"What?" The two high school girls froze, not expecting Teacher Jodie to directly admit that she was lying.
After hesitating for a moment, Suzuki Sonoko looked at the meaningful smile on the foreign teacher's face and said suspiciously, "Teacher, don't tell me you ran into some huge problem and said that on purpose because you were afraid we'd worry."
"Hm?" Jodie was a little surprised. In this high school girl's eyes, was she actually that good a person?
That made her conscience twinge instead. Jodie shook her head and said, half sincere and half joking, "Actually, for a very long time now, I've been searching for an extremely, extremely important treasure map—and now, I may have already found it."
"...Treasure map?" Suzuki Sonoko and Mouri Ran never expected that to be the reason.
The two exchanged a look. Suzuki Sonoko's imagination instantly ran wild, and she whispered to Mouri Ran, "Could Teacher Jodie's first love be in Tokyo, so she came all this way especially to look for him?"
Mouri Ran felt that didn't quite add up. "Why would an American's first love be in Tokyo?"
When it came to topics like this, Suzuki Sonoko's mind became lively. Like the sharpest detective, her gaze sharpened, and in an instant she produced countless possibilities:
"For example, Teacher Jodie came to Tokyo on vacation before, didn't know the place or the people, and was bullied by local thugs. Then a handsome guy stepped forward! He saved her from danger.
"Or maybe a handsome guy went to the United States on vacation, didn't know the place or the people, and was bullied by local thugs. Then Teacher Jodie stepped forward! A beauty saved the hero.
"Or maybe they met online and gradually developed a mysterious and romantic internet relationship... Ah! How wonderful. I