Winning is everything: Conan

Chapter 1: The Lawyer Keisuke Kumiko

May 1st Holiday, Japan's Golden Week.

The sky was clear, and the sun was shining. It was a perfect day for an outing.

Early in the morning, Mouri Ran was in a great mood. She went out with her best friend, Suzuki Sonoko, and took the subway with Conan, preparing to visit a suburban park for a stroll.

Tokyo's subway seemed even more crowded than usual because it was a public holiday.

When they arrived at a station, the crowd thinned slightly, and finally, a seat became available. Ran was about to let Conan sit down, but when she looked around and saw an elderly man carrying a heavy bag on his shoulders, she smiled slightly.

"Sir, please have a seat."

The old man nodded and was about to sit down when, suddenly, a figure swiftly moved past and took the seat first.

Ran frowned slightly.

Looking closely, she saw that the person who had taken the seat was a young man, not much older than herself.

He appeared to be in his twenties, with neatly parted hair, a youthful face, and a well-tailored suit. He looked like a respectable man.

At that moment, he was looking down, flipping through some documents in his hands, seemingly unaware of the dissatisfied gazes of some passengers around him.

Seeing this, Ran couldn't help but cough lightly.

"Um... Please give up your seat."

However, the young man kept his head down as if he hadn't heard her.

A hint of anger appeared on Ran's face, but since it was a public place, she couldn't say much.

Suzuki Sonoko, on the other hand, was far less polite. She simply reached out and patted the young man on the shoulder.

"Hey, we're talking to you! Why are you pretending to be deaf?"

The man finally seemed to react. He raised his head and looked at the two girls in surprise.

"Are you talking to me?"

"If not you, then who else?" Sonoko put her hands on her hips and glared at him angrily. "You're a grown man taking a seat from someone else. Don't you feel ashamed?"

The man looked around, his expression filled with even more surprise.

"Why do you say I 'snatched' it? If I'm not mistaken, this isn't a priority seat for the elderly, disabled, or pregnant women—it's a public seat, isn't it? Or did you personally purchase this seat?"

"Uh..." Sonoko was momentarily speechless.

Ran, who was standing beside her, exchanged glances with her friend and tried speaking in a gentler tone.

"Isn't it common etiquette in Japan to give up your seat to those who are weaker, such as elderly people with poor health?"

"Weaker, you say?"

The man glanced at the old man and then at the serious-looking girl in front of him.

"Why do you assume he's weak and in poor health? How do you judge that? By his age and appearance?" He seemed intrigued. "Well, I may look energetic sitting here, but I actually suffer from a severe heart condition and won't live much longer. Does that make me weak or strong?"

"Ah, is that so?" Ran immediately lowered her head and quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, I—"

But before she could finish, she heard the man's mocking voice.

"Sorry, I lied."

"…"

"…"

Ran took a deep breath and glared at him fiercely.

"You're an adult. At the very least, you should have some sense of morality. Please give up your seat!"

The elderly man beside them shook his head and said, "Forget it, young lady, I—"

"How can we just let this go?" Ran's face was red with anger. "This person, this person—"

The man looked at her, then leaned over and lifted the elderly man's heavy bag.

"Even though this gentleman appears short, he's quite strong. The fact that he can easily carry a bag weighing over 20 kilograms shows that he exercises regularly."

Then, he patted the elderly man's chest, back, and thigh muscles.

"Moreover, he has strong pectoral muscles, tight abdominal and back muscles, and well-developed calf muscles. Even through his pants, I can feel their firmness. Compared to me—someone who has to wake up early and work late to earn a living—he already has a pension to spend freely and looks quite healthy."

"Well..."

Ran and Sonoko exchanged glances.

The man continued, "Besides, he's about to get off at the next stop. Didn't you notice? His backpack is filled with fitness gear. The next stop is Beihu Park, where many elderly people go to exercise and socialize. It's just a two-minute ride, so standing up and sitting down again is unnecessary, don't you think?"

The man spoke quickly and sharply, without stopping. As Ran listened, her face darkened further.

Just as he finished speaking, the subway stopped.

