Ch.107Addiction! (3)

#107

“Why is this thing here?”

“Oh, that? It felt wrong to throw it away, and destroying it seemed wrong too… Senior agents said to leave it alone for now, so we just put it there.”

When Himena arrived at the Science and Technology Department office, she found a Libretron trapped inside a reinforced glass enclosure.

“Still, I feel a bit sorry for it.”

“Sorry? It’s just a robot that won’t share any information.”

[……..]

Himena, watching the Libretron’s head components spinning ceaselessly, mouthed the word “idiot” before turning her head sharply away.

“So, Agent Ribero, what brings you here?”

A female agent from the Science and Technology Department asked with a sly smile directed at Himena.

“Actually, it’s about Agent Thompson.”

“…Ah, that game-loving nerd? Why?”

Himena was a bit taken aback, not having realized that Thompson had such a reputation despite his somewhat gloomy appearance.

“Agent Thompson seems to be acting strangely today because of Polytechnic, so I wanted to ask a few questions.”

The female agent tilted her head at Himena’s question, pondering for a moment before sharing what she vaguely remembered.

“Polytechnic… Oh, that gaming console? He did mention buying a new one a few weeks ago… Come to think of it, he’s been complaining about being tired and leaving work right on the dot ever since he got it.”

“Really? What was he like before?”

“Just ordinary. This might sound like racial stereotyping, but he gave off a bit of an Asian vibe?”

It was an assessment bordering on offensive that others might consider rude.

“Ah, I get what you mean. But that’s a bit harsh…”

“Sorry, I just couldn’t think of a better way to explain it.”

It was a discriminatory expression suggesting that, like Asians supposedly do, he showed vulnerability while still completing assigned tasks without issues.

“Anyway, that’s how it is…”

As Himena took notes about Agent Thompson’s usual behavior on her phone, the female agent glanced curiously at Himena’s device and asked:

“But why are you asking?”

“Oh, just something that’s been bothering me. Thanks for your help.”

“No problem. Hey, have you ever thought about transferring from Residency Management to Science and Technology? We have so many men here, I thought it might be nice to have more women together.”

“Hehe, Director Steve would probably kill me if I tried.”

Residency Management was one of those departments that struggled with recruitment, making each agent particularly valuable.

“That’s too bad. It would be nice to have you here.”

“I think Science and Technology would be fine too, but I probably can’t transfer anytime soon. Well, I should get going now.”

As Himena waved goodbye and turned to leave, she glanced at the Libretron still trapped behind the glass wall and gave it a little wave.

[……..]

The Libretron turned its head to watch Himena as she walked away.

* * *

After returning from the prison, Dexter was surprised to hear that Jesse had prepared dinner for him and was now sitting at the dining table.

“…What is this?”

Dexter pointed at the large tray filled with what looked like red stones placed in front of him.

“This? It’s meatloaf.”

“This is meatloaf?”

From any angle, it looked like red rocks collected from the nearby Red Rock Canyon.

Dexter skeptically cut a piece of the stone-like meatloaf with the knife beside him and placed it on his plate.

Then he took a bite.

“…Surprisingly not bad?”

“Really?”

“What do you mean ‘really’? Haven’t you tasted it?”

“No, of course I was waiting for you before eating.”

“Well, try it.”

Dexter cut a piece of meatloaf and transferred it to Jesse’s plate.

“Honestly, I didn’t expect this.”

“Why?”

“I didn’t know you could cook well.”

“I’ve lived on my own for quite a while, you know?”

Jesse said with a pout.

Despite its strange appearance, the taste of Jesse’s homemade meatloaf was ordinary.

“Try the mac and cheese too.”

“Well, that’s pretty hard to mess up.”

There was also mashed potatoes and Bolognese pasta, which were equally decent.

After eating his fill of Jesse’s cooking, Dexter patted his stomach contentedly.

“Guess I don’t need to go to Oasis Bar anymore.”

“Huh? Why would you go there?”

“Oh, I used to go there for dinner sometimes. Gets boring eating alone all the time.”

“Hmm, I could go with you? I can’t cook dinner every night, you know?”

Of course, Jesse would have days when she didn’t feel like making dinner.

“I guess so? We’ll go sometime. Kiara there is cute.”

“…What do you mean by ‘cute’?”

“Oh, she’s not like that. Really. If I had a little sister, she’d be like Kiara.”

“Really?”

“Really. Don’t you trust me? I’ve never once thought of her romantically.”

Though she had a cute and attractive face, Dexter had never seen Kiara as a potential romantic interest.

“You’re enough for me…”

As Dexter looked at Jesse with gentle eyes, she glared at him intensely and said:

“Enough for you, yet you mess around with Himena and Emily?”

“…I didn’t mess around with Emily.”

“Just eat your food.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Jesse smirked at seeing Dexter with his tail between his legs.

“Anyway, anything interesting happen today?”

“Today? Nothing much for me, except Judy asking to see a movie the day after tomorrow and… oh, some guy named Stoner or something got caught trying to leave work without permission because of a gaming console.”

“That’s ‘nothing much’?”

“It’s not like an inmate escaped or anything.”

Jesse stared at Dexter, unable to understand how he didn’t consider this a big deal.

“Let’s start with the Judy story first?”

At Jesse’s prompting, Dexter chewed on some meatloaf before answering.

“It’s really nothing. Before lunch, she suddenly asked if I wanted to see a movie, and I said sure.”

“And then?”

“We were trying to decide which movie to watch when suddenly this Stoner guy or whatever interrupted, and that was the end of it.”

“…That’s it? Can’t you explain better than that?”

“No, that’s literally what happened.”

It was true that Stoner the guard had interrupted just as he was about to have a serious conversation with Jesse.

