Bang!The car landed heavily. Austin's body lost its balance and rolled inside. As he looked out the car window, longing for freedom, he felt a buzz in his ears. He felt his head in a daze and did not know how long it was before he felt himself getting dragged out of the car.His head felt warm, as if something was flowing down his scalp. The scene before his eyes was chaotic. There was a fire with people shouting as sirens rang in his ears. It was as if he could hear everything, yet nothing at all.Then he blacked out.…Putting away the boiled herbs, Lily wiped her hands and was about to leave when she heard hurried footsteps. Edmund appeared in front of her. "Dr. Russell, there are some changes in Debbie."When she saw the serious look on his face, her heart tightened. "What changes?""We'll talk as we head over," Edmund said, taking a protective suit and handing it to her.Lily quickly got dressed and followed him to the ward.The two talked as they walked. Each sentence f
“It’s all your fault!” Dashiell said fiercely, “If it weren’t for you, the child wouldn’t suffer so much, and her life wouldn’t be in danger! How dare you mess around again!”“I’m not messing around and have to take her wrist pulse. Step aside!” Lily said coldly.“Please! Take her pulse? What the hell for? Do you think your fingers can detect more than our professional equipment? It’s nothing more than a party trick since herbal medicine is unreliable! Now that things have come to this, what else must you say?” He scolded angrily.Some of the other herbal medicine practitioners got upset. “Hey, how could you say we’re performing party tricks? How is herbal medicine not reliable?”“It’s just not!”“Without the equipment, mainstream medicine can do nothing. All you know is to perform surgeries or ask the patients to wait for their deaths.”“It’s the herbal medicine that’s…”The two parties suddenly ended up in a fierce quarrel. Although some herbal medicine practitioners also thou
After a while, she stood and looked toward Dr. Blanc. “I’d like to have a word with you.”“How’s the kid?” Dr. Blanc questioned, furrowing his brow."She should be stable for now," she said euphemistically, bending down to pinch Debbie's cheeks with one hand and stuffing something into her mouth with the other.She did it so swiftly that others could not do anything but shout, “What did you feed her?!”“Dr. Blanc, let’s talk alone,” Lily said indifferently while turning to face him.Before Dr. Blanc could reply, Dashiell chuckled coldly. "What can't you say here that you must speak with Dr. Blanc alone? We’re all colleagues, and as Dr. Blanc said, we’re all on the battlefront together. How are there secrets we are not privy to?"Dr. Blanc, you said you wouldn't let her off the hook easily, and I believe there’s no secrets between the two of you. So, I’m wondering, Dr. Russell, what is it that you could only tell Dr. Blanc and not us?” Dashiell looked around, and someone piped u
Lily and Dashiell each seemed to have a point, and the others did not know for a moment which side to take or whom to trust.“Dr. Russell, according to you, what should we do?” Having remained quiet, Edmund spoke. Instead of making accusations or taking sides, he simply asked her what they should do next.“That’s right. It’s not the time to argue about who is right. What matters is saving her life.” Someone else nodded and said, “Dr. Russell, what did you feed her? How could she take any drugs without a prescription?”“It’s to protect her heart,” Lily answered. “Since I’ve been put in charge of the child, I’ll perform my duty. You can hold me accountable for what I’ve said.” Edmund frowned. “It doesn't matter if you would fulfill your obligation or if we could hold you accountable. We’re talking about someone’s life here, and we mustn’t take it lightly!”“I know!” Looking at Edmund, she grimly uttered the two words.Although she did not want to save the world, she knew how impo
“Go and prepare since you might have to stay here overnight. It could be exhausting with only the two of you taking shifts," Dr. Blanc said to the two nurses who remained behind, "Do come back when you're ready. I still have to examine the patient.”“Okay, Doctor.” The nurses replied and left.Dr. Blanc took the stethoscope and checked Debbie’s heartbeat, then gave her a rough examination. When he withdrew his hand, he thought about something and gave Lily a look. He took the child's wrist and turned it over, checking her palm.The palm was soft, but he could see something abnormally yellow in the middle. If one were not careful, they might mistake it for a callous caused by labor.However, she was still a child and had not done such work before, let alone over a long period of time. Not only that, she had been in the ward recently.Stroking his finger over it, Dr. Blanc realized it was not a callous but a darker yellow that had shown through the skin. It was something unnatural a
“I’ll see to it,” Dr. Blanc said, “How do you know she got poisoned?”Having asked that, he felt it was redundant as a herbal medicine practitioner could determine many hidden problems by taking one’s wrist pulse.“Then who do you think could’ve poisoned her?” He asked again.Lily shook her head. “I’m unsure and don’t want to jump to conclusions. However, it’s a serious problem. Whoever the person is, what is their goal? What motives do they have? It’s too dangerous having someone like that around here.”“You’re right.” Dr. Blanc nodded and turned to Edmund. “What do you think?”“I think Dr. Russell is correct. Whoever the person is, we must catch them! I never expected anyone like that to be hiding among us. It’s truly horrible.”Dr. Blanc was thoughtful. “Then about the poisoning…”“Debbie will be fine. I fed her the antidote, which should be able to counteract the poison very soon,” Lily explained.Taken aback, Edmund asked, “That was for the poison? Not to protect her heart
