Eri Kisaki wouldn't care too much about Ran Mouri's ordinary little things. However, Eri still had the right to discipline Ran on major issues of right and wrong, and Ran would generally obey her mother's words.
"Mom, tell me, Shinichi and I really are just going to the amusement park to play. You don't want to go with us in person, do you?" Although Ran asked this, she was not too worried. After all, Eri was still quite busy at work.
"Of course, I won't follow you, Ran, but I wouldn't worry if someone else were to accompany you," Eri responded to Ran.
After hearing this, Ran subconsciously looked at Ren.
"Mom, are you asking Brother Ren to go with me?" Ran asked in shock.
Earlier, Eri arranging for Ren to go to work at her office was already very surprising, but now she was actually arranging for Ren to go to the amusement park with her.
You know, today she was going to celebrate with Shinichi Kudo, and having Ren tag along just felt awkward.
"Yes, I'm not in a rush with his work arrangements anyway. It's not a big deal to ask Ren to go to the amusement park with you," Eri admitted, which made Ran's face look a little sour.
"What's wrong, Ran? Your attitude wasn't like this before." Seeing that Ran was silent, Eri continued to press.
"Mom, this time Shinichi and I are going out together, so if you want someone to join us, I still have to ask Shinichi..."
"That's fine. I can just contact Shinichi Kudo's mother, Yukiko, and ask her to rein in her son. He completely forgets himself while helping the Metropolitan Police solve cases anyway. If he actually wants to take my daughter out to play alone, he should be on his best behavior..."
"Mom, you don't need to contact Aunt Yukiko! I will take Brother Ren to the amusement park with us." Ran surrendered immediately.
She knew perfectly well that if Eri really contacted Yukiko, Yukiko definitely wouldn't persuade Shinichi to back off, but would instead tease and encourage him. It was impossible to say what kind of embarrassing choice Shinichi would make under that pressure.
Therefore, Ran immediately threw in the towel. If her mother wanted her to take Ren with her, then she would take Ren with her. The worst that could happen was that she'd have to explain the situation to Shinichi on the way.
"Then I'll be troubling you, Ran." This was Eri's arrangement, and Ren didn't refuse.
Moreover, since the system had said that he was invincible from now on, it was about time to finally meet the protagonist of this world, Shinichi Kudo.
"Ren, don't get shaken off by Shinichi and Ran. Both of them can be a bit cunning. You should know what I mean by sending you out with them," Eri instructed Ren directly in front of Ran.
What made Ran even more annoyed was that Ren didn't seem to think this was abnormal at all, responding calmly: "Sister Eri, don't worry. The current Ran and the 'savior of the Metropolitan Police Department' are still minors; I will definitely keep a close eye on them."
After receiving such a guarantee, Eri nodded with satisfaction, and then said to Ran: "Okay, I have to pack up and get to work. Ran, you and Ren should leave now."
Eri needed to clean up the mess from breakfast, and more importantly, the mess left in her bedroom.
Ran left the dining room first. When Eri saw Ren to the door, she whispered to him: "Ren, help me keep a close eye on them. I really don't approve of that Shinichi brat."
Even if Shinichi Kudo grew up to become a famous detective in the future, Eri did not want her daughter to end up with someone in such a dangerous line of work.
"Sister Eri, leave these matters to me; they will definitely be handled," Ren assured her again.
The main reason he was so confident was because Ren knew that after the plot at the amusement park today, Shinichi Kudo would become the little devil, Conan Edogawa, and Eri's worries would naturally be alleviated.
Although Ren had never been active in society, Eri completely believed his guarantee.
If Ran hadn't been waiting in the corridor outside, Eri might have given Ren a farewell hug, but she decided to hold back for now.
After Ren came out, he went directly next door and unlocked his own door. Ran asked in surprise from behind: "Brother Ren, with your door closed like this, aren't you afraid of someone breaking into an empty house?"
Ran wasn't very clear about Ren's family background, but she figured his financial situation was at least much better than that of her confused detective father, Kogoro Mouri.
"Of course I'm not afraid. The security here is very good. I'm just going to change my clothes. Ran, do you want to come in and sit for a while?" Ren extended an invitation to Ran.
Unfortunately, Ran simply shook her head and refused, saying: "Then Brother Ren, please hurry up. It's almost time for Shinichi and me to meet up."
