21st Century Necromancer

"Brother Yu, I really owe you big time for last time.

If it weren’t for your reminder, we wouldn’t have thought the victim’s cause of death was due to illness—we’d probably still be trying to figure out which poison was involved!" Inside a common barbecue restaurant on the streets of Tokyo, Kube Rokuro thanked Chen Yu while introducing the woman beside him: "This is Misumi Mikoto from our UDI forensic pathology team.

She was in charge of the autopsy on that body. It was because of your reminder that we were able to determine the victim’s true cause of death, so Dr. Misumi insisted on thanking you."

"Hello, Doctor Chen, I am Misumi Mikoto. Thanks to your reminder this time, we were able to find the correct cause of death. The timely discovery of the MARS virus transmission is also thanks to you. Director Kamikura was saying he wanted to treat you to a meal to express his gratitude, but he had to go to Higashiyo Medical University Hospital today, so he specifically asked Mr.

Kube and me to thank you on his behalf—truly, we’re extremely grateful!" The woman sitting next to Kube Rokuro, with her wavy, curled hair and petite stature, was very earnest in offering her appreciation, bowing deeply to Chen Yu as she spoke.

Chen Yu responded to Misumi Mikoto’s gratitude with a casual smile and said modestly, "It was just a small matter, not deserving of such a formal thanks. Besides, even without my reminder, I believe Dr. Misumi you would have found the true cause of the victim’s death. What’s more Rokuro, you scamp, can’t even remember what causes acute kidney injury. If Professor Kube found out, he’d have your head."

The words made Kube Rokuro’s proud expression quickly disappear, as he brought his head down in embarrassment, pretending to concentrate on his food to hide his discomfort.

Dr. Misumi Mikoto, curious after seeing Kube Rokuro’s reaction, turned to Chen Yu, "Doctor Chen, the Professor Kube you mentioned is?"

"Professor Kube is Rokuro’s father, the head of surgery at Eastern University Affiliated Hospital, and also my current boss. When I was doing my doctoral research at the University of Tokyo, Professor Kube was my advisor, and that was also when I met Rokuro." Chen Yu explained his relationship with Professor Kube to Dr. Misumi Mikoto.

Then, he sighed while looking at the bowed head of Kube Rokuro: "Professor Kube has always been very strict with Rokuro, so if he knew Rokuro had to come to me for something like this, he’d definitely be angry."

"Head of surgery at Eastern University Affiliated Hospital?" Misumi Mikoto’s eyes widened as she looked at Chen Yu, and then incredulously turned toward Kube Rokuro, who was still looking down: "I recall you’re just an ordinary..."

"Just a student from a third-rate medical university..." Kube Rokuro said without looking up, his voice laced with unmistakable self-deprecation and disappointment.

The son of the prestigious head of surgery at Eastern University Affiliated Hospital was merely a student at a third-rate medical college, having to repeat a year just to get admitted; it was a fact that dealt a serious blow to Kube Rokuro’s pride, and was also something that would embarrass Professor Kube immensely.

These were not the sort of topics one would bring up at the dinner table if it weren’t for the good relationship between Chen Yu and Kube Rokuro, and the fact that Chen Yu was a student of Professor Kube.

"Uh... Regardless, I’m really very grateful for your help this time, Doctor Chen. Truly, thank you very much!" Perhaps eager to steer away from the subject, Dr. Misumi Mikoto once again expressed her thanks, then picked up her cup from the table and offered a toast to Chen Yu.

After clinking glasses with Misumi Mikoto, Chen Yu, too, moved past the uncomfortable and embarrassing topic for Kube Rokuro and instead started discussing the recent MARS virus outbreak: "Speaking of which, the MARS virus transmission incident was something that you at UDI discovered on your own.

I presume you have investigated everything about the victim who was infected in the Middle East and his activities until his death, haven’t you?"

"Yes, thanks to the cooperation and permission from the victim’s parents, we indeed conducted a thorough investigation into the circumstances of his death. Is there a problem?" Dr. Misumi Mikoto looked at Chen Yu, wondering what had prompted his sudden question.

"Nothing much, I’m just very concerned about something and wanted to ask." Chen Yu appeared casually inquisitive as he posed his question to Dr.

Misumi Mikoto, but his query seemed to puzzle her as well: "I read some recent news reports that said the victim contracted the MARS virus while on a business trip in Saudi Arabia, and then went to Toyo Medical University Hospital for a checkup on the third day after returning because he thought he had a cold, and then he died of the disease outbreak soon after.

This sequence of events is correct, right?"

After listening to Chen Yu, Dr. Misumi Mikoto recalled the details of her investigation, nodded, and confirmed, "Based on the results of our current investigation, that is indeed the case. Is there something wrong with that?"

"No, it’s just that I found out during my research that Higashiyo Medical University Hospital was involved in MARS virus research—one of Japan’s few MARS virus research teams just happens to be there." Chen Yu shook his head slightly, but brought up his point of confusion: "The fact that someone with symptoms that seemed like a cold went to a checkup and just happened to choose one of the few places in all Japan that studies the MARS virus seems like quite a coincidence.

Moreover, among all the people he had contact with at his company, only one other female victim was confirmed to be infected, but at the hospital eight people were infected... Granted, the patients there have lower immunity, but the ratio seems unusually high, don’t you think?"

Chen Yu’s words caused Dr. Misumi Mikoto to freeze mid-motion as she looked at him, disbelief in her eyes: "Doctor Chen, you can’t be suspecting..."

Kube Rokuro, who had been bowing his head until now, also looked up at Chen Yu with surprise, as he too seemed to have realized what Chen Yu was suspecting, "Brother Yu, it couldn’t possibly be that serious, right? If that were the case, then the vitriolic accusations the victim is currently facing..."

"I don’t know, it’s just too much of a coincidence." Chen Yu tapped his forehead with his fingers, as if trying to dismiss his own thoughts or to clear his mind of distractions: "Maybe I’m being overly suspicious, but if it was the hospital’s virus sample that caused this infection, then the victim would be wrongly blamed.

If only we could find someone who had contact with him before he went to Higashiyo Medical University Hospital for a checkup, and who had not been in contact with him since. If that person doesn’t have the virus or antibodies, we could determine whether the victim was infected in Saudi Arabia or at Toyo Medical University Hospital."

Chen Yu’s words lit up the eyes of both Dr. Misumi Mikoto and Kube Rokuro, as it was apparent they both thought of someone who fit the conditions described by Chen Yu.