Chapter 31: End of the Incident
"They said to watch, but not to get close. How am I
supposed to watch like that?" On the rooftop of a nearby building, a Black
Hat looked at the building ahead.
The order from Wei Yanwu put
him in a difficult position: not to get close, yet to watch the young lady in
the building opposite to ensure no accidents occurred.
He could understand the importance of this matter, after all,
the child in that building was a dependent of a deity.
However, not being allowed to get close and being blocked by the
building, and him not having X-ray vision, made it quite difficult for him.
"Hello, or good evening, how are you, sir? Is my daughter
lovely?"
A voice suddenly rang out next to the Black
Hat's ear. He immediately retreated explosively to the wall,
moving away from the source of the voice.
"Who... Your Excellency..."
Shadow guard was
about to draw his weapon, but after seeing the person who appeared beside him,
he relaxed completely and placed his hands in the most obvious position.
"No need to be nervous, I just came over out of curiosity.
How is my daughter? Isn't she cute?"
Reinette, whose body was transparent, stood
there, smiling as she looked at Shadow guard.
"Very... cute."
Shadow guard glanced over there. He probably
could guess what the child was doing: lurking in the shadows, hunting those
people like a red phantom.
From a certain perspective, she was indeed very cute.
"Hmm, so what are you here for this time?"
"Chief Wei's order. He wants me to
help look after your daughter to prevent any accidents."
Reinette nodded: "Please thank Chief
Wei for me. Oh, no, it should be Chief
Wei. Also, regarding the other matter, do I need to discuss it
with Chief Wei in person?"
"Regarding that matter, Lord Wei hopes
that you, esteemed sir, will wait a little longer."
Reinette nodded knowingly: "I see,
so he wants me to wait for an invitation from the LGD?"
"Your insight is truly sharp."
"What a hassle. There's no need to make it so complicated.
It's just a medical activity."
Shadow guard looked at Reinette shaking
her head: "I'm sorry, but it's very important to Lord Wei."
Reinette waved her hand: "Alright,
alright, do as you wish. I can look after Red myself. Thank you for your
trouble."
"As you command." Shadow guard turned
around and disappeared between the buildings in a few leaps.
"Should I find a time to pay a visit? I'll ask Mr. Emperor
later." After thinking for a while, Reinette's entire body
burst into a mist of water and vanished from the rooftop.
"We've arrived." Texas found
a hidden corner, parked the car, and said to the others behind her.
"Oh, finally." Exusiai stretched
a little, picked up her gun, and was about to open the door to get out when Croissant,
who was beside her, pulled her back.
"Eh?"
Reinette, who had been closing her eyes, also
opened them and turned her head: "Exusiai,
your halo is naturally not suitable for stealth."
As Reinette spoke, she reached out and
flicked the shining halo on Exusiai's head.
"Stay put." Texas was
about to open the door to get out but was stopped by Reinette.
"Check the back compartment. I left a portion for you, if
they didn't take too much."
Texas turned her head to look
at Reinette. Reinette just
held her staff, smiling at her, without any intention of explaining, seemingly
wanting her to see for herself.
Texas closed the car door, went
to the back compartment, climbed up to the window, and found a bag hanging on
the wall.
"Is this it? I didn't notice it before."
Although she had come to the back compartment for boxes before,
it was always the police officers themselves who moved the boxes down and
climbed inside, and then she and her team transported them.
As for Red's time, she really hadn't noticed a bag hanging
there.
Texas took the bag from the
hook, and the hook dissolved into water and disappeared.
'Did Reinette specifically leave this here?'
Texas opened the bag and pulled
out three test tubes with green liquid inside, along with a piece of paper.
"This is a very effective healing potion. Don't mind the
color. I've prepared some for everyone, three for each person. Of course, don't
rely too much on its effects. Its healing effect is limited to flesh and blood,
so if you have a broken bone, please drink it as appropriate.
