the time, Mr. Aso went insane and killed his wife and daughter..."

"No! That wasn't what happened!" Before Kurumi could finish, Asai Seijitsu suddenly cried out. "That wasn't what happened!" She immediately realized that she had lost her composure.

Asai Seijitsu's heart pounded wildly. She knew that because she had failed to restrain herself just now, if Kurumi asked why she had reacted so strongly, she would have no way to explain.

Just as she feared, Kurumi had clearly noticed her unusually intense reaction.

"Sister Seijitsu, do you know something?"

When Kurumi looked at her suspiciously, Asai Seijitsu was momentarily at a loss for words.

This concerned her greatest secret. Asai Seijitsu truly could not say it aloud.

"No... To be precise, I don't know much about the details either, but..." Panic filled Seijitsu's heart.

Noticing Asai Seijitsu's slightly trembling body, Kurumi knew she could not pressure her too much.

"Although the police have already issued a closing report on the deaths of the Aso family, there is..." Kurumi seemed somewhat hesitant as she spoke. "Though there are some things I cannot conveniently reveal to you, Sister Seijitsu, I can say with certainty that the tragedy was man-made."

"Furthermore, after investigating some drug traffickers, we learned that one of their routes came through Moon Shadow Island."

"Although we still don't know who on Moon Shadow Island was selling that stuff, combined with Mr. Aso Keiji's identity as a pianist, we came up with a theory."

"Since Mr. Aso Keiji's status allowed him to perform piano pieces around the world, we suspect that these drug traffickers wanted to use Mr. Aso to purchase that stuff overseas and then sell it after returning to Japan."

"As for the deaths of Mr. Aso's family, if our guess is correct, then those people must have forced Mr. Aso to cooperate. When he refused, they feared their crimes would be exposed, so they murdered his family to silence them."

Every word Kurumi spoke was deeply branded into Seijitsu's heart.

Even her expression had frozen on her face in shock.

"Kurumi... you... what exactly are you? Why do you know about something like this?" In her extreme shock, Seijitsu even forgot that her identity was supposed to be that of a female doctor who had come here because she enjoyed rural life.

The words she spoke at that moment completely revealed that she, too, knew some of the inside details of the incident from over a decade ago.

"Could you be a detective, Kurumi?" At first, Seijitsu suspected that Kurumi might be a Tokyo police officer. But recalling that Kurumi looked no older than a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old high school student, she discarded that possibility and began to wonder whether Kurumi might be a detective like the famous Kudo Shinichi.

Kurumi shook her head and denied it. "No."