Things got weirder as the evening progressed at the campsite.

There have been many awkward dinners Ranran had grown used to, back in Edgewood Academy, a school filled with students from the royalty of noble lineage. From the observer's point of view, Ranran had witnessed the most bizarre and uncomfortable situations.

Usually, those situations are when the students are ex-friends, boyfriend girlfriend, or even ex-husband and wives sitting together around the same table. Yes, at that time before the laws were enforced, it was legal for 16-year-olds to marry, so even that was possible despite being out of place, in a world where social hierarchies and class distinctions were everything.

One particular dinner that stood out to Ranran was when she witnessed a group of students from rival noble families forced to dine together as part of a school-sponsored event. The tension was palpable, and Ranran could practically feel the animosity radiating off of them.

At the table, one of the students, a boy from a rival family, spilt his drink all over himself, causing a loud commotion. The rest of the students erupted in laughter, except for the boy's date, who was mortified.

Ranran tried to hide her own laughter behind her hand, but it was too late. The boy's date noticed and shot her a dirty look. If Ranran wasn't 3 years old at that time, the date could've literally taken a glass of drink and pour all over her head.

Another awkward dinner Ranran witnessed was when two students who had broken up a week before were forced to sit together at a formal dinner. They sat in silence, barely acknowledging each other's presence, as the rest of the table attempted to make small talk. They were Edgewood Academy's 'It Couple' at that time till they fell apart.

At one point, the girl's ex-boyfriend reached for the salt shaker and accidentally knocked over his glass of wine, spilling it all over the girl's dress. The girl promptly stood up and stormed out of the room, leaving everyone else in stunned silence.

But this dinner at the campsite was a whole new level of awkwardness.

Jun, better known as Yasuo Jun as Ranran and the rest of the children soon found out is the wife of Yasuo Miki, had her hands shaking so much so that as she passed around the cup of drinks, Ranran wondered if she had Parkinson's. Even Shinichi whispered to Ranran and said, "She doesn't look good."

No one else seemed to notice this, then again, they are kids after all. No one is going to bother paying attention to the adults in the first place. Let alone, see the things Ranran saw the moment Jun laid eyes on Eiji. No, everyone, including the idiotic Ran and Sonoko naturally assumed she was cold.

Technically, even Ranran is feeling cold, despite what she'd said about the boiler in this building would help keep them warm. "Come on, children. I will show you all the bedrooms later, as dinner may come a little later."

Having drank the hot chocolate, the woman then showed the children to their rooms. There were eight of them, each containing two sets of bunk beds and a bathroom.

"When we open in September, all these will be filled with children," she said, smoothing one of the pillows. "But for now you can choose whichever one you like."

Being naturally greedy, the children rushed out to pick whatever befits them, while Ranran chose the one nearest the stairs where she could see and hear everything that was going on. Across the corridor, Shinichi and Takuma picked rooms at the back that had a distant view of the sea.

When all of the kids showered and changed into dry clothes it was supper time, Ranran got over the drowsiness by then and was starving. The moment Miki shouted up the stairs, the entire class of 1-A thundered down to the kitchen like a herd of small elephants.

Bowls of Yakisoba, plates of Onigiri, Oden, and even curry rice were standing in the middle of a very long table. There were two benches on either side that looked like they had room for at least twenty bottoms. All of them sat down, but it was slightly spooky being such a small group in such a big space – Ranran sort of rattled around and everything they say would echo back at them. It made everyone feel a bit awkward and self-conscious.

Soon, Ranran piled up her plate with food and tucked in, but all the time she was eating, she was also quietly observing the instructors.

There was Eiji, keeping himself to himself at the far end of the table. Miki was sitting next to him and it looked like he was having to work quite hard to think up things to say.

Miki's wife however was still horribly white and wasn't eating much: as far as anyone could see, she was just pushing her peas in circles around her plate with a fork. There were two more instructors who they hadn't met earlier: the canoeing guy Yoshinaga Iwao whose name literally means 'Man of stone' in Japanese, whom Ranran overheard used to study at the same university as Miki and Jun.

And it was evident that Yoshinaga Iwao lived up to his name, judging his tanned skin due to hours spent outdoors, his all-ruddy cheeks and big biceps. He kept cracking bad jokes and laughed his head off when Shinichi asked about the statistical risks of drowning in a canoe, which was mostly Ranran's fault since she shared her findings with the apprentice after he asked what other hazards of camping did she find about the campsite here.

