Bin looked at the message Jasmine just sent him then glanced at the time before standing up and saying:"Master and your friends will come soon. I need to go."
Surprisingly, the time he spent with Rika was relaxing as he doesn"t need to go around and do the boring tasks of his master. After the reconciliation, they did talk about a few things but it was mostly related to the movie airing on the TV or some informative programs, all in all, it was fun and not the least bit tiring. Rika opened up a bit to him and talked more than usual, moreover, the sad expression which was plastered on her face this morning had long since disappeared.
As she saw him prepare to go, she tried to come up with a few words to stop him but, in the end, she said: "Ok.. Thanks for staying."
He waved his hand unceremoniously before leaving the villa, leaving an absent-minded girl alone. It won"t take long for Jasmine and co to arrive and it"s almost time for his meeting with Ann.
As the young doctor"s laboratory is a bit far, even if he takes a cab, it"ll still take a bit more than half an hour, which is why he departed now. If he were to tell Jasmine about his meeting, she"ll either object or accompany him, which is something he definitely didn"t want. After all, asking for forgiveness is easier than requesting something.
The cab fee is exorbitant but Bin didn"t really walk so many kilometers as it"ll much more time. Despite his unwillingness, he still called a taxi and arrived at the meeting location a couple of minutes after 5. The place was as deserted and empty as usual, excluding the female doctor, who was so engrossed in her work that she didn"t notice his arrival.
Bin lightly coughed, causing her Ann to slowly turn around and look at him before saying: "You arrived…"
She sounded and looked drowsy, two big black bags under her eyes, and her hair disheveled. It was apparent that she had little rest, much less a good night"s sleep. Bin wasn"t particularly close to Ann, nevertheless, he felt grateful for her help and knew that she was a really good person. She was helping him for free charge, though part of her kindness is contributed to her unsated curiosity about her enigmatic young patient, Bin.
"So…"
He didn"t know what to say as he sat on her large leather sofa and waited for her to start speaking. Ann tidied her ragged white lab-coat and fixed her gla.s.ses before turning to face the youngster and leaning her face closer as she started to examine him from head to toe.
"How are you feeling?"
"Honestly, great."
"That"s good. It means the pumps I implanted are doing their job."
She sat next to him and stretched her hand to his chest. Her actions were intimate but the purpose was just to check his condition personally. She used her "Medical Eye" as she poured a sliver of her Mana into his body, trying to see its condition for herself. Although, on the outside, Bin looked healthy, it doesn"t mean he"s cured as the pumps are but a temporary solution, which won"t last that long as per Ann"s unsaid speculation.
"Medical Eye" allowed her to get a simple overview, for a more detailed inspection, she needs to use the advanced Maninfused machines in the next room.
With his back straight and his eyes fixated on the doctor, Bin allowed her to do whatever she wanted without uttering a single word, obviously to not distract her.
"The process has been slowed, fortunately. I still need to do a full-body check-up though."
She stood up and signaled for him to follow her, which he obediently did while nodding his head.
Very soon, Bin changed into a long robe which covered his naked body then laid inside one of the ma.s.sive and loud machine in the white room right next to the main laboratory. It was the same place he was operated in when he was stabbed or when the pumps were implanted.
Truthfully, he was impressed whenever he saw how Ann managed to handle everything on her own. She doesn"t need any a.s.sistant and isn"t bothered by staying alone all day long. He was curious about her motives but he restrained from asking anything and merely followed her strict instructions.
A blinding white light forced him to close his eyes as it went through every inch of his body… a distance away, Ann was looking at a small monitor which displayed the results of the light"s fast and accurate inspection. Every time she looked, she became more surprised and perplexed. Scientifically speaking, Bin shouldn"t be able to live, it was truly a miracle… or perhaps something else.
To put it simply, the human body cannot absorb more than a specific amount of Mana but in Bin"s condition, the limit has been surpa.s.sed a long time ago. Moreover, the heartbeat was twice an average person"s yet the body still functioned normally, well, almost.
The black spots remained unexplained and their location is randomized, from the looks of it. Ann fixed her unsteady gla.s.ses before writing some notes then turning toward Bin, who finished the examination and sat up, seemingly dazed.
"How is it?"
Unlike his usual uncaring tone, he sounded a bit nervous because after Ann implanted the pumps, he started hoping for a good outcome, which was a bit far-fetched but still not impossible. While it"s true that Dr. Galen, one of the best in the medical fields, told him that there"s little chance for survival, that doesn"t mean that Ann, who"s inferior, cannot come up with a solution which makes him live for a few more years until a real cure is discovered.