Secrets and Spectators

By the time we arrived at the port, Kai followed Mana down while holding about 20 shopping bags on both of his hands.

"Well, I guess this is where we are splitting off, you three."

"Mm. Take care, Mana, Furuta-sensei and Kai."

"You too, Ephraim. Take care not to fall off your motorcycle."

"Heh. I'm not that bad of a driver, sir."

With my belongings in my duffel bag along with the souvenirs I bought for my daughters, we all split up with Mana taking a taxi back to her family's house and Furuta-sensei and Kai riding a car that they left in Shibuya bunker's parking space.

"Agent Chronia. I'm glad I caught up to you before you left."

"Operator Yusa…"

"Here's the address of her hospital and her room number. I've also told Yurippe to inform the nurse office and her guardian ahead of time that you are visiting her today."

Yusa-san gave me a piece of paper and there, I found out that she's staying at a place that I could've worked at once I first arrived here.

"Thank you, Yusa-san. I'll be leaving now."

"Yeah. Take care and thank you very much for your service so far."

"Mm."

I rode my motorcycle and headed back to the surface. Instead of going straight to Sunogahara-cho, I turned to the interior of the old city where a certain hospital is located.

"That would be 500 yen."

"Here."

Before entering, I bought a small bouquet of flowers from a stall as some kind of welcoming gift and rode the elevator of the building.

"Miyazono Medical Research Institute… These guys still have my resume in their shelves…"

If that law hasn't been passed, I could've worked here, and my life could've definitely changed. But now, I kind of felt happy that it didn't become the case. After all, I have finally learned about what is happening beneath the business face of the mega corporation.

"You're visiting Patient Akamine?"

"Yes. You should've received a call ahead of the time."

"H-huh?"

The nurse's confused expression kind of worried me since Yusa-san told me that the nurses will be informed of my arrival.

*Tootooto! Tootooto!*

"You've gotta be kidding me…"

"A-ah… please excuse me for a moment, sir."

I can assume that she only got to call now because she is busy, but it sure was awkward to show up here before my arrival is announced.

"O-Okay, miss… A-Actually, he's already here… Y-yes, I will say it in your stead… Yes, yes… I understand."

"Can I assume that the one who called is…?"

"Y-yes. She said she's sorry for calling late about your arrival."

"I knew it…"

The nurse led me to the room of the girl whom I saved that day.

"Good morning, miss Akamine. You have visitor today."

"…"

"Nurse, who is this man?"

I entered the room to see Kaori laying down on her bed and facing away from us while a couple who I assume are her parents are sitting at the visitor's couch.

"He is-"

"Sorry, nurse. But I can handle it by here."

"O-okay, sir. I'll be leaving then."

After the nurse closed the door, I faced her parents and gave a courtesy bow.

"Good day, Mr. and Mrs. Akamine… I am Ephraim Seliah Chronia."

"…"

"I am the person who helped your daughter escape from her kidnapper that night."

""-!""

After I raised my head, I saw Mrs. Akamine holding her chest as can't believe what I just said while Mr. Akamine sat there while his shoulders shook lightly.

"Y-You said that you helped our daughter escape… right?"

"Yes, sir."

"YOU-!!!"

*Pyak-!*

"Ich!"

"Don't lie to me! Don't you lie to me, you bastard!"

"D-darling! Stop!"

"You disgusting outsiders… you damn outsiders!"

As I half-expected, Mr. Akamine hit me and took me by the collar after hearing who I am and why I am here.

"D-dad… what's happening?"

"Kaori! Tell me… please tell me that he was the one who assaulted you so I can beat him up!"

"…"

"Wait… S-Senpai…?"

As soon as Kaori saw my face, she recognized me and I gave her a nod to confirm that it is me.

"Don't you look at her, you bastard!"

"Dad! Stop!!!"

"-!"

"Senpai… he's the one who saved me! Don't hurt him anymore!"

"W-What…?"

While her father let go of my collar and stepped back, I stood up properly and pretended that I was not hurt.

"B-but… he can't be…"

"Darling, get out for a moment and clear your head."

"B-But he is-"

"I will handle it. Just get out for now and get back here after you have calmed down."