Austin groggily opened his eyes, but his eyelids felt so heavy that he gradually closed them again.He did not know how much time had passed, and it felt like a year later when he reopened his eyes. He saw a wooden roof instead of the unnerving white ceiling. He then looked around him and saw a closet, desk, chair, the bed he was lying on, and the blanket…Everything was not the cold and hard stuff he had before. Almost subconsciously, he lifted his hand and slapped himself.‘Ouch, that hurts!’ However, he was glad he felt pain. ‘This isn’t a dream!’In other words, he finally escaped and no longer needed to suffer in that hellhole. He eagerly tried to get off the bed, but the moment he removed the blanket and his feet touched the floor, he went limp and almost dropped to his knees if he had not propped himself up.“What are you doing? Are you trying to kill yourself?” The voice was familiar and yet so strange. Austin had not heard it for a long time, and hearing it again felt lik
“Uncle…” The moment Austin opened his mouth, Dominic handed over the herbal medicine. “Drink it!”Dominic sounded rude, but the medicine was the most delicious thing on earth to Austin now. Without asking what it was, he gulped it down in one shot. He did not even care that it was hot and smacked his lips after finishing it. “It’s so sweet!”Dominic stared at his nephew. “I doubled the amount of bitter melon! Very sweet? I think you must be suffering from a concussion!”Despite being scolded, Austin did not mind and laughed happily. “Thank you for saving me, Uncle Dom.”“I told you I’m not that free, got it? Your father will come to pick you up later. Don’t dilly-dally and try to stick around. You’re no more than a pain in my a*s!” After a pause, he added, “Oh, yes, I don’t want the bed and blanket anymore since you’ve used them. Tell your father to buy new ones for me!”“Sure, I’ll buy the best ones for you, Uncle Dom!” Austin said laughingly. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in hi
Lily tilted her head up to fight back her tears, saying, “There’s something I find strange.”“What is it?” Mike asked after comforting his son.“Instead of detaining Prince Ross, Her Majesty has sent him back to Yudonia. If so, why couldn’t we reach him?”After some thought, Mike answered, “There are two possibilities. It’s probably due to poor signals, or he doesn’t want us to contact him.”The two shared a look, knowing what each other was wondering.‘Why can’t we contact Ross? Is he planning something?’…Three days later, Lily inserted the last needle into the queen’s leg and looked up at her, saying, “You should start feeling your legs tomorrow. Still, it’ll take some time before you can stand.”Suddenly, Lily chuckled.“Why are you laughing?” Yasmin touched her legs. She had begun to regain sensation in her legs over the last two days. She then began to believe that she could get up. However, the queen was hesitant when the queen heard Lily chuckle.Lily shook her head
Lily straightened up and said without resentment, “Of course, you wouldn’t.”“That’s… quite a pity,” the queen murmured thoughtfully.“Well, there’s a price to pay for everything. That’s how the world balances itself,” Lily continued, “I can’t stop you if you must carry on with R10. Still, I won’t witness whether or not it succeeds. I just wish the outcome isn’t something you’ll regret.”Lily smiled and turned to head out the door.Rick heard their conversation as he stood guard outside. After exchanging looks with Lily as she brushed past him, he entered the room and saw the needles in Yasmin’s legs. “Your Majesty, those needles—”The queen waved dismissively. “It’s okay. Lily will remove them later.”Even so, Rick was wary. “You’re being too careless, Your Majesty. What if that woman—”“She wouldn’t,” Yasmin interjected, shaking her head."Why do you trust her so much?" Rick asked despite himself. The queen fell silent. If Rick had not asked her that, she would not have rea
Lily took out a cloth and unfolded it, revealing a row of silver needles inside. Yasmin was surprised she carried the needles with her.“Tell me. What do you want?” The queen took a deep breath to calm herself. She then reminded herself that she could always say no to Lily’s request. Still, Yasmin was cautious about Lily trying to trick her.Lily casually said, "I left because Prince Ross wanted to help me. I hope you don’t punish him.""That's it?" Yasmin thought she had misheard Lily. 'Is she trying to talk terms with me just so that I won't punish my son?' she wondered in disbelief."Ross is my son. I won't harm him. Don't you think you've wasted an opportunity by making such a request?" The queen shook her head. "I wasn’t sure if you’d blame him, but he did rescue me once. If I don't do anything, it would be ungrateful of me," Lily said gently, "Also, didn’t you already lock him up?"Yasmin was puzzled. "No, I only sent him back to Yudonia. He kept trying to get me to sto
