Kaito received a message from Manhattan Cafe, asking him to come to the research lab.
…The research lab?
The image that surfaced in his mind was of that horse girl with lifeless eyes—Agnes Tachyon.
As Tracen Academy's infamous experimental maniac, Tachyon had caused no shortage of incidents. Calling her lab "a mess" was putting it mildly. More than once, Kaito had mistaken the chaos she caused for an actual fire, grabbed a fire extinguisher, and sprinted over in a panic. He was terrified that some of the horse girls might wander straight into danger without realizing what was happening.
If burn marks were ever left on their fair skin, he knew he'd regret it for the rest of his life. He liked horse girls—but not in some twisted way that involved harming them.
Fortunately, horse girls reacted swiftly to emergencies. The Discipline Committee members—armbands emblazoned with the word [Discipline]—rushed to the scene almost immediately and quickly apprehended the culprit behind the incident: Agnes Tachyon.
She was escorted straight to the Discipline Committee room.
Incidents like this were practically routine. At first, Kaito had been shocked, but before long, he'd grown fond of these random events. Tachyon would stir up chaos around Tracen from time to time, and he'd find himself swept up in the crowd, feeling as though he'd truly stepped into the story itself.
That was when Kaito began paying attention to Agnes Tachyon. It wasn't because her looks matched his personal tastes—well, not just that—but because of her personality. That bizarre temperament brought him a kind of enjoyment beyond mere lewdness in an otherwise uneventful game world.
After getting to know her better, Kaito could only say one thing:
Agnes Tachyon was amazing.
Her ample chest—easily a D cup—fit perfectly in the hands, offering an almost ideal sense of grip. Her eyes, forever lacking any sparkle, possessed a strange, unique allure. Maybe because she had a sweet tooth, her lips tasted sweet as well, accompanied by a rich black tea aroma.
Kaito liked it. Very much.
Come to think of it, wasn't Agnes Tachyon supposed to be a genius in the Uma Musume setting?
Back when he only saw the "game" version of her, he'd completely ignored that aspect. Now that she was right here—alive and breathing—the experience of interacting with her might be entirely different.
As soon as he entered the lab, a strange medicinal smell assaulted his nose. Kaito waved a hand in front of his face. The room's layout hadn't changed—flasks and beakers everywhere, reagents glowing faintly in all sorts of colors.
It could be intimidating the first time, but Kaito was already used to it. He practically treated this place like his second home.
When Tachyon noticed him, a smile crept onto her face—one that was impossible to read.
"You're here, Guinea Pig-kun."
…Guinea Pig-kun?
According to the game's setting, that was Agnes Tachyon's nickname for her trainer. But he wasn't her trainer yet, was he?
Ah, whatever. Whether he was now or not didn't matter—he definitely would be in the future. Kaito had no intention of letting Agnes Tachyon belong to anyone else.
"Hey there, Tachyon." Kaito sat down on the sofa.
"I heard about your situation from Cafe," Tachyon said. "Care to explain it in detail? This so-called 'game world' of yours—what exactly is it like?"
"You believe me?"
"Any unverified theory cannot be dismissed outright," she replied coolly. "This isn't about belief. It's about whether it can be proven."
"There's a lot of R-18 content in it," Kaito said cautiously. "I'm worried you'll uppercut me straight into the afterlife. Promise me first—you won't kill me."
"Medicine itself is founded upon the dissection of the human body," Tachyon said calmly. "If we're talking about taboos, modern science is proof that humanity has been violating them nonstop. And as for doing 'terrible things'—if I ranked second, no one would dare claim first. I have no grounds to condemn you. Rest assured."
"…Alright."
Since Agnes Tachyon was asking sincerely, Kaito decided not to hide anything. Her affection level was sitting right at eighty—quite high. Higher even than the three members of the student council.
She was practically a fixed-location treasure chest—come to the lab, and she'd always be there. Kaito had farmed this spot plenty of times.
So he told her everything.
No beating around the bush—Kaito explained his experiences as plainly and directly as possible.
"Oh?" Tachyon's expression lit up with interest. Just as Kaito expected, she didn't think there was anything wrong with it at all. A man seeking women to mate with—what was wrong with that? It was a perfectly normal biological process.
"What you do over there is completely different from what you do here," she mused. "It's almost like a pubescent kid indulging in fantasies inside his own head. How old are you? Twenty-two? Twenty-three?"
"Twenty-two," Kaito answered.
"You should be past the age of idle fantasizing. Do you have a girlfriend?"
"Do you count?"
"If you think we do, then we do. Are you free this weekend?"
"I already promised to go out with Teio."
"Then next time," Tachyon said, returning to her seat. "For now, it's clear that the two worlds are connected in some way. We just can't determine the exact nature of that connection yet. But based on what you've said, one thing is certain—the 'Agnes Tachyon' in the game world is synchronized with me. She does exactly what I do."
She pinned a sheet of paper to the wall.
"I'm making this my top research priority. If I can figure out the connection between the two worlds, then even if you return to the game world, I'll continue the research here. When that happens, you can go directly to 'me' over there. Oh, and you don't have my command authority yet, do you? Then let's become a trainer–trainee pair. You might even be able to order me to conduct research."
Agnes Tachyon was terrifyingly rational—and terrifyingly intelligent.
"If you have any more questions, call me, Guinea Pig-kun."
"Alright. I'm counting on you, Tachyon."
"Honestly, I'm curious too," she added. "Is it you who's wrong… or this world?"
"Maybe both?"
"That would be far too interesting," Tachyon burst into laughter, clutching her stomach. "Just imagining it makes me laugh—ahaha!"
"Tachyon, your personality really is something else."
"Oh? I find your strangeness quite appealing too, Guinea Pig-kun."
After seeing Kaito off, Agnes Tachyon collapsed onto the sofa. She kicked off her shoes and stretched out her feet lazily.
It had been a long time since something intrigued her this much. What Kaito did to horse girls—whether it was just fantasy or something real—meant nothing to her. She didn't care. What she wanted to know was whether that outrageous world truly existed.
In fact, the moment Kaito entered the room, she'd clearly felt her body react to his presence—something that had never happened before.
There were signs. His story wasn't without merit.
Maybe I should just take his body and study it first, she thought. If he can move between two worlds, perhaps his body is different too.
Don't worry—I won't hurt him. I just want to collect some of his bodily fluids.
He's already used to that sort of thing anyway. Even if I'm a bit rough, it should be fine… Who knows? Guinea Pig-kun might even enjoy it.
Extracting fluids.
Agnes Tachyon had found herself a brand-new experimental direction.