CotE: The Wandering Misfit

Prologue - Sudden Liberation

The lights didn't go out.

Now, I was convinced that something was up. The lights turning off at 22:30 was a given at this place. I couldn't recall a night when they didn't go out or went out at a different time, apart from the nights when I was made to stay awake.

Was this a test of some kind? There was too little information on hand to draw a conclusion. Unfortunately, the walls were soundproof, so I couldn't make out what was going on outside. I also could not leave the room, for the risk of doing that was not worth the potential gain in information.

Then, I heard it.

Pop pop pop pop pop

Even through the soundproof walls, muted sounds came from outside the room. Given the decibel level required to achieve that effect, these unmistakably had to be gunshots.

At the White Room, we were never taught to use weapons. To learn how to wield an external tool such as a sword or gun would go against the facility's ideal of creating the "perfect human". I had trained in evading blows from such weapons, but to fire brazenly without any prior instructions was so unlikely that it was not even worth thinking about. Thus, the only possible conclusion was that my second theory from earlier today had come true.

The question now was whether the invading forces would be hostile toward me. It was best to assume that they would be — after all, I, the masterpiece of the White Room, would be a valuable resource for any entity. It would not be surprising if they invaded solely for my skills. That would be doubly so if they were that man's enemies since they might think that I, his son, possessed valuable information about his dealings.

There was also the question of why that man did not evacuate the White Room beforehand, but that could be saved for later. For now, I had to fight for self-preservation. Being taken in or killed by them would be akin to transferring from one prison to another. It would be more beneficial to remain in the confinement I had more information on, so I would resist capture at all costs.

The White Room is my best chance at staying safe, so I will act to remain there. If both sides happen to break down, then that would mean...

No. I mustn't think of that now. I needed to formulate a plan to tackle this threat.

As if on cue, the door swung open, and the din of fighting became clear to my ears. I readied myself into a fighting stance, anticipating an enemy break-in, but I immediately dropped it upon seeing who it was.

A middle-aged, brown-haired man wearing a suit strode in with three guards flanking him. His gaze was as stern as always, possibly the only one that could rival mine.

I was surprised that that man himself came to rescue me. Perhaps he recalled his moral duty as a father.

"Kiyotaka," he began, his pretentiously caring voice echoing across the room, "let us go now. You know that I cannot leave my precious masterpiece behind."

Yeah, that change of heart was wishful thinking. My father solely viewed me as his most prized possession. Without me, his work would be for naught. Being used by him was an unpleasant experience, such as when he showed me off like an exhibition trophy in New York, but it aligned with my goals and mindset, so I did not resist.

"Why did we not evacuate earlier?" I asked monotonously, slightly startling one of the guards.

"It was an oversight on my part. I had predicted an attack on a different location, but I did not expect that they would discover and invade the White Room."

His choice of words was interesting. The phrase "discover and invade" did not imply destruction or loss but rather a temporary setback. A change of location now that this one was compromised, a change in plans. Perhaps there were other White Rooms elsewhere?