Faced with Ran Mouri's urging in the corridor outside, Ren Itadori didn't respond at all.
The clothes he was currently wearing were the ones he had changed into after returning this morning, taking a shower, and then heading over to Eri Kisaki's place to make breakfast.
However, now that he was going to be the third wheel for Ran and Shinichi Kudo, Ren would definitely have to change his outfit.
He didn't delay for long, finishing within the timeframe that Ran could tolerate. After coming out, Ren closed his door casually, clearly having no intention of locking it.
"Brother Ren, did you leave your door unlocked?" Ran asked, finding it very strange.
"It doesn't matter. Sister Eri will come over to check my door before she goes out to work, and she will lock it for me then," Ren responded.
This made Ran instantly alert. She asked, "Why does my mother have the key to your house?"
"Sister Eri asked me for it, of course. In the past, if I ever skipped cooking, she would just come directly through the door and drag me out to the kitchen," Ren said to Ran with a shrug.
After hearing this, Ran sighed. Her mother was exceptional in other aspects, but it was a bit sad that her cooking skills were so terrible.
Fortunately, based on what Ren said, he didn't seem interested in cooking *with* her mother. Otherwise, Ran would have wanted to move in with Eri right then and there, just to keep her guard up against him.
After the two came downstairs, Ran headed straight toward the main road. Ren asked, a little puzzled, "Ran, what are you doing over there?"
"Catching a taxi. If we don't take a taxi, we won't be able to make it in time." Ran waved anxiously on the side of the road, but the taxis at this hour seemed to be on strike. Looking left and right, she couldn't spot a single one coming.
"If I let you take a taxi when we're going out together, Sister Eri will definitely give me an earful when we get back. Ran, wait for me here. I'll go drive my car out." After Ren finished explaining, he headed toward the apartment's parking lot.
It didn't take long for Ren to drive his car out, and when she saw it, Ran breathed a sigh of relief.
The car Ren drove was not an overly flashy luxury car, but a relatively ordinary vehicle, just slightly more spacious than average.
If Ren had driven a luxury car, Ran would have refused to get in. After all, they were going to pick up Shinichi later.
Having Ren tag along was already enough of a surprise; if he also drove a luxury car to show off in front of Shinichi, the first impression of their meeting would definitely be terrible.
"Get in, and don't worry about my driving skills. During my driving test, the instructor said I was a natural. Even if I participated in a professional race, there would be no problem at all," Ren assured Ran from the driver's seat.
Ran did not refuse, opening the door and getting inside.
However, she did not sit in the passenger seat, opting for the back seat instead. Ren had no objections to this.
After the car hit the road, Ran finally believed that Ren hadn't been lying at all, because his driving was incredibly smooth and steady.
Kogoro Mouri did not own a car, but occasionally he would rent one for a case, and sometimes Ran would ride along with him.
However, riding in Kogoro's rented cars was not only very bumpy, but she also had to constantly help him check the road conditions. Because her father always liked to brag while driving, if they didn't pay attention, accidents were bound to happen.
But riding with Ren brought no such worries. Not only was he very stable behind the wheel, but he could also effortlessly hold a pleasant conversation with her.
Actually, setting aside the complicated situation with Eri, Ren was really a pretty decent guy.
He had graduated from a prestigious university, and his actual net worth was a complete mystery. He treated people and handled situations very well, which could be seen from the relaxed smile that Ran unconsciously wore as they chatted.
But, after all, he and her mother, Eri, were next-door neighbors, so Ran still kept her guard up and held him to very high standards.
"We're here," Ran said from the back seat, and Ren cooperatively pulled the car over, bringing it to a smooth stop.
Then, Ran stuck her head out of the car window and shouted to a young man standing on the sidewalk: "Shinichi, I'm over here!"
Hearing Ran's voice, the young man quickly approached the car and immediately spotted Ren sitting in the driver's seat.
"Ran, this guy doesn't exactly look like a taxi driver. Could it be that he's your *other* date today?" The somewhat arrogant high school student standing outside the car was undeniably Shinichi Kudo, and what he said to Ran was laced with an unpleasant tone.
Of course, Ran was not happy about that remark. Ren was not her date; he had been forced upon her by her mother.
"Hello, young man. I am Ran's Uncle Ren. I'm here to take you to the amusement park," Ren said, introducing himself to Shinichi Kudo with a perfectly straight face.