After leaving Cocktail Bar, the two took the elevator down to the underground parking garage.
Ritsu tossed a motorcycle helmet to Akemi. Seeing the hesitant expression on her face, he immediately guessed what she wanted to ask. His tone softened as much as possible.
"You want to ask why I knew the Organization's target would be Nomiguchi?"
Akemi hadn't expected him to read her mind so easily, but considering just how perceptive he was, she decided not to beat around the bush.
"Yeah. Don't tell me... you were the one who arranged this mission?"
"No."
Leaning casually against his motorcycle, Ritsu said,
"I simply investigated the high-profile figures the Organization's intelligence division has been looking into recently. Someone like Gin, when trying to determine your value, would never assign you to meaningless chores like collecting dirty money."
"...So you were the same, weren't you? You were forced to do things you didn't want to do."
The memory of his very first mission surfaced in his mind.
Ritsu had an excellent memory, though he didn't remember every person he had killed.
But he did remember the woman whose throat he'd pierced with a single pull of the trigger.
It was difficult to forget. Even after seven years, the memory remained vivid.
Yet Ritsu looked completely unfazed.
He merely shrugged with an easy smile.
"Akemi, it's better if you don't get curious about my past. Curiosity kills the cat."
"If you don't want to talk about it, I won't ask." She nodded before continuing,
"Then... how are we supposed to carry out this mission?"
Ding.
His phone chimed with a new message.
Ritsu lowered his head and found an email from Vodka.
As expected, it contained nothing more than Nomiguchi's recent movements and upcoming schedule, the essential information needed to plan an assassination.
"You won't be the one carrying it out. But I need you to record it."
"...Can't we save him?"
"How?"
Ding.
Another email arrived.
Ritsu glanced at its contents, raised an eyebrow, then turned toward Akemi.
"Take a taxi home first. Text me when you get there."
"Aren't you coming back?"
"No. Gin wants me to attend an Organization gathering. They didn't exactly invite you."
A strange expression appeared on Akemi's face.
The Organization she had always feared... actually held gatherings? No matter how vivid her imagination was, she simply couldn't picture it.
"...I don't want to go either."
She sighed, then took out a bottle of disinfectant and a roll of medical bandages from her handbag.
Looking at the bloodstained bandage wrapped around Ritsu's forehead, she frowned.
"Can't you feel pain? Crouch down a little. I'll redress the wound. If it gets infected, you'll be the one suffering."
"Oh."
Obediently, Ritsu spread his legs slightly into a gentleman's stance, lowering himself until his forehead was level with Akemi's eyes.
Anyone who didn't know better would probably think she was touching up his makeup.
After carefully smoothing the bandage into place, Akemi reminded him,
"Don't let the wound get wet. You probably haven't eaten much today either. And after staying up all night, you should go home and get some rest."
"...I'm older than you, you know."
Ritsu sighed helplessly as he swung a leg over his motorcycle.
"You and your sister are both kind of like old—"
The moment Akemi heard the first word, she already knew this hopelessly blunt man was about to say something outrageous again. Smiling sweetly, she cut him off,
"Did you forget what I said when we visited Date-san's house?"
"Hm? What was it?"
"If you don't know how to talk, then talk less."
Leaving those words behind, Akemi walked away in her high heels.
She puffed out her cheeks in annoyance.
She had a good temper, but that didn't mean she wanted someone comparing her to an old woman who nagged endlessly.
She was just worried about him.
'No wonder he doesn't have a girlfriend. That mouth of his alone could drive anyone crazy!'
Ritsu had no idea what he'd said wrong this time.
Scratching his cheek with a puzzled expression, he could only start his motorcycle and head toward Vodka's brand-new safehouse.
He honestly hadn't expected the guy to be rich enough to buy an entirely new house.
Vodka's new safehouse was located at 47, 2-chome, Furuhashi Town. It was a rather elegant two-story detached Japanese-style house.
To Ritsu's surprise, Vodka had actually chosen a home with such a traditional Japanese design. Apparently, he was quite fond of Japanese culture.
After parking his motorcycle in the small front courtyard, Ritsu walked toward the entrance.
Before he even had a chance to knock, the front door suddenly flew open. A jet of water shot straight at him.
Caught completely off guard, he was drenched from head to toe.
"..."
This scene felt strangely familiar.
Back at the Organization's year-end party in the suburban bar years ago, the unlucky soul who'd been soaked by water balloons had also been him.
Only this time, there was no Rei secretly laughing behind him. Instead, Chianti stood before him, looking completely at a loss.
It was obvious she hadn't expected the final guest to arrive to be him.
—"This is the liver."
—"Here are the spleen and the stomach. The kidneys are on either side."
The events of last Christmas Eve at Tropical Land involuntarily resurfaced in Chianti's mind.
Almost instinctively, she took two steps back, shoved the water gun into Kir's hands as the latter happened to be passing by, and stammered awkwardly,
"U-Um... Mr. Augier... I-I didn't do it on purpose."
Still wearing a purple apron, Vodka heard the name and immediately came out of the kitchen with a kitchen knife still in hand.
The moment he saw the soaking-wet man at the entrance, he hurried over.
"Are you alright?"
"You'll make it so I'm not alright if you don't put down what's in your right hand first."
Looking at the kitchen knife approaching him, Ritsu couldn't help but sigh wearily.
He never should've come. He could've gone home, enjoyed the dinner Akemi made, and relaxed in peace.
Chuckling awkwardly, Vodka quickly set the knife down.
"Go grab a towel from the bathroom and dry your hair. We don't want you to—"
He abruptly stopped mid-sentence.
Only then did he remember that after taking APTX4869, Ritsu no longer got sick. He wisely swallowed the rest of his words to avoid reminding him of unpleasant memories.
Kir looked helplessly at the toy water gun in her hands.
She had infiltrated the Organization with painstaking care... so why did every annual party or gathering somehow turn into something so unbelievably bizarre?
When Ritsu entered the bathroom, he was surprised to discover that despite living alone, Vodka kept the place spotlessly clean.
Picking up a brand-new unopened towel, he was just about to dry himself when he realized the bandage Akemi had wrapped around his forehead had gotten soaked.
"...Is this the curse for saying the wrong thing? My luck really sucks."
He let out a sigh, opened the bathroom door, and called toward Gin, who was sitting in the living room calmly cleaning his Beretta.
"Gin, can you get me some sterile bandages and medical alcohol?"
Kir had just finished putting away the water gun when she heard him. It was the perfect opportunity to interact with Augier.
"I'll get them, Mr. Gin."
Vodka poked his head out from the kitchen.
"They're under the liquor cabinet. Just open it."
Kir crouched down and took out the first-aid kit. Before she could stand back up, she sensed someone approaching from behind.
Looking up, she found Gin standing over her, a cigarette hanging from his lips, his face as cold as ever.
"Give it to me."
"...Yes."
----
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