I am in Mihua, and the ladies all like me

But there were also a small number of people who were relatively stubborn and simply refused to participate.

For example, there is a gloomy old man who claims to be a master of Japanese traditional painting and a professional surveyor of Mount Fuji.

On the stage, Mio Tokiwa saw that most of the flags had been distributed and those who were supposed to take them had received them. She thought that the remaining ones probably wouldn't intend to participate, so she picked up the microphone again and her voice echoed throughout the banquet hall through the radio.

"Then the prize-giving time-limited activity is about to begin. Are you all ready~?"

Just like an idol using her high-pitched voice on stage to stimulate the audience's passion, seeing that the atmosphere was almost right, Tokiwa Mio turned to secretary Sawaguchi who was holding a stopwatch and nodded.

Secretary Sawaguchi immediately understood what he meant, placed his index finger on the timing button in preparation, and took the microphone handed to him by Mio Tokiwa.

"Then get set—go!"

The moment the countdown started, a low counting sound was heard almost simultaneously from the audience.

It's just this rhythm, the main focus is on everyone reciting their own words.

Mitsuhiko: "1, 2, 3..."

Yuantai: "6, 7, 8, 9..."

Dr. Agasa: "25, 26, 27..."

Serabelle did not make any sound, nor did he join the counting. He just silently closed his eyes, pinched his pulse, and adjusted the pressure to the appropriate level.

In this way, time passed by minute by minute.

Secretary Sawaguchi on the stage stared at the timer in his hand. Only twenty-two seconds had passed since the announcement, and guests in the venue had already raised their flags one after another.

In the crowd, Kogoro Mouri was also counting seriously with his eyes closed and his hands folded across his chest. He had counted to the twenty-fifth second.

Although there was a slight discrepancy between the time and the actual time on the timer, considering the number of guests in the venue, Kogoro Maori's count was relatively accurate.

"26, 27..."

However, at this moment, a small hand from the side playfully patted him on the head.

She was a female guest holding a baby. The child in her arms saw something interesting on the back of Mouri Kogoro's head, so she slapped him with her backhand. Mouri Kogoro, who was concentrating on his study, was so frightened that he trembled all over and even stopped counting.

The female guest holding the child also quickly apologized.

However, Kogoro Mori didn't care about these at all, because there was a more serious problem facing him.

After he was startled, he actually forgot how many he had counted!

Looking around, more and more people have raised their flags.

No! If this continues...

Kogoro Mori panicked.

The next moment, a baby's cry as loud as a volcanic eruption sounded in the banquet hall, and the eruption took place right next to Kogoro Mori, causing him to shiver again and subconsciously raise the flag in his hand.

At the same time, Serabelle also raised the flag in her hand.

On the stage, Secretary Sawaguchi accurately pressed the timer in his hand, stopping the time at exactly thirty seconds.

Then she raised her head and gestured to Serabelle and Maori Kogoro in the audience with a surprised tone.

"Hey, I didn't expect that this event would actually produce two winners. Please invite the two distinguished guests with the blue and orange flags to come on stage!"

Serabelle's is an orange flag.

Kogoro Mori's flag is a blue flag.

It's just a coincidence.

After exchanging a glance across the crowd, Serabelle took the lead and walked onto the stage, followed closely by Maori Kogoro, stroking his chin.

Both parties came to the stage and stood still. Secretary Sawaguchi stood between them like a referee in a boxing match, holding a microphone and speaking.

"Then according to the rules explained before the game starts, if there are two winners, they will use rock-paper-scissors to decide the winner. The winner will win a sports car worth tens of millions of yen, and the loser... can only make do with that mountain bike~"

"The rules of rock-paper-scissors are simpler. The winner is determined in one round. Do either side have anything to say to the other?"

Secretary Sawaguchi gave up the microphone while speaking, as if he wanted the two to improvise a script like in WWE.

Serabelle didn't answer the phone. She just faced Kogoro Mori and scratched her hair, her tone showing a lack of motivation.

"Well, how should I put it... I'm only participating for fun in the first place. As for the car... I already have one, so I'll just give it to you, Uncle Maori. I'll play paper later, and you just need to play scissors to win, Uncle Maori, is that ok?"

"Hum..."

Naturally, Kogoro Mori would not believe a single punctuation mark in such words. He just curled his lips and thought to himself, how could such a low-level trap be used to trick an adult like me who has been through many battles in the battlefield?

It doesn't exist, okay!

Secretary Sawaguchi withdrew his arm and put the microphone to his lips, then stretched out his hand to signal the two to get ready.

"Now let's have the final decision! Rock-paper-scissors!"

With a sound of cloth being spit out from the secretary's mouth, both sides attacked at the same time.

A stone produced by Kogoro Mori.

Cloth made by Serabelle.

? !

Looking at the boy's five fingers that were all evenly stretched, Kogoro Mouri looked at his clenched fist in disbelief, then at his five open fingers.

He never expected that the other party was serious.

"Sincerity is the greatest weapon."

Serabelle shrugged, turned around and jumped off the stage in a cool manner.

Only Kogoro Mori was left standing on the stage, dumbfounded.

Chapter 168 Old man, what do you want to do?

By the time Serabelle returned to the stage, the atmosphere in the banquet hall had returned to normal before the event began.

The guests continued drinking and chatting, not feeling discouraged at all because they didn't win a sports car.

But think about it, it's nothing more than an entertainment show, there's no way you would make yourself famous just because of an entertainment show.

Oh, except for Uncle Maori, theoretically his mentality should have completely exploded...

"It's amazing that you can come up with such a way to fool him."

Looking at someone humming "The Little Song of the Little Boy" who was coming towards her, Huibara Ai complained lightly.

