Human experimentation!
Upon hearing Stelle's words, that phrase flashed simultaneously in Bourbon, Scotch, and Rye's minds.
After a pause, seeing Stelle's innocent and naive expression, Scotch, feeling a pang of reluctance due to his strong suspicion, softened his voice even further and asked, "Then, Stelle, do you have a mom and dad?"
"I don't have a dad. As for mom..." Stelle mused for a moment before answering, "Kafka should count as my mom."
"Kafka?" Scotch repeated the unfamiliar name.
"Mm-hmm." Stelle nodded. "It was Kafka who brought me into this world, so I suppose she's who you mean by 'mom'."
"Then where did your mom go?" Scotch pressed.
"I don't know." Stelle shrugged indifferently. "After I woke up, I vaguely saw her once, then Kafka handed me over to Gin, and I haven't seen her since."
Scotch paid even more attention to this woman named Kafka.
From what Stelle said, she seemed to know Gin and had a deep connection with him. It was even possible that she was one of the organization's research members, and Stelle was her research result.
Unfortunately, there wasn't much information about Kafka available now, but Scotch and Stelle had only just met today, so for safety's sake, they couldn't talk too much.
Fortunately, Stelle was now assigned to his care by Gin, and it seemed there would be plenty of time to interact later, so there was no need to rush now.
Thinking this, Scotch didn't ask any more questions. Instead, he turned to Bourbon, who had been quietly listening to him and Stelle talk without interjecting: "Bourbon, I didn't drive, so I'll trouble you to take us out of here again."
Scotch had just finished a mission with Bourbon when he received Gin's message.
There was no need to deliberately separate in this situation, so Scotch had come in Amuro Tooru's car, and naturally, he would have to ask Bourbon again for the ride back.
Moreover, with Rye not present, he and Zero could ask Stelle some questions more freely, without worrying about Rye discovering anything amiss.
"Sure, it's on the way anyway." Bourbon also understood his childhood friend's intentions, shrugging his shoulders and agreeing with a feigned casualness.
"You two seem to get along quite well," Rye remarked casually, glancing at Bourbon and Scotch.
"Heh, compared to you, I get along well with everyone!" Bourbon sneered, snapping back at the organization member he disliked, then turned and walked away, clearly displaying his antagonistic attitude.
Scotch didn't say anything, only nodded apologetically to Rye, then led Stelle to follow Bourbon.
Rye was left watching Scotch and Stelle's retreating figures with a thoughtful expression, lost in his own thoughts.
Ahead, Stelle jogged a couple of steps to catch up with Scotch, leaning in curiously and asking, "Scotch, are you and Bourbon not on good terms with Rye?"
Scotch glanced at Stelle, not answering directly, but instead asked, "Why do you ask?"
Bourbon had just shown his dislike for Rye quite clearly, but Scotch felt that compared to Zero, his own attitude towards Rye was still quite friendly.
"Hmm..." Stelle pondered for a moment. "A hunch, I guess."
Then Stelle looked up at Scotch and reminded him, "You still haven't answered my question!"
Scotch: "Rye and I are just ordinary colleagues. There's no such thing as being on good or bad terms; we just follow the organization's orders."
"Is that so?" Stelle nodded, indicating she understood, then smiled again. "I'm not sure if you and Rye are on good terms, but Scotch, you and Bourbon definitely are!"