An F-Rank Veterinarian Physically Heals an S-Rank Magical Beast - Chapter 42

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 42
[9th Floor: Twisted Twilight Forest]
[Difficulty: Nightmare]
[Special Conditions: Physical laws nullified, causality reversed.]
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“Ugh…!”
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The moment the gaping maw spewed out our group, Luna retched violently, flailing through empty space. There was no ground. There was no sky. In this bizarre realm of swirling purple and black, colossal trees drifted aimlessly with their roots pointing upward.
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“What… is this…?”
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I struggled to find my center of gravity, but my body rose weightlessly like a feather. Gravity was utterly capricious. One moment I floated in zero gravity; the next, a single step sideways plunged me into crushing gravitational force that slammed me downward.
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“Captain! Luna! Is everyone alright?”
“Heh… this old man’s getting dizzy. The ground won’t stop spinning.”
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Baek Mu-young hung suspended from an inverted tree root, dangling helplessly. His complexion had turned ashen. The sudden pressure differential had ruptured his eardrums, and blood streamed from both ears.
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“Captain! The bleeding is severe!”
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I instinctively activated [Eye of Divine Will].
[Skill Activated: Eye of Divine Will]
[Warning! System Error.]
[Targeting system malfunctioning.]
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Bzzt—
Crackle!
Red static flooded my vision.
Where Baek Mu-young’s status window should have appeared, Luna’s status window overlapped instead.
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“Damn it, the coordinates are scrambled! But I still need to heal him!”
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I pulled a [Superior Recovery Potion] from my inventory and hurled it toward Baek Mu-young, simultaneously casting [Remote Healing].
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“Catch it, Captain!”
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But.
Whoooosh—!
The potion bottle defied physical law, arcing along an impossible trajectory before exploding directly above Luna’s head.
Splash!
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[Healing skill activated.]
[Target: Luna]
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“Huh? Wha—what? Power is… power is surging through me!”
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Luna’s eyes snapped open, her muscles rippling with newfound vitality as she launched into a somersault through the air.
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“Wow! I can fly! My body feels so light!”
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Meanwhile, Baek Mu-young—bleeding profusely—was left to fend for himself.
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“Cough… Director… help me… why’d you give the medicine to the one who’s perfectly fine…?”
“Wait, no! Why is it going over there?!”
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I was bewildered.
Had I miscalculated the trajectory?
No.
The space itself was warped—the very concept of ‘straight lines’ had ceased to exist.
In this mad world, if I threw something to the right, it would fly left.
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“Jin-hyuk…!”
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That’s when I heard Yoo Yi-soo’s anguished cry. Turning, I saw her hunched in midair, clutching her chest.
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“Ugh…!”
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Dark sparks crackled from the center of her chest, near her heart. Yoo Yi-soo—an S-rank attacker who wielded overwhelming magical power and physical prowess despite being no mage. The secret lay in the [Artificial Core] implanted within her heart.
A fusion of essence harvested from slaying the Four Demon Kings of The Abyss in ages past—the crystallization of human science and magic itself. It was her power source, her lifeline.
But now.
The core blazed with frenzied luminescence, spiraling into runaway overload.
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“The core… won’t obey… magical backlash is occurring…!”
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Black veins erupted across Yoo Yi-soo’s skin. The environment of the 9th Floor—saturated with The Abyss’s essence—had awakened the dormant consciousness of the Demon Kings slumbering within her core.
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[Warning!]
[Artificial Core ‘Abyss’ is resonating.]
[Time remaining until core meltdown: 15 minutes.]
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“No… Yi-soo!”
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I tried to move forward, but gravity rejected me and pushed me back.
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[System: The ‘Unknown God’ denies your approach.]
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“Krahaha! Quite the spectacle, Doctor.”
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A repugnant laugh echoed through the void. Space twisted, and a colossal shadow materialized—a formless mass of black smoke. Where a face should have been, dozens of mouths writhed.
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[Administrator of the 9th Floor: False Guide of Twisted Twilight]
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“This is a place where your logic holds no sway. Medicine? Strength? All meaningless.”
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The Guide’s mouths began speaking in discordant chorus.
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“You will die here.”
“There is no way out.”
“Do not seek hope.”
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Deafening noise burrowed into my skull. Baek Mu-young clutched his ears in agony, while Luna thrashed about, overwhelmed by surging power. Yoo Yi-soo was losing consciousness from the Core’s torment.
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‘Stay calm… I must stay calm.’
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I took a deep breath. Skills won’t work. Physics is broken. My wife is dying. There’s only one thing that can break this deadlock—my mind.
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‘It’s an administrator. It must be bound by the System’s rules.’
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I listened intently to the Guide’s words. It continued hurling curses and insults.
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“This Core is cursed.”
