"Ahhh—! That was amazing!"
Shinichi Kudo stretched his arms wide as he stepped off the Drop Tower, grinning from ear to ear.
"That was seriously thrilling! It's a shame you didn't come on, Ran!"
Ran Mouri opened her mouth, clearly wanting to say something, but with all the other parkgoers around, she swallowed her frustration and forced a polite smile instead. "Why don't we try something a little… less extreme? Like the Ferris wheel?"
"Ferris wheel? What's so fun about that? It's so slow," Shinichi groaned—then, catching her expression, immediately backpedaled. "Ah, but, uh, I've never ridden this one before! Maybe it's different from the others!"
That saved him. Ran's face softened. "Then let's go!"
The two of them made their way toward the Ferris wheel line—just in time to bump into Ren Kuroda and Sonoko Suzuki stepping out of one of the gondolas.
"Kuroda-kun! Sonoko!" Ran called, waving brightly.
"Ran!" Sonoko answered, hurrying over with her usual energy.
Ren smirked. "So, Shinichi—how was the Drop Tower?"
"Fantastic! Super intense!" Shinichi replied with enthusiasm, then sighed regretfully. "It's just too bad Ran didn't want to try it. Hey, how about we go again later? Just you and me?"
Ren stared at him. The guy's face was completely serious. He really means it.
Suppressing a sigh, Ren gave a half-hearted nod. "Sure. Why not."
"Shinichi! It's our turn!" Ran called from inside the gondola.
"Coming!" Shinichi turned to Ren and Sonoko. "You two go on ahead, I'll catch up later!"
As soon as he disappeared into the Ferris wheel cabin, Ren turned to Sonoko. "Where to next?"
Her eyes sparkled. "Go-karts! Let's do the go-karts! They look so fun!"
"Alright," Ren said, amused by her excitement. "They're this way."
But as they walked, the crowd around them thickened. Without thinking, Ren reached back and caught her hand. "Hold on tight. Don't get separated."
"Y-yeah… okay," Sonoko stammered, her cheeks flushing crimson.
She couldn't believe it—just like that, they were holding hands!
Her gaze lingered on their joined fingers, her smile growing wider by the second until she looked completely dazed with happiness.
Ren glanced sideways at her and sighed inwardly. Hopeless. Absolutely hopeless. People in love are way too easy to handle.
He hadn't even done anything, and she'd already fallen headfirst.
By noon, the two of them had hit most of the rides worth trying. Deciding to regroup, Ren and Sonoko headed off to find Ran and Shinichi.
As soon as they met up, Sonoko launched into a cheerful play-by-play of her "date," her words bubbling out faster than she could breathe. Ran listened with obvious envy in her eyes.
Shinichi, meanwhile, was already bouncing on his heels. "Ren, come on! While they're resting, let's hit the Drop Tower again!"
"Sure," Ren said casually.
After letting Ran and Sonoko know where they were headed, the two of them made their way back to the towering ride.
Since most sane people weren't eager to be hurled fifty meters into the air and dropped like stones, the line was short.
Within ten minutes, they were seated and ready. After stowing their phones and keys, they pulled down the safety harnesses.
Once the attendants checked the restraints, the ride jolted slightly and began to ascend.
"It's starting, it's starting!" Shinichi gripped the handles tightly, his face glowing with childlike excitement.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Ren pulling out—was that a binoculars set?
"Wait—how did you even bring that on?" Shinichi blurted.
Ren's tone was casual. "It's been hanging around my neck the whole time."
Of course, the truth was that he'd just bought it from the System's black-market shop seconds earlier.
He lifted the lenses, scanning the skyline with practiced precision.
There.
Chianti.
She was perched atop one of the observation towers, sniper rifle in hand, just as he remembered from the reset timeline.
So that's her position… but where's Korn?
He turned his binoculars, searching again—
—and then the Drop Tower plunged.
