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Golden and red orbs of light swayed back and forth before his eyes, emitting an incessant buzz that made everything deeply uncomfortable. They were like two flies, circling endlessly around Ignis's head. He reached out and swatted at them a few times, just as he would with real flies.
But the two hazy clusters of light did not disperse. Instead, as if enraged, they flared brightly and then plunged straight into his abdomen.
"Holy shit!" Ignis cursed aloud as his eyes snapped open.
The air carried the sharp scent of disinfectant. Above him was a glaringly bright light, yet it was not an unfamiliar ceiling.
Seeing several retracting flexible mechanical arms overhead, along with the familiar LED lights, the Salamander quickly realized that this was his own bed.
He tilted his massive head to the side and saw an enormous IV bag. It looked like an industrial-sized container of laundry detergent, and several of them were hanging at once. Following the infusion tube, Ignis noticed someone holding his hand.
It was Nicole, the head of the Cunning Hares. She was gripping Ignis's hand, fast asleep. She had changed into casual homewear, her hair let down in a messy state. The pink-haired woman was breathing softly, dark circles ringing her eyes, clearly having gone a long time without proper rest. The nail polish on her fingers had grown patchy from not being redone.
Looks like I worried her again.
Ignis sighed. With his right hand, he felt over his body. The power armor was gone, as were the neural-muscle bundles. He was completely naked now. He moved his hand toward his abdomen, following the traces of memory, searching for the wound left behind by that demon.
Then a surge of searing pain made his entire body shudder violently.
The wound was still there. His body was weak, his stamina poor, but he was alive. Ignis reached that conclusion and let out another sigh.
He clearly remembered the moment when U'zuhl's daemon blade pierced his abdomen, the agony of warp fire scorching his internal organs. He had not expected to survive it. His life must have been preserved partly thanks to the modified body of an Adeptus Astartes, but there was no doubt that The Emperor had lent His aid as well. He even seemed to recall hearing the laughter of the Blood God. Perhaps even the other chaos gods themselves had taken notice.
Thinking that he might have caught Khorne's attention made the Salamander sigh again, but the motion tugged at the wound, forcing a grimace of pain. His resistance to pain should have been considerable, but that injury had been inflicted by the Blade of the Blood God. That it had not killed him outright was already a mercy.
Once the pain eased slightly, Ignis exhaled deeply and turned his head toward his current employer.
At the very least, he had succeeded. The daemon had been banished. The sacrificial assault had been reckless, but it worked. His friends should all have returned from the Hollow safely. He just did not know how they had managed to haul him out, considering that with armor he weighed several tons.
Nicole's fingers were still wrapped around his hand as she lay slumped beside the bed. The beautiful woman suddenly sneezed, shook her head, and sat upright.
"Is the air conditioning too cold…" she muttered softly, stretching lazily, before her eyes met the burning embers of Ignis's gaze.
"Hey." Ignis lifted his hand and waved at her.
"You're awake?" Nicole yawned, then suddenly realized something was wrong. "You're awake!"
That shout perfectly demonstrated that Boss Nicole had an impressive soprano range. It immediately summoned the rest of the Cunning Hares.
In an instant, four more people crowded around the Salamander's bed, chattering nonstop with questions. Well, mostly Billy and Nicole. Anby still wore her poker face, but the joy in her eyes was unmistakable.
Ignis's attention, however, was drawn to someone else. Jane Doe, dressed in homewear. Why was she here?
"Wait…" Ignis spoke up, his tone serious and steady. "I know you all have questions, but let me ask one first." He tried to sit up, but the pain in his abdomen forced him back down. "Why is Jane here?"
"Oh? Is that you trying to send me away?" The Rat Thiren woman immediately put on a wounded expression. "How cold-hearted. Once I've lost my value, you won't even let me visit you."
The over-the-top performance was obviously deliberate. Ignis's face twitched with exasperation.
"Sister Jane is here to help take care of you." Nekomata actually stepped forward first to defend her. Since when had this cat gotten along so well with that mouse?
"At first, Zhu Yuan suggested sending you to a hospital affiliated with New Eridu Public Security," Jane Doe said as she lifted the blanket and checked the bandages on his wound. "But Nicole refused. It looks like the bleeding has finally stopped. A few days ago, it was still seeping constantly. We had to change the gauze several times a day."
"Does it still hurt badly? Do you need painkillers?" Nicole asked, watching the Salamander bare his teeth in pain. "I remember you didn't want to go to a hospital for an examination, so we had no choice but to hire a trustworthy underground doctor. It costed us a huge amount of dennies."
"That doctor said you were basically half a corpse," Billy recalled. "He thought you couldn't be saved."
"Then Anby immediately put a chainsword to his neck and told him to figure something out," Billy added.
"Yeah, that doctor was scared out of his mind," Nekomata nodded vigorously. "He said there was nothing he could do. He couldn't even perform basic examinations, so he could only try stitching you up."
"Then your breathing suddenly stabilized," she continued. "Even the wound that had been bleeding nonstop started to clot."
It must have been the Larraman's Organ and the Belisarian Furnace activating, forcibly dragging him back from the brink of death. But his internal organs had been burned by warp fire. That should have been beyond the Belisarian Furnace's repair capabilities. Normally, with injuries like that, he should have ended up like Gotthardt, relying on a sarcophagus to sustain life.
It seemed The Emperor Himself had intervened, pulling him back from death.
Thank you, old man.
Ignis silently offered his thanks to The Emperor.
"But I am curious," Jane Doe said, reaching out to touch several neural interfaces on Ignis's chest. "What are these circular ports? Over the next few days, your wound kept seeping blood, but your vital signs were stable. The doctor prepared some medication and originally wanted to hire a nurse. As for me, I happen to know nursing techniques, so I stayed."
