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The brightness lowered enough for me to open my eyes, and I found myself staring at a man with numerous stitches across his face, illuminating my eyes and various parts of my face with a flashlight.

“—No problem here.”

“…Who are you?”

“I’m a doctor. Can’t you tell?”

The man who introduced himself as a doctor performed a few more examinations before standing up, as if he was done, and called for someone. Moments later, familiar faces began pouring into the room.

It was Regalia, Ayle, and Vira—my companions from the Evil Organization.

“Dr. Magical Medical. Is the treatment done?”

“It’s done, Madam. You didn’t need to call me for such minor injuries. Any local hospital doctor could handle this easily.”

“I just want to give my subordinates the best care.”

“To be honest, I feel like it’s a waste of money.”

“Then will you consider a discount?”

“I can’t do that. Anyway, since the treatment is over, I’ll be going now…”

As the man with the stitched face left the room, the three of them rushed toward me. I looked at them with a bit of an awkward expression.

“M-Mister Scientist… I’m so sorry!”

“…For what?”

“Because of me…”

Ayle, teary-eyed, looked down, seemingly thinking she was the cause of my current state. Technically, she wasn’t entirely wrong. If it hadn’t been for her, I wouldn’t have gone to such a crowded place, and if it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have fainted from debris falling from a collapsing building…

But I wasn’t the kind of scientist who lived solely by cold, rational thought, devoid of empathy or sympathy. Scientists like that can’t survive in an industry where you need to secure budgets by wrangling politics and emotions. What mattered wasn’t reason, but empathy, collusion, and compromise.

“—Sorry. I don’t really remember what happened before I fainted.”

“R-Really?”

“I remember you asking me to go to that Magical Girl comic event, but… what happened after that?”

A little white lie. Thankfully, Ayle didn’t seem to catch on. Quite the opposite of the two people behind her, who looked utterly baffled.

Ayle bit her lip a few times before cautiously speaking up.

“…Nothing happened.”

“Really?”

“Y-Yes… Mister Scientist… You, you fell in the shower, and that’s how it happened—!”

“No, that’s not it.”

“H-Have you regained your memory?!”

Oh, Ayle…

My plan to comfort her with a lie completely backfired. Even when given the chance, she couldn’t take the bait, acting like the socially awkward outcast she was.

I sighed and shook my head. Then I looked at the boss. Regalia raised her eyebrows, as if asking, ‘Is this gag of yours finally over?’

“Scientist. Enough with the unconvincing act. We have a lot to discuss.”

“Yes, Boss.”

“W-Was it an act?”

As Vira broke into laughter at Ayle’s obliviousness to my ruse, Regalia began explaining what transpired after I fainted.

“All the kidnappers have been thrown into the Villain Containment Facility. They likely won’t see the light of day again.”

“But… they were just kids!”

“Precisely because they’re kids. The fact they chose that path despite their abilities means there’s no hope for rehabilitation.”

The kidnapper who had the rare ability of teleportation still chose the path of a villain. It was a clear sign they were beyond saving.

Unlike Earth, where criminals’ rights often trumped victims’ rights, here, once you become a villain, you’re locked up for life in a facility, with no chance of getting out.

I understood the reasoning behind not killing villains with dangerous powers. You couldn’t give a murder license to heroes. After all, the only difference between a hero and a villain is how they wield their abilities. There’s no law that says a hero with a murder license wouldn’t turn against civilians.

“Why? Are you one to feel sympathy for kids? Are you hoping for leniency for them?”

“No. Of course not… It just feels a bit too kind to just lock them up.”

“…It sounds kind of scary when you say that. Please don’t elaborate.”

Having heard Regalia’s words, I nodded in understanding. Sure, no matter how much of a corporate bigwig she was, she was still a child at heart. This could be a little too intense for her ears.

I leaned back against the bed, looking at Vira, who seemed like she had something left to say to me.

“Vira? Why are you here?”

“Well, um…”

“Aren’t you supposed to get fired for failing your protective duty?”

“U-Um, well…”

Vira seemed taken aback by my words, only able to fumble her lips without being able to voice a proper answer. To put it coldly, she couldn’t deny the truth.

Seeing her usually vibrant self turn shy and awkward like Ayle started to make me feel unexpectedly good. I even felt a desire to tease her more. I shouldn’t be doing this— I’m not a jerk (professor), after all.

“Why the sad face? If someone sees you like that, they might think I did something wrong.”

As I watched her face visibly crumbling, I briefly wondered if I was being too harsh. But I wouldn’t regret it. If I get a chance next time, I’ll keep teasing her as much as I can.

However, when her expression continued to remain tense, Regalia followed my lead and began to tease Vira too.

“Scientist. Although Vira did make a mistake this time, she’s certainly not an incompetent guard. In fact, this incident will likely encourage her to reflect more and improve. I will guarantee that.”

“I know, Boss. You wouldn’t have sent her as my guard otherwise.”

“However, I’m starting to think that perhaps I might have misjudged her after this incident…”

“A-A lady…!”

As Vira sank into despair, Regalia and I exchanged knowing looks and broke into laughter. Seeing us laugh so freely, Vira finally realized she’d been played and her face twisted in disbelief.

Gazing back at her with a devilish expression, I lightly lowered my head.