Then there is the other one they just met, a younger woman called Nakagawa Rika, who is going to teach them how to ride a horse. Her personality through the first impression was...she was as silent as a mouse.

Or rather, she hardly said a word.

Suddenly, Shinichi who sat next to Ranran whispered, "She never looked at him, not once. Their marriage is so abnormal."

And Ranran agreed, she too noticed Jun – who was married to Miki– never once gave a glimpse back at her own spouse.

If they were not told that she was his wife, they never ever could have guessed it: she acted as if Miki meant absolutely nothing to her. She wasn't even wearing a wedding ring on the fourth finger.

Still, the one thing the red lip detective girl noticed was even if Jun was, it was more towards Eiji that the husband is chatting with that she couldn't keep her eyes off. They kept flicking sideways every thirty seconds or so, which gave Ranran things to consider throughout her Fox experience.

Unbeknownst to many, Ranran had seen this pattern multiple times during her Fox apprentice days.

One of the highly demanded requests from their clients (children of high society) was to check if their arranged finances are cheating behind their backs. The reason for this is to either:

- Break this engagement in order to regain back their old lives before getting engaged

- Make the other pay a penalty fee for evidence of 'cheating'

- Freedom

Usually, the smarter noble children think of it this way, the dumber ones would request wanting their 'true love' back, which is something Ranran's mentor who was alive at that time rejects easily. The signs of infidelity were easy to spot for Ranran.

Such as:

- The way one looks at the other despite being with someone they are meant to be with

- The other party's expression shows a panicking sign when they see their lover talking to their arranged fiance, fearing the other would eventually notice their traces of infidelity.

Or even secret love letters/ text messages, photos...man, Ranran came a long way seeing all of this when her mentor started allowing teenagers to request from them, it even made her question why a marriage even exists in the first place.

But right now, although some of the signs were evident on Yasuo Jun...Ranran felt like it is too soon to tell. They have just met after all. But it was clear to Ranran that Eiji lied about him having only just gotten to know Miki and Jun, as Jun seemingly knew Eiji based on her body language.

None of the grown-ups said anything particularly interesting so, once Ranran had enough of studying them, she started to read the photo of this week's timetable sent in 1-A's group chat by the form teacher, said time table was scrawled on a whiteboard hanging on the wall opposite Ranran.

Tomorrow Monday, the schedule states that they would be rock climbing with Miki and Eiji in the morning, and then horse riding with Nakagawa Rika in the afternoon.

Horse riding....it's been a while since Ranran rode in Edgewood Academy.

When she was 3, the moment she first heard of this, she begged her parents to buy her a pony. They refused, of course, saying that she was too young and the responsibility to raise a horse is heavy. But she didn't give up on her dream of riding.

Finally, after 3 months of begging, her parents decided rather than buy her a horse, they let her enrol in horse riding lessons in Edgewood besides the aeroplane lessons she was given. Ranran was thrilled and couldn't wait to start riding. She quickly love the feeling of freedom that came with riding them.

And yes, she committed tons of pranks while riding on a horse, with chaos soon followed.

Ranran also recalled the time she convinced someone to switch horses with the client since Ranran noted that the horse the client was given was very mean-spirited, enough to ruin the client's dream of becoming a prestigious riding instructor for a royal family.

Despite the mischief she caused, Ranran was a skilled rider. But then, after her mentor died and not long after she moved to Tokyo, she was forced to give up riding since then.

But now, the prospect of riding again filled her with excitement. She wondered if she still remembered how to ride and if it would be as thrilling as she remembered. She couldn't wait to find out.

As for rock climbing...according to Shinichi, the weather tomorrow might not be fit in the morning. The idea of clinging to a wet, slippery cliff face in a high wind wasn't her cup of tea. Although this activity suits Shinichi ideally...bad weather can ruin things.

Then on a Tuesday would canoeing with Yoshinaga Iwao in the morning, and more horse riding in the afternoon. Canoeing is something Takuma has been looking forward to. Then the following day after that is abseiling, and then mountain or forest trekking with the husband and wife team.

The one thing Ranran dreaded the most...would be doing the survival skills in the wilderness.

It was then that Ranran noticed something odd on the whiteboard.

