Chapter 199
When Vodka saw the code name "Potnis" on the caller ID, his heart stopped for a moment.
It wasn't the first time Vodka had received a call from Usui Saiki; there must have been dozens of calls over the years. But Vodka seemed to have developed a conditioned reflex; whenever he saw words related to Potnis or Usui Saiki, his heart would skip a beat.
Even when he's drinking at a bar and accidentally glances at the bottle of "Potternis" on the drink menu or behind the bartender, he feels his mind go blank for a second.
It was just as terrifying as when his mother suddenly called him by his full name when he was a child!
When he realized this, Vodka almost cried.
How badly has he been tormented by Bo Yezaki?! He's a gangster, after all, how could he be so pathetic, letting a mere kid give him such a psychological trauma!
The main problem is that Usakabe Saiki is completely irrelevant. Every time I answer his call, it's like opening a blind box, with no idea what bizarre things I'll find.
Vodka always felt uneasy and resistant to the unknown.
But despite his reluctance, he still had to answer the phone, otherwise he would face another kind of unknown fear.
So he reluctantly answered the phone, secretly regretting why he had charged it; it would have been so much better to wait for the phone to run out of battery and shut down automatically: "Hello?"
"Vodka, where are you now?"
The voice of Usaku Saiki came through the phone.
Most of the time, Usoppei Saiki's tone was relaxed and cheerful, as if he was in a good mood. Vodka guessed that it was because this guy transferred his troubles and pain onto other people... like him.
However, after a few seconds of heavy mood, Vodka's mood suddenly turned wonderful after hearing Usui Saiki's question.
Hehehe... Hahahaha! That kid Bo Ye probably never expected this! He's in America right now!
He and his older brother didn't usually spend all their time in Japan, but for some reason, when Usakabe called, they were both on a mission in Japan.
But things are different now; they are separated by the Pacific Ocean!
That situation where you get a harassing phone call and soon have to face the caller like they're dealing with a demon is over! So what does he have to worry about?!
Whenever Usui Saiki wanted to do something, he would say, "We'll talk about it when we get back to Japan," and then, depending on the situation, he would find some excuse to postpone the relevant tasks in Japan. It was possible that Usui Saiki's affairs would no longer need him...
Vodka hadn't felt this happy in a long time when receiving a call from Saiki Usaba.
So he suppressed his joy and tried to answer in a calm tone, "I'm in America."
“I know you’re in the US, Vermouth said so. I’m asking where in the US you are.”
The tone of his voice sounded ominous, but Vodka comforted himself, thinking that maybe Usoppai wanted him to buy something for him.
This guy is good at playing the innocent in front of women, so he's probably too embarrassed to bother Vermouth. I heard he's in America too, so asking him to help bring something over will put no pressure on him, right?
Vodka had originally intended to give a random address out of caution, but...
A few days ago, they had a mission to find out about Vermouth's identity as an acquaintance of the famous actress Sharon. They went to Vermouth to ask about the situation and tried to persuade her to get involved, but Vermouth didn't like to participate in the organization's work under a false identity, so she refused.
If he had known that Usakabe Saiki was also in the United States, he wouldn't have asked Vermouth for information!
Considering that Vermouth might have already betrayed him, and that if what he said now didn't match up, Usui Saiki would probably cause trouble again, Vodka hesitated and looked at Gin.
Brother?! Should I tell the truth now?!
The older brother said he couldn't hear or see.
He could find peace of mind by staying away from Usoppō Saiki, and how to stay away was, of course, a matter for his partner and deputy, Vodka, to worry about.
Unable to get a response from Gin, Vodka could only give a rather vague answer based on his own assumptions: "...Los Angeles."
Then Vodka heard a sound that sounded like it came from hell.
"What a coincidence! I'm in Seattle too. We're both in the US. How about we get together sometime?"
Vodka's hand trembled, almost causing him to hang up the phone, but he managed to steady himself and not actually do so: "You... how come you're in America too?"
"You're here for a trip to the US, and you're also visiting Vermouth. I didn't want to call you, but Vermouth persuaded me, and I think I can forgive you. So when are you free to come over?"
Vodka: "…………"
Vermouth—!!!
He didn't know whether he should be devastated by Vermouth's troubles or relieved that he hadn't been cut off from by Usui Saiki.
“I’m on a mission.” Vodka could only be thankful that the mission he had complained about so many times was still going strong. “It will probably take… at least a week.”
He gave a time that wouldn't be questioned by Usoppō Saiki.
Saiki Usaba said, "I will return to Japan in a week."
Vodka had just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Bo Ye Saiki continue.
"So I'll come find you in a couple of days. By the way, what mission are you on now? Do you need any help?"
Don't say such scary things!
Voltaire tried to remain calm: "This is a top-secret mission. The organization's missions cannot be disclosed to others casually. Although you don't participate in the organization's missions much, you should understand this, right?"
“…I understand.” Usakata Saiki sighed. “Los Angeles is indeed a bit far…we’ll talk about it another time.”
Usoppei hung up the phone.
Vodka gave me a feeling of escaping death.
That's great! For the first time, he was grateful that the United States is so much larger than Japan. Otherwise, if this were in Japan, he could probably get there by taking the Shinkansen, but in the United States, he would at least have to take a plane. Maybe Usuo Saiki would have thought it was too much trouble and wouldn't have come!
Moreover, Usakabe Saiki's attitude was very friendly this time. He didn't ask any tricky questions or say anything awkward... Although it was a bit strange and made him a little suspicious, the most important thing was to end the call smoothly! Other details didn't matter!