PS: Of course, there's no need to save it. The potion's
effective time only lasts until nine o'clock at most, so there's no need to
save it. Also, please be sure to pay attention to your safety."
This is the convenience of potions. While magic is simpler, Reinette ultimately
needs to be present to use it. Potions, however, can be directly given to
others for use.
"A doctor? Indeed, no rumor about her is ever wrong."
Texas put the potion into her
waist pouch, recalling that when Red had climbed into the box, Reinette seemed
to have slipped something into her hand.
Texas looked up, about to
leave, when she noticed a message written in water on the wall.
"That's why I'm a doctor. Since I participated in the
mission, isn't it my duty to ensure everyone returns safely?"
Texas smiled: "Yes, you
are a doctor. Ensuring people return safely is your duty."
After securing her weapons, Texas entered
the building next door. Although a bit cliché, it was indeed the best way to
infiltrate.
— — — Inside the car — — —
"So we can only wait here?" Exusiai constantly
fiddled with the gun in her hand, without its magazine, of course.
"Otherwise? Are you expecting this human flashlight to
stealth? This time the objective isn't a clear-out."
Reinette opened her eyes, rubbed them,
and turned to the two, saying: "Don't worry, things are progressing
smoothly, on both sides."
"Oh, oh, wait, that's not right. How do you know?" Croissant casually
took over Reinette's words but then suddenly realized
something, staring at Reinette, who for some
reason looked a little tired.
"Things are progressing smoothly on both sides. In the end,
it's probably just a bunch of hooligans." Reinette pinched
the bridge of her nose, her other hand waving dismissively.
"Oh, I see." Croissant nodded,
looking at the tired-faced Reinette, then turned
and took a small iron box from the bag behind her.
"Cooling balm, to wake you up?"
"It's not that I want to sleep, nor am I tired; I'm just a
little unaccustomed."
Hearing Reinette's words, Croissant raised
her hand and checked her watch: "Unaccustomed? It's not that late. It's
not time to stay up all night yet, and last time we had hotpot, we ate even
later."
"It's not about staying up late." Reinette shook
her head, then sat back down and closed her eyes again, "Anyway, don't
worry about those sides; everything is progressing smoothly."
As soon as she closed her eyes, the ten fields of vision that Reinette had
disconnected when she first opened her eyes instantly reconnected.
'I'm truly tired of watching, but I can't ignore it. It should
be over soon, right?'
As a doctor, how could she ignore anyone? While potions are
reliable, they have their limits, and after all, they are bombs. If they were
truly discovered and detonated directly, it would ultimately be a big problem.
It's more reassuring to watch this way, even if it's a bit
tiring.
"Hmm, has the LGD's side been
resolved? This will make things much easier." Reinette disbanded
the six water clones she had sent to follow, but still left one clone at each
location to watch.
"Red, things are also going smoothly here."
— — — — — — —
"Old Li, be more careful next time."
"Oh, come on, Liu, you wouldn't have noticed either if
you'd encountered it." A police officer sitting by the wall, clutching his
waist, retorted grumpily.
"Too bad I didn't encounter it. Stabbed by someone hiding
in a closet, what was it?"
"If you keep being a jerk, I'll punch you. Where are the
other guys? Are they dealt with?"
"Dealt with. You're probably the only one who got injured.
I hope you've settled down in life." Officer Liu looked at Officer Li,
sitting by the wall, with a teasing expression.
"Get lost!"
"Alright, alright, my bad. By the way, that Penguin
Logistics, uh, Reinette, didn't she
leave us some medicine?" Liu saw Old Li about to throw his dagger, quickly
raised both hands in front of him, backing away and apologizing.
"You mean that? It's useless." Old Li heard Liu's
words, put down his dagger, and pulled out a test tube containing green liquid
from his waist pouch.
If they had been injured in battle, they might have drunk it
without a second thought, but now the battle was over, and they were just
waiting for the brothers from other teams to come in and clean up.
