Pathway to Japanese Literature

House of Artificial Humans

This story begins in Vladivostok City, a famous port town of the Soviet Union. As one ascends from Vladivostok City toward the mountains, there stands a magnificent building that would catch anyone's eye immediately—with its grand white walls crowned by a blue-rusted circular roof, and a sharp spire towering upward as if piercing the gray sky. "Ah, what a magnificent temple!" People who didn't know would surely say that. However, while this building was undoubtedly once a temple, it was no longer so. Now then, what kind of house could that be? It was none other than— That very building was none other than Dr. Ivanov's "House of Artificial Humans."

The House of Artificial Humans—you might not understand what that refers to—but to explain in more detail: Dr. Ivanov was a most eminent scientist. Though by then a completely bald old man, he possessed a research spirit that rivaled even younger scholars and had long been engrossed in artificial human studies. He had moved into that former temple site ten years prior, and at that time, when leading a mechanical doll—its crude form resembling welded oil tanks—up the slope, passersby would invariably stop in their tracks and stare in astonishment. With each step, the mechanical doll emitted grinding gear noises, occasionally shaking its oil-can-like neck while sounds issued from between lips resembling a postbox slot,

“U-uh, everyone. I am a robot. I have moved to this town. Please be kind to me.” It spoke in a radio-like, impossibly loud voice. Chattering the same phrases over and over along the way, they climbed up the slope until vanishing into the grounds of that former temple. They say Dr. Ivanov’s look of pride as he stood beside it defied description. Ten years had flowed by since then.

Dr. Ivanov’s research had progressed remarkably over ten years, and his creations had become so splendid that people no longer called them mechanical dolls but referred to them as Artificial Humans. But lately, Dr. Ivanov stopped showing his Artificial Humans to the townspeople as he once did. As if making amends, once a year—during spring when white plum blossoms burst into bloom—he would open the temple gates, allowing townspeople free access to the garden, and display mechanically animated dolls, horses, dogs, and other creations in the garden for viewing. Today was the one and only Artificial Human Day of the year. In the garden, townspeople crowded in, pushing each other to see the rare sights. The congestion at the entrance was especially intense.

“Oh, you cannot enter.” “Artificial Humans are top secret.” “Japanese people are not permitted to enter.” “Go back now! Hurry up and go back!”

At this very moment, a Japanese brother and sister who appeared to be siblings were being yelled at by a Russian man as large as a Nio Temple guardian statue at the entrance reception desk. "But we..." "No entry, no entry! No matter what you say, you can’t come in!”

The giant at the reception desk kept up his loud protests, determined not to let the siblings enter.

Dr. Ivanov "Then please call Dr. Ivanov here. We're the brother and sister named Seita and Mariko who live next door. But Dr..." "No matter what you say, Japanese people can't enter. If you don't go back, I'll show you my strength!" "Wait, please. But Dr. Ivanov insisted we come see it and was kind enough to call us just now!"

“Brother, let’s just stop this and go back already.”

Mariko, the fourth-grade elementary school student and younger sister, became so intimidated by the receptionist’s fierce demeanor that she now wanted to go back. “Wait, Mariko. But the Doctor told us to come see it! Getting turned away by the receptionist like this—there’s no way something so strange could happen!” “Hey! Won’t you go back no matter what? You stubborn Japanese! I’ll raise my arm now!” “Huh? Brother...” Mariko tried to pull her brother Seita back. Seita was a third-year middle school student, quite reliable for his age. That was when it happened.

Inside the abdomen of that temple guardian statue-like receptionist, something made a grating, grinding noise. The moment that happened, the receptionist’s raised arm froze in place. It wasn’t just his arm—his entire body had stiffened until he resembled an actual wooden temple guardian statue. “What’s wrong with this receptionist?”

As Seita was making a puzzled face, a bald-headed old man came rushing up from the back, panting heavily as he pushed through the crowd.

“Don. “No entry!” “Ah, Seita-san, Mariko-san, I’ve been waiting for you.” “Come along now, please enter this way.” “I had forgotten to give instructions to this receptionist.” “Ah, you’re Dr. Ivanov, aren’t you?” “Yes, I am Ivanov. “Welcome—how kind of Seita-san and Mariko-san to come!” “Please come this way.” The siblings turned to look back at Receptionist Don as if to say “See?”, but by then Don had already stationed himself among the crowd at the entrance, wearing an innocent expression while zealously managing the flow of people.

“Huh? That’s strange.” “Come along, come along this way, pleease. There are many artificial humans I especially want to show you.” “What do you mean by ‘artificial humans you especially want to show us’?” “Well, there are some rather fascinating creations I’ve made. I don’t let anyone in, but for you two alone, I’ll make a special exception to enter the house—pleease.” The doctor led the two to the large building’s door, unlocked it, and guided the siblings inside.

Strange Animals The moment the siblings stepped into the room, something suddenly snarled "Grrr... Arf arf! Woof!" and lunged at their feet. Mariko let out a yelp and clutched Seita's arm. When they looked down, it was a fierce dog nearly the size of a calf. “Here, Dap. Go over there.” Dr. Ivanov abruptly lifted his leg and kicked the dog. A hollow clang rang out like kicking an empty chair. The mechanical beast tucked its tail and scurried into the shadows.

“That’s quite a dog you have there,” Seita said. “Oh, that’s an artificial dog.” “Huh? An artificial dog? Mariko, he said that’s an artificial dog!” “Why, it’s an artificial dog,” said Dr. Ivanov. “So it’s a dog assembled from machinery. It looks exactly like a real one!” “That’s exactly right—if the artificial dog bites down, it can tear off a hand or a leg. If it were a real dog, that wouldn’t happen.” “So it’s stronger than a real dog then?”

“Yes, yes.” “I’m quite proud of this artificial dog,” the doctor said cheerfully. “There are even more interesting things.” “Now, I’ll clap my hands,” he said, clapping twice. Then squealing “ui-ui-ui,” a white pig ran out from behind the curtain and came to an abrupt halt before the doctor. “Please look at this pig’s back, pleease.” “The back has been made into a table.” Indeed, upon closer inspection—the white pig’s back appeared to have a flat board placed upon it.

“Inside this is some delicious liquor, ple~ase.” “I will give the command.” “The liquor will come out in cups.” When Dr. Ivanov reached his hand toward the pig, its back split open to both sides with a clunk, and from beneath emerged three cups filled with what appeared to be fine Western liquor. When its back closed, the cups were properly resting on top. The pig’s body was structured like a warehouse for storing liquor.

“How about it?” “Have some liquor, pleease.” The doctor picked up the cup. “No, we won’t drink any, so please have it yourself, Doctor.” “I see.” “Then I’ll stop too—pleease. Let’s put away the moving table.” With that, Dr. Ivanov gave the pig’s rear a light tap. Then the pig ran off toward the other side. As it ran off, its back split into two again, and they saw the cups of Western liquor automatically retract inside.

“Ha ha ha ha, how about that?” “Isn’t it fascinating?” “That isn’t a real pig either—it’s an artificial pig I created.” “Hmm, so that’s an artificial pig?” “That’s incredible.” “I’m starting to feel queasy.” “Brother, let’s go home already.”

Mariko kept poking her brother's side and urged him to leave the mansion.

“Please wait a moment.” “I’ll show you something even more interesting.” “I’ll show you my pride and joy—the artificial human Mr. F.”

“I’ve had enough.” “But the Artificial Human Mr. F is quite an impressive human. “If you see it, it’ll make for a good story to tell. “You will soon return to Japan. “It’ll make for a great story to bring home.” Seita took issue with that,

“Huh? How do you know about our return to Japan, Doctor?” “Ha ha ha ha. “Everyone knows that. “I can immediately know anything happening in the world.” Dr. Ivanov continued to laugh out loud—ha ha ha ha—at something that wasn’t particularly funny.

The Unfinished Mr. F

Seita and Mariko's father was a merchant who ran a store in Vladivostok. Their mother, being in poor health, resided in their hometown of Kamakura, but having not seen her children for a considerable time, had requested their return. This was why the siblings were scheduled to return to Japan shortly. This decision had only been made within their household and not yet reported to either the consulate or Soviet authorities, making it all the more astonishing that Dr. Ivanov already knew about it.

“Well then, you may see just the Artificial Human Mr. F before returning home, ple~ase.” “Miss Mariko, does this frighten you?” “Should you feel frightened, you may wait outside the room, ple~ase.” “Only Mr. Seita will be permitted to view it.” “You’re certain to be impressed, Mr. Seita.”

Dr. Ivanov, beaming, took the siblings by the hand and guided them along the corridor deeper and deeper into the mansion.

Eventually, the corridor came to a dead end.

“From here we’ll go down the stairs to the basement. “Miss Mariko, are you frightened? “Then please wait here. “You may go out to the garden from there.”

“Well then, Mariko. “Wait here, okay? “Don’t go anywhere until I come back.” “Yes, I’ll wait. “Please come back as soon as you can, Brother.” Mariko said with a praying gesture. Seita was led by Dr. Ivanov down the dimly lit stairs. “Doctor, why are you so insistent on showing me this artificial human called Mr. F?” “Hmm, that is—it’s because he’s the most outstanding artificial human in the world. “Until now, artificial humans were as large as gorillas or giants, but Mr. F has been made quite small. “He even speaks Japanese rather well—better than we do.”

“Oh, so that artificial human Mr. F speaks Japanese—”

“He does.” “In addition to Japanese, he speaks English and Russian fluently.” “He speaks thirteen languages.” “It took me considerable effort.”

Dr. Ivanov took out a key and unlocked the door. “Please come in.” A purple electric light glowed. Something made a strange creaking noise. Looking closely, under the electric light sat a human-shaped thing on a chair. However, strangely enough, it merely maintained a human form through numerous wires overlapping exactly like those inside a radio receiver. “Is Mr. F... that?”

“That’s correct. “Mr. F has only had his interior completed so far, ple~ase. “Next, we will add flesh on top of that framework, then cover it with skin to make him appear human. “He hasn’t been completed yet. “However, he moves quite well. “Now, let’s go in.” With that, Dr. Ivanov pulled Seita into the room. The door snapped shut.

Inside the ominous door.

On this side was Mariko, waiting in the corridor. Seita, who had promised to return immediately, still hadn’t come back even after ten or twenty minutes had passed. What had happened to Seita? Mariko suddenly felt uneasy, and her chest began pounding like a rapid temple bell. (What had happened to Brother? He said he'd come right out, but he still hadn't appeared. All the other visitors had left, and now I was the only one waiting here like this. Oh, I felt so lonely I thought I might lose my mind.)

Mariko looked around the corridor. Dusk cast dark shadows in the corners of the corridor. A strange tower seemed to peer intently at Mariko from the window.

(Miss Mariko, Brother has already gone somewhere—now you're the only one left here.)

The strange tower somehow seemed to be speaking to Mariko in that manner.

"Ah, I can't take this anymore. I'm going down to the basement now."

Mariko muttered to herself and started running down the corridor.

The stairs leading down to the basement were now completely swallowed by darkness, but Mariko, driven solely by her desire to see her brother, clattered down the steps one after another. When she descended the stairs, there was another wide corridor. And there were many rooms with large doors. Standing in front of the nearest room door, Mariko timidly peered inside. The other side of the door was quiet. There was no sign that anyone was present.

(This doesn’t seem to be the room.) Mariko, looking frightened, turned her gaze back to the door, and even she could read the characters for "Storage" written there.

“Oh, this is a storage room.” Mariko walked briskly down the corridor and stood before the next room. Then, from inside the room, a rather high-pitched creaking noise—creak-creak-creak, creak-creak-creak—echoed out. There, written on it, was “Artificial Human Mr. F’s Room.”

(Oh, Artificial Human Mr. F’s Room—Brother must be here.) Mariko resolutely knocked on the door—tonk-tonk-tonk. “Brother! Brother Seita! “It’s Mariko!” Having said that, Mariko waited for a reply. Yet somehow, the awaited response never came. Only the strange creak-creak-creak noise persisted beyond the door. Vision darkened from anxiety.

“Brother! Brother!” “Mariko! Mariko is waiting!” “Brother, if you’re there, please answer me!” With that, Mariko began frantically pounding on the door with fierce, rapid knocks. When her hands hurt too much to knock, Mariko began thudding her body against the door, “Brother.” “What’s wrong?” “Mariko!” “Won’t you come out here quickly?” Mariko cried out, half-sobbing.

At that moment, from beyond the door came the clank of a key turning. And before long, the door smoothly opened inward. A single face appeared from behind that door⁉

Japanese teacher “Brother!” Mariko called out to the face that had appeared from behind the door. However, that was a huge mistake. It was not Seita’s face, but the ruddy visage of Dr. Ivanov—master of the “House of Artificial Humans.” “Ah—”

Mariko, startled, jumped back two or three steps.

“Ah, Dr.! Where is my brother? Could you please call him here quickly?” Mariko pleaded with the doctor as if in prayer，begging him to let her see her brother.

“Miss Mariko. Making such a fuss won’t do.”

“But Doctor, Brother left me behind and went off somewhere, you see.”

“Are you asking about Seita-san? If it’s Seita-san you’re concerned about, he’s in this room, so there’s no need to worry.”

Upon hearing this, Mariko suddenly perked up.

“Huh? Brother is in this room?” “Oh—” Mariko’s eyes widened, and “In that case, I’ll have you let me in.” “Now, now, wait a moment.” Dr. Ivanov extended his thick arm and restrained Mariko. “It’s dangerous if you go inside. “Just wait a moment. “I’ll call Seita-san for you.”

Dr. Ivanov withdrew back into the room.

Mariko timidly peered into the room. It was very dim inside. The purple electric light emitted only a faint glow, and somewhere there was a strange creak-creak-creak noise that kept sounding incessantly. “Ah, Mariko. Have you grown tired of waiting?” Brother’s voice sounded. It was the voice of the brother she had been waiting for with such desperation. “Oh, Brother. You’re making me wait quite a while, aren’t you?”

When Mariko saw her brother appear from the back of the room, she rushed forward to him. “But researching artificial humans is just so fascinating, you see.” “Mariko, why don’t you go on ahead first?” “I’ll go home after I’ve seen more of the experiments.” “You mustn’t! You mustn’t!” Upon hearing this, Mariko clung to Seita’s chest and refused to let go. “But it’s so interesting. “Hey, Mariko. “Dr. Ivanov is such an amazingly brilliant person. “He says that by creating lots of artificial humans, we can make the world happier and more convenient. “I was thinking I’d like to learn even how to create artificial humans...”

