Second of first

Karna : "I'm.... Truely sorry"

Karna apologized, his head lowered in guilt. Now he was sitting outside a room with Jihan next to him. His purchases during the New Year festival were piled up on the side of the chair.

Jihan : "It's none of my concern anymore, don't think about it"

Jihan said while scrolling his cellphone screen, looking for the information he wanted.

Jihan : "Do you have any watermelon juice in there?”

Karna piqued up hearing Jihans question and immediately rummaging through the bags.

Karna : "Of course! Just wait a second, hopefully it hasn't warmed up yet"

As Karna was rummaging through the bags, the door next to them opened and a doctor with square glasses came out from inside. The doctor who noticed their presence looked at them.

Doctor : "Are you friends of Sapphire?”

Jihan : "We are"

Doctor : "His conditi-"

Jihan : "No need"

Jihan stood up from his seat and looked down at the doctor with calm eyes.

Jihan : "I just need to know if we can come in yet."

Doctor : "Of course, go ahead"

Jihan immediately walked in without waiting for Karna who was still busy looking for watermelon juice among the pile of bags. When he got it, he turned around and found Jihan had already entered first and was now making eye contact with the doctor.

Karna reached back into the bags and took something out before walked over to the doctor, took his hand and placed an apple in his hand.

Karna : "Happy new year".

Doctor : "Oh.... Mmm, thanks"

Karna walked back to his pile of bags and dragged them all into the room without feeling overwhelmed. Meanwhile the doctor was stunned on the spot, until he snapped out of it and walked away with an interested smile.

Inside, Karna saw Sapphire on the patient's bed with bandages wrapped around her neck. Both of his hands formed several signs that were foreign to Karna, but apparently not to Jihan who was sitting next to him with an understanding look. Sapphire's face looked guilty for a moment before he put on a cheerful face and pointed to his own neck.

Jihan : "If that's what you want, then so be it".

Karna : "I heard it from Doctor Tirta earlier, but are you really mute now?”

Sapphire nodded with a small, serene smile.

Karna : "Man..... I didn't think it would be like this. Kinda want to make a joke but.... Sure I'll get some punches, won't i?"

Sapphire : (It's. Fine)

Even though Karna didn't understand sign language, he could roughly understand that what Sapphire had just said was a form of reassurance.

Karna : "Now I kinda regret not practicing sign language with you guys back then."

Karna : "Also.... how bad is the cut on your neck?”

Sapphire : (Enough. Bad. To. Not. Can. Eat. And. Drink. Too. Much)

Jihan : "Short thing is he can only drink plain water and eat porridge in small amounts. And of course the rest of the nutrition will be fulfilled by the infusion"

Karna : "Ah.... I see. Guess I'll have to finish all your parts"

Karna joked with a sad smile on his face, looking pitifully at his friend's condition.

Sapphire : (Ok)

Sapphire only answered with one sign.His face was full of resignation, completely at peace with himself. Karna, who was relieved to realize this, sat next to Jihan and started to talk about several things with his two friends, including about the strange Minori.

Meanwhile, underground in the hospital.

Many people in suits and PPE are seen walking back and forth in a white room with an interior full of chambers containing humans and animals with very strange shapes.

In one of the rooms, Darius and Tirta and 3 other people in surgical uniforms are performing an autopsy on Minori's body. Tirta watched behind the transparent glass while writing in his small book, while Darius led the autopsy process in his casual green shirt.

Minori's corpse in front of them already had a slit in her chest, revealing her heart which appeared to be partially wrapped around by some kind of branch.

Darius : "specimen number 008 heart core extraction attempt, begins"

Slowly and calmly, Darius cut open the skin of the heart with a scalpel. His eyes were so calm, not so afraid of the possibility of failure. Once the outside part is opened, a small ball is seen formed from several coils of small branches that are balled up, and from there other small branches spread out from the heart to the upper part of the body.

Darius separated the branches from the heart flesh with precision, and once everything was separated, the ball was picked up with tweezers by the person across from Darius.

Darius : "Analyze what genetics are in it, then store it with the others in a chamber"

"Understood"

After saying that, the person put the core into a small tube before leaving the room, while the others rearranged the equipment to its original position and sterilized it.