"Three days," Lily replied.“That’s it?!” Yasmin was in disbelief. She thought Lily would try to buy some more time and suspected she would say the process would take several months or even years.‘I haven’t felt my legs for over a decade. I wouldn’t mind waiting for three more days.’“Are you sure I can get up and walk in just three days?” Yasmin pressed her legs hard but felt nothing. She would have treated her legs long ago if it were that easy.The queen had visited many famous doctors from various countries, but they could only stop her legs from getting weaker. However, Lily confidently told Yasmin that she could fix her legs so quickly.Yasmin wanted to believe it.After some consideration, Lily said, “I can’t guarantee that you’ll walk as fast as you once could. After all, you haven’t used your legs for a long time, and your muscles have atrophied. Still, you’ll recover slowly.”Yasmin nodded repeatedly, thinking it was good enough. She never dreamed of walking as well a
“Because only our opinions matter." Lily thought of something and said, "Unless you choose to believe Rhea.""I… don't trust anyone." Yasmin’s expression stiffened as she turned her wheelchair away."Your Majesty, I know you're dedicated to the experiment, but there are other things in life. Have you ever considered letting go of your burden to sightsee? You’ve done enough as a queen over the last few decades. Aren’t you tired of living a lonely life?”Lily gently spoke as she gazed at Yasmin’s back.The older woman caressed her knees with both hands and stared down at her legs, murmuring, “Sightsee, huh? I’ve forgotten what that’s like.”Yasmin had not used her legs for many years. Initially, she could still stand up and sometimes took a few steps. However, she could no longer get to her feet.She had grown accustomed to sitting in a wheelchair, but she felt a pang of sorrow after hearing Lily’s suggestion.Lily asked, “What if I can help you stand again? What if you can walk a
"Yes, I returned not just for him but also for you," Lily said, "I'm sure you were anxious for my return, weren't you?"Yasmin scoffed dismissively. "Why would I be? I have my bargaining chip. Besides, did you honestly think I couldn’t bring you back?""Bargaining chip? Do you mean Nick?" Lily shook her head with a smile. "Don't forget that he's not my son. Do you think he'll be much of a bargaining chip to you if I choose to ignore him for my three children?"She did not wait for Yasmin to reply and continued, "Besides, Nick still has a father who’s willing to die for him. If Mike decides to take drastic action against you— Yes, you're a queen, and you don't care much about an insignificant businessman.“However, don't forget that his business spans worldwide. There's no guarantee what he might do. Who knows, he might spread information that can affect Your Majesty and Yudonia's reputation?""You…" The queen was exasperated but could not retort.Lily noticed it and casually said
Rick could only remain silent at that moment.Yasmin then turned her wheelchair around and blandly said, “Bring Lily over. I’d like to see what excuses that sly woman can come up with.”"Your Majesty?" Rick was puzzled. "You know she'll just lie to you. Why must you—"Yasmin interjected, "I'd like to hear what she has to say."Rick had no choice but to leave and do as she said.As Lily was about to doze off, she heard noises from outside and opened her eyes. Immediately after, the door opened, and Rick appeared. He glared at her and spoke coldly, “Her Majesty wants to see you.”Lily glanced at Rick calmly and stood up as if she had expected his appearance. On the other hand, Mike rose before her and headed out.However, Rick stopped him as he reached the door. “You stay.”"But we came together!" Mike glanced over his shoulder at Lily, signaling her to persuade the man. Rick added, "The queen doesn’t wish to see you. Just stay here!"Lily patted Mike's shoulder and said gentl
Everyone was shocked when Lily returned to the embassy with Mike. One of the staff members quickly left to report the news to Queen Yasmin.Meanwhile, Lily saw people peering at her and Mike from the corner. Afterward, several guarded-looking men appeared. Lilt recognized them as the queen’s attendants. They brought Mike and Lily inside and then gave the duo a thorough search.The men only relaxed after finding nothing suspicious about the duo. Even so, Lily could not see the queen as the men told her to wait in an innermost room instead.After returning to the embassy, Lily felt a sense of strange familiarity. Although she knew the place well, her mindset had changed.She previously hated the embassy and simply wanted to escape. However, she had returned with a critical mission. Not only did she have to complete it, but she also needed to leave the place in one piece.While she was calm, Mike was somewhat anxious. He clasped his hands on his knees and glanced around as he sat dow
"I promise I'll do anything you want, okay?" Mike begged. He was desperate to see his son, so he decided to follow Lily when she insisted on returning to the embassy.Mike continued, “If any of you go with her, they might stop or suspect you. They won’t do that to me. It’s natural for me to want to see and rescue my son. I’m the best candidate because it makes sense for me to sacrifice myself for him.”After a short silence, Lily said, “You’re right.” She then looked at Alexander, who pondered before slowly raising his head and saying, “Me too.”Dominic tapped the table. "So do I."Cameron thought for a moment before saying, "I've no objections."Seeing this, Austin spread his arms and said, "Since you all agree, what else can I say? Let's do it!"It did not matter whether or not he agreed, but he just wanted to support Mike. The latter nodded and became emotional, saying, “Thanks, you guys!”"Why are you thanking us? Just be careful, and don’t be rash like you promised," Aust