“You mustn’t! Father is worried.” “Let’s go home together right away, okay?”

Then, Dr. Ivanov—who had been silently listening to their conversation until that moment—spoke up.

“Well then, Seita-san. Please return home for today.” “Mariko-san is worried.” “But Doctor,” “You’re only showing us this place today, aren’t you?” When Seita said, “You won’t show us anymore starting tomorrow, will you?” “In that case, I will show you once more tomorrow—for one day only.” “You may come alone.”

Dr. Ivanov said that with a beaming face.

Seita's Early Bedtime

On the way back after leaving the "House of Artificial Humans," Mariko was in a very bad mood.

“Brother. “You must never go to Dr. Ivanov’s place again. “I’m certain he’s a terrifying person. “What were you doing in that room with him?” “There’s an artificial human called Mr. F that’s just a skeletal frame. “I’ve been teaching him Japanese.” Seita replied completely unfazed.

“My, an artificial human learning Japanese… That’s quite strange.” “He picks things up pretty quickly.” “When I say, ‘It’s quite cold, isn’t it?’ Mr. F immediately repeats the same thing right after me—‘It’s quite cold, isn’t it?’” “And he imitates my voice and speaks in the same kind of voice.” “It was so funny that I burst out laughing.” “Oh...” “Then Mr. F also burst out laughing in the same way I had done afterward—it was uproarious. “Ahahaha.”

"My, how strange." For Mariko, it was less amusing and more unsettling. It seemed Mariko's sense of unease at this time had not been mistaken. For a terrifying incident would later occur—one that would force them to clearly recall this moment once again. Seita, paying no heed to Mariko's attempts to stop him, continued visiting Dr. Ivanov's place for four or five days—perhaps even more—incessantly making excuses like "just today" or "one more day."

The siblings’ father had not been entirely unconcerned upon hearing about this matter; however, having no inkling it would develop into the major incident that later occurred, he ultimately let matters be. The last time Seita visited Dr. Ivanov was on the day before the siblings were finally to board the steamship and return to Japan. Yet despite the entire household being in hectic commotion that day—packing and making all manner of preparations for their departure—Seita returned home only after night had fallen. And then,

“I’m really sleepy today, so I’ll go to bed ahead of you.” With that, he alone burrowed into his futon.

Events During the Voyage

After undergoing rigorous inspections, the steamship Ural Maru finally departed Vladivostok Port.

“Oh, Father! Goodbye, goodbye,” Mariko waved a white handkerchief from the ship’s railing, lingering over her farewell to her father who had come to see them off at the pier. “Goodbye, goodbye,” Seita was also calling out loudly.

Before long, the figure of their father gradually grew smaller, the pier shrank like a toy, and only the mountains of Vladivostok continued to show themselves beyond the smoke. Even so, the siblings still did not try to leave the deck. At that moment, Mariko suddenly recalled how her brother Seita had seemed terribly unwell when he returned from Dr. Ivanov’s residence for the last time,

“Hey, Brother. “What on earth happened there?” she asked. Seita seemed startled by his sister’s sudden question but lowered his voice as if wary of their surroundings, “Yeah, Mariko. “Even I ended up regretting that day. “In other words, Dr. Ivanov had shown me Mr. F’s artificial human experiments for a very long time, but that day, these suspicious crackling sparks flew between Mr. F’s body and mine, and I suddenly felt dizzy—for a while my mind just went completely blank.”

“Oh, how terrible.” “Dr. Ivanov is just like a magician, isn’t he?” “I don’t know how much time passed after that, but when I came to my senses, I found myself lying stretched out on an easy chair without realizing when it had happened.” “Oh! Brother! So you were subjected to something truly terrible by Dr. Ivanov!” “I don’t know whether it was done by Dr. Ivanov or by Mr. F, the artificial human I was facing off against.” “Anyway, after that I felt completely awful, and even when I got home I immediately burrowed into bed.” “Please keep it a secret from Father.”

“Brother, you know how you immediately get absorbed whenever it comes to experiments with electricity and machinery.”

As the two were engrossed in their conversation, an airplane gradually approached the steamship Ural Maru. No matter how one considered it, this was no Japanese airplane. "Hmm! A strange-looking airplane targets this steamship!" Suddenly a loud voice sounded behind them—Seita and Mariko turned around in surprise without understanding why. There sat an old gentleman in a deck chair who had appeared unnoticed. The beard covering his face grew so thick that nose and eyes seemed to peer out from its depths. Thick black-framed glasses completed the appearance.

“Ah! The airplane dropped something.” “Oh! Those look like signal flags.” “Hmm, this is downright peculiar!” The old gentleman shouted in a booming voice that showed no regard for his surroundings.

Sure enough, a balloon trailing four signal flags beneath it was drifting gently along at an altitude of about five hundred meters above the steamship. What were the signal flags for? Who were they directed at, and what message were those signal flags trying to convey?

An ominous shadow fell over the steamship Ural Maru!

The Old Gentleman's Concern

The airplane was circling round and round far behind the ship. It seemed to be waiting for something. Only four signal flags remained behind, slowly descending downward.

“Uncle, what are those signal flags signaling?”

Seita asked the bearded old gentleman. “Oh, some sort of incomprehensible signal flags, I tell ye!” said the old gentleman. “Huh? What do you mean by that?” “It’s an incomprehensible signal, I tell ye.” “In other words, they’re coded signals, I tell ye.” “It’s not an ordinary signal, I tell ye.”

“It’s a code. What are they signaling with the code?” “You don’t understand, child, I tell ye. Since it’s a code, there’s no knowing what they’re signaling, I tell ye. The only thing that’s clear is that something terrible is sure to happen to this ship.” As he spoke these words, another strange thing occurred—exactly as the old gentleman had predicted. Though it remained unclear who had done it, two ball-like objects were thrown from the ship toward the sea with two plopping sounds. When the balls hit the water’s surface, they immediately burst into flames—triggering some mechanism—and began belching out thick plumes of smoke. From one ball rose yellow smoke, while red smoke steadily ascended from the other over the waves.

“There, it’s started, I tell ye!” “Someone inside the ship sent up that smoke as a response instead!” “Now things have really gotten strange, I tell ye!”

The old gentleman clutched the ship's rail and stared intently at the smoke. The airplane—which appeared to have been waiting for the smoke signals—swung its nose around and steadily retreated the way it had come.

“Captain! Captain!”

The old gentleman now called out for the Captain. Even the Captain was not unaware of this strange incident. Having been informed by the crew, he had come out to the bridge some time ago and had been observing this entire situation. “Well, Mr. Ōki. Please don’t make such a fuss. Among the passengers there are those with delicate constitutions.”

The name Ōki was this old gentleman’s surname. “But how can I possibly stay quiet about this? That’s why I had warned you so thoroughly before the ship departed, I tell ye! It’s true—this Ural Maru had been marked by scoundrels even before leaving port, I tell ye! If you keep being careless, the Ural Maru will end up sinking!” The old gentleman’s eyes changed color. The culprit? The Captain deliberately showed composure,

“It’s nothing serious. If it comes to it, a warship will immediately come to our aid.” Though he said this, Old Man Ōki could not calm down at all. “Then you should make immediate preparations. All my wealth—the fortune I worked until I was drenched in sweat to build up to this age—is loaded as cargo on this ship, I tell ye! If the ship sinks, my life will be over, I tell ye! What’s this? What’s the meaning of that signal flag, I tell ye? And then, what’s the meaning of those red and yellow smoke signals thrown from this ship, I tell ye?”

“Regarding that smoke—I also found it suspicious and am having it investigated now.” “Who threw those into the sea—we’ll find out right away.” The Captain said that and glanced toward the lower deck. Earlier, he had sent the chief engineer into the ship and was having him investigate it.

At that moment, the chief engineer’s face appeared from below the stairs. From behind him, a group of sailors came up, seizing the Chinese cook. “Captain. This one—the culprit who threw those smoke-emitting balls into the sea is…” The chief engineer pointed at the Chinese cook, Chō.

“Oh, it’s you, Chō? Why did you throw those smoke-spewing balls into the sea?” “No, Captain. Me no do bad thing. Me don’t know nothing.”

Chō shook his head vigorously. Then, a sailor behind him thudded his fist into Chō’s back,

“Hey! Don’t lie.” “I saw you throw that ball into the sea with my own eyes from behind.” “There’s no use hiding it.” “Huh? You were watching.” “That’s not a lie, is it?” “You’re the big liar here!” “Fine. If you won’t talk, I’ll make you talk.”

As the sailor gruffly grabbed the cook’s arm, Chō immediately burst into tears, “Ah! I’ll talk! I’ll talk!” “I definitely threw the balls into the sea.”

“There, see? Why did you throw them in?” “That… me not know. Someone else ask me throw balls. Me got money. Me don’t want money either. Me give you.” “Who said they’d give you money?” The Captain interjected, “Alright, understood. Chō, who told you to throw the smoke balls? Describe them—what kind of person were they?”

“If I say that, me get killed.” Chō began trembling violently.

Chō's Confession “So you claim ‘If I say that I’ll be killed’—who exactly would kill you?” the Captain pressed harshly.

“It was that child,” said Chō, then gasped and shut his mouth—but it was already too late. “What? A child?” The Captain asked back. “The one who ordered you was a child? Hey, answer me!”

Chō trembled violently, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. “I won’t tell! I won’t tell!” “What are you babbling about?” “Haven’t you already confessed it was a child who gave you orders?” “Even if you clam up now, it’s too late.” “What did this child look like?” “What was the child wearing?” “Tell me that, and I’ll pardon your crime.” Chō glanced desperately around at the gathered crowd’s faces, clearly hoping someone might rescue him. When his eyes suddenly landed on Seita’s face, Chō let out a strangled “Ah—!”, wrenched free from the sailor’s grip, and bolted.

“Hey, stop right there, Chō!” The sailors, determined not to let him escape, chased after Chō. Chō was now fighting for his life. He tumbled clattering down the stairs, crashed into doors, overturned chairs, and darted about like a rat, but under the sailors’ fierce pursuit, he was finally cornered and caught in the ship’s storeroom. By then, Chō lay sprawled like a corpse.

Because word had been sent to the Captain’s location, he soon came down to the storeroom.

“Hey, Chō. “You’d better come clean about everything now!” “Ugh...” “Don’t you understand? I’m offering to forgive your wrongdoing if you confess.” “Hey, Chō—when you saw that passenger Seita’s face earlier, why did you panic and run?” “Ah! That’s—” “We know the whole story already.” “The faster you talk, the easier it’ll go for you.” “Alright... I’ll talk,” Chō said with a pained expression.

“—But if that child is here, I can’t say.” “That child passenger isn’t in this storeroom.”

“So there really isn’t.” “Then speak.” “Me was asked by that child.”

Phantom Flame Chō, the Chinese cook, surprisingly confessed that he had been asked by Seita, the boy, to throw smoke-emitting balls into the sea.

“What?! You’re saying you were asked by Mr. Seita?” Though he had dismissed it as impossible, when Chō stated that Seita had made the request, even the Captain grew shocked at this unexpected turn. He pressed further, suspecting Chō might have mistaken Seita—a boy who shared his appearance—for someone else, but Chō shook his head vehemently, “No—it’s definitely that child. I never mistake people’s faces,” Chō declared. The Captain and all those listening realized this Chinese man wasn’t lying. Now that adorable Japanese boy Seita had become an extremely suspicious figure. How had it come to this?

Seita was summoned by the Captain and went before him. When Chō saw Seita enter with Mariko, he hid behind a sailor with a thoroughly startled expression.

“Mr. Seita. The smoke-emitting ball thrown into the sea earlier—this Chinese cook Chō claims he did it at your request. Do you have anything to say in your defense?”

“What? What are you saying?” Seita exclaimed, thoroughly startled by this unexpected accusation he was hearing for the first time. “That’s outrageous! I didn’t do such a thing.”

"No—that child asked me." “Me never lie.” From behind a sailor, Chō pointed at the boy Seita and refused to back down. Then, Old Man Ōki made an angry face and stepped forward.

“That’s right. That Seita-kun didn’t do it—I was right behind him at the time and saw it all. Seita-kun has no guilt.”

“I see. This has taken a strange turn,” said the Captain. “Chō claims he was asked by Seita-kun, and you all claim that Seita-kun didn’t do it. Which one is actually true?”

Even to Seita, this incident began to seem extremely strange. (Wait. Could it be that there's a boy on this ship who looks exactly like me?)

He considered telling the captain about it but ultimately remained silent. Because at that very moment, a great commotion suddenly erupted inside the ship.

“Fire! Fire!” “A fire’s broken out in the sixth hold!” “Hey, everyone! Lend a hand!”

A suspicious ship fire! Both crew and passengers turned pale simultaneously as if rehearsed. At that moment, the old gentleman spat out: “There! See?” “That earlier signal was fishy.” “Pray this ends with just a ship fire...”

Before those words had even finished, a submarine fleet surfaced on the sea. In the blink of an eye, it completely surrounded the Ural Maru.

**“Burning Ural Maru”**

“Ah! Submarines!” “Oh my, where is that submarine from?” “Japan doesn’t have anything like that!”

On the deck of the Ural Maru, wild-eyed passengers clamored in panic. Inside the ship, desperation showed on the faces of sailors fighting the fire, knowing the vessel might sink if they didn't extinguish it quickly. "Hey! Smoke's billowing from between cargo in the ship's hold!" "Pass the word to the pump crew!" "If we don't press down harder on these pumps, we'll never put out this inferno!"

“Hey, over here! Smoke’s coming from here too! The passengers’ luggage is on fire!”

A ship fire and a suspicious submarine!

Pressed by two threats, both the passengers and crew of the Ural Maru were gasping for breath. Seita and Mariko emerged onto the deck and stood glaring at the submarine.

“Brother. What does that submarine intend to do?” “Hmm, I wonder what they intend to do—” Seita gave an evasive reply, though in truth he thought this submarine must be Soviet, likely having caused the ship fire and now waiting to watch the Ural Maru sink. But fearing how worried Mariko might become if he said so, he deliberately kept his words vague. At that moment, someone passed behind the siblings—someone making sounds like a madman. It was none other than Old Man Ōki.