“It can never stop.”
“All your methods are futile.”
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My eyes narrowed. It wasn’t merely ranting. There was a distinct ‘pattern’ to its words.
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“You will die here.” → here
“There is no way out.” → way
“Do not seek hope.” → seek
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The sentences don’t connect.
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‘How am I supposed to find a way out here…?’
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It made no sense.
Then the guide sneered, pointing at Yoo Yi-soo.
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“Look at the woman’s heart.”
“You must destroy the darkness.”
“Only then will you survive.”
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A spark ignited in Kang Jin-hyuk’s mind.
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‘The second word.’
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The second word in each sentence. If I connect only those….
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[heart / destroy / survive]
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“…!!”
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Kang Jin-hyuk’s skin crawled. This monster was mocking us while speaking the truth all along.
No—it had no choice. Because of its role as a ‘guide’, it was bound by constraints that forced it to hide truth within lies and offer hints regardless.
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“Ha! I’ve got it. Your rules.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk grinned wickedly and shouted toward Yoo Yi-soo.
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“Yi-soo! Snap out of it! Can you hear me?”
“Ugh… Jin-hyuk… I feel like I’m going to burst….”
“I won’t let you. I’ll fix it. You trust me, don’t you?”
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Kang Jin-hyuk kicked off the empty air and launched himself upward. Though gravity was chaotic, he exploited its irregularity, bouncing like a billiard ball to reach Yoo Yi-soo.
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“To escape this forest….”
“You must kill me.”
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The guide cried out in alarm. Kang Jin-hyuk snorted derisively.
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[forest / kill] -> That’s a lie.
He realized that Kang Jin-hyuk had caught onto his pattern, so starting with the second clause, he began weaving lies into his words.
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‘He changed the rules. Smart bastard.’
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But Kang Jin-hyuk had already seen through it. The fact that he panicked was proof that they were getting closer to the truth.
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“Team Lead! Luna! Shut that thing’s mouth!”
“What? In this condition?”
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Baek Mu-young grumbled, but forced himself to his feet anyway.
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“Yes! Leave it to me!”
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Luna, unable to contain the overflowing power from the heal buff, charged forward like a missile.
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“H-Hey! Let go! Get away!”
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Luna wrapped her arms around the guide’s true body and held on. While Baek Mu-young drew its attention with blade energy, Kang Jin-hyuk reached Yoo Yi-soo.
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“Yi-soo, I’m sorry. This is going to hurt.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk drew one of the Gladius blades from Yoo Yi-soo’s embrace. Without hesitation, he aimed at her rampaging heart—the [Artificial Core].
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“You’re not… going to stab me, are you?”
Yoo Yi-soo asked with clouded eyes.
“No. Not stabbing—[incising].”
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Kang Jin-hyuk’s hand moved like lightning.
Thwack!
The blade pierced through Yoo Yi-soo’s chest.
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“Gaaahhh!”
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Yoo Yi-soo’s scream.
Black mana surged forth instead of red blood.
But Kang Jin-hyuk’s hand didn’t stop. With the blade’s tip, he meticulously scraped away the core’s outer shell—not destroying the nucleus of the rampaging mana, but forcibly opening the [discharge port] that had been blocked by mana overload. A surgical procedure of precision.
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[Skill: Doctor’s Hand – Ultra-Precision Incision]
[Tamer Skill: Mana Control]
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“Come forth, you worthless dregs!”
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As I twisted the blade free, the clustered consciousness fragments of the Four Demon Kings that had been compressed within the core erupted as black smoke.
Kuaaaaaah!
Like steam escaping a pressure cooker, the rampaging core’s luminescence dimmed and faded.
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[Core meltdown sequence halted.]
[Artificial Core ‘The Abyss’ transitioning to stabilization mode.]
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“Haa… haa….”
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Yoo Yi-soo’s breathing returned. The black veins that had spread across her skin vanished.
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“We succeeded… didn’t we?”
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Yoo Yi-soo laughed weakly.
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“Of course we did. Whose husband do you think I am?”
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I wiped the sweat from my brow and pulled Yoo Yi-soo into my arms.
But it wasn’t over yet.
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“Aaaah! Kang Jin-hyuk! I can’t hold on!”
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Luna screamed. The Guide was expanding, attempting to swallow both her and Baek Mu-young whole.
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“Insolent wretches! How dare you unravel my riddle?”
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The Guide’s fury caused the entire forest to tremble. Trees transformed into spears, targeting our group.
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“Jin-hyuk, I have no strength left….”
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Yoo Yi-soo looked too drained even to grip her blade.
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“It’s fine. From here on, I’ll take the lead.”
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I seized Yoo Yi-soo’s gladius. Kang Jin-hyuk, the surgeon specializing in magical beasts. But now was the time to become the [butcher] wielding [dual blades] instead of a [scalpel].
