Joshua noticed Cedrick’s unusually stern expression. “What’s on your mind, Cedrick?”

Cedrick was staring at the cover of the book, Abnormal Psychology, and thinking about what Benedict had said to him earlier in the ward.

“Benny told me a professor in the lab gave it to him, so I came to ask you since you were with him the most. Who else spends that much time with him?”

He wanted to know if it was a coincidence or a deliberate act to give a five-year-old child something so disturbing.

“I’ll look into it,” Joshua promised. “I wouldn’t be too worried, though, Cedrick. It must have been a coincidence.”

Cedrick nodded.

Five minutes later, Joshua found out from the professors on duty in the laboratory that it was given by a biochemist named Eugene Yortz.

Eugene was an elderly professor of about sixty, with a snow-white beard, a straight nose, and chiseled features.

He was not Chanaean. Instead, he was sent from Astoria as part of a collaborative project.

Joshua led Cedrick to Eugene’s office to pay the professor a visit.

“Eugene is a strange fellow,” he warned Cedrick in a whisper along the way. “Aside from having a funny character, he’s withdrawn, easily irritable, obsessed with research, and has zero regard for interpersonal communication skills. The things he does sometimes are bizarre.”

Behind his back, the other professors called him Professor Nuts.

After listening intently, Cedrick mulled it over for a while.

Compared to the earlier version of himself who had devoted his life to research, he seemed to have become an entirely different person. However, Eugene is different. He is sixty years of age. Having had enough of his eccentricity, his ex-wife left him long ago. As he has no children

pair found themselves outside

they opened the door, Joshua repeated gingerly, “Try not to be too blunt when you speak to him, Cedrick. He’s a man who never flatters anyone. He does what he wants and speaks his mind when something displeases him. He doesn’t care who you are or what power you wield. Everybody is subjected to the same

and thought that he

would somebody like that give Benedict

eyes, Cedrick knocked on

Knock, knock, knock.

thrice in a

no sign of movement in the office, nor was there the sound of someone coming to open the

“Why don’t I keep

appeared stern. “Nobody saw him leave the lab during

force, he rapped the

the office. “What good would knocking do? Why won’t you say why you’re here? Your mouth is not

on the other side of

have already gotten an earful

“This is Prof. Mallory. I have

a moment’s silence, the doorknob twisted with

stating your intention, Joshua, I’ll assume you’re mute. It’s a waste for you to have a mouth and

attention to the admonishment as he saw his colleague as an elder who was

in a premier laboratory in Chanaea, Professor Yortz. How could you be taking a nap

wanted, and you’re telling me off,” he said huffily. “Feel free to make an anonymous report about me if

“Like you, Professor Yortz, I

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