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Chapter 532: Yingqu Went Mad...
Tokyo.
Haibara Ai chatted with Doctor Agasa for a while, put away her mobile phone, and went to stew the Beef Stew with Potatoes. Then, she went to the Courtyard.
To control the Doctor's diet, she had stopped eating things like Blueberry Jam. Now that the Doctor was away, it was the perfect opportunity to secretly enjoy a little.
In the Courtyard of Doctor Agasa's House, Little Horse Sanriyue was tethered Aside. Ignoring the fodder in the stone trough, it was busy munching on the Lawn and the trimmed Shrub.
Haibara Ai Looked at the messy Grass and Green Plants, and patted Sanriyue's Head. "You've really ruined the Courtyard."
Sanriyue neighed, sounding puzzled. It didn't understand, but it seemed to sense it was being blamed and felt a little Grievance.
"But it's okay."
Haibara Ai soothed it.
She had heard that Brother Hichiji's Non-Ink and Hissashi had once fought and destroyed the Senyuan Family's Courtyard. Non-Ink had also Seemingly damaged Police Superintendent General Hakuba's Courtyard.
Maybe raising Pets just tends to ruin Courtyards...
The Green Plants in the Courtyard could be replanted if destroyed. As long as her Sanriyue was Happy, that was all that mattered.
Sanriyue nuzzled Haibara Ai with its Head.
Haibara Ai pulled up her Hat, put on her Mask, Step Forward, untied the Rope from the Iron Ring, and pulled it towards the Door. "Let's go, I'll Keep Company you for a walk. I'll eat Dinner when we get back later."
She never expected to actually reach the point of 'others walk dogs, she walks a Horse'.
There was no Method. The Courtyard was only so big, and she had to Go To School during the Day. Not only could she not Keep Company Sanriyue, but she also had to tie Sanriyue up to prevent it from secretly running away. So, naturally, she had to take Sanriyue out for a walk after School Dismissal.
As long as she covered her Face and Hair well, even if it attracted the Line of Sight of Passersby, it didn't matter. There was No Need to worry about being discovered by people from the Organization.
Besides, walking a Horse wasn't bad. If she got tired or didn't want to walk halfway, she could always ride the Horse back...
...
Boston.
Just after midnight, the Time jumped to early January.
As the Temperature plummeted, the heavy Snow that had just stopped not long ago began to fall again, fluttering and swirling.
By morning, the Snow had lessened a bit, but many Shopping Malls and Schools had closed for the holiday.
Yingqu Yan Nan and Hissashi completely gave up on Going Out, enjoying the leisurely Time of being snowed in.
Chi Feichei went out for a while to Check on Non-Ink's Base.
He was worried that Non-Ink and the Crows might freeze to death... But it was clearly an unnecessary worry.
"When we came, we checked online and secretly inquired about the climate Problem," Non-Ink explained from under Chi Feichei's Thick Coat. "Local Birds can withstand that little Cold. Even if we couldn't, I made them prepare Heaters."
Indeed, when Chi Feichei arrived, Non-Ink was leisurely staying Inside the Room with a Heater, watching the Snow Scene Outside the window, looking utterly comfortable.
"I'll buy those Houses when I have Time," Chi Feichei Say. "To prevent someone from suddenly moving in."
"No Need for now..." Non-Ink Sigh. "We have four Bases. Originally, we occupied the Attic. Even if someone moves in, we'll have Time to withdraw. Currently, we pay the water and Electricity bills by leaving Notes and Money. However, two of the Bases are still not ideal. After a while, I'll have them find two new Places. Also, regarding the Houses ownership Problem, we'll figure out a Method to solve it. The original House owner of the 3 o'clock Base is a wealthy Woman. She has Houses elsewhere in Boston and is a Christian. A Group of Birds went to trick her, and she felt it was a blessing, agreeing to give the Houses to us. Oh, By the Way, she even had someone write a Transfer Deed, stating that she was giving the Houses to the 'lovely Birds'. I'm not sure if the Law recognizes it, but for now, the Houses and the Land are all ours..."
Chi Feichei: "..." Amazing, my Ink...
