Chapter 10
Jonah's Dangerous Sign 2
Although his expression was complicated, Cohen still exchanged contact information with Jonah and told Jonah to wait for his message.
Knowing he had a chance to own his own gun again, Jonah returned to the detective agency in high spirits. His happy demeanor during dinner prompted Ran Mouri to keep pressing him for details, but all she could get in return was a simple "have fun."
After eating and drinking his fill, Jonah's first thought was to figure out where to store the guns he might acquire later at the detective agency. However, after circling the two floors three times, Jonah still couldn't find a suitable place to hide the guns, which left him somewhat disappointed.
The next morning, Jonah, who had just returned home after going out for a run, saw Ran Mouri in her everyday clothes serving breakfast from the kitchen.
"Sister Xiaolan, are we eating so early today?"
"Good morning, Jonah. Out training again?"
Seeing Jonah covered in sweat, Ran Mouri smiled and pointed towards the bathroom.
"You forgot to boil water for your bath this morning. I've boiled it for you. Go take a bath now, and we'll have breakfast together later."
"Have you forgotten? Didn't we agree to go out and have fun together today?"
"Oh, I understand."
Jonah paused for a moment, realizing he had indeed forgotten what Ran Mouri had mentioned at dinner the day before. At the time, Jonah was preoccupied with figuring out how to hide the gun and had only vaguely agreed to Ran's request.
When Jonah came out of the shower, Conan Edogawa, still half asleep in his pajamas, also walked out of the bedroom, said good morning to Jonah, and then went into the bathroom to wash up.
After having breakfast together, the three of them took a bus and then a minibus, finally arriving at the edge of a mountain forest.
Walking on the sidewalk, Jonah appeared calm, but his eyes had become wary.
Ran Mouri had already mentioned that they were going to her best friend Sonoko Suzuki's summer villa. According to Jonah's description in the detective novel Conan Edogawa gave him, villas deep in the mountains and forests like this were the most likely places for trouble to occur.
Looking at the wooden suspension bridge in front of him, Jonah became even more determined and couldn't help but touch his back.
Although Ran and Kogoro Mouri had developed a habit of checking all the sharp tools in the house every day, Jonah still managed to seize the opportunity to steal a kitchen knife of the right size from the school cafeteria. He made a sheath out of a cardboard box and secretly tied it to the back of his clothes.
"Hey Conan, Jonah, look, there are people on the suspension bridge! Are they going to the villa too? Hi~ Hello, excuse me..."
Ran Mouri's enthusiastic greeting to the cloaked figure on the suspension bridge abruptly ended as he turned away.
Not only Ran Mouri, but Conan Edogawa, who was yawning idly, was also startled when he saw the face of the cloaked man in front of him covered with bandages under his hood.
Jonah was the first to reach behind his back and take a step forward, but Ran Mouri, frightened, grabbed his backpack and bounced back.
A hint of confusion flashed in Jonah's eyes as he turned to look at his gentle and kind older sister, Ran Mouri, unable to understand why she possessed such great strength.
"Haha, maybe he accidentally injured his face."
It wasn't until the bandaged man quickly fled the suspension bridge and disappeared into the nearby woods that Ran Mouri regained her composure. She looked down at Jonah and Conan Edogawa with an embarrassed smile and winked, trying to salvage some of the face she had just lost.
Seeing this, Jonah and Conan Edogawa naturally didn't say anything more and obediently followed Ran Mouri across the suspension bridge.
Ran Mouri quickly walked to the front of the villa and pressed the doorbell. A moment later, hurried footsteps came from behind the door. Sonoko Suzuki pushed the door open and appeared in front of the three of them with a smile.
"Xiao Lan, you're finally here~ Oh, you little rascal, you really did come along."
After greeting Ran Mouri and Conan Edogawa, Sonoko Suzuki curiously looked at Jonah beside her, squatted down with interest, crossed her hands on her knees, and carefully examined Jonah, whom Ran Mouri had been talking about for the past few days.
"You must be Jonah. You do look very cute, and your face is so cold. My name is Suzuki Sonoko, and I'm best, best of friends with your Ran-neechan~"
Smiling, Sonoko Suzuki extended her hand to Jonah. She had learned from Ran Mouri that Jonah had been a child soldier, and she felt some pity and sympathy for the boy, so she was very gentle when they first met.
Blinking, Jonah looked at the smiling Sonoko Suzuki and obediently extended his hand to shake hers, calmly calling out "Sonoko-neechan".
"So obedient, much more well-behaved than that little brat next to you."
After patting Jonah's hair, Sonoko Suzuki, who had just stood up, didn't forget to provoke Conan Edogawa, who had sensed something was off about them from their first meeting. Hearing this, Conan Edogawa secretly pursed his lips but didn't say anything more.
After entering the villa, Jonah looked around curiously, and followed Ran Mouri into several rooms before finally finding their bedroom.
Later, through Sonoko Suzuki's introduction, Jonah also met her older sister Ayako Suzuki and a group of Ayako Suzuki's classmates from her university club.
Jonah found the adults' conversation somewhat boring, so he went to watch TV on his own until someone paused their conversation and invited Ran Mouri to go for a walk outside. Jonah then turned back to watch.
"Jonah, where are you going?"
"Go protect Sister Xiaolan."
"Protect? Haha, don't worry, that guy may look tall and big, but if he tries anything to Xiaolan, she can take him down in no time."
"I misunderstood Jonah's meaning," Sonoko Suzuki said with a smile. However, she took the umbrella, and together with the very concerned Conan Edogawa, she followed Jonah out of the villa to watch the excitement.
Along the way, Sonoko Suzuki searched for Ran Mouri's whereabouts while curiously asking Jonah all sorts of questions.
Jonah could tell that Sonoko Suzuki and Ran Mouri had a very good relationship, so he didn't act too coldly and answered Sonoko's question in a way that wasn't perfunctory.
"The footprints here are still very clear, so it should be just ahead."
Based on the footprints on the ground, Conan Edogawa determined that Ran Mouri's location wouldn't be too far away. Just as he voiced his assessment, he heard Ran Mouri scream from ahead.
The three of them changed their expressions simultaneously and immediately ran towards the direction of the scream. They soon saw Ran Mouri sitting on the ground, and in front of her stood a bandaged man wearing a cloak and holding an axe.
Jonah's expression changed drastically. Without a word, he pulled a kitchen knife from his back and charged at the bandaged man.
"No, Jonah!"