The brown-haired girl was much shorter than her. Although she currently wore a stern expression that made her look formidable, he suppressed her momentum with just a single downward glance.
Miyano Shiho stared at him for a while, then turned her head away in silence.
Gin and her relationship wasn't particularly good, but it wasn't bad either.
Sherry was a young girl after all; despite being clever and sharp, she still retained some of a girl's innocence.
Now, she was gradually beginning to take over his parents' research—research that indirectly caused blood and pain.
However, her progress was not as profound as it would be in the future, she had not yet come into contact with the bloody side of it; even though she had a faint premonition in her heart, she could still deceive herself at this moment.
Gin was not interested in these things.
Whether it was the bloodshed Miyano Shiho added to the name "Sherry" in the darkness of the Black Organization in the future, indirectly causing the pain and sorrow of others, or the girl's own entanglement and hesitation, or her interest in research, or the helplessness of the Miyano sisters being forced into being accomplices against their will..
These had nothing to do with him.
There are countless people in the Black Organization who are acting against their will, but can anyone say they are entirely innocent?
Whether it was by force or by choice; whether they were helpless due to the lives of Family or their own, or whether they took risks for money and power; their right or wrong is for a judge to decide.
The fate of Miyano Shiho—or rather, Haibara Ai—was largely the same.
Yet, in the end, she was lucky.
No matter when or where she is, there are always people willing to protect her: the Miyano couple from before, Miyano Akemi now, in the future, Edogawa Conan and Professor Agasa.
Gin chose to start with his for the sake of that person who was also unable to control his own fate, yet he did not feel any resentment toward the act of approaching him.
Sherry was one of the few intelligent people in the Organization; she knew what she should and should not do. As Miyano Shiho had not yet been fully stained by the darkness, the hint of a girl's innocence and her pursuit of light, revealed when she wrapped herself in indifference, was quite refreshing.
Gin was willing to take a closer look at such a rare existence within the Black Organization.
He watched nonchalantly as the small glimmer of light in the girl's heart gradually faded, also understanding that it would eventually be reignited with the arrival of the Young detective and his friends.
At this moment, the Miyano sisters' situation was much better than it had been in previous years. Their most difficult time was likely the period after their parents died, when Sister had not yet revealed her talent and Sister had not yet grown up; Miyano Shiho had probably understood something from the experiences of that time, her intense research without easy contact with outsiders was likely because she understood that this was the only thing that could provide security for the two sisters within the Organization.
It was said that he was approaching her, but in reality, Gin had not done much.
He didn't need to do much either.
She would only lend a small hand when Miyano Shiho was in a difficult position, occasionally showing her approval of her. After she had experienced the disdain of her seniors and had certain Cadres attempting to claim her achievements as their own, Gin's timely assistance undoubtedly made her feel grateful.
His interest in Miyano Shiho was entirely due to her rare youthful achievements and certain interesting aspects of her personality; later, it gradually increased into a sense of approval for a promising Cadre. As for the research results, it was merely an emphasis on and curiosity regarding the organization's important research—it crossed the line slightly, but not enough to arouse suspicion.
It's perfectly reasonable, isn't it?
Of course, Feiwen provided an additional layer of cover. Although Miyano Shiho was young, her youthful beauty was cold and stunning, giving another explanation for Gin's "special treatment" of her.
If Gin truly wanted to do something with intent, she naturally wouldn't leave behind any obvious evidence.
As the party involved, Miyano Shiho knew perfectly well that the latter rumor was complete nonsense, but she fully believed the former—given Gin's status, there was no need for her to plot anything against her, was there?
After all, although she was highly regarded within the Black Organization, most of her work at this moment was supportive; there weren't many people in the Black Organization who were specially favored due to special potential, but she still couldn't be compared to someone like Gin.
At least, considering the gap between the two sides at this stage, Miyano Shiho still didn't feel that he had anything to scheme for regarding her.
—Unless he is a loli lover, or a girl lover.
However—
The girl looked at the Silver-haired youth's cold and arrogant features.
Clearly not!
The wind blew through her long hair. Gin was still dressed in her black trench coat and black fedora; her silver-haired locks, which usually flowed down her back, were now slightly disheveled by the sea breeze.
She frowned slightly, turning her head to glance at the sea.
Miyano Shiho saw that he seemed somewhat annoyed by her hair being blown messy. She blinked and fished a brown hair tie out of her coat pocket. "Do you need this?"
Her hair had grown a bit long previously, but she hadn't had the time to cut it due to being too busy at the laboratory recently. Since her hair falling down interfered with her work, she had simply bought a few hair ties.
Before this mission, Miyano Shiho finally had some free time and went to get her hair trimmed, though she happened to have one hair tie left that she hadn't thrown away.
Gin glanced down at the watch on her wrist. "It's about time. We'll be arriving at Mermaid Island shortly."
Her voice was low and carried a slight chill, drifting faintly through the sea breeze, momentarily gaining a hint of softness.
I'm going back to sit for a while.
"I see.." Miyano Shiho nodded. She lowered her head, intending to put the hair tie back, but then a fair, slender hand suddenly caught her eye.
Those hands were pale, as the owner reached out, the sleeve slid up slightly, revealing a small patch of fair skin at the wrist. They were well-shaped and very strong.
The fingers were long and slender, with well-defined knuckles. Although they bore many calluses of varying thicknesses, the beautiful structure of the bones could still be seen.
Her index and middle fingers casually picked up the hair tie from her hand. Her nails were neatly trimmed, the pads of her fingers inadvertently brushed against her palm the moment he grasped the hair tie. Miyano Shiho felt a slight chill and a touch of coarseness.
