Chapter 35

Mori Ogai kept his word and told him to "rest well", and he really treated everyone equally and did not let anyone disturb him, including Chuuya and Dazai.

The former can still learn some information from doctors and nurses, such as "Lord Zhongyuan is in a bad mood recently, and he hardly smiles when you see him." "Lord Zhongyuan went on a business trip to Europe two days ago. I heard that he was going to verify evidence." And "Lord Zhongyuan came to ask several times if he could come in to visit. Alas, we don't want to disappoint that lord, but we can't disobey the leader's order."

As for the latter, the nurse was also hesitant when she mentioned it, "I don't think I've seen Dazai-sama in the past few months. Is it a secret mission?"

But no matter what we talked about that day, the nurse's last words were always "You must take good care of yourself and get well soon."

With such expectations on his shoulders, Seiryoshi Kono felt too embarrassed to continue to slack off, and he worked hard on rehabilitation in private, but not physically.

Not long after regaining consciousness, he was flipping through the CG and inadvertently discovered that the mission progress had increased to 70% during his coma.

The rapid progress was a good thing, but Kono Seiryoshi felt something was wrong and had reason to suspect academic fraud in the system.

The light ball argued: [My algorithm is the most advanced in the world! It includes many elements and is the result of careful analysis!]

"Hmm? So how did you calculate it?"

[Of course, that is to convert emotions into energy, and convert it into the percentage required to prevent the world line from exploding—]

Kouno Seiryo grabbed its wings affectionately and said, "Recalculate."

“I don’t need to collect other people’s negative energy,” he said. “You just need to calculate it in the most primitive way.”

The light ball flew around twice in a rage, but finally came back to recalculate. After a lot of trouble, the result was - 5%

It's not the energy that has been accumulated, but the part that has been reduced - after simulation exercises, it was found that if an explosion occurred now, the scale of damage caused would be 5% less than at the beginning.

"Is that so? Then I think I understand." Kono Seiryoshi seemed to have realized something.

Energy doesn't disappear out of thin air, the missing part is naturally used up. The calculated data proves this point - supernatural powers are not inexhaustible, nor will they regenerate themselves, just like a liter of water in a fixed bottle, which is full at first, and then becomes less as you use it.

It was pretty much what he guessed, except that the relationship between dosage and effect was still unknown.

According to this line of thinking, wouldn't it be fine if we just use up all the abilities before the deadline?

Kono Seiryoshi had a preliminary plan in his mind, vaguely, but he could feel that perhaps this was the correct way to pass the level.

As for the past... we can't say that he took a detour, at least he did live a fulfilling life.

By the way, he finally discovered what the tattoo on his ankle was. The tattoo grew for a while as if it had life, and perhaps it was influenced by the rose with special powers, but it remained in the form of a bud. Comparing its outline with the data in the system database, it turned out to be a young Epiphyllum.

The flower is beautiful, but the meaning it represents is not very auspicious, just like the FLAG. However, his luck has always been bad, so it's the same for us.

Of all his friends, the first person that Kimino Seira met was Oda Sakunosuke.

That day, he was halfway through reading a book when he suddenly remembered that he had not yet given his special ability a name - even if it was trapped in a half-human body, this ability should have its own identity.

I don't know if the names of other people's abilities were born with them or were given to them later. Anyway, Kono Seiryoshi has no impression of this. He started reading the few books he had, hoping to get some inspiration from them. However, he fell asleep after just a few pages.

Since waking up that day, he occasionally had such uncontrollable interruptions. The pen in his hand slipped to the side and the ink accidentally stained the snow-white quilt.

In the dim light, Gongye Shengliang could vaguely feel the breath of someone approaching. He didn't think much about it and thought it was the nurse who came to change the dressing.

The man picked up the fallen pen and gently pulled the book from his clenched fingers, letting out a sigh that dissipated into the air.

This sigh fell on the dull senses of Kimino Seiryoshi. He could not hear it at first, but for some reason, a slight sadness arose in a corner of his heart.

His eyes were still sleepy and his vision was hazy. In the blurred background, he could not see the expression of the person coming. He could only see the rough outline and the unique deep red hair color.

"Weave..." Just as he uttered one syllable, he was gently stopped.

"Go to sleep," Oda Sakunosuke lowered his eyes and tucked the corner of the quilt for him, "Don't worry about me."

Kono Seiryo closed his eyes again. He was indeed very sleepy and his mind was not clear, so he did not notice that his voice was heavily nasal. Like a child who felt wronged because he did not get the toy he wanted, he muttered, "...will you leave while I am asleep?"

Oda Sakunosuke paused, staring at the boy who had fallen into a light sleep. Even though he knew that the boy probably couldn't hear him, he still suppressed his emotions and whispered, "I won't leave until you wake up. You can decide whether to stay or go when you wake up."

So, "Sleep peacefully."

If your memory is filled with bad things, I wish you a dreamless night.

--

The room was at a suitable temperature, so even in a thin hospital gown, he would not feel cold. Kono Seira wore a coat and chatted with Oda Sakunosuke.

