Chapter 11

Even though it seemed like a declaration of true fragrance, as a principled Great Demon, Black Goat actually followed through with its word and immediately went silent.

No matter what price Leon offered, it stubbornly remained completely quiet, even closing its eyes, showing no interest whatsoever.

Since he was worried about the situation at the hospital and the bandaged woman had changed her mind to help, seeing that there was no way to persuade this troublesome goat, Leon simply ignored it and rushed towards the hospital with the bandaged woman.

However, something strange must have happened nearby. Even though it was already night, they kept encountering people in a hurry.

Most of these passersby wore bizarre masks resembling giant crow beaks, gathering in small groups, using metal stretchers or poles to carry someone lying face down, moving quickly with their heads down.

Strangely, despite their apparent urgency, when they encountered Leon and the bandaged woman at intersections or narrow alleys, they would hastily make way, gesturing repeatedly for them to go ahead, seemingly wanting to avoid any contact.

Since Leon was anxious to confirm his sister’s condition, he didn’t have the energy to focus on these mysterious passersby. He merely glanced at their soul states, confirmed there were no abnormalities, and prepared to move on. Unexpectedly, he was stopped by the bandaged woman raising her hand.

“Wait.”

After solemnly observing those strange people for a moment, the bandaged woman opened her luggage, bent down to search, took out a mask similar in design, put it on her face, and then quietly instructed Leon: “Stay here and don’t move. Absolutely do not approach them until I return!”

What? Is there something wrong with these people?!

Through the mirror lens of the bird-beak mask, Leon exchanged a glance with the cautious “senior.” It seemed she was quite wary of those strange people, so Leon immediately became more alert.

Following the bandaged woman’s instructions to stay put, he tightly gripped the sheep head in his arms, fully focused on observing the souls of those strange people, ready to warn the bandaged woman if anything abnormal occurred.

But what Leon didn’t expect was that, although these strangely dressed, sneaky individuals had unstable soul states filled with restlessness and anxiety, they didn’t seem to harbor any hostility.

After a quick conversation with the bandaged woman, they even handed her a new mask and pointed toward him, as if… suggesting he should wear such a strange mask too?

Sure enough, when the bandaged woman returned, she immediately shoved the mask into Leon’s hands and urged seriously: “Something’s happened! Put this on quickly!”

Seeing her serious expression, Leon didn’t dare to delay and hurriedly followed her instructions, placing the mask sewn onto the black hood entirely over his head. The world, which was already dim, instantly turned darker.

Leon realized that this leather bird-beak mask was fully enclosed, pitch black without a speck of color. Even the two small lenses covering the eyes were painted black, with only a small pupil-like spherical lens in the center letting in a faint light from outside.

If it were daytime, it wouldn’t be so bad, but now it was like wearing sunglasses, greatly hindering his vision, making it hard to even see the road beneath his feet.

“I can’t see…”

“Don’t move!”

Before Leon could finish expressing his situation, the bandaged woman reached out and slapped the bird-beak part of the mask hard. The mask, which previously had some space between it and Leon’s face, was now pressed tightly against him, with the small pupil-shaped lens directly touching his eye.

Startled, Leon instinctively wanted to close his eyes but found his eyelids held open by the lens. A small amount of cold, yellowish oil squeezed out from the corner of the lens and quickly coated his eyeballs.

The patterns on the bandaged woman’s suitcase, the seams of the floor tiles underfoot, the textures of the buildings by the street — the entire world was forcibly overlaid with an eerie thin layer of yellow…

Wait! Can I see clearly now?!…

“This is the Plague Prevention Bureau’s anti-epidemic Night Crow Mask. You can see the road even in places without streetlights at night. Remember not to look outside with your eyes; press your pupils tightly against that pupil lens and learn to observe through the lens.

Also, the mask must be worn tightly, breathing through the bird beak. There are herbs, spices, and specially made smelling salts inside, which can prevent most epidemics.”

While explaining how to use the mask, the bandaged woman quickly explained:

“I just asked those people from the Plague Prevention Bureau. Last week’s heavy rain caused the sewage river to flood, and the dam built by the Road Administration Department was washed away that day, causing a tributary of the sewage river to connect with the water intake river of the Capital City.

If that were all, it wouldn’t be a problem, but the Water Power Corporation, to save costs, didn’t follow the prescribed twelve-step water purification process. After pumping water from the river, they only filtered out debris and silt, did a rough disinfection to remove odors, and directly pumped it into the municipal water pipes.