"This also gave me some Inspiration," Non-Ink continued. "In the future, we can use the Same Method to acquire more Bases, but we can't have them transferred to Birds again. We can conduct an Investigation, find some superstitious rich people, and we can pretend to be ghosts to trick them into transferring Houses to a designated person. It would be best if Master could find someone to use. If not, we can temporarily find someone. Afterwards, we can create an Accident and think of a Method to get rid of them..."
Chi Feichei: "..." It's becoming more and more like the Organization's Style. Except, the Organization uses Extortion and blackmail, while Non-Ink uses pretending to be ghosts.
"Actually, there's No Need to be so Troublesome," Non-Ink Thought seriously. "We could find a fanatical believer, control them, and have them Specially do this for us. However, Humanity's greed is very Danger. Once many properties are transferred to that person's name, there's no way to be sure they won't Betrayal due to greed..."
Chi Feichei: "..."
"In short, I still need to Consider it further." Non-Ink's Tone was a bit troubled. "If it really doesn't work, let Master buy them. I Thought about it, and having others receive the Houses is still not stable enough. Master, you need to Effort to earn more Money."
"Okay." Chi Feichei had already Saw the Hotel he was staying at and quickened his pace.
"We'll Help too," Non-Ink added, and seeing that they were almost at the Hotel First Floor Main Gate and people were going in and out, it stopped cawing.
Chi Feichei took Non-Ink back to the Hotel so that Non-Ink and Hissashi could have a Companion to play with.
Inside the Room, a Crow was cawing non-stop, and Yingqu Yan Nan's Ear had never been quiet. In the Afternoon, he went Downstairs to the Gym with Chi Feichei for two Hours. After returning to the Room, it wasn't long before he completely went Mad.
As soon as Non-Ink cawed, Yingqu Yan Nan started talking to it.
"Non-Ink, you think this Snow is nice too? Yeah, I also think it's very pretty. Are you Cold?... You're not Cold? That's good. When the Snow Stop, I'll take you guys to have a snowball fight, how about it?... Okay, Then it's Say So settled. But Hissashi can't go, he'll freeze stiff as soon as he goes outside..."
"Ga a ga?" Non-Ink asked Chi Feichei in a Stunned tone, wondering what was going on.
Yingqu Yan Nan: "No Method, Snakes are like this. Have you eaten After Meal yet..."
Chi Feichei explained to Non-Ink, "He's Crazy."
Non-Ink Looked at Yingqu Yan Nan. "Can you stop messing around?"
Yingqu Yan Nan sat on the Sofa, making Tea. "Eaten already. What did you eat?"
Non-Ink couldn't help but retort, "Don't join in the fun. You don't even understand what I'm Say So."
Yingqu Yan Nan: "Ate Millet Grain, huh? That's not bad..."
Non-Ink: "I ate Fruit!"
Chi Feichei Go To the Sofa and sat down, reminding him, "Yingqu, if you find Non-Ink noisy, you can Go To the Hotel Bar for a while."
"Boss, don't mess around. I'm chatting with Non-Ink," Yingqu Yan Nan Handle him perfunctorily, then turned to Non-Ink with great interest. "You fly Outside all Day, do you ever have times when you can't find Food and go Hungry?"
Non-Ink: "Can you stop being noisy? You're so annoying."
Yingqu Yan Nan: "Oh, if you can't find Food, you just come back to Boss, right? That's good, you won't go Hungry."
Non-Ink: "I've never had a time when I couldn't get Food!"
Yingqu Yan Nan: "You have a lot of subordinates, right? Are they all raised by Boss for you?"
Non-Ink: "I raised them! I raised them! I haven't caused Master any Troublesome!"
Hissashi quietly moved closer to Chi Feichei and asked, "Master, has Yingqu learned to Communication with Crows?"
"No, it's like talking to a brick wall." Chi Feichei lowered his Head and flipped through Emails on his Mobile Phone.
He Check the Intelligence from Rum and various sources to see if they could arrange some Action once the Snow Stop. If they stayed cooped up any longer, Yingqu Yan Nan would really go Mad.
He had too little composure. It had only been a few Days...
Five minutes later, Yingqu Yan Nan achieved a new milestone—becoming the first person to make Non-Ink swear.
"Can you fucking shut up! Huh? Huh!"
"Oh dear, you're so excited. I know, I..."
