< Chapter 92: Four Divine Beasts (2) >
The cadets who had left for an additional test returned, and the official schedule of the school trip began.
We’re now on a bus, moving.
“Seo-yul, where’s Goldie?”
One of my classmates asked me.
“He seems really tired, so I left him to rest at the accommodation.”
To tell the truth, I had no choice but to leave him behind because of White Tiger. If I brought Goldie, White Tiger would follow, and then I would have to explain White Tiger to the cadets or instructors. I had no way to explain it.
“Really?”
“Is Goldie not feeling well?”
“Is he okay?”
“Didn’t you play with him too much at Monster Park?”
Everyone eagerly pounced on my lie. I had to acknowledge Goldie’s popularity.
“He used too much energy during the exam, so don’t worry.”
“That’s a relief then.”
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as if it were their own issue. Well, it’s not a bad feeling since they care so much for Goldie.
“Oh, by the way, tell me about yesterday with Si-yeon.”
Once Goldie’s story ended, the conversation naturally shifted to me.
“Me too! I was dying to know!”
“Call Ha Si-yeon! Let’s hold a hearing!”
Ha Si-yeon was dragged out with a disgruntled expression.
“Why againnnnnn. Nothing happened.”
She seemed to have had a tough time in the room last night.
“Come on. Two people of the opposite sex go out, and nothing happens?”
“Criminal Ha Si-yeon, tell the truth!”
Why is everyone so hyper? This is going to last a while.
As I anticipated, the topic of Si-yeon and me continued for a good 30 minutes.
“How was the additional exam?”
“Hmm. It was doable.”
Everyone gathered again in small groups, chit-chatting.
“Phew.”
No longer the center of attention, I sighed softly. Why is everyone acting so restless when my head is already aching?
I checked my smartphone once again.
[Maiden]
[Little one. I looked into it. This guy really stinks.]
I reread the messages I exchanged with Meiden this morning.
[He’s practically the real power in Australia. From connections to finances, everything is concentrated on him.]
Meiden’s information was remarkable. The extensive and accurate information she gathered overnight was beyond belief.
[First, about the equipment of the Four Gods we talked about. There’s no record of how it was used after being acquired.]
[A lot of funding is being poured into the laboratory, but the usage details are unclear.]
[There’s a high probability they’re conducting illegal experiments.]
But unfortunately, it’s all circumstantial evidence. There’s no concrete proof.
[If only we had evidence, we could move the World Superhuman Federation.]
But even having evidence is a problem.
[No, from what I see, there might be someone backing Beast Master within the Superhuman Federation.]
[It’s impossible not to get caught conducting experiments for 10 years.]
[Especially such an extensive and well-funded experiment.]
This couldn’t be the work of Beast Master alone. There must be a higher power.
[Tsk. It’s undeniable.]
[The Superhuman Federation has its rotten roots.]
[Okay. I’ll investigate further on my end.]
Investigating higher-ups is Meiden’s specialty.
[Yes. I’ll also look into things on my end.]
So, I’ll have to do some on-site investigation.
[Investigate? What for? Are you planning to infiltrate that old man’s lab?]
[Yes. I’m thinking of doing just that. I happen to have a friend who specializes in infiltration.]
[You have such a friend?]
[Yes.]
I have the best agent specialized in infiltration and concealment. Hermit, my friend. The problem is meeting him, but if I’m right, it shouldn’t be a big issue. I should be able to meet him where we’re headed now.
[Anyway, I’ll do what I can on my end, so don’t worry too much.]
[Alright. I know you won’t overdo things with your nature. Take care.]
[I’ll contact you later.]
The messages ended there.
“We’ve arrived. Get ready to get off.”
At that moment, Instructor Pi Jin Ho announced our arrival at the destination.
* * *
The place we arrived at was a famous historical museum in Australia.
Normally, a museum tour would be nothing but boring, a course that everyone dislikes. But the image here is a little different.
“Wow, look at this. They say it’s the shedding of the snake that swallowed the world. They say if you touch it, you’ll turn to stone.”
“And this one is amazing too. The claw of a hellish mantis. It boasts a strength that cannot be cut by anything.”