This sleep lasted exactly one hour, neither too long nor too short, and Oda Sakunosuke kept his promise and waited for him by his side for the same length of time he slept, without even changing his posture.

Kono Seira still had some shame about what he had said before going to bed, and now he was trying to change the subject: "What is Mr. Oda doing recently?"

"Nothing, just some odd jobs like before." Oda Sakunosuke paused, picked out some things he thought the other party would be interested in, and said, "Change the teacher's plate of cat snacks every day, do a thorough cleaning of the office once a week, and water the meat every ten days."

He talked about trivial matters in a very normal tone, such as the calico cat that hadn't shown up for several days and ate a whole plate of dried fish the next time it showed up; another example was that the winter beauty had grown a lot bigger, and the time for watering had been extended as the weather got colder, etc.

Kono Seira listened very carefully, asking a few questions from time to time. In the past, he was the one who talked most, and Oda Sakunosuke listened quietly, but now the roles were reversed, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.

After talking about himself, Oda Sakunosuke looked at him and asked, "What about you?"

Kono Seiryoshi couldn't say that he drew joker cards in his consciousness every day. His daily routine remained basically unchanged and there was nothing to say. Just as he was about to laugh it off, there was a knock on the door.

The chat was interrupted by the nurse who came to change the dressing. She was a little surprised to see other people in the ward, nodded politely and said no more. She recorded the heart rate and blood pressure, and skillfully changed the new medicine.

The cuffs were gently rolled up, revealing the indwelling needle on the forearm and the purple bruises that were particularly obvious on the cold white skin.

Oda Sakunosuke's gaze froze almost instantly.

The nurse put away the sundries, gave a few instructions in a soft voice, and gave the space to the two of them.

Kono Seira had been listening to her attentively. He always felt guilty when facing medical staff. Before he could breathe a sigh of relief after seeing the nurse leave, he suddenly heard the hoarse voice of Oda Sakunosuke.

"Is this how you spend your days?"

Kono Seira was stunned, and paused for a few seconds before he realized that this sentence corresponded to the sentence Oda Sakunosuke asked him just now, "What about you?"

He didn't know how to answer for a moment.

Fortunately, Oda Sakunosuke was the first to look away. He also realized that this question was too unreasonable, like reopening a healed wound, and it should not be said at this time and place.

"…Sorry, just pretend you didn't hear that."

The emotions that had been pent up for months were like an unlimitedly inflated balloon, which was mercilessly punctured by a needle tip as thin as an ox hair. The moment it exploded, my mind went blank, and when I came to my senses, there was only a mess on the ground.

This kind of inappropriate side cannot and should not be exposed in front of patients.

"Mr. Oda," Kono Seira's smiling voice brought him back to his senses, "I haven't eaten curry for a long time. Is the store we went to before still open?"

Oda Sakunosuke was stunned for a moment, and replied, "I haven't been there for a long time, so I don't know the situation there."

"But if you want to eat curry, I have another restaurant to recommend."

The red-haired young man seemed to want to continue talking, but Kono Seira could no longer listen. He stared at Oda Sakunosuke's face in surprise, and his focused gaze made the latter unconsciously tense up: "Is there a problem...?"

"...No, nothing, I just saw a very rare scene."

Kono Seiryoshi narrowed his eyes, and a lively smile appeared on his face, which was pale due to the injury.

This time I was not mistaken, Oda Sakunosuke did laugh just now.

There was a slight curve at the corner of his lips, so tiny that it could be ignored, but he was definitely smiling.

"Did you think of anything happy?"

"I was thinking about Mr. Oda."

"..." It was rare for Oda Sakunosuke to not know what to say. He even seriously reflected on what he had done wrong just now.

After a while, he sighed and said, "I'll see if I can bring you some curry next time."

--

Kono Seiryoshi really stayed in the hospital room for a long time and felt that his limbs were almost degenerated.

He didn't like going out, but he didn't feel bored staying indoors. He didn't feel anything when he watched the time passing by on the clock and the calendar ticking, until one day he suddenly had the urge to learn from Morioka and open the switch on the wall. The view he saw startled him.

He remembered that it was still early autumn when he went out that morning, and now, all the leaves of the ginkgo tree at the foot of the building had fallen.

I completely missed the chance to enjoy the autumn scenery of Yokohama... I don't know if I will have the chance to do so next time.

With such a melancholy mood - or perhaps simply because he slept too much during the day - he tossed and turned and couldn't sleep that night.

In short, Seiryoshi Kono suffered from insomnia.

The light ball tried to sing a lullaby for him but he refused, arguing that the electronic sound was not only not gentle but also weird. The sad system said on the spot that it would shut itself off for an hour to learn human onomatopoeia.

During this boring hour, Gongye Shengliang quietly turned on the bedside lamp and wanted to continue flipping through the book to name his supernatural powers. The doctor had told him to have a good rest at night, so he was particularly guilty while hiding under the quilt and flipping through the book. He would vigilantly look around for any movement.

Therefore, the sound of the door handle being gently turned was accurately captured by the ear.

Gongye Shengliang immediately turned off the lights and closed his eyes.