"Fooling? I'm not fooling you. I'm just telling you the truth."

Serabelle made a happy scissors hand gesture with classic determination on her face.

"I told Uncle Maori that I would play paper and asked him to play scissors so he could win, so I really played paper, but he insisted on suspecting that I was going to cheat him and ended up playing rock and losing. Isn't this his own problem?"

"Besides, Brother Sera, I have always been sincere to others. I have never been biased towards you."

Treat others with sincerity? Die with sincerity!

The brown-haired girl silently complained in her heart with her half-moon eyes.

Well, that's fine. Although I'm not sure whether the sentence she said before the event started played a major role, let's just assume it was.

This way, at least the chances of success for my clumsy sister have been increased a little.

Although it's really only a little bit.

Serabelle naturally had no idea what she was thinking, but she noticed that after the 30-second guessing event ended, Tokiwa Mio went to the back of the stage, along with the twin-tower skyscraper designer Kazama Hidehiko and Japanese traditional painting master Kisaragi Minemizu.

Are there any other activities coming up?

As they were wondering, the scene in the banquet hall suddenly dimmed without warning, shocking all the guests. Even the spotlight on the stage in front went out.

A huge electronic screen was lowered from the ceiling above the stage. The lit screen reflected a faint fluorescent light that barely illuminated a small area on the stage.

What is shown above is a distant view of Mount Fuji. The Mount Fuji in the painting is majestic and magnificent, with the top of the mountain covered with white snow all year round. This is the most inherent impression of Mount Fuji in Japan for people all over the world.

The voice of an unknown male host rang out from the pitch-black stage.

"Teacher Kisaragi Minemizu is a master of Chinese painting. He has devoted his life to depicting the majestic and lofty Mount Fuji..."

As the male host spoke, the images on the big screen switched one after another.

That is Mount Fuji in different seasons, at different angles, and at different times: morning, noon, dusk, and night.

After all, this was not a memorial service for Rugetsu Fengshui, and it was not the main course for tonight's opening dinner, so the photos switched very quickly, perhaps only ten seconds, and dozens of pictures of Mount Fuji flashed by in the blink of an eye.

"Recently, Mr. Kisaragi Minemizu personally painted a new picture of Mount Fuji to celebrate the completion of the Tokiwa Twin Towers."

As the male host on the stage finished speaking, the large screen that was originally on and providing a little light went out instantly, and rose back to the ceiling with the humming sound of the motor, while the stage curtain at the back quietly opened.

The moonlight at night shines in from the window with starlight, faintly reflecting the outline of the picture frame in the air.

But Serabelle noticed that there seemed to be something hanging in front of the frame.

Why does the shape look a bit like a sunny doll?

“Please enjoy!”

The male host was totally unaware of this and waved his hands vigorously to the back.

The next moment, bright lights shone down from the top, illuminating the exquisitely painted and magnificent painting of Mount Fuji.

It also illuminated the...corpse hanging in the air.

Well, whether he had turned into a corpse or not is another matter, but the identity of the person who was hung was known to everyone in the audience.

"That, that's..."

Kogoro Maori was so shocked that his eyes almost popped out of his head after just one look.

That’s right, the person being strangled by the neck and hung in the air was the current president of the Tokiwa Group - Tokiwa Mio.

She was hung off the ground by the pearl necklace around her neck, connected to the upper edge of the picture of Mount Fuji by a thin piano wire. Her hands and feet hung limply and her head was lowered, as if she had lost consciousness.

Just like a hanged ghost.

"President Tokiwa?!"

"how so……"

No one expected that such a horrific and thriller scene would appear at today's dinner.

For a moment, an atmosphere of panic swept the entire banquet hall.

Most people either covered their mouths in disbelief or stared at the scene in amazement. Even Kazama Hidehiko and Kisaragi Minemizu, who were standing on the left and right sides of the stage, had expressions of doubt about their lives.

Who could have imagined that the person who was supposed to be standing less than two meters away from him would be hung up in the darkness?

Chaos was about to break out in the venue, but fortunately, the veteran detective Kogoro Mouri was present.

At the critical moment, he rushed onto the stage and shouted to Secretary Sawaguchi, who was standing in front of the control console behind the stage, to immediately lower the picture of Mount Fuji and pull up the stage curtain again.

And Sawaguchi was worthy of being chosen by Tokiwa Mio as her personal secretary. After being called by Mori Kogoro, he immediately reacted and started operating the console in a hurry.

The picture frame was then lowered and the heavy curtain was raised again, blocking out any attempts to peek.

Although they were in the same banquet hall, the stage and behind the scenes suddenly became quiet with only a few people present.

Secretary Sawaguchi, Hidehiko Kazama, Minemizu Kisaragi, the unconscious Mio Tokiwa, Kogoro Mori, and...Serabel.

The last guy came in from outside after the stage curtain was drawn.

"Why did you get in?"

Seeing the latter appear, Kogoro Maori asked loudly.

However, this trick of his was good enough to scare the three little guys in the Junior Detective League, but it was completely useless against Serabelle.

"Nothing, I just saw you guys like this and was afraid you might just put a coffin on the spot, send flowers and bury the boss, so I came up to give you a little reminder that there might still be hope."

"Although I think this is common sense, that is, when a person's carotid artery is compressed, they will indeed lose consciousness within just ten seconds, but it is still a long time before they are completely dead. At least within three minutes, they can still be saved."

As Serabelle spoke, she squatted down next to Tokiwa Mio, placed her hands on her chest as if preparing to apply pressure, then turned around and raised her chin to Secretary Sawaguchi who was still standing there in a daze.

"As the only woman here, could you please help me blow some air, Miss Secretary?"

"I, I'll be right there!"

There is naturally nothing much to say about the artificial respiration process.