Conan: Above all force, there is truth!

Just as Ran and Ryuno were about to take a photo in front of the statue, a blonde woman wearing a blue shirt and jacket, a baseball cap and brown sunglasses walked up to them.

Chapter 252 The Information Hidden in the Wristband

"Mr. Sherlock isn't the god of love, you know~"

Longye and Xiaolan exchanged a glance, wondering why the woman in front of them had suddenly said that.

Seemingly noticing their "confusion," the woman smiled and said, "Excuse me, it sounded like you were speaking Japanese, which brought back some memories. I used to live in Japan for a while..."

Xiaolan stared at the woman's face for two seconds, then suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Excuse me, are you the tennis player, Ms. Minabar Glass?"

Hearing this, the blonde woman leaned closer to the two and whispered, "Shh! If we cause a commotion, I won't be able to come here again..."

After she finished speaking, she carefully looked around and breathed a sigh of relief when she found that no one was paying attention to her.

"I'll definitely be here before the final. I hope Holmes can share some of his observation and insight with me so I can win the upcoming matches!"

"You also like Sherlock Holmes?" Xiao Lan asked with a smile.

"Yes, my mother is a Sherlock Holmes fan, so I've been exposed to it since I was little. But since she went blind, she can only read the Sherlock Holmes stories by Braille. My father also died in a car accident eight years ago, along with my sister who is six years younger than me..."

After speaking, Minaba noticed the atmosphere was a bit somber and immediately changed the subject: "Let's not talk about that anymore. You two have such a good relationship~ From the moment I met you, you've been holding hands the whole time~"

Having just felt a pang of sympathy for the Minaba family's misfortune, Ran immediately let out a shy "Ah!" and looked at the ground in a panic.

Even so, she did not let go of Longye's hand.

Seeing this, Minaba's gaze slowly swept over the two of them, revealing a maternal smile.

--"elder sister!"

Just then, a little boy with short blond hair ran towards them, shouting.

Upon hearing the voice, Minaba turned to look at the boy, then smiled at Ryuno and Ran, saying, "This is my younger brother. He was still in my mother's womb when my father passed away."

After seeing the little boy's face clearly, Xiaolan blinked and tugged at Longye's hand: "Huh? Isn't this boy...?"

Longye nodded slightly: "Yes, that's the person we met yesterday."

At that moment, the little boy also saw Longye and his sister beside his sister and asked in surprise, "Aren't you the older brother and sister from yesterday?"

Minaba blinked and looked at both of them: "You know each other?!"

Through the little boy's narration, Minaba learned how they met and about the crime prediction.

"No wonder you've been acting strange these past few days, so that's what it was about. Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"But... Sister, aren't you focused on preparing for the competition? I don't want to disturb you..."

Hearing this, Minaba patted her younger brother's head and said no more.

Just as everyone was preparing to say goodbye, Longye looked at Minaba and asked softly, "Has anything strange happened around you these past few days?"

"Huh?" Minaba and her younger brother immediately looked at Ryuno, their expressions slightly confused.

Xiaolan glanced at Longye thoughtfully, but didn't say anything.

She trusted Longye, and knew that he always spoke with purpose. There must be a reason why he asked that question.

In addition, Longye had previously told her that the culprit's target was most likely related to the boy named Apollo in front of her, and that the culprit's target might be his sister—the Minaba Glass in front of her, the famous Queen of the Grasslands.

Seeing Longye's serious expression, Mina looked up at the sky, as if she was recalling something.

The next moment, she slowly spoke: "Speaking of which, my bag went missing at the hotel this morning, and my younger brother didn't find it for me until just before I left."

Upon hearing this, Longye and Xiaolan exchanged a glance, their expressions grave.

Seeing their expressions, Minaba asked in confusion, "What's wrong? Why are you asking that?"

Longye carefully observed his surroundings, then whispered, "The crime warning your brother received is real. The police have already detected the fingerprints of a fugitive on it. And this criminal's target..."

Although Ryūno didn't continue, Minaba had already gleaned the gist of it from his gaze.

"Could it be that he came for me?!"

Longye didn't nod, but said seriously, "I don't know the criminal's specific target. However, could you take us to see that 'missing bag'?"

Before Minaba could speak, her younger brother tugged at her hand: "Sister! They seem to be Sherlock Holmes's apprentices too, why don't you take them to see them!"

"Holmes' disciple, huh..."

Minaba took a deep look at Ryuno and Ran in front of her, and finally nodded.

"I trust you both~ I don't know why, but from the first moment I saw you two, I had a strange sense of trust in you both. Don't let my appearance fool you, I actually really believe in fate and intuition!"

Indeed, under normal circumstances, I would never take the initiative to talk to a stranger.