From the appearance in the instructor name's section under the survival skills wilderness lessons, there seemed to be a name before it was erased and replaced. That meant there used to be one instructor previously in charge before something happened, which led the name to be wiped out and buried.

It had been done quickly and the shadow of the Kanji letters remained. When Ranran squinted. she could just make out the name "Kagetora Kiryu' underneath the freshly written 'Eiji Ishida'.

Once again, Ranran wondered again exactly what had happened to the previous instructor and why he wasn't here.

After finishing their food, of all the desserts Ranran was presented before her, it had to be that food.

Ranran is currently faced with a dessert that she absolutely despises - fruit sandwiches.

When she first arrived in Japan at the age of 5, her father introduced her to this snack so that she could learn more about the culture and the language he was used to growing up. At that time, Ranran was very down, hating the idea of leaving the U.K. after having lived there for over 5 years, and he knew his daughter loved sweet things. So he assumed buying this would reduce her tantrum, after all of the hell and tragedy she endured there.

Unfortunately, the fruit was sour, and the cream was too stuffy to swallow despite being sweet. He bought it from the airport after all, so it ain't surprising. It just drags her mood further.

Don't get her wrong, Ranran is a sweet tooth child, but it still leaves a funny taste on her tongue. Also, who the hell thought it was a good idea to put fruits plus whipped cream in between two pieces of bread!?

The thought of fruit between two slices of bread seemed unappetizing.

Ranran must have made some sort of face when it was put on the table because Yasuo Jun, in between staring at her husband and Eiji then said, "Do you want ice cream instead?" When Ranran nodded, the woman said, "It's in the freezer. Over there – that big door in the corner. Help yourself."

"Ooh, wait up! I am following Ranran!"

Shinichi chimed in, jumping up from his seat and running towards the freezer. Ranran couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm. She got up from her seat and followed him to the freezer.

"Shinichi, you don't like fruit sandwiches?" Ranran asked her apprentice as the two kids made their way to the kitchen.

Shinichi shook his head vigorously. "Basically, I don't like anything that is a con job. Especially when one puts fruits and whip cream in between bread, then tries to sell it off as a sandwich!"

Ranran chuckled. "I know, right? I don't get why anyone would want to eat that either."

Shinichi then said, "Do you even know what is the true definition of sandwich, Ranran?"

Ranran raised an eyebrow. "Of course, I do, Shinichi. A sandwich is a dish that consists of two or more slices of bread with filling between them."

Shinichi nodded. "Exactly! So why do they call it a fruit sandwich when there's no meat, cheese, or any other filling besides fruits and cream?"

Ranran shrugged. "Maybe it's just a Japanese thing. They have a lot of unique snacks and food combinations here."

Shinichi made a face. "Well, I'm sticking with ice cream."

Ranran smiled, "Wakata (alright)."

The freezer was massive – a walk-in thing stuffed with enough food to feed even a village for months. They then saw that it was stocked with all kinds of ice cream flavours. Shinichi's eyes widened in excitement. "Whoa, there are so many choices! I don't even know which to pick?"

Meanwhile, Ranran observed carefully before selecting one tub of ice cream in particular, but to Shinichi's surprise, her hand intentionally covered the label for some odd reason. Shinichi raised an eyebrow, he could tell based on the colour and texture of the Ice cream that it was Hokey Pokey. If Ranran wanted to hide the flavour, she could've covered down there.

The fact that she didn't, meant she is covering up the Ice cream brand for some odd reason.

Shinichi's curiosity got the better of him, and he asked, "Why did you cover the brand of the ice cream you chose in front of me."

Realizing that he noticed it, Ranran grins, "I...have my own reasons."

Sensing something amiss, he pressed further, "Show me the brand."

"No."

Shinichi could sense that Ranran was hiding something from him, and his curiosity was piqued. "Why not?"

"None of your business, just go eat yours."

As always, Shinichi's detective instincts won't let this go. So he pried her hand out, only to be surprised when he reads out, "Haagen-Dazs!?" He then looked up at her, puzzled, "Why would you eat such a cheapskate brand?"

Hearing Shinichi's reaction almost made Ranran drop the entire tub to the ground, "Er, Shinichi, have you ever eaten Haagen Dazs?"

Shinichi furrowed his brows, "No."

"Then how do you know it is cheapskate?"

"Okaasan said so," Shinichi explained before Ranran realized what is truly going on.

