Chapter 4 - Toilet Inspection

'Oh, you gotta be fucking kidding me…' Jason internally groaned. 'A surprise from Joe? What is this, an artificial intelligence attached to my soul? As if.' He internally scoffed.

[You are correct, Jason. My creator did not tell me you were already informed of me.] Surprise was clear in its robotic voice.

'… I was being sarcastic, but damn. AIs can actually be attached to souls?'

[There are many things that are possible in the multiverse, Jason. I, for one, am merely a form of artificial intelligence designed by my creator to help you in your missions.]

'Help, huh?' He continued to observe the old man in front of him with cold, calculating eyes.

It was strange, but the feeling of his thoughts being so quick that he can have a full-on mental conversation in only a second… It must be because of the enhancement Joe gave him. It could also be because of the soul merging or the AI controlling his perception of time, but he can only speculate for now and ask later.

'Can you tell me what made you activate and why?'

[The series of conditions my creator set was fulfilled. This set of conditions includes being within 10m of the anomaly members, meeting them, and being within the anomaly's predicted time frame of occurrence.]

That got his attention. 'Anomaly? Elaborate.'

[An anomaly is an unnatural change in the world's fabric of reality or it could also be the product of one. In this world, many anomalies have occurred due to certain forces creating fluctuations in the fabric of its reality. Some anomalies are relatively harmless, but many are strange and have affected the world negatively. Japan is a prime example of a country-sized anomaly, as it is a hotbed of many forms of smaller anomalies. Most of the anomalies have negatively affected it, and it is the only country on Earth that contains anomalies of more than ten types.]

The gears inside Jason's started turning. 'That means there could be dozens or more anomalies in Japan alone and maybe hundreds or thousands, or even more worldwide. Does Joe want me to take care of these anomalies if I find them?'

[If possible, yes. Though you alone will not be able to repair the anomalies. That is also why I am here. My second purpose is to isolate and repair the anomalies that you may come across. I have other functions as well, but aside from the one I have mentioned, they are less important and are much more mundane in nature.]

'I see… So what can you tell me about the anomaly that made you activate?'

[From what I have detected, it is the product of a Core Anomaly. A Core Anomaly is an Anomaly that affects humans physically, mentally, and changes their biological structure and processes. The two young females in particular will have much less mental and emotional resistance in… specific situations. In addition, their libido and sensitivity will be amplified during intercourse, consensual or not, leading to a severe increase in lust. And in those situations, it will cause them to have lesser mental faculties, causing them to create decisions with little preliminary thought. It is even possible for them to make decisions no sane human would.

Worst case scenario is they end up loving what is being done to them and will do it of their own volition. Normally, that would not be much of a problem, but the girl with dyed hair, in particular, is in dire life circumstances. I am sure that I do not have to elaborate on what situation they will end up in and that you've already figured it out.]

Jason gritted his teeth. 'They'll be sexually assaulted by that old man. It's unlikely that kids like them would even work in a convenience store. That is, unless they needed to for financial reasons. And based on what I've observed so far, it's reasonable to assume that the blonde girl needs the money for herself or her family or her friends. Her arrogance and pride were clear in her body language, and no teenager with those characteristics would willingly work in a convenience store. I can't say much about the other girl's circumstances since she seems to be happy working here, which is slightly strange. But the bastard wouldn't be able to hold himself back from attacking her, too. I see the way his eyes linger on their bodies. Makes me want to stitch his eyelids shut.'

[Excellent deductions. That is also what I had predicted.]

'From how the blonde girl commented on the piece of shit earlier, it sounded like she knew him personally, or at least well and long enough to know that he's a piece of shit. Maybe he's someone related to her or someone she met through her friend. She also could've just worked here long enough to know how much of a pervert he is.'

[So what is your plan, Jason?]

'I'll need to collect more information and evidence. I wish I could just beat this guy to a pulp, cut off his dick, and hand him to the cops right now, but there is one important lesson I learned after all my training and experience.' He grabbed the two large plastic bags filled with food and water. 'Patience.'

The mental conversation felt like they've been talking for a minute or two, but it only lasted for about five seconds in real time. The three were still locked in the conversation with Yui, now trying to pacify the disgusted blonde girl while the old man continues ogling the two of them discreetly.

