On the Ark.

When Lin Ye returned to her office, she was surprised to find the White-faced Owl waiting for her.

"Has the sun risen in the west?" Although he had said this many times, Lin Ye still liked to use it to tease the white-faced owl. "You actually came to work again."

White Owl shook her head and said, "Operator White Owl isn't here to work."

"What is it?"

“It’s about the ‘Y-type’ reagent,” the white-faced owl replied.

Lin Ye's smile gradually froze: "'Y-type' reagent? Are you aware of this?"

Shining nodded: "Because Operator Shining participated in the development and formulation of the 'Y-type' reagent as an assistant, but please rest assured that this was done with Miss Kal'tsit's permission, and Operator Shining did not tell anyone about this, including Ifrit."

“Hmm…of course I wouldn’t doubt you,” Lin Ye said. “Then why did you come to see me…”

"Operator Shiny has also heard about the quota issue."

Lin Ye immediately felt a headache coming on: "You know that too?"

“Yes,” said the White Owl. “I was just about to deliver some documents to Ms. Kal'tsit when I overheard it at the door. It wasn’t intentional, but I still found out.”

"I see... I understand now." Lin Ye took a deep breath and then asked, "Do you want me to remove you from the list of five?"

The white-faced owl was somewhat surprised: "I haven't said anything yet."

“But that’s what you’re probably thinking,” Lin Ye said. “Am I wrong?”

The white-faced owl nodded.

"Why?" Lin Ye said, "As an assistant, you should know the abilities of the 'Y-type' drug, right? Although the effects aren't that significant..."

“Compared to other drugs on the market, the ‘Y-type’ drug is already quite effective,” White Owl said. “And it does indeed have the effect of reducing the density of Originium crystals.”

"In that case..."

“But the density of Originium crystals in Operator Shinyomi isn’t very high,” Shinyomi said. “So it should be used by those who need it more first.”

Lin Ye frowned slightly: "But your Originium particles are located in your brain. Hemer also told me that the Originium particles are compressing your nerves and affecting your memories..."

“But I’m still alive,” the white-faced owl interrupted Lin Ye. “I think that’s enough.”

Lin Ye was stunned.

Then, White Owl bowed slightly and said in a serious tone that Lin Ye had never heard from her before, "Please give the spot to someone else. This is Operator White Owl's request."

Chapter 603 Eyjafjalla Falls Down

White Owl was one of the earlier people Lin Ye met on Rhodes Island. She was initially introduced to Lin Ye as his assistant by Himeru. Although she rarely comes to work now, Lin Ye still vividly remembers her for being too demanding in terms of being "mentally sound".

For a long time afterward, Lin Ye remembered White Owl as a "goofball" or a "mischievous monster." After all, she often used the excuse of her brain being compressed by the Originium Virus to say some inexplicable things that embarrassed Lin Ye.

Of course, most of these remarks were just harmless jokes, and Lin Ye naturally didn't care.

But precisely because of this, Lin Ye couldn't quite define what kind of person White Owl really was. A person might have a goofy appearance and a goofy heart, but she couldn't possibly be nothing more than a goofball. Lin Ye understood this perfectly, because he could occasionally sense the gentleness hidden deep within White Owl's heart through her various goofy behaviors.

This time, however, the feeling was more direct.

However, Lin Ye did not answer the White-faced Owl's request immediately, but remained silent.

The white-faced owl raised its head and tilted it: "Doctor Lin?"

Lin Ye then slowly said, "I don't think I can agree to that."

"I don't know."

“Because according to you,” Lin Ye said, “besides Eyjafjalla, Nightingale and Lappland are not in immediate danger, especially Nightingale. Under Kal'tsit’s care, Nightingale’s physical condition, while not outstanding, is definitely the best among the four of you… at least not worse than yours, so you have no reason to give up your spot to her.”

The white-faced owl asked, "Doesn't Doctor Lin want Miss Nightingale to be cured?"

“How could that be? Of course I hope she can be cured,” Lin Ye said. “But I also hope you can be cured, and I hope all the infected on Rhodes Island can be cured, and all the infected in this world can… cough cough, that sounds a bit grandiose, but I think you should understand what I mean.”

The white-faced owl said, "I don't understand."

Lin Ye sighed softly: "What I mean is, whether it's you and Nightingale, or Eyjafjalla and Lappland, they all hold the same place in my heart... It sounds a bit strange to say that. But I would never do anything to sacrifice one person for another."

The white-faced owl tilted its head: "Does Dr. Lin think this is a sacrifice?"

“Of course,” Lin Ye said. “This is a sacrifice.”

The white-faced owl shook its head: "But I don't think this is a sacrifice. It's a reasonable allocation of resources, because no matter what, you have to choose three people from the four and eliminate the other one. So why can't that person be me?"

