"I probably got one thing wrong—in Uzo's eyes, Cool Guy and Angel are indeed special, but nowhere near as special as they are to me." A streak of cold sweat slid down Vermouth's temple.
"To that child, everyone is nothing more than a tool on the stage. And he has already seen through the fact that I treat Ran and Shinichi differently...
"In other words, under the current circumstances, if Uzo arranges Angel and Cool Guy into some dangerous script, then he will very likely write me, a related party, into it as well.
"Although this feeling of being manipulated is unpleasant, from another angle, it gives me room to act. I can personally stand beside those two children and protect them with my own abilities. The more I do, the safer the two of them will be.
"But if I leave... who can guarantee that Angel and Cool Guy will be able to leave the stage alive and safe every single time?"
"Uzo?"
The moment she thought of handing those two innocent children over to a little devil who was almost certainly without a conscience, Suzuki Sonoko's brainwashing wailing began replaying in Vermouth's mind.
—Today it was Suzuki Sonoko. Perhaps next time, the ones forced into a desperate situation would be those two children she treasured.
No matter what, leaving this place for the United States did not seem like a wise move.
"I'm not leaving." Vermouth repeated it again with certainty. "I suddenly remembered that there are still some important things I haven't done."
After a pause, she said to Gin, "Don't tell Uzo about this matter."
Although she was going to stay, she did not want to repeat the tragedies of the past.
On the contrary, if she could use this "departure" as an opportunity to jump