Chapter 55 A Chaotic Battle in the Tea Room
By the time we got back, it was completely dark. The moonlight and stars were playing hide-and-seek among the clouds, appearing and disappearing intermittently.
Chika's steps were slow, accompanied by the constant chirping of cicadas and the occasional croaking of frogs.
Back at the familiar building, looking up, I saw her room was already lit up, and my steps suddenly became lighter.
"Matsuda-nii, you're here again," Takanashi Chinatsu called out as she entered the room.
"What? You won't let me come?" Matsuda Jinpei came out of the kitchen, carrying a bowl of freshly cooked miso soup. He liked to wear dark clothes, but he was wearing a light-colored apron with a butter bear design, which made his "villainous" aura much less pronounced.
After placing the miso soup on the table, Matsuda Jinpei skillfully took off his apron and called out, "Go wash your hands, dinner's ready."
"Okay!" Takanashi Chinatsu replied cheerfully and ran to wash her hands.
When she came out after washing her hands, she saw Kenji Hagiwara happily consuming the offerings next to his memorial tablet. Jinpei Matsuda placed the cooked food on the table and casually pulled up a chair to sit down.
Takanashi Chinatsu sat opposite him, looking at the four or five side dishes on the table, and happily cupped her face in her hands, exclaiming, "Matsuda-nii is a great cook!"
Before Matsuda Jinpei could speak, Hagiwara Kenji, having finished his drug use, ran over and hovered beside the two of them, answering, "He doesn't like cooking. When we used to live together, we would always go out and buy ready-made bento boxes. He learned to cook for Chinatsu."
Matsuda Jinpei didn't hear, which saved him from embarrassment. He simply asked, "You came back late today. Did the organization give you trouble?"
Chinatsu Takanashi was secretly laughing because of Kenji Hagiwara's revelation, but upon hearing this, she immediately retorted, "No, I went to a friend's house."
"A friend's house? That Kinomoto one?"
"Hehe." Takanashi Chika just laughed without answering.
"Are the organization's 'friends' still friends? Are you playing word games with me here?" Matsuda Jinpei was too perceptive and saw through it almost immediately, his gaze towards Takanashi Chinatsu became more scrutinizing.
Takanashi Chika could only clasp her hands together and beg for mercy: "Matsuda-nii, don't take it so seriously. I can't possibly leave the organization."
"Why not? Because you have an all-powerful boss?" Matsuda Jinpei slammed the handcuffs on the table, his attitude resolute: Cuff him!
Those criminals, even if they didn't affect China's future, he still had to teach them a lesson.
Takanashi Chika only drinks soup and is too naive to think about catching Karasuma Renya. Since he is said to be "omnipotent", he is not so easy to bring to justice. Otherwise, those undercover agents would not have come to the organization one after another.
Ultimately, although Karasuma Renya claims to trust her the most and their interactions are always harmonious, Takanashi Chinatsu has never met him, let alone captured him.
Matsuda Jinpei seemed to know he was joking, but he was still indignant: "If you cooperate with our police and we protect you, do you think your boss can catch you despite all the security?"
"The police simply don't have that kind of power," Takanashi Chika said with a wry smile.
Matsuda Jinpei immediately said, "What if it's the Public Security Bureau? I have a friend who is now..."
The words came to an abrupt halt.
Takanashi Chika looked over curiously and saw Matsuda Jinpei staring intently at her, or rather, at the new bracelet on her wrist that she had just acquired that day.
"The bracelet was also a gift from a friend?" Matsuda Jinpei's tone was extremely strange.
Chinatsu nods, not understanding what's wrong with Matsuda Jinpei.
"It must be very expensive."
She suddenly realized it was because of the price, and immediately laughed and said, "It is indeed not cheap, but the people in the organization are all very rich, so it's nothing."
Actually, that's not the case.
Bourbon must have emptied his pockets to buy her this bracelet, but Matsuda doesn't seem to know much about jewelry. He probably only thinks it's expensive because it's so beautiful; he definitely can't guess the exact price.
