"For this research, I gave everything!"
"And yet you want to transfer the results to Raiden Ryoma!"
"Why? It's all mine! Mine!"
Ouma Kuro looked sorrowful. He suddenly realized that he had never truly seen through this "close friend" by his side.
Come to think of it, the first person to discover the Origin Stone had actually been his daughter—Ouma Mana.
The two adults had only happened to be called there by the children to take a look.
But because of this "treasure," his first wife had died, and his daughter Ouma Mana had nearly paid with her life as well...
The Origin Stone was no treasure. It was a calamity that would bring destruction to the world!
According to his research, it seemed to contain a virus capable of materializing the depths of a person's heart. Its primary external symptom was the gradual appearance of purple crystallization across the body.
Soon afterward, a man named Dayart, who claimed to be a descendant of an ancient civilization, came to find them.
The cruel truth was also partially revealed through him.
This thing was called the "Apocalypse Virus." It was the invisible hand of God, and with the appearance of the Origin Stone, it would begin to spread until it selected a man and a woman to restart civilization.
The Children of God—the Adam and Eve of the new era!
And his daughter, Mana, would become the first infected. She would mature in the form of "Eve" and unleash the Fourth Apocalypse across the world, eliminating all life and ushering in evolution.
Ouma Kuro's research progressed far more slowly than the multiplication of the Apocalypse Virus within Mana's body.
Very soon, on a Christmas night ten years ago, his daughter began showing uncontrollable abnormalities.
Just as he was falling into despair, Raiden Ryoma, an old university friend and the president of ME Company, came to find him and brought a special medicine capable of suppressing the Apocalypse Virus.
After his daughter's condition was temporarily suppressed, Ouma Kuro could only painfully place her into hibernation due to the medicine's limited effects.
He would awaken her again after completely resolving the lingering issues of the Apocalypse Virus.
Not only that, Raiden Ryoma had invested heavily in building a secret research institute on Oshima and used the special metal, Soul Steel, to seal the Origin Stone beneath the laboratory.
And this former university classmate had only one goal...
He hoped that Ouma Kuro, who possessed extraordinary expertise in virology and genetics, could quickly unravel the Origin Stone's secrets and attempt to weaponize it.
Their goals aligned perfectly, so Ouma Kuro began his long years of research.
Until the worldwide "flu" outbreak half a month ago, the project of weaponizing the Apocalypse Virus finally made a major breakthrough.
Ouma Kuro named this result, which could block the genes infected by the Apocalypse Virus—"Void Genome"!
He had originally planned to use it on his daughter, Ouma Mana, after the final adjustments were complete and with Raiden Ryoma's approval.
But he had never expected it to become the final echo before his death.
In truth, Ouma Kuro had noticed Kendo Shuichiro's obsession with the Origin Stone from the very beginning of the research.
The naive and slow-witted researcher had not thought much of it and had even taken the initiative to invite him into the project...
Thinking it over carefully, the Origin Stone had been discovered by his daughter, Ouma Mana...
At least eighty percent of Void Genome had been independently perfected by him alone...
Raiden Ryoma's ME Company had provided enormous financial support and information security for it as well...
So... Shuichiro... this thing does not belong to you...
You are just a bastard driven by desire, obsessed with fame and profit!
As Ouma Kuro saw the true face of his "close friend," boundless sorrow hung on his face, and his consciousness gradually sank into endless darkness.
Mana, Dad can't protect you anymore. I'm sorry...
Kendo Shuichiro took the Void Genome from the refrigerated chamber, then cast a fanatical gaze toward the girl still sleeping with her eyes closed inside the cultivation tank.
Kuro, even if you surpassed me in every field, so what?
I will ultimately become the "Adam" who restarts civilization!
Only I am qualified!
The twisted sense of conquest and utilitarian ambition in his heart made Kendo Shuichiro reveal a crazed smile.
The man whose mind was full of schemes and tricks walked up the platform step by step and gently lifted Ouma Mana's right hand.
Then, before everyone's eyes, Kendo Shuichiro first cut open his thumb with a dagger and smeared his blood across Eve's lips, making them look even more delicate and alluring.
Then Kendo Shuichiro, already past fifty, bent one knee and half-knelt, lowering his head to kiss the back of the girl's hand.
One second... two seconds... a full ten minutes passed, yet Ouma Mana still showed no sign of waking.
"Looks like you still aren't qualified to become her Adam..."
At that moment, a blond boy with thick eyebrows, dressed in a white robe and carrying a crossbow, slowly emerged from the darkness.
Hearing this, Kendo Shuichiro clenched both fists tightly. His nails dug into his palms, and a thread of blood seeped through his fingers.
The intense humiliation and unwillingness even gave him the urge to destroy everything before him.
Why? One after another... all of you... why are you all denying my talent!
Today, I will prove it to the world—the gates of Eden will ultimately be opened by me!
"Gai... you do it!"
The pause between those three words seemed as long as a century. In the end, Kendo Shuichiro forcibly suppressed his fury and painfully voiced his choice.
The blond boy, still wearing an oversized lab coat, slowly approached in silence.
Though he tried to suppress the joy in his heart, his eyes, which did not dare meet Kendo Shuichiro's, overflowed with fascination for Eve.
Over thousands of dull and difficult days and nights, the Sleeping Beauty within that cultivation tank had become the faith that kept him alive.
Wake her! Save her! Even a simple embrace would be enough!
Mana... I'm here.
PS1: Let me explain. Due to the overlapping presence of the Calamity Virus, they devour and mingle with one another, so the timeline can sometimes become muddled. The plot will be presented in a "reasonable manner."
