Dragon Raja 3; Chapter 242: Attack of the Rat Team (4)

Dragon Raja 3

“This place looks ancient!” Lu Mingfei exclaimed, impressed. “Doesn’t feel like a typical Japanese building.”

“It’s not. Before World War II, this used to be a Catholic church. After the Meiji Restoration, many missionaries came to Japan, and back then, a lot of people were Catholics. This place was the center for Tokyo’s Catholic community. Dozens of priests lived here, and regular services and Mass were held,” Chu Zihang explained. “During the war, Tokyo was bombed, and much of the ornamentation and arches were destroyed. The main structure, however, remained intact. The boss saw the potential of this location and rented it, spending a considerable amount of money to renovate it into a nightclub. The stage used to house a pipe organ, and the booth area was the choir seating. This floor was the confessional and study rooms. During the war, it served as a bomb shelter, and to this day, it’s still designated as an official government shelter. But the boss just uses it as storage.”

Where the light passed, everything was gray with dust. The walls were covered with white plaster, and the ground was merely cemented. There were still scorch marks from fire damage on the walls, and in the corners were parts of the pipe organ, enameled lecterns, and several life-sized crucifixes draped in faded crimson robes. You could still sense the grandeur of this old church from when priests used to walk its halls and the sound of scripture reading echoed. Who could have imagined that, a century later, it would be transformed into a host club?

Chu Zihang found a manhole cover in the corner of the hall, an old cast-iron lid covered in rust. The markings from the German foundry that made it had long since faded. Chu Zihang and Caesar worked together to lift the cover, revealing the sound of running water below.

“The entrance to the sewers is inside the building!” Lu Mingfei was surprised. This meant they could come and go from Takamagahara without being seen.

“It’s a fortunate coincidence,” Chu Zihang said. “I didn’t expect the sewer entrance to be right under Takamagahara. I found the Shinjuku sewer map online. Despite Shinjuku being so large, there are only about a dozen sewer entrances, most of them in sewage treatment plants. This manhole is an exception. It was supposed to be sealed off, but because it’s connected to the bomb shelter, it’s been kept as an emergency escape route. You could say we got lucky—we not only found a shelter but also the back door to Genji Heavy Industries.”

Lu Mingfei paused, feeling as if a cold snake had slithered over his heart. Yes, they were lucky—but perhaps a bit too lucky. It was as if some invisible hand had guided them straight to Genji Heavy Industries’ back door. This whole mission seemed like an impulsive plan by Caesar and Chu Zihang, but it also felt like it had been orchestrated from the start, like mice being led through a maze. All it took was for them to be placed at the entrance, and after running in circles for a while, they’d plunge straight into the labyrinth, racing down its winding paths. Lu Mingfei shuddered violently. In this game, they were the mice, while some immense shadow controlled their every move from a place beyond sight, coldly watching their frantic race.

He shook his head, trying to dispel these unsettling thoughts. If the puppet master was just a person, then fine—Caesar and Chu Zihang would find a way to beat them to a pulp, maybe even kill them. But what if it wasn’t a person? What if it was something untouchable, something called “fate”? Lu Mingfei had never liked the concept of fate. In all the stories about it, the protagonist is always searching, only to lose more and more along the way.

When he was in middle school, Lu Mingfei avidly followed Gundam SEED, where the boy Kira Yamato, bound by fate, ascended into the Gundam. He piloted the Strike Gundam, the Freedom Gundam, and finally the Strike Freedom Gundam, which was hailed as the strongest. In the end, he saved Orb, saved the world, and became the greatest pilot in the universe, a hero. He also won the affections of Lacus Clyne, a beautiful woman who was not only a wealthy heiress, a space diva, and a brilliant young politician but also utterly devoted to him. Together, they became a legendary couple, and Kira’s journey was one of constant triumph. Yet, Lu Mingfei always felt that Kira had actually died—slowly, from the moment he first boarded the Gundam. Kira became the most powerful person in the world, but he lost his love, Flay, and the entirety of his life before the age of sixteen. The delicate, sensitive, and hesitant Kira Yamato gradually died, leaving only the shining shell of a savior.

Strangely, Lu Mingfei, who possessed so little, didn’t particularly long for a future where he would “rule the world.” Instead, he feared losing the small and insignificant things he already had.

They descended into the sewers via a ladder, their flashlights illuminating moss-covered brick walls. This section of the sewer was ancient, entirely different from the modern Iron Dome system. The cross-section was semicircular, with a central waterway and narrow paths on either side where workers from a century ago would have had to enter to clear blockages. Hanging from the ceiling were tendrils of some aquatic plant, dark green and thread-thin like hair. If they weren’t careful, these cold, ghostly strands would brush against their faces. In the corners, shadowy figures about a foot long scurried along the ground. When Chu Zihang shone his flashlight on one, it suddenly sped up, disappearing into the greenery while making a barking sound like a small dog. Lu Mingfei, terrified, instinctively leaned back, and Caesar caught him just in time to prevent him from falling into the water.

“It’s a mudpuppy, a type of salamander native to North America,” Chu Zihang explained, his flashlight focusing on the creature’s long tail. “It eats the eggs of aquatic animals to prevent their overpopulation in the sewers. It must have been released here as part of an effort to maintain balance.”

“Jeez! Scared me to death! Who knew there’d be this kind of creepy thing in the sewers?” Lu Mingfei was still shaken, temporarily forgetting his melancholy and musings about fate.

“Every city’s sewer system forms its own ecosystem,” Chu Zihang said as he led the way with his flashlight. “There’s plenty of water here, but almost no sunlight, so species that can adapt to the dark thrive and eventually establish a stable ecosystem. Each city’s sewer ecosystem differs, depending on the rainfall, temperature, and pH level of the groundwater. The real danger here comes from small creatures like bloodworms, which might lay eggs on you. Larger animals, like water snakes, are generally harmless—they’re not even venomous.”

Lu Mingfei instinctively tightened his collar, feeling as if something was breathing cold air down the back of his neck. “The high-tech sewers of Iron Dome are much nicer. By the way, does this path lead to Iron Dome?”

“Each city’s sewer system wasn’t built all at once. What you’re seeing now is the century-old sewer system of Shinjuku,” Chu Zihang explained. “Tokyo’s sewer system underwent a massive overhaul ten years ago, linking the old and new systems. Excess groundwater flows through these sewers to Iron Dome, where it’s purified and then discharged into the sea. As long as we keep walking, we’ll eventually reach the main sewer channel.”

Chu Zihang glanced at the map in his hand. “After another 600 meters or so, we’ll pass beneath Shinjuku Station. There, we’ll find a massive water turbine. Once we get through the turbine’s opening, we’ll be inside Iron Dome.”

“Were you born in the sewers, senior? How do you know so much about them?” Lu Mingfei asked incredulously.

“I looked it up online.”

“But you can’t read Japanese.”

“I used Google Translate. I also learned a few phrases in Japanese through it,” Chu Zihang replied, switching to Japanese: “Thank you for your patronage, we hope to see you again, would you like more wine, and if you feel sad, just cry.”

“I can’t believe you’re such a diligent learner! You really throw yourself into whatever job you take on, huh, senior? Planning to make being a host your lifelong pursuit?”