Sighing, she says, "Shinichi, your mother is obviously lying to you in the face. Haagen-Dazs is actually a premium ice cream brand, not a cheap one."

Shinichi looked at her sceptically, "Are you sure? And even if that is the case, why would she lie to me?"

"Haagen-daz is expensive, Shinichi, your mother didn't want to spend the money necessary on it."

"Eh!?" Shinichi was shook to the core, "Not possible! My parents are rich! They can afford it!"

"They can, but they choose not to," Ranran snickered before continuing, "In my old school, even the parents of nobles and royals tell this same lie to their kids all the time because the idea of premium ice cream is just as dumb as the fruit sandwich idea. Even my own parents lied to me, but I did my research and told them to cut the crap before forcing them to buy it."

"What....force them!?" His jaw dropped.

"You see we have exams in Edgewood, at 3-years-old I suck in maths big time. Everytime if I get a passing grade, they promise me a premium ice cream for me to eat. Well, they bought a cheaper brand everytime and assumed I wouldn't notice. But then after researching and finding out they lied to me, I threatened to boycott studying if they didn't keep their promise."

Shinichi's eyes widened in shock, realizing that he might have been living under a false impression. "I can't believe it...are you serious!? All of that for premium ice cream?! They are your parents, Ranran!"

"I don't care, if they lie to me, I will go all out even if they are my own parents."

At first, he was more in denial than ever, "No, my Okaasan would not-"

"All parents lie to their children, even if the lies are big or small."

Shinichi looked at her, surprised at her statement. "What do you mean?"

"You know...."Ranran mused about this, "When I was growing up...it took me a while to realize parents often lie to their kids about a lot of things, like forcing their first child to accept they would be having a sibling whether they like it or not, or moving to another country against their will, despite knowing that their child will end up being forced to sacrifice their own social circle once more...it's always the child who always ended up being forced to pay up for the sake of their convenience."

Shinichi was gobsmacked at his mentor's harsh words. "You talked as if you have bad parents."

Ranran suddenly sneered while chuckling, "No, they may not be the best, but they ain't the worst. Even so...that was how it was when I learned about their plans to move me to Japan. Just because they missed living there, and I had no one there. Why would I want to move there in the first place when I had no one to wait for me?" Dumfounded by her bitterness, Ranran then said, "Enough of my rants, let's go eat Haagen-Daz. You haven't had it the first time, right?"

Quietly, Shinichi and Ranran helped themselves to the bowl of ice cream, and for the first time Shinichi had it, it blew his brains to bits in a good way.

Cold, yet sweet, smooth and salty. Reminded him a bit of Ranran's personality.

Whenever she talks, sometimes she sounds ruthless and cold, but there is some sweetness to it. It doesn't work as a remedy for others, but it makes the bitter salty things he dealt with in life bearable unlike the times he was with Ran and Sonoko.

Shinichi then thought about what Ranran said, regarding her refusal to move to Japan. Suddenly, the incident of her death mentor popped into his mind, let alone, her earlier revelations on planning to move to Japan with her.

Did she...grow worried about leaving 'him' behind? Which is why she insists on refusing to move here?

When the meal was over, the two children stacked their plates neatly in the dishwasher. It was then Miki announced it was time to relax. "Everyone gathers in the sitting room," he said.

"Great," said Sonoko. "I could do with a bit of TV."

But as soon as they got into the room, the only thing they could see was a roaring log fire surrounded by a sofa, several comfy armchairs and a lot of squashy beanbags. Nice enough but not exactly entertaining. "Where's the TV?" demanded Sonoko, grabbing the best seat in front of the fire.

"There isn't one," replied Miki.

"What?" demanded Ranran incredulously, since she too was expecting a TV.

"The reception's so bad around this area it's not worth bothering with," Miki said cheerily. "And before you ask, no, you can't get a mobile signal either at this corner, and the phone here keeps breaking down. We're in the middle of nowhere."

"But you've got laptops and computers at least, right?" asked Ranran, looking as if she were about to faint in Shinichi's eyes since he knows Ranran can not live a day without any of those essentials.

"No," said Miki. "We do all the bookings by post and that only comes once a week on the ferry."

"But what if there's an emergency?" Ran sounded panicky.

