Q: Does Shiratori Midori know the function of the Jade Ping An Kou?
A: It can't be said that she knows. Shiratori wears the Jade Ping An Kou, she actually accidentally held it up to the System Page before (just like Gin), but at that time, she hadn't died, so it didn't meet the activation requirements for the Jade Ping An Kou. Therefore, the status description was merely [Unactivated, function description invisible].
He noticed the words "unactivated," but she didn't tell Gin for two reasons: on one hand, it wasn't particularly important information, on the other, they had spent a long time researching it without finding anything unusual, so Shiratori didn't take it to heart. Furthermore, the timing of his discovery was an issue; shortly after that, she discovered the secret of Puzzle, the subsequent series of events left his with no mind for anything else. Shiratori himself had almost forgotten this "unimportant matter."
Q: If Shiratori Midori knew, would he tell Gin?
A: No. Most importantly, Gin does not trust the System, Shiratori doesn't actually trust it much either; his fear wouldn't diminish much, Shiratori also wouldn't want Gin to experience the pain of having his hopes raised by his words, only to have them crushed when the System fails him.
Besides, the risk was too great; even if she believed in the System, she wouldn't use it as a trump card.
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I changed my little sister's name; Reiko and Midori were too similar, so I changed it to Nana.. I also tried my best to change the previous Reiko; if you find any omissions, please let me know, mwah~
The young Shiratori Nana essentially stabbed Gin.. but please forgive her, she is still a good child.
By the way, don't pay too much attention to the System; it rarely makes an appearance (though its impact has been quite obvious so far). Honestly, it is probably the most inconspicuous System in history; even Gin and Shiratori don't believe in it yet.
Gin looks like he believes it now, but it is only because he is clinging to the hope that Shiratori might still be alive; emotionally he tends to believe, but rationally he remains skeptical.
In the end, she couldn't bear to let Gin be sad for too long; she wanted him to be happy while he prepared for his Mission!
An important character appears in the next chapter, location hints have already appeared in the text!
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Some readers have asked why the author's comments are not appearing.. It's because this is a new account.. Comments must undergo review QAQ
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Thanks to Little Angel "Selling Tangyuan on the Nahe Bridge" for the landmine, love you, mwah~
Chapter 14 Chapter 14 He blinked his eyes, suddenly toward that..
It was already two days later by the time he boarded the plane to the USA.
After experiencing extreme highs and lows, Gin felt a slight physical discomfort, but after two days of rest, he had basically recovered his state.
Similarly, his rationality had returned, he had formed certain conjectures regarding the current situation of the Jade Ping An Kou and Shiratori Midori.
However, due to the lack of intelligence at the moment, even with several guesses, he could not determine whether they were right or wrong.
Gin kept this matter in mind and began preparing for the mission.
The Black Organization's benefits were quite good; they had arranged business class for him. He didn't have much luggage to carry, essentially just a mobile phone, a computer, some clothes, necessary tools—a small carry-on suitcase was enough.
As for firearms, they certainly couldn't be brought on the plane, but the Black Organization would provide them once he arrived in the USA.
Business Class, Gin thought, was quite fitting for the purpose of his trip to the USA.
Performing official business..
Setting that joke aside, the Business Class environment was quite good, the flight attendant was very attentive. Gin gave a slight nod to the flight attendant who had greeted him, indicating he was fine, then turned his attention back to the view outside the window.
As the plane was in the taxiing stage preparing for takeoff, Gin watched the rapidly changing scenery outside, memories of the first time he had flown years ago surfaced in his mind.
He was still small back then, traveling on a plane with several youths he didn't know, sitting in Economy Class.
He could still recall the novelty of those days, the feeling of surprise tinged with a hint of fear as the plane took off.
How interesting..
As the plane took off, he couldn't help but recall the scene of the first time he flew with Shiratori Midori.
Back then, they were also in Economy Class; the Brown-haired girl leaned against the window, looking outside with curiosity, turning his head from time to time to speak to him in an excited yet restrained whisper.
his Green eyes were bright.
Gin thought to himself, a slight smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
The Great-winged bird finally pierced through the clouds, flying toward its destination.
..
After a flight of more than ten hours, plus going through customs and immigration, Gin was still feeling somewhat exhausted, even though he had traveled in Business Class.
After leaving the airport, Gin sent a text message and quickly received the address of the hotel where he would be staying.
He rubbed his eyes as drowsiness washed over his brain and his eyes grew dry and sore—Gin planned to head to the hotel to get some sleep and overcome the jet lag, as for other matters—
Anyway, there was no rush.
Let's wait until he wakes up.
The Black Organization's liaison was quite efficient; after Gin had finished having a good sleep, he was notified that he could go and select the prepared firearms.
Upon arriving at the appointed location, Gin looked at the array of firearms, as well as the various knives, saws, screws laid out in the Underground Armory, silently gave the contact a thumbs-up in his heart.
The Silver-haired youth selected the weapons he needed and arranged them one by one. After touching the pistol at his waist, he finally felt a bit more at ease, then set off toward one of the Black Organization's local strongholds.