The things exhibited in this world’s museum are all enough to make superhumans’ eyes widen.
These include remnants of ancient monsters and special items made from those remnants.
“Huh? That’s the ancient relic section.”
“Oh! I wonder what’s in Australia.”
And in most museums, ‘ancient relics’ are exhibited.
Yes, it’s filled with ancient relics.
“……”
I looked at the ancient relics with greedy eyes.
I wanted to grab them right now, and explore their properties.
CCTV, guides, cadets, instructors, etc. If there was nothing around, I would have done so.
“This is amazing. I’ve never seen such an option before.”
I see. The option is really incredible.
“If I could use this, I’d really have no wishes left.”
I repeated to myself the virtue of patience while listening to my friends’ exclamations.
Now is not the time to focus on ancient relics. I have to remind myself why I came here.
“Sigh.”
I somehow pushed my greed to one corner of my mind.
“Instructor, I will be going to the restroom for a moment.”
Instructor Pi Jin Ho nodded his head.
I quickly turned and headed for the bathroom.
No, I pretended to head for the bathroom.
“It should be this way.”
And then I searched for and moved to, the special exhibition hall instead.
I found it.
[Special Exhibition Hall]
It’s a place where even more precious items among the museum’s valuable collections are gathered. Entrance is not for everyone; one has to apply and be granted permission.
I cleared my throat at the entrance.
“Hermit.”
I don’t know if he’s there.
But if my guess is right, Hermit has a high chance of being here. He’s probably preparing to infiltrate the special exhibition hall. Or he might be discovering us and circling around me.
“Follow me to the bathroom. There won’t be CCTV there.”
I ended with that and moved to the nearby bathroom.
As soon as I arrived at the bathroom.
“…I was paying attention to hiding today, you know.”
I heard Hermit’s voice.
Indeed, Hermit was here.
“If I know you’re there, it’s not hard to detect you no matter how well you hide.”
Of course, that’s a lie.
Whether he paid attention to hiding or not, what’s there to know? I couldn’t detect both.
“…You knew?”
Darkness flickered from thin air and began to form the shape of a person.
“How did you know I was here?”
Soon, Hermit, who had fully revealed himself, spoke with a slightly surprised expression.
“You said so the day before yesterday. There’s one annoying thing left to do.”
“Yes.”
The day before yesterday when we met, he said there was one annoying thing left in Australia.
“I figured if it’s something you find bothersome, Hermit, the only thing I can think of other than stealing the Siren’s Tears here.”
The Siren’s Tears is also a key item in a national war.
The Siren’s Tears are still stored in the Australian Museum, and Hermit said there was an annoying thing left.
It wasn’t hard to guess that Hermit’s task was to steal the Siren’s Tears.
“…You really know everything.”
Hermit shook his head as if there was nothing more to be surprised about.
“Rather than that, there’s something I want to ask you.”
“…A request?”
“Yes. I want to ask for some infiltration research.”
Hermit smiled mischievously.
“Infiltration research is my specialty. Unfortunately, I’m not free to act as I please….”
“You mean if you act on your own, you’ll be suspected?”
“Yes.”
Hermit’s actions are all controlled by Unknown.
In that situation, it will be difficult to accept my request.
“Then report it. You found a place where you need to conduct infiltration research.”
“What kind of report…?”
Then get permission from Unknown.
“I’ve received information that there’s an experiment to control a link in the monster system. I think the data from that experiment will be a great help to Lord Unknown. What do you think? Maestro.”
“!”
I grinned.
“If you say that, he will surely grant permission.”
As long as Unknown’s goal is a complete analysis of the system, there’s no reason for Maestro to reject Hermit’s proposal.
“If he hesitates, just say it’ll be enough in a day or so. He’ll probably give you permission right away.”
* * *
After that, Hermit disappeared, saying he would try to contact Maestro.
He vanished suddenly after leaving a message that he would return to the accommodation later in the night and that they should meet in that quiet park.
The approval would probably be granted with a 99.999% chance.
