CH 27

Chapter 27 – Community Center Under Attack

Even after night fell, Jouichirou still didn’t come back. With phones not working, we couldn’t get into contact with him, but I knew that he was probably really busy.

At any rate, I found it really admirable that Jouichirou still continued to put in so much effort to save other people when he was hardly getting paid for it. If Japan had still been peaceful, he would have been getting compensated for his hard work.

People can work hard because they get something in return. But in today’s world, there weren’t even wages to compensate you anymore. Food had an even higher value than money now, after all. No matter how much money you had, you still wouldn’t be able to support yourself in this day and age. It was literally a useless possession.

But even so, Jouichirou was working tirelessly and without compensation to help treat people. That kind of person was probably what humans should have been like in an ideal setting.

I definitely couldn’t be like him. Money was one thing, but helping other people without receiving any compensation whatsoever was frankly a revolting thought to me. I could understand if there was a reason to save them, but wanting to save someone without reward… I didn’t think the current me could do something like that.

“Anyway, the community center was turned into a dungeon, huh?”

I muttered this to myself suddenly as I was lying face-up on the bed.

“Looks like Totoki is really an unlucky person to the end, huh?”

No, she had been rescued from the depths of hell once. That could be considered to be good luck. From the time that I met Totoki to the time that the community center was dungeonized, there was a possibility that she had already left.

“Well, it’s nothing I need to worry about.”

What I was a little worried about was that little girl―Totoki’s little sister. She was only five years old, if I remembered correctly. I hoped that if possible, that innocent child would be saved. She was still a pure existence, untainted by any color.

Maybe she wouldn’t turn out to be scum like the students and teachers at my school. Yes, there was even a possibility that she would turn out to become a person of great character like Jouichirou. That was why I hoped that she could survive if possible.

“It’s already 2 AM, huh? I guess I should go to sleep soon.”

I took a [Shapeshifting Potion] and was about to close my eyes when I heard a car driving up the street. Then, that car pulled into the Fukuzawa estate.

“…Did he come back?”

I was a bit curious, so I got up and looked out the window, turning my gaze to the gate. As expected, the car that Sasaki drove was there.

Since I had already gotten up, I decided to greet him and hear the situation from him, so I left the room. Then, I just happened to run into Jouichirou.

“Oya, did I wake you up? Sorry.” (Jouichirou)

“No, I haven’t slept yet.” (Torimoto)

“Haha, I apologize for making you worry.” (Jouichirou)

I really hadn’t slept yet, but he seemed to have misunderstood me, thinking that I was concerned about him. Looking at Jouichirou, he really seemed quite exhausted. In his own way, he had probably been fighting on an utter battlefield this whole time. It was understandable.

“It looks like you had a rough day. If you don’t mind, please come this way.” (Torimoto)

“Eh?” (Jouichirou)

I invited him into my room and set him down at a table. Then, I prepared a cup and a pot of tea, and poured a beautiful, shimmering orange liquid into the cup.

“Here, this is [Aurora Tea], a type of black tea. It’ll help you get rid of your fatigue.” (Torimoto)

Of course, this was just a fantasy item that I pulled out of my <Box>. No, a fantasy food would be more accurate, I guess?

“Since you went through the trouble of preparing it for me, I’ll have to accept…. Fuhaaa~.” (Jouichirou)

Jouichirou’s face softened into an expression of enchanted bliss. His expression looked the same as if someone’s frozen body was being thawed by the comfort of a perfectly warm bath.

“Hm? Ooh… This hits the spot.” (Jouichirou)

“Right? Your fatigue and drowsiness must be somewhat better now, right?” (Torimoto)

“I-Is this another one of those things you can make?” (Jouichirou)

“Yes, it has the effect of relieving fatigue and preventing drowsiness. It’s a type of medicine meant for people who work long hours.” (Torimoto)

“…Well, I’ll say. You’re really amazing.” (Jouichirou)

“No, the amazing one is the power of the Torimoto family. I just do the compounding while following the recipe I’ve been given.” (Torimoto)

“But the compounding can’t be done by normal people, right?” (Jouichirou)

“It would’ve been nice if I had powers like yours.” (Jouichirou)

“If you did, there’s a good chance you’d already be living it up as a guinea pig of the state.” (Torimoto)

“….Hah, it’s frustrating that I can’t completely deny that.” (Jouichirou)

With this rare of a power, they would surely try to unravel its mysteries and mass produce it. Even if the experiments were a bit excessive, they would probably still carry them out regardless of that person’s will. There wouldn’t be any happiness for that person. In the role of a guinea pig, there was only a life of tragic consequences.

