『 "...Fo—o—o—o—und the nearest check-in spot!"
"Please lo-lo-lo-lo-look—at this gacha-cha-cha-cha-cha machine model behind me—"
"Mo-mo-mo-mo-mo-model—"
The toy soldier's voice became increasingly shrill.
"Ah!"
With a scream, he collapsed to the ground, frozen. He didn't even have time to earn a five-star rating from you. 』
『 ....』
〘Stelle〙: How did this pass quality control?
〘Herta〙: Don't show this to my puppets; they'll get stupid.
....
『 "What's going on? Do the family's toys pull insurance scams now? I didn't do anything, Professor; you have to testify for me."
"I didn't see anything."
Aventurine shook his head helplessly at the fallen soldier, stepped over his body, and walked toward the gacha machine he had mentioned.
"A gacha machine… hmm, there's no place to operate it on the ground. Is it the clockwork mechanism on top?" Aventurine looked up at the clockwork mechanism on the gacha machine.
Then he beckoned to Ratio and called out: "Professor, do me a small favor—"
Ratio clicked his tongue in annoyance, but reached out and turned the clockwork mechanism. After a burst of impassioned music, the pinball machine popped out a giant gacha capsule.
Aventurine walked up to the capsule, opened it, and a key fragment appeared inside.
Only one is left to complete the puzzle. Come to think of it, did that piece fly upstairs? Looks like I'll have to use the pinball machine to bounce up there, though that probably won't be easy.
Aventurine walked to the location of the pinball machine in his memory of the Golden Hour. As expected, there was only an empty base here.
Aventurine looked at the base in front of him, unsurprised. "Sure enough, there's only the base of the pinball machine here, empty as can be."
Then he looked at Ratio and shouted, "Professor, I have to rely on your wisdom again."
"No need to shout, I can hear you. The pinball machine model must be placed somewhere in the lobby, just like the archway. Wait here; I'll be back soon."
With that, the professor sighed deeply, turned slowly, and walked outside. As he walked, he muttered: "Finally, I can have some peace and quiet for a while…" 』
『 ....』
〘Stelle〙: I can tell the Professor is very annoyed.
〘Dr. Ratio〙: Being buzzed at by a shrunken gambler the whole time—is this some kind of torture?
....
『 After strolling around outside, Ratio easily found a spherical, hollow object in another corridor; it looked a bit like a launcher model.
Looks like this is it… The thought of enduring Aventurine's chatter again upon returning made Ratio sigh; pleasant times are always short-lived.
After returning, he stared at the sand table and couldn't help but exclaim.
"This thing isn't bad; it would be even better without the noisy little person inside!"
"Ratio, I heard that~" Aventurine's crisp, loud voice came from the sand table. "I suddenly have an interesting idea. Tell me, what would happen if I put a sugar ball into Soda?"
"You can try, but make sure not to sell me out when the Bloodhound Family interrogates you." 』
『 ....』
〘Sushang〙: So, what will happen?
〘Gallagher〙: Simply put, after adding the sugar ball, the Soda and it will create a large amount of foam, spraying out of the bottle opening, achieving an effect similar to a volcanic eruption.
〘Kiana Kaslana〙: Oh, isn't this the Tic Tacs and Cola thing I saw on the internet?
〘Mei〙: It's Mentos.
....
『 After Ratio finished his sarcastic comment, a trace of helplessness appeared on his face, but the work had to be done; the sooner it was finished, the sooner he could clock out.
He inserted the pinball machine into the base in front of Aventurine. Accompanied by the roaring sound of the machine starting up, Aventurine dove inside.
With a pop, the high-speed pinball machine instantly ejected Aventurine, shooting him straight toward the towering rooftop.
Aventurine landed steadily on the roof. He looked down, taking in the entire city. The sight before him left him in awe.
Then he looked up at Ratio, who looked like a giant above him, and exclaimed, "Ratio, you really should come in and see this. It's spectacular. I bet you could crush me with a single pinch."
