Chapter 59
"Why aren't you answering? Are you captivated by my beauty?" Dr. Kureha took a sip of her drink, glancing sideways at Adrian. "Kid, want to know the secret to my eternal youth?"
Adrian smiled faintly and said, "I was just thinking about how to answer what you just said. As for..."
He stopped speaking and glanced at Sliver, who was still lying unconscious on the ground.
"Ridiculous? I don't find anything ridiculous about him. Although he was indeed beaten quite badly by these guards, he still fought back in the end, didn't he?"
"Yes! Rebellion!" Dr. Kureha seemed a little unsteady on her feet. "But then, he won't be able to stay on this island any longer."
Dr. Kureha suddenly changed the subject, saying, "Never mind that! Kid, are you Doctor?"
Adrian frowned slightly. "I'm not some 'kid.' If you like, you can call me Adrian, or White Ghost, either is fine."
"It's all pretty much the same anyway," Dr. Kureha waved her hand dismissively. "If you're Doctor, come and help out. Lots of people in town are injured, and we're short- Doctor."
Just then, a prompt appeared on the panel.
You have triggered the quest [Rescue]!
[Detected: [Doctor] level maxed out, [Simple Disease Treatment] level maxed out]
[Task changed!]
[You have triggered the C-level Profession Upgrade Quest [Physician]!]
[Mission Requirements: Heal at least twenty injured residents of Kaisda Town, with a healing rate of at least 60%]
[Task Rewards: [Doctor] promotion to [Physician], [Simple Disease Treatment] promotion to [Common Disease Treatment]]
After glancing at the panel, Adrian naturally chose to accept the mission.
"I wouldn't call myself a great Doctor, but I do know a few treatment methods," he said to Dr. Kureha, "But I don't have any medical supplies with me."
"Don't worry, there's plenty of medicine and equipment in this town!" Dr. Kureha said. "If you really can't find it, just go to the pharmacy and get it. No one will bother you at this time!"
Adrian broke out in a cold sweat; this witch's methods were far too crude...
After a brief test of Adrian's medical skills, Dr. Kureha confidently assigned him a large area of town, instructing him to call her immediately if he encountered any trouble.
After a busy half-day, the two finally finished treating all the injured residents in the Kaisda Town.
Some of the town's residents who suffered more serious injuries have shown significant improvement thanks to Dr. Kureha's skillful treatment.
As for the residents with minor injuries, they had already begun to clean up the mess.
Dr. Kureha seems to have an extraordinary influence among the residents of Kaisda Town, and even though she has helped heal many people, only a few dare to step forward and express their gratitude.
Of course, Adrian believes the main reason not many people express gratitude to Dr. Kureha is that after treating a wounded person, she would say to him/her:
"Don't forget to reimburse me for the consultation fee later! My fees aren't cheap!"
After finishing the treatment mission, Adrian had treated well over 20 people. Once they had fully recovered, he believed the Profession Upgrade Quest would be completed smoothly.
The two bid farewell to the residents of Kaisda Town and returned to the lakeside where the battle had previously taken place.
Adrian asked, "Dr. Kureha, what should we do with these dead guards?"
"Let the dead stay here. When night falls and no one's around, the beasts and the snow will take care of the aftermath," Dr. Dr. Kureha said. "As for Sliver..."
At this point, she couldn't help but sigh.
Adrian couldn't help but ask, "Actually, I haven't really understood the situation yet. Dr. Kureha seemed to have mentioned that this Sliver was also a Doctor from the Drum Kingdom?"
Dr. Kureha had nothing to hide from this, and she explained the whole story of what happened in the Kaisda Town in just a few words.
Sliver was originally a talkative and optimistic Doctor in the Kaisda Town, with a very good image and reputation among the townspeople.
But two weeks ago, while gathering herbs in the mountains, Sliver accidentally ate a Devil Fruit.
Paramecia -type Sliver Fruit: Bandage-Bandage Fruit. That's the name of the Devil Fruit Slider ate.
Originally, the profession of Doctor and bandage making seemed like a perfect match.
