"Hiyomi!"
The inky blackness materialized into a grey ceiling hovered and swam above me as stalactites quivered like shuddering arrows. My back ached and my legs throbbed with exhaustion.
*Ping!*
A familiar blue translucent window appeared with a soft chime in front of me, the faint colour shocking against the plastered greys of [Templar's Sight].
———
First Kill Bonus For Event Quest Miniboss: [Enhanced ???]
Unique Item: [Ingredient: ???'s claws ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆]
Description: The claws of an [Enhanced ???]. A precious ingredient. Given its rarity, its effects aren't well documented.
———
I blinked, confused before a smarting headache flashed across my head.
"Ugh…"
"Hiyomi, are you okay?"
…Midori?
My vision pulsed once more before her face popped into view above me, immediately kneeling down, grabbing my shoulders. A long brown ponytail swished like a silk sash as her pearl-like eyes flicked over my body.
She smelled nice… soft and warm like lilies and spring rain. Her hands were so nice too…
She locked her eyes on mine shakily as two other women appeared in the corners of my vision.
Midori shook me gently, furrowing her brow, her chest rising and falling quickly as if she'd just sprinted to me. Her breath was quick, in sharp little gasps. (Not in that scenario, come on…)
The receptionist's eyes were wide, her jaw trembling, her brows pinched together so tight it looked like it hurt. "Hiyomi—hey, look at me. How many fingers am I holding up—"
Oop.
—My vision flickered, then returned for a brief moment, before—
"—Ah, fuck—" Midori slid a backpack off of her shoulder, snapping open the straps and reaching inside. "Don't do this, please please please please don't go, you're fine, you're fine, it's going to be okay…"
Her words shot by like a stream of consciousness as she cradled my head with a hand, her breathing catching up as tears foamed up at the corners of her eyes. She was hyperventilating, I realized. I could feel Midori's hand trembling, resting at the base of my neck.
"I'm fine, Midori…" My hand felt cold as I grasped Midori's hand in what I hoped was a reassuring way. (Blatant lie, I was *not* fine, but it's not like I'll admit it…) My voice was incredibly dry, almost crackling like dry leaves as I spoke.
Ooh.
That sounded… not great.
Midori shakily pressed a glass vial against my lips. I didn't really register the cool, smooth liquid going down, but… needless to say, I felt much better afterward.
My vision finally settled on my surroundings, and I quickly recounted what had happened. Monster jumped me, I killed it and fell down…
Fuck… ow, my head kind of hurt. Lucidia Online simulated fatigue as well?
I tried to stand, but my legs still felt hella uncoordinated. I stumbled, and Midori quickly lunged to catch me, dropping the empty vial she was holding. It shattered into a million shiny crystal pieces with a crinkle as it hit the stone floor.
Midori held me tight as I steadied myself, a residual headache hammering before gradually fading away.
Something warm and wet fell on my cheek and I awkwardly wiped it off with the back of my hand. I looked up at Midori, who was… crying? Tears rolled down her cheeks as she pulled me into a hug.
???
"Oh my god… Are you okay? Midori? What's wrong—mph!"
She pressed my head to her chest, and now I could feel a faint heat riding up to my face. So… big…
"Midori, h-hey—mmn." I stuttered as she enveloped me, falling silent as she clung to me like a frightened child, burying her face into my neck. I should have felt something, but… it just didn't feel right for me to get embarrassed when she was like this.
Slowly, carefully, I hugged her back.
We were silent for a while.
Lilith turned her eyes away, respecting our privacy. So did Dame Airi, surprisingly.
…
It was a while before Midori's sniffles receded. I was grateful that no monsters decided to jump us during that time.
Eventually, Midori let me go, her hands reluctantly trailing off of my shoulders.
The expression on her face cut me to the heart.
Was she really just an NPC? Her eyes were red, her cheeks flushed from crying. She still sniffled in short gasps, her eyes still blinking back more tears. Something in my heart ached for her. Even crying, she was so pretty,
…Why was she crying?
Midori grasped my hand and squeezed tightly, her fingertips brushing against mine. She swallowed once before looking up at me. Her voice sounded loud in the cavern, with only the sound of water dripping accompanying her tones.