These people being carried drank contaminated water, mainly experiencing nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, severe abdominal cramps, dehydration, and unconsciousness. Those who came into contact with their vomit also began showing similar symptoms. About five hundred people have shown these symptoms.

People from the Plague Prevention Bureau suspect a possible epidemic, so they’re sending patients showing symptoms in large numbers to Red Brick Road Hospital, hoping to control the situation.”

Red Brick Road Hospital? Isn’t that where Anna lives?” Are they crazy?”

Unbelieving that things could get this absurd, Leon couldn’t help but angrily say: “What about Central Hospital? Royal First Hospital? If those won’t work, hospitals on Church Street and Messa University are options too! Those hospitals have over a thousand beds each, while Red Brick Road Hospital has only one or two hundred beds and is always full, sometimes with people lying in the hallways. Why send people here?”

“Because of location.”

Seemingly accustomed to similar situations, the bandaged woman calmly said:

“The area around Central Hospital is the Rich District, near Royal First Hospital is the Noble District, Church Street is where the priests live, and around Messa University are the future elites of the Kingdom. The Plague Prevention Bureau certainly wouldn’t dare send patients there. The Red Brick Street Hospital in the Old District is naturally the first choice.

Moreover, the widespread issue with the water pipes is only in the Old District. The water intake point for the New District’s Water Power Corporation is upstream and hasn’t been polluted by the sewage river tributary, so the problems in the Old District should be solved within itself.”

“Why?!”

“For paying water fees five times higher than in the Old District.”

“…”

Money! Money! Money! In the end, it’s still money!” Don’t think about it.”

Seeing Leon’s emotions clearly off, the bandaged woman quickly consoled him:

“Even if those hospitals agree to accept patients, people from the Old District wouldn’t go because they can’t afford the costs.”

“What about the Road Administration Department and the Water Power Corporation?”

Hearing this, Leon clenched his teeth and said:

“The Road Administration Department’s dam collapsed in one rainstorm, and the Water Power Corporation violated regulations. According to the Kingdom’s laws, shouldn’t they bear responsibility… Damn!”

This time, before the bandaged woman could answer, Leon stopped questioning himself, because this question was truly stupid.

Forget natural disasters caused by heavy rain. Even when the alchemical factory in the residential area leaked exhaust gas, causing Anna to develop lung disease, the Road Administration Department still refused compensation with excuses. As for the Water Power Corporation cutting corners, once dividends are issued and equipment sold, declaring significant losses due to poor management, bankruptcy is declared, and that’s the end of it.

Even the little property left will likely be taken by upstream and downstream companies and shareholders as compensation for breach of contract and losses. What remains for the victims might not even be a fraction!

Damn!

Feeling like a burning coal was scorching his chest, Leon clenched his teeth, about to say something when his arm was lightly tugged by the bandaged woman.

“Let’s go! We’ve blocked the road long enough. Don’t delay their work anymore.”

Pointing to the “crows” at the corner, the bandaged woman softly said: “Their job is to treat patients and prevent the large-scale outbreak of the epidemic. Our task is to clean up anomalies and prevent the ordinary world from being eroded.

If I’m not mistaken, the uncontrolled contaminant you discovered is probably related to this incident. Even if it’s unrelated, these people continuing forward may encounter danger.

“…”

“Um…”

Deeply inhaling the pungent smell of spices from the bird mouth, Leon nodded and followed the bandaged woman, jogging towards Red Brick Road Hospital.

At this moment, the sheep head, which had been silent for a long time, suddenly moved, nudging his chest stealthily with its horns.

“Hey!”

“Huh?”

“Shh! Shh! Don’t talk!”

Seeing Leon was about to ask questions, Black Goat hurriedly warned:

“We’ll just let me speak. You don’t need to answer my questions. Just by looking at your soul, I’ll know whether you agree or not!”

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“…”

Glancing at the bandaged woman’s back ahead, Leon immediately understood. This self-proclaimed demon, Black Goat, wanted to secretly make some deals with him without being discovered by the Clearing Bureau.

Is this the temptation from a demon? Thinking about this, Leon’s expression tightened instinctively, wanting to report to the bandaged woman and let her and the Clearing Bureau behind her pay attention to this trouble-making demon. However…

“Relax, I won’t impose any conditions on you, and you don’t need to do anything for me.”

Looking at Leon’s soul, which shone brightly yet concealed overwhelming black flames, the previously sulking Black Goat grinned and said: “Once we find the right target, I’ll teach you how to guide human wickedness and incite them to kill each other. How does that sound? Interested?”

“…”

????

