Everything happened too fast, so fast that before he could even realize what was happening, Yamawashi had already unilaterally concluded that this was indeed Yamawashi's usual way of doing things—whether it was proposing a relationship or dying in his stead. By the time he noticed, Yamawashi had often already decided everything alone, but tonight's pace still caught him completely off guard.
This was something that had never happened before his rebirth.
But he knew what was about to happen.
Hiromitsu Morofushi dialed another number, this time, the call went through successfully.
"Hello.. It's me," he said in a low voice.
**
Aotsuki leaned against the corner of the wall, carefully wiping a dagger. The tip had been stained with blood last night, even after cleaning it all night, he still felt it wasn't clean enough.
The sound of a lighter came from above his head, a moment later, he expressionlessly raised his hand to brush away the ash falling from above.
The assassin with long silver hair held a cigarette between his fingertips, leaning casually against the wall. "Can't stand seeing Scotland fall for someone else, yet can't bear to break up, so you've simply decided to hide away and avoid meeting?"
Aotsuki's voice remained calm. "Are you that bored?"
Gin let out a laugh, his meaning unclear: "Hiding and dodging.. it seems you miss those days very much."
It has nothing to do with you.
It was I who told you that Scotland replaced the mission list, it was also I who removed you from that list.
Every sentence avoided the subject, yet every sentence served as a reminder. Aotsuki looked up and said gloomily, "So, I'm not blaming you for messing up my hair."
Thank you for your leniency?
Saying this, Gin flicked his cigarette ash again. "Scotland betrayed you, instead of killing him, you avoided him—you even personally dealt with your so-called friends, yet you show mercy to your lover."
A certain keyword accurately pierced a nerve, as expected, a cold gaze was cast from below.
Gin let out a soft snort from his nose, making no effort to hide his mockery, yet Yamawashi stared at him with a look that could devour someone for a long while, before ultimately saying nothing more than a meaningless sentence: "If you're so curious, go find a romantic partner yourself."
Am I curious about you?" Gin crushed his cigarette against the wall, "Whose fault do you think this all is?
This sentence was like a crack appearing in a precarious wall, exposing all past contradictions. Aotsuki fell silent again, his gaze returning to the dagger in his hands.
Looking down from above, one could only see the gray crown of his head and the downward curve of his lips; if one ignored the neurotic, repetitive motion of him honing the blade, he still appeared to be that dull and uninteresting Yamawashi from the Organization.
"Mermaid Island." Gin mentioned an irrelevant term.
Aotsuki remained unmoved, paying no heed to the indifferent voice sounding above his head, continued speaking to himself.
The Boss still intends to include Scotland; if you're truly that concerned, you should make your arrangements early.
The hand grinding the blade steadily paused for a brief moment before returning to normal, but Gin clearly captured that anomaly. He thought Yamawashi would oppose it as vehemently as the last time this was mentioned, although that so-called vehement opposition was nothing more than a frown and a single sentence: "Scotland won't go." Unexpectedly, this time, Yamawashi didn't even look up at him.
Gin's eyes showed a hint of realization. "Creating an illusion of discord, to make that person think you've lost interest in Scotland?"
Aotsuki stood up, tucked the dagger into his lower back, stretched his body slightly.
Of course not; he wasn't so stupid as to be beyond help.
But he did not refute it.
He had already said enough today; if Gin hadn't lent him a hand, he wouldn't have joined the conversation from the very beginning.
This kind of topic is too stupid.
The phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated twice. He knew who the message was from, because this was not the first text he had received since last night. He hadn't originally intended to look, but not missing a message from Scotland had gradually become an instinct within their thin acquaintance; by the time he realized it, his fingers had already opened the chat box on their own.
The brief text on the phone screen reflected in his light gray eyes. Aotsuki silently turned off the phone, looked up, said, "It's going to rain."
Looking at the clear sky, Gin remained noncommittal: "Then let's settle this quickly."
**
The sent text went unanswered once again, giving Hiromitsu Morofushi a bit of a headache.
Yamawashi's whereabouts were unknown, but the internal assignments within the Organization were public. He had specifically found Yamawashi's partner for today's mission to make the switch, originally thinking he could clear up the misunderstanding on the spot, but upon arrival, he realized that Yamawashi had been sent to another mission on short notice.
He took Rye's place, while Bourbon was called in temporarily to replace Yamawashi.
