Chapter 206: The Contradictory Tequila
"Long time no see." Yuri greeted Furuya Rei.
Furuya Rei nodded, sat down opposite Yuri, and looked at the waitress, saying, "A black coffee, iced, please."
Azusa Enomoto nodded, also somewhat curious about this handsome dark-skinned, blond-haired man.
"This coffee shop looks nice."
Furuya Rei looked around, quite satisfied with the layout.
The waitress was also pleasant, speaking softly. Next time he was in Tokyo on a mission, he could choose to work here as a cover.
The only thing that made him uncomfortable was that the waitress kept looking at him.
Without turning his head, he could feel her gaze frequently glancing his way.
"My sister and I often come here for coffee. The service and coffee are both very good."
As he spoke, Yuri involuntarily turned to look at the Natsukawa residence across the street.
His sister had said this was where she and Natsukawa first met.
Damn it! I should have known better than to choose this place.
But it was obviously too late to regret it now. His sister had already been taken by that bastard.
Rei Furuya followed his gaze and suddenly noticed a little girl with brown hair walking out of the house across from the coffee shop.
The little girl, carrying a small backpack, was less than a meter tall. Furuya felt she looked vaguely familiar, but didn't pay much attention.
As an intelligence officer, he encountered countless people and was used to seeing familiar faces.
"Hmm?" Yuri paused, frowning slightly.
Wasn't that supposed to be Anya?
Anya had pink hair, while the little girl who'd just come out of the house had brown hair.
Considering she might be Anya's classmate, Yuri glanced briefly and then thanked Rei Furuya:
"Thank you so much for that day. If you hadn't had Kazami inform us, our team would probably have lost a lot of people."
They'd arranged for over a dozen political prisoners to impersonate police officers and infiltrate Shirakage Pharmaceuticals, and none of them survived. The worst seven or eight were completely incinerated, their bodies never found.
Even he might not have survived such an explosion. Thankfully, they had Rei Furuya's intelligence.
"It's what I should do," Rei Furuya smiled slightly.
"However, how did the Black Organization discover this information?"
Yuri frowned. Their investigations were always meticulous, and he'd been pondering for days where things had gone wrong so that Gin had discovered them.
"When you investigated the power plant, you used Metropolitan Police Department credentials," Amuro Tooru said, then stopped.
Yuri, like him, was an excellent Public Security officer and should understand the security breach.
"I see." Yuri nodded. "That was my oversight. I didn't explain it clearly enough."
Power safety had nothing to do with the Metropolitan Police Department—no wonder they were suspected.
But this showed that there were Organization informants within the Beika Power Plant, which needed to be investigated thoroughly.
"Tequila is quite clever. You need to be careful when investigating the Organization in the future, and don't make the same mistake again."
"Tequila?"
"Yes." Furuya Rei nodded, not elaborating further, but instead took a USB drive from his pocket, placed it on the table, and pushed it toward Yuri.
"What's this?"
"Some businessmen with questionable backgrounds, though some of them may have already been blackmailed by Gin. Be careful during your investigation."
"Okay."
Yuri took the USB drive, hesitating.
He was wondering whether to tell Furuya Rei about Miyano Akemi and Tequila.
Although his superiors had instructed him not to inform Furuya Rei about this for the time being, was that really the right thing to do?
Moreover, after numerous inquiries, Public Security hadn't found any trace of Tequila.
He was clearly Japanese, not from Kyoto or Osaka. Could there be some special, mysterious organization within the domestic government?
Unable to find answers, Yuri hoped Furuya Rei could provide some.
At the same time, he also hoped Furuya would keep a close eye on him.
But this involved his superiors' orders, leaving him in a dilemma.
"Is there something you need?"
Furuya Rei noticed Yuri's unease. "Is there something you want to ask? You can just say it. I'll tell you what I can."
He wouldn't say what he couldn't.
Yuri nodded, knowing that Furuya Rei was also facing difficulties within the Black Organization.
Finally, he decided to ask. Tequila was too crucial. Regardless of whether he was an official member of the Japanese government, it was necessary to mention him to Furuya Rei. Maybe he knew something?
