Chapter 221: A Conversation with the "Past"...
[Anti-fraud expert #66: So, number 234 does exist, right?]
Of course, I assumed you had given it enough thought while you were in the spacetime rift. Otherwise, you wouldn't have accepted what I just said so quickly, would you?
[Anti-Fraud Expert #66: Indeed, there are some. After all, when I was initially "stuck" in this situation, I felt something was off. So, after removing unnecessary distractions, I decided to revisit our past time-travel experiences to find some clues, and I did discover some discrepancies. However, because of the collective memories of the Anti-Fraud Experts corroborating each other, my analysis process encountered some contradictions, until now, your answer has provided a solution.]
So, did No. 234 actually manage to leave something behind in the spacetime gap?
[Anti-fraud expert #66: Do you think this is a warehouse? = = Keep whatever you want here. To prove the existence of #234, the conditions just mentioned are enough.]
Too.
By the way, why are you the only one talking to me? Where is everyone else? Have they been left behind in the past again?
[Anti-Fraud Guru #66: Yes, you haven't forgotten how fate weakened you after you traveled through time, have you? Last time they didn't let us come along, and this time it's probably going to be even worse. Like that cognitive invasion you just experienced, once you truly abandon your original identity, the consequences will likely be quite severe.]
Even now that things have come to this, is fate still unwilling to let me go? I think it doesn't want something like "going back upstream" to happen either.
[Anti-fraud expert #66: Of course, the premise is that it has to be aware of this. Unfortunately, from an instinctive standpoint, if you go against fate and are tainted by our influence, you're basically already on its front row blacklist.]
I already knew about this, so there's no need to remind me. However, I hope you take care of yourself. After all, after I spent time alone with Number 234 last time, he was eliminated in order to bring the secret out.
[Anti-fraud expert #66: Of course I understand. I've basically never seen anyone like him, or like you, who plans their demise in advance. Even if I were to pass on a secret, I'd use other methods. We just need to control our own thoughts... At worst, I'll cast a divination for you before each of our operations. You know I'm very accurate at this kind of divination.]
Okay, master, I believe you.
They stopped discussing the topic in depth and focused on the current situation. They needed to figure out where things were going before they could intervene.
[Anti-Fraudster No. 66: I've already browsed through the information here. Through the ongoing murder news reports, we can roughly understand Shinichi Kudo and his team's movements. It hasn't been long since you left, but the cases they've encountered are becoming increasingly connected to the organization. I'll go check the intelligence team's classified archives first… Hmm, you take a look at this first.]
Then, a long string of information appeared in his mind.
After reading it, he discovered that it was actually some memory fragments left behind by his own corpse. However, these fragments were neither coherent nor clear, and most of them were scene changes derived from the analysis of limb reactions and injury data.
That's true. Ever since returning from Nagano, Number 234 has been unable to control this body for him, and the accompanying memory benefits are naturally gone.
Checking this simple information didn't take long, because he discovered that the intelligent AI robot, Hase Butler, had arrived at Nagano Station in time, preventing Midorikawa Osamu from being taken to the local police station morgue as a corpse. Then, citing poor health, it took a long sick leave, ensuring that no matter what case occurred, the corpse wasn't allowed to wander around even once more.
Well done! As expected of a robot modeled after an anti-fraud army, this great move has saved everyone's worldview!
He couldn't even imagine what a terrible scene it would be if Komei and Zero discovered that Midorikawa Osamu's body was actually the remains of Morofushi Kagemitsu that should have been buried long ago.
[Anti-Fraud Guru No. 66: Then fate probably wishes it could automatically reverse course—if it had the will to do so.]
Thankfully, Akiyama Nao didn't destroy Hase's butler.
[Anti-Fraud Master No. 66: It's on standby in the living room right now. If you want to call it, just open the door and shout... Wait, things aren't going well on the organization's end. Let me see if I can use some tricks to get you some extra help. You go ahead and take care of your business...]
Good luck!
Zhu Fujingguang let No. 66 do it.
After reviewing his memories, he took out his phone from the bedside table and began looking through his call logs from the past few days. If Midorikawa Osamu didn't go out, he'd probably have to rely on his phone to maintain contact with the outside world.
Then, he looked at the screen full of work groups and twitched his lips. He even wondered if it was because he had been working so hard to meet the work deadline recently that the butler, Hasegawa, who had taken on the mission of anti-fraud, had misunderstood something.
Then, his suspicious gaze fell on a group called “Those Years We Still Don’t Understand… (5)”. The other four groups had nicknames that looked very familiar.
