Amamiya Natsuki asked,
"Lord Zhuzhu, may I turn around now?"
Zhuzhu folded her arms across her chest and huffed,
"No."
"Then I'm turning around." Amamiya Natsuki turned to face her. "Shoko said she suddenly couldn't get in touch with you and was really worried. I figured the potion must have worn off... I found Chika and Kaguya earlier today. Everyone's waiting outside the sanatorium, and we came to help you complete the Main Quest."
Zhuzhu quietly explained her progress on the quest:
"After we parted yesterday, I went back to work at the sanatorium. Then I found a chance to give the Head Nurse a rice ball. With the Head Nurse looking out for me, my work got a lot easier. I also found out the truth about the sanatorium. It's involved in some kind of shady business..."
She paused, then said quietly,
"They're selling Death Certificates."
Amamiya Natsuki raised an eyebrow.
"Death Certificates?"
"Yeah, that kind of thing." Zhuzhu couldn't help complaining. "I'd heard of people selling birth certificates, but I never thought anyone would sell Death Certificates too. What's the point of something like that?"
Birth certificates were understandable enough. They were medical documents verifying a baby's birth, commonly known as "birth certificates." They were a newborn's first "ID card," important documents proving the baby's birth and blood relations, and the primary medical basis for the public security authorities to register a birth. They were required for important matters such as household registration, daycare, school, and even studying abroad.
If birth certificates might be sold for the children's sake, the truth behind Death Certificates was even darker.
Under the Civil Code, both actual death and a declaration of death involved the distribution of property. A medical Death Certificate concerned even greater interests than a birth certificate.
Amamiya Natsuki