How about a 'Silver Bullet'?
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Author's Note: This chapter is a two-in-one.
Estimated error.. That person has not come out yet..
There will be another chapter later, mwah~
..
Thanks to Bi'an Flower Little Angel's Grenade! Love you, mwah~
Thank you, Gongjun Wangshu Little Angel, for the landmine, love you mwah~
Thank you to Chanming Xueshen, 24328096, Xuwu, Xiaobaozi, Honglian, Suiyuan, Yitiao Jinyu, Chi, Xixi, Xiwu de Anijia, Riri Yeye, Baichenshang, 33316790, 32840417 Little Angels for the nutrient solution. Love you all, mwah~
Chapter 81: As If Falling Headfirst into a Net
Neon lights shimmered, reflecting upon the Customers' faces; amidst the clinking of glasses and the lively banquet, their expressions remained indistinct and vague.
But there was no need to see too clearly.
Gin stared at the cocktail glass before him, the clear liquid appearing crystalline within the glass, with a fresh, thin slice of lemon embedded against the side of the glass.
The bright yellow, so tender it seemed as if it could drip water, along with its slightly tart flesh, became the only color in this cocktail; the light cast into the liquid, creating several dreamlike phantoms.
“I remember—” Akai Shuichi spoke slowly, his highly distinctive voice remaining completely unsuppressed even in such a noisy environment: "The first time I had this kind of Cocktail, it didn't have a Lemon slice as a garnish."
"Perhaps it's a nod to the name of the bar." Gin did not give a direct answer; Lemon Bar, with its lemon garnish, was not out of place.
However—
"I don't like lemon," he said unhurriedly, swirling the wine glass in his hand.
This is a fairly common 'Silver Bullet' recipe: Gin, Anisette, lemon juice.
It was completely different from the one he had mixed on a whim several years ago.
Just like the two people sitting across from each other now, they were no longer the same people who had once met by chance.
Does the Silver Bullet, taken from Western fantasy stories, truly have the power to exorcise demons? Gin does not know, but whatever the answer may be, it will not change his choice.
The Silver-haired youth's neither confirming nor denying his attitude did not affect Akai Shuichi; he merely wanted to test the waters, it would be no loss even if there were no result.
It was a somewhat dangerous probe—the meaning of 'Silver Bullet' didn't seem to be a positive term for the Black Organization, Akai Shuichi himself felt a slight sense of surprise when the invitation slipped out of his mouth a few minutes ago.
As for why he had finally voiced that long-lingering doubt so obliquely?
Perhaps it was because the atmosphere at the time was too subtle, perhaps it was because the faint fatigue in Gin's eyes caused him to let his guard down, or perhaps—
The urge to know whether that silver-haired youth, whose dangerous aura he had caught in a fleeting glimpse many years ago, was the same person as the man before him, was simply too overwhelming.
Well—
After all, as he had said, this doubt had been haunting him for a long time.
However, Gin's reaction was within reason—though he was still a bit disappointed.
Akai Shuichi rested his forehead against his hand, a faint smirk curling at the corners of his mouth, when he spoke, his breath carried an ambiguous tone: "Actually, I don't like it either."
The conversation sounded somewhat familiar. Gin tilted his head and thought for a moment, but since he couldn't recall what it was, he simply let the thought go and brought the wine glass to his lips.
The mellow aroma of the Cocktail mingled with the sweet and sour notes of Lemon juice, filling his mouth.
Although the Lemon Bar was not large, the quality of the alcohol used was excellent, given Gin's one-sided "ill-fated connection" with the owner, the other party would never use inferior liquor to deceive him.
Gin's slight bitterness and strength, mingled with the fresh scent of juniper, lingered in the air; Anisette carried the slight chill of its origin, the consistent flavor of the Mediterranean, the unique sweet aroma of Anise liqueur; the Lemon juice extract was just right, neither overpowering the other flavors nor being imperceptible.
Gin quickly finished a glass.
Although fine liquor should be savored slowly, with Akai Shuichi present, Gin did not have the leisure to leisurely enjoy his drink—as for whether he would get drunk—
Sorry, but his alcohol tolerance has always been excellent.
Don't you plan on explaining anything to me?
Even though he was perfectly clear on the cause, the process, the outcome—it was even a drama he had arranged himself—but since being the first to complain could save a lot of trouble, why not?
"Actually, it is not complicated. If Boss wants to know, I will tell him everything." Akai Shuichi put on a look of complete sincerity, his green eyes sparkling as he turned his head to look at him.
Gin felt that this Light was truly far too bright.
Concealment and deception are essential skills for undercover agents; although Akai Shuichi is cold and proud, it does not mean he is incapable of lying with a straight face.
Normally, Gin does not like being deceived, but since he had already received the script beforehand, he viewed the performances of those actors who were still completely in the dark with a certain sense of tolerant amusement.
"I promise, I will never betray the Black Organization." — There was never any loyalty to begin with, so how could there be betrayal?
See, isn't it quite interesting?
In a slight drunken haze, Gin suddenly felt like making things a bit more interesting.
He casually pulled something out from the inside pocket of his coat and pushed it across the table toward Akai Shuichi.
