Ichijō Mirai knows himself best, and knowing his own character, he was surprised by two things about 'Ichijō Mirai'.
Surprise #1: How can there be a lover?
Surprise #2: How can you say something like 'I'm not sure if my lover will fall in love with me again'?
"No matter who the other person is," Ichijō Mirai reasoned from a sense of self-awareness, "I'm the dominant party, right?"
In a normal interpersonal relationship, whether it be love, friendship, or whatever, there are often equals, but sometimes there is a dominant party.
Unlike Ichijō Mirai, he doesn't have normal relationships, and in all of them, he's the dominant one.
In all of his interactions, such as with Gin as a coworker, with Hiromitsu Morofushi as a classmate, and with his future colleagues at the FBI, he's the dominant one.
He's always in the driver's seat.
...And in love, too, right?
Ichijō Mirai can't imagine being in a relationship where he's an equal, or in a relationship where he's the dominant one.
But how can the dominant person not be sure 'Will she fall in love with me? .
System: [...]
It wants to say don't think about it, the question in its entirety is 'Once again, change some basic settings, will my lover fall in love with me?' Ichijō Mirai can't think of anything if it's linked to 'once more'.
Even if you concentrate hard on your thoughts, you won't get any useful information, and instead you'll experience the subtle sensation of 'tentacles rummaging in and out of your brain' again.
It's a trap.
But I knew that Ichijō Mirai was concerned about it.
So after hesitating for a few moments, it pulled its focus away from 'once more' and completely shifted to its lover: [Should, should I?]
It recalled, a little uncertain: [I thought you were the dominant one, but you said you weren't...]
Ichijō Mirai:"..."
His steps stopped for a split second, thinking, slowly inquiring, "Have I been poisoned before?"
"Is it the kind of poison that causes irreversible damage, such as affecting the brain, lowering IQ, making the brain less capable, turning it into a fool, and other aftereffects?"
"It doesn't have to be poisoning, it could be overuse of anesthesia or something like that?"
The table said, while nodding convincingly, "Oh, no wonder I'm needed, I see."
...Not brain-dead, how can you fall in love, how can you not be the dominant!
[I feel that you are the dominant one,] The system repeated again, this time adding one more sentence, [but you said no,]
[You feel that you can't take the initiative to end the relationship, so you're not the one in charge.]
You're about to get married and you're still thinking about 'ending the relationship on your own initiative'?
That's not a good thing.
When you're in a relationship with such a thing, is the other person a 'lover' or a 'fiancée'? No, she's a victim.
Victims who have had the worst luck of their lives.
Ichijō Mirai made a subtle pause before saying, "I'm guessing you exchanged these words before you put on the ring."
This question would not reveal the identity of the lovers, only Ichijō Mirai's privacy, and the system frankly admitted: [Yes...]
[It was when he found out she was going to propose.]
Ichijō Mirai: "..."
[You seem to reject love, and even more so, marriage,] The system said, [She proposed several times, and the first time, you refused, said-]
It paused for a moment, as if organizing the language with difficulty, [...marriage will affect the financial fortune.]
[You say you've seen people die because of marriage, going from being rich and powerful to living on the street, and that it affects their fortunes too much.]
Ichijō Mirai: "?"
"...Didn't the victim immediately and urgently think about how to plan a murder? Actually, I don't mind if you do."
[She said you don't need luck.]
What do you mean, you don't need luck?
You don't have money, you rob it? That's pretty much a no-brainer. Ichijō Mirai doesn't need it right now.
[Second proposal, you declined.] The system is more difficult. [You say your mother was on drugs, and that you might have some unknown drugs in your system, and that you might have a child with problems, and that it would be torture to have something as heartless as yourself.]
[You said you've seen a heartless child born from an unfortunate family, the family is broken, we're likely to have an unfortunate future if we get married, forget it.]
Ichijō Mirai: "..."
This victim really doesn't think about planning a murder.
[She said you're a kind-hearted god with a soft heart, and it's great to have a child like you, so if you don't like children, you can stop raising them and just look at them when you have time.]
...This victim, it seems, it seems, it's a bit...
In the first half of the sentence, Ichijō Mirai's eyelids fluttered as he heard it, and he said in awe, "That's a lot of nonsense."
The second half of the sentence, Ichijō Mirai was even more in awe, "How irresponsible."
