Seeking knowledge

"Awake?"

Huiqi studied Rize Kamishiro before him.

"The pain woke her, I suppose. It happens every time." Akihiro Kano looked at Rize Kamishiro with a cheerful smile.

Inside the transparent culture vessel, Rize Kamishiro's eyes brimmed with boundless hatred as she stared fixedly at the two men before her.

Her blood-red kakugan seemed capable of piercing their souls. At the same time, her mouth opened slightly, as though she wanted to say something.

"You... will... die..."

Huiqi watched Rize Kamishiro's lips, reading what she said.

"A curse? Let's leave her for now."

With that, Akihiro Kano withdrew the mechanical arm and retrieved a syringe of highly concentrated rc cell fluid.

"You've seen the human experiments. Next come the ghoul experiments."

Akihiro Kano then entered a spacious testing area and operated the machinery to lower one of the culture pods.

Hiss...

Thick white mist dispersed from the pod, and a naked man slowly emerged from behind its door.

Akihiro Kano approached the man and plunged the syringe into him, slowly injecting the rc cells into his body.

"Watch. The threshold of the origin."

A while passed. Time seemed to freeze, and everything fell deathly silent.

Then the previously motionless ghoul began trembling violently and uncontrollably. Every muscle contracted and expanded desperately, far beyond the limits his anatomy could withstand.

Amid those bizarre convulsions, the ghoul's arms rotated a full 360 degrees like machinery, seemingly controlled by some invisible force.

His head shook from side to side at an alarming speed, making them wonder whether it would snap off his neck and fall at any moment.

The sight was horrifying. What stood before them no longer seemed to be a ghoul, but an out-of-control creature undergoing some mutation beyond ordinary comprehension.

At the same time, Huiqi heard the grinding crackle of bones and a sizzling sound as something devoured the flesh bit by bit.

"This is only the beginning. Next, his appetite will increase severalfold."

As he spoke, Akihiro Kano operated the machinery again, lowering three culture pods.

Three more ghouls appeared in the testing area, standing motionless where they were.

The first ghoul, who had been injected with rc cells, stared viciously at the three others with his red kakugan, drool dripping from the corners of his mouth.

In the next instant, a kakuja emerged behind the test subject and began attacking.

Squelch!

The kakuja shot through one of the ghouls like an arrow. The test subject immediately opened his gaping maw, baring sharp fangs as he tore into his prey.

Each bite came with a violent contraction of his muscles. His prey's flesh was crushed between his jaws, and the smell of blood filled the air.

With every mouthful of flesh that slid down his esophagus, irregular bulges rippled beneath his skin. Those movements seemed to stimulate the test subject's appetite enormously.

Huiqi and Akihiro Kano watched the test subject devour all three ghouls, each the size of a full-grown man. Even then, he still seemed unsatisfied.

"His stomach?" Huiqi stared at the swollen belly, which looked as though the ghoul were carrying triplets at full term. He could even see the freshly consumed flesh through the skin.

"The show has only just begun. This is what I want to explore." Akihiro Kano observed eagerly, occasional flashes of excitement lighting his eyes.

The test subject's belly gradually changed. Its enormous swelling shrank at a visible rate, while the things beneath his skin began writhing again.

Thin crimson threads continuously streamed into the ghoul's stomach. The flesh was digested even faster, and his enormous belly gradually returned to normal.

After digesting the flesh, the red threads changed targets, wriggling toward their host's kakuhou. This time, the test subject clawed at his body, as though an unbearable, painful itch had erupted inside him.

The next instant...

Huiqi's eyes widened.

The test subject dropped to his knees in the testing area. Stimulated by the red threads, his kakuja began coiling around him, layer after layer, until it covered his entire body.

Then tiny gaps formed across the surface of the kakuja, revealing faint glimpses of something white inside.

"Watch closely." Dr. Kanou braced both hands against the lab bench, his voice excited.

Under their gazes, the test subject's form slowly broke down and melted into a mass of flesh. Several oddly shaped kagune sprouted from its surface, covered in sharp white teeth, while its head kept swaying.

Looking at the thing before him, Huiqi recalled something that defied description.

The kagune monster he had encountered in Ward 10.

After suffering grievous injuries at his hands, it had displayed astonishing regenerative abilities. But once its weakness was targeted, it would lose control and turn into a terrifying kagune monster, a sight far more shocking than this experimental ghoul.

"Rc cells can be extracted from dead ghouls, or from the product of this experiment. I think that if we supply this thing with enough energy, perhaps we can glimpse the origin."

"Enough? You want to raise this thing?" Huiqi stared blankly at the testing area.

"We can't... It'll die soon... There's no core to sustain its functions."

Hearing that, Huiqi instinctively breathed a sigh of relief.

"But we can place our hopes in the test subjects. As long as the rc cells establish a balance with their host, it can be achieved..."

"That would be difficult, wouldn't it? After watching this experiment, at least, I don't think it's very likely."

"Not necessarily. Everything has its unknowns... Besides, Ken Kaneki..."

Hearing the implication in Akihiro Kano's words, Huiqi fell silent, indecision filling his mind.

"So, if I want to see the origin... I need to make Ken Kaneki..."

"No. Wait and see. Just keep him alive. I'm already looking for the next batch of test subjects."

"Understood."

Huiqi rubbed his forehead and sat down to rest. The sheer complexity of today's revelations was overwhelming. Now it seemed that uncovering the origin of ghouls would be incredibly difficult.

"Have some coffee. Your equipment has arrived." Akihiro Kano brought over two cups of coffee, slowly savoring his own as he observed the product of the rc cells in the testing area.

Ken Kaneki... I hope you can maintain this balance until I uncover the origin of ghouls... When that time comes, I will... Huiqi considered the feasibility of his plan.

One minute later...

"A lifespan of one minute. The lack of a core is still the problem."

Inside the testing area, the subject lost all signs of life. The mass of flesh gradually congealed, and the kagune that had been clearly visible above it vanished into thin air.

"Forget it. I'll focus on the human experiments for now." Akihiro Kano sighed. At his current level, it was difficult to make any further breakthroughs regarding the origin. He still needed to concentrate on his artificial ghoul experiments.

"I'm heading back to rest. I'll let you know before I come next time."

"All right."