There's a Murderer Here!
There's a murderer here!
Kaedori's walk was going remarkably smoothly. Actually, calling it a "walk" was a bit ambiguous—saying we'd come to an all-you-can-eat meat buffet was probably more accurate.
Since we'd come to a meat place, I guess I should describe the joint. This barbecue spot was packed with advantages, aside from one glaring drawback.
First off, it was eco-friendly. If you left any meat behind, hyena-like scavengers would sniff it out from somewhere and clean it up on the spot. Second, it was free. You could eat as much as you wanted, with no time limit!
The downside? If you didn't survive, you became the meat! Kinda sounds like a barbecue joint straight out of an urban legend. Should I make up some "rules for unlimited meat refills" for this place?
-Crunch.
But an hour had already passed, and Kaedori's appetite showed no signs of slowing. Even for an all-you-can-eat, was it okay to devour this much? The outside ecosystem, boosted to extremes by the P.V. Virus's regenerative powers, wouldn't collapse from this—but the problem was Kaedori, buddy.
Could it even squeeze back into the truck now if I told it to? I didn't have a measuring tool, but it looked impossible even without one.
"This should be sufficient."
Emma, who'd been scribbling away at her documents the whole time, finally stopped. Kaedori's movements halted precisely in sync with the doctor's words.
Hmm, finally wrapping up, huh? So why'd they drag me out here in the first place?
Mountains are mountains. Water is water. I was a little relieved the ordeal was over, but bored out of my mind staring blankly at it all, when I felt the doctor's gaze on me.
It's been a while since I've felt such a piercing stare. Whenever he looked at me like this, he always had something he wanted.
"Emma."
"Yes."
"What do you think about merging this defective product with the Guardian?"
Eh? Doc... what're you saying? Even if our paths diverged, weren't we soul partners or something?
Despite my desperate pleading gaze, the doctor's eyes remained steadfast. I snuck a sidelong glance at Emma.
Thankfully—or maybe not—Emma didn't answer right away.
Or rather, she probably just didn't grasp what he meant? This twisted way of talking was straight out of the doctor's playbook, with his warped heart. Having watched his thought processes in the game, I could pierce right through this fancy rhetoric where he packaged his raw desires under the guise of "research"!
"You don't understand? Feed this defective product to the Guardian. Nothing major. Utterly trivial."
"I don't quite follow."
The doc's the one in the wrong this time! Emma was great with people, but she wasn't exactly an expert on research. He knew that. Even if you fed me to another cadaver, absorbing my traits was impossible anyway.
It was a pointless act. No different from feeding a mere 2.5 Stage inspector to Kaedori.
Still, if he insisted on trying... I could kindly explain what would happen.
Too bad he never asked. He just silently directed Kaedori without a word.
The ground shook hard. Kaedori, now truck-sized enough to swallow one whole in a single bite, loomed over me.
Ugh... I really don't recommend this, you know. Forcing one-sided commands like that meant he had no clue about Kaedori's true state.
From his perspective, maybe it was a blessing? At least it let him dream happy dreams.
"Let me rephrase the question. Imagine an ant-like existence—utterly useless, causing no harm. Things too small to notice usually, crawling up a person's body without knowing their place. Brushing them off gently with your hand, then crushing them so they never rise again, pulverizing their wretched flesh."
He sure made simple words sound complicated. And the overflowing emotion was so obvious. What the hell did I even do to deserve this? I hadn't done anything to catch his eye!
"When you're high up, news finds its way to you whether you want it or not."
Hydra's teeth slowly approached me.
"I told you to stay quiet as a dead mouse."
Ugh?
"Reports from the Executors are surprisingly glowing. Competent. Quick judgment. Excellent mission performance. All so plausible."
Isn't that good news?
"The problem is, I know you lack that kind of ability."
Ah!
"You ignore orders to manifest your powers, but now that death's knocking, you suddenly want to live a bit longer?"
Ahem! Got nothing to say to that. But obviously, when death comes, you squeeze out every last drop of strength to survive, right? What a ridiculous demand.
"Honestly, even that's not a huge issue. I don't care what you do anymore."
The Hydra drew even closer. Fresh from its feeding frenzy, it reeked of nauseating blood.
