He's in Detective Conan, and he's the mastermind behind everything.

"Thank you, it's my pleasure. How's the cruise ship going?" Ying Sheng asked with a smile.

“Dad has agreed. The cruise ship will be waiting for us there.” Sonoko turned and walked toward a group of classmates with different expressions at the castle gate. Her gaze seemed to casually flash across Ran’s face. “I’ll go tell them to go back to the villa on the mountain, grab our things, and then leave.”

"Not everyone needs to go up the mountain. Let everyone visit here. Kyogoku-senpai and I can handle it." Hotaru turned and left.

Ran stood still and looked at Hotaru. She saw him pat Makoto Kyogoku on the shoulder of the recliner. Makoto jumped up and walked with him toward the door.

Xiaolan hesitated for two seconds, then turned around and quickened her pace to catch up with Yuanzi.

Sonoko quickened her pace, and Ran grabbed her hand.

Sonoko turned her head away from her and only murmured softly.

"Feel sorry."

"What are you thinking about, you silly girl?"

Xiaolan smiled gently, took Yuanzi's hand, and walked to the group of classmates whose eyes were full of admiration. She took a deep breath.

"Everyone! Let's go to the beach!"

After a few seconds of stunned silence, the crowd erupted in cheers.

"Long live!!!"

Outside the castle gate, Makoto Kyogoku, who had just stepped onto the muddy ground, paused slightly and looked at Hotaru, who was walking calmly ahead of him.

"You really don't mind?"

Ying Sheng chuckled: "You really are an old-fashioned person. We're going to the beach later, you wouldn't even point fingers at girls wearing swimsuits, would you?"

"..."

Makoto Kyogoku was silent for a few seconds: "Girls should respect themselves. Clothing that exposes a lot of skin, like a blatant temptation to commit a crime, should be completely banned. This is not being old-fashioned, it's about being responsible for them."

Ying Sheng nodded: "That makes sense."

Kyogoku Makoto felt a sudden sense of relief: "So..."

"So I would suggest Sonoko wear a two-piece outfit."

Bang——

Snap!

Kyogoku Makoto's knuckles cracked as his fist hardened.

"What did you say?"

"Bikini, three-piece, don't you think Sonoko has a great figure? She's in the prime of her youth, of course she should..."

call--!

With a thunderous roar, Hotaru casually dodged to the side, turned back to look at Makoto Kyogoku, whose face was almost as black as charcoal, and gave a contemptuous smile.

"Anger will reduce your accuracy, senpai."

"You guy!"

Kyogoku Makoto, enraged, laughed and beckoned with his hand.

"Hey, let's have another match, Mizuki-kun."

Ying Sheng grinned slightly, then turned and ran.

Be careful on your journey.

Kyogoku Masanao pursued him, his eyes burning with fighting spirit.

"it is good!"

A minute later, Ran was holding Sonoko's hand and talking to Katsuo Tabata when they suddenly heard a loud bang coming from the forest halfway up the mountain.

Looking back, one could see a large tree with a dense canopy slowly falling down, accompanied by Ying Sheng's loud laughter.

"Thanks for the seesaw, watch out for the hidden weapon!"

Xiao Lan smiled slightly, turned around, and Yuan Zi calmly reassured the old employees of the castle.

“We hope you will continue to work here, Mr. Tabata.”

After discussing the salary and benefits, an excited Katsuo Tabata led the waiting teenagers to continue exploring the castle.

Because Sonoko had been the first to encounter the old woman's remains in the secret passage, she felt a bit uneasy about the place and didn't go with them.

Ran wanted to stay and keep Sonoko company, but she was worried that her classmates might encounter danger in the secret passage. Just as she was hesitating, Wada Haruna, dressed in a blue tracksuit, stepped forward.

"Leave it to me, I'll definitely beat you next time."

“Okay, but I won’t wait for you,” Xiaolan said.

"Who needs you to wait?"

Wada Haruna waved her hand and left with a group of eager classmates. Ran took Sonoko to rest where Hotaru and Kyogoku Makoto had been lying. The two had just sat down when Ran saw a familiar face outside the door.

"Officer Megure."

Ran quickly got up to greet them and walked towards the door. Seeing that Inspector Megure had turned around and noticed her, she asked again, "Is there some problem on the mountain?"

"It's Ran and Sonoko, what are you doing here?"

Megure Juzo was still wearing his familiar chubby orange outfit, pulling down his hat brim as he walked towards the castle entrance.

