Gin suddenly had a thought about Bourbon.
Rum had long suspected something was off with Bourbon and had told Gin to keep an eye on him. But Bourbon mostly worked alone due to his job responsibilities, so Gin rarely had the chance to interfere.
Now, Gin figured Ouzo might be a good candidate for the "stalker" Rum had in mind.
Thinking about it, this new bottle of wine really keeps digging deeper — definitely worth listening to patiently.
Gin snapped out of his thoughts and returned to the topic Jiang Xia had brought up earlier about the gun. "If it's for that, don't even bother. Keep your legal status clean on the surface, help us as much as you can. Having an extra gun won't do you any favors."
Actually, legally owning a gun isn't too hard for a detective.
But Ouzo's problem was his age—he wasn't old enough—and the paperwork was a nightmare. The more complicated the steps, the easier it was to mess up. So Gin thought it best not to give him a gun at all. After all, Ouzo was the type who hid in the shadows and killed with words, not bullets. If he got a gun, he'd probably just screw it up.
After rejecting the gun idea, Gin asked again: "What is Bourbon busy with?"
Jiang Xia glanced at the gun in Gin's hand, then replied without much interest, "I work part-time. Mostly convenience stores and dessert shops. Sometimes delivering newspapers or doing housekeeping."
Gin: "..." He already knew this kind of info, he wanted to hear something else.
But thinking about it, it made sense. According to the info, Ouzo and Bourbon rarely had much contact. Bourbon probably took Ouzo in as a test at first, but got too busy with work to notice—or didn't expect Ouzo to make such quick progress.
Gin remembered Bourbon had mocked him before for lacking vision and sneered. Seems Bourbon was the one who didn't know how to cultivate talent.
But honestly... if it weren't for the Ichimura diplomat, Gin wouldn't have guessed Jiang Xia's sudden "event physique" was secretly triggering murders.
Thinking that, Gin suddenly understood Bourbon's previous behavior defending Jiang Xia—picking up lost talents is a pretty nice feeling.
He decided to pay more attention when dealing with those cannon fodder types nearby. Helpers like Ouzo don't have to be many; even one or two can inject fresh blood into the organization.
Compared to members caught at murder scenes, accidentally killing themselves, or stuck in everyday murders with no way out, people like Ouzo were the organization's hope.
Gin quietly adjusted his plans and told Vodka to find a place to park and let Jiang Xia out.
Before Jiang Xia got out, Gin looked at him: "You just became a full member. There's no rule about keeping your code name secret yet, but if I were you, I'd keep it as quiet as possible."
Jiang Xia nodded humbly, like he was getting a lecture.
Gin added, "Keep an eye on Bourbon. If he acts weird, report it to me. Not a task—you don't have to try too hard. Just be more observant when you meet him."
Jiang Xia blinked, a bit surprised. "Is Bourbon acting strange?" Then he nodded seriously: "Got it."
After Jiang Xia stepped out, the old Porsche sped away.
Jiang Xia stood on the empty roadside and sighed.
I didn't get a gun.
But he didn't come for nothing.
This time, he'd performed exactly as expected, prostituted a verbal promise like a kill order, and, of course, kept the ever-present high-class murderous spirit.
Although he had the extra authority to kill officially, Jiang Xia had no worldly desire to kill. For a psychic, that was a mentality that easily led to doom —and he didn't want to do it.
Still, if needed, he could use this authority to break away from the organization and shake things up. But it was risky, and better used sparingly.
Jiang Xia reviewed his recent gains and losses, found a nearby station, and planned to head to the office.
As for Gin's "watching Bourbon" thing, Jiang Xia didn't care too much. Amuro Toru was Rum's key target, but Rum hadn't got evidence, and the organization didn't have enough talents for "better to kill by mistake than let go," so no one was really after him now.
Since that was the case, just paddle along. Gin said don't watch Bourbon deliberately—just follow fate. Rum hadn't caught Bourbon's slip-ups, so it was normal a newbie like him got nothing.
Jiang Xia quickly forgot about the messy organization and focused on Reika Yotsui.
Back at the detective office, he dug through a box in the cabinet, rifled through a stack of letters, and finally found the invitation from Reika Yotsui.
This box was full of invitations Jiang Xia had kept handy—just wait for the date to approach, then bring it to the appointment.
Reika's invitation came a few days ago. She was about to turn 24 and planned a big birthday banquet.
Not only had Jiang Xia gotten the invite, but as the famous detective who helped Reika find her dog, Reika Yotsui offered extra perks—she'd send a car to pick him up.
The banquet was the day after tomorrow.
Jiang Xia thought it over and decided to make time to go to school and "accidentally" bring Mouri Ran along.
That meant roping Conan in, too. With that, the "Assassination of Yotsui Reika" mission's success rate would definitely skyrocket.
The next day, Jiang Xia sat in class and "accidentally" dropped his notebook with the invitation inside, right at Mouri Ran's feet.
Ran helped him pick it up. Jiang Xia waited for her to ask questions, but just then, Suzuki Sonoko shot him a complicated look.
Sonoko whispered in a discouraging tone, "Why don't you just not go?"
Jiang Xia rejected that thought silently but didn't ask why.
Sonoko started to say something but stopped.
—Earlier, Reika Yotsui had bragged in a small circle that she invited Jiang Xia, just to make things interesting.
Sonoko never liked Reika Yotsui's attitude. With this preconceived notion, she always felt like Reika's tone when talking about Jiang Xia was like she was looking to prostitute him out. It pissed her off.
Sonoko wanted to complain.
But looking at Jiang Xia in front of her, she swallowed it—she wouldn't let scumbag women like Reika Yotsui taint him.
So she switched reasons: "Reika has a bad temper. Her every party is old-fashioned and boring. Why don't we just go somewhere else to have fun?"
*Goal #1: Top 200 fanfics published within the last 31 - 90 days by POWER STONES.
Progress: 46/60(approx) for 10 BONUS CHAPTERS
Goal #2: One BONUS CHAPTER per review for the first 10 REVIEWS.
Progress:2/10*