“Ah! What’ve I done boarding this cursed ship!” “The entire fortune I spent my whole life building will burn to ashes.” “Even if it doesn’t turn to ashes, next that suspicious submarine will have us sunk to the bottom of the sea, I tell ya.” “Ah! I’m tellin’ ya, I’m about to lose my mind!”

Old Man Ōki ran off, clutching at his hair with both hands.

“Brother. That old man is saying such things. That submarine is trying to sink the Ural Maru, isn’t it?” Mariko finally realized the second terrifying thing. “Nah, it’s alright.” “No, it’s not alright.”

“Hey Brother,” we’re either going to burn to death in this fire or get killed by submarines—one or the other.” “If that’s how it must be then let’s resolve ourselves and die like proper Japanese.” “Otherwise we’ll become a laughingstock.”

Seita's Resolution

(That's right. I can't just stand around dazed!)

Seita snapped back to his senses. Until that very moment he had remained a good-natured boy who kept to himself, but now he believed it was time to rise to action. My own life doesn't matter, but I must somehow get Mariko safely through this peril and deliver her into Mother's care waiting in Japan. That's right—that's it. I must save Mariko. (I'll stake my life and fight this crisis with all my might.)

Seita now cast off feeble feelings and resolved to fight as a brave Japanese boy.

“Hey, Mariko. No matter how you look at it, there’s still nothing to worry about. I’ll work with the crew to help save the Ural Maru. It’ll be lonely, but wait in the cabin until I come back, okay?” “Wait, Brother! Hold on!” “Never mind about me. Hurry—get into the cabin…”

“Brother… Brother…”

Mariko called out to her brother Seita at the top of her voice, but Seita dashed headlong into the crowd on the deck and disappeared from view.

At that moment, on the Ural Maru's bridge, the captain and first engineer had their faces close together as they whispered something rapidly.

“Captain. “Either way, it’s already hopeless.” “Now, now, showing such weakness won’t do. But having the radio equipment destroyed is a real problem.” While the radio operator had been frantically sending SOS signals, he sensed someone behind him and turned around. Then in that instant, he was struck on the head and lost consciousness. “He reportedly caught a glimpse of the assailant’s face then—they say it looked exactly like that boy Seita.”

“I see. “I thought that boy had somehow slipped away from me, but to think he pulled off such a swift move? The one who wrecked the radio must undoubtedly be the same person who attacked the radio operator—that is to say, the boy Seita. To think that despite such a cute face, he’s a terrifying one who defies appearances.”

“That’s right.” “He’s a terrifying fiend.” “And he possesses terrifying strength.” “Not only did he render the radio operator unconscious, but the way he wrecked the radio equipment—it was completely destroyed! That child Seita possesses strength even most adults couldn’t muster!”

The suspicious boy? Could Seita truly have such strength?

The captain and first engineer were shuddering at Seita’s terrifying strength when the boy Seita suddenly appeared before them, causing the two to cry “Ah!” and stagger back two or three steps.

“Captain. Haven’t the Japanese warships arrived yet?” “What?” “Captain, have you sent the SOS radio signal? Or if you haven’t sent it yet, how about sending it quickly?” The captain and the first engineer exchanged glances. Both thought to themselves: What an audacious boy this was! To think he’d ask whether they still hadn’t sent the radio signal—after being the one who wrecked the equipment—they were both appalled and astonished.

“Aren’t you heroes of the sea，Captain and everyone?” “Stay composed.”

Seita earnestly encouraged the Captain and First Engineer.

Having heard this, the First Engineer burned with silent fury. He pulled a pistol from his pocket and trained the muzzle on Seita, poised to fire at any moment. At that moment, the telephone bell rang shrilly. That was akin to saving Seita’s life.

“The call must have come from the ship’s hold. Hey, what is it?” said the Captain as he answered the phone. “What? The fire in the ship’s hold has been extinguished.” “That’s under control.” “...What?! They found an electric ignition device?” “So they found out someone used it to detonate the dynamite that was disguised as cargo?” “That’s alarming... They say they don’t know who set that electric ignition device.” “Hmm, that shouldn’t be too hard to figure out.”

The Captain sharply shifted his gaze toward Seita but immediately returned his eyes to their original position, “Anyway, once we’ve dealt with the fire, next it’ll be time to confront that mysterious submarine.” “Since torpedoes might come flying this way at any moment, all of you gather beneath the stairs immediately.” “And make sure you’re prepared to rush out to the deck at any moment.” “You must not go out onto the deck until orders are given.” “If they spot us panicking, it would complicate things.”

Emergency Dive

“Excuse me, Captain. It still feels like I’m being suspected somehow, and it’s really uncomfortable.” said Seita. The captain snorted through his nose while hanging up the receiver. “Even though last time I was suspected of throwing a smoke signal ball into the sea, and Mr. Ōki spoke up to clear my name, it seems the Captain and the others still suspect me. What exactly about me is so suspicious?”

“What do you mean?” “What an audacious boy you are!” The First Engineer leaned forward. “Hold on, First Engineer. Right now we need to worry about torpedoes coming from that submarine over there.” “Captain. I understand that, but listening to this child makes me sick to my stomach.”

Seita wanted to say more, but realizing the captain was right—that confronting the mysterious submarine targeting *Ural Maru* took priority—he restrained himself from further discussing his own situation. “Captain,” “If there’s anything I can do, I’ll do it.” “I can even row boats if needed.”

“Hmph.” “You keep quiet.”

The captain was gazing intently at the sea surface. The First Engineer had been alternating his gaze between the submarine and Seita when he suddenly let out a surprised exclamation,

“Oh, Captain. Doesn’t it look like the submarine has started to dive?”

It was just as the First Engineer had said. The four mysterious submarines that had been surrounding the Ural Maru suddenly began submerging into the water with bubbling sounds.

"That's right—they seem terribly flustered." "I wonder what's going on," he said, when suddenly the droning sound of airplanes reached their ears. Moreover, it resembled the noise of a considerable number of aircraft.

“Ah! Airplanes.” “Whose airplanes are those?” As they were saying this, emerging majestically from the southern sky in wing-to-wing formation came an unmistakable squadron of nine naval aircraft belonging to our forces. “Ah! Japanese airplanes.” “They’re naval aircraft!” “Ah! Our initial SOS wireless transmission got through, and they came to rescue our Ural Maru.” “That’s why the mysterious submarines fled.” “Whoa! B-Banzai!”

The figures of the mysterious submarines had already vanished from the sea surface. The naval aircraft passed over the Ural Maru and, maintaining their majestic formation, continued flying northward.

Unforgivable Bombardment

The large squadron of naval aircraft that had been pursuing the mysterious submarines suddenly split into three squadrons.

“Hmm, I wonder what’s happening?” Seita watched this from the bridge and found it strange. Then came a thunderous boom—crack! crack! crack!—as anti-aircraft shells burst midair right at the formation’s center. Had those planes lingered even a second longer under that barrage, their fuselages would’ve been shredded. The naval pilots instantly grasped the danger and scattered their formation—a brilliant maneuver. As this thought crossed his mind, the second salvo struck. Boom! Crack-crack-crack! Deafening noise erupted alongside light so intense it seared retinas. The captain, crew, Seita and Mariko all stared transfixed at the bombardment. Where on earth were these anti-aircraft shells coming from?

“Look! The planes are diving down!”

At the moment Seita shouted, the three divided squadrons each executed a brilliant loop-the-loop, turning their noses upside down as they swooped down with a whoosh. Where were they aiming? It became clear at once. There in the waves, appearing and disappearing, was the mysterious submarine that should have fled earlier. Having pretended to retreat, it hadn't actually withdrawn; instead, seizing an opening between the swells, it began firing desperate shots skyward—Boom! Boom! The cunning submarine.

At that moment, our squadron in the midst of its dive released black bombs from beneath its wings. The bombs cut through the wind and plummeted toward the sea surface. As a result—Boom! Roar!—a massive explosion erupted. From the sea rose a towering column of water like a great pagoda, while across the surface spread tremendous undulating waves. Amidst this, pitch-black smoke began to rise gently. No sooner had they wondered than the smoke exploded all at once with a thunderous roar, transforming the sea surface into a blazing inferno. It scored a direct hit on the submarine. Because they fired a cowardly illegal bombardment at the naval aircraft, they finally ended up being defeated in turn. At that moment, another bomb plunged into the sea surface. Once more, a tremendous explosion erupted. The very heavens and earth trembled violently, as though on the verge of collapse. The anti-aircraft guns fell completely silent.

Gunpowder smoke covered the sea surface, gradually obscuring the surroundings. The weather too seemed to be worsening. Before long, the airplanes' forms dissolved into the smoky haze until they vanished from sight. Only the engines continued emitting their fierce roar, but even that sound eventually faded into the distance. Crew and passengers alike aboard the Ural Maru sighed in unison with relief, gazing about in wonder at the ship's hull that remained utterly intact.

Tsuruga Port

After that, with nothing out of the ordinary occurring, the Ural Maru finally made its triumphant arrival at Tsuruga Port, dropping anchor.

The Ural Maru’s quarantine had been completed. It was now decided that they could finally disembark. There at the pier, the ship came alongside and the exit was opened.

The first to charge toward the exit was the bearded old gentleman Ōki.

“Come on! You lot must follow me and disembark quickly now! Such an ill-omened ship—the sooner we get off, the better! Hurry now, follow me!” Old Man Ōki grabbed Seita and Mariko’s hands and tried to push through the exit while roughly shoving aside other passengers. While this suited Ōki just fine, it was the siblings whose hands he had seized who faced real hardship. Mariko had her feet stepped on repeatedly since they started moving, her face scraped by adults’ Western-style clothing—she was truly enduring a dreadful ordeal.

“Excuse me, what have you done with your tickets? Please hand over your tickets.” “Please hand over your tickets.” The sailor stationed at the exit called out to Old Man Ōki and the others. “What’s this now? Tickets?” Old Man Ōki returned and pulled out a crumpled ticket from his pocket. “Come now! You all hand over your tickets to this old man!”

Old Man Ōki looked back at the siblings. Seita and Mariko each took out tickets and handed them to the sailor. “Brother, let’s hurry and get out of here.”

Mariko pulled Seita's arm. At that moment, she was startled to find her brother’s arm unusually rigid. Just as she was about to ask about it, Old Man Ōki looked back again, “What’s all this dawdling?” “Hurry up and come down here!” he barked, his beard twitching. Distracted by this, Mariko disembarked the steamship as she was and stood on the pier.

“Over here! You lot get in this car. I’ll give you a ride part of the way myself!”

Old Man Ōki, acting as if he'd swallowed up everything into himself, urged the siblings to hurry from inside the car. Seita was first to enter the automobile. Mariko followed right after him. The door slammed shut. Blaring its horn, the car immediately accelerated to tremendous speed and raced away from the pier. The vehicle was moving so fast that the stevedore working on the wharf jumped aside in alarm. Then he exclaimed,

“Ah, what a reckless bastard! If I’d stayed still like that just now, that car would’ve run over half my body. Why on earth would they drive at such a speed?” With that, he glared at the license plate number of the departing car.

Counterfeit Ticket

It was about thirty minutes later. Nearly all of the Ural Maru’s passengers had already disembarked. The ticket-collecting sailor who had been standing at the exit receiving tickets from passengers felt somewhat fatigued and let out a big yawn without a care for his surroundings. At that moment, a senior crew member appeared from the back and called out. “Hey, stop yawning like that. In the meantime, check the passenger ticket numbers or something.”

Muttering to himself about being seen in such a trivial moment, the ticket-collecting sailor began arranging the tickets—No. 1, No. 2, No. 3. He was just about to finish counting all the tickets when a lone passenger appeared there. “Please hand your tickets over here.” With that, the sailor reached out his hand. When he looked, he saw that the passenger was a lone boy. Upon seeing the boy’s face, the ticket-collecting sailor inwardly exclaimed: Huh? That’s strange!

“Ah, if it’s the ticket, here it is.” The boy presented a ticket with the number No. 19 printed on it. When the ticket collector tried to take the ticket, the boy hastily pulled back his hand. “W-Wait a second.” “It’s not that I’m getting off the ship now.” “But the ship’s journey ends here.” “Please disembark quickly.”

“I know that,” he said. “But I can’t see where my sister has gone.” “Huh? What did you say?” “I’ve been searching all over the ship for my sister Mariko, but I can’t find her anywhere. I’m really worried...” The boy appeared genuinely troubled. However, the sailor scrutinized his behavior as highly suspicious. “Hey—show me that ticket right now.”

“Instead of checking tickets, please hurry and find my sister!” “No, no, that won’t do. That ticket is suspicious, I tell you! You have ticket No. 19, but look here at this. As for the ticket called No. 19, I have already properly received it from a passenger. The ticket you’re holding is a counterfeit. Where did you get such a counterfeit ticket? Or did you make it yourself? You're not getting away now!”

With that, the ticket collector pounced on the boy and, wasting no time, wrestled him down with all his strength. When he looked closely at this boy’s face, strangely enough, it bore an exact resemblance to Seita’s.

Real Ticket

This news reached the captain. The captain, startled, dashed over to the exit.

“Hmm, so it was you after all.” “Why do you have a counterfeit ticket? Answer me.” “You gentlemen keep saying my ticket is counterfeit, counterfeit, but why do you say that?” “This ticket is one that my father properly bought for me, and it’s not a counterfeit ticket at all.” “Get angry after you’ve checked properly!” The boy’s face turned bright red as he spoke. The captain nodded, took two tickets labeled No. 19 from the ticket collector, and compared them. Both tickets looked identical. The captain examined the paper quality of the tickets with his fingertips, and when that was done, held them up to the light, conducting various checks.

“Hmm, this one is strange. “This ticket is genuine, but this one’s a counterfeit.” The captain marked the counterfeit ticket with a red pencil. “So it’s clearly been confirmed as a counterfeit ticket?” smirked the ticket collector. Then, turning toward the boy with a sudden fierce expression, he barked, “Hey, it’s over for you. The captain’s expert judgment has determined your ticket is counterfeit.” “Now, confess!”

“Wait.”

The captain restrained the sailor by the shoulder. “Huh?” “You’re mistaken.” “The ticket this boy is holding is genuine, and the No. 19 ticket you had initially collected is the counterfeit one.” “It was wrong to suspect this boy over the counterfeit ticket.” “You should apologize to this boy.”

With that, the captain apologized to the boy. The ticket collector didn't quite grasp the situation, but since the captain ordered him to apologize, he followed along and kept bowing his head repeatedly. Though everyone apologized to him, the boy showed no particular sign of being pleased. His face had grown even paler than before.

