On her way back to the barracks, Lilith is called by Iska.
*This chapter continues to be told from Lilith’s perspective.*
After parting ways with Yuki-chan in front of the cafeteria, I was walking back to the barracks when my Handycom chimed.
“This is Undertaker. Did someone die?”
“No one’s dead, but there’s one person who’s about to be killed by a mountain of paperwork. We need immediate backup.”
“…Ugh, I’m hungover and feeling miserable,” I complained.
“Underage drinking will land you in the brig. How about a plea bargain?”
“Fine, I’ll help, but I’m carrying fresh groceries right now, so I need to go back to my room first.”
“Use the refrigerator in my room. I’ll send someone to pick you up right away.”
Less than a minute after I finished talking to Iska, a member of the No. 0 Unit arrived on a motorcycle with a sidecar.
“The Commander wishes to see you.”
“I know I’m being summoned. Iska’s diligent, isn’t she?”
As I settled into the sidecar, the motorcycle sped towards the Commander’s Building.
The cheap-looking commander’s office greeted me with the usual sight: a mountain of paperwork piled high like a mountain range, stale air swirling with cigarette smoke, an overflowing ashtray, and a displeased-looking Iska.
“I’d really like to hear Iska’s opinion on the health of a growing girl,” I said.
“You’re here. It just happened, I don’t know how,” Iska replied.
“Could you please put the groceries in the refrigerator quickly? The smoke smell is getting on them. I’ll air out the room while you do that.”
I handed over the grocery bags and the container of yakitori. Iska disappeared into her private quarters through a door at the back.
I cranked up the air purifier to maximum, opened the window, and cleaned out the ashtray.
Iska returned, plopped down in her desk chair, and began sifting through documents.
I sat down too and, though I didn’t feel like it, started tackling the paper mountain.
There’s a reason why the diligent Iska has accumulated so much paperwork.
Iska is a resident of the world of stratagems and schemes, busy with behind-the-scenes negotiations, persuasion, and intimidation.
Furthermore, she’s not just a soldier but also the Head of a Zaibatsu.
More than half of this mountain of paperwork is related to the corporate conglomerate she owns.
This is why she can afford to lavish us with rewards without going bankrupt.
Iska pours her personal fortune into making the Asura Unit the strongest.
Especially significant is her ownership of all rights related to the cancer cure. It’s truly a money-making tree.
The cancer cure was apparently developed by Iska’s Mother.
“As expected, the medical-related sales are incredible. Thank goodness for the cancer cure.”
“It’s not a cure, precisely, but an inhibitor. If administered beforehand, it can suppress the onset of most cancers. My mother was truly amazing to develop such a drug. Thanks to her, my father and I can be soldiers as a hobby.”
She actually called it a hobby! How insane. A hobby that involves overflowing body bags is too much to handle.
“That’s quite a morbid hobby. I heard Iska’s mother was a world-renowned authority in bio-engineering?”
“It’s regrettable that I have to speak of her in the past tense. My mother was a genius, known as one of the twin pillars of the legendary laboratory. If she were alive, she undoubtedly would have made further contributions to humanity.”
“The legendary laboratory?”
“Yes, there was a research institute at Terukyo University called the Hyakume Laboratory. That’s where she conducted her bio-engineering research.”
“Hyakume? Do you mean Dr. Hyakume Kanechika?”
“You know Dr. Hyakume?”
“I’ve never met him personally. However, my late grandfather, though a recluse, used to communicate with Dr. Hyakume occasionally. He used to say that only Dr. Hyakume Kanechika possessed a mind worth engaging with, and associating with other idiotic scholars was a waste of time, calories, and brain cells.”
“Come to think of it, Lilith’s grandfather was the world-renowned mathematician Dr. Lohengrin. He was friends with Dr. Hyakume?”
“I don’t think it was close enough to be called friendship. My grandfather was a peculiar man who boasted about having no friends.”
“Like Dr. Lohengrin, Dr. Hyakume was also a genius. His success in the bio-metalization experiments on animals was his achievement.”
“So, the research that led to Yuki-chan was his. Did Dr. Hyakume also develop the bio-metalization technology for humans?”
