Mash-up Anime World: Creating the SCP Foundation to Contain Anomalies Chapter 459 - 445: The Pleasure of Teasing Asada Shino

Standing in front of the apartnt door, Haruto was considering whether it would be wiser to sneak in more carefully, when—

"Um, excuse … who are you?"

From the side ca a timid voice, carrying a hint of fear.

Haruto turned his head, and saw—a girl in a JK uniform, with black hair and black eyes, thick glasses covering her face, staring at him with a mix of wariness, doubt, and hesitation.

His first impression was—she looked familiar.

"Excuse , are you Shinkawa's friend? I'm his high school classmate. He hasn't been to school for three days now. I heard he's on sick leave, so I ca to visit. And also, to deliver the notes he's missed over the past three days."

Haruto's lies ca as smoothly as breathing, his eyes filled with nothing but sincerity, the level of skill not unlike that of Hoshino Ai herself.

Hearing his explanation, the girl, as expected, relaxed more than half her wariness.

"I see, you're Shinkawa's friend. Thank you for visiting him, really. Shinkawa seems to have suffered so kind of neurological trauma, and he's been unconscious since. And right now, he's living alone—governnt volunteers are taking turns looking after him. Sudden visitors… might not be welcod, so let explain for you."

She explained softly, then stepped forward.

Clearly, she was the kind of girl who, despite her caution, had a genuinely kind heart.

She knocked on the apartnt door.

Soon, a caretaker opened it.

The caretaker's pay ca directly from the family's bank account; the volunteers only checked in occasionally.

After all, no governnt could expect volunteers to tend to a comatose patient 24/7.

The girl spoke with the caretaker, and after a brief explanation, the caretaker nodded, stepping aside to let them in.

The apartnt wasn't large, and the caretaker, nearly off-duty, didn't bother guiding them inside.She simply left, waiting for the next shift to arrive.

"My na is Asada Shino," the girl finally rembered to introduce herself.

Haruto blinked, then smiled faintly.

"I'm Haruto. Pleased to et you."

So it was Shino—that explained why she'd seed so familiar.

And that guy lying inside… the na was familiar too.

Shinkawa Kyouji—the very sa villain.

As they talked, they entered the back room.

There lay Shinkawa, hooked to monitors, unconscious on the bed.

Haruto placed his hand on Shinkawa's forehead, letting the Blacklight Virus seep in.

The scan ca back… strange.

No illnesses.

No neurological damage.

Even his bioelectric signals were perfectly normal.

The Blacklight's inspection was down to the cellular level, finer than any dical device. So if his body was fine, why was he comatose, like a vegetable?

Haruto's thoughts drifted toward cognition.

Maybe it was tic, or even antitic contamination. Especially the latter, which lined up disturbingly well with the anomalies rumored in GGO.

Haruto's eyes glowed with rainbow hues.

With Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, he saw Kyouji's lines of death—and they were fractured at the level of recognition itself.

It was indeed a cognitive issue.

Maybe if he erased those broken fragnts with the Mystic Eyes, things might improve. After all, the Foundation's previous attempt with a Class-B mory wipe hadn't worked.

As he pondered, Asada Shino suddenly spoke up:

"Um, excuse , but… where are the notes you said you were carrying? And also, isn't today a school day? If I rember right, Shinkawa's school requires uniforms on weekdays…"

Haruto dispelled his Mystic Eyes and turned.

By then, Shino had already taken a few steps back toward the door.

She had realized—he was lying.

Seeing her wariness, Haruto smirked.

"Shino, sotis being too clever isn't always a good thing."

He stepped toward her, hand moving behind his back as if reaching for sothing.

Shino's face instantly went pale.

She spun around, trying to flee, but Haruto stepped in and slamd the door shut, his posture towering over her—like a wall slam.

Her body trembled, yet unlike an ordinary girl, she didn't squeeze her eyes shut. Her gaze darted frantically, searching for anything she could use as a weapon.

And then, Haruto slowly drew sothing from behind him.

"Ahh—! Ah… ah?"

Shino's scream of terror broke halfway, replaced with confusion.

What he held wasn't a knife, nor a gun.

It was… a badge.

On its cover glead a very familiar police emblem.

Her expression twisted into sheer bewildernt.

Haruto couldn't help but laugh softly.

Ah, the joy of teasing a girl— that never got old.

"My na's Takamine Haruto. To reintroduce myself properly—I'm a Superintendent in the Tokyo tropolitan Police Departnt. I'm here investigating Shinkawa Kyouji's situation in secret. I apologize for the misunderstanding."

It was the sa identity cover he'd used before.

Ever since Inspector gure had been promoted, Haruto's own honorary police position in Japan had been bumped up as well.

Superintendent wasn't the top of the hierarchy, but in Japan's nine official ranks, it was already sixth—a high enough position to hold real authority and perfect for fooling people.

After all, any higher—Superintendent General, Chief Superintendent, Commissioner General—and he'd be too famous, constantly appearing on TV and in newspapers.

Shino studied the badge closely, checking every detail, comparing the photo with Haruto's face.

Finally, she sighed in relief.

It was real.

Still, her expression twisted again.

What kind of Superintendent does sothing like that?!

Clearly, he had deliberately scared her.

Even if he'd been forced to reveal himself, there was no reason to phrase it like so criminal's threat.

"Mr. Haruto, next ti, please don't say things that make you sound like a felon!"

Shino snapped angrily.

"My surna isn't Haruto—it's just Haru. Japan pronounces it differently, that's all."Haruto replied calmly, correcting her.

Shino's lips twitched.

That's what you're focusing on?!

"Anyway, could you—uh… get off?"

She suddenly realized—he still had her cornered in a wall slam.

Haruto chuckled, pocketed his badge, and walked over to Kyouji's bed.

Shino, still fuming, stayed where she was.

"Then, Superintendent Haruto, may I ask… what's wrong with Shinkawa?"

Haruto shrugged.

"Didn't I just say? I only just arrived. Still investigating."

And with that, he began rummaging through the room. He quickly pulled out Kyouji's laptop and the full-dive equipnt.

Watching him, Shino's lips pressed tight.

This guy really didn't look like a cop.

"Excuse , Superintendent… do you even have a search warrant?" Normally, even a Superintendent couldn't just ransack a house.

"Take a guess."

Haruto didn't even look back, already booting up the laptop and examining the gear.

"I'm rembering your badge number. I'm going to file a complaint with the police departnt!"

Shino threatened angrily.

Too bad.

Haruto wasn't so honest detective from a drama.

He didn't care.

The laptop powered on, prompting for a password.

Shino actually had so idea of what Kyouji's password might be, but she wasn't about to tell Haruto.

In fact, she was secretly looking forward to him asking her for help—just so she could turn him down.

She wasn't normally one for petty revenge, but this guy had really gotten under her skin.

Yet, before she could enjoy that mont—

Haruto casually tapped a few keys, and the laptop flickered white, then unlocked itself.

Shino: ???