Experiment

Chapter 38: Experiment

"No, it has nothing to do with me!"

"I'm just a collector, please, let me go, let me go—ah!"

The scream cut off abruptly. The member of the Taoka Gang collapsed stiffly in his own apartment, eyes wide open, his features twisted as if he had seen some unspeakable, absolute terror.

He died in the locked room in a bizarre posture.

"Still no progress?"

As the yakuza member lost his vital signs, Iori Ichika spoke up.

Dozens of cameras, positioned at every angle, had recorded the entire process of his death.

The "experts" in front of the monitors were all drenched in cold sweat, terrified that they might follow in the footsteps of this "volunteer."

"No."

"None," they replied.

The "experts" present were all seasoned criminal investigators.

Yet, they had never encountered a case this bizarre: this was clearly the work of an evil spirit; how were they supposed to investigate such a thing?

Should they hold up the Penal Code and read it to Mrs. Inoue, informing her that her actions violated the law?

Or should they hang garlic around their necks, grab crucifixes and prayer beads, and attempt an exorcism?

"Chief, if I may speak frankly..."

"Experiments like this are meaningless."

One investigator couldn't help but speak up. Although those "volunteers" were criminals, judging them according to the law was one thing, but using them to probe an "evil spirit" was quite another.

Furthermore, by repeatedly probing Mrs. Inoue, if they were to annoy her, or cause her to "mutate" or "evolve," the first ones to suffer would be the police officers participating in the process.

An evil spirit crawling out of a monitor—wasn't that a classic local trope?

"Hmm, indeed."

"Seiko, help me write a report. State that the experiment has yielded no progress and request that the Inoue residence be sealed off."

Fuji Seiko, standing behind Iori Ichika, was stunned for a moment before answering.

"Yes!"

?

"Seiko, is something on your mind?"

Facing her superior's inquiry, the mature policewoman shook her head.

"No."

"It's just... I heard Kawai Mai has woken up, and I'd like to go see her."

Kawai Mai was her former partner who had the misfortune of encountering the Earthquake Catfish on the road, getting struck in the head by debris it kicked up, and lying in the hospital for several days before waking up.

Fuji Seiko, who should have visited her long ago, had been dragged into this "supernatural incident" and assigned under Iori Ichika.

She had been running around for the past few days, so busy she didn't even have time to sleep, let alone visit her junior.

"I see."

Glancing at the corpse on the screen, even Iori Ichika felt a sense of discomfort.

"I'll drive you there."

"Huh?"

"Let's go—"

Patting her subordinate on the shoulder, Iori Ichika turned and walked out.

Mrs. Inoue appeared without any pattern, but once a volunteer was "targeted" by her, it was a dead end.

Before dying, they would go through stages of "muttering to themselves," "panicking," and "frantic destruction" before finally being scared to death!

Just like the members of the Broken Tooth Gang.

Except this process was slower and even more terrifying!

As a police officer, Iori Ichika could barely claim a "clear conscience," but if she truly had to face an evil spirit, she was helpless.

She couldn't just wait until she died and become an evil spirit herself to seek revenge, could she?

Tokyo Women's Medical University, Adachi Medical Center.

It wasn't hard to tell from the hospital's name that this was a facility under the umbrella of a university.

Of course, the university behind the hospital was in no way comparable to Todai; and while the medical conditions of this hospital located in Adachi Ward weren't exactly poor, they certainly had nothing to do with being "high-end."

Even so, it was the premier hospital in Adachi Ward.

After all, with a university as its backing, the resources available were far beyond what any private clinic could compare to.

A black-and-white police cruiser pulled into the hospital parking lot. Iori Ichika, wearing a studded leather jacket left open with her shirt tucked into her belt—looking every bit the leader of a biker gang—pushed open the car door and stepped out.

With just a single sweep of her gaze, nearby pedestrians immediately gave her a wide berth.

"Officer, you..."

Fuji Seiko no longer knew how to describe the "deterrent power" of her superior.

"Don't sweat the small stuff."