“No, the bio-metalization technology that fundamentally changed the nature of this war was born at the Hyakume Lab, but its creator was not Dr. Hyakume, but Rather Towa Saginomiya, a researcher there. My mother’s maiden name was Mirei Shirasagi, and it seems they were known as the twin pillars or wings of the Hyakume Lab.”
“So, there were two unparalleled herons at the Hyakume Lab. But it’s ironic, isn’t it? One developed bio-metalization technology, leading many to their deaths, while the other developed a cancer inhibitor, saving countless lives.”
“The development of bio-metalization technology didn’t start the war. It simply shifted the main players in the already ongoing war from mechanised weapons to humans.”
“…Bio-metalization technology essentially means the development of combat cells, right? The cancer inhibitor was also the development of suppressor cells that kill cancer cells when found. And they were created in the same lab? It can’t be a coincidence!”
“Yes, I believe my mother and Towa Saginomiya were researching the same thing. I recall my mother telling me when I was young, ‘I and Towa discovered the live stone.'”
“Live stone, a stone that is alive. It’s starting to sound like a horror novel.”
“Indeed. But the problem is that we have no idea what this ‘live stone’ is. Both my mother and Towa Saginomiya are long gone.”
“What! Wait a minute! Aren’t combat cells and suppressor cells based on the live stone?”
“Yes, but while we know how to copy combat cells and suppressor cells, we don’t understand their inner workings.”
“…So, essentially, we have unknown cells implanted in our bodies. It’s incredibly unsettling. Hmm? Dr. Hyakume would know the details, wouldn’t he?”
“It seems my mother and Towa Saginomiya developed it together, and even the Doctor doesn’t know. Currently, what are called ‘new weapons’ are just combat cells with added functions. The core unit remains a black box.”
“It’s like a car where the engine is the same, but the steering wheel and tires are modified. We can copy the engine but don’t understand how it works; we’re walking on a shaky bridge. What if there’s something hidden in the cells?”
“However, both the Alliance Army and the Mechanist Army have no choice but to use combat cells. Otherwise, they will lose the war.”
“Combat cells to win the war, suppressor cells to escape deadly cancer. Two types of cells, spreading explosively throughout humanity, born from the same lab. It just seems like there’s something hidden behind it all. Shouldn’t we investigate Dr. Hyakume and the lab more thoroughly?”
“The lab was shut down long ago and is gone without a trace. The two developers are no longer among the living, and Dr. Hyakume defected to the Mechanist Army. There’s nothing we can do.”
“Dr. Hyakume defected to the Mechanist Army! Is that true?”
“It’s classified military information. Don’t leak it. There’s a reason I told you, Lilith. I believe you have the right to know. We’ve discovered that the laboratory you belonged to was promoting something called the ‘Diablos Project.'”
“…So, I’m the prototype of the Diablos Project, the Diablos Type X.”
“That seems to be the case. And the person who formulated the basic theory for the Diablos Project was…”
“Dr. Hyakume, right? My grandfather was involved with quite the monster.”
“Dr. Hyakume doesn’t seem to have been involved with that laboratory. He only formulated the basic theory.”
“Hmm, is that so? Well, that doesn’t mean Dr. Hyakume isn’t a monster… Can I tell Warrant Officer this? I don’t want to keep anything from him.”
“…Not yet. I do want to hear Kanata’s opinion eventually, but right now, there’s too little information for even Kanata’s natto bacteria to be useful. It would only cause unnecessary worry for Kanata, who already tends to overthink things, wouldn’t it?”
…I pictured Warrant Officer already burdened with some worry. I suppose adding more to his plate wouldn’t be good.
“You’re right, but I will definitely tell him eventually. Iska, please gather even a little bit more information. Whether it harms us or not is another question, but I’m certain that the Hyakume Lab had some ulterior motive or objective.”
“Yeah, for now, I just need to get through this paperwork.”
Iska and I diligently tackled the documents.
It seems Warrant Officer and I are both used as convenient errand runners.
Shigure’s crescent moon scar under her right eye was an injury sustained during a duel with Agito. I completely forgot to mention it. I’ve added a description of it to Sanpin’s dialogue in Chapter 21 of the Promotion arc, “Bad Faces Attract Like.” My apologies for the recurring inconvenience.
