[Serialized Novel] 'Cage of the Star-Eater' Chapter 2/Episode 14 | Near-Future Dark Fantasy | Ability Battle |

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Episode 14: The Unease Seeps into the City

When I woke up, the first thing I saw was a white ceiling.
I moved my neck slightly to check my surroundings.

With the IV drip and monitor connected to him, and the rhythmic dripping of medication and electronic beeps, Tsukasa realized where he was.

(...The medical wing's special treatment room, huh?)

As he tried to sit up, he noticed his head felt heavy.
Assuming it was the lingering effect of the administered drugs, Tsukasa put strength into his body and slowly sat up.

Just as he sat up and let out a breath, the room door opened and a female nurse entered.

"Are you awake, Mr. Mido? Let me check a few things—"

Tsukasa, reacting to her voice, met her gaze for just a split second.

(...Huh?)

What hand the nurse would use to pick up her pen next, the words she would say, which foot she would step forward with—everything flooded into Tsukasa.

Unable to process the overwhelming information, Tsukasa averted his gaze and looked down at the floor.
As he did, the influx of information stopped, and all that remained in his field of vision was the waxed linoleum floor.

"...Excuse me, please wait a moment."

Pressing his hands against his throbbing eyes, he took a deep breath to steady his ragged breathing.

The nurse proceeded with the examination while looking slightly bewildered, but during that time, Tsukasa did not meet her eyes.

(—As long as I don't make eye contact, I'll be fine.)

That was the only way Tsukasa could cope for now.

Ryuma came to the room just before noon.

"...Minase."

"...You're awake."

Speaking gently, Ryuma pulled up a chair, sat down beside the bed, and looked at Tsukasa's face.

"Your complexion... well, it's not bad."

"My head is finally starting to function again."

"...Your eye color is still the same."

Hearing that, Tsukasa looked out the window to avoid making eye contact.

"Does it bother you?"

"...It does."

Saying this, Ryuma clasped his hands on his lap.

"What about Yagisawa-san?"

"She has already been deployed to handle the runaway incident. She was already on the move last night."

"And me?"

"...You are on standby until the test results come back."

Tsukasa decided not to ask any further after Ryuma's reply. He didn't say he had been taken off the case, but Tsukasa understood that was the judgment.

"What's it like outside?"

"Ability-user cases are occurring one after another... They're small-scale, but they're happening in multiple locations simultaneously."

Ryuma, having reported this, closed his mouth for a moment as if thinking, then spoke to Tsukasa.

"...Mido-san, how are you feeling right now?"

Tsukasa tried to look at Ryuma's face, but directed his gaze toward his ear. He judged that it was dangerous to make direct eye contact when he didn't know the current state of his own powers.

"My reactions are a bit hypersensitive. If I make eye contact, I can see the other person's movements too far in advance."

"...See them too far in advance."

"I think it's just a matter of condition... it'll settle down soon."

Ryushin said nothing to Tsukasa, who spoke with a light tone.

It wasn't that he didn't believe him. It was just that he seemed to be weighing the gravity of the word "soon."

"Pass on the message... tell them I'll be back soon."

Ryushin nodded back at Tsukasa's forceful words.

"I'll... be waiting."

---◇---

A corner of an alley in the eastern part of Tenkawa City.

Shuji was leaning his back against the corner of a building on the perimeter, organizing the situation. He had removed the brace on his thigh this morning, but his movement was still restricted.

"Status report."

He said briefly into the communicator in his hand.

"Confirmed occurrences at three locations. There are seven rampaging individuals in total—all of them seem to have lost half their reason, with only their physical abilities abnormally enhanced."

Ryushin's voice, sensing the "flow" of the entire area, conveyed the situation in detail.

"Where are they converging?"

"Two are south of Yagisawa-san's location, three in the eastern alley, and the remaining two have entered the building."

"What about the second squad?"

"They have joined up."

As the two were confirming with each other, a bright female voice, out of place for the scene, cut in.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Shuji-kun."

"...Hyodo."

Shuji could tell that his first words made her frown.
Undeterred by Shuji's grumpy tone, a voice called out from the other side of the communicator.

"Is your thigh injury okay? I heard about it!"

"...I can move."

"I see. Then I'll leave the field command to you—I'm going in."

Leaving those words behind, the woman—Rinko Hyodo—dashed from the alleyway into the building.

She was small, but her movements were like those of a "beast" heading out to hunt.

Her approach toward the man nearby was swift, and the quality of her leap was different—truly the movement of a "panther."
Using her natural high-speed mobility, she circled behind the runaway and delivered a kick to the side of his head.

"One down!"

"Roger."

While listening to Shuji's reply, she looked toward the rest, seeing a man heading straight for Hyodo's subordinate, Kumada.

The runaway's arms were significantly swollen as he charged, and Kumada took the reckless rush head-on.

"...Hmph!"

—He didn't budge.

He was pushed back slightly, but that was all.

It was visible that the skin of Kumada, who had caught him, had hardened.
While still holding the runaway, he then used his enhanced arm strength to pin him against the wall and quickly handcuffed him.

"Secured."

Following his quiet voice reporting in, a transmission came through.
It was from Kurose, the rookie of the second squad positioned at a high vantage point.

"Kurose here, I have visual on the two on the south side. They are within range for suppression rounds."

"Fire."

Two gunshots rang out without a moment's delay following Shuji's voice.

"…Hit confirmed."

"Good."

Three left… Just as Shuji was calculating this, a communication came in from Ryuma.

"Yagisawa-san, the movement of the three on the east side has changed. They are heading toward the crowd at the evacuation guidance point."

"Hyodo, head east--"

"Already on my way."