As for why Usoya Saiki's attitude was so good this time...
He didn't hide it from Vermouth when he made the call, so Vermouth witnessed his entire conversation with Vodka.
Vermouth thought Usui Saiki's speech was normal, while Vodka was clearly just fooling around. How dare Vodka say that Usui Saiki's speech was unpleasant?!
"What do you plan to do after he said that?" Vermouth asked considerately. "Actually, since you're in the US, it wouldn't be bad to visit Los Angeles. I also have a house in Los Angeles... Anyway, I'm just doing a cameo role. If I speed things up a bit here, it should be over in two days. I'll take you there then?"
If Vodka knew what Vermouth was saying, he would thank the entire Vermouth family.
When Bo Yezaki heard that Vodka and the others were in Los Angeles, he was reluctant to go, thinking it would be too much trouble.
But since Vermouth brought it up, it was clear that it included food, lodging, and entertainment, so Bo Yezaki readily agreed: "Sure, will it be too much trouble for you?"
"It's okay. A house is meant to be lived in; there's no point in leaving it empty."
Vermouth hadn't invited anyone home in a long time, her purpose being simply to have fun. A slight smile played on her lips: "As for Vodka... just wait and see."
Vodka even came all the way to ask her for information, so she naturally knew about their mission.
She didn't want to participate in the mission, but taking Usoya Saiki along to join in the fun was fine.
"Yay!" Usui Saiki cheered happily, "Vermouth is the best!"
Vermouth smiled.
She thought to herself, if Alex can manage to spoil his child like this even in the Middle East, she might as well help him out.
The angels never smiled at her, and all of Ariji's efforts were in vain with his death. How long will the gods continue to favor Usaku Saiki?
That night, Usoppei stayed at Vermouth's place. The film crew had booked several floors of the hotel, so they easily got him a room by himself.
This can be considered as taking advantage of the privilege of being a big star like "Sharon".
The same goes for meals. Vermouth treated him to a very expensive meal—the kind of meal that would make Gin want to kill someone if he saw the expense report. After all, he personally handled even a 100 million yen transaction, and he was really annoyed to see someone who didn't know the value of money constantly submitting expense reports for such useless things.
However, some people in the organization have special privileges, such as Vermouth and Usui Saiki, and Gin can only endure it no matter how unhappy he is.
To be honest, expensive doesn't necessarily mean delicious. For example, Usui Saiki would rather not eat caviar, but Vermouth asked him carefully what he usually liked to eat, so the dishes she ordered were more to his liking.
This shows dedication, and Usoppō Saiki also appreciates Vermouth's kindness.
System: [You still say you don't discriminate based on gender... Didn't others treat you well too? Morofushi Kagemitsu specially modified so many dishes to suit your taste, and you weren't that nice to him!]
They showed no mercy in raising suspicion levels!
[I've already given him a lucky cross, what more could he want!]
System: [Isn't that something you don't need? Besides, you've given your Middle Eastern friends way more and more items.]
[So when he's exposed, I'll just save him and lower his suspicion level.] Bo Yezaki had already planned this out.
System: […Well, he probably won't be exposed.]
Usoppō Saiki: [Huh? Why?]
[Have you forgotten that guy you met at the hot springs with them at the beginning of the year? He implicated a bunch of politicians and stuff, and then the Metropolitan Police Department... In short, the Metropolitan Police Department investigated everyone in key positions to assess their risk, and those with high risk were transferred away. They're safe for at least a year.]
Bo Yezhai was greatly shocked.
He was just casually having fun during his hot spring trip, how did that disrupt the organization's investigation into the undercover agent?!
System: [It might be the luck from that cross; I just happened to see that ad in that remote place...]
Usakabe Saiki was heartbroken: [Damn it! I had already planned it all out. Gin and Vodka would definitely suspect that I helped Morofushi Kagemitsu escape, and then I would say something like, "My friendship won't waver because he's a traitor"... Wouldn't that completely ruin everything?!]
The system comforted him: "It's okay! If one is gone, there's always another! And once things calm down, the organization will definitely continue to recruit people. Maybe Morofushi Hiromitsu will just be exposed a couple more years later… You could consider Akai Shuichi first!"
[Sigh, that's all I can do. Let's see when Shuichi Akai decides to arrest Gin... Actually, he could also consider arresting me.]
System: [...In Shuichi Akai's mind, capturing Gin is probably safer than capturing you.]
After all, it's easier to understand Gin using normal human logic, but you're like a madman, there's no way to figure you out...
Bo Ye Zaiji sighed.
Vermouth, sitting opposite him, raised an eyebrow: "What's wrong? Not to your liking?"
“No, I’m just worried about Gin and Vodka.” Saiki Usopp looked worried. “They both have a bad eye for people. It’s one thing to deal with killing, but when it comes to dealing with people, I’m always worried that they’ll be deceived.”
"……for example?"
Usoppei: "Take Lai, for example. I can't believe they actually let Lai join the organization."
Vermouth: "...It's alright, I'll take you to see them in a couple of days."
Hmm, this child... although he's overthinking things, the child isn't wrong. It's all Gin and vodka's fault for making the child worry!
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Extra chapter with nutrient solution tonight, landmine charge bar 82/100
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I'm really afraid of my mom suddenly calling me by my full name.
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Vermouth listened to the phone call: Thin Leaf's speech seemed normal, but Vodka's tone was so strange.
Vodka was truly traumatized.
I'll have Bo Ye go find them and play with them later!
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