"That's right, it's me."
The blond man had a foreign face, but when he nodded and spoke, his voice was unmistakably Toru's.
Kaito immediately realized that Toru must be wearing a disguise.
He examined Toru carefully but could not find the slightest trace of a disguise on his face, leaving him even more astonished.
Could this be some new form of disguise technique? If so, he definitely wanted to learn it.
As a magician, he could not afford to remain stagnant. He had to keep studying and improving his skills.
"Kaito, did you get it?"
Kaito casually tossed over the USB drive in his hand, and Toru caught it cleanly.
"It's all here. The drive contains what you wanted. I hope you'll keep your promise and leave me alone for a while."
Kaito spoke in a low voice.
Toru smiled and nodded. "Don't worry. At least for the rest of this year, I won't ask you to do anything else."
So he'll still order me around next year... Kaito cursed inwardly.
His gaze unintentionally fell on the corpse at his feet.
Toru said indifferently, "This is a slum. Even the police rarely bother coming here. That man was clearly high on drugs, so even if the police find him, they'll assume he was killed in gang violence. You don't need to worry."
Kaito took a deep breath and tried to stop his body from trembling.
He was indeed a world-famous phantom thief, but he had never hurt anyone. He always returned the jewels he stole, which was why he was not wanted worldwide.
Kaito had seen dead bodies before, but watching Toru kill someone so casually, then remain completely indifferent afterward, still terrified him.
Damn it. The United States really was no place for him.
"You said you might have found traces of Pandora's Tears?"
Kaito asked in a low, trembling voice, a glimmer appearing in his eyes.
Pandora's Tears was the reason behind his father's disappearance.
Kaito even suspected that his father had died long ago. Otherwise, with his father's abilities, it would have been impossible for him to leave behind no information at all.
Toru nodded and asked, "Kaito, do you know what Pandora's Tears is said to do?"
Kaito remained silent.
He did not dare say the legendary effect aloud, the very thing that had led to his father's disappearance.
Toru smiled. "Since you won't say it, I will. According to legend, Pandora's Tears has the power to grant eternal life."
"Eternal life is something countless people have dreamed of. Rulers and nobles throughout history, all across the world, have sacrificed everything in pursuit of it."
"Pandora's Tears may only be a legend, but for some people, even a legend is worth chasing. Besides, the legend may actually be true."
Kaito's expression changed. "You mean Pandora's Tears can really grant eternal life?"
Toru nodded.
Ever since Toru became Rum, he had placed one of the Black Organization's top drug research institutes under Haibara's control, allowing her to resume her research under the identity of Sherry.
This time, Haibara's research no longer focused on the lethal effects of APTX 4869, but on the part that could cause the human body to shrink.
Haibara possessed her parents' original research data, which contained records of the structure of several unusual substances.
Using modern chemical methods, Haibara had recreated those substances and used them as raw materials for APTX 4869.
In earlier research, this substance had been found capable of causing an undetectable death, which was why the Black Organization had used it as a poison.
It was only after Haibara's body shrank that she fully understood that the true purpose of this mysterious substance was not death, but eternal life.
Because of that, both Toru and Haibara suspected that her parents had once obtained fragments of Pandora's Tears and studied them, analyzing their structure and using the results to create the original drug.
However, Haibara's parents were already dead, and none of the surviving research data explained where the substances had come from. Every lead connected to Pandora's Tears had been cut off.
Toru did not mind telling Kaito this information.
When Kaito heard that Toru might possess fragments of Pandora's Tears, he fell silent for a moment before saying hopefully, "I hope you can use those clues to find the jewel."
"As long as you can do that and uncover information about my father, I'm willing to work for you."
Toru chuckled. "I'm interested in Pandora's Tears too. After all, it's a treasure said to grant eternal life. If the investigation makes any progress, I'll tell you."
Kaito breathed a sigh of relief.
Investigating alone would make it difficult for him to uncover anything more substantial, but he strongly suspected that Toru was backed by an enormous terrorist organization.
If that organization helped with the investigation, Kaito would feel much more reassured.
"I've already booked a flight under your false identity. You can return to Japan now. The United States isn't a place you should stay for long."
"You don't need to tell me. I don't want to stay here any longer either."
Kaito replied irritably. He removed his disguise mask, revealing his real face, and walked past Toru.
As for Vermouth, who stood beside Toru, Kaito only glanced at her without saying anything. He did not recognize her.
After Kaito walked away, Vermouth said, "This kid is quite similar to my teacher. They both become far too obsessed with certain things, and that obsession may eventually cost them their lives."
"Vermouth, did you care deeply about Kuroba Toichi?"
"After all, he was my teacher. He taught me much of what I know about acting. Honestly, his talents were somewhat wasted on being a magician."
Vermouth recalled Kuroba Toichi and sighed with emotion.
After a brief pause, she continued, "Kaito isn't reliable. If you wanted something stolen from Burns, you should have sent me."
Toru shook his head. "The best way to steal something from Burns was to impersonate his lover. I didn't want him taking advantage of you, so I sent Kaito instead."
Vermouth smiled seductively. "Boy, you're terribly possessive."
Although she said that, Vermouth was delighted inwardly.
It meant Toru cared about her deeply. Possessiveness only arose when someone truly mattered, proving how important she was to him.
Knowing that was enough to satisfy her.
The Park Hyatt Tokyo was where Toru and Vermouth had first slept together.
Inside their hotel room, the two listened to the recording playing from the computer, copied from the USB drive.
Two people could be heard speaking in the recording: Spencer and Burns.
They were discussing Spencer's plan to assassinate the presidential candidate, Donald, with Burns acting as the one responsible for carrying it out.
"Checkmate. With this recording in my hands, Burns has no choice but to obey. Otherwise, death is all that awaits him."
Toru smiled faintly and made several copies of the recording, storing them in different hidden locations.
"How did you know Burns would secretly record his conversation with Spencer?"
Vermouth asked with interest.
"During my time at the Central Intelligence Agency, I constantly studied Spencer and Burns. Through my research and investigation, I discovered that Burns is an extremely cautious man who always puts his own safety first."
"For something as serious as assassinating a presidential candidate, there was no chance he would let Spencer hold all the leverage. He would definitely keep something that could be used against Spencer in return."
"But that same leverage has now become the blade hanging over his own neck. Of course, as long as he obeys, I'll help him become director of the Central Intelligence Agency."
Toru spoke confidently. "Vermouth, watch closely. The Organization's infiltration of the Central Intelligence Agency begins here. It won't be long before the CIA can be renamed Hydra."
"Hydra?"
"It's just a name I made up. Don't think too much about it."
There was no Marvel in this world, so Vermouth did not understand the reference Toru was making.
(To be continued.)