The eccentric doctor never makes a misdiagnosis!

"You! Cough..." Commons clutched his blood-splattered neck and staggered backward.

The child's desperate counterattack was incredibly powerful; his carotid artery and part of his trachea were bitten through...

Commons quickly stepped back, seemingly trying to compress the neck to stop the bleeding, but the gushing blood showed no signs of decreasing.

Due to massive blood loss, he quickly went into shock and collapsed to the ground.

The girl was breathing heavily, spitting out the remaining blood and bits of flesh from her mouth.

It took her a long time to completely calm her fear, and just as she stood before the white falcon statue, pondering how to escape this secret chamber…

Commons, who had been slumped to the ground, quietly stood up and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey……"

What gushed from his neck was no longer blood plasma, but a thick bacterial spore lysate.

"Your disguise is quite good. You seem to be seeking liberation, or willing to die for others... but you never gave up the fight. Until the very last moment, you were thinking about how to kill me."

"And I'm also curious to see just how far you can go..."

"As a seven-year-old, you've done very well. Now, embrace your new life without regrets."

The laceration on Commons' neck had stopped leaking fluid. He beamed with undisguised joy, displaying the air of a victor.

Using this method to evoke emotions in the material is truly the epitome of perverse humor...

Fran remained an observer, occasionally offering his comments on the alchemist's procedures.

The girl retreated little by little, while Commons approached little by little.

Suddenly, Commons stopped in his tracks.

It wasn't because the girl had been cornered, but because... a dark shadow scythe was pressed against his neck.

If you move your head any further, it might fall off.

"Who are you? How did you get in? Don't you know this is Lois's residence?"

Comens felt an icy chill from behind, as if a slightly heavier breath would kill him... to the point that he couldn't even muster the courage to turn around.

Who was it, and how did they get in? Why is the only secret door completely unopened?

What should we do? What should we say? In any case, we must at least try to calm him down!

Just as Commons was pondering rapidly, his vision suddenly blurred...

After a strong feeling of falling, he saw his ankle.

"Peng!"

Commons' head was crushed into a pool of shattered flesh by the trampling of the hunting boots.

The contents of his skull were not red and white brain matter, but a cluster of dark green bacteria. These forms, resembling plant contamination, had replaced most of the medulla, interfering with and even dominating his thoughts.

Previous "bio-alchemy experiments" rarely succeeded, except for producing large amounts of contaminants saturated with lysates, yet he persisted in doing so... The answer is obvious.

The alchemist's mind had been completely replaced without his knowledge.

At this moment, he was not even a so-called "mad scientist," but merely a gardener cultivating lysozyme.

The girl did not express her gratitude or make any other move; she simply stared warily at the hunter with his deep-set eyes.

Although the hunter killed the terrifying alchemist, it didn't mean he was there to save him. The one who kills a villain isn't necessarily good… he could be an even greater villain.

The aura surrounding the hunter was cold and murderous, like the howling north wind of winter.

He's far more dangerous than that alchemist...

Yaheng looked around at the skeletons that almost filled the secret room, his gaze growing increasingly solemn.

After confirming that there were no more evil offspring or priests alive here, he turned his gaze to the girl whose mouth was still covered in blood.

"Grey-brown eyes, are you 'Mei6 Redis6'?...Which branch are you from?"

As the dim, flickering light filled the secret room, the girl finally noticed that the hunter's eyes were also a light gray-chestnut color.

"I..." The girl seemed somewhat fearful, as if she hadn't figured out how to respond to the hunter.

Her memory was completely blank; she had no idea what Meredith was. But if she answered truthfully, would she end up like the alchemist, her head chopped off with a scythe?

"I do not remember."

In the end, she chose to answer truthfully.

"What's your name?" Yaheng asked succinctly, almost sparingly.

"I don't remember either." The girl pursed her lips. Since she had chosen to tell the truth, she would grit her teeth and go all the way.

After waking up, she found herself among many experimental subjects, completely unable to remember her origins or name. Her only obsession was to "survive."

"Don't you remember..." Yaheng narrowed his eyes, as if deep in thought.

The white cup, like a dream veil erasing memories, not only deleted two names but also caused moderate-sized amnesia. Children, especially those with keen intuition, were most easily affected.

"It's better not to remember. Meredith is an ancient ship that is destined to sink, and it's not worth being tied to it."

He seemed to be recalling something, and his expression became somewhat wistful. He even became more talkative.

"You did well."

Without any warning, Yaheng praised the girl, but his tone remained as indifferent as ever, as if he were merely stating a fact.

"...Which point?"

The girl was a little confused.

"After biting Commons' neck, the first thing you did was tear his blood vessels. If he were still human... you would have won."

Yaheng raised his hand and straightened his French tricorn hat.

"Sensitive and suspicious—★〇〇萋「≤就□♀肆钐″∠刺蝟〕〃4折代∷购∷∩：Sharp, resolute, you possess the talent of a hunter of secrets..."

"Come with me, if you'd like."

As he spoke, Yaheng ignored the white falcon statue that served as the door-opening mechanism and slowly approached the secret door. With three swings of his scythe, a gap large enough for a person to pass through was neatly cut out.

