Traveling back thirty years to Conan, intercepting Princess Eri

"Tch, that's you!" Yukiko scoffed. "We're both girls, what's wrong with us taking a look?"

"But you, you've been blocking my way, acting all sneaky. Are you hiding something from me?"

"Could the person in the bathroom not be Reiko at all?"

As Yukiko spoke, she tried to bypass Hayashi Hideichi and continued walking towards the bathroom.

"Let's forget it, don't go in. It'll really make Lingzi angry." Lin Xiuyi quickly reached out and grabbed the girl's wrist.

"Hey!"

Unable to move, Yukiko's face instantly darkened, and her tone turned icy.

"Lin Xiuyi, why are you stopping me like this? Is the girl with glasses taking a bath inside?"

She thought and thought, but couldn't think of any other possibilities.
In her view, Lin Xiuyi's furtive behavior and desperate attempts to stop her meant he must be hiding someone he didn't want her to see in the bathroom.

The most likely candidate is the bespectacled girl who is usually close to Lin Xiuyi.

The more Yukiko thought about it, the more suspicious she became, and the more dissatisfaction she expressed in her tone grew.

"How could that be?" Lin Xiu shook her head immediately upon hearing her words.

Yukiko looked at him suspiciously, then suddenly spoke, shouting loudly towards the bathroom:

"Lingzi, are you in the bathroom? If you are, please answer me, okay? If you don't answer, I'll come in, okay?"

When Lin Xiu heard her shout, his heart sank to the bottom.

This is really the end!
If Tomizawa Chikage doesn't speak up, Yukiko will definitely force her way in, and then everything will be exposed!

He instinctively gripped Yukiko's wrist, wanting to stop her, but the words wouldn't come out.

He could only watch helplessly as Yukiko reacted in the bathroom, waiting for the accident to fully unfold.

……

In the bathroom, when Tomizawa Chikage heard Yukiko's loud question, her body instantly stiffened, her heart pounding wildly, and she became even more nervous and flustered than before.

She was already huddled in the corner of the bathroom, barely daring to breathe.
Hearing Yukiko's shout, she trembled with fear, and the blush on her face deepened, almost to the point of bleeding.

In Tomizawa Chikage's mind, several scenarios of Yukiko's intrusion had already played out.

Yukiko forcefully pushed open the bathroom door and saw her wrapped in a towel, looking disheveled. Her face showed surprise and disdain. She then pointed at her and mocked her for being shameless, for being alone with a man in a room and shamelessly taking a bath in the Lin family's house.

It's also possible that Yukiko will get angry, question her, and demand to know why she hid her in the bathroom and why she lied to her.
At that time, both she and Lin Xiuyi will be extremely embarrassed and ashamed.

The thought of these scenes made Tomizawa Chikage feel incredibly ashamed, and she wished she could disappear into the ground and never come out again.

At the same time, she also became annoyed with Lin Xiuyi, secretly complaining in her heart:
Lin Xiuyi, you idiot! Why did you have to say it was Lingzi?!
Lingzi is a little girl, her voice is so childish, how could I possibly imitate it!
Although she was filled with frustration and complaints, she knew that now was not the time to complain.

If she continues to remain silent, Yukiko will definitely force her way in, and then she will truly be utterly humiliated.

Tomizawa Chikage took a deep breath and gritted her teeth.
Fine, I'll give it my all!
Maybe we can actually fool them!
The girl took a deep breath, trying to calm her nervousness, and then prepared to imitate Reiko's voice in a high-pitched voice to deal with Yukiko.

Just as she was about to speak, the doorbell rang at the apartment entrance.

Tomizawa Chikage's movements stopped abruptly, and the words that were about to come out were swallowed back.

Great! Someone's coming!

I'm finally saved!

The girl breathed a sigh of relief, and some of her tension and panic subsided.
My heart was still pounding wildly, and my cheeks were still burning hot.

...In the living room, Lin Xiuyi and Yukiko naturally heard the doorbell ring.

Lin Xiuyi felt as if she had grasped a lifeline, and her face instantly lit up with joy.

He quickly grabbed Yukiko's hand and hurried towards the door.

"It must be Eri!"

Yukiko was pulled along by him, walking quickly towards the door. The dissatisfaction and doubt on her face were replaced by a hint of surprise.

If the person ringing the doorbell is the girl with glasses, then is the one in the bathroom really Reiko?

The girl let Lin Xiuyi pull her along, and the two went to the door together.

Lin Xiuyi opened the door, and standing there was indeed Fei Yingli.

"...What are you doing here?" Eri Kisaki frowned as she looked at Yukiko. The next second, her gaze fell on the hands of Shuichi Hayashi and Yukiko.

Their hands were clasped tightly together, looking exceptionally intimate and ambiguous.

Upon seeing this, Eri Kisaki's calm expression vanished instantly, and her face darkened.

She stared intently at their clasped hands, her eyes filled with jealousy and dissatisfaction.

When Hayashi Hideichi noticed Eri Kisaki's gaze, he realized that he was still holding Yukiko's wrist tightly.

The joy on his face was instantly replaced by embarrassment. He quickly released Yukiko's wrist and took a step back.
"Eri, you... how did you get here? I just..."

"You just want to take me to the shopping street,"

Yukiko chuckled and spoke first, her voice brimming with obvious pride, and even a hint of barely perceptible declaration.

"After all, we're going to see a magic show together tomorrow."

Her tone was light and cheerful, as if she were talking about the weather, but every word pierced Eri Kisaki's heart with precision.

Shopping street... Magic show... Together tomorrow!
Eri tightened her grip on the backpack strap.

Her face remained calm, but something was rapidly freezing deep within her usually clear and composed eyes.

"...I apologize for disturbing you both."

Eri Kisaki's voice was very soft, almost one word at a time, each syllable as if squeezed out of her throat.

There were no questions, no accusations, and not even a noticeable change in tone.

But it is precisely this excessive calmness that makes the statement sound particularly heavy.

After saying that, Eri Kisaki turned around and walked downstairs without looking back.

"Eri!"

Lin Xiuyi almost instinctively chased after him.

"hey-hey,"

Yukiko chuckled smugly, then turned and shouted towards the bathroom.

"Lingzi, come out early after you finish your bath, be careful not to catch a cold. I'm going to go see what's going on!"

After saying that, she hurriedly chased after him out the door. (End of Chapter)