Even If I'm Reborn as a Cute Dragon Girl, I Will Still Make a Harem-Chapter 79Book 6: : Pandora’s Box

The dean, once a respected man who had adopted five children, now had a reputation that stank like a gutter in the slums after that single post.

Whenever he stepped outside back then, neighbors and acquaintances greeted him warmly. Now, stepping outside meant risking rotten eggs and wilted vegetables being hurled his way.

“Tell me, Dad… Is what you said online all true?” the young man asked anxiously.

“It’s true,” the old man replied without hesitation.

“I-Is that so…? But it’s also…”

The young man faltered, struggling to find words that wouldn’t wound the old man yet still convey his message. After a long pause, he could only smile helplessly.

“It’s not that I don’t believe you, Dad. But… what you wrote is too bizarre. Saying the total energy of the entire species is fixed? That’s just…”

It was like digging up the coffins of every great physicist, dragging them on stage, and forcing them to dance. The fact that none had clawed their way out to strangle him meant those coffins had been nailed shut good and tight.

“I know it sounds bizarre,” the old man said, meeting his son’s eyes. “But it’s the truth. Reality is always more outrageous than a carefully crafted lie because lies need logic, and reality doesn’t.”

“So, Dad, your way of saving Susie is by creating public opinion like this and forcing the higher-ups to change their policy?”

The young man was sharp. It didn’t take him long to see through the old man’s intent.

“…That’s right. That’s exactly my intention.” The old man hesitated, but admitted it all the same.

“But… even if it works, what about your reputation…?”

“Does my reputation matter?”

The old man loosened his tie and tossed it aside. Maybe he would never need to wear this suffocating suit again.

“It doesn’t matter to me at all.”

“But so many are condemning you…”

“Let them!”

For a moment, the old man straightened his back, regaining a sliver of his dignity as a dean.

“The more aggressive they are, the better. The louder the outcry, the greater the chance this works.”

“But…” The young man lowered his gaze, unable to look at the old face that time had already carved deep lines into.

“If Susie knew you were doing this, would she even be happy?”

The old man froze, his body trembling slightly.

“…She might not be. But a parent has the right to give everything for their child.”

In that moment, he was like an old lion roaring at the setting sun.

“No one can take that right from us. No one!”

◆◇◆◇◆

Things went better than the old man had ever imagined.

After only a few days of weathering the fury of the internet, public opinion began to shift. People started to notice the core issue buried in what many had first dismissed as a ridiculous statement.

Population.

No one knew for certain whether reducing the population could actually solve the Debilitating Syndrome, but there was little doubt it would ease the crushing stress on those at the bottom of society.

Fewer people meant less competition—or so people liked to tell themselves.

Whether that self-serving belief would ever become reality was debatable, but once the idea was out there, someone was bound to believe it.

More importantly, the alliance’s expansion efforts were growing increasingly radical. Nobody wanted to become cannon fodder, shipped thousands of light-years to the front lines to face the unknown, never to return home again.

Gradually, more and more voices called for an end to expansion and the implementation of population control.

Those voices grew louder, and soon massive parades filled the streets.

Finally, under mounting pressure, the alliance government relented and introduced its first population-control policy.

Not long after, the old man discovered new data from the Gaea Center showing that the rate of Debilitating Syndrome cases had dropped by five percent.

The old man was so excited he nearly danced.

Five percent might not sound like much, but it confirmed his theory. And besides, birth restrictions always had a time delay, the true effect might not be visible for another year or even longer.

For now, though, it was enough to give him hope.

The old man had one more theory, one he had never shared publicly. It was a way to help those already suffering from the Debilitating Syndrome.

It was what the afflicted children desperately needed, yet he knew he could never reveal it publicly. Compared to his earlier statements, this was the true Pandora’s Box.

But fate, as always, had its own cruel sense of humor.

The old man had already decided that once he saved Susie, he would take this Pandora’s Box with him to the grave.

But who could have guessed that he wasn’t the only one holding this key?

No, he had practically left a trail leading to it. Most had overlooked it, himself included, but there was always someone clever enough to piece things together and open the door that should never be opened.

It began with a single, trivial rumor—a ghost of a message drifting across the endless sea of the internet, attracting almost no attention at first.

The rumor claimed that one could kill someone and steal their energy.

It was short and absurd—the sort of nonsense only fools and madmen would believe.

Yet when the old man saw it, his hands trembled so badly he almost dropped his handheld device.

Because this rumor… was his very own theory for saving those already afflicted with Debilitating Syndrome.

The logic had been painfully simple: if the Debilitating Syndrome was caused by insufficient life energy, then the only way to save a patient was to reinfuse energy into their body.

But how could one transfer a type of energy that modern science couldn’t even detect?

After years of research, the old man had arrived at an appalling conclusion: killing.

That was it. Kill a person, and one could take a portion of their life energy.

It was so simple, so horrifyingly simple that it made those ten years of fruitless research seem like a bad joke.

But what meaning was there in saving one life at the cost of another?

There was none. That was why he had kept his silence as he prepared to sacrifice himself to prevent more tragedies like this.

It was why he had gone public with his population theory, so he could welcome his own death without regret.

A dean who spouted nonsense and died in disgrace… that, at least, was a reasonable enough explanation.

After that, there would be no more tragedies. The world would move forward again, back on track.

But then came the rumor.

And from that moment, everything slowly, inevitably began sliding into an abyss from which there was no return.

Because even the most absurd rumor… would always be believed and pursued by those who were desperate enough.

*”This is a report on a homicide that occurred at nine this morning in the slums. The suspect is a forty-one-year-old man, and the victim was his elderly neighbor, a man in his late sixties.

Taking advantage of the victim’s children being away, the suspect lured the elderly man into his home and used an unknown substance to render him unconscious. He then attempted to have his own son, who suffers from Debilitating Syndrome, kill the man. Both the suspect and his son are now in custody.

According to authorities, this is already the fifth such incident this week linked to online rumors claiming that killing another person can transfer ‘energy’ and cure Debilitating Syndrome.

Experts stress that this so-called energy theory has no scientific basis. There is currently no known cure for Debilitating Syndrome. We urge everyone to remain rational, avoid believing unverified rumors, and refrain from actions that could lead to tragedies, harming both others and themselves.”*