[ENG] Killed Again, Mr. Detective Volume 3 part 8

Case 3: 【Spooky Gear】

I am not a praiseworthy human being.

Naturally, I am not an exemplary detective either.

I have at least that much self-awareness.

I don't hold up my police badge with heroic goals like wanting to eliminate crime from society or save all the weak.

In general, the world is at peace.

O Earth, please keep spinning with a moderate amount of good and bad things loaded on you.

But, strictly moderate.

That's the key.

Going too far is not good.

Not good at all.

The Seven Old Men.

When folks like that start running rampant, circumstances change in various ways.

No one will be able to say "moderate" or "so-so" anymore.

Disturbances, violent revolution, overturning the state—eventually, the final war?

It sounds like sci-fi stuff that was popular in my old man's generation, but I hear they are existences capable of doing that, capable of causing that.

In short, they are the kind of bunch who would stir up the world that was maintaining an exquisite balance and ruin it.

So, even a not-so-exemplary detective can't exactly say "let them do what they want."

I have to get off my ass and try a little.

That said—.

"Please listen, Detective Manzorogi. Ensure you keep a certain distance from the cell at all times."

The guard explained the points of caution with a tense expression.

"Since you are on the SOM Countermeasure Team, I don't think I need to worry, but……"

"Stop it. That's just a title forced onto me the other day. But well, if I can see the rumored noble face, I'll follow the precautions."

That said. I never thought I would be assigned to the specialized countermeasure team for the Seven Old Men (SOM).

I was expecting some hero somewhere to wipe out these insane sinners for us.

But after all, I am a public servant.

If told to do it, I have no choice but to do it.

However, can this be called a promotion?

Hmm. Feels different somehow.

Well, enough complaining.

Right now, I just do what needs to be done.

"This way."

I walked down the corridor, guided by the guard.

On the way, we passed several young people. There were men, and women.

"Hey, the ones we've been passing since a while ago, those are guards……"

I asked the guard walking in front.

"They aren't, are they? Their clothes are different. Don't tell me they're prisoners? Is it okay to let them walk around freely?"

"No. They aren't prisoners. But as you say, they are different from us guards too."

"Then what are they?"

"Auto-workers."

"Au…… oh."

I didn't really get it.

It seemed like a hassle, so I didn't question further and simply followed behind.

Before long, an exceptionally heavy door appeared in front of us.

It was firmly shut.

"Are you really serious about this? Meeting her."

"It's not about being serious or joking. It's work."

"I see……"

"Besides, I don't get to be choosy. As it stands, she's the only one of the Seven Old Men who hasn't broken out of prison yet, staying right here."

"That…… is true. Open it."

When the guard sent a signal to the control room via radio, the heavy door slid open to the left and right, revealing a passage leading deeper.

"Please proceed alone from here. She is beyond this point."

"Person…… She…… huh."

The phrasing bothered me, so when I looked that way, the guard awkwardly averted his eyes from me.

"Ah, no……"

He's still young. Judging by those eyes, his passion for the job doesn't seem to have extinguished.

"Listen, please ensure you do not have any electronic devices on you."

"I heard that earlier. That's why I left my smartphone and watch. I'm going."

As I started walking down the passage waving my empty hands, the young guard called out from behind again.

"Also, Manzorogi-san, one last thing."

"There's more?"

"Please be careful not to be swayed by her honesty."

"……What's that supposed to mean?"

Being honest is a good thing, isn't it?

If I ever have a child in the future, I'd want them to grow up like that.

This place I've come to on orders from above is Kutcharo Special Prison.

Its history as a prison isn't that long. But precisely because of that, it's an advanced facility equipped with the latest equipment.

That brand-new corridor continued for a good fifty meters.

And another door.

The door opened upon my arrival as if it had been waiting. They must have confirmed me via the surveillance camera on the ceiling.

The special cell spread out beyond that.

A pure white space with nothing superfluous.

Just one glass case-like room in the middle.

It looked like a sterile room—no, like an art museum.

"A cell covered in 360-degree reinforced glass, huh. An old-school iron grid would have been fine, but they sure are building up the atmosphere."

I shoved my hands in my pockets and walked around the transparent cell.

In the center of the cell, a gray ball was rolling.

Its diameter was less than a meter.

It looked the same from any angle. Not interesting.

"……What is this? Is it on display?"

For a moment, I really thought this place was an art museum.

Not that it could be.

"No…… wait, in the first place, where is she?"

I had finished walking completely around the cell.

Yet, the figure of the prisoner in question was nowhere to be found.

"Oi, nobody's here."

This wasn't a monologue. It was directed at the guards who were definitely listening in via camera.

"Are you late bringing the prisoner from another cell?"

Then, after a pause of a few seconds, a guard's voice through a speaker echoed in the room. It was a different guard from the young one earlier.

"No, Manzorogi-san. That is her cell. She is there."

"Hah? Are you kidding me?"

