Chapter 26 Brass Bell It’s time to show the true art of tea
Vermouth has golden hair that falls on her shoulders like a waterfall, flowing in the light and shadow of the brass clock. The luster is soft, but it is slightly tinged with a sense of alienation.
The actress with many faces is dedicated to her job and even her hair is working hard to act. At this moment, she may be playing the role of a "gentle and intellectual big sister", but it's a pity that the aura in her eyes has not been completely removed.
She was wearing a simple blue silk shirt with a low neckline, revealing her delicate, beautiful and charming collarbone.
Crafted by the Black Organization's high-end custom workshop, the collar height is meticulously calculated... an inch more and it looks like a woman in a specialized profession, an inch less and it resembles workwear. This elusive, almost invisible quality is truly a life-threatening one.
I don’t know if he spent several hours picking out clothes before coming, or if the food in the Black Organization is so good that he actually raised such a “deadly weapon”.
The curvature of the clavicle is like a work of art carefully polished by a Renaissance sculptor.
The charm she exudes in her every gesture reminds people of the fatally attractive actresses in the golden age of Hollywood.
The curvature of the lip corners can be measured with a vernier caliper. One degree more will make the person appear dissolute, and one degree less will make the person appear murderous.
Huiyuan looked away and didn't look at her.
I always have a vague feeling in my heart that there is some hidden secret behind what happened in the cafe just now.
Looking sideways, I saw that, unlike the doctor's science and engineering background, there was an exquisite Ukiyo-e hanging on the wall, depicting the magnificent scenery of Yoshiwara Park. The painting style was rich in ink and color, with a sense of luxury.
When a scientist gets into a sultry mood, even Kaito Kidd would be in awe. When did the doctor learn the Black Organization's decorating taste? Could this ukiyoe painting contain the formula for APTX4869? Or perhaps a floor plan for the next bombing?
When Huibara saw this exquisite painting for the first time, she was a little surprised that the doctor would collect such a painting and hang it in the restaurant so casually.
Contrasting cuteness...?
At that moment, Huiyuan's pupils, which had just shrunk, trembled for three seconds, and her inner barrage of comments filled the screen: "Can looking at pictures of prostitutes during dinner help digestion?"
Is this a mix-and-match style? A PhD in science and engineering versus a collection of literary ukiyo-e paintings or something.
In the picture, the geishas, each dressed in gorgeous clothes, are playing the piano, pouring wine, or smiling with their brows lowered, just like the scene of singing and dancing in the Edo period in "The Good Doctor".
A closer look at the pouring gesture reveals an almond-flavored liquid. A faint smile and lowered brows reveal a poison-tipped hairpin hidden within her sleeve... Perhaps this painting is from a team-building photo?
A closer look at the teardrop mole at the corner of the third geisha's eye reveals that she actually looks a lot like a cross-dressing master.
But if you look closely, the eyes and eyebrows of these characters do not reflect the joy of the romantic world, but are instead wrapped in a hint of eerie coldness.
After all, how many happy moments does a courtesan like Yefeng have?
At this moment, Huibara looked at the painting as if she was looking in a mirror. Two women, abandoned by fate, looked at each other across the world.
If you think about it carefully, no matter how popular the courtesans were a hundred years ago, they did not enjoy the same glory and freedom as today's Hollywood actresses.
She has to play Chris, Sharon, and the silver-haired killer at the same time, which is busier than a courtesan changing twelve pieces of clothing.
Yesterday, she was still drinking and partying at Beverly Hills, and today she flew to Tokyo and met a 7-year-old elementary school student by chance.
The Hollywood press release, on the surface, says "charity event", but in reality it is "APTX4869 victim observation notes".
But the female star had her slender fingers resting on her lips, as if she was thinking about something.
In the room, time seemed like a prolonged torture, except for the old brass mechanical clock on the wall, which was still ticking steadily.
In the Conan universe, time is the most bizarre thing... Some people are abandoned by time, some are hunted by time, and these two are brewing lily wine in time.
In the clash of ice and fire, who will melt first? No one knows... From the very beginning, this contest was perhaps destined to have no winner and no way out.
