CH 30

It’s going to be a very painful treatment…

Kashiwagi-san said so, but I couldn’t just give up because of that.

This is the opportunity that Renji-san gave me after Chieri took me to their home.

I can never let it go to waste.

And most of all—

“Now that I’m going to do it, I want to finish it completely. I heard from Renji-san that if I succeed this time, the drug will be approved in Japan. If so, I want to do my best for that purpose as well.”

When I said that, I felt Kashiwagi-san’s eyes change color.

How can I say this, it was like a light came on in her eyes that had no highlights, as if she was no longer feeling exhausted.

“… Is that how you feel going into this clinical trial?”

“Eh, did I say something funny?”

Kashiwagi-san shook her head.

“No, I think it’s very admirable. Hypertrophy is a disease of unreasonableness. The world thinks you are ‘obese’ because of your own inactivity, and you are ridiculed and bullied because they think you deserve it. Every patient is desperate for themselves and usually has a distorted personality.”

“I can certainly understand that… I’ve lived that kind of life for a while.”

“It is said that there is no discrimination in Japan, but that is a big mistake. The discrimination of appearance-supremacist lookism is widespread all over the world. It’s a phenomenon that is even bigger in Japan, which is a mono-ethnic country. It’s hard to notice the problem because we don’t have a culture that recognizes differences. If we can raise the issue in some way, even if it’s just a little—”

As Kashiwagi-san was about to say more she shook her head in annoyance.

“Sorry I got off topic, that’s a bad habit of mine. And a long story.”

Kashiwagi-san seemed somewhat tired, perhaps because all of her previous patients had personality difficulties due to hypertrophy.

The reason why I didn’t become desperate was because of Saika’s constant support and encouragement to me.

“Anyway, your treatment will start now and you will live in this hospital until the end of it, no matter what the result. I’ll be taking detailed data on the amount of food and drink you eat and drink, your metabolism and exercise intensity, so you’re not allowed to eat between meals or go out.”

“Uhe…”

Thus, my life in America began under house arrest, a far cry from the land of the free.