The meeting place was a not-so-conspicuous Western restaurant, and there were even fewer customers at lunchtime.
Hayashi Yoshiki walked directly to the corner.
"Long time no see, Mr. Hayashi."
Haneda Yumi sat casually at the table, smiling at the man as he took his seat.
"Impressive," she said. "Your disguise rivals Kaito Kid's."
"But I hear you often see through Kaito Kid's disguises," she added with a smirk, reaching up and removing the face mask to reveal long, golden hair.
Hayashi Yoshiki didn't answer directly. He glanced at the waiter nearby and asked calmly:
"You're taking off your disguise here? Aren't you worried about attracting attention?"
"If we're going to talk about something important, I wouldn't risk just meeting anywhere."
Vermouth lit a cigarette slowly.
From her tone, Hayashi Yoshiki knew immediately: this place was also under the Organization's surveillance.
"So what you texted me earlier… it's true?"
Vermouth's eyes moved to the Fantasy Paradise ID strapped to Hayashi Yoshiki's wrist.
"This thing is packed with C4?"
"Yes. If it goes off, it'll level half the restaurant."
"Geez. Dangerous man to share a meal with."
Vermouth joked lightly, but her tone remained relaxed.
"So, what do you want me to do? Find someone to get this thing off you?"
"Not just me."
Hayashi Yoshiki looked at her seriously.
"The people around me have all been taken hostage in Fantasy Paradise. If their watches aren't disarmed by 10 p.m.—or if they try to leave the park—those bombs will go off."
Vermouth's heart sank.
He had explained part of the situation to her a couple of hours earlier, setting up this act so she could leave discreetly. She already knew that both Hayashi Yoshiki and Kogoro Mouri were wearing the explosive-laced IDs.
But now, Ran was clearly among those in danger.
Just thinking about that girl carrying a bomb on her wrist made Vermouth uneasy. But she couldn't show it.
"Why not ask Gin or the others for help?"
Yoshiki didn't answer.
That silence was telling.
She immediately realized she had asked something foolish. Cointreau had once warned her personally not to use the people around him to test him. And he had clearly never told Gin about his "weakness."
That's why he came to me instead...
Cointreau really does care about the people around him...
This was the second—no, third time Vermouth had been able to confirm this.
Maybe, just like her, he had been drawn in by the warm light of that girl.
If so... they were natural allies within the Organization.
"I can help," she said, leaning forward slightly. "But what do you want in return?"
"Whatever."
His calm tone made Vermouth blink. She raised her eyebrows.
"You could've asked for anything... so long as I help you protect Ran and the others?"
"Exactly."
Seeing the seriousness in his face, Vermouth felt a strange warmth stir inside her. She smiled slowly.
"Of course, I'll also keep this between us."
"Thought about your price? Want me to let you into the Intelligence Division?"
"No." Vermouth shook her head. "I'm not Rum's subordinate, so I don't have to care what he thinks. Just consider this... a favor you owe me."
Then, quite deliberately, she added with a smirk:
"By the way, when I brought up the people close to you that time... that wasn't really my idea."
Sorry, Rum. Please take the fall for me.
She laughed inside.
After all, it's not like Cointreau was going to ask Rum directly to verify it.
Too bad Hayashi Yoshiki wasn't buying it.
He knew that statement from Vermouth back then had been a test. Rum wouldn't waste time with something so indirect.
Still, the fact that she was trying to pin the blame on someone else... it told him a lot.
She was giving way.
She wanted to get closer.
"I see."
Hayashi Yoshiki held back a smile.
Just as expected.
From the lesson he gave her in the beginning... to the Twin Towers incident when he saved Ran... and now showing weakness like this—he had carefully constructed an image Vermouth would inevitably respond to.
And though he now owed her a favor, offering that debt willingly was the first step toward building a stronger alliance.
Vermouth could become a powerful tool... when the time came.
"I'll have someone in the Organization hack your client's network. Once we access their system, we'll remove the explosive trigger from your ID bands."
"Good. But be careful. The guy's a tech expert. Don't let him spot you."
It wasn't going to be easy.
Even though he was blind, Ito Suehiko had proven incredibly sharp. He'd monitored their movements through street surveillance cameras and had somehow deduced Conan's identity via a fingerprint left on a car seat.
Clearly, he had access to public cameras and possibly even police databases—all without being caught.
"Relax."
If Ran's life was on the line, Vermouth wasn't taking any risks.
In fact, this kind of job would be easy for the Organization's tech team. They had previously embedded viruses into floppy disks, and even top-tier hackers like Hiroki Sawada or Hara Yuuji hadn't known they'd been compromised.
Ito Suehiko may be clever, but he's just one man.
"That's all for now. I have to go."
Hayashi Yoshiki stood up. He clearly had no intention of staying for lunch.
Seeing that, Vermouth also stood. She reached into her bag and pulled out the Haneda Yumi mask she'd worn earlier. Within seconds, she was back in disguise.
"See you next time, Mr. Hayashi."
She extended her hand and smiled with Yumi's bright voice.
Hayashi Yoshiki shook it, his eyes sharp and calculating.
They had reached an understanding.
After watching him leave the restaurant, Vermouth exited more slowly and slipped into her car.
Once seated, she opened her contact list and dialed one of her secure numbers.
She had no intention of wasting time.
She would make sure Ran's bomb was disarmed as soon as possible.