"You don't mind me smoking, right? After all, you... are an adult." Vermouth finally spoke, her voice like a stretched double bass string, very magnetic.
You're asking despite knowing the answer. The soul of nineteen-year-old Miyano Shiho resides in Haibara's seven-year-old body, but biologically, she's still a child.
At this moment, Huiyuan might be silently calculating in her mind: Will nicotine intake affect the cell activation process?
Although Huiyuan's mental age is considered adult, will this shrunken body and exposure to secondhand smoke have any health effects? Well, this is a question that her APTX antidote project can study.
However, to stop a high-level killer in front of you from smoking, well, it is an impossible task no matter how you look at it.
Little do people know that the subtlety of the game of love lies in this balance between reluctance and acceptance.
Vermouth carefully observed Huibara's expression, and then, regardless of how Huibara answered, she reached into her custom-made handbag and took out a signature metal cigarette case that was exquisitely crafted and obviously made by a master craftsman from somewhere who had spent dozens of days working hard to make it. She then took out a cigarette.
Using custom handmade models, or perhaps the real purpose is not the wine, but the romance of the actress.
The moment her thumb lightly flicked open the lighter cover, the flicker of fire flickered for a second in her blue-green pupils before being swallowed up.
"Forget it. You have the body of a child now after all. It's not good to smoke in front of a child. My Ai-chan."
The voice was light and floating, and as he spoke, he admired the expression on Huibara's little face.
But, would a senior member of the Black Organization, who is known for his ruthlessness and decisiveness, mind smoking in front of an elementary school student?
Could it be that he said he wanted to smoke just to tease the children?
Vermouth's slender fingers tapped lightly on the table.
At this moment, no one could tell whether that voice contained the secret code commonly used by the organization.
Huibara listened carefully for a while. Although the knocking sound had a special rhythm, he could not hear any special message.
She sighed inwardly. Not all tapping rhythms in this world contain the secrets of Morse code.
Even though this is the safest city in the world and there is a detective who graduated from a technical school in Hawaii stationed here... Beika Town.
The elementary school student who attracts cases wherever he goes seems to have his own magnetic field. Even supermarket discount flyers can be interpreted as threatening letters after he appears.
However, not every fishing line in this world is used to build an exquisite secret room.
Real murderers are sometimes very simple and brutal, they just act on impulse and chop people with an axe.
There wasn't even an axe handy, so just an ashtray or something.
This rice krispie, and not every piece of dessert with the aroma of almonds, is mixed with deadly cyanide.
Otherwise, more than a dozen dessert chefs at Quanmihua might be forced to call the police to prove their innocence: How come my ancestral almond recipe became evidence in a serial murder case when it came to you?
After all, whether it's a coffee shop or a bakery, they need to make a living. (Except for Café Poirot, Toru Amuro's source of funding is unknown.)
Beika Town, this land, is not a miniature landscape revolving around Edogawa Conan solving cases, but a stage for imaginary reasoning.
The residents of Beika Town, ordinary people who work hard all day, also have their own life trajectories and experience real, daily joys and sorrows.
It is definitely not the soulless background board in the drama called "Edogawa Case Files".
This land has its own pulse and breath.
And right before his eyes, even the top killer of the winery, the beautiful female member in a high position, sometimes tapped the table with their knuckles. Perhaps it was just a simple habitual action, without any other meaning.
In this world, no one can devote all 24 hours of a day to the hamster cycle of "committing crimes" or "solving crimes".
Even detectives and criminals have a daily life and have to live their lives. This is inevitable in human nature.
The Black Organization is not the Metropolitan Police Department and will not pay overtime by the hour.
Of course, Edogawa Conan, who regards reasoning as his lifelong pursuit, does not include the mobile crime scene and the humanoid self-propelled alarm.
Haibara's gaze stayed on Vermouth's slender fingers that could hold a gun or... do evil things. Suddenly, she had a thought. Although she couldn't hear any Morse code, could the rhythm of the tapping contain some secret code that only senior personnel within the organization could understand?
But on Vermouth's exquisite and beautiful face, the smile became more and more intense, and her eyes moved around, looking at Haibara carefully.
Many years ago, had she also been looking at the Miyano couple's laboratory like this?