Another five minutes later, Yingqu Yan Nan achieved yet another new milestone—becoming the first person to be chased and pecked by Non-Ink Inside the Room.
Non-Ink: "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"
Yingqu Yan Nan: "Non-Ink, don't pull my Hair! I'm warning you for the last time, don't pull my Hair!"
Chi Feichei watched Expressionless as the Human and the Crow darted around the Room.
Five more minutes passed, and Yingqu Yan Nan achieved yet another new milestone—becoming the first person to try and hunt down a Crow Inside the Room on a snowy Day, fail due to the Crow's Agility, and end up being hunted by the Crow instead.
Non-Ink: "Hitting me! Trying to hit me! Trying to Net me! Looking down on my Intelligence!"
"I was wrong... Hey, I'll Say So it again, don't pull my Hair!" Yingqu Yan Nan desperately protected his Hair, finally finding a Plastic Bag and putting it on his Head. "Come on! See how you pull now!"
Chi Feichei watched Expressionless. Who was this idiot? He certainly wasn't the capable subordinate he had imagined.
More than twenty minutes later, Yingqu Yan Nan sat back on the Sofa, panting for Rest. What to do when bored and having nothing to do? He could tease Boss's Pet.
Hissashi looked gentle and didn't caw, offering no sense of interaction. He was also afraid of being bitten. Crows were different, especially Fun~
Non-Ink also landed on the Table, slumped backward, raised its Eye, and glared at Yingqu Yan Nan with its scarlet Eyes. It was furious, hehe... This Matter wasn't over!
Yingqu Yan Nan caught his breath, noticed Non-Ink slumped on the Table, and turned his Head to ask Chi Feichei, "Boss, will Non-Ink be okay?"
Chi Feichei put away his Mobile Phone and Say calmly, "It's fine. You'll be the one who has Matter soon."
Crows were very interesting Creatures. They had Viewpoints of hostility and friendship and would categorize other Species.
They would repay kindness, and it was a Group thing. For Example, there was once a Child who saved a Small Crow, and the entire Group of Crows would leave shiny Glass Balls at his Doorstep.
They were also particularly vengeful, and it was also a Group thing. Offend one Crow, and it was Normal to be chased and Killed by a Group of Crows for three to five years.
There was even a case where someone tried to save a Small Crow but failed, and the Crows mistakenly believed that person had Killed the Small Crow. They chased him for three years, pecking him every Day, throwing pebbles, and 'delivering justice' whenever they saw him. It showed just how persistent these Creatures could be.
With Non-Ink's own Wisdom, there wouldn't be such a misunderstanding. It knew Yingqu Yan Nan was just teasing it, and they were Companions, so it wouldn't go too far. However, some things were ingrained in their nature and hard to change. Non-Ink had to vent its Grievance somehow.
Even if he reminded Non-Ink not to mess with Yingqu Yan Nan now, he Guess Non-Ink would still be resentful and secretly do something to Yingqu Yan Nan, which would be even more Troublesome. It was better not to stop it and just let Non-Ink vent its anger, and then it would be over...
"I'll have Matter?" Yingqu Yan Nan asked, Doubtful.
But soon, he would know what Matter he would have.
In the evening, the Snow Stop, and Non-Ink went Out for a trip.
Yingqu Yan Nan Call the Hotel to have Dinner delivered to the Room. He ate Dinner and drank Liquor with Chi Feichei. As he was drinking, he suddenly discovered a Small Insect floating in his Cup.
Stunned. This Insect, which looked like a Caterpillar, couldn't have flown into his Wine Glass like a Flying Insect, right?
No, that wasn't right... In such Cold weather, even if there were Flying Insects, they would have frozen to death, right?
Chi Feichei Look Towards Non-Ink, who was eating an Apple by the Table like nothing was wrong. "Where did you get the Insect in this Cold weather?"
Non-Ink raised its Head and cawed a string of sounds, indicating: These Insects were raised by them...
Why raise Insects? They were Provisions. Also, it was to deal with people like Yingqu Yan Nan. Raising some Insects would ensure they had Gadgets on hand when needed.
Chi Feichei: "..." A Group of Birds collectively raising Insects? Impressive.
Yingqu Yan Nan looked at Non-Ink, Speechless. Was this Non-Ink's doing? Why did he feel like he was being Stare at by an underworld Faction?
