Chiba Hospital.
After finishing dinner, Hayato changed into different clothes, put on a mask, and headed to the hospital. The mask covered half his face, making him just another sick patient.
After asking around a bit, he got the location and basic status of the critically injured patients. Both were still in critical condition as of now. Hanging by a thread.
"So, in this room?"
[Time Stop]
Using his time-stopping ability, Hayato smoothly entered the ICU room. He spotted his target immediately.
The patient was wrapped head to toe in bandages, teetering on the edge of death with closed eyes. IV tubes ran into their body like lifelines, and an oxygen mask assisted their breathing. The steady beep of monitors filled the frozen silence.
The other person was in slightly better shape, though their condition was still pretty bad. Burns covered visible skin.
"It's similar but...."
Hayato took a mental note and silently left the ICU. He found the medical records, flipping through them carefully.
Honda Koichi.
35 years old.
April 8th, 9:38 PM. Sudden onset of symptoms. Cardiac arrest, respiratory failure, and severe comatose shock. After ten minutes of emergency treatment, declared deceased.
The timing caught Hayato's attention.
When he'd left after dropping off Tachibana, it had been just before 9:30. Getting to the street where the anomaly appeared would take about six minutes. The math lined up perfectly.
"If the eyes were just a coincidence, fine. But if the timing also lines up, then the chances of it being a coincidence are pretty slim."
Hayato had a strong suspicion that last night's possessing anomaly's original form was this deceased man named Honda Koichi. If that was the case, would the other two victims also turn into new anomalies?
Hayato made a mental note to keep an eye on that. Monitoring the situation.
There was one more injured person at Chiba Hospital that he needed to check on.
The man who'd been possessed by the anomaly, too. After the possessing monster was destroyed, Hayato's emergency call had ultimately saved his life. By now, he might've already regained consciousness.
Hayato wanted to know if this guy had any memories from when he was possessed. Any awareness at all.
A few minutes later.
Using time stop once again to freeze the world, Hayato reached the special floor. Everything is suspended in eternal stillness.
There were dedicated guards, making it easy to pinpoint the man's location.
The man wore a blue patient gown and was leaning back watching TV. He looked to be in decent shape, all things considered. Hayato didn't go inside to talk to him directly. Instead, he searched around until he found the inquiry notes made by official personnel.
Name: Hirano Kenji
Age: 28
Condition: Intermittent headaches. No memory whatsoever of the possession period. Everything feels hazy like a dream. Last conscious memory was riding the train back to his apartment.
Assessment: Suspected encounter with an anomaly during train ride. Successfully possessed by an anomaly.
There wasn't much valuable information for me....
But it was enough. Hayato's purpose in coming here was to confirm whether the man had any memories during possession, and this report had already given him his answer.
He put everything back in its original place and left directly. Only after returning to his original position in the hallway where he'd activated time stop did he release it, letting everything return to normal.
Noise flooded back in. The world resumed breathing.
A patient was walking slowly down the hallway, supported by a nurse. Several nurses hurried past, looking like something urgent had happened. Their footsteps echoed against the sterile tiles.
Hayato took the elevator downstairs and left the hospital.
It was already six o'clock.
The sky had darkened, painted in shades of deep blue and purple.
Hayato walked alone down the wide street. A breeze blew past, carrying a penetrating chill that made him pull his jacket tighter.
"Ring ring ring..."
His phone rang, vibrating in his pocket.
It was Hoshino Ai.
"Good evening."
"Good evening! Hayato-kun, how was today? Going back to school must've been fun, right?"
She was full of interest in Hayato's high school life. Her voice carried genuine excitement.
Honestly, she sometimes wished she could go to school too. Experience normal teenage life.
"High school life is great! It's full of fresh, pretty JK girls. Just looking at them is pleasing to the eye. Makes me feel at least ten years younger."
"Hahaha, ten years younger? That'd make you only six or seven years old."
They chatted for about ten minutes before ending the call.
As an idol, Hoshino Ai was getting back into her daily routine. Most of her days were filled with practicing dancing and singing. But aside from that, she'd also started working out regularly at Hayato's suggestion.
"Haa."
"If only Hayato-kun went to high school in Tokyo..."
Chiba wasn't far, but there was still distance between them. Too much distance.
If Hayato were in Tokyo, she could even visit him every single day.
Hoshino Ai thought about it for a moment, her cheeks flushing red. Heat crept up her neck.
Smack, smack.
She patted her own cheeks, trying to focus.
"Can't let my mind wander. Gotta work out properly. Next time, I definitely won't be a burden to Hayato-kun."
She started running again, pouring sweat on the company's treadmill. Her ponytail bounced with each step.
Hayato returned to his apartment and did a thorough inspection of the place. Searching through drawers and cabinets.
"ID documents, bank card, thirty thousand yen in cash, and..."
He laid everything out neatly on the desk.
Hayato had actually hoped the original owner kept a diary, but now he knew that was impossible. Normal people don't really write diaries. Not in this age.
"Let's see if I can reset the bank card password through the app."
If not, he'd have to visit a branch office of that bank in Tokyo. A hassle, but necessary.
Money was essential.
How to make money? His time stop ability was incredibly powerful.
He could rob a bank, and no one would ever find out. But Hayato had absolutely no intention of doing that. He had principles and a bottom line. Lines he wouldn't cross.
Since he'd decided to stay under the radar, naturally his income and finances needed attention too. Couldn't raise any suspicions.
"Hmmmm, Maybe... find a sugar mom?"
If a rich woman supported him, he wouldn't have to worry about money at all.
Completely reasonable and legal. Wouldn't draw suspicion from anyone.
"Haha, stop daydreaming, I'm not living as I used to."
Hayato chuckled to himself as he sat down at his desk and turned on his computer. The screen glowed to life.
"Better start by looking up safety accidents, deaths, and urban legends circulating around Chiba."
The love hotel incident and the fire burn anomaly made Hayato suspect there was some connection between real-world accidents and anomaly incidents. A pattern waiting to be uncovered.
Hayato could actively trigger Death Game missions and get a reward. Passively waiting around wasn't his style.
Besides, I don't know when this time-stop ability might no longer be usable.