The love and hate of the immortals are like aged poison: the older they are, the stronger their taste becomes. (Translation: I've lived half a century just to soak you.)
But, how could this be the look one gives to a traitor to the organization?
It could be an artist in Beverly Hills, contemplating his beloved sculpture. Bayley's OS: This generation of cute figurines has become spirits and is also doing scientific research. So cute. (Tactical retreat)
Ms. Chris Wynyard, using Oscar-level eye attacks on a scientist with a seven-year-old body, needs to be careful not to be outmaneuvered.
You must know that this Q-version sculpture artwork is poisoned by APTX4869.
Vermouth's voice lowered, like a piano solo that belonged only to the two of them, gentle, but with hidden eddies.
"As for the attention you mentioned? Of course I am paying attention to you, Shirley."
The topic returned to the beginning when Huibara secretly said that she cared about him.
Vermouth speaks in her own rhythm and will never be led astray by others.
"After all, we have such...special memories between us, don't we?"
The blonde foreign actress actually used the subtle and ambiguous expression unique to neon gold. The ending tone was wrapped in unclear ambiguity, like a string plucked on a shamisen, the lingering sound tightened the atmosphere between the two people.
Q: What is the most likely "special memory" for Miss Bayonet?
A. Tie Shirley's hair into two pigtails and apply lab stickers;
B. Playing dress-up in the dressing room, causing blushing;
C. Rooftop gunfight turns into flirting;
D. Bourbon was cleaning his gun outside the laboratory door, while she and Shiho were cleaning their guns inside and the gun went off accidentally.
E. It cannot be said. It cannot be said at all.
After becoming smaller, the people and things that used to make Huiyuan feel moved are now just like flowers seen through a layer of fog, vague and very far away.
Of course, she would occasionally spend some time on high-end jewelry, which can sometimes be considered works of art. After all, everyone has to have some hobbies, and in Neon, many people like to collect.
It’s like those cute elementary school students from the detective team who collect Kamen Rider peripherals. They have to have at least three types of collections: for appreciation, for collection, and for teaching. None of them can be missing.
However, apart from these emotionless objects, Huibara tries not to think about people.
This may be self-protection, but it may also be a form of alienation.
I thought the memory of the first encounter between the blonde actress and the tawny-haired girl had vanished in the mist of memory, no longer faintly warming my heart.
Huibara's gaze gently moved back to the room and fell on Vermouth... Sealing the memory of that night in New York, she restrained her gaze, trying not to reveal any emotion.
But at the moment when he tried to seal the memory, a very faint emotion appeared in his eyes.
Then, Vermouth, who was full of human wisdom, still caught it keenly.
The duel between the two top minds "produced by the organization" is a battle of swords and sabers under a microscope.
When it comes to poker faces, Miss Wynyard, ma'am, is a professional, just like an experienced gambler who never reveals his cards.
But he can always catch the free molecules in the air and the truth that ordinary people ignore.
Max out your air reading skills.
"Unfinished complex"... These words suddenly circled in Huibara's mind, circling and refusing to go away.
At first glance, he is obviously a tough guy who has studied 300 pages of Freud's psychology.
Perhaps, everything that woman Vermouth did was just because she was unwilling to accept it.
I am unwilling to let that unfinished... emotion, a one-time encounter, or the absurdity of that night, remain incomplete like this.
Or maybe... she, Vermouth, couldn't stand loneliness.
As a shining actress in Hollywood and a senior member of the Black Organization, there are only a handful of people who can make her open her heart and speak a few true words to him.
Translation: The only person Vermouth can talk to in this dark organization is Shirley.
From Haibara's perspective, Vermouth's character is no longer a "fox spirit" but a "lonely fox spirit".
At least, Haibara remembered clearly that Vermouth had no friends in the organization.
On the outside, he looks bright and glamorous, but on the inside, he is a lone wolf wandering between the spotlight and the gunfire.
Q: Why does Haibara repeatedly analyze Vermouth?