She blinked her icy blue eyes.
"Let's go." Gin casually put away her hair tie, dropped those words, turned to enter the cabin.
..
The Black Organization always seemed to be very interested in "immortality," and many of their research projects were related to it—including those of the Miyano couple. This time, having heard the rumors about Mermaid Island, they sent Sherry and Madra.
It seemed unsafe to send two researchers, so they sent someone from the Executive Department instead, under the guise of providing protection.
In truth, their true intentions were not difficult to understand.
Originally, the two researchers would not have troubled Gin, even if they were talented individuals favored by the Organization; however, since the objective of this mission involved a research topic that the Organization placed great importance on, Korn and Chianti were sent to accompany them.
—Choosing Gin's subordinates seemed to be partly because of the somewhat ambiguous relationship he had with Sherry.
This was revealed by Vermouth.
Gin decided on the fly to switch to himself and Vodka, a decision that sent Feiwen's excitement reaching a new peak once again.
On one hand, he had some free time recently and planned to clear her head—he had heard that the scenery on Mermaid Island was beautiful and the seafood was quite delicious; on the other hand, it was because of Sherry.
Researchers are different from their positioning, the occasions where they go out on missions together are even rarer. Wouldn't it be a pity to miss such a great opportunity to operate right under the Black Organization's nose?
The Silver-haired youth shook his cuffs and fished a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. The JILOISES brand had a strong scent, a spicy flavor with a hint of cigar. He exhaled a ring of smoke.
But he remembered that this Mermaid Island.. seemed like there would be a case here in a few years?
The Shinigami Elementary Student has encountered too many cases, he has always been too impatient to remember anything irrelevant; even the people he kills are forgotten in the blink of an eye if they are not important.
Forget it, it has nothing to do with me anyway.
Gin thought to herself that it was none of her business, as she turned around, she ran straight into a long-haired woman.
Madra.
The black-haired woman froze for a moment when she saw her, then bowed slightly, revealing a graceful smile.
Gin glanced at her, her sharp green eyes narrowing slightly. "How has Brandy been lately?"
-----------------------
Author's Note: I didn't get to this in this chapter, so I'll have to move it to the next one.
Who wouldn't remember Brandy without reading the previous chapters?
..
Thanks to Mo Mingqi Miaoxiao Little Angel's landmine, love you, mwah~
Chapter 37 Chapter Thirty-five "You will receive the mermaid's blessing.."
“How has Brandy been lately?”
It seemed like a casual question on his part, but the expression on his cold, stern face made it clear that this was clearly not an idle inquiry.
Madra's smile remained unchanged; a respectful and polite smile still lingered on her pale face. The sea breeze blew her long black hair, revealing her petite ears, beneath her fair earlobes hung rice-sized ruby studs.
The brilliant crimson was like a drop of blood, hanging from her paper-white earlobe, making it exceptionally striking.
Everything is fine, Your Excellency, there is no need for you to worry.
Gin flashed a smile of an indescribable meaning.
Although Brandy had already relinquished his power, unlike those who only maintained a superficial prestige after "retiring," Brandy's status remained extremely high; combined with That person's trust, even without holding power, he was still supported by the organization.
As someone who had once worked with Brandy, Gin knew this person's strength and methods quite clearly, or at least not entirely in the dark.
Madra was someone who had stayed by Brandy's side five years ago. Even within the Organization, her personality was considered quite eccentric, but because she had always remained by Brandy's side, even those of the same rank treated her with a certain level of respect.
He had always been fiercely loyal to Brandy, to the point where it was a loyalty bordering on brainwashing; rather than a subordinate, she was more like a "vassal."
This young Researcher possessed no lack of talent or aptitude; even when compared to the genius Sherry, he was only slightly inferior.
Gin had no intention of making things difficult for her; it was just that recently, people from Brandy's faction had been making subtle contact with him. This contact did not seem like an act of allegiance, nor did it seem like normal contact resulting from him taking over a portion of Brandy's power, which compelled Gin to pay attention.
She gave her a long, deep look, then walked into the cabin.
Madra's polite smile gradually faded as Gin departed, she returned to her usual expression.
..
The famous Dugong Festival on Mermaid Island isn't scheduled to begin for another two days, there isn't much else to do here, but the scenery is beautiful. Strolling around and feeling the breeze makes it a perfect place to clear one's mind.
By the time they arrived at the small island, it was already nearly evening. They first collected their number tags and then found a clean inn they had previously booked to stay in.
When signing, Gin hesitated for a moment without drawing attention, but ultimately wrote down her name.
Kurosawa Zhen.
After putting down the things, while Gin let the two women eat whatever they wanted to fill their stomachs, he left them behind and took Vodka to go eat seafood.
—In fact, he didn't even want to bring Vodka.
This island is actually called 'USA Island,' but it is known as Mermaid Island because of the legends of mermaids—which was also their reason for coming here. The seafood on the island tastes good, fresh and affordable; relying on his good health, Gin ate both raw and cooked seafood.
Having eaten and drunk his fill, the Silver-haired youth wiped the soy sauce from the corners of his mouth, feeling that even though he knew the legend of the mermaid was a lie, the trip had not been a waste of time.
And it was even reimbursed by the company.
After dinner, after sending Vodka back under the pretext of "keeping an eye on those two women," Gin enjoyed the scenery all by himself.
Basking in the evening breeze and gazing at the moonlight, he couldn't be bothered to think about the mess of problems left behind in the Black Organization. He let his mind wander to relax, appearing completely leisurely and at ease.
Ahead.. is Mermaid Falls.