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"Let me make sure I've got this straight," Seonhee says in the distinct tone of someone humoring a lunatic. "Kansai's legendary info broker vanishes into thin air, isn't seen or heard from in years, and now out of nowhere he's offering his services to the Geomijul. For... reasons."
"That would be the gist of it, yes."
"Mm. Listen, Nishitani-san--"
"Please..." He takes a sip of hot black coffee so that any faces he makes can be blamed on its bitterness. "That name should have died with the first to bear it. Call me Kuroshi."
"Kuroshi-san. You haven't give me a single reason to trust you."
"Haven't I, though? You don't recall our conversation online some weeks ago? Ah, wait--that wasn't you." Kuroshi notes the perfectly sculpted eyebrow that rises ever so slightly before she can stop it. "I believe it must have been your associate... Yeonsu Kim, is it?"
"Not bad." She puffs out a soft laugh and shakes her head. "Neither was that free sample. It led us down some very interesting rabbit holes."
"I'd hoped it might," Kuroshi says. He watches a young couple stroll past their table, hand in hand. The boyfriend's gaze lands on Seonhee and he does a downright cartoonish double-take. The girlfriend turns to see what he's spotted, starts to scold him, then does an even more cartoonish double-take when she notices Kuroshi. "There's plenty more where that came from."
"Of course there is," Seonhee says. She's noticed the young couple going heart-eyed over either or both of them as well, and she seems to find it just as amusing as Kuroshi does. "With a few strings attached, of course."
"Of course. Thin and slack strings, to be sure. But I'd be doing you a disservice if I tried to convince you this was all out of the goodness of my heart."
"Is this the part where you ask for a date in return?"
"Mm. Sorry to disappoint, but I suspect my husband might have several things to say about that." Kuroshi chuckles at the reaction Seonhee can't quite stifle and takes another sip of his coffee. "I may have been off the radar these last few years, but I have by no means been idle. I'm offering you access to my network and expertise, to use as you see fit. This of course includes the use of my ship. I suspect you might find Kei-chan's technical skills handy, as well. He can do things with computers I barely begin to understand, but he specializes in weaponry. Compact, effective, and largely technically legal."
Seonhee tries her best not to look interested. "And the strings?"
Kuroshi nods. "The strings. Yes. I have two ...personal projects that would go much more smoothly with access to the Geomijul's resources. Nothing that would come back to haunt you in any way, I assure you. One..." He pauses while another couple passes a little too close to their table. "I have unfinished business with my ...successor. Unfortunately, he seems to have vanished into thin air right around the time of the Great Dissolution and the few leads I have managed to sniff out are dead ends."
"So I've heard." Of course she's heard. Everyone even remotely connected to the info business in Japan has heard something of the Kijin Clan's bloody implosion. "And two?"
"Tatara." Oh, that name has certainly piqued Seonhee's interest. Kuroshi waits for her to respond. When she doesn't, he goes on. "Her exposé on one of my associates in Kamurocho was particularly brutal... and revealed some deeply personal details about him that nobody on this side of the Pacific should have access to. I'd quite like to find out where she's getting her information. For..." There is nothing warm or friendly about the smile that plays at his lips. "Reasons."