Stay away from Conan.

He seems to know everything that's happening so clearly, especially since he even anticipated my arrival at the shopping mall in Beika Town and hid in my car beforehand, leading to the current standoff. And then there's Hachioji City—he seems to have completely figured it out. So, what exactly is this guy...?

After a brief moment of thought, Vermouth finally picked up her phone and looked at the familiar number displayed on the screen—

That was indeed a call from Gin.

Vermouth's expression turned serious. She didn't answer the call immediately, but instead glanced at the calm-looking guy in the back seat through the rearview mirror.

Aren't you going to answer?

Seeing that Vermouth didn't answer the phone, Gao Yuan's calm voice rang out, and he added, seemingly emphasizing, "..."

"Gin's side... we can't find him, right?"

Vermouth didn't answer, but hesitated for a moment before pressing the answer button to calm herself down.

Gin's voice came through the receiver immediately, a brief response tinged with anger:
"We missed them. There were signs of a struggle at the scene, so someone must have gotten there first."

"understood."

Vermouth responded in this way, her voice devoid of any emotion:

"I don't have any results either; what I found wasn't the target."

Thus, both pieces of intelligence from Ireland were deemed useless, so Gin didn't say anything more and hung up the phone.

As the call ended, Vermouth casually tossed her phone onto the passenger seat, then gripped the steering wheel again and continued driving. But for a moment, the atmosphere in the car seemed to freeze.

"look."

Just then, Gao Yuan's voice came from the back row, carrying a hint of calm laughter.

Vermouth remained silent for a moment after hearing this result, then spoke coldly:
"You knew all along? You knew in advance that she would disappear, hid her in my car beforehand, and then told me you knew about it—"

"What are you planning to do? You wouldn't happen to be behind that person's disappearance, would you?"

"All I know is that she's missing."

Thus, in response to Vermouth's questioning, Gao Yuan simply replied calmly, and then added:
"And I also know something else—"

"The murderer also failed to find her."

Upon hearing this, Vermouth visibly tightened her grip on the steering wheel, then, as if realizing something, she said sternly:

Do you know where she is?

Gao Yuan did not answer the question immediately, but maintained his calm expression.

A brief silence fell over the carriage.

What are you trying to say?

Finally, after waiting for a moment, Vermouth decided to ask.

I want to say—

Gao Yuan sat up slightly, and said in a somewhat meaningful tone:

“I know your secret, and you know my weakness. Sherry is with me, and that child is with the Maori family. In the end, we're in the same boat, aren't we?”

Hearing this, Vermouth recalled how this guy had inexplicably hidden in her car earlier that day and said all that, only to say this now. She couldn't help but sneer and replied:
So you're trying to reason with me now?

"I'm talking to you about a deal."

Only then did Gao Yuan's voice become serious:
"I can tell you the exact movements of the FBI—"

"Did Rena Mizunashi shift time? Has Rikumichi Kusuda been exposed...?"

"You can even choose when to move or when to expose yourself."

"You can use this to report back to the organization, and even take the opportunity to adjust your deployment..."

Vermouth didn't respond to these words, but Gao Yuan knew she was listening.

“In exchange, I need a few things.” “Speak.”

At this moment, Vermouth finally got to the point that Takato wanted to make.

"First, the murderer who took the memory card in this case must be handed over to the police. We can't let him fall into the hands of the organization, and we can't let him be silenced by you. He has to live, and the police need an explanation."

Gao Yuan said this casually, as if this incident was not a troublesome matter for him.

Upon hearing this, Vermouth's eyebrows twitched slightly, and she asked in confusion:
"You want to keep that list?"

"I'm not interested in that list."

Gao Yuan shook his head, as if the list was completely unimportant to him, and explained:

"I don't need to take that risk for a list that isn't exactly crucial. But it's different if that list falls into the hands of an organization versus the police."

"Even for that child, the impact of this event was different—"

"You should know what I'm talking about."

Vermouth fell silent; she certainly understood what Gao Yuan was saying—

The child was clearly interested in the list, but coincidentally, Ireland also noticed the child at that moment.

If the list is recovered by the organization, Ireland's mission will be complete, everything will go smoothly, and he will have more energy and resources to investigate the child's matter.
If the list falls into the hands of the police, the organization will be in a passive position, and Ireland will be held accountable for the mission's failure, but that child...

It's still a big problem.

The list of organizations cannot be lost, but the child also needs to be safe. In that case, Ireland becomes a problem that needs to be addressed…

"You're quite the schemer."

Vermouth replied calmly, already knowing in her heart that the other party wanted her to deal with the troubles in Ireland.

"Secondly, the administrator himself must come back alive. He's being held somewhere by you right now, isn't he? Let him rest in peace once this is over. He's just an unlucky guy who got caught up in this; it wouldn't be good if he died, would it?"

Following that, Gao Yuan talked about the real person who was impersonated by Ireland.

"You're really pushing your luck."

Vermouth wasn't surprised by this, but she was worried that things would become more complicated if she let the administrator go.

Gao Yuan ignored Vermouth's response and calmly continued speaking:

"third--"

At this point, Gao Yuan paused, lowering his voice by an octave:
"If you want to keep that child's identity a secret, then so does Shirley's!"

Upon hearing this, Vermouth's eyes flickered slightly, realizing that Gao Yuan's true purpose was only now surfacing:
"What do you mean?"

Vermouth asked, feigning ignorance.

"The risk of that child being exposed is actually the same as the risk of Shirley being exposed. If Ireland keeps an eye on that child, sooner or later they will find out that there is another child who 'shouldn't exist' by his side."

"Besides, because of your previous actions at the 'lookout restaurant,' the organization should have realized that Sherry might still be lingering in Tokyo, which is not good!"

"Ha, so this is... your idea of ​​settling accounts? How are you going to do it?"

Upon hearing this, Vermouth finally seemed relieved and began to reply calmly.

“You have to convince the organization that Shirley is gone.”

Gao Yuan's words caused Vermouth's pupils to contract slightly—

"Gone?"

Which interpretation? Is he no longer in Tokyo, or is he no longer alive?

"I'm no longer in Japan."

Gao Yuan's voice was soft, yet every word was clear:
"Exit records, surveillance footage... nothing too complicated, just enough for the organization to find." (End of Chapter)