Chapter 63: A Miracle in Motion
"System, settle the rewards!"
After Eriri left, Lucien D. Blackthorn lay back against the pillows, heart pounding. He had been waiting impatiently for this moment, eager to know just how much the second volume of Attack on Titan would bring him.
---
System Settlement Begins…
[Settlement in progress…]
[After evaluation, the comic work Attack on Titan Volume 2 has received: Work Quality Rating — S. Impact Rating — S.]
[Congratulations! Host has received a 16-day lifespan bonus! Health Value +8!]
---
System Status Panel
[Host: Lucien D. Blackthorn]
[Remaining Life: 62 days]
[Health Value: 30/100 (You may create comics for 2 hours per day. Exceeding the limit by 1 minute will deduct 1 day of life.)]
---
[System Tip: Congratulations! Host has reached a Health Value of 30. All body functions have recovered to 50% of their healthy state. To ensure recovery, daily comic creation time is limited to 2 hours. Exceeding the limit will consume 1 day of life.]
[System Tip: Host has earned a chance to draw a prize!]
---
Lucien let out a breath. "So… it's still 2 hours. And if I exceed it, I lose a whole day of life…"
He sighed, half-frustrated, half-relieved. It felt like a cruel bargain, yet he couldn't deny the truth: two hours of creative time every day was already a blessing. Enough to keep serialization steady. Enough to let him fight for his stories.
And this time, something was different.
A warm current surged through his body, flowing like gentle waves through every limb. The swelling and stabbing aches he'd lived with daily began to fade. His lungs, once constricted and burning, felt looser. For the first time in months, he could draw a deep breath without coughing. Even swallowing didn't bring choking spasms.
"Hah…" He exhaled in relief, almost laughing. "Finally… my body is starting to feel alive again."
The system had once told him: lifespan bonuses only delayed the cancer's advance. True recovery depended on health value.
At 30, body functions restored to 50%. At 40, stabilized enough to leave the hospital. At 50, a return to nearly normal life. At 60 and beyond, the cancer itself would weaken into remission. At 80, eradication. At 100… true health, a life as if the disease had never existed.
Lucien's eyes shone with hope. "If I can keep going… if I keep creating, maybe I'll really make it. Maybe I can beat this."
But deep down, he wasn't naïve. This system wouldn't be called "draw comics at the cost of one's life" if the road to recovery was that simple.
Still, he clenched his fists. "System. Lottery draw!"
---
System Lottery
[Rewards are being drawn…]
[Congratulations! You have received: +10 days lifespan!]
---
Updated Status Panel
[Host: Lucien D. Blackthorn]
[Remaining Life: 72 days]
[Health Value: 30/100 (Daily limit: 2 hours of creation, excess = 1 day life deduction)]
---
Lucien grinned, unable to hide his relief. Seventy-two days. That was more than two months—time enough to continue writing, time enough to fight.
Just then, the door to his ward opened.
"Lucien!"
His mother, Eve, and his father, Adam, entered together. Both had only recently returned from abroad, their faces lined with fatigue and worry. But when they saw his complexion—no longer pale and sickly, but glowing with a hint of strength—they froze, then smiled through tears.
"Your face…" his mother whispered, rushing to his side. "It's brighter. You look stronger!"
His father gave a long, shaky exhale. "Thank goodness… finally."
Lucien smiled faintly. "Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere yet."
The three spoke warmly for a while until medical staff entered with charts and equipment. After a quick check-up, they wheeled Lucien into the radiotherapy room for his scheduled treatment.
The hours that followed blurred into white light, cold machines, and the faint hum of radiation. By the time he was returned to his bed, fatigue swept over him. He closed his eyes and drifted into the deepest, most peaceful sleep he'd had in weeks.
---
The Weekend
On Saturday, Eriri arrived at the hospital, eager as always. But when she learned that Lucien was still under isolation after radiotherapy, her face fell.
"You mean… I can't even see him?" she asked the nurse.
"I'm sorry, Sawamura-san. He needs rest after exposure," the nurse replied politely.
Eriri lingered outside the ward for nearly an hour, clutching a sketchbook to her chest, before finally leaving with reluctant steps.
Sunday brought more treatment—targeted injections coursing through Lucien's veins. He bore it silently, his mind fixed on stories yet to be drawn.
By Monday, he was scheduled for a PET-CT scan. The doctors gathered around the results, brows furrowing, then widening in astonishment.
The attending physician adjusted his glasses, staring again at the scan. "This… This is incredible."
He immediately called Lucien's parents.
"It's a medical miracle," the doctor announced. "The targeted therapy has been astonishingly effective. Large portions of the cancer cells are gone. His vital functions are recovering. At this rate, he is completely out of immediate danger."
His parents exchanged stunned glances. "Truly? He can recover?!"
"Yes. He can even begin moving again—though weak, he should start with a wheelchair."
---
When the news reached Lucien, he was silent for a moment. Then his eyes grew wet.
"…I can get out of bed now?"
He had been confined for nearly two months. Dreaming of the day he could stand again, walk again. To hear those words—
His hands trembled as he whispered, "Finally… finally…"
---
✨ End of Chapter 63
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