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

In the end, she herself had become a traitor in a similar way... This feeling made her feel unreal.

"Relax a bit."

Lin Jiashu's voice was gentle, "We are both cadres of the organization. Not to mention your special status, I myself have some influence with Gin and Rum... It's just sharing the names of other colleagues, it doesn't count as betraying the organization."

That's not what I wanted to ask.

Vermouth retorted briefly, then lowered her voice even further: "We don't have much time... Once I start to show my true colors, given the BOSS's control over the organization, once he notices, then—"

She didn't finish her sentence, but the sense of urgency and underlying fear were already transmitted through the radio waves.

"Do not worry."

Lin Jiashu's tone also became calmer. His voice was still gentle, but much more serious: "Things always have to be done step by step... You and I are now bound together, and I won't let anything happen to you. Besides, the information you provided is very valuable, and I will consider it carefully."

Then he changed the subject, his voice tinged with laughter: "By the way, are you taking folic acid supplements on time? This is very important in the early stages."

This overly casual and abrupt concern clearly startled Vermouth on the other end of the phone.

Immediately, a crisp, almost annoyed tone came from the receiver as the call was abruptly ended—"Beep...beep...beep..."

Hearing the busy signal, Lin Jiashu smiled and put down his phone.

Vermouth was right; he didn't have much time left.

Having obtained Rum's real name, there was no need to contend with this treacherous fellow—for Hayashi Yoshiki, the primary enemy was Karasuma Renya.

To find Karasuma Renya's location, Vermouth is the one who must be won over.

Even at this point, she still dared not directly reveal Karasuma Renya's location to Hayashi Yoshiki, or perhaps she was simply unaware of it...

But it's okay.

Lin Jiashu's gaze returned to the open black notebook on the table.

"It's definitely time... to speed things up."

He seemed to be whispering to his notes, or perhaps stating something to himself.

He picked up the pen, but the tip hovered above the paper for less than half a second before falling.

In the quiet bedroom, the only sound was the occasional scratching of a pen across paper, like the sound of fate being rewoven, deep and deadly.

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.

As night deepened, the abandoned dock and warehouse area was left with only the monotonous sound of waves crashing against the shore, and the air was filled with the salty sea breeze and the smell of rust.

"Big brother, this time it went quite smoothly."

Vodka grinned.

The two had just come out of the warehouse behind them.

Today's target is a bank executive who embezzled a huge sum of public funds. With the help of the organization's combination of threats and inducements, the executive obtained 500 million yen in cash from the bank's vault... and under Gin's cold gun barrel and undisguised killing intent, the executive practically handed over the 500 million yen while crying.

The heavy metal box was now being carried by Vodka.

Gin chuckled.

He habitually lit a cigarette, and the grayish-white smoke rose wisps in the darkness.

His dark green eyes habitually swept across the shadows of every container, every vantage point where a sniper might be hiding. It was his instinct; Gin's vigilance never wavered, regardless of mission success or failure.

Just as they walked toward the Porsche 356A parked in a secluded spot, Gin's fingers, which were holding a cigarette, paused almost imperceptibly.

Something's not right...

Although he didn't notice anything, the sudden palpitation and slight tingling from the back of his head made his muscles tense.

Gin suddenly stopped in his tracks.

His gaze instinctively drifted to the back of his head.

"Wait, watch out!"

He let out a low shout and pounced towards the container shelter to the side like a cheetah!

Almost the instant his words fell—

Diu!

A bullet made a muffled thud in the darkness, landing precisely where Gin had just stood, sending up a spray of gravel across the asphalt.

Vodka reacted a step too late, belatedly realizing what was happening and hurriedly seeking cover.

"Damn it! That bastard! He actually dared to hire assassins to ambush us?!"

Vodka was both shocked and furious, cursing loudly, thinking it was the target of his extortion that was behind it.

As he ran toward cover, his movements slowed slightly, and another bullet grazed his side, tearing off a small piece of flesh. The burning pain made him groan.

"Shut up, Vodka! It wasn't him!"

Gin, hiding behind cover, spoke with a voice as cold as iron, his hand already gripping a gun.

Based on the ballistics and shooting accuracy, he roughly judged that this was probably not a gunman that an ordinary gang or a desperate target would hire, given his precise and calm style, and his ability to immediately change position if he missed...

Is it those persistent ghosts...?

The attackers didn't give them much time to think.

From different directions, two more figures appeared like ghosts, their movements swift, silent, and perfectly coordinated.

"Kill them!"

Gin's eyes flashed with killing intent. Without any hesitation, he raised his Beretta 92F and immediately unleashed a scorching tongue of fire!

The bullet flew precisely at an assassin who was trying to flank from the side, forcing him to tumble and dodge in a sorry state.

Vodka, enduring the pain, steadied his gun with his strong arm behind the container and fired wildly at the assassins rushing in from another direction, suppressing their fire and creating an opportunity for Gin.

The warehouse area instantly turned into a battlefield amidst a hail of bullets.

In the darkness, bullets, completely invisible, struck the metal container with a piercing clang, sending sparks flying.

An exceptionally agile assassin used stacked cargo boxes as springboards to approach at lightning speed, like an ape. He fired rapid bursts of fire from a silenced pistol, the bullets grazing Gin's clothes.

Gin remained expressionless, and just as the other party was about to approach, he suddenly kicked over an empty oil drum next to him!

The oil drum rolled toward the assassin with a loud bang, temporarily obstructing his vision and movement. Just as the assassin dodged to the side, Gin, who had silently taken a step, appeared beside him like a ghost!

