Berserk of Gluttony (LN) - Volume 7 - Chapter 22

Chapter 22:

The Galian Lab

WE STOPPED AT A SPOT a little to the east of the research facility.

“This is it,” said Kairos.

“What do you mean?”

“You’ll see for yourself when we get there. Try not to breathe through your nose.”

Because of the smell? What is he talking about? A few moments later, Myne and I both knew exactly what he meant.

“It’s their sewer,” Kairos said. “This is where all their wastewater ends up.”

“We’re really going in through the sewer?”

“We are. What of it?” Kairos’s face said it all: What’s the big deal? 

Myne scrunched up her face in disgust. This wasn’t like the Myne I knew.

“According to our intel, the sewer is the biggest weakness in their security,” Kairos explained. “Furthermore, our person on the inside dealt with the security measures they do have, at least temporarily.”

“Can we trust them?”

“I figured you’d say that. You don’t have to trust them. Trust me.”

Kairos said some strange things at times, but he could be pretty persuasive when he wanted. I felt like I wanted to believe in him. Perhaps that feeling was enough to have persuaded the people of Babylon to take up arms in rebellion against the Galian Empire.

My foot sloshed in the sewer water. A shiver ran up my spine. Ewwwwwwwwww. 

“Hurry up,” said Kairos. “Don’t fall behind.”

I began to follow after Kairos, but stopped when I noticed that the other member of our team hadn’t budged at all.

“Myne! If you don’t hurry, you’ll get left behind,” I said.

“You can’t expect me to do this. My dignity as a young maiden is at stake.”

I had never once imagined the words “young maiden” would come from Myne’s lips. I was so surprised that I burst into laughter. 

Myne smacked me on the head with the flat of her axe.

“Ow! What the hell?!”

“Cause and effect, idiot!”

I could feel a lump forming on my head. Why was she so violent?! And why did she always default to arrogance?!

“Fine, fine,” I said. “Climb on my shoulders and I’ll carry you. That way you won’t have to worry about touching any sewage.”

“But that’s…so embarrassing.”

Oh, come on! Are you joking?! 

Myne didn’t even know the meaning of shame. How could she possibly feel embarrassed by the idea of simply riding on my shoulders? This was the same girl who’d appeared in front of me in just her underwear. She hadn’t been embarrassed then. In fact, she’d flaunted it. Thinking back on the incident made my face flush red.

Is this Myne an imposter? A fake? She must be!

She was a lot like the Myne I knew, with that mostly expressionless face, but her range of emotions was totally different. Who was this girl, really? 

She continued to fidget nervously as I said, “Okay, in that case, you’ll have to keep watch out here and wait for us. I’ll go tell Kairos.”

Myne clenched her fists until the knuckles whitened and said, “Wait. Okay, I’ll… I’ll do it.” 

With slow, laborious movements, she climbed onto my shoulders.

“So heavy! We’re going to sink! I can’t…handle it. We’re…sinking…”

“How could you say something so rude to a woman in the bloom of youth?! Do you realize my dignity is at stake?!”

“You’ve got the wrong idea! Quit squirming. It’s not you, it’s Sloth! Have you released the axe’s weight since that last battle?”

“Oh… I forgot.”

Myne seemed to be a little embarrassed by her assumption. After things had settled down, we caught up to Kairos, who casually flicked our foreheads in turn.

“Idiots… Have you heard of stealth?!”

“Sorry!” we chimed in unison.

“You sound confident in your answers, but I’m losing my confidence in you real quick…”

Kairos told us that if we made too much noise again, he would dunk us headfirst into the sewage. Of course, I wanted to avoid such a fate at all costs. We proceeded with utmost discretion.

“See? You can do it. Then again, we’re in for a world of hurt if you can’t keep this up…” Kairos seemed almost resigned to that conclusion, but soon he pointed up at a light gleaming from above. “There. We’ll take the ladder against the wall. I’ll go first.”

There was no way I was going to be able to climb the ladder with Myne on my shoulders.

“Okay. You next, Myne,” I said.

“Got it.”

She leaped from my shoulders to the ladder and began to climb, careful not to drop her axe as she went. I grabbed a rung of the ladder and looked up only for Myne to scream, “No looking up! That’s not allowed!”

“How am I supposed to climb, then?”

“You climb the ladder, but you keep your peeping eyes pointed down. If you don’t, I’ll drop this axe on your head.”

Myne seemed like she was embarrassed about my potentially looking up and seeing her underwear. This had to be a joke. The Myne I knew was arrogant and shameless—a flash of her undergarments certainly shouldn’t have been enough to faze her.

“You’re still looking! I’m going to drop the axe!”

“Whoa! Stop! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“You two!” Kairos barked. “Shut your traps!”

When we finally reached the top of the ladder, we were met by a woman wearing a white lab coat. Her skin was tanned and her white hair was tinted purple. Behind her glasses, her eyes glimmered with intelligence. 

“Why hello there. As for the two of you behind Kairos, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Micuria. I’m sure Kairos has already informed you, but I’m his help on the inside. Come along now. You too, Kairos. You stink.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“One ‘yeah’ is enough!”