The dark brown-haired youth revealed a look of slight surprise and suspicion, causing Gin to curl his lips in satisfaction.
His voice was resonant and raspy, like a fine cello, its notes echoing in the small corner and lingering in Akai Shuichi's ears.
Borse is still in Italy—" he narrated slowly, as if weaving a fine web: "For the next mission, I'll temporarily need a driver with good skills.
Under the Light, the car keys on the table shimmered with a faint, silvery-white glow.
Under the light, the silver-haired youth's green eyes shimmered with a dangerous edge.
Akai Shuichi gave a light sneer and raised his left hand.
His hand covered the palm of the youth opposite him, along with that string of keys.
The sensation beneath his palm was slightly cool, much like its owner's breath, yet it still carried a vivid, fleshy warmth.
Fine.
As if he had fallen straight into a net.
..
Whether it was true or false, the ambiguity was best left aside for now.
As soon as he stepped out, a cold wind blew directly against his face.
The late-night wind was cold and desolate, combined with the moonlit, star-sparse, deserted surroundings, the scenery appeared even more bleak.
A customer brushing past them sneezed, shivering as he wrapped his Coat tightly around himself, tucking his chin into his collar, refusing to let it be exposed to the air, which had suddenly dropped in temperature at night.
Gin also felt a slight chill, but it was well within his range of endurance, so he ignored it.
The wind blew in fits and starts, blowing away much of the slight intoxication. Gin watched the fallen leaves as they were blown by the wind, swirling slightly and skittering slowly across the ground toward the door, blinked.
“Come out,” he said, calling him by name, “Takao Haruki.”
..
After running into two 'acquaintances' in a single night, Gin thought to himself that his luck was truly something else; he might as well consider buying a lottery ticket.
Maybe he might even win.
However, these two "acquaintances" were still somewhat different from one another.
Looking at Takao Haruki's completely unashamed face, the Silver-haired youth felt a sense of ridicule in his heart.
He thought to himself, since you have no conscience, I certainly don't need to have any either.
Once we met, we naturally had to settle some old scores, such as that so-called tax form that Takao Haruki seemingly gave to Kindaichi, but in reality, was meant for Nana.
Even a 'Silver gift'?
Takao Haruki had known for a long time that it was impossible for him not to meet with Gin, the many days he had been given were more than enough to prepare a plausible excuse.
Gin's reaction to this was a slight raise of his eyebrows.
As of now, his cooperation with Takao Haruki must continue. Given this prerequisite, there is no need to be overly pedantic about other matters of right and wrong.
After all, sometimes a person needs to turn a blind eye.
Takao Haruki showed his sincerity, after giving a warning or two, Gin decided to play along and stop pursuing the matter—after all, in the end, it hadn't caused Gin any losses.
Instead, it ended up doing him a favor.
During their casual conversation, the two, each harboring their own hidden motives, had already cleared everything up. Takao Haruki gave a small smile, his eyes shimmering with a hint of cunning, "Is there anything else you need me to do?"
There wasn't much that could be said in such a short amount of time, however, both were top-tier intellectuals, with just a few words, Takao Haruki laid out the entire sequence of events with absolute clarity.
The information provided in the words was substantial and extremely helpful—even Gin could not help but fall into deep thought at this moment.
Along with his contemplation, there was also a sense of lamentation.
If only his subordinates had the skills of Takao Haruki..
However, such unrealistic thoughts only flashed through his mind. Upon hearing the question, Gin quickly snapped back to reality, his green eyes looking toward the slender youth.
“Keep investigating.” Gin's cold tone drifted through the wind, the end of his sentence curling before vanishing without a trace, leaving behind only his warm breath and the wisps of white mist formed by the condensation in the air.
"Don't do anything unnecessary." Those cool green eyes stared at Takao Haruki's seemingly unchanging face, carrying a warning as chilling as ice.
Don't drag Dan Nani into this anymore.
It was a subtext that both of them understood.
The youth wearing a plain shirt and jeans nodded, his metal-style coat reflecting faint, cool glimmers of light under the moonlight. He raised a hand to adjust his cap, a slight smile appearing on his face: "Some things are only fun if you do them once—if you repeat them, they actually become boring."
Half true, half false; half false, half true.
Gin knew it clearly, but whether such an agreement would be kept remained to be seen; for now, he was merely three parts more wary of his future arrangements, though he showed nothing of it on his face.
The conversation was mostly over. Neither the Black Organization's Top Killer nor the Hell Puppeteer, who played the police and detectives like chess pieces, had any intention of standing in the cold night wind to discuss the philosophy of life while watching the snow and stars with the other.
Just a second before they went their separate ways to return home, the youth opposite him suddenly called out to Gin.
Takao Haruki gave a seemingly willful kick to a small stone on the ground, his lively eyes filled with the pleasure of watching a good show, the slight, teasing smile at the corner of his mouth looked mischievous and ill-intentioned no matter how one looked at it.
The surroundings were silent, so his words sounded exceptionally clear.
By the way, Gin." The slender youth looked quite frail on the evening street. He looked up at Gin, who seemed unaffected by the chill, said, "That person who was with you just now, I feel like I've seen him somewhere before.