So, with this potion in their hands, whose color was a bit
strange and glowed faintly in the dark, to be honest, they were a little
hesitant to drink it.
"Forget it, if I drag this out any longer, I might really
miss out on finding a wife." Old Li looked at the potion, steeled himself,
thinking Penguin Logistics wouldn't
harm them, uncorked it, and drank the potion directly.
Immediately afterward, an itchy sensation came from the wound.
Old Li looked down, and the area around the bloody hole where he had been
stabbed by the dagger was slowly wriggling, healing at a visible speed.
???
When I type question marks, it's not necessarily that I have a
problem; it might be that I think you have a problem.
Old Li held the empty test tube up to his eyes: "Damn, this
stuff is that amazing?"
Officer Liu, who had been watching, also leaned closer and
touched the spot where the bloody hole had been.
"Do you feel anything?"
Officer Liu had seen such rapid flesh regeneration spells, but
these spells usually only regenerate the flesh, not the nerves. While they
could save a life in a critical moment, from a long-term perspective, this was
not good.
"Your touch is quite itchy. Alright, stop touching. This
isn't the kind of emergency spell you've seen. It was very itchy when it
regenerated just now, and there was a bit of pain. As for the internal organs,
I need to get them checked."
"If even the internal organs can regenerate
perfectly..."
Old Li didn't continue speaking. What he had said was enough. If
this potion could truly regenerate flesh and blood while ensuring that nerves
and organs could also regenerate...
For them, this potion would be nothing short of a life-saving
miracle drug.
"This matter needs to be discussed with the
superintendents."
— — — LGD · Plaza
— — —
On the plaza, Chen stood on a high platform and shouted to the
police officers gathered below: "We have once again thwarted the enemy's
conspiracy and safeguarded the security of Lungmen!
Not a single person was injured in this operation! We achieved a complete
victory!"
"Oh!!!"
Exusiai, on the edge
of the plaza, yawned: "Today was really boring. I thought we'd have a big
fight."
"Then the other side would set off a bomb, blowing up the
entire building. Even if we survived, the Emperor would let out a piercing
shriek, and the repair costs would eat up at least 50 years of our future
salaries."
After Texas cleared out that
stronghold, Exusiai and her group
naturally went to take a look and saw the piled-up bombs already placed in the
sewer.
If that pile of stuff exploded, it would at least blow the
surrounding pipe system to smithereens and cause the buildings above to
collapse.
The repair costs would probably make signing a contract of
servitude to the Emperor seem like a better deal.
Exusiai, hearing Croissant's
words, also showed a look of lingering fear: "Uh, you're right."
Reinette, who was petting Red nearby, looked
at the two worried individuals and smiled without speaking. In fact, even if Exusiai couldn't
bear the boredom and rushed over, it wouldn't matter. If that bomb could
explode, Reinette would write her name backward.
She had specifically divided her vision into ten parts to follow
all the operatives, and it had exhausted her.
If she hadn't been worried that the low intelligence of the
water clones might not make absolutely accurate judgments on the scene, making
direct reactions difficult, she would have died before doing such a thing.
After all, those ten fields of vision really made her dizzy.
"Uh, Reinette, there's
something I want to talk to you about." At this moment, Swire walked
over with a document.
"What is it?"
"Take a look at this first." Swire handed
over the document.
Reinette took the document and examined
it carefully: "A medical examination report. Hmm, from my perspective,
it's quite healthy. You wouldn't bring such a document just for me to judge
health. Let me guess, someone drank the medicine, right?"
Swire nodded: "That's right. He
was stabbed by a thug hiding in a closet, a kind of bloody hole. After drinking
your potion, it regenerated perfectly, even the organs."
"That's truly wonderful. Not a single person was harmed in
this operation."
Swire nodded: "Perhaps not in the
future either. Do you have any thoughts on selling the medicine? The price is
negotiable."
"Of course. As for the price, let's not rush." Reinette thought
for a moment, unable to come up with a price for something that she produced
almost entirely without cost.
