4-3 -

Is this some kind of game? What the hell's going on here?

Ah, what's this? Your brain is becoming aware, I see.

Greetings and welcome, Captain Hitsugaya! How many times has it been now?

One thing my drugs have in common, they provide their users with new and wonderful experiences.

They can bestow power, sensation, agility, or courage.

To you, I gave the gift of hindsight, of being able to see the past.

Again and again, every time you reach a certain point in the battle, you're sent back to a moment in the past.

The point I'm talking about is the point at which you kill me.

In other words, we can assume that if you do not kill me, then your future will continue on forever. On the other hand, if you do kill me, your future ceases at that moment.

It's quite a predicament, isn't it? You're unable to move forward unless you defeat your enemy. But once you defeat him, you inevitably fall backward.

Additionally, one of the defects of this drug is that it only works on the hippocampus, that part of the brain that controls your short-term memory.

As a result, users are unable to remember the number of times they've returned to the past.

And the thing is, once they travel back to the past more than ten times...

...they experience a serious side effect.

That part of the brain that controls their equilibrium becomes completely paralyzed for thirty seconds.

Being the kind-hearted person you are, Captain, I'm sure you'll forgive me for this momentary paralysis. However, it could prove fatal if it took place during combat.

Yes, and because of that unfortunate side effect, I don't feel I can introduce it to the market just yet.

............

I know what you're wondering.

I'm sure you must be asking yourself: when exactly did he administer this drug to me?

Damn you...

Perhaps you'll find the answer in the past.