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Last Embryo Volume 4 Chapter 3 Part 5

Translator: DarkHeartedAlchemist

「Oh really? You don’t say.」

That is what he told her the last time they managed to exchange a few quick words. Having her curiosity picked by that last tidbit, Kasukabe You tilted her neck to the side even more.

At the very least, she knew that he was not lying about that, because for as long as they have been friends and comrades from the same Community, Izayoi has always been someone obsessed with fighting against strong opponents and evil organizations of every sort, and would never joke about it, even if it could weasel him out of explaining himself.

What You did not know but she wanted to know was that at the current moment, Izayoi was in the Outer World, flying to Brazil at Homura’s request.

To be more exact, Homura asked him to go to the Amazonian Rainforest to investigate its relationship to the 『Bull of Heaven』 and the pseudo-smallpox virus that it released around the world by using the Star Particle Bodies. This call must be him making the status report about the things he managed to discover so far.

As for why he was borrowing the power of Queen Halloween. . . well, it could not be helped. After all, she is a Celestial Spirit responsible for keeping watch over the boundaries of the stars, and without her help, it would be impossible for the radio waves from Outer World to reach Little Garden.

Ayato approached Homura and handed the phone off to him, and as soon as she did that, it automatically began to connect to Izayoi in the Outer World. It startled her a little, but she quickly managed to collect herself and rushed to the table where Asterios was, snatching the pen and paper away from him, preparing to note down anything from their conversation.

After a few seconds of nervous waiting, the call finally connected and the voice on the other side called out:

『Yo, Homura! You hearing me all right?』

「Yeah, loud and clear. So, did you manage to learn anything useful in the Amazon?」

『Learned anything useful? More like I scored a bullseye right from the get-go. I have no doubts that 『The Bull of Heaven』 must have been created in a facility hidden deep in the rainforest, and I even have evidence to prove it.』

If it really was just like Izayoi said just now, then those would definitely be breathtaking results beyond his wildest expectations. He kinda expected Izayoi to get results when he asked him to do it, but he never expected he would get it done so fast.

And if he even managed to obtain a physical proof, then even if Everything Company will not launch its independent investigation, it should be enough to send the Star Particle Bodies research team to the United Nations.

However, it was too early to be jumping for joy just now, because even though Izayoi was talking with his usual carefree voice, Homura could sense there was something wrong with it, almost as if he was trying to carefully choose the words he was saying.

While being mindful of that subtle sign he was giving him, he asked about his situation while being mindful of his own voice and words.

「As expected of Iza-nii and Miss Prith. I knew that asking you to handle that would be the right choice. So? Have you already send the report on what you managed to discover to the higher-ups at Everything Company?」

『Unfortunately, I regret to inform you that we have yet to do that, because we are not in a state where sending any kind of meaningful report back to Everything Company would be possible. Or rather, the evidence we managed to secure is not in any shape to start talking.』

No way for them to send the report? And the evidence is not in any shape. . . to start talking? While he continued to listen to Izayoi’s report, Homura felt his heart tightening up in his chest as he mentally prepared himself for the worst.

「Iza-nii. . . what the hell did you manage to find there?」

『The facility we were looking for has been razed to the ground, but we managed to secure a lone test subject that has been subjected to experiments with Star Particle Bodies.』

Just like Homura was afraid, the worst possible scenario has come true, just like Queen Halloween and Mr. Edward expected. Whoever was behind the incident with 『The Bull of Heaven』, they must have been so desperate to achieve results with their experiments that they begun to conduct them on human subjects without checking if it was safe to do so first, which was already inhumane enough.

But even so, even if Homura felt so sickened that it made him want to vomit, he had to ask that one question. He simply had to make sure that this was really what was going on there. Because that test subject was definitely at the core of the experiment that led to the creation of 『The Bull of Heaven』 and its subsequent rampage throughout the world.

He took a few deep breaths to stabilize his breathing and to not allow any of his doubts to show on his face, and then he asked the question that he absolutely needed to ask in a quiet whisper.

「Iza-nii. . . Is. . . is the test subject you were talking about. . . is it a human being?」

『. . . Yes. Yes she is. It is a Black Albino girl.』

Homura felt his heart sinking even more. Black Albinos already had it rough due to the rare condition where their skin, which was supposed to be dark in color just like with all the other people of African descent has been bleached white, which resulted with them being discriminated and persecuted by their own people, and in some cases even killed because of an outrageous belief that the body parts of a Black Albino were said to bring good fortune and prosperity to those who would come to possess them, which in the current day and age was definitely crossing the line of how superstitious people could be.

「Is she alive? And unharmed?」

『Alive, yes. As for well. . . it could have been better, but we are lucky that it is not worse. It has been four days since Prith and I fought off the pursuers who tried to take her away from us, but ever since then she has been balancing on the brink of consciousness, and her body is burning up with a fever that refuses to go down no matter what we try to throw at it. Honestly, we have no idea how we could help her, and she is getting weaker with each passing day.』

So that is why Izayoi decided to contact him. He himself does not know nearly enough about those who have been exposed to Star Particle Bodies to properly judge how to help them whenever something like what he described would happen to them, so he concluded that Homura, who knew practically everything there was to know about them would be his best option, and rightfully so.

Hurriedly taking his personal notebook from one of the many inside pockets of the jacket he was wearing, he went to the side so he could instruct Izayoi on what to do without being bothered by others. . .but then he stopped right in his tracks, because he remembered something.

Before he left for Brazil, Homura made sure to tell him that they will be heading to Little Garden for the first round of the 2^nd War for the Sun’s Authority. But even though Izayoi said that they have secured that Black Albino girl over four days ago, he only contacted Homura just now. Did he tried contacting someone other than Homura during that time?

No, that cannot be the case. Izayoi might be a textbook definition of a free spirit and a hedonistic, genuine asshole, but he was definitely not someone who could not properly judge what he could, and what he could not do.

So then, why would he delay making contact with Homura for over four days? The possible answer was so outrageous that it made him go pale in the face when he asked with his hands shaking from nervousness:

「Iza-nii. . . I hope I am wrong about this, but do not tell me. . . have you been summoned to Little Garden without informing me about it?!」

『Oh come on, now you are just being unreasonable, and you know it as well as I do. . . is what I would love to say, but this time I had literally no saying in the matter! So to answer that stupid question of yours: yes, I have been summoned back to Little Garden, but before that I had a little run-in with people related to the experiments with the Star Particle Bodies. One of them is going to serve as our evidence, but as I mentioned before she is practically unconscious and fighting with an extremely high fewer, so she won’t be able to tell us anything in that state.』