Chapter 72: Back to Life!
For a while, Ethan simply admired her.
His little spiritual companion. His first real proof that he had reached B-Class. He could not stop smiling. His excitement grew as he imagined what the future could look like.
He would become stronger.
Lumi would become stronger.
And together, they would be far more capable of surviving whatever this strange world threw at them next.
But before he could start planning how he was going to train her, another thought suddenly struck him.
His Mental Sea.
If he had really ranked up to B-Class or possibly even A-Class, then he needed to check his Mental Sea immediately.
There was no telling how much it had changed after absorbing all that purified spiritual energy inside the rift.
He was about to close Aster’s book when something suddenly struck him.
Ethan froze.
His smile disappeared.
"Wait."
His eyes widened.
There was something he had forgotten.
Something much more important than his rank.
Much more important than his new spiritual companion.
"Rin."
His heart dropped.
How the hell had he forgotten about Rin?
Rin was still receiving treatment in the infirmary.
His best friend had been seriously injured and Ethan had been so caught up in everything that had happened afterward that he had completely forgotten to check on him.
Ethan immediately jumped off the bed.
"Damn it, I need to check on him!"
****
Ethan practically rushed toward Rin’s ward the moment he remembered his friend, his earlier excitement over Lumi and his newly discovered B-Class status completely forgotten as one thought occupied his mind.
Rin.
He needed to know how his best friend was doing.
As he approached the ward, Ethan slowed slightly when he noticed several healers and doctors coming out of the other wards that housed the Sentinels affected during the Rift mission. The medical staff Zane had brought from the Empire had clearly been put to work, with white-uniformed nurses moving between the wards and carrying out their duties with an efficiency that immediately told Ethan that things had become much more organized than before.
Then his eyes landed on Rin’s ward.
A few nurses were entering and leaving, and one of them was carrying medical equipment while another was adjusting something near the doorway.
Ethan’s eyes lit up.
If nurses were already attending to Rin’s ward like this, did that mean he was finally out of danger?
His heart immediately lifted.
Then he spotted a familiar figure among the healers.
Dr. Vale.
Ethan immediately walked over with a relieved smile.
"Dr. Vale."
The doctor turned at the sound of his voice and immediately recognized him.
"Ethan."
"How is Rin doing?" Ethan asked quickly, unable to hide the concern in his voice. "Is he alright?"
Dr. Vale’s expression softened.
"He’s fine."
Ethan’s shoulders immediately relaxed.
"He is?"
"Yes. Thankfully, the method we used worked exactly as we hoped. Rin’s condition stabilized, his spiritual energy has calmed down, and the corruption that had been spreading through his body has disappeared."
Ethan felt as though a huge weight had just been lifted from his chest.
"The corruption is gone?"
"Completely gone."
Ethan’s lips immediately stretched into a relieved smile.
Dr. Vale continued, "We checked on him only a few moments ago. He is still unconscious at the moment, but his condition is stable, and he should wake up anytime soon. I just sent the nurses inside to check on him and make sure everything remains normal."
Ethan nodded repeatedly, his heart practically overflowing with relief.
"Thank you."
"You don’t have to thank me."
"I do," Ethan insisted, his smile becoming even brighter. "Seriously, thank you so much."
Dr. Vale gave a small smile before Ethan remembered something else.
"And the other Sentinels?"
"They’re doing fine as well," Dr. Vale assured him. "The majority have already been cleansed of the Miasma. Some have regained consciousness and are already recovering, while others are still being attended to, but none of them are in the kind of danger Rin was in earlier."
Ethan exhaled softly.
That was another weight off his shoulders.
"So everyone is going to be alright?"
"Yes."
"Thank you again, Dr. Vale."
Ethan hesitated for only a moment before asking, "Can I see Rin?"
"Of course. Just don’t overwhelm him when he wakes up. He has been through a lot and needs to rest."
Ethan nodded.
"I’ll be careful."
He immediately turned toward Rin’s ward. The moment Ethan stepped inside, his eyes went straight to the bed.
Several nurses were gathered around Rin, checking his condition and adjusting the equipment around him.
Then one of them stepped aside.
Ethan froze.