The girl gritted her teeth, made a decision in a split second, and then chased after the hunter in black.

"Wait for me."

Yaheng immediately turned around.

"Would you like to become a Hunter of Secrets?"

"Yes." The girl, who had already made up her mind, agreed without hesitation.

Yaheng nodded slightly, unsurprised, as if their communication should be this concise and efficient.

“Hyda Moira, use this name. From this day forward, I will call you my daughter.”

He said the name without any sign of thinking, as if he had already decided on it long ago.

Upon hearing the chief hunter's words, Fran raised his hand to cover his mouth and looked at Haida beside him. The doctor's amber eyes held a faint smile, like a feline that had discovered something interesting.

Haida wasn't embarrassed; her gray-chestnut eyes held more composure.

She had no intention of hiding anything from the doctor.

“Dr. Fran also discovered the secret in my memories... then we're even.”

Fran protested this.

"Hey, isn't this a bit unfair? My dark history is so extensive... I have three stories to recount."

"However... Sister Heda's memory is very 'pure,' without much sign of darkness corrupting you. This means your mental state is approaching health. You no longer need additional treatment."

As for the darkness and danger of Fran's memories... let's not even go into it.

In the introduction of this quarterly outpatient clinic, the patient suffering from [post-traumatic stress disorder (early stage)] was Haida.

Due to the past of the alchemist Commons, she experiences near-physiological discomfort with lysozyme.

This is also why, when she first saw that towering statue, even just glimpsing its afterimage caused her spiritual consciousness to collapse and shed tears of blood.

But when she saw Dr. Fran, fueled by madness, climb the mountain of corpses and seize the crown... the shadow that had been hidden in Heda's heart for many years vanished.

……

With the heart ailment cured, this year-end quarterly outpatient visit is now over.

Memories, the world inside and out, all the old images of the past... are now melting away like spring snow.

As the mist gathered, the two figures gradually disappeared into it and could no longer be seen.

...Silent Hill fell silent again.

-

-

I want that one (the one).

Chapter 101 Epilogue

Foggy Street Clinic, main hall.

Fran had an old, thick diary on her lap, and she held a quill pen in her hand, recording the findings of her December quarterly house call in a smooth and coherent manner.

Because this is the last and most important outpatient visit of the year, she also calls it the "annual outpatient visit".

[Fran, the "Misty Street Doctor," and Heida, the "Funeral Maid," have had their mental illnesses cured. This quarter's cross-disciplinary consultation is complete. Completion: Apollyon (Abyss). Your next cross-disciplinary consultation will trigger at the end of the next quarter.]

[This consultation fee: The Crown Thief (Talent)]

[Your resolution changes: TerraMedicine (15% → 17%), Xenologia (40.5% → 42.5%).]

[Special ability 'Dust Removal' has reached the advancement standard (Proficient Level → Mastery Level), and its level is reset to zero.]

-

【Crown Thief (Talent)】

[Quality: perfect]

[Effect: Evolved from the "Legendary Phantom Thief," this talent allows the user to attempt to steal anything, whether tangible or intangible, simply by "touching" it. However, due to a certain doctor's rusty skills, the current effectiveness of this talent is severely limited.]

[Note: "One more on my wish list, one more, one more. Phew... Only my museum is the best home for these treasures." — An anonymous space necromancer overlord.]

Fran paused to write down the description of the "Crown Thief" talent, then closed his diary.

This is equivalent to recovering a portion of the talent that was separated from "Madness" back then, which is indeed enough for an Abyss-level diagnostic certificate.

After all, even the "Legendary Phantom Thief" is only of flawless quality, while the "Crown Thief" has reached perfection.

The only regrettable thing is that some of her memories and skills were completely lost during that separation, which was equivalent to starting from scratch...

Fran raised his hand and gently stroked his abdomen, his amber eyes flickering slightly with a hint of languor.

The mark of the King of Mad Fire, entwined with the crown of lysozyme, detached from her body, and the Void Gate she had crafted had also vanished completely. At this moment, apart from some special medicines in the "Second Medicine Treasury," her body was practically empty.

This feeling of ease and comfort is something I haven't experienced in many years, as if a chronic illness has been cured.

As for the stolen crown… it’s currently being kept in the collection room of the Foggy Street Clinic. The plan to find a new “box” can be put on the agenda, but it’s not urgent; we can look for it while making house calls.

That feeling of being chased had vanished and no longer haunted Fran.

But perhaps it is just lying dormant, and will reappear one day.

……

Heda sat upright on the velvet sofa opposite Fran, quietly flipping through the Ashes Codex in her hands.

Although not much time had passed, her knowledge of the mystical had already undergone a qualitative leap after her trip to the Hill of Silence.

After all... witnessing the incarnation of a god without dying or losing one's mind is a miracle in itself.

After a while, Haida put down the scripture and rubbed her temples.

Fran rested his chin on his hand and asked her about the progress of her study of the secret technique at just the right moment.

"Hai Ba Da, what is the current completion rate of the 'Mechanized Spirit Body' secret technique model?"

"Around 70 percent."

Haida considered the situation and gave an answer as truthfully as possible.

Fran nodded slightly. The progress was a bit faster than she had imagined, but it was still within her expectations.