Mouri Ran sighed. "In that case, shall we head back first?"
Jiang Xia nodded. He was even more eager to get home than she was, though it didn't show on his face.
As if mentioning it casually, he said, "I heard from Conan that their school is holding a group event today, and your father went as a guardian. It sounds pretty lively—since we happen to have time today, why not go there and unwind?"
—There was no way Hattori Heiji would come all the way to Tokyo without meeting up with Conan. Once he caught Conan, where could the Osaka detective possibly run to?
Besides, Hattori alone sometimes didn't have enough output. Like on the way here with Toyama Kazuha, he had only run into one utterly ordinary theft case... Only by letting Hattori Heiji and Conan happily play together could one witness the true golden age of detectives.
Before long, Jiang Xia and Mouri Ran boarded the train home.
He looked at Beika Town on the route map, a restrained anticipation flickering in his eyes.
Although Toyama Kazuha really wanted to meet Mouri Ran and Jiang Xia, Hattori Heiji wore an expression that clearly said he had serious business to handle. She could only follow him, silently watching as he sneaked out of the station, hailed a taxi, and darted inside at top speed, as though something terrifying would latch onto him if he were a second too late.
"I think you're prejudiced against Jiang Xia."
Leaning against the taxi's chair back, Toyama Kazuha condemned her childhood friend. "He came all this way to pick you up, and you ran off. It's not exactly close to Beika Town from here. Doesn't your conscience hurt?"
"If anyone's conscience should hurt, it's Kudo's. I clearly told him to come