After a bit of struggle, I found myself propped up against a tree and slowly sipping from a bottle of particle water while giving my legs some much-needed time to recover.
I had expected to injure myself since I was going pretty hard on the trip over, but I never thought that a short five-minute sprint would shred virtually every muscle and tendon in both of my legs.
Even as a 6C being at my age, I had no business having stats as high as they were, yet time and time again, I continuously pushed myself.
’Well, at least now I know my limits,’ after wiggling each of my toes to double-check I wasn’t paralyzed, I sat completion motionless and closed my eyes.
’From what I could tell, everything was fine until around the 3-minute mark, that was when the damage started amassing. Even with my constant drinking of Particle water, all I could do was repair half the damage that my legs were sustaining, not nearly enough to overcome the inflicted injuries.’
As silly as it may sound, one of the biggest goals I had was to increase my defense stats high enough that my Body’s regeneration factor could mitigate any injuries faster than I could earn them.
Honestly, it’s a dumb goal because in more than half the fights I’ve ever partaken in, my opponents didn’t land a single blow on me, but that was more so because of my fighting style.
However, the ones who DID hit me, well, let’s say there were more than a couple of hairy situations that I barely walked away from, for example, the incident I caused with all the USAHA leaders.
By the time I made it to the sewers, I was on my last legs, beaten bloody, and an inch from death. If it weren’t for my augmentation skill-boosting my natural strength, I wouldn’t have even made it halfway back to my cottage.
Then let’s not forget about my death in the Origin Timeline…if I had Brenden’s healing factor, I probably could have walked outta there perfectly fine, albeit dirty as hell, but physically safe and sound.
It took roughly an hour for my legs to repair themselves, which to me was far too long for comfort.
Clicking my tongue, I bounced back up to my feet and began stretching out my legs.
’So long as I limit myself to two minutes and thirty seconds MAX, I can move at my top speed, that means I can really only use it as a burst technique.’
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’Still, it’s a good way to throw off my opponents or escape; the sudden hyper-acceleration will startle them, especially if they believe me to be a Mage type with Psychic powers, as they had in the Origin Timeline.’
With that thought in mind and my legs back to their peak condition, I glanced up at the sky to check the position of the stars and moon so that I could figure out my directional heading.
Once I got my bearings, I looked southwest from where I stood, through the treeline, past the nearby police station and surrounding residential homes, and off in the distance, I spotted my first landmark.
’SonneyBrook Medical Centre, that was where he used to work until 93, his clinic should be across the street…given the time of night, he should be there right now, and even if Harlow isn’t there now, I can always steal the schedule to see when he is working.’ Scratching my cheek, I took off in the direction of the Medical Facility, running at a brisk jog pace to warm my legs up.
As it wasn’t even half a mile away from where I had landed in the part, it took me no time at all until I was standing outside of the doors to the medium-sized medical clinic.
But when I arrived at the place of work for Harlow, I frowned because all the lights were out, and the doors locked….it was closed.
With a dead-eyed expression, I stood back, hiding in some bushes, and looked at the small placard hanging on the glass door with its hours of operation printed in bold text.
’8:00 am to 6:30 pm….cheeky, his hours match exactly what I saw on his old employer, and it’s like half a block away,’ shaking my head at the audacity of this killer, I took care to stick to the shadows and bushes as I walked the perimeter of Harlow’s business.
’Only three exits, one on the right flank, the back door, and the front. All three are locked, and there isn’t a camera in sight; at least Harlow was smart enough to take that step.’
’Then again, it would be pretty damning to be caught killing your patients on your own personal security cams…well, what do we haveeee here,’ mid-step and thought, I suddenly paused and noticed that one particular window was slightly ajar and more importantly, unlocked.
Reaching into my inventory, I withdrew a pair of black gloves. After sliding them on and changing my shoes to ones free of dirt, I crept forward and, with practiced expertise, lifted the window, then jumped into the room silently before shutting the window softly behind me.
’Sigh, I really wish I had a floorplan for this place, but I didn’t ever think to look for one; oh well, let’s find out where his office…’
Clack…clack…clack…clack
Right as I was about to leave the small examination room I had broken into, I froze and strained my ears.
Clack…clack…clack…clack
’Heh…hehe…..hehehehe, he’s here….’ Inhaling through my nose, I ran the tip of my tongue along the bottom of my top teeth while wearing a twisted smile.
Although I hadn’t heard that particular clacking sound in decades, I would be able to place it anywhere, as the distinct clacking could only be made by one device.
A typewriter.
Which was also the tool that Harlow was adamant about writing all the falsified wills he would force his victims to sign. The fact that I could hear the sound of someone clicking away at the keys meant the killer was here, in the flesh, and that thought excited me.