"Boss," Ignis said, raising a finger to point at Jane Doe, "you never suspected her?"
"Of course I did," Nicole replied, her gaze drifting away. "But she said she didn't want any nursing fees… and she's an acquaintance… so…"
"In short," Nicole suddenly raised her voice, "Jane Doe is now a friend of the Cunning Hares! And you need to rest properly!"
The Rat Thiren woman winked at him, her face full of triumph. While he had been unconscious, this sly mouse and brilliant criminology expert had already won over everyone in the Cunning Hares.
And Nicole, weren't you terrified of officers from Public Security…? She's far scarier than them.
Faced with the Salamander's unspoken stare, Nicole forcibly turned her head away to avoid eye contact.
"How many days was I out?" Ignis sighed, choosing not to dwell on the issue. Having more friends meant more paths forward, and Jane Doe, someone who lived long in the gray zones, could provide plenty of help.
"Today is the fifth day," Anby answered. "It was much worse than last time. We all thought you wouldn't wake up. Nicole was already contacting a funeral home."
"Anby!" Nicole hurriedly interrupted. "You were bleeding heavily those first few days. I only mentioned it in passing. I didn't actually contact a funeral home!"
Considering that the wound had been inflicted by the Skulltaker's daemon blade, surviving such a blow was already a miracle.
"Looks like I walked right up to death's door again," Ignis said with a faint smile.
Honestly, during his battles across the Warhammer galaxy, he had never once faced danger like this. Yet after arriving in New Eridu, he had already lost consciousness twice due to injuries.
The first time had been the Chaos fog. This time, Khorne. Who knew what monstrosity he would face next. This was no longer like before, fighting alongside that old sergeant who protected him like a true elder brother. Now it was Ignis's turn to protect others, even if it meant facing greater danger.
By his understanding, U'zuhl was a genuine monster, one who had killed many Grey Knights and even fought Castellan Garran Crowe for hours, on ground already sanctified with holy water. That Ignis had faced it without being instantly slain, escaping with only injuries, was already remarkable.
"So, Razor's case is finished?" the Salamander asked Jane Doe.
"It's finished," the Criminal Investigation Special Response Team's external consultant nodded. "Zhu Yuan wrote in the report that with significant assistance from civilians, the team eliminated the resisting Razor and other hardened criminals. The Mountain Lion Gang has been completely eradicated, reduced to a single page in criminal history."
"That's good…" Ignis finally relaxed. It seemed he truly had won, albeit at great cost, and U'zuhl likely had not even unleashed its full strength.
"All right, all right. The patient needs proper rest," Jane Doe said as she pulled the blanket back over him. "Nicole, go rest. I'll take over. You all too. Stop crowding him and get some rest."
Their temporary nurse began shooing people away. After confirming that he was no longer in danger, the members of the Cunning Hares finally relaxed. Nicole, in particular, yawned repeatedly as she staggered out of the garage.
Before long, the garage that had been packed with people was left with only the Salamander and the Rat Thiren woman. Jane Doe sat beside the bed, her back to Ignis, and reached out to rest her hand on the back of his.
"Thank you…" she whispered. "You really came to save me…"
Her voice no longer carried its usual composure or cheer, but trembled like someone who had survived a catastrophe.
"I told you," Ignis replied firmly. "I said I would win. It was only Razor."
"Mm. I always believed in you…" The Rat Thiren woman lowered her head. Ignis couldn't see her expression, but he could feel her trembling through their joined hands. "I was so scared… those lunatics…"
"I kept praying… enduring… hoping you would come sooner. Do you remember when we met on Fourteenth Street…? I was too careless. Someone mentioned you to Razor, and I was captured. They drew a strange symbol on me, and then it was like falling into a nightmare. I watched myself kill living people, cut their throats, pin them down, and watch their blood drain away…"
"I wanted to refuse, to struggle, to fight Razor with everything I had. But my body wouldn't listen. I could only watch it like a movie. I was so scared… scared I'd become a monster like them…"
Jane Doe's voice suddenly stopped. She tightly gripped the Salamander's fingers, as if making a decision.
The swift Rat Thiren moved like a shadow, pouncing onto Ignis. Her slender arms wrapped around his neck, and even through the thin blanket, he could feel the softness of her body.
"Thank you…" she whispered by his ear. Her warm breath made it itch slightly. "For saving me from this nightmare."
"Just like a prince from a fairy tale…"
Ignis froze, unsure of what to do. A woman had hugged him of her own accord, and not in the deliberately flirtatious way she had before.
"Even if this prince looks like a monster."
Of course. She still couldn't resist teasing him. Ignis relaxed inwardly. This was the Jane Doe he knew.
He was just about to say something suitably dignified to carry the moment through.
"I promised you, so I should—"
Before the words could leave his mouth, a slightly damp, warm sensation brushed against his cheek. His old face flushed instantly.
Unlike the act they had put on in the cargo truck last time, this time Jane Doe was serious. She buried her head against the Salamander's chest. Heat seeped through the blanket, making his skin burn as well.
The two of them froze like that. Ignis didn't dare move, and Jane Doe showed no sign of getting up. The Salamander's mind was locked in turmoil. This woman was undeniably charming, but how should he respond to these feelings?
He even silently prayed to The Emperor, asking the Master of Mankind for some guidance.
But the old man did not answer this time.
Both of his hearts were pounding furiously. He had never felt this stirred, not even when facing U'zuhl.
"I…" He had just begun to speak when Jane Doe raised a finger and pressed it against his lips.
She got off him, then removed a hair tie from her wrist and tied her hair back.
"Do you want something to eat?"
She tried to act as usual, but the Salamander could see that her agitation had not yet faded.
"Just get me some water."
Jane Doe nodded and walked out of the garage.
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