The story of Sakura Quest wasn't particularly complicated.
It followed a girl who dreamed of staying in Tokyo, only to suddenly receive an unusual job offer. Because of that opportunity, she ended up traveling to a once-prosperous tourist town that had long since fallen into decline.
There, she became the town's so-called "King"—essentially a promotional ambassador—and worked hard to revive the local economy.
Jiang Hang remembered that when Sakura Quest originally aired, another TV drama called In the Name of the People was extremely popular.
One of the characters in that drama—Secretary Dakang—became a meme because he was obsessed with GDP growth.
Because of that joke, the audience began calling Yuno Kisaragi, who had gone to the countryside to revive the local economy, "Secretary Kisaragi."
At the time, the scrolling comments during the broadcast were filled with jokes like:
"Secretary Kisaragi, please think about our village's GDP!"
Thinking back on it now, it was honestly quite amusing.
But nostalgia aside, for Jiang Hang, the situation now presented a choice he had never even imagined before.
After remembering Yuno Kisaragi's identity, he had quietly activated Eagle Vision to observe her.
Just as expected, she emitted a faint red glow in Eagle Vision.
However, compared to the deep crimson aura surrounding Conan Edogawa, the red light around this girl was noticeably weaker.
Jiang Hang had no idea what the difference meant.
What he did know was this:
If he did nothing and allowed events to unfold naturally, Yuno Kisaragi would eventually follow the path shown in the anime and become the famous "Secretary Kisaragi."
But what would happen if he intervened right now…
And hired her as his assistant instead?
With that thought in mind, Jiang Hang rested his chin on his hand and asked calmly,
"Miss Yuno Kisaragi… do you know what position you're applying for?"
A moment ago, Yuno Kisaragi had already assumed she failed the interview.
But hearing Jiang Hang's question felt like grabbing onto a lifeline.
"I do! It's the assistant position at the Pioneer Detective Agency. I—I really like detective stories, things like Sherlock Holmes. I'm also very interested in mystery and deduction… and detective work is a very… very 'special' profession for many people…"
Even Jiang Hang could tell immediately that she was lying.
At best, she probably only knew the name Sherlock Holmes.
If he asked even a couple of follow-up questions about the stories, she would almost certainly expose herself.
However, Jiang Hang didn't press the issue.
Instead, he simply pretended to accept her explanation.
"In that case," Jiang Hang continued, "have you prepared yourself mentally?"
"Mental preparation…?"
Yuno Kisaragi froze for a moment before nodding vigorously.
"As long as there's something you need me to do, I'll do it!"
In most interviews, saying something like "I'll do anything you ask" was basically the same as admitting:
I don't actually know how to do anything.
It was a self-destructive answer.
If Jiang Hang hadn't been the interviewer, she would have been rejected instantly.
"That's not what I meant," Jiang Hang said calmly.
"The job itself is simple."
"However, just yesterday I assisted the police in solving a robbery case worth 600 million yen. The three suspects arrested were members of an Italian mafia group—and they were carrying real firearms."
The girl sitting across from him immediately turned pale.
"As a detective, I'll inevitably deal with various murder cases in the future. Investigating crime scenes up close will be a normal part of the job."
"And as my assistant, you'll likely accompany me to those scenes."
Jiang Hang looked directly at her.
"Do you think you can handle that?"
Yuno Kisaragi's face instantly lost all color.
This was something she had never even considered.
She had simply received the interview notification and decided to try her luck.
She never expected to hear something like this from the interviewer.
This… this is what a detective's life is like?
That's terrifying!
I thought detectives mostly handled things like lost pets or gathering evidence for cheating cases!
Why is this guy talking about mafia robberies and murder investigations like they're normal?!
"N-No… no problem," Yuno Kisaragi stammered.
"My adaptability is… actually pretty good. If I work hard, it should… should be fine."
Even she sounded unsure of her own words.
Jiang Hang nodded.
"Alright. Come to my office tomorrow to sign the contract."
"There will be a one-month probation period. I assume you already know the address of the agency."
"If there's nothing else, you can head home now. And if you decide you can't handle the job after all, just let me know."
Looking at the nervous girl, Jiang Hang had already made his decision.
After all, the system had told him yesterday that he could do whatever he wanted.
He already planned to reveal Conan Edogawa's true identity to Ran Mouri sooner or later.
Compared to that, rewriting the storyline of another anime from the beginning didn't seem like a big deal.
If Yuno Kisaragi really couldn't handle the job, he could always send her back to that small town later.
Meanwhile, Yuno Kisaragi misunderstood his words.
She assumed he was simply asking her to go home and wait for the results.
So she stood up and replied politely,
"Alright, I understand…"
Then she froze.
"Wait… I got the job?"
Her eyes widened in disbelief.
Since when had interviews become this easy?
She had been nervous the entire time and had even imagined all sorts of worst-case scenarios.
She was certain she had already failed.
And yet…
She was hired?
She carefully replayed Jiang Hang's words in her mind.
He had clearly said "come sign the contract tomorrow."
Not "wait for further notice."
Somehow…
She had just landed a job with a salary that most people her age would envy.
"Remember, it's only a probation period," Jiang Hang reminded her calmly.
"If you feel the job isn't suitable, the contract can be terminated at any time."
Even with the word probation attached to it, Yuno Kisaragi seemed to be floating as she walked out of the meeting room.
Jiang Hang didn't mind.
Once he took her to a real crime scene in a few days, she would quickly figure out whether she could truly handle the job.
There were still several candidates left to interview.
Aside from the upcoming interview with Shizuka Sakaki, Jiang Hang decided to speed things up.
Most of the remaining candidates simply introduced themselves.
Jiang Hang asked a few routine questions out of courtesy.
Then he suddenly began asking them questions based on famous detective novels.
Those candidates probably never expected that applying for a front-desk assistant position at a detective agency would require them to know the plots of mystery novels.
After just a few questions, they were completely defeated.
One by one, they lowered their heads and left the meeting room in frustration.
Jiang Hang did feel a little apologetic toward the other applicants.
But what could he do?
After all, he had already known Yuno Kisaragi and Shizuka Sakaki for years—
Long before they ever stepped into this room.