The water used to make the potion she could create herself, a
can of water was just a thought away. As for the magic circle used for alchemy,
while it was single-use, such things could basically be mass-produced with a
little time.
It's worth mentioning that although it's a magic circle and
sounds very sophisticated, how should one describe that magic circle? As long
as you know how to draw it and your hand is a little steady, even a
three-year-old could draw it.
And it doesn't require any special materials; drawing it on the
ground with a stick is fine.
According to the system's data, the Adventurer's Guild over
there seemed to mass-print this magic circle on drawing paper and sell it at a
very low price.
Perhaps in that world, this skill, which only required a little
time to master and had extremely low costs but relatively good effects, was
widely popular among adventurer teams there.
Oh, right, this skill seemed to be quite difficult to learn over
there. It wasn't just the exclusive domain of mages and alchemists, and it also
had high requirements for the person mastering it. However, for Reinette, who
possessed the system, it wasn't a big problem.
However, Reinette was also
quite curious. With such an excellent skill, although the skill description
said it couldn't compare to proper potions, Reinette's experience
using it showed that the effect was really good.
She wondered just how terrifying the healing effects of proper
potions over there were, that they hadn't been completely replaced by this
skill.
Although there was a so-called storage time limit, Reinette believed
this could be completely solved by mass production, which she had done before.
In reality, it required a large amount of magical power, and
basically, only legendary mages there could mass-produce, and in that world,
they had more important work, so they couldn't do such things.
However, for Reinette, she couldn't
experience the feeling of consuming a large amount of magical power.
Swire, upon hearing Reinette's words,
pondered for a moment and then asked, "Some kind of special Originium
Arts?"
"Something like that. Anyway, for me, this kind of thing
only has a time cost, there's no need for it to be so expensive."
"Then, based on time cost and craftsmanship cost..."
Before Swire could
finish, Reinette gave a quote: "1000 LMD per dose
is fine, there's no need for it to be so expensive. Consider it support for Lungmen's
safety efforts."
Anyway, for Reinette, this was
just a simple task. She could even research it later to see if she could use a
Water Clone to make this, achieving automated production.
"Eh, that cheap? Is that okay?"
Reinette spread her hands: "When I
was providing medical care in the Slums,
this stuff was given out for free."
"I see. Then, shall we exchange phone numbers?"
"Okay."
——Penguin Logistics——
"Alright, you two, stop nagging." Reinette knocked
on both of their heads in exasperation, and they both recoiled in pain.
"The cost of this stuff is almost zero for me. It's not
right to rip people off like that."
Hearing Reinette's words, the
two exchanged glances, and Croissant spoke first:
"But that's fifty thousand, and it's not fifty thousand once, it's fifty
thousand per dose!"
Exusiai on the
side also chimed in: "Yeah, yeah, if we sell a bit more, I can even buy a
gun."
"A gun?" Reinette's gaze
shifted. She opened her system, browsed the mall, and then nodded.
'It seems a bit expensive. When we're closer, or for a birthday,
I can give her one. Anyway, it can be localized, so nothing will go wrong.'
"Money is just a number to me, and the cost of this thing
is really cheap. Asking for too much would be unethical."
If she had to say, the cost of this item was probably just
readily available tap water, a jar, and the distributed test tubes. Calculated
in LMD, the total cost would not exceed 20 LMD.
One jar of liquid medicine could yield about 30 doses. Even at
the agreed price of 1000 LMD per
dose, that one jar would be worth 30,000 LMD, which is
1500 times the cost.
This level of profit was already exorbitant. If it were at the
price Swire initially suggested, which was
50,000 LMD per dose, that level of profit
would be beyond just ripping people off.
Seeing that Reinette had
already said so, the two didn't say much more. They shrugged at each other.
They said these things not because they were truly greedy for money, although
it was true at first.
