pdf-ebookys Chapter 184 Lovers, End
Chapter 184 Lovers, End
Thick smoke billowed from outside the glass platform, and even through my leather shoes, I could feel the stifling heat emanating from the floor.
The No. 2 base beneath their feet had been reduced to ashes. Personnel had evacuated in an orderly fashion after receiving prior notice, but one figure remained alone on the top floor. Heimen Yaoye swirled a silver bullet cocktail in his tall glass, gazing at the gradually collapsing industrial buildings below.
The scorching heat startled the birds roosting nearby, which then circled overhead in a dark mass. According to the theories of physics, humans within the range of the high temperature and the shockwave from the explosion would have no chance of survival.
"But in the world of science fiction, anything is possible."
As the crows glided over the fire scene, they looked down and saw a blonde woman supporting a figure wearing a knitted hat, stumbling forward in the menacing flames.
"Xiu, hang in there! We'll be leaving soon!"
"Mmm..." came a weak response from beside her.
Tears welled up, only to be dried by the intense heat. Judy's eyes brimmed with tears as she hoarsely encouraged Shuichi Akai, "That damned organization, if it weren't for those demons..."
One second everyone was relieved by Xiu's support, and the next second, a massive explosion came crashing down from above! If it weren't for Xiu's superb driving skills, they would most likely have perished in the flames like the others in the car behind.
Even so, in the end, only the two of them survived, and Shuichi was seriously injured while saving her...
With each step forward, Shuichi Akai's right foot would involuntarily sway from side to side, almost completely unable to bear weight. His black coat was stained with large patches of blood, which had congealed into a brownish color after being burned, making it impossible to distinguish where the wounds were. Fortunately, he was still conscious.
The choking, toxic gas continued to spread. Judy remembered there was a small river ahead; once they reached it, they could drift downstream and escape the organization's pursuit.
The sound of flowing water came from not far away. Judy gripped Shuichi Akai's wrist and quickened her pace: "The riverbank is just ahead, Shuichi! Look..."
"Wait! Get to the cover quickly!"
Shuichi Akai suddenly grabbed Jodie's wrist and pulled her behind the roadside railing.
A gentle breeze blew by, and Judy lay prone on the concrete for a long time, but heard no sound except for the crackling of fire behind her.
She turned her head to look at Shuichi Akai, whose expression was serious: "Shuichi, what did you find out?"
"Shh!"
About a minute later, Judy finally heard a faint sound, which was slowly approaching from beneath the surface of the burning sound.
ratttttt...
Emerging from the shadow of the thick smoke, a motorcycle slowly approached along the riverbank road. A woman in a black down jacket got off the motorcycle, holding a rifle, and looked around.
"I have arrived at the designated location." Akemi Kurogami straightened the helmet of her disguise mask.
[Proceed 10 meters to the right front, load a bullet, and inspect the warehouse ahead.]
Judy breathed a sigh of relief as she watched the organization members walk away. "Great, he doesn't seem to have noticed us yet. Xiu, how did you hear us from so far away?"
"I wasn't just listening; while observing the surroundings, I noticed a motorcycle speeding towards us on the bridge to the northeast. Today, the wind is blowing from the northeast, and the toxic fumes from the motorcycle will be billowing up towards the bridge."
No one could be sure if a secondary explosion would occur here. Ordinary passersby would avoid such a situation and wouldn't be able to rush over. For someone to arrive alone and then deliberately slow down upon approaching clearly indicates they are pursuers from the organization.
Shuichi Akai loaded a bullet and aimed it at Akemi Kurogami's back: "He must be quite skilled to have come alone. After I shoot him, Jodie, jump into the river immediately and don't worry about me."
"Stop talking nonsense!"
Judy looked at Shuichi Akai's twisted ankle and slammed the barrel of his gun down: "If the organization sends reinforcements, you'll definitely be caught like this! I will never abandon you to live!"
Shuichi Akai frowned: "This operation contains crucial information. Delaying my movement due to my physical limitations is the optimal solution for a high success rate..."
“No way!”
Judy, in desperation, spoke in her native language, her blue eyes streaked with tears as she looked resolutely at Shuichi Akai: "Shuichi, you are an indispensable ace for the FBI. Without you, we will lose our weapon against the organization. But I am different. The rest of us can be replaced, so you must leave alive!"
"And..." Judy lowered her head, choking back tears, gazing longingly at his departing figure, "I don't want someone I love so deeply to die in a fire because of the organization again."
[A man who cannot love two women at the same time, yet does not prevent two women from loving him at the same time, ultimately dies because of him... How ironic.]
Subtitles flashed on the helmet screen. Akemi Kurogami listened to the heartfelt confession transmitted through her earphones, her eyes heavy with emotion, and she remained silent.
"So, Shuichi, I'll provide cover fire for you while you run away."
After saying that, Judy ignored his opinion, crouched down and ran to another cover, then pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The bullet's kinetic energy struck her back through the bulletproof vest. Akemi Kurogami leaned forward to absorb the impact and turned to face Judy.
[Raise the muzzle 3 centimeters, fire]
The bullet grazed Judy's right shoulder, splattering blood!
"Ugh." Judy groaned, moving and firing at Minmei as she went, but all her shots were barely dodged.
Just then, five gunshots rang out in quick succession, aimed directly at Akemi Kurogami, who was hit three times out of five shots on her shoulders and torso!
"Judy, I've blocked her movements. Let's go together!"
Judy looked at Akemi, who was struggling to get up from the ground, nodded, kicked away her sidearm, and went back to help Shuichi Akai up, saying with relief:
"It seems they are just low-level spies who have come here, not codenamed members."