"We can radio the police or the coastguard and they'll send a helicopter – there's no need to worry. This is an outdoor activities centre. We chose an uninhabited island so that people could get away from it all, and I mean all. We're entirely dependent on our own resources here. What you need to do is rise to the challenge."

"But we're not outdoors now. It's dark," said Reina. She sounded really fed up. "What are we supposed to do?"

"We make our own entertainment."

"Such as?"

"Charades, board games, quizzes. I thought we could do some storytelling right now. Anyone cares to start?"

By this point on, Shinichi decided then that Miki was what Ranran would call an overly thick-skinned dickhead.

The loud groan of dismay that echoed around the room from the children, bouncing from wall to wall and back again, would have made anyone else shrivel up. Even Ranran can't help but guess why his wife never looked at her husband's way, let alone, kept looking at other men: He is just plain boring!

But Miki just sat there grinning and looking totally untroubled. There was a long silence, broken only by the crackling flames from the log fire. Then from the depths of an armchair Eiji, who'd been pretty quiet all evening, spoke up. "I have been thinking of one, till I remembered this one from the from the ferry skipper on the way over here. A ghost story. Do you lot want to hear it?"

Everyone, except Mouri Ran who had a fear of ghosts, said yes immediately. At first, Ran bit her lip, but perhaps it was due to peer pressure, or the fact that she has already earned disapproving looks from all of the students of 1-A for what she had been doing to Ranran and Shinichi not long ago, she forced a smiled and nodded.

Ranran however,  who had plunged into an epic computer or even tv withdrawal syndrome– said absolutely nothing. It was as if her own soul left her own body. Shinichi was then looking at Jun. Her mouth had gone into a string-thin line.

"I don't think we should be scaring the kids," she said. "Not on their first night."

"We're not babies," Takuma replied, "We had seen worst."

And he was certainly holding back from mentioning they had seen too many adult criminal activities in Tantei Association. So Eiji cleared his throat and started his story. He spoke in a soft, low voice, so you had to concentrate hard to catch every word. It made the atmosphere in the room really tense.

"This is from what I heard took place here a hundred years ago from the sea captain. Back in the day, it used to be an island that focus on farming and fishing to make a living, and a couple of families were raised in a village down by the harbour. Among them was a young man by the name of Tsuneo, he had a friend named Hideo. If one is to describe their relationship, it was in a way....one would naturally assume that they are brothers by blood. And that their relationship would remain as it is."

Paused, "But as every story goes...it had to end thanks to one woman."

Shinichi could see this annoyingly, that the ears of Ran and Sonoko perked up since he could sense a story of romance for this ghost story Eiji is weaving before their eyes. They go for anything related to romance, even if the direction is heading to a ghostly turn.

"The daughter of a farmer, Mitsuru was an extraordinary beauty, unlike most village girls. With pale skin, blue eyes and hair as dark as charcoal, she was never lack of suitors wherever she goes, let alone, marriage offers. Even when she caught the beauty of several rich suitors who paid the island a visit, she choose the poorest man of the entire island, who is none other than Iain, much to her parents' protest."

"Aww...this is true love, regardless of the lack of money." Ran swooned.

"I mean if you are willing to marry someone who has 30 years of debt to settle, which will also involve your future children and grandchildren to settle it, go for it." Ranran's encouragement caused Shinichi to burst into laughter, and so did the other children, much to Ran and Sonoko's disapproval.

Eiji who had been eyeing Ranran secretly, thinks whoever raised this child is far too pessimistic about life. He went on with the story and ignored Ranran's words, "Realizing this fact, he felt like he wanted to offer more to the woman he loved because she deserves the best. So he decided to serve in the King's navy. They needed men to fight the war against the enemies who threaten to seize the island. For 3 years he will be out on the field, but then he will return to marry her, which she promised him, keeping the oath as a vow."

With the attention back on him, Eiji continued, " Three years of terrible danger and hardship, when each and every day the only thing he thought of was Mitsuru. The only face he saw when he shut his eyes at night was hers."

Eiji's voice became deeper and quieter. The children then leaned forward to catch what came next.

"Three years to the day after he'd sailed away he returned with a handful of gold coins clinking in his pocket. It was a fine morning, with the sweet smell of wild thyme and heather hanging in the air. With joy in his heart, he went to the farm and called his love's name. But the house was empty. Suddenly, he was caught off guard by the peal of bells ringing out for a wedding carried on the warm breeze, and so he walked towards the sound. Who should he see coming out of the church in his wedding finery but his best friend, Hideo? And who was the smiling bride on his arm looking lovingly into Hideo's face? Mitsuru!"