However, the residents of the isolated and primitive Kaisda Town could not accept this strange ability of bandages appearing out of nowhere from his body, and they all regarded Sliver as Monster possessed by a demon!
Some of the more timid residents chose to report Sliver's situation to the Royal Palace.
The current ruler of the Drum Kingdom, King Swallow, dealt with such strange events in a very simple and brutal way.
He directly dispatched Royal Palace guards to the Kaisda Town to eliminate Sliver, or at the very least, to drive him out of the Drum Kingdom!
"From the perspective of the kingdom's rulers, this statement is neither wrong nor problematic."
After a moment of silence, Adrian shared his opinion.
"But why are the remaining residents of Kaisda Town also included in the guards' attack range?"
"What else could it be? They couldn't agree on the amount of money to be made, so the one with the bigger fist chose to flip the table!"
Dr. Dr. Kureha stated bluntly.
"Don't think those Royal Palace soldiers are all good people! They work for the king, collect treasures from the Commoner, and make money from both sides! They are essentially no different from Pirates who make a living at sea, they just wear a legal cloak!"
"Ever since that brat Swarov ascended the throne, I knew that Drum Kingdom would one day be ruined by him! Even if it wasn't him who ruined it, it was his whole family!"
Adrian glanced at Dr. Kureha with some surprise. When did this witch take on the role of a "Prophecy"?
[109. Chapter 106 There is a beautiful Boa Sandersonia over 100 years old in the world]
Seemingly noticing the subtle expression on Adrian's face, Dr. Kureha couldn't help but let out a cold snort.
"Kid, what's with that look? Don't you believe me?"
Adrian quickly waved his hand and explained, "No, I'm just a little surprised that a Doctor would have such insightful observations."
Dr. Kureha snorted again, taking a swig of wine at the same time. "Hmph! Although I'm just a 118-year-old young Boa Sandersonia, I'm not some clueless fool!"
Adrian immediately broke out in a cold sweat.
A beautiful Boa Sandersonia who is only 118 years old...
Just how strong must one's mental fortitude be to say those words so calmly?
When you say this, do you think about the deep, etched lines of time on your face?
In comparison, that purple-clad old lady who's forever only 17 years and N months old is slightly less impressive!
Bringing his wandering thoughts back on track, Adrian asked Dr. Kureha, "Dr. Kureha, what are you going to do with Mr. Sliver now?"
Without a doubt.
The Kaisda Town has been struck by such a shocking event.
Even if Sliver wasn't the real culprit, as the "trigger" that sparked this incident, this once-reputable and kind Doctor could no longer possibly continue living in the Kaisda Town.
Considering the reaction from the Drum Kingdom's Royal Palace, Sliver might not even be able to stay on Drum Island.
Moreover, Sliver's current condition is not very good.
As Paramecia Devil Fruit, the Bandage-Bandage Fruit doesn't allow the user to quickly recover their strength and condition like Zoan Devil Fruit.
Moreover, Sliver had just overused his Devil Fruit power, especially after being abused and beaten by the Royal Palace guards.
If Sliver is allowed to continue lying flat on the shore of this cold lake...
It's highly likely that no other residents will need to retaliate; his extremely poor physical condition combined with the harsh icy and snowy environment will soon be the death of him!
Hearing Adrian's words, Dr. Kureha couldn't help but feel a little troubled.
After thinking for a while, she said, "Let's pull him up from the ground first, then take him to my place. Anyway, I don't live with anyone else in town, and I don't care what that brat Swolo is thinking."
"...?"
A question mark slowly appeared on Adrian's forehead as he asked in confusion:
"Dr. Kureha, have you misunderstood something? I was asking how you plan to deal with Mr. Sliver."
"I'm just an innocent stranger passing through the Kaisda Town. I've already done more than enough by helping you treat the injured Commoner in town. It seems I have no responsibility or obligation to continue taking care of others."
Upon hearing this, Dr. Kureha's eyes widened immediately. "Hey, kid, you're not kidding this old woman, are you?"
"Do you expect me, a centenarian, to carry this young, strong man home all by myself?"
Upon hearing this, Adrian couldn't help but twitch his lips.
