Detective Conan: Shadow Legion Office

122: Chapter 122 Ran Mouri Visits Lin Long’s KingdomThe door of the private jet opened slowly, and the sea breeze, carrying a salty, damp scent, rushed into her face, ruffling Mouri Ran’s hair.

She narrowed her eyes and looked towards the end of the tarmac—under the sunlight, Suzuki Sonoko was wearing a bright yellow beach dress, standing on tiptoes and waving at her. The tiny diamonds on the hem of her skirt sparkled in the light, like a handful of scattered stars.

Beside her, Lin Long was dressed in a dashing camouflage military uniform. He stood tall and straight, wearing a pair of oversized sunglasses. He was listening to Sonoko, a faint smile playing on his lips, looking remarkably dashing.

”Ran-chan! Over here!”

Seeing her, Sonoko immediately let go of Lin Long’s hand, lifted her skirt, and ran over, giving her a solid hug.

”I’ve finally been waiting for you! If you didn’t come, I would have started to mold on this godforsaken island!”

Ran laughed as she was squeezed. ”It’s not as exaggerated as you say; this island looks beautiful.”

She looked around. The tarmac was paved with a special material that shimmered with a silvery-gray light. In the distance were rolling green mountains, and at the foot of the mountains, one could faintly see clusters of white buildings. Further out was the endless blue sea, as beautiful as an oil painting.

”It’s beautiful, sure, but it’s just too boring.”

Sonoko took her hand and chattered on, ”Those bodyguards are all like wood; they don’t even laugh when I tell jokes. Mr. Lin Long is busy with work all day, either reading documents or in video conferences. My parents are even worse; they actually told me yesterday that ’young people need to be independent,’ and then went off to fish by the sea!”

Mouri Ran couldn’t help but tease, ”Then, when you and Mr. Lin Long are alone, do you also feel bored?”

Sonoko’s face turned bright red, and she pinched Ran’s arm. ”Ran-chan, you’ve become naughty!”

Although she said that, the sweetness in her eyes couldn’t be hidden. ”Alright, alright, let’s not talk about that. Let me take you to see our villa; it’s huge! There’s even a private pool where we can soak and look at the stars at night!”

As they were talking, Lin Long and Mouri Kogoro had already walked up to them.

Mouri Kogoro patted Lin Long’s shoulder, smiling brightly. ”Kid Lin Long, this island of yours is really impressive! It’s even more impressive than those kings’ palaces I’ve seen on TV!”

He rolled his eyes, leaned close to Lin Long, and lowered his voice. ”What about the fine wine we agreed on? Don’t try to fob me off with that cheap stuff.”

”Don’t worry, Uncle Mouri.” Lin Long nodded with a smile. ”I had a few cases of 1982 Lafite air-freighted from a French winery, as well as some aged Scotch whisky. I guarantee it will be to your liking.”

He turned sideways and made a ”please” gesture. ”The car is ready. Let’s go to the villa first; my parents-in-law are waiting there.”

Not far away, a stretched Rolls-Royce Phantom was waiting quietly. The body was gleaming, and even the tread on the tires looked like it had been carefully polished.

The driver respectfully opened the car door. Lin Long first let Mouri Ran and Sonoko get in, then made a gesture to Mouri Kogoro before getting in himself.

The car smoothly drove away from the tarmac. Mouri Ran leaned against the car window, curiously observing the scenery outside.

Large swathes of roses were planted along the roadside—red, pink, and yellow—blooming vigorously. Every few steps within the flower beds, there was a maid dressed in a maid’s outfit, each busy with her own work among the flowers.

”Lin Long specifically had these flowers planted,” Sonoko leaned over and said. ”He said he wanted the island to have flowers all year round. But I think it would be better to plant some strawberries; at least you can eat them.”

Mouri Ran was amused by her, but her gaze was drawn to the scene in the distance—a group of soldiers in camouflage were conducting shooting drills. The dull sound of gunfire drifted over, and bullets kicked up dust on the shooting range. Further away in an open field, several tanks were slowly moving, their barrels gleaming with a cold light. One could even see radar mounted on the mountaintop, like giant eyes, vigilantly watching the sky.

”Mr. Lin Long,” Ran couldn’t help but ask, ”Why are there so many soldiers on the island?”

Lin Long was looking at documents on a tablet. Hearing this, he looked up. ”This island has a special location, and pirates often appear in the surrounding waters. Arranging some manpower is for safety.”

