Chapter 40: You Came at Just the Right Time
In the empty, echoing factory, only the three of them remained.
A cold, bleak wind added an extra edge of unease to the air.
"What exactly is going on here?"
Makoto demanded.
"I'm the assistant the organization's assigned to you—your teacher for all the ins and outs of our rules, your liaison to the organization, and, well, also the one keeping an eye on your every move."
"But still—the organization has finally accepted you!"
Rena undid the tie holding her ponytail.
Her hair fell loose, dancing in the wind, as if she'd let out a breath of relief.
"Power, status, money, women?"
"Heh. The organization isn't nearly as wonderful as you're imagining."
"As of today, you no longer have the right to choose!"
Akemi looked at him with open disdain.
Clearly, she'd written him off as just another man chasing after wealth and glory.
Handsome as he might be, he still couldn't hold a candle to her boyfriend, Moroboshi Dai.
"What's your codename?"
Makoto asked, curious.
She was a member of the organization too, and yet, oddly, she seemed to be the only one without a codename.
"Codename?"
"That's something only official members get to have."
"I'm just a peripheral member of the organization."
Akemi said coldly.
Before the other two could even move, she'd already climbed into the car herself.
"At the very least..."
"Tell me your name!"
Makoto opened the car door and slid into the driver's seat.
"Akemi!"
"Miyano Akemi!"
She looked up, catching the man's face in the rearview mirror.
Her slender hands quietly tightened around the hem of her clothes.
A gift?
She knew perfectly well that she loved Moroboshi Dai—the organization's own Rye.
And yet that man still sent her off, treating her like some gift to be handed to the man in front of her.
And she couldn't refuse.
After all, her sister's entire future was in the organization's hands.
Her sister had already carried so much, for so long.
Unlike her, unable to go to school normally, grow up normally, or fall for someone the normal way.
She hadn't even once met their real parents.
'As long as it means you can leave the organization, I'll do anything.'
Akemi bit down hard on her lip, silently making a vow.
◇◇◇
Tokyo, Haido Town.
The white Porsche Cayenne pulled up in front of an ordinary apartment building.
Rena got out of the car and headed upstairs alone.
She lived in Room 306 of this building, and with the news to anchor at Nichiuri TV tomorrow, there was no way she could stay.
Soon, the Cayenne started up again.
Now only Makoto and Akemi remained inside.
Makoto: "How old are you?"
Akemi: "Twenty-five!"
Makoto: "Got a boyfriend?"
Akemi: "Yes."
"If your boyfriend knew you were riding in the same car as me, he wouldn't get upset, would he?"
Makoto continued.
"He would."
"He'd be furious. Might even kill you."
"Because he's a member of the organization too—an official one, with his own codename."
"Rye!"
Akemi answered coldly.
"Your boyfriend sounds terrifying. Not like me—I only know how to..."
"Screech..."
The white Cayenne slammed to a sudden stop on the pitch-black, empty road.
Makoto got out of the car, then climbed back in.
Except this time, he moved from the front seat to the back.
"Y-you—what are you doing?"
Akemi looked visibly flustered.
Even though the man in front of her was clearly a few years younger, about the same age as her own little sister.
But still!
He was a member of the organization, and a new one Gin himself thought highly of, at that.
"Akemi, don't tell me you've forgotten?"
"You're Gin's gift to me!"
Makoto reached out without a trace of hesitation.
He pulled the woman straight into his arms.
"I'm quite a bit older than you."
Akemi said, her voice cold, offering no resistance.
"I don't mind."
Makoto smiled.
Twenty-five? That was hardly "older."
Wasn't that exactly the age when a woman was in the very peak of her bloom?
"I have a boyfriend."
Akemi went on.
Makoto: "I don't mind that either."
If anything, it suited him just fine.
This was exactly his kind of thing!
After all, in the world of Detective Conan, practically every female character had a matching male CP.
If he let something this small bother him, wouldn't he end up single for the rest of his life?
"I..."
"I don't like this!"
Akemi bit her lip, trying hard to refuse.
"But I like it."
Makoto got even more into it.
No fierce resistance was as good as tacit permission, as far as he was concerned.
Makoto knew that this girl in front of him had probably already braced herself for something like this before she'd even met him.
Whatever happened now was already something she'd expected, deep down.
Bottom line—it was only a matter of time.
Suddenly!
Inside the dim car, a ringtone sounded, and the screen lit up.
Her phone was ringing.
"Your boyfriend?"
"Answer it."
Makoto glanced over.
The name on the caller ID was unmistakably—Moroboshi Dai!
A cover name once used by Akai Shuichi, who was now undercover in the organization as Moroboshi Dai, codenamed Rye.
Heh.
You really did come at just the right time.
…
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Higashino Makoto — Protagonist. Transmigrated.
Hondou Hidemi — Undercover girl. Series: Detective Conan.
Miyano Akemi — Miyano Shiho's older sister. Series: Detective Conan.
…
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Translated by CheapBiscuit.
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Throw those power stones here, lemme catch them!
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