Chapter 53: Shinonono Tabane Lecturing Kanzaki Kaori
The young woman, Kanzaki Kaori, looked at Ren in disbelief. The Steam from her chazuke had long dissipated, but her face was flushed with a mixture of emotions. His words made her feel a hint of confusion, a blinding ray of hope, and a deep, gnawing panic. She was momentarily stunned, her hand gripping the hilt of her sword under the table until her knuckles turned white.
The confusion was because she didn't know what it would mean for her entire belief system if his words were true. The hope was fierce and desperate—that she wouldn't have to harm her best friend, the cheerful nun Index, anymore.
The final panic she couldn't quite articulate; it was due to the horror of realizing she might have personally harmed her friend for so many years based on a lie. The horror of the Anglican Church, an organization she served faithfully, manipulating her loyalty. And the immediate horror for Index's safety if the wipes were unnecessary.
Kanzaki suppressed the deep stirring in her heart, took a deep breath to steady her voice, and said, "How can you guarantee that what you're saying is true? You are a chef in a strange restaurant. Why should I trust your medical knowledge over the Church's experts?"
Ren thought for a moment, unbothered by her suspicion. "If you're not in a hurry, I can find some related scientific videos for you. And I also know some geniuses—actual scientists and biology experts from Another World—who come here to eat. You can ask them directly."
Kanzaki glanced at her wrist. "There's enough time. My watch shows that only five minutes have passed in my world since I entered, so I still have over three hours before the deadline."
Ren nodded. "Then I'll find some videos for you first to lay the groundwork, and then I'll find a relevant scientist to answer your specific questions~"
Kanzaki nodded slowly. A shop that could manipulate time and cross worlds was truly a bit too miraculous for her to dismiss. If this place existed, then other impossibilities might exist too. For this reason alone, she had reason to believe him. After all, she knew her own identity as a Saint was scientifically absurd in many worlds. In other words, it wouldn't be surprising for a scientist of the same level as their Pope to appear here.
She didn't want to truly lose her friend. After all, personally deleting her friend's memories was an incredibly painful thing for her. Every year, watching Index look at her with the eyes of a stranger broke her heart anew.
Ren returned to his room on the second floor, took out the laptop he had used to watch horror movies earlier, and then came back downstairs. He set it up on the counter in front of Kanzaki.
Ren found many videos—documentaries on neuroscience, lectures from top universities, and medical breakdowns of memory storage. Kanzaki watched them silently, her crimson eyes scanning the subtitles and diagrams with intensity.
Countless authoritative scientists and doctors all spoke about this issue, stating that memory is not a physical file that fills up a hard drive. They explained neuroplasticity, how the brain creates new connections. They debunked the idea of a "full brain" causing physical rupture. This made her believe most of it.
Ren, meanwhile, was on his phone looking for contacts in his "Regulars" group chat.
An hour later.
Kanzaki Kaori had watched all the videos. She sat back, feeling drained. Each video had different aspects, with most discrepancies revolving around how much a person could truly remember in a lifetime, but on the development of brain regions and whether the brain would explode from too much memory, the results were consistent.
It wouldn't. It physically couldn't.
Almost the moment the young woman finished watching, Ren also made a video call.
The screen on his phone lit up. The instant the call connected, a cheerful, energetic, and slightly chaotic voice burst through the speakers.
"Yo Ren-chan! What do you need me for~? Are you finally confessing your love to the genius Tabane-chan?"
Hearing this voice, Kanzaki looked over, startled.
Ren smiled and turned the phone screen around. "Tabane, behave. How is your expertise in human biology?"
On the other end of the phone was a girl with long purple hair and bunny ears (which were actually mechanical sensors). Shinonono Tabane from the Infinite Stratos world.
Shinonono Tabane smiled, leaning into the camera. "Oh, that? Because all the IS mechs I develop need to be highly compatible with the pilot, of course I've researched it! Especially the brain and mental aspects. I know the human brain better than anyone on my planet~"
Hearing this, Kanzaki's eyes lit up. This was the creator of the Infinite Stratos?
After Ren aimed the camera at Kanzaki, Shinonono Tabane glanced at her. Her playful expression shifted for a millisecond to analytical sharpness. Then she continued to rapidly type on a keyboard with both hands—presumably working on another project simultaneously—making Kanzaki stare in astonishment. The sound was like a machine gun. Was that speed truly human?
Shinonono Tabane smiled and said, "Hello! I'm a scientist from Another World, Shinonono Tabane. You're also Ren's guest, aren't you~? You look like a swordswoman. Do you have anything you need to ask the genius?"
Kanzaki Kaori nodded respectfully. "Dr. Shinonono Tabane, I am also a guest from Another World. My name is Kanzaki Kaori, and I have a medical question regarding the human brain's capacity that I'd like to ask you."
Tabane smiled and waved her hand. "Don't worry! Since even Ren-chan wants to help, I'll do my best to answer~. Ask away!"
Kanzaki took a deep breath. "It's like this... My friend has memorized 103,000 grimoires perfectly. The Church says her brain is 85% full and she needs an annual memory wipe or her synapses will overload and her brain will undergo fatal damage..."
She explained the "Perfect Memory" condition and the Church's diagnosis in detail.
Before Kanzaki Kaori could even finish speaking, she heard Shinonono Tabane burst out laughing.
"Pfft! AHAHAHAHA!"
