T.A series Volume 7: Feathers of Fury

Chapter 34 - Setback Traps

Met with curious glances from hotel guests and staff members who had seen the images and captions on the large screens earlier at the city, the adults were whispering among themselves when they lay eyes on the 6-year-old Mouri Ran and Suzuki Sonoko, entering the hotel of Mayfair at Brampton Hotel.

"Is that the two girls who duped those boys into attacking that poor child?"

As Ran and Sonoko made their way through the hotel, the curious glances and hushed whispers from the adults around them did not go unnoticed. The weight of the public exposure and the judgmental eyes added to the tension in the air, fueling their determination to expose Kudo Ranran as The Fox.

Some guests and staff members recognized them from the images on the screens earlier, connecting them to the disruptive behaviour and harassment displayed in those images.

"Isn't that the duo who caused such a commotion earlier?" one woman whispered to her companion, her eyebrows raised in curiosity.

"Yes, I heard they bullied the poor child by sending a boy over to attack her," her friend replied, shaking her head in disbelief.

Ran and Sonoko exchanged a glance, their expressions hardening as they heard the snippets of conversation around them. They knew that their actions had garnered attention and that their reputation was now under scrutiny.

"Looks like we're the talk of the hotel," Sonoko muttered, her jaw clenched.

Ran nodded, her gaze determined. "Let them talk. We're not here to confront Ranran and Shinichi and make things right. Our job is to find evidence that proves Ranran is The Fox in Japan."

As Ran and Sonoko continued to navigate through the hotel, the whispers and stares from the adults served as a constant reminder of the challenge they were facing. Despite the judgment and scepticism around them, their determination remained unshaken. They were resolute in their mission to expose Ranran as The Fox.

"But how do we make sure which is their hotel room?" Sonoko wonder, "Also, we arrived kinda late, don't you think?"

"If it wasn't for that stupid elevator back in the hotel we were in earlier having stalled us for several hours, we wouldn't have been late to come all the way here!" Ran hissed lowly at that thought. "First, we need to find which hotel room are they in, then, I recalled asking around one of our classmates in school that their class trip will end tomorrow night-time here, so hopefully, if we can pinpoint their activities for tomorrow, we will sneak into either Ranran and Shinichi's hotel room, then run through their belongings to find evidence."

Sonoko nodded in agreement, her determination matching Ran's. "Right, we'll need to gather information about their plans for tomorrow. Once we know where they'll be, we can use that opportunity to search their hotel room and find the evidence we need."

As they continued to walk through the hotel, Ran and Sonoko discreetly eavesdropped on conversations and observed the activities of the guests and staff members. They were on the lookout for any hints or mentions of Ranran and Shinichi's plans for the next day.

After a while, Sonoko's eyes lit up as she overheard a group of adults talking nearby in American English.

"Children are becoming smarter nowadays, huh?"

"Right? I mean I was shocked to see two 6-year-old children in that NASA event earlier who happened to be hired by Professor Shibuya, asking about who could've made Professor Shibuya vanish into thin air after attempting to save his missing friend, Professor Hoga. I didn't think our former colleague's life would be extremely bad not long after he resigned."

"Not to mention, he was harassed according to one of them like for....a year after quitting our company? Especially after moving to Japan."

Ran and Sonoko exchanged a quick glance, "Neh, isn't that the eagle case Tantei Association was working on before you quit?" Sonoko suddenly remembered.