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墨書 Inktalez
The people in the laboratory clearly shifted their focus away from them, as recently Lin Ling had not shown up at all, and even the doctors in the same clinic occasionally failed to come to work. Xiao Mei sat next door, complaining that for the past two days, it was just him and Shui Su in the clinic; not only were there fewer patients, but colleagues also seemed to have disappeared.
In the group chat of the exchange team from the Jiang Family, several colleagues expressed their confusion about why the hospital felt so desolate overnight. This desolation referred to the insufficient number of medical staff in each office, along with a noticeable absence of patients.
On the afternoon before his departure, Song Bunan was approached by a young nurse he had met on his first day. The girl stood at the door with an apologetic expression, explaining that many people in the hospital had taken leave recently, and she was overwhelmed with her rounds alone in the afternoon, which is why she sought his help. She was a genuine nurse who had been there for only two years. Song Bunan quickly realized she was not from the laboratory because she lacked that aura of death.
He agreed to help her, and as they joked while heading upstairs, he sensed someone approaching from behind. Turning around, he saw Xin Yi in a white coat with a cold expression following them. Upon being noticed, she casually mentioned that she was there to help as well.
The young nurse clutched her chest, her face filled with gratitude as she repeatedly thanked them. "Thank you so much! I don’t know what’s going on; so many people have taken leave these past few days. Although some patients have been discharged, we still don’t have enough staff. The other nurses were called to the fourth floor for assistance, leaving me all alone on the third floor. I really appreciate your help! Once we finish up, I’ll treat you both to dinner!"
Song Bunan graciously shook his head, saying it wasn’t necessary. The clinic they were in was also deserted, and it was a good opportunity for them to stretch their legs. The young nurse finally smiled and remarked how strange things had been lately at the hospital; patients would say they were being discharged in the morning and be picked up before noon, while doctors didn’t show up and nurses kept taking leave.
"If it weren’t for getting my paycheck yesterday, I’d really think this hospital was about to close down," she complained casually as she picked up her notebook and headed towards the first patient room. Xin Yi glanced at Song Bunan, reading a similar sentiment in his eyes.
On the third floor, nearly half of the patients had left; each room was mostly empty, and those still inside had become taciturn, only responding when questioned by the young nurse with answers unrelated to her inquiries. She was already accustomed to this situation; after jotting down notes, she rushed to the next room while they assisted patients with changing IV drips or ensuring they took their daily medications.
Some rooms were even empty, with unmade beds piled high with disheveled bedding and half-eaten food left on bedside tables. The young nurse sighed at this sight, saying she had never seen anything like it before; when family members came to pick up patients, they seemed impatient and wanted to take them away even before completing paperwork.
"This is my first time seeing the hospital this empty; even on the fourth floor, people are trying to leave—it's ridiculous." She instinctively smoothed out a blanket nearby and marked it for cleaning staff while slowly conversing with them. Curious, Song Bunan asked if it was common for people to be discharged from the fourth floor.
"The fourth floor isn’t locked down like ours; those patients are generally more serious cases that families pay for but rarely visit. As for those locked behind heavy doors, they’re usually individuals whose families are no longer around or who are severely unstable—there have been instances of them harming doctors or nurses in the past, so they’re under special control with dedicated supervision. The third floor has visitors more often; their conditions aren’t considered too severe by our standards. I attended your meeting when you came in; it was vague at best—probably just a way to brush things off."
Facing her candidness, Song Bunan smiled and asked if she wasn’t worried about being overheard by the director and losing her job. She dismissively waved her hand and said she had already decided to resign; who would want to stay in such a hospital? She wanted something closer to downtown so she could go home more often.
Song Bunan agreed with her sentiment and suggested that if she was interested, she could consider applying at Jiang Family Hospital, where conditions might be better. The young nurse beamed brightly and whispered behind her writing board that she had thought about that too.
They giggled as they entered the last patient room when suddenly Song Bunan felt something was off. Looking around, he realized that Xin Yi, who should have been following him closely behind, was nowhere to be seen. He asked the young nurse if she had noticed where Doctor Xiao had gone but received an equally puzzled look in return.
"Wasn’t she just behind us telling a patient to take their medicine?" The young nurse hurried ahead and checked three rooms without finding anyone. When Song Bunan looked into the last room and found it empty as well, he turned around and left.
They turned back to check each room again, surprised to find that the tall and strong man had seemingly evaporated into thin air. When they asked the patients if they had seen him, they received nothing but serious shakes of the head.
Standing at the stairway, Song Bunan took out his phone, intending to call him, but before he could even touch the screen, he heard a little girl gasp, and then there was silence. He rushed into the corridor, only to find that she had also vanished.
Instantly sensing something was wrong, he adopted a defensive posture and quickly dialed Xiao Mei's number while slowly moving away from the stairs towards the center of the corridor.
It was daytime; there was no way the other party could send a Ghost Messenger or a Nightmare to attack. They must have blended in with the patients he had just seen, modified test subjects equipped with weapons. He could clearly feel that the atmosphere had shifted. Looking around, the wide-open doors of the patient rooms resembled monstrous mouths waiting for him to enter.
