The other had a distinctly European face. He was handsome, not looking like a Mercenary who lived a life of danger, working deals on the edge of a blade. He had brilliant Blonde hair, clear blue eyes, a tall stature, a robust physique; he looked to be no more than thirty. His English pronunciation carried a slight accent, but it was much better compared to his Partner.
However, from the few sentences of his mother tongue that occasionally slipped out..
Okay, at least Gin can tentatively conclude that he is Italian.
Very good.. It seems Heine hasn't come unprepared either.
However, whether this is truly protection or merely inviting a wolf into the house is hard to say.
This Italian man calling himself Anthony was clearly interested in Sheila—at first, Gin thought it was because of Heine's instructions.. but later he discovered things were not that simple.
Hmm—or should I say, simpler than imagined?
If people were rain——" he narrated in a tender and affectionate tone, her voice as romantic as the shimmering ripples on the Rhine, "I was drizzle and she was a hurricane.
Gin's mouth twitched. Perhaps because the journey had been far too boring, he couldn't help but pour cold water on the sentiment: "So if you don't have an umbrella, please stay away from him."
Anthony frowned his handsome brows and puffed out his cheeks somewhat childishly, an action that brought a look of distress to his handsome face: "I cannot. I cannot help missing."
Blinking, his blue-green eyes showing a drunken, lingering affection, the Mercenary from Italy retorted flippantly, “I saw you touch base with Bourbon yesterday—— ”
“So why do you disagree with the relationship between me and him?” Anthony's smile reminded Gin of Heine for a split second, but he was certain that if Heine were here, that seemingly unrestrained Mercenary opposite him would most likely get beaten up: “I just want to go to first base with him.”
Before Gin could even retort, Amuro Tooru—who had been in a daze and a foul mood all day after being verbally crushed by Gin yesterday—was the first to lose his patience.
Although he appeared approachable and possessed quite high social skills, when it came to eloquence, Bourbon was in no way inferior to others: "Daydreaming."
Anthony looked up in surprise, raising one eyebrow as he observed Bourbon with interest. The man's lips were cracked and peeling from days of wind, sand, sun, appearing slightly pale at this moment. He curled the corners of his mouth into a meaningful smile: "I dream of him."
Gin pulled the increasingly dangerous Bourbon toward him, looked at the unyielding Anthony, said coldly, "You can directly talk with his if you want."
Anthony's smile froze.
His gaze turned cold and凝固, his expression was no longer as flippant and playful as before, but instead carried a hint of hesitation.
Clearly, he was wondering whether Gin knew some inside information—such as Heine, Heine, Heine.
Gin had no intention of saying more, seeing that someone had no intention of continuing, the Silver-haired youth casually released Bourbon's hand and glanced at the person beside him.
Amuro Tooru was also looking at him.
"Let's go." After a brief pause, he dropped the words.
Bourbon nodded and did as he was told.
..
Two days passed in a flash, all the pre-battle preparations were completed.
Although this clearly couldn't be called a "war," the law of "live if you win, die if you lose" still applied just the same.
Gin felt no mental burden at all.
Bourbon's reaction was as usual; he seemed to have taken Gin's words to heart. In the days that followed, he perfectly demonstrated the high quality of an elite Cadre of a criminal organization, to the point that even Gin could find no fault in him.
This is quite good.
Gin thought.
He looked down at his left hand, the one gripping the gun. It was fair, slender, clean, beautiful, with neatly trimmed nails. Aside from a bit of skin peeling from his fingertips due to the poor conditions of these past few days, the only thing that stood out were the calluses left behind from his gun.
These were calluses formed from using his gun for an unknown amount of time, he would never lay down his gun in the future.
He cast a faint, somber glance at the building not far away, his eyes darkening slightly.
The Silver-haired youth suddenly thought of those several bottles of Fake Liquor in the Black Organization that never brought peace of mind; he wondered if they would feel uncomfortable if they were the ones executing this mission.
Probably not? After all, it's Betrayal.. compared to harming the innocent and such.. the psychological burden should be much lighter?
Gin seemingly cast an indifferent glance toward Amuro Tooru, who was waiting nearby. After a long silence, he finally spoke, his voice cold and hard, betraying no emotion whatsoever.
Let's move.
-----------------------
Author's Note: (1) From "Searching for Alaska": "if people were rain, I was drizzle and she was a hurricane"
(2) I saw you touch base with Bourbon yesterday——I just want to go to first base with him.
The use of "touch base" and "first base" here is quite interesting, filled with various insinuations—Anthony did it on purpose, which is why he's called a "frivolous counterattack"—as for whether he "just" wants to kiss him.. ahem.
Including the "dream" in "Daydreaming" and "I dream of him".. Anthony is clearly making a pun.
But for now, he was just flirting.
..
Gin arranged the meeting between Bourbon and Sheila not only to provoke Sheila, but also to test Bourbon.
As for his choice to reveal some truths to Bourbon during the mission, part of it was to observe his subsequent reaction, while the other part was a sincere warning.
Oh, right, it was also the truth when he said he would tell Bourbon in the future.
And also.. why all the conversations with Anthony are in English.. of course it's because Anthony can't speak Japanese, so they can only communicate in English!
I didn't pay much attention to the grammar in the English parts.. If there are any mistakes, please remember to remind me..
..
Thank you to Tiannan Dibei Little Angel for the mine, love you mwah~
Thank you to the Little Angels for the Nutrient solution, ziwwer 80 bottles; Lada Dahao, Sinking in the Sea of Books 10 bottles; Dibei Tiannan 6 bottles; Love you all~
Chapter 108 Chapter 103 Being Smothered in the Face by an Owl..
It was several days after the trip to Africa when I had contact with Brandy's people once again.
