After the girls had showered, changed into fresh clothes, and eaten breakfast by the beach, the vacation came to an end.
Each woman, nourished by Yin energy, now radiated with charm and vitality.
It had truly been a delightful getaway.
Everyone piled into Eri's blue Mini Cooper and headed back to Tokyo.
However, Akashi's treatment had noticeably changed.
Unlike the journey to the beach, where he enjoyed resting on Haibara's lap, this time he was completely isolated.
Ran, holding Haibara close, seemed to be angry with him.
Haibara, naturally pleased with the development, smiled like a little fox.
Akashi let out a quiet snort but didn't take it personally.
Spending every day surrounded by women—it wasn't a bad idea to have some peace for once.
Among the group, Eri, who was driving, seemed particularly distracted.
She still couldn't figure out whether what happened the night before was a dream or reality.
Too embarrassed to ask her best friend Yukiko, who sat beside her, she chose to keep her thoughts to herself.
Nonetheless, something had subtly shifted in Eri's perception of succubus shota after last night—something she hadn't yet realized herself.
Hours passed quickly on the road.
By noon, the blue Mini finally arrived back in Tokyo.
Eri naturally dropped Ran off at the Mōri Detective Agency.
The car came to a halt just below the building.
Ran's lavender eyes sparkled as she spoke up:
"Mom, it's already noon. Let's grab lunch at the Poirot Café!"
"There's a new waiter there, and the coffee he makes is amazing!"
Eri hesitated, then turned to ask the group for their thoughts.
Yukiko, already hungry, immediately agreed.
With that, the group exited the car and made their way to the café.
Ran's eyes gleamed with mischief.
Plan: successful!
She knew full well her mother wanted to avoid running into her father. So she took the roundabout route.
Once inside, she'd coax her mother upstairs to meet him. Maybe—just maybe—their relationship could be patched up.
Ran still hadn't given up on helping her parents reconcile.
The group entered the Poirot Café.
Behind the bar were two waiters—one male, one female.
The man was dark-skinned and of average height, with short silver hair.
The waitress had a baby face, gentle features, and soft, flowing brown hair that added to her warm aura.
Akashi recognized them instantly—Amuro Tooru and Azusa Enomoto.
He hadn't expected Amuro to start working at this café so quickly.
Something wasn't right.
Could this guy have already figured out Conan's identity?
Though the thought puzzled him, Akashi kept a neutral expression.
He didn't even glance at Amuro Tooru.
After all, they had crossed paths back in the organization.
If he were to be recognized by this double agent—a man with one foot in every camp—things would get complicated fast.
Fortunately, Amuro didn't seem to notice anything suspicious.
To him, Akashi and the others looked like one big, happy family.
Amuro remained calm, but Azusa couldn't contain her delight.
"Wow, what a cute little boy! What's your name?"
She leaned over with a warm smile. "Tell big sis, and I'll give you a little cake!"
As she reached out to pick him up—
Ran acted swiftly, scooping Akashi into her arms.
The succubus shota once again found himself enveloped in a familiar, gentle embrace. He couldn't help but enjoy it.
"Sister Azusa, this is the brother Akashi I told you about!" Ran said sweetly.
Akashi glanced sideways at her and shook his head.
Woman... you're nothing if not persistent.
Azusa let out a soft laugh as she retracted her hand.
"Oh, so it's him!"
She looked a bit disappointed that she hadn't been able to hold him.
"Little brother, you should come dine with your sister more often."
"I'll even give you a discount!"
As expected, Akashi's charm continued to work its magic wherever he went.
"Thank you," Akashi said politely.
The group took a window-side seat and began ordering lunch.
Meanwhile, Akashi's thoughts drifted into the system interface.
Without hesitation, he initiated a check-in.
"System, come out and start working. Time to clock in!"
The Poirot Café was one of the key locations in the Detective Conan universe.
Unfortunately, Rum's sushi shop next door was still under renovation. Otherwise, he would have checked in there too.
In the system's interface, a familiar scene of the group assisting the protagonist appeared.
The image shimmered in purple light before breaking apart and reforming into a noble treasure chest.
The chest creaked open, releasing several beams of light that instantly fused into Akashi's body.
[Ding! Check-in successful! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Dream Weaving Lv1! Pear God Falling Lv2! Props: Time-Stop BGM × 3!]
[Dream Weaving Lv1: The user—typically a succubus—can enter a target's dreams and influence their emotions or behavior. Some memories or thoughts can even be implanted.]
[Time-Stop BGM: Only effective on high-quality female individuals.
When the target is alone, this can be activated via phone to temporarily freeze time within a localized zone.
The user can act freely within this time-stop zone.
Usable three times. Best results occur in underground parking lots.]
"!!"
Akashi's eyes lit up—then dimmed a little.
Tch. I thought I landed a golden legendary item!
He had hoped for an actual time-stopping ability.
If he really had that, he'd be unstoppable!
He could end Gin with a single headshot the next time they met—no need for long-winded dialogue.
But alas, it was just a temporary BGM effect.
Only worked on one "high-quality" woman at a time.
Kind of mid-tier.
This system really sticks to its usual trolling style...
Still, he admitted—it wasn't bad.
Life was bound to be more entertaining with these new abilities.
As for Dream Weaving—now that had real potential.
He just had to find the right person to experiment on...
As Akashi pondered possible test subjects—
A sharp snort snapped him out of his thoughts.
He looked up and saw Eri staring out the window, her face expressionless.
Following her gaze, Akashi turned toward the street.
Outside, Kogoro was being helped back into the office.
Assisting him were a familiar little devil—Conan—and a muscular man in a suit whom Akashi didn't recognize.
But that wasn't the point.
The real eye-catcher was their appearance.
Kogoro and Conan wore garish coats and wooden clogs.
Each had a Kabuki headband across their forehead.
Their faces and necks were covered in hickeys, and both held paper fans.
Anyone could tell at a glance—
These two had just come back from a wild night out.
So this was why Kogoro got so angry at the beach yesterday.
He'd taken Conan to the Kabuki theater for an overnight escapade!
Yukiko, seeing this scene, instantly exploded with fury.
She hadn't expected that while they came here to eat—
Her son had gone off drinking instead!