Chapter 326: Toru Amuro Successfully Becomes a Disciple
Amuro leaned forward slightly, his sharp eyes locking onto Natsume. "I later asked Miss Kamon about the incident," he continued, his voice smooth but carrying a probing edge. "She mentioned that it was the very first time she had ever met you, Natsume. Naturally, she was quite surprised when you suddenly approached her, insisting on a private conversation. Unfortunately, given the chaos that unfolded shortly after, she still has no idea what you actually wanted to discuss."
He tilted his head, a polite but calculated smile resting on his lips. "When she learned of my intentions to ask Mr. Mouri to take me on as an apprentice, she requested that I pass along an inquiry to you. So, what exactly did you intend to say to her at that moment? Would you mind satisfying a humble detective's curiosity?"
The atmosphere in the room shifted as all eyes naturally gravitated toward Natsume. Ran leaned in with evident curiosity, while Conan adjusted his glasses, watching her closely. Natsume merely blinked, her expression entirely unbothered.
"Ah, it's not a secret or anything," she replied with a breezy wave of her hand. "It's actually quite simple. I had received some prior information suggesting that Miss Kamon and Mr. Banba were highly likely to be biological siblings. I just wanted to pull her aside beforehand, hoping to give her a gentle heads-up and prepare her mentally for the shock."
A brief shadow crossed her features. "Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to stop her self-destructive impulse while she was in such an agitated state. But, thankfully, I managed to intervene just in time before the worst happened."
"Received information?" Amuro echoed. His smile didn't quite reach his eyes. "You certainly are remarkably well-informed, Natsume."
Ran frowned slightly, resting her chin on her hand. "Yeah, Natsume. Wasn't that your first time meeting her too? How on earth did you get your hands on such deeply private information about a stranger?"
Natsume chuckled, leaning back in her chair. "Ran, did you forget? Didn't Miss Kamon mention that she had a divination reading done by Mona? The stars explicitly stated that it was impossible for her to be with Mr. Banba, and that pursuing the marriage would only lead to severe heartbreak and injury."
"Mona happens to be a good friend of mine, and her astrological readings are terrifyingly accurate," Natsume explained, her tone laced with absolute conviction. "Since the bride was set to be married the very next day, I felt uneasy about the ominous reading. I contacted Mona and asked her to dive deeper into the scryglass for more detailed results. She messaged me later, clarifying that the stars confirmed Miss Kamon and Raita Banba were definitely siblings by blood. She just couldn't pinpoint whether they were closely related cousins or direct biological twins."
"But since the hydromancy definitively showed their union was doomed, there had to be a fatal biological reason for it. That's exactly why I needed to intercept her." Natsume delivered the explanation with absolute confidence, her golden eyes shining with unwavering faith in her astrologer friend's mystical abilities.
"Astrology?" Amuro repeated, his composed facade cracking for a fraction of a second.
He stared at her, utterly dumbfounded. Watching Natsume spout such blatant superstition while wearing a face so uncannily similar to the Black Organization operative known as Cointreau created a bizarre cognitive dissonance in his mind. He felt entirely thrown off balance. Could it really be that this girl—highly suspected to be Cointreau's younger sister—actually based her life-saving interventions on something as notoriously unreliable as horoscopes?
Completely oblivious to the complex, calculating storm brewing in the blonde detective's eyes, Natsume carried on. "Although I know it's legally permissible for cousins to marry here in Japan, the sheer number of coincidences was too high. Hearing that they shared the exact same rare blood type, the same birthday, and nearly identical tragic life experiences... well, when you combine all those physical clues with Mona's celestial warnings, I was about eighty percent sure they were separated twins."
As Amuro listened to this wild justification, his expression went entirely blank, his sharp eyes practically turning into flat dots of disbelief. Surely, he thought, absolutely no one in this room is actually going to buy such an absurd, unscientific explanation.
To his deep shock, he turned his head just in time to see the esteemed detective's daughter nodding in earnest agreement. "That makes perfect sense," Ran said, her voice entirely sincere. "Mona's divinations are incredibly accurate. It's a really good thing you double-checked the readings just in case, Natsume. Otherwise, something truly terrible would have happened to Miss Kamon."
Amuro's gaze snapped down to the bespectacled little boy living with the Mouri family. Conan—who had previously struck Amuro as far too sharp-witted and analytical for an ordinary elementary schooler—was actually rubbing his chin with a thoughtful, serious expression.
The undercover agent felt a headache building behind his temples. He could hardly fathom that the household of Kogoro Mouri, a man who had inadvertently thwarted the Organization's operations on multiple occasions, would readily swallow such groundless, mystical nonsense.
Fortunately, the Sleeping Kogoro proved to be the sole voice of reason. The older detective scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. "Oh, please! How can you kids actually believe in something like astrology? It has absolutely zero scientific basis!" Kogoro leaned back, crossing his arms. "If you ask me, this friend of yours just managed to dig up some private background information beforehand and dressed it up as a 'prophecy'."
Exactly, Amuro thought, mentally applauding the man. That is the only logical possibility. He nodded inwardly, finally feeling a sense of grounded reality return to the conversation.
Ran, however, was quick to defend the astrologer. "Dad, you don't understand. Mona is completely different from those street-corner fortune tellers. She accurately predicted the exact circumstances of Sonoko's romance before Sonoko had even laid eyes on Makoto!"
"And Uncle Mouri, didn't you personally request a divination from Mona as well?" Natsume chimed in, a sly, knowing grin spreading across her face. "It was just last month. You bought your horse racing tickets based entirely on her astrological charts and ended up winning a phenomenally large sum of money. You even treated us all to a massive sushi dinner with the winnings. Don't tell me you've conveniently forgotten?"
"Ah? Oh!" Kogoro stiffened. The mere mention of his glorious horse racing victory instantly jogged his memory. He cleared his throat loudly, suddenly looking very serious. He lowered his head, adopting a posture of deep, scholarly contemplation. "Well... now that you mention it, it does seem this Miss Mona is an exceptionally capable young woman. When you really think about it, astrology clearly possesses a deep, undiscovered scientific basis after all."
Amuro's mouth twitched violently. He watched in stunned silence as the seasoned detective completely overturned his own staunch skepticism without a single ounce of hesitation, entirely bought off by the memory of gambling money. Suppressing a heavy sigh, Amuro forced a bright, charming smile onto his face, smoothly pivoting to praise Kogoro's unique and flexible insight.
Recognizing that the older man was now in exceptionally high spirits, Amuro seized the opening. "Speaking of your brilliant insights, Mr. Mouri," he began, his tone perfectly respectful and eager. "I was wondering... would it be possible for me to stay by your side and learn from your vast experience?"
Kogoro picked up his coffee cup, taking a slow sip. He opened his mouth, fully prepared to reject the blonde young man's sudden request for an apprenticeship. But before he could utter a single word of refusal, Amuro leaned in close, lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper right beside the detective's ear.
"As tuition... I am willing to pay a substantial fee for every single case I observe. What do you think?"
"Re-Really?" Kogoro sputtered, nearly choking on his hot coffee in sheer excitement. His eyes widened into saucers as the prospect of easy money danced in his vision. He slammed his cup down onto the saucer. "Accepted!"
Coughing to regain his composure, Kogoro straightened his lapels with exaggerated solemnity. He lifted his chin, adopting the haughty air of a grandmaster. "Very well. From this day forward, you have permission to call me 'Sensei', Amuro."
Amuro straightened his posture, flashing a beaming, picture-perfect smile as he offered a crisp, respectful salute. "Understood. Thank you very much, Mouri-sensei."
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