Life didn't get easier, even in another world.

Glenn turned on the computer.

"Can I... Can I ask why are we searching about these things?"

Glenn folded his arms and sighed with a tired face.

"It's about those documents you guys brought that day. They really belonged to Philomns. After examining them for a few days, we found out that they had some information about monsters."

"Monster?"

"Yes. Although the real information was hidden under a bunch of unrelated things to cover them, we managed to find out some bits of it. In short, they are related to the process in which the monsters are created."

Kairen looked down at the papers given to him.

"Is this about those crack-like things that The Fifth used on that attack?"

Glenn thought for a second.

"Well, yes. It might be related to that."

Kairen looked up at Glenn and nodded with a smile.

"Okay. I'll do everything you told me before I go home."

Glenn's eyes sparkled and the edges of his lips rose up. He patted Kairen's shoulder with happiness.

"God I was going crazy in this place all alone! Just don't get injured anymore! From now on, whenever you see that an enemy is about to hit you, just throw one of those muscle-brained guys in front of the enemy, okay?"

"....."

Kairen blinked his eyes without being able to say anything.

'Pardon?'

"Don't look at me like that! It will take half a day for those muscle bags to recover from the wound that hospitalizes you for a week. So don't hesitate to do what I said. You are needed here! Do you want me to die from overwork?"

"...."

Kairen gulped and looked down.

'This man... Scary...'

With a happy face, Glenn left Kairen and walked towards his own desk.

"By the way..."

He suddenly stopped midway through and turned towards Kairen. 

He looked at the boy who tilted his head after sensing his gaze.

"Oh no. Nothing."

"..."

Kairen stared at his back with a dumbfounded face.

'Why do these people act like this today...'

Well, no wonder.

He was a suspect after all.

'Just why did that man act like that? Damn, I'm so curious.'

Kairen shook his head and looked at the monitor. 

'Let's get these things done first.'

. . . . . 

Kairen placed the reports on Glenn's desk.

"I've finished doing all of the things you asked."

Glenn, busy typing on the computer, raised one eyebrow without turning his head.

"Already? That was fast."

Kairen looked at the pile of papers on Glenn's desk, wondering where he had to put his reports.

"I don't have the time to go through them all right now. Can you sum up the results?"

Kairen nodded his head after hearing Glenn's words and looked at the papers in his hands.

"As you said, I checked the average change levels recorded on the surface of the city's barrier and compared it with the other records. Also checked the monster generation rate and other variables related to them that you mentioned."

"So?"

Kairen looked at the papers once more to make sure he didn't tell anything wrong.

"The overall monster generation rate is the same as ever. Also, the average change level on the barriers and the total damage taken by them are the same. But..."

Kairen put one paper in front of Glenn. It was a small map with a few places marked on them with different colors.

"In these places..."

Kairen pointed at the places marked red.

"The monster generation rate has increased significantly in the past few years. It was not to the point to be spotted normally as the changes accrued really slowly. But comparing the data of the past then years with the data of the past fifty years, you can see how much it has increased."

"...."

Glenn silently looked at the numbers written on the map.

"And in these places..."

Kairen pointed at the green dots on the map.

"The monster generation rate has dropped significantly. Again, it wouldn't be easy to spot the changes if you didn't compare them to the data of the last fifty years."

"...."

Glenn still silently looked at the map with a serious face.

"There are places where the changes in monster generation rate are small, and some places that the changes are big. There were various places in the country but I picked up the ones that stood out the most."

Kairen pointed at three yellow spots on the map.

"This one decrease, this one increase, and the last one decrease."

Glenn nodded his head.

"Ah and..."

Kairen hesitated for a moment, before walking to his desk and picking up another paper.

"Just in case, I checked the same thing for the neighboring nations. I didn't have access to all of the data, but the results were more or less clear."

Showing the continent's map to Glenn, Kairen continued.

"There were changes in these places as well. The same as the ones in our country. This one on this island had a decrease while these two in Bordkly had an increase... No, unlike our country where the changes started to happen from ten years ago, it seems that the changes in Bordkly had started just recently. And also this island has a faster change speed than Hainston."

