The Funeral

"This exchange went very well. You truly are the eldest son of the William family." Lieutenant General Ricky patted William on the shoulder, acting very familiar with him.

"Whew. Compared to dealing with an entity like the Holy Infant, I'd much rather go back to the investigation team and handle those files." William smiled with relief and said what he didn't mean.

In truth, he would much rather stay here and speak with the Holy Infant. The information he could gain that way was top-tier.

"Speaking of the investigation team..." Ricky straightened his expression. "Our people and the local leadership are planning to establish a department independent of the Metropolitan Police Department. Its main task would be dealing with supernatural phenomena like this."

William was silent for a few seconds before asking, "Do the higher-ups think these incidents will become more frequent?"

"They're concerned about that, so for now it's only a draft proposal. We'll continue operating under the current investigation team model, but we'll need to add more personnel and establish another division. Those conglomerates want to put quite a few people in, too. Heh. We'll see how their leaders handle it."

After discussing a few more matters concerning the investigation team, William was given the afternoon off.

He had initially joined the investigation team only because the lieutenant general was interested in "suspected supernatural abilities." Since William was familiar with Japanese language and culture and was known for being approachable, he'd been assigned to the team, where he served as a pair of eyes and ears.

He had fulfilled that role honestly, rarely questioning the decisions made by Noguchi or Kuroki.

But now it seemed the lieutenant general wanted him to play a more active role on the team. Establishing a division was preparation for creating a department in the future.

Thinking things over, William headed to the gym. For the past few days, he'd been training there to improve his control over Steel Body.

In his view, an ability that couldn't be controlled was dangerous, no matter how powerful it was.

Especially now that he knew about the "loss of control" incidents involving Sato Gafeng and Sato Tomomi. Perhaps that was the price of power?

The thought had barely occurred to him when he dismissed it. That was probably only one of the costs; otherwise, this ability would have come far too easily.

It was like that joke: "If I gave you a million, would you drink piss?" The person answering looked anxious and said, "Could I eat a couple bites of shit, too? Otherwise, I wouldn't feel right taking the money."

Fortunately, though he trained regularly, he still looked fairly young. After taking the Holy Son Pill, he stopped shaving and started applying just a little makeup each day to make himself look older. No one suspected anything; they only thought he'd gotten scruffier lately, though they assumed it was because of his heavy workload.

Noguchi Yuji, under the pressure and relentless work of the past few days, looked like he'd aged ten years.

The exchange might have looked like Shiraishi Wataru had been taken advantage of, but the information was all made up anyway. He hadn't dared to invent anything too specific, keeping things vague wherever possible. Then, at certain moments, he'd made a few expressions even he didn't understand, leaving them to speculate among themselves.

That would split their research efforts in several directions, making it much less likely they'd find their way to him.

More importantly, he'd learned something implicitly: even America didn't seem to know much about the existence of people with supernatural abilities.

Perhaps they were putting on an act, but Shiraishi Wataru had time to verify it slowly—to find out whether this world really was one where only he possessed such powers.

If that was indeed the case, then the entire planet could be treated as an experimental site.

In a good mood, Shiraishi Wataru stretched his hand out toward the window. The sky was overcast, as was normal during the rainy season. He slowly turned his upturned palm over and pressed it downward.

A muffled rumble of thunder sounded.

The cemetery.

Noguchi Yuji remembered when he hadn't yet been section chief. After hearing that he had a high case-clearance rate, Director Odagiri had happily patted him on the shoulder and said, "Whenever I see talent like you, Yuji, I feel certain our country will never lose hope! And neither will I!"

"Did I disappoint you?"

Noguchi Yuji gazed blankly up at the sky. Raindrops began to fall, growing heavier until they struck his cheeks and hid his tears.

A black umbrella blocked his view of the sky.

"The funeral's over. Are you going back to the investigation team?" Kuroki Niizumi asked.

Noguchi Yuji instinctively wanted to say that he'd stay a little longer, but Kuroki added, "If we go back together, we can save on security and get more done."

He was silent for a moment. "All right. Let's go back together."

After walking a few steps, he looked back. Odagiri's gravestone was no longer in sight.

He took the umbrella from Kuroki Niizumi and held it over them both as they continued toward the parked cars.

"What direction are you planning to take for a breakthrough? The higher-ups are being ambiguous. They don't seem to support us going all-out against the Holy Infant Society," Kuroki Niizumi said.

"Whatever they think, they'll still need to deter a dangerous person who's beyond their control, possesses incredible individual strength, and has a history of killing officials. To convince them, we should focus on a 'decapitation strike.' Those people will be afraid." Noguchi Yuji analyzed the situation.

Kuroki Niizumi nodded. "Nakai Hayato is indeed an extremely dangerous target. And so is that 'Dharma Protector.'"

"Have they tried threatening the Advent Body to make those two turn themselves in?"

"That's impossible. I hear the Holy Infant has become an important guest of the higher-ups. They won't resort to that unless absolutely necessary." Kuroki Niizumi shook her head bitterly. "No one knows how important the Advent Body is to the Holy Infant. Besides, they actually had a chance to take the Holy Infant away that day."

"Are you saying they deliberately left the Holy Infant behind, or that the Holy Infant chose to stay?" Noguchi Yuji looked thoughtful.

If they had deliberately left the Holy Infant behind, it would mean the Holy Infant couldn't control them, and that the Holy Infant and the Holy Infant Society were at odds. But if the Holy Infant had chosen to stay, that would mean he wanted to make contact with the authorities and had some kind of leverage.

From either perspective, threatening the Holy Infant into making the two turn themselves in was indeed a very low-priority option.

"Right. So for now, we can rule out getting help from the Holy Infant. We basically can't get anything from that side." Kuroki Niizumi explained her plan. "I'm thinking of reorganizing the investigation team first. As it happens, a lot of groups want to put people on the team, and we really do need more personnel."

"Good. I'll follow up on the people who took the pills and track down the other believers. I'll use the mother of that paranoid boy who ran away earlier to persuade him. We have to do everything we can to build our own 'supernatural force.'" Noguchi Yuji gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Even if that power comes from our enemies."

"Mm. William will be working with you. We have to bring him into it." Kuroki Niizumi's words carried an implication.

"William... He's very different from the other Americans I know. Working with him has been pleasant enough; at least he doesn't hold us back. What happened last time was an accident, too." Noguchi Yuji understood what Kuroki meant. William represented America, so he had to be involved in projects where he could learn about progress and decisions. It was a necessary, if reluctant, compromise.

As they talked, the two of them reached the cars.

"Take the lead car and get some rest on the way. You look as haggard as an old man." Kuroki Niizumi joked, then walked over to her car.

Noguchi Yuji folded the umbrella and got into the car. He forced down his tangled thoughts and closed his eyes.