"After our karate competition, we held a joint event with Beika High School here. We all took leave. The location was a villa on the mountain. We were just visiting here."

Xiaolan explained for a moment, then asked the same question again.

Knowing that she was worried about her classmates, Inspector Megure quickly shook his head and said, "It's not your side, it's Ms. Ayako Suzuki who called the police, saying that two people are missing in their area."

"What? Something happened to my sister?"

Sonoko looked worried and immediately offered to go too. Inspector Megure was used to this kind of thing and naturally agreed.

After Xiaolan left a note on the castle gate, the rest of the group went up the mountain together.

Apart from Chiba and Shin, the police officers were all unfamiliar faces, and Ran didn't care much. The only thing that bothered her was why there was a child in the middle of the group.

The child was wearing a blue blazer and light-colored shorts, with large black-rimmed glasses on his face, and his short black hair was neatly styled.

As if sensing Xiaolan's gaze, the child looked up at her, smiled politely, and his blue eyes were full of a peace that did not match his age.

Xiao Lan felt a sudden stirring in her heart, and inexplicably felt a sense of familiarity with the child.

But upon closer reflection, I realized that even if Shinichi Kudo had shrunk, he shouldn't be this composed.

"Hello, my name is Ran Mouri." She smiled and extended her hand.

"Hello, Ran-neechan, my name is Conan Edogawa." He also extended his hand.

Hands clasped together, then separated at the touch.

Chapter 298 Conan: Why does my heart hurt?

Conan is a child fostered by a friend. He has been learning all sorts of knowledge from adults since he was a child. He is very smart and a little genius.

This is roughly how Megure Juju explained it.

Xiaolan nodded, not delving into the matter, and walked at the front of the group with Yuanzi, leading the way for the police.

The two villas on the mountain are not located together, but the road in front of them is the same.

So they set off from the castle, and not far along they came to see a large tree that had been broken in half, as thick as Conan could hug, lying in the forest, but it did not block their way.

Continuing forward, they frequently saw broken trees or shattered rocks, which terrified several young police officers. They suspected that some kind of mandrill was causing trouble in the mountains, and that the two people who disappeared on the mountain last night might have been eaten by the monster.

"Ran, Sonoko, do you know what's going on?"

When a large, broken tree finally appeared blocking his path, Inspector Megure wiped the cold sweat from his brow and finally asked the question.

Xiaolan shook her head helplessly, let go of Yuanzi's hand, and walked towards the big tree blocking her way.

"They're just two guys with too much energy."

She grabbed a thick branch from the fallen tree canopy and pulled it toward the road. In the distance, the dense, fresh wood stubs on the tree trunk, which were not yet completely broken, kept creaking. Occasionally, a branch would break off, like a strong bowstring snapping, making one's scalp tingle.

Several young police officers, who had initially wanted to step forward to help, quickly retreated upon seeing the commotion.

This is a Valkyrie; it's best for mortals to keep their distance.

After the road was cleared, Xiaolan clapped her hands.

Inspector Megure felt a sense of relief, thanked the messenger, and prepared to continue forward.

"Don't go there."

"Don't go there!"

Ran and Conan both called out at the same time. Ran's tone was calm, but Conan's eyes were quite serious.

Ran glanced at Conan, signaling him to speak.

Conan, without hesitation, pointed to a spot hidden in the tree canopy above: "There's a charged trap there, similar to a crossbow, and it's already at its limit."

The police officers were startled and quickly looked up. Sure enough, as the breeze rustled the treetops, they spotted a sharp point made of wood.

"Gulu——!"

Megure swallowed hard and looked at Ran: "Is this really just a case of excess energy? It could easily be considered premeditated murder."

“For Kyogoku-senpai, it was a piece of cake. The height he jumped even exceeded Mizuki-kun’s expectations, which caused the trap to be completely ineffective.”

Xiao Lan told everyone to disperse, glanced at the taut vines hanging overhead, picked up a stone from the ground, and tossed it into the air.

collapse--!!!

The bowstring snapped, and all that could be seen was a white shadow flash before everyone's eyes. The white wooden arrow, resembling a spear, was deeply embedded in the ground, less than a meter in front of Xiaolan.

Everyone stared in disbelief, but Sonoko looked troubled. She took out a wet wipe and went to wipe Ran's hands.

"Such arrogance is a bad habit."

"The mistake is overconfidence."

Xiao Lan dried her hands and continued to lead the way. This time, there were no obstacles along the way, and they successfully reached the edge of the cliff.