Lin Ye couldn't help but laugh: "Is this another way of saying 'If I don't go to hell, who will?' In that case, let me share my opinion: even if we really have to choose three people from four, I hope that the three chosen are the most suitable people, not three people who are chosen because of the voluntary sacrifice of one of them."

"Dr. Lin is overthinking it."

How is this complicated?

The White Owl said, "If I, Miss Nightingale, Miss Eyjafjalla, and Miss Lappland were all on the verge of death, and you only had three vials of medicine that could save us, would you still be considering whether something is appropriate or not?"

Lin Ye couldn't help but facepalm: "Don't try to twist the facts, okay?"

“This is not a fallacy,” the white-faced owl said quite seriously. “At times like this, you absolutely cannot hesitate, because if you hesitate, you won’t be able to save even one person.”

Lin Ye's lips twitched involuntarily at the words of the white-faced owl, and then he raised his hand and pinched the white-faced owl's cheek hard.

"I already told you, don't try to change the subject," Lin Ye said irritably. "Besides, your way of changing the subject is really low-class. It's one thing to fool an uneducated kid, but to try and fool me? The situation you're describing is completely different from the situation we're facing right now."

"Really?" Even with Lin Ye pinching her cheek, the white-faced owl's tone remained unchanged. She simply said, "Dr. Lin is much smarter than I imagined."

Lin Ye nodded with satisfaction: "Aren't you just stating the obvious... Hmm? Is it just my imagination? I feel like you're not praising me, but insulting me."

“That’s not important,” the white-faced owl shook its head and said. “What is important is, Dr. Lin, since you’re unwilling to listen to me, who have you decided to remove from the list?”

“I’m going to… don’t try to trick me into telling me anything.” Lin Ye sighed. “Honestly, you always try to trick me into telling me things without me even noticing. Can you please behave yourself a little?”

"Operator White Owl just wanted to remind Doctor Lin," said White Owl.

Lin Ye turned to look at the white-faced owl: "What are you trying to remind me of?"

“Operator Shining is a former Rhine Lab employee,” Shining said.

"so what?"

“Miss Ifrit also came from Rhine Lab,” White Owl said, “including Ms. Himer who has already used the ‘Y reagent’.”

Lin Ye roughly guessed what the white-faced owl wanted to say, but he didn't say it outright. Instead, he asked calmly, "And then? What do you want to say?"

“What Operator White Owl wants to say is that Dr. Lin cannot only consider the issue from the perspective of physical condition,” White Owl said. “We also need to consider her identity. You cannot use all the limited ‘Y-type drugs’ on Rhine Lab employees; this is not conducive to the unity of Rhodes Island.”

It has to be said that Lin Ye had never considered this aspect of the issue before. Although he really wanted to tell White Owl that since she had joined Rhodes Island, she was now a member of Rhodes Island, and her previous identity no longer mattered, he also knew that this statement would be even more empty and pretentious than his previous words. Although no one would definitely refute him, no one knew what people would think in their hearts.

Rhodes Island is divided into factions; everyone knows that. While this doesn't usually cause problems, it becomes unavoidable when something significant happens.

Lin Ye also started to feel a headache.

The white-faced owl continued, "In conclusion, Rhine Lab was responsible for all the research, and Ifrit and Ms. Himer were also involved..."

Before she could finish speaking, the office door was suddenly pushed open, and Hermer rushed in, his face grim: "Dr. Lin, something has happened to Eyjafjalla."

Chapter 604 Five Percent Hope

When Lin Ye and Himer rushed to the medical department, there were already quite a few people there, including Kal'tsit. When she saw Lin Ye, Kal'tsit nodded slightly but didn't say anything. She simply stepped aside so Lin Ye could see Eyjafjalla, who was already in the intensive care unit and wearing a ventilator.

Lin Ye's heart skipped a beat: "How is she?"

Saria, wearing protective clothing, was walking out of the intensive care unit. Hearing Lin Ye's words, she took off her mask and protective goggles, and then said in a deep voice, "It's very bad. The fusion rate of her somatic cells with Originium has increased from eight percent to ten percent, and the Originium crystal density in her blood has increased from 0.5u/L to 0.7u/L."

Although Lin Ye wasn't very sensitive to these numbers, he could still sense the seriousness of the situation from the rate of increase.

"Why is this happening?" Lin Ye couldn't help but ask. "Hasn't she been taking medication all along?"

“Eyjafjalla’s medication has never been interrupted,” said Hermer, who is also in charge of Eyjafjalla’s treatment. “But she still went from a moderate patient to a severe patient in just a few months. It is only possible that she came into contact with a highly infectious source during this period, which led to a secondary infection.”

"A high-risk source of infection?" Lin Ye suddenly realized something and quickly asked, "Did she go to the volcano again?!"