The price of 50,000 LMD per dose
had indeed temporarily blinded them, but only for a short time. Now, they were
just trying to make Reinette understand the value of the
medicine.
Anyway, they had never heard of any medicine that could
regenerate flesh, restore nerves, and even restore organs. Some magical spells
might be able to do it, but the practitioners of those spells also had high
appearance fees.
Croissant stroked
her chin: "Reinette, you keep emphasizing how low the
cost is. I'm quite curious how low it actually is."
Reinette took out a water jug from her
clothes, and with her other hand, she made a 'two' gesture.
"20,000 LMD?" Croissant looked
at the water jug and estimated that it could make about 30 doses, based on the
test tubes shown earlier.
"A net profit of 10,000 LMD. Considering
the time cost, it seems pretty good."
Then Croissant saw Reinette shake
her head, and she paused, realizing the cost might be even lower than she
thought: "2,000 LMD? This cost,
it's a huge profit!"
Reinette smiled and shook her head:
"The actual cost is much lower than you imagine. Including the test tubes
and this water jug, it's only 20 LMD."
"What!!!" Croissant was
stunned by Reinette's quote, "20 LMD! You mean
that miraculous medicine, an entire jar of it, only costs 20 LMD to
make?!"
Reinette nodded. Seeing Reinette nod, Croissant felt
a bit disillusioned. That kind of medicine that people would fight over outside
only cost 20 LMD!
"So, 1,000 LMD per
dose, this profit already makes me uneasy."
Reinette looked at Croissant,
who was lying on the floor, constantly drawing calculations with her fingers.
Exusiai, who was also
somewhat disillusioned, accompanied Croissant,
fiddling with her fingers on the ground.
Texas, who was nearby, was
surprised, but at least she wasn't like the two who were already lying on the
ground.
"It's practically a no-cost business."
Reinette nodded: "Pretty much. If I
didn't charge anything at all, there would be problems, but with such a low
cost, charging a high price really makes me uneasy."
"I see."
"Alright, you two, stop playing dead on the floor. Today
was quite tiring. Even though there was no fighting, staying up so late, it's
time to sleep, or you won't wake up tomorrow."
Exusiai and Croissant,
who were playing dead on the floor, heard Reinette's words and
stopped. They stood up and went straight back to their rooms. It seemed the
shock Reinette caused them would take some time
to recover from.
Reinette looked at them and shook her
head: "Should I not have said anything?"
Texas bit off her Pocky:
"Don't mind them. They're just temporarily over-excited. One is a
spendthrift, and the other is a money-grubber. They're both very sensitive to
money."
"Ah~~" Red, hugging Reinette's leg, let
out a sleepy sound.
"Oh, it's already this late, Red. Go to sleep." Reinette rubbed
Red's head.
"Red is very excited, so she doesn't want to sleep, but
it's time to sleep."
Reinette nodded. It seemed Red was a bit
excited after just completing a hunt, but it clashed with the biological clock Reinette had
helped Red develop.
So, she was now in a state of yawning and feeling sleepy but
unable to fall asleep.
"Go to sleep. Mama is also very tired today."
Texas asked with concern:
"I heard them say you've been pinching the bridge of your nose all day.
Are your eyes sore?"
"Even if I'm watching ten people, I'll still get
tired."
"Ten?" Texas paused
slightly, then seemed to realize something, "Reinette, you've been
watching us all this time?"
"After all, the other side were dangerous individuals with
bombs. As a doctor, I need to ensure everyone's safety, so of course, I was
watching all the time. However, simultaneously watching ten rapidly changing
scenes of people running around still makes one a bit dizzy."
"You worked hard."
"A little rest will do. It's probably just not being used
to it. Speaking of which, how much is the commission this time?"
Texas pulled out her phone from
her pocket: "Red and I get 100,000 LMD. You didn't
directly participate in the combat, so you split the rest, which is about
50,000 LMD each."
"I was just slacking off. There's no need to split it with
me."
