"Miss me? Maybe he would have ten years ago, but I doubt it now. Besides, I don't have feelings for him anymore. Ran, just like you and your Kudo Shinichi, I don't have feelings for him anymore. You know this sort of thing can't be forced. Even if we forced ourselves to stay together, I wouldn't be happy." Kisaki Eri explained as she looked at her tearful daughter.
"B-but, Mom, can't you give Dad another chance? Do you really have to get divorced?" Though she understood how her mother felt, Ran Mouri still didn't want her parents to split up.
"Haven't I given him enough chances? Take these ten years since I left. Has he ever come looking for me, apologized, or asked me to come back? No! Not once. He's probably spent every day either drinking or looking at pretty women. How could he spare a thought for me? Am I wrong, Ran?" Kisaki Eri said angrily. At first, she had still held out a little hope for that man. But as time passed, he never came looking for her—not to mention apologizing. Her hope had turned to disappointment, and then to despair. Eventually, she stopped expecting anything from him, and her feelings gradually faded.
Ran Mouri tried several times to say something, but when she thought about what her father was like, she couldn't bring herself to speak. It was true, just as her mother had said: she couldn't force Mom to stay with Dad. As Mom had said, there could be no happiness in a relationship that was forced.
"Ran, even if we get divorced, I'll still see you often. You can come visit me, too. We'll still be just like before. Nothing will change." Seeing that her daughter had fallen silent, Kisaki Eri hurried to reassure her.
"Mom, will you be with Mr. Lin from now on?" Ran Mouri thought it over. As a daughter, all she could do was try to talk them out of it. If both of them agreed to divorce, there was nothing she could do. So she asked about her mother's plans instead.
"I don't know. Lin has to go back to China, and I don't know if he'll ever get another chance to come to Japan. He said he definitely would, but I can't help worrying." The thought brought Kisaki Eri's mood down. She didn't know whether she would ever see that man again, or whether this relationship would end before it had a chance to deepen.
"Mom, then why don't you ask him to stay? Doesn't he like you a lot?" Ran Mouri asked, puzzled.
Looking at her daughter's confused expression, Kisaki Eri explained, "Lin's situation is a little complicated. He has to go back, and whether he can come to Japan again isn't up to him. That's why I'm worried."
"Then... Mom, why don't you go to China with him?" Ran Mouri steadied herself before speaking. She didn't want to be separated from her mother, but she said it anyway. She wanted her mother to find happiness, to have someone who loved and cherished her. She had already had one unhappy marriage and Ran didn't want her to miss out on another chance at love.
Her daughter's determined expression deeply moved Kisaki Eri. "Ran, thank you for understanding and thinking of me. But never mind. If we're meant to be, we'll meet again. When we do, no matter what difficulties we face, I'll stay with him and won't leave. If we never meet again, then we weren't meant to be. I'll keep him in my heart. I'll leave it all to fate."
"Mom, you don't have to do that. You can go with him. There's no need to make yourself suffer." Though Ran Mouri could see her mother's point, she still disagreed and hoped her mother would choose happiness instead.
Kisaki Eri smiled at her daughter's words but said nothing more. She had made up her mind. The rest was up to fate. She hoped it would surprise her and bring Lin back to her, without letting him forget she existed.
While Kisaki Eri and her daughter were talking, Lin Maoxian arrived at the crime scene.
He happened to see Kudo Shinichi, Inspector Megure, and several others discussing the case.
Watching Kudo Shinichi work through the case, Lin Maoxian couldn't help admiring him. He was so young, yet he knew an astonishing amount and had such a wide range of knowledge. He didn't just know things on a superficial level, either; he understood them deeply. It was hard not to be impressed. But why hadn't he received a side quest this time? Was there some condition he hadn't triggered? Or was it because he hadn't gotten involved?
Lin Maoxian was just about to make a move when one of Kudo Shinichi's deductions caught his attention. He headed downstairs. Kudo Shinichi had just said the culprit had thrown the gun down the garbage chute, which was why it couldn't be found at the scene. Lin Maoxian thought this might be an opportunity to trigger a side quest. If he could get his hands on the gun, the things he wanted to do afterward would be much safer, and his chances of succeeding would rise dramatically.