"... Almost dying isn't allowed. Dying isn't, either."
She blinked several times more, sniffing.
"Promise me."
…It wasn't like I would die as a player. I'd just respawn at the nearest town or city—Agëmon—if I died. But how would that impact Midori? Would she just forget about me and be reset? Midori drooped slightly, as if she were deflating.
Why was she so sad…?
I looked on as Midori sniffled, wiping the tears from her eyes. The fabric from her cloak rustled around her, almost like a blanket around an infant child needing protection.
Oh, right.
Midori had lost Dame Airi's sister.
Shit, how could I forget that…? I had no idea who she was to Midori, or if I even had the right to think this, but…
I know how painful it is to lose someone.
To have their life slip away underneath your fingers.
In fact, that's one of the leading reasons I chose to be a doctor in the first place… but that's another story for another time.
Seeing me almost die must have dredged up a memory in Midori that… she probably didn't want to relive.
Still, I was a doctor, not a therapist or a psychiatrist. I had no idea how to save Midori from her sorry state. So… I did the only thing I could think of.
I stepped forward, reaching above me to pat her head before hesitating and pulling her into a hug. I wasn't sure if it was morally okay to do this when Midori could be still struggling with loss but… I wanted to comfort Midori in any way I could.
"I'm sorry for worrying you, Midori. I wasn't sure if you'd be able to make it to me in time, so I ended up fighting… I'm sorry. And I won't die, I promise." I whispered quietly.
Her chest was warm and soft. Midori was stiff at first before relaxing and leaning into me, holding me tightly. "You'd better not."
"..."
Not to be pessimistic, but we still were in a level twenty dungeon, and our chances weren't great.
However, now I had more than one reason to make it out alive.
- - -
[Dame Haneul Airi, the Commander's POV]
The silence was almost palpable as Dame Airi turned away from Midori and the Doctor.
Drip, drip, plink… the sound of water droplets hitting the cavern floor somewhere accompanied the feeling of something tugging at her chest.
Dame Airi couldn't understand what she was feeling—nor did she understand why she felt this way.
Seeing Midori embrace—cling to—someone else hurt more than she wanted to admit. That was how Midori had once held Rena… and now she was holding another woman for comfort.
Dame Airi bit her lip. She didn't trust herself to speak. She knew she should be angry at Midori for going against the knight's oath and what she believed in. That much was easy, condemning someone for going against the truth that the oath demanded.
But seeing Midori like that…
Rena's death had shattered them both, though in different ways. Midori had lost the woman she loved. Airi had lost her sister—and her best friend, all in one instant.
Haneul didn't want to think about it.
It had been too painful, too long for her to bear.
For years, Airi had buried that beneath blame. It was easier to hate Midori than to face the emptiness Rena had left behind. But now, watching Midori clutch the doctor like she was the last thing anchoring her to this world…
…Midori was never my enemy, Dame Air realized. She'd just been hurting too. Why did I even blame her? Midori wasn't responsible for Rena's death. No—were either of us wrong?
The thought struck like a blade twisting in her chest.
Her armour plates shifted, clanking against each other as Dame Airi shifted her weight. Her feet felt heavy in her tight armoured boots. She clicked her heels together.
Should she tear Midori from the Doctor before things got worse? Should she kill them all like she thought of earlier?
Tch.
…No. She couldn't.
Not anymore.
Airi's gaze flicked back to the two of them. The sight of Midori hugging someone else stung—but not in a bitter or spiteful way. Dame Airi felt something else.
Relief, maybe.
Midori was healing. Even if Airi or Rena couldn't be the one to help her, at least she wouldn't be suffering alone anymore.
The realization burned more than anger ever had. They weren't best friends anymore. The moment Rena died, that bond was buried with her.
But seeing Midori like this… maybe I was wrong. I… wasn't the only one grieving, and maybe hiding the truth from Rena was the only way I could have saved her. Maybe I was wrong to blame Midori.
Dame Haneul Airi exhaled, trembling, her armour suddenly feeling far too heavy. She'd told herself that Midori had betrayed her. That Midori had broken everything they believed in. But maybe it had been Airi who'd broken first.
