FLIA 142

“Meal service!”

Something jumped out from the one-way meal slot and hit ■Han■’s body. The moment it touched her, the itching vanished, and ■Han■ stopped scratching in surprise. Naturally, she checked what had hit her. It was…

(Tilt) Mom’s stew! Rice! Side dishes! She had wanted it so badly.

She gobbled it down, chewing noisily, gulping noisily.

Mom, can I have more? I just want a little more. I went hungry too long. I was too starved. I missed you so much….

“Then another meal service!”

Something sped by and threw food into the slot with precision. Choi Hanna devoured the delicious meal greedily. It was cooked so well it gleamed, almost shining.

Even after finishing that, she still felt hungry. She staggered over and peered at the slot. Something gleaming popped out again. This time it sparkled too. It was mom’s delicious salad, soft tofu stew, fresh kimchi, braised monkfish, grilled short rib patties, and seaweed soup.

After eating until she was full, she no longer itched. Choi Hanna yawned once and then, for the first time in ages, fell into a peaceful sleep. When she woke after a long deep rest, she realized something.

“Ah, ah….”

Her body did not itch at all. Her name came clearly to mind. Her mom’s face, her mom’s name, her longed-for home.

She immediately started crying. Before, when she was corrupted, grotesque itchy growths had erupted over her body. Now they had subsided. Her skin was still red, uneven, and scarred from scratching, but it did not matter. Without itching, she couldn’t be happier. While she stroked her body, Choi Hanna noticed something.

“What’s that…?”

A booklet had fallen near the bed. She quickly picked it up and read.

[This is a treatment ward for severe corrupted patients, established by the Taeyang Guild. Citizen, you are currently undergoing treatment. If you understood this sentence, please press the red button in the room three times.]

Choi Hanna stood and looked carefully around the room. Red buttons were scattered everywhere. She slowly walked over and pressed three of them at random. A moment later, she heard a lively voice.

“Meal service!”

The voice faded quickly as if the owner was running fast. She slowly picked up what had fallen through the slot. It was warm, steaming, and glowing… a hamburger.

‘…? Do hamburgers… usually glow?’

It seemed strange, but the glow felt comforting and warm. She ate the hamburger instantly. After another deep sleep, she woke and found another booklet.

[This is a treatment ward for severe corrupted patients, established by the Taeyang Guild. Citizen, you are currently undergoing treatment. If you understood this sentence, please press the red button in the room two times.]

Rubbing her eyes, Choi Hanna looked around. Unlike yesterday, only one red button was on the wall. She went and pressed it twice. Something dropped through the slot. It was another small booklet. She opened it.

[This is a treatment ward for severe corrupted patients, established by the Taeyang Guild. Citizen, you are currently undergoing treatment. If you understood this sentence, please press the button the same number of times as the sheep drawn in this booklet.]

“Uh….”

Looking again, the booklet was filled with fluffy sheep drawings. She counted them carefully and pressed the button. The door opened with ‎ clanking noise. Choi Hanna stepped back in hesitation, then stumbled forward and walked out. She followed the quiet hallway.

‘How long has it been this quiet….’

The government quarantine facilities had always been gloomy, smelly, noisy, and completely dark. But here sunlight poured in through windows along the corridor. She squinted at the brightness, but she liked seeing the sun again, so she walked as slowly as possible. A sign was posted at the end of the wall.

[Taeyang Guild Severe Corruption Patient Treatment Ward: Follow the sheep to the cafeteria. Let us keep order while eating.]

At a fork, she looked left and right, then spotted sheep stickers on the wall and turned right. Her legs trembled, but she pushed herself to walk. At the end, she heard voices. She opened a closed door, and her eyes widened.

People in clean clothes sat together eating. Marks, spots, and small tumors covered their faces and bodies, but as they ate food glowing with light, their symptoms faded. Some even looked normal.

Choi Hanna blankly stared at them, she buried her face in her hands and cried. Then, patients who had also been locked away for long as severe corrupted came and put their thin, twisted hands on her back to comfort her.

***

The method Lee Hyunmook suggested to Yohan was food. He had gotten the idea from once giving Yoon Seungryong jerky infused with purification as a temporary measure against corruption in the Abyss.

