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

The code name rolled through his mind, carrying a chilling aura.

If it's true that Sherry shrank and was always protected by Cointreau, then this guy with blood on his hands, more ruthless than anyone in the organization, is actually a traitor.

So what is he after?

sense of justice?

Are you kidding me...?

Although I believe this guy is a traitor, even I, Rum, now firmly believe that he has a penchant for killing.

It couldn't be that they were captivated by Sulli's shrunk appearance.

Rum almost laughed at his own humor.

But this might be an opportunity...

He thought about it.

Once the testing of the cross-age tracking system is complete, I'll then create my own version of Jundu, whether it's to find something on him or to directly uncover his secrets...

"Continue to monitor all relevant developments, Curaçao."

Rum finally gave the order: "Especially Cointreau, and that brat who looks like Sherry. Report any unusual activity to me immediately."

"Yes."

Curaçao bowed his head and accepted the order.

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.

Lin Jiashu leaned against the poolside and put his phone, which was no longer making any noise, aside.

At this moment, the night sky was dotted with a few stars, and the courtyard was filled only with the gurgling of the spring and the occasional chirping of insects, creating an atmosphere of utter tranquility.

Just then, the shoji door leading to the room behind me was gently slid open, and a soft "whoosh" sound came from behind.

Lin Jiashu subconsciously turned around, and in the misty steam, he saw Fei Yingli standing at the door wrapped in a white bath towel, her hair loosely tied up, revealing her beautiful neck.

With a slightly embarrassed smile on her face, she looked at the coffee milk in Lin Jiashu's hand and asked softly, "How is it? Is the coffee milk good?"

Lin Jiashu was clearly surprised to see her come out, his face showing astonishment: "Aunt Yingli? You haven't rested yet?"

Eri Kisaki took a few steps closer, squatted down by the pool, and smiled helplessly:

"Hmm, I don't know if it's because of the change of environment, but I just can't fall asleep no matter how much I toss and turn."

She did indeed toss and turn on the tatami for a long time, her eyes closed, but she could hear the faint sound of water in the courtyard and the slight movements from this side with unusual clarity.

She didn't even know why she couldn't sleep; it was just a strange excitement that made her come out.

She concealed her subtle feelings with a lighthearted tone: "I guess... I'm a bit of a light sleeper."

"So it's because I'm not used to sleeping in the same bed."

Lin Jiashu smiled understandingly. However, as Eri Kisaki was about to step into the hot spring, he seemed to suddenly remember something. His body tensed almost imperceptibly for a moment, and his tone became unusually flustered. He quickly raised his hand to stop her, saying, "Ah, Aunt Eri, please wait a moment..."

His reaction made Eri Kisaki pause, and then her gaze unconsciously swept across the water surface shrouded in the misty steam of the hot spring.

Although she couldn't see it very clearly, the smooth and muscular outline of a man's body, faintly visible beneath the water, instantly made her understand why Lin Jiashu had suddenly become reserved—he wasn't wearing a towel.

A surge of heat rushed to her cheeks, causing Eri's heart to skip a beat, and she hastily looked away.

"Ah... I'm sorry."

She whispered, then quickly turned and walked to the shelf next to her, took a clean, folded bath towel, and handed it to her with her back to the water, saying, "Here, use this."

"Thank you."

Lin Jiashu's voice came from behind, accompanied by the sound of water and a hint of embarrassment.

A moment later, I heard his voice from behind saying, "That's enough."

Eri Kisaki took a deep breath to calm herself, then carefully walked up the stone steps into the hot spring and sat down a little distance away from Yoshiki Hayashi. The warm spring water enveloped her again, seemingly easing the embarrassment she had just felt.

After a brief silence, Lin Jiashu remembered her initial question, picked up the coffee milk can in her hand, and said with a smile, her tone having returned to its usual naturalness, "Mmm, it's delicious. It's definitely the most comfortable thing to drink while soaking in a hot spring."

Seeing the clean, youthful smile that reappeared on his face, Eri Kisaki couldn't help but smile too, and the awkwardness she felt earlier dissipated in the warm steam.

