Rhodes Island does not exist.

“There’s nothing to thank me for,” Warfarin smiled. “In this desperate situation where we are trapped by natural disasters, we all just want Rhodes Island to survive this calamity, so there’s nothing to thank me for. We’re all the same. And, Doctor.”

"You said."

“When I called you a pushover at the meeting, I was actually complimenting you,” Warfarin shrugged. “After all, there aren’t many people who can maintain their inner kindness like you, especially after witnessing so much cruelty.”

“But I must say, your ability to come up with such a plan this time is indeed beyond my expectations.” She spread her hands, her expression showing a hint of helplessness. “You don’t need to worry about the rest. Just continue with your inspection. I will pass the orders to my medical staff and then, as planned, exile those four agitators to the fourth floor.”

After saying that, Warfarin casually stubbed out the half-smoked Seven Fragrance Orchid cigarette, then strode away and disappeared into the elevator car doors.

"Doctor, doctor."

After seeing Warfarin off, Amiya jogged over to the Doctor, her eyes gleaming with anxious anticipation. "What did Dr. Warfarin say to you just now?"

"I suppose it can all be considered a good thing." Recalling his conversation with Warfarin, the Doctor looked up at the non-existent sky and said, "She granted my request."

"Now that we've found those instigators, what are you planning to do next, Doctor?" Amiya asked.

"Next?" The doctor chuckled. "Of course, it's to continue the inspections. Don't forget I haven't been to the Chernobog refugee area yet."

-

Thank you segment.

Thank you for the monthly pass to "Beautiful Scenery of Keto Mountain".

Chapter 43, Part 43: Three Days of Murphy's Law

The process of inspecting the wounded in Chernobog was the same as the inspection of the Reunification Movement, and the little episodes in between were all things that had happened before.

However, during the inspection, the doctor kept thinking about what Warfarin had said earlier.

[Because you need to know, Doctor. Although a conflict between these two forces would plunge Rhodes Island into chaos, their primary objective is not actually Rhodes Island.]

Warfarin is wrong on this point.

The doctor understood perfectly.

Perhaps initially they did indeed harbor animosity towards each other's camps—the case of Eugene Petrov can attest to this.

However, if we extend the timeframe, then this is certainly not the case.

Rhodes Island's supplies are not unlimited, and the hundreds of mouths in the communal wards are consuming large amounts of food every day. Although this medical fortress, converted from a mobile city module, was designed with this in mind from the beginning and thus prepared with ample storage space, it is ultimately not a doomsday shelter.

Food and water, like youth, will eventually run out.

When their youth is exhausted, they will, like all those whose youth has ended, march into a miserable and hopeless society.

Provence had previously received a message from the outposts saying that the natural disaster might dissipate within three days. Therefore, the Doctor's task now is to resolve all destabilizing factors within those three days.

"Send those few people who incite refugees and the integration movement to the intensive care unit, and then redistribute the food and water supplies for the next few days... that should be enough."

The doctor mentally planned out what he should do that day.

As long as reason prevails, there should be a solution to everything.

unless……

"Beep beep beep, beep beep beep, beep beep beep."

The communicator in his ear beeped, indicating that someone was calling the doctor.

"This is the doctor." He answered the call.

"Doctor, where are you now? It seems there's been an incident in the ward on the eighth floor." The message was from Myrrh in the medical department. She wasn't usually keen on communicating with people, so the Doctor was a little puzzled when he heard her voice.

"I just left the eighth floor and I'm in my office now. What happened?" The doctor calmed his tone, trying his best to get Marmot to calm down as well.

"Here's the thing, Dr. Warfarin just led several of our medical staff to the eighth-floor ward, saying that several patients there have deteriorated and need to be transferred to single rooms in the intensive care unit on the lower floor," Moyao said.

"Yes, I asked Warfarin to do it, and then?" the doctor asked.

"Then, when we got to the first patient's bed, we found he wasn't there." Myrrh's voice sounded uneasy, like a child who had done something wrong. "We asked all the other patients, but none of them knew where he was, so Dr. Warfarin has now gone to the security department to retrieve the surveillance footage."

"...Disappeared?"

The doctor paused for a moment, then spoke slowly.

"That seems to be the case at the moment," Myrrh replied. "Considering he was infected and then progressed to severe illness, his physical condition shouldn't have allowed him to travel too far... So where did he go?"

wrong.

not like this.

The doctor's thoughts drifted away from the communication channel filled with static and noise, and instead spread throughout the entire space of Rhodes Island.

What Myrrh says is wrong.

Because she and Warfarin themselves provided her with a flawed premise.

That agitator—aside from being infected, he was otherwise perfectly healthy, and most importantly, his Originium Arts were dangerous.

This guy used to work as a scout in the Reunion Movement, and he's skilled in stealth and intelligence gathering. The reason he was able to do these things was entirely due to his Originium Arts, which allowed him to erase his own form.

—Yes, just like Ethan.

This guy is probably some distant relative of Ethan's.

"His disappearance must have been premeditated," the doctor thought to himself.

"What?" Myrrh could only express his confusion after hearing the doctor's ambiguous words.

“No, it’s nothing, just talking to myself.” The doctor shook his head. “Just do as Dr. Warfarin tells you to do. I’ll take this to heart.”

"Okay, Doctor, that's settled then."

Having said that, Myrrh cut off the communication.

But the PhD student faced a new problem.

