Chapter 319: Whether to Trust
Natsume rested her chin on her hand, half-heartedly tuning in to the boisterous banter between Kogoro Mouri and Raita Bamba. The lively atmosphere of the restaurant was suddenly interrupted by the arrival of a waiter.
"Sorry to keep you all waiting," the waiter announced, carefully balancing a tray with a slice of cake.
However, his footing seemed to falter. With a clumsy stumble, the plate tipped, sending the cake sliding right off the edge. It splattered directly onto Raita's trousers.
"Oh dear, your foot stepped in the cake too," Hatsune Kamon pointed out, her brow furrowing with concern as she looked down at the mess near her fiancé's shoes.
"I am truly very sorry..." the waiter stammered, his face flushing with an impeccable mask of embarrassment. He quickly bowed his head. "It's because I just started working here today. Please forgive my clumsiness."
Natsume tilted her head, her curiosity piqued. She studied the blonde, dark-skinned waiter. Black-rimmed glasses sat on the bridge of his nose, partially obscuring his sharp features. Hearing him apologize to Hatsune in that magnetic, deceptively gentle voice, Natsume couldn't help but lift her cup, taking a long, slow sip of her drink to hide her shifting expression.
'Wow, so this is Bourbon?'
The last time she had crossed paths with him was during the chaotic incident at the Beika Central Mall. Unfortunately, back then, he had been wearing the stolen face of Shuichi Akai. This was her very first time laying eyes on the true, unmasked appearance of Bourbon—the dangerously capable operative of the Black Organization.
Watching him play the role of a bumbling rookie waiter, Natsume had to silently applaud his skill. He was a terrifyingly effective undercover agent, perfectly capable of submerging himself in the shadows for years. Even though he undoubtedly knew who she was and had likely combed through her background, he didn't spare her a single lingering glance. He acted exactly as a stranger would, offering no extra attention. His performance was flawless.
Speaking of which, Natsume recalled the underlying irony of this entire gathering. These two newcomers, Raita and Hatsune, had coincidentally hired private detectives to investigate one another right before their wedding. The investigator Hatsune had commissioned was none other than Bourbon himself, which conveniently provided him with the perfect excuse to infiltrate this circle and get close to Kogoro.
It was a rather cynical situation. They were on the verge of tying the knot, yet their mutual trust was practically nonexistent.
The group's conversation flowed on for a while longer. Raita and Kogoro traded good-natured jabs about their respective jealous streaks, keeping the mood light and pleasant.
Amidst the laughter, Hatsune suddenly lifted her wrist, tapping the screen of her terminal to check the time. Realizing she was cutting it close for her scheduled manicure appointment—a necessary preparation for her perfect wedding tomorrow—she decided she needed to leave, despite the heavy downpour outside.
Raita's gaze drifted toward the window, watching the endless, fine threads of rain streak down the transparent glass. His brow creased slightly as he thought back to the handsome, blonde waiter from earlier.
Pulling his attention away from the gloomy weather, he looked at his fiancée. "I've said it before," he muttered, his tone casual but carrying a sharp edge of possessiveness. "If you are unfaithful, I won't forgive you."
"I should be the one saying that, dear husband," Hatsune fired back with a bright smile, playfully winking at him.
Leaning down, she closed the distance between them, and the couple shared a brief, affectionate kiss right there at the table.
For the ordinary high schoolers present, the sudden display of public affection was a bit too much. Ran and Conan instantly averted their eyes, their faces flushing a bright shade of crimson.
"Cough, cough!" Natsume suddenly choked on her drink, hastily grabbing a napkin to wipe her mouth.
She wasn't blushing. Unlike Ran and Conan, she wasn't easily flustered by a simple kiss. Her reaction stemmed entirely from the horrifying context she possessed. She knew the dark, twisted truth of their relationship—the tragic reality that these two lovers were actually biological twins separated at birth. Seeing them act so romantically intimate sent a wave of deep awkwardness crashing over her.
'Sigh, thinking about the truth makes this whole situation feel incredibly tragic.'
"I'll be back in about two hours, and then I'll let you admire them properly," Hatsune promised, holding up her hands and wiggling her unpolished nails at Raita.
Natsume's eyes darted toward the terminal clutched in Hatsune's hand. The presence of that device made her upcoming intervention significantly easier.
In the quiet space of her mind, she reached out to Paimon. She instructed her floating companion to contact Ningguang and have Noah's Ark temporarily monitor the data traffic on Hatsune's terminal.
According to the original timeline, after receiving Bourbon's investigation report, Hatsune's suspicions about her connection to Raita had deepened. To settle her doubts, she had secretly commissioned an identification agency to run a DNA test on the two of them.
If things proceeded as they should, she would receive those devastating results right around the time she finished her manicure and drove back to the restaurant. Without the terminal, pinpointing the exact moment the agency sent the message would have been a logistical nightmare. Now, it only required a minor favor from Noah's Ark.
"Miss Kamon!"
After a brief moment of hesitation, Natsume quickly tapped out a message to Mona on her own phone. She then pushed her chair back and stood up, calling out to stop the bride-to-be before she could step through the door.
Hatsune paused, turning back with a look of mild confusion.
"Miss Kamon, could you let me know when you get back from your manicure?" Natsume asked, keeping her voice steady and polite. "I have a private matter I'd like to discuss with you."
Hatsune blinked, surprised by the request, but nodded agreeably. The two women quickly exchanged contact information before Natsume settled back into her seat.
Across the table, Conan's glasses caught the overhead light. He stared at Natsume, his expression tightening into a mask of grave scrutiny. 'Could it be that Sister Natsume discovered a clue I missed again?'
Ran sat beside him, equally puzzled. This was clearly Natsume's first time meeting Hatsune, so what in the world could she possibly need to discuss in private?
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]