Bliss's holy power lasted for about a minute.
But as the seconds ticked by, he noticed a strange sign.
The surface of Jiwoo's skin was slowly drying out.
"Ahh... it hurts..."
Jiwoo moaned in pain.
Seeing this, the two were puzzled.
"Hmm? What's wrong."
"Wait a minute, Mr. Bliss. I think something's wrong."
"No way."
Bliss stopped emitting holy power.
But the situation had gotten worse.
Jiwoo was becoming as thin as a malnourished man.
"Brother---it hurts so much."
"Look, there must be something wrong."
Sangwoo quickly pressed the emergency call button next to the bed.
"We're in trouble, please come quickly."
Bliss listened to Sangwoo's urgent voice as he paged the medics, his mind racing.
'What the hell, the virus is getting stronger. I thought we could just burn the virus with holy power. What if holy power is treated as mana and the MA virus has gotten stronger?'
Bliss was right.
His holy energy had the power to heal and protect, but it wasn't really holy power (Holy power: sacred power that comes from a god).
Bliss himself was an atheist, so it wasn't like he was borrowing power from a god.
For the MA Virus, a mana draining virus, holy energy was delicious food.
In fact, it fed on Bliss's holy energy, causing the virus to explode.
"What's going on?"
That's when the doctors, nurses, and medical staff arrived.
"It's---."
Sangwoo stammered.
The doctor who heard him got a serious look on his face.
"Ah, so this is Mr. Bliss," he said, "I wish you'd talked to us first before treating her."
It wasn't against the law for the healer to treat him.
However, it was customary to consult with the hospital before treating hospitalized patients, something Sangwoo hadn't realized.
Of course, Bliss wasn't a regular person, so the doctor let that part slide.
What mattered now were the details of Jiwoo.
"Well, since Bliss's holy power isn't working either, it's likely that his holy power has been absorbed by the MA virus, which is why it's gotten stronger."
"This can't be---."
Sangwoo made a dismayed expression.
Jiwoo had already fainted from the pain.
In real time, her skin was turning to mush.
Seeing that, Bliss opened his mouth.
"Doctor, what happens when the virus gets stronger?"
"I've read in the literature that the MA virus absorbs all the mana in the host's body, and when the host dies, it is naturally expelled with the gases that emanate from the host's corpse. It then spreads in the atmosphere and seeks out new hosts."
"Hmm---."
Bliss scratched his chin.
He looked like he was pondering something.
"So what are we supposed do to the virus when its host dies?"
"Hmm--- I don't know of any method, but I'm guessing collecting the air around the body and incinerating it would be the first choice."
"Then we'll need something to control the gas. Do you have any tools or people with that ability?"
"Yes, sir. I'll get it ready."
"Mr. Bliss, what do you mean, you're going to let Jiwoo die?"
Sangwoo, who was listening from the side, asked Bliss.
Then Bliss put his hand on Sangwoo's shoulder and said.
"That's right."
"What?"
"'Yes and no.'"
A joke in such an urgent situation.
Sangwoo was about to lose his temper.
"I'm going to kill your sister and then bring her back to life."
Bliss told him his plan.
The virus recognizes his holy power as mana anyway, so it's hard to cure her in her current state.
So he would let Jiwoo's body drain of mana until it was completely gone, and when it was gone and the virus was out of her body, he would unleash his holy power on Jiwoo and revive her.
"This is ridiculous---. No, I mean, it's not like her life is a joke, but what if she really dies?
"It's okay. I've already revived a few dead people."
"Yeah?"
Bliss chuckled.
"I'm not called 'Bliss' for nothing. I took things a little too easy this time, but I've got my dignity, so I'm going to try my best now."
He sounded confident, but Sangwoo found it hard to believe.
Even an S-class Hunter couldn't possibly be capable of resurecting someone.
'But--- there's no other way.'
The virus has already grown stronger, and there's no cure.
Unless we can get the elixir right now.
And the elixir wasn't even proven to be a real cure.
There was no choice but to trust Bliss now.
'It'll work---. It'll work.'
Sangwoo kept repeating it, but his heart was shaking with anxiety.
It was his sister's life, not anyone else's.
Meanwhile, the medical team was moving quickly.
Huge machinery and equipment entered the mana intensive care unit.
"What is all this?"
"This is a machine that measures the virus, this is a crystal shield generator, and this is a large, state-of-the-art vacuum system."
