Chapter 229 Magic Lover

Chapter 230 Magic Lover

A sneeze!

I was woken up by a loud sneeze early in the morning. When I opened my eyes, I saw Conan sitting on the bed next to me with a sick look on his face. There was also a roll of toilet paper next to him.

"Hey... Great Detective, what's wrong with you? Are you sick?" I joked.

"Okay. Stop making sarcastic remarks... A-choo!" Conan sneezed again as he was speaking. "I think I fell asleep in the police car yesterday, and I caught a cold as soon as I got out of the car."

"Oh? Detectives can get sick too? I said with a smile. I thought you were indestructible."

"Then I'm just an ordinary person. I'm not a monster like you." Conan looked at me with his half-moon eyes.

"I have a good health since I was young. Besides, as a killer, you are either healthy or you have to be hospitalized for ten days or half a month." I said to Conan as I sat up.

"Yes, yes, the killer is mighty... A-choo!"

"I say, if you're not feeling well, just continue lying down. Why are you sitting up?"

Today, Miss Sonoko asked Xiaolan to go to a holiday home on the mountain to meet an online friend. And they will spend the night together. "Conan sat up and said weakly.

"Huh?! That girl is having so much fun?" I couldn't help but sigh. "There are so many different kinds of people on the Internet. How could she be so carefree?"

"So, I'm worried about Xiaolan. I want to go and see her too." Conan stood up with great effort and took a breath.

"If you ask me, you should just rest at home. I shook my head as I looked at Conan who looked exhausted. "I'll take care of Xiaolan. You should just stay at home and recuperate. If you pass your cold to Xiaolan, it will be more trouble than gain."

"Hmm...Okay. Then I'll go over and take a look. Then I'll come back with Uncle Maori."

"Hey, why bother? You have to go all the way." I shook my head. "Forget it, if you want to go, I won't stop you. Just think about it yourself." After saying that, I got up first and went to the bathroom to wash up.

"Hey, you two, come down to eat." Dad yelled upstairs.

"Hi~~" I responded, and after putting on my clothes, I turned around and looked at Conan who was taking a breath for a while to put on his clothes. "Don't worry about it. Just rest at home."

"No, I have to check on those netizens. Otherwise I won't be able to rest well."

"Um... I admire your persistence." I held my forehead and said. "Then wear a mask. Your sneeze will not spread the virus."

"Hi.."

"Oh, hello, Xiaoxun." When I came downstairs, my dad and Xiaolan were already sitting at the dining table. Xiaolan greeted me with a smile.

"Good morning, Xiaolan, good morning, Uncle Maori." I greeted them. Although the names have changed, it feels good to greet my family this way early in the morning. It's a pity that my mother is not here. But it doesn't matter. If my mother is here, I will be easily exposed.

"Boy, you should have heard Conan tell you where we are going today."

"Okay, I see. Today, Xiaolan and Sonoko are going to meet their online friends, right?"

“Humph, you’re so young and you’re already meeting your online friend. You really don’t know how treacherous people are.” Dad said with an unhappy look on his face while holding a salted fish in his mouth.

"Dad..." Xiaolan was embarrassed, but she believed that her good friend Yuanzi would not let her take risks. Moreover, she was also very good at karate. She believed that nothing would happen.

"Well, anyway, I will drive myself to see those so-called netizens of yours." As he said that, dad swallowed the dried fish in his mouth in one gulp and ate the rice in the bowl, which made us laugh.

"Oh ha yo..." After a while, Conan's weak voice came from the door.

"Conan, are you okay?" Xiaolan asked with concern.

"Yeah, it's okay..." Conan said with a sick look on his face while wearing a mask.

"If it doesn't work, don't force it. Just have a good rest at home." Xiaolan said with concern.

"It's okay. You guys won't come to visit me anyway. Just go with uncle and take a look. Then I'll be back."

"Well... okay." After several persuasions, Conan still chose to go with us. He was wearing three layers of clothes and wrapped himself tightly. Soon, the group finished breakfast and walked out of the room, and Miss Sonoko was already waiting downstairs.

"Hey, Lan." Yuanzi greeted casually.

"Oh hello, Sonoko." Xiaolan also greeted Sonoko.

"Good morning, Uncle Maori."

"Good morning." Dad said to Yuanzi, smoking a cigarette.

"Hi, Xiaoxun, long time no see." Sonoko bent down and greeted me.

"Well, long time no see, Sister Sonoko." I also smiled at Sonoko.

"Huh? This kid wearing glasses doesn't seem to be in good spirits today." Sonoko also looked at Conan.

"Good morning..." Conan said listlessly. "Sonoko, you'd better stay away from me. I have a fever. I don't want to infect you."

"Eh?! You have a fever, are you going with us?" Sonoko was surprised.

"Well, I'm just going to take a look and then I'll be back with Uncle Maori."

"Uh... what a persistent kid." Sonoko was ashamed of Conan's decision. "Then, let's go."

