Chapter Ten: The Kidnapping of the Chairman's Daughter

"Come to think of it, you little rascal, you really are quite attached to Ran." Kogoro Mouri nodded with a sudden realization, then turned to Ran Mouri and asked, "By the way, weren't you supposed to go to the amusement park with that detective kid? Why didn't he come back with you?"

"We were together until we left the park, but Shinichi suddenly said he had something to take care of, so he asked me to bring Seimei back first." Ran Mouri quickly tidied up the trash in the office, a look of concern crossing her lovely face. "I wonder if he ran into any trouble?"

Seimei Suzuki tugged at the hem of Ran's skirt and comforted her with a smile, "Don't worry, Sister Ran! Brother Shinichi is a high school detective prodigy; even if he did run into trouble, I'm sure it won't stump him."

"That's true, Shinichi is very capable." Hearing this, the unease in Ran's heart dissipated, and she temporarily abandoned the idea of going to look for Shinichi Kudo. After all, Seimei Suzuki was still here, and she didn't feel comfortable leaving him in Kogoro's care. Anything else could wait until tomorrow.

"Gurgle..."

A thunderous sound suddenly erupted from his stomach, causing Seimei's face to flush slightly as he gave an embarrassed smile. Hearing the protest from the little boy's stomach, Ran smiled knowingly, leaned down, and asked, "Seimei, what would you like for dinner? Sister Ran will make it for you."

"Whatever Sister Ran cooks, Seimei loves to eat."

"What a good boy. In that case, Sister Ran will just improvise!" Ran couldn't help but plant a kiss on Seimei's cheek before heading off to prepare dinner with a light step.

"That little brat, he sure knows how to butter people up." Kogoro curled his lip with a chuckle, then called out loudly, "Ran, don't forget to make a couple of side dishes for my drinks!"

"Got it." Ran replied helplessly, skillfully beginning the preparations for dinner. Although her cooking wasn't quite on par with the master chefs of the Suzuki household, it was still quite good, and Seimei thoroughly enjoyed the home-cooked meal she prepared.

"Seimei, you spent the whole day playing at the amusement park, so you must be quite sweaty, right?" After dinner, as Ran cleared the table, she suggested with a smile, "Why don't you take a bath with me later? It just so happens that we have two sets of your spare clothes here."

Seimei's face flushed a deep crimson, and he nodded shyly. "Okay..." *Stay calm, this is just a minor situation!*

"Right, yes, I understand." On the other side of the room, Kogoro finished his phone call, pumped his fist in the air, and shouted with excitement, "Great! Finally, a major case has come in!"

Ran asked skeptically, "It’s not another infidelity case, is it?"

"Of course not! This is a real big case—a wealthy man's daughter has been kidnapped! Alright, no more talk, I have to get to work."

"A kidnapping? Uncle Kogoro, I’m coming too!" Seimei touched his chin, lost in thought as several theories crossed his mind, and quickly chased after Kogoro.

"Seimei, wait..." Seeing this, Ran could only lock the door helplessly and chase after them.

Since Kogoro hadn't bought a car yet, he had to flag down a taxi on the street, which gave Seimei the perfect opportunity. Before Kogoro could react, Seimei and Ran had both piled into the cab.

Kogoro looked speechless. "What are you two doing? I'm going to work, why are you tagging along?"

"Dad, don't look at me like that. Seimei ran over here suddenly, and I just followed because I was worried about him," Ran explained.

"You’re usually such a sensible kid," Kogoro said, turning to Seimei. "Why are you being so troublesome today?"

Seimei replied calmly, "Because this is the first time I've seen you get a big case like a kidnapping, and I'm curious if you’ll be able to catch the kidnapper. If you can actually pull this off, then if the Suzuki Group ever runs into trouble, we'll prioritize hiring you. I’m sure the commission fee won’t be small."

Kogoro's eyes lit up. He chuckled and patted Seimei on the head. "Well then, you just watch and learn, kid! Watch how this master detective brings those nasty kidnappers to justice! Hahaha!"

Ten minutes later, the taxi stopped in front of a Japanese-style garden. A maid, who had been waiting at the gate, immediately ushered them inside.

"Mr. Mouri, you're finally here! Please, help me find my daughter!" A middle-aged man in a brown suit rushed over as if he had just seen a savior.

"You must be Chairman Fujito, right? Please, don't panic. Tell me what happened when your daughter was kidnapped so I can understand the details."

"The kidnapped child is my only daughter, Akiko Fujito. She's ten years old," Fujito said, regaining some of his composure as he handed a photo to Kogoro. The photo showed a little girl with pigtails wearing a pink dress, clutching a medium-sized brown Dogo Argentino.

Fujito pointed to a gray-haired butler standing nearby. "Mr. Mouri, this is my butler, Mr. Aso. He witnessed the criminal kidnapping my daughter."

"Is that so? Then Mr. Aso, please explain the situation in detail," Kogoro said with a serious expression.

The butler, Aso, looked nervous. "Y-yes! The young lady had just returned from school and was playing in the garden when a man dressed in black suddenly rushed out from the corner and grabbed her. He said that if the Chairman didn't close the company for a month, he wouldn't let her go. He also forbade us from notifying the police, or he would kill her. After saying that, he took her hostage and jumped over the wall."

After hearing the butler's account, Kogoro fell into deep thought, while Seimei wore a strange expression. It had been over seven years since Seimei had been reborn into this world, and he could only vaguely remember some of the major characters and plot points from the anime *Detective Conan*.