One by one, the machines were set up, and a ventilator was connected to Jiwoo's mouth.
Soon, a blue, membrane-like crystallization shield was created around Jiwoo's body.
"Creating crystals. 30%--- 55%--- 100%. Grid formation complete."
Sangwoo was taken out of the room by the nurses.
It was for stability reasons.
Outside, Sangwoo shivered with anxiety.
'If I knew this would happen, I would have taken care of her when she asked for pocket money. Jiwoo, you're going to live. I'll take care of you.
In that life-or-death moment, he remembered what he hadn't done for her.
'It's going to be okay---? It's going to be okay. God, Buddha, Allah, all the gods. Please save my sister.
Unable to think of calling his parents, Sangwoo waited anxiously, praying.
In the hospital room, things were beginning to change.
Beep, beep, beep... beeeeee....
Jiwoo has turned into a mummy.
Jiwoo's thin heartbeat stopped.
"Jiwoo, she's in cardiac arrest."
The tension between all the medical staff and Bliss was at an all-time high.
Now it was all about timing.
They had to delay her resurection just long enough for the virus to completely leave her body.
If they waited too long, there could be side effects.
How much time had passed?
The monitors on the virus-measuring equipment picked up something oozing from Jiu's body.
It was the MA virus.
"Draining gas and virus!"
"Prepare to drain!"
At the same time, the large vacuum system connected to the inside of the shield began to pump.
Chwii Iik-
The suction started sucking out all the air in the shield.
The virus was no exception.
The virus detection machine reported that the virus level inside the crystal was zero.
"Now."
"OK."
Bliss stretched out her hands.
'Get better.'
A golden flash of light emanated from his hands and shot into Jiwoo's body, which had turned into a husk.
Then, little by little, Jiwoo's withered body began to revitalize.
Like a sprout emerging from a pile of dirt.
The mummy-like skin tightened, and new flesh began to grow.
And like a growing sprout, it spread quickly.
'Slow. Then---.'
Bliss concentrated her power.
But there was no change in the size of the golden flash emanating from his hand.
Instead, the sky above the hospital began to glow.
A golden glow began to form there.
'Pour it on!'
His ultimate move.
'Saint Sky Laser.'
A beam of light fell from the sky and struck the hospital.
Swoosh!
The huge pillar of light pierced through the roof of the hospital and shot straight to the bed where Jiwoo lay.
At the same time, Jiwoo's body began to revive rapidly.
Her skin tightened, and her hair, which had been brittle, became silky.
Her fingernails and toenails, which looked like they were going to crack, became shiny.
And her lips, which had turned a deep blue color, became vibrant red.
Soon, black sweat oozed from her skin, her pores tightened, and her skin turned milky white.
At the same time, she grew taller and her limbs grew longer.
Bliss terminated the resurection.
At the same time, Sangwoo, who had been watching the situation nervously, burst through the door of the hospital room.
"How'd it go, how is Jiwoo?"
"As you can see, it went well."
Bliss replied with a shrug.
Sangwoo pushed past the medical staff and hurried to the bed.
"Jiwoo!"
As the medics shut down the shield, Sangwoo ran to Jiwoo's bed and grabbed her hand.
Her hands were covered in a sticky black oily substance.
Then.
Jiwoo's eyebrows twitched.
And then, Jiwoo's eyes shot open.
"Mmm--- Big brother?"
"It's me, Jiwoo, are you okay?"
"Huh? Yeah. I'm fine, I was really sick earlier---."
Jiwoo winced and jerked her upper body upright.
She looked down at her body.
It was covered in black smudges.
"But, what's all this? And it smells like shit."
Then she sniffed.
The smell was coming from herself.
"Hey, what the hell!"
Then, the doctor nearby spoke carefully.
"It's most likely that your sphincter relaxed after you died and you lost your bowels. You need to wash up and have a thorough examination, and only then---."
At those words, Sangwoo let go of Jiwoo's hand, which he had unconsciously clasped.
Sangwoo's hand was covered in black foreign matter.
"What do you mean, after I died?"
Only Jiwoo was dumbfounded.
Sangwoo looked at her and said.
"--- You pooped."
"What? Aaaaahhhh!"
Jiwoo shrieked.
* * *
After the commotion.
After Jiwoo was washed and dressed, she was given a thorough examination.
"Surprise, surprise, there's nothing wrong anywhere, the virus has been cured."
"Aaaah!"
Jiwoo cheered.