(End of Chapter)
Tokyo.
Haibara Ai chatted with Doctor Agasa for a while, put away her mobile phone, and went to stew the Beef Stew with Potatoes. Then, she went to the Courtyard.
To control the Doctor's diet, she had stopped eating things like Blueberry Jam. Now that the Doctor was away, it was the perfect opportunity to secretly enjoy a little.
In the Courtyard of Doctor Agasa's House, Little Horse Sanriyue was tethered Aside. Ignoring the fodder in the stone trough, it was busy munching on the Lawn and the trimmed Shrub.
Haibara Ai Looked at the messy Grass and Green Plants, and patted Sanriyue's Head. "You've really ruined the Courtyard."
Sanriyue neighed, sounding puzzled. It didn't understand, but it seemed to sense it was being blamed and felt a little Grievance.
"But it's okay."
Haibara Ai soothed it.
She had heard that Brother Hichiji's Non-Ink and Hissashi had once fought and destroyed the Senyuan Family's Courtyard. Non-Ink had also Seemingly damaged Police Superintendent General Hakuba's Courtyard.
Maybe raising Pets just tends to ruin Courtyards...
The Green Plants in the Courtyard could be replanted if destroyed. As long as her Sanriyue was Happy, that was all that mattered.
Sanriyue nuzzled Haibara Ai with its Head.
Haibara Ai pulled up her Hat, put on her Mask, Step Forward, untied the Rope from the Iron Ring, and pulled it towards the Door. "Let's go, I'll Keep Company you for a walk. I'll eat Dinner when we get back later."
She never expected to actually reach the point of 'others walk dogs, she walks a Horse'.
There was no Method. The Courtyard was only so big, and she had to Go To School during the Day. Not only could she not Keep Company Sanriyue, but she also had to tie Sanriyue up to prevent it from secretly running away. So, naturally, she had to take Sanriyue out for a walk after School Dismissal.
As long as she covered her Face and Hair well, even if it attracted the Line of Sight of Passersby, it didn't matter. There was No Need to worry about being discovered by people from the Organization.
Besides, walking a Horse wasn't bad. If she got tired or didn't want to walk halfway, she could always ride the Horse back...
...
Boston.
Just after midnight, the Time jumped to early January.
As the Temperature plummeted, the heavy Snow that had just stopped not long ago began to fall again, fluttering and swirling.
By morning, the Snow had lessened a bit, but many Shopping Malls and Schools had closed for the holiday.
Yingqu Yan Nan and Hissashi completely gave up on Going Out, enjoying the leisurely Time of being snowed in.
Chi Feichei went out for a while to Check on Non-Ink's Base.
He was worried that Non-Ink and the Crows might freeze to death... But it was clearly an unnecessary worry.
"When we came, we checked online and secretly inquired about the climate Problem," Non-Ink explained from under Chi Feichei's Thick Coat. "Local Birds can withstand that little Cold. Even if we couldn't, I made them prepare Heaters."
Indeed, when Chi Feichei arrived, Non-Ink was leisurely staying Inside the Room with a Heater, watching the Snow Scene Outside the window, looking utterly comfortable.
"I'll buy those Houses when I have Time," Chi Feichei Say. "To prevent someone from suddenly moving in."
"No Need for now..." Non-Ink Sigh. "We have four Bases. Originally, we occupied the Attic. Even if someone moves in, we'll have Time to withdraw. Currently, we pay the water and Electricity bills by leaving Notes and Money. However, two of the Bases are still not ideal. After a while, I'll have them find two new Places. Also, regarding the Houses ownership Problem, we'll figure out a Method to solve it. The original House owner of the 3 o'clock Base is a wealthy Woman. She has Houses elsewhere in Boston and is a Christian. A Group of Birds went to trick her, and she felt it was a blessing, agreeing to give the Houses to us. Oh, By the Way, she even had someone write a Transfer Deed, stating that she was giving the Houses to the 'lovely Birds'. I'm not sure if the Law recognizes it, but for now, the Houses and the Land are all ours..."
Chi Feichei: "..." Amazing, my Ink...