The world dropped out beneath him in a gut-lurching rush, wind screaming in his ears.
Ren had to lower the binoculars or risk sending them flying. The violent rotation and sudden stops made it impossible to focus on anything.
All around, tourists shrieked in terrified delight, but Ren sat perfectly calm. The enhanced reflexes and nerve control from his Outlaw System's genetic booster serum made him nearly immune to vertigo.
He wasn't frightened—just slightly annoyed at the shaking.
After a few more bone-rattling spins, the Drop Tower finally slowed, descending back to ground level.
Ren tried once more to locate Korn's position, but his head was spinning now, and he gave up with a sigh.
Once on solid ground again, he tucked the binoculars out of sight and grabbed his belongings.
"You're not afraid of heights?" Shinichi asked, astonished.
"Nope," Ren replied honestly. "Doesn't really bother me."
The System had toughened him to the point that fear itself felt… distant.
Confidence was a powerful drug—and Ren was overdosing on it.
"Man, I wish I could be like that," Shinichi said, half admiring, half jealous. "As a detective, you're supposed to stay calm no matter the situation… but I still lose my cool up there."
Ren shrugged. "You'll get there. Eventually."
They chatted idly until they rejoined the girls.
"Let's go on the roller coaster next!" Ran said brightly.
"Sounds fun!" Sonoko agreed instantly.
"Sure," Shinichi said. "A good cooldown ride after the Drop Tower."
Ren pointed ahead. "That way."
The four of them headed toward the roller coaster line, laughing as they went.
While waiting, Shinichi couldn't resist showing off—grabbing a woman's hand briefly and making a deduction about her occupation based on the calluses on her fingers and thighs.
Unfortunately, the observation had come when a gust of wind flipped her skirt slightly—making the entire thing look extremely suspicious.
Ran and Sonoko both stared at him with the same expression: a mix of disbelief and disgust.
Pervert.
"Hey, you kids," a woman's voice called from behind them. "Mind if we cut in? Our friends are up ahead."
Ren turned, spotting a stylish woman pointing toward two others in front of the line. "They're with us."
It was Aiko.
Being polite, Ran and Sonoko immediately stepped aside. They weren't the type to refuse something that small.
But before the newcomers could move, Ren suddenly frowned. "Kishida?"
The man blinked in confusion. "Uh, do I know you?"
The next instant—
WHAM!
Ren's fist connected squarely with his jaw, dropping him to the ground in one clean hit.
Everyone froze. Ran, Sonoko, Shinichi, the crowd—every single person in line gawked in stunned silence.
Even the man on the ground—Kishida—was too shocked to react at first.
Holding his swollen cheek, he stared up in disbelief. "Wh-what the hell, man?! Why'd you hit me?!"
Ren grabbed his collar, his expression ice-cold. "Does the name Mei Yokokawa ring a bell?"
"Huh? Who the hell is that? I don't know any—"
SMACK! SMACK!
Two sharp slaps echoed through the air.
"You got a girl pregnant and now you 'don't know her'?!" Ren barked.
The crowd gasped.
Even Ran, Sonoko, and Shinichi froze, halfway between intervening and staying out of it.
The onlookers' imaginations immediately filled in the blanks—this was clearly a cheating scumbag getting his comeuppance.
Disgusted whispers spread.
Kishida paled. "I—I really don't know what you're talking about! You've got the wrong guy!"
Ren's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I'll give you one more chance to answer correctly."
Another CRACK—two more slaps.
"I know her! I know her!" Kishida yelped, completely panicked now. "I'm sorry, okay?! I won't do it again!"
"Get out of my sight," Ren said flatly, shoving him away. "If I see you again, I won't stop at slaps."
Kishida scrambled to his feet, half-running, half-stumbling away from the crowd, clutching his face.
What the hell just happened? he thought in horror. Did I get attacked by a psycho?!
Bad luck.
He should've checked his horoscope before leaving the house.