“Specifically, it was some gaming console… Poly-something. Anyway, he apparently wanted to play it so badly he tried to leave the prison.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Right? I was so dumbfounded I talked about it with another guard. Wonder what kind of game would make someone act like that.”

Dexter took a spoonful of mashed potatoes and thought.

‘What kind of game could be so addictive?’

Dexter was curious too.

-Ding dong.

“Who could that be at this hour?”

When Dexter opened the door, he found a tired-looking Himena greeting him.

“Himena?”

“I came for dinner. Jesse called and said she’d prepared a feast and told me to come over right away.”

Hearing that Jesse had called her, Dexter nodded before turning to Jesse with a confused expression.

Dexter’s home didn’t have a landline.

“Wait, you have a cell phone?”

“Ta-da!”

In response to Dexter’s question, Jesse pulled out a latest-model smartphone from her pocket and waved it.

“Himena bought it for me.”

“And you didn’t tell me?”

“What, do I need your permission to get a phone?”

“No, that’s not what I meant. You didn’t even exchange numbers with me.”

“I already know your number, and I was planning to surprise you later.”

Jesse stuck out her tongue playfully.

“You little rascal.”

“Himena, sit down. I set aside a portion for you.”

Jesse put her apron back on and quickly served the same dishes they had been eating.

Himena sat down, took a bite of Jesse’s pasta, pointed at it, and gave a thumbs up.

“This is what I needed. I’ve been eating takeout so much lately that I missed home cooking.”

“Hehe, is it good?”

“It’s not amazing, but it hits the spot for me.”

Jesse grinned at Himena’s response.

She appreciated the honest assessment that it hit the spot more than empty flattery about how delicious it was.

“How was your day, Himena?”

“My day? Well, I had the usual exhausting amount of work.”

Himena said as she took a big spoonful of Jesse’s meatloaf.

“A battle cruiser captain from Planet Cairo suddenly applied for defection to Earth, and an alien who committed sex crimes on 23 planets and fled to Earth sexually harassed a staff member at the detention center and got summary judgment…”

As Himena listed the incidents that had happened today, Dexter shook his head.

“I’m glad I didn’t become an official OSA agent.”

“…You got really angry when I tried to recruit you back then.”

“Because I really didn’t want to do it.”

“You’ve got a bit of a coward’s streak in you.”

Himena wrinkled her nose and took another bite of pasta before continuing.

“Oh, and today there was a commotion about some gaming console called Polytechnic.”

“Polytechnic? That $2,000 gaming console?”

Seeing that Dexter seemed to know about it, Himena pointed at him.

“You know about it?”

“Of course. Today, one of the guards at our prison got caught trying to leave work without permission because of that console.”

“It happened there too?”

“What do you mean ‘there too’?”

Himena raised her index finger toward Dexter, quickly finished eating Jesse’s food, and washed it down with a gulp of water before speaking.

“Phew. So what happened today was…”

She explained what had happened at OSA headquarters with Agent Thompson from the Science and Technology Department, and how he had been a quiet employee who hadn’t caused problems before.

“That is strange.”

“Right? It’s not just one or two people—there are multiple cases popping up, but it’s not getting much attention.”

“People who can afford a $2,000 gaming console are limited, so the spread would be relatively slow.”

Most people don’t readily buy a gaming console that costs $2,000.

As Jesse said, only people with a certain level of wealth were buying it, and it seemed that only those who could play games for extended periods were being affected.

“It’s probably not time for OSA to take official action yet. We need to investigate more before referring it to a higher department, right?”

“That’s what I think too. All I have are my suspicions and some internet posts. We’ll have to continue investigating assuming that the guard Dexter mentioned and our agent Thompson are victims.”

In reality, this “Polytechnic” case was more appropriate for the FBI or CIA to investigate than OSA, and OSA wouldn’t participate in the investigation until a suspect was identified as an alien.

“I wonder if OSA even needs to investigate this. There’s no evidence of alien technology, no proof that aliens are behind it. Isn’t it just game addiction or something?”

Uncertain, Himena rolled her eyes around.

But Dexter had a different perspective.

“Why not think of it the other way around?”

“What do you mean?”

“Find a reason why OSA has to investigate it.”

“…But that would just mean more work for me.”

She had already left work with some tasks still pending.

Dexter, aware of how tired Himena was, waved his hand dismissively and said:

“I’ll do some investigating, and you can just be on the side.”

“On the side? That doesn’t sound right.”

She wanted him to phrase it more nicely.

“Let’s say main and supporting roles then.”

“Main and supporting… so you’ll do the main investigation, and I’ll support?”

“Well, even if I investigate, I’m not a professional, so I’ll need your assistance.”

The results Dexter produces would help Himena, an official agent. Naturally, her workload would decrease while her performance would improve, potentially accelerating her promotion to senior agent.

“Alright then!”

As Dexter and Himena shook hands, Jesse, who had been watching them, pointed to herself and asked:

“What about me? Can I help too?”

“You? Isn’t that obvious?”

Dexter smirked.

“You and I are like, what’s his name… Sherlock Holmes and who?”

“Watson?”

“Right, you’re Watson. Except you’re a criminal.”

“…Is that good?”

“Of course it’s good. Watson was originally a doctor.”

Dexter said as he patted Jesse’s head.

While Jesse, secretly pleased to be helpful to Dexter and Himena, smiled and took away the plates, Dexter said to Himena:

“First, we need to figure out what kind of gaming console Polytechnic is.”

“We should visit the homes of Guard Stoner and Agent Thompson, right? They should have the console.”

“Hmm… it’s getting late today, so Jesse and I will visit Guard Stoner’s place tomorrow evening.”

“Sounds good. I’m looking forward to it.”

Himena winked.