Tabane was clutching her stomach, rocking back and forth in her chair. Kanzaki was stunned. Was it a stupid question?
"Hahaha! Oh my god! Why would your Church tell such an unconvincing lie! It's hilarious! 'Brain explode'? Are they comedians?"
Kanzaki Kaori's eyes lit up with a mix of shock and desperation. "So... it's impossible for her head to explode from memory because of this?"
Shinonono Tabane wiped away the tears from laughing, ignored her work on the other screens, and sat back in her chair with her legs crossed. Her tone became serious, though still playful.
"Of course it's impossible! Listen, the development of the human brain is limited, and reaching full development is even more unrealistic. Even developing to fifteen percent would put someone in a superhuman state—like you, Miss Saint—and at that point, the memory capacity would be terrifyingly large."
She held up a finger. "You also said before that magic doesn't interfere with memory, and it's purely text. Text is data. And some books are just like small diaries or a few short pages. Thinking that compressing text data could make a biological brain explode is overthinking it too much! And even if someone has a photographic memory to remember that much at once, their brain would adapt. Every bit of brain region development is a significant reinforcement, not a weakness!"
Kanzaki Kaori said somewhat excitedly, leaning closer to the phone. "But why does she always get a headache before her memory is cleared? She gets a fever, she collapses... Isn't it because of too much memory pressure?"
Shinonono Tabane stretched her arms and said with a smile, "The literature I've read alone is more than that number of books, and I don't have headaches. Don't think of the human body as too fragile. Her headaches only have three explanations."
"What?"
"The first is that some of the grimoires are fighting back. Living books, cursed text. Of course, that's unrealistic unless she literally ate the books and has indigestion~."
"The second is that she has a congenital illness. A brain tumor or defect."
Kanzaki Kaori immediately shook her head. "She's very healthy. We check her constantly. She has no illnesses."
Shinonono Tabane narrowed her eyes, her grin turning predatory.
"Then there's only one possibility left. Your Church left something on her. A shackle. Perhaps magic, or perhaps nanomachines, or a biological limiter. At a certain time—say, exactly one year—it activates to stimulate her pain receptors and mimic a breakdown. It should also have its own defensive functions to prevent tampering~."
Kanzaki Kaori froze. The blood drained from her face.
"Why... why would they do that?" she whispered, her voice cracking.
"Because this is a living library of forbidden grimoires!" Tabane laughed, but it was a cold sound. "How could they let others peek at it? Or steal it? Or let the library walk away? Of course, they want to keep it in their own hands. A memory wipe keeps her dependent, weak, and loyal. It's basic control tactics 101."
Kanzaki Kaori looked at Shinonono Tabane in disbelief. But she wasn't foolish. She was a Saint, a warrior. After sorting things out, stripping away her blind loyalty, she realized that the possibility was indeed very high. The timing was too perfect. The symptoms too consistent.
Kanzaki Kaori stood up, bowing deeply to the phone. "Dr. Shinonono Tabane, do you have any solutions?"
Shinonono Tabane waved her hand. "If it's nanomachines or biological tampering, I can solve it easily. After all, when it comes to mechanics and bio-engineering, I think I'm invincible! Just bring her here. But if it's magic..." She shrugged. "I'm not good at that mystical stuff. For that, Ren-chan will have to find someone else."
Ren, who had been listening quietly, spoke up with a smile. "If it really is magic, I can find someone right now. We have specialists."
Shinonono Tabane chuckled and teased, "Is it Lucifer-chan? Or Cerberus-chan? Ren, you're flirting with girls again! Chifuyu-chan is very angry, you know! You're building a harem!"
Ren smiled, shook his head, and then hung up the phone before Tabane could cause more chaos.
Kanzaki Kaori stared blankly at Ren. The names registered slowly.
"Shopkeeper Ren... you just mentioned Lucifer and Cerberus. Are you talking about the legendary former Archangel who later became a demon, Lucifer? And the Guardian Hellhound of the Underworld, Cerberus?"
As a member of a Christian-based church, these names held immense weight for her. They were entities of myth, beings of immense power.
Ren smiled and nodded. "Yes. But their true appearance might be a bit different from what you imagine from the Bible. Never mind. I'll call Cerberus over for you. She has a good nose for curses."
"Call her over?" Kanzaki blinked. "You can just... summon a Hellhound?"
"That's right! Because she's my pet and my family. She's sleeping upstairs right now. Please wait a moment."
As Ren spoke, he took out his phone and sent a message to Cerberus's phone.
Ren: Wake up. Ice cream if you come down now.
Upstairs.
Hearing the phone ring, Cerberus paused in her dream of chasing skeletal cats. She scratched her belly, opened one eye, and looked at her phone.
"Ice cream?!"
All sleepiness vanished. She jumped up immediately, creating a mini-earthquake on the bed. The three bodies coordinated perfectly, quietly pushing open the door, and then ran out into the hallway, thundering down the stairs.
"Master, Master, Master! Did you call me? Is it strawberry flavor?"
The moment Kanzaki Kaori saw Cerberus, she was stunned.
A girl with white hair, dog ears, and a wagging tail, wearing a cute pajama set, ran into the room with the energy of a golden retriever.
This was not quite like the myth... It wasn't just a little different; it was completely different. Where were the three terrifying heads? Where was the fire and brimstone?
"This... is Cerberus?" Kanzaki asked, her hand hovering near her sword out of confusion rather than fear.
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