Rin was awake.
His eyes were only partially open, and he still looked exhausted, but he was awake.
"Rin!"
Ethan rushed toward the bed.
"You bastard! You dare think of dying and leaving me alone in this world to suffer? Do you know how scared to death I was?"
Rin stared at him for a moment before a weak laugh escaped him.
The nurse beside the bed smiled knowingly.
"You came just in time. Rin only woke up a moment ago."
Ethan immediately turned toward her.
"Is he really alright?"
"He’s still in the recovery phase, so don’t get him too excited or worked up," she warned him. "He needs plenty of rest."
"I understand."
The nurse gave Rin one last check before leaving the ward, giving the two friends some privacy.
Ethan immediately moved closer to the bed.
Rin’s smile slowly faded.
His gaze dropped toward his hands.
"Ethan..."
"Hm?"
Rin’s fingers tightened slightly against the blanket.
"I’m really sorry."
Ethan’s expression softened immediately.
"Hey."
Rin swallowed.
"I really am."
Ethan reached out and grabbed him gently before Rin could say anything else, but the moment he saw the tears gathering in his best friend’s eyes, he immediately sighed and covered his own face with one hand.
"Seriously?"
Rin sniffed.
"What?"
"You’re getting emotional now?"
Rin gave a watery laugh.
Ethan pointed at him. "Don’t you dare start crying, because if you start crying, I’ll start crying too, and then we’ll both look ridiculous."
That only made Rin laugh again, although tears still slipped from the corners of his eyes.
"I’m sorry."
"I know."
"No, you don’t."
Rin lowered his head again.
"I wanted to tell you."
Ethan’s expression became serious.
"Tell me what?"
"About the deployment." Rin took a slow breath. "I wanted to tell you about the private deployment I received through the academy and the guild. I wanted to tell you before I went, but I couldn’t turn down the offer, and everything happened so quickly that I didn’t have enough time to explain anything to you."
Ethan remained quiet, allowing him to speak.
"I thought I would have another chance to talk to you afterward," Rin continued, his voice becoming softer. "I thought I would come back, tell you everything, and we’d probably laugh about how worried you were."
His eyes became red again.
"But then..."
He stopped.
Ethan understood.
Facing life and death inside that Rift had changed everything.
"I was scared," Rin admitted. "I was scared and sad, and when I thought I might actually die, I realized I hadn’t even had the chance to say goodbye properly. I hadn’t said sorry to you. I hadn’t said goodbye to the people I cared about. I just..." His voice cracked. "I didn’t want to leave like that."
Ethan’s heart tightened. He immediately reached over and pulled Rin into a careful embrace.
"You’re not leaving anywhere."
Rin’s shoulders trembled.
"You’re here now, aren’t you?"
Rin nodded against him.
"And you’re going to stay here," Ethan continued. "So stop thinking about that nonsense. You went into that Rift to save people, and you did. You were a hero, Rin."
Rin slowly pulled away and Ethan smiled.
"You saved the lives of other people even when you were risking your own. You don’t get to feel guilty about that."
Rin stared at him for a moment before his expression finally brightened.
"Alright."
"Good."
Rin wiped his eyes. Then, as though he had suddenly remembered something, a mischievous smile appeared on his face.
"You know..."
Ethan immediately became suspicious.
"What?"
Rin lightly punched his arm.
"I might have been unconscious..." He slowly pushed himself upright despite Ethan immediately looking ready to stop him. "...but I could hear everything being said around me."
Ethan blinked wondering where this was leading to. "You could?"
Rin nodded in response. "Almost everything."
"Oh."
Rin’s grin widened.
"I heard quite a lot."
Ethan suddenly had a very bad feeling about where this was going.
Rin looked him up and down before giving him another amused smile.
"And I’m curious to know..."
He paused deliberately.
"Since when did my friend become such an Academy Sensation?"
Ethan’s eyes widened.
Rin leaned closer, his eyes sparkling with curiosity despite his exhaustion.
"I heard you were the main reason the Rift mission on the west side succeeded."
Ethan opened his mouth to object.
Rin immediately raised a hand. "No excuses." His grin became downright mischievous. "Spill the tea now."