So now you've suddenly remembered that you're a woman over a hundred years old?
And if I remember correctly, even twenty years from now, you seem to still be able to kick a wall down without getting hurt, right?
Is this something a centenarian could do?! You must be some kind of supernatural being...
Just then, a small E-level quest, [Respect the Elders], suddenly appeared on the panel.
The mission requires you to cooperate with Dr. Kureha to move Doctor. Sliver to a designated location, and the reward is only a small amount of experience points.
Faced with the temptation of the mission, Adrian still... accepted it.
Even a mosquito's leg is still meat!
More importantly, if the argument with Dr. Kureha continues, Doctor. Sliver will likely just die in the cold wind...
Adrian quickly walked to Sliver's side and whispered, "I'm sorry, Doctor. Sliver."
After speaking, Adrian instantly entered Ghostification state.
Free Ghost: Firefly Trickster!
Adrian's body suddenly grew several times larger, reaching almost seven or eight meters in height. He bent down, stretched out his right hand, and grabbed Doctor. Sliver's body, holding him in his hand like a claw machine.
Wow! That's an amazing ability!
From below came Dr. Kureha's exaggerated voice, but it was so obviously pretentious that it was obvious she was lying.
Adrian simply didn't believe that this old hag, who had lived for over a hundred years, would really be so easily surprised by such a trivial matter.
On the way to Dr. Kureha's house, Adrian and Dr. Kureha chatted casually.
"Speaking of which, Adrian, you really don't seem like Supernovas with Bounty close to 200 million Beli."
"... Dr. Kureha, you actually recognized me a long time ago, didn't you?"
"I only got some information from that kid at Twin Capes beforehand, don't overreact."
"I never imagined that Mr. Crocus, who is over fifty years old, would be called a brat..."
"That's the advantage of living a long life! I hope you can be as carefree as me when you're 118."
"I hope so..."
Just then, a two-story shed made of white bricks and stones came into view. The top of the shed was covered with a thick layer of snow, obscuring its original color. This was Dr. Kureha's residence, which was located outside the Kaisda Town.
Seemingly because he was completely away from the town, Doctor. Sliver slowly woke up.
He first opened his eyes with difficulty, and spoke to Dr. Kureha and Adrian in a hoarse and strained voice:
"Thank Dr. Kureha! And thank you so much to this Benefactor!"
"Hmm, it sounds like your throat is damaged." Dr. Kureha stroked her chin, offering an objective assessment in Physician's manner. "But it doesn't seem like your throat was burned just now..."
Adrian chimed in, "Perhaps the vocal cords were torn while screaming; this isn't uncommon."
Sliver seemed to want to say something more.
Dr. Kureha waved him off, saying calmly, "If you want to keep talking, then keep talking, Sliver."
Doctor. Sliver looked bitter, but ultimately kept quiet.
After Dr. Kureha's meticulous treatment...
About two hours later, Doctor. Sliver was able to get out of bed with difficulty.
He staggered off the hospital bed and bowed deeply to Adrian and Dr. Kureha, saying, "I am extremely grateful for Benefactor help!"
Adrian quickly stepped aside to avoid Doctor. Sliver's bow, pointed to Dr. Kureha, and said, "Don't thank me, it was Dr. Kureha truly saved you."
[110. Chapter 107 Refusal and Suggestion]
Doctor. Sliver looked up and said very sincerely, "In any case, you two are my Benefactor."
"Alright, Sliver, stop with the effeminate talk," Dr. Kureha interrupted him impatiently. "Now, think about how you're going to get out of Drum Island!"
Doctor. Sliver's expression instantly became complicated. His voice was somber as he said, "Dr. Kureha, please don't call me Sliver anymore... Sliver died in that previous battle..."
Dr. Kureha suddenly realized, "So that's what you were thinking? Actually, it's not bad. You can just go into hiding, change your surname, and continue on Drum Island— "
"No, Dr. Kureha, I'm actually already prepared to leave Drum Island."
Doctor. Sliver lowered his head, avoiding Dr. Kureha's gaze, and whispered.