What kind of black power is this guy from?
The Organization? Animal organization? FBI?
[The third time you were proposed, you refused,] The system hesitated, [the reason you said you refused the first two times was not a perfunctory dismissal, it's something that happened you had an unfortunate childhood, the father was a criminal who cheated on the mother of a young lady, but when the child was almost an adult, and after he was firmly established in his own company he tore his face off and showed his true colors, happily took over the nest and threw mud at his mother to drive her away and cause her to pass away, but the genes are hereditary. Children are like their fathers, and you happily raised the table and left your father to chew on the trash.]
[You said you'd be reduced to eating garbage to keep from resembling your father too much, so forget it.]
Ichijō Mirai: "..."
System: [...]
[...She says she's touched that you're willing to say this to her, that she knows you're not just dismissing it perfunctorily, that it's a serious rejection after serious consideration, that it's the truth...]
"Touched", not 'moved'.
Come up with a murder plan, really.
Ichijō Mirai is willing to take care of all the steps before dumping the body.
The reason for the system's hesitation is: 'Is it true?'
Ichijō Mirai didn't answer positively, "Do you think I'll tell the truth."
"What about the fourth time?"
[For the fourth time,] the system replied, [you said she jumped out of the room with joy like a bunny rabbit.]
[You like rabbits, so you agreed.]
Ichijō Mirai himself didn't even know he liked animals like rabbits, he paused, ignoring that section for now and just looking at the failures, "That lord victim, she's more or less outrageous, isn't she?"
How can you say words like 'kind-hearted' and 'divine'?
...It can't be Belmod!
That guy's a drama queen.
"It's decided," Said Ichijō Mirai, "to find a chance to mess with Belmode's mind,"
And: "'Calvados'."
This guy's got a lot on her mind, too.
"I'll have to mess with this guy's mind sometime."
Let's see which one of these two guys comes up with similar nonsense.
Or maybe it's the same guy.
System: [...]
Two victims have appeared, one is Belmode, the other is still Belmode.
Ichijō Mirai added: "But I am indeed the dominant one."
Even though I was proposed to, even though I couldn't say anything to end the relationship.
But I'm the one who's in charge.
But there was something subtly complicated about this relationship, something Ichijō Mirai could smell as a tacit secret, certain that she and her lover-sama had had a special experience that had evolved into something that felt like a normal relationship and something that didn't.
...Have a special experience, it's barely normal to have a relationship.
Ichijō Mirai is barely acceptable.
Ichijō Mirai is fine with it as long as they don't intend to cheat on their feelings or get married for some kind of gain.
And one more thing, "Rabbit."
He thought for a moment, and added the third person he wanted to mess with, "Jodie."
Officer Jodie is a very cute officer bunny.
Maybe it's because his lover's name rhymes with Officer Jodie that he likens his lover to a rabbit.
There are three victims.
Actually, there's one more: Suzuki Sonoko.
Mouri Ran, who obviously has a boyfriend and is chasing someone with her girlfriend, is the least suspicious, while Suzuki Sonoko, who received the delivery, is the most suspicious.
And, "Ms. Suzuki."
Ichijō Mirai walks behind Suzuki Sonoko and observes her without moving.
Her shoes were walking shoes, with a layer of mud on the soles, some snow that hadn't melted near the tops of the shoes, and some splashes of mud on the backs of her calves that looked like she had been running.
In addition to this, there were signs of a fall, on part of her leg and skirt, and her sleeve was stained with a few muddy marks, as if she had propped herself up on the ground with her hands.
These marks could easily form a picture of Suzuki Sonoko being attacked, falling to the ground and having to use her hands to support herself.
For ordinary people, an attack is a very frightening thing.
After such a frightening incident, he hurried back to the villa, and without even changing his shoes, his first thought was to go upstairs and look for Ichijō Mirai...
Ichijō Mirai was a little unsure, "If she knew who I was, would she just run away, or would she just blabber on about me without changing her face?"
Rationally, he thought the former.
But as he watched Suzuki Sonoko without moving, Ichijō Mirai was a little uncertain when he realized that she was only now realizing the danger she had just been in, and that she was a little scared and insecure, but with an inexplicable cheerfulness in her step.
Every now and then, Suzuki Sonoko would look back.