She shook her bracelet and joked with Matsuda Jinpei, "Extorting a colleague is also doing a service to the people."
“Ah…that’s true.” Matsuda Jinpei remained silent.
Takanashi Chinatsu couldn't help but glance at Matsuda Jinpei several times, feeling that Matsuda-nii was acting strangely today, but she quickly stopped caring. The combination of organizing and studying was a double torment, and she still had to write her thesis after dinner.
It's best to submit the leave of absence application together.
Oh no, I have to write it when Matsuda Jinpei can't see me, otherwise I'll get scolded again.
She was also at a loss. Karasuma Renya had already decided to train her, and there would definitely be many challenges ahead. She probably wouldn't be able to leisurely attend school while handling the organization's affairs.
Oh, her adoptive father...
When will her adoptive father come to help her? Gin said he would appear once he was done with his work, but it's been several days and there's still no news. Could something have happened to him?
Chika's eyes showed worry, but she quickly cheered herself up. After all these years, she didn't care about these few days. She would just consider it a surprise prepared by her adoptive father.
Matsuda Jinpei did not stay at Takanashi Chinatsu's house; he left after having dinner.
On his way home, he kept his hands in his pockets, looking preoccupied.
His fingers gently touched the small jewelry box, inside which lay the pair of earrings he intended to give to China, but he hadn't given them to her for several days.
No, it wasn't sent out today either.
That bracelet... is it the one Furuya bought?
Although I only caught a glimpse of it at the time, the characteristics of both the chrysoberyl cat's eye and the emerald were very obvious. It would be hard to find another necklace as dazzling and luxurious as that, and there would be no such coincidence.
His colleague was in a wheelchair and was injured for some unknown reason, but judging from his mental state, he seemed to be in good spirits and it was definitely not a lifelong disability.
He bought a bracelet, an extremely expensive one that Matsuda Jinpei couldn't afford even if he went bankrupt.
Then... I gave it to China.
Matsuda Jinpei wasn't so shallow as to speculate about love. Furuya and Morofushi were clearly on a special mission, and it's very likely they joined the Public Security Bureau and became undercover agents. Knowing all this, the truth behind the bracelet appearing on Chinatsu's wrist became quite clear...
hiss--
So, did Furuya and Morofuku infiltrate an organization?
And it just so happens that it's the organization that China belongs to?
Matsuda Jinpei was somewhat relieved that he hadn't finished speaking. He did trust Chika and believed that Chika wouldn't betray his undercover identity, but not exposing Furuya and Morofushi's identities was a matter of principle. If Chika found out on her own, there was nothing he could do, but he couldn't let him say it.
Wait, hasn't he told Hagi about Furuya and Morobuchi yet?
Matsuda Jinpei touched his nose guiltily. He had been busy dealing with China's matter these past few days and had forgotten about it for a while.
Lost in thought, Matsuda Jinpei naturally stepped into the moonlight.
A deep purple moon hung in the sky, like a captivating eye, silently gazing down upon everything.
Everything around him fell silent, and the presence of human beings seemed to be shut out. Matsuda Jinpei walked forward step by step, and after passing through the desolation, he finally came to a small house.
He was not alarmed and went over to open the door with practiced ease, where he saw Elio sitting around the stove brewing tea.
"Could you have told me in advance? It's scary to suddenly change the scene." Matsuda Jinpei sat down opposite Eriol.
"But I don't see that you were scared."
Matsuda Jinpei pursed his lips, took out the earrings and handed them to Eriol, quietly watching Eriol pour the water from the jug onto them.
That wasn't tea.
The liquid had a faint golden hue, as if flowing gold was quietly submerging the earrings, and then being absorbed by the green gemstones on the earrings. The green became even more translucent, and even sparkled.
How eerie.
No matter how many times he watched it, Matsuda Jinpei still felt something was off.
After the Angel Crisis, when Chinatsu was away, Kenji Hagiwara contacted him and told him about what happened abroad.
