1-04: Rejection (1/4)
Because of how shocking the revelations were, the two adults had to put a stop to the interrogation temporarily.
In exchange, the boy, who was named Shinichi Nakamura, had to undergo a body search and a physical examination.
They needed to know various things such as if he was injured or if he was carrying any otherworld germs with him.
Of course, another reason was to confirm that he was truly Nakamura Shinichi.
After all, as far as the people who caught him were concerned, 8 years had passed, and yet for some reason, he came back as if only 2 years had.
Perhaps if he were older, they could argue he was merely lying about his age, but the difference between a 13 year old that has become 15 years old and one that has become 21 years old was not something that could be lied about.
No matter how you looked at him, he was undoubtedly a 15 year-old boy.
His face hadn’t changed much from his old photos, the only notable thing being his longer hair.
In response to that, the boy dropped his shoulders and said, ‘I grew taller, but my face and figure hasn’t.’
It was a trivial issue considering the bombs that would be consecutively dropped on him ‘from here on’.
“Ok, you can get up now.
Put on your clothes and wait just a little bit more until we finish your examination.”
Shinichi followed the instructions of the female doctor and got down the pedestal he’d been lying on.
The device that resembled a CT Scan examined his body throughly and displayed it on the monitor for the doctor to see.
Shinichi wasn’t interested in the results, but he was curious about the female doctor’s hair, which was a natural lush green.
Yes, although there was no basis behind it, he could tell in one glance that this was her natural hair color. That was due to him having gotten used to it over in Falandia.
That being said, there was still an indescribable sense of oddity in seeing a greenhead among a group of black-haired Japanese.
—Who would’ve thought this world would actually end up interacting with another world.
He had only been given a simple explanation for now, but he was informed at least that much.
Unfortunately, because of all the shocking revelations prior that, he was unable to process it completely.
“Kyuu, kyuu…” Cooed a living creature.
“Don’t worry, it’s just a device to examine the body,” Shinichi replied.
“…”
Although Shinichi didn’t show his bewilderment on his face, the small living creature still sensed it and ran up to him.
The small living creature had beautiful golden fur, three tails, and a pair of ears that resembled those of the fox.
When ‘she’ reached Shinichi, she jumped up onto his shoulders.
Unfortunately, Shinichi was so bewildered that he misunderstood why the small living creature was cooing at him.
That caused her to be speechless.
“……That amaryllis fox sure has warmed up to you.”
When the green-haired female doctor and the staff of Japanese saw the small living creature cozying up to Shinichi, a faint look of shock mixed with fear flashed on their faces as they muttered, ‘impossible’.
“Kyuu!”
“Eek!”
“Stop that. Behave.”
She did not seem to appreciate their gazes, however, for she threatened the crowd of onlookers with a cry, leaving them visibly frightened.
Shinichi remonstrated her for that, but at the same time, patted her on the head to thank her.
After all, it was only because of her that things could go so smoothly despite his inability to speak well.
Usually she was kept under his clothes in case something went wrong, but when she was starting to worry over her master’s stupor, she jumped out.
Her appearance caused the people within the interrogation room to fall into panic, and most probably, even those outside.
The panic did not last, however, for very soon it became evident that she listened to Shinichi and bore no hostility toward them.
The technical name for her kind in Falandia was Tenkorius, but conveniently, there was a similar living creature in the otherworld Earth had made contact with, so they mistook her for that.
That made things much easier for Shinichi, as her appearance made his captors presume where he came from.
“Doc, are you sure he’s uninjured?”
But because of that a certain female officer was worried stiff.
“Yes, the very picture of health, in fact. Though I suppose he could do with more meat.
But then again, he was in the ‘Nature Reserve’, so I suppose it can’t be helped.”
Nature Reserve. From the bits and pieces Shinichi’s picked up, it seems that’s what they refer to the dangerous part of the otherworld Earth was acquainted with.
A vast unexplored land teeming with nature, dangerous living creatures, and a terrain unsuited for humans.
The amaryllis were one of the top creatures in that region, be it in intelligence or power.
Because of that they naturally came to this conclusion.
“Looks like that amaryllis protected the boy.”
So even though Shinichi did not know of the otherworld they knew – a world called Garesto – they did not think it strange that he was able to survive despite his weak status.
Of course, part of the reason Shinichi went with the flow was because he didn’t really understand the details, so he couldn’t exactly try to come up with his own story.
“Otherwise, it would have been impossible for an All D to survive in the Nature Reserve.” The female doctor smiled smugly with a snobbish hint.
“A-An All D!?” The female officer was shocked upon getting word of Shinichi being All D. Shinichi was shocked too, but his reason differed.
“Is it that surprising?
See for yourself. That’s his status after examination.
Strength: D
Stamina: D
Mind: D
Resistance: D
Agility: D
All D. And everything is even maxed out,” the female doctor said.
“I-It’s true… I can’t believe it…” Sasamori said.
“Is that all?” Shinichi muttered.
Unlike the other two, Shinichi said something completely different than them and promptly stiffened up.
The female officer was shocked at how weak his status was, but the boy was shocked at the absence of the most important attribute of them all: Skill.
Fortunately, he’d muttered that last sentence quietly, so no one could tell his shock except for her who was sitting over his shoulders.
“What a disaster. For you too.
Even if a kid of this rank came back, he’ll be nothing more than a hindrance,” the female doctor said.
“…You needn’t be concerned. I’m an Earthling, so I don’t mind,” Sasamori said.
When the female doctor voiced out her honest thoughts, Sasamori’s tone dropped like a lead balloon.
It seems she wasn’t the sort who was good at hiding her emotions. That calm response was already the best she could do.
“…Umm, is the physical examination over?
Have you confirmed that I’m Shinichi Nakamura yet?”
When Shinichi sensed the disturbance in the air, he brought the topic back to its original course.
He was happy that she was angry for him, but at the same time, he also didn’t understand.
The only relationship he had with this doctor was that of duty.
“Y-Yes…. Judging from your DNA, the marks left by by medical treatment on your teeth, your facial features, and the rest, there’s a 99.999999% chance that you’re the Nakamura Shinichi who went missing 8 years ago.”
She was somewhat taken aback upon seeing how uninterested Shinichi was despite her talking about his status, but she still confidently announced the result of his physical examination.
Shinichi ignored the female officer who heaved a sigh of relief as he found himself both happy that he was scientifically certified as the genuine Nakamura Shinichi, and indescribably anxious that this was in fact his original world.