Rhodes Island does not exist.

"Let's leave it at that for now." The doctor nodded, leaned back in his chair, and stopped talking to the girl in front of him.

Since she has shown such a strong rebellious attitude, there is no point in trying to communicate with her. It would be better to wait for her to calm down on her own.

But the doctor didn't expect her to calm down so quickly.

"Hey."

Less than thirty seconds after she turned her head away, she suddenly looked at the doctor and spoke.

What exactly is in your suitcase?

"So you didn't even know what was inside before you stole it?" The doctor chuckled.

“Yeah, what else?” Levini snorted. “This is robbery, not a business deal. As long as I get it, isn’t it a sure profit?”

“Indeed, there’s nothing wrong with the logic.” The doctor smiled.

"So what's inside?" Levini asked again. "Now that I'm in this state, I need to figure out what caused my downfall."

"They are medical supplies," the doctor said calmly and directly.

"Medical supplies? You mean those things used for injections and IV drips?" Levini's expression became curious. "Um... are you a doctor?"

"He's kind of an unlicensed doctor traveling all over Terra," the doctor said with a bitter expression. "He came to Asturias this time because he had an appointment with a collaborator, so he was going to discuss some things. And the box you stole is the specific content of this discussion."

"Hmm... you mean selling medicine?" Levini thought for a moment and asked.

"More or less," the doctor nodded.

"What kind of medicines are those?" Levini blinked.

Living in this remote border town shrouded in religion and having never received a systematic education, she was almost completely unfamiliar with these scientifically-based things.

“It’s a drug used to alleviate and treat Oripathy,” the doctor replied, looking at Levini. “Although most of it is still in the early stages of development and the effects are not obvious, it at least has some effect.”

"Orisite disease...?"

Upon hearing those three words, Levini's gaze towards the doctor changed.

"What's wrong? Are you infected?" The doctor asked instinctively, remembering the bartender who was just loafing around doing nothing.

“No, no.” Levini hurriedly shook her head. “But my parents died of Oripathy… in the mines run by those big families in Syracuse.”

"what."

The doctor suddenly remembered.

She did say something like that when she was knocked to the ground.

-

-

Thank you segment.

Thank you for the blades and monthly passes, thank you.

Chapter 74, Chapter Seventy-Three: Deep Sea Tales - Nine Promises Not Made

"Tell me more, tell me more! Do you have any stories about the Yan Kingdom? I heard that there's a place in the Yan Kingdom where people eat chili peppers with every meal, is that true?"

Levi has been pestering the doctor to tell a story for an hour.

And it all started after she learned that the doctor was the one who treated Oripathy.

Perhaps because her family had died from Oripathy, and the man before her was trying to cure the disease, the Doctor's image in Levini's mind suddenly became much more approachable. Coupled with the Doctor's rich experience gained from traveling through Terra, Levini held him in even higher esteem.

As for the price of this reverence, it might be telling stories non-stop.

But the PhD student himself enjoyed it, so he didn't really care.

"I wouldn't say I eat it like a meal, but I can definitely handle spicy food," the doctor said. "Unfortunately, my sense of taste is rather dulled, so even with the local spicy dishes, I can't really taste anything."

"Hey, numbness of taste, isn't that pretty pathetic?" Levini stared at the Doctor. "If you can't even enjoy delicious food, doesn't that take away a lot of the joy of living?"

"Perhaps," the doctor smiled, "but satisfying one's appetite is only one kind of pleasure; there are many other pleasures in life."

“Hmm…that’s true.” Levini nodded thoughtfully. “So, what are your pleasures, Doctor? Traveling around?”

"Travel is merely a necessary process for me to achieve my goals... but I do enjoy it nonetheless," the doctor replied.

The title "Mr. Healer" was a name Levini came up with on her own initiative; according to her, she seemed to really enjoy giving people nicknames.

"So what is your purpose? Oh, I think you mentioned it before... You said you wanted to develop a drug that could cure all infected people, and that everyone could afford it, and what else was it?" Levini recalled.

“And building shelters. A very unrealistic idea, I know,” the doctor said with a wry smile. “Even children would think so.”

"I don't think I'm qualified to judge whether something is impractical or not. But I think that since the doctor is a good person, everything you insist on must be right," Levini said, looking into the doctor's eyes. "And the right thing can't fail."

she said so.

The doctor paused for a moment.

Although such logic simply doesn't work in real life, this was the first time he had ever heard someone say that to him.

"Levini".

He lowered his head, his voice soft and low.

"Hmm?" The girl tilted her head.

"Thank you."

-

As the journey continued, the sea breeze, carrying a faint salty smell, began to enter the doctor's nostrils.

This is a sign that they are gradually approaching the sea and Iberia.

“We’ll be in Iberia in about thirty minutes,” the cleric driving the car said. “I hope you will respect the locals and behave in a friendly manner.”

“I will,” the doctor nodded.

The doctor was well aware that Iberians were inherently xenophobic.

No, rather than saying that the local customs are xenophobic, it's more accurate to say that the entire Iberian region exudes an aura that keeps strangers at bay.

"Will you come with me after we get off the bus?" Levini asked with some concern.

Although she was as unruly as a wild girl in Asturias, her arrogance diminished considerably once she left the environment she depended on for survival.

This is just how it is in living things.

"Why not?" the doctor replied. "Isn't the reason I came here precisely because of you?"