China's mission failed.
No, to be precise, the mission was successful, but the plan failed.
They had planned to fake Sophie's death, and Chinatsu was about to do so as well, but Sophie died in the fire first. This kind of regret caused by a twist of fate seemed very abnormal to Kenji Hagiwara.
Chinatsu's luck seemed to have failed her.
Kenji Hagiwara is a bound spirit and cannot wander around. Fortunately, Jinpei Matsuda has obtained Eriol's contact information and successfully made contact with him.
Just like Takanashi Yuki, Eriol came to the same conclusion.
She either encountered a more powerful magician or someone who was born lucky. As long as that kind of luck exceeded that of Takanashi Chinatsu, the curse of luck on her body would naturally have no effect.
Curses have their limits, a fact that both Eriol and Takanashi Yuuki are well aware of.
To prevent the same thing from happening again, Matsuda Jinpei sought help from Eriol.
However, Chinatsu Takanashi already has a curse that grants her good fortune. Magic with the same effect cannot be stacked, and the curse has been with her for many years, making it more compatible with her than any other magic. Even if Eriol casts a spell himself, he cannot make her luckier.
But besides magic, there are also magical items.
Elliot rarely brewed magical potions, and he used them to nourish the earrings again and again, turning the tsavorite earring into an item that could enhance one's luck.
Everything in this world is in balance: good and evil are in balance, energy is in balance, and luck and misfortune are naturally in balance as well.
To this end, Matsuda Jinpei connected the energy of the earring to himself.
Chinatsu will always be lucky, and bad luck will gradually be transferred to him. However, he doesn't need to worry too much. The earring will only work when Chinatsu's luck is suppressed. On ordinary days, the curse of luck will still be in effect.
This is a guarantee.
If the person who suppressed China's luck reappears, China will have even more energy to deal with it.
“If it were up to me, I wouldn’t choose you to link to it.” Watching the earring absorb the liquid, Elio picked up the earring and said calmly to Matsuda Jinpei.
"Why?"
"You also have a curse on you, do you know that?"
Matsuda Jinpei knew it was a deadly curse, but seeing Hagiwara Kenji grow stronger and stronger, and perhaps soon appearing before him without the power of the rhinoceros horn, he felt it was all worth it.
Will this conflict with this?
Elio shook his head and simply said, "Aren't you worried about becoming even more unfortunate? Perhaps you could have avoided death, but after the link is established, death will arrive as scheduled, without giving you a chance to breathe."
Matsuda Jinpei sneered. Would he be afraid of that?
If he were afraid of dying, he wouldn't have become a policeman.
"China needs me." Matsuda Jinpei's tone was resolute. He didn't care about death or anything else. If he couldn't even protect the people around him, what was the point of living?
Elio gave Matsuda Jinpei a deep look, placed the Tsavorite gem earring in his palm, and then used magic to link him to the earring.
“From now on, you will be her protector,” Elio said solemnly.
Matsuda Jinpei seemed to choke on his own saliva, his hand suddenly tightening as he gripped his earring and coughed violently, hastily retorting, "What nonsense are you talking about? Don't be so ambiguous. I'm a policeman, protecting citizens is my duty." His ears and cheeks were burning hot.
"Guardians" and such...
That's too ambiguous and unclear!
Chika is so young, she's only just come of age, she...
"Police are the guardians of citizens, and they can also be the guardians of Chizuru, right? Is that so ambiguous? I'm not the one who's thinking dirty thoughts," Elio teased.
Matsuda Jinpei, enraged and embarrassed, glared at him fiercely.
Elio, however, was not afraid. His smile did not fade; instead, it became even brighter.
Seeing the mockery in Eriol's eyes, Matsuda Jinpei quickly lowered his head again, cursing inwardly.
Have they all gone mad? Hagi is like this, Furuya is like this, and Eriol is like this too. He was just giving away a pair of earrings, not a ring!