Darius paused for a moment looking at Minori's corpse bedore took a few strands of black fur from her arm and put them in his chest pocket. He then took off his gloves and threw them in to sink, then walked out of the room and went into where Tirta was. Darius walked past Tirta and washed his hands with soap at the sink.

Tirta : "For someone who is renowned as the pinnacle in a field where sterility is a must, your behavior is nothing short of disgraceful."

Tirta said a little mockingly without taking his eyes off his small book.

Darius : "What I did there didn't require that, so keep quiet if you don't know anything."

Tirta stopped writing, closed his book in his right hand and leaned back on the soft sofa.

Tirta : "Explain to me then"

Darius was still in front of the sink, this time he washed his face while occasionally looking in the mirror. There was silence between them until Darius finished washing and drying his face with a folded towel on the table next to the sink.

Darius : "I'll let you know if my speculation is correct. Just call me when it comes."

Tirta : "Very well"

While they were talking, Minori's body in the autopsy room was pushed out by Darius' 2 assistants.

Tirta : "By the way, what did you do with the extracted bodies?"

Darius walked to the table behind Tirta and picked up an apple then took a big bite. He chewed only 3 times before swallowing it and answering Tirta.

Darius : "Apart from research, what can be done?"

2 seconds later, the sound of 4 knocks was heard from the door. Darius walked towards the door while eating the apple. He opened the door and saw one of the assistants he had sent to analyze the core, returning with a piece of paper clamped to a plywood board.

"Professor Darius, the analysis has shown the results, please check it"

Darius : "Well done"

He said with his left hand taking the analysis results and turning around towards his desk. The assistant behind him excused himself before closing the door again and leaving.

Darius finished his apple and threw the core part into the trash can next to his desk and sat down in his chair, reading the results of the core analysis inside Minori's body. It took about a minute of silence before Darius opened his mouth.

Darius : "Tirta, what do you know about Minori and the area where she lived?”

Tirta : "An old woman around 60, the owner of the boarding house where Sapphire, Karna and Jihan live. She has a routine to go to the temple every week for community service. She has a child and husband who died because of an accident, their names are Saori and Katou if I'm not mistaken. The house is surrounded by vast, lush trees, but it is rare to find-"

Darius : "Stop."

Tirta stopped and turned to Darius who sighed while rubbing his forehead.

Darius : "Seems I asked a bit unclearly. Is there anything related to Minori specifically about cats?”

Tirta : "Cat?"

Darius : "Ah.."

Tirta : "There's one thing I remember, the 3 kids kept discussing it when they got together. Minori has a pet cat, named Hiki."

.....

Darius looked back at the piece of paper in front of him then back at Tirta.

Darius : "Let me guess, black fur and golden yellow eyes"

Tirta : "I don't know about that, ask them"

Darius : "Ugh....."

Darius got up from his chair and walked out of the room without saying or looking at Tirta. Meanwhile, Tirta slowly getting off the sofa, took out his pen and started writing again while walking out of the room.

In the elevator, Darius was alone leaning against the iron wall with his cell phone in his right hand. He was exchanging messages with someone, his fingers very agile and precise in typing each letter.

[Darius]

"Hōmine Seiru, remember me?"

[Hōmine]

"Of course. How could I forget my mother's savior"

[Darius]

"I have a favor to ask, lend me one of your dogs"

[Hōmine]

"Eh?! Like right now?!"

[Darius]

"You can't? Doesn't matter, I'll ask someone else"

[Hōmine]

"Please wait! I never said I refused"

[Darius]

"I'll send the address, time tolerance 2 hours from now"

[Hōmine]

"You are too generous, 30 minutes is more than enough. Maybe"

[Darius]

"Also, i want you to bring something for me."

[Hōmine]

"Sure. as long as it's not something that endangers citizens"

Right after the last message was sent, the elevator doors opened and he walked out of it then going through white corridor with many doors and windows with patients in each of them.

Back to Jihan

Karna : "Come to think of it, how are you going to eat now? Surely they'll just come out through that cut, right?"

Sapphire chuckled silently while shaking his head.

Sapphire : (They. already. patched. it. with. silicone)

Jihan : "Silicone has solved it"

Karna : "Ah..... I see, i see"

Sapphire continued to form several hand signs.

