The Resonance of Pain
"Come on, let's try it one more time."
"Even if you suddenly ask me to..."
I had applied to use Laboratory 44, which happened to be empty, because the large experimental spaces were assigned to the front numbers indicating the floor level, and the back numbers from 1 to 3. Ironically, I had to write my own codename on both the applicant and the test subject fields. As for the observer, the Management Team Leader would be joining us.
In the middle of a room that felt far too empty to be called a laboratory, we had placed two chairs facing each other. Sitting across from me, she bluntly told me to try it again.
"..."
It was awkward. Sitting face-to-face like this reminded me of the day we signed the contract, but now there wasn't even a table between us, making it unbearably awkward. Of course, it seemed I was the only one bothered by it.
"I've already released the block. Hmm... maybe there are other conditions?"
If Woong's ability has been a passive concept that lets him hear the thoughts of those nearby even when he doesn't want to... then it wouldn't be strange if he had another concept he could actively control.
"...?"
His expression is getting funny again.
I'd heard it twice now, so it couldn't be my imagination. Then whose voice was this?
"...Is this your voice right now, Team Leader?"
"I released the block. It looks like this mask can't distort the voice in one's thoughts. Thanks. I've got more to record now."
It was probably the Team Leader's real voice. Hearing her inner voice for the first time, it was clearly a woman's, but it was quite delicate, with a slight tremor at the end of her words. That distinctive, trembling voice was naturally different from the Team Leader I had always watched.
After all, someone with the same build, dressed in a suit, wearing a clown mask and teasing me every day... I already knew the contents were female, but even so, this pleasant voice created a sense of cognitive dissonance.
"Back to the main point. The manifestation of abilities is usually based on the ability user's own will. Of course, there are cases like yours where the ability manifests constantly even when you don't want it to."
"Will... hmm."
Even calling it will made it feel more difficult. It wasn't like some shonen manga protagonist holding onto an unyielding belief or anything. But in the Response Team Leader's case, hypnosis only worked when she clearly stated her desired request with intent, so the Team Leader's words had credibility.
However, in my case, since I'd been hearing other people's inner voices as naturally as breathing since childhood, it was hard to believe there had been any will involved on my part.
"I don't know that many ability users, but I do have a few hypotheses. For example, in the case of an ability user who controls fire..."
"Fire? There are ability users who control fire?"
It would probably look cool in person. It's something you see often in movies.
"...There is one, but you'd be better off never knowing about them."
"Okay..."
I had been excited at the thought of actually seeing it, but the Team Leader's firm refusal suggested there was a reason. This was her way of saying not to ask further.
"Anyway, in the case of an ability user who controls fire, their body possesses resistance to the intense heat of flames from birth. It would be ridiculous for them to get burned by the flames they create themselves."
"That... makes sense."
Getting burned by the fire they control... what an unfortunate comedy.
"From this, we can hypothesize that what you've thought was your ability all this time is actually just an auxiliary function of your true ability, which hasn't manifested yet."
The Team Leader tapped the terminal in her hand and tilted her head left and right with interest. I felt a flutter of tension—or perhaps anticipation—in my chest without realizing it.
Until recently, hearing other people's inner voices had never been helpful in my life. So the idea that there might be another ability I could control at will made me excited.
"You said you definitely felt the other person's sensations, right? And that woman... excuse me. The counseling subject also felt that unfamiliar sensation in the same way."
"I'm not entirely sure, but I think she felt the same thing at that moment."
"Hmm..."
So it's not just hearing thoughts, but also feeling the other person's emotions or sensations? It seems like a convenient ability, but feeling someone else's emotions and sensations through your own body could be dangerous...
"There's no helping it."
Plus, since this is about sharing rather than just receiving, if similar emotions or sensations resonate with each other...
"I'll suspend the counseling sessions for now."
"What?"
"If your ability isn't just hearing thoughts, then your safety could be at risk during future counseling sessions. There's no rush, so there's no reason to take the risk."
But the order to suspend counseling had been given to me, and instead of what I expected, I was told it could become even more dangerous than now. I felt the hair on the top of my head stand on end.
