Traveling back thirty years to Conan, intercepting Princess Eri

"You're my teammate, you wouldn't try to back out of it, would you, Gentleman Phantom Thief?"

Tomizawa Chikage put her hands on her hips, gave a soft hum, her tone carrying a hint of coquetry mixed with an air of undeniable authority.

She knew Lin Xiuyi's abilities well; with him by her side, the success rate of this operation would be greatly increased, so she naturally wouldn't let him go easily.

Looking into her determined eyes, Lin Xiuyi knew that if he didn't go with her today, she would probably risk it all by herself.

After weighing the options, he could only sigh again and reluctantly compromise.
"I'm totally hooked up with you. Wait a minute, I'm going to put on a coat."

"No need, I've already prepared all your equipment!"

Tomizawa Chikage quickly patted the black leather suitcase in her hand.

“When I left Tokyo this time, I made sure to bring your night clothes, gloves and tools so that you wouldn’t have to go through any more trouble.”

"Let's hurry up and leave, or we'll have a hard time explaining ourselves if the servants see us!"

Lin Xiuyi said no more, turned around and changed into the shoes placed by the bed. Then she quietly closed the door, making sure she didn't disturb anyone before jumping down from the windowsill and landing steadily on the grass in the courtyard.

"Let's go!"

Seeing that he was ready, Tomizawa Chikage's eyes flashed with excitement. She then turned and walked quickly out of the mansion, her figure darting nimbly in the moonlight like a wary night cat.

Lin Xiuyi followed closely behind, her steps light and she tried not to make a sound.

The two of them, one after the other, climbed over the wall and left Chibo's house.

“Hey, it’s really far from here to the Mito house,” Lin Xiuyi reminded him. “You’re not planning to walk all the way there, are you?”

"Don't worry, I'm all ready!"

Tomizawa Chikage pulled Hayashi Hideichi by the arm and led him to a nearby alley where a heavy motorcycle was parked.

Lin Xiuyi looked on in astonishment: "When did you...?"

“Cats have their ways, and mice have theirs,” Tomizawa Chikage chuckled as she hopped on her motorcycle. “Hurry up and get on, time is tight, we can’t afford to waste any more time!”

The streets were deserted and silent late at night.

Boom boom!

The deep roar of a motorcycle engine broke the silence as a black heavy motorcycle swept through the street like a ghost, moving so fast that it left only a blurry afterimage on the retina.

The car carried two people. The driver in the front seat was agile, his tight leather jacket outlining smooth lines in the wind; the person in the back seat looked slightly tense, glancing back warily from time to time.

Lin Xiuyi wrapped his arms around Fuzawa Chikage's slender waist, leaned forward slightly, and lay behind the girl.

The night wind whistled past my ears, bringing a bone-chilling cold.

He had no interest in the thrill of speed; all his attention was focused on observing his surroundings, fearing an unexpected encounter with a patrol car around a corner.

This is not a game; if you get caught red-handed, the consequences could be dire.

Tomizawa Chikage, standing ahead of him, formed a stark contrast.

She seemed to blend completely into the rushing night, her eyes beneath her helmet gleaming with excitement.

She twisted the throttle deeper, the motorcycle roared and accelerated, weaving nimbly through the deserted streets, seemingly oblivious to the potential risks. Or perhaps, she was enjoying the thrill of skirting the edge of the rules.

About twenty minutes later, the motorcycle left the main road in the city and turned onto the winding mountain road leading to the villa area.

The streetlights here are sparser, the night is darker, and the dark woods on both sides of the road rustle like waves in the night wind.

The Mito family mansion is located in a relatively secluded spot halfway up the mountain.

Chikage Tomizawa turned off the motorcycle and silently glided to a dense thicket of bushes by the roadside before stopping.

There was still some distance to the main gate of the Mito family villa, but through the gaps in the trees, one could already see the imposing European-style building in the night, with only a few scattered corridor lights still on, like the sleepy eyes of a sleeping giant.

The two quickly got out of the car. Tomizawa Chikage opened the leather suitcase secured to the back of the car, inside which were neatly arranged two sets of clothes and some tools.

Without exchanging any words, the two quickly changed their clothes under the cover of the trees.

With practiced ease, Tomizawa Chikage quickly changed into her signature outfit: a tight-fitting black leather suit that perfectly hugged her body curves, with special elastic bandages used to reinforce key joints and vulnerable areas, providing both mobility and protection.

She neatly tied her long hair up and tucked it into the bandages, revealing only a pair of eyes that shone brightly in the darkness.

She looked like a mother leopard poised to pounce in the night, agile and dangerous.

Lin Xiuyi's appearance was much more "dramatic." He put on a black tailcoat, then a slightly exaggerated top hat, and finally a white mask that covered most of his face.

The mask has a simple design, with holes only for the eyes, and the corners of the mouth seem to have an unchanging, slightly mocking curve.

Rather than a sneaky thief in the traditional sense, his attire made him look more like a magician about to take the stage.

After changing her clothes, Tomizawa Chikage couldn't help but mutter a complaint under her breath as she looked at Lin Xiuyi.
“Every time I see you wearing this, I feel like we’re going to a masquerade ball, not… well, work.”

Lin Xiuyi adjusted the position of the mask and said helplessly, "Didn't you buy all of these?"

The implication is that this matter of taste cannot be blamed on him.

After changing their clothes, the two hid their casual clothes and suitcases deep in the bushes, roughly covering them with dead leaves. Then, like two shadows blending into the night, they silently made their way towards the Mito family mansion.

As Lin Xiuyi drew closer to the quiet villa, he could clearly feel his heart beating faster and faster.

Footsteps landed on the soft soil and fallen leaves, making almost no sound, but the tension grew ever stronger.

The last time they teamed up with Chikage Tomizawa, their target was the private residence of the Sumiyoshi-kai boss.

Although it was dangerous, the opponent was, after all, a shady character from the underworld, so it was a kind of "double-crossing" in a way, and the psychological burden wasn't that heavy.

This time, however, it was completely different. They were about to break into a mansion that had been officially sealed off by the police and was being used as a safekeeping location for important evidence in the case.

The officers standing guard outside the door are from the Osaka Prefectural Police Headquarters, and there are likely also night patrol personnel inside the villa.

What they are doing now is blatantly challenging the authority of law enforcement agencies.

If they fail, they will face irrefutable felony charges.

Thinking of this, a ridiculous self-mockery flashed through Lin Xiuyi's mind.

From being forced into Tomizawa Chikage's "adventure" to now half-heartedly participating in this direct confrontation with police guards, hasn't my "fallen" happened a little too fast? (End of Chapter)