Tokyo: The Player Behind the Scenes

What was her purpose in coming to Mr. Iwasaki's room? Was the power off shown on the monitor actually hers?

Goto had a bad feeling, so he quickly opened the door and went to Iwasaki's side.

At this moment, everything was normal in Iwasaki's treatment bed, the instruments were working, and the power had been turned back on.

"Mr. Iwasaki, did that person do anything to you?"

Goto asked hesitantly.

“Oh, she told me something,” Iwasaki replied calmly, his mind seemingly elsewhere.

But in Goto's eyes, it seemed like he was angry.

"Yes, about me?" Goto gave a bitter smile, his hands unconsciously falling to his sides.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hide it from you. If you mind, you can apply to change the caregiver. Please, don't complain about me. I really, really need this job."

She begged.

Iwasaki regained his senses slightly and looked at the spot on her arm: "Goto, can you tell me why you are still so passionate about life despite how it has treated you?"

Goto opened his mouth, but didn't know how to answer the question.

"You know what? In my first year here, I really hated you, no, I could even say I was disgusted by you."

"Why can you laugh so genuinely?"

Why are you able to feel happy?

As Iwasaki spoke, Goto's head drooped lower and lower, almost burying itself in his chest.

"Could you please turn off the device? I don't want anyone to hear what I'm about to say."

"Okay, it's closed."

"Thank you. I'm forced to watch those inspirational movies, listen to uplifting music, and see your smile every day. It's not healing for me, it's torture."

"Unfortunately, I can't even die."

“I understand, I know. This isn’t your problem, it’s my problem, so I take my medication on time, follow my therapist’s advice, and try to become ‘normal’.”

"I'm almost there, barring any unforeseen circumstances."

Accident?

Goto remembered that strange, rude guy from yesterday who claimed to be Mr. Iwasaki's older brother.

"Goto, your identity is nothing to me. I won't have any thoughts about you just because you're a Bakumin. Or rather, only those old fogies have those thoughts nowadays."

The more professional term for the tribespeople is the tribespeople who are differentiated from others.

They existed outside the traditional four social classes of samurai, farmers, artisans, and merchants in Japanese history.

If a comparison must be made, it could be seen as the Dalits of India—untouchable and of low status. However, it's not quite that extreme.

In Japan, there are even specific discriminatory terms: "non-human" and "eta".

These two words have long been taboo, and openly, the identity of "tribal people" no longer exists.

However, even into the millennium, some large companies were still able to obtain the list through certain means and exclude these individuals.

Nowadays, some young people don't even know what a tribal people are, so there's no question of discrimination.

However, this is a nursing home, and the last thing it lacks is elderly people.

So the sanatorium took a risk by recruiting Goto, which was actually asking for trouble. I don't know what their considerations were.

If any of the elderly residents find out, they might go berserk, and the nursing home itself will definitely suffer the loss, even if the matter itself should be considered a good thing and public opinion would support it.

Hearing Iwasaki's words, Goto felt a glimmer of hope.

I didn't take Iwasaki's earlier comments about dislike and disgust to heart at all.

What she feared most was causing trouble for the kind person who had taken pity on her and arranged for her to come in.

Moreover, this job offers the highest salary she can get, which is very helpful for her family.

"Ms. Goto, I would like to ask you to seriously consider something."

Iwasaki looked at her, his tone becoming serious.

"Please tell me!"

Goto nodded quickly.

"If there were a chance that would free you from financial worries and get rid of that caregiver, Kame-i, the mission would be to keep a secret and never let anyone else find out, or the price would be death. Would you accept it?"

After hearing Iwasaki's words, Goto slowly opened her mouth. Although it sounded incredible, and even seemed like a pure hypothesis, she couldn't help but think about it seriously because of Iwasaki's earnest tone.

"Is there really such a good thing? No need to do anything else?"

"All that's needed is to cooperate in keeping this secret."

Iwasaki considered it for a long time.

He didn't know if there were any other beings like him in this world besides the players.

The identity of being a paralyzed patient is a very good disguise.

He wanted revenge, but not in a irrational way.

The best outcome would be to let the enemy die in despair and pain without paying any price.

Revenge involving abandoning all real-world identities in a self-destructive manner is not currently on his agenda.

If he wants to maintain his identity as a paralyzed patient, even with his ability to create illusions, it will be difficult to hide it from Goto, the caregiver beside him.

So he decided to drag Goto into the mess, or to put it more politely, to bring him onto his boat.

After all, the information he had asked her to search for already carried the risk of being exposed, and finding her would naturally allow him to be located.

He decided to make her one of his own, which would allow him to retain her public identity as a paralyzed patient while also carrying out his plans.

What will happen if it's exposed?

It would just be the same result as him leaving directly, and it would probably cost Goto his life.

Given the available information, the potential benefits of such a choice clearly outweigh the risks.

Hatred may blind him, but it cannot shield his mind.

“I would! If such an opportunity arises!” Goto nodded solemnly in response.

Even if the price of disobeying is death?

".Um!"

"it is good."

