Winning is everything: Conan

That night, Haibara Ai followed Kumiko to his new office in Shibuya.

To save money, Kumiko had given up the house he had rented in the Edogawa district and was currently living and eating in the office.

"Two sofas, one for each of us."

When bedtime came, Kumiko threw a blanket at Haibara Ai.

Haibara Ai looked around the office.

"It's really pitiful," she murmured.

"Stop talking nonsense and go to bed early. We need to catch the train to Chiba Prefecture tomorrow."

Haibara Ai glanced at the old sofa with several holes and curled up on it in silence. She tightly wrapped her small body in the blanket and closed her eyes.

"Good night."

That night, no words were spoken.

The next day, Keisuke closed the office and took Haibara Ai to the train station.

Before boarding the bus, Keisuke handed her a pair of breathable white masks.

"To avoid complications, from now on, you must sever all ties with your past. From now on, your name will be Kumiko Ai, and your identity will be my rural sister. Don't let me hear the name Haibara (はいばら) again."

"Sever all ties with the past?"

Haibara Ai, no, Kumiko Ai, took the mask, and her icy blue eyes were stunned for a moment.

Parents in the fire, sister's death...

"Don't let me see that expression on your face all the time, it's annoying. Stop pretending to be depressed like a primary school student. It'll be terrible if people find out I'm employing child labor. You have to be careful with everything you do, understand?"

Kumiko's rude words brought Ai back to reality and away from her sad thoughts.

"I understand," she nodded slightly without saying anything more.

Using a mask to cover her face, Ai followed Kumiko onto the train, and they headed to Chiba Prefecture to meet the client there.

Of course, the so-called child labor to avoid detection was just a superficial excuse.

The main issue was the Black Organization. Kumiko didn't want anything to do with those stupid people. You see, Gin always likes to follow people and call them "Sherry Sherry." He's just a lunatic.

With a roar, the train began to move.

On the train, Keisuke and Ai sat across from each other.

After thinking for a moment, Keisuke Kumiko took out a stack of documents from his briefcase and handed them to the other person, looking at her with the scrutiny of a boss.

"Here are some materials related to this commission. First, you need to analyze how to resolve this case."

"Alright."

Ai nodded, took the materials, and flipped through them one by one.

It was clear that they mainly contained confessions from the involved parties, testimonies from some witnesses, and the first-instance judgment from the Chiba District Court.

Yes, this case had already been judged in the first instance.

The court declared the defendant, former Chiba Prefecture Police Department detective Kazushi Nakamichi, guilty of intentional homicide and sentenced him to 20 years in prison according to the law.

Of course, Nakamichi Kazushi's family couldn't accept such a long sentence, so they planned to hire another lawyer to appeal to the Tokyo High Court, hoping to change the verdict in the second instance.

After reading it, Ai looked up and said, "This case is very problematic. If they appeal, they must present grounds for the accusation. However, many witnesses in the first trial identified him as a criminal, including four of his college classmates, including Mouri Kogoro. Moreover, there is physical evidence of a gun and various conflicts of interest between him and the victim. It can be said that he had sufficient motives to kill."

"And so? How do you think we can overturn the case?"

Keisuke looked at Ai, who was analyzing seriously, and asked with interest.

Ai paused, thought for a moment, and highlighted some words.

"Simply call a deer a horse."

Looking into Ai's indifferent eyes, Keisuke Kumiko smiled.

His smile was particularly like that of a heartless boss who makes employees work overtime for days without pay and doesn't give any pension to employees who suddenly die after working day and night.

He patted Ai on the shoulder and spoke seriously.

"Work hard, and your life will get sweeter."

Ai looked at him.

"When you say sweet, are you referring to the kind of sweetness that means there are no dormitories or beds for the staff, and you can only sleep on a sofa full of holes?"

"Don't say that. After all the difficulties, sweetness comes. I'll invite you for a cup of tea with milk and sugar when you get off the bus."

"Now that's sweet. Thank you very much."

Although Chiba Prefecture is outside of Tokyo, it essentially belongs to the Tokyo metropolitan area. Many connections exist, including administration, economy, law enforcement, justice, etc. For example, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is also responsible for Chiba Prefecture.

The train reached its destination in less than an hour.

Keisuke Kumiko took Ai out of the car and followed the phone's navigation instructions to the client's house.

During the trip, they took the subway twice and the bus for the entire route, eventually arriving at a rural field.

After asking a passerby for directions, the two arrived at the door of He's B&B with a sign that read "Zhongdao."

(I didn't know it was Zhondao so I left it the same)

Nakamichi Kazuto, the client's brother, Nakamichi Kazushi's brother, was also the client in this case.

Keisuke Kumiko knocked on the door, and soon, a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties, with half-white hair, came out and welcomed them.

"I'm Lawyer Kumiko, the defense attorney assigned by Lawyer Sakaguchi."

After sitting down, Keisuke stated his purpose directly.

Nakamichi Kazuto nodded, "Sakaguchi already explained the details to me over the phone, but..."

As he spoke, he looked Keisuke up and down.

"I didn't expect Lawyer Keisuke Kumiko to be so young. It's true that the youth are formidable."

Although he said this, his tone was a bit disappointed.

Of course, Keisuke Kumiko knew what Nakamichi Kazuto was thinking.

As a lawyer, and also a member of the legal profession, although promotions are not based on years of service and qualifications like in the prosecution, age can still represent some information, such as experience in litigation.

In fact, this is the case in any field. As the saying goes, a man without hair on his lips cannot do things well.

"These are the evaluation materials for my internship and training at the Judicial Training Institute."

Keisuke Kumiko did the same as last time and handed Nakamichi Kazuto a pile of A+ papers.

Nakamichi took it and looked through it, and his expression relaxed a little.

However, he was still a bit uncertain.

"Mr. Kumiko, you are a new lawyer, right? I'm worried you don't have enough experience and might not be able to handle the job..."

"This is the relevant information about the case where I helped Sakaguchi fight."

With a snap, another pile of papers was placed in front of Nakamichi Kazuto.

It included the verdict of Sakaguchi's lawsuit and local news.

Nakamichi Kazuto looked at the information for a while, then his eyes turned to Keisuke Kumiko with sudden doubt.

Because of this news, the new lawyer Keisuke Kumiko was almost praised to the heavens.

"Are all these things true?"

"Of course, don't you believe in the power of these media?"

"No, actually not. It's just that..."

Keisuke Kumiko's mouth curved slightly.

"Don't worry, although it might be a bit exaggerated, it's absolutely genuine. Of course, I'm talking about my level."

(End of this chapter)