————The scent of orchids, the scent of lavender, the scent of home & the wings of angels, the wings of demons, the wings of guardians————

"Da Da~~" In the father's car, Sonoko was holding a handkerchief and performing the poor magic tricks she learned from TV for Xiaolan. "Dear audience, here is a handkerchief with nothing on it. Then, take a red string and a ring. Then, Miss, can you please make a knot for me on this red string?"...

"I say, Sister Sonoko."

"Hmm? What's wrong, Xun?"

"Is it really okay for me to sit on your lap while you perform magic?" I squinted my eyes unscrupulously. In order to avoid Sonoko's hand, my head was completely buried in Sonoko's arms. Although I don't mind this kind of taking advantage, but, um... It doesn't feel as good as the one from Officer Sato yesterday.

"Hehe, it's okay." Even though she said that, Sonoko still put me off her legs and between her and Xiaolan. Then she continued to perform her magic for Xiaolan.

"Besides, Sonoko-san, your magic trick is too simple." I said calmly while sitting in my seat. "I think Conan in front of me could have guessed it."

"What? You little brat, you look down on me." Yuanzi said angrily.

"Well... you should cover it with a handkerchief, then press the knot on the red rope, and then pass the ring through it, so that the ring will appear in the center of the rope." Conan cooperated with me.

"But, damn little devil." Sonoko said unhappily.

"Well, at least, you have to change to this extent." I took the ring from Sonoko's hand, but the ring disappeared in my hand. Sonoko was stunned. Then, I reached out and snapped my fingers in her ear, and the ring reappeared in my hand.

"Si, Si Guoyi...Xiaoxun, how did you do it?" Yuanzi looked at me in surprise.

"Well, it's very simple. Use your sleeve and wrist. Hide the ring inside your sleeve while spinning your hand. Lock it with your wrist. Then snap your fingers next to your ears and shake it hard, and the ring will come out."

"......" Sonoko looked Quincy. (OvO) "Is it that simple?"

"You think?" I shrugged. "No matter how advanced the magic is, it relies on techniques and performance to deceive the audience. This is why most magicians can only show the audience their front face. Only those magicians who perform magic to the extreme can show their art to the world from 360 degrees without blind spots."

"Oh? Xiaoxun, do you know a lot about magic?" Yuanzi looked at me strangely. "Do you like magic too?"

"Me? Not bad. I played with it for a while."

"Once? Please, you are only seven years old. Where is the once? When you were acting like a spoiled child in your mother's arms?"

“…” I was speechless in response to Sonoko’s teasing.

"But, having said that, the eldest daughter of the famous Suzuki family actually knows how to make friends using the computer?" Dad said subconsciously.

"Please, uncle." Sonoko said dissatisfiedly. "In this information society, the Internet has become an indispensable tool. In my opinion, uncle, you should put one in your office as soon as possible."

"Well... I'll consider it." A cross appeared on the father's forehead. "Hehe~ But I never thought that you would suddenly start making friends online. You even became interested in magic." Xiaolan changed the subject.

"Because, because I met an incredible person on the Internet." Sonoko suddenly became infatuated with him. "His name is Doi Takeki, he's 21 years old. He's a regular at the magic lovers' league I'm a member of. Not only is his choice of words polite and humorous, but he's also full of wisdom. Sometimes he even shows his excellent literary accomplishment. Ah... I think he must be a handsome man with both talent and beauty."

"What's your name?" I suddenly interrupted.

"Doi Tak Tree."

"Uh..." The corner of my mouth twitched suddenly. Doi Takeshu, haha... Really knows how to play. I just called him yesterday, and it seems that I will meet him today.

"What's wrong, Xiaoxun?" Xiaolan couldn't help but ask when she saw me looking weird.

"Oh, nothing. I just haven't heard of the last name Doita." I shook my head.

"You're still the same, kid." Yuanzi was a little unhappy when I talked about the man of his dreams. "I've never seen the last name Mingya before."

"You've seen it now."

"..."

"So, Sonoko, you haven't met him yet?"

"Yes, today is the first time we meet."

"But is this really a good idea? I'm an uninvited guest." Xiaolan said worriedly.

"It's okay, it's okay." Yuanzi said carelessly. "Because I already told them that I would bring my girlfriend with me."

"Girlfriend?" Xiaolan was surprised, but when she saw Sonoko's smirk, she seemed to understand something.

"We're here. There's a suspension bridge ahead. We can only walk across." Dad suddenly interrupted our conversation.

"Huh? What? Sonoko, you have been chatting with them using a boy's identity?" Xiaolan talked to Sonoko as we walked after getting off the car.

"Yes, on the Internet, I chat with them as a 30-year-old adult man, which is more interesting."

"But, wouldn't we be exposed immediately once we see the name Suzuki Sonoko?" Xiaolan said naively.

"No, because everyone uses a fictitious online name to communicate." Sonoko explained. "For example, my online name is The Magician's Apprentice, and Katsuki uses Red Herring."

"Red Herring?" I raised an eyebrow. Isn't that guy the one who hates fish the most? How could he use this online name?

"Then how do you know his real name?"

"Hehe, I asked him directly."

