episode_0104

Chimera, a being created by synthesizing two or more organisms.

In the land of the demon king without human rights, they were beings commonly created. Among those who survived cruel experiments, those who maintained their sanity were treated as intelligent monsters and lived on.

Chimeras without sanity were simply treated as grotesque monsters.

There were various reasons for creating chimeras. Humans commonly imagined purposes such as ‘to create new species, to obtain eternal life, or simply to acquire strong organisms,’ but there were also many cases with different purposes.

They were also created for personal reasons like ‘to have a beautiful appearance, to create beings for exploring dangerous places, or to create ideals.’

The results produced by those dreaming of eternal life or new species often had horrific appearances resembling humans with orc arms and two heads.

On the other hand, the products of those aiming for beautiful appearances or ideals were quite intact. Chimeras with intact appearances were sold at high prices and could live among humans in an ordinary manner.

‘If it is a chimera… the purpose for which it was created is important.’

Mu-kan continued his thoughts while looking at Noah frozen in confusion and astonishment.

‘Judging from the rather flashy appearance, it might be a chimera made to be used as a sex slave.’

Mu-kan turned his gaze away from Noah and examined Lian more closely once again.

‘The quickest way to confirm is to check the lower body…’

Chimeras created for the purpose of sex slaves mostly had orc items attached below. Mu-kan had never seen this directly, but he had heard about it from others.

‘…No, no. The probability of not being a sex slave is also high. All the internal organs are abnormal for a sex slave.’

Perhaps it could be a chimera created for purposes like new species or eternal life. Mu-kan decided that there was no more information he could gather about Lian’s appearance.

‘Sigh, with the information I have now, I can’t treat properly.’

Mu-kan clicked his tongue softly and looked at someone who seemed to know well about Lian.

“Chi… Chimera?”

It took less than a minute for Mu-kan to examine Lian and come to a conclusion. As a result, Noah was still in a malfunctioning state.

It seemed necessary to calm down a bit to obtain proper information from Noah.

“Just in case I asked, I didn’t mean to say the patient is a chimera.”

“Oh…”

Only after hearing that, Noah seemed to regain focus in his eyes as if he had found his sanity.

“Even if not a chimera, were you someone who underwent experiments in the past?”

“Yes…”

“Well.. To receive proper treatment, we need to know what kind of experiment you underwent.”

Noah’s face turned pale at Mu-kan’s words. It was because of the cruel experiment scenes that came to mind. With a trembling voice, Noah spoke.

“Do I… really need to know that?”

“This patient’s body is very different from that of ordinary people.”

Mu-kan pointed to Lian’s abdomen.

“Especially the condition of the organs inside the abdomen… is very abnormal. Because of that, medicine that works for ordinary humans may act as poison for the patient.”

Mu-kan explained calmly.

“The reason for vomiting blood is likely due to that. Since the organs are not in normal condition, it leads to vomiting blood.”

“…!”

“To resolve this, using a Holy Water or a high-grade potion might improve the condition considerably, but it’s not a perfect solution. Moreover, if the patient’s organs have a ‘malevolent’ attribute, it could become a bigger issue.”

Mu Khan looked straight at Noah and spoke.

“So, to properly treat the patient, we need to know what experiments the patient underwent in the past. Otherwise… we may have to cut open to accurately identify the cause.”

Noah’s trembling gaze soon wandered to the floor.

“What kind of experiment was it?”

She searched her memory, recalling the horrific experiment that had happened to Lian. The proliferating blood seemed to flow stickily above her pupils.

“I can’t reveal the experiment from back then without Lian’s consent. But…”

Noah’s gaze turned towards Lian lying stretched out on the bed.

“For treatment…”

Amidst the intense inner conflict in her mind, Noah realized a shocking fact.

“Just a moment.”

Her eyes widened.

“Does saying the organs are abnormal mean… they were damaged due to an experiment?”

“No, rather…”

After hesitating for a moment to choose his words, Mu Khan bluntly uttered a cruel statement.

“It would be more accurate to say that they have been replaced by non-human organs.”

“…! Th-that means…”

Chimera, wasn’t that the word for Lian?

The unfinished words trickled from Noah’s throat.

Crack.

Mu Khan touched one side of Lian’s bed, creating a noise to capture Noah’s attention.

“If you don’t have any information, we’ll have to resort to other methods urgently.”

