Sneaking through the corridor, I could see that both exits — stairs and elevators — were blocked by men in black suits.
I don't need to be a psychic to know they're Bai Ning's men, and from the bulge under their arms, I can tell they're all wearing shoulder holsters.
"..."
I'm speechless… Is all of this just for me?
I don't know whether to feel flattered or terrified. Probably the second.
Well… I need to think of a way to slip by unnoticed, or to knock them out.
Assuming they're highly trained guards, sneaking up on them to knock them out is impossible.
But passing unnoticed in this hospital gown is also impossible; they'll spot me from afar and might even recognize my face.
"Kid… are you lost?"
An unfamiliar voice reached my ears, and I hadn't noticed anyone approaching.
I immediately raised my head and found the owner of the voice: a fat old man, with a few gray hairs on his head and large cheeks.
"Oh… yes, I'm lost. Could you help me? I need to go to the storage room to get a set of clothes, but I ended up getting lost."
The old man's eyes ran over me from head to toe, sending chills down my spine.
"That's strange, the nurses are supposed to get everything you need." The old man then turned and started walking in the opposite direction of the elevators as he spoke. "But I won't judge you, lately not many nurses have been coming to the VIP area."
I remained still as I watched the old man walk. He didn't seem trustworthy, so I tried to read his thoughts.
'Mind's Eye!'
The ability activated immediately and showed me the old man's thoughts.
[This is —— strange… —— maybe —— lost —— help?]
"..."
Looks like I was a bit mistaken. But I can't be blamed—he looks just like a perverted old man from hentai.
I followed him cautiously, still not fully trusting him. After all, I might have misinterpreted his thoughts.
"I noticed the corridor is empty, and there are guards at the elevators and stairs." I walked beside the old man, acting innocent while trying to gather information. "Can you tell me what happened?"
"I don't know the exact details, but it seems the floor above is occupied by the son of a rich woman."
Surprisingly, the old man was quite talkative and didn't take long to open up.
"This woman seems pretty paranoid. Not only did she clear out the patients from the top floor and fill it with guards, she also placed security at every exit." He let out a lighthearted laugh and added, "That's what I call motherly love."
"That's… impressive…"
At that moment, I didn't know whether to be surprised that Bai Ning had assigned so many men to watch me, or impressed by how the old man didn't hold back while spewing words.
"Truly impressive."
It didn't take long for us to reach the storage room.
It was a white door identical to all the others, with no sign or anything. I would never have found it on my own—I guess I should thank this old man.
"Sir, how did you find this door?"
The old man pulled out a keyring from his pocket, picked a key, and turned the lock.
"It's easy to confuse them, but after some time you memorize the right door and never forget it."
The old man's lighthearted answer brought a smile to my lips. He was kind—I really misjudged him.
The old man went in first, and I followed right after.
The storage room was very different from what I imagined.
I thought it would be an empty room with things thrown in the corners, but no—it was full of shelves, everything neatly organized in numbered boxes.
"I think we have clothes in your size around here."
The old man turned his back to me, raising his hands to grab a white box from the top shelf.
"Here!"
I approached him step by step as I asked:
"Did you find it?"
"Yes, it's—"
Without waiting for him to finish, my hand struck the back of his neck hard enough to knock him out.
The old man's body fell forward, hitting the shelf and knocking it over with the force of the impact. With five points in agility, my reflexes were fast enough to catch the shelf and stop it from falling.
"Sorry about that, old man."
I slipped my arm under his shoulders and dragged him to the corner of the room, placing him seated against the wall.
Then I walked over to the box of clothes that had fallen to the floor. The lid had opened, scattering clothes everywhere.
"This isn't what I want," I said as I looked at the clothes on the ground.
They were pajamas, and although they were better than the gown I was wearing, they were still patient clothes.
I carefully folded each piece and put them back into the sealed box. After returning the box to its place, I began searching through every box.
I wanted lab coats.
I planned to pretend to be a doctor—at least to get past those guards.
Minutes passed until I finally found the lab coats. There were several sizes, so it was easy to find one that fit me.
After putting on white pants, my disguise was almost complete. All I needed was a pair of shoes.
Unfortunately, there weren't any. The closest thing I found was something like closed Crocs, so that would have to do.
Before leaving the storage room, I put on a hospital mask. The white mask covered half my face, but it was enough to keep me from being recognized.
What I lacked was a medical ID, and I had no way of obtaining one.
Of course, I could steal the old man's, but I don't have the wrinkled face of a 60-year-old, so no one would be fooled.
'Worst case scenario, it turns into hand-to-hand combat. As long as they don't draw their weapons, victory is mine.'
[Haha, your confidence captivates me.]
I looked at the unconscious old man one last time.
He helped me, and although I don't know his name, I certainly won't forget him.
"Goodbye."
I closed the door behind me. I took a deep breath and then headed toward the elevator.
As I approached, the two guards watching the elevator noticed me. They didn't react immediately, as if evaluating me.
It didn't take long before I stood face to face with the two imposing guards.
My heart was beating wildly—I was scared—but my expression remained calm.
"Hello, I'd like to use the elevator."
"..."
"..."
Silence was the answer I received.
The two guards were still watching me, their eyes cold and analytical.
"I've never seen you around here."
The guard on the left broke the silence, stepping forward with an interrogative air.
"Yeah, we've been on watch since midnight, and we haven't seen anyone like you come out of the elevator."
The second guard joined him and also stepped forward.
It didn't seem like they were deliberately making things difficult, but just in case, I tried to read their minds.
'Mind's Eye!'
[Watch the elevator.]
[Watch the elevator.]
Unconsciously, I took a step back.
My ability shows the most important thought of an individual—the one dominating their mind at that moment.
