I Was Transported to Another World with a Male-to-Female Ratio of 1:3000 and Made into a Breeding Pet for the Demon Lord’s Army - 102

Chapter 102: Secret Chapter 4: The Pursuers Begin to Move

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“This is…How awful.”

I looked at the investigation report handed to me by Satou and was struck speechless.

“The food rations are below the minimum meal standard, and even the IV drips are under the baseline amount… This is basically the same as telling them, “Hurry up and die.”’

“It really is horrible! I was interviewing some former nurses who used to work at the hospital, and I almost ended up yelling at them on the spot out of anger!”

“A reporter shouldn’t be showing his emotions like that… But still, this is strange. Even if the purpose is post-mortem autopsies, why would they go out of their way to take such a dangerous risk that could be exposed to the public and end everything in an instant?”

And besides, the real value should have been in the data taken while the subjects were still alive, not after death. What was so important that they were willing to sacrifice that for?

“Tsk, tsk, tsk… You can’t be clutching your head over something like this. I’ve got a new piece of information so big it makes that investigation report I gave you look trivial!”

“Then don’t drag it out—spit it out already. I’ve paused cleaning up these cardboard boxes just to listen to you.”

Maybe it was because I was busy organizing things, but Satou’s smug, grinning face only annoyed me even more.

“You’re the one who begged me, “Hurry up and listen!” in the first place.”

“Jeez… Senpai, you’re still as impatient as ever. At this rate, you’re gonna have a hard time when you get married someday.”

“Shut up! I’ll only marry someone who can keep up with my pace, so there won’t be a problem!”

“Fufufu ♡ I see, I see ♡ …Anyway, let’s get back to the story. Listen carefully, okay?”

“Just hurry up already.”

“Ah, right. So, Kento-kun should have been autopsied immediately after death… but it turns out there are multiple testimonies saying that his body actually disappeared at that moment!”

“The body disappeared?”

“Yes! And not only that! When it vanished, the area was suddenly enveloped in a mysterious light, and then the body was gone! Can you believe it? We’re talking about a miracle moment, a once-in-a-century discovery here!”

“Right… I drink too, so I’m in no place to judge, but don’t confuse reality with your drunken delusions. I’ll leave some stomach medicine here—go get some rest today.”

“No, no, no! I wasn’t drunk, I’m telling the truth! A nurse who had been directly in charge actually witnessed it, and because of this incident, she ended up being driven out of the industry! Can you believe that?!”

“Even if you get all worked up about it, we don’t cover mysteries. And what are the odds that someone just disappeared in a flash of light… Huh? Wait a second.”

I dismissed it as nonsense and reached out to organize the documents on my desk, but at that moment, a strange sense of déjà vu ran through me. After weakening from some unknown cause, they were enveloped in light and disappeared… I’d heard this story somewhere before.

“Hey, Satou, grab that magazine from the other box over there… The mystery one that came out about two years ago.”

“I keep telling you! This isn’t some occult tall tale—it really happened! Please, you have to believe me!”

“A competent reporter would just grab the book without another word! Hurry it up!”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

Satou scrambled through the mountain of papers from the last cleanup, fumbling around until she finally hauled over a box.

“This one?”

“Yeah, that’s the one. Now, there should be something on one of these pages… Ah, here it is! Hey, read this part!”

“Uh… Let’s see, what does it say…”

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【Mystery! Pets Being Abducted!?】

Recently, numerous incidents have been reported of pets suddenly disappearing—dogs, cats, reptiles, and many others. The following is a summary of an interview with a pet owner living in Nagano Prefecture who lost her cat, Mii-chan.

“Mii-chan was a newborn male cat who had been suffering from a mysterious illness for years. Even the animal hospital couldn’t cure him. While I was nursing Mii-chan, who had grown very weak, his body suddenly began to shine… And before I knew it, he was gone. I searched everywhere around us, but there was no trace of him at all…”

In cases like this, the vanished pets weakened from a mysterious illness, and immediately afterward, their bodies were enveloped in light and disappeared without a trace. Is this a disease, or someone’s conspiracy? The next target may be… Your beloved pet.

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“This… This is exactly the same situation as our current case! If incidents like this are happening, then why hasn’t it been reported on a larger scale?!”

“Because there was no video evidence, only testimonies. That’s why it didn’t get much attention. Honestly, the story itself sounded pretty shady.”

“Ugh… Yeah, if you think about it normally, it does seem like a fake article. A typical mystery piece. Still, Senpai, I’m impressed you remembered such a small article. That’s amazing!”

“Well, the person who interviewed that pet owner was an old friend of mine. Over drinks, he told me it didn’t sound like a lie, and that he wanted to somehow get to the truth. That’s the only reason it stuck with me.”

Of course, an article this dubious never turned into anything long-term, and it was dropped right there.

Damn it… Being a reporter is hard. You have to chase not only the truth, but also what’s entertaining and in demand.

“So what are we going to do, Senpai?! With a case this deep in darkness, we can’t just ignore it! Let’s uncover the truth together!”

“Even if you say that… Even if we did find the truth, the final issue is already complete. It won’t matter.”

“Then worst case, we could post it on the online edition! Besides, I’ve already decided—I’m going to solve this case no matter what! When I saw the sad expression on that parent’s face, I knew I had to do something, anything, to bring them results!!!”

Satou clenched her notebook tightly, her lips trembling slightly, eyes filled with sorrow.

Damn it… When she looks at me like that…

“Tch, fine! I was planning to spend the rest of my life enjoying retirement anyway… All right then! Better my last article as a reporter be this, rather than some trashy story about a celebrity affair. Let’s go now!”

“W-Wait, Ryuudou-senpai, where are we going?!”

“To the publisher’s office, of course. Once we’ve finished checking things there, we’re re-investigating the hospital from top to bottom!”

“Yes, sir!!!”

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