Conan: Ran turns into an elementary school student and calls me dad.

Chapter 92 Sonoko's Chocolate

"Forget it, let's go to the cafeteria for lunch first. Maybe we'll run into Sonoko and then we can get the chocolate."

Lin Xiuyi checked the time, and with her last glimmer of hope, stood up and opened the door to the counseling room.

He froze as soon as the door opened.

The person he had been waiting for all morning was standing hesitantly at the door, clutching a lunchbox tightly in his hand, his toes shuffling nervously on the ground, looking somewhat uneasy.

"...Uncle, lunch is ready."

When Sonoko saw Hayashi Hideichi, she quickly looked up, held up the lunchbox in her hand, and handed it to him. Her voice was a few decibels lower than usual, with a hint of barely perceptible nervousness.

She paused, then, as if remembering something, quickly added,

"Oh right, I forgot to bring one for Judy today too."

"It's okay, Judy went out to run some errands and isn't at school."

Seeing her flustered appearance, Lin Xiuyi couldn't help but laugh and reached out to take the lunchbox.

These past two days, Sonoko has been coming to find him to have lunch together right at noon, and each time she "coincidentally" forgets Jodie's portion, clearly wanting to spend time alone with him on purpose.

Today is Valentine's Day, and he originally thought Sonoko wouldn't come, but to his surprise, the girl still came as always.

Lin Xiuyi took the lunchbox and pulled Yuanzi into the office.

The two sat facing each other at the desk, eating lunch in silence.

The office was so quiet that only the soft clatter of bowls and chopsticks could be heard, creating an eerie atmosphere.

Something's definitely not right here!

Lin Xiuyi frowned slightly, muttering to himself.

When they usually ate lunch together, Sonoko, who had a small appetite, would always finish her food quickly and then sit aside and chatter away, telling him about her worries.

They were either complaining about schoolwork, gossiping about classmates, or talking about their idols. It had never been this quiet before.

Today, Yuanzi not only ate exceptionally slowly, but also moved with great deference.

The girl shoveled rice into her mouth, her eyes glancing at Lin Xiuyi every now and then before quickly looking away.

He seemed like a completely different person, appearing very reserved.

"What's wrong? Something on your mind?"

While Yuanzi was taking a sip of oolong tea, Lin Xiuyi put down his chopsticks and asked her with concern.

"Huh? This..."

Yuanzi was startled by his sudden question, and almost spilled the oolong tea in her hand.

The girl quickly steadied her hand and gave an embarrassed laugh.

Faced with Lin Xiuyi's concerned gaze, she hesitated for a while before, as if she had made a huge decision, she took out a flat, exquisitely packaged gift box from her schoolbag and quickly stuffed it into Lin Xiuyi's hand.

"...Uncle, here's some chocolate for you!"

The girl's cheeks instantly turned as red as ripe apples.

"Let me make it clear first, this is just a token of my gratitude, simply to thank you for your usual care. Please don't overthink it, sir!"

Lin Xiuyi didn't care whether it was a duty chocolate or his personal favorite chocolate.

He had been looking forward to this chocolate all morning, and he finally got it!

Lin Xiuyi's face immediately lit up with a satisfied smile. She took the gift box, and while unwrapping it, she said with a smile,

"I thought you'd forgotten about me today and weren't going to bring me chocolates."

"Uncle, you've always taken such good care of me and helped me so much. How could I forget you!"

Sonoko puffed out her cheeks and muttered a complaint.

She seemed angry, but her eyes were fixed on Lin Xiuyi's hand as she unpacked the package, her expression full of trepidation and anticipation.

"Uh, is this chocolate?"

Lin Xiuyi gripped the edge of the gift box, her face full of astonishment.

It's no wonder he was puzzled, because when he opened the gift box sent by the garden, he found a strangely shaped, shiny black object inside.

Its edges were pitted and uneven, and its surface was covered with some unknown debris. It was impossible to describe its appearance accurately in words.

Lin Xiuyi brought the gift box to his nose and sniffed it gently, barely managing to detect a faint, sweet chocolate scent.

But the sweet aroma was quickly overwhelmed by a sharp sour smell, making him wrinkle his nose involuntarily.

From now on, if anyone complains about the "sour smell of love," he'll make sure to stuff the chocolate Sonoko makes into their mouth.

It'll let that person see what a truly pungent, choking stench looks like!

"This is definitely chocolate!"

Sonoko's cheeks flushed instantly. She snorted angrily and reached out to snatch the gift box.

"If you don't want it, give it back to me!"

"Yes! How could I not want it!"

Lin Xiu quickly pulled her hand back, broke off a small piece of dark chocolate, and popped it into her mouth without thinking.

"I've been waiting since this morning for this chocolate!"

"Uncle, I've told you before, stop saying those flattering things to girls!"

Sonoko huffed and puffed at him, but her flushed cheeks betrayed her true feelings.

"By the way, Uncle," Sonoko leaned forward, her eyes full of anticipation, her tone softening, "although the shape of this chocolate is a bit strange, the taste should be alright, right?"

"Well, how should I put it?"

Lin Xiuyi slowly chewed the chocolate in his mouth, pondering how to organize his thoughts to describe the complex taste without hurting Sonoko's feelings.

"For me, this is the taste I miss."

"Really?"

Sonoko's eyes lit up, and a look of surprise instantly appeared on her face. She seemed much more energetic.

In her view, the feeling of "nostalgia" must be associated with beautiful memories.

This means that although the chocolates she made didn't look very appealing, they probably tasted pretty good!

Thinking of this, the girl immediately regained her usual radiant and smug demeanor, straightening her back a bit.

Unfortunately, she had no idea that the "taste of nostalgia" that Lin Xiuyi was referring to was the strange-tasting chocolates that Eri Kisaki had given him back then.

This morning, after eating the chocolate that Eri Kisaki had modified, which tasted reasonably normal, Lin Xiuyi secretly rejoiced.

This year's Valentine's Day was finally spared from the torment of terrible food, but I never expected to fall victim to Sonoko's cooking again.

"If I'd known it would taste good, I would have sent it over sooner!"

With her hands on her hips, Yuanzi proudly showed off her achievement to Lin Xiuyi.

"In previous years, Xiaolan would make the chocolates for me for Valentine's Day, but she's not here this year, so I have to do it myself."

"Luckily, this young lady has an extraordinary talent for cooking!"

The girl patted her chest, smiling brightly.

"Although I didn't really understand what those seasonings like salt, vinegar, and sugar were for, I just grabbed some and threw them in, and I didn't expect it to taste so good! Hahaha..."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiuyi was both amused and exasperated.

No wonder this chocolate tastes sour one minute and salty the next, with an absurdly strange flavor. It turns out she added cooking seasonings to the chocolate!

In terms of talent for creating bizarre cuisine, Sonoko is in no way inferior to Eri Kisaki.