Airi closed her eyes and breathed out again, the sound faint and hollow beneath the echoing cavern.
She grimaced lightly, her eyes burning. She thought she was going to cry as she clenched her hand into a fist and pressed it against her forehead.
Lilith, the pretty healer girl that stirred something in her, looked up at her with those adorable eyes. "Dame Airi," the princess asked. "Is something wrong?"
"No, Miss Lilith. Nothing you need to worry about." Dame Airi reached over to Lilith and petted the girl's head, causing a flush of colour to bloom on Lilith's cheeks.
"E-Eh??"
Lilith quickly looked away, fumbling to hide her blush behind her snow-white hair.
Dame Airi giggled. A tremor worked itself up Dame Airi's chest, just looking at Lilith. Cute, she thought before looking back to Midori and the Doctor who had just let go of each other.
"…Rena," she whispered under her breath, the sound alien to her. "You'd probably laugh at us, wouldn't you? Two idiots still fighting over ghosts…"
…What the fuck have I done?
…
And can I make it right?
- - -
[Hiyomi's POV]
After a while, we started moving again, our footsteps echoing faintly through a tunnel that wound out of the cavern. [Templar's Vision] had long since faded, so Lilith quietly re-cast it. Her silvery hair lifted with the flow of mana, strands shimmering faintly as light spilled from her palms.
She walked in front beside Dame Airi, who looked… calmer with Lilith next to her. Lilith clung a bit close to Dame Airi, but… I wasn't in the mood to tease them. (Still, I want my screenshot button this is too cute~)
It was true that Dame Airi had lost her sister as well, and Midori and her were still at odds about it. But still…
I trudged after them, my boots dragging against the uneven stone. Midori's footsteps padding softly behind me.
The scent of damp earth thickened with something acrid and faintly metallic like rusted iron or stale blood. The walls began to widen, and the rhythmic drip of unseen water became a slow, steady pulse.
Lilith slowed her pace.
The tunnel ahead opened into a vast chamber that swallowed her light whole.
Even before we stepped through, my stomach tightened. The silence felt… wrong. It was quiet like the beginning of a shift just before some absurd accident happened and all hands was called. (A very not fun time. Yes, it happened. No, I don't want to go into details. At all.)
A row of hulking shapes lined the path ahead—stone figures slumped against the floor, their features blurred by dust and time. Statues, maybe.
…Or not quite statues.
One of them twitched as we passed, its cracked armor releasing a sigh that certainly didn't belong to anything dead.
Okay so we have statues that move oh my god my heart what the fuck—
I flinched hard, nearly stumbling. My heart jumped so high I'd thought a heart monitor would catch its peak a mile away.
Dame Airi didn't even break stride. Calm, collected, the knight commander in every inch of her posture. Her hand hovered just above her rapier hilt, trembling ever so slightly before curling into a fist.
It was the same tremor that I got every time I stepped up to an operating table.
I swallowed and followed, less confidently. [Templar's Vision] flickered, stretching shadows long enough to reveal a massive gate ahead, cracked open just a sliver.
Deep claw marks scored the floor, all leading into that single point. Lilith whispered, her hair swishing around her shoulders. "Looks like a boss room."
Yeah.
That's exactly what I was afraid of—
*SLAM*
The gates blew open, shaking the ground beneath our feet and assaulting my ears with the grind of heavy hinges.
When I opened my eyes, I blinked against the glare of white light. The brightness was almost blinding after being in [Templar's Vision] for so long.
Lilith dropped the spell, and as my sight adjusted, I froze.
…A hospital?
Fluorescent panels buzzed overhead. Curtains divided rows of metal-frame beds that stretched alongside the hall, leaving a suspiciously large space open in the middle of the room. The sharp tang of disinfectant clashed with the musty damp of the dungeon.
Oh, shit, wait—what the fuck?
My pulse stuttered.
It was Forest Brooke General—almost. The equipment was older, brass fittings instead of steel. Beds draped in thick linen instead of plastic. It was a hospital reworked in Lucidia Online's fantasy-medieval theme.
My mind immediately slipped into work mode before I realized—I counted beds and equipment, half expecting to hear a nurse page over comms. I inched forward instinctively, turning to an exact doorway that would lead down to another hall with my office before I stopped myself.