Jason swiftly produced a small and attachable listening device in the shape of a circle, placing it under the edge of the counter.

Jason cleared his throat loudly, causing the two girls behind the counter to swivel their heads in his direction and the old man to jump in fright. "I'm sorry to interrupt your conversation, but can you point me to where the bathroom is?"

After the old man used it, he already knew where it was located based on the sound the old man made before he opened it's doors. He wanted to go to the bathroom to listen to them through the listening device and inspect the bathroom. He had a strong hunch that the loud thud from before the old man exited the bathroom wasn't because he slipped and fell.

"Oh, um…" Yui pointed behind him and to his left. "The bathroom is in that direction, just past the potato chips and the candy."

"Thanks." Jason nodded at her with a smile and headed for the bathroom.

Strange… Why did the old man jump as if a ghost spooked him when he cleared his throat? Did he not see him? Come to think of it, the man didn't seem to look at him even once before he made his presence clear.

He shook his head and entered the bathroom, grimacing because of the bathroom's stench. He could already smell the bathroom from outside, but it was much worse after getting in. Especially with an enhanced sense of smell.

Ignoring the smell, he produced an earpiece from his ring and fit it in his ear. The audio from the listening device was crystal clear.

<—swear he wasn't there before! It was as if a ghost had just popped up from nowhere! > The old man said.

Jason inspected the bathroom. It was a small, white-colored space with a single mirror and faucet. The toilet was a little farther back, past the faucet. Jason pushed its door open.

<What are you talking about? He was there the whole time. Are you sure you don't need to get your eyes checked, old man? > The blonde girl asked.

Jason looked up, searching for an irregular object attached to the high ceiling or somewhere on the upper wall. One would think something on the ceiling would be easy to spot, but people rarely look up. He quickly spotted a small black box about an inch thick and the reflection from its lens was an obvious tell of what it was. It was directly above the toilet, taped to the ceiling. People using the toilet wouldn't notice it unless they directly looked up. The old man must've stood on the toilet just to get the camera up there, which would explain the heavy thud from earlier.

<I'm serious! I wouldn't miss a customer that tall or with that appearance, but I literally didn't notice him before he made a sound!>

<W-well, maybe you were just distracted? You have been more tired lately.> Yui suggested.

Jason slightly crouched and leapt off of the ground, ripped the camera from the ceiling, and landed back without making a single sound throughout the process. Identifying the camera as a wireless one designed to deliver live-feed to a device, he placed it in his hoodie's pocket and took out a laptop from the ring with the Wayne logo on it. He quickly traced the camera's signal back to the receiving device and hacked into it. His lips tugged upwards into a smile as the laptop displayed every other camera connected to the tablet the old man was using to look at the camera feeds.

<Maybe? I-I don't know anymore. I think I should ask for a day off from the manager.> The old man stuttered.

Jason could sense that the old man was using this as an excuse to take a day off. He sounded a bit too relieved when he said that. That was fine with Jason, though. Better for him to stay away and stop spying on the girls or anyone else. The cameras were clearly cheap. Their signals were only effective at a certain distance of around fifty-five meters, barely enough to cover the area needed for half of the store.

'Time to get out of this damn bathroom.' Jason exited the bathroom and grabbed the plastic bags he placed outside the door before he went in, and made his way back to the counter. He picked up a box of watermelon flavoured gum on the way.

When he arrived, the old man was no longer behind the counter, leaving the two girls behind. But he could hear movement behind the door on the right side of the counter.

"I'm back. Gonna buy this pack of gum, too." Jason held up the pack of gum, drawing their eyes to it. He raised his other hand, holding a five thousand yen bill, and deftly grabbed the listening device before putting it back in the ring and placing the bill on the counter.

A slight smile tugged at his lips. "Keep the change."

The doors slid open with a chime as Jason exited.

"Thank you very much!"

"Thank you very much!"

-===-

Author's Note: Another chapter finished for today. This one's a little under two thousand words, but at least I finished it.

If you have any constructive criticism about the dialogue or the story in general, don't be afraid to comment! Improving my writing means you will get to enjoy better content. :D