Sapphire : (Even. so. it. still. feels. painful. and. uncomfortable.)

Jihan : "It hurts"

Karna and Jihan slowly lowered their gazes, feeling sorry for the misfortune of their friend who had now lost his voice.

Suddenly, the door behind them opened to reveal Darius with a calm face with a hint of his trademark condescending look. The three of them immediately turned to Darius with shocked and confused looks, except for Jihan.

Darius remained at the door and held the door with his right hand. He looked at Sapphire for a moment then at Jihan.

Darius : "Popsicle, I need you to come with me"

Jihan : "May I know what it is for?”

Darius : "I'll explain on the way"

They exchanged glances before Jihan finally stood up and walked towards Darius. They left the room without looking or saying a word, leaving Karna alone with Sapphire.

Karna : "Uh..... Please use my phone when you want to say something"

Karna reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone then unlocked it before giving it to Sapphire. Sapphire received the blood red casing cellphone and opened the Google Translate application which had a speaker feature.

The door to their room opened again, their attention returning to the door this time more slowly than before. After it was opened, it turned out that it was not Darius who returned, but Tirta.

Karna slowly raised his hand, then his index finger pointed in the direction Darius and Jihan were leaving.

Karna : "If you're looking for Darius or Jihan, they went that way."

Sapphire typed something on Karna's phone, and pressed the speaker button.

Sapphire: "Um...... Doctor Tirta?"

A flat voice from the phone appeared trying to break the awkward silence.

Tirta : "Don't worry, one day you will be able to talk again, Sapphire"

Tirta finally spoke after taking a long, light breath in his calm tone.

Karna : "Did we get a donor or something?”

Tirta : "No, this is just my guess"

After saying that, Tirta left the room after closing the door silently. They both looked at each other, Karna tilted his head towards Tirta once with a question mark and Sapphire responded by shrugging.

Meanwhile, with Darius. [08.54 pm]

Darius was standing in front of the bakery with Jihan beside him. They had been standing since ordering and staring at the seller with cold gazes, which made her tremble slightly from pouring the coffee into the edible cup to wrapping the bread.

The seller handed Darius a bag containing 2 white coffees and 2 toasted butter buns.

"That would be 1.340-"

The seller's words were cut off when she saw Darius who had already handed over the exact amount of money even before the price was mentioned.

"O-um. Thank you for purchasing"

Darius : "You're welcome"

Darius and Jihan walked to the concrete bench near the fountain under the street lights. Darius handed Jihan's part into his hands and then ate his. Jihan stared at the bread in his hand, thinking about something.

Darius : "Don't worry, I didn't ask you out just for coffee and bun"

Jihan turned to Darius for a moment, whose gaze was straight ahead and didn't stop eating his bread, then looked at his and started taking a bite.

Jihan : "In that case, thank God"

......

Darius had finished his bun and was sipping his coffee slowly but without stopping, while Jihan still have his bun three-quarter. While they were still busy eating, a black car slowly stopped in front of them.

After stopping completely, the right door of the car opened and a woman with brown hair in a ponytail was seen in a black shirt and slightly tight black pants. She has a serious stare on them and walks closer to them.

Darius : "That's our pick up"

Darius threw away his bun wrapper and ate his coffee cup. After that, he clapped his palms a few times to clean off the crumbs and walked into the passenger seat, which made the woman halted in surprise and get back in quickly with panic.

Jihan finished the rest of his bun quickly and took a sip of his coffee before getting into the car next to Darius. Inside, Jihan saw a K-9 dog next to the passenger seat, his behavior was calm and he looked professional.

The woman started the engine and started to step on the gas slowly.

??? : "Um.... Mr. Darius, who is the young man beside you?”

Darius : "He's Jihan, my friend's student, and Jihan, she's Hōmine Seiru, from the central police. Now i want you to go to where i have told you"

Jihan : "No wonder she has a K-9 dog"

Jihan's attention was diverted to the long black suitcase next to the driver's seat.

Darius : "Maybe I said I would explain it on the way, but nevermind. We will just practice it in the field."

Hōmine : "Understood, I believe Mr. Darius."