He said it lightly, as if he were talking about the most ordinary thing.

Mouri Kogoro, however, didn’t buy it and snorted. ”I don’t think it’s just that, right? I think I saw anti-aircraft missiles just now. Kid Lin Long, you haven’t gotten yourself into some kind of trouble, have you?”

Lin Long smiled and didn’t answer directly, simply handing Mouri Kogoro a freshly opened bottle of whisky. ”Try this, Uncle. I asked a friend to get it directly from a Scotch distillery; it hasn’t hit the market yet.”

As soon as Mouri Kogoro saw the liquor, his eyes lit up. He immediately unscrewed the cap, took a sip, and sighed comfortably. ”Good liquor! Much better than what I drank at the reception last time!”

He smacked his lips. ”Who cares about missiles or whatever; as long as there’s good liquor to drink, that’s fine!”

Ran looked at her father helplessly and then looked out the window.

The car had driven into a dense forest. The trees on both sides of the road were tall and straight, their branches and leaves intertwined, almost blocking out the sky. Through the gaps in the leaves, she saw many cameras hidden in the forest, silently rotating.

”The security system here is stricter than a bank,” Sonoko whispered. ”Last time I tried to sneak off to the back mountain to explore, and I was ’invited’ back by bodyguards after just a few steps, saying that it was a ’restricted area’.”

She pouted. ”Mr. Lin Long said it was some kind of ’ecological reserve,’ but I think he just doesn’t want me to go play.”

Ran felt vaguely strange in her heart. A private island, even if it emphasized security, didn’t need to be deployed with so many heavy troops, right? Tanks, missiles, fully armed soldiers... this was more like a military base than a vacation resort.

The car passed through the forest, and the view suddenly opened up. A huge white villa appeared before them, as if built from ice and snow. The roof was golden, glittering in the sunlight, and several marble statues stood at the entrance, looking solemn and luxurious.

On the lawn in front of the villa, Suzuki Shiro and Suzuki Tomoko were sitting under a parasol drinking tea. Seeing the car stop, they immediately stood up and came over to greet them.

”Mr. Mouri, Ran-chan, welcome, welcome!” Suzuki Tomoko said with a smile, taking Mouri Ran’s hand and looking her up and down. ”Ran-chan has become even prettier; let Auntie take a look.”

Suzuki Shiro also shook hands with Mouri Kogoro. ”Kogoro, long time no see. Is your drinking capacity still as good as ever?”

”That goes without saying!” Mouri Kogoro proudly raised his chin. ”But compared to this liquor of Kid Lin Long’s, what I drank before was all plain water!”

The group walked into the villa, laughing and talking. As soon as Ran entered, she was stunned—the living room was as large as a banquet hall, with a huge crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, thick Persian carpets on the floor, and the oil paintings on the walls looked priceless at a glance.

Through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the living room, one could see the private swimming pool outside and the lake in the distance; the scenery was breathtaking.

”Isn’t it impressive?” Sonoko leaned into her ear. ”I was also taken aback when I first came. Mr. Lin Long said this villa was built according to the layout of the Palace of Versailles, and just the decoration cost a lot of money.”

Mouri Ran nodded. She looked back at the magnificent statues at the entrance and the resplendent villa before her. Even someone like her, who didn’t value material things, was shocked. It was too extravagant.

”Ran-chan, what are you daydreaming about?” Sonoko pulled her hand. ”Come on, let me take you to see your room. It’s on the second floor and has a huge balcony where you can see the sunrise!”

Mouri Ran was pulled away by Suzuki Sonoko to her room. However, she turned back and glanced worriedly at her father. Mouri Kogoro was chatting with Suzuki Shiro and Lin Long.

Mouri Ran wasn’t worried about her father’s safety, just that Mouri Kogoro would drink too much and hurt his health. ”Forget it, it’s not easy to come here, so let him be.”

Mouri Ran shook her head, suppressing the thought of wanting to stop Mouri Kogoro from drinking. Sonoko and Mr. Lin Long invited her to come and play, so she should properly enjoy this vacation.

However, when she walked to the second floor, pushed open the room door, and saw the telescope on the balcony pointing at the sea, her heart couldn’t help but race. It was too beautiful. Mouri Ran walked onto the balcony and looked at the scenery in the distance. She remembered an article she had once read in a magazine: ”I have a house, facing the sea, with spring flowers blossoming!”