Seita's Anxiety

Seita disembarked from the ship. While aboard, he had been desperately worried about his younger sister Mariko who had gone missing. When he went to the police station and reported this, they immediately commenced a search.

But to Seita, the police’s search methods somehow seemed terribly unreliable. Where on earth could Mariko have gone? Seita wandered aimlessly through Tsuruga town searching for Mariko, but three days passed without any clues.

The captain, feeling terribly sorry for him, suggested that at this point it would be best to go to Tokyo and hire a competent detective. And so, using his own business card, the captain wrote a letter of introduction for him. When he looked at the address, it was written to "Mr. Homura Sōroku." Homura Sōroku? It was a name he had heard somewhere before. While comforting Seita, the captain encouraged him by saying that this Detective Homura, though a young scientist, was quite an exceptional man who would surely find Mariko. With that, Seita finally began to regain some spirit and, with lingering attachment, left Tsuruga town behind to head for Tokyo.

It was the fifth day since the Ural Maru had arrived at Tsuruga port.

Here, the story goes back one day.

The location was inside the Victory Exhibition Hall in Tokyo’s Kudan district. The venue’s gate was open from early morning. From noon onward, it became extremely crowded with visitors, but as expected, in the morning it remained relatively empty.

That morning, the guards permitted entry without suspicion, but when presented to Seita, the Ural Maru’s captain, and the Tsuruga police officers, there was a suspicious pair of visitors who couldn’t help but make them exclaim “Ah!” The pair consisted of a refined boy and a lovely girl who seemed to be his sister. Or rather, to state it more clearly—the boy had a face exactly like Seita’s, and the girl was the spitting image of Seita’s younger sister Mariko. The two walked hand in hand, politely examining the captured Chinese weapons and Soviet arms neatly arranged in the exhibition hall.

“What an adorable young master and young miss.” “It’s admirable that you’ve come to see it so early in the morning.”

The guards stationed throughout the venue spoke to the two in this manner, as if coordinated. The two smiled gently upon hearing this. Eventually, the pair resembling Seita and Mariko arrived before the new model Soviet tank—the exhibition’s main attraction—that had been captured. The boy resembling Seita stomped closer to it and pressed his face against the tank, as if sniffing for a scent. From that moment on, the behavior of the boy resembling Seita grew strange.

Just then, after deliberately letting a visitor who appeared to be a village chief pass ahead of them, the boy resembling Seita suddenly darted his eyes around and scanned their surroundings. Mariko stood motionless in the corner of the room, like a doll.

Crackle, crackle, crackle—a sudden fierce sound rang out. When they looked, the main attraction—the new-model Soviet tank—was spewing flames. Looking closely, the tank glowed bright red while melting into a viscous form. Before it stood the boy resembling Seita, his mouth gaping wide as he heaved panting breaths. When that breath struck the tank, it began melting viscously like molten candy. What a bizarre way for the boy to behave. It didn’t seem like something a human could achieve. What on earth was he?

Burning Tank “Oh no, this is terrible!” “The tank is burning.” “No—it’s melting into a viscous mess! Hey, everyone, get over here quick!” “What’s going on?” “A fire?” “What? A steel tank is burning all by itself?”

The exhibition hall was instantly thrown into a great uproar. A squad of police officers arrived by truck. Sounding its sirens, the fire engine rushed in. It was a terrible commotion. When this commotion began, the two children quickly fled outside the venue. And then they disappeared somewhere.

As firefighters rushed in with hoses, there stood a bearded old gentleman intently peering at the melted and crumbled tank.

“Hmm-hmm, this has turned into something incredible. The three-centimeter-thick iron plate melted away like cardboard soaked in water. It’s a terrifying power.” “Hey, you’re in the way. Old man, move over there. We’re gonna spray water!” “Ah, there’s no need to spray water. The fire’s already died down. The tank has just melted into a lump of iron and that’s all. Ha ha ha ha.” The old gentleman laughed in a booming voice and was ushered away by the firefighters. The old gentleman was none other than the old man who had caused such a commotion aboard the Ural Maru. He was that old man who had confronted the captain over the Ural Maru—the ship carrying his entire fortune—sinking.

The Tank Melting Incident both shocked and deeply troubled the authorities. The loss of its form of the important captured item posed a major problem, but they couldn’t comprehend why it had melted into a viscous mess. The guards underwent strict investigation by the military police. Yet they too knew nothing of the true circumstances. The investigation concluded it was as if they’d been bewitched by a fox. None had ever imagined those adorable children could be the dreadful culprits. Two days later, the boy Seita arrived in Tokyo alone, swayed by the train’s motion with lonely solitude.

The boy wanted, above all else, to return to his home in the suburbs and see his bedridden mother. However, if he told the truth, his mother might worry terribly. Though he felt bad for his mother, he resolved to maintain the story that Mariko had fallen ill aboard the ship and been hospitalized in Tsuruga.

It was when Seita had gotten off the government railway train at Musashino in the Tokyo suburbs and was trudging alone down a dusty path toward home. As he walked considering this and that about the words he should smoothly say when meeting Mother he became absent-minded. As he suddenly looked up and gazed at the expansive farm road stretching ahead he spotted something unexpected and let out an involuntary cry of surprise—"Ah!"

Ah! That was Mariko!

Two hundred meters ahead on the farm road beyond, a boy and a girl walked along hand in hand. When he saw the girl's figure from behind, Seita identified her as his sister Mariko. The reason was that the girl was wearing the same clothes Mariko had worn on the ship. The red hat was also identical. From the bobbed hairstyle down to her gait, it was unmistakably Mariko.

“Hey, Mariko!” Without even having time to consider who Mariko was walking with, Seita called out from behind. The two of them spun around together to look back at him. At that moment, Seita saw something terrifying. The face of the boy standing beside his younger sister Mariko was—to his astonishment—the spitting image of his own. How could there exist a boy who resembled him so perfectly? “Hey! Who are you?”

When Seita called out, the boy who looked just like him suddenly hoisted Mariko onto his back and began rapidly fleeing while glancing back over his shoulder. The speed of his legs was like a whirlwind.

“Hey, wait!” “Mariko, wait up!” Seita chased after the two of them. As he ran down the farm road, there was a suburban train railroad crossing. The mysterious boy carrying Mariko leapt over the railroad crossing. Seita was fifty meters behind. At that very moment, as if out of spite, the railroad crossing gate came down. And then the bell started clanging. The express train had come. When Seita rushed to the railroad crossing, it was already too late. The crossing guard, realizing this, glared intensely at Seita, who was about to duck under the gate.

“Danger! Danger!” “If you go in there, you’ll lose your life!”

Mysterious Boy Appears

In the end, Seita narrowly failed to catch up to his sister and the mysterious boy. After the railroad crossing gate had risen, the figure of the mysterious boy carrying his sister on his back had already grown small in the distance.

Even so, Seita desperately chased after them there, thinking he had to retrieve his sister now or he might never get another chance, but it was already too late. Before long, the figures of the two vanished into the village's cluster of houses.

“Ah, damn it all. I finally let them get away.” Seita sat down on the road, wiping away his falling tears with his fist. The mysterious boy had taken Mariko away. Who in the world was that mysterious boy? Even so, Mariko’s demeanor didn’t sit right. Since her brother had called out to her, she should have come running over saying something like “Oh, Brother!” However, in reality, even when his sister looked his way, she had pretended not to recognize him. It was truly mysterious. The sole comfort to Seita was that his sister Mariko, whom he had lost sight of in Tsuruga, had somehow arrived in Tokyo. If Mariko was in Tokyo, then perhaps he might meet her again somewhere before long—Seita clung to this fleeting hope. Seita passed through the gate of his home for the first time in a long while right then and there.

Mother, who was bedridden, was unexpectedly energetic. At this rate, it seemed she might be able to get up before long. However, when Mother heard about Mariko's illness, she became extremely worried and pressed Seita with numerous questions. Seita was telling a made-up story, so when his mother asked him too many questions, he was at a loss for an answer. “Mother, Mariko has a measles-like illness. It’s nothing serious.” “But since it could spread to others, she needs to stay hospitalized for about another month.”

With those words, Seita comforted the mother. Hearing this, the mother finally softened her expression.

Detective Homura’s office was located in Marunouchi. When he presented the letter of introduction received from the captain of the Ural Maru, Homura agreed to meet him immediately. The detective was a tall, lanky young man. He wore brown glasses and a sports outfit. He appeared very attentive as he listened to Seita’s story while puffing away on his cigarette.

“I understand perfectly, Seita.” Detective Homura nodded reassuringly, “In any case, let’s put forth all our efforts to locate Mariko’s whereabouts.” “But you see, Seita-kun—what struck me as particularly intriguing upon hearing your account—is how both the suspicious pair of youths you witnessed and yesterday’s bizarre incident involving a Soviet tank melted into sludge at Kudan share common elements. At the time of the tank incident, witnesses reported another suspicious pair loitering nearby. These likely involve the same individuals.” “This appears to be quite an elaborate affair.”

“I did read briefly about the Tank Incident in the newspapers, but it’s such an awful case. However, the idea that my sister Mariko could be involved in such a horrific incident... it just doesn’t seem possible to me—” “Of course, Ms. Mariko bears no guilt whatsoever. The boy accompanying her—your imposter—must invariably be the instigator of these misdeeds. Apprehending that youth and placing him beside you would prove most illuminating. In fact, I already have certain leads regarding this matter.”

“What kind of clue are you referring to?” “Well, you see—” Detective Homura paused briefly before continuing, “I’m not sure if I should mention this, but lately, suspicious foreigners have been entering the country who seem intent on destroying Japanese factories and disrupting military operations whenever they get the chance. We mustn’t let our guard down. Especially…” As he was saying this, the door opened and Homura’s assistant Ōtsuji stomped in.

“Detective, the radio is broadcasting an emergency news bulletin right now. There’s been a major explosion at an ammunition depot near Yokosuka.”

Explosion Site

The news was that the ammunition depot had suffered a massive explosion. Detective Homura stood up from his chair. “Seita. As you just heard, there has been an explosion at the ammunition depot, but since I have some leads, I will head there immediately. Would you like to come along with me?”

Told by Detective Homura, Seita was not the kind of coward who would shrink back.

“Yes, I’ll go anywhere with you. But Detective, when will you get Mariko back for me?” “Well, I can’t yet say for certain, but in my view, this ammunition depot explosion may have some connection to your sister. In any case, things will become clear once we go to the explosion site.” “Then let’s go right away.”

“Very well.” “Hey Ōtsuji, we three will depart immediately. Are preparations complete?”

“Yes, we’re ready.” “I thought that might be the case, so I had the car prepared at the entrance.” Homura, Seita, and Ōtsuji—the three of them—went out to the entrance. The car was waiting right there. Ōtsuji did the driving. The three sped down the Keihin National Highway as if flying, rushing to the scene. After driving for about an hour, they rounded the mountain’s edge. Then, from the driver’s seat, Ōtsuji— “Ah, Detective, there it is. “There’s an enormous amount of smoke coming out!”

Ōtsuji pointed ahead. Indeed, jet-black smoke billowed out thickly. “Right. That must be the place. Hey Ōtsuji, full speed ahead!” As they raced toward the scene under Detective Homura’s orders at undiminished full speed, the devastation from the explosion—shattered houses and collapsed fences—came into view, shocking all three of them. Near the site, a police squad with fastened chin straps ordered them to halt. “Hey! You can’t enter from here.”

The three of them got out of the car. When Homura spoke to them, they let them through the police line. The three of them continued advancing deeper while jumping over a water hose sprawled on the ground like a giant serpent.

“Hey, don’t go over there—it’s dangerous! There’s still an unexploded ammunition depot over there.” As he said this, an inspector called out to Homura and the others, but then abruptly changed his tone as if realizing something, “Oh! Homura? You came too?” he addressed Homura. When Homura looked toward the voice, it was an inspector he knew well.

“Well, if it isn’t Inspector Kawahara! You’ve had quite a time of it. How exactly did the explosion occur?” “That’s exactly it,” Inspector Kawahara said, tilting his head. “We can’t figure out the cause at all—it’s been a real problem. If you notice anything, do share your insights with me.” Detective Homura nodded reassuringly and immediately asked a question.

“Have you received any reports of a boy and girl loitering near the scene before the explosion?” “Are you asking whether a boy and girl weren’t loitering around? Hmm, now that you mention it, someone did say something like that. What about that boy and girl? Have they done something?” “That boy seems quite suspicious. That isn’t just an ordinary human.”

“What? He’s not human?” Inspector Kawahara made a strange face, “If he’s not human, then what is he supposed to be?” “You’re not suggesting it’s some kind of monster, are you?” How did Detective Homura respond?

Artificial Human or human? “Inspector, that mysterious boy is a type of monster.”

Detective Homura said with complete seriousness. “If it’s a type of monster, then is it a tanuki or a fox?” “Ha ha ha, such nonsense…” “Inspector. That mysterious boy has an exact replica of the body—and face—of Seita-kun here, who accompanies me.” “What? It resembles this boy?” “Hmm, so that monster’s also a cute little boy now, huh?”

“That’s correct. Rather than simply resembling him, it’s more like twins—no, even more precise, like a photograph—but he’s the exact double of this Seita-kun here.” “What? They’re twins?” “No—it’s that they resemble each other as closely as twins. That is extremely peculiar. That is precisely why I have reached this conclusion. That mysterious boy must be an artificial human.” “What? An artificial human? Ha ha ha, you’re saying even stranger things now.”

“Actually, based on what I just heard from Seita-kun,” Detective Homura said, “it occurred to me that mysterious boy might very well be the artificial human Mr. F created by Dr. Ivanov, an artificial human researcher in Vladivostok. Though we won’t know for certain unless we conduct a thorough investigation from here on out.” “Artificial Human Mr. F!”

“This has become utterly incomprehensible.”

As they were saying this, Seita—who had been standing beside the two men and surveying the explosion site—suddenly raised his voice in a loud cry,

“Ah, there’s Old Man Ōki over there.” “I’ll go meet Old Man Ōki for a bit.”

Hearing this, Homura looked in the direction Seita was pointing. Sure enough, a bearded old man wearing glasses was prowling around the remains of the destroyed gunpowder storage, for some reason or another.