Yuri took out a photo of Tequila from his inner pocket and handed it to him. "Tequila—how much do you know about this person?"
"Tequila?" Furuya Rei frowned slightly, looking at the photo he'd sent back to Public Security a long time ago.
He didn't know much about Tequila either. He hadn't had many opportunities to meet him while abroad.
Although he'd had a few encounters since returning to Japan recently, they were only nodding acquaintances.
Tequila was in charge of weapon sales, while he was in charge of foreign intelligence gathering, so they basically had no contact.
Although he'd recently returned to Japan, he was mostly not in Tokyo. The Organization's code-named members mostly operated within the Tokyo area, so there was practically no chance of meeting.
"I don't know much about Tequila, only that he recently became one of Gin's trusted operatives. You should know about the one billion yen robbery, right?
He was the mastermind and executor of that case.
Because of that, Gin values him highly, and now it seems he's on par with Vodka, maybe even higher.
Also, during the billion-yen heist, Miyano Akemi died at his hands."
Furuya Rei paused, as if thinking of something.
"Speaking of Miyano Akemi, you might not know her, but you definitely know her sister, Miyano Shiho.
Codename Sherry, the Organization's chief scientist!
Because of her sister's death, Sherry somehow escaped from Shirakage Pharmaceuticals. Keep an eye out for her. She should have information the Organization desperately wants.
If we can find her, we'll soon know the Organization's research secrets."
Amuro Tooru handed over Sherry's photo.
He'd secretly photographed many people in the Organization, and Sherry was no exception.
"Missing...?"
"Yes. Why do you think Gin was able to completely relocate the research equipment as soon as you discovered Shirakage Pharmaceuticals? The real reason is Sherry. Her disappearance led Gin to decide to move the equipment."
"I'll be careful!" Yuri nodded, glancing warily around.
It was Saturday, past 1 PM, a time when most people had just finished lunch and were taking a nap at home.
Confirming no one else was in the coffee shop, Yuri spoke gravely, "Keep a close eye on Tequila. It's best to track what missions he's carried out.
Also, if anything threatens your identity or life, try asking him for help!"
"???"
Furuya Rei's hand holding the coffee trembled, spilling half of it and staining his white T-shirt with a brown stain.
What kind of suggestion is this? What does Yuri know?
Why is he telling me to ask Tequila for help in a crisis? Could it be...?
But why use the word "try"?
"Don't overthink it. This is just a backup plan. In fact, I don't know if he's reliable."
Yuri gave a wry smile, took a sip of coffee, and earnestly instructed, "Remember, never ask him for help unless it's a critical situation!"
Furuya Rei neither nodded nor shook his head, lost in thought.
Yuri's words only made things more confusing.
Suddenly, Tequila seemed extremely suspicious.
When he first learned of Tequila's rise within the Organization, he was curious. Tequila hadn't seemed this intelligent during their previous collaborations.
However, considering he hadn't seen Tequila in a long time and didn't know his personality or methods well, and that people grow and mature, he hadn't investigated further.
Now it seemed there was something suspicious going on.
Yuri's words were undoubtedly telling him that Tequila was questionable.
What was suspicious about him? There were two possibilities:
First, Tequila was a spy for Public Security, deeply hidden, only now being activated.
Second, the current Tequila was someone else in disguise, which would explain the stark difference between the Tequila he'd seen years ago and the one he saw now.
With Vermouth, a master of disguise in the Organization, it wasn't surprising that someone could impersonate Tequila.
But even Gin hadn't noticed anything amiss—the disguise was quite impressive.
"But..." He suddenly remembered that Public Security's exposure was Tequila's doing.
It was he who'd alerted Gin, and only then did Gin notice the clue.
Yuri had clearly also noticed this contradiction, his mind filled with questions. It was too inconsistent.
"I don't know either, which is why I told you not to contact him unless absolutely necessary.
At first, we thought he might be one of our people, but after hearing you say that our investigation was exposed because of him, I'm starting to get confused too." Yuri frowned, deep in thought, unable to comprehend Tequila's motives.
