I'm really unnerved in Tokyo

Chapter 1012
"Why does this bullet carry karma..."

A warhead lingering in black flames was burning more and more intensely inside Kotomine Jiro's broken heart.

"So, that's the end of it?"

Under the fire of karma, he only felt that the power of ghosts and gods in his body, together with his life and soul, was passing away bit by bit.

"Whoa..."

At the same time, a yellowed piece of paper fell from the inside of the neckline with the wind...

"This is……"

Kotomine Jiro subconsciously raised his hand to catch the piece of paper.

"Did Muran... put it in at that time?"

Looking at this yellowed card, the moment he hugged Kasuga Kiran, the other's little hand quietly poking into his robe, flashed in his mind.

"……postcard?"

On the blood-stained paper, there is a temple with a white roof, red pillars and black walls, and the words "Kyoto Kurama-ji Postcard" are printed on the top.

"Send... to me?"

On the back of the postcard, next to the torn postage stamp, there is an impressive inscription "Jiro Kotomine, Department of Oncology, University of Tokyo Affiliated Hospital, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo."

"This handwriting is..."

Looking at the line of small, familiar characters under the address bar, Kotomine Jiro felt his heartbeat and breathing stop suddenly...

At this moment, the pain of karma burning and the emptiness of life passing by were all left behind by him.

"To Tengu-san"

"When this delayed postcard arrives, I should already be out of this world, right?"

"I originally planned to find an uninhabited forest in the unfamiliar Kyoto, and leave quietly like this... For me who has no worries, it is the least troublesome way for others."

"Whenever I think about it like this, a certain questioning face always pops up in my mind. Rather than blaming myself for 'wasting the time bestowed by others', it's better to say it's the longing... the longing hidden in the indifference The face that gave me courage through the pain of the night with passion."

"The ink stains the paper, so I know that I love you so deeply. Perhaps, before I met you and understood love, the real me did not exist."

"If, in the end, I choose to go back to the hospital, it must not be to prolong my life, but to try to hold on to the passing time and stay by the side of the cherished person in the last days."

"Please don't be sad for me. The weight of life cannot be measured by time. If I can be by your side, grieve the sorrow of the living, and leave safely... I should be happy like this, right?"

"In the years to come, please also become a tengu who saves others. I would like to be the wind in the feathers of the king, but look at the branches of the leaves dancing, and the heads of thousands of trees hanging down, and you will know that I have been here."

"FROM Anonymous Breeze"

"Ha...hahaha...the tengu who saved...others...?"

I don't know if it's because of the burning of karma, the passing of life, or the tears streaming down his face, but after reading this postcard, Kotomine Jiro's vision is already blurred.

"Sorry, Kanako...ahem...I thought I had found the right direction..."

He fell to the ground weakly, with blood foaming from his mouth, immersed in the last time before the end of his life: "In the end, I found that everything I did was meaningless except to bring about killing and death."

……

12 years ago, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Institute of the Supernatural.

"How wonderful and unique are the organizational structures of these creatures..."

Kotomine Jiro, with a slightly immature face and fanatical eyes, bowed and stroked before the rows of large test tubes like a pilgrimage.

"This is simply a discovery that crosses the ages... Even the Nobel Prize in Medicine is not qualified to evaluate research results!"

Some of these test tubes, which are one person wide and one person high, are soaked with individual limbs and organs, and some are even a complete biological specimen.

In these "specimens" that look like humans but not humans, animals that look like animals but not animals, Jiro Kotomine, who has studied medicine for many years, has seen countless characteristics and structures that are different from the known species on the earth.

Of course, for ordinary people, it might be more appropriate to describe it as a "demon" rather than a "creature".

"Yanfeng-kun... After seeing this little bit of 'phased results', how do you think about my previous proposal?"

The thin old man walking in front with his hands behind his back asked without looking back.

"Please call me Jiro, teacher... As for thinking, after seeing all this, there is no need at all."

Kotomine Jiro looked serious, and respectfully placed his forehead on the cold floor in the posture of Dogeza: "No matter what price you pay... Please, please give me this honor to participate in your great research middle!"

"As expected of the most potential medical genius in contemporary Japan, you can understand its value without any explanation."

The old man nodded approvingly, and dragged out a dilapidated wooden box engraved with runes from the side: "I have prepared a separate 'research subject' for you. You know, the 'materials' in it have been exhausted by me." It’s hard to collect all the contacts.”

"These are... antique paintings? But, our subject should not be medical..."

Opening the wooden box, what appeared in Kotomine Jiro's line of sight were exquisite picture scrolls full of ghost images.

"Don't be impatient, you will know the detailed content soon. However, too many eyes are focused on Tokyo, and it is inconvenient to carry out further research. Therefore, I have arranged a more suitable place for you..."

"By the way, if you don't expect it, there may be a secret organization that invites you to join in the future. At that time, we..."

After closing the wooden box again, the old man smiled kindly and patiently told him.

"I see, please rest assured, teacher."

Listening to the other party's words, Kotomine Jiro's downcast eyes gradually ignited with fiery flames: "I finally found the direction of human evolution..."

……

"Recent experiences tell me that the meaning of life does not stop at life and death."

A voice like gold and iron rubbing against each other quietly rang in his ears, calling Kotomine Jiro's slack thoughts back.

"Are you... Tokimoto... Ichiro?"

A dark red figure slowly walked into Kotomine Jiro's blurred vision.

"Now tell me about the "Flower of Evil", it's still too late. "

Kneeling down in front of the other party, Tokimoto Ichiro said sincerely: "This will definitely save countless lives in the future..."

"Hey, countless lives?"

Hearing this word, Kotomine Jiro, who was breathing weakly, raised a playful arc at the corner of his mouth: "I tell you, it's okay. But, I have one condition..."

"please say."

"You swear...to bury my ashes at a designated place...the address is..."

"The old man remembered..."

Listening carefully to Kotomine Jiro's words, Tokimoto Ichiro nodded solemnly: "My lord Tokimoto Ichiro, I swear in the name of Sanqing that your wishes will come true."

"Very good. My...time is running out...you, come here with your ears..."

Hearing Tokimoto Ichiro's promise, Kotomine Jiro nodded in satisfaction, and whispered in the other's ear with great effort.

"I know, I've pretty much told you all about it."

After 3 minutes, he finished speaking in a spirited manner, and he fell to the ground as if he lost his strength.

"Can't face up to life and death, blindly seek false answers..."

Looking up at the slightly lit sky, the brilliance in Kotomine Jiro's eyes dimmed.

"Kanako, I'm really an unqualified doctor, right?"

……

(End of this chapter)