Past Arc 14
When Fodui awoke, an unfamiliar ceiling greeted her.
The lighting fixture casting light upon the ceiling was not something she had seen before.
She felt sluggishness and thirst, but as time passed, her consciousness gradually returned.
With it, her memories also became clearer.
The captain, feeling ill, began to suffer.
Then, suddenly, the captain attacked.
Fodui’s memory ended at the moment she was struck by intense pain.
What had happened, Fodui could not comprehend.
The captain was a man she trusted.
That he would betray her with such a clumsy method was difficult to believe.
Though Fodui tried to calm her disoriented mind, she soon understood her situation and was thrown into renewed shock.
His body lay stretched across the bed.
That was acceptable.
Yet Fodui’s body was secured by thick belts.
Multiple layers.
“What is this?”
It was unavoidable that Fodui spoke aloud.
Fodui was a recognized figure in the financial elite.
A person of importance. One who should never be restrained in such a manner.
What kind of situation allowed for such a person to be bound?
The word “kidnapping” surfaced in Fodui’s mind.
Yet Fodui dismissed the word immediately.
Even if the captain had betrayed her, the circumstances were too inconsistent.
Fodui rotated her neck—her only free limb—and surveyed the surroundings.
What met her eyes was medical equipment mounted beside the bed.
The IV tube extended from there, connected to Fodui's arm.
Upon closer inspection, the nature of the location became apparent—this was a medical facility of some kind.
Too inconsistent for a kidnapping.
Yet, recognizing that did not alter the fact of her restraint.
She must speak with someone.
Making that decision, Fodui shouted toward the door.
“Anyone! Is anyone there!?”
The shout intensified her awareness of thirst.
Aging had long diminished her awareness of dryness in the throat.
The intense, unfamiliar sensation caused her to cough involuntarily.
Footsteps approached—hurried, frantic—followed by the door swinging open abruptly.
Harsh light streamed in from the hallway, forcing Fodui to squint.
At the same time, she suddenly became aware—now, belatedly—that her vision was unnaturally sharp despite the room being completely dark.
Thirst. The eyes adjusting too well to darkness. She concluded, with growing certainty, that she had been unconscious for an extended period.
"Awake?"
She turned toward the figure standing in the hallway. Confusion arose. The person she expected—medical staff—was not who appeared.
A police officer.
"Police officer?"
The question escaped her lips before she could stop it.
The officer reacted with shock.
The exaggerated response stirred irritation within Fodui.
She wanted to protest the unjust treatment—being arrested upon waking. Her tone hardened.
"What is the meaning of this? Do you know who I am?"
The officer flinched visibly at Sophia’s words.
She seemed to understand whom she was dealing with. Sophia made her demand, as expected.
“Untie me—quickly.”
The officer did not respond to the request to release the restraints.
“I—I’ll call someone!”
He shouted it, then fled before Sophia could answer.
“How many do you see?”
How long had passed since the officer ran off?
Sophia remained in the room without a clock. She could not measure the passage of time precisely, but the prolonged suffering of being bound, unable to act, waiting—this was undeniable.
That much time had passed.
Then, when someone appeared, the officer was gone. Instead, seven people had gathered.
Among them, a man resembling a physician examined Sophia.
While still restrained.
Three.
The physician’s displayed fingers answered, slightly weary.
At first, Fodui had shouted to be released and explain his situation, but the response was unclear: “We’ll release you once safety is confirmed.”
Fodui felt indignation—was he being treated as a dangerous individual?
Yet all those surrounding him, including the physician, wore serious expressions, radiating an intense atmosphere.
Fodui decided compliance was the wiser course. He suppressed his complaints and accepted the physician’s assessment without protest.
“Excuse me. May I ask you to open your mouth?”
“Ah.”
Fodui opened his mouth as instructed.
The physician peered inside. Fodui felt discomfort.
Typically, when a physician examines the mouth, they inspect the throat, would they not?
Yet at that moment, the physician was looking not at the throat, but farther forward—as if examining the teeth.
And it was not the physician alone who peered inward.
The other six also fixed their gaze upon Fodui’s mouth.
“Is that enough?”
Fodui closed his mouth, discomfort mounting.
“Ah… yes.”
The physician responded haltingly.
“And? Did you discover anything?”
Fodui asked without concealing his irritation.
The diagnosis was straightforward.
Not meant to assess health, but to verify whether consciousness was present.
To Fodui, who was clearly awake despite waking from sleep, the procedure felt dismissive—like mockery.
“Mr. Fodui possesses normal cognitive function.”
“Naturally.”
It was unavoidable that Fodui spoke dismissively.
“Not naturally.”
A voice rejecting Fodui’s statement.
The man who appeared alongside the physician, the one with the highest rank.
“You are the sole example among those infected by vampires to have regained conscious will. Among all those bitten, you alone remain rational.”
The man spoke with solemn finality.
“Huh?”
It was unavoidable that Fodui made a sound unbecoming of himself—awkward, bewildered.