"But the rumors trailing behind? That you're bullying young lives, conducting sinister experiments under the lab, that the institute director's turned a child into a weapon."
O... oh... ugh... I had no idea rumors like that were spreading.
"Truly grating."
Ehe, we're screwed. Guess the free ampoule production service ends today...
"You've crossed the line. In this critical time, not even a whisper of noise can be tolerated."
-Gasp.
Several Hydra heads gaped wide as if to threaten me... but it was just breath. Biochemical attack instead of a blast—deadlier to me in some ways!
No, wait—I'm a bit wronged here!
Sure, I got a little carried away, but I kept to the bare minimum lines! Wasn't I his closest confidante? How does word twist into "child weapon"?!
Who? Who?! Carmen? Only Carmen? But that lady didn't seem that clueless! She'd know spreading rumors could mess up my position!
Anyway, I'm not a kid. Maybe a tad smaller than an average adult woman, but a full-grown adult!
Help! There's a psycho killer here!
I desperately scanned around with my eyes. Predictably, no sympathetic gazes came my way.
So they're all in cahoots, huh. I suspected it when they didn't freak at Kaedori, but this heartless...! No hearts at all, these adults.
Bad grown-ups who feel not even a speck of pity for such a lovable beauty... they need punishment, right?
So. What happens next? Not my fault.
"Doctor."
I was expanding my blood vessels bit by bit, raising my hand, when Emma blocked my path.
Hmm. Standing there blocks my attack. Come to think of it, I hadn't considered Emma.
What happens to her if the doc dies? Without orders, does she turn into a vegetable? Such a shame. But her brain's been controlled since before I was born. No helping it.
"It's a defective, but vanishing suddenly now could cause a stir."
"A stir...? I can't agree with that idiotic opinion. I'm saying I'd risk that trivial cost to squash the bug in front of me. Can't you grasp this simple point?"
"My apologies, Doctor. But there are two recent reports from the Executor division. The first from 3rd Platoon Captain Carmen, the second from 1st Platoon Captain Carlos."
"...What did they say?"
"From Carmen: a request to minimize external interference with Inspector Nera. The Executor units can handle internal observation and management."
"Don't interfere, in other words. And next?"
"From Captain Carlos: a report that its mission performance exceeds expectations. However, judgment criteria differ from standard inspectors, so long-term observation is needed."
The doctor's face twisted.
"...Tch."
He said nothing more, but Kaedori's nauseating breath had already retreated far away.
Boring. He was all "kill now" a second ago! Hit me~ Hit me~ Coward doc couldn't kill me even if he tried~
Didn't expect everyone to care this much. Especially Carmen's report—or request. Declaring they're watching? Perfect. Eyes on you make people cautious.
"We're heading back."
Kaedori's body began shrinking.
I'd wondered how we'd get back, but it could shrink too? Makes sense—it's deformed freely since its tentacle days. Downsizing's a breeze.
Kaedori obediently climbed into the truck. It never spewed flames under the doc's murderous glare, but its retreat speed? Untouchable.
"From now on, send a person. They'll deliver the samples to the lab—just hand them over."
That was the doctor's order the moment we arrived back at the Research Institute, after a silent truck ride.
Hmph! "We've seen all we need, now scram"—but still demanding samples? Thinks I'm a slave? Playing that RP, huh!
Fine, catching cadavers on the way and boxing them up is easy. Just gets my hands dirty, that's all. But... it used to feel rewarding. Now? Totally meaningless.
I'd packed samples diligently to stock up my own ampoules... but no more lab access!
Feels good in a way, but so empty. Kinda wanna grab the doc and blackmail him right now.
Ignoring my bittersweet mood, the massive truck coldly rolled into the Research Institute. In the end, the only one kicked out was me.
Ferocious Kaedori gets comfy truck rides, and I'm booted? Unbelievable. Me, inferior to Kaedori? So sad my lips are curling up.
"Let's go. You won't be coming back here anymore."
Emma poked my forehead with her finger. Like, "leave now."
Ugh, Emma's too aggressive. No need to go that far. Or was it the doc's order? That'd make sense in a twisted way.
The doc seemed ice-cold on the outside, but scratch a little, and no one's as petty as him.