In the villa's living room, Kurosawa Hoshino finally met Suzuki Ayako. Sonoko had gone upstairs to call her sister down from resting in her room.
His first observation? She did indeed have those distinctive squinty eyes—just like in the anime. She radiated that gentle, kind older sister energy.
"Hello, I'm Suzuki Ayako. Sonoko's been talking about you nonstop at home. I'm glad we finally get to meet." She smiled warmly.
"No way, Sis! Don't say weird stuff!" Sonoko's face flushed bright red as she protested.
Really? Kurosawa Hoshino wondered. She's not badmouthing me, is she? Given how often they bickered, he figured "talking about him" probably meant complaining.
"Not at all." Suzuki Ayako's voice remained soft. "At home, she's always praising you—says you're even better than Shinichi Kudo. The only bad thing she says is that you're really good at annoying her."
Conan: "..."
Conan was deeply unconvinced. But so far, every case they'd encountered, he hadn't won a single round. Reluctantly, he had to accept it.
"You actually praised me?" Kurosawa Hoshino looked at Sonoko in surprise, only to be met with a glare.
"Hmph~" Sonoko turned her head away haughtily. It was his fault for not trusting her—and for suspecting she'd badmouth him.
Ahem. Kurosawa Hoshino's expression turned serious. "Ayako-nee, would you mind going upstairs and asking your friends to come down? I have a few questions for them."
"Of course." Though she found it odd, Suzuki Ayako headed upstairs.
Sonoko leaned in and whispered, "Hoshino, what's going on?"
Kurosawa Hoshino recounted what had happened outside.
After listening, Sonoko shrugged. "There aren't that many bad guys out there. Probably just someone passing through."
Ran chimed in, "But it is strange. A cloak and bandages wrapped around his face? That's creepy just to look at."
Kurosawa Hoshino didn't respond. Under the two girls' and Conan's watchful eyes, he set down his bag, rummaged for a moment, and pulled out a baton. He gave it a few practice swings and nodded in satisfaction.
Ran swallowed nervously. The photo incident still fresh in her mind, she took two steps back. "Hoshino... why are you carrying a baton?"
Kurosawa Hoshino smiled. "Safety first."
With his Danger Prediction ability, he actually had decent combat instincts. Handling ordinary thugs wouldn't be a problem.
After all, this superpower was like having a predictive cheat code. Every move that could hurt him flashed in his mind beforehand. Against someone of equal strength—or even someone slightly stronger—he'd always come out on top.
Of course, don't get cocky against real fighters. Even against someone like Ran—if he dodged and counterattacked, she could just dodge back and keep coming. He'd end up in that frustrating situation where his mind knew what to do, but his body couldn't keep up.
"I think you're the most unsafe one here." Sonoko backed away and hid behind Ran.
Kurosawa Hoshino rolled his eyes. "Why do you two look so scared?"
"No, no," the two women said in unison, shaking their heads vigorously.
Conan's lips twitched. He suddenly remembered Kurosawa Hoshino had been attacked three times in a single month. Carrying self-defense gear was completely reasonable.
Five minutes later, Suzuki Ayako came back downstairs. Three men followed behind her.
One of them wore glasses and had a massive belly—the kind that screamed "really fat."
"Sis, wasn't there one more person?" Sonoko noticed someone was missing.
"Yes." Ayako nodded. "Chikako seemed tired and fell asleep. I opened the door and peeked in—she was lying on her side under the blanket. I didn't want to disturb her."
"Kurosawa Hoshino! It really is you." One of the men stepped forward. "When Ayako said you called us down, I wasn't sure. But here you are—the famous high school detective. I'm Ota Masaru. Nice to meet you."
"Hello, I'm Kakutani Hiroki." The second man greeted him as well.
The large-bellied, bespectacled man smiled kindly. "I'm Takahashi Ryoichi. Pleased to meet you. Um... may I ask why you called us down?"
"Nothing major." Kurosawa Hoshino toyed with his baton as he recounted the bandaged figure on the suspension bridge.
After hearing the story, Kakutani and Ota exchanged strange glances.
"Kurosawa-kun, to be honest, I ran into that bandaged weirdo on my way here too."
"Yeah... me too."
"What?" Suzuki Ayako's squinty eyes nearly flew open in surprise. "You both saw him? How come I didn't? Takahashi, what about you? Did you see him on your way?"
"Yes." Takahashi Ryoichi nodded.
Kurosawa Hoshino studied Takahashi carefully. His gaze landed on the back of the man's left hand. "Mr. Takahashi, what happened to those scratches?"
"Ah, these..." Takahashi smiled wryly. "Some bug in the forest bit me on the way here. Itched like crazy, so I scratched them open myself."
Kurosawa Hoshino didn't press further. Instead, he turned to Suzuki Ayako. "Ayako-nee, could you go upstairs and get your friend?"
"Okay." Ayako headed for the stairs.
Takahashi Ryoichi's expression flickered. His eyes darted across the room, fists clenching nervously.
"Um... I need to use the restroom."
"Mr. Takahashi, no rush. Wait until Ayako-nee comes back."
"Sorry, I really can't hold it."
"Then I'll go with you."
At those words, no one in the room was stupid. They all realized Kurosawa Hoshino was targeting Takahashi.
Conan frowned, puzzled. Why is he being so cautious? Calling everyone down first, now cornering Takahashi—just because they saw a bandaged stranger?
"Kurosawa-kun, what are you implying?" Takahashi's tone sharpened with anger, but his expression remained anxious—like someone who genuinely needed the bathroom.
"Something's wrong! Chikako's in trouble!"
Suzuki Ayako's shout echoed from upstairs.
Conan didn't hesitate. He bolted toward the stairs.
The others snapped out of their daze and rushed after him.
But Takahashi Ryoichi stood frozen.
Kurosawa Hoshino stayed put too.
A long, heavy silence passed.
Finally, Takahashi spoke. "Kurosawa-kun... something's happening upstairs. Aren't you going to check?"
As he spoke, he subtly lifted the edge of his shirt, reaching inside.
"I—"
Before Kurosawa Hoshino could finish, his Danger Prediction ability flared.
An image slammed into his mind:
Takahashi Ryoichi's face twisted into a ferocious grin as he lunged forward. An axe gleamed in his hand, swinging straight for Kurosawa Hoshino's head.