"Really? Then I'll give it a try next time."

She responded softly, lowering her body slightly so that the spring water covered her shoulders, feeling the tranquility and peace.

A brief silence.

The sounds of water and insects were exactly the same as before, but the sense of tranquility suddenly felt different.

The rising steam from the hot spring blurred their outlines and seemed to soften some of the usually rigid boundaries.

Eri Kisaki leaned against the edge of the pool, the warm water soothing her tense nerves. Her gaze fell on Yoshiki Hayashi beside her—he was looking up at the starry sky, his profile appearing somewhat distant in the misty steam.

"Small tree".

Eri's voice was soft, gentle with moisture, "It might sound strange, but sometimes I feel that you have a kind of... sense of being out of place with your surroundings, as if you're always looking at the world through an invisible pane of glass."

Hearing this, Lin Jiashu turned his head and smiled at her, saying, "Really? Maybe it's because I'm thinking about things too much."

Eri Kisaki shook her head, her observation far more nuanced than it appeared: "It's not that feeling. It's more like... a kind of loneliness."

She paused, then continued, "Besides, I don't think I've ever heard you mention any particularly close friends, especially male friends. Apart from work colleagues, like Mr. Amuro, but... I don't think your relationship is that close."

Lin Jiashu's smile faded slightly. He didn't deny it immediately, but just silently watched the ripples on the water.

Eri Kisaki's gaze was gentle and tolerant. She didn't speak, but rather held an expectation that encouraged him to open his heart.

Finally, he gave a somewhat wry smile.

"You noticed... It seems that there really isn't one."

"why?"

Eri's voice became even softer, as if she was afraid of disturbing something.

Lin Jiashu was silent for a moment, as if he was organizing his thoughts, or as if he was reviewing that not-so-pleasant past.

“Actually… a long time ago, probably since I was old enough to understand things, I felt that I was different from other people.” His voice was devoid of emotion. “I felt that my peers were too immature and childish. Their ideas and games seemed meaningless to me, even a bit stupid.”

"But I did feel lonely back then. It's not nice to be left out in that feeling of not fitting in."

"so."

He continued, a hint of amusement in his voice at his past thoughts. “In middle school, I actively sought out a group of so-called delinquents. They were simple-minded and easily swayed, and I could easily get them to revolve around me and listen to me… That feeling of being surrounded filled, to some extent, my loneliness.”

Eri Kisaki's eyes widened slightly, somewhat surprised.

She did know that Lin Jiashu had been close to delinquent groups during his student days, and had even worried about it, but she never expected that the reason behind it was like this.

"So... that's the reason?" she said softly. "When I found out about these things, I really thought you had gone astray, and I almost wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk with you."

Lin Jiashu was amused by her words: "I'm sorry to have worried you."

"And then what happened?" Eri Kisaki pressed.

"Later? Later I quickly got bored. It wasn't fun hanging out with a bunch of loud, delinquent teenagers. Instead, I felt even more out of place. So I abandoned them under the pretext of learning foreign languages ​​and musical instruments, and completely gave up on the idea of ​​finding friends on that level."

His narration was calm to the point of being cold, as if he were talking about something irrelevant.

Hearing this, Eri Kisaki felt a complex pang of heartache.

Even now, this kid still occasionally gives people that feeling... In the end, has he never truly integrated into the group?

She suppressed her heartache and asked in a more relaxed tone, "Then... shall we change to a lighter topic? Xiaoshu, what kind of girl do you like?"

She remembered asking a similar question a long time ago.

Lin Jiashu seemed surprised that she would suddenly ask this question. He paused for a moment, then chuckled, "Aunt Yingli, I think you asked this question before."

“Then let me ask you one more time,” Eri Kisaki said with a mischievous smile, but her eyes were serious as she looked at him. “For example… do you like someone like Ran?”

When Xiaolan was mentioned, Lin Jiashu's eyes softened considerably. He nodded and said sincerely, "Xiaolan is very cute and kind. She's like a little sun, warm and full of energy."

