Chapter 419: All Acquaintances
"I was just passing by and saw you all chatting so happily. Naturally, I came over out of curiosity," Cointreau said. He pulled out a chair and sat down without the slightest hesitation, a faint, unreadable smile playing on his lips. He offered a casual wave of his hand, a gesture meant to dispel the sudden tension his arrival had caused. "Please, continue. Don't let me interrupt. I am actually quite interested in hearing this story."
Toru Amuro's jaw tightened, his teeth grinding together behind closed lips. He wasn't feeling restrained in the slightest; he simply harbored a deep, visceral resentment for the man sitting across from him. Welcoming Cointreau was the absolute last thing on his mind.
Conan's reaction, after a brief moment of stunned surprise, was entirely different. A spark of sharp, investigative excitement flared in his eyes. He desperately wanted to interrogate the man, to peel back the layers of his calm facade. However, with Ran and the others sitting right there, he had to forcefully swallow his questions, doing his utmost to suppress the burning urge to probe for information.
Cointreau's sharp gaze drifted downward, easily catching the subtle shifts in the boy's demeanor. He reached out, his hand resting heavily on Conan's shoulder in a gesture that looked gentle but carried an obvious weight. "Little Brother Conan," he murmured, his tone dripping with an artificial kindness. "Remember not to fidget too much while listening to a story. It wouldn't be good if you disturbed the others." As he withdrew his hand, his expression remained perfectly placid, acting as though he hadn't felt the boy's small frame instantly go rigid beneath his touch.
The heavy atmosphere briefly dissipated as Natsume, encouraged by the expectant looks around the table, cleared her throat to recount tales from her past travels. "Actually, the very first person I met was Venti," she began, her eyes brightening with nostalgia. She paused, tilting her head as she looked around the group. "Um... do you guys know Venti? Wait, did I never mention this friend to you before?"
"No, you haven't," Amuro replied, his expression smoothing out into a polite mask as he shook his head. Beside him, Ran Mouri and Sonoko Suzuki mirrored the gesture, their faces reflecting genuine curiosity at the unfamiliar name.
Ran was halfway through shaking her head when she suddenly froze. Her eyes widened as a sudden memory surfaced. "Wait a minute, Natsume. Are you talking about that boy with the twin braids? The one who wears those green, Baroque-style clothes?" she asked, leaning forward to seek confirmation.
"That's him!" Natsume nodded enthusiastically, though she immediately reached up to scratch the back of her head in confusion. "So I did tell you about him? Why don't I remember doing that?"
"You definitely didn't mention him, Natsume. But if my description matches your friend, then Conan, Mr. Amuro, and I have actually met Venti before," Ran explained. She turned to glance at the detective and the blonde man beside her, prompting their memories. "It was during that terrifying incident when Conan was kidnapped. Venti was the person standing right beside Mr. Diluc when they came to save him."
Amuro's eyes widened a fraction as the pieces clicked into place. The image of the enigmatic, bard-like youth standing alongside the imposing Diluc finally surfaced in his mind.
Sonoko glanced left and right, taking in the knowing looks exchanged between her friends. She crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks in a dramatic pout. "Hold on a second! Could it be that Mr. Morikawa and I are the absolute only ones sitting at this table who haven't met this mysterious Venti?"
"Miss Sonoko, I am afraid I am going to have to disappoint you even further," Morikawa Shiro chimed in. He raised a hand, a sheepish, apologetic smile forming on his face. "Actually, I am quite familiar with Mr. Venti as well. In fact, my colleague even treated him to a few drinks not too long ago."
"Huh?!" Sonoko gasped, her jaw dropping. "So that means I am literally the only person here who doesn't know him!" She whipped her head around, fixing Natsume with a fierce, accusing glare. She maintained the intense stare until Natsume, sweating under the pressure, finally threw her hands up in defeat and promised to introduce the bard to her at the earliest opportunity. Only upon hearing that solemn vow did Sonoko retract her glare, leaning back in her chair with a satisfied hum.
Natsume cleared her throat, eager to steer the conversation back on track. "Anyway, as I was saying, I first met Venti. Then, entirely due to his silver-tongued hoodwinking, I ended up sneaking in and stealing a certain lyre kept by Barbara..."
"Um... Sister Natsume, stealing isn't exactly a good thing to do, is it?" Conan could not stop his detective morals from flaring up, piping in with a critical tone.
"Ouch!"
A sharp sting erupted on his forehead before he could finish his lecture.
Cointreau had casually reached over and flicked the boy's forehead with his index finger, the precise strike drawing a pained yelp from the young detective. "Be quiet when listening to a story," the man scolded, his tone light but carrying an edge of absolute authority. "Children shouldn't interrupt the adults so much."
Natsume waved her hands frantically to defend herself. "Don't worry! After the Holy Lyre der Himmel lost its effect on Dvalin, I returned it to Barbara in its absolute original condition."
She kept her smile bright, completely hiding the fact that 'original condition' was merely an illusion cast to cover up the shattered state of the ancient relic.
Dvalin.
Conan rubbed his stinging forehead, his sharp mind latching onto the unfamiliar word. He felt certain he had heard that specific name somewhere before. It was just like the name Venti; he had felt a nagging sense of familiarity the very first time it was spoken.
A sudden flash of inspiration struck him like a bolt of lightning. He remembered now. Back in the story of the Evil Dragon that Lisa had once recounted to them, both the names Venti and Dvalin had been explicitly mentioned.
He narrowed his eyes, digging through his memories. What else had Lisa said back then?
The dragon slayer eventually becomes the Evil Dragon.
Could it be that the heroic friends in Lisa's story—the ones who had helped Dvalin turn back from the path of darkness—were actually Venti and Sister Natsume?
Natsume's next words perfectly validated the young detective's silent deductions. "...Because of some unfortunate accidents, Dvalin wasn't exactly in his right mind. The sound of the Holy Lyre der Himmel possessed the power to, at least to some extent, restore his lost sanity. So we had to borrow it... but the item was definitely returned in the end!"
"Wait, Natsume, you just said the Holy Lyre der Himmel lost its effect," Ran pointed out, her brow furrowing with genuine concern. "What happened to Dvalin in the end? Did he ever manage to regain his sanity?"
"Oh, don't worry about that. In the end, with Venti's help, I just beat him until he woke up." Natsume puffed out her chest, looking rather proud of her violent, pragmatic solution.
Floating nearby, Paimon scratched her cheek, completely at a loss for words. 'Literally speaking, there is actually nothing wrong with what she just said,'the little guide thought to herself.'But why does it sound so incredibly wrong when she puts it like that?'
"Ah..." Ran stared blankly, a completely deadpan expression overtaking her usually gentle features. "You... beat him awake. Well, as long as he is conscious now... I suppose that is good. Haha." She trailed off into a string of incredibly awkward, strained laughter.
Were Natsume and this mysterious Venti really so utterly ruthless toward their sick, mentally compromised friend?
She supposed that as long as the final result was positive, the methods did not matter.
Still, Ran could not help but mentally wipe away a drop of cold sweat, offering a silent prayer of pity for the poor Mr. Dvalin.
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]