Before parting, Madra stood up and gave Gin a slight bow, her angle precise to a fault.
Even Gin felt exhausted on her behalf.
But now was not the time to be considerate of her.
“I look forward to our next meeting.” Madra straightened her posture and lowered her gaze slightly, the tilt of her head conveying a respectful demeanor.
Gin curled the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a smile of ambiguous meaning as a form of acknowledgment.
As Madra turned around, the silver-haired youth tossed out one last question:
“Is Brandy Russian?”
After a brief pause, Madra's Voice drifted over, unhurried.
No.
It remained calm, yet it could hardly be described as waveless.
The faint smile at the corner of Gin's mouth turned into a sneer.
This time, your tone while lying doesn't seem to be perfect.
..
After seeing Madra off, Gin looked at the sky and decided to order some takeout.
After all, he was too lazy to go out, he didn't want to have his dinner at a cafe.
However, this house was one of the few places where he could live comfortably, barely enough to be called a 'home.' He was truly unwilling to have a takeout delivery person come to his door and risk exposure.
So the silver-haired youth leisurely pulled out his mobile phone and sent an SMS to his subordinate Borse, who had recently returned to the country and seemed to have nothing to do.
However, because of consecutive days of "work" that had left him in poor spirits and even slightly hypoglycemic, he failed to notice.. that he had selected the wrong recipient for the SMS.
Borse, who had been left to idle away his time in Italy and had finally made it back to Japan.. had not received any SMS at all.
After sending the SMS, Gin lay lazily on the sofa, his eyes half-closed as he rested.
The Owl, who had just been brought back not long ago, also seemed to be homesick, appearing exceptionally cheerful the moment it entered the door. Although a few days had worn down that initial frenzy, it still couldn't help but flap its spirited wings from time to time.
Out of a sense of guilt for having neglected his pet for nearly a month, Gin rarely refrained from restraining it.
So, as Akai Shuichi stood at the door holding the takeout, pressing the doorbell with a sense of speechlessness—
When Gin blinked and came to his senses, he walked to the Entrance and opened the door—
The Silver-haired youth's green eyes widened in surprise the moment he saw who had arrived, he realized with regret that he would need to move, as if it were only natural.
Likewise—
It seems that an Owl smacking an FBI elite in the face when they are caught off guard is not an impossible occurrence either.
-----------------------
Author's Note: Great, now there is only one chapter left.
The second volume is gradually coming to an end; everyone can start the countdown now.
..
Thank you to the Little Angels who cast Overlord votes or provided Nutrient solution~
Thank you to the Little Angel who provided Nutrient solution:
maty0703 10 bottles; Vase on Tatami 5 bottles; Yuzhi 4 bottles; Kongshan Jue 1 bottle;
Thank you all so much for your support, I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 109: Chapter 104 I am not that cowardly..
Looking at this unexpected scene before him, Gin paused—and then paused again—
In the very end, he simply could not restrain himself, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.
His previously depressed mood improved significantly as well. Gin stood with his hands in his pockets, lazily watching the "war" between Akai Shuichi and the Owl for a while, his eyes filled with an infuriating sense of detachment.
As the "winner" was about to be decided—no matter how you looked at it, Akai Shuichi was an elite of the FBI, the power gap between the man and the Owl was vast, if not for the Owl's "sneak attack"—Gin finally began to move.
He brought his palms together, then clapped his hands twice.
This movement seemed like a signal. The Owl, which had been struggling violently just a second ago, let out a strange cry, then flapped its wings, crossing the distance of those few steps to arrive at Gin's side.
It circled the Silver-haired youth twice before landing cautiously on Gin's shoulder, its body language a world apart from the roughhousing it had engaged in with Akai Shuichi just moments before.
Having finally managed to shake off this unexpected Akai Shuichi..
She raised her hand to her forehead, casually straightening her collar that had been messed up by the Owl, looked up at Gin. Although Gin's expression remained composed, he could still faintly discern the words "gloating" written across her face. "This 'thank-you gift' is quite unexpected, isn't it?"
Akai Shuichi raised his hand, the takeout in the white plastic bag was revealed before Gin's eyes, reminding the silver-haired man of the meaning behind his teasing words.
His Subordinate had worked hard—or perhaps not so hard—sacrificing his rest time to deliver takeout to him, yet he had used "Justice" as a greeting gift for the other man, which indeed seemed quite unreasonable.
Gin gave a light cough. "It's very well-behaved." — In front of him.
Hearing this, Akai Shuichi slightly raised his eyes.
After all, as a "victim," he truly could not understand this so-called "well-behaved" nature.
Unfortunately, that Owl, whether it had become a spirit or not, was very considerate of its owner—in other words, it was quite disrespectful to Akai Shuichi. It was unclear whether it understood what was said, but it simply tilted its head and let out a soft cry, calmly preening its feathers with a grace and poise reminiscent of a well-mannered, elegant lady.