"…I understand."

Mr. Akamine left the room, leaving me with Kaori and her mother.

"Senpai… is that really you?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry that I didn't get to visit you earlier than I should have."

I unpacked the bouquet of flowers and placed them on the vase over her bedside table. After that, she reached out to me, and I let her touch the back of my hand.

"I-It really is you… B-but how? You were so injured back then."

"I'm just a bit hardier than some people. I did need to stay in a hospital for a while."

Now that she has confirmed that it really was me, the sense of rush left her and tears welled up on her eyes.

"S-senpai… Senpai…!"

"There, there…"

"I was so scared…! Kh-! I wanted to go back and help you… but… but…!"

"It's alright. We're both alive and that's what matters."

"I'm sorry… Hik-! I'm so sorry…!"

I sat beside her and let her cry all of her worries out, making sure that everything that she has been bottling up all this time can finally leave her.

"Mister… Chronia, yes?"

"Yes mam. But for convenience's sake, you can just call me Rai."

"Rai-san, then… Rai-san, we cannot thank you enough for saving our daughter. Though my husband may have mistaken you for her assailant due to your… identity, should we call it, I know that he would also be thanking you this much now that he knows it."

"I understand Mr. Akamine's response earlier. And regarding my identity, as how you put it, I do not bear any grudges about it or consider it as an unforgivable mistake. He is a father and I understand that he wants to at least do something about the thing that happened to his daughter."

Hate it or like it, this is just what the world has become. If you don't want to overcomplicate the situation, just accept it if it wasn't something done on purpose.

"About my late visit, I have actually just come back from my work outside the city… I believe that Director Nakamura has already talked to you regarding the incident that your daughter almost fell victim to."

"Ah, before we talk about that, Rai-san. Can I bring my husband inside so he can hear this as well?"

"Of course, mam."

Mrs. Akamine opened the door and called her husband in who seemed to have calmed down now.

"…I'm sorry about earlier, young man. I assumed you were among the assailants due to your-"

"I forgive you sir, so let's not dwell on it anymore."

"…Alright."

After they have sat on the couch, I began to tell them the other reason why I came here other than to show Kaori that I am alive.

"As told to you by Director Nakamura, the individual named Kiyomasa Isao escaped from the crime scene shortly after incapacitating me. A trail of security cameras from various establishments showed him running towards the direction of the train station where he hid for the night, cleaned the traces of blood on his hands, changed from the bloody clothes he was wearing into the clean ones he stole along the way and finally, sneaked into a cargo ship heading to Formosa island."

"H-he's in a colonial island?!"

"Sadly, he is, Mr. Akamine…"

The videos I showed on my tablet computer may have all sounded and looked believable, but this is just some made-up videos for the cover-up story to hide the fact that I killed him during my awakening.

"So, he is still…"

"Don't be afraid, Kaori-chan. I have already arranged for the guarantee of your safety and just recently, found out something that might be connected to his delusion about you."

I swiped the tablet to another application and showed them some pictures that Yusa-san approved to show them regarding the insurrection in Fukushima where the drugs that Isao's blood sample matched with came from.

"Our raids in Fukushima showed where Isao has been getting the narcotic drugs that caused his delusions regarding Kaori-chan. These drugs are known to enhance a person's physical abilities and has so-far, been undetected by athletic associations. However, his crime allowed us to find his dealers and thus, the extent of the crime organization that sold it to him."

"Wait, Rai-san…"

"Yes, mam?"

"I don't understand. Kaori said that you were her upperclassman and nothing else… but why are you showing these kinds of things like those videos and these images from that battle in the north?"

"Ah, I forgot to tell why occupation earlier. Again, I am Ephraim Seliah Chronia, and I am an Operative of a government agency. That is all that I can say in the open."

"Government agency… so you are-"

"Yes, mam. Me being a student in the school was just a cover-up. I am actually a government employee, although the fact that I saved her was pure coincidence. I wasn't there to guard her or watch over Isao."

The entire family was astonished with my statement, but in order to not make them ask more which would lead me to tell more inconsistent lies, I decided to swerve the conversation away from there.

