Conan: I've been linked to the tech tree system.

......

Nine and a half out of ten people go to the toilet as an excuse, so Tohno Toru just washed his hands in the sink. Then a figure that looked exactly like him came in.

"Sorry, it took me a while to get here."

It was Kaito Kuroba who spoke.

Tohno Toru had already noticed an unusual heat source clinging to the roller coaster; this unconventional person was most likely Kaito Kuroba.

It seems the mission was successfully completed. Kaito Kuroba walked in and switched identities with him.

"Speaking of which, why is Koizumi Akako here?"

Before leaving, Kaito Kuroba asked a question.

"How would I know?" Tohru Tohru said irritably. "Maybe he came to join you guys."

"What do you mean, 'join'...?" Kaito Kuroba didn't understand what he was talking about. "Let's go!"

The boy waved and left.

......

For Tohru Tohno, the incident involving Kaito Kuroba was just a minor episode; life went on as usual once he returned home.

Starting a company is not something you can figure out on a whim. As the founder, although he had the help of Misaki Ichijo, an experienced employee, there were still many things to consider.

For example, the company's location, main business selection, holding model, employee system... and even how to connect with the money laundering channels there, since the main source of income will be provided by the black organization for a long time, must be carefully considered.

Moreover, the invention and mass production cannot be neglected; in fact, more overtime work is required to make up for any potential shortage of funds.

In short, my brother is very busy.

Time always flies when you're busy.

Not long after, "Star Hub Technology" was quietly registered successfully.

Misaki Ichijo brought her usual staff with her when she switched companies and became the company president.

It wasn't that she wanted to leave the family business to work for someone else; she simply had no other choice.

Moreover, she was indeed dissatisfied with her father, who had become unambitious as he got older, and that was why she had tried to find fault with "Starlight".

After all, as a technology company that started with inventions, it has not produced any inventions that could elevate its status in the industry for more than five years... Its decline was only a matter of time.

In that case, changing jobs might actually be a good thing for her to do what she wants.

No matter how bad "Starlight" is, its level of invention is undeniable.

That's why, although she went from being one of the controlling shareholders to an employee, Misaki Ichijo is still very diligent overall.

Thanks to her efforts, "Star Hub" quickly began to operate normally.

The company positions itself as a high-end technology customization consulting firm, and its main business is to provide "non-standard technology solutions" for wealthy individuals and enterprises, charging on a project-by-project basis.

In layman's terms, it means providing wealthy people with personalized, customized products.

For example, customized private security systems, upgraded anti-theft technology for artworks, and corporate data encryption solutions—these are things that only the wealthy or corporations use; ordinary people don't need them.

Logically speaking, this model, without a dedicated supplier, should be a "three-year drought followed by three years of profit" situation.

But for Toru Tono, having the Black Organization as a major client meant that everything else was secondary.

Of course, dealing with the Black Organization was extremely risky, so Toru Tono chose to register a shell company in the British Virgin Islands to control the main company, thus obscuring the source of funds through multiple layers of equity structure.

Then they would place their fabricated identities overseas and establish offshore holding companies.

In this case, apart from a few insiders, the Japanese Public Security Bureau will only regard "Star Hub Technology" as a normal foreign-invested company and will not pay special attention to it.

Even if something is discovered to be wrong, the review process is very difficult to implement.

Simply perfect.

Chapter 141 Still Too Young

"Wow, boss, are we going to have official positions too?"

It's obvious that Tachibana Maya said such a stupid thing.

Tohru Tono sat on the sofa, biting the tip of his pen, his head down as he struggled with the contract beside him.

"Didn't you already have a salary?"

“That’s different!” Tachibana Maya said matter-of-factly. “Before, I was a temporary worker on probation, but now I’m a registered full-time employee!” She drew out the words.

“It’s not registered.” Toru Tono finally looked up at her. “Only Shiho Miyano is accounted for through the company; yours is accounted for separately.”

"...What do you mean 'someone like me'?! Do you look down on me?!"

"not at all."

"Tsk." Tachibana Maya made a defiant sound, then her eyes darted around.

She turned and nudged Shiho Miyano, who was looking at a fashion magazine next to her.

"Shiho, don't you think we should celebrate?"

Shiho Miyano looked at her with her icy blue eyes, her face full of confusion.

Maya Tachibana, worried that she wouldn't understand, gestured with her eyes wide open, "It's like a company opening. According to custom, shouldn't we have a dinner party and then a team-building event?"

