MEMELAND

"KAI!"

Munnu's voice echoed behind him.

Kai didn't stop.

The doctor continued walking.

Not running.

Simply walking through the dim corridor.

As if he had absolute confidence nobody could catch him.

Kai followed.

The sounds of battle slowly faded behind them.

Gunfire.

Magic.

Screams.

All becoming distant.

Eventually—

The doctor entered a circular chamber.

Unlike the rest of the laboratory—

This room remained almost untouched.

Shelves lined the walls.

Books.

Medical journals.

Strange preserved organs floating inside glass containers.

An operating table occupied the center.

Mana lamps cast a pale blue glow.

The doctor finally stopped.

Without turning around, he spoke.

"You've followed me quite far."

Kai steadied his breathing.

"I have questions."

"So does everyone."

The doctor finally turned.

His expression remained calm.

Curious.

Not hostile.

"Let's begin with introductions."

He adjusted his glasses.

"I am called Doctor Z."

Kai blinked.

"So your name really is Doctor."

Dr. Z chuckled.

"No."

"People simply stopped using my real one."

Silence.

Then—

"And you?"

"Kai."

The doctor nodded once.

"Pleasure."

Kai immediately spoke.

"...Magic circuits."

The doctor's eyebrow lifted.

"What about them?"

Kai hesitated.

He didn't know.

He didn't know why those words left his mouth.

Only that they felt...

Important.

"I..."

"I saw someone survive the operation."

Dr. Z stared.

"...Interesting."

Kai continued.

"I saw mana pressure become unstable."

"I saw needles."

"I saw surgery."

"I saw you say..."

Kai frowned.

"...Magic Circuit implementation... success."

Silence.

The room became deathly quiet.

Dr. Z slowly removed his glasses.

Cleaned them.

Then put them back on.

"...Say that again."

Kai swallowed.

"I don't know why I know it."

"But I know those words."

Dr. Z took a single step closer.

"No."

"You shouldn't."

Kai remained silent.

The doctor studied him carefully.

No scars.

No visible circuits.

Nothing unusual.

Yet...

"...Curious."

Very curious.

"You've never undergone my procedure."

Kai answered immediately.

"No."

"Then where did you hear that sentence?"

"I don't know."

The answer came honestly.

"I keep remembering things."

"They aren't mine."

"They feel like mine."

"But they aren't."

Dr. Z became quiet.

For the first time—

His calm expression cracked ever so slightly.

"...Memory inheritance?"

He whispered.

Kai tilted his head.

"What?"

The doctor ignored the question.

Instead—

He circled Kai slowly.

Examining him like another specimen.

"No visible mana circuit pathways..."

"No surgical scars..."

"No implanted conduits..."

"...Impossible."

Kai frowned.

"I'm not here to be examined."

The doctor smiled.

"But you've already become fascinating."

Kai ignored the comment.

"I have another question."

"Hm?"

"If..."

Kai looked directly into his eyes.

"...someone wanted magic circuits."

"...Could they be implanted?"

Silence.

Then—

Dr. Z laughed.

Not loudly.

Genuinely.

"Hahahaha..."

He looked delighted.

"Do you have any idea what you're asking?"

Kai shook his head.

"Not really."

"I only know..."

"...I need them."

The doctor folded his arms.

"You do realize..."

"...more than ninety-nine percent of patients die."

Kai answered immediately.

"I know."

"You don't."

"I do."

"You don't."

"I saw it."

Dr. Z narrowed his eyes.

"You saw it."

Kai nodded.

"People exploding from mana overload."

"Bleeding from every opening."

"Bodies rejecting the procedure."

"I remember it."

Silence.

Dr. Z slowly smiled.

"...Now that's impossible."

Kai rubbed his forehead.

"I know."

"But I remember."

The doctor turned away.

Walking toward a nearby shelf.

He picked up a small metallic coin.

Balanced it across his fingers.

"...Normally..."

"I would refuse."

Kai's eyes widened slightly.

"But..."

Dr. Z looked over his shoulder.

"...I've spent decades searching for anomalies."

"And today..."

"I may have found one."

Before Kai could respond—

A violent explosion rocked the laboratory.

The entire room shook.

Dust poured from the ceiling.

Another.

Then another.

Dr. Z sighed.

"...How troublesome."

He casually slipped the coin back into his pocket.

"It seems our conversation must wait."

Kai stepped forward.

"Wait!"

"I want the procedure."

Dr. Z paused.

He didn't turn around.

"...Perhaps."

He answered quietly.

"If fate allows us to meet again."

He walked toward a side corridor.

Hidden doors slid open.

Before disappearing into the darkness—

He spoke one last time.

"Try not to die, Kai."

"I've become interested in you."

The passage sealed shut.

Kai stood frozen.

"...Interested..."

The words echoed in his mind.

Then—

A scream erupted from the battlefield behind him.

"MUNNU!"

Persia's voice.

For the first time since meeting him—

It sounded genuinely panicked.

Kai's eyes widened.

He immediately turned—

And sprinted back toward the battle.