Lu Yuan quickly pulled a small bottle of high-grade Holy Water from the inner pocket of his trench coat and unscrewed the cap.
He poured it over the contaminated spot on Kael's shoulder.
"Hiss—"
The instant the Holy Water seeped in, the spread of the dark green veins beneath his skin visibly slowed, as if someone had pressed down on them from the side.
Kael gritted his teeth without making a sound.
Lu Yuan did not spare him another look and stuffed the remaining half-bottle into Frank's hand.
"Milo, treat him the same way. Hurry!"
"Understood."
Lu Yuan rose to his feet.
Of the three methods Deep Study had provided, only the Seed could truly cure them. The Seed was in Room 7, District C.
They needed to move faster.
"Hank, carry Kael."
"Yes!"
Hank asked no questions. He tucked his hand axe back into his belt and crouched so Kael could climb onto his back.
The boy's movements had become sluggish, but he still managed to shift himself onto Hank's back.
Frank had already tightly wrapped Milo's arm with strips of cloth and was supporting him with his shoulder.
The man retracted the metal plates of his mechanical arm into his sleeve, section by section. A faint thread of white smoke still rose from the scorched opening.
He looked up at Lu Yuan.
"Good luck."
His tone was flat, devoid of emotion.
"I hope your teammates don't die too horribly."
Lu Yuan did not respond.
The man did not wait for an answer either. He jerked his chin at the other three behind him.
"We lost the target. Mission over."
As he turned away, his gaze lingered for half a second longer on the Flame at Lu Yuan's waist.
"Oh, right..."
"Nice gun."
Then he left without looking back.