A. Because she is a rational genius girl, she must understand her opponent's psychology (hard-talking love-brained)
B. Because I haven't connected with the past since "that ridiculous night" and it's still replaying in my mind (nostalgia-killing love brain)
C. Because she wanted to give herself a "scientific reason" to openly think about Vermouth (excuse-based love brain)
D. Because she really, really, really... just cared about a lonely woman (the love-brained type who is tough on the outside but soft on the inside)
Vermouth stood up and examined the photo frames on the wall. Most of them were photos of Professor Agasa and the members of the Junior Detective League outings. It was the typical social Professor Niu Za's extended family style.
Classic segment: Inspecting the enemy situation (crossed out) my wife’s home.
The actress with many faces strolls around the place, just like inspecting her own backyard.
Her gaze stopped at a photo of Huiyuan standing a little further away from the crowd, her expression as cautious as ever, a perpetual sense of distance and self-protection.
Accurately capture a wild gray original.
Sister Bei’s OS: Let me see where my little cat is so beautiful all by itself.
Isn't this the feeling of falling in love at first sight in a crowd? (Although the atmosphere is a bit subtle) The classic setting of a small animal-like beauty is both aloof and pitiful.
A heroine chosen by heaven to stay away from others, a top star in the social anxiety world. A heroine who stands out from the crowd.
Someone: Do it tonight.
I've started to "invade" Ai-chan's personal space. It feels like I'm spying on my wife's social media updates.
"You never smile in photos," Vermouth commented.
The killer question. What's this new pick-up line? "Beautiful girl, why aren't you smiling?" (Crock-and-dump warning)
73 Old Thief: I designed it. Vermouth: I asked. Ai: I don't want to laugh.
Subtext: "Give me a smile?" (Thick fog)
"I will laugh when there is something worth laughing about." Huiyuan said coldly, and the standard answer template was loaded.
A textbook example of tsundere. Ai's inner thoughts: "Hmph, what do you care? What's your business whether I laugh or not? (Tsundere max)" (very loud)
Translation: I have a high sense of humour, unlike some people who act out their roles all the time. I'm in a state of dramatic acting and can't stop.
Quotes from Social Anxiety Disorder Vol.1: It’s not that I don’t laugh, it’s that no one deserves my laughter.
It wasn't that she didn't smile, it was that she hadn't met someone who could make her let down her guard. Unfortunately, that person was her enemy.
But, while she said she was cool, she might actually be thinking: If you flirt with me again, I'll really break down. How can this woman be so skilled?
"Like, puzzles? Or chemistry problems?" Vermouth leaned in closer. "Or does Miyano Shiho only laugh because she enjoys the thrill of the chase?"
Physical distance -1, psychological distance -100 (?)
Bayonetta activates her "Stick" skill. It's incredibly effective. Ai-chan is in danger.
"In my spare time, I naturally have my own hobbies."
Ai-chan: My hobby is “how to make Belmode cry gracefully” (fog
Gao Leng Ai continues to be online, and it’s a bit hard to seduce Sister Bei.
Vermouth narrowed her eyes and smiled, no longer dwelling on this topic. Anyway, her purpose of diverting the topic from Miyano Akemi had been achieved.
She turned around, poured more tea for herself, and hummed a tuneless melody. This ordinary action was a bit unpleasant to Huiyuan.
Sister Bei: Take the initiative, don’t be too bad at basic operations.
Ai-chan's perspective: "Why is this woman so familiar?" (Inner comments are crazy)
When a female killer starts humming a song, it means she is in a good mood today, or someone is about to be in trouble.
"Are you still brewing poison in your spare time?" She leaned against the table, showing off her long legs and flaming red lips, and asked leisurely.
Still drug A related, a crepe-like question. I feel like the next sentence is, "I want a glass of APTX486 special?" (the kind with ice and no sugar)
"Only for pests," Huibara retorted, setting the cup down gently with a crisp and decisive tinkle. "And for unwanted visitors."
The second round of social anxiety quotes: Anyone who comes uninvited is a pest. But Vermouth seems to have come at her invitation.
"Ouch." Vermouth pretended to be injured, giving an Oscar-level performance, covering her chest with her hands.
The implication is: Miyano Shiho, your verbal attacks have already severely damaged the female agent's heart.
The actress is online. With Sister Bay's acting skills and the tea master's proficiency, it's obvious that she is a thousand-layer mask.