He paused for a moment, his gaze seemingly casually sweeping over Eri's face, which was flushed slightly by the heat, making her even more charming, and continued, "She is good in many ways, especially in some aspects, such as her purity and kindness, which are indeed very similar to you, Aunt Eri."

He then subtly changed the subject, his tone carrying an indescribable undertone: "However... Ran and Ran, Eri is Eri, they are ultimately not the same type of girl."

The rising steam from the hot spring blurred their vision and concealed certain complex emotions.

Unexpectedly, he shifted the topic to her. Eri simply hummed in response and did not press the matter further. She sank her body into the water, savoring the indescribable tranquility of the night.

Chapter 96: FBI Code

Furukecho 2-chome

The deep night stained the narrow alleyway like ink. An FBI agent with a blond buzz cut leaned anxiously against the mottled brick wall, glancing occasionally toward the alley entrance.

"Damn it, why is Tony so slow..."

He cursed under his breath, raised his wrist to check his watch, and thought, "Could it be that I got distracted by some ramen shop again and lost track of time?"

A sense of unease swept over him, and he took out his phone again and turned on the screen. What was displayed was not an ordinary text message, but an instruction written in coded language that no outsider could understand, confirming the meeting place and time once again.

"Could it be that I misunderstood?" he muttered to himself.

Just then, a series of footsteps, deliberately light but still clear, came from the depths of the alley.

"You've finally arrived, your place—"

The blond agent breathed a sigh of relief and turned away with a grumble.

However, what came into his view was not the familiar faces of his colleagues, but an FBI badge stained with blood, held in a large hand wearing a black glove, almost shoved in front of his eyes.

Holding his ID, Vodka grinned and said, "Sorry, Tony had something come up and couldn't come to see you."

The blonde agent's pupils suddenly contracted.

Realizing it was a trap, he cursed under his breath and almost instinctively turned around, bursting out with all his strength to sprint toward the other end of the alley!

There is light, traffic, and life there!

Just as the exit was in front of him, a dark figure suddenly appeared, and a foot wearing black leather shoes kicked him sharply in the abdomen!

"Well--!"

The blow sent the detective flying back into the alley, where he landed heavily on the cold, damp ground.

He struggled to lift his head, staring in horror at the towering figure that stood before him like an iron tower—long silver hair gleaming coldly in the dim light, lifeless dark green pupils, looking down at him from above.

“G…Gin…”

The agent's voice trembled with fear.

Gin slowly crouched down, the Beretta gun barrel, with its chilling touch of death, was roughly shoved into the agent's gaping mouth in horror, pressed against his palate.

"Where is your base?"

Gin's voice was low and calm, yet more chilling than any roar: "Tell me, or not?"

The metallic and gunpowder smells filled his mouth, and the agent's face turned ashen, cold sweat instantly soaking his back.

He shook his head with difficulty.

"Not going to talk?" Gin's lips curled into a cruel smile. "Then you're useless."

Just as Gin's finger was on the trigger, ready to pull, a voice came from behind him: "So this is how you usually interrogate people?"

Gin didn't turn around, but the gun barrel stuffed in the agent's mouth paused.

The blond agent looked in the direction of the sound, and when he saw the person slowly walking out of the shadows, his pupils suddenly shrank to the size of pinpoints, and his face showed an even more incredulous horror than when he was facing Gin.

Hayashi Yoshiki...

That Japanese detective who had worked with the FBI before, and whom Judy and James both considered highly capable and trustworthy… what is he doing here, and standing with Gin?!

Lin Jiashu's gaze swept indifferently over the agent who was lying on the ground, his eyes wide with shock, his face expressionless.

"Doesn't the organization have any training courses specifically for interrogation?"

"That kind of thing is too troublesome; I need efficiency."

Gin glanced at him, his voice indifferent.

"...As expected of the leader of the action team."

Lin Jiashu shrugged, walked over to the detective, and looked down at him with a cold, almost pity-like gaze: "Why bother? Is it worth risking your life for a place that will be found sooner or later?"