The one Gin met was still Madra—although he really wanted to question that male member who worked part-time as a medic, it was clear that Brandy would not allow an inexperienced Subordinate to handle negotiations.
If Brandy could still feel relaxed and bold enough to let a subordinate who exposed himself so easily go meet Gin.. then the next one to be exposed would likely be himself.
The location was a small cafe not far from home.
The Cafe was not large, but it was well-equipped despite its small size. The interior was decorated in a minimalist European style, with large areas of blue and white serving as the background, creating a quiet and leisurely atmosphere. On the checkout counter, the windowsills, even on the small brown wooden tables used by the customers, various exquisite small objects were placed more or less perfectly, adding a touch of charm.
The address of the coffee shop was generously sponsored by Sheila; it was said to be run by him "friend," ensuring confidentiality and making it convenient for the two to "exchange" information. Of course, she had no idea that this shop was operating right under Gin's nose, a fact that had even once made Gin suspect whether the ICPO knew where he lived.
Fortunately, it turned out to be nothing more than a false alarm.
The habitually cautious Gin was naturally unwilling to expose herself like this, so he simply spent money to buy the cafe—on the surface, it was a financial transaction, but privately, he added intelligence regarding the □□ that had been opposing the Organization lately as leverage—killing two birds with one stone.
Now, the Cafe had been renovated by her—its reliability was even higher than before.
To her surprise, the business at this cafe was actually quite good. Although it followed a boutique style, the quality of the coffee beans was excellent, the interior decor was quite elegant—Gin did not intend to mistreat himself—attracting a number of young man and woman.
In addition, the Shop owner had created partitioned spaces, making it a good place for those seeking tranquility.
Thus, the small cafe, which Gin had originally intended to use merely as an intelligence relay station—and had even spent a fortune on just to ensure he could have his coffee—had actually turned a profit for him.
Gin was also a bit surprised by this.
On the table, a small succulent plant served as a decoration, lush and green, carrying a sense of fresh vitality; opposite him, the emerald decorating the earlobe of the pale-skinned woman shimmered like a gemstone under the pendant light; Gin's green eyes were calm and waveless, like a cold lake.
The small booth was fully equipped, making it suitable for office workers to work and chat without worrying about being overheard by others.
In a sense.. they also seem to be office workers?
Madra's lip color was slightly grayish, his face, though without any makeup, was still a terrifying white; his demeanor was impeccably perfect, but the dark circles under his eyes betrayed his recent exhaustion.
Even after staying up for several nights, she still didn't have a single pimple on his face, which made Miyano Shiho, who was feeling slightly dizzy and suffering from mouth ulcers, feel a hint of envy.
Madra's voice was as "formal" as ever when he spoke, though his tone sounded slightly hoarse.
That's true, Gin thought: After all, with the APTX4869 drug research restarting, she and Sherry probably won't have an easy time these next few days.
The USB he and Vermouth obtained from the party last time.. it probably provided a great deal of help, didn't it?
Gin was dressed in his usual black coat. Coincidentally, Madra was also wearing black today—a black suit skirt and coat, buttoned up tightly, leaving only a small amount of skin visible at his neck.
It didn't look like a meeting between colleagues, but rather a discussion regarding funeral arrangements.
“Congratulations.” The opening was mere polite, useless pleasantries—to be honest, Gin couldn't tell if Madra liked such formalities; however, she truly possessed the ability to carry out these polite procedures meticulously, no matter the time or place.
However, Gin was clearly unwilling to waste his life like this.
He gave a light chuckle. "Perhaps you should be congratulating me on something else instead—like surviving a brush with death a month ago."
Madra's expression remained unchanged: "What are you trying to say?"
See? There you have it.
Getting straight to the point was something she was certainly capable of. That was why Gin had never been able to understand Madra's way of thinking.
Does Brandy have anything to do with B. W.?
Madra blinked, speaking unhurriedly, "The Gentleman and the leader of B. W. are not the same person."
Whoa—
Whether what she said was true or false, at least she didn't flatly deny knowing about the Black Organization.. Okay.
Gin also gave his some face by changing the subject, his attitude finally becoming less aggressive: "When did Sherry start taking over the research?"
Madra gave a specific time, then added, "If you are referring to the restart of APTX4869, she hasn't had contact with the core yet."
A flash of light flickered in his green eyes as Gin tilted his head, staring at Madra. "You've made contact."
Madra did not hide anything: "That's right."
“I see.. The Organization put a lot of effort into this solution.” Gin remarked casually, his words meaningless, before picking up the Americano in front of him and taking a small sip. “Tell me what you know—only the parts you are allowed to say.”
Although it was unclear whether Gin could understand the relevant knowledge, she didn't even ask a single question, instead nodding and beginning his statement with an extremely natural expression—a naturalness based on his own standards.
A vast amount of detail was disclosed one by one, Gin quickly noted down the parts he could understand—he did not force himself to understand certain specific technical terms. Occasionally, he interjected a sentence or two of questioning that had nothing to do with the solution, but pertained to Brandy's recent situation.
Madra did not seem to be making any effort to brush him off; even when faced with questions he was unwilling to answer, he would state bluntly that he either did not know or could not say—as for whether it was the truth or a lie, Gin had no way of judging.
—Of course, he didn't care either; he would investigate everything that needed to be verified regardless. At this moment, what he cared about more was Madra's attitude.
The sun gradually set, as the atmosphere of their conversation grew increasingly harmonious, various details regarding the arrangements for the APTX4869 Experiment were finalized one by one.
The Black Organization placed great importance on the Researcher—but only regarding research.
As for the various matters of the Researcher beyond research, for Gin, most of them were things he could find a way to "arrange."