Or perhaps the person who delivered the envelope to Public Security wasn't Tequila?
If it wasn't Tequila, and it wasn't Furuya Rei, did Public Security have another hidden agent?
The two sat in silence, each with a cup of coffee, for half an hour, until a loud laugh from the front counter startled them awake.
"Ran's luck is so good! You absolutely have to treat me to a drink. You don't mind paying for this one, do you?"
Suzuki Sonoko was very envious of Mouri Ran.
Her friend was too lucky, as if she had a buff that allowed her to win prizes just by entering raffles.
Today's source of happiness came from—Ran won the only hot spring inn voucher at the Beika Department Store!
"Okay, Sonoko, keep your voice down. You're disturbing others."
Despite being the second daughter of one of Japan's top conglomerates, she's excited about something so trivial and even wants to mooch a coffee from her.
Is the happiness of the wealthy really this simple?
"What? I'm already being quiet, and at this hour, the coffee shop is..."
Sonoko was about to say no one was around when her gaze met two pairs of eyes.
"..."
Sonoko paused, then awkwardly composed herself, coughed twice, adjusted her purse, and gave an embarrassed but polite smile.
"Excuse me."
After apologizing, she turned to Ran and whispered, "Hey, Ran, did you see that? Two handsome guys!"
Ran hummed in agreement and ordered two coffees.
Seeing that Ran didn't react much, Sonoko rolled her eyes. "Come on, you're too devoted! Kudo has been missing for months, and you're still thinking about him?
To have a childhood friend like you, I wonder if Shinichi Kudo saved the galaxy in his past life."
Hearing this, Ran blushed instantly. "Please, Sonoko, don't talk nonsense. Shinichi and I are just friends, really."
Ran sighed sadly. "I don't know what Shinichi is busy with. Yesterday was his birthday. We were supposed to go to the Beika Cinema, but he didn't show up in the end. I really don't know what's more important than a birthday."
"What? He stood you up?"
Sonoko adjusted her voice, then nudged Ran's arm with her elbow teasingly. "I think you should just give up on that clueless detective."
She then pointed to the two men and chuckled. "Look at those two handsome guys. One has a baby face and looks super cute, and the other, although he's a bit tan, has exactly the type of build I like."
Ran politely nodded to the two men who were looking their way again, then rolled her eyes at Sonoko. "Can you speak a little quieter? Everyone heard you."
Sonoko didn't care. A woman who dared to love boldly was never afraid of a handsome man's scrutinizing gaze.
Yuri and Rei Furuya sighed at Sonoko's bold yet defiant demeanor, paid the bill, and left.
They'd finished their conversation, and with Sonoko around, they had little interest in continuing.
She was the second young lady of the Suzuki family. She probably had bodyguards, and those bodyguards were likely quite skilled. They might attract attention, so it was best to leave quickly.
Watching the two leave, Sonoko sighed. "I wonder when my prince charming will come."
A look of disappointment appeared on her face. Just as Ran was about to comfort her, Sonoko's expression suddenly brightened.
She looked at Ran with enthusiasm. "My sister is inviting her college classmates to a party at our mountain villa in a few days. Do you want to come along? I heard there are some handsome guys—"
"No thanks."
Ran waved her hand. She wasn't interested in that.
She was much more interested in the hot spring hotel voucher in her hand.
"Mikami Town—it seems not far from Tokyo. I remember it's only an hour away."
"Yeah, it's the weekend. I'll go back and talk to Dad. We'll go to this Haido Hot Spring Inn tonight."
"Perfect timing! I just saw on the TV display at the Beika Department Store that the temperature will start dropping this afternoon, and it should start snowing tonight.
Snow and hot springs are a perfect match. Maybe we'll even meet some handsome skiers. You'd better keep your eyes open and put some pressure on Kudo, otherwise he'll think you're only interested in him."
Ran didn't respond, her lips twitching. Sonoko was still the same, always talking about handsome guys.
Neither of them considered why the sun was shining brightly in the morning, yet the temperature would drop in the afternoon, and it might even start snowing at night.
(End of Chapter)
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