Why would they have such a group? Could it be that their identities have been discovered?!
His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly opened the chat history to check if anything was amiss. However, before he could even flip through a few pages, he was interrupted by a sudden pop-up window:
"Beep beep—"
His phone rang; a call was coming in.
However, the caller ID showed Vermouth.
Um?
Zhu Fujingguang immediately frowned.
No, Midorikawa Osamu's identity has no connection with Vermouth of the organization. Even during the Kir robbery incident, which was very close, he had no contact with this woman. Why would she call him?
[Anti-fraud expert #66: This frequency is so confusing, it's like right and wrong intertwined. That's how #205 taught me before... Ah, finally it's a bit more stable...]
What? Was there really something wrong with that phone call?!
[Anti-fraud expert #66: Hmm... everything's fine now. This is the backup I got for you. Your phone can now connect to the future and the past. However, maintaining this connection requires energy. To ensure we have enough energy to stop the retrogression at the last moment, use it sparingly.]
After saying that, he visualized the energy cans they had accumulated over the past few days in his mind, reminding him that he needed to pay his "phone bill" next.
[Anti-Fraud Guru #66: Oh, and this too, some analysis about the organization, take a look.]
Morobuchi Kagemitsu cautiously answered the call.
"Scotland, why did it take you so long to answer the phone? Did I accidentally hang up on you just now?" Vermouth's voice came from the other end of the line, her familiar tone clearly indicating it was the same Vermouth from before.
"How could that be? I was just replying to an important message and didn't have time to think about it."
Morofushi Kagemitsu casually made up an excuse and deliberately steered the matter toward the organization's boss to prevent her from asking any more questions—after all, he had received quite a few orders from the boss these past few days.
"...Okay, so why did you contact me in such a hurry? Is there something wrong?" Vermouth didn't ask any more questions and, unusually, went straight to the point.
Morofushi Kagemitsu briefly recalled why he had called Vermouth before his transmigration and said, "It was about those laboratories in the organization."
“…Oh? So after taking over the logistics and transportation network of the Japanese laboratory, you’re now eyeing the United States?” Vermouth smiled. She never underestimated this man’s ambition, but she didn’t expect him to reach out so quickly. “You’re a bit too impatient.”
Looking at the burning 'phone credit', Morofushi Kagemitsu didn't continue arguing with her about such a trivial matter and directly stated his request: "I received intelligence that can be said to concern the 'survival' of the organization, especially regarding the laboratory section."
He got straight to the point, silencing the previously relaxed Vermouth. After a full two seconds, some sounds came from the other end of the phone.
Vermouth lowered her voice and asked, "Scotland, do you know what you're saying? Don't think you can do whatever you want just because you're currently favored by the boss..."
“I think you should have guessed my identity by now, just like you guessed Ray’s identity.” Morofushi Hiromitsu also lowered his voice in response. His eyes flashed over the organization’s progress analysis that No. 66 had just compiled for him, and he said, “You should know that Sherry is researching the ‘Silver Bullet,’ and you should also know that the organization will never give up its plans that have been in place for so many years.”
"..." A longer silence followed. Vermouth probably hadn't expected that his investigation into the organization's secrets had reached this point.
"What...do you plan to do with the lab?" she finally asked.
"It's hard to say about the outer perimeter, but the core part definitely needs to be destroyed," Morofushi Kagemitsu affirmed.
Given the behavior of those at the top, there's no way to expect them to act on their own initiative. Neither he nor Zero have the power to stop these people from taking away such enormous profits. The only option is to expand the destruction outward from the top-secret areas, radiating outwards as far as possible.
“…I need the island’s core code.” Vermouth paused, then said, “Without knowing how to crack it, once this thing is viewed, it will trigger an alarm and generate a completely new program. Fortunately, I know how to use it to activate the self-destruct program. But…the prerequisite is that you can get your hands on it.”
[Anti-Fraud Guru #66: Ah, so this was a prop left for Vermouth...]
"I'll figure something out." Morofushi Kagemitsu agreed without hesitation. He needed to quickly confirm the location of the initial laboratory, "the underground laboratory I visited that day..."
"The security level there isn't really up to the classified level, but it's only symbolic as the initial experimental site," Vermouth said. "If you want to destroy it, I can arrange it."
“…Then I’ll leave it to you.” Morofushi Kagemitsu hesitated for a moment, just in case, it would be better to destroy that kind of place.
“Okay, I look forward to your performance~” Vermouth returned to her usual tone, “By the way, just a little reminder, there’s been a static noise on your end.”
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