How to Survive With a Death-Flag Character Setting in Detective Conan - Chapter 11

When Matsuzaki Toru arrived at the club room, he immediately noticed that the atmosphere inside was a bit odd.

“What’s going on?” He looked at Adachi Shizuku and asked, “Why do you look so upset while eating snacks?”

Adachi Shizuku rolled his eyes. “The way you’re saying it, it’s like you’re implying all I do is eat.”

Matsuzaki Toru laughed. “Isn’t that true?”

Adachi Shizuku glared at him fiercely, gritting his teeth as he said, “You little brat, I’m a senior, you know! Can you show me some respect?”

Matsuzaki Toru widened his eyes, looking innocent. “How am I not respecting you?” He placed the bag he was holding on the table and sighed dramatically. “I went abroad recently and even brought you a gift, Senpai, but I didn’t even get a word of thanks. Ah~ I’m so heartbroken~~”

Toyama Mima peeked into the bag. “Is it handmade chocolate? It looks really expensive.”

Higashino Hiromu nodded. “The snacks I bought don’t seem worthy of being placed next to it.”

Adachi Shizuku glanced at the chocolate, then looked back at Matsuzaki Toru, hesitating. “You’re really this kind-hearted? You actually brought me a gift? You’re not planning something, are you?”

Matsuzaki Toru shook his head, helpless. “Forget it, I’m not teasing you anymore. These are for everyone, let’s just share them.”

Adachi Shizuku showed a knowing expression. “I knew it. You can only trust half of what you say.”

Matsuzaki Toru shrugged at that.

Higashino Hiromu wasn’t sure if it was because he was overly sensitive after coming out, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something odd about those two.

“So, what happened just now? Why does everyone look so upset?” Matsuzaki Toru asked again.

Toyama Mima explained, “Just now, Hoshimoto came by. She said that the farewell party for the former president will be funded by her and moved to Friday evening at the Haido City Hotel.”

Adachi Shizuku tilted his head back and imitated Hoshimoto Kana’s arrogant demeanor, raising his voice with a dramatic tone, “I don’t want to go to some remote mountain hot spring. Who knows if the water’s clean there? What if I get a skin disease?”

Matsuzaki Toru raised an eyebrow. “Doesn’t she know I’m looking for a sulfur spring? Sulfur springs have sterilizing properties and can actually help treat skin diseases. Moreover, while the Haido City Hotel is expensive, it’s in the city, so more people will go, and the water there is probably even dirtier, right?”

Adachi Shizuku shrugged. “Who knows what that ojou-sama is thinking.”

Matsuzaki Toru pinched the bridge of his nose. “Forget it, if she wants to hold it, let her. Anyway, I booked for a different time. We’ll go at our own time.”

Toyama Mima clapped her hands, smiling. “Oh, that means we get to play twice!”

Matsuzaki Toru reminded them, “Also, everyone should be careful on Friday night. Who knows who she’ll invite.”

Adachi Shizuku curled his lips. “She might bring her ‘host club’ with her.”

Toyama Mima hesitated. “That shouldn’t be the case, right? The farewell party is for the former president Kaneda, isn’t it?”

Higashino Hiromu didn’t join in on their conversation. Although he had memorized the club’s member list, he didn’t know anything about their personalities, so to avoid revealing anything, he kept his mouth shut.

He finished handling the club application forms and asked Adachi Shizuku to send messages to those who passed the initial screening, letting them know to come for interviews tomorrow.

Higashino Hiromu said, “The interviews are just a formality. Unless something unexpected happens, these people are going to be this year’s new members.”

Adachi Shizuku glanced at the list and asked, “Out of the fifty-something applications, only these few passed?”

“Fewer but better quality,” Higashino Hiromu explained. “Besides, we’re not a big club. Too many members would be hard to manage.”

Matsuzaki Toru nodded from the side and added, “You should know that every new member means an increase in the budget. The budget request has to be based on last year’s numbers. If we add too many people at once, it’ll be hard to get the student council to approve the funding. The best way is to gradually add a few members each year, and before you know it, the club’s activity funds will go up.”

Higashino Hiromu thought to himself, I didn’t actually think that far ahead. I just thought having too many people would be difficult to manage.

Adachi Shizuku closed the folder and said, “Anyway, I’m graduating next year. Let the next person deal with these things.” He then turned to look at Higashino Hiromu with a mischievous smile, saying, “But you, Higashino, still have a few years left, right?”

Higashino Hiromu didn’t respond. As someone who switched to studying medicine halfway, he wasn’t even sure if he could still graduate!

He only knew basic first aid, which was a skill provided by the system. Every day after returning home, he would carefully go through the original host’s textbooks and notes. But the reality was, just reading books wouldn’t get him through. Although he had a photographic memory now, the knowledge was just imprinted in his mind—it didn’t mean he understood it.

He even wondered if he should switch to forensic medicine; at least there, he wouldn’t be killing people.

But the original host had always been a top student, a star in the medical field, and probably one of the best. The advisor definitely wouldn’t let him go. As a graduate student, he was about to start his internship soon, so what could he do?

Higashino Hiromu had great respect for medicine, but with his current situation, how could he possibly treat patients or perform surgery?

