Detective Conan: Shadow Legion Office

43: Chapter 43 Lin Long’s Empty PromisesHalf an hour later, Suzuki Ayako walked out of the restroom, her face flushed, one hand still rubbing her jaw.

Suzuki Ayako came up to Lin Long and gave him an annoyed glare. ”You were trying to kill me just now, weren’t you?”

Lin Long laughed awkwardly and said sheepishly, ”Well... I just got a little carried away. Couldn’t help it, really couldn’t help it.”

”Hmph.” Suzuki Ayako snorted.

”Then it’s settled. Once I go back, I’ll tell my parents that I’ve decided to marry into the Tomizawa Financial Group.”

”Once I’m married over there, you can start your operation.”

”No problem, it’s a done deal. We’re on the same team now, so I definitely won’t hold you back.”

Lin Long grinned and patted Suzuki Ayako’s bottom.

”Who’s on the same team as you? I’m going to be the daughter-in-law in charge of the financial group.”

”Huh? ...A married woman?” Lin Long’s eyes lit up. How did this come with a bonus?

”Pervert!” Seeing Lin Long’s reaction, Suzuki Ayako was speechless. She shouted ”Pervert!” and, grabbing her bag, walked towards the door with a click-clack of her heels.

In the reception hall of the Lin Family Manor, a faint, lingering scent of perfume remained in the air—it was left by Suzuki Ayako.

Lin Long leaned back on the sofa, rubbing his chin with his fingertips, savoring the memory of Suzuki Ayako’s ”firefighting service” just now, a playful smile curling the corners of his lips.

This eldest daughter of the Suzuki Family was more resilient than he had imagined.

She wanted to break free from family constraints while trying to hold onto her pathetic bottom line, and in the end, she half-willingly stepped into the trap he had laid.

”Interesting.”

”Ambition...”

Lin Long whispered to himself.

Taming such a ”young lady of a prestigious family” was much more interesting than dealing with those who wagged their tails and begged for pity right from the start.

Just as he was thinking this, Butler Ochiai walked in lightly and bowed. ”Boss, there is something I need to report to you.”

”Speak.” Lin Long lifted his eyelids.

”This morning, an applicant came to the office to apply for the assistant position.”

Butler Ochiai handed over a file. ”It’s a female college student. Her resume is decent, but...”

”But what?” Lin Long took the file and opened it carelessly.

”But she is also proficient in pastry making. She said she was looking for a part-time job. Since our office is currently short of an assistant in charge of tea and snacks, Miss Akemi thought it might be worth considering and asked me to seek your instructions.”

”A female college student? A pastry chef?” Lin Long raised an eyebrow and looked at the photo in the file—

The girl in the photo had long, jet-black hair, a pretty face, and two shallow dimples when she smiled. Her figure was so hot that it was hard to look away, and the curves of her chest were particularly striking under a simple T-shirt.

The file listed her name: Akagi Yuko (clearly a pseudonym), a junior in the Department of Literature at Tokyo University, who specializes in making French desserts and is looking for a part-time job due to tuition pressure.

”She’s quite a beauty.”

Lin Long whistled, but a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

He originally had no interest in hiring an assistant, but for a top-tier female college student in every aspect to apply to his office, Lin Long clearly felt something was wrong.

More importantly, he was bored out of his mind right now and wanted to find some fun.

”Fine.”

Lin Long closed the file and threw it back to Butler Ochiai. ”Let Miss Akemi show her the ropes and test the waters first. Oh, and bring her here. I want to see her.”

”Yes, Boss.” Butler Ochiai acknowledged and withdrew.

Lin Long leaned back on the sofa, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

A female college student who could be an assistant and was also skilled in pastry making? It sounded quite versatile, but it felt strange somewhere.

Was he being paranoid, or... was someone really trying to get close to him?

A few minutes later, Butler Ochiai led a girl in.

It was exactly ”Akagi Yuko” from the file photo.

She was wearing a white dress, her long hair draped over her shoulders. Her face showed a bit of shyness and nervousness, her hands clasped uneasily in front of her. She kept her head down, not daring to look directly at Lin Long.

”B-Boss, hello, I am Akagi Yuko, here for the job interview.”

Her voice was thin and soft, with a timid tone, like a frightened little rabbit.

Lin Long’s gaze swept over her.

Her figure was indeed as the file said, incredibly hot. The white dress clung tightly to her body, outlining breathtaking curves.

Her face was also delicate, especially those moist, deer-like eyes that looked innocent and guileless.

If it were an ordinary man, he would likely have been bewitched by this appearance long ago.

But Lin Long was not an ordinary man.

The moment ”Akagi Yuko” walked in, his five senses, which had been greatly enhanced by becoming a creature of darkness, sharply captured something wrong.

First, the scent.

Although the girl was wearing a faint, cheap perfume commonly used by students, beneath that scent, there was a faint, very pleasant fragrance—a unique scent mixed with rose and sandalwood. This perfume was very expensive, and Lin Long remembered it clearly because Miss Akemi had bought it when he accompanied her shopping.

This could not possibly be something a fresh college graduate could afford.

Second, the skin.

Lin Long’s clairvoyance could vaguely see through the surface. Although he couldn’t see the true face beneath, he could feel that the texture of her facial skin was a bit stiff, not as delicate and elastic as natural skin—this was a typical characteristic of wearing a human skin mask.

Finally, the eyes.