This is the only possibility.

Kal'tsit nodded slightly: "That's right. She has been conducting research in the volcanic mountains for the past month."

Lin Ye grew anxious. He wanted to question Kal'tsit about why she wouldn't stop Eyjafjalla's dangerous research. However, the words wouldn't come out, because Lin Ye remembered that he had clearly stated his support for Eyjafjalla months ago.

At that time, he was persuaded by Eyjafjalla.

"Although it sounds a bit like hindsight to say this now," Saria said, though Lin Ye couldn't quite put it into words, her tone was very stiff, "I made it clear half a year ago that I would prohibit all of Eyjafjalla's research. Her condition was already on the verge of getting out of control, and she was still lingering in such a dangerous place, it was practically suicide."

Kal'tsit shook her head and said softly, "But you also know, Saria. Back then, we had no reason to stop her... and not only back then, but even now we have no reason to stop her. Given her personality, even if we forbade her research, she would leave Rhodes Island and continue."

Saria understood that Kal'tsit was right, and could only sigh softly before shaking her head slightly in resignation.

"It's no use talking about this now," Lin Ye said. "We should be thinking about how to cure her."

“It’s not that simple,” Himer said in a deep voice. “0.5u/L of Originium crystal density is a dividing point. Below 0.5u/L, patients can be considered moderate to severe cases, and their condition can still be barely controlled with medication. But above 0.5u/L, they are severe cases, and at 0.7u/L, they are absolutely high-risk patients. At this point, the effect of medication is almost negligible.”

“But if it is…” Lin Ye was about to speak when Hermer, who was standing next to him, reached out and pinched his waist. He then realized something, turned his head to look at the medical staff around him, and shut his mouth.

Kal'tsit coughed lightly twice, then turned to look at Sussurro and Fleur: "Fleet, Sussurro. Please look after Eyjafjalla. Saria and Himeru, come to my office to discuss the medication. Dr. Lin can come along too, since Eyjafjalla can only hear your voice now."

Lin Ye understood Kal'tsit's intention and nodded. Before leaving, he glanced one last time at Eyjafjalla in the intensive care unit, and thinking of how she had followed him around calling him "senpai, senpai" just two months ago, he felt a pang of heartache. But there was nothing he could do now, so he could only pray for Eyjafjalla in his heart before leaving with Himeru and Saria.

Upon entering Kal'tsit's office, Lin Ye immediately asked, "If regular potions don't work, how about 'Y-type' potions? Eyjafjalla was originally a candidate for 'Y-type' potions, right? In this situation, can't we just use it on her directly?"

“I knew you’d ask that.” Kal’tsit sat in her office chair and tapped the table lightly. “That’s why I called you here. As for the ‘Y-type’ potion, Dr. Saria and Dr. Himer just told me a little about it, and they’ll tell you now.”

Lin Ye immediately looked at Saria and Himer.

Saria didn't speak immediately, but Himer sighed softly: "Eyjafjalla's condition has worsened far too quickly. A density of 0.7u/L of Originium crystals... to be honest, this is very likely beyond the capabilities of the 'Type Y' potion."

Lin Ye's heart sank: "How could this be?"

“That’s true.” Saria said slowly. “Dr. Lin, as I told you before, the current ‘Y-type’ drug is best suited for patients whose condition has been brought under control and who will not die from Oripathy in the short term, like Ifrit. Although Ifrit’s infection level is not low, with the help of Himeru and me, her condition, while not optimistic, is indeed under control. Therefore, at this time, the ‘Y-type’ drug can be used to slowly remove the Oripathy particles from Ifrit’s body.”

“But Eyjafjalla’s Originium crystal density of 0.7u/L is hardly stable by any standard,” Himer said. “You may not know what an Originium crystal density of 0.7u/L means, but I’ll give you one piece of data and you’ll understand. Of all the Originium disease patients Rhodes Island has encountered so far, not a single one has survived for more than two weeks after their Originium crystal density reached 0.7u/L.”

Lin Ye's heart sank.

“0.7u/L and 0.5u/L are completely different concepts,” Saria said slowly. “This is the difference between being completely uncontrollable and barely controllable. When the density of Originium crystals in a patient’s body reaches 0.7u/L, no matter what medication is taken, it cannot be controlled, because this value will increase wildly in the following period of time, and when it reaches 1u/L... that’s the end.”

What was the final outcome? Saria didn't need to explain; Lin Ye already knew.

That is the ultimate fate of the infected: to self-destruct after being ignited by the Originium particles within their bodies.

He had seen this scenario many times back in Chernobog.

“So, even if we do our best, Eyjafjalla can only last for two weeks at most,” Himer said softly. “But two weeks is not enough for the ‘Y reagent’ to take effect; it’s impossible to even maintain the crystal density at 0.7u/L.”