“Other methods?”

“Well, if you can’t provide any more information…”

In response, Noah bit her lip slightly and nodded, confirming her ‘easily recoverable constitution’ that had existed even before meeting Lian.

This meant that it was likely correct to assume that in her unknown past, she underwent some experiment where her organs were replaced with non-human ones.

Noah pondered with a puzzled expression.

“I… don’t know anything about Lian.”

How she ended up with such a constitution, what experiments she underwent in the past, what thoughts she usually had.

She didn’t know any of these properly.

“Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to have a ‘malevolent’ attribute.”

“…?”

At Mu Khan’s voice breaking the silence, Noah’s gaze turned towards the bed. In Mu Khan’s hand was a tiny vial of Holy Water. It was a substance known as ‘Jab Holy Water,’ heavily infused with water, providing effects only slightly better than a low-grade potion, but it was a rare item forbidden in the Demon King’s land, making it hard to obtain. Consequently, it was quite expensive.

Mu Khan dropped a few drops of the Holy Water onto Lian’s left hand and nodded.

“If it had a ‘malevolent’ attribute, there would have been some reaction.”

After giving additional explanations to Noah, Mu Khan took out a potion.

“First, let’s administer emergency treatment. Please help me for a moment.”

Following Mu Khan’s request, Noah helped raise Lian’s upper body. Mu Khan opened Lian’s mouth, poured the potion, gently lifted her chin, and made her swallow it.

“With a high-grade potion, most wounds should heal without issues. Of course…”

Mu Khan’s gaze shifted towards Lian’s abdomen. The eerie aura still lingered strongly.

“It may be difficult to consider this as a complete cure.”

“Ah…”

After wiping off Lian’s face with a damp towel, Mucan looked at the sleeping Lian with an angelic face. He felt the warmth burning in her eyes.

“The immediate measures we can take end here. It seems we can proceed with further treatment after obtaining additional information from the awakened patient. More importantly… The communication device has been ringing since earlier. Is it okay if you don’t check it?”

“Ah.”

Hmm, hmm…

Unaware of how distracted he had been, Noah failed to notice the vibrating communication device. He hurriedly took out the communicator.

It was a message from Lily.

Noah realized that he hadn’t informed others about finding Lian. After quickly informing them about finding Lian through the communicator, he asked them to inform others as well.

Hmm…

Before long, the communication device turned off, leaving only Lian’s quiet breathing and Noah’s regret in the medical room. Mucan subtly withdrew from the sight of the two people who seemed to have an unusual relationship.

“I shouldn’t get involved as much as possible.”

Mucan returned to his place, took out herbs to chew thoughtfully, and started flipping through a book on the medical room shelf.

Even if he couldn’t find a way to cure Lian, he was searching for information that could be helpful. Contrary to his indifferent expression, Mucan was sincere towards the patients.

***

“Ugh..?”

Lian blinked her heavy eyelids slowly and let out a sluggish breath.

“Where am I?”

Initially puzzled by the unfamiliar ceiling, her confusion soon dissipated. It felt like she had slept deeply and woke up feeling pleasantly drowsy.

“Lian!”

“Brother!”

“Oppa!”

“…!”

Just as she was drifting back to sleep, voices filled with concern surrounded her. Her drowsiness vanished in an instant. Lian half-opened her eyes and looked at Lily, Nero, and Noah surrounding her bed.

Still groggy from just waking up, Lian stared blankly at the three people.

Although she was only partially awake, to others, she seemed mentally absent due to her poor physical condition.

“Mucan!”

“Please step aside for a moment.”

Approaching Lian’s bedside, Mucan examined her face. When Mucan brought his finger towards Lian’s eyes, she blinked reflexively.

Then, flicking his finger near her ear, Lian’s gaze unknowingly turned towards the direction of the sound. Confirming that Lian was fully awake, Mucan spoke immediately.

“Can you hear me, patient?”

Only after hearing Mucan’s words could Lian fully awaken from her slumber.

“I collapsed and was brought to the medical room.”

Recognizing a face she had encountered several times while using the power of healing, she understood the situation. As Lian tried to assure them she was fine, she heard Mucan’s stiff voice.

“Could it be a hearing problem..”

“..?”

As Lian was busy grasping the situation around her and didn’t respond, she inadvertently became someone who couldn’t hear.