Zen riddles in a futuristic place like this?

"We are not kidding. Did you not read the documents?"

"I was made to read them as soon as I arrived. I checked the appearance in the photos too."

"That was likely the appearance in Active Mode."

Active?

"She is right in front of your eyes now."

"In front of my eyes…… Oi, you don't mean that……?"

The moment I guessed everything, a voice came from the sphere inside the cell.

"You seem nervous. Detective Manzorogi Kaoruta."

The timing was as if it had patiently waited for my understanding.

It was a low, intelligent voice, but also an inorganic voice, as if the vocal cords themselves had been roughly sanded down.

"Apologies. It has been a long time since a human visited, so I inadvertently welcomed you while still in Sleep Mode."

In the next instant, that which was merely a gray sphere moved its parts in every direction.

The interlocking parts assembled into a different shape like a puzzle.

"Thank you for waiting."

In just five or six seconds, the sphere in front of me transformed into a humanoid robot likely nearly three meters tall.

The boy inside me involuntarily muttered:

"A transforming robot, huh……"

Even if I say humanoid, it just means it has limbs and stands upright on two legs—in reality, it looks nothing like a human.

A body made entirely of rugged metallic gray material.

A green mono-eye lit up in the center of its face.

The impression from the exposed joints was exactly that of heavy machinery or a weapon.

Good grief, trying to intimidate me.

But this isn't the time to be overwhelmed.

I dared to take a step forward and looked at the place that seemed to be its eye.

"So this is the first time we meet, Android."

"Nice to meet you. But Manzorogi Kaoruta, I would like you to call me Felisette."

"You have a fixation on names? Like a human?"

"That is correct. I have a fixation."

Ignoring my provocation, the thing said so.

Felisette.

Alias: The Dream-Seeing Machine (Android).

Sentence: 638 years.

A great sinner counted as one of the Seven Old Men.

A great sinner…… but as you can see, Felisette is a robot.

Not a human.

A 100% pure machine.

And—.

"When no one is around, I am in Sleep Mode like before. See, turning over in sleep is easier as a sphere, isn't it?"

It possesses intelligence, a personality.

A personality-equipped independent robot created by a single scientist at the end of mad obsession and philosophy—that is Felisette's true identity.

Felisette is a machine. Nevertheless, it was judged under human law and is imprisoned here.

And counted as one of the Seven Old Men.

It's a long story.

From my perspective, it's an eerie existence beyond my understanding.

Felisette stared down at me as I harbored such thoughts.

"That was a joke just now, but were you unable to laugh?"

Every time it spoke, Felisette's eye flashed.

"In other words, strictly speaking, I have no need for sleep or rebooting, but I dared to adopt the biological habit of turning over in sleep……"

"A machine's jokes are too stiff to listen to. Oil yourself up a bit more."

When I retorted like that for the time being, a strange pikon-pikon sound immediately rang from Felisette's body.

"Interesting. That was laughable. It is educational."

Eh, was that a laugh just now?

"Manzorogi Kaoruta, despite being nervous, you are quite something."

"……You said that before too. Me, nervous? How can you look at me and……"

"Confirmed trace amount of perspiration on body surface. Heart rate also rising."

Without waiting for my words, the thing blandly read out information about me.

Correct.

It saw through me in an instant.

"Apologies. I scanned your body."

Can it do even that?

This rugged and strange mechanical body seems to be equipped with all sorts of functions.

"Go get a job at a health clinic after you get out safely."

Pikon-pikon-pikon

"Shut up with the pico-pico! Idle talk is over! I didn't come here today to be your chat buddy. I came to announce the time of your execution. So—"

"Body temperature rose again. Manzorogi Kaoruta, lying is not good. Getting information on the Seven Old Men from me. That is your objective, isn't it?"

"……Tch. Yeah, that's right."

I took both hands out of my pockets and spread them.

"In the end, since you're scanning this and that, there's no point in playing mind games, so I'll say it honestly: I thought you might know something. Or do you feel guilty selling out your comrades' information, even as a machine with no heartbeat or body temperature?"

Information on the escaped Seven Old Men. That is indeed information my team—no, the Japanese government—wants desperately.

They were initially imprisoned in robust prisons around the world, but in the last few years, they broke out one after another as if they had arranged it.

It is said that the decisive factor was ultimately the death of the Immortal Detective, Oitsuki Tatsuya, the central figure who cornered and captured the Seven Old Men.

Naturally, the governments and judiciaries of the countries that allowed the escapes were held responsible and are still receiving bashing from all over the world.

A complete loss of face.

However, Felisette, imprisoned here in Kutcharo Prison, is the only one they haven't allowed to escape yet.

Thanks to that, Japan is currently strengthening its voice in the world regarding international crime and terror, and is starting to be seen as the flag-bearer for anti-SOM measures.

Since this Felisette is the only remaining 'reachable' Seven Old Men member who hasn't broken out yet, the police organization wants to obtain information from Felisette somehow.