I exhaled.
Not real. This can't be real…
But the smell…
Was it a coincidence?
Dame Airi drew her rapier and stepped forward, her armoured boots clicking sharply against stone. "Looks like we're here."
We followed behind her. Lilith glanced at me. "What's wrong?" she whispered.
I just shook my head. "Nothing…" I hope? Fingers crossed. This was a bit too personal—I'd have to ask the Lucidia devs. Forest Brooke General Hospital was pretty generic, but… wasn't this a bit… too close for comfort?
Then, as soon as the four of us crossed the threshold—
*CLANG!*
The iron gates slammed shut behind us. The gust kicked up by it flicked my cloak around my shoulders. Yeah, we… probably should've seen that one coming. Oopsies.
…But then, a figure stepped into view from behind a curtain.
A doctor.
The fuck?
Okay, now that one I didn't see coming.
I'd only been with him for a brief while, but he had the same face. This was the doctor who'd come to the alchemist school to request potions. The one who'd vanished with the cart after Qirune's ambush.
He slid on a pair of thin glasses and rolled up his sleeves like he was prepping for rounds. His scrubs were splattered with dried blood. A frayed white coat clung to his shoulders, while his blond hair was a mess and jaw shadowed by a few days' stubble.
"Well," he cleared his throat, adjusting his glasses. "I uh… I didn't expect you all to be here."
"D-Doctor?" Midori stepped up beside me. "What are you doing—?"
Dame Airi moved instantly, stepping between us. Her rapier angled toward his chest. "…Everyone, step back."
The doctor smiled faintly, lenses hiding his eyes. "Ah. Madame Haneul Airi. You're with them. I was wondering who'd been killing all my patients."
"Your… patients?" The question slipped out before I realized it.
"Why yes," he said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You've seen them roaming the forest, haven't you? I saved them. Every one of my patients from Royal Agëmon Hospital—those who were dying or already gone. I brought them here and gave them new life. Isn't that wonderful?"
My stomach twisted hard enough to make me dizzy as anger started to crawl its way up my body.
I pressed my eyebrows together in disbelief. "Patients…" I hissed. "You mean those monsters attacking the city?" The ones that were causing Agëmon hospital's issues in the first place???"
He frowned, almost pitying. "I'd prefer you didn't call them monsters. That's rather cruel, don't you think? But yes—if that's how you wish to see them."
This twisted fuck. Save—SAVE THEM? SAVE THEM BY TURNING THEM INTO THOSE MONSTROSITIES???
I clenched my hands into fists, my nails biting into my palms. This man had been turning humans into monsters under the delusion of the doctor's oath of saving lives. I couldn't even begin to describe how I felt.
Disgusted?
Appalled?
Sick?
Outraged?
Pick one, I have a great vocab for times like this.
I growled. "You—"
Midori stepped in front of me, drawing her crossbow. "Doctor, what is the meaning of this?"
He sighed, exasperated. "I'm protecting them. Saving them. Can't you see?" His gaze cut straight to me. "You, of all people—a doctor yourself—should understand."
The word hit harder than the echo of his boots. My breath caught. Doctor. The title felt wrong in his mouth. Contaminated. Corrupted. Wrong.
"I—" My thoughts broke through my composure. They sounded tiny compared to the amount of anger I felt toward the man. "You turned them into those things? And you call that saving them???"
"Hiyomi, don't," Midori said, lowering her voice. "There's no talking to him."
The doctor tilted his head, expression softening in that awful, patronizing way some senior physicians used when they thought I was naïve.
"So be it," he said finally. "I had hoped we could have spoken longer."
He reached into his pocket and popped a small pill into his mouth. A chilled green light spider-veined through his skin, glowing in rhythm with his pulse.
I heard the crunch of the capsule breaking between his teeth as his frayed coat began to flap with unseen wind. Pressure began to build, the air pressing in on me as he turned to face us fully. A strange rapier materialized in his hand as he clicked his heels together.
"It's a shame," he murmured, almost regretful. "Truly."
———
Warning: You are facing the boss of the dungeon [Alexander's Madness], [Alexander, the Good Doctor], Lv. 30.
———
Oh, fuck.