Once he reached the hotel's ground floor, Lin Maoxian slipped into the disposal area while no one was looking.
He looked around inside. No one else was there. Unsure when the police might arrive, Lin Maoxian hurriedly searched through the various bins. Before long, he found what he was looking for in one of them: an ordinary handgun with a silencer, tucked inside a bag. He picked it up and hurried out. This wasn't the place to inspect it, and he didn't want to run into the police and have to explain himself.
He found a random restroom, went inside, and locked the door tightly. After making sure no one could see in, Lin Maoxian took out the gun and checked its stats.
Shoddy Handgun [Quality]: Ordinary [Level]: level 1 [Category]: Weapon [Description]: Twenty years ago, the victim drove the culprit's father to take his own life. For the past twenty years, the culprit had thought of revenge every waking moment. He first disguised himself and gained the victim's trust, then plotted this murder. He had obtained this gun from a member of the **[unclear in source]** through dishonest means. After killing the victim, the culprit abandoned the gun. [Attributes]: 1—The target takes 25 points of damage. (Damage to vital areas is doubled; damage to lethal areas is tripled.) 2—[Shoddy Construction]: Because this gun was cheaply made, it can only fire six shots. Shots remaining: 5/6. (This equipment cannot be taken out of this world.)
"Hm? Why is there such a huge difference between this gun and that ring when they're both ordinary equipment? The ring only gives +2 strength and even has a negative effect. This gun has a powerful drawback, too, but at least it deals 25 damage. That completely outclasses the ring. Why is that? Right, differences are normal. A piece of iron and a piece of steel aren't the same, after all. 'Cannot be taken out of this world' means I can't take it with me when I return to that space after completing all the quests, right? The ring didn't have that note, so I guess I can take it with me. Sigh, there's still so much I don't know about this space. I hope I can learn something when I return." Lin Maoxian stared at the gun, lost in thought.
But the unknown space filled him with longing and curiosity. He wondered if he would someday uncover its secrets.
Lin Maoxian took another careful look at the gun's stats. At 25 damage per shot, even ordinary hits would kill someone in three shots. The vital areas probably meant the body's vulnerable spots, while lethal areas were likely the brain, throat, and heart. If he fought someone and attacked those spots, would he get the damage bonus, too? He'd have to try it sometime. He could think about that later. For now, he needed to deal with the gun.
Lin Maoxian carefully tore open the bag around the gun, making sure not to leave any fingerprints. He picked up the gun and pulled back the slide to check. There were exactly five bullets left. Once he fired them all, the gun would shatter.
He carefully tucked the gun against his body. After making sure everything was in order, Lin Maoxian returned to the scene where the case was being discussed.
When he got there, Kudo Shinichi had just exposed the culprit.
The culprit was the victim's daughter's current boyfriend. His father had been driven to his death twenty years ago, and he had been thinking of revenge ever since. Today, he'd found the perfect opportunity. He could kill the victim and avenge his father without revealing his identity. But he hadn't expected a young man to come along and solve the case.
"Goodness, Kudo, I really can't thank you enough. Without you, it would have taken much longer to solve this case." Seeing that the case had been solved, Inspector Megure hurried to thank Kudo Shinichi. He hadn't seen him much lately and had wondered if he was having some kind of trouble.
"Shh, Inspector Megure, don't say that so loudly. Didn't I tell you? Don't call me by my name, and don't tell anyone I was here tonight, all right?" Hearing Inspector Megure say his name out loud, Kudo Shinichi immediately reminded him. He couldn't let anyone discover his identity. If that organization found out he was still alive, it would be disastrous.
Megure looked confused by Kudo Shinichi's expression. "Kudo, have you run into some kind of trouble? You can tell me. I'll see if there's anything I can do to help. Don't be shy—you've helped me plenty of times."
Though Inspector Megure's words tempted Kudo Shinichi, he thought of the organization's power and could only brush him off. "It's nothing. I have run into a little trouble, but I can handle it myself. There's no need to trouble you, Inspector Megure."
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