Isn't it very scientific to use the Death Note to kill people?

"...It's really dangerous to have dinner with you."

Vermouth made a joke, but her demeanor remained very relaxed: "So what do you plan to do with me? Ask me to find someone to help you deal with this ID?"

"It's not just me."

Lin Jiashu looked at her.

He paused for a moment, his eyes fixed intently on Vermouth: "The people around me are currently being held hostage in Fantasyland. If the watch isn't deactivated by 10 p.m., or if they leave Fantasyland during the night, the bomb inside will explode."

Vermouth felt a chill run down her spine.

Two hours earlier, Lin Jiashu had explained part of the situation to her in order to get her to cooperate with the acting so that he could leave halfway through.

Vermouth thus knew that both Yoshiki Hayashi and Kogoro Mouri were wearing this watch—and for the hostages who were important to these two, Ran was the first person she thought of.

The thought that the girl was carrying a dangerous bomb made Vermouth secretly anxious.

However, she couldn't possibly express these emotions.

"I'm a little curious, why don't you bother Gin and the others?"

"..."

Lin Jiashu did not respond, which made Vermouth realize belatedly that she had asked a stupid question.

He had previously tested Gin with someone close to him, and as a result, he quickly received a warning and a lesson from Gin. Gin did not tell Gin the truth about this matter, and obviously he did not want Gin to know that he had this "weakness".

That's why he specifically sought me out...

Cointreau truly cares deeply about and cherishes the people around him.

The fact that Vermouth risked her life for that lovely angel time and time again was enough to convince her that Cointreau was not a threat to Ran.

—Perhaps Jundu, like himself, was redeemed and attracted by the girl's warm radiance. If so, they could be considered natural allies within the organization.

"I can help, but what price would you like to pay?"

"random."

Lin Jiashu's words made Vermouth raise an eyebrow. "You can name any conditions you want, as long as you help me get Xiaolan and the others out of danger."

"OK."

Seeing the man's serious expression, Vermouth felt an inexplicable sense of pleasure.

Her alluring face beamed with a smile: "Of course, I'll keep this a secret for you."

"Have you decided what conditions you want to set, like having me join the intelligence team?"

“No, I’m not Rum’s subordinate, so I don’t need to think so much about him. Just consider it a favor you owe me.” Vermouth suddenly changed the subject, absolving herself of any responsibility: “Actually, mentioning the people around you before wasn’t my intention.”

Sorry Rum, but you'll have to take the blame for me.

The woman thought to herself with a sense of pleasure.

Anyway, Cointreau wouldn't go to the other party to confirm something like this.

Unfortunately, Lin Jiashu knew that she was trying to shift the blame, because Vermouth's statement that day was essentially a test of him, and Rum would not do such an unnecessary thing.

However, Lin Jiashu also realized from her act of shifting blame that she was offering a way out, probably also with the intention of getting closer to him.

"I see."

Lin Jiashu managed to suppress his laughter in front of her.

The woman's reaction was exactly what he expected.

From the initial lesson she learned, to rescuing Xiaolan at the Twin Towers skyscraper, and now the way she proactively revealed her weaknesses... Given her repeated actions, it was entirely predictable how this woman would react.

Although he owed her a favor, proactively offering it was essentially just the first step in building a closer relationship—once he reached a consensus with a woman like Vermouth, she might become very useful.

“I will have people from the organization hack into your client’s network. Once we gain access, we will immediately deactivate the bomb on your watches.”

"Okay, let's do it that way. But we need to be careful because the other side seems to be quite proficient with networks as well, so we don't accidentally arouse his suspicion."

Suehiko Ito's computer is not something that can be hacked easily.

After all, even though he was blind, he was still able to observe the movements of Lin Jiashu and others through the cameras on the road. Furthermore, he even learned that Conan was Shinichi Kudo by looking at the fingerprints on the seat. This also shows that his computer has probably been hacking into the city's public cameras and the internal database of the public security bureau without being discovered.

"rest assured."

Since it concerned Xiaolan's life, Vermouth dared not joke around.

However, it wouldn't be difficult for the organization's programmers to do this kind of work. After all, the organization could encrypt even a floppy disk with the "Dark Baron" virus, and programmers like Hara Yoshiaki, who could single-handedly support the company, didn't even realize they had been discovered after stealing the data... Ito Suehiko is blind and poses no threat.

"Let's leave it at that for now, I'm in a hurry."

Lin Jiashu had no intention of staying for the meal.

Seeing this, Vermouth put the mask of Ikumi Gunta that she had just taken off back on, and in the blink of an eye, she was disguised.

"Then see you next time, Mr. Lin."

She also stood up and reached out to Hayashi Yoshiki, laughing in the voice of Yamada Ikumi.

Lin Jiashu shook hands with her as if they had reached a consensus.

She watched Lin Jiashu leave the restaurant, then Vermouth, who was a step behind, got into her car and quickly dialed a number from her contacts.

She also wanted to get Xiaolan out of danger as soon as possible.

249

Chapter 249: That good-for-nothing, how can he be so useless?

"What? You said you revealed your identity to the young man?"

Walking through the campus of Yokohama Ocean University, Hattori Heiji's tone was unusually surprised.

He couldn't help but look at Conan beside him.

Conan rested his hands on the back of his head, looking somewhat helpless.

"I had no choice. If I didn't mention the situation at the time, it would be like treating Lin Jiashu as an idiot... I couldn't stand that feeling, so I couldn't help but test the waters."

"and then?"

"Then he started calling me Kudo-kun right away, and he said he had guessed it was me a long time ago."

