The Flower Is Finished

With our breaths ragged and uneven, we finally managed to climb into a room above. Yes, we were now on the rooftop.

From here everything looked beautiful, yet behind it there was a darkness that no one realized.

The sound of rushing water grew louder, forcing us to hurry and give them first aid.

My eyes scanned the surroundings but found nothing. The exit door faced north, and beyond it there was a wall blocking my view.

"Why are we on the rooftop?" I asked, because I didn't understand why Arif had brought us here.

"There's something important here," he said, then hurried behind the door.

I didn't know what he was looking for, but after placing the table down he ran quickly behind the door.

He brought several medical tools and some supplies for first aid.

"You understand medicine, don't you?" he asked urgently.

I nodded.

"Yes, I know a little," I replied simply.

He immediately handed me cotton and antiseptic to treat the outer wounds first.

"Clean the wound and rinse it with this cotton. I'll help your uncle and aunt."

After that he handed the task to me.

I began treating Farel, who was groaning in pain.

"You really can treat me, right?" he asked.

I stayed silent and didn't answer.

"Don't let me die on the spot!" he said with a laugh at the end of his sentence.

I sighed and looked at him with a faint smile.

"Yes, I'll make sure you die here," I replied casually.

Instead he chuckled softly.

"This time I'm really relying on your medical skills."

I said nothing and focused on bandaging the wound on his stomach.

"Why didn't you look for clothes first?" I asked after realizing he was no longer wearing any.

"Where are your clothes?" I asked, remembering the last time I saw him he was still dressed. Now he wore nothing except his pants.

"Ah, I don't want to talk about it," he replied.

I couldn't do anything about it.

I cleaned the blood first, applied antiseptic, then began bandaging his stomach.

The wound was quite deep. I carefully removed the fragments embedded in his stomach even though he groaned in pain.

"How does your stomach feel?" I asked after pulling the fragment out. It seemed like he had been stabbed by a sword.

"Luckily it's not too deep and didn't damage any internal organs, though it will sting."

I wrapped the gauze while he groaned again after I finished cleaning the wound.

When I finished everything, I turned toward Arif. My uncle and aunt were still unconscious.

"I'll check on them now," I said.

He nodded and leaned his head against the wall.

The sky was bright enough that it wasn't too dark. There was no rain, but I could hear the sound of water growing louder as it threatened to flood the rooftop.

"What happened to them?" I asked, seeing Arif busy while thinking about what medicine would suit them.

"Poisoning, and the medicine isn't here," he said.

My eyes widened when he said there was no medicine here.

"Then where is it?"

"It's downstairs. But the water is already rising. If we look for it, none of us might survive."

"Where is it? I'll go find it. What medicine do you need?"

I had no other choice but to look for it.

"The medicine is called Ardentia powder."

I raised my eyebrows. Even though I wasn't very skilled in medicine, I had memorized several remedies, but this was the first time I had heard of that one.

"Is it a capsule, powder, or liquid?" I asked to be sure.

"It's a capsule."

"Where is it?"

"It's at the west end, next to the medical room. There's a storage room with various medicines. Look there."

I nodded and headed downstairs again, leaving them on the rooftop.

Just as I was about to leave, Arif called me.

"Xanders… drink this."

He handed me a capsule I didn't recognize. I swallowed it hesitantly.

"What is this?" I asked.

"Drink it. It will ease the tightness in your chest."

After that I headed for the stairs.

When I reached them, the water was already visible. I took a deep breath to calm myself.

My heart pounded as I went back down.

The water, which should have been blue, was now darkish. The smell of blood and the foul odor mixed together.

I took a breath and started swimming downward.

It was quite dark, so I tried to remember what Arif had told me.

After almost ten minutes of swimming, I finally found the medical room. Next to it was a tightly locked storage room, clearly labeled with a sign.

I tried to open it but it was locked, so I forced the door.

The lock was strong, and it was difficult to break it underwater. I had no choice but to use my ancient fire to melt the lock.

"Did they do this on purpose?" I muttered angrily.

Finally I managed to open the door.

My eyes widened as I remembered what I was looking for, and my chest began to feel tight.

I had to find the medicine quickly.

I searched through the medicines, even knocking some of them over while looking.

Five minutes passed and I still couldn't find it.

It seemed like they had deliberately hidden it.

I checked the trash bin beside the table and dug through it. There were torn packages inside.

I picked them up and examined them.

They were empty capsules.

I felt hopeless.

But then I noticed two capsules lying under the table. I picked them up and compared them with the torn packages.

They were the same medicine, and the capsules were still sealed, so the contents hadn't mixed with the water.

As I was about to leave, I stopped and grabbed several other medicines that might be useful.

Then I swam back toward the rooftop.

My chest hurt badly. The light grew brighter as the water began flooding the rooftop.

I quickly swam upward, and when I reached the surface I could finally breathe again.

"Hah… hah… hah…"

I gasped for air, stopping for a moment because of the pain in my chest.

I walked unsteadily.

Arif noticed me and rushed over.

"Did you find it?" he asked worriedly, helping me sit down on the rooftop.

"Isn't this the medicine?" I asked while handing him the two capsules, along with the other medicines I had collected.

He examined them and nodded before quickly approaching my uncle and aunt.

"Luckily I managed to find it," I said.

Arif hurriedly placed the capsules into their mouths.

As I closed my eyes for a moment, Farel suddenly threw a small stone at me.

I opened my eyes. He was smiling faintly with a sad look.

"Are you tired?" he asked.

I shook my head.

"Thank you for helping me save my parents."

I smiled slightly.

"Your parents are my parents too. So it's fine."

Ten minutes passed and my uncle and aunt were still unconscious.

My strength had returned, so I walked over to check if the medicine had any effect.

"Are you sure you identified the medicine correctly?" I asked in confusion. They were still unconscious, breathing steadily, while the water had already risen to our stomachs.

"Yes, I checked it. The effect may take longer since it was submerged in water," he replied.

I nodded. We had no choice but to wait for them to wake up.

Farel stepped closer and looked at his parents sadly.

Suddenly his mother opened her eyes and winced in pain.

"Arif… they're awake," I said firmly.

He quickly turned toward my aunt who had opened her eyes.

"Do you feel pain in your stomach?" Arif asked.

She nodded.

Arif immediately examined her to see if there were any hidden wounds.