The elementary school sports festival was split into two levels. From grade three and up, it was competition among kids of the same age. From grade three and below, parents were required to join in fun events.
The Detective Boys were in first grade, so all their parents came to participate in the races with them. These events were meant to highlight the parents' performance and also strengthen communication with the kids through the games.
"Conan, the three-legged race is coming up soon. We have to give it our all," Mōri Ran said with confidence.
But Conan looked at Mōri Kogorō, who was swaying and reeking of alcohol, and knew they had zero chance of winning. Who knew how much Kogorō had drunk yesterday—he'd been groggy all day.
"Dad, pull yourself together," Ran scolded, tugging at his collar.
"Ahhh, Yukiko, one more drink," Kogorō mumbled. He always blurted out nonsense when drunk, saying things he shouldn't. This time, he even shouted the name of the bar girl who drank with him yesterday.
'Uncle, are you serious right now?' Conan didn't even have the strength to complain about him anymore.
"The three-legged race will begin shortly. Anyone who hasn't signed up, please head to the registration desk now."
Ran tied Kogorō's leg to Conan's ankle, then tied herself to Conan as well. "Conan, does it feel too tight?"
"It's fine, Ran-neechan." Their feet were bound together, like a bond that couldn't be broken in a lifetime. Conan blushed. The only perk of being shrunk was probably getting to live with his childhood crush and seeing so many beautiful things.
"Dad, stand up! The race is about to start!" Ran had no way of dealing with her father. He was hopeless. Even as a famous detective now, his addiction to alcohol hadn't changed. "Dad, Dad, hurry and get up!"
Conan could only accept his future father-in-law's bad habits. He admired Ran's patience. Even Kogorō's wife hadn't been able to put up with him and chose to live apart. He wondered how much longer Ran could endure.
"Conan, you're in the three-legged race too?" It was Genta, standing with his strong mother and scholarly father.
Conan had seen Genta's father before during the Kojima family's selection competition, but this was his first time meeting the mother. As expected, like mother like son—both were solid and sturdy.
"Conan, I won't lose to you in this race. My parents are the strongest," Genta declared. In his heart, he thought, 'Conan's always the smart one. At least in a running contest, I can't lose.'
"Go, Genta!" Mitsuhiko cheered for his friend.
"Go, Conan!" Ayumi shouted. The precocious little girl already had feelings for Conan. In fact, it wasn't just Ayumi cheering—several other schoolgirls were rooting for him too.
"My, my, Conan, you're quite popular," Ran teased when she saw all the girls cheering for him.
Conan felt crushed by the pressure. He had no interest in being the crush of elementary school girls.
Seeing all the girls cheer for Conan, the boys couldn't stand it. They started cheering for Genta instead. His big size made him competitive even against third graders, so he was already the standout among first graders. With such capable parents, the Kojima family team had the best shot at winning.
"Go, Genta, go!!"
"Don't worry, I'll definitely win!" Genta thumped his chest. "As long as it's about strength, I'll never lose."
Looking at the situation, Conan thought, 'Don't treat me like your love rival, guys. It's not my fault I'm popular.' But the truth was, Conan was too good to everyone, and with his abilities, he was the kind of good man even elementary school girls knew they should cherish.
Ran looked at the complicated factions among the kids and felt that elementary students these days were way too mature. Back when she was their age, she only knew about Kudō. Where were all these messy situations? But Ran as a child had been a lot like Ayumi. The difference was that back then Kudō was still in his bratty stage, an annoying, socially clueless mystery nerd. Aside from Ran, no other little girl would've liked that kind of guy. Kudō Shinichi only started to gain popularity in middle school. By high school, once he became a detective, his popularity exploded so much that it even made Mōri Ran nervous.
Conan was basically the ultimate version of Kudō, a limited-edition good man with all of Kudō's strengths. He wasn't just good at deduction, he also knew how to take care of girls. If someone like him wasn't popular, it would be unnatural.
If Conan were into lolis, he'd probably be in heaven. But too bad—his heart was fully tied to Mōri Ran. He was all about childhood sweethearts. Lolis or older women weren't his type at all.
"Ah, it's Haibara." Even though she was also a transfer student, Haibara hadn't blended into the class as well as Conan. She was much more withdrawn compared to him.
Haibara had originally said she would skip the event, and Kobayashi Sumiko, the first-grade homeroom teacher, had been worried. But she didn't expect Haibara to actually show up. "Haibara, you came."
"Teacher Kobayashi, long time no see." Professor Agasa had met her before when he helped Haibara with enrollment.
"Professor Agasa, long time no see! I'm so glad you're here to join Teitan Elementary's sports festival." Teacher Kobayashi was excited. Her whole class was now participating. She couldn't ask for more.
"Teacher Kobayashi, we want to sign up for the three-legged race."
"Alright, but… you only have two people," she said, a little troubled.
"With me, that makes three."
Wow, such a beautiful woman that Teacher Kobayashi froze for a moment.
"Teacher?"
"Sorry, may I ask who you are to Haibara?"
"Mother. I'm Ada Wong," Ada said. Since she had agreed to adopt Haibara, she was now her mother.
"So you're Haibara's mother." It was the first time meeting her. "Then your team will be Haibara's mother, Haibara, and Professor Agasa. Correct?"
"Yes, it'll be the three of us." The professor glanced at Liu A'dou hiding in the crowd, thinking, 'This guy is way too playful.'
Liu A'dou had said they were still in the middle of the game, so they couldn't let classmates know he and Ada were already married. He even asked the professor and Haibara to keep it secret. Awkward, way too awkward. Who else pretends not to know their own spouse in front of others? He was obviously just looking for something to do.
That was exactly it—he was just bored. Liu A'dou thought ordinary vacations were dull, so he came up with this kind of game.
"Please head to the starting line. The race is about to begin." Teacher Kobayashi handed them the colorful straps used for binding their legs.
'Why is Haibara with a high school teacher?' Conan thought. And seeing the professor there too made it even stranger. How were these three connected?
Professor Agasa noticed Conan's questioning look and gave him a confused shrug in return.
'What the hell? What exactly happened?'
It looked like Haibara would be racing with Teacher Ada. Could it be Ada was related to her somehow? Conan didn't have much bias against Ada. In his eyes, beautiful women never committed crimes. And even if they did, they'd probably turn out to be cute boys in disguise.
At least in Conan's experience, every beautiful woman around him had treated him kindly and protected him. Even Vermouth from the Black Organization had been the same. No matter how dangerous, once a woman crossed paths with Conan, she always seemed to turn into a good person. By that logic, Ada wasn't a bad person either.