Walking to the rear of the car to open the trunk and retrieve a fruit basket for the patient, a cavalier Iori Ichika beckoned her over.

"Let's go, time to check on our cute junior."

However, when the two arrived at the hospital room, they realized the atmosphere was off—

"Are you Mai's colleagues?"

"Sit, please, have a seat."

A middle-aged woman with a haggard expression forced a smile and stood up to greet them.

"Ma'am, please don't go to any trouble."

"We should have come to see Mai sooner, but we've been so busy lately..."

Noticing Kawai Mai awake on the hospital bed, Fuji Seiko revealed a genuine smile. Although this junior was a bit scatterbrained and timid, she was still a competent person who worked hard at being a police officer.

She was also an important friend.

"Mai, I'm so glad you're alright!"

?

"Officer,"

"You don't know about Mai yet, do you?"

Just as the middle-aged woman's expression darkened, Kawai Mai, lying motionless on the bed, interrupted her.

"Mom,"

"Could you let me talk to my seniors alone for a moment?"

"What?!"

Her body swayed violently.

Fuji Seiko, nearly collapsing, was caught by Iori Ichika, who reached out to steady her.

"Mai, you..."

The mature policewoman looked at her junior on the bed, her eyes filled with shock, heartache, and guilt.

"Paralysis of the entire body due to spinal nerve damage,"

The young policewoman, unable to even turn her head, let out a chuckle from the bed.

"Well,"

"I guess I don't have to hand in my resignation letter now."

"How could this... how could this happen?"

Losing all strength in her limbs, Fuji Seiko slumped into a chair that Iori Ichika had hooked over with her foot, clutching her forehead, unable to accept the reality.

"Oh, I'm lucky to even be alive."

Compared to Fuji Seiko, who refused to believe it, Kawai Mai on the bed seemed much more at peace with the situation.

"Actually, I was never really cut out to be a police officer anyway."

The short-haired young policewoman, paralyzed on the hospital bed, recalled her feelings back when she graduated high school and faced her "career path survey."

"...My grades were average, and I didn't have any grand ambitions."

"As long as there was a stable income, any job would have been fine."

Then, she took various civil service exams and, as luck would have it, only passed the police entrance exam, so:

"After becoming a police officer, I realized it wasn't as easy as I imagined, and I never really got to touch any 'real cases'."

Someone like her, who entered the police force after high school, had to start from the lowest rank of "patrol officer," which meant: patrolling the streets, directing traffic, writing tickets, and so on—in short, doing the grunt work.

You tax-thieving parasite!

Damn it, just a ticket-writer!

Hey, "if you have a problem, call the police"—isn't that what you guys say?

These were the kinds of things almost every new recruit had to face.

At the same time:

The reports you haven't turned in yet—get them on my desk as soon as possible.

As a rookie at the very bottom of the police force, there was no end to the troublesome tasks.

"If I'd known the work would be this exhausting and thankless, I absolutely never would have become a police officer, hehehe~~"

A somewhat sheepish smile appeared on Kawai Mai's young face.

"I even have my resignation letter written out."

She just never turned it in.

"But, you know..."

Everything changed after she met her senior, Fuji Seiko, who had just transferred over.

Under her guidance, despite stumbling along the way, she managed to endure those initial hardships.

Only, she never expected:

"I won't be able to go on missions with you anymore, Senior. I'm sorry."

She flashed a carefree smile. Under normal circumstances, Kawai Mai would have been scratching the hair behind her ear with a goofy expression. However, right now:

She would have to spend the rest of her life lying in a hospital bed.

Bang!

"Why did it have to end up like this?"

A fist slammed heavily against the wall of the hospital corridor.

The mature policewoman lowered her head, not wanting anyone to see the tears in her eyes.

"Mai was working so hard, so earnestly trying to be a good police officer. Why did something like this have to happen to her?!"

"Calm down, Seiko."

Iori Ichika, standing beside her, patted her shoulder.

"In our line of work, accidents happen sooner or later."

That didn't sound like a police officer; it sounded more like some kind of battlefield mercenary.

