~ The ICU ~
Lyra had finally awakened from her coma.
Her eyelids fluttered.
Slowly—almost painfully—they began to open.
Harsh white light flooded her vision, forcing her to squint. At first, everything was nothing more than a blur—the ceiling, the lights, the unfamiliar shapes surrounding her.
She blinked several times, waiting for her vision to adjust.
Then—
She froze.
A strange blue screen was floating directly in front of her face.
[Loading...]
Lyra stared at it, wide-eyed.
She blinked.
The screen remained.
She rubbed her eyes, convinced it was merely some lingering effect of her coma.
When she opened them again—
It was still there.
"What... is this floating screen?" she whispered.
Confusion slowly gave way to curiosity.
Lyra cautiously raised a trembling hand and reached toward the display.
Her fingers passed straight through it.
She immediately pulled her hand back.
"What...?"
She stared at her fingers, then at the screen.
There was no glass.
No resistance.
No sensation beneath her fingertips.
It was almost like a holographic projection suspended in midair.
Before she could make sense of it, the text suddenly changed.
[Evolution Complete.]
Lyra tilted her head.
"Evolution... complete?"
She reached toward the words again.
"What's completed? Is this some kind of operation status?"
The moment her fingers passed through the display—
The screen vanished.
Lyra blinked.
"Eh?"
A second later—
It reappeared.
But this time, the single line of text had been replaced by an enormous list of information.
[ STATUS ]
Name: Lyra Valen
Level: 0 — Evolved Human
HP: 160
MP: 80
Stamina: 100%
STR: 7
VIT: 11
INT: 12
DEX: 9
AGI: 7
LUK: 10
Total Base Stats: 46
Current Added Stats: +0
Attack: 70
Magic Attack: 120
Defense: 85
Magic Defense: 82
Casting Speed: 75
Attack Speed: 65
Movement Speed: 65
---
[ PASSIVE SKILLS ]
• Weak Point Critical — Lv. 1
Deals Base Damage +25% on a critical hit.
Crit Rate: 5%
• Regeneration — Lv. 1
Gradually restores 0.5% HP and MP per minute.
Regeneration increases ×5 while resting.
---
[ ACTIVE SKILLS ]
• Twilight Healing — Lv. 1
Restores 10% of HP, MP, and Stamina.
Heals injuries alongside HP/MP/Stamina restoration.
Slight chance to clear 1 negative status effect.
MP Cost: 30
Healing output increases by 1% per 5 additional MP used.
---
[ UNIQUE SKILLS ]
• Omniscient Eyes — Lv. MAX
├─ Perception
Detects living beings, hidden objects, and traps.
Range: 10m | MP Cost: 10
+5m range per additional 10 MP
└─ Appraisal
Reveals information about targets and objects.
MP Cost: 10
---
[ UNSIGNED STATS ]
+0 Stat Points
---
[ SYSTEM ]
+2 random stat points per level
(Random distribution is influenced by Luck)
+3 unassigned stat points per level
(Luck excluded from the total base stat and cannot be increased through normal leveling)
Lyra stared at the screen.
She couldn't understand half of what she was reading.
"What... is this?"
Her eyes slowly traveled down the endless list.
"Are those... my stats?"
She swallowed.
"Is this some kind of game?"
Her gaze returned to the words Evolved Human.
"Am I dreaming?"
She pinched her cheek.
"Ouch!"
Lyra winced and immediately rubbed the spot.
"Okay..."
She stared at the floating screen again.
"Guess I'm awake."
But that only raised even more questions.
She looked around the room.
"Then... what's going on?"
The blue screen suddenly disappeared.
Lyra blinked.
"Hmm..."
She waited.
Nothing.
She waited a little longer.
Still nothing.
"...Well, whatever."
Slowly, she turned her head and finally took in her surroundings.
Sterile white walls.
Medical equipment.
Monitors blinking beside her bed.
Tubes connected to her body.
The steady, unfamiliar beeping of machines filled the room.
Lyra stared at everything in confusion.
Then something caught her attention.
A CCTV camera mounted high in the corner of the ceiling.
She stared at it for a moment.
Then raised her hand.
She waved.
"Hello?"
There was no response.
Lyra frowned.
She pointed toward her wrist before tugging lightly at one of the monitoring wires.
"Please, take this off."
She gestured toward the other equipment surrounding her.
"Can someone please remove all of this?!"
---
~ Broadcasting Room ~
Liam stared intently at the monitor.
There she was.
His first patient.
Awake.
For a moment, he could only stare.
A smile almost appeared on his face.
After everything that had happened, seeing Lyra conscious again felt like an enormous relief.
But the relief didn't last.
His expression slowly became serious.
"What if she's infected?"
On the screen, Lyra was reaching toward something in front of her.
But there was nothing there.
Her hand passed straight through empty air.
She stared at the space before her as though she were interacting with someone—or something—that no one else could see.
Liam frowned.
He watched for several seconds.
"I'm going to check on her."
He started to stand.
Dr. Amy immediately stopped him.
"Don't be impulsive. Observe her first."
Liam hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Right."
He sat back down and continued watching the monitor.
After a few moments, Lyra stopped reaching into the air.
She simply stared toward the ceiling.
Liam leaned closer to the screen.
There was no audio feed, so he tried to read her lips.
But whatever she was saying made little sense.
She appeared to be talking to herself.
Looking around.
Confused.
Then—
Lyra suddenly turned toward the CCTV camera.
She waved.
Then pointed at her wrist.
Dr. Amy watched carefully.
"Looks like she's still lucid," she said. "She's probably just uncomfortable with all those tubes and wires."
Liam nodded.
"Yeah..."
His gaze drifted toward the corner of the room.
Trish sat there, pale and exhausted.
Liam looked back at Lyra on the monitor.
Then at Trish.
His hands slowly tightened into fists.
He wanted to go to Lyra.
He had been waiting for this moment ever since she was admitted.
Back then, Lyra had been so pale and lethargic that she barely seemed to have the strength to speak. Her hair had been short, barely reaching her shoulders.
Now...
It fell all the way down her back.
And the sickly girl he had spent so long caring for—
looked completely different.
Bright.
Awake.
Full of life.
After watching her lie unconscious for so long, Liam desperately wanted to be there when she finally opened her eyes.
He wanted to be the first person to tell her that she had made it.
But he couldn't bring himself to leave Trish alone.
Not now.
She looked terrified.
Dr. Amy noticed his hesitation.
She walked over and gently tapped him on the shoulder.
"Go see your patient."
Liam looked at her.
Dr. Amy smiled softly.
"I know you've been waiting for this."
She glanced toward the monitor.
"We all have."
After all, Dr. Amy had been Lyra's attending physician. She had witnessed firsthand just how dedicated Liam had been to her care.
She looked around at the chaotic scenes displayed across the other CCTV monitors.
"It's a shame everything has turned into this mess."
Her expression softened.
"But she's awake."
She looked back at Liam.
"And she needs help."
Then her eyes shifted toward Trish.
"I'll stay here with her."
From the corner of the room, Trish slowly looked up.
Her eyes met Liam's.
She gave him a small nod.
"Come back soon."
Liam nodded.
"I will."
He clenched his fist.
Then he looked at Lyra's image on the monitor one final time.
"Hang in there."
He grabbed a baton from one of the cabinets and hurried out of the broadcasting room.