One-Eye

Things were going quite smoothly. The Hirosue family didn't need to personally bring everyone over, and the group wasn't like the organizations in TV dramas, with a large number of devoted, willing-to-die followers. Most of its members were just employees drawing a salary. There were a few trusted confidants, but there was no guarantee they could keep everything completely secret. The reason Nobuo Hirosue had been asked to receive Nakai Hayato was simply that Shiraishi Wataru wanted to see whether they could handle things efficiently.

As for the other hidden members, Shiraishi Wataru had them go separately to rooms at hotels owned by the Hirosue family. Unless there was a special reason, they didn't need to gather. That way, even if one or two were exposed, the Huajin Group could use lax management as an excuse.

A few days later, in a conference room at the Huajin Hot Spring Hotel, Nobuo Hirosue and Hideyasu Hirosue underwent the initiation ceremony, witnessed by Nakai Hayato and the Ninth Guardian.

Ryomiya Hirosue stood below them, quietly sizing up the Holy Infant duo.

The ceremony was simple. They only had to demonstrate their loyalty; it wasn't even as solemn as the rites of some religions.

"In view of your contributions in sheltering our fellow members, I, on behalf of the Holy Infant Lord, bestow upon each of you a Holy Son Pill as a reward."

"Thank you, Holy Infant. Thank you, Ninth Guardian. Thank you, President."

The two men carefully accepted the Holy Son Pills.

So these were the Holy Son Pills that had the entire upper class coveting them? They seemed to have come by them rather easily. That was what Ryomiya Hirosue, watching from the side, thought. But she guessed that since they could be given, they could also be taken away. Whether the pills would work at all probably depended on the Holy Infant's whim.

As the son, Hideyasu Hirosue swallowed his pill first.

He was compatible with the [Steel Body] and [Regeneration] abilities. Not bad.

Seeing his son's face grow younger and rosier, Nobuo Hirosue didn't wait long before swallowing his pill as well.

Then he experienced the strange sensation of his lost youthful vigor gradually returning. It was a joy and excitement that young people who had never lost it could hardly understand.

The Ninth Guardian glanced in surprise at Nobuo Hirosue, still basking in the sensation. He had actually become compatible with [Offense-Defense Integration], despite being a seventy-year-old man. The Ninth Guardian then looked at Nakai Hayato beside him, who was something of an old man himself. Were old men more likely to become compatible with abilities?

Was the Holy Infant Society about to change its name to Old Folks' Fun Club?

Shiraishi Wataru had only activated [Steel Body] and [Regeneration] for him. Unless there was a plan to put him in combat, he didn't intend to give him any more abilities for now.

After the initiation ceremony, the group began talking among themselves.

"How did you know I'd see that news report?" the Ninth Guardian asked the young woman before him.

She had fair skin, a delicate figure, and a charming face—the very image of a wealthy young lady. The only thing that didn't fit was that she was too alluring. But years of training had taught her how to temper that allure with her bearing, giving her a different kind of charm.

"Lord Dharma Protector, when the investigation team first raided the Society, I saw that most of the members had been able to prepare several days in advance. So I thought that the President and Lord Dharma Protector must take information very seriously, or have other sources of intelligence. That's why I suggested that my family contact you in that way." Ryomiya Hirosue spoke slowly, whether she had come up with the idea first and then tailored her explanation to it, placing the credit squarely on the Dharma Protector and the leader.

The Ninth Guardian nodded and didn't ask anything further. Many schemes were gambles. If you won, it was a hundred percent success, as if everything had been planned perfectly. If you lost, you were just a defeated general.

"Lord Dharma Protector, Lord Holy Infant, many conglomerates are now interested in joining our Society. Should we bring in a few people of value?" Hideyasu Hirosue glanced at his father before asking the two of them.

The Ninth Guardian shook his head. "Not for now, but you can draw up a list."

The Holy Infant Society would lie low for a while. Shiraishi Wataru planned to use other forces to draw the authorities' attention and make them believe that supernatural powers were emerging in more places than just the Holy Infant Society. That would ease the pressure on the Society and increase the calls for cooperation.

"Then what should we do to help the Society, Lord Dharma Protector and Lord Holy Infant?" Nobuo Hirosue asked.

"Find a large warehouse and buy a batch of animals according to my instructions." The Ninth Guardian planned to resume his biological experiments.

Because of his main identity, he couldn't buy large numbers of animals or find a big enough place to experiment. Using the Ninth Guardian's identity made things much more convenient.

"Understood."

One-Eye had fled from Adachi to Saitama and disappeared into the mountains. There, the two-legged beasts that seemed to fill the world gradually grew scarce.

It didn't know why it had become so powerful. No stray cat or dog stood a chance against it, and even a two-legged beast could be knocked down with a single blow.

So its escape, though it had lasted only a few days, had been fairly comfortable.

When it was hungry, there was no shortage of food among the two-legged beasts. When it was tired, anywhere it could lie down was good enough.

But it still couldn't accept the two-legged beasts. The pain had carved its fury into its memory.

It feared that one day it would wake up bound by the two-legged beasts again, powerless to fight back.

And today, that fear reached its peak.

Late June.

The rainy season had finally passed, and sunlight spread across the land.

One moment, people praised the sun; the next, they complained that it was too hot and wondered why the sky wasn't overcast.

A flower-patterned cat emerged from a tree hollow in the woods. Its body was covered in scars, and it had lost an eye, but it carried itself like a lion surveying its territory, mighty and imposing.

Behind it came the soft mews of kittens, interrupting One-Eye as it surveyed its domain.

Following the light to the tree hollow, it saw three unsteady kittens and a mother cat.

Unlike other solitary tomcats, One-Eye seemed to care a great deal about its offspring. From the mother cat's pregnancy through the birth, it had been the one caring for and protecting them.

Most mother cats might not let a tom near their kittens, but One-Eye was clearly different from other tomcats. The difference in strength was too great; the mother cat had no way to resist. Over time, she had grown used to One-Eye looking after them.

After playing with the kittens for a while, One-Eye decided to hunt in the woods.

As soon as it emerged, it spotted a human child hiding behind a tree in the distance.

Ever since the child had noticed it, they had come to check on it every so often and sometimes left food behind. But One-Eye had never touched any of it.

It had even tried to drive the child away a few times, but the child always kept a considerable distance. After a while, One-Eye began to act as if they weren't there.

Leaping through the mountains, One-Eye gave free rein to its wildness and strength. Here in these woods, it stood at the top of the food chain and could eat whatever it pleased.

Today, for instance, it wanted fish, so it headed for a pond in a ravine.

After a half-hour journey, One-Eye, utterly unafraid of water, plunged straight into the pond and searched for small fish to fill its belly.

Once it was about two-thirds full, it left the pond and found a rabbit's den. It killed a rabbit, picked up its prize, and headed home.

It was nearly noon. One-Eye was almost back at the tree hollow when it caught a scent it instinctively loathed.

It quickened its pace and reached the tree hollow, but no meows greeted it. It peered inside. The hollow was empty.