My coworker Sayama melted to death.

  After working nonstop for four days without sleep, he suddenly melted into a gooey mess like soft-serve ice cream that can't hold its shape. The liquid that had been Sayama seeped into the chair and carpet, vanishing while leaving behind his suit, watch, belt, and shoes.

  Despite this happening, many employees carried on with their work as usual, merely avoiding his desk. Aside from one female colleague who was so shocked by a coworker melting that she took several days off, most showed only slight unease. After all, work comes first, so it's hardly unusual for people to come in regardless.

  I was one of them, but I began to fear that staying here would gradually swallow me up in this atmosphere, and that even if someone else melted, I might treat it as if it never happened.

  Whether it's someone else melting or even myself, either way, I feel no sense of being alive while I'm in this company. Above all, in this world where the common sense that held true just half a year ago is gradually becoming obsolete, there's perhaps no guarantee I can work without incident until retirement.

  With nowhere in particular to go, I resigned at twenty-seven, as if falling through the cracks. Strangely, my heart felt full, and my shoulders moved more freely.

  The heat reflecting off the asphalt road surface was starting to feel unpleasant. Come to think of it, it was already June. I checked the temperature on my smartwatch. Twenty-four degrees. Since the temperature would only keep rising, I thought about going for a run to acclimate my body to the heat.

  Wondering when I'd last run, I found myself drawn into a convenience store.

  Holding a small plastic bag with drinkable ice, a carbonated drink, and a sweet bread, I sat down on a bench in the fountain park. Placing both hands on my back and stretching my waist, I caught sight of an enormous catfish swimming leisurely through the light blue sky.

  I grabbed my smartphone and searched for “Catfish over Tokyo.” Tapping on a site updated three hours ago, I checked the catfish's flight path. Sure enough, it was just circling around the Chiyoda Ward area, showing no signs of falling to the ground or veering off in any other direction.

  The catfish had appeared exactly six months ago.

  I remember well how the entire country panicked when it suddenly materialized in Tokyo's sky without warning. Opinions abounded that it should be shot down or driven out of airspace, but concerns that provoking it might cause it to rampage and damage buildings on the ground led to it being left unchecked until today.

  Now it has completely blended into the everyday scenery, and many people come to Tokyo specifically to see the giant catfish.

  Zooming in with a smartphone camera revealed the catfish slowly circling, its mouth slightly open, its large, vacant eyes flickering.

  Perhaps frightened by the eerie sight of its massive body swimming through the sky, a toddler in a stroller cried out,

  “Waaaaaaaah!”

  as if trying to reach the catfish.

  ＊＊＊

  "Total length: 260 meters. Judging from its slightly darkened body color and yellowish-brown mottled markings covering its entire body, it is believed to be the Japanese endemic species ‘Iwatoko Namazu’. With some margin of error, it's circling at an altitude of 600 meters, around the Chiyoda Ward area. Its flight speed is about 20 kilometers per hour, which is rather slow for such a massive body."

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  Scrolling through her phone at a terrifying speed, Yumi explained that giant catfish to me.

  Typing text into the computer while also paying attention to Yumi and digesting what she was saying was exhausting.

  “And then, six months ago, it suddenly appeared. Not descending from the upper atmosphere, but literally ‘poof.’ Within a day, all of Tokyo was in a mild state of panic, but within a month, that sight had become commonplace.”

  Just as Yumi started to say “But,” I paused my work on the computer.

  “But the number of domestic deaths and missing persons has skyrocketed in the last six months, right? Since that catfish appeared. And these aren't deaths from car accidents, fires, or random stabbings. They're different—people are dying in ways we've never seen before.”

  Yumi's scrolling finger stopped, and her gaze shifted from her phone to my face.

  I could almost see her clear, light brown eyes faintly tracing my features.

  "Yes, that's why Mr. Sayama, your colleague from the same class, is another example. It's all because of that catfish. Ever since that thing took up residence in this country, things beyond common sense have been happening one after another. It's not just people melting to death. Remember when hundreds of Buddha statues formed a procession and marched down Shibuya's main street? After that, “those people” faded away like mist. Now they're all officially listed as deceased. There are other cases too—like someone whose arm turned into a flower, or another whose body shrank to the size of a pinky finger."

  I could see her wide-open eyes shift from cold detachment to a look filled with rage.

  “To break this chain of madness, we must kill its source.”

  The dehumidifier emitted a screeching noise, filling the quiet room with a hollow energy.

  ＊＊＊

  “Good evening. Working late again today?”

  Momona , two years my junior, placed a plastic bottle of mineral water on the edge of the desk so it wouldn't get in the way.

  “Good thing it was water. If it had been tea, I'd have had to keep running to the bathroom because of the caffeine's diuretic effect.”

  “I remember exactly what you said, senpai.”

  “Thanks for that.”

  “Still, it's ridiculous that on top of our regular duties, we're also handling the analysis work for that catfish. It just piles more work onto us.”

  “Well, everyone says that, don't they? Personally, I'm rather glad about it.”

  “Even if you don't work hard, Senpai, the Prime Minister can just authorize the Self-Defense Forces to deploy and shoot it down with combat helicopters or surface-to-air missiles.”

  Muttering her complaints, Momona rolled up her suit sleeves and glanced at her watch.

  “It's already 1:30. Shouldn't we wrap things up and head home soon?”

  “I'm currently arranging for RIKEN to analyze that catfish's body surface tissue. I'll take a break once this task is done.”

  “Body surface tissue? Did you actually collect that?”

  “No, I’m also working on a plan to get it at the same time.”

  Before she could interrupt with “But—”, Yumi began her explanation.

  "I understand. There are precedents with Russia and India. As you say, physical attacks on ‘symbols’ and attacks using biological weapons won't work either. The 200-meter giant matryoshka doll outside Moscow, the 300-meter giant Bengal bodhi tree native to Bengal. Large-scale eradication operations were conducted by the military, even mobilizing tanks and aircraft, yet both remain intact to this day, persisting as sources of the ‘Madness Phenomenon.’"

  “That's right. So even ‘obtaining surface tissue’ might be impossible. As Ikeguchi san mentioned, no country has managed to eliminate the ‘Symbols’ that appeared worldwide six months ago. Not even the US's bunker-busting bombs could scratch them. But Japan hasn't even been attacked in the first place. Meaning, even without Mr. Ikeguchi's plan, a full-scale attack by the Self-Defense Forces could potentially eliminate that need altogether.”

  “Even the U.S. military couldn't damage it. How do you expect the Self-Defense Forces to eliminate that catfish using only conventional weapons?”

  “Because they haven't even taken action yet. Honestly, I don't think I could do anything about it either. But to be completely honest, I don't want Ikeguchi san to push himself any further.”

  “I'm not pushing myself too hard. I'm not the type to go into battle unprepared. Frankly, I think trying to defeat it with existing weapons is the wrong approach. There's another way to handle this. And the only place capable of executing it is the Ministry of Defense where we work.”

  “Are you sure it'll work?”

  Momona asked with a frown, wrinkling her brow and placing a hand on the back of her neck.

  “It's possible. If things go well, we might even be able to kill that catfish.”