“Wait a moment, Seita-kun. Please wait before meeting that old man.” “Why must I not meet Old Man Ōki? That old man was very kind to both me and Mariko. Didn’t I explain that in detail to you earlier, Mr. Homura?”

“I’m well aware of that. That’s precisely why I told you to wait,” Homura said, staring intently at Seita’s face. “Listen, Seita-kun. I’ve been considering that old man the most suspicious one from the start. Why do you think he always appears right after that mysterious boy shows up?” “I still think Old Man Ōki’s a good person... He really looked out for me on the ship too. Back then, I was almost thrown into the brig. Old Man Ōki came and kept insisting I was innocent. Thanks to him, I could move freely around the ship without being locked up.”

“That seems suspicious.”

“Huh? Why is that? I don’t understand why the person who helped me would be suspicious.” “No—you’ll understand clearly soon enough. I have a feeling I understand what that mysterious figure calling himself Old Man Ōki was plotting. Seita-kun, don’t forget what I’ve just said.” “Something’s really off here.” Seita couldn’t quite comprehend what Detective Homura had said. What did the detective think Old Man Ōki really was?

The Back Mountain Mystery

Detective Homura declared he would follow Old Man Ōki wherever he went. Seita heard that and thought it was a waste. Rather than that, he thought it would be better to pursue the mysterious boy who might be Mr. F, the artificial human, and when he told Homura, the detective—

“In any case, I will pursue Old Man Ōki. Will you come with me? If you don’t want to follow, I’ll go alone.”

“I want to search for Mariko.” “I see. I fully understand.” “Then, Seita-kun, I’ll have my assistant Ōtsuji accompany you.” “Ōtsuji possesses significant physical strength—he’ll certainly prove useful.”

With that, Homura assigned Ōtsuji to accompany Seita and hurried off. The detective seemed to have something clearly in mind. “Well, young master. Due to the detective’s orders, I’ve been assigned to accompany you. What shall we do now?” Ōtsuji was a man as large as a Temple Guardian Statue, his thick arms crossed over his chest as he looked down at Seita.

“Well then, Mr. Ōtsuji. Since I’ll be the chief detective, you’ll act as my assistant while we chase after my sister and that strange boy.” “What? Me as an assistant?” Ōtsuji grumbled. “Ah, how pathetic. Forever stuck as an eternal sidekick!” “So you’re refusing?” “Not refusin’. If I did, the detective’d skin me later.” “Fine if you tag along, but I reckon you’ll make a pretty useless detective.”

“D-don’t go makin’ jokes like that! Didn’t the detective say so himself earlier? When it comes to strength, even Futabayama can’t match Ōtsuji.”

“You can keep saying that all you want—Futabayama’s definitely stronger.” “After all, Futabayama’s definitely stronger.” “Don’t get cocky just ’cause you’re a kid.” “If we’re gonna move out, let’s get going already!” Acting as if he’d become detective chief, Seita promptly spoke to Chief Kawahara and arranged a meeting with the officer who claimed to have seen the boy and girl.

“Yes, I definitely found them.” “It seems the two of them went into the back mountain, though.”

Because the police officer said this, the two immediately plunged into the back mountain. The path was mostly a single trail. They desperately ran along the mountain path. There they were! Seita keenly spotted the figures of the mysterious boy and his sister. Down the slope, the mysterious boy dragged Mariko along as he descended. “Ah, I see. That’s it,” Ōtsuji said while wiping his sweat. “That despicable mysterious boy. Your sister looks about to collapse.”

“Mr. Ōtsuji.” “Let’s chase them on three.” “Hmm. You go ahead and do that.” “I’ll cut through this thicket and get ahead.” “Right around that bend up ahead—we’ll pinch ’em from both sides.” “Alright! Let’s do this!”

“The time’s finally come for you to see my real power!” No sooner had he spoken than Ōtsuji flung his bulky frame into the thicket. But thorny wild roses snaked through the undergrowth, thwarting his advance at every turn.

“Ouch! Oww! Oww! Damn these thorns are in the way! Wild roses—just vanish!”

And so he was grumbling to himself. As time passed, Ōtsuji desperately charged forward, tearing his trousers on the thorns. By the time he finally emerged onto the path, Ōtsuji’s hands and legs had been torn by wild rose thorns and were covered in blood. When he looked, there before him was a boy holding the girl's hand. “So it’s you. Hey, wait, you freakish boy disguised as an artificial human!” As he tried to lunge forward, the opponent—

“Don’t rush, Mr. Ōtsuji. “It’s me! I’m Seita!” “Huh? Seita-kun?” “That’s right—I just defeated that artificial human and got my sister back.”

“I see.” “Well done.” I thought again how skillfully that artificial human had disguised itself. “Ha ha ha! I nearly beat you to death there.”

The moment Ōtsuji burst into laughter, the boy drove his fist into Ōtsuji’s side with a solid thud.

“Ugh… Oof.” “Y-you… you…” Ōtsuji gnashed his teeth in frustration, but unable to endure the pain from the boy’s fist lodged in his side, he collapsed with a thud on the spot and lost consciousness. The boy they had believed to be Seita laughed with a harsh mechanical cackle. Mariko neither laughed nor cried, standing rigidly like a doll. From this, it became clear that this boy whom Ōtsuji had thought was Seita was not Seita but indeed that artificial human disguised as the mysterious boy. Where could Seita have gone?

After them, quick!

Assistant Detective Ōtsuji had lost consciousness and lay sprawled on the mountain path for some time. Gradually, he felt as though his name was being called, jolting him back to his senses.

“Oh dear, what on earth was I doing lying around in a place like this?”

As he tried to get up, he suddenly grimaced, clutched his side, and plopped back down on the spot.

“Hey, Mr. Ōtsuji. What’s wrong?”

At that voice, when Ōtsuji raised his face, there stood the boy Seita. When he saw this, Ōtsuji leapt in shock, let out a cry, and the moment he jumped nearly a meter into the air, he scrambled up the mountain path with an odd twist of his hips.

“Hey, Mr. Ōtsuji! Wait up!” “Wait up!” When Seita gave chase, Ōtsuji’s face turned even paler with terror, “Ahhh! Murderer!” “Someone help me!” “Ahhh! Murderer!” It was truly a disgraceful spectacle of panic. Seita couldn’t understand why Ōtsuji had suddenly started making such a commotion upon seeing him. He even began to suspect that Ōtsuji might have lost his mind. Because Seita was fast on his feet, he quickly caught up to Ōtsuji, who was scrambling up the mountain path with an odd twist of his hips. There, Seita finally managed to shout and leaped onto Ōtsuji’s back.

“Mr. Ōtsuji, why do you run away when you see me?” “Ahhh! Murderer! The Artificial Human bit my back! I’ll be bitten to death by Mr. F!” Ōtsuji, now completely frantic, continued to shout wildly while thrashing about like a bull, kicking up clouds of dirt everywhere as he tried to shake Seita off his back. When the words “The Artificial Human bit me on the back?” reached Seita’s ears, the boy finally felt he understood why Ōtsuji had been making such a commotion on his own. Ōtsuji had mistaken Seita for the artificial human Mr. F. It was only natural. Earlier, because Ōtsuji had been convinced that the boy who appeared before him was Seita and let his guard down, he ended up being struck by Mr. F’s fist and dazed. Thus, upon seeing Seita’s face, he must have thought that Mr. F had appeared once again.

“Mr. Ōtsuji, please get a hold of yourself. I’m the real Seita.” “No way! Who’d fall for that trick now? Murderer!” “I’m really Seita, and you still can’t tell? It seems Mr. F did something to you, Mr. Ōtsuji.” “There’s nothing wrong with me! If I’d gotten hit one more time, that would’ve been the end of me! Are you really Seita?”

“Oh come on! Look closely! I’m not an artificial human—I’m the real Seita!” “No no! That Mr. F earlier dared use those same overly familiar words! Then he exploited my moment of carelessness and took a swing at me! I ain’t buying you’re the real Seita-kun! If you’ve got proof you’re really him, show it right here!”

“What? You want me to show proof that I’m not an artificial human but the real Seita?”

This left even Seita perplexed. “There’s got to be something...” Seita stood with his arms crossed in thought when he suddenly clapped his hands.

“Ah, that’s it! Mr. Ōtsuji, look at this!”

“What?! Oh! So you’re not an artificial human after all!”

Ōtsuji exclaimed with a face of great relief.

It was truly strange. Just what had Seita shown Ōtsuji?

Poor Mariko.

“Ahahahaha!” “Wahahahaha!” For a while, Seita and Ōtsuji clutched their stomachs in amusement, unable to stop laughing.

“How about that? Mr. Ōtsuji. I showed you perfectly clear evidence, didn’t I?” “Right, I get it now. I’ve never heard of an artificial human with a cavity. Your cavity may be a nuisance normally, but it’s proven quite useful in this situation. Ha ha ha!” Ōtsuji burst into loud laughter again.

Now it was clear. Seita opened his mouth and showed Ōtsuji the cavity. Since artificial humans couldn't have cavities, this proved Seita wasn't Mr. F.

“That’s all well and good, but it seems you let Mr. F escape, Mr. Ōtsuji.”

“Yeah, it’s a bit embarrassing, though.” “Which way did he escape?” “Did Mr. F take Mariko with him?”

“Nah, I didn’t see Mariko-san.” “Then what happened to Mariko?”

“After all, that Mr.F has quick legs and tremendous strength.” “Truly a formidable opponent.” “Ah-ha! So you’ve grown frightened of Mr.F, haven’t you, Mr.Ōtsuji?”

“No, I ain’t scared. But that monster’s a real handful, I tell ya.” Even while saying this, Seita kept glancing around restlessly along the mountain path when he suddenly shouted in a loud voice. “Hmm, Mariko was indeed taken away by Artificial Human Mr. F. And the two of them escaped in this direction.” “Huh, Seita-kun. How do you know such a thing?”

“But look here! There are Mariko’s footprints and the artificial human’s footprints!”

he pointed to the ground. Sure enough, there were two sets of footprints. Mariko’s footprints were scattered as if floating in midair. In contrast, Mr. F’s footprints left firm imprints on the ground. “Well now! You’re quite the detective!” Ōtsuji widened his eyes in surprise and looked at Seita’s face again. But Seita remained downcast. “It looks like Mariko’s being dragged around pretty roughly by Mr. F.” “If this continues, Mariko will surely fall ill and die.” “If we don’t rescue Mariko now, it might be too late.”

Seita said in a subdued voice, not addressing anyone in particular. That was right—exactly as Seita had said. The frail Mariko, being relentlessly dragged along by a machine that was not human, truly had no path but to fall ill and die. Even though Detective Homura must have known this, what a grave miscalculation it was that he chose to pursue Old Man Ōki rather than chase after Mariko. In Seita’s chest, the worry he had momentarily forgotten came gushing forth like a spring.

“Mr. Ōtsuji.” “If we dawdle any longer, we might not make it in time.” “Come on, let’s go right now.” “Go where?”

“You know what we’re doing! We’re taking Mariko back from Artificial Human Mr. F’s clutches.” “If we don’t do it today, poor Mariko will die.” “Huh?! You want to chase after the artificial human right now?” “But the sun’s gonna set in these mountains before long...” “You’re such a coward, Mr. Ōtsuji.” “Even though you have a body many times bigger than mine, you’re spouting such cowardly words—aren’t you ashamed of yourself?”

“J-Just don’t joke around! I was merely stating the obvious—that it’d get dark in these mountains before long! A big body means strength to match! Someone who’d cower before artificial humans has a fundamentally different physical build altogether!” Ōtsuji spouted nonsense while putting on a show of bravado.

“Alright then! Let’s follow these footprints and keep chasing them!” “Ah, that ain’t a bad idea... But I’m dead tired today, y’know? First off, I’m starving to death and feel like I’m about to pass out!” “Oh? The big strong man who boasted about his strength is whining already? What a coward! Fine then—stay right here, Mr. Ōtsuji. I don’t need help anyway. I’ll go alone.”

Seita started running off alone.

When Ōtsuji saw this, he panicked and began swaying his clumsy, massive frame as he hurried after Seita. Seita strained every nerve. Without uttering a word, he doggedly followed the footprints of Artificial Human Mr. F and Mariko, pushing ever deeper into the mountains. Before long, sunlight became blocked by the treetops, turning the surroundings dusky as twilight. The mountain's cold air bit chillingly into their skin. The cry of a nameless, mysterious bird!

Bloodstains scattered across the boulder. “Is it really okay to keep climbing up like this? What’ll you do if that artificial human comes rushing out from the side, huh?”

Ōtsuji, still trembling with fear, continued climbing up behind Seita. Seita was giving it his all. “Ah! There’s a button here!” “Hmm, this must have torn off from Mariko’s clothes and fallen here.” “Tch! Mr. F’s mistreating Mariko, isn’t he?”

Having shouted that, Seita once again quickened his pace and started climbing the mountain path. “Hey, wait up!” “You can’t just leave me here alone!” “Hey hey, I hate these lonely mountains!”

Seita ignored this and kept vigorously climbing up the mountain. He was single-mindedly focused on rescuing his sister. If Ōtsuji couldn't be relied on, then Detective Homura—who was chasing Old Man Ōki—proved even more useless. Soon enough, a massive boulder that loomed overhead blocked Seita's path.

“Ah! That’s a huge boulder!” The footprints of Artificial Human Mr. F vanished before the boulder. The side path curved to the right, but there were no artificial human’s footprints here.

“That’s strange...” When he looked up, it was a massive rock about four or five times the height of a person. It seemed the artificial human had entered this boulder, but how could he possibly get into such hard rock? This was truly strange. Seita looked around the boulder. There, weeds were growing thickly. Although he thought it impossible, he wondered if Artificial Human Mr.F had gone around to the back of the boulder along the weeds, so he stepped on the weeds and circled to the side of the boulder. Then, he discovered something tremendous.

“Ah! Someone’s collapsed!”

A man in a suit lay face down. Wondering who it might be, Seita rushed over and reached for the fallen man's shoulder, only to freeze in shock.

“Blood! Blood!” “Is he dead?” The trousers were stained with blood. Upon closer inspection, even the grass was stained with blood. Seita looked back, but there was still no sign of Ōtsuji. Reluctantly, though somewhat frightened, Seita reached around the collapsed man’s back and lifted him up. The man’s body still held warmth. When Seita moved his body, the man groaned faintly.

Seita unintentionally peered into the man's face. He recoiled in shock.