But today, not only did he approach them to talk, he even "naturally" told them about his family situation.

Like her younger brother, she seemed willing to believe the two people in front of her.

Shortly after

The group arrived at the hotel where the Minaba family was staying.

On the way, Tatsuno explained the crime warning to Minaba.

He also told the two why he believed the criminals' goals were related to them.

After listening, the siblings' expressions clearly showed a hint of "worry".

After entering the hotel suite belonging to the Minaba family, Xiaolan asked in confusion, "Miss Minaba, I remember you're from London, why are you staying in a hotel?"

Before coming to London, she had investigated information about "Mineba Glass" and knew that Miss Minaba was originally from London.

"Well, since my home is far from here, staying at a hotel near the venue is the most convenient. Besides, there's been a lot of traffic here lately because of Wimbledon, and it would be terrible to miss a match because of that."

"That's it~"

Minaba handed her gym bag to Ryuno and asked curiously, "Takeda, I was just about to ask you this. You seemed to be constantly on guard about your surroundings on the way here. Why was that?"

Hearing this, Xiaolan also looked at Longye curiously. Like Minaba, she had also noticed Longye's "abnormal" behavior along the way.

Longye took the bag and chuckled, "I was checking if any criminals were watching us."

"You mean the prisoners might be spying on us?" Minaba asked, startled.

"Hmm, if the criminals discover what we're doing, things will get even more complicated."

Longye didn't say much, but carefully examined the sports bag in front of him, and everyone's eyes were also focused on the sports bag.

"I checked before, and nothing is missing."

"Besides the tennis racket, what else here will you use in the final?"

“I’ll definitely use this hat…and this wristband! My father gave it to me before he passed away, and I wear it to every final…”

After checking the hat, Longye turned his attention to the wristband.

The next moment, Longye took out a piece of paper from the inside of his wristband.

Upon seeing the note, everyone's faces showed shock.

Chapter 253 I heard there's a bomb?

The appearance of the unfamiliar note undoubtedly confirmed Longye's guess.

Minaba stared wide-eyed at the note in Ryuno's hand, her mouth slightly agape.

Clearly, the note that appeared out of nowhere in her wristband made her somewhat uneasy.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Longye unfolded the note and began to read its contents.

—"Dear Queen of the Grass: After the match, your mother will explode along with the bomb. Don't even think about calling the police, I'll be watching you closely. If you dare tell anyone about this, I'll detonate the bomb immediately. I look forward to your performance in the match!"

After Longye finished reading, the room fell into a deathly silence.

The contents of the note instantly shattered the psychological defenses of the Minaba siblings.

They couldn't believe that the criminal's target was their mother!

For a moment, the two of them turned pale, staring in disbelief at the note in Longye's hand.

A moment later, the boy named Apollo said tremblingly, "Sister, sister! Let's call the police quickly before the culprit finds out!!"

Minaba glanced at her younger brother, her face pale, and did not answer immediately.

The note clearly stated that if they called the police or told others about it, her mother might face retaliation right now.

If we call the police now, no one knows what will happen next...

Therefore, she dared not easily agree to her brother's suggestion.

Seeing that his sister hadn't agreed, Apollo frantically shook Minaba's arm: "Sister! What should we do now?"

Seeing this, Xiaolan nervously took Longye's arm.

Ryūno patted Ran's head, then looked at Mina and her brother, and said calmly, "In any case, calling the police is not a good choice."

"You've probably heard of this prisoner named Hades Shabala. He's a vicious criminal who has committed numerous murders and bombings."

“When he bombed the hospital last time, he also issued a crime warning. When he found that the code on the warning had been deciphered, he did not choose to stop. Instead, he detonated the bomb as planned and sent the police a provocative video of the moment the bomb exploded afterward.”

“Since he has already made your mother the target of his ‘revenge,’ he will not stop until he achieves his goal, regardless of whether you call the police or not.”

After hearing what Longye said, Minaba's face turned even paler.

She knew that Longye's idea was correct.

She had heard about this criminal in the news before; he was a vicious serial killer who lived for revenge.

Although it's unclear why he's targeting my mother, it's certain that he won't give up easily until he achieves his "goal."

Even if they contact the police now and manage to avoid the criminals' "bomb attack," it will only maintain their safety temporarily.

The prisoners are in the dark, while they are in the light.

As long as the criminal is not caught, their family will continue to live in fear.

No one knows when or how the criminal will strike.

Thinking of this, Minaba closed her eyes tightly, crossed her hands in front of her forehead, and clenched her teeth.

What should I do? How can I save my mother?!

Sherlock Holmes, if only you weren't just a character in a book...

Apollo, standing nearby, clenched his fists in fear, looked down at the floor, and remained silent.