The Tennis Prince's Resolve

Ryoma sighed as he looked outside the glass ceiling. This was the second day that he woke up at Professor Agasa's house. And he still had to sleep there for another day until the antidote that Doctor Miyuzaki and Doctor Yanai that were working on was finished.

Up until now, he couldn't sleep well because he was too worried about his family's situation.

It was a good thing that Kourin was there to ease his fears and worries, especially at night when he was having a hard time sleeping because of nightmares about the incident a week ago. It was like the girl was treated as a member of a family even though she just met him when the incident happened.

Maybe because… she knew the fear that was in his heart because of those people chasing him.

He sighed again and he noticed that Karupin kept on meowing at him. The cat then jumped to his bed and sat on his lap.

"Karupin, stop meowing. You might disturb the others. It's still early," he said to the cat in a low voice but still, the cat continued to meow.

He looked around the room and that was the only time he noticed that Kourin wasn't there.

'She wakes up early for a nine-year-old,' he thought. He decided to try moving his feet and walking. But before he could do that, he heard the door open. It was Kourin, Conan, and Haibara, along with a couple who entered.

He looked at the couple who entered along with the kids. They seem to be nice people as he saw them smile at him.

'I wonder who they are,' he could only ask himself as they approached him.

Though he wasn't used to being taken care of and someone worried about him, with this kind of situation he was in, he should get used to it. After all, it was his life that was in real danger.

He nodded and smiled faintly. Then Kourin went near the couple and faced him.

"Ryoma-niichan, I want you to meet my uncle and aunt," she said as she glanced at the couple.

"Good morning," he could only say to them.

Yukiko went near Ryoma and sat on the bed. "How are you feeling now, Echizen-kun?"

He glanced at Kourin and smiled at him. It was like assuring him that it was alright to answer the woman's question.

"I'm fine now, thanks to Rin-chan. If it wasn't for her and the others, I guess I wouldn't see myself alive. But my leg…"

"If you're still worried about that, Miyuzaki-sensei and Yanai-sensei had already finished making the antidote for you," Haibara suddenly said.

Ryoma was surprised but he managed to smile. "They did?"

Haibara nodded. "But it would only take effect after 16 hours so you should be patient in waiting for the result."

"But Haibara, isn't there supposed to be a prototype to it? What if the result wouldn't be the ones that they've studied?" Conan suddenly asked.

The girl sighed. "Miyuzaki-sensei and Yanai-sensei had gathered enough information within the one year that they've studied it. Since they're the ones who had an insight about the bullets used, they have already tested the prototypes created before to some of the volunteers. So I'm sure that they know what they're doing." Then she looked at Kourin.

"I guess you're right about that," he said. "Anyway, I'll be going out for a while."

"Where are you going, Shin-chan?" Yukiko asked her son.

"I'll try to solve the coded message along with the police. They might have found clues that will help me solve it."

"What coded message?" Ryoma couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

Conan looked at the freshman for a short while before he answered. "It's a message that the victim had left before he was beaten to death. Surely, this code will help us solve the case completely." Then he smiled. "So you should just take a rest there and try to heal yourself. Like what Miyuzaki-sensei said, 'you shouldn't always depend on science and medicine'. I'll solve this case for sure."

The others just looked at him. The determination Ryoma saw in Conan's eyes made him feel a little bit assured.

'He's right. I have to heal myself so I could walk again and go back home to know my parent's condition. I have to know the reason why those men chased me. And I have to ask Edogawa-kun about—'

His thoughts were disrupted when Yuusaku suddenly called his name.

"Echizen-kun, can we talk to you for a while?"

Though a little surprised, Ryoma nodded. Then Kourin and Haibara decided to leave the couple and the freshman to talk.

When the two girls went out of that room, the couple faced him and then they revealed to him the past that he needed to know for him to understand the situation he was into.

xxxxxx

"You heard the story, didn't you?"

Haibara suddenly faced Kourin when the girl asked that question to her. Then unknowingly, she nodded in response to the question asked.

They were walking through the hallway after they went out of the room.

"I didn't mean to. It's just that…" Haibara couldn't continue her sentence.

"It's alright. I also realized that it's about time for you to know my story, as well. I kept it hidden from all of you for a long time and it's not easy for me to do that. It's just that… I don't want you to be too involved with me because I couldn't bear to let you suffer because of my and my family's secret. You and Shin-nii are already facing your predicament."

"Rin-san…" Haibara could only say as she looked at Kourin. "By the way, what was the code that Kudou-kun was talking about a while back?"

Kourin sighed. "Ares left it for the Miyuzaki clan to decode."

"It wasn't intended for the police to know?"

"It isn't."

Haibara was more confused. "But how did you know that?"

"I already solved the code after Shin-nii made me look into it and the guide. It's one of the unique coding systems that the Miyuzaki clan had used for years now. And one more thing—Ares didn't betray the clan five years ago."

The girl was surprised at Kourin's revelation. "He never betrayed the Miyuzaki clan? I don't understand. How did that happen?"

Kourin smiled. "It was just a plan that Ares and the clan elders had come up with to let the Dark Rose Agency think that he hated the clan more than they do. And the spy of the agency that Shouko-san was talking about was none other than Ares himself. He was probably killed because the secondary leader of the agency might have found out about his secrets."

Both of them fell silent for a while. When they reached the living room, Haibara asked her something.

"Why didn't you tell Kudou-kun about the answer to the code?"

"I want him to discover the truth on his own. And besides, he's one cocky guy so I'm sure he can do it. And…" she paused for a while. "I believe in him."

Haibara sighed and looked at Kourin. "Could you at least… tell me the answer to the coded message?"

"If you promise me not to tell Shin-nii about it."

Haibara smiled and then nodded.

She then revealed the trick in answering the code and the answer to the code itself to Haibara.

'I know he can solve it because I believe in him,' Kourin thought and then smiled sadly in her mind. 'Thank you so much, Daryll Corazza-san, for protecting my family up to this extent. And I'm sorry. I just wished I had known you even better…'

xxxxxx

"I have to go back home."

Yuusaku and Yukiko went quiet when Ryoma suddenly said that. It was after the couple revealed Kourin's past to him.

Yukiko looked at him with a worried face. "Are you sure about that, Echizen-kun?" The freshman nodded.

"I want to make sure that my family and my friends are doing fine. And… I want to know from my family about the real reason why the Dark Rose is after me and what they want from me for them to chase me that night."

All the couple could do was look at the eyes of the determined freshman. After they had revealed too much to him, they knew that he would do anything to find out the truth behind this situation.

Yuusaku sighed. "If that's what you want, then… we're not going to stop you."

"But we'll escort you to your house. We also want to know from your parents about what's going on," Yukiko said while smiling, but obviously, it was said in a serious tone.

Ryoma smiled and then he nodded.