"Regarding the protection of Kaori-chan, Director Nakamura has said that once she is comfortable enough to leave the hospital, I will be tasked to watch over her from a distance."

"R-Really? You'll be guarding me, Senpai?"

"Yes. But only during your trip from home to school and vice-versa. I can't be seen near the school after all."

"Aww…"

"And I'll be busy tracking down Isao now that he's outside the country. Though the Formosa island colony is a small place, it's still big enough to make hiding there easy."

I gave my agency card to her parents while I tidied up my belongings.

"Once she has been discharged, please call this number and inform us about it. We will handle the rest and Kaori-chan can return to her normal life. Leave her protection to us, Mr. and Mrs. Akamine…"

"We will, Mr. Rai… and thank you very much for saving our daughter."

After being given their thanks and telling Kaori to take care of herself and try to bring her life back to how it was before, I left the room and rode the elevator to the lobby.

"Excuse me, can you press the button to the administration office?"

"Sure."

While the doors were closing, a young woman placed her hand between them to force it back open and entered the elevator. She then asked me to press the button labeled as AO.

"…Were you visiting someone?"

"Yes."

"A family member?"

"Well… I could just call her as an acquaintance."

"With your age range… a young woman, I presume?"

"…Yes."

"Huh… I see."

One of the many things that I hate… elevator conversations. It just always ends up being awkward for both parties.

"Oh. My floor became the priority."

"No need to worry, I am not in a hurry."

"…Thanks."

With her chosen floor closer to the current one, the elevator rose up rather than down where the lobby is located.

"It's quite beautiful, yes?"

"Pardon?"

"This place. Miyazono Medical Research Institute."

"Yes. I've walked around it several times. It's spacious and the facilities are state the art… probably even more advanced that what is in the market."

"Well, this isn't a research institute for nothing. Half of the place is for finding better and more effective instruments and medicines, after all."

"That's right…"

The elevator bell finally sounded and once it opened, I was surprised to see a whole line of employees forming a pathway from the door of the elevator.

"Welcome back, Lady Miyazono Himari…"

"-!"

"Mister."

"Y-yes?"

"Thank you for sparing me some of your time. It's not everyday that I get to talk with someone without them being so wary or suspicious of me."

I forced myself to calm down after learning about her true identity. After all, this person is…

"Mister?"

"Y-Yes. I appreciate your time too."

"Hehe."

The leader of our enemies.

"…Haah!"

After the doors closed, I finally caught my breath and held onto the railings of the elevator. I can almost feel my knees giving in just because of that single revelation.

"Calm down… Calm down, Ephraim…"

However, there is also this strange feeling inside of me that made me feel nauseous. Something that I knew was not just because of that encounter.

["…"]

"Law… I know this feeling. What the hell have you done?"

["It's not yet the right time for you to know."]

"Know what?"

["Know the reason why I could barely hold myself back from possessing you earlier and strangling that human."]

"-! What the hell? What is your problem?!"

["…"]

"Are you going silent on me all of a sudden? Tch!"

["…"]

In the end, I wasn't able to coax anything from him and I decided to just leave it like that and go home to my family.

"I'm back!"

"Rai-nii!"

"Wahaha! I knew you'd run into me in full speed!"

"Welcome back, Rai-san."

"Wah-wah!"

Yes… I'm home now. I am back in where I am at peace.

But little did I know that the peace I was given for now… will not last for long.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"So, they have finally met again, huh?"

"What is that amused expression on your face for, Logos?"

"You have seen the same thing that I saw, Justice… You know what made my face smile like this."

"…You insolent fool. If only Law has not forbidden me, I would've-"

"You have better things to do than scold me, O great spirit of Impartiality."

"…"

"I suggest that you leave Caelestia now before your vessel gets into a difficult situation again and she requires your power."

"Tch!"

As the woman dressed in a pure white robe and has her eyes covered by a crimson blindfold stood up from her marble throne to dissipate into particles of light, the only one left in the huge room was a man in a pure white robe who watches a young man on a huge glass orb in the middle of the room.

"Oh, dear Divine Challenger…"

And as he saw him embracing his children, a wide and ominous smirk traced across his face.

"…how I wish to meet you soon and tell you what you have been made to become."