Detective Conan: Death Note

Bang! A gunshot rang out beneath the dock, and the blast from the shotgun sent Vermouth flying backward. She hit the ground hard, in a miser

Bang!

A gunshot rang out beneath the dock, and the blast from the shotgun sent Vermouth flying backward.She hit the ground hard, in a miserable state.

"No, Shu..."

"Don't worry. This woman was wearing a bulletproof vest with padding. She's covered in gear from head to toe. At most, she has two or three broken ribs."

Shuichi Akai sneered as he coldly observed Vermouth's agonized expression."And look closely—her scratched face... this is her true face, without any disguise."

Checkmate.This woman couldn't escape—

Just as Akai was thinking this, the red laser dot that had vanished earlier reappeared—now aimed directly at Conan's unconscious head beside the car.

Akai's face darkened."Are you trying to force our hand?"

When it comes to life and death, Vermouth's mind works frighteningly fast.Clenching her teeth, she endured the agony of her broken ribs and used Akai's hesitation to grab the unconscious Conan.

"Showtime—!"

"This little brat is really in the way!"

Akai raised his gun instinctively, but when Vermouth sneered and pressed her gun to Conan's forehead, he froze.

Struggling, Vermouth shoved Conan into the car, started it, and fled.She even used the rearview mirror to aim at Jodie's car's fuel tank—firing multiple shots until it exploded in a ball of flame.

Under the blazing firelight, Akai found himself... oddly impressed.

"Even in that state, she still pulls this off. Impressive."

"What's there to admire? She's kidnapped a hostage and escaped!"

"What can we do? There's a sniper hidden in the shadows..."

Akai glanced toward where the laser had just been. Doubt flashed in his eyes.

The sniper known as Calvados wasn't particularly notable... but the other hidden sniper was a different story. Their position was odd—and rather far.That spot had multiple blind zones from every direction. Yet the sniper provided precise cover for Vermouth at just the right time.

That meant one thing:They had another observer.

Akai couldn't afford to move recklessly now.

Vermouth drove into a forest in the remote outskirts.She only stopped once she was completely sure she was safe.

She pulled out her phone and checked a message:

[I've given you too much freedom. Come back to me, Vermouth.]

It was from the Boss.

So that's it.Calvados was dead?

Vermouth had never told anyone about this mission. But Calvados had followed her to Japan.The Boss must have realized it the moment Calvados died—and sent this thinly veiled threat.

[I understand, Boss.]

She hit send.

Then, looking at the unconscious Conan, still asleep under the effects of the tranquilizer, she began wondering what to do next—

VROOOM.The roar of an engine.

Her head snapped up—blinded by sudden high beams.

Bastard...!

Sensing danger, she gripped her gun tightly.

A sleek black sedan stopped in front of her car.A tall man in a black trench coat stepped out. The moonlight glinted off his long silver hair.

Her heart sank.

"Gin..."

Her voice trembled.

"What are you planning to do, Vermouth?"

His voice was ice. A bitter accusation.

Vermouth forced a smile."Are you here to scold me?"

"You involved the FBI. Because of you, we lost someone useful—Calvados. Don't think your special treatment from that man lets you do whatever you want."

Gin approached the car, holding a gun.

He glanced down at Conan, then pointed the gun at the boy.

"And you brought this little pest with you."

"You're too paranoid, aren't you? I escaped because I used the kid as a hostage."

"Then get rid of him."

The cold command sent sweat pouring down Vermouth's back.

As Gin's poisonous green eyes stared into her, she laughed nervously.

"It's just a kid... how dangerous could he be?"

"Just a little brat?"A twisted grin spread across Gin's face.

Before Vermouth could stop him, he pulled out a knife and slashed open Conan's clothes.

Electrodes for heart rate monitoring.A transmitter. A recorder.

Vermouth's heart sank to the depths.

So that's what he was doing.

"Tch... so, we've got a hidden listener."

"Wasn't this the same brat who infiltrated the station when we were trading Itakura Taku's software?"

"No matter."

"Then we'll find everyone around him—and kill them all..."

Gin didn't care that someone was listening.He ripped the transmitter from Conan's chest and crushed it under his heel.

He grinned—a predator catching the scent of blood.

Vermouth shivered.

Everyone around this kid...That meant Ran.That meant the child of Yukiko Kudo.

What to do?How to stop this?

She watched, paralyzed, as Gin raised his gun—

There was no time.If Gin found out who Conan really was, Yukiko's son wouldn't survive.But at the very least, Ran... Ran must be protected.

"...You said you'd kill everyone around him. Does that include... Cointreau?"

"What are you getting at?"

"Exactly what it sounds like."

Enduring the pain in her chest, Vermouth forced a smile.

"The Cointreau you're so interested in... also falls under your definition of "elimination".

Gin snorted coldly."Doesn't matter. We'll deal with Cointreau later. Anyone who's a threat to the Organization... must be erased."

He raised his gun again—But this time, the barrel pointed straight at Vermouth.

"But you... You've been trying to protect this kid from the beginning, haven't you?"