"First, we need to understand your ability. We have to figure out the conditions, and you need to gain confidence that you can handle it skillfully."
"But I really don't know either..."
"Still, we've confirmed that when your ability manifests, there's a faint light in both your and the connected person's eyes."
The first time we discovered this trait was when I was with Harpy, deep in the middle of baby-making... and this time it was during a meal with the counseling subject. Is there some common factor?
"Baby-making... wait a second?"
Had I heard that correctly just now?
"Ah, this is bad."
Oh no. At this rate, the Team Leader might find out about the camera I installed in the hotel room bedroom that night, the one that recorded everything with the Response Team Leader...
"...Team Leader?"
"Hmm."
She might even learn that the President watched the recorded footage too...
"Did you... do that on purpose?"
"Hmm, who knows?"
I had thought this kind of gesture only existed in manga, but my face felt like it was about to catch fire, so I covered my flushed cheeks with both hands.
I thought I heard a small laugh, but I gritted my teeth and pretended not to notice.
"Don't worry too much. Watching that intense baby-making was purely insurance for your safety. The facility also needed to document Harpy's mating methods, and most importantly, only those at Team Leader level or above can access it."
"Ugh..."
That cleared up my questions. Why the Response Team Leader knew about Harpy's "cute breasts"—that decidedly non-ordinary phrase—and why she kept making those not-quite-jokes about her own bust size during our shopping trip...
Those hours-long... relations. Even the fact that I had taken full advantage of Harpy's complete lack of sexual knowledge to satisfy my personal desires—someone had been watching it all. That realization was enough to make my mind crumble like sand.
"Well... let's leave the teasing at that."
The Team Leader stood up casually, but I couldn't even see it, nor could I hear anything she said.
This was completely different from just showing my naked body. The way I had spoiled Harpy rotten, making all sorts of unreasonable demands...
"Baby-making and meals... hmm. Is the condition the satisfaction of desires? Or perhaps strong empathy with the other person is the key."
Let's see...
Smack—!
"?!"
In an instant, I felt a flash before my eyes, and I realized my head had snapped to the side. A moment later, a burning, tingling sensation spread across my cheek. The sudden pain cleared away all the tangled thoughts in my head.
"How is it? It hurts, right?"
I could confidently say I'd never uttered a single curse in my life, but seeing her calmly ask if it hurt after slapping my cheek made me nearly blurt out profanity.
"...My gunshot wound from when you shot me still hurts too."
"Ah, it hurts."
Of course, the Team Leader's single reminder of my past mistake was enough to control my anger. If asked whether I'd rather get shot or slapped, the answer was obvious.
"Could you focus? While remembering that pain, try to figure out where exactly I'm hurting, how, and how much."
"...There's no way I can do that."
"Try it. I'll keep going until it works."
She bent down as if my opinion didn't matter and thrust that unpleasant mask right in front of my seated face. It was as if she was saying she'd slap me as many times as needed until her prediction was confirmed.
"Ugh..."
Will... will? I tried to ignore the tingling in my cheek and concentrate, but... of course it didn't work. What on earth was wrong with this person's mind? I wanted to know what I was feeling right now—
Throb!
"Guh...?!"
The unfamiliar sensation that appeared, as if slapping my other cheek in response to my belief that such an unknown ability couldn't emerge so easily, brought a pain like someone driving five fingers into my chest and twisting them back and forth.
"...This is fascinating. I can feel it too. Were my hands this rough? Sorry about that."
"Ugh... urgh..."
Whether she said anything or not, I collapsed from the chair onto the floor for the first time in my life, clutching at my chest where the pain radiated, but there was no blood, nor was anyone actually touching me.
This... could it really be?
"Good, Woong. I'm sorry, but this part requires multiple verifications. Still, Undine will take good care of you once you wake up."
Multiple verifications...? Undine?
"Wait a second...?"
Crack!!
Just before my mind went completely white and I lost consciousness, the last thing I saw was the Team Leader grabbing her own wrist and twisting it in a direction it could never return from.