-----
-----
"Who are you? Why are you trying to kill me?"
Joseph Obama froze for a moment, then shouted angrily.
Damn.
A knife at his throat and he didn't panic at all. As expected of someone used to big things. Way better than that Jo Murakami guy.
If not for the Organization's orders, Steven might actually have liked to be friends with him.
"Steven."
"You're lying. I've seen Steven's wanted poster. And the Kudo couple are champions of justice. They would never associate with criminals."
Joseph Obama grew emotional, terrified that his idols might suddenly fall from grace.
In his heart, Kudo Yusaku and Yukiko were like gods. With that kind of blind devotion, he naturally believed that their friends could never be criminals.
"I get it now. You're an assassin sent by the Black Organization. You just happened to run into the Kudo couple at the door. You're not really their friend at all."
Poor fanboy. Even at death's door, still making excuses for his idols.
Even Mouri Ran had seen through the disguise, yet Joseph Obama couldn't. Steven had outright revealed his identity and was still doubted. It left him speechless.
What an idiot with unpaid IQ bills. No wonder the Organization wanted him erased.
"Correct. Your reward is a trip to hell."
Steven didn't want to waste time. He needed to get back quickly.
If he stayed too long, Yusaku would definitely sense something was off.
"If I'm going to die, I'll take you with me!"
Knowing escape was impossible, Joseph Obama grabbed the wine bottle on the table and hurled it.
At the same time, Steven's blade sliced open his carotid artery, blood spraying everywhere.
Bang!
The wine bottle smashed against the door.
"Damn it. I underestimated him."
Hearing the noise, Steven immediately realized things were bad.
The room was extremely well soundproofed. Even if Joseph Obama screamed for help, the two bodyguards outside might not hear it.
But a bottle smashing into the door was another matter entirely.
Sure enough, before Steven could put away his knife, a chill ran down his spine.
Sensing danger, he instinctively activated his size-changing skill.
Bang!
Whoosh!
The moment Steven shrank, a gunshot rang out behind him. The bullet flew over his head and punched a hole in the wall.
That was close.
If he hadn't anticipated it in advance, that shot would have gone straight through his heart.
With his full-revive skill, dying wasn't his main concern. Pain, however, definitely was.
The two bodyguards burst into the room, guns raised. Seeing the scene before them, they froze.
A muscular young man nearly six feet tall had instantly turned into a five or six-year-old kid.
It was so absurd their brains completely short-circuited.
Before they could pull the trigger again, Steven pulled out Jodie's small pistol and activated his auto-lock targeting skill. One shot each, clean and effortless.
Then he returned to his original form.
After confirming all three were dead, Steven used the maid outfit on the table to wipe the blade clean and remove fingerprints from the wine glasses he had touched. Making sure no blood had splattered on him, he calmly closed the door and left.
Mission complete. Now to wait for the payout.
…
Meanwhile.
"I really admire your courage. You know Turtle Egg's true identity, yet you still dare to keep him by your side."
"Chris, aren't you worried he might have another agenda?"
Taking advantage of Steven's bathroom escape, Yukiko casually probed.
"Sigh. What choice do I have?"
Vermouth sighed and launched into an award-worthy performance.
Her eyes welled with tears, her face full of helplessness.
"The afternoon we returned from Okinawa, he showed up at my door. He threatened that if I didn't cooperate and let him disguise himself as a servant for a while, he'd set off an explosion somewhere in Tokyo every single day. He even said he'd kidnap me and sell me to a black district as a prostitute."
"To keep me from escaping, he forcibly took my passport. I don't want to help a villain, but you know his personality. If he says it, he'll do it."
"I don't want to become a Black man's plaything. I had no choice but to swallow my pride."
With Vermouth's intelligence, how could she not see through Yukiko's little scheme?
Steven was already a notorious outlaw, the perfect scapegoat. What harm was there in smearing him a bit more?
The key thing was to distance herself from him publicly. She wasn't ready to give up her surface identity yet.
"Why not call the police?" Conan suddenly piped up in a childish tone. "If they arrest him and throw him in jail, wouldn't Sister Chris be safe?"
"Heh." Vermouth couldn't help mocking him. "If the island nation's police were actually useful, Great Detective Mouri Kogoro would've been out of a job ages ago. If they really had the ability to catch that guy, would he still be walking around free?"
At this point, she and Steven weren't just members of the Organization. After spending time together, they'd become something closer to soulmates.
They complemented each other's strengths and weaknesses, growing together.
"But if you don't report him, you'll always be under his thumb," Conan insisted after taking a sip of juice. "That just makes him more arrogant."
He wished he could call the police and have Steven arrested on the spot.
The earlier rape-murder case had its doubts, but the bombing was an undeniable fact.
What's more, the subtle tension between Steven and Ran Mouri made Conan feel a growing sense of danger.
"Drink your juice," Yusaku Kudo said coolly, glancing at Conan. "When adults are talking, kids shouldn't interrupt."
Then he turned to Vermouth.
"Chris, I fully agree with your approach. That man is a beast soaked in blood and violence. Provoking him would lead to unimaginable consequences. Not only would your life be in danger, countless civilians would be at risk as well."
"At best, a city could be destroyed. At worst, the survival of this country itself could be threatened. That's not exaggeration. I've seen his unfathomable strength firsthand. This isn't baseless speculation."
"A criminal like him suddenly changing tactics, willingly hiding as a servant to avoid capture, can't be out of fear. He's probably planning something much bigger in secret. Chris, right now, you're the only one who can get close to him…"
Yusaku didn't truly believe Vermouth's story. He was clearly considering using her to monitor Steven and test the truth.
Just then, the private room door was pushed open.
Seeing that Steven had returned, Yusaku could only drop the subject.
"Why is everyone staring at me?" Steven asked. "Got flowers growing on my face or something?"
Weird.
He looked at Vermouth and the others in confusion. After finishing his task, he'd checked himself in the mirror. No blood on his face or clothes.
"You went to the bathroom forever," Vermouth said smoothly, stepping in to cover things up. "We thought you fell into the toilet. Didn't expect you to still be alive."
"Mr. Turtle-Egg, don't listen to Chris' nonsense," Yukiko chimed in cheerfully. "She was just praising how strong you are. Then you suddenly walked in, so she started teasing you to hide her embarrassment."
Yukiko was a total veteran when it came to innuendo. She could make any road sound like a racetrack.
Steven, for his part, found it very pleasant to hear.
After all, if he weren't strong enough, how could he have conquered Vermouth?
"When you go out, it's all about having fun," Steven said with a grin. "Letting things go awkward would be a waste. Come on, let's keep drinking and chatting."
"Mr. Turtle-Egg," Yusaku said, lifting his glass. "Have you thought over that matter?"
"....."