The elderly man glanced at the group, then exited the train with his heavy bag, standing tall and looking energetic.

The two girls inside the train watched him leave, their mouths slightly open, unable to say anything.

The situation in front of them clearly reflected what the man had just said.

After a long silence, Ran had no choice but to stomp the floor and murmur:

"How can someone be this infuriating?!"

The man smiled slightly, casually glancing at those in front of him, then lowered his head again and resumed reading his documents.

At that moment, Conan, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke.

"Uncle, you're a lawyer, aren't you?"

The man raised an eyebrow, looked up, and observed the little boy in a blue outfit and bowtie standing before him.

"How did you know?"

"It's simple!" Conan said in his childlike voice. "Uncle, today is Golden Week, yet you're wearing a formal business suit and taking the subway, where office workers usually gather. That means you could be a salesperson on a business trip, a government official, or a freelance professional working overtime."

"And the documents in your hands contain people's addresses, family details, and work information. This suggests you work in a profession that requires a lot of data—perhaps as a detective or a sales agent."

"Judging by your smooth and sharp speech, you likely have a job that involves frequent debates, meaning you could be a lawyer or a prosecutor."

"Of course, the most important evidence is..."

Conan pointed at the man's chest.

There, a finely crafted bronze badge with a scale symbol in the center represented justice.

"You have a lawyer's badge on your chest! That means you're a lawyer!"

After hearing Conan's words, the man chuckled and clapped his hands.

"Marvelous!"

He leaned in closer to Conan and narrowed his eyes.

"But what I don't understand is— you must have seen the lawyer's badge from the start. You knew what it meant, so why didn't you just say it directly instead of going through all that reasoning?"

"Leave him alone! He just likes playing detective games!"

Sonoko, standing beside them, grabbed Conan's head and turned her gaze toward the man with shining eyes.

She had been keeping pace with Ran and hadn't paid attention earlier, but now that she looked closely, she realized—the man in front of her was quite handsome!

"If it's convenient, could I have your contact information?"

"Sure."

The man smiled and pulled out a business card from his pocket.

His name was written there: Keisuke Kumiko.

"I'll keep it safe!"

Sonoko happily took the card and put it in her pocket, also exchanging email addresses with him.

"Sonoko!" Ran scolded her.

"What's the problem?" Sonoko laughed. "Besides, what he just said makes sense, doesn't it?"

"That was nonsense!"

"Alright, alright, don't be so mad!"

As the girls bickered, the man named Keisuke Kumiko narrowed his eyes, staring at the boy who had spoken earlier.

"You seem to enjoy playing detective, don't you?"

Conan's heart skipped a beat at the man's half-smile, but he still grinned.

"Of course! I love reasoning! When I grow up, I'll be a detective!"

"Really? That's not a good thing."

The man raised a finger and waved it in front of Conan.

"Detectives are the most evil profession in the world. They always use the name of justice to use all kinds of despicable means, such as invading other people's privacy, to find the truth they think they know. Then they have to stand on the commanding heights to criticize and educate people to satisfy their sense of achievement of playing games or standing above others... Kid, you don't want to be such a person, do you?"

This guy...

The man's words were very harsh, making Conan frown subconsciously.

He instinctively opened his mouth, wanting to refute, but he couldn't say it out loud. He could only touch his head awkwardly and smile like a child.

"You're embarrassed, right? Hahaha, he's right! Who told you to be so arrogant and show off every day? You're exactly like that mystery geek!"

Sonoko giggled and tapped Conan's head with her finger.

Conan twitched his lips helplessly, then looked at the man with some dissatisfaction.

I don't know why the man said that, he's just a kid, but it sounded uncomfortable anyway.

Not long after, the subway stopped again.

Ran, Conan and Sonoko got out of the car angrily.

"Lawyer Keisuke , remember to contact me!"

Sonoko was smiling and waved to the man before leaving.

The man raised his eyebrows and glanced at the figures of several people from the window. There was a gleam in his eyes, and it was unknown what he was thinking.

Then he smiled softly again, lowered his head, and returned his gaze to the information in his hands.

(End of the chapter)