Was this going smoothly, or not?
Standing outside the laboratory, he stared blankly at its tightly shut doors, a bitter smile tugging at his lips.
Yet beneath that bitterness was a sense of relief.
About an hour earlier, he had brought the Higan Grass that needed its medicinal properties tested here. The moment he knocked, the laboratory doors had flown open. The six elderly researchers, who looked somewhat restless, saw Chiba standing outside—clearly startled by their sudden opening of the door—and the Higan Grass in his hand. Their eyes practically flashed.
Really, Chiba still felt a little shaken when he recalled the way their eyes had lit up. He had never seen anything like it in his life. At the time, he had instinctively wanted to protect the Higan Grass in his hand.
"Oh... have you discovered another new medicine?"
"Did you come to have us test its medicinal properties?"
"Not bad, not bad. We'll reluctantly help you test it, then. It's not like we have anything else to do."
But before he could do anything, the six old men had snatched the Higan Grass from his hand at a speed that surpassed even his dynamic vision.
Yes, snatched it.
Chiba had instinctively gripped the Higan Grass and resisted for a moment, but he ultimately could not overcome their numerical advantage and was defeated in an instant.
Then, amid those few remarks, before Chiba had even had time to react or explain anything about the testing, the laboratory doors were shut by the six impatient old men.
No matter how he knocked, there was no response.
And so Chiba had stood there until now, beginning to wonder whether this sudden incident was a sign that things were going badly or going well.
The argument for it going badly was obvious.