Chapter 117: Ch155. sICKNESS - 10 (Deceiving shadow)
The little boy took Kurt by the hand, and they ran down the street, until they reached the playground.
The place brought a pleasant and at the same time painful feeling of nostalgia to Kurt’s heart.
He looked at the jungle gym, the swing, and even the Merry-go-round seemed so far away...
And at the same time, it was as if Kurt was really there.
As if he could touch each of the toys, and simply spend as much time as he wanted there.
Until the end of his life, if he wished.
[WAKE UP]
"Urgh..." Kurt groaned, almost falling to his knees on the pebbled playground floor.
"You okay, man?" The little boy asked, gently squeezing Kurt’s shoulder.
"Yes I am... I think I’m just hearing things..." Kurt replied, hearing his own voice once again, higher pitched and younger.
Something in his mind twisted and twisted, sending messages to his conscious mind.
But Kurt simply ignored the emotions that tried to overflow in his mind and heart.
"Let’s play!"
Kurt and the little boy then went to the Merry-go-round, and began to spin, and spin, and spin some more.
When Kurt felt so dizzy he almost felt like throwing up, he asked, almost shouting.
"WHAT’S YOUR NAME?"
"NIKOLAI!" The little boy replied, laughing nonstop.
They staggered out of the Merry-go-round and dropped to their knees, trying to shake off the dizzy feeling.
[WAKE UP!]
Kurt fell to his knees, and then his body hit the pebble floor, slightly injuring his shoulder.
"Hey, Kurt, are you sure you’re okay?" Nikolai knelt down next to him, getting his face very close to Kurt’s face. "You need... [WAKE UP]..."
"Huh?" Kurt’s eyes widened, feeling the feeling of nausea being overcome by the surprise of Nikolai’s comment.
Kurt stood up, feeling the world spin more slowly around him.
"What did you say?" He asked, but he looked around, and there was no one else there but him.
[WAKE UP]
[YOU NEED TO WAKE UP]
Kurt felt a pang of migraine hit him hard, and his knees hit the pebbled floor again.
In addition to his slightly scratched shoulder, he now felt slight pain in his knees.
"What is happening...?"
***
Keisuke heard the sound of the jet approaching the landing area at the guild headquarters, and ran out, ready to find those who had returned from the mission.
And what was his surprise when he found each of the initial members who had left - including the young irregulars - exiting the aircraft.
"Everyone returned safely!" Keisuke said to himself, going to greet Evellyn, Nikolai, Rodrick, and his guild master.
Until he saw that there were two more people with them.
A woman who appeared to be in her late twenties, and a military-looking man, in his late twenties, with extremely short black hair, and an attentive, but somewhat indifferent look.
The woman had slightly slanted eyes, but she was not Japanese. His eyes were darker brown than normal, looking like two very deep wells.
Her walk was full of dignity, and the very slight dark circles under her eyes denoted countless hours - perhaps days - of uninterrupted study and sleepless nights.
"This is Doctor Amara Lee." Toshinori said, introducing the doctor to Keisuke. "And this is Agent Collins, member of the CIA wielder recognition committee. He strongly requested that he be allowed to accompany Dr. Lee to meet the Blake boy." The guild master finished.
Suddenly, everything came to a head in Agent Collins’ mind.
"Blake...Kurt Blake?" He asked, looking a little anxious.
"Did you already know him?" Toshinori retorted, hiding a hint of distrust in his voice.
"Somehow." Collins replied, while Doctor Lee observed her surroundings uneasily. "We’ve already met once, since then I’ve been looking forward to meeting you again. Who would have thought it would be in a situation like that, right?" He chuckled.
"How about we leave the small talk aside? We didn’t come here to visit old friends, right?" The doctor asked, incisively. "Where’s the patient I need to see."
"Kurt is inside, but... He seems to be..." Keisuke started to respond, being immediately interrupted by Evellyn.
"What happened to him?"
"I think... It’s better for you to see with your own eyes..." The healer replied, taking Doctor Lee, Evellyn, Nikolai, Rodrick, and Toshinori to the infirmary.
***
"YOU FOOL!" The doctor shouted, glaring at Keisuke. "You... What the hell were you trying to do while we didn’t arrive?"
Keisuke took several steps back, looking at the guild master.
"I think you should tone it down when talking to my subordinates, Doctor Lee." Toshinori interrupted, keeping his voice calm, but showing, deep down in his intonation, the seriousness with which he was prepared to treat the matter.
"Whatever, but this healer was trying to infuse his own healing energy into the Blake boy!"
"And what’s wrong with that?" Toshinori asked, frowning. "Isn’t this the standard healing method for healers?"
The doctor huffed.
"Yes, but Kurt is an irregular, and the first one I have studied. His awakening has nothing to do with what we know so far, and normal healing methods will do nothing but very slightly slow down the current process of his tissues’ degeneration..."
Keisuke’s eyes widened and he swallowed.
"Gods in heaven... So that was why..."
Doctor Lee glared at the healer, practically ordering him to explain what he meant by what he had just said.
"Erm... Blake-san seemed to react strangely when I started the healing process. It was like... Like I was filling a bottomless pit with my healing ability. No matter how much I put into it, there seemed to be no more than a very slight immediate effect."
Doctor Lee practically growled at Keisuke, saying.
"We don’t have time to waste! I need everyone to leave the room now!"
Evellyn looked at Rodrick, who had a clear question in his expression.
She just nodded in agreement, and Toshinori agreed with her.
Soon after, only Doctor Lee and Agent Collins were in the room with Kurt.
"What do you think of him now, agent?" She asked.
"I think that even though he’s no more than a teenager, he’s grown a lot in terms of strength and power over the last few years... I think we should keep an eye on him." And after a brief pause, he added. "Do you really think it makes sense to cure him?"
"I think it would be completely unwise for us to let him die. But from what I can see..." The doctor’s eyes glowed violet. "Whether or not Blake boy will be cured depends much more on himself and his own willpower than on my efforts." She let out an evil laugh. "Although, I can actually do something about slowing down the progress of decomposition caused by the parasite inside him."
"Parasite...?" Agent Collins’ eyes widened. "You mean that..."
"Yes." The doctor cast an enigmatic look in Kurt’s direction. "The boy is already past the initial preparation stage."
"So he already found out about the Masters..."
Doctor Lee just nodded at Collins, grinning, confirming what he had just said.