"Oh, no wonder." I suddenly realized. I seemed to have overlooked the extent of Miss Sonoko's love affair.

"Hey... these kids are really something." Dad was speechless. "Huh? Is there any strange smell?"

"A-choo." Conan immediately sneezed to indicate that he couldn't smell it.

"Huh?!" After my dad said that, I also noticed that it was the smell of gasoline. As I was talking, I scratched the fence of the suspension bridge aimlessly, then put it to my nose and sniffed it. Sure enough, it was the smell of gasoline. Although the smell was very faint in such a cold environment, the gasoline had already seeped into the hemp rope along the suspension bridge. In other words, this suspension bridge should be the kind that can be ignited at any time. "Why? If it was him... No, this should have nothing to do with him." I muttered to myself. "Is there another case happening?"

"Xun, hurry up." Xiaolan was waving at me on the other side of the bridge.

"Hmm? Oh, here I come!" I threw away the thoughts in my mind and followed Xiaolan's steps. Who cares? It seems that whether there is a case or not has nothing to do with me. As long as Xiaolan's father and the others are safe, I will feel relieved.

Soon, we arrived at the holiday cabin on the mountain.

"Hello, we are here to attend the party." Sonoko walked to the door and rang the doorbell.

"Oh, welcome, you should be the magician's apprentice?" The door opened and a middle-aged man in his forties walked out.

"Eh? Yes."

"Ha, we've been waiting for you for a long time, welcome." The man smiled kindly.

"But how did you guess that I was the magician's apprentice at once?" Sonoko asked puzzledly.

"I knew it right away after reading your conversation. This is a girl pretending to be a man while chatting. Right, everyone?" The man turned around and looked at his friends in the room.

"Uh..." Sonoko blushed in embarrassment.

"If you want to learn, you have to at least pretend to be as good as Tanaka." A young man in the room said to a charming woman behind him.

"Oh? I'm not going to pretend to be like that. Then I'll always call myself the Missing Barney and you're a girl."

"Hey... that's what I can blur?" the man laughed.

"What do you mean by deliberately vague?" another woman said, "I also always thought you were a girl. I was discussing the issue of underwear with you in private."

"Haha, I was almost bleeding from talking so hard at that time." The man said cheerfully.

"Um, everyone here..." Sonoko was a little dumbfounded.

"Oh, sorry, let me introduce myself. I am the owner of this hut. Ara Yoshinori. The one wearing black over there is Sukama, who I hired to work for me. As for you all, I don't need to introduce you, right?"

"Um, by the way, Katsuki.. the red herring isn't here yet?"

"Oh, he's already upstairs, eh? Coming down."

"Hey hey!" Sonoko was very excited, but when the red herring came down, Sonoko's dream was instantly shattered. Because the red herring was a chubby man who looked like he must weigh more than 160 pounds.

"Pfft...Hahahaha." Seeing this man named Red Herring, I couldn't help but laugh.

"Xiaoxun? What's wrong with you?" Xiaolan couldn't help but ask in confusion when she saw me laughing.

"No, no nothing." I held back my laughter. "Anyway, let's go in."

"Then, I will take the child back, and Xiaoxun will be left to you to take care of."

"Okay, Dad, be careful on the road." Xiaolan said to her father. Then, we watched Dad and Conan leave. Because I was here, Conan also saw the people here and didn't find it strange. So he followed Dad back without worry. But he didn't know that after he and Dad returned to the car, I took out my mobile phone, sent him a text message, and then walked into the room. On the other side, Conan didn't notice the text message I sent him because his mobile phone was on silent.

"Hey, uncle, what should I do for dinner tonight?" Conan asked his father weakly.

"Don't worry, I'll make you some porridge." Dad said. "Anyway, you should take a nap first." Dad turned on the radio.

【The body of 41-year-old Nishiyama Mu, who lived in an apartment in Beihu Town, was found by his mother who was cleaning his room today. According to her, there was a note on Nishiyama's computer saying "One solved, Shadow Master is coming up". The police are currently investigating this incident in the direction of criminal investigation. It is reported that Mr. Nishiyama is now keen on making friends online. Today he was supposed to go to a gathering called the Magic Lovers' Union where he was the group leader. Unexpectedly, this tragedy happened.】

"Huh?!" Dad and Conan were surprised at the same time.

"Hey, this can't be the party that Xiaolan is attending today..." Dad was panicked.

"Uncle, drive the car back quickly." Conan said with a pale face. "Hurry up!"

Without hesitation, my father turned the car around and drove at the highest speed. Soon, they returned to the suspension bridge. However, the suspension bridge had been engulfed by fire.

"Oh no, the whole bridge is on fire! This is the only access!" Dad said in panic.

"Uncle, go find the police quickly." Conan took off his coat and prepared to rush in.

"You little brat, are you trying to kill yourself?" Dad stopped Conan. "Don't be so impulsive. Let's contact the police first." With that, Dad pulled Conan back into the car.

"Let me call Xun first." Conan said to himself, and took out his cell phone. Before he made the call, he saw a text message from me.

[Go back and recuperate, leave this to me. ]

(End of this chapter)