Of course, many higher-ups showed disapproval of contact with a Special Class A criminal, but this time a special permit came down from above, realizing the meeting.

It pays to have a former colleague who got promoted.

The Murderer, Kill Wonder.

The National-Class Military Force, Warlord.

The Anthropophage, Rancid.

The Empress, World's Lover.

The Celebrity, Millionaire Phantom Thief.

The Apostate Detective.

"Anyone is fine. I want information on these guys scattering and hiding in the world. I know, you can connect to any and all networks and steal information, right? Feels like a sci-fi trope from decades ago, but if you can really do that, there shouldn't be anything you don't know."

Enjoying the net world with five senses and accessing all information.

That is precisely Felisette's troublesome skill.

On top of that, its calculation ability is on par with a supercomputer. I'm bad at math, so I don't understand how amazing that is.

"I'd even welcome information on you yourself."

"And whisper the brought-back information into the master's ear? Like Hugin and Munin."

"I'm not knowledgeable about mythology. Just tell me quickly."

"You are human, yet you have no interest in the origins of your own world?"

"Myth is myth. Fairy tales and reality are unrelated. Listen, it's useless to lie. If necessary, I'll pull the circuit board out of your head and gather the information directly. Now, if you don't want me to do something reckless, tell me quickly……"

"Telling me not to lie, yet you lied again, Manzorogi Kaoruta. You just said you wouldn't play mind games; what a strange human."

Good grief, impossible to deal with.

Exactly. That was all a bluff just now.

If we could do that, someone would have done it already.

The fact that we haven't been able to extract information from Felisette yet, and that I'm coming all the way here to meet it, is because humans currently have no technology or method to analyze Felisette.

That implies the technology used in Felisette is that super-scientific.

And that's why there is no other way but to honestly face it and beg, "Please tell me."

"No one can steal information from me."

"……Quite the confidence."

"Also, let me teach you one other important thing."

"Ah?"

"I do not lie."

Felisette's words echoed in the area impressively.

"If being an honest person is your selling point, then I'd like you to spill it even more honestly."

"Being honest and acting according to human wishes are entirely different stories."

With a driving sound, Felisette extended a thick metal arm toward me.

"By the way, you said this earlier. 'Do you feel guilty selling out your comrades' information?' To reiterate a correction: we are not comrades. At least I have not acted together with anyone, nor have we communicated."

I watched the three-pronged fingers slowly open and close.

"We are not a team. Nor do I recall naming myself one of the Seven Old Men. You people are just arbitrarily calling us that and making a fuss."

"In other words, you mean you don't have information to sell."

"No. I have it."

"What the hell! Then speak!"

Certainly honest.

"Whether I speak or not is for me to decide."

"For someone thrown in a cell, you're pretty haughty. Do you want to talk slowly after experiencing some pain? Even if analysis is impossible, we might manage to destroy you, you know?"

"Violence and torture by police organizations are not good. It is no longer that kind of era, Manzorogi Kaoruta."

"You don't get to say that! How many riot police and Self-Defense Force members do you think were sacrificed to capture you!"

"At that time, I also received merciless attacks from humans. Are you saying I should have remained unresisting while guns were pointed at me and bullets were showered over my entire body? You humans say reckless things sometimes."

"You bastard……"

"Also, Manzorogi Kaoruta, you mentioned experiencing pain, but I do not have a sense of pain. Therefore, I will not experience pain. I am thinking I would like to taste pain if possible, however."

Really hard to deal with.

Words are getting through, but the heart isn't connecting. That kind of feeling.

"Talking nonsense."

"It is my true feeling."

This isn't getting anywhere.

I thought about the remaining time. The time allowed for the visit isn't very long now.

My watch was taken, so I don't know the exact time, which irritated me further.

"Do you intend not to hand over the information no matter what……"

"Unfortunately, I cannot hand it over now. However, you came all this way. If other information is acceptable, I can provide it."

"Other……?"

"Provided you grant one wish of mine, however."

"If you're asking to be let out of here, that's impossible."

"I won't say something that reckless. I won't ask you to offer your life either, so please be assured."

"Tch."

I don't like that it's at the opponent's pace, but if there's something to gain, it's worth negotiating.

"Fine. If it's within what I can do, I might consider it."

"You promised."

"So say it quickly. What information?"

"Regarding Oitsuki Tatsuya."

"Ah……? That, you……"

Suddenly the name of a person I know well popped out, and I was at a loss for words for a moment. In that interval, Felisette told me definitive information.

"Oitsuki Tatsuya is alive."

"What……? You…… You, that…… is true…… right?"

"I do not lie. It is the truth. He is alive."

Felisette said it blandly in a flat tone.

Alive.

Oitsuki Tatsuya.

Tatsuya-san.

"I…… I see. ……I see!"

I was on duty, but I couldn't help shouting.

What the hell. What the hell!

Making us worry!

The Immortal Detective. That title isn't just for show!