NOVEL WEB Chapter 240: Otto, You're Using My Own Spell Against Me…?
This was a crimson hell.
Countless corpses littered the ground. Shu couldn't see their faces, but he instantly recognized them.
The white-clothed body remained pure, the gray one… like dust…
He saw the gruesome details of each body, but not their expressions.
What would they say? What were they thinking before they became… this?
He staggered forward, trying to examine them.
But then, a corpse sprang up, grabbing his collar and dragging him down.
"You… could… have saved us!" The voice was strained, fragmented, yet filled with a bitter determination.
Shu felt a chill. He wanted to look down, to see who it was, but the hand gripping his collar lost its strength and fell.
His heart wasn't stirred by the attack, but the moment the hand released, he felt a piercing pain.
—
"!"
A familiar ceiling…
Shu stared at the white metal ceiling, unsure what to say, what to think…
Where was he…?
"Yo, you're awake?" A familiar voice.
He was exhausted, his body resisting movement. He could only turn his eyes.
A flash of bright gold, a continuously peeling apple…
"Otto?" Shu asked weakly.
Wait… had he fainted? How long had he been out, for Otto to be here?!
Physical exhaustion seemed less important. He instinctively tried to sit up.
"Wham—"
He underestimated his body's weakness. He only managed to lift his upper body slightly before collapsing back onto the bed.
He instantly entered a state of zen-like calm, lying motionless, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.
Was there any point in getting up? Did he need to get up?
Since Otto was here, unharmed, nothing major had happened while he was unconscious, right?
Unless this was all a dream…
"Relax, nothing serious happened," Otto said, placing the perfectly peeled apple skin on a tray. He expertly sliced the fruit, placing a toothpick in each piece.
After finishing, he paused, then picked up a piece of apple and ate it. "You protected them well."
Okay, that familiar feeling… Only Otto would be this… extra.
But Shu's body and mind relaxed completely, sinking into the bed.
"How long was I out?" Shu asked.
"About 12 hours," Otto replied, setting down the toothpick and leaving the rest of the apple untouched.
"Really…" Shu's tone was melancholic. "It felt like three days and three nights…"
"Your body was in a terrible state," Otto said, picking up several medical reports and glancing at the appalling data. "I'm curious… how did you survive with these stats?"
Shu rolled his eyes. "How bad could it be?"
"Well, you weren't quite a corpse…" Otto smiled, turning the reports to face Shu.
Shu squinted at them.
[Heart Rate: 7 beats per minute]
[Pulse Rate: 12 beats per minute]
[Respiration: Apnea for 37 minutes]
[…]
Shu: "…"
He touched his face. It was still warm. He placed his hand on his chest. He could feel his heart beating.
Still unconvinced, he took a deep breath, then looked at the astonishing report with a questioning gaze.
"Are you sure these are the stats of a living person?" Shu asked, his expression twisted.
"Of course. How much worse could it be?" Otto spread his hands.
Otto, you're using my own creation against me?!
Shu didn't want to discuss it further. He was alive… that was all that mattered.
"So, how did you get here?" Shu shifted his gaze from Otto to the room.
It looked familiar. A quick search of his memory revealed why.
It was one of the dormitories on B5 of Heliopolis.
But why was he here? And why was Otto here?
He didn't recall setting up any kind of "search and rescue" plan with Otto based on a time limit.
Otto set down the reports, his green eyes meeting Shu's. He paused thoughtfully, then pointed behind him.
"Your new… friend brought us here."
Shu: "?"
I'm warning you, don't say anything out of line! You're slandering me! Slandering me!!
Shu glared, following Otto's gesture, looking behind him.
At the door of the dormitory, Ethics stood, ramrod straight, holding Pet.
Shu didn't know how long Ethics had been standing there like that. But when Shu looked at him, Ethics gave him a nod.
"Mr. Shu, I have sought cooperation with your teammates and fulfilled the terms of our agreement," Ethics said, his voice as raspy as ever.
Shu once again found that, compared to Otto…
No, never mind. Otto was alright…
Shu was truly hungry.
"This gentleman from Future City, Ethics, along with his Titan compatriots, descended from the sky, bringing me, everyone from the Hyperion, and a substantial amount of supplies to find you."
"And it was Ethics who maintained your vital functions, allowing me to receive you in a… relatively lively state." Otto glanced back at Ethics, who returned the gesture with a formal bow.
"How am I 'lively'?" Shu asked, lying weakly on the bed, looking at the nonchalant Otto.
"How much worse could it be?" Otto spread his hands again.
Enough!
Stop saying that to me!
"Alright," Otto smiled, standing up, picking up the hard drive on the table, and walking towards Ethics. "Thank you very much for your cooperation with Fire Moth. I still need to administer further treatment to our squad leader, and the procedure is… confidential. Would you mind stepping outside?"
"Of course, Mr. Otto," Ethics replied, taking the drive. "Our agreement stipulates that you may withhold confidential information from me."
With that, Ethics, holding Pet, turned and left the room, closing the door behind him.