"This also gave me some Inspiration," Non-Ink continued. "In the future, we can use the Same Method to acquire more Bases, but we can't have them transferred to Birds again. We can conduct an Investigation, find some superstitious rich people, and we can pretend to be ghosts to trick them into transferring Houses to a designated person. It would be best if Master could find someone to use. If not, we can temporarily find someone. Afterwards, we can create an Accident and think of a Method to get rid of them..."
Chi Feichei: "..." It's becoming more and more like the Organization's Style. Except, the Organization uses Extortion and blackmail, while Non-Ink uses pretending to be ghosts.
"Actually, there's No Need to be so Troublesome," Non-Ink Thought seriously. "We could find a fanatical believer, control them, and have them Specially do this for us. However, Humanity's greed is very Danger. Once many properties are transferred to that person's name, there's no way to be sure they won't Betrayal due to greed..."
Chi Feichei: "..."
"In short, I still need to Consider it further." Non-Ink's Tone was a bit troubled. "If it really doesn't work, let Master buy them. I Thought about it, and having others receive the Houses is still not stable enough. Master, you need to Effort to earn more Money."
"Okay." Chi Feichei had already Saw the Hotel he was staying at and quickened his pace.
"We'll Help too," Non-Ink added, and seeing that they were almost at the Hotel First Floor Main Gate and people were going in and out, it stopped cawing.
Chi Feichei took Non-Ink back to the Hotel so that Non-Ink and Hissashi could have a Companion to play with.
Inside the Room, a Crow was cawing non-stop, and Yingqu Yan Nan's Ear had never been quiet. In the Afternoon, he went Downstairs to the Gym with Chi Feichei for two Hours. After returning to the Room, it wasn't long before he completely went Mad.
As soon as Non-Ink cawed, Yingqu Yan Nan started talking to it.
"Non-Ink, you think this Snow is nice too? Yeah, I also think it's very pretty. Are you Cold?... You're not Cold? That's good. When the Snow Stop, I'll take you guys to have a snowball fight, how about it?... Okay, Then it's Say So settled. But Hissashi can't go, he'll freeze stiff as soon as he goes outside..."
"Ga a ga?" Non-Ink asked Chi Feichei in a Stunned tone, wondering what was going on.
Yingqu Yan Nan: "No Method, Snakes are like this. Have you eaten After Meal yet..."
Chi Feichei explained to Non-Ink, "He's Crazy."
Non-Ink Looked at Yingqu Yan Nan. "Can you stop messing around?"
Yingqu Yan Nan sat on the Sofa, making Tea. "Eaten already. What did you eat?"
Non-Ink couldn't help but retort, "Don't join in the fun. You don't even understand what I'm Say So."
Yingqu Yan Nan: "Ate Millet Grain, huh? That's not bad..."
Non-Ink: "I ate Fruit!"
Chi Feichei Go To the Sofa and sat down, reminding him, "Yingqu, if you find Non-Ink noisy, you can Go To the Hotel Bar for a while."
"Boss, don't mess around. I'm chatting with Non-Ink," Yingqu Yan Nan Handle him perfunctorily, then turned to Non-Ink with great interest. "You fly Outside all Day, do you ever have times when you can't find Food and go Hungry?"
Non-Ink: "Can you stop being noisy? You're so annoying."
Yingqu Yan Nan: "Oh, if you can't find Food, you just come back to Boss, right? That's good, you won't go Hungry."
Non-Ink: "I've never had a time when I couldn't get Food!"
Yingqu Yan Nan: "You have a lot of subordinates, right? Are they all raised by Boss for you?"
Non-Ink: "I raised them! I raised them! I haven't caused Master any Troublesome!"
Hissashi quietly moved closer to Chi Feichei and asked, "Master, has Yingqu learned to Communication with Crows?"
"No, it's like talking to a brick wall." Chi Feichei lowered his Head and flipped through Emails on his Mobile Phone.
He Check the Intelligence from Rum and various sources to see if they could arrange some Action once the Snow Stop. If they stayed cooped up any longer, Yingqu Yan Nan would really go Mad.
He had too little composure. It had only been a few Days...
Five minutes later, Yingqu Yan Nan achieved a new milestone—becoming the first person to make Non-Ink swear.
"Can you fucking shut up! Huh? Huh!"
"Oh dear, you're so excited. I know, I..."
Another five minutes later, Yingqu Yan Nan achieved yet another new milestone—becoming the first person to be chased and pecked by Non-Ink Inside the Room.
