So he paused for a moment and spoke with concern.
It wasn't that he was unromantic; it was simply that with a mission at hand, he had little interest in flirting with this beautiful poppy flower.
Gin's professionalism had always been impeccable—otherwise, he wouldn't have become the Black Organization's Top Killer at such a young age.
Vermouth twitched the corner of his mouth.
He knew that guy too well; she saw through Gin's intentions—which he wasn't even trying to hide—and felt a sudden surge of frustration.
Then she found it quite amusing.
So she raised his finely drawn eyebrows—his brow shape was naturally beautiful, requiring only a bit of grooming—and applied some bean-paste colored lipstick to his lips, which added a touch of softness without concealing his charming and sharp essence.
So you've truly grown tired of the old in favor of the new?
It was clearly a teasing tone.
The Silver-haired youth looked puzzled. "What do you mean by that?"
He wore a well-tailored black suit, which made his tall stature and long legs even more apparent. As he lowered his gaze to meet Vermouth's eyes, perhaps due to the light, the chill in his cold green eyes seemed to dissipate significantly.
New refers to 'Bourbon'," Vermouth said with a beaming smile, his blue eyes seemingly filled with honey, his ability to feign tenderness and affection effortless. "Old refers to 'Rye'.
He tilted his head slightly, his eyes gleaming with an even more ambiguous, teasing light: "Of course, it could also refer to me."
Gin was speechless for a long moment, then replied coldly, "You're overthinking it."
The Blonde-haired woman tilted his head slightly and stepped back calmly, his delicate arm sliding out from the Youth's bent elbow. He gave a subtle wink with his right eye, offering him an ambiguous wink: "Is it not?"
Gin paused, frowning in irritation. "Of course not.. What on earth are you talking about!"
“Then—" Vermouth took a step forward, his fair hands picking up a glass of liquor from the banquet table. He turned to face the Silver-haired youth, holding a glass in each hand.
The Blonde-haired woman did not hold the glass very steadily; the liquid swayed within the glass, the transparent ice cubes tapped against the sides intermittently, appearing quite dazzling under the light: "Which one do you prefer?"
One was Bourbon Whisky, the other was Rye.
Gin was somewhat dissatisfied with Vermouth's tendency to cause trouble for no reason, he raised an eyebrow slightly. "Is there any difference?"
—Aren't they all just Whisky?
This was his overt meaning.
—Aren't they all undercover?
This was his silent grievance.
"Why do you insist on choosing a cup?" the Blonde-haired woman said with a hint of playfulness, his tone lighthearted yet not annoying.
Gin remained silent for a long moment, took a step back, casually picked up an apple from the table, taking a bite.
The sweet and delicious taste of the apple tingled on his taste buds. The Silver-haired youth's green eyes met the smile Vermouth showed, a smile that was hard to tell if it was one of satisfaction or dissatisfaction, he merely raised an eyebrow in silence.
The lights should be turned off.
Gin's voice was very soft, appearing so insignificant amidst the boisterous banquet filled with clinking glasses and lively chatter. It was like a kite in a violent storm, or a tiny boat amidst crashing waves.
He placed the bitten apple on the table beside him, steady and calm.
In the next second, the Light from the crystal chandelier flickered uncertainly.
The silver-haired youth took a step forward, walked to Vermouth's side, reached out his hand to him.
The Light finally went completely out.
..
The blonde-haired youth in the control room pressed the last button, then slumped his body back against the chair. Light gold bangs hung over his forehead as the youth let out a long, heavy breath.
"Finally done," he muttered to himself.
The series of actions he had just performed had left him on edge, but now that he had successfully completed his mission, Amuro Tooru could finally breathe a small sigh of relief.
Perhaps because the tension in his mind had finally snapped, a wave of exhaustion finally surged into his brain.
But now was not the time to relax.
The Blonde-haired youth rubbed his temples, trying to pull himself together.
He reached out to take out his USB flash drive, plugged it into the port, then began transferring the files.
Speaking of which, while looking at the dense data displayed on the screen, Amuro Tooru wondered absentmindedly: what were Vermouth and Gin talking about?
..
The silver-haired youth took a step forward, walked to Vermouth's side, reached out his hand to him.
The Light finally went out completely.
His arm brushed against Vermouth's arm as he gently grasped the blonde-haired woman's wrist—
—Then, without a sound, he took the wine glass she was holding in one of his hands.
Vermouth's eyes widened slightly in surprise, before softening into a faint smile.
In the darkness, they could not clearly see each other's expressions.
The liquid seeped between his lips and teeth, the characteristic bitterness and fragrance of Whisky blending together, intertwining into a fiery, searing sensation that silently surged over his taste buds.