There is no need to worry about danger. This is the most heavily guarded headquarters of the Port Mafia. If the enemy can break in here with ease, Sen Ougai will definitely not be able to sleep on the first night.

Even if he is really an enemy, he can't do anything anyway, so he might as well surrender.

After the man opened the door and came in, he didn't move again. Even his breathing was suppressed. Only his gaze was as solid as if it had substance, as if his purpose was to blend into the air in the room that smelled of disinfectant, and just looking at him was enough.

Kono Seiryo, who was pretending to be asleep, felt very pressured by such a gaze and finally couldn't help but open his eyes.

Then, I met a pair of blue eyes that widened slightly due to being caught off guard.

...Chuuya? Why at this time?

Before Kono Seiryoshi could say anything, Nakahara Chuuya stopped him in a panic: "Wait!"

He gritted his teeth and whispered, "Don't let anyone find out. I came in secretly."

As they got closer, with the help of the dim light coming from the corridor, Gongye Shengliang could see that the boy was dressed unusually.

Nakahara Chuuya was not wearing his usual suit vest or his signature hat, but instead was wearing a nondescript black hoodie. His conspicuous ochre hair was firmly covered by a baseball cap, revealing only his slightly messy forehead.

The boy was full of emotion, but his alert expression revealed a hint of seriousness.

"What...you haven't slept yet." This serious expression immediately turned into a helpless smile after seeing him.

The two looked at each other and couldn't help laughing.

No one expected the reunion to be so sudden, but it was not a bad thing.

I don’t know if it’s because of the poor lighting, but when Gongye Shengliang looked into Chuuya’s blue eyes after his smile faded, he suddenly felt that there was something else in the clear blue sea. The bright look remained unchanged, but it contained a sharp edge.

At the same time, he also noticed the fatigue that could not be concealed between the brows of the ochre-haired boy.

Chuuya seems to be very busy. Thinking of what the nurse said during the chat, Kimino Seiryoshi couldn't help but feel a little confused... It seems that he really missed a lot during this period of time.

In the silence, it was Nakahara Chuuya who spoke first: "I just came back from Europe." He took off the hood of his hoodie, rubbed his eye sockets, and said softly but firmly, "I don't trust others to handle the contents of the chip you gave me."

"Don't worry, I won't let any of those who hurt you go."

Kono Seiryoshi didn't know whether he should say "You don't have to go to that extent for me" or "Thank you". He opened his mouth, but could only call out the other person's name, "...Chuuya."

"Um?"

"I'm so lucky that you're the first person I meet after coming here." Maybe his few good fortunes in this world were spent on this.

Nakahara Chuuya's expression froze for a long time, and then a low laugh escaped from his throat, "It's already this time, you should be a little greedy."

He raised his eyebrows, which were hidden by the brim of his hat, and his blue eyes sparkled. "There will definitely be more luck in the future."

The sight was so real that just looking at each other made his eyes burn. Gongye Shengliang avoided his gaze and nodded gently.

"…Just glad to see that you're okay. It's getting late, and I should go back."

Nakahara Chuuya stood up and put the hood of his hoodie back on. He came to the ward without the leader's permission, and took advantage of the guard change to sneak in. This trick can probably only be used once.

"Go to bed early—"

"Knock, knock."

The voices saying goodbye and the knock on the door rang out almost simultaneously.

Before they could sort out their emotions, Kono Seiryoshi and Nakahara Chuuya saw the same look of surprise on each other's faces.

The voice outside the door didn't know what was going on inside, so it continued slowly: "Sorry to bother you, Gongye-kun. My name is Guangjin, and the leader sent me to report something to you."

Kono Seiryoshi was stunned. What was he reporting to him so late at night? Wait, was he telling him that an unknown person had broken into the ward?!

On the other side, the ochre-haired unknown man froze in place.

Kono Seiryoshi didn't have time to think. He had only one thought in his mind - he must not let people outside find out that Naka is also in this ward.

"Wait, wait a minute, let me change my clothes first!" He raised his voice and spoke to the outside, almost stuttering.

Kono Seiryoshi's anxious gaze quickly scanned the room, and his eyes suddenly lit up, "Closet!" He gestured silently to Chuuya.

Nakahara Chuuya was confused. It was the first time for a gravity user to encounter such a weird situation of being rushed to the shelves. He felt vaguely that it would not be a big deal if he explained it to Guangjin Liulang, but time was running out, so he had to hide in the closet with a confused look on his face and follow Kono Seiryo's instructions.

Gongye Shengliang wiped the sweat from his forehead and was thankful that there was a closet in this ward, otherwise he would have to hide in the refrigerator.

He calmed himself down and said to the door, "Come in."

There was another knock on the door, and an elderly man in his fifties wearing a monocle walked into the room and nodded to him.

At this time, Kono Seiryoshi was no longer in a panic. He smiled politely at the other party and decided to take the initiative.

"I'm sorry, could you tell Mr. Mori for me?" The gray-haired boy smiled faintly, with a helpless calmness in his eyes, "I'm not in a good condition to work."

"What the leader asked me to hand over to you is not a job," Guangjin Liulang shook his head and took out a small wooden box from behind him. "This is the seal for the underground casino business. Please take a look."