First, Yohan poured purification into simple food that could be held and eaten by hand. The quick Ju Hoyoung handled the distribution, while Lee Chanha used hallucinations to make the food look more appetizing. The rest stood ready in case of emergencies.

For example, restraining corrupted who turned violently aggressive, feeding food to those who wanted to eat but could not, or protecting Yohan when he had to personally purify those without mouths.

They gave out countless foods. Once was not enough, so they fed them twice, three times, and those who still needed more ate until they improved. Everyone regained their reason. They escaped pain and maddening chaos and became able to follow rules and order. Yohan’s eyes also grew hot as he watched the corrupted people cry from happiness.

“I’m so glad for all of you…!”

Yohan clapped with a trembling voice. He was tired from purifying so many people, but his heart felt full and glad. The corruption was not completely gone yet, so they would still need more meals, but watching their smiling faces made Yohan feel warm too.

“Come to think of it, I heard the assailant from the ceremony woke up. Shall we go see her together?”

“Yes!”

Yohan readily accepted Lee Hyunmook’s suggestion. The assailant was staying in the treatment ward of the care facility. Yohan’s purification erased corruption, but it could not heal the body. Awakeners could recover their regeneration ability once the corruption was gone, but ordinary people could not. So another person was stationed here.

“Suho-hyung!”

Yohan greeted warmly. A friendly-looking awakener man welcomed them with a smile. Lee Suho had been a medic before awakening as a mid-level healer. He had been scouted from the Sunrise Guild to the Taeyang Guild. His main role was treating lower and mid-level awakeners whose regeneration ability was weak. Yohan asked in a gentle tone.

“Did you eat?”

“No, I was just about to.”

Yohan saw Suho’s body stained with fluids and corrupted residue and quickly purified him. He thanked Yohan and turned to Lee Hyunmook.

“She’s much more stable now. You can go in.”

“You’ve worked hard, Suho.”

“Ah, well, isn’t this exactly what I get paid for? And the Guild Leader gave me a big bonus too!”

Suho answered casually, but in truth, it was no easy choice to risk exposure to corrupted and devote himself only to treating them. Especially since when Hyunmook had first asked Suho to treat patients at the care facility, he had not even revealed Yohan’s ability properly.

‘There really are good people in the world.’

Thinking that, Yohan went inside with Hyunmook.

Unlike during the attack at the ceremony, the woman now looked mostly intact, though she stared gloomily at her blanket. When she saw Lee Hyunmook, surprise spread over her face.

“You… you really are Mr. Lee Hyunmook?”

Wanting to ease the unease of someone not yet free from the aftereffects of corruption, Lee Hyunmook smiled in a trustworthy way and sat beside her bed.

“Yes, I’m Lee Hyunmook. Nice to meet you. You probably haven’t been able to eat well until now…. Have you managed to eat something?”

“Ah, not yet….”

“If you have time, may I ask you a few things?”

“O-of course! A, ask anything you want!”

Lee Hyunmook is ‎a national hero, his appearance seemed to make the woman drop both her suspicion and her fear. With just a few questions, she recounted everything that had happened.

When they finished the questioning and came back out, Yohan’s face looked heavy. After putting some distance from the ward, he sighed and spoke quietly.

“I didn’t expect the topic of reawakening to come up here.”

The woman had said that a friend who awakened not long ago introduced her to a religious group. She was not especially religious, but the claim that they could make her awaken, even reawaken, had been tempting. Following her friend, she arrived at the church. It was gloomy and strange, but evidence and witnesses filled the place. At least that’s what she had thought at the time.

‘Welcome, welcome! I was just ordinary before, but thanks to the cult leader I awakened!’

‘Welcome! I was a low-level, but I reawakened as mid-level!’

‘Here, eat this Eucharist. You too can awaken!’

At the church’s direction, the woman ate the Eucharist. It was nothing more than ordinary bread and drink, yet the moment she swallowed, she felt strength rushing through her body. She could use powers she had never had before and tear apart monsters. But strangely, it was painful and miserable. Joy alternated with suffering, and her mind wavered in and out of madness. In the middle of it, a voice whispered in her head.

‘The true Eucharist from the purifier will complete you….’