vncnus Chapter 342 Poison Bomb - Closed Loop
Chapter 342 Poison Bomb - Closed Loop
Chapter 344 Poison Bomb - Closed Loop
"Are you the only one who came?"
Looking the ninja he had let in through the window up and down, Hugo couldn't help but ask curiously.
The Dark Iron Triangle, which always operated as a group of three, had only one member present this time, an anomaly that made him somewhat suspicious.
"Don't misunderstand. Although you have now become a partner of our organization, I have no obligation to disclose the whereabouts of my companions to you."
The ninja named Darkness spoke in a harsh, low voice, sounding like he wasn't in a good mood.
"Is that so? In that case, I'll make an irresponsible guess."
Seeing that the other party did not deny the absence of their companion, the detective felt increasingly relieved. No wonder this ninja chose to communicate with him in a way that avoided the police; it turned out that he was being cautious after realizing that his own forces were insufficient.
"Judging from our meeting outside Fuki City last time, since the incident at the Rikyu City power plant, the only mission your trio has been to perform is to protect King N and obey his orders. In that case, if the king has anything to discuss with me, the detective, the most convenient way, besides going through your cult's liaison, Akroma, is to send you ninjas to make contact in secret."
Hugo directly revealed the uninvited guest's purpose. Seeing that the ninja remained silent without rebuttal, he continued leisurely, "Through intelligence from the Alliance, I know that an unfortunate incident occurred in Akroma, making it impossible for them to continue serving as intermediaries in the negotiations. Since you noticed such a strange poisoning incident, you naturally cannot ignore it. You will certainly assign a trustworthy officer to closely monitor the police's movements at headquarters—and in this matter, your Dark Triangle is undoubtedly the best candidate to carry it out."
"However, at this time of frequent murders, it is impossible for all of you responsible for guarding the king to go out. In the end, one of you will have to stay by his side to guard against any unforeseen events."
"What a lucky coincidence! Three things happen to be done by three people. Although three ninjas, each a ninja, can sometimes be more effective than three when they are together, isn't it also a reliable and efficient way to split up and have each person carry out an independent task when necessary? For the mathematical genius who is in charge of you, this is just like calculating the points in a 24-point game."
"So, based on the information above, your trio of ninjas are currently scattered in different places: one at the Alliance headquarters, the other by the King's side, and the other here in Feiyun City. Is there anything wrong with my analysis?"
Even if there are problems with your analysis, I have no obligation to point them out.
The ninja intended to maintain his rigid tone, but seeing Hugo's increasingly knowing nod, he could only sigh, "Fine, those details aren't really anything worth keeping secret. Rather than calling it a secret operation of the organization, it's more accurate to say we're being led around by the nose. Here's what we'll do: if you insist on believing your conclusion is correct, then I won't object."
Is this indirect confirmation? They gave up so quickly. The ninja on the other side must be that spineless lackey who followed the leader of the Dark Trio and played the guessing game with him during the museum incident. These Dark Trio members seem to exhibit more pronounced personalities when acting alone.
Just as Hugo was thinking this, the black-clad, white-haired ninja suddenly changed the subject, staring directly into the detective's eyes and asking, "However, Akromma's experience did indeed surprise us greatly. Let me ask you directly—Detective, were you behind this?"
"No, that's not it."
To avoid any misunderstanding, Hugo bluntly denied it, saying, "I've hardly ever met Akromma. Besides, I left the Alliance headquarters long before this case occurred. Furthermore, poisoning and assassination are not in line with my style—I've always believed that violence is the worst, most costly, and most troublesome solution when trying to solve problems."
"Hmm—after all, you prefer to hit people with a solid iron ball rather than poison them."
"Let me defend myself by saying that the situation at the time should be considered self-defense."
"Is that so?" The ninja showed a nonchalant, indifferent expression.
"Leaving aside the matter of the medicine ball, I cannot verify the veracity of your claims about Akromma. Let His Majesty and the sages decide for themselves. Getting back to the main point, my purpose in coming to Flying Cloud City is not for this matter, but for consultation—"
"Wait a minute!"
Hugo gestured for a pause, then said to Zheng Dao, "It's a bit unfair for me to keep relaying information; it's practically an interrogation. After all, I'm now a partner of your cult, so consider this a deposit for future consultations. Could I also ask you a few questions?"
Darkness looked at him with great suspicion, and Hugo quickly added, "It's a problem related to the Akromar poisoning incident. You must be having a headache about it too."
"Okay, what would you like to ask?"
Although the ninja was somewhat impatient, he eventually agreed to the detective's bargain.
This ninja seems to have some discretion in deciding what information to reveal. That makes sense, since N sent these ninjas to Feiyun City to find Hugo most likely to solve a case or something similar. If they were to keep quiet about such a person, the discussion about the case would certainly stall.
"What exactly is Akromar's background? I've only heard that he's a scholar who collaborated with the Plasma Team in the past. What did he do before joining the Plasma Team?"
"Hmm—" The ninja pondered for a moment, "There is some information that you, as an outsider, should not know, and I will avoid discussing it."
Hugo nodded: "I understand. Please disclose as much information as possible within the scope of confidentiality."
"As you know, Mr. Akromma is a scholar who recently joined Team Plasma. However, compared to you, a detective who is nominally a collaborator but whose true intentions are unknown, although Akromma only recently joined..."
But he has long been considered a member of the Plasma Group by the Sages. That gentleman has provided the Order with a great deal of intelligence and technology outside of Unova, and it is no exaggeration to say that he has made outstanding contributions—as for the specific intelligence and technology, as well as the regions he has been in, I am afraid I cannot disclose that information.”
The detective, unfazed, pressed for details: "I see. Is this widely known within your cult?"
"No, this is information that only high-ranking officers and above can know, but recently, with that gentleman's formal joining, the level of secrecy has been relaxed considerably," the ninja replied.
"I see. The formal joining of a cadre of this rank into the Plasma Corps will surely cause a huge personnel reshuffle. If the future subordinates cannot learn about Akromar's achievements, that scholar's position in the Order will likely become quite awkward."
"There might be some reason for this, detective. Is there any connection between these circumstances and Akromma's poisoning incident?"
Hugo stroked his chin, his expression somewhat hesitant: "Perhaps it's related. By the way, what is Akromma's area of expertise as a scholar?"
"Broadly speaking, it's classified as Elven Studies, but I can't disclose the specifics."
"Oh? This is an area that the Seven Sages aren't particularly good at. So Team Plasma, which focuses on releasing Pokémon, is finally starting to address its weaknesses?"
"I don't know anything about this, and your attempts to provoke me won't work," Dark replied with a stern face. "Isn't it time to hear my side of the story?"
The detective's casual expression vanished, and his tone turned serious: "Well, I'm pretty much mentally prepared myself. Please tell me, just how serious is this case that would send the King of Team Plasma all this way through the Order for consultation?"
The ninja known as Darkness took a photograph from his pocket and slowly placed it on the desk that Servić had faced before his death.
Above the photo is another poisoned corpse with a gruesome death.
"We found the body of a wanted criminal who died of poisoning in a cave somewhere in northern United States."
The ninja then recounted in great detail everything that had happened since N began his pursuit of the fugitive Voodoo to the detective before him.