“Ah! This is bad! Detective Homura, what happened to you?!” To their complete and utter astonishment, lying beside the boulder where Artificial Human Mr. F’s footprints had vanished—as if dead—was none other than Detective Homura. He was supposed to have been following Old Man Ōki, so how had he ended up collapsed here? “Detective Homura, stay with me!”

Seita kept watch around them as he brought his mouth close to Homura’s ear and called his name in a hushed voice. “Ugh... Ah... It’s painful,” groaned Homura, who soon regained consciousness. “Oh? Seita-kun?” “Yes.” “Hmm... So it truly is you,” Homura said, his voice strained yet analytical. “Why come to such a dangerous place?” True to his reputation as a great detective, Homura had immediately confirmed Seita’s authenticity through some unspoken deduction. “We tracked Artificial Human Mr. F’s footprints here,” Seita whispered urgently. “Detective Homura—is this area unsafe?”

“Yes.” “Don’t raise your voice too much,” he warned while vigilantly scanning their surroundings. “I was nearly shot dead by Old Man Ōki with a pistol up on this boulder. I fell from that rock and strangely managed to survive.” “Huh? Old Man Ōki came here too?” “That’s right. Apparently, this place seems to be the secret hideout of Artificial Human Mr. F and Dr. Ivanov.” “What?! Dr. Ivanov?!”

“Seita-kun, I’ve discovered that Old Man Ōki is actually Dr. Ivanov in disguise.” “What?! Old Man Ōki was Dr. Ivanov?!” “So Old Man Ōki was...”

Ivanov appeared.

While the boy Seita and Detective Homura were talking in front of the boulder known as Dr. Ivanov’s secret hideout, Old Man Ōki emerged from the grass beside them with a rustling sound.

"You damn detective! Still clinging to life here, are you?"

“Ah! Old Man Ōki!” “Oh? Seita’s here too. “This works out perfectly. “I’ll dispose of both of you together. “We’re deep in the mountains. “No one will come even if you scream for help!” Old Man Ōki pointed the large pistol in his hand at them and sneered viciously. “Mr. Ōki... Why are you trying to shoot me? “You protected me on the ship...” “Heh heh! What drivel are you spouting, brat? “That was all an act! If I’d kept you tied up back then, how could I’ve dressed Artificial Human Mr. F as you and brought him ashore when we docked? Don’t you see? “You dimwitted child. “Even if I made Mr. F impersonate you to board the ship, people would’ve noticed immediately if I’d left the real you bound somewhere!”

“Ah! Now I get it. You kept me alive on purpose to use me as your double. Not knowing that, until this very moment, I had thought Mr. Ōki was a kind person—I was such a fool.” “Heh heh heh, now you finally realize? Too late for that now. Now that I’ve been exposed as Dr. Ivanov, I can no longer spare Homura or Seita. Both of you, prepare yourselves to finally be killed!”

Dr. Ivanov, disguised as Old Man Ōki, finally revealed his true nature as a villain and listed terrifying threats before the two of them. Homura, seemingly in pain from the wounds he sustained when he fell off the cliff, gritted his teeth and endured silently.

Why on earth had Dr. Ivanov brought Artificial Human Mr. F to Japan? He was undoubtedly a villain, but what could he possibly intend to accomplish by coming here? These details remained entirely unclear. Of course, these two were believed to have melted the captured Soviet tanks displayed at the exhibition hall into unrecognizable sludge and caused today's ammunition depot explosion, but their ultimate goal surely extended far beyond such acts. To think of them—Dr. Ivanov and Artificial Human Mr. F—was indeed terrifying.

Moreover, not too many people were aware that these two fearsome individuals—Dr. Ivanov and Artificial Human Mr. F—had infiltrated Japan. The only ones who knew about this were likely Homura and Seita. Homura and Seita were now captured by Dr. Ivanov and were about to be killed. It was a critical moment for the two of them and, broadly speaking, a critical moment for our Japan.

The Terrifying Lair Dr. Ivanov brandished a large pistol and looked poised to shoot Homura and Seita dead at any moment.

“Come on, both of you, get in here. “Keep moving—get down into that hole.” “If you dawdle, I’ll treat you to a pistol bullet from behind.” Dr. Ivanov, without letting down his guard as he watched the two, forced them into the cave that gaped open behind the large rock. Forcing the frail boy Seita and the injured Homura into the cave had been no difficult task. This was Dr. Ivanov’s hideout. The cavern, skillfully hollowed out from a massive boulder, presented a sight so horrifying it made one’s hair stand on end. Inside glowed lamps emitting a strange blue light—likely bacterial lamps. Further in lay two or three connected rooms each spanning about three tatami mats. That such chambers existed here seemed astonishing—but they hadn’t been here originally; Dr. Ivanov had used Artificial Human Mr. F to carve out this entire cave, making the feat all the more shocking. Being mechanical, Artificial Human Mr. F possessed tremendous strength. As for how he constructed caves—dear readers, you’ll recall he’d melted tanks into sludge. That was his method. Indeed, you’ll soon witness firsthand how monstrously powerful artificial humans could be. I intend to relate that major incident’s details in due course.

“Get in here. No matter what you do, you won’t escape! If I see any attempt to escape, I’ll have Artificial Human Mr. F finish you off immediately! I’ll give you fair warning!” Dr. Ivanov kept saying everything he wanted to say and boasting—the sheer repulsiveness of it all. However, regrettably, Homura and Seita—who could do nothing—were pushed into a deep well-like stone cell located in a remote part of the cave, just as commanded. The moment Seita and Homura jumped in, they struck their hips so hard they could hardly bear it; at the bottom of the stone cell, they lay collapsed like dead men, without even the energy to speak.

Dr. Ivanov was completely relieved. Now that he had disposed of the nuisances, he resolved to finally tackle the grand task he had come to Japan for and began devising plans before Artificial Human Mr. F. “Well then, I suppose it’s time to finally get started.” “Now then, where and how should I begin?” Dr. Ivanov spread out a large map of Japan and appeared deep in thought. After a while, he shook his head from side to side and let out a sigh.

“When it’s just me alone, even devising schemes is inconvenient without someone to consult.” “What should I do...” Dr. Ivanov muttered with a troubled expression as he lit a cigarette and let the smoke curl quietly upward. Then he suddenly slapped his knee. “Ah! I have an idea.” “I’ll summon Artificial Human Mr. F and have him keep me company.” “Since it’s just mimicry, even Mr. F should suffice.”

Dr. Ivanov stood up. He went to the wall. Dr. Ivanov took down something resembling a kendo chest protector that hung there and returned to his chair. What could this possibly be? Vertical slats like narrow bamboo strips were arranged in a slightly rounded torso shape - not actual bamboo but some rare material. Countless buttons covered its surface. Dr. Ivanov laid it across his lap and pressed one button with his fingertip. Suddenly, heavy thudding echoed from somewhere in the silent cave. What was making that sound?

The Mystery of Mr. F

Dr. Ivanov's eyes shifted to the corner of the room. At that moment came a sharp snap as a perfectly round hole opened in the corner. The heavy thudding reverberated from below. No sooner had this registered than—with a powerful bounce—the boy Seita sprang up through the hole. He struck the ground once and rebounded like a rubber ball, but when his feet touched down again, he lumbered toward the doctor with mechanical deliberation. Why would the boy Seita come bursting into such a place? No—this was unmistakably not Seita.

“Ah, Artificial Human Mr. F. “I have something to discuss. “Come over here for a moment.” Dr. Ivanov welcomed Artificial Human Mr. F and treated him no differently than a human. “Is there something you require?” said Mr. F. “Hmm, the artificial human I created—I must say, it’s remarkably well-made. “He properly responds to everything I say—truly remarkable!” Dr. Ivanov looked happily and intently at the artificial human,

“Well, please have a seat there.” “Yes, yes, exactly right.” “Now then, Mr. F—I believe we should finally commence our long-awaited plan here. What are your thoughts?” “Very well.” “By all means, please begin quickly.” “Good, good! Keep it up—I’ll be counting on you even more.” “Now then, before we do that, I want to make every last person in Japan tremble in fear.” “For that, I think using the radio to intimidate them would be best.” “How about it? Would you feel like becoming a temporary broadcasting station and making a broadcast that shocks the Japanese people?”

“No, I prefer apples over bananas.”

“This is strange. You’ve started spouting nonsense.” “I must’ve overused these artificial humans since coming here—these frequent malfunctions are becoming intolerable!” “Let me examine you.”

Dr. Ivanov approached Artificial Human Mr. F, suddenly placed his hand on Mr. F’s right ear, and yanked it downward firmly. Then, for some reason, Artificial Human Mr. F spread both legs to the sides and abruptly extended both arms horizontally, as if performing radio calisthenics. And he closed both eyes. That was the act of turning off the electrical switch that operated Artificial Human Mr. F. Mr. F’s ear was the switch. Dr. Ivanov approached Mr. F, unbuttoned the coat identical to Seita-kun’s that Mr. F was wearing, and opened the abdomen. Then, he took out a key, inserted it into Mr. F’s navel hole, gave it a firm twist and pull—whereupon the abdominal skin swung open toward him like a door, laying bare the interior.

That said, no blood was flowing from the abdomen, nor were any intestines spilling out—the abdomen’s interior was crammed full of intricate machinery, packed without a single gap.

Dr.Ivanov put on a strange pair of glasses and began busily tinkering inside the artificial human's abdomen with pliers and a screwdriver. "Hmm,I just can't figure it out," he muttered.If he didn't fix this quickly,there'd be trouble later... As he worked,"Ah!This gear is broken so badly!"The gear's teeth were chipped away."Why had this happened?" Dr.Ivanov let out a low groan.

Ōtsuji's Adventure

There existed a certain person who had been forgotten for some time.

Who could that have been? It was none other than... Complaining about his aching legs and sluggish back, puffing and panting, Assistant Ōtsuji was gradually falling behind. What in the world had happened to him? Assistant Ōtsuji witnessed a scene terrifying enough to make one’s gall bladder burst. It was the moment his master Detective Homura and the boy Seita were being driven into the shadow of a boulder by Dr. Ivanov. (This was a crisis.) ("I can’t let them capture the Detective and the boy!") He nearly leapt out immediately but paused—charging out now would only get him overpowered by that strange old man. Suppressing his urge to rush in, he kept watching for a while. Before long, the area around the large boulder fell completely silent, with not a single sound to be heard,

“Perfect.” Judging by this, Ivanov still didn’t know there was a formidable man like me around. “Alright then—I’ll play along and handle this smoothly!” Plunged into this great crisis, Ōtsuji instead found himself suddenly bursting with courage. He then carefully inspected the area around the massive boulder. Soon, he discovered a single round wire mesh hidden in the thicket. The space beneath the mesh lay pitch black and indistinct, but there seemed to be a hole extending far downward.

“What on earth is this?” Ōtsuji placed his hands on the wire mesh and kept perfectly still. Then, from somewhere unseen, the sound of muffled sobbing could be heard.

“Hey, someone’s crying!”

Ōtsuji looked up in surprise. The crying was indeed coming from beneath the ground. "Hmm, is that Seita-kun’s crying voice, or is the Detective weeping?" You wouldn’t think someone like the Detective would cry, but no—that might not be the case after all. Even the Detective might wail like a child when things finally become hopeless. "Alright, I'll save them!"

Ōtsuji placed his hands on the wire mesh and pulled. The wire mesh snapped open. When he peered inside, there was indeed a deep hole just barely wide enough for his body to fit through. "Alright—since it's come to this, I'm going in!"

Ōtsuji steeled his resolve and inserted himself into the hole feet-first. However, his feet did not reach the bottom. Before long, the grass roots he had been holding onto ripped free, and in an instant, his body slipped smoothly downward. And then with a heavy thud, he landed on his bottom at the hole’s base—but at that moment, someone yelped and leapt aside.

Great Exploit

There was no telling how shocked Assistant Ōtsuji was. After all, he had fallen from a great height with a heavy thud, landing so hard on his backside that he couldn’t stand it. Even if he tried to get up immediately, his back hurt so intensely that he couldn’t muster any strength at all. Nearby, someone let out a strange shriek and jumped aside. It was beyond creepy. But I couldn’t move a muscle.

Assistant Ōtsuji swallowed back the groan that threatened to escape, knowing that making any sound would be disastrous, and prayed earnestly to Kannon-sama in his heart. Then, after some time, a single whimpering cry—"Hee!"—could be heard. It was a very faint voice. "Ugh, g-g-ghost!" Finally, Assistant Ōtsuji could stand it no longer and let out a cry of surprise. Though his body was large, his courage wasn't quite as sizable—this was Assistant Ōtsuji.

“What? A ghost. “Whaaat?” Next, someone screamed in a shrill voice. That was not Ōtsuji. It was a girl’s voice. Ōtsuji was doubly shocked! But upon clearly recognizing it as a girl’s voice, he calmed down somewhat. The one who had been shrieking nonstop in this pitch-dark, damp place that felt like the bottom of an empty well was this girl. At that very moment, a single idea flashed through Ōtsuji’s mind.

Thereupon, he called out in a low voice. “Hello? Are you Mariko?”

“Huh?” The girl let out a startled cry. “You’re Miss Mariko, aren’t you? “I am a detective—Chief of Great Detectives Ōtsuji, that’s who.” “Ahem.” “I was asked by Seita-kun and came here to find you, Miss Mariko.”

“Is that true? I’m Mariko.” “I knew it. Now that the Chief of Great Detectives has come here, Miss Mariko, you can rest assured.”

"Oh, will I really be saved, I wonder?" "I wonder if I'm dreaming again?" That must be it. If this were truly Mariko, it wouldn’t be unreasonable for her to think that way. Inside the Ural Maru, she had been kidnapped by Dr. Ivanov, then dragged around by the artificial human Mr. F—who shared her brother Seita’s face—enduring countless hardships and sorrows all this time. She must have thought countless times that it would be better to die. However, she had managed to stay alive, wanting to meet her bedridden mother at least once. Until then, no matter what happened, she had resolved not to collapse, protecting her own fragile body and enduring.

“It’s all right now. “As long as I—Chief of Great Detectives Ōtsuji—am here, nothing can harm us anymore! “Miss Mariko, please rest assured as if you were aboard a grand ship!” Ōtsuji, trying to cheer up Mariko, put on an act of boasting while impersonating the Chief of Great Detectives. Ōtsuji had indeed performed a great deed. But that deed’s origin lay in his genuine trembling and cry of “A ghost!” Since it was a feat born of cowardice, he couldn’t boast too much about it. Detective Homura would surely laugh if he heard.