"Chief,"

"Not all police officers encounter violent incidents."

Fuji Seiko didn't know how to respond to her superior's attempt at comfort. Most police officers would never even fire their service weapons throughout their entire careers.

Only someone like her superior, who used to be in the Organized Crime Division and now belonged to the Supernatural Countermeasures Division, would make such a "life and death are indifferent" remark.

"It's all my fault."

"If I had warned Mai sooner, or pushed her out of the way..."

"Alright, alright, what's the point of saying that now?"

Iori Ichika spread her hands.

"Can you reverse time and save that junior of yours?"

"Since you can't, you have to look forward—the current 'brain-computer interface' technology has made breakthroughs; paralyzed patients can even play computer games now. Who knows, maybe one day she'll stand up again, fully mechanical."

"Chief,"

"Has anyone ever told you that you're terrible at comforting people?"

To Fuji Seiko's helpless remark, Iori Ichika simply shrugged.

"Too many people to count."

"Anyway, we just have to wait for now."

Suddenly remembering something, Iori Ichika's expression turned serious. She gestured for Fuji Seiko to follow her, and after they returned to the parked police car and locked the doors:

"Seiko, if there were a chance to heal Kawai Mai, how far would you be willing to go for her?"

Before the confused Fuji Seiko could answer, Iori Ichika continued on her own.

"For example: risking your life."

?!

"Chief, I don't understand what you mean."

Fuji Seiko couldn't grasp the meaning behind her superior's abrupt question, but:

"If it could help Mai recover, as long as it doesn't break the law, I am willing to do anything."

Mai was not just her junior; she was her dear friend!

"Good."

"Then I'll tell you a piece of intelligence:"

"The government has an extraordinary individual codenamed 'Miko' in their possession. She is capable of treating all sorts of injuries that science cannot heal."

Medical ninjutsu was something that defied science entirely.

The genin 'Nohara Rin' could perform an eye transplant surgery on the battlefield with ease.

By the standards of modern medical science, faced with severed optic nerves, one could only shake their head and wave their hands in defeat.

"Really?!"

"That would be so—"

The surprise that had just surfaced on her face dimmed instantly.

Fuji Seiko had served as a patrol officer for many years, earned promotions to sergeant through sheer competence, and was now an inspector; she was hardly ignorant of the ways of the world.

Ask that 'Miko' to treat a mere patrol officer?

Who do you think you are!

"You've realized it too, haven't you?"

"The big shots currently lining up to request treatment from that 'Miko' are already booked a week out."

"From here on, that person's 'schedule' will only become increasingly tight."

Right now, many influential figures are still skeptical, or perhaps have not yet reached the point of needing to go under the knife.

But as time passes, the price required to secure the 'Miko's' services, and the status needed to do so, will only become more unattainable!

"What should I do?"

Fuji Seiko knew very well that both she and Kawai Mai's families were ordinary people.

They had absolutely no ability to move the 'Miko,' and it could even be said that if she hadn't joined the 'Supernatural Countermeasures Division,' and if her superior beside her wasn't kind-hearted, she wouldn't even know of the 'Miko's' existence.

Since her superior had brought it up, there had to be a way to solve it.

"The government has launched a 'Super Soldier' project."

"The experimental risks are extremely high; all animal test subjects have died suddenly!"

"I hear the human clinical trials aren't looking very optimistic either. But if it succeeds, you will instantly become the ace of the Metropolitan Police Department."

Compared to recruiting 'wild' supernaturals, the government naturally prefers to manufacture its own: unfortunately, the experimental progress is very slow, wasting quite a few 'volunteers' in the process.

The researchers believe that the physical constitution and mental willpower of the 'volunteers' recruited from prisons are insufficient to support the experiment, so:

"So, you want me to participate in the experiment?"

To Fuji Seiko's question, Iori Ichika nodded.

"That's right."

"If you succeed, you will have the qualifications to request the 'Miko's' help."

"If you fail, you will likely be left with a lifetime of injuries, or even die on the spot—"

"I agree!"