Ch.79Chapter 11. Doing Our Best in Our Respective Positions (2)

A scene flashed through my mind.

That time at the golf resort when I slipped in water mixed with zombie blood on the first floor. And Camilla, who kissed me saying that since I came all this way because of her, if she was infected, she would infect me too.

Even if I hadn’t been infected then, we had gotten quite close anyway. The virus might have transferred while we were living together.

My eyes met Camilla’s. She seemed to be recalling the same memory.

She looked like she might explode or was trying hard to remain composed. Either way, she looked as unstable as a glass of water teetering on the edge of a desk, so I sat down beside her. Camilla wrapped her arm around mine with difficulty.

“…You two seem closer than Cassandra thought.”

But I didn’t want to discuss that in front of outsiders.

“You’re failing as a doctor. Is it okay to freely discuss a patient’s secrets in front of outsiders?”

I pointed at the jewelry store clerk. When Cassandra nodded gently, the employee bowed politely and withdrew.

She set her luggage down on the floor and gently stretched her shoulders and neck. Each time she moved, her large breasts swayed like waves. High waves.

“Strictly speaking, they’re not outsiders. This jewelry store belongs to Cassandra, and those clerks have been serving our family for a very long time. By the way, that’s a secret.”

“Excuse me, Cassandra… right? Is it okay to call you that?”

Camilla spoke with difficulty. Cassandra nodded.

“If Johan and I are really infected, why did you let us into Hampton? And there’s nothing wrong with our bodies. We had slight fevers for a few days, but it was just like a common cold. Wait a minute. Does that mean we…”

If what Camilla said was true, we’ve been wandering around the city while infected. But that was because we weren’t aware of it. If we had shown any symptoms, we wouldn’t have even thought about coming to Hampton.

The zombification process was generally similar. The virus infiltrates the body, inflammation levels skyrocket, high fever sets in, followed by delirium and coma. Permanent changes occur in the body and brain, and there’s no going back.

But we only had slightly elevated temperatures within the “normal range,” and even that has improved now. In all the zombification cases I’ve witnessed, there was never an instance where a fever rose and then subsided. That’s why Camilla and I dismissed it as a simple cold.

“I let you in partly because of Cassandra’s wish. She believed Johan could surely free this poor woman from her cage. But Cassandra didn’t break any rules. According to the Disease Control Agency’s standards, you two are perfectly normal.”

“Wait. Cassandra. Didn’t you say we were carriers?”

“Yes.”

“But you’re saying we’re within normal standards?”

“Yes.”

What is she talking about? Infected but within normal standards? That means…

“…We’re not the only ones walking around infected, are we?”

“That’s right. Crow virus antibodies are commonly found. Zombification is just the final form of infection symptoms.”

“Wait. Hold on, doctor. My head’s starting to spin. Commonly found? Antibodies? Don’t antibodies form when you’re infected with a virus?”

For some reason, Cassandra looked at Camilla with admiration.

“That’s right, pretty lady.”

But if they’re commonly found…

“Cassandra. Just how many people are infected?”

“Almost everyone in Elsa. The numbers are gradually increasing in Römer and Minsk too.”

“…Kik.”

Camilla burst into laughter. Sometimes when something is too absurd, all you can do is laugh. This seemed to be one of those times.

“What, what kind of unfunny joke is that, what did you say? Almost everyone in Elsa is infected? Sorry, Johan. But is this person sane? Are you crazy?!”

The last part came out almost like a shout. Cassandra lowered her head and laughed desolately.

“…Cassandra is broken somewhere. She knows it well herself. Maybe she’s a little crazy. But it’s true that almost everyone in Elsa is infected. Anyone from the Disease Control Agency would tell you the same thing.”

“That can’t be true, doctor. Why aren’t other doctors saying what you’re saying? Why are all the other scientists keeping their mouths shut! You’re the only one in the world saying this!”

“Because doctors who tried to say that were all shot dead. Pew, like that.”

Cassandra made a gun shape with her hand and pretended to shoot herself in the head. Then she aimed at Camilla and me in turn.

“By the time the Disease Control Agency’s functions were expanded, the situation had already spread uncontrollably. It couldn’t be contained.

So the agency changed its guidelines according to government decisions. Our institution is the ‘Disease Control Agency,’ not the ‘Disease Eradication Agency.’ Funny, isn’t it? ‘Control.’ Many colleagues went bang, bang, bang, shot dead in that process.

They didn’t just shoot people. They also persuaded them. If the people of Elsa knew that the epidemic was so widespread, there would be massive chaos, and the doctors at the Disease Control Agency would be the first scapegoats. Either torn apart by angry citizens or shot dead in the government’s show trials.

Looking back, the ‘persuasion’ really worked well. You know what? They never touched the people who tried to leak information or make conscience declarations first. Instead, they gathered the entire team and made them draw lots.”

“What kind of lots?”

“Lots to receive injections full of the Crow virus. The resulting ‘infected’ had to be ‘disposed of’ by their team members. The government elegantly called it the ‘One-Tenth Model.’

In the end, no one could say anything. Who wouldn’t comply? If someone opened their mouth, the colleague working overtime next to them would go kwang and turn into a zombie… Wait. Are you okay?”