Mariko was greatly encouraged by Ōtsuji’s words. But how could she escape from a place like this empty well? Mariko, worried about that, appealed to Ōtsuji. Then Ōtsuji let out a dry laugh,

“Ah, there’s no need to worry about that.” “Why?” “Because, you see, I fell into here from above this hole. Therefore, if we climb back up this hole in reverse, we’ll definitely get outside. Right?”

“That’s true,” she said sorrowfully. “But climbing such a deep vertical shaft… I don’t have the strength for that.” “Ah, no need to fret about that either! I may be good at tumbling into holes, but climbing out’s my specialty. Born in mountain country, you see—been scaling cliffs and trees since I was knee-high. Better at it than any monkey!” Assistant Ōtsuji looked more like a gorilla than a monkey.

The Unyielding Two

Assistant Ōtsuji was a man who grew very energetic when things went well. Conversely, he had a bad habit of becoming instantly discouraged whenever things hit even a minor snag and stopped going smoothly.

“Come on, Miss Mariko. “Climb on my back.” “If we dawdle any longer, the bad guys will find us again.” Mariko clung to Ōtsuji’s back. There, Ōtsuji removed the band and secured Mariko to his back. Mariko found the area under her buttocks painfully constricted by the band, but she couldn’t afford to voice such frivolous complaints. Mariko’s hands gripped Ōtsuji’s shoulders firmly. Ōtsuji began climbing up the shaft.

He took out a large sailor knife from his pocket and clamped it between his teeth. Both legs and arms pressed against the shaft walls, his posture like a crab wedged in a chimney. He climbed upward by skillfully shifting his limbs against the shaft walls. The sailor knife proved invaluable for carving footholds into the stone. It took exactly thirty minutes to scale the shaft. Even Assistant Ōtsuji—who boasted of his great strength—appeared to have spent all his energy in this grueling half-hour effort, collapsing without a word onto the grass the moment he emerged with a heavy thud.

“Mr. Ōtsuji.” “Pull yourself together!” “Ugh.”

“Let’s escape quickly.” “If someone comes chasing after us, it’ll be terrible.” “Ugh.”

No matter what was said, Ōtsuji kept groaning “Ugh... ugh...” for a while, but then suddenly heaved himself up like an ox and— “Hooray! There’s no one scary left! Let’s get out of here!” Hoisting Mariko onto his back, Ōtsuji dashed down the dimly lit mountain path at full speed. Ōtsuji was truly happy. And he was elated. He should have remembered Homura and Seita, but he continued descending the mountain without doing so. He had simply been too overjoyed. He was indeed elated.

To Homura! To Homura! All the while praying not to be pursued by Artificial Human Mr. F as well, Assistant Ōtsuji continued rapidly descending the mountain.

Now, this side concerned Dr. Ivanov. While opening Artificial Human Mr. F's body cavity and repairing the instruments packed tightly inside, he heard a disturbing noise. "Hmm, what could that sound be?"

Dr. Ivanov heard the crashing and rumbling sound of rocks breaking and falling somewhere, and stood up.

“Hmm, that detective and the brat might be trying to escape by collapsing the rock cave.” “That must be it.” “Hmm, I’ll give them hell!”

Dr.Ivanov left the room with a pistol. The doctor’s footsteps echoed through the underground passage.

Dr. Ivanov quietly approached the earthen cell where he had thrown Detective Homura and Seita. He moved to the small barred window. It was an earthen cell dimly lit by a faint bulb. The doctor peered into the stone cell using what little light there was. "Ah! There they are - both lying stretched out over there. That noise must've worked perfectly." _Now I'm safe - completely secure._ That sound might actually be coming from Mariko's cell further back. "I'll go investigate that side."

With that, Dr. Ivanov proceeded deeper into the underground passage.

However, once they realized the doctor had moved away, Homura and Seita sprang up with a start. In truth, both of them had been deliberately feigning unconsciousness.

“Now’s our chance. The hole’s about to open!” The two clung to the wall like locusts. They were poking at the dark wall with something like a stick when, for some reason, a beam of light suddenly shot through the wall.

Unexpected Event

Light! A light suddenly flashed in from the dark wall!

The light rapidly grew larger. Homura and Seita vied to cling to this light, refusing to let go.

“Hmph, I can see clearly!” Homura said in a low voice. “I can see... the room...” said Seita. A hole had opened in the wall. Through the hole in the wall, the interior of the neighboring room could be seen. “Ah! There’s Artificial Human Mr. F! “Seita-kun, come here for a moment and look inside. “I’ll lift you up.” Homura lifted Seita up from behind and showed him the situation inside the room through the hole. “Ah! That’s him! “He has a face that looks just like mine. “It’s Artificial Human Mr. F.”

“Seita-kun, quiet—” Homura cautioned. “Hey... Seita-kun.” “Looking now—through this wall hole—the device Dr. Ivanov values for controlling Artificial Human Mr. F isn’t far off.” “It’s sitting on the desk.” “Let’s smash that thing somehow!” “Then I bet the artificial human will stop moving for sure!” “Ah, that’s clever thinking.”

“Let’s destroy that thing before Dr. Ivanov comes back.” “Step aside for a moment.” Detective Homura gripped a short stick in his hand and inserted it into the hole. Because the hole was small, inserting his hand made it quite troublesome to see through to the other side. Homura estimated his aim first, then thrust out his right hand and swung the stick with a whizzing sound. But whether the stick was too short or Homura’s arm couldn’t reach properly, he frustratingly failed to hit the device.

“Don’t we have anything longer?” “This isn’t working. Let’s try it this way.” With that, Homura retracted the stick, tore his handkerchief into strips with a ripping sound to fashion a makeshift string, and hastily tied it to the end of the stick. Then, to the other end of the string, he tied a knife. “Let’s try this again.” “I see, Mr. Homura—you come up with clever ideas.” “I’m completely impressed.” “Oh, it’s nothing—just a desperate idea.” Homura inserted his right hand into the hole once more. And then, he swung the stick he held in his hand. The knife tied to the end of the stick with string spun rapidly until it met with a clanging resistance. But after that impact, the stick stopped moving entirely.

“Huh? What’s going on?” Seita said, but Homura’s arm was fully inserted into the hole up to his armpit, leaving no gap in the opening. Therefore, they couldn’t see through to the other side. Then, suddenly, a loud voice rang out. “W-who’s there!” It was Dr. Ivanov’s voice.

“Damn it.” “It’s no use now!” Homura, convinced this was the end, gripped the stick and with all his might yanked it back toward himself.

It had been quite strenuous, but the stick finally moved. There was a heavy thud as something fell onto the floor. It was Mr. F’s control device that had fallen to the floor. At that very moment, “Ah—it hurts!” Homura shouted. At that moment, the stick slipped from his grasp. He hurriedly retracted his arm from the hole. “Grooowl!” A beast-like creature let out a guttural roar.

“Oh no, this is bad.” “No—it’s failed!” This was Dr. Ivanov’s voice. From inside the doctor’s room came heavy thudding sounds of collisions. Then abruptly, even the wall confining Homura and Seita began reverberating deeply, its plaster starting to crumble away. “You, Artificial Human Mr. F.” “Won’t you be still?” “I said be still!”

The noises from Dr. Ivanov’s room grew increasingly louder. Various things seemed to be breaking. “Ah, what do I do now?” Just as the doctor shouted, the earthen wall of the room where Homura and Seita were trapped collapsed with a crash. Before they could even gasp, the thing that leaped through the hole was Artificial Human Mr. F. It was a tremendous force.

Now, what would become of the two?

Rampaging Artificial Human

“Roooar!” With a tremendous roar, Artificial Human Mr. F began rampaging through the room. To look at his figure alone, it appeared exactly as though the boy Seita was rampaging. As for Mr. F’s face at that moment, contrary to his tremendous roar, he was grinning broadly. Grinning broadly while letting out a tremendous roar, he began demolishing every wall he could reach. Later, Detective Homura recalled that time and recounted how this was even creepier than if he had been rampaging with a terrifying expression on his face.

Homura and the boy Seita huddled in a corner of the wall, praying that the artificial human wouldn’t come their way. But as the rampage grew increasingly violent, Seita finally edged closer to Homura. “Are you okay, Mr. Homura?” “Yeah, I should be mostly okay.”

Detective Homura's voice was calm. When he heard that voice, Seita suddenly felt his spirits strengthen.

“Mr. Homura. Why is Mr. F rampaging?” “Well, I’m not entirely sure, but earlier we dropped the device that controls Mr. F. At that time, I think part of that device broke, which is why Mr. F suddenly started rampaging.” Detective Homura, even amidst this commotion, managed to put his mind to work. Seita heard that and became scared again.

“So Mr. F has gone mad then,” he said. “If I were to lose my mind and rampage like that... how horrible,” Seita thought, his heart growing dark.

“Ah, that makes sense,” Homura nodded in agreement. “You shouldn’t look at such things. Keep your head down and don’t watch,” he said, holding Seita’s head. Artificial Human Mr. F rampaged even more violently—hurling dirt and rock fragments like a raging bull thrashing inside a granary. What had become of Dr. Ivanov?

Dr. Ivanov, in the opposite room, was also hunched over, intently watching the situation here. “Ah, this is bad! “If this doesn’t work, maybe I should try moving it like this.” Upon closer inspection, Dr. Ivanov was frantically flipping numerous switches on and off on the artificial human’s control device before him. Indeed, something seemed to be malfunctioning, and since it wasn’t working as the doctor intended, it was failing.

“Tch, even this isn’t working. “There’s no help for it.” “It seems there’s no choice but to disassemble and repair this control device once.” Dr. Ivanov, now completely absorbed, wiped the sweat from his brow, took out a screwdriver, and began disassembling the control device. At that moment, the screwdriver in Dr. Ivanov’s hand touched something, and sparks flew with a flash. When Dr. Ivanov let out a startled “Gah!”, the artificial human that had been rampaging in the detention room spun around and leapt into the doctor’s chamber.

“Ah! Look out!” Before Dr. Ivanov’s startled cry had even finished echoing, Artificial Human Mr. F shot upward toward the ceiling with cannonball-like speed. A thunderous boom, then clattering earth and rock fragments raining down. From that moment on, Artificial Human Mr. F’s figure vanished from sight.

What had become of Artificial Human Mr. F? Now Mr. F was flying eastward through the pitch-black sky like a cannonball, emitting a whooshing roar. And then—for some reason—his body would occasionally flash with an eerie glow. Each time it glowed, Mr. F’s body spun round and round in midair, looking exactly like a human firework. Mr. F’s body seemed to gradually ascend higher and higher into the sky. At that moment, a sudden fierce wind began blowing from that ominous sky, as though Mr. F had abruptly transformed into the god of wind.

Mr. F flew through the sky with fierce force. Since it was the middle of the night, things remained manageable, but had this occurred in daylight, passersby looking up at the boy-shaped Mr. F soaring through the air would surely have been terrified. Without doubt, a hundred or two hundred people would have fainted.

The Cave Confrontation

Inside the cave, Homura and Seita regained their vigor. Because Mr.F had broken loose, Dr.Ivanov was thrown into utter panic. Seizing that moment, Homura and Seita pinned down the doctor from both flanks.

“Now, Dr. Ivanov. Be quiet.” “Ah! What do you intend to do by restraining me?” “It’s obvious. How could we possibly let your wicked deeds of bringing an artificial human into Japan go unpunished?” said Homura as he bound the doctor’s hands with rope to prevent escape. “Well now, what do you think you’re doing?” Dr. Ivanov glared sharply at Homura.

"I'm terribly sorry, but under these circumstances, we have no choice. If you were to escape, we'd have to endure another outrageous commotion again." Homura clearly delivered his judgment to the doctor. "Y-You insolent cur! But mark my words! The time will come when you'll be begging me to untie this rope!" Dr. Ivanov muttered angrily.

Homura did not fall for such threats. He then signaled to Seita and instructed him to keep watch from behind the doctor. Homura intended to make Dr. Ivanov quickly reveal the secret of the artificial human here.

“Doctor. “You brought Artificial Human Mr. F into Japan—what exactly did you intend to accomplish?” “Ah ha, so the interrogation is finally starting, is it? “You can think about that yourself.” Dr. Ivanov defiantly turned his face upward toward the ceiling. “Doctor, it seems you can’t respond. “No—we’ll hear that response later,” said Homura while intently observing Dr. Ivanov’s demeanor. “Doctor. “You were always controlling Artificial Human Mr. F with this radio wave controller, I presume. “Artificial humans are, so to speak, like automobiles: when a driver gets in, starts the engine, and takes the wheel, they move—but an automobile alone cannot move on its own. “In the same way, Mr. F cannot move independently either. “Unless you, Doctor, skillfully toggle these numerous switches on the control device in precise sequence, Mr. F remains immobile. “Well? There’s no discrepancy in that analysis, I presume.”

Homura incisively cut into the secret of the artificial human. “Ha ha ha ha! If you understand that much, there’s no need to ask me anything.” “How about it? Does Japan have such a magnificent device as an artificial human?” “No—even if I said there was, no one in the world would believe it.” Dr. Ivanov made a nasty remark. Homura paid no attention to this and instead took another step forward, “Listen, Doctor.” “Now, I must give you a warning here—it seems that Artificial Human Mr. F is no longer under your control.” “In other words, it seems Mr. F has started moving on his own.” “Is this something you need not concern yourself with?”

Homura’s question had struck right at the doctor’s weak spot. Until that moment, Dr. Ivanov had been arrogantly puffing out his chest, but hearing this question suddenly threw him into disarray. Seizing the opening, Homura thrust forward with sharp words. “Well now, Doctor. Artificial Human Mr. F has rebelled against your will—punching holes through walls, smashing through ceilings, then fleeing who knows where. Surely you never ordered him to wreck this cave you labored so hard to build?”

“Hmm.” “That is...” “Doctor.” “Doctor, if you leave Mr. F unattended like this, will that truly pose no problem?” “Is it acceptable to let Mr. F act freely?” “What if Mr. F were to jump into the sea?” “The seawater would immediately soak the machinery inside its body, rendering it inoperable. If that were to happen, your carefully crafted artificial human would be ruined.”

“Seawater’s nothing to him!” “No—this…” Dr. Ivanov covered his mouth mid-sentence, but his words suggested the artificial human had been engineered to withstand water exposure. Through and through, it was a masterfully constructed creation.