Gin slightly raised an eyebrow, then set down his wine glass.
He turned and walked toward the location of the Target he had already confirmed. His long fingers swirled at his waist, an exquisite dagger-gun appeared between his well-defined knuckles.
Vermouth keenly captured the sound of the man's departing footsteps before him. He curled the corners of his mouth slightly, forming an interested curve, then lowered his eyes and raised his hand, draining the remaining glass of liquor in one gulp.
All the Whisky glasses were the same.
So when the Light lit up again, Everyone screamed, pushed and shoved in terror, roared loudly, amidst the chaos—
—no one knew which cocktail they had actually drunk.
-----------------------
Author's Note: (1) Transliteration of Rye
Chapter 62 Chapter 59 Regarding Sugar-Coated Bullets
After the Mission ended, no one mentioned what had happened before.
Gin got into Bourbon's car, while Vermouth also left, following his protector.
It was only after the banquet ended, during the short stretch of the road leading to the Target, that the Blonde-haired woman asked him with a half-smile why he had chosen Bourbon, Gin met the woman's ambiguous yet highly perceptive blue eyes.
Even though he was often wary of the Blonde-haired woman and remained constantly alert to everything she said, he never doubted Vermouth's ability.
Just as Vermouth would never doubt his ability.
“Because Bourbon's cooking is delicious.” The Silver-haired youth kept his hands in his pockets, his cold green eyes appearing somewhat languid under the night light, a slight smile playing on his lips as if this absurd answer were the root of everything.
So Vermouth stopped asking.
..
Gin had always felt that Vermouth was a very contradictory person.
An 'Angel' dwelling in darkness, yet longing for the light, regardless of whether the 'Angel's' holy light might burn them.
Even though he knew he would never turn back, that he had no right to turn back, he still felt a sense of goodwill toward that person from the other shore, even going so far as to show mercy.
Gin was an orphan; in his childhood, he was a little wolf cub, as he grew up, he became someone who could hardly be described as having even a cent's worth of mercy. The Black Organization recruited him and trained him to serve the organization, but at the same time, they accepted him and gave him a place to belong, so that he would not be left wandering aimlessly.
The silver lone wolf was only in his early teens when he joined the Black Organization. Being a bloodthirsty predator by nature, existing within the dark, gloomy, sinful Black Organization, his thoughts and values were heavily influenced by the organization.
He knew, of course, that killing and such was illegal, he knew it was wrong, but he could not feel any compassion, much like those who know something is wrong yet feel nothing in their hearts because they simply do not care.
Environment can have a profound impact on a person. Corruption does not happen overnight; rather, it is a long-term process of subtle influence. Many people eventually become assimilated by their surroundings, but for the young Gin, he did not consider it "corruption" at all.
This resulted in him not caring about the lives of others, having no inherent aversion to darkness, finding danger exhilarating.
He also found Vermouth's behavior incomprehensible.
However, although he found the Blonde-haired woman to be inexplicable, he had no intention of interfering with him.
One reason was that he was too lazy to bother; to put it bluntly, Vermouth had no special connection with him.
Fate, fate—generally, one relies on one's own efforts to live; while the other half is the "luck" decided by Heaven.
—By the way, for a certain Shinigami Elementary Student, the latter's influence on him is nothing short of extreme.
Whether Vermouth wants to do this or how she chooses to live is his own business. Gin doesn't mind lending a hand with small favors, but he deeply resents helping with this kind of matter.
To put it bluntly, for people like them, whether they could even live a full life was questionable; even Gin had never considered whether he would die of old age, let alone bothered to worry about other people's business.
—Isn't that just looking for trouble because they have nothing better to do?
Secondly, he didn't want to bother with matters that had nothing to do with "himself."
To be honest, concepts and ideas are all subjective; everyone has their own view on what is right or wrong, his thoughts are not necessarily applicable to Vermouth. Furthermore, he has an innate indifference to anything that does not concern him, he disregards life even more, showing no concern for the feelings of others.
Rather than expending effort to care about the joys and sorrows of others, Gin prefers to look out only for himself.
—Or rather, "cultivating his own evil."
Although he felt that Vermouth's actions were incomprehensible, he saw no need to understand them.
Speaking of which, even Shiratori Midori's thoughts.. they were something he could not fully understand.
Since Shiratori's death, Gin had considered that he ought to change, however.. in the end, it came to nothing.
After all—
—There is only one Shiratori Midori in this world.
And she was no longer there.
But then again, perhaps even Vermouth thinks he is quite strange?
..
Come to think of it, "Bourbon is a great cook" was certainly no exaggeration.
Whether it is the hints given in Spoilers or Gin's own personal practice, it all proves this point.
Well, Gin's own practice.