“I’m sorry, Vira. It’s just that you were making such a teasing face, I couldn’t help myself…”

“…That’s not wrong, is it? Yes. It’s all my fault for being so incompetent. Is it a sin to be excited about having my limbs back after being an armless person? Isn’t it?”

After a few exchanges, Vira began to make self-deprecating jokes.

The mood was slowly getting tense.

Fortunately, Regalia didn’t let that atmosphere linger.

“Vira, enough of this. What if the Scientist decides to create a guard android? You’d lose your job.”

“Ah, yes, Boss. But no matter how skilled Eight may be, there’s no way he can make something like that…”

“Right. Isn’t that so?”

The two looked at me with suspicious eyes.

I faced the two, who were looking at me in disbelief.

“Of course I wouldn’t make something like that. It’s a violation of labor laws.”

“Hm— As expected… wait, what?”

“No, what kind of violation?”

“Labor laws. Making a robot that takes human jobs is an infringement on human rights… Ah.”

As I started to mention that, it suddenly hit me that we weren’t on Earth and that such laws didn’t exist here. In other words, it meant I could create those robots without any restrictions.

As the realization struck, the looks on their faces grew even colder. They now glared at me with the vicious eyes of workers worried about losing their jobs.

“I said I’m not making one.”

Fortunately for workers around the world, I had no intention of building such a robot.

At most, I’d want to…

“A self-defense tool.”

What’s the most important factor in a self-defense tool? Performance? Of course, it’s essential to have the ability to effectively take down an opponent, but what’s even more crucial is practicality and discretion.

Who doesn’t know that the safest method is to carry a gun and shoot anyone who approaches? The issue, however, is that you’d be branded a lunatic and thrown in jail for that.

So the key to any self-defense tool is that it must be practical enough to use without facing societal condemnation, and at the same time, discreet enough not to be seen as a weapon.

If it looks threatening to anyone, the opponent will be the first to try and grab it or neutralize you. It needed to appear harmless enough.

“A watch or a bracelet would be ideal.”

However, wearing a bracelet as a man seems awfully effeminate, and if it’s an expensive-looking item, there’s a chance it could get stolen. So those were out. That left just the watch.

Even in an age where you can measure time to the millisecond, watches were still favored. Thieves and kidnappers might snatch your phone, but they rarely bother to steal watches.

In other words, it was perfect as a self-defense tool.

“The most dangerous thing is teleportation. That must be blocked.”

Fortunately, I already knew how to counteract teleportation, and I had demonstrated that it worked in this world not long ago. It was the quantum spatial folding phenomenon discovered by Professor Emilia.

In the past, Professor Emilia won the Nobel Prize in Physics for discovering that quantum wave interference could fold space. Subsequent physicists researched this phenomenon and developed the technology to block spatial movement, which I had used to counter the kidnappers.

“A barrier… should be enough to block at least one hit.”

If I could prevent teleportation, then I wouldn’t need to worry about attacks. After all, I had Vira. Her superpower is the ultimate shield of the evil organization—one of the highest abilities known to humanity. Any attack she couldn’t block couldn’t be handled by a mere self-defense tool either.

And I certainly didn’t plan to wear something bulky like a suit every day just to prepare for attacks she couldn’t handle.

So, the attack needed to be minimal—just enough to block one hit. The next priority was counterattack—capabilities to subdue an enemy.

This part had me pondering.

At what level should it be set?

“Hmm…”

Enough to breach Vira’s barrier in one blow? Ridiculous. There’s no way a small device like a watch could produce that kind of power.

Enough to hurt Ayle? Ridiculous. Ayle may be as strong as a tank without her Magical Girl costume, but in this world where superpowers exist, she couldn’t be the benchmark.

In the end, I had to test…

“So, that’s why you came to find me, Scientist?”

“Yes, well. You’re free to refuse if you don’t want to.”

Standing in front of Galm, I fiddled with a small handgun. Small enough to hide in my palm. I would later put it inside the watch, but for now, I had it in a shape that was easy for shooting.

As I aimed the small pistol at Galm, he smiled as if to say, “Go ahead, shoot me.”

“There’s no way a toy like that could hurt me—”

Piiing—!

A beam shot from the pistol pierced through Galm’s abdomen.

Dazed, Galm stared at the hole in his own belly.

I looked at him and said, “I shoot.”

“…You already shot.”

“Let me know when the pain becomes unbearable or when you feel you’ve been subdued.”

I pulled out a new pistol with increased firepower. I had made it slightly larger than before to make it distinguishable. It was still palm-sized, but Galm swallowed hard and opened his mouth.

“Heh, heh— well, with this level—”

Piuuuung—!

“…This is a bit spicy for a toy—”

Piiiiiiing—!

“No, don’t interrupt me—”

Jiiiiing—!

Now aiming at the firearm that had surpassed palm size, Galm raised his hands as if to indicate that this was starting to get dangerous.

“—I surrender.”

“Oh, sorry. I already pressed the button.”

With a light smile, I fired again. A massive hole opened up in Galm’s abdomen. It appeared he really could not endure it this time, as he began foaming at the mouth and collapsed.

As I poured a red medicine into his gaping mouth, I became certain of the level of firepower needed to subdue an opponent.

“The original size should suffice.”

Even if he had been caught off guard, the fact he couldn’t move after taking one shot was solid evidence. I knew even then that the firepower was sufficient…

I simply wanted to take another shot.

This was definitely not due to any ulterior motives.

End of Chapter