Was there a secret passage he hadn’t noticed? Song Bunan reflected on the details he had observed during his rounds, but no matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t figure out where a hidden entrance might be among these rooms. The call had already been disconnected; clearly, Xiao Mei had reacted to his message. He took a tiger claw from his pocket and put it on, deciding to check again.
There were over thirty patient rooms on the third floor alone. Even someone walking briskly would take three or four minutes to make a round trip in the corridor. He deliberately slowed his pace, stopping at each room he passed to look inside. The patients in their rooms were curious about why he was still moving around and occasionally waved and greeted him with smiles.
However, as he continued down the hall, something discordant caught his eye. The door of a room that had previously been empty was now closed.
Throughout his inspection, he had been talking with the little girl; not hearing a door close was perfectly normal. But they hadn’t seen anything like that happen when they walked towards the stairway—it must have occurred just moments ago.
Song Bunan removed his somewhat cumbersome white coat, put on a mask, and took off his glasses, preparing to deal with this situation forcefully.
He kicked open the iron-clad door with great force; it slammed against the wall with a loud bang that made several patients scream. Standing at the doorway, he looked inside to see Xin Yi being held at gunpoint and a small nurse lying on the floor, unconscious or worse.
“Broad daylight and so blatant about it,” he said incredulously as he glanced at the person holding the gun. The combination of Patient Gown and Black Cloak quickly made him think of their identity, and he could clearly see the conspicuous dark spots on their exposed hand.
Xin Yi's gaze burned into Song Bunan with displeasure. He understood that this frustration stemmed from Xin Yi being angry at himself for not seeking help and coming alone to find him. Among those present, Xin Yi was the calmest; he stepped into the patient room and smoothly closed the door behind him.
“What are you doing?” Xin Yi asked urgently, which only brought the gun closer. Song Bunan winked playfully at him and said, “Don’t worry; his target isn’t really me. But you being threatened by him is because of me, right?”
Given Xin Yi’s abilities, it was impossible for him to willingly let such a frail person point a gun at his head unless he was being blackmailed by some leverage held by this individual. Based on their recent interactions, it seemed that this Ghost Messenger had only one reason for choosing him: perhaps threatening that if Xin Yi didn’t comply, someone from eight hundred miles away would take a shot at him.
Of course, it was also very likely because this person had a gun. The only weapon available to him while disguised as a doctor was probably just the neutral pen tucked in his chest pocket.
The tone of Black Cloak was as haughty as it had been that night, asking with arrogance how the consideration was going. Xin Yi's eyes showed confusion, while Song Bunan sat casually on the empty bed beside him, smiling and responding easily, “Just like before.”
“I’ve said it before; I only want this body, his soul remains his.” The other person’s tone turned angry, the gun now pressed firmly against Xin Yi's temple. The hostage fell silent, his gaze unwavering.
“I’ve also said that both his soul and body are indispensable. You dare to be so brazen in broad daylight; it seems the chaos you caused on the fourth floor was quite significant. Unfortunately for you, you’re dealing with me, and I fear no threats.” Song Bunan propped his chin up, his expression a mix of pride and innocence, leaving one to ponder what he truly meant.
Xin Yi watched the seemingly composed individual beside him, swallowing the question that had almost escaped his lips, quietly waiting for the two to continue their exchange.
“You're just an ordinary person, not even Underworld Messenger. This isn’t a dream; what do you have to fight me with?” The figure hidden beneath the cloak spoke disdainfully, showing no concern as Song Bunan approached him. It was only when they were a meter apart that he disengaged the safety. “I wonder which is faster, you or the gun? Since you refuse to cooperate, then let’s just end it all.”
Black Cloak burst into laughter, tightening his grip on the gun. Just as he pulled the trigger, Xin Yi suddenly fell forward, and the scorching bullet grazed past him, embedding itself into the wall.
Before another shot could be fired, a heavy punch came straight for Black Cloak’s face. If he had been in his Ghost Messenger form, he would have easily dodged it; however, in this weakened body, he could only take the blow.
The punch landed with a sharp crack of breaking bones against Black Cloak’s face. The once arrogant man crumpled to the ground without even a groan as he lost consciousness. Blood began to seep from beneath the cloak as Song Bunan nonchalantly pocketed his knuckle duster and feigned indifference while moving to assist Xin Yi.
The man had been struck in the calf and was now unable to rise due to pain, his brow furrowed tightly but suppressing any sound. Song Bunan used a plastic writing board that had fallen from a little girl’s hands to deliver another blow to Xin Yi.
“Brother, forgive me; it all happened so suddenly that I didn’t have time to grab a weapon,” Song Bunan pleaded with what he thought was his cutest expression towards Xin Yi, whose face was twisted in pain as he shot back a glare that promised retribution.
Unbeknownst to him, his earlier actions had been fully witnessed by the little nurse who had woken up at some point.
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