Although he had already learned the relevant information regarding this Mission in Japan, he still needed to head to the USA to get more detailed information and meet his partner and subordinates.
He hoped they could be reliable—whether it was his partner or the intelligence.
Gin thought.
The preparations for the mission were largely similar to previous missions, it wasn't the first time Gin had handled one like it.
Given Gin's current level, the difficulty of this mission could be considered high, but it was still within his capabilities—he had even completed more difficult missions before.
Following the usual routine, it took him less than three days to complete all the preparations for the Mission, leaving him only to wait for the start of the task the next day.
The Silver-haired youth thought about it and felt that Vermouth was right.
Time was indeed tight.
But he didn't regret it, though.
To his surprise, the partner assigned to him for this mission was a sniper, a very skilled one at that. That senior's sniping range was nearly seven hundred yards, making them a first-class sniper within the Black Organization.
Gin was pleased with this. As he continued to practice, his marksmanship grew increasingly proficient, but due to his age, he had only just begun training in sniping, his progress was quite underwhelming.
His current mission partner was a decent Sniper, which piqued Gin's interest.
At this moment, the young version of him was like a sponge, striving to learn all sorts of useful skills within the dark underworld. This determination arose because of the enemies he would face in the future due to Spoilers, it grew even more steadfast with the death of Shiratori Midori.
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The USA is vast in land area, with varying climates across its different states. The state where Gin is located is somewhat colder than Japan, but the temperature hasn't dropped much yet, so it isn't particularly difficult to bear.
Gin wore a silver-gray stand-up collar knit sweater that perfectly complemented his silver hair, layered with a beige trench coat. He wore lightweight casual trousers and a dark brown beret on his head, his long silver hair falling naturally.
He approached the bar amidst the cold night wind, his green eyes sweeping across the seating inside the bar before finally locating today's target in a spot that could hardly be called conspicuous.
That senior was sitting opposite the mission target, chatting with him.
He walked over, sat down beside the senior, apologized softly to the mission target, "I'm sorry, I'm late."
"It's fine, it's fine, we arrived too early—" The shrewd middle-aged man smiled at the young Organization Cadre and offered a word of praise:
This must be Gin.. Truly a young and promising talent!
"Not at all," Gin replied modestly, a polite curve touching the corners of his mouth, though his eyes held no trace of a smile.
After a few rounds of back-and-forth compliments, Gin felt a flicker of impatience in his heart—honestly, just how long were they going to keep up this inefficient small talk?
Perhaps some people would gradually grow tired of these seemingly mindless yet necessary conversations, but Gin was certainly not one of them.
Whenever such a situation arose, Gin would feel a surge of impatience. The only difference was that, initially, he had no choice but to play along with the conversation, whereas now, his status allowed him to offer a few half-hearted remarks to feign seriousness, while in reality, he would leave the task of making small talk to his partner.
I really wish I could just give him a cold shoulder one of these days..
Since it was their first tentative contact in a bar, naturally, no one would be foolish enough to discuss anything important in an insecure place like a bar.
Gin understood this principle, of course. He initially exchanged a few words with the other party, but later he essentially left the opportunity to speak to his partner, Tennessee, while his own mind wandered elsewhere.
Honestly, I'd rather listen to the music in the bar than listen to such nonsense.
Although the music wasn't good either..
The Silver-haired youth turned his head slightly and indifferently, observing the decor of the bar, the liquor bottles on the counter, the scattered crowds, occasionally giving a perfunctory nod to his mission target.
He saw the Bartender skillfully preparing a Screwdriver.
He saw a man and a woman kissing passionately, like a couple in the throes of passionate love—but through certain details, Gin felt they were likely just having a one-night stand.
He saw that the band performing consisted of both men and women; although the band's performance was a bit lacking, the lead singer's voice was quite good.
Huh—?
That person playing the accordion.. seems to be looking toward their side?
Their table was indeed a bit conspicuous.. but was it enough to be noticed by the band?
After all, a resident band at a bar should have seen plenty of customers—surely some of them must have been quite eye-catching?
Gin, feeling bored, sized up the person playing the Accordion.
He looked to be in his early twenties, roughly the same age as himself. He had black hair and wore a dark knit cap. Because of the distance between them, his eye color was unclear, but he appeared to be quite good-looking.
The Boy playing accordion seemed to notice Gin's scrutiny, he shifted his gaze away somewhat awkwardly, but his attention seemed to remain on their table.
Gin felt that the youth looked somewhat familiar, though they likely had never met.
He blinked and suddenly raised his glass toward the black-haired boy.
The amber liquid shimmered under the bar lights, ripples dancing across the surface of the glass.
They were separated by a considerable distance and a chaotic crowd, yet Gin knew that he could see his every move.
The Silver-haired youth tilted his head, slightly raising his eyebrows.
Author's Note:
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Gin did that because he had been in a good mood these past few days—he had learned the news that Shiratori Midori was still alive.
Everyone guessed it, right? The black-haired boy playing accordion 23333
It was mentioned in Magician of Lianbo 233333
As for why he focused on Gin's table, that will be mentioned in the next chapter.