than Yukio? Not at all in the end? Although Conan knew that now was the worst possible time to think about these questions, he let himself be distracted from his case for a while.He thought back tohismeeting with Ran in Tropical Land and how timid, even downright clumsy, she had tried to send soulful signals in his direction. What did your hesitation mean?

Conan wanted to concentrate his attention fully on Yukio again, but deep down in his soul he was plagued by perplexity and worries: How[/i]did Ran feel about Shinichi in the end ...?

Yukio was getting more and more suggestive. "Sorata hardly wanted to believe me, but the little one has it really tough: Her stormy kiss made me really hot! After a few minutes I thought: 'I'll be there for this week. Young boy, such a willing bride I haven't run into it for a long time! '

But then suddenly the fire was gone. From one day to the next! After our date we only had to hold square hands and a careful kiss here and there. Where was the awesome action? I didn't want a relationship, man."In mock grief, Yukio poked out his lower lip; he pouted like a little boy who hadn't gotten the toys from his mother that he wanted. beep, beep, oh how love we are! 'Uh- "

Annoyed, he frowned and checked his teeth, which couldn't have shone whiter. Then he turned his head examining it from side to side. "And then there was this Sonoko! What stung her, that she was after me, I would like to know. Maybe she played exactly the same game with her friends as I did with Sorata ... Not that you are bad Would have looked, sweetheart! I was almost ready for a little flirt. But I'm not aiming for you! "

Now Conan was sorry that he had asked Sonoko to take on Yukio. She too was showered with his condescending derision, albeit in her absence."So in the end I had to take the initiative again and promise Ran a very special evening. Well, if it helps me to get Sorata's car, everything should be fine with me. Ran wouldn't be the first to give me." at the bay at your feet. Dad really got lucky with the house there. They all love the atmosphere ... "

Yukio's excitement rose in accord with Conan's tension. The solution to the case was within reach: a girl, a Lexus and two spoiled guys, not much was missing. Conan could almost guess where this was going. But Yukio should tell him himself. "Come on," Conan whispered, barely audible. "Finally spit out the truth!"

When Yukio put on an expensive-looking watch, he shivered excitedly and noted with a look at the dial: "In a little more than three hours I have won." The certainty of victory was in his voice. "Then I finally got Ran around."

Suddenly he stopped.His excitement was suddenly subdued, as if something had occurred to him to diminish his triumph. "Actually weird. That was a lot easier than I thought. What did Sorata mean?

'Try it at Ran. Ran Mori. This is really the toughest nut to crack at Tantei right now. According to popular talk, she is waiting for a boy named Shinichi Kudo. He's supposed to be a real weirdo, the guy: He only reads the thrillers his father makes. But it doesn't matter. Anyway, this Ran ... A bit pale, but somehow very charming ... solo for months ... runs around like a bed sister the whole time and gets a head like a ripe tomato if you just look over at her. Definitely still a virgin, the little one ... Can you land with her? It should be difficult, old boy. If you lay her down, the car is yours, I promise. But if you fail, your catamaran will soon be going to sea with me. What do you think of it? Is the bet? '

Well, according to Sorata's description, I would have expected a rather shy creature.As Dad would say, a daisy that blows everything away before you can even blow. But Ran melts like wax in my hands. This Shinichi must have been a pretty sleepy girl, as starved as she is. In any case, I can't think of an easier bet sacrifice! "At the end, Yukio put a flower in the breast pocket of his shirt and looked at his likeness again. A perfect appearance, shiny, flawless, pure.

He smiled, whereupon the two small crescent moons moved back onto his cheeks, which drove Ran so much into ecstasy. His eyes picked up again that intimidated, admiring timidity that activated Ran's protective instincts with each glance. For a moment he looked as innocent as Conan had always known him to be. Yukio inclined his head playfully. "Hello Ran. I am glad that you came! I am sure you will enjoy the evening." The heavenly smile slipped from him, a diabolical grin took its place."Because tonight you are mine, doll!"

Yukio grabbed a bottle and sprayed his face, neck and cleavage on. Then something incredible happened: Conan felt like he smelled the scent of a rose. A little intense, but completely natural. He closed his eyes and saw a round, red goblet in front of him. He stuck his nose deep into it, drank the air with his organ, felt an irrepressible thirst for more. Desire...