"Hmm." Without commenting, Shuichi Akai narrowed his eyes and recalled Akemi Kuromiya's clumsy technique.
This member of the organization gave him a very familiar feeling, but it was definitely not Vermouth or Chianti. Who was she? Why would the organization send such a weak member?
And why hasn't that bad feeling dissipated yet?
With the raging fire behind them, Judy looked at the river so close at hand and smiled with relief: "Great, Show! Once we get back, we'll..."
sudden--
A sense of relief and naiveté lingered in her aquamarine eyes. Hot blood exploded from Judy's chest; the bullet pierced her frail body, causing her life, burdened with deep hatred, to burst like a balloon, leaving no trace of meaning.
'How about we get back together?'
Her lips parted slightly, but before she could utter the confession of reconciliation hidden in her throat, she pressed herself against Shuichi Akai's shoulder, and the two of them fell into the icy river.
[Well done, good boy.]
Gazing up at the words of light appearing in the dark night sky, Akemi Kurogami suppressed her disordered breathing, her hands trembling as she put away her gun, and bowed deeply with loyalty and despair: "...This is what I should do, boss."
......
At the beginning of the year, which coincided with the road maintenance renewal period, the streetlights along some of the side streets in Beika Town were still under construction and were dark.
In the dark alley, a figure tore off his wet clothes and knitted hat, put on some old clothes he had just taken from a clothing recycling center to keep warm, and disguised himself as a homeless person.
"...Shuichi, I'm sorry for Jodie's sacrifice. The FBI's base in Tokyo has also been destroyed by the organization, and you are now in a dangerous situation where you are isolated and helpless. Please be careful."
"Is the safe house coordinate you gave me still safe?" Shuichi Akai leaned on a mop handle he had found and walked with difficulty, step by step. "The FBI has records of the safe houses they arranged. James, maybe you're right, I now suspect that someone in the federal government has made a deal with all of our lives and the organization."
“Of course we can’t stay in the FBI’s safe house anymore.” James Black held up a steaming cup of black tea and looked at the old man sitting opposite him. “But it’s different for MI6.”
Akai Shuichi's eyes widened as James's seemingly inexplicable actions flashed before his eyes, and he finally understood them all: "...I see."
"I'm sorry, but even if you are Wu Wu and Mary's son, I can't just reveal my identity."
"No, I should have thought of that a long time ago. After all, both my parents were MI6 agents, and as their old friend and a British native, it's not surprising that you became an undercover agent sent by MI6."
Silently gliding across the street, following the map in Shuichi Akai's mind, he knew that after passing this point, a few blocks further ahead would lead to the safe house.
The sound of news reports came from the courtyard of his house behind him:
"We have an urgent news briefing: At 20:35 PM tonight, a series of explosions occurred in an industrial park in the Minami Ward of the Beika district in Tokyo. The explosions triggered a fire that ignited half of the riverbank and also affected several nearby commercial buildings..."
"Hey, that was close! Luckily we live far away. If the explosion had hit our house where we just finished paying off the loan, we would have been devastated!" the husband exclaimed in his Kansai accent.
"Honey, stop talking. I think moving to Beika Town was a mistake!"
The wife, who also spoke with a Kansai accent, felt a lingering fear:
"Although there are serial murders in the Kansai region, everything else is alright. Look at Tokyo, not only are there bombs, but I even witnessed a celebrity murder while I was out for a walk after dinner!"
"Since the know-it-all's wife said that, she must have already found out the truth!"
"Of course! There were police cars all around downstairs, and a lot of police officers gathered there. It felt like all the police officers in Tokyo had gone there."
"The incident occurred at the nearby Mika City Apartments. At first, I thought it was a bombing, since so many people were gathered there, and no one seemed to know anything. But I happened to have an old friend who works as a security guard there, so I called him right away, and guess what happened?"
"what happened?"
"It's said that a couple committed suicide by poisoning themselves! And it happened in their apartment. I heard they even left the door unlocked and ordered takeout on a timer to make sure they wouldn't be discovered in time!"
The husband jumped in fright: "What?! The delivery guy must be terrified!"
“That’s right!” The wife nodded with her arms crossed. “I heard that the time of the incident was estimated to be around 18:30 p.m.
The venue was decorated in stark white, practically a wedding reception, with a Bluetooth speaker on the table playing a mournful wedding march on repeat. The delivery guy walked into the room and was immediately struck by the sight of the couple lying in the center of a circle of candles, bleeding from their orifices. He nearly fainted from shock!
"According to my friend, the woman's suicide note was also left at the scene. It seemed to be something like, 'Everything is complicated and entangled, the bluebird of happiness is bound to the other side of the Sanzu River, but lovers will eventually be united.' It was filled with her pain and entanglement, how pitiful!"
The husband wasn't interested in these romantic entanglements and turned to his main point: "Then why are there so many police officers surrounding us?"
"I'm about to get to it, don't rush me! Young people committing suicide together is common, but their identities are quite rare. I heard the woman is a very popular female traffic cop in the Metropolitan Police Department, and the man is even more famous. You'll be shocked when I tell you his name!"
"He is none other than Hideyoshi Haneda, the shogi genius who won all seven titles in Japanese shogi and was known as the 'Taiko Meijin'!"
Thump!
The wooden stick and walkie-talkie in his hand fell to the ground, and Shuichi Akai slid slowly down the cold courtyard wall, having lost all his strength.
In the lonely night, only the walkie-talkie kept calling out:
"Shuichi? Shuichi! What happened, Shuichi..."