"Damn, what a scum. Both the bride and groom," Reina commented.

"I agree, who knew that girl is a wench? 3 years of hardship for nothing," Ranran casually says.

"Ranran! Don't be rude! It ain't just solely her fault, even Hideo is at fault, because he hit on a engaged girl!" Ran chastised her, but Shinichi noted that Miki's wife, Jun, seemed to have her fists trembling.

"Torn with misery, Tsuneo ran to the headland and, cursing them both, he threw himself into the sea, as if his body turned to foam...they never found his corpse since, presumably due to the currents around this island that suck you down to the depths. He's still out there somewhere, his bones picked clean by the fish. "No headstone marks his grave. He does not rest in peace. You can still hear his ghostly cries carried on the wind as he curses the woman and the best friend who betrayed him. The story goes that one day he'll be avenged."

Eiji's voice had dropped to a whisper. For a moment there was total silence. Then the wind whistled outside like a soul in torment and the room seemed cold despite the warmth of the fire. Goosebumps prickled down Ran's arms and she shivered.

Someone gave a small, strangled sob. Everyone looked around and realized it was none other than Jun. Miki had his hand on her arm and was asking her, "Are you all right?"

She didn't answer him. Her mouth opened and closed a couple of times. Then she got up and ran out of the room. She looked absolutely terrified, yet at the same time distraught. There was a moment's shocked silence and then Miki followed her, closing the door firmly behind him.

"Weird!" said Sonoko. "What was all that about?"

"Maybe she doesn't like ghost stories, this story is scary even for me," suggested Ran.

Soon, it was Takuma's turn to come up with one – a long, rambling tale involving zombies, government conspiracies and corruption, which Ranran could tell was an obvious rip-off from the game she and him used to play called 'Resident Evil'. Luckily for Ran, it was so dull that it had the effect of sending others to sleep for being so long-winded.

"Neh Ranran, did the captain say anything about that story back at the ferry?"Shinichi wonders quietly.

"No," Ranran replied. "But we were dealing with being on the unstable boat for so long, I didn't pay much attention to anything else."

"Me neither," Shinichi replied. "I suppose that would explain it."

The two then took a quick look in the scarred-faced man's direction. There was no trace of the embarrassment or confusion everyone else had experienced when Miki's wife had run out. He didn't seem to have even noticed that he'd terrified her. He'd sunk back into his chair as relaxed as a well-fed cat.

When Takuma had finished his story, the horse instructor later took charge. "I think that's enough for now. You all look terribly tired after your journey. How about an early night?"

Everyone leapt at the suggestion, yawning and complaining of total exhaustion as they left the lounge.

When they'd arrived, everyone claimed a room each but as they climbed the stairs the wind picked up as if the tormented soul was now screaming for revenge. And it was all evident that Ran is scared shitless to that point, she is going to have sleepless nights from now on till everyone heads home.

Because as soon as they got to the top, originally Ranran had the whole bedroom to herself.

No girls wanted to share a bedroom with Ranran in the first place, due to her difficult nature. It wasn't a secret that Ranran was impossible to manage, having grown used to a privileged lifestyle where she didn't have to share a single shred of anything she owns, which led everyone to be aware of her selfish reputation. When she grew up in the slums, she swore to herself that if by miraculous chance that the family ever become rich out of the blue, she will never share with anyone or anything.

Even her friends had it rough, but they were able to co-balance and manage this smoothly so far.

That was until tonight happened, when Reina, Sonoko, Ran, and some of the girls in their class moved in with her.

What pissed Ranran more was they didn't even bother to ask, they just dropped their bags on her bunks as if she'd invited them for a sleepover. Like shameless squatters moving into her bedroom. It was reminding her of Mouri Ran shamelessly remaining in the HQ to take Shinichi away from his dream. Though Reina did scold her later on for calling her squatter since she is her friend after all. Branding her selfish princess did little to stop Ranran from attempting to kick them out, even when the form teacher found out and scolded her, she didn't change her stance and ordered everyone to leave.