Thinking with a sigh that he was as fast as ever, Shuji stepped out from the corner of the building.
He put strength into his thigh; it hurt a little, but he could move it.

---◇---

In a room at the back of an alley, a man was crouching.

In the young man's hand was a small bottle containing a crimson liquid.
Except for the color, it was shaped like the energy drinks often seen around town.

"More… if I can just get stronger…"

The man brought the bottle to his mouth and tilted it back in one go.
The liquid he swallowed was tasteless and like water, but for some reason, the scent of blood remained.

"I'll be chosen… if I'm chosen…"

--It happened immediately after.

The man's body shuddered violently once, and the muscles in his arms swelled up enough to tear his long-sleeved shirt from the inside.
The bones throughout his body creaked with an unpleasant sound and began to deform.

"Ghh——aaah!"

Factor control completely vanished from the man's awareness.
Pain so intense he mistook it for his whole body bursting, and at the same time, an abnormal sense of euphoria assaulted him.

"Found youuu!!"

Hyodo burst through the entrance with great vigor and launched an attack without hesitation at the man, who was acting strangely.

He tried to stop the man's movements with a series of kicks, but they were blocked and deflected by his abnormally strengthened arms.
The man then rushed toward Hyodo, who had gained some distance from the impact.

"Kuma-chan!"

"Got it."

Kumada, who had entered late, cut between the two and took the man's charge with his body.
He was pushed back this time, but he still managed to stop the man in his tracks.

"Kurose, inside the room."

"Eh, but inside is difficult, from the outside—"

"Now."

"O-okay, I understand!"

Simultaneously with the panicked voice, the window shattered, and the suppression round fired in struck the man's neck with precision.

The man lost consciousness instantly, and Kumada caught him as he collapsed.

"Secured him, Shuji!"

"I'm finishing up here too."

Shuji replied while keeping his aim on the man crouching before him.

He had already applied two "shackles" with handcuffs, slowing down the man's movements and factor activity, but the man's bloodshot eyes were still glaring at him.

"To be... chosen... by... that... person..."

"Tch... what a pain."

Shuji glanced at the man who had lost consciousness after being hit by a suppression round for repeating words like a madman, ordered everyone to begin withdrawal, and started investigating the scene himself.

There was no significant evidence to be found in the room, so Shuji proceeded to the back of the alley and found several scattered small vials.

They were all the same shape, and after confirming with Hyodo and the other field investigators, it turned out they had been recovered from multiple locations.

Looking at the one that still contained liquid, Shuji spoke into his communicator with a suspicious look on his face.
The person on the other end was Ryushin.

"It's likely that something to activate the factor is inside... This doesn't look like a natural runaway case."

"...A troublesome case, is it?"

"Likely... I will send this recovered item for analysis."

---◇---

The report was made after the sun had set.

When Shuji, Ryuma, and Hyodo visited the director's office to report, Hasuike was sitting behind his desk, and Sendo was present with a terminal.

Shuji reported as the field commander.

"Judging from the situation at the scene, it was an artificial factor activation caused by a mysterious liquid... is that right?"

As Hasuike voiced his confirmation of the report from Shuji, Sendo organized the information while operating the terminal.

"It cannot be explained by a natural runaway. Assuming that liquid is an activator, identifying the distribution route and the manufacturer is the priority."

Nodding at Sendo's words, Hasuike asked further.

"What about the connection to Mido?"

Sendo operated the terminal for a moment as if comparing data, then shook his head.

"...At this point, I believe it is appropriate to process it as a separate case."

At that reply, Hasuike looked at Sendo's face.
That answer was correct, and the organization was flawless—but that judgment to separate them was too fast.

(...Something is bothering me.)

It was not something that could be put into words, nor did it have any basis—it was a vague feeling.
It was a sensation that Hasuike, who knew Sendo well... had felt for the first time.

Exhaling a long breath, Hasuike returned his gaze to the report and told everyone present.

"Continue the investigation and inquiry."

---◇---

In a room lined with monitors in the underground facility, Juzo Momose was checking the results.

"What is the retention rate for those who were administered it?"

"We've given it to over fifty people, and the majority failed. Factor collapse, loss of consciousness, cessation of function—only one person has achieved retention."

"One person, huh."

"Yes."

The male researcher reported the results as mediocre, but Momose did not smile, merely nodding.

At that moment, the door opened with a heavy sound, and a man entered the room.

The man with young lizard-like eyes—Ryuta Ishida—had fled after the bank robbery and had been in contact with this organization while in hiding. His severed wrist had already regenerated, and not only that, but there was a large scar running horizontally across his forehead, shaped like a closed eyelid.

"I've come to report."

Upon reaching Momose and the others, Ishida spoke. Momose gave a single nod and called out to confirm.

"How is your physical condition?"

"No problems. If anything—it's much better than before."

Hearing his words, the male researcher displayed the data he had taken beforehand on his terminal.

"Factor reaction is over three times higher than before the activator was administered. Physical regeneration speed has also increased significantly—it's a success case."

Momose, who had been looking at the data, looked at Ishida again. The face looking back at Momose seemed to be overflowing with confidence.

The feeling of having been acknowledged was strongly present in Ishida's eyes.

"It's still not enough."

"Huh..."

"It means you must break yourself until you reach the 'Star'."

Ishida had no choice but to remain silent at Momose's words. Still not enough—he ruminated on those words.

Ignoring the male researcher who shrugged as if exasperated, Momose, who had nodded at Ishida's state, handed him the case of factor activators that had been set aside and gave him a new order.

"Go to the city... and begin the next selection."

Ishida took the case that was handed to him, bowed his head, and began to move to exit.

He certainly felt that he had been acknowledged.
But he felt that Momose's eyes were already looking at something else.

--The selection had only just begun.