Seeing the two men's firm attitude, Hakuto chose not to speak further. After all, the guns in their hands were clearly real.
Rather than wasting words, he focused on observing his surroundings.
The environment he was in was exceptionally clean—not just in terms of hygiene but in terms of lighting as well.
White fluorescent lights illuminated every corner, accompanied by nearly uninterrupted surveillance, ensuring that every movement within the space was captured.
Hakuto had only seen such environments in novels before. Now, he was deeply puzzled as to why he was here and what these people wanted from him.
Raising his wrist slowly, he noticed a clearly visible needle mark.
He touched it gently, and a sharp pain followed—suggesting the injection had been recent.
Judging by the timing, it must have been when he lost consciousness. His clothes had also been changed—they were brand new.
A completely white outfit, just like a hospital gown…
Hakuto had a rough idea of what was happening, but for now, he had no choice but to follow the two heavily armed men to their destination if he wanted answers.
"We've arrived."
As he was lost in thought, the two men leading the way turned around, each taking a position at the entrance of an automatic door.
"Go inside. Someone is waiting for you."
"What's inside?"
"You'll find out when you enter."
"Can I refuse? And… you're from the military, aren't you?" Besides the military, Hakuto couldn't think of any other organization capable of arming its members to the teeth.
The two men didn't answer, but the cold, gleaming gun barrels in their hands spoke for them.
There was no choice. No matter how good Hakuto's physical abilities were, in the face of guns, he was nothing more than a defenseless lamb.
Ginko should be fine…
Hakuto was certain that his abduction wasn't a random incident but a carefully planned operation.
The two men who took him had barged in right after Ginko left, meaning their target had always been him from the beginning.
From this, he deduced that Ginko was at least safe.
A small fortune in misfortune…
With this thought, Hakuto hesitated for a moment before stepping into the room.
As soon as he entered, a blinding light made it impossible to keep his eyes open. It took him a while to adjust.
At that moment, the automatic door behind him slowly closed.
A middle-aged man, wearing glasses and a white lab coat, walked up to Hakuto.
"Shiratori Hakuto… I didn't get your name wrong, did I?"
"Who are you?" Hakuto asked, his expression unchanged.
"As expected of the youngest Dragon King in history—remaining completely composed even in a situation like this."
Hakuto didn't respond to the man. Instead, he turned his attention to the room itself.
The spacious room was filled with medical equipment, the most prominent of which was a full-body examination machine in the center.
Looking up, he noticed that surveillance cameras covered every corner, leaving no blind spots.
"There's no point in looking. You can't escape."
"So Japan is still conducting these inhumane human experiments? You really haven't changed at all…"
Hakuto spoke with disgust, his eyes brimming with anger.
"Human experiments? No, no, no." The middle-aged man chuckled. "You're trying to bait me into revealing information, aren't you? But it doesn't matter."
"What we're conducting isn't human experimentation. It's research on espers."
The moment Hakuto heard the word "espers," his expression shifted—it was clear that he was genuinely shocked.
He had indeed been trying to get information out of the man, but it seemed the other party had no intention of hiding anything.
"Espers? Sorry, but you've got the wrong person. I don't have anything like that. I'm just an ordinary person."
As a transmigrator, Hakuto had always wished he possessed something special. Unfortunately, aside from his superior learning ability, he had no other talents.
Even if he did, he couldn't admit it now—not when there were likely countless eyes watching his every move through surveillance.
From his observations, this place was completely sealed—no windows, and the doors were made of alloy.
Access required fingerprint and retinal scans, along with an ID card. Escape was nearly impossible.
But Hakuto had to get out. Someone was waiting for him.
"An ordinary person? The youngest Dragon King of the shogi world isn't ordinary at all."
"If that's the reason you brought me here, then you should know there are many players more talented than me."
"But you're different!" The middle-aged man suddenly became excited.
"You possess computational abilities beyond human limits! If you fully unleash your potential, forget being the Dragon King—shogi itself would be nothing more than a child's game to you!"
Hakuto instinctively took a step back, watching the man's sudden excitement.
Now, he had a rough idea of why he was here.
Hakuto didn't believe he had any supernatural abilities, but the man before him clearly thought otherwise.
He was convinced that Hakuto's status as Dragon King was the result of a unique power.
"You've hidden it well, but unfortunately…" The man adjusted his glasses.
"You're a smart person. You should understand the consequences of not cooperating."
He gestured toward the various experimental devices in the room. His words carried a clear threat.
Hakuto took a deep breath.
It was clear that the man had already made up his mind about him having powers, but Hakuto wasn't someone who would simply resign himself to fate.
"And what happens if I don't cooperate? Death?"
Hakuto asked calmly. At this point, he had no choice but to use words to extract as much information as possible.
The man didn't answer. He simply smiled coldly.
"I want to know—why are you so sure that I have special abilities? A shogi prodigy alone isn't enough justification for this."
Hakuto continued probing while formulating his next move.
"You're clever…" The man shook his head. "But you seem to have misunderstood something."
He picked up a folder from the table and pulled out a file belonging to Hakuto.
"We would never let you die. You're far too valuable a resource."
"A resource, huh…" Hakuto clenched his fists in anger. He had never thought he would be reduced to something as dehumanizing as a mere "resource."
"But…" The man held the file out for Hakuto to see. "The Queen of the shogi world, a genius on par with you, and—more importantly—your girlfriend. I'm not wrong, am I?"
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Hoo boy. Better prepare where do you want to get buried..
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