“She’s strict about the strangest things…” Kairos muttered under his breath as he was dragged by his collar into another room. Myne and I darted after him.

“Wait for us,” I said.

“That woman’s got him wrapped around her finger. Tougher than she looks.”

Myne showed unexpected interest in Kairos, but to me, it just looked like he was getting pushed around.

We entered a room that looked like a private office. As expected, Micuria gave us a brief tour.

“This is my research office. There’s a shower over there, and I suggest you make use of that with all due haste. In the meantime, I’ll launder your clothes. No need to worry; they’ll dry in no time.”

Kairos disappeared into the shower first. Myne and I looked around Micuria’s office. 

“You stink, Fate,” said Myne. “You need a shower, and quick.”

“I got a little extra filth on me, but that’s because I had to carry a certain someone on my shoulders,” I said, looking down at my soiled clothes.

Myne hesitated before she said, “About that… Thanks.”

Whoa, are you for real?! Did this version of Myne just thank me for something?!

No matter how hard I worked, and no matter what I did, the Myne I knew always acted like that was the way things were supposed to be. I liked this new version of her! The version I knew loved counting money and always stole my food. But that girl didn’t seem to exist here, and I had the overwhelming urge to congratulate her with a pat on the head.

“You’re so well-behaved,” I said as I gave into the temptation and actually tousled Myne’s hair.

“What are you doing?!”

As I pulled my hand back, she almost chomped my fingers off. Seemed like this cat was still a tiger after all. She showed me a gentler side, but the moment I was lulled into a false sense of security, her killer instincts awoke and she struck back, aiming for the kill. Then again, if she hadn’t had that side, she wouldn’t have been Myne.

“What’s so funny?!” Myne said. “Why do you always laugh when you look at me?”

Every word was punctuated with a poke to my chest. This wasn’t some mere irritated gesture. Myne’s prodding felt like I was getting hammered in the heart. It was enough to make me cough. 

Micuria tittered as she looked on. “You two get along like a house on fire, huh?”

“What? No we don’t!”

Myne vanished into a nearby room. I wasn’t sure if it was good manners to do so without permission, but when I looked at Micuria, she simply nodded with a smile.

“It’s fine,” she said. “There’s nothing in there I don’t want her to see, and it’s not a problem even if she trashes it.”

“Well, that’s a relief.”

“I should formally introduce myself. I’m Micuria, the deputy director of this research facility. Kairos and I, well, we have something of a history. It’s a long story.”

“I’m Fate. The girl who ran off is Myne.”

“He was supposed to come here by himself, but instead he shows up with you two in tow. I have to admit, I was surprised. Regardless, I am glad to make your acquaintance, Fate.”

Micuria held out a hand, and I shook it. 

“Huh?”

In the instant our hands touched, my mind flooded with a vision of red. This couldn’t have been Telepathy because this wasn’t the real world. Whatever it was, I couldn’t stop the vision from forcing its way in. 

I saw Kairos try to kill Micuria as the research facility became an inferno around them. Micuria’s consciousness faded as her neck was crushed. Kairos wept through red-rimmed eyes. With what little strength she had left, Micuria put her hands on Kairos’s own and tried to speak. However, her lips wouldn’t move. She couldn’t even manage a whisper.

“Fate? Is something wrong?”

“Hm?!”

The sound of my name brought me out of the vision and back to Micuria’s office. I had stood rooted to the spot, apparently staring at the floor.

“It must have been a difficult trip to get here,” said Micuria. “And I know Kairos can be quite rough. You should probably take a rest after your shower. I’ve still got things to finish up, so we can get started when I’m done.”

Micuria took a seat and studied the panel in front of her. The panel displayed some sort of research material or experimental results, and Micuria was revising it. I took a peek at the screen and the word “superorganism” leaped out at me. 

Huh?! But that’s what I’m fighting, back in the real world. That’s Shin.

“Hey. No spying on classified materials, young man. It’s bad manners.”

“Sorry.”

I didn’t get a chance to read anything else on the panel. I did catch that there were a variety of diversion methods, however. Was Micuria trying to use a superorganism to create something? Even if she was, she wasn’t about to discuss classified research with a complete stranger like me. As if in confirmation, when I tried to peek again, she gave me an irritated look.

“Looks like Kairos is out of the shower, so run along and take one yourself,” she said.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Fine, but make it quick.”

“Did you create the superorganism?”

“I did. Now go take your shower.”

Micuria gave me a shove in the back, so I gave up and headed for the shower. 

Kairos looked refreshed as he passed me by and gently tapped my cheek. “I know you can’t see what’s ahead and it’s got you feeling like you’re treading water, but it’ll all be clear soon enough.”

“What do you mean?”

“First things first: Go take your shower.”

Kairos also pushed me toward the shower. He was right. I really needed to clean all this grime off of me.

I’d gone into this mission anxious and unsure of what to expect, but this had all gone so smoothly that I could hardly believe it. Even our battle with that horde of monsters earlier had been more trouble than this. In any case, I listened to their advice and allowed myself a little rest as I showered.