Although she tried hard to feign timidity, in the moment she lowered her head, Lin Long still caught a flash of sharpness and inquiry deep in her eyes—that was definitely not the look of an ordinary female college student.

”It seems to be vermouth...”

Lin Long understood in his heart, a subtle smile curling the corners of his lips.

No wonder he felt something was wrong. It turned out that this ”Vermouth” had come to his door personally.

It turned out that Amuro Tooru’s investigation data had not only failed to make her lose interest in him but had instead made her even more curious.

Especially since Vermouth had found out that Lin Long was protecting the Miyano sisters and had made Gin suffer a setback, she had come to regard Lin Long as a ”prey” worth studying in depth.

Interesting.

Lin Long didn’t expose her on the spot; instead, he showed a gentle smile and pointed to the sofa opposite. ”Sit down, no need to be nervous.”

”Th-thank you, Boss.”

”Akagi Yuko” sat down cautiously, her hands still nervously clutching the hem of her skirt.

”Looking at your file, you are a student at Tokyo University?” Lin Long asked, appearing casual, but his eyes were tightly locked on her micro-expressions.

”Y-Yes.” ”Akagi Yuko” nodded, her voice still timid. ”I study literature, but I’ve loved making desserts since I was a child, so I wanted to find a related part-time job.”

”Oh? French desserts?” Lin Long smiled. ”That’s perfect, the people in our office quite like eating desserts. Can you make a soufflé?”

”Y-Yes, I can!” Mentioning desserts, ”Akagi Yuko’s” eyes lit up, and she seemed to relax a bit. ”I’m best at making soufflés. The fluffiness is just right, and it won’t collapse.”

Lin Long sneered inwardly. Soufflé? Amuro Tooru’s signature dessert at Cafe Poirot was the soufflé. Was Vermouth choosing this ”specialty” implying something, or was it just a coincidence?

”Very good.” Lin Long nodded, his tone encouraging. ”Although our office mainly does information consulting, the benefits and treatment are quite good. As long as you work hard, not only will you get a generous salary, but if you perform well, you can also get company stock dividends.”

Lin Long began to subtly paint a ”pie in the sky,” his tone sincere and his gaze ”genuine,” as if he were truly recruiting a promising newcomer.

”Re-really?” ”Akagi Yuko’s” eyes widened, and her face showed a look of surprise and disbelief—she was acting it to the hilt.

”Of course.” Lin Long leaned back on the sofa, his posture relaxed. ”Our Lins Office has always valued talent. As long as you have ability and loyalty, I will never treat you badly.”

He deliberately emphasized the word ”loyalty,” looking sharply at ”Akagi Yuko.”

”Akagi Yuko’s” body stiffened imperceptibly for a moment, then she nodded quickly, her tone incredibly sincere. ”I will definitely work hard! Absolutely loyal!”

Watching her ”flattered” look, Lin Long almost laughed out loud. This vermouth’s acting skills were indeed top-notch; if his perception hadn’t been extraordinary, he might have really been fooled by her.

”Hmm, I believe you.” Lin Long stood up. ”Ochiai, take her down and have Miss Akemi arrange her work.”

”Yes, Boss.”

”Akagi Yuko” quickly stood up and bowed deeply to Lin Long. ”Thank you, Boss, for giving me this opportunity! I will definitely not let you down!”

After saying that, she followed Butler Ochiai and left the reception hall, looking slightly awkward.

The moment she turned around, Lin Long clearly felt her gaze quickly sweep over the layout of the living room, and she even glanced at the painting on the wall—clearly collecting information in secret.

Lin Long watched her back disappear at the door, the smile on his face gradually fading. Vermouth... if you want to play, I’ll play with you.

He certainly knew Vermouth’s purpose—to observe him up close and find out his background.

But she probably didn’t expect that he had already seen through her disguise.

”Ghost, arrange a position for ’Akagi Yuko’ that is close to the core area but cannot access real confidential information.”

Lin Long said to a blurred figure on the computer, ”Remember to notify Miss Akemi and tell her to put on a good ’performance’ over there, so she thinks we have no guard against her.”

[Understood. Do you need to monitor her every move?]

”No need.” Lin Long shook his head, a playful smile curling his lips. ”Let her have free rein. I want to see what tricks this vermouth can come up with.”

”However, give all the unimportant but labor-intensive chores to her. It would be a waste not to use free labor.”

He was not only unafraid of Vermouth’s investigation, but also felt it was an opportunity.

An opportunity to observe Vermouth up close and even use her to pass on false information.

After all, Vermouth had a special status in the Black Organization, and her life or death was enough to influence ”The Boss’s” judgment.

”By the way,” Lin Long added, ”Remind Miss Akemi to watch over Miyano Shiho and don’t let them have direct contact with ’Mizunashi Rena’. I don’t want Sherry to know that Vermouth is here and alert the enemy.”

[Received.]

Lin Long walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, watching ”Akagi Yuko” walk towards the staff dormitory with Butler Ochiai, a gleam of excitement flashing in his red eyes.

Vermouth is here, Amuro Tooru is investigating in the dark, Suzuki Ayako is about to infiltrate the tomizawa family, and Kudo Yusaku and his wife are preparing to join the organization...

The original plot of this world has completely headed in another direction because of Lin Long’s intrusion.

Lin Long stretched, turned around, and walked out of the reception hall.

He was not interested in dealing with Vermouth right now; he was more concerned about how Suzuki Ayako would ”act” out this drama with her parents after she went back.

After all, those heirs of the tomizawa family were still waiting to be ”dealt with.”