Takato was in the villa's basement, pondering his current special rewards. Each one seemed very useful, but also somewhat useless.
So far, except for the trench coat named "The Hermit" which had genuinely helped him, he hadn't used any of the other items at all!
Not to mention the monocle named "stars". As for "The Hanged Man" which was a "Defense Skill", it could only trip people who touched his trench coat, and it had such a long cooldown! Compared to using this for defense, wouldn't it be more reliable to learn something proper like Karate!
Sigh, he should just look forward to what rewards he would get in the future.
The next day, Monday, Takato dragged his tired body to the coffee shop. Last night, Kuroba Kaito finally sent him all the information on Art of Disguise. After waiting so many days, if he still hadn't sent it, Takato had planned to go to his school again.
It was just that the content of Art of Disguise was too extensive and complex. He read until late into the night, but basically couldn't understand it at all. After some thought, he decided to wait until today to buy some materials and learn it bit by bit.
So, Takato arrived at this coffee shop early in the morning, intending to have a cup of coffee to refresh himself. But beyond that, Takato had another purpose for coming here.
It was here that he had "proven" Hanada Emi was Mr. Nishikawa's illegitimate daughter by searching through empty cups in the trash can. However, later facts confirmed that all of this should have been a trick by the Black Organization—but how was he deceived?
He was chatting with Saeki Tadashi when Hanada Emi happened to walk in. Based on the generational relationship between Saeki Tadashi and Hanada Emi, he had only vaguely guessed this possibility. And because Hanada Emi was carrying desserts from this coffee shop at the time, he thought Hanada Emi must have visited the coffee shop before coming over, and therefore might have had coffee here. So, with a sliver of possibility in mind, he asked the staff at the time and then went to search for empty cups in the trash.
So, how did the Black Organization tamper with things there? Could it be that they monitored his every move and were able to replace the empty cup he was looking for one step ahead at the crucial moment? Is that possible? To do that would mean the Black Organization possessed the DNA of Mr. Nishikawa's true illegitimate daughter!
Looking at the staff member who was making his coffee today, who was the same one he had seen that day, Takato remained skeptical about this possibility.
Compared to that idea, directly interfering with the DNA testing agency and altering the report would be simpler.
At Lawyer Shimada's office, the front desk staff named Yuki Furukawa confirmed who took on the commission to find Mr. Nishikawa's illegitimate child. Then, when that person had investigated to a certain extent, they made Hanada Emi appear before that person, arousing suspicion. After that, that person only needed to take back any item with Hanada Emi's DNA, and the testing agency would definitely issue a report confirming the parent-child relationship!
This way, Hanada Emi would naturally be able to receive Mr. Nishikawa's inheritance! And this meant that such a huge sum of money was legally obtained by the Black Organization!
Yes, that must be it. This way, the entire matter becomes very simple. According to Occam's Razor, when there are two possibilities, the simpler one should be considered!
After roughly understanding these things, Takato finished his coffee and left the coffee shop, ready to buy materials for learning Art of Disguise—this matter concerned the Black Organization, so he would put it aside for now. After all, the deed was done, and Mr. Nishikawa had already passed away.
Not long after Takato left, two young ladies arrived at the coffee shop. One was Hirota Masami, with long black hair, and the other was a girl with short brown hair wearing a white jacket.
The two ordered their drinks, found a random table, and began their ladies' tea party.
However, it seemed that Hirota Masami was doing most of the talking, chatting about various things with the brown-haired girl. The girl just sat there, quietly and leisurely listening to Hirota Masami discuss many things, occasionally responding with a few words.
This reaction made Hirota Masami a little disappointed.
"I say, Shiho, you can't keep this up. Staying in the lab all day is going to drive you crazy. At least you could find a boyfriend."
The girl didn't speak, just smiled in response, and then, as if thinking of something, she retorted with a teasing tone.
"What about you, Big Sister?"
"Me… "
Facing such a question, Hirota Masami was momentarily speechless. As if recalling something, she showed a relieved smile.
"Could it be, Big Sister, that you're still… "
The girl saw Hirota Masami's expression and stopped herself from speaking.
"Oh dear! It's all my fault for bringing up an unpleasant topic."
Hirota Masami quickly reacted, laughing awkwardly and ending the topic. "More importantly, Shiho, are you really okay? I haven't been able to reach you these past few days since Hanada left."
"It's nothing."
The girl took a sip of her drink.
"It's just that the experiment reached a critical stage a few days ago, and I couldn't get away. Big Sister, you don't need to worry about me."
"After all, we were just schoolmates who knew each other for a few years."
Putting down her cup, the girl showed a calm expression and murmured to herself.
"Oh, right! Shiho, tomorrow there's a new product launch for 'Fusae' at the Beika City Hall! Want to go together if you're free?!"
Hirota Masami quickly changed the topic after seeing the girl's expression, and this time the girl was clearly interested.
"Tomorrow? I can make some time!"
The girl thought for a moment, then happily agreed.
"Then it's settled. Tomorrow, don't dress so plainly. Let's have a proper shopping spree between sisters!"
Hirota Masami said happily, "After all, since you came back from studying abroad, we haven't had much time to go out together."
In the evening, Takato bought many materials and returned home, beginning to study the relevant content of Art of Disguise.
Regarding the high-fidelity mask part, which could completely disguise one as another person, Takato felt like an illiterate. If it was just about achieving disguise through some makeup techniques, he could still be considered to have the knowledge but not the skill. But for the mask-making part, he felt like he was reading a heavenly script.
On the other hand, he could roughly understand the method mentioned at the end of the content, which involved first making a plaster mold of a human face and then blow-molding it into a mask. However, such a level of sculpting could not be learned in a short time! Did he have to get a whole "3D printing" setup first? He couldn't afford that cost right now!
Never mind, he'd start by learning the makeup techniques within it.
Unfortunately, the identity of Akechi Takato already had a basic appearance in others' impressions, so he couldn't make major changes to his looks.
Thinking this, Takato first began to try making some modifications to the edges and corners of his face. After roughly trying to slightly change the style of his eyebrows, Takato already felt like giving up—it was too difficult!
It was also at this moment that his doorbell rang.
After roughly cleaning off the things on his face, Takato walked out to open the door, wondering who was coming to see him at this hour. But he didn't expect that the person standing outside the iron gate was beyond his expectations!
It was a lady who looked about thirty or even younger, with long brown curly hair and an angelic face.
Looking at the conspicuous curls in her bangs and at her temples, Takato recognized her—Kudo Yukiko!