Chapter 172 The Arrogant Japanese Person
Chapter 172 The Arrogant Japanese Person
Paris's cold rain continued its steady drizzle, washing away the fallen leaves on the streets.
Leo strode out of the cream-colored villa, yanked open the car door, and slid into the back seat of the black Maybach parked by the curb.
The door shut, sealing out the chill completely.
Olivia sat in the passenger seat, her slender fingers flying across the keyboard of an encrypted military-grade laptop, the screen scrolling with dense streams of data.
"Boss."
Olivia studied the comparison results on her screen, a cold smirk crossing her striking features. "I just cross-referenced the intel Pierre provided. The timeline and basic events Marcel and Yuna mentioned—it all checks out."
"However..."
"That Professor Martineau he praised as some great, selfless hero? Far from the innocent saint his student made him out to be."
"According to Swiss bank records, before 'Project Genesis' was discovered to involve live human experimentation, Professor Martineau's offshore anonymous accounts received tens of millions in research grants from the Fujiwara Group. Someone who pocketed that much cash from experiments like these—how could he possibly have 'suddenly' grown a conscience at the last minute?"
Listening to Olivia's report, Leo's expression showed no surprise whatsoever.
He pulled a cigar from inside his coat, lit it slowly with a blue windproof lighter, and exhaled a thick plume of smoke.
"Of course I know."
"Biochemical live experiments at that level consume massive resources and generate mountains of data every single day. As chief scientist, how could Etienne not know where those 'test subjects' came from?"
"His so-called awakening of conscience? More likely, the Evernight Order and the Japanese stopped paying enough, or he sensed they were about to kill the golden goose and tried to use the threat of exposure as leverage. That's why they silenced him without mercy."
Leo held the cigar between his fingers, his gaze turning razor-sharp. "Besides, a 'Project Genesis' that received that level of funding wouldn't just shut down completely because one chief scientist died. The Evernight Order and the Japanese would definitely need someone to take Etienne's place and continue the research."
Olivia instantly grasped Leo's meaning, her beautiful eyes narrowing. "You're saying... whoever replaced him was one of Etienne's former students?"
"Definitely."
Leo leaned back against the leather seat, his lips curling into a cold smile that saw straight through human nature. "But whoever took that position, it absolutely wasn't Marcel."
"Just now in the study, I could see it—when Marcel mentioned that Japanese man named Kenichi, the disgust and hatred in his eyes were genuine. You can't fake that. He really does hate the Japanese, and he hates The Evernight Order."
"But..."
Leo's tone darkened. "He's lying. He's definitely hiding something critical. Like where the real Talia is. And why he's willing to risk The Evernight Order discovering him by staying in Paris, right in the middle of this mess."
Olivia's eyes turned cold, radiating lethal intent. "Understood. I'll immediately deploy Shadow Squad to watch that villa around the clock and monitor Marcel's every move."
"No need for all that."
Leo lowered the window slightly, letting the icy rain spray against his cheek. "People who've just experienced extreme fear and interrogation tend to seek out a 'safe' harbor to confirm certain things."
"Trust me, we won't have to wait long. Tonight, we'll find out where the real Talia is, and what he's really up to."
...
Just as Leo predicted.
One in the morning, when the rain was at its heaviest.
The side door of the villa where Marcel was staying opened silently, just a crack.
Dressed in a black coat and wearing a baseball cap, Marcel glanced around furtively like a guilty thief, then hurried into the rain and got into an unremarkable gray Peugeot.
The engine started, and the sedan quickly merged into Paris's empty streets.
What Marcel never imagined was that the moment he turned the corner, a black Audi A8 parked in the shadows silently pulled out behind him.
Leo had already switched to an inconspicuous tracking vehicle.
He drove the Audi himself, hands steady on the wheel, maintaining a safe distance of at least three blocks from Marcel's car, yet clinging to him like a shadow.
Half an hour later.
The gray Peugeot entered Paris's sixteenth arrondissement.
This was one of the city's most famous old-money neighborhoods, filled with high walls and heavily guarded private estates.
Marcel's car finally stopped at the back entrance of an extremely luxurious French-style estate.
After confirming no one was around, Marcel rang the bell, was patted down by two Asian bodyguards in black suits, and let inside.
"Japanese operatives."
Inside the Audi, Leo bit down on his cigar, his gaze coldly locking onto the bodyguards' movements and habits.
He pushed open the car door, took a running start, and silently scaled the estate's high wall lined with infrared sensors.
Leo avoided all the patrol posts, climbed the ornate stone columns on the outside of the main building, and finally landed soundlessly on the spacious balcony outside a second-floor study.
Through the partially open French doors, the conversation inside carried clearly to Leo's ears.
The study was decorated with distinctly Eastern touches.
On an expensive Persian rug, Marcel stood somewhat awkwardly.
Behind the wide huanghuali wood desk in front of him sat a Japanese man in his mid-forties.
The man was toying with a string of premium agarwood prayer beads, his eyes cold and arrogant.
"Running to me in the middle of the night—you'd better have something important to report, Marcel." The Japanese man didn't even look up, his tone dripping with condescension.
"Mr. Ichii Ito..."
Marcel wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his voice trembling. "This afternoon, someone came to my house asking about Professor Martineau and Mr. Yamamoto from twenty-five years ago."
At those words, the man called Ichii Ito's fingers froze mid-bead.
He raised those viper-like eyes, fixing them on Marcel. "Who?"
"I... I don't know his real identity."
Marcel bit his lip and chose to conceal Leo's identity. "He claimed to be a private investigator, probably hired by remnants of the Valois family. I followed our agreed-upon script, fed him some peripheral misinformation, and sent him on his way."
Outside on the balcony, Leo flicked his cigar into the rain.
Everything was crystal clear now.
...
An extremely soft yet jarringly sudden footstep suddenly sounded by the study's French doors.
"Who says I wasn't suspicious?"
Along with an icy voice.
Leo pushed open the doors with one hand, his black coat speckled with water droplets, and walked calmly out of the night rain into the luxurious study.
"...What?!"
Seeing Leo appear out of nowhere, Marcel's face went deathly pale.
"You... how are you here?!" Marcel's voice shook uncontrollably.
Compared to Marcel's terror, Ichii behind the desk only startled briefly before recovering his superior arrogance.
He didn't recognize Leo at all, had no idea that standing before him was the Reaper who'd carved a bloody path through Europe's entire underworld.
...
Ichii slammed his hand on the desk, glaring venomously at Marcel and erupting in curses. "You useless pig! You let someone tail you to my safe house!"
After berating Marcel, Ichii pulled a silver Browning pistol from his drawer and slapped it on the desk.
He looked at Leo with the gaze one reserves for the dead, sizing him up dismissively. "A lowly private investigator dares to break into Black Dragon Society territory? You really think learning a few tailing tricks makes you qualified to extort us?"
"Guards!"
Ichii barked arrogantly.
...
Hidden doors on both sides of the study burst open instantly, four Japanese elite killers in black suits filing out.
"Foolish rat. Since you've seen what you shouldn't have, you'll stay here permanently."
Ichii settled back into his chair, toying with his agarwood beads, not even bothering to look at Leo again—as if dealing with such a 'minor player' would dirty his eyes.
"Break his limbs, cut out his tongue, and feed it to the dogs. And teach Marcel what it means to do a job properly."
Watching Ichii's stupid, self-satisfied expression.
Leo didn't panic in the slightest. Instead, he laughed softly.
That laugh carried a bone-chilling, extreme violence.