Non-Ink: "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"
Yingqu Yan Nan: "Non-Ink, don't pull my Hair! I'm warning you for the last time, don't pull my Hair!"
Chi Feichei watched Expressionless as the Human and the Crow darted around the Room.
Five more minutes passed, and Yingqu Yan Nan achieved yet another new milestone—becoming the first person to try and hunt down a Crow Inside the Room on a snowy Day, fail due to the Crow's Agility, and end up being hunted by the Crow instead.
Non-Ink: "Hitting me! Trying to hit me! Trying to Net me! Looking down on my Intelligence!"
"I was wrong... Hey, I'll Say So it again, don't pull my Hair!" Yingqu Yan Nan desperately protected his Hair, finally finding a Plastic Bag and putting it on his Head. "Come on! See how you pull now!"
Chi Feichei watched Expressionless. Who was this idiot? He certainly wasn't the capable subordinate he had imagined.
More than twenty minutes later, Yingqu Yan Nan sat back on the Sofa, panting for Rest. What to do when bored and having nothing to do? He could tease Boss's Pet.
Hissashi looked gentle and didn't caw, offering no sense of interaction. He was also afraid of being bitten. Crows were different, especially Fun~
Non-Ink also landed on the Table, slumped backward, raised its Eye, and glared at Yingqu Yan Nan with its scarlet Eyes. It was furious, hehe... This Matter wasn't over!
Yingqu Yan Nan caught his breath, noticed Non-Ink slumped on the Table, and turned his Head to ask Chi Feichei, "Boss, will Non-Ink be okay?"
Chi Feichei put away his Mobile Phone and Say calmly, "It's fine. You'll be the one who has Matter soon."
Crows were very interesting Creatures. They had Viewpoints of hostility and friendship and would categorize other Species.
They would repay kindness, and it was a Group thing. For Example, there was once a Child who saved a Small Crow, and the entire Group of Crows would leave shiny Glass Balls at his Doorstep.
They were also particularly vengeful, and it was also a Group thing. Offend one Crow, and it was Normal to be chased and Killed by a Group of Crows for three to five years.
There was even a case where someone tried to save a Small Crow but failed, and the Crows mistakenly believed that person had Killed the Small Crow. They chased him for three years, pecking him every Day, throwing pebbles, and 'delivering justice' whenever they saw him. It showed just how persistent these Creatures could be.
With Non-Ink's own Wisdom, there wouldn't be such a misunderstanding. It knew Yingqu Yan Nan was just teasing it, and they were Companions, so it wouldn't go too far. However, some things were ingrained in their nature and hard to change. Non-Ink had to vent its Grievance somehow.
Even if he reminded Non-Ink not to mess with Yingqu Yan Nan now, he Guess Non-Ink would still be resentful and secretly do something to Yingqu Yan Nan, which would be even more Troublesome. It was better not to stop it and just let Non-Ink vent its anger, and then it would be over...
"I'll have Matter?" Yingqu Yan Nan asked, Doubtful.
But soon, he would know what Matter he would have.
In the evening, the Snow Stop, and Non-Ink went Out for a trip.
Yingqu Yan Nan Call the Hotel to have Dinner delivered to the Room. He ate Dinner and drank Liquor with Chi Feichei. As he was drinking, he suddenly discovered a Small Insect floating in his Cup.
Stunned. This Insect, which looked like a Caterpillar, couldn't have flown into his Wine Glass like a Flying Insect, right?
No, that wasn't right... In such Cold weather, even if there were Flying Insects, they would have frozen to death, right?
Chi Feichei Look Towards Non-Ink, who was eating an Apple by the Table like nothing was wrong. "Where did you get the Insect in this Cold weather?"
Non-Ink raised its Head and cawed a string of sounds, indicating: These Insects were raised by them...
Why raise Insects? They were Provisions. Also, it was to deal with people like Yingqu Yan Nan. Raising some Insects would ensure they had Gadgets on hand when needed.
Chi Feichei: "..." A Group of Birds collectively raising Insects? Impressive.
Yingqu Yan Nan looked at Non-Ink, Speechless. Was this Non-Ink's doing? Why did he feel like he was being Stare at by an underworld Faction?
(End of Chapter)