“Was the hospital a complete battleground?” (Torimoto)

“Yeah. Places are becoming dungeonized one after the other, and the number of victims is endless. Patients are being brought into the hospital every day. Today was particularly bad.” (Jouichirou)

“That community center that was designated as an evacuation center turned into a dungeon, right? Was the damage serious?” (Torimoto)

“Mhm. Powerful monsters attacked, and it was already too late for most of them. Even still, it’s a doctor’s duty to go through with the surgery as long as there’s even the smallest sliver of hope.” (Jouichirou)

Jouichirou surely performed one surgery after the other, but even still, many lives were lost.

“However, our hospital is still one of the better ones. The utilities have been shut down all over the country… But along with water and gas provisions, we have our own generators and storage batteries, as well as a solar power system.” (Jouichirou)

Amazing. It was a truly stable setup.

“We were hit by an earthquake in the past. We learned our lesson from that time and decided to make sure our hospital facilities were perfect.” (Jouichirou)

Now that he had mentioned it, I remembered that in the past, there was a huge earthquake in this area. It caused an unbelievable number of victims and tragedy.

“For all of the hospitals out there that aren’t equipped with such utilities… It must be horrible.” (Torimoto)

Just picturing a hospital without access to water or electricity painted a picture of a miserable hell in my mind.

“Speaking of which, do you know what happened to the community center after that?” (Torimoto)

“Well…. I’ve only heard about it, but apparently there are still people in the building.” (Jouichirou)

In this world, food and water were no different from treasure. It wasn’t surprising that they would try to take from the weak.

“Good grief… It’s awful. It’s precisely in times like these that people need to work together.” (Jouichirou)

Jouichirou was a doctor with a strong sense of justice, so this was his view on the matter. Humans were neither that smart nor pure. At the core, they were ugly and black inside.

“It seemed that while the young people were attacking, the dungeonization occurred.” (Jouichirou)

“So that’s what happened. Those young people who attacked received instant karmic retribution, I suppose.” (Torimoto)

“Haha, that’s how Buddha might have put it. In reality, a lot of those young people lost their lives. We also did everything we could.” (Jouichirou)

They reaped what they sowed, and I had a feeling there wasn’t much they could have done about it. Those who steal should be prepared to be stolen from as well.

“According to a young man who was brought in, there was a boy in charge of the youths, and he was still left in the community center. Along with the people who were originally living in the community center, that is.” (Jouichirou)

“If that guy was the only one left, wouldn’t he have already been kicked out by them?” (Torimoto)

After all, he was the one who had instigated the attack. If it were me, I would have used him as a decoy to escape from the community center. On the other hand, if he was getting in the way, I would have even considered the possibility of killing him.

“I’m not sure. We can only pray that the police will do something about it.” (Jouichirou)

“The police haven’t done anything yet?” (Torimoto)

“…Come to think of it, that kid’s case sure was a tough one.” (Jouichirou)

“Huh? Did you say something?” (Torimoto)

He might not have meant to say it out loud, but Jouichirou quietly muttered something under his breath, so I didn’t catch it.

“Ah, excuse me. Actually, a child was brought in with relatively minor injuries, and she told me that her sister was still inside the community center.” (Jouichirou)

“…I see.” (Torimoto)

“She said her sister was only five years old too.” (Jouichirou)

…Eh? A five year old… little sister?

A certain premonition flashed through my mind. It would have been better to ignore it, but I still went ahead and asked.

“T-That girl, how old was she?” (Torimoto)

“She was a high schooler. If I recall correctly, I think she said that her name was―Totoki.” (Jouichirou)

…!? I didn’t think it was possible, but my hunch turned out to be spot on.

“Torimoto-kun…?” (Jouichirou)

“…! ….What is it?” (Torimoto)

“Nothing, you seemed a bit stiff. Is she perhaps an acquaintance?” (Jouichirou)

“No, I just found her sister a bit pitiful, that’s all.” (Torimoto)

“I agree. It’s understandable to feel pity for a five year old kid being thrown into hell. I would want to help her out if I could.” (Jouichirou)

After that, Jouichirou thanked me for the tea, washed up in the bathroom, changed his clothes, and then went back to the hospital. I suppose he had only come back for a change of clothes.

Then, I was left alone, lying on my bed as I stared up at the spotless ceiling.