Didn’t you just say that even if you were thrown back into the sheep pen in Wales County, you wouldn’t teach me anything? “That was then, this is now.”

Noticing the confusion in Leon’s soul, Black Goat laughed and shamelessly said: “Just tell me if you want to learn!”

Leon couldn’t help but furrow his brows.

Of course, I want to learn. Since there’s no cost involved, why not agree? But… would a demon really be this kind-hearted?

…

It’s impossible for a demon to be kind. They will never be kind. When a demon doesn’t negotiate and instead offers to help you generously…

Hehe, it only proves they want more!

Looking at Leon, who was clearly suspicious but hadn’t reported him to Emma (the bandaged woman), a trace of satisfaction appeared in Black Goat’s eyes.

My judgment is indeed sharp! This kid may勉强be considered a “good person,” and his moral sense is stronger than average. But perhaps it’s because he’s too naive, or maybe this world is too dark, or perhaps both, allowing a lot of troubling things to accumulate in his heart. Such a person is destined to fall into the abyss.

Nudging closer to Leon’s chest while running, enduring the disgusting morality and kindness, deeply inhaling the boundless anger hidden beneath the brightness, and the extreme madness that wishes to destroy everything and start anew, Black Goat closed his eyes with great satisfaction.

With a sharp weapon in hand, the killing intent arises naturally.

Now you can barely endure it because you’re still weak. Once you gain enough power, will you still be willing to let anger burn your soul like this? Come on, kid! I’ll definitely help you! Help you deal with those annoying trash, help you harvest those sinful souls, and even help you achieve the absurd vision in your heart.

However, when you think you’ve completed your ideal and indulged in happiness, if you realize everything is reverting to its original state, the world’s base color remains unchanged, or even becomes worse…

The abyss welcomes your joining.

…

“Cough cough… Could you please ask for me?”

Through the glass door of the intensive care unit, the young girl lying on the bed couldn’t help but pulled the sleeve of the nurse beside her, worriedly asking: “Has my brother come back? And, is something wrong outside? Why are there so many people lying in the hallway?”

“This… maybe it’s better not to go out.”

Looking at the increasing number of patients outside, almost reaching the door of the intensive care unit, the handsome young nurse hesitated and said: “To have so many patients at once, either there’s a mass poisoning or some acute infectious disease. If it’s the former, it’s okay, but if it’s the latter…”

“If it’s the latter, it’s already too late.”

Looking outside, seeing the vomit already flooding to the door, another older middle-aged nurse sighed and shook her head: “Having patients placed at the door of the intensive care unit means our hospital is likely at its limit. If it’s an infectious disease, we can’t escape it even staying in the intensive care unit. We might have already been infected.”

“In that case… since it’s unavoidable, why not open the door and let them in?”

Looking at the patients lying on the cold tiles, convulsing, or clutching their stomachs and screaming in pain, Anna bit her pale lips and said compassionately: “Although there’s only one bed here, there’s a row of sofas, and the floor is carpeted. It’s much more comfortable than lying on stone bricks… Is it okay?”

“Of course it’s okay!”

Surprised at Anna’s words, the older nurse’s eyes softened and smiled kindly: “This is your room. If you’re willing, there’s no problem.”

After saying that, she called the visibly uneasy young nurse, opened the door of the intensive care unit, bent down to help a nearby patient inside. However…

“Huh?”

Seeing the boy who looked very thin but felt like he was welded to the ground, the two nurses couldn’t help but widen their eyes.

Even though they were female nurses, working in the hospital often required lifting heavy objects, so their strength wasn’t negligible.

If it was a strong man, not being able to lift him would be understandable, but this was clearly a child around ten years old. How… By the True God! With the boy’s cries of pain, the two nurses were shocked to discover that their earlier sensation wasn’t an illusion. This skinny boy was indeed “welded” to the ground!

“This… this…”

Looking at the boy’s arm sinking into the tile, the young nurse fell to the ground, trembling lips ready to say something, but saw the older nurse’s sudden change in expression, grabbing her off the tile violently and dragging her back into the ward.

“Rip!” “Ah!!!”

The tearing sound of clothing and the woman’s scream rang out simultaneously. The young nurse clutched her bloody right hand and painfully fell onto the ward’s carpet.

And the position she had just sat on revealed a piece of bloodied skin, exactly the size of her palm, clearly torn from her palm! Looking at the patients in the corridor who, without realizing it, were slowly sinking into the hospital tiles, the quick-thinking older nurse, who had just saved her colleague, felt her legs weaken and fell onto the carpet with a thud, muttering in terror: “This… this… what’s going on?”

(End of Chapter)