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

Rum's death was already predetermined, and Hayashi Yoshiki had already received his legacy as the second-in-command through the Death Note. All that remained was some information held by Karasuma Renya.

Lin Jiashu was not worried that the other party would not hand it over.

Because he is still clinging to life in his current state, he must cherish his life more than anyone else and fear death more than anyone else.

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 cold and deathly silence of the underground passage had nothing to do with the rage and chilling fear churning in Rum's chest.

Mezzo's body, the empty box, the futile search... it all felt like a meticulously crafted nightmare, and he was the clown running wildly through it, unable to find a way out.

"Retreat! Get out of here!"

Rum's hoarse voice echoed through the corridor.

He couldn't stay in this rat hole any longer. Karasuma Renya must have already moved away through some unknown means. Staying here would only waste time and increase the risk, which was pointless.

He must leave immediately and regroup.

Even if this means that his long-planned rebellion has temporarily failed, as long as he is alive and still holds some power and connections with the outside world, it won't be so easy for Karasuma Renya, who has lost the elite of the action group, to eliminate him!

Curaçao and his few remaining men followed closely behind.

Everyone's face is now etched with fatigue, tension, and bewilderment. This operation started strong but ended weakly, suffering heavy losses, and the target was nowhere to be found. Morale has plummeted to rock bottom.

They stumbled back along the same path, and through the entrance opened by Fujiko Mine, returned to the storage room filled with miscellaneous items in the western part of the mansion.

The gunfire from the direction of the courtyard outside had thinned out considerably, but the occasional explosions and screams indicated that the battle was not yet completely over.

Rum had no time to think about anything else; all he wanted now was to get out of this damned place as soon as possible, find a safe place to lick his wounds, and think about his next move.

However, as he led his remaining troops out of the mansion's side gate like frightened birds and stepped into the chaotic courtyard illuminated by both firelight and moonlight, a cold voice, like a chilling wind from the depths of hell, instantly froze all his movements.

"Where are you going in such a hurry, Rum?"

The sound was not loud, but it clearly pierced through the sporadic gunshots and crackling flames.

Rum's body stiffened abruptly, and he slowly, extremely slowly, turned his head.

Not far away, in the shadow of a half-collapsed artificial hill, Gin was leaning against something. He had obvious wounds and stains on his body, and his black trench coat was somewhat torn, but his dark green pupils burned with a killing intent more intense than the flames in the courtyard.

He was toying with a gun in his hand, his posture seemingly casual, but he had blocked all possible escape routes for Rum.

Chapter 125: Epilogue

Rum rushed out of the side gate of the mansion. The wind, carrying the smells of gunpowder, blood, and burning, rushed towards him, but it could not dispel the chill in his heart.

All he wants now is to escape this place that has caused him so much disappointment.

However, Gin's cold voice, which came out of nowhere, instantly froze him in place.

He turned his head stiffly, his pupils contracting violently in shock.

Under the shadow of the artificial hill, Gin's reclining figure resembled a demon returned from hell, covered in wounds, yet radiating a killing intent more chilling than ever before.

"Gin?!"

Rum's voice was distorted and shrill with disbelief, "You...you shouldn't have died in the factory already?!"

Gin slowly straightened up, the gun in his hand stopped spinning, the muzzle pointing vaguely at Rum, his dark green pupils in the shadows like a venomous snake eyeing its prey.

“Thanks to you,” Gin’s voice was hoarse and calm, yet carried a chilling edge, “I crawled back from hell and came here specifically to catch up with you.”

"Hmph!" Rum suppressed his panic and shouted, his voice filled with bravado but not courage. "What can you do in this half-dead state?! My men are still here..." He tried to bolster his courage by talking to his men who were still fighting in the courtyard.

Before the words were finished—

Diu!

Diu!