"That's good."

Levini breathed a sigh of relief.

The PhD student she knows now is no longer the unlucky guy whose bag she snatched.

“By the way,” the Doctor thought for a moment, then looked at Levini and said, “the priests said they want you to receive your education in Iberia, so I think you may have to start a new life in Iberia from now on.”

"What did you say?!" Levini frowned, wanting to say something but unsure how to begin.

"...Do you feel you can't leave Asturias?" the doctor asked. "Is there anything you still miss about that place?"

"No, it's not because of that, it's just..."

Levi's expression became complicated. "I never thought it would turn out like this... I thought those priests were just taking me to be interrogated."

"Wait, didn't they tell you?" the doctor asked, somewhat puzzled.

“I don’t know.” Levini shook her head. “Because I was angry, and I even twisted my ankle, I was basically not listening to what they were saying.”

"Oh, so according to you, I'm going to be sent to an orphanage or something?" Levini thought for a moment, then continued from where she left off.

“The church should have its own dedicated care facilities,” the doctor said thoughtfully. “After all, you lack caregivers, and if Iberia takes over Asturias, they certainly have that obligation.”

“Ah… but I’m used to being free, and I really don’t want to be controlled by anyone.” Levini sighed.

But then, her eyes lit up again, and she stared straight at the doctor in front of her.

"How about you adopt me, Doctor?"

Upon hearing this, the doctor couldn't help but smile wryly.

I knew she would say that.

However, before the doctor could politely decline, Levini spoke first.

“It’s impossible, isn’t it?” She shrugged. “Mr. Healer, you’re going to travel all over Terra and you have such lofty ideals. My presence with you would only slow you down.”

"Oh, but you were probably thinking about how to reject me just now, right?" she asked the professor with a grin.

“Indeed,” the doctor said bluntly, “after all, you’ve already stated the reason.”

"And what if your dream comes true?" Levini suddenly asked again.

"Huh?" The doctor didn't react for a moment.

“Didn’t you say that you had your ideals?” Levini looked intently at the doctor in front of her and said, word by word, “You said you wanted to develop a drug that could cure all infected people and build a shelter to protect those infected people who were oppressed and tortured.”

"If you ever realize this dream and build such a shelter, could you adopt me?"

Her eyes were more serious than ever.

The doctor wanted to say something realistic and ruthless, like, "By then, you'll be an adult long ago," or "Who knows how long it will take for this dream to come true."

But when he looked into Levini's eyes, he realized he couldn't say those words.

Because the girl in front of me didn't ask that question in order to get that answer.

So he thought about it and then answered like this.

"—"

-

Thank you segment.

Chapter 75, Chapter Seventy-Four: Deep Sea Tales - The Tenth Lantern Festival

The layout of Iberia is not much different from other cities.

Moving components that define the structural layers, guarding a tight quarantine checkpoint, towering exterior walls, and mottled paint.

But outside of these patterns, it has almost nothing in common with any other city.

"Clang, clang clang."

The dull tolling of the bell pierced through the high walls and reached the doctor's ears.

He and Levini were being led by two priests through the Iberian checkpoint.

The Iberian xenophobia is exceptionally severe—the Doctor had heard of this before, but only now has he experienced it firsthand.

Political background, racial background, whether you are infected, purpose, family structure, travel history—the inspector will relentlessly ask about everything that can be asked, until they are sure they have extracted all the information about you.

It felt like visiting a prisoner, not going to the city.

“So, Doctor, you have connections with Kazdel.” After overcoming the numerous obstacles at the checkpoint, Levini asked the Doctor with a sigh of relief, “When you mentioned this place, I noticed that the way they looked at you was off.”

“That’s normal,” the doctor said with a wry smile. “After all, Kazdel is a place of chaos, civil war, hunger, and disease. It’s as if all the malice of Terra is concentrated there, so people from there have no room for argument even if they are discriminated against.”

“But you’ve only been there, you’re not from there.” Levini pouted. “I noticed they were looking at you really fiercely.”

"Because there's also a cultural reason involved." The Doctor sighed somewhat helplessly. "The Sarkaz of Kazdel and the Sarkaz of Laterano are basically natural enemies."

“I haven’t told you about this, have I—those Sarkaz take pleasure in hunting Sarkaz,” the Doctor said. “Almost every Sarkaz mercenary there carries one or more Lateran guns as a memento of killing a Sarkaz.”

“And since Iberia and Lateran have a very close relationship, it’s inevitable that they would hate the Sarkaz,” Levini said thoughtfully.

“That’s it.” The doctor nodded. “Very good. Now you’ve learned to use existing conditions to think for yourself and draw conclusions. That’s excellent.”

"Hehe." Praised by the doctor, Levini couldn't help but scratch her head shyly.

At this moment, the two priests walking in front stopped.

Please stop here.

Please stop here.

They turned around at the same time, one to the left and one to the right, like the guardians at the entrance of the Dali Temple in the Yan Kingdom.

What the Doctor and Levini, who had stopped in their tracks, saw was the towering golden archway standing behind the two priests.

The archway is wide enough to allow six people to pass through at the same time, and its height is about five stories high. Beneath the gold plating are exquisite carvings carved by artisans. The carvings depict people, beasts, and winged angels, seemingly retelling a legendary story recorded in the Lateran classics.