The Gentleman at the End

Chapter 53: Chapter 52 Moon Night

[Day One]

The four of them conducted a basic exploration of the Clinic’s main building and the Secret Medicine Tower, though they hadn’t yet discovered the “leftover secret medicine.” However, they had fully memorized the basic layout and architectural structure of the Clinic.

They planned to conduct a detailed search tomorrow, checking every room and every corner, taking photos, and trying to find any possible hidden passages or secret rooms.

Nightfall

The group reached the third floor of the main building,

and chose a relatively clean apprentice room with intact windows and doors to use as a resting place during the mission.

They also brought over two extra beds from next door and converted them into bunk beds.

Of course, it wasn’t possible for all four to sleep at the same time,

so they arranged for everyone to take turns keeping watch throughout the night, especially since the “False Moon incident” also occurred at night… It was entirely possible that the Clinic, which seemed safe during the daytime patrols, might welcome some unusual visitors at night.

There were also survivors hidden in the city ruins, who might also come up the mountain at night.

Ding~Ding~

Sitting on the lower bunk, Edmund knocked on the edge of the upper bunk.

“William, when the three of us used to operate together, taking turns keeping watch has become a habit… You don’t need to participate in the watch tonight, considering the detailed screening tomorrow will significantly increase your ‘eye usage.'”

“Oh~ok.”

Yi Chen, from the upper bunk, was slightly startled, but then agreed.

He wouldn’t decline because “sleeping” was a very important aspect in Yi Chen’s personal philosophy. Any lack of sleep could lead to problems in brain function, causing inefficiency and a series of mistakes, ultimately leading to serious consequences.

“You still seem to be thinking about the matter of the Secret Medicine Building?”

“Yes…”

What Yi Chen saw in the Secret Medicine Building had made him doubt the essence of the Clinic.

He didn’t witness any gentlemanly conduct, just a mad rush to survive the apocalypse by any means necessary.

Could such deviations from gentlemanly conduct lead to apprentices in the Clinic, or even powerful Doctor Staff, to be invaded by Pathological Thinking?

Edmund’s blonde head slowly emerged from the edge of the bed, his slightly feathery, blue pupils fixating on Yi Chen:

“Hmm~ I can generally understand your thoughts.

Since you have doubts about the Twilight Clinic and Dr. Macaul, take this opportunity to thoroughly investigate and find out the true nature of the Clinic and the truth behind the development of the secret medicine.

If we truly discover something wrong here, we’ll collect the evidence and report it to the higher-ups of the organization through my family’s connections or through Professor Qian Bosen on your side.”

“Get some rest, in case there is some emergency at night that won’t allow us to sleep.” @@novelbin@@

“Hmm.”

The clothes made from Gentleman’s Skin seemed to sense the individual’s desire to rest,

automatically raising their “looseness” to the maximum,

the outermost coat wrapping around the body like bedding, enhancing thermal insulation,

the lines within the clothing stimulating the subcutaneous nerves, functioning as a hypnotic to slow down brain activity, leading to rapid sleep onset.

The raised collar also perfectly covered the ears,

automatically blocking out ambient noise while amplifying any suspicious sounds.

…

Midnight.

When the clock’s hands overlapped, aligned perfectly overhead,

the moon, previously obscured in the skies, seemed to personally swat aside the thick foggy curtain, displaying her pale, round body to the world.

Or rather, to the hillside area where the Clinic was located.

Moonlight poured down,

causing the surrounding forest and the stairway floors inside the Clinic to emit thin wisps of gray mist.

This mist wouldn’t disperse with the wind,

it behaved more like a liquid,

flowing on the ground,

crawling on the walls.

Crawling through the pipes,

the clinic, originally silent and empty, seemed to welcome a “new birth” under the moonlight, as the lifeless “objects” slowly awakened amidst the stirring gray fog.

Strange noises emanated from the inpatient department on the second floor of the clinic.

It sounded like a metal stand continuously hitting the floor, mixed with the sound of flesh crawling.

Eventually,

these sounds completely melded into one—clack! clack!—turning into the sharp and crisp sound of high heels.

It was as if a night shift nurse had forgotten to change her shoes, beginning her rounds through the clinic’s corridors.

…

The night watcher at midnight was Dagbert.

The rest of the personnel were deeply asleep, enveloped in their bedding, trying to fully recover from the day’s mental exhaustion.

At that moment,

Yi Chen and Edmund, who were sleeping on the same bunk bed, both sensed an anomaly from outside at the same moment and immediately woke up.

“What’s happening! Where are the two of them?”

Though the apprentice’s room was meant for four, only the two of them were left.

There was no sign that the door had been opened,

and moreover,

Edmund was certain that his teammates would not have left on their own; something must have happened.

“Edmund… the moon has risen!”

Yi Chen’s voice came from the windowsill,

He wasn’t looking directly at the moon outside, but instead saw a blurry reflection of part of the moon through a piece of broken glass.

As Edmund received this information, his expression turned extremely grim.

“Could it be! The ‘remnants’ of the False Moon incident, after fermenting for a whole two months, have grown in the shadows and can now create a ‘moon illusion’ like the former Open Source patients.”

These creatures that spread Pathological through the ‘moon’ were active at night.

Is it that only after midnight do the clinic and the surrounding city reveal their true appearance?”

Yi Chen nodded, then analyzed, “The disappearance of Dagbert and Juliana is probably related to the appearance of the ‘moon’… Considering the worst-case scenario, we need to find them as soon as possible.”

“Don’t worry about that for now,

as long as they stick together, the problem isn’t too severe. Their strength is no weaker than mine; in good condition, they should manage for a while.

Now let’s focus on our own situation, and assess the risks inside the clinic…”

Before he could finish,

the room’s floor and walls suddenly emitted flowing gray fog,

at the same moment,

the clothing on both men began trembling slightly, actively resisting the intrusion of the gray fog.

This situation shocked Edmund greatly, causing him to involuntarily blurt out a professional term.

“Grayification… How is that possible!?”

“Grayification…” Yi Chen recalled the term from his Pathology class.

It had been explained in detail in the classroom by Teacher Zede,

“Grayification is a precursor to a region’s transformation into the Grey Zone, characterized by the gray mists permeating the environment, a special carrier of Pathological.

Under its influence, all matter will undergo transformation, even the desks we use in class could become diseased.

Given your current rank, exploring the Grey Zone is still premature; even the Grayification stage before the Grey Zone fully forms is quite dangerous. If encountered, try to avoid contact.

If you’re very confident in your strength, you might try playing around in the Grayification area.”

Clack! Clack!

Just then,

the crisp sound of high heels came from outside the door, snapping Yi Chen out of his recollection of the concept.