It wasn't until dealing with Mouri Ran's tears in her eyes, and so did the other girls that the teacher forced Ranran to either accept it or that the teacher will complain about her unruly behaviour to her parents, something Ranran did not want to drag. Her mom and herself had huge bickering regarding this behaviour,  but Ranran had no plans of changing this attitude.

After all, she isn't the type to make sacrifices for others just to let herself suffer. After The Boy died, Ranran swore no more sacrifices since then.

Ranran was later called out for being merciless, but she didn't care.

Another reason Ranran could tell why they choose to move in with her was that since the entire school were aware of her adventures and exploits as the founder of Tantei Association, having narrowly escaped the infamous criminal known as The Snake, almost killed by a psychopath-like Mamiko, even having handled a gun and attempted to shoot a rich murderer in the mine, for a 6-year-old's point of view, it's no surprise why the girls feel it would've been safer as long as Ranran is around, to protect them from ghosts by no means.

But Ranran detests it, why should she bother to be responsible for the lives of so many? They are other people's daughters. Well...maybe for Reina she would, but not the rest who called her selfish. She ain't a self-deprecating hero like Spiderman who work for a crappy boss, let alone, members of society despite life being a dick towards him.

Even so...Ranran sighed to herself after failing to kick the girls out of her room, there goes her video gaming plans during the wee hours. Across the corridor, she could hear Takuma and the rest of the boys of 1-A carting their stuff into Shinichi's room.

And there go Shinichi's plans to read mystery novels till the late hours of the night.

But the long day and the sea air had made everyone tired. Despite the eerie noises, it wasn't long before they fell asleep. And Ranran was left alone in the dark to think of that backup plan she made on the bus earlier.

It's only going to get worst. Ranran decided that she will put this plan in motion on a Thursday. She definitely cannot last with these girls for over 2 weeks, just no way in hell.

.......................

The wind had dropped a little by the morning. It was still gusting but at least it didn't sound quite so scarily insane as last night.

Perhaps the weather was a bit better off than less night, and the mood of 1-A was a little better than last night, as all of them went off for a spot of jolly rock climbing led by Miki and Eiji.

As for the boat instructor plus Jun, the two decided to stay back in the centre to prepare lunch. After last night's events, Jun wasn't even in the mood to join her husband to come along "for a bit of exercise", jerking away with visible irritation when he'd put a hand on her shoulder.

But horse instructor Nakagawa Rika had leapt at the opportunity of going out, saying she could do with "a breath of fresh air".

Straight away as soon as they go about outdoors, Ranran's complaint about hating insects became a bitter reality to the students of 1-A over why she had reasons to hate camping. The moment they stepped out of the door, everyone was savaged by a grey cloud of teeny-tiny flies, called Tokunagayusurika akamusi, in English, they are known as midges.

And midge themselves are blood-sucking flies, and they do hurt.

This was odd to Reina at first, since according to studies, they don't normally come out till the beginning of October, then surfaced around November and December, and it is February right now.

Then again, global warming really messed up with their time schedule, cause here they are right now pestering the left and right towards the other children, despite their microscopic size, Reina is certain they must have had very big teeth, cause she is feeling the sting within minutes.

Within seconds everyone was scratching at angry red bites as they walked through the pathway towards the cliffs. Don't get them wrong, they too brought normal anti-insect spray, but it seemed to have little effect against the relentless swarm. But Ranran and Shinichi however came prepared with things besides bug spray.

When Ranran was googling about the perfect thing to prevent from getting bitten by those pesky bugs should the spray plan backfires, she googled that there was this hat with a net attached to it, even clothes with nets attached to the sleeve and leg. With this stuff, the bugs won't be able to bite any part of her body since the net itself was protecting her.

And obviously, Shinichi who doesn't like to miss out on her research skill somehow got word that Ranran bought that stuff, so he too had his parents purchase one, and now, the two were spared free from getting bitten, which obviously made the others far more envious than ever that Ranran always thinks ahead of everyone!

The coastline of the said island was jagged as if a very large dinosaur had once taken bites out of it. Miki then led them to a place where a U-shaped chunk cut through the cliffs all the way down to the broiling sea. The kids then stood on one side, looking across to the other. The land sloped upwards over there and a section of bare, black rock rose from a narrow ledge a hundred metres above the water.

"That's where we'll be climbing," Miki informed them, as they all gulped nervously.

Feeling it as the wind grew a little stronger, the children sense that they might not be having a smooth climbing experience at this rate.