Part 46: Amane Suzuha says various odd things

I stare at the numbers on the ticket shaking in Rukako's hands.



"Whoahhh, so close! And yet, so far!"

That's right. I do believe there was a 19 in the winning numbers I looked up. I’ll know if I check my phone's send history. I take out my phone.



There's no log data of the D-mail I just sent. Just like everyone else's memories. The mail should be there, but it's completely missing.



I take a breath of fresh air, calming the chaos in my head. The ticket Rukako bought turned out to be 4th place. The prize is just 5,000 yen.

($58.49.)

"Hey, Okabe Rintarou!"





Just like last time, Tennouji Nae is squatting next to her, watching her work with great interest.

Two things:
How long have you been polishing that?
Just how much free time does the Braun Tube Workshop have?

"You look like you've been brainwashed. You okay?"

"Brainwashed? Me?"

"There's nobody else here."

"...Ahh. That's right."

"Which part's right? Being brainwashed, or nobody else being here?"

"Being brainwashed."





Suzuha rushes over to me at once with a grim expression. She suddenly forces my eyes open with her index finger and thumb.

"Nwohh?! Wh-Wh-What are you doing?!"

"Don't move."

Suzuha peeks into my eye with a serious face, but she quickly removes her fingers.

"You're okay. You're not brainwashed."

"...What?"

"When you're brainwashed, they usually put a chip onto your lower eyelid."

A chip...?

Then, Suzuha shuts her mouth in surprise. Bashfully, she places her hand on my shoulder.

"Okabe Rintarou, please keep that info confidential."

Don't tell me, is she...



"Hm? Organization? You talking about SERN?"

"No! Say no more. I understand your pain all too well."

"Eh, y-you do?"

"The Organizatoin's cover-up mass brainwashing facility... known as Apocalypse of Galient. That place is a living hell. I don't want to revive any suppressed memories."

"Uh, umm, y-yeah. I don't think it was called Apolkawhatever, though... but it certainly was a living hell."

"You do seem like you'll make a good comrade, Working Warrior. The day of crusade is upon us!"








Suzuha awkwardly raises her hand to denote enthusiasm.



Nae asks as she tugs on the hem of Suzuha's clothes.

"Heheheh, I, Hououin Kyouma shall be the one to answer that."



When I talk to her, Nae hides herself behind Suzuha.

"Ahaha, looks like Nae's afraid of Okabe Rintarou, huh."

"Sister raun, it's okay to fear me, but you should also pay respect to the mad scientist who travels the world over."

"You're traveling the world over?"

"Indeed. For my genius gray brain cells are desired from countries all over the world."

"Hehhh..."

Still clinging to Suzuha's waist, Nae opens her eyes even wider, sighing in admiration.

"Being brainwashed means you start saying things like that, Nae."

"Eh?"

"What are you saying, Working Warrior? I've been speaking nothing but the truth, so this isn't brainwashing."

"Uncle Okarin, did you lie?"

"Who're you calling uncle?!"



I didn't think she'd call me uncle. I'm not even old enough to drink yet... what a disgrace. No, even if I seriously get mad at a child's prank, there's nothing I can do. I need to show composure as an adult.

(If this scene seems odd, it's because in Japanese, 'ojisan' means uncle, but can also be used to generally mean 'sorta old guy'.)

"You're even more of a pervert than Okabe!"

"I'm not a pervert! I'm a gentleman pervert!"

"Haah?!"

"Hey, hey, more importantly, do you think Okarin's okay?"



Since she can hear them clearly from here...

Suzuha starts chuckling.

"Don't tell me you heard everything?"

"Ahh, sowwie. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I could hear you guys no matter what.

"Did you hear about the time machine, too?"

"Ahh, yeah. I heard about it. Way to go, you.""

She strikes my upper arm to encourage(?) me. I don't know what she means by "way to go, you".

"...You're not going to disclose anything, right? If you try talking to someone, I'll have to silence--"



"That's fine. There's one thing I'd like to ask... Just now, did you see a discharge phenomenon break out from the second floor?"

"Discharge? You mean like yesterday's rumble rumble?"

I nod in reply.

"It happened once before. You're lucky Manager wasn't around."

"It shook, it was scary."

I ignore the girl's frank impression.

"Just now, about a minute ago, it should've shook again, though."

"Oh, really? I didn't see the second time."

Suzuha tilts her head and turns back to her bicycle.



"Did you see it, Nae?"

"Nope."

Sister Braun frantically shakes her head left and right.

"You didn't see the second one?"

"I didn't."

Disappointment spreads throughout me.



Things that certainly happened, unhappened.
The fact that I sent a D-mail.
The fact that we argued over that D-mail's contents.

But Kurisu herself remembers that I called her 'celeb sev' during that argument. Right after sending the mail, I was hit by that vertigo. That's probably related somehow...

"Did something happen?"

"...Are you well informed about time travel?"

"What do you mean by that?"

Suzuha seems slightly suspicious.