After a long pause, he continued, "We need to target the elite. We must focus on those with high intelligence to transition, the ones who have been wronged by certain forces and empower them. We need to reduce the number of those reckless, foolish beasts; they will bring us disaster sooner or later."
"I like the idea of empowering those whose rights have been taken by force," Tamiya said with a sinister smile.
"The chaos they will cause will work in our favor," the unidentified man added.
"A question that has been troubling me: What is our purpose for existence?!" Tamiya asked.
"The answer is simple. Humans have become a poison on this earth; it is necessary to have an antidote, someone to stop them and rein in their plans. Humans are not equal. Do you think that the billions of humans on this planet hold the same value? They know it themselves," the man replied.
"So, I'm nurturing a toxic being within me!" she said, placing both hands on her swollen belly.
"Power and authority are what make humans toxic," the man said.
Izumi noticed his father's guests leaving and hesitated for a moment before heading to the room to try to figure out what they were planning. He knocked on the door and then opened it.
"Have your guests left?" he asked his father.
Lost in thought, Takashi replied, "Savage monsters. Their existence must be wiped out."
Noticing his son at the door, he invited him in to sit.
"I've decided to tell you the truth at least," Takashi said.
They exchanged long glances, and Takashi finally said, "Yes, it has to do with your mother."
In the end, Takashi finally revealed to his son Izumi the truth about his mother's death at the hands of those savage parasites, though he did not disclose the horrific details of her murder. With his head lowered and eyes on the ground, Izumi listened in silence to what his father said, feeling a sharp pain in his chest upon hearing the news. He couldn't muster the words to tell his father about his right hand.
"Dinner is ready; you can go and call your uncle now, my daughter," Yuko's mother said to her.
Yuko headed to invite her uncle to dinner, finding him fast asleep on the couch with a drawing of the parasite sprawled on the table. (Coincidentally, Yuko's uncle was one of the investigators who had been at Takashi's house—specifically, Investigator #3, who had been trying to sketch the parasite based on Takashi's description, arriving at the drawing that everyone had seen.)
Since Yuko loved to draw, she picked up the sketch and stared at its details, finally commenting, "Gross!"
Suddenly, her uncle woke up, noticing the drawing in Yuko's hands. "Don't look at that!" he exclaimed, snatching the drawing from her.
"This is for an ongoing investigation," he added angrily.
"Is this a suspect in some case?" Yuko asked.
"Of course not! This is a monster! Anyway, what did you want?" her uncle replied.
"I was sent by Mom to tell you that dinner is ready, but before that, I want to show you something," Yuko said as she rushed out of the room.
She returned with her sketchbook in hand. "I wanted you to take a look at this…" (a drawing of Shimada).
Her uncle opened the sketchbook to the first page. "Is he one of your friends?"
"This is a fine piece of work! You're talented," her uncle added, admiring the drawing.
"So, is there anything about him that raises suspicion in you? Maybe his personality or way of thinking… You've drawn the faces of living people, so you can notice that, right?" Yuko said.
"You must be joking. How do you expect me to analyze his personality or way of thinking from a drawing? It doesn't work that way," her uncle replied.
Frustrated, Yuko said, "I see."
"But from his appearance, I see something strange in his eyes," her uncle said.
**At the University**
Tensions were rising on campus, with everyone watching everyone else, each for their own reasons. Shimada stood at a corner, not as if he were waiting for someone but as if he were observing someone. What Shimada didn't realize was that he, too, was being watched. Every time Yuko passed by, she found him in a suspicious stance, standing at the corner, peering out.
Yuko remained behind him, watching to see what he intended to do. "He's alone again today. Is he waiting for someone? His stance suggests he's watching someone!" Yuko thought to herself.
Nearby, a baseball game was taking place between two university teams. A stray ball flew beyond the field's boundaries.
"Watch out, anyone nearby!!!" shouted one of the players from inside the field to alert anyone close by.
Late to react, Shimada turned towards the source of the shout just as the ball struck the right side of his head. Any ordinary person would have been taken straight to the hospital after such an incident, but Shimada was fine. He simply wiped his hand over his head as if nothing had happened.
"Are you okay?!" One of the players ran toward Shimada, concerned after noticing him brushing his head, unsure whether he had been hit by the ball.
"Yes!" Shimada replied, walking away from the scene.
Yuko witnessed the entire incident from start to finish.
With a mix of shock and realization, she exclaimed, "A fake face!"
On the other side, Izumi waited for Murano to leave the classroom so he could talk to her. He realized it was the right time to break the ice and apologize for his behavior regarding the puppy and then seeing her hanging out with Kana.
"Murano!" Izumi called out as she passed by him.
She stopped without turning to face him, listening to what he had to say.
"About that day, it was... it wasn't serious. Kana was just messing with me, so…" Izumi began.
Before he could finish, Migi appeared and whispered his name in his ear.
"Migi! What? This isn't the right time!" Izumi turned away, trying to hide Migi, speaking in a hushed tone.
The sound cut off for Murano; she could no longer hear what he was saying, which piqued her curiosity. She turned to face Izumi, finding him hunched over with his left hand covering his face, watching his strange behavior without saying anything.
"Shimada is about to kill someone; I sense his aggression," Migi said.
At the university gate, Shimada was surrounded by six individuals led by Mitsu, indifferent to Shimada's warning.
"I told you I'd end you, but you insist on standing in my way. Let's go somewhere… away from prying eyes," Shimada said confidently.
"He has targets ranging from five to seven people, all of them human. It will be a massacre if he decides to take them out," Migi whispered to Izumi.
"Izumi!" Murano couldn't bear being ignored by him any longer and called out.
"I can guide you to where he is if you want to intervene," Migi whispered.
"That's obvious," Izumi said loudly, then ran toward Shimada's location, leaving Murano in shock and his bag in the corridor.
It seemed that fate was conspiring against Izumi in his relationship with Murano. Every time he tried to fix things, something outside his control would sabotage his efforts.
At Mitsu's usual spot for confronting someone, Shimada was there to put an end to his interference whenever he saw him. The number of people attracted by Mitsu had increased, forming a circle of humans around Shimada.