Illumi's Gentleness

Milluki dragged the video of Sōkatsui back and watched it again.

On the screen, blue-white flames exploded, burning through the Black Crystal Fragment.

He stared at Bai Zhu's hand-raising motion, and the more he watched, the more something felt wrong.

"There was no flow of Nen."

Milluki bit into a potato chip, his brows knotting tightly.

"And there was no windup for the release either... What principle does this thing even work on?"

On the bed, Bai Zhu hugged a pillow, his entire body sunk into the blankets without the slightest reaction.

Milluki glanced back at him.

"You'd better sleep like the dead. Don't wake up and start causing trouble again."

As soon as he finished speaking, static came through the underground channel.

Milluki immediately switched screens.

The core area had entered maximum lockdown.

The corridors outside the altar were packed with guards. Everyone's access badges were being checked again. The silver-robed bishop personally stood watch at the outer entrance, clutching a clipboard with a face grim enough to make children cry.

"Have the drug pipelines been repaired?"

A technician lowered his head, his voice tense.

"They're still being cleaned. The source of contamination hasn't been completely eliminated."

The silver-robed bishop raised his hand and slapped him.

Smack! [Whenever the bishop slapped someone while I was writing, I wanted to add a "baka..."]

The technician was sent stumbling into the wall.

"The Elder only gave us one hour!"

"Within one hour, the external circulation system must at least be restored to an operational connection state!"

The technician covered his face and nodded repeatedly.

"Yes, yes, we've already activated the backup pumps."

"The backup pumps are contaminated too!"

"Then dismantle the reserved ones on the west side!"

"An alarm has gone off at Western Interface Fifteen. We can't dismantle it!"

Several people began arguing at once.

The silver-robed bishop raised his silver staff and slammed it heavily against the floor.

"Shut up!"

The corridor instantly fell silent.

He pointed toward the rest room.

"Who's responsible for Number Fifteen?"

A nurse hurriedly raised her hand.

"I am."

"Record her status every ten minutes. Keep unauthorized personnel away. The Elder said she must stay alive."

The nurse nodded.

"Understood."

The silver-robed bishop swept his gaze around again.

"The surface heretic has escaped. He was seriously injured and cannot return anytime soon. All the trouble now is inside."

"Check the drug storage."

"Check the maintenance crews."

"Check everyone who touched the pipelines."

"If anyone lets even one person escape, I'll stuff him into the altar as a sacrifice to the Lord."

Milluki grimaced as he listened.

"Damn, they're actually investigating pretty seriously."

He minimized the surveillance window and pulled up Illumi's location.

That red dot was in a maintenance corridor outside the core area, moving very slowly.

As if he were waiting in line.

Milluki lowered his voice.

"Big Brother, security outside is tight. How are things on your end?"

Illumi's steady breathing came through the earpiece.

"No problem."

"You sure?"

"Mm."

Milluki had just been about to complain, When you say 'no problem,' there's usually a huge problem, when he saw a temporary medical team being let through the lockdown line.

At the front was a middle-aged medic with a high-level inspection pass hanging from his chest.

Behind him followed a black-haired, black-eyed young man carrying a testing case, his expression unchanged.

Milluki stared at the screen, forgetting to eat the potato chip in his hand.

"Big Brother... When did you infiltrate the medical team?"

Illumi did not answer.

The medical team had already reached the rest room door.

The two guards at the entrance simultaneously raised their hands to stop them.

"Access badges."

The middle-aged medic handed his over.

"Follow-up check for Number Fifteen. The bishop just approved it."

The guard examined the badge, then looked at Illumi carrying the case behind him.

"What about him?"

The middle-aged medic opened his clipboard.

"A temporary tester. After the drug contamination, every core sacrifice needs another blood-response test."

The guard frowned.

"Never seen him before."

The middle-aged medic looked impatient.

"How many usable people are even left in the core area right now? If you're worried, go ask the bishop. If you delay Number Fifteen and the Elder asks about it, you can answer for it yourself."

The guard's hand paused.

The nurse's voice came from inside the rest room.

"Number Fifteen's abdominal readings just fluctuated again. Hurry up!"

The two guards exchanged a glance before finally stepping aside.

"Go in. Make it quick."

The door opened.

Illumi followed the middle-aged medic inside.

Milluki stared at the screen and cursed under his breath.

"The Elder guarded against the surface, the drugs, and the maintenance crews, but not the people checking her body."

The rest room was not large.

Ella lay on a temporary hospital bed, her wrists still fastened with restraint straps. They were not tied tightly, but they still restricted her movements.

Her palm had been bandaged again, with medicine stains on the gauze.

Two machines were connected beside the bed, and the abdominal sensor readings remained low.

The nurse stood nearby. When she saw the middle-aged medic enter, she immediately moved aside.

"The bishop told us not to administer any more drugs, but she's stayed awake the whole time."

The middle-aged medic nodded.

"I'll take a look."

After saying that, he suddenly stopped.

Illumi stepped out from behind him and raised a hand to press down on his shoulder.

The middle-aged medic quietly moved to the wall and lowered his head to flip through the clipboard.

The nurse did not notice anything unusual.

She only felt that the two worked together with great familiarity.

Illumi placed the testing case beside the bed and opened it.

Ella lifted her eyelids. When she saw him, her expression froze.

Illumi did not exchange pleasantries.

He raised a hand and brushed aside the messy hair on her forehead, checking her pupils' response.

Then he held her wrist and counted her pulse.

Next, he checked the injection marks, the hemostatic bandages, and the abdominal monitor patches.

Ella did not make a sound throughout.

Milluki reminded her quietly through the earpiece.

"Ella, that's my big brother."

Ella blinked very lightly.

Illumi lifted the edge of her cloak slightly, his fingertip pausing where the Mechanical Spider was hidden.

The spider was attached to the inner stitching, curled into a ball and disguised as a black button.

It had not been discovered.

He checked the edge of her boots as well.

The spare spider was still in the layered stitching. Its locator, recording module, and miniature medicine pouch all gave off faint signals.

As K watched Illumi's movements, Ella forced herself to look at him.

Illumi stopped.

"What are you smiling about?"

Ella did not answer.

She looked at Illumi, then at the spider on him, likewise curled into a ball and disguised as a button.

The look in her eyes as she watched Illumi was exceptionally gentle.