In the vicinity of Sam'an City, a hooded man looked up curiously at a section of the city.
'That's where the government facilities should be, right? Why did it feel like something had broken all over the country, starting there?' he thought.
Although a situation like this could be hidden from anyone else, it would not be the same for him. Special changes in the environment or space he could easily notice; not for nothing was he sent on such dangerous missions.
So he smiled a little and started walking towards the city.
'What an interesting place. As always, small countries that want to reveal themselves are quite interesting. Let's see what's going on.' Without further thought, he walked towards the city and entered it, disappearing into the crowd soon after.
...
In a room in what appeared to be a hospital, dimly lit with small artificial lights, a woman wearing a medical gown paced around, looking at the man lying on the bed.
'This man is stunningly beautiful - how could he possibly be a Reared in the Mist? His muscles are well formed, and his body looks very well exercised. Even when he lost a lot of blood, his pallor adds an unusual touch to his beauty.' She thought.
It wasn't the only thing that puzzled her about this man; the fact that he had been asleep for so long when he should have woken up by now was another source of bewilderment for her.
She opened the sheets in her hand and read the medical file once more.
'Birth name, but no last name. With an unusual code... Why was I entrusted with such an unusual person? Normally, the greats of the country would take charge; after all, it could be someone of astonishing talent.' She thought. She had been asking herself the same question for several days, but the answer was not coming to her.
Soon, a high-ranking person entered the room.
"Professor!" She quickly greeted him, not daring to say his name, and bowed in a form of respect.
The man who entered recently nodded to her and clutched the file.
"Still not awake?"
As he read it, he put a hand to his chin, clearly curious about something.
The woman nodded to him. "Yes, Professor. He's been unconscious all this time, but our machines tell us he should have woken up by now."
The man nodded and then handed her the file.
"Did you inject him with CNI?" he asked. (NTA: CNI or Cursed Noxius Injection, a special poison of this world, made from certain cursed beasts and their energy, it has several uses.)
The woman lowered her head and shook it.
Her mind worked quickly to find an answer to convince him, and soon her eyes sparkled.
"Sir, it's a possible Sorcerer. We can wait a while for him to wake up naturally. If we put the CNI on him... He'll die in a few years; don't you think it's a waste?"
The man frowned and stared at her. He was clearly angry. He had ordered her to put him the injection 2 days ago, so the fact that she hadn't obeyed was an insult to his name.
"Waste? Yes, it would be a waste to waste an expensive injection on that bastard." He growled and grabbed the woman by her clothes, pulled her roughly towards him, and spoke into her ear.
"But listen well, little internist. If that damned slave doesn't wake up by night, you will give him 2 CNI injections. I will spend my own money to wake him up, and I don't care if he dies the next day. If you disobey one more time, I will take it upon myself to destroy your career."
She stared at him for several seconds until she nodded. She could say no more.
He returned her gaze briefly, trying to scrutinize what she was thinking since he didn't see her startle. But within seconds, he lost interest and released her abruptly, pushing her until she hit the bed behind her.
He turned around and pulled out the pocket watch he was carrying. "It's six hours to sundown. If he doesn't wake up by then, you know what to do. If you don't, I will make you suffer the consequences of disobeying me."
After saying this, he slammed the door shut, allowing the woman to breathe again.
She had nothing to say. They were in a Military Hospital, where the great monsters of the country's investigations meet. Here, even though she was the leader of the hospital, she was just a small internist. She had a remarkable status in the face of the public, but she was among the lowest positions in the face of the leaders of this place.
And that man was one of the top leaders of the laboratory research group.
She had nothing to do. She disobeyed him at first because she thought he might wake up in time and thus not destroy his future, but at this moment, she had to look at him with compassion.
She sighed visibly.
'I'll delay the injections as long as I can, but if it's been five hours and you don't wake up, I'll have to damage your life.' She went to sit down soon after, looking nonchalant but with a lot to think about.
While she was thinking and lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice Klaus stirring.
His eyelids and hands were the first to move. They felt stiff and hard to move, but he still clenched his hands and opened his eyes.
When he saw the ceiling, he thought. 'A hospital?' Later, he looked to the side. The sun's rays were gently creeping in through the window, making their way through the blue and white curtains that adorned it.
'Yes...' He then tried to sit up but was stunned when he noticed a pretty face staring at him with a dazed expression.
Klaus didn't know her, but he could guess she was an internist of some branch. Her neck card said so.
He looked at the name, too. 'Sua Vinanne...' He said in his mind.
At that moment, Sua snapped out of her stupor and smiled broadly. "You're awake." She said cheerfully.
His face visibly lit up thanks to her cheerful smile.
Klaus nodded to her gently.
"How do you do, Miss Vinanne? May I know where I am?"
Sua cocked her head slightly. "How do you know my name?"
Klaus pointed to her chest when he heard that question, causing her to look down to see.
"Oh, right." She said lamely. She had forgotten.
And to deflect attention from her oversight, she quickly stood up.
"This is the Sam'an City Military Hospital. After finishing your First Bath, you fell unconscious from the amount of wounds on your body, so you were brought here. I care for you and the many who come out of a First Bath." She turned to look at him and held out her hand.
"It's a pleasure, Klaus. I'm Sua Vinanne, but it's okay to call me Sua. I'm a Vital Systems Internist specializing in the field of Curseology."
Klaus stared at her for several seconds and then grabbed her hand out of respect. "The pleasure is mine, Miss Vinanne. Thank you for your care."