“First of all, this patient definitely left on purpose.” The doctor leaned back in his chair, thinking about the possible causes and consequences of the incident. “If we’re being bold, he might even have known we were going to arrest him… but the question is, how did he know? I only discussed this with Warfarin.”

The doctor felt a bit of a headache.

From being besieged by natural disasters until now, this may be the first unstable factor he has encountered.

"We need to talk to someone about this."

The doctor reached out and dialed an internal number on the terminal.

"Beep beep beep... Click."

The connection was established on the other end.

"Ah, Doctor, what brings you here to talk to me today?" Kroos's voice sounded much the same as usual, as cheerful as ever.

"Something has happened, so I'd like to ask you for your help, is that alright?" the doctor asked sincerely.

“I’ve never refused to help you, have I? Just ask me whatever you want.” Kroos smiled, her attitude completely different from that of her clansman Warfarin. “Whether you’re lost or missing, I can help you find it.”

"...You know?" The Doctor was slightly taken aback, realizing that Kroos's words clearly implied something.

"Rhodes Island's power lines are my blood vessels, and Rhodes Island's cameras are my eyes." Kroos chuckled twice. "If I were sitting in the database room all day and didn't know about something happening, then I shouldn't be the chief engineer."

"Phew, now that you know, that makes things easier." The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief. "Let's find that escaped patient. I don't want to introduce any unnecessary complications within Rhodes Island."

However, Kroos's answer surprised the Doctor: "Unfortunately, I can't do it."

"Can't do it?" The doctor frowned. "Then why did you say those things just now—"

"Having the ability to know a problem doesn't mean having the ability to solve it," Kroos sighed on the other end. "Doctor, have you forgotten that Rhodes Island is currently focused on energy conservation?"

These words immediately jolted the doctor awake.

He did indeed give that order.

Moreover, he had specifically mentioned this during a previous call with Provence—Rhode Island is currently focusing on energy conservation.

So this means one thing.

"All the cameras in the hallway have been turned off, except for those in the more important rooms... so there's nothing we can do."

Kroos's voice echoed.

-

Thank you segment.

Thanks also to the razor blade, thank you.

It's time to switch to double update mode.

Chapter 44. Not all the beautiful girls of the Sarkaz are like this.

"When moral principles are neglected, the world is plunged into eternal darkness."

Kal'tsit had mentioned this phrase to the Doctor before, and when the Doctor asked her about its origin, Kal'tsit would say it was a proverb from the Eastern Kingdom.

People from the East often say that "duty" is the most difficult thing to bear, and everyone walking in the world carries the responsibility of fulfilling duty. The mutual ties between duty are like a chain connecting the entire society, with each link interlocking.

The Yan Kingdom, which is separated from Yan by only a narrow strip of water, also has a similar saying.

"Reciprocity is the best policy," or "It is impolite not to reciprocate."

But there is another saying in the Yan Kingdom: "When people are well-fed and clothed, they know etiquette."

If even the most basic needs for food and clothing cannot be guaranteed, then everything else is just empty talk.

-

It was a day later when the doctor found a clue about the missing patient through Cloosir's surveillance network.

Yes, this is just a clue, not the person in question.

Despite being a user of stealth-type Originium Arts, his location in this sixteen-story enclosed building should have been discovered within minutes.

However, Rhodes Island is currently facing a crisis of energy and resource depletion, so the means that should have been available are now unusable.

Of course, the Doctor can use it if he wants, but such use is nothing short of waste, and it does nothing except accelerate the rate at which Rhodes Island consumes its limited resources.

The situation gradually became tense.

Today, two more patients in the ward announced their recovery and were granted permission to join Rhode Island's logistics department.

But the Doctor understood that he couldn't let anyone join Rhodes Island right now, so he rejected them at the final review stage.

But even so, what can be done?

Even if they are released, they can't go anywhere and will have to stay on Rhodes Island in the end.

The doctor knew that the situation had already become tricky.

"If only we had discovered the problem sooner—"

The moment the thought crossed his mind, the doctor immediately snapped out of it and nipped it in the bud.

You must never have such thoughts.

Unrealistic ideas and assumptions are meaningless; they only weaken one's mental and willpower, causing one to indulge in fantasies.

The doctor patted his cheeks and continued to devise countermeasures.

"Apart from the patient who escaped, the other three have been sent to the intensive care unit." He mentally laid out the plan, stepped into the elevator, and pressed the button for the fourth floor.

"Since it's a private room, I can go and talk to them alone," the doctor thought.

In fact, when he visited the ward yesterday, he had already spoken with the four people in full view of everyone, but the result was not ideal.

Amiya stated after monitoring that it was a completely fake result, an act.

In that case, private communication becomes very necessary.

"Ok?"

As the elevator doors opened, an acquaintance who was waiting for the elevator unconsciously made a sound.

"W?" The Doctor was slightly surprised as he looked at the white-haired, red-eyed Sarkaz in front of him. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be lying in bed?"

"Almost there. Don't forget I spent many years in Kazdel. My healing ability is unmatched by most races." W flexed his right arm to show he was in good health.

"Then you should have told the medical department before you left—"

“I already told you,” W said with a smile. “Otherwise, do you think that old woman Kal'tsit would let me out of bed?”

"Something about that sounds a bit off..." the professor muttered to himself.

"Anyway, I'm fine now, I can go wherever I want... oh, I guess that's not really possible." W shrugged. "But at least I don't have to lie in bed anymore."

"Om."