"The surgery was very successful."
Dr. Allen walked out of the operating room, taking off his face mask, and told Mr. Auceptin with a relieved expression, "Will's condition is stable. Barring any unforeseen complications, everything should be fine."
"Thank the heavens, praise the Goddess!"
Mr. Auceptin was overjoyed, gratefully shaking Dr. Allen's hand. "Thank you, Dr. Allen, thank you so much!"
"It seems the surgery went smoothly?"
Seeing this, Ashes did not interrupt but approached Fors, who was also coming out of the operating room, and asked.
"Of course."
Fors proudly lifted her pointed chin, exposing her pale, pinkish neck. "It was just a routine surgery. If I couldn't handle something like that, I wouldn't be a doctor."
"But you aren't a doctor."
Ashes retorted bluntly, "And I was asking about your digestion progress, not the surgery."
The surgery was bound to be successful. Even if Fors somehow messed up, Will Auceptin would still come out unscathed. That was a given, so he wasn't surprised.
"It's going alright."
Fors's expression fell, her tone deflated. "I can feel that the potion has been digested a bit. If this progress continues, it might take less than a month, maybe half a month, to fully digest."
"Not necessarily."
Ashes pondered for a moment before saying, "It's probably because you assisted Dr. Allen during the surgery that your digestion process sped up. If you can assist in a few more surgeries, you might be able to fully digest the potion within a week."
Before he finished speaking, Fors stared at him with wide eyes.
"Just tell me to die! Why torture me like this? Do you think performing surgery is fun? Do you think facing gruesome wounds is a great experience?!"
Ignoring her, Ashes walked over to Dr. Allen, directly requesting that Fors be scheduled for a few more surgeries.
Though surprised, Dr. Allen did not refuse and nodded in agreement.
As for Will Auceptin, Ashes didn't look at him again. He feared he wouldn't be able to restrain himself.
...
Four days later, in a corner of Raphael Cemetery.
People gathered around a new tombstone with Klein's black-and-white photo, exuding a scholarly air.
His brother Benson, Leonard, and two other colleagues carried his coffin into the grave.
After the priest's eulogy and everyone's prayers, soil began to cover the black coffin, gradually concealing it.
When the grave was filled and the stone slab was in place, Leonard took one last look at Klein's tombstone, which bore a single line of epitaph: "Pastor, please resurrect me, thank you."
Soon, the funeral attendees departed.
The cemetery returned to its tranquil state.
After everyone had left, two figures suddenly appeared in the cemetery.
"Captain."
Leonard said softly, "I want to join the Red Gloves."
"Hmm."
Dunn nodded gently, his gaze fixed on Klein's tombstone. Suddenly, he said, "In a few days, let's go to Backlund together."
"Huh?"
Leonard looked up in surprise.
"Seeka has reached Sequence 7. I think she can take over protecting Tingen."
Dunn lowered his head, the shadows covering his eyes, and said in a deep voice, "As for me, my life was given by him. I'm not a hero, but at least I can avenge him!"
He knew why he was still alive.
It was because of that ring.
He also knew Klein must have known the ring's purpose; otherwise, he wouldn't have insisted on personally putting it on him.
But as a result, he survived, and Klein died.
Dunn knew the person who should be lying here was him!
If Klein hadn't given him that ring, he wouldn't have died.
Klein died in his place.
Guilt and regret filled Dunn's heart.
He couldn't face Klein's family.
He didn't even dare attend Klein's funeral with them.
"It's us."
Leonard corrected.
He already knew from the old man how Dunn survived.
If Klein were alive, he would have pursued the origins of that ring—
It definitely wasn't just a family heirloom.
Resurrection could only be described as a miracle, something even the old man found intriguing.
But now, none of it mattered.
The only thing left to do was avenge Klein.
The one who owed Klein a life wasn't just the captain!
Leonard clenched his fists, lowering his head to hide the anger and hatred in his eyes.
"Ince Zangwill!"
Dunn and Leonard stood in silence before Klein's tombstone for a long time.
They only left quietly when night fell.
Unbeknownst to them, shortly after they left, Azik, with bronzed skin, appeared at Klein's grave holding a bunch of white flowers.
"I'm sorry I'm ten minutes late."
"But I think I know who did it."
Azik stood silently for a long while before sighing softly.
He placed the flowers at the grave, turned, and left the cemetery, and Tingen.
The cemetery fell silent again, with only the scarlet moonlight illuminating Klein's grave.
Finally, everyone was gone.
A pale hand emerged from the soil.
The stone slab was pushed aside, the coffin lid lifted, and Klein sat up, looking around in confusion.
He knew he had died again and come back to life.
"Sigh."
Klein sighed, dusting off his clothes as he climbed out of his coffin.
He then guiltily restored his grave, standing before his tombstone.
It felt weird.
"What a waste."
Klein looked at his brand-new tuxedo and at his meticulously carved tombstone, feeling a pang of regret.
But after the regret, he started thinking about the situation.
The captain had the ring he gave, so he should be fine.
The absence of Dunn's tombstone in the cemetery was solid proof of this.
Hmm, the main evidence was the divination that told him Dunn was alive.
So, in the end, only he had died, which was fine...
Fine, my foot!
Klein complained inwardly.
Everything had ended, but then that old scoundrel messed things up!
Even though he successfully revived, who knew how many more times he could?
He couldn't afford to test it recklessly.
After all, he wasn't an immortal like Ashes.
Although he had no proof, he had a clear premonition that his revival was related to the gray fog.
Apart from that, he needed to leave quickly.
He couldn't stay in Tingen—
Being resurrected wasn't easy to explain.
Especially after being dead for several days before suddenly coming back.
A normal person's body would have decomposed by now, not crawl out of the grave.
Even with the captain's precedent, Klein felt it best not to go back and scare people.
And not to test the EverNight Church's limits.
The captain's resurrection would definitely be questioned, but his issue could be explained—
No one saw him die, and Leonard wouldn't betray the captain.
The heart in the urn had also dispersed with the wind, leaving no evidence of Dunn's death.
But it was different for him. Going back would probably get him dissected for research.
So, after careful consideration, Klein resolutely decided—
To flee.
Avoidance might be shameful, but it's useful!
(End of the chapter)