Those guards' thoughts were very simple: watch the elevator.
So simple that my ability didn't censor anything.
And that's terrifying.
Human thoughts are usually complex and extensive. Take Bai Ning as an example—she only thinks about me, yet her thoughts are incredibly complex.
Having such singular focus on one task means either those guards are highly trained… or something is wrong with them.
'Now's not the time to think about that.'
It doesn't matter if they can only think of one thing—in fact, that might even be good for me.
I smiled under the mask, but outwardly I let out a tired sigh as I said:
"The previous guards must have forgotten to inform you about me. Last night I had to come in a hurry because one of the patients relapsed."
"I stayed up all night taking care of him, didn't even get proper sleep. All I want now is to go home."
The two guards said nothing, their expressions as cold as ever.
'God! Did they notice my smile?!'
"Alright." The two guards said in unison and stepped aside.
With the path to the elevator clear, I took a step forward—but before I could take the second, an arm stopped me.
"Show your ID."
I froze when I heard those words—the very words I feared.
"M-My ID?... I-I forgot it."
Saying that was a mistake.
"Intruder!"
The expressions of the two guards changed.
They lunged at me.
The guard on the left turned his hand into a fist and aimed for my face. The guard on the right grabbed my right arm, punching my ribs.
To dodge the punch to my face, I stepped back—but that made the other guard's fist hit my back, right below where I had been stabbed.
And it hurt.
It hurt a lot!
"Bastard!"
I pulled my arm, dragging along the guard who was holding it. His expression was confused, and I took advantage of that to strike the back of his neck hard.
THUMP!
My eyes widened when the guard didn't go unconscious from the first blow. I gritted my teeth and struck harder.
CRACK!
My breath caught when a dry cracking sound echoed as I landed the second hit.
It sounded like something breaking, but I didn't have time to think about it, because the guard on the left moved his hand toward the holster under his arm.
I immediately kicked his knee.
CRACK!
His leg broke with a snap, but the most terrifying thing was that he showed no pain as he fell.
"Intruder!"
He started shouting on the ground, and I had to kick the back of his neck hard to silence him.
Others definitely heard those shouts—I didn't have much time before more guards arrived.
"Damn it!"
I spat at the second guard and pressed the elevator buttons in a hurry.
While waiting, I searched the bodies of the two guards. Each had a weapon in the holster under their arms.
STEPS! STEPS! STEPS! STEPS!
The sound of footsteps approached. Looking to the side, I saw four men in black suits coming.
I grabbed a pistol from one of the fallen guards and entered the elevator that had just opened.
"Go, go, go, damn it!"
I pressed the button for the second floor repeatedly, hoping the doors would close before the other guards arrived.
Ding!
The doors closed with a chime.
"Haha… ha…"
A laugh mixed with a sigh escaped my lips, and my heart was beating so fast it sounded like drums in my own ears.
Not even in my fight against the gangsters had my heart raced this much.
But unlike that fight, now I was up against trained guards—with weapons.
"That guy didn't die… right?"
As the elevator descended, my mind drifted to the first guard I knocked out.
Since arriving in this world, I knew that at some point I'd face this kind of choice.
But I never imagined things would happen like this.
Everything happened so fast.
They attacked me suddenly, and in the blink of an eye I struck one guard's neck and broke the other's knee.
[Host… I really hate to interrupt your crisis and all, but you're already close to the third floor.]
"…huh?"
I looked up and saw the system was right. The panel showed I was already on the fourth floor—soon I'd reach the second.
"Damn… I wasted that much time thinking?"
[Yes, you did. I could've warned you earlier, but honestly, it was fun watching you so shaken.]
"…you son of a—"
[I don't have a mother, so instead of insulting me, you should think of a way to survive.]
It's honestly impressive how this system has a comeback for everything…
Well, whatever.
The first floor would probably be heavily guarded, since it's the main entrance and exit.
So the second floor is my best option.
After dealing with the guards there, I'd find a window and jump out. Being close to the ground, the fall wouldn't hurt as much.
Ding!
The doors opened again, and two guards were already waiting in front of them.
"Intr—"
I didn't wait for them to finish—I shoved them hard, making them stumble and fall backward.
'This is bad.'
There were more guards nearby, so after circling the two fallen men, I started running down the corridor.
Unlike the VIP floor, this one was full of people, allowing me to slip through the crowd and leave the guards behind.
"They won't shoot me, right?"
I heard a commotion behind me as the guards pushed people aside to chase me.
"Stop him!"
"Stop!"
The shouts faded as I got farther away. At the end of the corridor, I found a huge window.
Sunlight poured in from the other side, and to me, it was the light at the end of the tunnel. My freedom was literally on the other side.
The glass wall got closer and closer, and instead of slowing down, I sped up even more.
"There he is!"
"We got him!"
Somehow, the guards caught up—but it was too late.
—KRRASH!!!
I lowered my head and closed my eyes at the moment of impact. My body collided with the glass, a fragile resistance that couldn't stop my momentum.
The morning breeze brushed my face, and I felt so light it seemed like I was flying. When I opened my eyes, I saw the green grass below slowly approaching.
Instinctively, I rolled my body to soften the fall.
"Haaa ahhhhh hahaaha."
Now I was breathing irregularly, staring at the blue sky.
It didn't hurt as much as I imagined. Maybe that's the advantage of having four points in vitality.
'That was actually easy,' I thought as I ran toward a nearby park. 'The biggest danger was firearms, but since they weren't used, everything went smoothly.'
Looking back to see if anyone was following me, I saw no one.
The two guards who had chased me stood motionless in front of the shattered window, watching my figure move away with neutral expressions.
That's terrifying.