There may be doubts, but as soon as Hermit takes Beast Master’s research records, those doubts will melt away like snow.
There should be no problem at all.
Getting information from Beast Master’s laboratory is just a matter of time.
Because there’s no barrier in this world that can stop Hermit’s intrusion.
“Sigh.”
After completing all the tasks and returning to my lodging, I took a light shower and headed to the nearby quiet park.
“Goldie~”
In response to my call, the world’s cutest cat, or rather, tiger-cat, came trotting out.
“…Meow.”
It looked extremely tired.
If I had to compare, its face looked like that of a person who’s been harassed by a wife’s nagging+scolding combo for 3 hours on a day off.
“Meow~”
After that, a pure white cat followed with the happiest expression in the world.
There’s no need to compare it; it looked like it’s embracing all the happiness in the world.
…How can their expressions be so opposite?
“Did you have fun?”
At my question, Goldie hesitated for a moment and nodded.
Then it jumped and snuggled into my arms.
It cried tenderly, burying its face in my chest, perhaps missing my embrace.
“Did you miss me?”
As if to say that saying it twice would be nagging, it rubbed its face against me again. Ah, this is healing.
Zap-
White Tiger was glaring at us with jealous eyes. A little earlier, it was looking happy, but now it’s staring at my face, full of jealousy.
Should I kill it? That’s the look it has.
…Honestly, it’s a bit scary.
White tiger-cat, if you mess with me unnecessarily, you’ll be hated by Goldie?
I protested with my eyes.
Perhaps my protest worked.
White Tiger turned its head slightly, sighed, and hesitated for a moment.
Leap.
Then it jumped into my arms just like Goldie.
Aha.
Since it’s come to this, do you want to snuggle in my arms and stick to Goldie?
Not a bad decision.
I smirked and opened one hand to accept White Tiger.
As soon as White Tiger touched my arms,
“Ugh!”
I felt a massive shock and started to fall backward.
This feels more like being pressed down by weight than being slapped by force!
Thump-
“Ouch… It hurts….”
I lay sprawled on the floor, feeling a pain in my chest.
“White tiger-cat, why are you so heavy?”
The weight I feel from my chest is definitely not that of a cat. It seems to exceed 100kg.
“Meow~?”
White Tiger cried as if it didn’t understand what I was saying.
But its face looked like everything went according to plan.
“…Enough. Let’s stop talking.”
White Tiger’s transformation into a cat seems somewhat incomplete, unlike Goldie. The weight and strength have been downsized inconsistently.
I pushed White Tiger aside for now and got up.
I dusted off the dirt on my clothes and checked my body. Thankfully, there seems to be no problem.
Was it my imagination? White Tiger seemed to click its tongue at my intact appearance.
“You crafty thing….”
It looked so much like a fox that I mumbled to myself.
“…Grrr.”
At that moment, Goldie growled with a fierce expression.
The only person that could provoke such a reaction from Goldie must be here.
You’re here.
“Hermit.”
With my call, darkness began to gather in thin air.
“We can go straight into the mission now.”
The revealed Hermit smiled with dignity.
It was a very trustworthy smile.
* * *
The following day at lunchtime.
“I’m back.”
Hermit’s investigation was unbelievably fast.
From pinpointing the exact location of the laboratory to infiltrating it, it didn’t even take a full day.
I only threw a few speculative pieces of information based on Maiden’s data, not knowing the exact location, but I didn’t expect it to be this quick.
I was truly grateful that Hermit was on my side.
“Here, the copied experiment records.”
“Good job.”
I checked the documents handed over.
“These are quite interesting experiments. Indeed, these experimental results seem like something Maestro would like.”
[Initiating modification and improvement experiments for the military use of monsters.]
And I was certain.
My prediction was right.
[…It is judged that only systematic and genetic improvements are not enough to encompass many monsters.]
Beast Master is the culprit.
[Decided to change the direction of the project by resurrecting the ‘Four Divine Beasts,’ which are said to have the power to control monsters.]
The worst disaster of the first episode.
An opportunity to prevent a massive monster rampage has arisen.
< Chapter 92: Four Divine Beasts (2) > End.
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