"Finally--- thank you. Doctor."
"Yes, sir. In fact, your insides are so clean it's almost unbelievable. This is a CT scan from one of your routine checkups."
The doctor pointed to the black-and-white film, which showed Jiu's internal organs.
"If you look here, the liver is a little black, right? If you have a congenital weakness, or if you have hepatitis or something, it's going to be black like that. But if you look at the picture now, it's very clear."
"Ah---."
"And this is a picture of your brain scan. If you compare it to the old picture here, you can see that after the virus treatment, the red activated areas have increased a lot. That means the brain is activated."
At that, Sangwoo looked at Jiwoo.
"Is your brain better?"
"No? I don't know, not really."
"Hmm--- Maybe it's just a temporary phenomenon caused by the activation of your brain cells due to Bliss's holy power, but you'll have to have more tests done to be sure. I mean, he can kill people and bring them back to life---.I've never seen anything like it before, and I'd like to write a paper for the conference."
"Yes, I understand, but can I go home right away?"
"We'll need to run some more tests, but you don't really need to stay in the hospital anymore, so you're good to go."
" Yaay!"
Jiwoo cheered.
"However, we'll need to monitor your progress, so we'll need you to come in periodically."
"Okay, thank you."
The two left the doctor's office.
Jiwoo changed back into her plain clothes and they headed to the hospital lobby.
She was about to check out when a group of people rushed up to them.
"You're the patient and her guardian from room 407, right?"
"Yes, that's right."
"Thank you!"
They greeted Sangwoo cheerfully.
Sangwoo was puzzled because he didn't recognize them.
"What are you doing all of a sudden?"
"I heard that you invited Mr. Bliss to treat her, and thanks to him, we recovered!"
"What?"
As it turns out, they were patients and family members who had been hospitalized in the same hospital that Jiwoo was in, just on a different floor.
They had been cured of all their illnesses and disabilities because they had been in Bliss's range.
"I hope you'll be sure to thank Mr. Bliss for me."
"Oh, yes. I'll be sure to tell him."
"And I would like to give a small gift."
"That's okay. I'll take it."
"But---."
"Really, it's fine. If you have any questions, please contact me here."
Sangwoo gave Junmo Kang the JM Agency business card he'd been keeping.
"Thank you!"
After the commotion.
The two finally finished the discharge formalities and left the hospital.
"We're finally outside! It's been a while!"
Jiwoo squealed with excitement, jumping up and down.
Sangwoo felt a pang of sadness as she spread her arms wide and breathed in the air.
"I wonder how long she's wanted to go outside.
Jiwoo had been in the hospital for almost seven months, since her freshman year of high school.
It must have been a tough time for an 18-year-old adolescent girl.
'I'll be good to her.'
As he was thinking about that, Jiwoo asked him.
"But what about Bliss?"
"Oh, Mr. Bliss has already gone back to the hotel."
Bliss had already gone back to the hotel.
He's celebrating the success of the treatment.
'Probably getting ready for the club.'
Sangwoo smirked at the thought.
"It's a shame. I didn't even get to say thank you."
"'We can go say hi soon. Or do you want to do it in advance over the phone?"
"Maybe?"
Jiwoo replied and opened her phone.
Suddenly, she started laughing.
"What's wrong, why are you laughing all of a sudden?"
"What?"
Jiwoo looked at her face on her phone and smirked.
"This is me, isn't it? I've changed so much."
She was admiring her new appearance.
Actually, Sangwoo was a little surprised too.
Jiwoo had become unrecognizably beautiful.
'That ugly duckling has become beautiful. I never thought Bliss's holy power could have such an effect.'
Jiwoo, who was cute and chubby, was a normal-looking girl with a few pimples.
However, after being bombarded by Bliss's holy power, her skin became flawless and free of blemishes.
Her lips were a bright red color even though she didn't wear any makeup because her blood circulation was good due to the waste being flushed out of her body.
She was also taller and had lost some of her baby weight.
"Hey, you should go bow down to Mr. Bliss. He gave you a total metamorphosis."
"Yeah, sure, I'll also show off my new look on Instagram and tell my friends."
"Hey, let's go home first."
"Of course! Let's go home, big brother. Come on."
"Go, go. But why don't you call Mr. Bliss?"
"I'll do it later."
Bickering but friendly.
After a long time, the two siblings were able to go home together.
And then, suddenly.
[Stormbringer Swordmanship skill created].