Control of the Artificial Human Dr. Ivanov suddenly began to fidget. He appeared unable to stay still, whether standing or sitting. Detective Homura signaled to Seita with a glance. Seita, sensing Homura’s expression, remained silent and nodded emphatically.

“Listen, Doctor. Before Artificial Human Mr. F breaks down, wouldn’t it be wise to obediently recall him using this control device?”

“Hmm, that may be so, but my hands won’t move.” “Untie this rope.”

“Ha ha ha ha! You’re asking us to untie you ourselves now, aren’t you? But we can’t do that.” “Why won’t you untie me? If you don’t, that artificial human will rampage unchecked! Soon enough, a catastrophe will strike—one so terrible that even if the entire Japanese nation comes to regret it deeply, there’ll be nothing anyone can do! Is that what you want?” “Enough with the scare tactics, Doctor,” Homura stated coldly. “Ah yes—it seems your hands won’t move. But your mouth still works. Give us verbal instructions.” “I’ll operate the control device’s switches exactly as you say.”

“Ah, I see.” “You bastard—you’re trying to extract the artificial human’s control method from me, aren’t you?” “That’s right.” “That’s right. To put it plainly—yes.” Dr. Ivanov fell silent, lost in thought for a while. But before long, a look of resolve began to appear on his face. “Very well.” “I’ll tell you what I know.” The doctor’s mindset changed drastically. He declared he would teach Homura how to operate the artificial human. They could not let their guard down against what terrifying scheme might lie behind Dr. Ivanov’s sudden change of heart, but at any rate, given that Artificial Human Mr. F was now rampaging freely, it was clear that the doctor wanted to reclaim control of Mr. F—even if it meant temporarily leveraging Homura’s assistance—above all else.

“Now then, I shall instruct you—commit this thoroughly to memory, understand? When you press this master switch here,” Dr. Ivanov explained, “radio waves transmit to the receiver embedded within Mr. F’s body.” “Indeed,” Homura acknowledged. “Having done that,” the doctor continued, “you must then press one of these switches numbered one through a hundred. Each switch here,” he added with evident pride, “is engineered to execute distinct operational patterns.” His bound shoulders shifted awkwardly as he concluded, “The explanatory manual resides in my pocket—extract it.” Twisting his restrained torso with effort, Dr. Ivanov presented his coat pocket toward the detective. Within lay precisely what he’d described—a compact volume bearing the title Secret Control Manual in bold characters.

“How about that? It’s splendidly crafted, isn’t it? For example, if you turn on the nineteenth switch, Artificial Human Mr.F will completely know what’s in the other person’s mind.”

Dr. Ivanov made an astonishing claim. He claimed there was a mechanism capable of reading human minds.

“Dr. Ivanov. Can you really do something as ridiculous as reading someone’s mind?” “Hmph! It’s precisely because you’re so easily astonished that Japan’s scientific progress lags,” sneered Dr. Ivanov, his voice dripping with contempt. “Humans believe thinking comes from brain activity—but in truth, that very activity is just electrical impulses.” “Like radio waves, these impulses become short radio waves that escape the human body.” “Since they emit radio waves, capturing them is possible with a receiver.” “Of course, it’s different from a regular radio receiver.” “A special receiver that detects even shorter wavelengths.” “This is installed inside Mr. F’s body.” “Well? Are you astonished?”

“I see.” “Then if it could understand what’s in someone’s mind, it could respond accordingly, shake hands, or walk together with them.”

Ah, I see—that was exactly when he was speaking. The radio receiver in the room suddenly began airing an emergency news bulletin. "The Tōkaidō Line has been rendered impassable. The Hodogaya Tunnel has been bombed. The mysterious boy in question is believed to be involved in this incident. The entire area around the scene remains under high alert, but a commotion resembling a battlefield has broken out."

Dr. Ivanov and Homura inadvertently exchanged glances.

A major incident! The Hodogaya Tunnel has been bombed! Artificial Human Mr. F is said to be involved in that! The Tōkaidō Line has been rendered impassable!

Detective Homura glared fixedly at Dr. Ivanov. He could not conceal the anguish in his heart. For Homura had known that a certain division composed of elite specialized troops from the Tohoku region was scheduled to rush westward that very night, and when he considered this, he felt great anguish. What would that departing division do? If the Hodogaya Tunnel were blown up, trains would obviously be unable to pass through. This meant they would have to disembark from the train and cross that mountain path, but for that heavy mechanized troop to traverse that ridge was both an immense logistical challenge and a time-consuming endeavor. However, unless this departing division reached its continental destination even an hour earlier in response to a certain battle situation, our continental army would suffer great damage on that battlefield.

But if it ended with just the bombing of the Hodogaya Tunnel, that would still be manageable—yet Dr. Ivanov, though bound hand and foot, wore a smug look all along (Just wait and see... because something far worse will happen—), his face seemed to say. Thinking of that, Homura felt his guts seethe with fury.

“Dr. Ivanov. You know how to subdue Artificial Human Mr. F. Please do it immediately.” With that, Detective Homura said to the doctor, suppressing his frustration. Then Dr. Ivanov wore a look that seemed to say “See?” “Impossible. It’s a mechanical malfunction—nothing will work now. If something slips from *my* grasp,” he declared with mocking grandeur, “how could *you* possibly hold it?”

Homura clenched his teeth in frustration, but there was nothing he could do. Then Seita, who had been silently watching this all along, spoke up. “Detective Homura. Wouldn’t this work? In other words, we should just destroy that control device. If we destroy that, then Mr. F would naturally stop moving, wouldn’t he?” “Yes, Seita-kun, that’s smart. That’s an excellent idea! Let’s smash the control device!”

With that, Homura glanced sideways at Dr. Ivanov’s face. Dr. Ivanov seemed to snort a laugh through his nose at that. Homura hesitated for a moment. If only Dr. Ivanov would panic there, but he showed not the slightest sign of alarm. That being said, he couldn’t afford to dawdle forever. It was a shame to smash the control device they had worked so hard to obtain, but there was simply no other choice. Homura picked up the large iron bar that had been leaning in the corner of the cave. Then, glaring at the control device, he raised it high with all his might.

“Ahahaha! You’d better not regret doing that later!” Ignoring this, Homura brought down the iron bar with a “heave-ho!” At that instant, a blinding flash of light suddenly illuminated the room amid a deafening roar. “Ah!” Homura let out a cry of surprise and collapsed on the spot, writhing. “Heh heh heh. See? That’s exactly why I told you to stop!” The Doctor sneered and stood up. Before anyone noticed, all the ropes that had bound Dr. Ivanov had come undone. The one who was shocked was Seita.

“Dr. Ivanov, you’re evil! Change Detective Homura back to normal!” “What foolishness, Seita. You can lie there with him for all I care.” With that, Dr. Ivanov slammed his fist into Seita’s jaw. As the boy cried out and collapsed, the doctor bolted from the room. Darkness enveloped the cave’s exterior. Switching on his flashlight, Dr. Ivanov charged down the mountain path. The distant sky glowed crimson—a burning haze that appeared to hover over Totsuka.

A perfect replica of a battlefield. Dr. Ivanov hurriedly ran down the mountain path. He moved with a speed that belied his elderly appearance. “Enough—there’s no need for me to stay in Japan any longer.” “As a parting bonus—I’ll burn down the Imperial Capital Tokyo as I’ve long planned, then make my exit.” Dr. Ivanov let out a dry laugh and continued running.

This was Detective Homura. Having received an electric shock, he had momentarily collapsed, but before long regained consciousness. The surroundings had fallen utterly silent, yet startled, he leapt to his feet. Upon waking fully, he was astonished for the third time. Beside him lay Seita stretched out unconscious.

“Hey Seita, pull yourself together!” he said, lifting him up and shaking him until Seita came to.

“Hey—Dr. Ivanov’s gone! He must’ve escaped!”

They searched the area, but of course Dr. Ivanov's figure couldn't be found. At that moment, the radio above their heads began to blare again. Another special news bulletin.

"We bring you a special news bulletin. The explosion site at Hodogaya Tunnel has been completely surrounded by our military forces. What initially appeared to be a mysterious boy has now been confirmed as the terrifying artificial human. Accordingly, the tank corps has formed a circular formation and continues tightening the perimeter in their efforts to apprehend it. Oh—we've just received an update. The artificial human has abruptly altered its behavior and begun frantically digging into the earth. No matter where it attempts to burrow, capture appears imminent. This concludes our special bulletin. Authorities further advise listeners to keep their switches on at all times, as evacuation orders may be issued without warning."

Homura and Seita instinctively ran toward each other and clasped hands.

“Let’s go to Hodogaya.”

“Let’s go.”

The two of them rushed outside. However, walking along the mountain path in complete darkness seemed extremely difficult. The two of them returned to the cave, searched for a handheld lantern, and then once again set off down the mountain. "That's a relief." "Mr. F will be caught before long." "What do you think happened to Dr. Ivanov?"

“Perhaps Dr.Ivanov also went to the scene.” “I wish we could get somewhere with phone access quickly.” “But I suppose we can mostly rest easy now.” “Even Dr.Ivanov is an old man—he’ll tire out soon enough and get caught by the police,I suppose.”

The two of them appeared to grow gradually lighter in spirit. But was it truly safe for them to feel so reassured? What had become of Dr. Ivanov? Homura and Seita hurried down the mountain in great haste, but some forty-five minutes later, they finally encountered the police cordon. For these two, being caught in the police cordon became an unexpected joy.

Homura gave a summarized account of everything that had happened to the police officers. He then informed them that it was crucial to make arrangements to capture Dr. Ivanov. Fortunately, as there happened to be a police car equipped with a radio transceiver nearby for surveillance and communication, Homura promptly used the transmitter to present his plan for capturing the escaped Dr. Ivanov.

The one who had been listening to this was Chief Ōeyama of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Investigation Division, but—

“Alright, understood. Then I’ll make arrangements immediately, so rest assured.” With that, he praised Homura’s efforts. Homura and Seita were then taken by car to the vicinity of Hodogaya Tunnel. The scene was in utter chaos, like a fireground commotion. Fire trucks extended their long ladders—the type used for fighting high-rise blazes—straight upward, illuminating the valley where Mr. F had fled with searchlights mounted atop them. This bright light came not from one or two sources alone, but converged from all directions upon the same spot, rendering the ravine as luminous as midday.

"What happened to the artificial human?" Homura asked a police officer. "The artificial human burrowed into the ground near that large fallen tree and hasn’t come out since."

At that moment, the valley exploded with a tremendous roar. A tremendous pillar of fire rose, and smoke and earth swirled into a vortex. Everything was illuminated by the searchlights, adding even more to the terror.

Grand Climax

It was an unexpected explosion. “Ah, Seita.” “Artificial Human Mr. F has finally self-destructed.” Detective Homura informed Seita, whose hand he was holding.

“Ah, did he finally self-destruct?” Seita let out a sigh of relief. “But even if it’s an artificial human... thinking about a boy’s body that looked exactly like me being scattered into pieces... it feels kind of strange,” he said.

That was only natural. The news of the artificial human’s self-destruction had also been reported from other sources. There were those who sighed in relief at finally being safe and those who lamented it as a waste. “Well, what remains is Dr. Ivanov’s whereabouts—I wonder what happened to him.”

Homura kept worrying about that matter. The details regarding Dr. Ivanov’s whereabouts reached Homura’s ears the following morning.

The one who told us that was Officer Tobita from the Yokohama Maritime Police Department. That account went as follows. “Well now—I was completely astonished! It must’ve been around ten o’clock last night. When I was patrolling the harbor at midnight aboard a launch, I spotted something strange on the sea surface—not a ship by any means—but something moving across the water at tremendous speed! I immediately started up my engine and gave chase. But you’ll never believe what happened next! When I drew closer… why… this turned out to be something extraordinary! What do you suppose it was? A human figure—truly! A bearded old man swimming out toward open sea still fully dressed! But here’s the kicker—though I say ‘swimming,’ it wasn’t any stroke like crawl or breaststroke! He tore through those waves like a torpedo—slicing through smooth as you please! No Olympic swimmer could’ve matched that speed! Felt like I was being made a fool by some trickster fox! But given his pace… couldn’t just let him go! Reported it straightaway by wireless—‘Headquarters,’ says I! They were flabbergasted! Ordered me to keep pursuit while alerting the security fleet! Whole thing turned into an uproar… but in the end… only my launch kept after that swimming mystery man—none of them other vessels could catch up!”

At this, Officer Tobita shuddered.

“So you’re saying that must be Dr. Ivanov?” “Well, it was an old man. I shone a small searchlight on him and got a good look—he was swimming fully clothed.” “Anyway, while pursuing him, the mystery man swam up to a large buoy-like object protruding from the sea and climbed onto it.” “From atop the buoy as well, several sailors reached out their hands and pulled up this mystery man.” “Even as I tell you this, you’re probably thinking it’s strange that there are sailors on the buoy.” “You’re absolutely right.” “I will explain that now, but just as I was thinking how strange this was, the buoy steadily sank into the sea.” By the time I realized—Ah, a submarine!—it was already too late. “In other words, that mystery man was dragged into the submarine waiting there and then got away.” “This is no fabrication.” “Later, I also heard from the authorities, but they stated that the submarine was undoubtedly ○○’s.”

“To give you a rough summary, my account ends here, but why that mystery man raced across the sea surface like a torpedo—that mystery remains completely unsolved. Mr. Homura, after hearing this account, does anything come to mind?”

Officer Tobita’s account was roughly as described above. Having heard this report, Homura’s entire body trembled violently.

“Ah! So that’s it,” he exclaimed. “Now I get it. Why didn’t I realize this sooner?” “Huh? What do you mean?” Seita watched the unusually agitated detective with a puzzled expression fixed on his face.

Seita watched with a mystified expression, his gaze fixed on Detective Homura’s extraordinary condition.

“Hey, Seita-kun. That Dr. Ivanov was actually an artificial human too, you know.” “What?! The Doctor is an artificial human too? No way—” “No—that’s undoubtedly the case. Mr. F is an artificial human operated by that controller; Dr. Ivanov is an artificial human with a controller inside the submarine—that’s the only difference. It was only then that the connection to the submarine became clear. How terrifyingly far the power of science has reached! We Japanese must stay strong!”

With that, Detective Homura twitched an eyebrow.