"Medical support, backup support, and, although others
don't know it, the defensive measures you set up. Honestly, it's too
little."
Reinette smiled: "If one doesn't
fulfill their duties, then it's too cheap. I can't protect everyone, but at
least those I can protect should be treated seriously."
'I always feel like your duties include too many things that a
medical operator shouldn't be doing.'
Reinette looked at Texas's
somewhat strange gaze but didn't know what she was thinking.
If she couldn't understand, she wouldn't think about it. Reinette squatted
down and picked up Red: "I'm taking Red to rest first. Go to bed early,
don't stay up too late, Texas."
Texas saw Reinette's back and
couldn't help but ask: "How did today's kill... mission feel to you?"
Reinette stopped, turned her head with a
smile: "I am a doctor. I only show mercy to those I am responsible
for."
"More importantly, I am not a saint. Even I have times when
I pick up a bow and arrow."
After speaking, Reinette carried
Red back to the room, helped her take off her blood-stained clothes, summoned a
ball of water next to her, and then threw her directly into it.
"Mama, Red can't sleep." Red hugged Reinette's arm and
swayed back and forth.
"Close your eyes, and you'll fall asleep soon." Reinette stroked
Red's head.
'Mmm~' Red obediently closed her eyes.
"Good night, Red." Reinette got up
and opened the door, preparing to leave. As she was about to exit the room, she
paused slightly, then gently closed the door.
In the dark room, a gentle breeze seemed to blow, and within the
sound of the wind, the sound of ocean waves seemed to rise.
'Playing some lullabies should help, right? I used to often use
the sound of ocean waves as sleep-aid music. It should work here too.'
Returning to the hallway, Reinette looked
at the lobby, which had returned to darkness: "Texas has
also gone to rest. Hmm, I'm really tired today. I should go rest too."
——LGD——
Compared to Penguin Logistics, where everyone
had gone to rest, the LGD was
brightly lit.
Hoshiguma pushed open the Office door,
carrying her triangular shield: "Old Chen, that batch of bombs has been
safely stored away."
Chen took a sip of coffee and nodded: "You worked hard, Hoshiguma."
"It's fine. I just don't know who provided them with so
many bombs."
The Office door was pushed open
again, and Swire entered: "Regarding that,
we'll just have to wait for the intelligence department brothers to investigate
more thoroughly."
"That's true..." Chen pinched the bridge of his nose
and looked at Swire, who had just entered. "What
were you doing just now? I didn't see you at the celebration."
"I went to discuss something and also picked up a
report." Swire placed the report on the table,
"A medical report."
"Someone was injured?" Chen glanced at the medical
report on the table. "I haven't received any corresponding report."
"There was, but now there isn't."
"What do you mean?"
"Regarding this, it would be better for the person involved
to explain." Swire waved towards the door,
"Come in."
"Chen Sir, I am Li Jian from the Covert Operations
Unit." The person who entered was the police officer who had drunk the
medicine during the previous battle.
He meticulously recounted his injuries, the changes that
occurred after drinking the medicine, and the doctor's diagnosis.
"I apologize, the medicine's effective time has passed, so
I cannot provide a direct demonstration to the Superintendent." Li Jian
took out the completely grayed-out medicine from his pocket.
"So, Swire, you went to
talk to that Tiamat about this matter then?"
Swire nodded: "The medicine's
effect is very obvious, and there are no other side effects for now. In
critical situations, its use will greatly reduce our casualty rate."
"Hmm, indeed, a very miraculous and effective medicine, but
the price shouldn't be cheap, should it? The department's funds..." Chen
nodded repeatedly at Swire's words but
then remembered the department's meager funds and looked a bit troubled.
Although he knew Swire's financial
power, this was a matter for the department and should not be paid for by Swire.
"The price is very cheap, or rather, too cheap. This kind
of medicine only costs 1,000 LMD per
dose. It used to be distributed for free. She truly lives up to her name, Tiamat."