Several gunshots, effectively silenced, rang out almost simultaneously from several hidden corners of the courtyard. Several of Rum's men, who were either fighting or on guard against the remnants of the Karasuma army, suddenly had blood spurt from their heads or chests and fell to the ground without a sound!

"There's an ambush!"

Rum was horrified; fear gripped his heart instantly.

Without further hesitation, he rolled to the side and roared at his remaining confidants and Curaçao, "Retreat! Cover my retreat!!"

The remaining men reacted quickly, blindly firing in the direction the sniper might be coming from while protecting Rum as he retreated to a darker corner outside the mansion.

Gin, like a shark that has smelled blood, immediately gave chase. His speed was affected by his injuries, but his relentless killing intent sustained him.

Two of Rum's men stayed behind to cover Gin's retreat, attempting to use firepower to hold him off.

"It's in the way."

Gin snorted coldly, his steps unwavering, and he raised his Beretta and fired two shots in quick succession.

boom!boom!

The two fell to the ground with a thud.

Gin didn't even glance at them, stepping over the corpses and continuing his pursuit. Dealing with these small fry only bought him a few seconds.

As Rum, supported by Curaçao and another of his men, stumbled and fled to a relatively open area outside the mansion, a woman's voice, tinged with laughter, suddenly rang out:

"Lord Rum! Over here!"

Just then, Fujiko Mine emerged from the shadows of a black sedan in the alley and waved to them: "Get in! We can't stay here any longer!"

Rum felt a surge of relief, as if he had grasped at a straw.

Oh, and there's this greedy woman! She won't let herself die without getting her payment.

He and Curaçao rushed toward the car.

However, just a few steps away from the car, Gin's figure, like a leech, stepped into the alley through the gap in the wall they had just broken through.

"Damn it, that piece of trash James!"

Rum was panting and cursing. He really couldn't understand why James could still let Gin live until now and appear in front of him, even though he had made so many preparations.

"It seems you still don't know anything."

Gin's voice came from not far behind him, laced with sarcasm.

Rum whirled around and saw Gin had closed to within fifteen meters, steadily closing in. The last of his men raised his gun to fire, but Gin fired first and killed him.

Now, Rum only has Curaçao by his side.

Although Gin was injured, his killing intent was stronger than ever before.

"Gin!"

Rum leaned against the car, his single eye bloodshot, his voice hoarse with fear and madness, "You think killing me will win?! Haven't you realized? That old codger Karasuma Renya is finished! He doesn't even dare to show his face! What the organization needs now is a new leader, new power!"

He attempted to make a final, powerful appeal.

“We can cooperate! You continue to control the operations team, and I'll control the intelligence team and external resources! Together, we can completely control the entire organization! Why risk our lives for a dying old man?!”

"Shut up."

Gin's reply was only two cold words, the gun barrel steadily raised: "The master's order is only one—clean house."

"Hahaha!"

Rum let out a manic laugh, trying to bombard Gin with an even bigger secret, "Clean house? You still don't know, do you! The man you're loyal to is now just a baby who needs milk and diaper changes! A monster! Does such a thing even deserve to lead the organization?!"

He hoped to see doubt or hesitation on Gin's face.

However, Gin's face only showed a deeper mockery.

“You really know nothing.” Gin grinned maliciously, each word like an ice pick piercing Rum’s heart. “From beginning to end, it was all you, Rum.”

Rum's heart skipped a beat, and a chill ran down his spine.

What did this guy mean by that?

From beginning to end, I knew nothing... Was it me?

Just then, Gin's gaze suddenly passed over Rum and landed on Curaçao, who had been silently guarding him from behind. He said, "Curaçao—aren't you going to carry out the mission that Cointreau gave you?"

task?

What mission?

For Curaçao, her instructions were simply to follow Rum, confirm the existence of the baby Karasuma Renya in the underground passage, and kill him—nothing more.

But her reaction was extremely quick.