"Where did this custom come from?"

Tohno couldn't stand her anymore. "Besides, even team building activities are for full-time company employees, it has nothing to do with you, right?"

Seeing that he wouldn't listen to reason, Tachibana Maya simply put her arm around Miyano Shiho's shoulder instead, "I recently heard that a restaurant called Ryusui-tei is quite popular. They have a special set meal for pufferfish sashimi, and also a limited edition sake—"

"I have to work tonight."

Shiho Miyano coldly read the magazine in her hand.

"Don't be so cold." Tachibana Maya was already used to her seemingly cold but warm-hearted nature. "Relaxing a bit can actually improve work efficiency!"

“There really is something…” Shiho Miyano reluctantly put down the magazine. “There’s been a small problem with the development of APTX, and I need to get a new batch of guinea pigs.”

"Ah~" Tachibana Maya was a little disappointed when she saw that Tachibana Maya's tone was serious.

"Huh? You need to worry about the experimental supplies yourself?" Tohno Toru was hearing this for the first time.

So Shiho Miyano can't just stay in the lab all the time?

“When you were part of the organization, I didn’t need to worry about you.” Shiho Miyano looked at him with a half-smile.

"..."

Thinking about it, it's true. I haven't really paid much attention to that side, and I haven't found her a helper yet.

No wonder the development progress of aptx-4869 shown on the system has slowed down a lot recently. He thought it had reached a bottleneck. It turns out that Shiho Miyano was just getting busy as more experiments were needed.

"Well, actually I had already thought of that, so the company has a special channel to meet your experimental needs—let's have lunch today, and we can contact Misaki tomorrow."

Fortunately, after taking over Pisco's authority, he inherited many of the Black Organization's shipping channels; otherwise, this would have been a real problem.

Shiho Miyano glanced at him and chuckled, seemingly realizing that Toru Tono wasn't telling the truth.

However, he nodded to indicate that he had no objection.

"Oh ho! You're treating us to dinner!"

Maya Tachibana raised her arms in celebration; she seemed to be the happiest one.

"Nobody said they were going to treat us, huh?"

"Oh dear, I bet some people have made enough dirty money lately to buy the entire Flowing Water Pavilion, haven't they?"

"...But then I thought, why should I make my employees pay for a simple meal once in a while?"

Tohru Tono wasn't helpless against Shiho Miyano's sabotage; he simply chose not to bother with it.

-----------------

"Really, there are still 30 minutes until our scheduled time."

Kogoro Mouri impatiently complained about the time on his wristwatch.

"But this store is very popular, and if you're late, your reservation will be canceled."

Xiaolan answered. Today she was wearing a light green women's jacket over a dark green dress, revealing her fair and delicate thighs.

"I've been waiting for so long, my stomach is growling." Kogoro Mori couldn't stand it anymore.

Sitting next to Ran, Conan didn't want to listen to the impatient old man's complaints, so he jumped off his seat to check out the renovation of the "Flowing Water Pavilion," which had recently become very popular.

There's an indoor bridge in front of you, spanning a man-made "river".

Wooden boats occasionally pass by on the river, each with a small red umbrella stuck in its pouch, propelled by the current.

This restaurant uses this wooden boat to deliver food. There is a control panel next to the kitchen, where the chefs who bring the dishes can control which private room the wooden boat goes to. When the customer arrives at the private room, they bring the dishes and press a button, and the wooden boat will return along the "river".

This not only gives guests a greater sense of privacy, but also saves the cost of hiring a waiter, achieving multiple benefits in one fell swoop.

A similar principle is actually seen in the conveyor belt delivery system of rotating hot pot restaurants, but this one has a particularly novel format and tastes good.

The unique style, combined with the antique Japanese architecture, has attracted many people to come and take photos or have meals together.

Conan stood on the small bridge, gripping the railing and looking down. He found it quite interesting; no wonder it was so popular.

"Is it fun?"

A waitress in a kimono gently struck up a conversation with Conan.

"Hmm!" Conan's childlike act was as natural as his breathing.

"Besides that, we have even bigger ships, you know?"

What happens after the ship arrives at the cabin?

"Guests will take the dishes down and press a button in their room, and the boat will automatically return to the dock to wait."

The young woman explained to him with a smile.

"So awesome."

Conan nodded thoughtfully.

Wouldn't that make poisoning very convenient?