“Hey, what are you doing? I haven’t even caught up with my great-grandma yet! Let go of me!”
That middle-aged chuunibyou patient was fitted with a magical tool that could restrain spiritual power, leaving him no choice but to be taken away by the medical staff and kept under separate guard.
Only when his voice had completely faded away did Su Mu snap back to his senses.
Hoshino Tamai smiled sweetly and said, “Teacher Chiba, I had no idea you were this amazing! Just now, each of that guy’s three sword strikes was stronger than the last, yet you blocked them all with your bare hands—and you made it look so easy.”
Who doesn’t enjoy a little praise? Su Mu was no exception. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly as he replied casually, “His skills aren’t bad…”
Hoshino Tamai’s eyes sparkled. “Wow, so cool!”
Kuchiki Cho’s focus was completely different. After thinking for a moment, she asked, “Teacher Chiba, are you a B-class strong expert?”
Su Mu shook his head. “You’re only half right.”
Kuchiki Cho understood immediately: So she only has B-class strength, but her actual cultivation level is still at C-class. That’s terrifying.
“Only half right?” Hoshino Tamai had a flash of insight. “So, even though she’s not B-class, she’s still a strong expert.”
Just then, Kurokawa Saki and Takahashi Eiro also hurried over. Seeing the damaged walls all around, both of them were completely shocked.
Kurokawa Saki glanced at the scene and sighed. “This fight was at least C-class in terms of level, but the destruction is relatively contained. That means there was probably a B-class expert present who subdued this C-class patient.”
Among the four, whether in terms of cultivation, experience, personality, or ability, Kurokawa Saki surpassed the other three. Su Mu had the highest hopes for her.
It’s a shame he couldn’t take her back with him. If he could nurture her carefully, her future would definitely be promising.
On the way back.
Su Mu cleared his throat and drew their attention back. “So, how did your investigations go?”
Kuchiki Cho was the first to report. “We found that most of the patients here are E-class, with a few being F-class. Not a single one above that. But I can vaguely sense that some of them don’t entirely seem to be E-class.”
Su Mu was fairly satisfied with her finding. “Go on, tell me how they’re ‘not entirely’ E-class.”
Hoshino Tamai continued, “Well, it’s like this. We suspect that some people’s cultivation levels have been forcibly lowered. We don’t have any hard evidence, but our instincts tell us we’re right.”
“We noticed that too, and it’s also just based on intuition. Besides that, we found this.” Kurokawa Saki took out her phone. On the screen was a photo of a purple eye—eerie and otherworldly.
Su Mu’s eyes lit up. “Where did you find this?”
“In a patient’s eye.”
Now even Su Mu was a bit confused. “What do you mean?”
Kurokawa Saki thought for a moment and gave a simple explanation. “This touches on my secret, so please forgive me for not going into detail. But basically, I can make tiny things look bigger—like a magnifying glass.”
Su Mu’s heart shook violently. This is way more than a magnifying glass. If she cultivates this ability further, she’ll basically become a human microscope. In the field of scientific research, that would be like having a built-in bug.
Kurokawa Saki’s discovery was an unexpected blessing. It cast a mysterious veil over the Kagawa Psychiatric Hospital. In fact, Su Mu felt that if he could just unravel the secret behind that purple eye, all the other problems would solve themselves.
With that in mind, he gradually started forming a plan. Meanwhile, Kurokawa Saki had a strange expression on her face. Su Mu noticed something off but didn’t say a word.
…
In a modest courtyard, Mr. Sato grabbed his wife’s hand and led her back to the main house. The moment they stepped inside, they started arguing.
“Look at this. This is all your doing. Our flawless plan is now in tatters because of you. That Chiba Masaka has already found a clue. When the time comes, I hope you won’t regret this,” Mr. Sato said, gritting his teeth in anger.
But his wife replied, “Our King only wants a perfect vessel. Everything else is just extra. It doesn’t matter if we lose it. She can’t wait much longer.”
“So you deliberately left a loophole to lure Chiba Masaka to Kagawa Psychiatric Hospital, just so she would discover your secret?”
“That’s right.”
“Well, you’ve achieved your goal. But what about me? What am I supposed to do?” Mr. Sato said angrily. “If we get exposed, there won’t be a single place for me on this entire Earth!”
His wife paused for a moment. “Considering we’ve been husband and wife, I can ask the King to take you… along when we leave.”
The room fell silent.
After a long while.
Mr. Sato finally sighed. “Well, we’re already on this pirate ship. There’s no jumping off halfway. Just make sure you don’t shortchange me on what you promised. If it really comes down to it, I guess we’ll have no choice.”
Mrs. Sato gently stroked her husband’s face and said in a soft voice, “You’ve had a long day. Let me help you relax…”
For an instant, her eyes turned purple. Inside Mr. Sato’s eyes, a hidden pattern slowly lit up—exactly the same as the photo in Kurokawa Saki’s phone.
Mr. Sato seemed to fall into a trance. He tumbled onto the bed, hugged a pillow, and started gnawing on it wildly.
His wife stood by, watching coldly. “Despicable human…”
…
Back at his lodging, Su Mu felt like he had missed something. He thought about it for a long time before it hit him: there was one place he hadn’t gone—the inside of the back garden!
Back then, because he had run into two people going at it, he had left immediately. Now that he thought about it, he had probably missed some important clues.
He had good reason to suspect that those two had been doing it on purpose right there, specifically to stop him from going further.
It seemed necessary to go again. Only next time, he’d have to sneak in.
During this visit to the psychiatric hospital, Su Mu appeared to have found no clues at all, and his gains seemed even less than Kurokawa Saki’s.
But in reality, he had already mapped out the hospital’s magic formation and made some silent adjustments, laying the groundwork for sneaking in next time.
He took out the man-eating monster he had caught earlier. After studying it carefully, he found that although it resembled a bat, it was actually a completely different species.
“How strange. Why does this creature’s existence feel so… deliberate?” Su Mu muttered to himself. “It’s as if wherever it appears, it’s been placed there by human hands.”
Just like today. Its appearance was practically full of holes, and it put Mr. Sato right in the spotlight. Anyone with half a brain would guess he was up to something.
But would he really do something so stupid?
And if he would, why?
Su Mu lay down on the bed and stretched lazily. “Mm-hmm～ This is really hard to guess…”
…
Outside the window, the moonlight was like water, and the stars were scattered across the sky.
The early summer breeze blew, making the leaves dance and sway. Under the moonlight, they looked like a gathering of demons—eerie yet carefree.
In the wind, a graceful figure walked slowly across Su Mu’s rooftop, making not a single sound.
She found a comfortable spot to sit down, propped her chin in her hands, and began admiring the night view of Kagawa Prefecture.
“Oh King, this girl really is outstanding. She’s definitely worthy of you.”
The woman’s eyes turned purple—deep, mysterious, and profound…