Scotch: "Is it intuition again?"
"This time not," Stelle shook her head, gesturing toward the figure of Bourbon walking not far ahead, and said smugly, "Because someone as odd as Bourbon can turn his back on Scotch, he must have some trust in you. Doesn't that Show you two get along well?"
"My personality's weird?!" Bourbon, who was walking ahead, stopped, curled one corner of his mouth, and looked back at Stelle with a fake smile, "Even if I'm weird, can I have a weird personality that likes to rummage through trash?"
Even though he was ahead, Bourbon still kept part of his attention behind him, so he naturally heard what Stelle just said to Scotch.
Bourbon didn't want Stelle to keep dwelling on the issue, so he cut in before Scotch could answer.
Moreover, Bourbon silently grew more wary of Stelle's sharpness, though it wasn't entirely surprising. After all, Gin treats this girl specially; she must be capable and have her own unique strengths.
"What do you mean rummaging through trash? I'm looking for treasure that's been misplaced, okay?" Stelle pursed her lips in annoyance, "And the trash can is pretty powerful, alright."
"Besides, with your build, you probably couldn't even catch a single kick from 'King's Next Bucket'!" Stelle sized up Bourbon from head to toe and said disdainfully.
"You didn't even name the trash can, and now you're so delusional you think the trash can has legs?" Bourbon's head filled with black lines, feeling that Stelle had completely misled him, arguing seriously with someone whose mind is obviously broken over such a meaningless issue.
Bourbon fell silent, quickened his pace, and within a few steps reached his Mazda car. He opened the rear door, gesturing to Stelle to stop the chatter and get in quickly.
In the car, Bourbon drove while pretending not to know, asking Scotch, "Where should I drop you off? Let me be clear, if it's too far I'm too lazy to go."
Scotch glanced at the road and said, "Don't worry, not far. Just turn right at the second intersection ahead and drop us off."
After briefing Bourbon, Scotch leaned back against the seat, glancing casually at Stelle.
Since getting in, Stelle had said little. She rested against the window, eyes fixed on the passing scenery. The flickering neon lights reflected in her golden eyes, making them appear even more dazzling.
After a pause, Scotch spoke up, "Hmm… Stelle, you said you're just a little over a year old. Did you start in the organization from the moment you first had memories?"
Hearing Scotch's question, Stelle blinked, shifted her head away from the window, turned to face him, and replied, "Of course not. Actually, this is probably the second time Kafka tossed me to someone else's care."
The first time I woke up was on Ms. Black Tower's space station; Kafka placed something inside my body and awakened me. Immediately afterward, she sent me onto the Astral Express, and I traveled with Aunt Himeko and Uncle Yang across various planets.
The latest stop was Penacony; I don't know why I passed out again, and when I woke up I saw Kafka once more, and before we could say much, she tossed me to Gin.
"Seriously, am I a rubber ball? Always being tossed around." Stelle complained with a hint of irritation at the end.
Regarding Stelle's answer, Scotch didn't disbelieve her, but he didn't fully believe either, since he had already confirmed that Stelle likely suffers cognitive issues due to the experiment.