"If you give your consent, I will execute it immediately," Ratio replied in a calm tone. 』
『 ....』
〘Stelle〙: He actually needs the person's consent. I'm dying of laughter.
〘Dr. Ratio〙: After all, I don't want to be charged with murdering a company executive.
....
『 When the two puzzle pieces were fitted into the gap, a flash of white light passed, and the door key appeared before Aventurine.
Aventurine gripped the key and sighed: "The pleasant trip to Toy City is over. I'm a little reluctant to leave. Penacony isn't all bad, right? I'll use this interesting experience as a topic of conversation at the poker table."
Aventurine muttered to himself, a satisfied smile on his face, as if this trip to Toy City had satisfied his childhood, which was devoid of entertainment…
Immediately afterward, he walked with light steps into the pinball machine to go downstairs, passing through that huge Gulliver archway once more.
After Aventurine stood steady, Ratio said, "It's a pity to see you leave the sand table alive. Sunday is right behind this door. By my shallow assessment, he is not someone easy to deal with. Are you ready?"
Aventurine nodded slightly. "Hmm, I believe it's him who needs to be prepared."
"Tell me your plan."
"No plan. Just play it by ear. There are only two bargaining chips when negotiating with people: benefits or fear."
Hearing this from Aventurine, Ratio shook his head helplessly and said, "It seems you truly don't understand Sincerity."
"Am I not sincere enough?" Aventurine asked back, then said with a smile, "No need to emphasize it. We must make good use of death. That man's sister is dead; he surely can't sit still. This is Fear."
"And I will help him drag the murderer out. Due to his status and position, he can't do this himself, but I can. This is the benefit." 』
『 ....』
〘Welt Yang〙: A reasonable deduction, but Sunday will certainly not be coerced so easily by these two points.
〘Sushang〙: I don't get it. Why do outlanders have so many tricks up their sleeves?
〘Stelle〙: Heh, then you haven't seen Jing Yuan. I bet if everyone on the Luofu had a total of one 'shi' (ten pecks) of schemes, Jing Yuan alone would take eight 'dou' (eight pecks).
〘Jing Yuan〙: Haha, you flatter me, you flatter me.
〘Huaiyan〙: Heh heh, this little girl's metaphor is quite interesting.
....
『 "Why do you think he can't do it and has to entrust it to a company person with an opposing stance?" Ratio raised his question.
"Very simple—because that murderer is likely a traitor lurking within the Family." Aventurine's tone was filled with confidence.
"…The person you accused before was that Galaxy Ranger."
Aventurine laughed after hearing this. "That was just an excuse, Professor."
"That woman is not right. I need someone to hold her back. The fewer variables outside our field of vision when we act, the better." 』
『 ....』
〘Stelle〙: …Played again. I'm getting used to it.
〘Hotaru〙: Come taste the little cake the Conductor taught me to make. We spent a long time on it.
〘Elio〙: Conductor… you didn't kidnap my Hunter, did you?
〘Pam〙: What are you talking about, Pam? Pam doesn't know anything, Pam.
〘Dr. Ratio〙: A brilliant move. What's your next step?
〘Aventurine〙: I've already revealed it before: three chips.
....
『 "At the same time, I also need to know who she is. If my luck is genuine, she will definitely become an important chess piece. And in this matter, the more friends who can help me, the better."
"But in all honesty, the murder case probably has nothing to do with her. I still hold the same view: it must be an internal problem within the Family. Otherwise, why would our Mr. Sunday arrange a private meeting? This is not an interrogation, but a secret negotiation."
Aventurine stared straight ahead, his eyes flashing with a confident light, as if declaring to the world:
"Watch, using Robin's death as a chip, I will win back my freedom and power. In the end, I will subvert this sweet dream and create the grandest death."
"If stepping into this door can usher in a chance for triumph, even if the probability is infinitely close to zero, I have no room for hesitation, right?"
Ratio sneered. "What makes you think you can win, you damned gambler?"
Aventurine's mouth curled up slightly, revealing a confident smile as he responded.
"Three chips are enough."
"All or nothing." 』
『 ....』