The second floor of the casino had no windows at all, it was completely sealed off. As a result, the air was thick with a heavy, mixed stench. Cigarette smoke, alcohol, even the cologne favored by so-called successful men, along with the overpowering perfumes of their extravagantly dressed female companions.
When they reached the restroom on the second floor, the smoke was so dense that Ritsu started coughing the moment he stepped inside. He had always disliked cigarettes and hated secondhand smoke even more.
Seeing Macallan coughing so hard his eyes turned red, Vodka reached out and patted him twice on the back. "Macallan, you alright?"
"I-I'm fine… it's just a bit suffocating in here."
"Haha, once you're of age, want to try smoking? I used to think the smell was awful too, but after getting used to it, you won't even notice it."
"Smoking is bad for your health, Vodka-san. You should cut down too."
Hearing that, Vodka burst out laughing and slapped him hard on the back. "Hahaha! Sometimes I really think you're a funny one, Macallan. But now's not the time for that. Aniki told us to cause some damage, what's your plan?"
Since this was already a case of criminals preying on criminals, Ritsu had no intention of holding back. Leaning in close to Vodka's ear, he whispered, "Vodka-san, I caught a faint smell of gunpowder on the first floor earlier. There's probably a room storing weapons, we could make use of that."
"Oh?" At the mention of gunpowder, Vodka's eyes lit up immediately. He had a particular fondness for explosives, far more than guns, he preferred putting on a flashy fireworks show for his enemies.
Unfortunately, Gin often forbade him from using bombs. The reasons were simple, they were expensive and caused too much commotion, easily attracting police attention.
The organization preferred to maintain an air of mystery. Loud, attention-grabbing actions like that were strictly prohibited. The Boss had ordered members of the operations team to keep a low profile and to clean up any traces at the scene. Ideally, deaths should be disguised as suicides or accidents.
"What do you think about calling the police first, then using their own stuff to cause some damage?"
"Call the police? Kid, you've got quite a few wicked ideas. Heh, I like it. I'm in."
Ritsu volunteered to steal the explosives himself. He didn't want his voice to be recognized by any Tokyo Metropolitan Police officers who might know him, so it was better to leave the call to Vodka.
"Then, Vodka-san, you handle the call. Come down to the first floor after you're done."
"Got it. Be careful."
"Mm."
Back on the first floor, Ritsu's senses, especially his sense of smell, were sharper than most. That was precisely why he disliked strong odors; to him, they were magnified to the point of being nauseating.
The faint scent of gunpowder he'd noticed earlier came from near the Texas Hold'em area. The explosives were likely stored in a warehouse nearby. And finding it wouldn't be hard. After all, someone was stationed outside an iron door clearly labeled "Employees Only."
Ritsu walked to the bar and casually ordered a drink. When the bartender wasn't looking, he splashed some of it onto his clothes. Then, putting on an act, he staggered toward the man guarding the iron door.
"Ah!"
The guard instinctively reached for the knife at his waist, but upon catching a whiff of alcohol, he realized the man stumbling toward him was just a drunk.
Seriously, did this guy think the casino was a bar?
"Hey, watch where you're going."
"S-Sorry… hic!" Ritsu even let out a convincing drunken burp. His flushed face wasn't entirely acting, he was actually a bit embarrassed. Mumbling incoherently, he said, "Hah… I feel sleepy… this is my room, right?"
Seeing the drunk actually grab the doorknob and open the door, the guard shouted in alarm and tried to pull him out.
Only to be dragged inside himself.
In the next instant, Ritsu, who had seemed unsteady just moments ago, moved with lightning speed, subduing the guard. A clean chop to the neck knocked him unconscious. He stripped off the man's jacket and put it on himself, then tapped his earpiece twice and whispered, "Vodka-san, I've changed into a dark red suit jacket. You can come to the first floor."
"Alright, on my way."
Disguised as a member of the Nisan-kai, Ritsu stood guard at the door. No one inside noticed the change, it was clear security wasn't very tight. They probably never expected anyone to cause trouble on their turf.
When Vodka arrived on the first floor, he spotted Macallan standing by the iron door. Casually strolling over, he slipped inside when no one was looking. Inside was a warehouse filled with explosives and various eavesdropping and surveillance equipment.
Tsk. Running a casino while using tricks like this to fleece customers, how unethical.
He grabbed several grenades from a crate and stuffed them into his jacket, then adjusted his earpiece. "How is it? Can we get out now?"
"Yeah."
Once Vodka stepped out, there was no reason for Ritsu to keep guarding the door. The two of them quickly headed toward the exit but the problem was, leaving required a body search.
There was no way they were letting that happen.
Just as the talkative guard reached toward Vodka, who was ready to strike, someone moved even faster.
Ritsu's right hand seized the man's left, his left hand yanked the man downward, and his knee drove hard into the man's abdomen. Even at only half strength, the blow caused intense pain, the guard felt as though his internal organs had been violently shaken.
"Ugh!!"
"What's going on?!"
Grinning, Vodka dashed toward the exit. Making sure not to kill anyone, he tossed a grenade at a carefully chosen angle. At most, it would just make a lot of noise, destroy some property, and injure a few people.
Boom!
Bang!!
Just as the police, responding to the report, finished parking their patrol cars, they heard the explosion. They immediately rushed toward the scene. Hearing the sirens, Vodka and Ritsu quickly fled in the opposite direction.
The rest of the script would be the police racking up merit, it had nothing to do with them anymore.
Back in the car, they removed their disguises. Vodka put on his sunglasses, laughing heartily, clearly in a good mood. "Throwing grenades really feels great… too bad Aniki forbade me from killing anyone this time. Otherwise, I'd have flattened the whole place."
Ritsu felt relieved that no one had died. Though Gin had told them to keep a low profile and avoid making a scene… well, they had clearly still made quite a scene.
Not only had they used grenades, they had even drawn the police in. Still, Ritsu was in a good mood. Successfully taking down a Nisan-kai casino was great news for him as a police officer at heart.
"Vodka-san, I think you should prepare yourself mentally."
"For what?"
"Gin-san… will most likely punish both of us."
Ritsu handed his phone to Vodka with a wry smile. "The internet is pretty fast these days. There are already reports online about the Nisan-kai casino… and they're describing us as terrorists."
So much for just causing a bit of damage.
This had turned into making headlines.