Conan and Gin are both my brothers, what's wrong with meeting them once?

Heiji Hattori was somewhat aware of Kazuma Kudo's penchant for making things up.

He was somewhat speechless when he heard Kudo Kazuma shift the blame.

To be honest, he wasn't really angry with the two brothers. Besides, he later learned from Kogoro Mouri that Shinichi Kudo had taken Ran and his parents out to eat. So, where did Kazuma Kudo go?

Hattori Heiji released Kudo Shinichi, chuckled, and said, "Fine, it doesn't matter where you guys went before. I'll forgive you since there's still a surprise waiting for Kudo."

"surprise?"

The Kudo brothers looked at each other, completely bewildered.

Soon, Shinichi Kudo might get a beating from his father-in-law. Isn't that a "surprise" enough?

What other surprises are they unaware of?

A moment later, Kazuma Kudo, Heiji Hattori, Kazuha Toyama appeared outside the Mouri Detective Agency, peeking inside through the crack in the door.

Inside the office, Kogoro Mouri sat on the sofa with a sour face. Beside him sat Eri Kisaki, who exuded a queenly aura and was sizing up Shinichi Kudo through her glasses.

On the sofa opposite the two, Shinichi Kudo and Ran sat very obediently. Although they were sitting and the three outside couldn't see their expressions, judging from the way they kept shifting, it was clearly more comfortable for them to stand...

Kudo Kazuma was quite annoyed by this situation of watching the commotion from afar, and muttered to himself in exasperation, "What are you two doing? You suddenly ran out like that, and I couldn't stay inside by myself, so I had to come out with you!"

Kazuha Toyama turned to Heiji Hattori: "I'd like to know too, Heiji, why did you run away? It's all your fault! You ran, and I ran after you. Oh dear, I wonder if Ran's mom will think we were being too impolite~"

Hattori Heiji was somewhat speechless: "What could I do? That aunt inside was too intimidating. The way she looked at me reminded me of my mom when she's angry. I couldn't control my legs, and before I knew it, she was already out..."

Kazuma Kudo sighed.

He was quite pleased with the "surprise" he had received when he went upstairs and entered the room to find Eri Kisaki sitting on the sofa.

Before he could even see what was going on, Eri Kisaki looked up at Shinichi Kudo beside him, and then glanced at him and the others, and then...

Then Hattori Heiji bowed to Eri Kisaki and ran out, with Toyama Kazuha following closely behind. What could he do?

He could only greet Eri Kisaki, then leave the four of them alone and watch the show unfold.

Facing the scrutinizing gazes of Kogoro Mouri and Eri Kisaki, Shinichi Kudo was extremely nervous. But no matter how nervous he was, he couldn't just run away like the others. He could only sit up straight, lower his eyes, stare at his toes, and remain silent.

“Shinichi, Shinichi Kudo…” Eri Kisaki said seriously, “You abandoned Ran and disappeared without a trace when you were at the amusement park. Last time you came back, you played for a day without saying anything and then left in a hurry. This time it’s even more amazing. You came back and kissed Ran in public under the guise of acting.”

"What's next? Are you going to just leave again like that? Have you thought about Xiaolan's feelings? As a mother, shouldn't I have the right to know where the person who causes my daughter so much worry goes, leaving in such a hurry every time?"

Eri Kisaki is very intimidating, but that's not the point.

The key point is that Shinichi Kudo didn't know how to answer her question.

We can't just reveal the truth directly, can we?

Seeing Shinichi Kudo's predicament, Ran quickly said, "Mom, Shinichi left in such a hurry because he has his own things to do. He has a special case to investigate, which is why it's inconvenient for him to appear. Even if he comes back, he won't stay for long."

"Oh?" Eri Kisaki pointed a finger and pushed up her glasses. "Ran, are you sure you really know what he was doing when he disappeared?"

She emphasized the words "Are you sure?" and "Do you really know?" very much.

Shinichi Kudo became suspicious instantly. He first glanced at Eri Kisaki, then turned and looked at Ran.

Ran nodded immediately, her expression serious and her tone solemn: "Yes, I'm sure I know what he went to do. And Mom, Shinichi is very busy, probably..."

She glanced at Shinichi Kudo beside her, a hint of regret in her voice: "I guess I'll have to leave in a few days."

Eri Kisaki carefully observed her daughter's expression, then turned to look at Shinichi Kudo, who would secretly cast his gaze at her daughter whenever she and Kogoro weren't looking.

“I’m not some kind of unenlightened parent. I used to scold you often because you were too young and didn’t know what was important. You were always taking little Lan, who was still a child, into trouble and doing dangerous things…”

Eri Kisaki's mood worsened as she spoke, probably because she was thinking about that mischievous boy who used to drag her precious daughter out on adventures every day when she was a child.

As she spoke, she glared at Shinichi Kudo in annoyance. Shinichi Kudo instinctively shrank back and, while looking down, revealed a helpless half-moon eye.

What's going on? He wasn't this nervous when he was with Gin, so why does he get scared when he sees Eri's gaze?

Ran's dad is really awful. How could he have thought of calling Aunt Eri over? He should have just given himself a beating!

Fortunately, Eri Kisaki didn't say much.

She said seriously, "Now that you're all grown up and have your own ideas, you don't even hide anything from Xiaolan anymore. As Xiaolan's mother, I'm still pleased. Of course, if you still take Xiaolan to do those adventurous things like before... humph!"

After expressing her stance, Eri Kisaki fell silent.

Kogoro Mouri, standing to the side, stared wide-eyed: "That's it?"

"This brat hasn't even established a relationship yet, and he dared to kiss Xiaolan in public. You only asked him one question and gave him a couple of warnings and that was it? That's too lenient with him, isn't it?"

As he spoke, his finger almost poked Shinichi Kudo's forehead.

Eri crossed her arms and retorted, "What? Your daughter is your daughter too. If you have a problem with it, you can go and cause trouble for Shinichi yourself."

"As for me, I'm somewhat satisfied with him now. At least he knows to be honest with Xiaolan about everything that needs to be said. What do you think?"

Outside the door, Kazuha curiously tugged at Hattori Heiji's sleeve and whispered, "Hey, Heiji, why am I understanding Auntie Hime less and less?"

Hattori Heiji coughed lightly, feigning ignorance: "I don't know either. Maybe there's some secret between them that we don't know..."

In contrast, Kazuma Kudo raised his hand to support his chin.

It should be noted that Eri Kisaki loves to use Shinichi and Ran to compare herself to Kogoro Mouri. So, does her next sentence mean that... Kogoro Mouri is also hiding something from her, and that she has guessed it?

hiss--

Could it be that Kogoro Mouri's understanding of Conan's true identity as Shinichi Kudo goes beyond simply realizing that he is Kogoro Mouri?