Cassandra jumped up and rushed to Camilla, who was sitting next to me. Camilla’s face had turned deathly pale. Her hands were ice cold. Unable to comprehend what was happening, Camilla could only make sounds like “uh, uuh” with her eyes wide open.

“Hold her arms!”

Cassandra shouted at me. I firmly held Camilla’s body. Cassandra put her hand inside Camilla’s clothes and pressed firmly somewhere between her stomach and chest.

“Huh, huuk! Kuluk, kuluk! Cough! Cough!”

Camilla coughed violently. Cassandra stroked various parts of Camilla’s back and pressed firmly. Camilla, nestled in my arms, gasped for breath.

“I’m, I’m fine. I’m fine.”

“You almost suffocated to death like a fish pulled out of water, pretty lady.”

“…Call me Camilla.”

“Pretty Camilla, then.”

“Yes, you, cough, know I’m pretty. Enough. Enough, I’m fine now. Sorry. I’m sorry. Johan, hold me.”

I gently stroked her back as if comforting a frightened child. Her body was damp with sweat. Cassandra looked down at Camilla and me, seemingly troubled.

“It’s very rare for a person to forget to breathe. You must have been really shocked. You’re quite robust.”

“Y-you.”

“Yes, pretty Camilla.”

“…You’ve been through, cough, a lot too, haven’t you? Cough. Cough.”

Hearing Camilla’s words, Cassandra turned away. When she turned back, her expressionless face looked unchanged.

“Hardship is… something everyone goes through. Anyway…”

Cassandra took out her phone and checked the time. A question suddenly occurred to me.

“Cassandra. How long after infection does someone become a zombie?”

In the Erysichthon Protocol, you didn’t immediately turn into a zombie when bitten. As if giving some cruel false hope, the transformation time varied regardless of whether you were bitten a little or a lot. If you were badly mauled, you changed quickly; if you were just slightly cut with the bacteria entering, it was slower.

“Zombification progresses after the body is almost completely infiltrated by the virus. The infiltration speed varies from person to person, so it’s hard to say. As for you two, well, you don’t need to worry about that.”

“…What about a vaccine?”

Camilla asked, whimpering.

“Isn’t there a vaccine or something like that? If there’s no cure, is there at least something to help us hold out? Isn’t that what the Disease Control Agency is for?”

“That’s right, pretty Camilla. That’s one reason why people are gathered like that. To find out which medicines work well, which antibodies work well. But Cassandra thinks that’s meaningless.”

“Why?”

“Because it evolves.”

Cassandra’s face darkened.

“The Crow virus mutates faster than any virus humans have ever faced. If one method doesn’t work, it persistently changes its transmission method.

In some ways, it’s just like humans. It adapts, responds, and adopts what seems to be a superior strategy as its main approach, but even then, it never stops mutating.

That’s why the Disease Control Agency hasn’t made progress yet. The government and agency organizations are rigid, but the virus changes almost daily. And that’s why Cassandra wants to go ‘out there.’ Because she wants to solve this problem.”

When I first met Cassandra, she definitely talked about the “Erysichthon Protocol.” It’s also the name of this game, but it seemed to have a different meaning for her. Did she say something about finding a counterexample?

I still don’t know what that means. It doesn’t seem like something I could easily understand. And while it’s important, it’s not urgent. What’s urgent is this.

“…Cassandra. Camilla and I are going outside the city. There’s not even proper electricity there, let alone research equipment. You won’t be able to dream of doing research, and you’ll barely get any sleep because of night watch duties. Do you still want to come with us?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Don’t worry about the research issue. Cassandra knows a place. A quite safe place with good electricity and water. And… Johan, you’re the only one who understands Cassandra.”

Camilla, still holding me tightly, asked:

“What kind of understanding?”

“That this virus will destroy the world. No one else thinks that way. They just see it as a manageable epidemic. Only you and Cassandra take it seriously.”

“…Did you just say ‘you’?”

“You” can also be used as a third-person pronoun when a woman refers to her husband or lover who is close to someone else. Perhaps because of this, Camilla got upset, but Cassandra didn’t seem to care. I made my decision.

“Seeing that you brought all your luggage, you’re planning to leave now, right?”

“Yes. But there’s one thing Cassandra hasn’t mentioned. Cassandra is under surveillance. If we leave like this, the military police will surely catch us.”

That’s a bit of a tricky problem.

It would be simple if we just shook off the military police whether they caught us or not. I’m not alone, and with Camilla by my side, I’m not worried about getting caught by those guys.

The problem is that we received Leticia’s help to get in here. If we thoughtlessly take Cassandra out, it will put her in a difficult position, and we’ll lose the trading partner we’ve just established.

“Let’s do this.”

I held out my gun toward Cassandra. Camilla looked at me as if she didn’t understand. So did Cassandra.

“Why the gun?”

“Cassandra, threaten us with the gun. We’re being kidnapped because we couldn’t resist your coercion. How about that?”

“Johan! What are you saying…!”

Camilla gripped my arm tightly as if it made no sense. But Cassandra quickly took the gun and aimed it at Camilla and me.

“That’s a good idea. Now, get up. You’ve been kidnapped.”

“Oh my, how frightening.”

As expected, we understand each other well.