When she did, and met Ichijō Mirai's thoughtful gaze, her fearful absentmindedness immediately dissipated like a dark cloud meeting a sunny day.
What emerged instead was embarrassment and embarrassment, "I just fell in the forest, so..."
"There are ghosts here, Mr. Mirai!"
Suzuki Sonoko pursed her lips, her eyes rounded a bit and she looked serious, "I just saw Ran from a distance on the second floor, so I tried to go out and look for her."
Because of the thunder.
"But when I saw her, before I could say hello, I saw a terrifying figure appear behind her!"
Fear surfaced again, she pursed her lips again, depicting the terrifying silhouette, "The silhouette looked like some kind of ancient castle ghost, draped in a black cloak, revealing a face that was covered in layers of white bandages, and her hands were wrapped in dense bandages as well, holding up a huge axe,"
She furrowed her brow a few times, a look of disgusted repulsion and fear spreading across her face, talking to Ichijō Mirai with a sidelong glance while holding onto the stairs without looking back, heading down, "That kind of monster, it's definitely some kind of ghost, isn't it?!"
"When I found out, he was planning to attack Ran!"
"After I called him out, he looked at me for a few seconds," Suzuki Sonoko's brow furrowed even more, "as if he wanted to memorize me, before slowly retreating behind the other trees."
"When we went after him, he disappeared as if he had vanished into thin air!"
Huh, how dare you go after him?
Ichijō Mirai signaled with his eyes as he neared the corner of the stairs and the staircase.
Without thinking, Suzuki Sonoko turned back to the stairs, walked around the corner, turned her head to Ichijō Mirai again, and explained, "It was Conan who went after him."
Guessing that Ichijō Mirai likes children, she praises him with open eyes, "He was very brave. Ran and I were still in shock, but he went straight after them, just like a detective."
It's just an unarmed kid chasing a ghost with an axe, kind of like a death wish.
They were going after Conan.
A kid chasing after a ghost with an axe?
Ichijō Mirai had seen Conan and knew that he was extraordinarily perceptive and had a child's perspective, so he probably picked up on some clues, such as Mr. Ghost's footprints.
He asked, "It's snowing outside, isn't it, and did Mr. Ghost leave footprints on the ground?"
Suzuki Sonoko looked puzzled for a moment and recalled for a few seconds, "I think so?"
"Hey, I think I heard Conan say something about footprints," She tried to remember, "We didn't see the ghost at all when we first chased him out, but he kept running as if he could see them, and didn't stop until he was near the villa."
There was snow near the villa.
But the people in the villa had already made many messy, indistinguishable footprints, and it was impossible to distinguish the line of footprints from the ghost.
"I see."
Suzuki Sonoko was still looking over, staring, her eyes a little bright, as if she thought that Ichijō Mirai, as a detective, would say something befitting of a detective.
And no matter what he said, she would nod her head and believe it without hesitation.
Ichijō Mirai paused.
In the past, he hadn't cared about this kind of gaze, but after learning that 'Ichijō Mirai' actually had a lover...
It was as if the stares suddenly took on a whole new dimension.
I can't tell if it's a good thing or a bad thing.
He smiled a little and asked a question to distract Suzuki Sonoko, "So, that Mr. Ghost actually had footprints?"
"And eventually disappeared near the villa?"
Wouldn't that be strange?
Suzuki Sonoko's eyes flickered as she understood what was being said, "You mean, it was a human?!"
She thought for a moment, and with some hesitation dawned on her, "That bandaged freak seemed to be gasping for air, and while staring at me, it seemed to be gasping for air!"
"The body was undulating, the hand clenched tightly around the axe, as if it was gasping in irritation!"
"Is it really human?!"
She stopped staring so intently at Ichijō Mirai and pondered the question.
Ichijō Mirai added, "If it's a human, then why is it wearing bandages around its face, hands, and cloak?"
That's a normal question for someone who's been attacked by a bandage monster.
That is, if one is calm and rational.
Suzuki Sonoko hadn't given it much thought because she was panicked and was afraid that something would happen to Ichijō Mirai, who was alone, since the Bandage Monster had disappeared from the vicinity of the villa, but now she was giving it some serious thought.
Since Ichijō Mirai was the one who asked the question, she thought about it very carefully, so she quickly realized something.
"...Covering his face?"
The Bandage Monster covered his face with bandages.
Why cover his face?