The illusion vanished when he heard Yukio talking to the receptionist via intercom and leaving her a message for his father. Conan opened his eyes and saw the vaporized fragrance molecules floating across the room.

It was then that Conan understood the implications of this case: Yukiowasa rose. He had beguiled and fogged Ran with his innocent charm, so that she fell for him completely. He had lured her and she followed him willingly, succumbing to the sweet, lovely seduction.But today he would stab. The danger had been present all along, and yet it was only now that Conan noticed it. He saw the thorns before him, as they sparkled in the clear water: sharp and dangerous, ready to attack at any time. And he heard Yukio's call for blood, Ran's virgin blood ...

Something jingled. Yukio reached for a bunch of keys on the dresser. He checked his dazzling appearance one last time and kissed his reflection on the hand; then he left the room with a feathery step, whistling a little song. Only the rose scent, erotic and dangerous, remained as a crackling echo in the room. Conan stared after him. His mouth was open like a barn door. Then, after a long moment of silence, he too had to grin.

CLACK. He hit the stop button on his voice recorder, reassuringly knowing that he had it all on tape. Right at the beginning of Yukio's monologue, he had the idea of ​​making a tape. It had been clear to him that something had to be lazy about his competitor.Now Yukio had given him the solution to the case himself without knowing it: Ran had only been the object of a bet for him, the plaything of two rich high-flyers who pursued heartbreaking as a sporting competition. The fact that the equivalent of Ran's innocence should be something as ugly as a sports car only made the whole thing even more absurd and contemptuous in Conan's eyes.

Hadn't Yukio addressed his interlocutor with 'Sorata'? Conan could only think of one boy in his former grade with that first name, and he was a spoiled good-for-nothing from a good family who had changed schools so often that he probably knew half of the capital's high schools from the inside. It was through him that Yukio came across Tantei and his girlfriend Ran Mori.

Conan could imagine the rest: Yukio had probably only taken the tiny apartment in Beika with all the worn furniture to spend the night during the week. Presumably he had to be resident in the Beika district in order to attend Tantei High School.In addition, he could inconspicuously store the vast quantities of flowers there, with which he made himself more and more docile to Ran. Verily, Yukio had spared no expense or effort to be able to play his dirty little game. After all, everyone had bought the fairy tale of the naive gardener's son. Conan didn't want to know how many girls he'd tricked with it before Ran.

Conan looked around once more at the tastefully furnished room. Yukio Taniguchi's real world was this, he thought. Right in the center of the whole country, at a height of 400 meters above the streets of Tokyo, in wealth, elegance - and emptiness: no one had met him up here except Yukio.

The detective in him nodded with satisfaction: the investigation was a resounding success; he had reconstructed the sequence of events. The motif, however, remained in the dark. Probably, Conan speculated, it would take deep loneliness and neglect to develop such self-love.If you cherished it for years, it could bloom so badly that you saw other people only as a means to your own amusement. So it was: Yukio was a perfect narcissus and ultimately only spun his intrigues to escape the satiated boredom of his luxurious existence for a while.

In either case, Conan had gathered enough evidence to incriminate the suspect. But his way would not lead him back to the police, to Inspector Megure, or even to the prosecutor. He had a different kind of charge in mind.

However, he had to hurry. Didn't Yukio mention "a very special evening" that was coming up tonight? Hadn't you mentioned a house on the bay? And didn't he think that Ran wasn't the first to lie at his feet? The matter was not over yet. Conan sensed imminent danger and decided to put his plan into action sooner than he thought.-----

When Ran came home that Friday, she had long since forgotten that at the end of the school day she no longer knew much about everything she was supposed to learn. The only thing she could think of was the upcoming evening with Yukio. A pleasant shiver ran down her shoulders to her bottom at the thought of her boyfriend. How did she deserve this boy? Handsome yet humble, intelligent yet polite - he offered so many of Shinichi's qualities without showing any of his weaknesses. The fact that, unlike her long-time school friend, he came from a rather humble background only made him even more likeable. Truly, he came very close to the 'Prince Charming' Ran and Sonoko raved about when they started high school.

Apparently the higher powers finally had an understanding with Ran of