Since Gin was able to call out Cointreau in front of Rum and give him instructions, it is enough to prove that Gin and Cointreau are now on the same side. From this perspective, what I should do is very clear.

So Curaçao, without any hesitation, while Rum was still stunned by Gin's words and hadn't yet recovered, suddenly turned the gun she had been pointing at Gin with a speed and angle so smooth it was chilling—the cold metal barrel was firmly pressed against Rum's unsuspecting back!

Time seemed to freeze at that moment.

Rum's crazed expression froze instantly, turning into utter blankness and bewilderment.

He didn't even understand what was happening at first; he only felt a hard touch and a chilling killing intent coming from behind him.

Curaçao…his most trusted and relied-upon subordinate—

betray?

No, this isn't even betrayal!

Gin mentioned Cointreau's mission...

"You...?! Curaçao—"

Rum forced out broken syllables from his throat, his one eye struggling to turn back to see Curaçao's expression.

"Don't move, Lord Rum."

Curaçao's voice was devoid of emotion, but the gun pressed against his back exerted pressure.

"Oh dear, that won't do!"

A woman's voice, tinged with laughter, suddenly broke in.

Suddenly, Fujiko Mine, who had been standing by and watching, pulled out a finely crafted pistol and pointed it at Curaçao, who was holding a gun to Rum.

She still wore that charming smile, but her eyes held the shrewdness of a businesswoman: "Miss, he can't die yet. If he dies, who will I ask for the remaining payment and the promised ore? I don't want to have worked for nothing."

Curaçao ignored Fujiko Mine's threat, not even glancing at her, and calmly pointed at Rum's back, ready to pull the trigger at any moment.

Rum stood frozen in place.

Ahead lies Gin, relentlessly pressing forward with murderous intent; behind him, the cold muzzle of a gun and unexpected betrayal; and on the flanks, a ruthless female thief with ambiguous principles.

He was overwhelmed by a profound sense of absurdity, the shame of being completely manipulated, and a deep-seated despair.

He finally realized that his actions, which had been based on his misplaced trust in Curaçao, had been completely exposed to the enemy from the very beginning—was this why Karasuma Renya escaped?

Rum was so enraged that he almost lost his mind.

But at this moment,

Ring ring ring! Ring ring ring!

The crisp ringtone of a cell phone suddenly broke the deathly silence in the extremely tense atmosphere.

Everyone fell silent for a moment because of the unexpected noise.

Fujiko Mine paused slightly, one hand still pointing the gun at Curaçao, while the other hand quickly reached for her chest and pulled out her constantly ringing cell phone from her groin.

Ignoring the atmosphere at all, she glanced at the caller ID and answered without hesitation.

Hello?

She responded and listened to the voice on the other end of the phone. After only a few words, the expression on her face quickly changed from surprise to a smile that was a mixture of delight and slyness.

"...Huh? Really?" She drawled, glancing at Rum's ferocious expression, then at Curaçao, who was holding a gun to him, her tone feigning difficulty and coquettishness. "But... that's a bit against my professional ethics. After all, I accepted Mr. Rum's request first~"

It seemed like someone else said something on the other end of the phone.

Fujiko Mine's eyes lit up noticeably, and her smile instantly became bright and radiant, as if she had heard the most wonderful news in the world.

"Oh, since you put it that way, of course no problem!" Her voice was cheerful and her tone crisp and decisive. "It'll be a pleasure working with you!"

She hung up the phone, casually stuffed it back into the ditch, and then very naturally put away the pistol that had been pointing at Curaçao, even leisurely blowing away non-existent gunpowder smoke.

"Alright, alright, this cool lady, and that gentleman over there who looks intimidating," Fujiko Mine spread her hands towards Curaçao and Gin with a beaming smile, "A generous gentleman just contacted me, saying he's willing—and even doubling—to pay Mr. Rum for everything he originally promised me, including those interesting ores. So, from now on, Mr. Rum's life or death is completely none of my business~"