Jodie successfully got Jiang Xia's contact information and happily began planning her next move.
After making her plan, she was leisurely reading a novel and munching on an apple when Akai Shuichi called.
That lone wolf had actually taken the initiative to contact her.
Surprised yet pleasantly delighted, Jodie answered with reserved composure. "So? I've successfully made contact with Jiang Xia—pretty fast, right?"
After a pause, recalling something, Jodie hurriedly added with a slightly dark expression, "It was normal socializing. There wasn't anything weird mixed into it!"
But instead of being impressed or teasing her as she had expected, Akai Shuichi got straight to the point. "I saw the case on the news. Why did you suddenly decide to go to the Game Arcade that day?"
"Huh? Didn't you tell me to keep an eye on Jiang Xia?" Jodie asked blankly. "When I was following Jiang Xia, I saw those two girls run into him after school, and then they went to the Game Arcade together—such a perfect opportunity, of course I had to follow them."
As she spoke, she seemed to understand. Her expression changed slightly. "You mean, behind this case..." someone had been secretly pushing things along?!
Thinking that she had unknowingly walked through the setup of that brutal member of The Organization, Jodie silently broke out in a cold sweat.
"It was probably just a coincidence." Jodie rapidly replayed the entire case in her mind, but found no signs of human manipulation. Otherwise, she would not have remained relaxed until now. "The cause, process, and result of the case were all perfectly clear—you're not being too paranoid, are you?"
Akai Shuichi asked, "How long have you been following Jiang Xia?"
Jodie froze. "Only a few days."
Akai Shuichi said nothing more, leaving it at that.
But Jodie