He’d have to come up with an excuse to avoid the internship.

After leaving the club room, he didn’t feel like going to the lab, so he wandered aimlessly around the campus.

It was his first time having the leisure to stroll through Tohto University. The atmosphere of a foreign university felt different somehow.

As he walked, something suddenly fell from the sky. He immediately raised his hand to catch it, and it turned out to be a white towel that was still damp.

He looked around, trying to figure out where the towel had come from.

At that moment, a voice called out from above. “Hey~~ Classmate over there~~”

Higashino Hiromu looked up and saw a short-haired girl leaning out of a second-floor window, cupping her hands around her mouth as she called to him. “Sorry~~ I dropped that towel. Could you please bring it over?” She pointed to the right. “Just bring it to the main entrance of the gym~~”

Only then did Higashino Hiromu realize that he had already walked to the vicinity of the gymnasium. This area was filled with various sports facilities and outdoor courts where most of the sports teams trained.

Higashino Hiromu nodded at her and walked in the direction she pointed.

Before he even reached the main entrance, he heard a loud sound.

Thud, thud, thud! It sounded like something heavy had fallen.

He lifted the net acting as a door curtain and peered inside. It turned out to be the volleyball team’s training area.

“Wow~~”

For someone who was experiencing this sport up close for the first time, the volleyball team left him deeply impressed.

A group of tall athletes, all averaging over 1.9 meters in height, sprinted and jumped to spike the volleyball over a net that was nearly 2.5 meters high.

They are literally flying!

At 1.83 meters tall, Higashino Hiromu felt short in comparison.

It seemed like they were jumping so high that they could surpass his own height!

So high! Their legs are so long! They jumped so high!

Just as Higashino Hiromu was admiring the volleyball team, a “stray bullet” shot towards him at high speed.

“Watch out!”

The bright orange volleyball was heading straight for his face. His brain told him to dodge, but the ball was too fast, and there was no time. He could only instinctively lean back.

Just as the ball was about to hit his face, a large hand appeared in front of him and caught the volleyball with perfect precision.

The ball spun for a while before finally coming to a stop, and Higashino Hiromu even felt the breeze created by its rotation.

The owner of the hand tossed the ball back into the court and shouted, “Be careful!”

Higashino Hiromu looked at him and smiled, “Thanks, Hatori. I think if I’d been hit by that ball, I’d have had a concussion. You saved my life!”

Hatori Yuiichi nodded slightly and said, “Volleyball can be dangerous, especially with Narita’s power. The ball speed can reach up to 100 km/h.”

Higashino Hiromu gave him a doubtful look. “How fast?”

Hatori Yuiichi smiled and said, “A serve with a speed of 100 km/h isn’t surprising anymore. The current record for men’s volleyball is 138 km/h.”

Higashino Hiromu touched his forehead, feeling a little shaken.

At that moment, Hatori Yuiichi noticed the white towel in his hand, raised an eyebrow, and asked, “What’s this?”

Higashino Hiromu looked at the towel he was tightly gripping, just about to explain, when a short-haired girl ran over, the same one who had called out to him from the window earlier.

She saw that Hatori Yuiichi was also there and, feeling embarrassed, said, “Sorry, Hatori senpai, I dropped your towel. I’ll go wash it again.”

Higashino Hiromu hadn’t realized it was Hatori Yuiichi’s towel. “So this is yours?” He raised the towel in his hand and said, “Don’t worry, it didn’t touch the ground. I caught it!”

Hatori Yuiichi smiled slightly. “Even if it did touch the ground, it’s no big deal. It’s just for wiping sweat.”

“A white towel getting dirty still doesn’t look great,” Higashino Hiromu said, handing the towel to the girl. She immediately grabbed it and ran off.

He looked at Hatori Yuiichi with confusion. “Do I look that scary?”

Hatori Yuiichi said, “Maybe you’re just too handsome, so she’s shy.”

Higashino Hiromu wore a “Are you serious?” expression. He figured that anyone who saw Hatori Yuiichi every day probably wouldn’t be shy in front of him…

“Is that all you came for, Higashino senpai? Just to return the towel?” Hatori Yuiichi asked.

Higashino Hiromu snapped out of his thoughts. “Hmm, no. I also needed to talk to you.” He said, “There’s a farewell party for the former president on Friday night, and new members are invited to join.”

Hatori Yuiichi said, looking troubled, “I’ll sit this one out.”

Higashino Hiromu asked, “You’re busy? It’s at the Haido City Hotel, you know. You can enjoy a big feast~”

When Hatori Yuiichi heard the location, he furrowed his brows. After thinking for a moment, he said, “If I have time, I’ll go.”

Higashino Hiromu smiled. “Great, try to make it! You’ve got to take the opportunity while it’s there!”

As the two of them chatted near the entrance, the rest of the team members were secretly observing them.

Just moments ago, Narita, who had almost hit Higashino Hiromu with the ball, hooked his arm around Sakusa Shinta’s neck and whispered, “Who’s that guy? He looks kinda familiar.”

Sakusa Shinta twitched his lips and replied, “Tohto University isn’t that big. You’ve probably bumped into him somewhere before.”

He certainly couldn’t say, ‘That’s Hatori’s rumored boyfriend,’ right?