The next morning, early in the day.
First floor, dining area.
Li Ze, still in his pajamas, sat at the table, enjoying the breakfast Alice had prepared.
"Not bad," he said with a satisfied expression. "I didn't expect Alice's cooking to be this good."
He was genuinely impressed. In his mind, Alice had always been a fighter. Her implanted memories from her previous life, being the security director of the Raccoon Base Hive, only reinforced that image. In her original story, she was always either fighting or preparing for one.
But this?
Her talent in cooking was a completely unexpected surprise.
"What's wrong, little boss?" Natasha asked with a teasing tone. "Is the food I made not good enough for you?"
Li Ze froze mid-bite, his expression stiffening.
He noticed something off. Despite Natasha's smile, there was a hint of murderous intent behind her words.
Caught in an invisible battle, he decided to play it safe.
He silently focused on his food, pretending not to hear her.
Alice, standing nearby, frowned slightly as she watched Natasha. Though she didn't say anything, her displeasure was obvious.
Still, Alice wasn't the type to argue. Instead, she crossed her arms and gave Natasha a pointed look, her hostility subtle but clear.
Natasha, unfazed, turned her full attention to Alice.
"Oh, what a beautiful lady," she said with an overly sweet smile. "The boss sure is lucky. I guess when I'm busy with work, he'll have someone at home to keep him company. How nice!"
Her words sounded like compliments, but Alice could feel the jab. Natasha was clearly trying to dismiss her as nothing more than decoration.
Classic Natasha.
Alice kept her cool and didn't respond, but the tension in the room was palpable.
Just then, several members of the advance team walked in. They immediately noticed the awkward atmosphere and stopped talking.
Li Ze sighed, realizing the situation was escalating. Setting down his utensils, he decided to intervene.
"Natasha, that's enough," he said, his tone calm but firm.
Both women turned to look at him.
He continued, addressing Natasha first. "Alice's background is even more tragic than yours. She's one of us now, so let's all try to get along."
Then, turning to Alice, he added, "For now, she'll be in charge of managing my daily life. Once she's settled, she'll take on the role of head of security for the Umbrella Group."
Before anyone could argue, Li Ze gestured toward the advance team.
"Let me introduce you all," he said, hoping to shift the focus.
"This team is officially a private military contractor hired for my safety. However, their real job is much more critical, they'll be eliminating potential threats to our organization."
He motioned toward one of the soldiers.
"This is Captain James Shedd. He's the leader. Natasha, you'll likely be working closely with him, so you should get to know each other."
With that, Li Ze leaned back, hoping the tension in the room would ease.
"This advance team is your responsibility, Natasha," Li Ze said directly.
After briefly introducing everyone, he decided to escape from home.
With two women locked in a tense standoff, leaving was the safest option.
However...
Standing outside on the street, Li Ze felt a bit lost.
Where should I go?
At that moment, his brick phone rang unexpectedly.
Li Ze frowned, puzzled. Who could be calling me?
In this era, phones didn't have caller ID.
"Hello," he answered. "Who is this?"
A familiar voice came through the line.
"It's Sonoko!"
"My mom's party today got canceled, and now I'm so bored at home. I was wondering if you'd like to join me at Tropical Land? Do you have time?"
She added, " Ran and Kudou are coming too!"
Li Ze froze for a moment.
Tropical Land??
Then it clicked.
Today's the day Kudou Shinichi shrinks!
He wasn't particularly excited, though. Having already seen this in the original story, he knew today's events wouldn't yield anything significant for him.
Still, going home wasn't an option with the current "battlefield" atmosphere there.
Although he wasn't close with Suzuki Sonoko, this was a chance to kill time.
"Alright!" he replied. "Let's meet at the park entrance."
After agreeing on the time, Li Ze hung up.
A short bus ride later, Li Ze arrived at the entrance of Tropical Land.
"Hi, Li Ze!"
He spotted Sonoko waving enthusiastically from a distance. Her gestures were so exaggerated that they were drawing stares from others.
Li Ze sighed helplessly and hurried over to her.
"Sonoko, keep it down!" he scolded lightly. "Everyone's staring at us!"
"Come on, I'll go buy the tickets," he added, walking towards the ticket office.
"Hey, stop!" Sonoko called after him.
"There's no need to buy tickets. We can go in directly!"
"Come on, follow me!"
Sonoko shook off Li Ze's hand and pulled out two tickets.
Then, she guided him past the crowded main entrance and straight into the park through the VIP lane.
Li Ze stood there, speechless.
Of course. Why didn't I think of this earlier? She's the second daughter of the Suzuki family.
It would be strange if there wasn't a VIP lane for her.
Shaking his head, he sighed inwardly. I might have some assets now, but I'm still not used to this lifestyle.
"Sonoko, does your family own this amusement park too?" Li Ze asked casually.
Sonoko blinked, then shook her head. "Not really. It's not fully ours, but my family does own some shares."
Li Ze shrugged. "Figures."
Yep, the perks of being part of the Suzuki family.
"Alright," he said, "what should we do first?"
Sonoko hesitated for a moment. "Shouldn't we look for Ran and Kudou first?"
Li Ze waved it off. "Today's their date. It wouldn't be polite to interrupt them."
He added with a smirk, "Let's enjoy ourselves this morning. We can meet them later this afternoon."
After thinking it over, Sonoko nodded. "You're right. Alright, let's ride the Ferris wheel first!"
"Sure," Li Ze replied.
Thanks to Sonoko's VIP pass, they skipped the line and quickly got onto the Ferris wheel.
As the ride climbed to its highest point, Li Ze looked out at the breathtaking view.
A genuine smile appeared on his face. This is nice, he thought.
Although he had lived in the modern 21st century in his previous life, his grueling work schedule had never left him with the time, or energy, to enjoy moments like this.
Meanwhile, Sonoko sat quietly, sneaking glances at Li Ze's smile. Her eyes reflected a mix of embarrassment and guilt.
"By the way, Sonoko," Li Ze said suddenly, breaking her thoughts.
"Why did you call me today?"
He was genuinely curious.
Even though he had been attending Teitan High School for months now and had become a part of the protagonist group, his relationship with Sonoko was... lukewarm at best.
He got along well with Ran and Kudou, but he and Sonoko rarely interacted.
When she had called him earlier, he was surprised, though he hadn't given it much thought. After all, the only person he really cared about was Kudou Shinichi.
Now, though, he was curious enough to ask.
Sonoko shifted uncomfortably, hesitating for a long moment. Finally, she took a deep breath and met his gaze.
"Uh, well..."
She paused before speaking, her tone unusually serious.
"Li Ze, I wanted to apologize to you."
She lowered her head slightly, her voice soft.
"Please forgive me!"