Even after leaving the magical space created by Eriol, Matsuda Jinpei was still muttering to himself, "What nonsense! None of them have pure intentions."
As the morning sun rose as expected, Takanashi Chinatsu went to school seemingly obediently, but in reality, she submitted her leave of absence application as soon as she arrived at school. Then, she stepped out of the school gate and happily went to the organization's training ground on roller skates.
Some were boxing, some were shooting, but the training ground remained as boring as ever.
As Chika Takanashi passed by the codenamed members, she saw Scotland fighting Rye from afar, while Bourbon watched from the sidelines in a wheelchair.
It's common for subordinates to spar, but when China saw the two of them, their faces were already turning pale and red.
How could you put it on my face!
Just as Takanashi Chika was startled, Rae punched Scotland in the face, and Scotland took the opportunity to punch Rae in the stomach.
This doesn't make sense!
What kind of fighting style is this, trading injury for injury?
Takanashi Chinatsu immediately realized that the two were not having a normal sparring match; it looked like they were settling a personal score.
"Stop!" As the roller skates came to a stop, Chinatsu Takanashi immediately shouted to stop them.
Ray instinctively looked in China's direction, and immediately withdrew his punch.
The punch that was supposed to miss landed squarely on Scotland's shoulder. Scotland grunted and fell backward heavily to the ground.
Ray looked at his fist with a blank expression.
"Scotland!" Takanashi Chinatsu hurriedly went to check on the situation in Scotland.
Although Scotland's face was bruised and swollen, it still couldn't hide his handsome features. In particular, his clear blue eyes were slightly dazed, and the blood that had spilled from the corner of his mouth stained his lips, making them look unusually delicate.
“No…it’s none of your business.” Scotland subconsciously turned his head away and said in a low voice, “It’s because I wasn’t good enough that I couldn’t win.”
"Ray, I already told them to stop!" Ray glared angrily at Scotland.
Ray shrugged and said, "I held back, and even a harder punch didn't knock him down, but he's lying on the ground now. What do you think is the reason?"
Chizuru looked at Scotland with suspicion.
Scotland smiled weakly and said, "Sorry, I got distracted when I saw you."
"I should apologize," Takanashi Chinatsu sighed. She'd really come at the worst possible time.
Scotland was in good health. He wiped the blood from his lips with his finger, stood up, and walked to the side with a smile.
"Where are you going?" Takanashi Chinatsu asked, puzzled. Why did you suddenly leave?
Just as she was feeling bewildered, she saw Scotland walk back, carrying a beautifully wrapped candy box tied with a green bow.
"Here you go, it's hot in summer, I made some mints."
"Thank you." Takanashi Chika took the box, but noticed the scar on his finger.
Scotland seemed to have noticed as well, and immediately curled its fingers in an attempt to cover it up.
"What happened to the injury on your hand?" Takanashi Chinatsu grabbed his hand to stop him from pulling away.
Ray's expression changed slightly, and his gaze towards Scotland became strange.
Scotland glanced up at Rye, then quickly looked away.
"Lai did this?" Takanashi Chinatsu immediately looked at Lai reproachfully.
Ray immediately raised his hands in surrender and quickly explained, "It wasn't me, we didn't use knives in our sparring."
“Yesterday, Ray wanted to bring his girlfriend a watermelon and hoped I could carve some flowers for her. But my skills aren’t up to par; I’m not very good at carving.” The Scottish man spoke in a gentle tone.
Chinatsuka Takanashi immediately glared at Rai again. How else can you argue? Sending a watermelon to your girlfriend and having Scotland carve it for you—that's blatant workplace bullying!
Lei was amused and said, "Scotland, yesterday you deliberately tried to show off your skills in front of me by offering to help with the carving."
“Yes, it was my choice.” Scotland clenched his injured fingers, his voice so soft it was almost inaudible: “After returning from the mission abroad, Ray has become a completely different person…”
Takanashi Chika couldn't hear the very faint trailing syllable, but she already understood the current situation.
