The Research Institute Exposed, Tanaka Makes His Move

"Hello, everyone. I'm Shimamoto Yuka, and today we'll be interviewing a very special guest."

"Hello, everyone. My name is Tanaka Kouji. I'm sure many of you already know my identity. That's right, I'm an Ajin.

And I came here today to tell the people of this country something very important!"

In the lounge, Takahashi Hitomi curled up on the sofa, her eyes fixed on the laptop screen before her.

A livestream was playing on it. It had popped up when she searched for the keyword "Ajin."

That was right.

After so much time had passed, and after relaxing somewhat once she was temporarily safe, Takahashi Hitomi had begun to piece things together.

She had clearly been shot.

Yet she had come back to life.

All signs indicated that she was very likely an Ajin!

She simply did not have the courage to kill herself again to confirm her suspicion.

So she decided to search online first.

Ever since Nagai Kei had been captured, the Ajin Research Institute had apparently been hit by an explosion.

All kinds of media outlets were reporting on it, with truth and falsehood mixed together.

Takahashi Hitomi's emotions rose and fell as she watched, leaving her hesitant and indecisive.

She did not know what to do.

Until she saw this live interview.

Onscreen was the famous host, Shimamoto Yuka.

The man before her had hollow cheeks, with long bangs covering one eye.

He wore a hospital gown and sat in a wheelchair, looking extremely weak.

It was Tanaka Kouji.

At that moment, he was earnestly recounting his story.

"There are three confirmed Ajin in this country, and I am one of them.

I'm sure all of you already know that, but now I'm going to tell you something you don't know."

Shimamoto Yuka said, "What could it be? You've already made me curious."

Tanaka Kouji stared straight into the camera, as though he could meet the eyes of every viewer watching the livestream through the screen.

He enunciated every word. "The authorities of this country have always been using Ajin for human experimentation!"

The moment those words came out, Takahashi Hitomi's heart trembled as well!

There were actually far more than three Ajin. Many of them were hiding among ordinary people.

They did not dare reveal their identities, and this was naturally what they feared most.

Before it had been confirmed, they could still cling to a shred of hope. But now that illusion had been ruthlessly shattered, an overwhelming sense of threat surged from the depths of her heart straight to her scalp!

"Wait!" Shimamoto Yuka looked even more shocked. In disbelief, she said, "Weren't Ajin supposed to assist the government with research, while the government ensured the Ajin's livelihood?"

Tanaka Kouji sneered. "That's all just public relations talk. The reality is the complete opposite.

For example, GRAND Pharmaceutical Company has been conducting clinical trials on Ajin to develop new drugs.

Then there is FORGE Company, a major heavy-industry corporation. They use Ajin for performance testing and have even produced poisonous gas that is strictly prohibited.

Besides that, companies in fields related to food, medical devices, automobile manufacturing, and more have all been secretly conducting human experiments on Ajin.

The government has reaped enormous profits, while the victims of this entire chain of events are all the Ajin captured by the Ajin Research Management Association, including me!"

Shimamoto Yuka was left dumbfounded by the shock, but her professional instincts quickly brought her back to herself.

"You mean Nagai Kei, who was taken in earlier, is suffering the same treatment? And how did you escape from the research institute?"

Tanaka Kouji looked at her. "Good question, Miss Shimamoto. Do you remember when I said there were three confirmed Ajin in our country?"

Shimamoto Yuka nodded, and Tanaka continued, "You already know who two of them are, but the first confirmed Ajin has always been kept secret. The reason I was rescued was because of him!

His name is Sato!

Earlier, Sato wanted to rescue Nagai from his suffering in the same way, but the cunning Ajin Research Institute had already set a trap.

Now both Sato and Nagai are imprisoned in a laboratory without sunlight, enduring inhuman human experiments over and over every day!

The government arrested us under the banner of protecting us. Before Sato rescued me, I suffered human experimentation for two full years!

Everyone, I want to ask you: what exactly are Ajin?

Are we merely lab rats?

We may be immortal, but we can still feel pain!

Even if we are Ajin, we should not be treated with such cruelty!"

By the end, Tanaka was practically hoarse from shouting.

Even Shimamoto Yuka beside him was so moved that she could not speak.

Tanaka calmed himself before continuing. "I have only one wish: recognize the civil rights of Ajin, release the imprisoned Sato and Nagai, establish a special autonomous district for Ajin, and please, listen to our voices!

You may have doubts about what I've said.

I have already posted the relevant evidence on the 'Ajin' website. You can look at it yourselves!"

The interview ended shortly afterward.

But after it ended, a video was played as evidence of Ajin being experimented on.

Inside a laboratory filled with cold metallic hues, a person wrapped from head to toe like a mummy sat in a chair.

"002" was printed on his head, signifying his identity.

Experiment Subject 002, Tanaka Kouji!

Bang!

With a deafening blast, an experimenter shot Tanaka in the head.

Watching it all, Takahashi Hitomi felt as though her own heart had been jolted.

"He's pretty clever."

Just then, a slightly teasing voice sounded from behind her.

Takahashi Hitomi jolted violently and hurriedly shut the laptop.

Her terrified, wide eyes turned backward, where she saw a well-built young man.

His medium-short hair was slicked back. The sharp lines of his handsome face gave him an added air of masculinity.

He had a high nose bridge, and beneath his hooded eyelids were a pair of starry eyes with a restrained gleam.

His sword-like brows slanted upward, giving him a faintly aggressive air that was nevertheless impossible not to find captivating.

He wore a brown leather jacket and jeans. The black T-shirt underneath was slightly stretched by the muscular build faintly visible beneath it.

"W-Who are you? When did you get here?!"

Bai Xing plopped down on the separate armchair beside her and looked at Takahashi Hitomi with interest.

"Why are you so nervous? Don't tell me you're an Ajin too?"

At once, Takahashi Hitomi became like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

She sprang straight up from the sofa.

"Someone! Someone, hurry!!"

She had just listened to Tanaka Kouji's account and had even seen the experimental evidence.

Her heart was at its most panicked.

When Bai Xing exposed her identity at that moment, she completely lost it.

But Bai Xing found it more and more amusing.

He had only come to the casino to make some money, yet he had run into an internal rebellion within the Takahashi Syndicate.

Going with the flow, Bai Xing decided to find himself a long-term meal ticket.

Who would have thought that Takahashi Hitomi, the woman he intended to put in the leader's position, was also an Ajin!

Meanwhile.

After ending the livestream, Tanaka Kouji dropped his disguise.

That deathly ill appearance from before had merely been meant to stir sympathy among the general public.

After bidding Shimamoto Yuka farewell, Tanaka followed the escape route they had planned beforehand and successfully passed the arriving police cars by.

He returned safely to the Secret Base he shared with Sato.

He took out a tablet and opened a chat window with an unknown account.

He hurriedly typed, "Sato, I did as you told me. What now?"

A reply soon appeared in the chat window.

"Good job. Just wait for my message now."

Tanaka hurriedly typed again, "You can use a computer to contact me. Does that mean you've already escaped the research institute? Why aren't you coming to meet up with me?"

"Don't concern yourself with that. I have more important things to do now. Don't worry. It won't be long before we meet again."