"Ada, are you free tonight? I'll take you somewhere fun." Jodie invited Ada. At school, Jodie didn't have many friends, but something about Ada made her want to know her better.
With her daughter under the care of the old housekeeper, Ada was of course free.
Meanwhile, at the Mouri house, Ran noticed Conan had been staring at photos every day, gloomy clouds hanging over him. She thought he was in a bad mood. Being the good sister figure she was, Ran decided to take Conan to the game center to relax.
In truth, Conan was stuck in his investigation. Hattori had gone back to Osaka, and their findings only pointed to Kaitou Kid using hydrogen balloons to lift some device that shrank Mount Fuji. But that was it—they couldn't dig up more. And they couldn't tell the police either. Who would believe them if they said a mountain had been shrunk? Without solid evidence, it was useless.
The investigation was at a dead end. Conan racked his brain but had no solution.
After Hattori left, Conan still couldn't figure anything out. That was why he looked so depressed, leading Ran to misunderstand.
"Conan, you can't stay like this. Cheer up. I'll take you somewhere fun."
Conan didn't want to go out. He wanted to keep working on the case. But now that he was small, he was no match for karate master Ran, and so he was dragged out.
"Ran, you're so slow." Ran had asked Sonoko to recommend a fun place, and Sonoko suggested a newly opened game center. Who knew what kind of hobbies this rich girl had—always such odd places.
Seeing Sonoko made Conan's head hurt even more.
"Conan, look! So many fun things!" Ran just wanted him to feel better.
Arcade machines everywhere. Conan sighed inside—he hadn't liked games even ten years ago. But he couldn't bear to make Ran worry, so he raised his little hand and said, "Wow, so many fun games."
Ran let out a relieved breath. As expected, kids loved this stuff.
"Ran, let's play too!" Sonoko was even more excited than Conan.
"Come on, Conan," Ran called.
But the games they picked were very girly. First stop—a photo booth. "This one even has wedding dress backgrounds! I've never seen that in other shops." Sonoko and Ran were still girls at heart.
Conan just thought, 'As long as you're happy.'
"Let's take one together, then each take one alone," Ran suggested.
Conan kept a deadpan face, like he had seen through life and death. This stuff was really for kids. If they wanted games, they should've gone for something thrilling instead.
"Ahhh~~ Ada, you're amazing, you broke the record!" Suddenly, in the noisy arcade, a piercing high-pitched voice cut through.
They looked over and saw two familiar figures in the crowd. Wasn't that their teachers?
"Jodie-sensei? And Ada-sensei?" Sonoko pushed through, shocked to see the two beautiful teachers completely absorbed in a shooting game.
Even the roar of the arcade couldn't cover Jodie's exaggerated, quirky voice.
"Hello, Ran-chan, Suzuki-chan," Jodie greeted with a smile.
Ada also gave a small nod. She hadn't expected Jodie's "fun place" to be an arcade. Jodie told her she came here every few days to relax.
Conan thought, 'As expected, two beauties. These are the new teachers at Teitan High? Damn it, ever since I shrank, every teacher has been prettier than the last. So unfair.'
"Why are you teachers here?" Ran asked in surprise.
"Because Japanese games are just too great! I couldn't help but share them with Ada," Jodie said cheerfully. "Isn't that right, Ada?"
"The story is pretty good, but the difficulty's too low," Ada replied.
"Ada is a gaming genius. It's her first time here and she can already handle every game. If Ada became a professional gamer, she could absolutely be number 1 in the world," Jodie said.
Talking about games with teachers felt weird, but that only made them seem more real.
"Amazing. Have you played all the games here?" Sonoko asked. Every time she came, she only picked her favorites—light, casual games without much competition. She hadn't tried most of the arcade machines.
"Not all of them," Jodie said. "There's one new game that's so popular it's never free, so we haven't played yet. It's the newest fighting game."
Sure enough, that corner was packed. At the very back of the arcade, set up back-to-back, was the newest motion-sensing fighting game. The machines had straps for arms and legs, plus a helmet and safety belt. Hits were shown through vibrations in the gear, making the body shake uncontrollably.
The effects were realistic, and with a giant screen showing the match, the place was crowded with spectators. Players became instant stars.
Showing off in an arcade… Conan didn't even know how to mock it.
Suddenly the crowd erupted. They shouted about "Caesar of Beika Town" versus "Unbeaten Lucas of Haido Town." Sounded like a big deal.
"Let's go watch too."
The four beauties approached, and naturally the gamers made way. Conan, stuck in the middle of the group, received countless jealous glares. He could only give a wry smile—this wasn't his fault.
The match was about to begin. One player was Bito, Beika Town's top fighter gamer. The other was Shimizu, Haido's undefeated champ. Bito's main was Caesar, so he was called "Caesar of Beika." Shimizu was skilled with Lucas, so he became "Unbeaten Lucas of Haido."
With Beika and Haido right next to each other, the clash of two local champions naturally set the crowd ablaze.
"How lucky! Didn't expect to catch such an exciting fight," Jodie said excitedly. As a game fan, watching others play was also a joy.
"Looks impressive," Ran admitted, not understanding but still in awe. Sonoko nodded along.
"Who will win? Beika's Caesar or Haido's Lucas?" the crowd buzzed.
Most supported Beika's Caesar. The current players gave up their seats for the two champions. Bito from Beika sat down first, while Shimizu from Haido leaned over to say a few words before taking his own seat.
Soon, the match began.
It was one-sided. On the big screen, Beika's Caesar unleashed a relentless offense, pounding Haido's Lucas into a mess with no chance to fight back. The audience roared their support. Since this was Beika, cheers for Caesar were especially loud. Seeing his dominance, they kept saying Beika's player was clearly stronger.
Lucas's avatar turned pale, signaling defeat. But just as the finishing blow was about to land, Caesar suddenly stopped moving.
What happened?
The crowd was confused. Victory was within reach—why stop now?
The timer ran out. Draw.
What the hell??!! The audience was furious.
But inside the machine, Bito wasn't moving. No reaction at all.
Something was wrong. The player who should've won had frozen in place, silent in his seat. What happened?
Conan rushed over at once. The grim reaper's presence struck again. Sure enough, Beika's Bito was lifeless. "Ran-neesan, call the police!"