Jihan pulled back his gaze, and faced forward.

Jihan : "I'm fine with that"

A few minutes later, they arrived at the area where Minori lived, Jihan already finished his coffee. Darius got out of the car followed by Hōmine holding the leash and Jihan holding the black suitcase, then they climbed the stairs. After passing the stairs, Darius asked Jihan to show Minori's house. It didn't take long for them to arrive in front of the house.

Darius : "Hōmine, tell your dog...

Darius took out a few strands of black fur from his chest pocket and crouched down with his palms open.

Darius : ....Sniff this"

As ordered, Hōmine told the dog to smell the fur on Darius' hand. Without being told, Hōmine knew what to do next, the dog began tracking the presence of an object with a scent similar to the one in Darius' hand.

The three of them circled the house, led by the dog. After one circle, the dog barked once at Hōmine. Hōmine shook her head at Darius, indicating the object he was looking for was not in the vicinity of Minori's house.

Darius: "Not here, huh? Jihan, where was the location when you were attacked?"

Jihan : "It's in the forest area"

Darius : "Bring a hoe, then show me the way "

Jihan leads the way ahead towards the area where Jihan was attacked by Minori. The dog immediately reacted and approached a certain point.

Darius : "Is the point the dog is pointing to is where Minori's body was lied?"

Jihan : "Yes, it was"

Darius : "Hōmine, Tell your dog to look for another point, besides this one"

Hōmine nodded and continued their search, until they stopped at a banyan tree.The dog reacted again and rushed towards one of the tree roots and started digging. After digging a quarter of a meter deep with Jihan's help using a hoe, they finally found something. Jihan's eyes widened, shocked by the sight before him.

Jihan : "Hiki...."

Darius : "You sure it's Hiki?"

Jihan : "There are very few cats in this area, and there is only one with black fur and golden yellow eyes i know."

Darius : "Move aside"

Jihan stood up and took a step back, his shock had subsided and he had calmed down again.

Darius crouched near the hole and lifted the black cat's corpse from the hole and examined it. There was a big hole in it's stomach, it's organs were a mess, and Darius kept sorting through the insides of the corpse. After a few minutes, he found something interesting, and he started laughing a little which slowly became louder.

Although it looked terrifying, the other two were not afraid at all. One was used to it and the other believed it was not a bad thing at all. Darius took a photo of the corpse before placing the cat's corpse back into the hole. He stood up and looked at them with a happy look.

Darius : "There's no heart in there"

Both of them tilted their heads, confused by the meaning of Darius's sudden statement that brought up the subject of heart.

Darius : "Only one thing left"

Darius's hand, covered in the corpse's blood, went into his trouser pocket and took out his cell phone, not caring at all about his clothes being stained. He pressed a certain contact and turned on the speaker. Not long after, an adult male voice came from Darius' cellphone.

"Hi, Professor Darius, what's the matter with you calling me?"

Darius : "Check Minori's body, is there any cat genetics in it?

"Um.... Isn't the result...-"

Darius : "Not in the bloodstream or flesh, but in the digestive organs."

......

Meanwhile, in the United States.

In a dark room, there was a bald person lying on an iron bed tied with chains on both his hands and feet. Not long after, a man came from the shadows, a man in a black shirt and black trousers, in his right hanging hand, there was a syringe containing a gray liquid.

The man on the iron bed struggled, trying to scream but realizing his vocal cords had been destroyed. Without further ado, the man in the black suit grabbed the bald man's head and injected a gray liquid into his neck. After seconds it was pulled out, the bald man had violent convulsions before finally died.

Behind the man in the black shirt, another person appeared in a brown shirt with the sleeves folded up. The man walked with a data sheet in his hand and his eyes fixed on it.

??? : "Indra, there are a few things I want you to-"

The man's voice cut off at the sight of the corpse in front of them.

??? : "Um.... What are you doing?"

Indra : "Testing"

......

Slowly, the corpse in front of them began to move, every part of the body moving as best it could, as if it was testing its own capabilities. Indra's gaze remained calm and his body did not move an inch in the face of the terrifying sight.

Gray liquid slowly leaked out of the pores of the corpse's skin, and when it stopped, he opened his eyes, for the second time, in the first stage of life.

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