I gripped the twin swords in reverse stance. Normally they would have been too heavy—Yoo Yi-soo’s weapons—but now, thanks to the twisted gravity of the 9th Floor, they felt light as feathers.
“Listen here, you lying balloon.”
I roared at the Guide.
“Didn’t you say it earlier? ‘This forest has no heart.'”
The Guide faltered.
“If the second part is true… then that means the heart does exist, doesn’t it? Right?”
“That, that’s—!”
“And when Yoo Yi-soo’s core was about to shatter earlier, there was one place you were particularly anxious about. Where the mana resonated.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk’s gaze fixed on the center of the Guide’s torso, where countless mouths clustered together. Within them, a violet light pulsed faintly.
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“There it is. Your vital point.”
“No! That’s a trap!”
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The Guide cried out desperately.
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“If you strike there, you’ll all die!”
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[That is / a trap] -> a trap?
[If you strike / there / you all / die] -> strike?
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Kang Jin-hyuk let out a soft laugh.
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“The rules changed again? This time you decided to only lie?”
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The Guide’s pattern collapsed. In its panic, it had mixed truth and falsehood together. That very confusion was its weakness.
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“Luna! Move!”
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Luna nimbly rolled to the side. Kang Jin-hyuk kicked off the ground and surged forward.
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[Taming Skill: Predator’s Eye]
[Medical Skill: Heart Extraction]
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Kang Jin-hyuk’s twin blades slashed across the Guide’s torso in an X.
Screech!
Black smoke tore apart, revealing the violet crystal hidden within—the power source of this forest and the Guide’s true form: the Heart of Twisted Twilight.
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“Found you, you bastard.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk reached out without hesitation and seized the crystal.
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“No! If you pull that out, this entire floor will collapse!”
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The Guide let out a piercing wail.
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“Collapse, then. I was planning to remodel anyway.”
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Crack! Kang Jin-hyuk tore the crystal free.
Kieeeeeek—!
The Guide shattered into fragments with a horrific scream.
At the same moment, the chaotic gravity began normalizing. Trees that had been drifting weightlessly plummeted to the ground, and the twisted space snapped back into place.
Thud!
Crash!
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“Ow, my back!”
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Baek Mu-young cried out from where he’d landed on the floor. Luna also fell hard on her backside.
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“Ow… at least we’re not flying anymore.”
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Yoo Yi-soo landed safely, cradled in Kang Jin-hyuk’s arms.
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[9th Floor: Twisted Twilight Forest cleared.]
[Interference from the Unknown God is temporarily blocked.]
[Reward: Heart of Twilight (S-Rank Artifact)]
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“Is it… over?”
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Baek Mu-young struggled to his feet.
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“Yes. We’ve extinguished the immediate threat.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk gazed at the violet crystal in his hand—the luminous Heart of Twilight. If he fused this with Yoo Yi-soo’s artificial core, it should permanently stabilize her unstable mana.
“Yi-soo, take this. Consider it an early birthday gift.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk handed her the crystal.
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“Something this precious… you could sell it for several buildings.”
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Yoo Yi-soo spoke with a hint of jest as she held the crystal to her chest. It resonated with her core and was absorbed smoothly.
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“Thank you, honey. I’m alive because of you.”
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Yoo Yi-soo’s complexion had completely recovered. No—I could feel an aura far more powerful than before.
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“Well, let’s save the touching reunion for later.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk looked up at the sky. Beyond the breach in the ceiling, the colossal eye still glared down at us.
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[Unknown God].
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It hadn’t given up yet.
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[…Impressive. My toy refuses to break.]
[But Floor 10 will be different.]
[That is where your very ‘existence’ will be denied.]
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The voice faded, and a staircase descended toward Floor 10. This time, it wasn’t a gaping black maw—it was an ordinary white marble staircase. Yet that very ordinariness sent chills down my spine.
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“Floor 10… just below the very peak of The Tower.”
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Baek Mu-young wiped his blade with solemn resolve.
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“Existence denied… how philosophical.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk straightened his necktie.
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“Let’s go. Whatever emerges, it’s just another patient for my Hospital.”
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Kang Jin-hyuk led the way. Yoo Yi-soo, Baek Mu-young, and Luna followed in his wake. There was no hesitation in their steps.
But beneath the surface, I was drenched in cold sweat.
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‘Honestly, I was terrified back there. If it hadn’t been for that second clause, we’d all be dead.’
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My hands trembled slightly, but I clenched my fists to hide it. If the leader falters, the party crumbles. I had to remain an audacious charlatan and the finest physician until the very end.
Their silhouettes vanished into the white light atop the staircase. Now the final trial awaited them.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————