Japanese society emphasizes "reading the air". Did Bayonetta deliberately not read it, or did she read it just to tease the kitten?
Faced with Ai-chan's "threat" to use poison to deal with unwanted visitors, what is the most likely inner thought of the battle-hardened Vermouth?
A. "It's over, it's over! She's going to poison me. Today is the anniversary of my death." (She's panicking inside, but appears as calm as a queen)
B. "It's just a small scene. Back when I was organizing the bloody storm, this little verbal threat was nothing." (The actress's calmness)
C. "Oh? Kitty's being tsundere again. I'm afraid this poison is a 'welcome drink' with added sugar?" (I got it, I got it)
D. "Tell me more, I love it. Roses with thorns are the real deal." (Masochistic personality awakening?)
I'll vote for C first. After all, this actress has seen it all. She must be enjoying this kind of interesting (? ) interaction.
"I thought we had established a little consensus because of today's treasure hunt. You hurt me, little scientist."
She turned, her gaze suddenly sharpening. This was the true face of the Thousand Faces Queen. The pity was over, and she started to get serious. "Or, seeing me, you reluctantly thought of... New York?"
Haibara froze, memories of eighteen-year-old Miyano Shiho suddenly flooding back into her mind: the smell of the luxury apartment, Vermouth's laughter, and other emotions—fleeting fragility that Shiho mistook for empathy. As Vermouth towered over her, the moonlight shone on the scar on her shoulder. And then, a suffocating emptiness.
Every frame tells a story.
Wounds, kisses, moonlight, emptiness, most likely it's not love, it's a battlefield.
Huiyuan's small hand stopped on the teacup: "That person no longer exists."
——Is he referring to the past Miyano Shiho, or the Vermouth she thought she was?
Ai-chan: Cut it off. It must be cut off. The past is the past.
Classic sad sentence: "I am no longer the person I used to be." (in the physical sense)
Q: What does Vermouth want? She has to mention New York and even bring up all the memories of “Life and Death”?
A. Just for fun, old love and new feelings, all mixed together.
B. For excitement, a cold beauty + a sharp-tongued scientist = love poison.
C. Seeking redemption, after all, she still couldn't get over "that night in New York".
D. What does she want? She wants everything about Miyano Shiho.
"Oh, I think she's just hiding, like one of those clues in a treasure hunt. Right in plain sight." Vermouth leaned on the countertop, too close.
"The question is, who can get to know the real you? The you who is different from the organization's ice princess."
Subtext: Is that me? (Expectant look) Tell me it’s me.
Shirley, stop pretending. I know you're burning with passion. Open up to me. Let me see your little kitty form.
"That was Miyano Shiho. She died in the organization's prison."
Haibara, the one who is the most stubborn.
Outside the window, the rain didn't stop, beating against the window glass, wanting to be let in and heard.
In the warm and comfortable home, Huibara sat elegantly at the dining table, swinging her short legs while talking harshly.
Vermouth, who was arguing with her, leaned lazily in front of her, as elegant as a large cat on the grassland.
Her blonde hair cascaded down her shoulders, and even though they had recently been on a mission at the museum and had been exercising vigorously, her hair remained perfectly styled.
"Really? Because I'm looking at Dr. Miyano right now, except she's a little smaller."
As Vermouth spoke, she picked up the photo frame of the detective team's photo, and her fingers accidentally brushed across Ai-chan's little face in the photo.
"Playing house like a child. So heartwarming and cute."
When the word "warmth" comes out of Sister Bei's mouth, I always feel something is wrong... (shaking)
(Dog head) Isn’t Sister Bay a little jealous that the detective team can accompany Ai-chan every day?
"I didn't play anything." Huiyuan replied briefly: "Also, don't touch my photos."
I'm so pissed off. Don't touch Ai-chan's exclusive items.
Chinese translation: That's mine. Mine. Mine. You are not allowed to touch important things. (In a fierce and aggressive way)
Vermouth carefully put the photo down and smiled at her.
Huibara made a cup of tea, grateful for this moment of distraction.
The tea is boiling, and it's time to show the true art of tea (Ji Yi).
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