Akai Shuichi: ……
She couldn't help it, the corners of her mouth twitched slightly.
The black-haired youth simply stopped worrying about whether this owl was well-behaved or not; his gaze brushed against the owl, then shifted toward Gin. "Are you a fan of Harry Potter?"
“It's not called Hedwig,” although Nana really wanted to name it that.
Gin stepped aside to make enough space for someone to pass. Since he had already decided to move, he wouldn't treat himself poorly—his takeout was still in Akai Shuichi's hands.
As he stepped aside, the Owl, sensing the movement, took flight once again. It flapped its wings and hovered in the air for several seconds, appearing to observe Akai Shuichi with curiosity. Then, this Owl named Hedwig flew back toward its nest.
Akai Shuichi followed instructions. After entering the house, he scanned the interior decorations, his face showing no extra emotion, instead naturally placed the takeout on the coffee table.
“Boss—you're getting better and better at bossing people around.” After setting down the takeout, Akai Shuichi put his hands in his pockets and turned to look at Gin from the side, his words carrying a hint of teasing.
Gin didn't care much for the remark. Since he was already here, he saw no need to clarify the blunder that he had actually sent the SMS to the wrong person.
"Sit wherever you like." Gin tossed out the simple words before turning around and carrying the takeout into the kitchen—that's where the tableware was.
Akai sat down and took the opportunity to observe the details within the house.
Just as he imagined, most of the furniture and decorations exuded a heavy style of a finished renovation handed over after construction—how should one put it, it lacked a human touch—similarly, it revealed almost nothing of the owner's hobbies and interests.
Unlike what he imagined, perhaps because there was an extra Owl, the place had a bit more "life" to it—at least it didn't look like a luxury hotel.
"How contradictory," Akai Shuichi thought, tilting his head slightly.
..
This was not the only contradiction.
Clearly, he did not trust him, yet for some inexplicable reason, he treated him like a Delivery man; clearly, he seemed to be on guard, yet he acted as if he didn't care at all, leaving him alone in the Living room.
The Kitchen and the Living room were not far apart; as soon as Akai Shuichi turned his head, he could clearly see Gin's figure.
By the same token, Gin could also see him.
—So, is it because of confidence?
Akai Shuichi, having no intention of causing suspicion, certainly had no intention of investigating while the owner was still present, but he could still walk around the living room.
His gaze swept across the various decorations in the living room. Almost all the furniture was in its original state from the high-end renovation—one could guess Ichimi's taste just by looking at their uniform style and brand. If there was anything different to be said..
So, besides some miscellaneous items like tissues.. there were only a few books left.
Akai Shuichi stood up and walked toward the book closest to him.
His gaze met Gin's, after three seconds, he reached for the book tentatively.
He was not stopped.
It was a beautifully bound classic, an English version, written by Charlotte Brontë.
The Black-haired youth frowned slightly in confusion.
So Akai Shuichi opened this book.
..
Gin does not eat slowly—he has never been a man of procrastination; of course, this time was no different, as it was a rare period of rest, besides, he had essentially ordered enough for two people.
Akai Shuichi's movements did not trigger his suspicion. There was truly nothing noteworthy in the living room—after all, although this house was secluded, it was not unknown, Gin naturally would not brazenly leave secrets in the living room.
—It's not like he's performing the Empty Fort Strategy.
And the few books that appeared.. were actually used by him to pass the time.
As a mixed-race person, Gin himself spoke English quite well. Long before Shiratori Midori was struggling with his English exams, he was already able to easily read English novels on the side.
Shiratori Midori didn't know what triggered him, but he simply bought a whole bunch of novels—the Japanese versions—and began reading them alongside the English versions, attempting to improve his English proficiency.
The two of them had always had a good relationship, to the point that many of Shiratori Midori's books were simply kept at Gin's place; over time, it became difficult to distinguish which book belonged to whom.
And now, the other owner of the books has passed away, so whether they can be distinguished no longer matters much.
He lowered his eyes slightly.. He appeared nonchalant, yet his chopsticks involuntarily came to a halt.
..
Akai Shuichi leaned back on the sofa with a hint of laziness, the sunlight fell lazily upon him, casting a dappled layer of golden radiance. The Black-haired youth held a book in his hands; he gazed down at it, his expression heavy and indistinct.
He seemed to be thinking about something, or perhaps he was simply spacing out from exhaustion.
When Gin finished cleaning up the leftovers and walked into the living room, this was the scene he saw.
Perhaps hearing no movement, Rye turned her head as if startled, her usually calm green eyes showing a rare hint of confusion as they met Gin's gaze.
Three seconds later, everything returned to normal.
Gin almost suspected it was her own hallucination.
"What's wrong?" It hadn't even been an hour; Akai Shuichi couldn't have suddenly undergone a complete personality transplant, could he?