Also, Toko City is actually a fictional city based on Tokyo. Coincidentally, the setting of Guilty Crown is also Roppongi, Tokyo, so they connect seamlessly on the map.
As for the remaining foreshadowing, go find it yourselves.
PS2: Thanks to readers @{"reader_id":"145472","reader_name":"Baker Street Requiem"}, @{"reader_id":"1277938","reader_name":"Snow QAQ"}, @{"reader_id":"3166524","reader_name":"Reader 44317652427"}, and many others for their support and tips. The author will keep working hard.
Desperate Song
The boy named Tsutsugami Gai had been adopted in childhood by Kendo Shuichiro, who had been determined to cultivate an Adam.
In reality, he was merely one of Kendo Shuichiro's many test subjects, with Apocalypse Virus injected into his blood.
Moreover, the timid and weak boy had been forcibly subjected to human experimentation and inhuman abuse.
Only Dr. Ouma Kuro's daughter had been willing to approach this pitiful child and give him the only light in his life.
Even after Ouma Mana fell asleep, during the painful experiments, Tsutsugami Gai's only way to relieve the pressure was to speak to the gentle Sleeping Beauty in the cultivation tank through layers of bulletproof glass.
That gentle, familiar expression seemed eternally unchanged, capable of soothing all pain and healing every grudge.
"Pfft..." The dagger sliced open the boy's thumb, and a thread of blood was once again smeared across Ouma Mana's lips.
One second... two seconds... Tsutsugami Gai waited anxiously. After a full seven minutes, his heart, which had already fallen to the depths of despair, was suddenly lifted to heaven by the trembling of the girl's eyelashes.
"His aptitude is a little lacking, but he succeeded in the end..."
The thick-browed blond boy boredly lowered his arms, as though he had already lost interest in watching the show.
"Where is the stigmata?"
Kendo Shuichiro immediately reached out to question Constantine and the others.
"That stigmata extraction technique was incomplete, and someone got there first."
Constantine casually glanced at the thick-browed boy. His smile was meaningful, as though he intended to shift the blame elsewhere.
"Excuses are merely meant to conceal your incompetence..."
"But forget it. Even without a stigmata containing Himiko's power, Eve's ability to control the Apocalypse is enough to deal with anything."
The boy showed everyone a disdainful expression. That lofty contempt immediately stirred resentment among the crowd.
Yet Kendo Shuichiro turned a blind eye to the boy's rudeness.
Because his name was Dayart. He could witness the rebirth of the world and possessed an almost infinite lifespan.
At the same time, he was also the tomb keeper of the ancient civilization known as Dayart, destined to witness the "divine baptism" brought down by the Apocalypse Virus!
As Ouma Mana gradually awakened, Kendo Shuichiro climbed the platform step by step. His devout and fanatical expression made it seem as though he were on a pilgrimage.
Meanwhile, the members of Holy Trinity Church struck their chests with their right fists, lowered their heads, and chanted the chapter from the Book of Revelation that foretold "judgment."
"The seventh shall soon sound, and the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ!"
"And He shall reign forever and ever!"
"King of kings, holy among the holy!"
"Hallelujah! Hallelujah!"
When Kendo Shuichiro reached the summit, he slowly raised his right hand and then clenched the empty air. The solemn, fierce hymn abruptly came to a halt amid its final praise.
This so-called High Priest stood at the pinnacle with an arrogant, conceited expression and roared in fury.
"What is Umbrella? A jumping clown with greedy blood flowing from every pore!"
"With a mere T-Virus, you dare lay your hands on a divine creation such as humanity?"
"These fools who have abandoned God's will dare dream of opening a new era..."
"Ugly! Ignorant! Lowly!"
"A pack of heretics!"
"Foolish souls seem to have forgotten..."
"In our hands, we hold not only the cross of suffering! We also hold the hammer of judgment!"
"Today, judgment descends upon this place!"
"We will use the corpses and sins of fools to pave the stairway to Eden!"
"Only we, the devout faithful, are qualified to knock open the gates of the new era!"
Those deeply stirring words immediately ignited the passion of the Holy Trinity Church members present.
They crossed their hands into the shape of a cross and solemnly held them before their chests. Looking up at the High Priest beneath the light and shadows, they chanted their praises in perfect unison.
"Great is our Lord!"
"Holy is our Lord!"
During the long era of Roman Church rule, Holy Trinity had merely been a radical sect that pursued equality for all and hoped to establish an Edenic paradise on earth.
But its history of persecution had forced it into hiding, twisting its heart, while its once-innocent doctrine had gradually become extreme and frenzied.
Now, these religious fanatics would stop at nothing to bring Eden into the world.
Of course, most who joined were descendants of the original believers, but there was no shortage of schemers like Kendo Shuichiro and Constantine.
The human heart was always complex and ever-changing. Faith could sometimes become the strength that carried a soul out of hardship, but it could also become poison that turned "simplicity" into "madness."
Kendo Shuichiro was extremely satisfied with the believers' reaction. The lofty feeling of looking down upon all living things filled his heart with joy and excitement.
"Then, everyone, our new era..."
"Goodbye!"
As the High Priest snarled and shouted, everyone took out the purple-red vaccines they had long prepared and injected them into their bodies with fanaticism.
At the same time, Eve finally awoke. Her eerie purple-red eyes were filled with an aura of deathly stillness.
A special substance as dazzling as amethyst spread and grew from the girl's chest in every direction, eventually weaving itself into the shape of a crown above her head.
Then Eve parted her lips and began to sing, a thread of ethereal melody flowing between her teeth and tongue.
"Blooming wildflowers..."