Overall, when Lai went abroad with her on missions, his status and the degree of trust he received greatly improved, naturally making him a superior person upon returning home.
Bourbon was still in a wheelchair, and Scotland was the only person Rye could bully. If he said something pointed, Scotland would naturally not dare to disobey.
Such "proactive" behavior is heartbreaking to hear.
Chinatsu Takanashi gave Rai a disapproving look.
Although she knew the FBI would definitely look down on people in the organization, at least Bourbon and Scotland were her people. Even if they didn't care about the FBI, couldn't Rye bully other people if she wanted to? There were so many codenamed members in the organization, why was she only bullying her own people?
"I didn't have any black cherries," Lei said, unable to defend himself.
Scotland gently tugged at Chizuru Kotori's sleeve and whispered, "It was my initiative." Then she gave Rae a meaningful look.
presumptuous!
Takanashi Chika was practically glaring at Rai this time. How could she not tell who was right and who was wrong? Scottish was such a gentle person, cooked so well, and even specially made candy for her, cutting his fingers while carving the intricate designs. What could he have done wrong? It's impossible for someone to deliberately cut their own finger just to act!
Moreover, Rye is an FBI agent, and it's impossible for him to try to unite his colleagues within the FBI organization.
Just as Ray was speechless, Bourbon maneuvered his wheelchair to him.
Ray raised an eyebrow and met Bourbon's shrinking gaze.
A trembling...gaze?
Wait, when has Bourbon ever been this afraid of him?
A sense of foreboding suddenly welled up in Ray's heart.
Sure enough, the next second Bourbon cautiously asked, "Could you be a little gentler?"
With a "whoosh," Takanashi Chika's gaze fixed on Rai.
Ray, however, seemed to be pinned down by a knife, frozen in place, completely motionless.
"You still want to fight him?" Takanashi Chika was so angry she laughed.
"I didn't..."
“My injury is almost healed, it’s time for reconstruction,” Bourbon said softly, head down.
Takanashi Chika looked at Rai with a half-smile. Was this how Rai pressured Bourbon?
“I hope you understand one thing, Lei, we are one country!” Takanashi Chinatsu emphasized the word “one country”.
Go and cause trouble for others!
Over the years, Chinatsu Takanashi has also been causing trouble for others. Not to mention Rum, even Gin was severely harmed by her before she knew the truth. She doesn't mind Ray harming the people in the organization at all, and it would be best if she killed them all and ruined the organization.
But not Bourbon and Scotland!
These two people are capable and loyal, and they were both given to her by her own brother. In the future, they will be able to help her withstand the pressure and overthrow the organization.
"They forbid you from moving, do you understand?" Takanashi Chinatsu emphasized again, glaring at him fiercely.
Ray remained unmoved, continuing to look at her with an expression of "caring for the mentally challenged."
"Can you smell the tea? Black cherry." Lei's tone was icy.
Tea flavor? Takanashi Chika subconsciously looked at Bourbon and Scotland, both of whom were staring at her innocently.
Does Ray mean that he was outmaneuvered by Bourbon and Scotland?
As for Scotland... although he's a good cook, he's a very gentle person. When it comes to tea, flirting, or scheming, he's definitely no match for Rye. After all, Rye is an elite undercover agent handpicked by the FBI, and the FBI wouldn't have sent him over if he didn't have some cunning.
As for Bourbon... Bourbon is indeed a manipulative woman, and last night he even gave her a gift and tried to win her favor by playing the victim, so his statement just now might have been an act.
But he is now physically disabled but determined...
A sinister laugh suddenly came from the side. Gin glanced at Lei and said in a cold tone, "Black Cherry, your dog seems to be very disobedient."
He didn't even glance at Bourbon and Scotland; his malice, even hostility, was entirely focused on Ray.
Takanashi Yuki instantly realized that her brother wouldn't lie to her; it was Rae who was lying after all.
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Author's note: When I opened it, the sky fell down! Oh no, I forgot to update!
Make sure to mark it before today ends.
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