Hiromitsu Morofushi was unsure if this was intentional, but he knew that Yamawashi must be determined not to see him right now.
The line of text in the dialogue box was edited and revised, but ultimately deleted character by character. He let out a sigh.
His partner by his side was full of concern. "What's wrong? You've looked preoccupied since just now."
Hiromitsu Morofushi didn't know how to answer, because even he hadn't fully grasped the situation himself. This reaction immediately made the already worried Furuya Rei a bit anxious: "What happened?"
He keenly sensed a signal of danger from this subtle change in personnel; his pupils contracted slightly, he blurted out, "It's Yamawashi—"
To prevent his childhood friend's thoughts from wandering too far, Hiromitsu Morofushi interrupted helplessly, "No."
His friend had always been highly wary of Yamawashi, which was nothing out of the ordinary; he had viewed Yamawashi the same way in the past, but at this moment, he did not want to see any more baseless accusations added.
As for what happened last night, it wasn't as if there were no suspicions at all.
Memories of spending time with Yamawashi three years ago had already become blurred. He tentatively imitated her actions and tried to do things Yamawashi might like in an attempt to offset the strangeness, but it was impossible to avoid any deviation from their original way of interacting. Given that a killer is naturally overly sensitive, it was only natural that Yamawashi would be suspicious because of this.
To be fair, if he had returned from a mission and noticed subtle changes in Yamawashi after not seeing her for a few days, even without actual evidence, he would suspect some kind of conspiracy.
So he was merely puzzled, puzzled as to how Yamawashi could immediately think that he wasn't Scotland. Even if he had noticed the change, by all logic, he should have first wondered what kind of situation had occurred; the fact that he immediately concluded it was a different person was what truly caught him off guard.
Unless there was some evidence, powerful enough to make Yamawashi insist that he was not Scotland.
.. even if he truly was Scotland himself.
Hiromitsu Morofushi turned to look at his childhood friend, pointed to himself, asked a somewhat strange question: "Do you feel like there's something different about me?"
Although he was puzzled as to why such a question was being asked, Furuya Rei nodded truthfully.
Hiromitsu Morofushi pressed for details: "Where, specifically?"
After observing intently for a long while, Furuya Rei conceded defeat.
The last time they met, he had vaguely sensed that something was wrong. He couldn't quite put his finger on what was different—the face was the same, the person was the same—it was just a mysterious sensation, but he would never mistake a friend he had known for twenty years.
The longer I look, the more I feel there's nothing different.. Why the sudden question?
Hiromitsu Morofushi said with a smile, "It's nothing."
He skipped over the topic in a few words; rather than engaging in pointless speculation, it would be better to ask the person involved for clarification.
On the way back to the safe house, as he passed the bento shop he often ate at in Yamawashi, his footsteps unexpectedly halted.
A tall young man's silhouette was clearly reflected in the glass door. His face was obscured by a hat, a black instrument case was slung over his shoulder; it was exactly how he most commonly looked at twenty-six.
Is the difference between 29 and 26 really that great?
Hiromitsu Morofushi tried hard to recall what he was like at twenty-six, after much thought, the biggest difference seemed to be that Yamawashi was no longer by his side.
He suddenly thought that, speaking of age, Yamawashi's age had always been a mystery as well.
The young man in the glass had a look of confusion on his face, muttering uncertainly, "He should be a bit younger than me.. right?"
..
At ten-thirty in the evening, Yamawashi had not returned, even though it was already the time Yamawashi usually prepared for bed.
Hiromitsu Morofushi had always suspected that Yamawashi had another safehouse elsewhere. After all, when Yamawashi moved into this apartment, the furniture was brand new, clearly indicating it had been recently furnished. Later, the frequency with which Yamawashi failed to return home at night indirectly confirmed his suspicion.
Yamawashi had always been skilled at hiding—whether it was hiding his tracks, his past, or the thoughts in his heart. Although an exact address had never been uncovered, it was impossible that he was sleeping on the streets.
He turned a page of the novel in his hands, but the neat characters failed to register in his mind, so he eventually just set the book aside.
Hiromitsu Morofushi pressed his temples.
The detective novel that Yamawashi has been reading lately—he has already revisited it up to the second volume, but given the current situation, Yamawashi likely won't be in the mood to discuss the solution with him.
In times like this, it would be best if the two of them could sit down and have an open conversation, but setting aside the fact that he currently cannot find Yamawashi at all, even if they did meet, Yamawashi would most likely not say anything.
