Chapter 78: End of Lab Rats Experiments and its results
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Next day, dawn broke, and in the soft morning light, Ace, Shinobu, and Tamayo gathered in the room, engaging in light conversation with each other while keeping a watch on the devil beside them.
The trio had spent the entire night in the room without sleeping, patiently waiting for Daki to awaken. One night of sleep deprivation wasn't enough to affect any of them.
"So, how's life as a demon, Tamayo san? Am sure it's quite different from being a human" Ace asked, not out of curiosity but to raise a topic of discussion as they pass time.
Shinobu elbowed me in the waist and mouthed the words 'that's insensitive'.
But it seemed Tamayo saw it and chuckled, saying, "Fufu, don't worry. I am not uncomfortable talking about this."
"See, she doesn't mind it," Ace said to Shinobu, who only shook her head.
"Well, if I talk about my life, I would say it has been pretty good if you forget about the start. I have been able to save many more lives than I would ever have if I were not a demon due to my long life."
"You can say I both appreciate and despise my demon life," she said with a conflicted voice.
"You don't have to despise your life, Tamayo-san. You have saved the lives of countless people, sick or poor without distinction. I am sure they wouldn't have thought of your life like that," Ace reassured.
In his mind he could somewhat sense the sadness in Tamayo's answers.
"I am happy you think of me like that, Ace-san, but these hands are stained… by blood, my own family's blood." As she said those words, memories that were buried in deep pits of her mind, memories that were as old as a millennia came to her mind again. "I had killed them, killed them with my own hands, my children and ate them while they screamed for help to their mother who was tearing their flesh apart. I still remember their faces as I…" She stopped as she felt someone giving a pat on her shoulder, noticing Ace had appeared at her side.
"You are trembling," he said. Only then did she notice her body was shaking, and sweat was forming on her forehead.
Ace tightened his grip in a comforting manner, offering support to Tamayo. He knew the weight of her past haunted her, and he couldn't help but feel sympathy towards her.
"I... I'm sorry," Tamayo muttered, her voice filled with a mix of guilt and pain. She didn't want to act like that, and thought after so many years she might have gotten over it, but it seems there is still some trauma left in her.
"No, I am sorry. I shouldn't have asked you this," Ace chided himself..
Shinobu, who had been silently observing, spoke up, "Tamayo-san, you've dedicated your life to saving others, trying to make amends. That counts for something."
Tamayo looked at Shinobu, a glimmer of gratitude in her eyes. Ace, still holding her, added, "We all have our demons, both figuratively and literally. It's about what we choose to do with it, that defines us."
Tamayo took a deep breath, visibly trying to collect herself. "Thank you both. I... I appreciate your understanding."
Meanwhile, Daki stirred on the bed, her eyes slowly fluttering open and she struggled to sit up, but the bounds didn't let her. The three turned their attention to her, hearing the rattling of the bed.
Daki's gaze darted around the room, confusion evident in her eyes. She then looked down at her hands and body, seemingly surprised by the lack of the expected changes.
After a moment, Daki looked up at the trio, her eyes narrowing, and she shrieked. "What did you do to me?"
She still remembered the pain that she felt before, even with her hazy mind, it was so excruciating that it even surpassed the pain she felt when she burned herself, during her life as a human.
She felt her insides melting on itself but regenerate itself again and again. She had felt her nerves melting before reforming again.
She was cooked alive again, but this time even death was not there to save her as her eyes melted into her own sockets, and her brain became nothing but a charred crisp.
Neither was she able to pass out, and she continued to experience that excruciating pain for several minutes without it ever stopping, before she finally blacked out. She almost wanted to cry but the conflicting half-paralyzed state she was in, didn't even grant her that drop of mercy.
"You had a transformation. The pain was a product of that!" Shinobu answered without much change of expression.
"You didn't say that it would be this painful!!" Daki shouted.
"Would it matter even if I said it? Would you have backed out of the deal just because of the pain?" Shinobu said.
Daki grew silent hearing that. It was true she was horrified at the pain and even wished she had died at that time. But it was only for that moment. Now that she had gotten past it, she could think clearly and had to admit, she would have gone for the deal even if she had to experience excruciating pain.
'Sigh. What a lowlife I am. No one is left in this world for me, and yet I am clinging on to dear life,' Daki thought bitterly.
"Let me check your body," Tamayo said as she finally released Daki from her bounds, allowing her to breathe a sigh of relief. Then, she began to diagnose Daki.
As Tamayo examined her, her eyebrows raised slightly at the results. The more she examined her, the more surprised she became.
After finally completing her diagnosis, she turned to Shinobu and Ace and said, with a glint in her eyes, "The experiment was successful, and surprisingly it was even better than what I initially thought. It seems her human part was somehow awakened in the neuronal region even before the experiment."
Ace and Shinobu were surprised at her words. Ace looked at Daki with a newfound appreciation. "I'm surprised. You still have humanity inside you. No wonder you were cooperative with us."
Daki just grunted at that. She didn't care if she was human or not. Maybe it was because of the returning memories from her previous life. But what irritated her more was that they were discussing her as a lab rat in front of her.
'If that prick wasn't here, I would show them what being an experiment truly means. Fuck! My life has completely turned around since I met him. I don't know if it's my good luck or bad luck," she thought, frustrated by her own weakness and his power.
"Let's go. If the experiment was successful, we need to shift her back to her cell," Shinobu said.
"Can't you give me a break? It's not like I'll run away, and besides, it's daytime now," Daki protested, seeing reflections of light, slivering through the creaks over the jamb of the window.
"No. You already got your break. You were sleeping the whole night while we had to watch out for you. We need a break more than you," Shinobu jabbed back at Daki.
"You..." Daki began, but she knew that she was not going at anything even if she argued. So she just sighed in resignation and followed them silently back to her cell.
"Don't worry, as long as you follow through with our plan, you'll get back your desired freedom. Then you can let loose as much as you want. Of course, no killing, or I will personally chase you down," Ace said, draping his arm around her shoulders, causing her eyebrows to raise.
"Hmph, I'll see how much you humans keep your word," Daki responded, a hint of skepticism in her voice.
"Enough with the human thing? I have a name. And weren't you shouting it in pleasure before? What happened now?" Ace said, smirking. His last sentence was silenced, as he only mouthed the words, so Shinobu and Tamayo wouldn't hear.
Interpreting his words from his lip movements, Daki gritted her teeth at this guy's shamelessness. So, she did what she thought would make him shut up.
"Do you want me to tell them that you played around with me? I'm sure that Hashira girl would be very upset to know how her lover was spending the night with a demon," she said, mouthing her words just like him.
This made Ace raise his hands in defeat. He didn't want Shinobu to find out this way.
Ace sighed and glanced at Shinobu and Tamayo, who seemed oblivious to their silent exchange.
"Shut it, I'll stop," Ace whispered back, giving Daki a knowing look. "But try to keep your little mouth shut, otherwise I will shut it with my glaive. "
Daki nodded. "Agreed," she mouthed silently. She liked getting an edge on him.
With that settled, Shinobu and Tamayo proceeded to escort Daki back to her cell, where she would await further instructions.
However, during their journey back, a small ray of light managed to penetrate the passage from a small hole in the ceiling, unbeknownst to anyone except Daki. The beam fell directly on her, but instead of fully incinerating the part where it fall, it only left a slight burn.
Quickly concealing her wound with her sash, Daki maintained her composure as they reached her cell. As she settled in, a small smirk played on her lips.
With a final lingering satisfaction, she drifted off into her unconscious state.
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