"Karasawa-kun!" Sonoko Suzuki dramatically threw herself across his desk. "What happened to your face?!"
Caught off guard, Karasawa leaned back as she reached for the bandage on his cheek. "Just a small scratch," he said, dodging her hand.
Sonoko looked heartbroken. Her expression practically screamed, "Who could hurt a face like this?"
What a shameless face simp.
Ran tugged her friend back with an awkward smile. "Ahaha, Sonoko didn't mean anything bad... Thanks again for your help last night, Karasawa-kun."
Mouri Kogorou, riding high on the buzz of solving a case and several cans of beer, had kept drinking at Café Poirot until closing time. The man was so sloshed he couldn't even walk straight.
Ran might've been a karate prodigy, but it really wasn't a good look to have a teenage girl dragging her unconscious father home, so Amuro and Karasawa had teamed up to haul him upstairs. After Amuro clocked out, Karasawa stayed behind to help Ran prep hot water and tea to sober Kogorou up.
Not entirely to rack up favor points, of course. Karasawa had a long history with alcohol himself. He moved like a pro—fluid, efficient, methodical. By the time Ran and Conan even noticed, Kogorou was already laid out neatly on the couch like laundry fresh off the line.
And so, Karasawa's rep in Ran's eyes quietly upgraded from "the new polite classmate" to "kind, dependable neighbor."
"It was nothing. How's Mr. Mouri this morning?"
"Thanks to your tea, he woke up clear-headed and chipper."
"Glad I could help."
The two smiled at each other—pleasant and easy.
Sonoko suddenly shoved herself between them like an emergency barrier, glancing from one to the other with exaggerated suspicion. "What are you two talking about? I leave for two days and suddenly you're all buddy-buddy! Not fair! Ran, your great detective just ran off a few days ago—stay loyal!"
Ran's smile froze. "...Don't bring him up. That mystery freak called and said he's on some tough case. Who knows when he'll be back..."
"Detective?" Karasawa tilted his head curiously. "Who are you talking about?"
"Shinichi Kudo, of course. He's been on the news tons—you've probably seen him," Sonoko replied casually, clapping a hand on Ran's shoulder. "He's Ran's childhood friend! He's in our class, though you transferred after he pulled his little disappearing act."
"A real detective, huh... but Mr. Mouri's a detective too, right?" Karasawa put on that melancholic look he'd shown Amuro before. "Must be nice…"
Ran looked a little flustered. "Ah…"
"Let's change the subject!" Sonoko waved her hands. "Ran, wanna hit the museum after school today? I heard something weird is going on at the Beika Art Museum!"
"The Beika Museum? They've got that Medieval Art Exhibit going on, right? I wanted to check it out. Supposedly they've got some rare pieces on display… I tried asking Dad to go with me but he outright refused." Ran sighed.
Sonoko snapped her fingers. "Yes! That's the one! Rumor has it the museum's security guards have seen medieval armor moving on its own late at night!"
"Ugh, a ghost story?" Ran hesitated, clearly not a fan of spooky stuff.
"Doesn't it fit the medieval aesthetic perfectly? Creepy and mysterious! And you already wanted to go, right? Come on, let's go together!" Sonoko spun, grabbing Karasawa's arm. "You too, Karasawa-kun! You've barely explored anything in Beika Town, right?"
You're speedrunning this, Sonoko.
Karasawa, seeing through her intentions instantly, smiled and nodded. "Sure, but since Ran-san's going to pick up Conan after school, why not invite him too?"
After all, today marked the beginning of Conan's illustrious first-grade career. Ran, ever the responsible pseudo-mother, wouldn't let the little guy walk home alone on day one.
"That brat… Fine." Sonoko relented. If she didn't go with Ran, she'd go solo with Karasawa, and that might look too much like a date. Better to bring along the brat and keep things casual.
A third wheel is better than a canceled plan. Sonoko sighed.
After school, the three headed to pick up Conan from Teitan Elementary. Karasawa got his first glimpse of the infamous Junior Detective League and received a frosty side-eye from a certain bespectacled grade-schooler.
A new handsome transfer student who lived upstairs from Ran and spent loads of time with her? Alarm bells were going off like crazy on Conan's internal Jealousy Radar™.
Karasawa returned the look with a calm, big-brotherly smile.
Some guys just never stop being jealous. See one good-looking guy near their childhood sweetheart, and it's instant Code Red.
After Sonoko brought up the art exhibit again, Karasawa sifted through his memories of the case. He tried plugging the names of the killer and the victim into his Metaverse Navigator, but no luck—neither triggered the app.
Makes sense. Most Detective Conan murders come from within tight personal circles, not random killings. Even if the victim's worse than the culprit, like that scumbag Maru Denjirou, most cases weren't spawned from warped cognition, just private grudges.
The Phantom Thieves aren't meant to fix petty drama or act as a supernatural ambulance. They only take down monsters, not messy divorces or sudden illnesses.
That said, Karasawa had already tested quite a few high-profile names. Say what you will about the Conan universe—if you want Palaces, this place is stacked.
Too bad the main characters are more about brain games than moral corruption. Karasawa had trouble finding motivation. Still, the sheer number of Palaces gave him a lot of room to maneuver.
As a multi-new-game-plus veteran, Karasawa knew the criteria: "a desire strong enough to distort cognition"—regardless of good or evil. Villains create Palaces, but so do the traumatized, the obsessive, the idealistic.
If he wasn't careful, he could end up crushing someone's drive entirely. The Phantom Thieves weren't here to ruin lives—they were here to expose the truth and keep the story moving forward.
"Here it is! Beika Art Museum!" Sonoko's voice yanked Karasawa back to the present. "That haunted suit of armor is in the Medieval Art exhibit!"
"Sonoko-neechan, we came to see art, not a haunted house..." Conan muttered, twitching at her volume.
"What's the big deal? We bought tickets." Sonoko shrugged and dragged Karasawa by the arm into the line.
Karasawa glanced up at the museum's medieval banner, bathed in the soft glow of the death god's presence, and walked into what was undoubtedly a soon-to-be crime scene…
With the solemnity of someone walking into his own funeral.