Chapter Seventeen: Vermouth: Ai Haibara? The Transfer Student at Teitan Elementary?
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“...Kenzo Masuyama is dead? How surprising.”
“It would hardly be strange for the urban legend known as the ‘Half-Human, Half-Ghost, Supreme Marksman’ to kill him and Ireland. But who told that urban legend Pisco’s true identity?”
“There probably aren’t many Organization members in Beika who know who Pisco really is, are there?”
On the upper floor of a hotel, Gin maintained his sniper rifle while a woman’s voice came through the communicator beside him.
It was Vermouth, another senior executive of the Organization.
Tequila, who had taken over one of her previous assignments, had inexplicably been killed by the urban legend. As a result, the Boss had sent Vermouth to investigate the matter. Now that she had heard Pisco and Ireland had been murdered and Gin had been dragged into the mess, she had deliberately come to stir things up.
“What do you think... Could it possibly be Sherry, who escaped from the pharmaceutical building?”
...Sherry? Could she really have some connection to the Half-Human, Half-Ghost urban legend?
The cloth Gin was using to wipe down a component of his sniper rifle suddenly stopped moving.
There was no discernible change in his expression, but a sharp killing intent flashed through his eyes.
“If that’s the case, I guarantee she’ll be dead within a week.”
His voice was so cold that it revealed not the slightest trace of emotion.
Vodka, standing on the other side of the hotel room, shuddered. He then pulled out his phone and once again asked when Chianti and Korn would arrive. Without those two clowns to lighten the mood, the oppressive atmosphere was far too heavy for him.
“If that’s true, then that’s wonderful.”
“I may send you some valuable information shortly. Be sure to receive it...”
Using special hacking software she had taken from the Organization, Vermouth spoke indifferently while searching through the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department’s computers as easily as if no one were guarding them.
She found Pisco’s death extremely suspicious.
He had not died sooner or later, but precisely after Sherry disappeared.
She absolutely refused to believe that Sherry had nothing to do with it.
And if Sherry really had become involved with the Half-Human, Half-Ghost urban legend, then there was a good chance they had encountered each other during some case. As it happened, an Inspector named Juzo Megure had submitted information concerning an urban-legend case within the police department.
It had taken place the previous night—the very night Pisco was killed.
Click.
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The mouse clicked open a webpage, and Vermouth’s gaze suddenly froze.
“Famous Counterfeiter Silver Fox Captured; Urban Legend Subdues Counterfeit Gang”
“Six elementary school students were involved in the case. Five of them called themselves the Junior Detective League: Conan Edogawa, Genta Kojima, Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya, Ayumi Yoshida, and Ai Haibara of Teitan Elementary School.”
She paused, then hacked into Teitan Elementary School’s database.
Within the enrollment records, she directly searched for information on the five members of the Junior Detective League.
There was nothing noteworthy about the records of Genta Kojima, Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya, or Ayumi Yoshida.
But the information on Conan Edogawa and Ai Haibara was exceedingly interesting.
“One enrolled at Teitan Elementary School a few days after Shinichi Kudo vanished, with Kogoro Mouri listed as his guardian... The other enrolled at Teitan Elementary after Sherry disappeared, with Professor Agasa listed as her guardian?”
Vermouth silently repeated the key details in her mind.
An incredible possibility slowly began to take shape.
But before pursuing it, she chose to keep the matter hidden for the time being and instead brought up a case from three months earlier.
“Gin, I suspect the urban legend may be connected to the heroin-trafficking gang involved in the Moon Shadow Island Serial Murder Case. I’ve already sent you the information. Go investigate.”
“Find out whether anyone held a grudge against the criminals who were killed in that case, or whether anyone moved away from Moon Shadow Island afterward. Whoever that person is, I believe they must be connected to the urban legend.”
With that, Vermouth ended the call.
She rose and sent a message to Calvados, her partner.
Then she left the café without looking back and disappeared into the crowd in the blink of an eye.
What exactly was the situation with this Ai Haibara? She would have to confirm it personally. If she truly was Sherry, then she could simply kill her. In any case... all the Boss needed to know was the result.
Meanwhile, Gin had Vodka take out the laptop provided by the Organization.
He gave the information on the Moon Shadow Island Serial Murder Case a cursory glance.
A killer’s instincts immediately alerted him that something was wrong.
“Seiji Asai? A female doctor? She left Moon Shadow Island immediately after the case was closed?”
Gin turned toward Vodka.
Vodka instantly understood and nodded.
There was no need to say more. If someone was suspicious, shooting first and asking questions afterward could never be a loss.
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They had clubbed Shinichi Kudo from behind while working at Tropical Land before because they had been worried about the consequences. But now the urban legend had nearly wiped out the Organization’s forces in Tokyo. What the hell did consequences matter anymore?
“Chianti and Korn will be arriving in Beika shortly. I’ll have them go with me.”
“Boss, we’ll be able to bring this person to you by this afternoon.”
Having said that, Vodka immediately rose and left.
The door creaked shut behind him.
Gin turned around and resumed his routine maintenance of the sniper rifle.
He prized the weapon greatly. Not only was it a top-of-the-line model, but it had also undergone numerous adjustments and modifications. In terms of performance, it could unquestionably be called the king of modern sniper rifles.
With it, he could make precise kills at a range of up to a kilometer.
Once they had kidnapped the doctor named Seiji Asai, he, Chianti, and Korn could position themselves with their rifles that evening, covering every possible escape route from the abduction site. By then, they would have no fear of the urban legend surviving.
And if the urban legend had nothing to do with the doctor, that would not matter either.
Someone who treated an entire city as his own backyard would likely see his blood pressure skyrocket if he learned that Gin and the others had directly killed an innocent person to lure him out. He might even turn around and hunt them down.
Either way, they would lose nothing.
“Let me show you... the strength of the Organization’s trump card in its strike force.”
Gin lowered the sniper rifle in his hands and gazed toward Tokyo Tower in the distance.
The landmark looked particularly irritating to him. If he got the chance, he would certainly apply to deploy the Organization’s armed helicopter stationed in Tokyo and rake that eyesore of a tower from top to bottom with bullets.
“Let’s see just what you’re capable of, urban legend of this little corner of the world!”
He recalled the black figure who had performed inhuman feats with a grappling hook.
The words escaped him in a subconscious murmur.
He had no idea that Hikaru Nara had already begun searching for him.
“Yes, a Porsche 356A. License plate: Shinjuku 54, Mi 43-68.”
The terrifying black-clad man with two guns spoke with certainty.
“Koshimizu, I’ll leave contacting the police to you.”
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