"....."

Kairen looked at the last paper in his hand.

"And the last thing is that, although the monster generation rate has increased in some places, the overall damage has not increased much. It might be because the hunter guilds work better as time passes, but it also might have other reasons, in which I couldn't find anything about."

"I... See..."

Glenn looked between Kairen and the documents.

"... Well done..."

He said that with a fazed face and stared at the documents. 

"I have to look into other stuff. You can go."

"Yes."

Kairen looked at Glenn one last time before leaving his room.

"...Kairen!"

Kairen stopped and looked back at Glenn.

"Is there anything else I need to do?"

Glenn shook his head.

"I just wanted to say something..."

"Yes..."

Kairen stiffened up as Glenn's face suddenly seemed more serious than before.

"If you can do all of these..."

He pointed at the documents that Kairen had just placed on his table with his eyes.

"Why don't you try a little bit to prove your innocence?"

"...."

Kairen looked directly at Glenn's eyes.

"...Can I?"

"...."

"I-I mean, I'm really suspicious y-you know... How am I even supposed to prove something..."

"...."

Glenn closed his eyes and massaged his forehead.

"I can't tell you how, but you've got to do something before it's too late."

"What do you mean?"

Glenn reopened his eyes and looked at Kairen again.

"You are gathering so much attention, and that attention... is not the positive one."

"...."

"So you'd better do something while the team leader can still protect you."

Kairen's eyes widened.

"The team leader is... protecting me? From whom?"

"Ha!"

Glenn chuckled.

"Look, Kairen, there are a lot of things about SMF that you don't know... Especially after what happened to you on your final exams in the academy."

"...!!"

Kairen flinched. 

'Of course, he knows about that memory loss thing!'

Glenn glanced at the computer Kairen often uses.

"I can somehow guess why you have been searching those stuff. It is only logical to look for a forgotten past, right?"

"...."

Ignoring Kairen's pale face, Glenn continued talking in a serious voice.

"And I also can understand why team leader Dains is trying so hard to protect you. But Kairen..."

Glenn placed his head on his palm.

"Team leader Dains is nothing but a 'team leader'. Keep that in mind."

"...."

Smile.

Glenn smiled at the boy's somehow frightened face.

"Goodbye."

"...."

Kairen turned back.

"G-goodbye..."

Kairen stiffly walked out of the room.

'What did he mean by... protecting...'

Did he mean that there was someone who wanted to harm him?

Where? Here? At SMF?

Why?

Glenn's words, mixed with his serious face, gave Kairen chills. Taking a deep breath, Kairen walked towards the elevator, trying his best to keep calm.

Kairen could sense unit members' strange gaze on himself again as soon as he left Glenn's office. Ignoring them all, he walked to the elevator and went to the Monster Hunting Division's hall.

Fortunately, there was no one to glance at him and avert their gaze each second in the Monster Hunting Division's hall. There were a bunch of people going here and there and some hunters leaving the hall. 

Kairen walked towards captain Neal's office and slowly knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Kairen opened the door and slowly walked inside. He looked at the office with his mouth gaped. The office was the same shape and size as the team leader's office, but unlike his, this office was just... too neat.

'How can this place be like this?'

Everything was ordered. Everything was clean to the point of sparkling...

"...."

"Come sit here."

Kairen snapped out of his thoughts and sat where he was told to.

"So you finished that book?"

"Yes."

Captain Neal looked at Kairen's face for a moment before taking out a paper from her desk.

"Summarize everything you've read in this paper."

"....."

"You only have one hour, so start quickly."

Kairen tilted his head.

"P-pardon?"

Captain Neal put the paper in front of Kairen and then gave him a pen.

"If your summary is not acceptable, You'll have to read the book again."

"P-pardon????"

"If you are not ready, you can come back after you've read the book once again."

"N-no wait-"

"And if you don't want to take the exam... There is no such option as not wanting to take the exam. So start."

"...."

Kairen looked at the paper given to him, trying his best not to cry.

"Can I.... get extra papers?"