Iwasaki sat up slowly and somewhat awkwardly from the bed, looking at Goto with a dumbfounded, ghost-like expression, and said:

"Welcome to be my confidant. So, the first thing..."

"Help me remove the catheter."

Chapter 94: Preparations for Revenge

Iwasaki had taken the Rejuvenation Pill earlier, and it took effect almost immediately, restoring his body to unprecedented health.

However, the long period of bed rest still made him feel awkward about his initial actions, like a person who had just successfully possessed another body trying to tame their limbs, as if playing a game of Humanity's Fall Flat.

Goto was stunned by Iwasaki's sudden ability to move on his own, but he still subconsciously obeyed Iwasaki's command, removing his catheter and letting him try to use the toilet on his own again.

During this process, she drew all the curtains, and because the door could not be locked from the inside, she temporarily blocked it with something. She even drew a small curtain over the monitoring window on the door.

To ensure that no outsiders would see this scene.

"Mr. Iwasaki, do you need my help?"

Seeing Iwasaki's difficult steps, Goto couldn't help but offer to help.

"Need not."

Iwasaki didn't let her help him; he maintained his balance and slowly walked to the bathroom, where he painstakingly expelled a little liquid himself.

five years.

He was finally able to use the toilet by himself.

Leaning against the sink, he looked at himself in the mirror, a stiff, emotionless smile appearing on his lips.

"Iwasaki Toshitaka."

After silently repeating the name, he washed his face and left the bathroom.

In just a few short minutes, he had already become familiar with how his body worked, and he got back into bed much faster than when he first got out of bed.

“From now on, you only need to follow my orders, and I will give you the money in cash, one payment at a time. As for Kamei, if you want, I can make her leave this sanatorium today.”

As long as Goto is willing to be a qualified confidant, Iwasaki doesn't care about money, which is an external thing.

From the moment he gained his abilities and regained his health, money was no longer a problem for him, and he was no longer interested in it.

"Hello, Mr. Iwasaki, there's no need to rush about Kamei's matter."

Goto nodded nervously; she still longed for money.

There is no rule that says a timid, insecure, kind person cannot like money.

She didn't know what changes had occurred in Iwasaki, but she knew how incredible this scene, which could be described as a medical miracle, was.

There are other paralyzed patients in the sanatorium, some of whom have even started using brain-computer interfaces, but they still need a long recovery period to move around, otherwise they wouldn't have been admitted.

Iwasaki is a paraplegic, and even his neck retains only some mobility. He just got out of bed alive and well, and within a few minutes, he recovered to a state almost like a normal person.

This is simply beyond medical explanation; it can only be described as a miracle.

Because the muscles that were originally atrophied now look fuller and firmer—but they weren't like this when she was caring for Iwasaki yesterday, so this is definitely not something that science can explain.

Just as Iwasaki had thought, she was too familiar with Iwasaki's body. After all, she had taken care of him for several years, and it would be difficult to hide any changes from her.

If one wants to maintain their identity as a paralyzed patient, then turning Goto into one of their own is the best option.

"From now on, take care of me as usual, but don't let anyone know that I've recovered. Keep the monitor on. If I have something to tell you, I'll blink three times, then you go to the bathroom, and I'll tell you what to do."

"I understand."

"Very good, now restore everything to normal and turn the power back on."

Iwasaki lay back down on the bed, just like he always did.

Goto clenched his fists and took a few deep breaths. First, he restored the curtains and other items to their original state, then turned on the power. After calming himself down, he began to give Iwasaki his morning care routine, just like before.

He seemed somewhat distracted, his fingers trembling.

Iwasaki remained silent as usual, repeatedly rehearsing his newly acquired abilities in his mind.

Now that everything is arranged, it's time to settle the accounts.

That night.

In Iwasaki Kosuke's room, he left a phantom sleeping on the bed, and then his real body, through a blind spot under the bed, transformed into wisps of smoke and passed through the crack in the window to enter the outside world.

It was around 10 p.m., and the nightlife was just beginning. Neon lights flowed, and the bustling atmosphere filled with all kinds of life was clearly visible from above.

These things were very close to him before the car accident, within his reach.

Even if you witnessed the accident, you can't truly understand what it felt like.

The long-lost feeling of freedom only made him feel dazed for a moment, but he quickly broke free from his nostalgia.

Following the road signs, under the cover of darkness, he drifted to Akihabara in less than half an hour, found a cosplay shop that had already closed, and quickly found a suitable costume inside.

That was a Ringwraith outfit from Lord of the Rings.

Not only robes, but also gloves, shoes, interior decorations and swords were all provided.

Iwasaki first used paper to obscure the view of the surveillance cameras before crawling into the Ringwraith robes that had been deliberately displayed.

The black mist he transformed into quickly entered the black robe, creating the scene resembling an evil spirit possessing him.

A few seconds later, the black mist completely filled the robes, and the Ringwraith's fingers twitched.

Then, he gently raised one hand, and with a flick of his wrist, the support frame that had been holding the clothes up fell neatly out of the robe.

Iwasaki carefully moved around in his hands, playing with the longsword for a while, and felt it was quite good.