Chapter 24: I Must Be Approaching This the Wrong Way

Yuki spent only one day in the hospital before being discharged the next morning.

His wounds had already healed.

Yesterday, after waking up, he tried resetting his bond points and allocated the pitiful single point under “Defense” to his life recovery speed. Though doubtful—since he couldn’t find his own health bar anywhere—he followed the doctor’s orders and rested in bed for six hours. Afterwards, he was able to get up.

Without a control group, Yuki wasn’t sure how much the so-called enhancement of “life recovery speed” actually contributed to his wound’s healing. Yet when the doctor came for a follow-up the next day, he noticed nothing suspicious about Yuki’s recovery speed; content that his patient had obeyed instructions and rested well, the improvement was obvious compared to yesterday, and the doctor was simply delighted.

Thus, Yuki was able to free up a hospital bed on the second day.

“Yuki?”

When he pushed open the door to Aegis, the three people inside looked up at him in astonishment.

“You’re out of the hospital?”

“Yes, I’m discharged…” Yuki nodded halfway, catching the mistrust in Senior Ayu’s gaze, and quickly added, “The doctor said I could leave.”

He wasn’t sneaking out; he’d gone home to drop off his things and then rushed straight to work. Yuki was almost moved by his own dedication.

President Sasaki was previously worried about Yuki’s hospital insurance, but upon hearing that Officer Sakura had already handled everything, he sighed in relief. Injuries from hazardous professions aren’t uncommon, but being sent to the hospital every few days by ambulance is unusual, which could trigger insurance fraud investigations. If the Department of Foreign Affairs Unknown intervened, it would be much easier; hardly anyone would dare commit insurance fraud under the police’s nose.

Mirika also ran out from her workstation, placing both hands on Yuki’s shoulders. Her beautiful eyes shimmered with data streams as she scanned him from head to toe.

Yuki stood obediently, letting the robot senior scan him thoroughly, so she could be reassured.

After a moment, Mirika let go and exchanged a glance with the president, who nodded slightly.

Seeing this, Yuki knew he had successfully rejoined the team and breathed a sigh of relief.

That evening, it was supposed to be Yuki’s turn on duty, but all three seniors kicked him out, insisting he go home and rest. One used the president’s authority; two used their seniority. Against six hands, Yuki had no chance and had to slink home. As usual, he stopped by the convenience store after work to buy supper.

Carrying his meal, he unlocked his door and stepped inside.

“…”

He instantly retreated, stepping back outside and slamming the door shut.

Yuki stood frozen at the entrance, his mind momentarily blank, unable to process what he had just seen.

Surely, I must have opened the door the wrong way!

Just then, a bright spark flickered through the crack, and the door creaked open, slowly and deliberately… Behind it stood the black-and-white demon, smiling and gesturing for Yuki to enter.

Wait a minute—this is my house, isn’t it?

Yuki glanced sideways to confirm he hadn’t entered the wrong apartment. Then, mentally calculated his chances of escaping if he turned and fled.

He resigned himself, stepped inside, and silently mourned the lock’s tongue, which had been caught in the crossfire.

“Mr. Kiri… Please don’t scare me like that. I thought I’d walked into the wrong place.”

He handed a box of milk pudding from his shopping bag to Tregia, sighing as he entered the living room and set down his bag. Turning around, he found a face inches away, making him swallow the rest of his words.

This is what it means to have your heart stop from fright.

Yesterday, Yuki had scared several officers from the Department of Foreign Affairs Unknown enough to stop their hearts. Now, karma had come swiftly—his turn had arrived.

As for those online who gleefully called themselves the “head-pressing squad,” it’s easy to talk big from behind a screen. If they tried it in person, they’d probably be gone before they could move.

Tregia chuckled, “You’re afraid of me, Yuki Kudo. Why?”

“…”

Yuki stood stiffly, forcing a smile. Could he stop pretending not to understand? Was teasing him really that amusing?

“There aren’t many people who aren’t afraid of you… Clearly, I’m not one of them,” Yuki said, doing his best to step back casually.

Tregia tilted his head, then brought the hand he’d hidden behind his back forward, handing Yuki a sheet of paper with binder holes. “It’s best to burn this quickly. These writings have ‘energy’—to certain people, they’re like a beacon.”

Yuki took the oft-retrieved paper with a complicated expression, unsure what to say. Still, he nodded. The regularity of the script made it easy to memorize; he already knew it by heart.

“May I… ask a question?” Yuki cautiously asked the dark Ultra who was peeling the pudding’s foil lid. At that moment, Tregia lifted the lid.

Oh, perfect shape, not a single bit stuck to the cover. Tregia was in a good mood, and the faint impatience in his gaze faded as he signaled Yuki to proceed.

Yuki unfolded the paper, pointing to the Ultraman-like signature in the lower left corner and showed it to Tregia. “Mr. Kiri, do you recognize this symbol?”

Tregia didn’t follow Yuki’s gesture but instead focused on scooping the pudding meticulously with a small plastic spoon, as if carving it into some shape. Clearly, he’d already seen the paper and knew what Yuki was referring to.

“Why don’t you guess?”

“…”

Yuki was speechless. If he knew, why would he ask?

Seeing Yuki’s helpless look, Tregia thought for a moment, then suddenly realized, speaking to himself, “What, you want some sort of prize? Let me think…”

No, not at all—Yuki just wanted to know whose Ultra signature it was, not play a guessing game.

He was on the verge of tears.

But Tregia seemed more amused, and Yuki’s tongue-tied expression only fueled his mischievousness. “If you guess correctly on the first try, I’ll give you a reward. How about that?”

Not about that. Not at all. The “reward” you give is probably about as safe as a live grenade with the pin pulled—who would want it?

Yuki grumbled inwardly, but could only yield to the dark Ultra’s tyranny, not daring to protest. Under that intense gaze, he could only stiffly nod.

Tregia gestured for him to guess.

Yuki frowned. He already had a guess, an answer—but was it wise to reveal it?

On second thought, if his guess were correct, it would be absurd for Tregia not to recognize this signature.

But he really didn’t want Tregia’s so-called “reward.” Should he deliberately guess wrong to avoid it?

Just as Yuki was about to blurt out a random answer, Tregia spoke again. “Do you know why so many aliens make a living on Earth? Is it because it’s so livable?”

He didn’t wait for Yuki’s reply, shaking his head and answering himself. “Not at all. Their business is here.”

“Earth is currently the largest intelligence hub in the universe.”

“A huge number of information brokers, as well as intermediaries from various intergalactic forces, trade intelligence on this planet’s ‘black market.’ For the past twenty years, it’s been like this. Now, they seem intent on expanding their business—besides trading intelligence, they want to branch out.”

Seeing Yuki’s confusion, unsure how this related to the guessing game, Tregia decided to explain.

“If you ever need information, there’s no need to search all over; right here on Earth, you can buy intelligence from across the universe.”

“Including intel on the mastermind behind King Grass’s deployment.”

Yuki’s expression changed instantly.

Tregia grinned. “They only deal with insiders. So, my reward to you is an invitation to the ‘black market’—your entry pass. Well, Yuki, are you tempted? It’s a pretty good reward, right? Do you still want to guess wrong and refuse my goodwill?”