Chapter 70, Eighteenth Cycle (14)
"Secrets make men more attractive—"
Bourbon smiled and winked at her, saying, "Although I'd like to say that, I'm more curious why you think I'm similar to you. To be honest, I'm shocked. Is that how you've always seen me? It's a little sad."
Vermouth stared into his eyes: "You really don't know?"
Bourbon frowned in thought: "How about you give me a few simple examples?"
Vermouth: "..."
If she had evidence, would this guy still be so arrogant?
Vermouth chuckled. "What if I said it's just a woman's intuition?"
Bourbon paused for a moment, then said, "You're cheating, but you actually said I look a lot like the organization's ageless Thousand-Faced Witch. Isn't that a compliment? Are you saying I'm amazing? Hahaha, thinking about it makes me a little happy."
Vermouth chuckled but didn't say anything.
Actually, no. If someone were truly as rotten as she was, she would only feel disgust, not affection.
What she liked about Bourbon was that although he shared the same aura as her, he showed no signs of giving up or falling into depravity, and continued to live earnestly and happily.
Unlike her, who was always looking to slack off and be lazy, Bourbon was so serious that he incurred the wrath of both heaven and man.
He didn't choose to give up or admit defeat when faced with the crushing force of fate. He kept learning everything he could get his hands on, and he was full of that kind of crazy, fearless energy. He seemed to be having a lot of fun every day, which often made Vermouth wonder if there was something wrong with her senses.
Although she didn't understand what Bourbon had gone through, and didn't know what his goals were, just seeing how seriously and diligently he approached life made her feel as if some vitality had been rekindled within her.
Bourbon's care extends to every detail of her life. In all her years, Vermouth has never met anyone who treats her with such normal gentleness after knowing her true identity. He cares earnestly about her diet, sleep quality, and even her messy lifestyle habits, and it's a comfortable kind of attentiveness that comes without any aggressive or fanatical love...
In fact, this period was a rare time of ease and happiness in her long and dark life.
If Bourbon hadn't punctured this window through which they all knew the truth, she could have continued like this indefinitely.
But since Bourbon exposed her secret first, she naturally had to find out this guy's secret as well.
It would be a lie to say I wasn't curious; I just didn't want to ruin their relationship, which is why I didn't pursue the matter before.
"Speaking of which, isn't this a common lie detection method used by the CIA?" The blond, dark-skinned young man gently placed his hand on the back of her hand, grasped her fingers, and gradually increased the pressure on her neck pulse.
He smiled, his eyes crinkling, and said, "When asking questions, you touch a person's carotid artery with your finger while staring into their eyes, observing changes in their pupils and blood pressure to determine if they're lying, right?"
“You’re really knowledgeable, Bourbon. It seems there’s nothing you don’t know.” Vermouth withdrew her hand, leaned back on the sofa with her legs crossed, and said, “Since you already knew that, then this method is useless. But people like us should certainly learn more about the hunting methods of those hunters, otherwise we’ll be finished if we get caught.”
Bourbon tilted his head: "Aren't you angry anymore?"
Vermouth lit a slender cigarette: "You know I'll get angry, so you risked angering me by bringing this up, really just to learn disguise techniques?"
Bourbon smirked: "And also, so that you can protect me. We're accomplices now, sharing a secret, you know. Even if I go a little too far and get into danger, you'll come to my rescue, right?"
“That’s not necessarily true.” Vermouth raised an eyebrow. “But so you can be afraid too. I thought you weren’t afraid of death at all.”
Bourbon shook his finger: "No, no, no, if he's not dead yet, it means he still wants to live. Besides, there are so many interesting things in the world. It would be a bit of a shame to leave early."
Vermouth, with a lit cigarette between her fingers, leaned forward and slowly exhaled a puff of smoke into his face, grinning maliciously, "Isn't it because your goal hasn't been achieved yet?"
“That’s true, I still have a lot of things to do.” Bourbon frowned slightly, seemingly a little unaccustomed to the smell of smoke. Vermouth thought back and realized she had never seen him smoke before.
She sat back down.
"Accomplice? This is not an equal deal for me; at most, it can only be considered coercion."
Vermouth lazily rested her chin on one hand, and a pinch of ash from the burnt-out cigarette silently fell to the ground between her fingers.
"Dear Bourbon, you'd better not let me find out your secrets~"
*
One month later.
Gin, exuding a strong aura of menace, sat down next to Vermouth.
"Oh my, Gin, how strange, you actually came to find me on your own initiative. Does the BOSS have some kind of mission?" Vermouth flicked her long silver hair behind his back.
"Where's Bourbon?" Gin asked coldly.
Vermouth paused slightly, then smiled: "Why are you asking me? I didn't come back with him, and I don't know where he is or what he's doing now. Maybe he's still causing trouble for the FBI in the US? You need to see Bourbon? Did he block you? Let me call and ask for you?"
Gin turned and stared at her, his eyes terrifying as if he wanted to kill her: "Why would I ask you? Vermouth, ever since that guy Bourbon started following you, he's become more and more outrageous, especially after he ran off to America with you..."
"I thought you were going to bring that man into the entertainment industry and start acting in movies together," Gin mocked.
Vermouth smiled and nodded: "Actually, I did invite Bourbon. I was really looking forward to acting with him on the big screen. With his looks and talent, he would definitely become a big star no less than me. It's a pity he declined."
Gin: "..."
Vermouth laughed even louder: "Hahaha, don't be angry, Gin. It didn't work out, did it? Bourbon may love to play around and cause trouble, but he's never let us down when it comes to serious matters and missions, has he?"
Gin warned with a dark face, "In short, that gentleman has already agreed to let Bourbon become a permanent resident in Japan. Don't lead Bourbon astray anymore, don't play your mystical games with him. We can't find you anywhere every day, and we don't know what kind of pointless things you're doing. What do you think the organization is keeping you around for?"
He had initially worried that Vermouth would be ruined by that madman Bourbon, but now it seemed that Vermouth had clearly led Bourbon astray.
He now has two of the most hated mystics in the organization, and he can't control them!
Bourbon was a man with a domineering and arrogant personality, and an information broker who liked to play the mystery. However, he had been quite diligent in his missions, even getting others in the organization to feel a sense of crisis and work together. This was the only thing that made Gin very satisfied.
As a result, he's been corrupted by Vermouth and has started slacking off too. His attitude towards tasks has become visibly perfunctory. You can't even find him around normally; you can't call him back. He only starts to dawdle and complete tasks when the boss intervenes.
Of course, what's even more infuriating is that after he worked so hard and personally led Vodka to rob hundreds of millions of dollars, he found out that these two guys were out there living a life of debauchery and sending back huge bills to the organization for reimbursement, often amounting to hundreds of thousands, millions, or tens of millions.
On one occasion, Vermouth took Bourbon to an auction, where Bourbon bought a billion-dollar amethyst and managed to get reimbursed by his organization, which he actually did.
Gin really wanted to pull out his gun and kill those two guys right then and there.
Bourbon's research into programming already involved a lot of high-tech spending within the Pit Organization, and now it goes without saying that his extravagance has completely surpassed Vermouth's.
"...I corrupted Bourbon?" Vermouth's eyes widened, and she pointed incredulously at her own nose.
Gin sneered: "Otherwise what?"
Vermouth hesitated, finally understanding what it felt like when Gin had warned her to be careful of Bourbon and said he was dangerous, yet no one paid attention.
The problem is, she can't explain it to Gin yet.
Because she is now an accomplice of Bourbon.
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