Dr. Aris's private clinic was located on the top floor of the Frostfall Guild's medical wing. It was a pristine sanctuary of white marble, chrome, and the overwhelming scent of antiseptic.
"Mr. Kael," Dr. Aris smiled warmly, adjusting his rimless glasses. He was a handsome man in his forties, projecting an aura of calm competence. "Alfred mentioned you were feeling... unwell? Side effects from the dungeon, perhaps?"
Kael sat on the examination table, swinging his legs. He looked around the room.
To the naked eye, it was a state-of-the-art medical facility.
To Kael's [Mana Sense], it was a torture chamber.
He could see the flow of mana in the IV drips lined up on the counter. They weren't healing potions. They glowed with a sickly, pale green light—Catalysts. Substances designed to accelerate mana growth, usually illegal because they caused instability in the core.
"Just a headache, Doc," Kael lied, tapping his temple. "And some dizziness. I thought maybe I was spending too much time around Seraphina's aura."
"Ah, the 'Empress's Chill'," Dr. Aris nodded sympathetically, picking up a scanner. "It's common for normal humans. Her radiation is potent. Let me scan your vitals."
He approached Kael with the device.
Kael didn't move. He let the doctor scan him.
"Hmm," Dr. Aris frowned, looking at the holographic readout. "Your mana levels are... surprisingly dense for an E-Rank. But your heart rate is elevated."
"That's because I know what you're doing," Kael said softly.
The doctor paused. "Excuse me?"
Kael hopped off the table. He walked over to the counter and picked up one of the pale green vials.
"This isn't medicine, is it, Aris? This is 'Dragon's Blood Orchid' extract. It doesn't suppress the curse. It feeds it."
Dr. Aris went still. His friendly smile evaporated, replaced by a cold, calculating look.
"You are smarter than you look, Cleaner," Aris said, his voice dropping an octave. "But you shouldn't touch things you don't understand."
The doctor tapped a button on his smartwatch.
CLICK.
The metal shutters on the windows slammed shut. The door locked with a heavy magnetic thud.
"Security protocol: Quarantine," the automated voice announced.
Dr. Aris sighed, opening a drawer and pulling out a scalpel. It wasn't steel; it was laser-edged obsidian.
"I didn't want to do this," Aris said, sounding genuinely bored. "Gareth warned me you were a pest. I suppose I'll have to dissect you to see how you survived the contact with Seraphina."
He lunged.
For a doctor, he was fast. A hidden B-Rank combat medic.
But to Kael, he was moving in slow motion.
Kael didn't even draw his weapon. He simply stepped to the side.
[Shadow Step: Short Range]
He appeared behind the doctor.
"You assume," Kael whispered in Aris's ear, "that I'm trapped in here with you."
Kael grabbed the back of the doctor's head and slammed it into the stainless steel counter.
CLANG.
Dr. Aris grunted, dropping the scalpel. He tried to elbow Kael, but Kael's grip was iron. Kael activated the [Abyssal Frost Suit] under his clothes. The suit hardened upon impact, breaking the doctor's elbow when it connected.
"ARGH!"
Kael spun him around and pinned him against the cabinets, his forearm pressing against Aris's throat.
"But the truth is, Aris," Kael's eyes glowed violet. "You're trapped in here with the garbage man."
"The... Cult... will know..." Aris choked out, his face turning purple. "My vitals... are monitored..."
"I know," Kael smiled. "That's why I'm not going to kill you yet."
Kael looked at the shelf full of medical records behind the doctor.
"System," Kael commanded. "Can I recycle information?"
[System Notice: Host can Recycle physical mediums (Paper, Hard Drives) to extract and memorize their data instantly.]
"Perfect."
Kael threw the doctor to the floor. Before Aris could recover, Kael swept his arm across the desk, knocking the computer terminal and a stack of physical files onto the floor.
He placed his hand on the pile.
[Target: "Project Hatching" Research Data]
[Recycle?]
"Do it."
ZZZZT.
The computer smoked and sparked. The papers turned to ash.
A massive headache split Kael's skull as gigabytes of medical data, chemical formulas, and five years of Seraphina's biological logs flooded his brain.
...Subject is destabilizing...
...Administering 50mg of Catalyst daily...
...Winter Solstice is the breaking point...
...The 'Medicine' masks the pain but weakens the seal...
Kael gasped, clutching his head. It was disgusting. They had been poisoning her for years, telling her it was the only thing keeping her alive.
He looked down at the terrified doctor.
"You monster," Kael breathed. "You made her dependent on the very thing that's killing her."
"It's evolution!" Aris screamed, realizing his research was gone. "She will become a God! And I will be the one who created her!"
"She's not a lab rat," Kael said coldly.
He grabbed a vial of the green Dragon's Blood Orchid extract from the counter.
"You like evolution so much?"
Kael grabbed Aris by the jaw, forcing his mouth open.
"Drink it."
"No! No! It's raw mana! It will burn my insides!" Aris struggled, kicking and scratching.
Kael didn't care. With his Strength of 50+, forcing a fluid down a normal human's throat was child's play. He poured the glowing green liquid into Aris's mouth and clamped it shut until he swallowed.
"Gah! Hukk!"
Aris clawed at his throat. His veins bulged, turning green. He began to convulse on the floor, foam forming at his mouth.
"System," Kael said calmly. "Status of the target."
[Target: Dr. Aris]
[Status: Mana Poisoning. Vocal cords paralyzed. Cognitive function failing. He is entering a comatose state.]
"Good," Kael adjusted his cuffs. "He won't die, so his heart monitor won't alert the Cult. But he won't be waking up to warn them either."
Kael looked around the wrecked office. He needed to make this look like an accident.
He looked at the Catalyst vials.
"System, recycle the chemical structure of the poison in these vials, but leave the liquid."
[Request Acknowledged. Extracting Active Ingredient "Basilisk Venom/Dragon Root". Replacing with inert water.]
Kael moved through the room, neutralizing every single vial of "medicine" meant for Seraphina. He turned the deadly poison into harmless, green-colored water. Placebos.
Now, when the Cult tried to dose her... nothing would happen.
[Quest Complete: "The Placebo Effect"]
[Rewards:]
[1. Knowledge: Advanced Mana Biology (Passive)]
[2. System Points: +300]
[3. Seraphina's Safety: Temporarily Secured.]
Kael walked to the door. He used his new [Mana Sense] to find the locking mechanism inside the wall and short-circuited it with a tiny pulse of electricity from his suit.
The door slid open.
Kael stepped out into the hallway.
A nurse was walking by. She looked at him, surprised to see the door open.
"Oh, Mr. Kael? Is your appointment over?"
"Yes," Kael smiled charmingly, though he felt like vomiting from the data he had just absorbed. "Dr. Aris is taking a nap. He said he worked very hard on his research and didn't want to be disturbed for a few hours."
"Oh, that's just like him," the nurse giggled.
Kael walked toward the elevator.
He had the data. He had neutralized the doctor.
But he knew the truth now. The Solstice Banquet wasn't just a party. It was a ritual ground.
And he had 14 days to turn himself into something strong enough to kill a Dragon King.
I need a dungeon, Kael thought as the elevator doors closed. I need to level up. Fast.