When they first met, he thought that the organization member codenamed Yamawashi was far too arrogant, even being stingy with a simple "mm." At that time, he thought Yamawashi looked down on newcomers, but after they were together, he gradually gained an understanding of just how taciturn this person was.
Their romance originated from an exchange of interests. Yamawashi did not require him to act affectionately, but since they were already in the same boat, not taking advantage of it would be a waste of resources. He would occasionally adopt what he considered the appropriate gestures for lovers to maintain the relationship; Yamawashi raised no objections, so he continued to maintain this balance as a matter of course.
They would embrace but not kiss, when they encountered each other during missions, they would merely nod in acknowledgment but rarely spoke.. On more than one night, they slept in the same bed, exposing their backs to one another, yet they never said goodnight.
The phone thrown on the nightstand suddenly rang. Seeing the caller displayed on the screen, Hiromitsu Morofushi hummed thoughtfully and waited a few seconds before answering.
Rye, whose true identity is FBI agent Akai Shuichi—they had managed to get along quite well even before they knew this identity, let alone now that the secret had been revealed in advance.
He answered the phone: "Calling this late, is something the matter?"
["Am I disturbing your rest? It's nothing major, but I guess you might want to know."]
It was very quiet on Rye's end, without a hint of background noise, making it impossible to tell where he was at this moment. After a rapid review of the major events that had occurred over the past year in his mind, Hiromitsu Morofushi asked, "Has anything interesting happened?"
Rye let out a low laugh, his voice deep.
["I'm not sure if this counts as interesting.. Yamawashi sustained some injuries, or maybe it's more than just a little?"]
His fingers tightened around his phone, Hiromitsu Morofushi frowned, his tone still sounding calm. "There's such a thing? He never mentioned it to me."
I just happened to run into her while I was looking for Sherry. It's said that Yamawashi and Gin suddenly started fighting during today's mission, both of them were quite injured, though they did manage to complete the mission through proper cooperation in the end.. It seems the mission you assigned on my behalf failed to bring lovers together, instead caused a pair of enemies to collide.
Hiromitsu Morofushi felt somewhat helpless. He knew that the other party was actually there to fish for information. Intelligence regarding Yamawashi and Gin was a scarce resource; the fact that these two had clashed, even to the point of a major physical fight, surely meant there was something going on behind the scenes. Perhaps he could use this as an opportunity to pick them off one by one.
To put it another way, even if he failed to obtain any useful intelligence from him, it wouldn't be a problem; he could still do him a favor by going along with it, then invite him out for a drink in a couple of days to fish for more information. As one of the few couples within the Organization who were openly dating, many people would naturally assume he knew more secrets about Yamawashi.
He didn't mind revealing some intelligence to this fellow undercover FBI agent at the right time, but he truly didn't know such a thing existed, nor did he truly understand Yamawashi.
Rye, on the other end of the phone, was still testing the waters and continued to say:
But speaking of taking action against a partner.. you've heard that rumor too, right? It's said that when Yamawashi was working as a mercenary..
Thank you for telling me this." Hiromitsu Morofushi glanced at the time and said quickly, "It's late. Let's talk more next time; I'll treat you to dinner another day.
Beep
Killed the entire squad's teammates.
In the laboratory corridor, Akai Shuichi stared in shock at the disconnected phone. After a moment of frozen silence, he let out an interested laugh.
He didn't get any information regarding Gin and Yamawashi, but he seemed to have obtained information regarding Scotland.
He had always thought that Scotland had no feelings at all for Yamawashi, but it turned out he wasn't completely indifferent after all.
Putting away his phone, he headed straight for a treatment room with a clear purpose. He knocked on the door and pushed his way in without waiting for an answer, saying familiarly, "I'm here to pick up Sherry. I heard you were here too, so I thought I'd drop by to say hello.. Whoa, looks like you're pretty badly injured."
On the hospital bed, the young man wrapped in bandages slowly lifted his head. A layer of gloom clouded his gray irises, though he said nothing, his entire being radiated signals of being unwelcome.
It seems I've arrived at an inconvenient time." As he spoke, Akai Shuichi casually closed the door, showing no intention of leaving, "I hope I haven't disturbed you.
Yamawashi stared at him expressionlessly, Akai Shuichi met his gaze unflinchingly. Amidst the standoff, a buzzing vibration suddenly erupted from the clothes scattered on the floor.