Click!

A sharp, teeth-grinding crack.

Gin gave his opponent no time to react, delivering a vicious elbow strike that landed precisely on the assassin's Adam's apple!

The assassin's eyes bulged out instantly, a strange hoarse sound came from his throat, and the weapon in his hand fell to the ground.

Gin didn't even glance at the limp assassin. He turned around and shot another assassin who was temporarily suppressed by vodka's firepower, the movement fluid and without the slightest hesitation.

The battle ended abruptly and brutally within minutes.

All three attackers were killed, and the air was filled with a strong smell of gunpowder and blood.

Vodka, panting heavily, ignored his bleeding arm and clutched his side as he looked at the corpse on the ground, still shaken: "Brother, these guys..."

Gin stood amidst the corpses, the hem of his black trench coat fluttering slightly in the night breeze. The murderous aura emanating from him was almost tangible, causing the surrounding temperature to drop several degrees.

He stepped forward, kicked aside a corpse, examined the body's hands and equipment, and frowned.

He then examined the other two bodies.

There are no obvious commonalities among these three corpses; on the contrary, the three individuals have very strong personal characteristics... more like individual killers than an organization.

So it really is someone from that organization?

A chilling glint appeared in Gin's eyes... It was that mysterious organization that supposedly pursued the "Gem Pandora." They had been silent for so long, but now they suddenly couldn't hold back anymore. Could it be that they were trying to lull him into a false sense of security and then take his life when he was off guard?

If that's really the case...

Gin gave a cold laugh and looked up into the darkness.

The conflict between the two organizations is far from over, and this targeted ambush, in his view, is more like a clear signal—the war has never truly stopped.

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.

The morning sunlight streamed through the blinds, cutting bright strips of light across the office's polished floor.

When Yoshiki Hayashi opened the door to the office, he found that only Tooru Amuro was there today. On the seat of Nanatsu Koshimizu, who was usually very diligent, there was a sticky note saying that she had to take half a day off because she wanted to queue up to buy something this morning.

"Good morning, Boss," Amuro Tooru greeted.

"Mr. Amuro?"

Lin Jiashu looked at him with some surprise. He walked to the sofa and sat down. "Have you finished your work?"

Because Vermouth had previously refused to take responsibility, Amuro Tooru had no choice but to take on some of her work and take a break for a while.

"not yet."

Amuro Tooru responded, his expression somewhat serious. He poured Yoshiki a cup of black coffee and brought it to him before sitting down opposite him.

"Have you heard? Last night, Gin and Vodka were attacked in the dock warehouse area."

Lin Jiashu picked up his coffee cup, the rising steam blurring his gentle features: "Yeah, Gin called me this morning. He sounded pretty angry and specifically told me to behave myself lately, especially not to hang out at the bars organized by the group."

Amuro Toru was shocked when he heard this.

He then shook his head, a hint of helplessness on his face, and said, "Gin really went too far in taking care of you."

He came to the office specifically to talk to Hayashi Yoshiki about this.

But then he asked, "Did he say anything else to you?"

"No, what's wrong?" Lin Jiashu blew on the steam rising from the surface of the coffee.

Seeing that Yoshiki Hayashi seemed unaware, Tooru Amuro's expression turned serious. He lowered his voice and said in a heavy tone, "Actually, the situation may be more serious than what Gin encountered. According to the information I have received, it's not just them; several other mid-level members of the organization have also been attacked by unidentified assassins in the past few days, and... some have already been killed."

"Someone in the organization has died?"

"As far as I know, two died... Aquavit and Riesling."

"Is that so?" Lin Jiashu's gaze sharpened.

"Although there is no conclusive evidence yet, their style and methods are very similar to that of the mysterious assassin organization that had a fierce conflict with the organization before, the one that was pursuing 'Pandora'. They have been dormant for so long and have suddenly become active again. I think they are probably lying in wait, gathering more information about the organization's members, and will only start to act after they have made a result. So I am worried that you may also be in danger."

Looking at Hayashi Yoshiki's face, Amuro Tooru appeared worried.

This sudden appearance of a third party was indeed giving him a headache. The internal struggles within the organization were already complicated enough, and now with the addition of a powerful and secretive external enemy, the situation seemed to have become even more unpredictable and dangerous.

Although Gin had kept Lin Jiashu's true identity well hidden, if the organization was really lurking in the shadows gathering intelligence, and might have used methods like tailing and surveillance, then Lin Jiashu's multiple encounters with Gin at the bar would not be able to be kept secret... This was precisely why Gin told him not to go near the organization's bar recently.

Lin Jiashu listened quietly, his fingers unconsciously stroking the inside of the coffee cup.

"Don't worry too much about me. On the contrary, Mr. Amuro's situation is probably more dangerous than mine..."

"..."

Amuro Tooru did not deny it.

Lin Jiashu didn't discuss this matter further with him. Instead, she smiled and asked, "Are you going to be busy at the firm until the end of the workday?"

"No, I'll leave as soon as I get back from Yueshui."

"...Alright then."

Lin Jiashu slowly finished his coffee.

Seeing Amuro Tooru getting ready to get busy again, I turned my gaze to the window of the office.

The zoo's actions will force the brewery to respond accordingly.

He knew perfectly well what this meant; it simply meant he had stirred up the water even more.

Rum...

Karasuma Renya...

These two people will never be able to escape in the end.

Chapter 78: The Coming Age Tracking System

[A shooting occurred again in the harbor area last night, marking the third targeted attack this week. Police suspect it is linked to certain extremist groups and are reminding the public to be vigilant...]