“…I knew it.” Hattori Heiji laughed instead. “If even I can see it, there’s no reason why such a skilled guy wouldn’t notice it.”

"I think it's because you kept calling me Kudo Kudo in front of him that you revealed too many of my flaws."

"Hey! You're clearly just pretending to be a child, and you don't look convincing at all!"

The two chatted back and forth the whole way.

After exchanging barbs for a while, the two couldn't help but bring up the accident that Lin Jiashu had encountered last time.

"Regarding the terrorist shootout that happened in Osaka, I remember you telling me that one side managed to escape under the cover of an unbelievable 'accident,' right?"

“That’s right, one of them is very likely the organization that caused you to become like this… That’s the consensus we reached at the time.”

“So this matter can’t be considered unrelated to me.” Conan said, looking somewhat eager. “After this incident is resolved, I’ll go ask Hayashi Yoshiki what exactly happened.”

"Don't forget to tell me if you find anything out."

"Don't worry, I won't forget."

Conan and Heiji Hattori arrived at the school's notice board based on the clues they had gathered.

While they were studying the posted content, they unexpectedly bumped into Hakuba Saguru.

As the three of them talked and began to notice the crime research club at Yokohama University, and decided to head there, Conan was thinking about something else entirely.

"White Horse, what's the story behind the murderer who staged the accidental killing?"

"What?" Hakuba Saguru was taken aback.

"You must know, right?"

However, Heiji Hattori was quite certain.

—When Hayashi Yoshiki mentioned Hakuba Saguru in the hospital room, he said that the other party might also be in danger, which shows that the other party must also be in the know.

Even in his previous speculations, Conan recalled the mysterious meeting between Hakuba and Hayashi Yoshiki during the Twilight Villa incident—they were probably talking about something related to the accidental culprit!

Hakuba Saguru... no... Kuroba Kaito was a little confused.

He disguised himself as Hakuba Saguru to infiltrate and investigate the truth. It's one thing to encounter these two troublesome guys, but what about the murderer who orchestrated the accidental killing?

Kaito Kuroba used his acting skills to deal with the two men while simultaneously extracting information from them.

He quickly sorted out his thoughts.

(That guy, Yoshiki Hayashi...)

The thought that the man who had always given him the cold shoulder had actually encountered such a thing filled him with surprise, and his heart also grew heavy.

I'll ask that guy about it later.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

14:38 pm

Lin Jiashu received a text message from Vermouth informing him that the bombs in the IDs on Xiaolan's wrists had been removed from Ito Suehiko's contact list.

Cointreau: "OK"

Vermouth: "Do I need to disguise myself as a staff member to retrieve their IDs? After all, even if the remote control and timer functions are disabled, it's still essentially a dangerous bomb, isn't it?"

Jundu: "No need, I've already made arrangements."

Vermouth: "Whatever."

Lin Jiashu put away his phone.

Sending Vermouth disguised as a staff member to retrieve the bomb would be redundant. Besides, he and Vermouth have just made a good start, and it wouldn't be good if she got close enough to alert Ai Haibara.

He planned to text Inspector Megure later to ask him to send someone to retrieve the bomb.

"Alright, Ito Suehiko is no longer of any use. Let's prepare to go and deal with him."

"Ehhhhh"

A woman's drawn-out, slightly disgruntled, coquettish voice rang out.

With her hand resting on the wardrobe and her back to Hayashi Yoshiki, Shimizu Reiko gently swayed her snow-white hips, muttering, "That good-for-nothing Ito, how can he be so useless? Wait a little longer, Mr. Hayashi."

"If this drags on any longer, those detectives who are risking their lives might start to suspect you... Even if you've covered up all the traces you could, you can't underestimate them."

Lin Jiashu's calm voice softened.

He looked at Shimizu Reiko, who was still somewhat unwilling, and reached out to stroke her pure yet alluring face. In her cat-like, docile yet excited, watery eyes, the back of his fingers gently slid over her face, and then lifted her chin: "I don't want anything to happen to Reiko, who is so important to me. Do you understand if I put it that way?"

"...You actually said I was important, Mr. Lin~"

"That's just how it is. You're a good woman, Reiko."

"I understand……"

Under those gentle, dark eyes, the woman's response was so soft it sounded like she was being coquettish, her dreamy gaze overflowing with happiness.

However, at the same time, she became increasingly disgusted and impatient with Ito Suehiko's existence.

It's all that guy's fault. Why couldn't that useless guy have held out for two more hours? And then there's Nishio Masaharu, who's already dead. I had already covered up so many traces, but because of those two's obsequious behavior at school and their incredibly stupid actions, there was a slight chance that I would be exposed...

After washing up in the bathroom, Lin Jiashu left the hotel room.

He took out his phone and called his secretary, Takada: "Mr. Takada, I'm about to return to the hotel. Could you please show me the way?"

"...Are you ready to report the investigation results to your client?" The male voice on the other end of the phone sounded somewhat surprised.

"Yes, please also pass on the message to my client."

After Lin Jiashu finished speaking, he hung up the phone.

He glanced at the time on his ID and compared it with what he had written in his Death Note.

Yoshiki Hayashi wouldn't easily put himself in danger; he would only act when he was sure that Suehiro Ito and Takada posed no threat to him.

After leaving the hotel, Yoshiki Hayashi received a call from Suehiko Ito.

"I heard from Takada that you were planning to come and report the truth to me, is that right, Mr. Hayashi?"

"Right."

"...According to your ID location, you've been staying in a nearby hotel since just now. Can this be considered an investigation?" Ito Suehiko paused here. "However, I've always had high hopes for you. If you're confident enough in the truth you've uncovered, then come over... But you only have one chance to report."