The Destruction of the World by Fire by Shiden Kanzaki Page B

have heard that she is no exception to the geniuses who are eccentric and hard to deal with,” said Tina.
    “It’s nothing that simple, you know.”
    “Huh?”
    Passing by the demon monuments meant to keep people away, they carefully made their way down the damp, moldy stairs, careful not to miss a step. Its ominous atmosphere, like that of a haunted house, made unease creep up on Tina until she clung to Rentaro’s clothes. But before long, the sound of his shoes on the green ceramic floor tile echoed around the basement chamber. The uncertain light of the bare lightbulb hanging from the ceiling lit the room only dimly. Scattered all over a table was a collection of gory horror movies, and on the shelves were Gastrea fetuses in formaldehyde. Complicated numerical equations covered the blackboard on the far side. Rentaro could see morgue drawers on the walls to the left and right.
    Looking around the messy expanse, Rentaro did not find Sumire. It was so quiet his ears strained, and the only sound was the slighthum of the incandescent lightbulb. And there was the peaceful smell of death, too. “Hey, Doc, where are you?” Rentaro called out.
    There was a slick sound, and then a ghost wearing a white lab coat appeared from the darkness behind Tina, already bending over her.
    “Eeeeeeek!” Tina’s piercing screech sounded like that of a strange bird; she ran behind Rentaro’s back with lightning speed.
    “B-big Brother. Wh-wh…! Wh-wh…! What is that?!”
    “That’s Doc. But—” Rentaro followed Tina’s pointed finger and folded his arms.
    Sumire was lying on the tiles after being shaken off by Tina and stayed there, twitching on the ground, showing no sign of getting up. Eventually, the woman turned a feeble expression on Rentaro and said, her voice cracking, “Do you…have something to eat, Rentaro?”
    “Food?” Rentaro echoed lightly. But then a lightbulb went off in his head, and he slapped Tina’s back.
    When they had left the Katagiri Civil Security Agency, Tina had already become fast friends with Yuzuki, and Yuzuki had given her a parting gift for it. Tina looked at Rentaro uncertainly, then took out the dried persimmons from the daypack on her back, fearfully walked forward and put them down, then hastily retreated.
    Sumire snatched up the packet without looking at what was inside, then turned her back to them as she gulped it down greedily. Over the sound of the wrapper ripping, she complained, “What, dried persimmons?” and clicked her tongue without a trace of remorse.
    Tina looked on in disbelief at Sumire, then shifted her gaze to Rentaro. “This is one of the greatest minds in the world?”
    “Um……… Yeah, well.” Rentaro found himself unable to reply immediately.
    When Sumire finally returned to her senses, she stood with a shout, spreading her arms benevolently as she walked toward them. “Oh my, you saved me. My gratitude, Rentaro. I almost died.”
    “What happened?”
    “Well, my stockpile of food ran out, and I was going to ask you to buy some more, but then I realized that I had lost my cell phone. It’s a sad story.”
    “To collapse with hunger is something Kisara would do.”
    Sumire waved her hand in front of her face. “Please don’t put me in the same group as that pauper. I have more money than I know what to do with. I just don’t go outside.”
    “You come out of the basement for Enju’s regular checkups.”
    “Oh yeah, that. I offer incense and prostrate myself, then sit in lotus position and meditate for twenty-four hours while reading the Koran before I can finally go outside for half a day.”
    Rentaro was utterly stunned and highly disgusted. “Do you really hate going outside that much?”
    “Of course. Think about it carefully. Outside is a world that stinks with the smell of gaudy women’s perfume mixed with the smell of old men’s body odor. That’s not something you can just endure. It makes me want to turn all the people other than myself