A gentle breeze brushed past him.
Lidi felt an eerie warmth.
It was a memory buried deep beneath time itself.
His eyelids felt unbearably heavy, allowing him to open them only slightly— but even that was enough to make him freeze.
It was his elementary school classroom.
The place he hated most.
The place he had spent countless years trying not to remember.
He stood silently in the corner of the room with his head lowered.
His oversized school uniform hung loosely from his body, and near the collar were dark red stains that had long dried yet could never be washed away.
His ears twitched faintly.
Children’s laughter echoed from the distance.
Not the innocent laughter of children at play— but thin, sharp snickers like blades scraping against bone.
“Well, well, Lidi, why are you all alone?
Where are your friends?” A young calf walked over with a fake smile stretched across his face.
Behind him followed two lackeys—a goat and an antelope—both staring at Lidi with obvious contempt and excitement.
“Boss, I heard his dad ran away.
Doesn’t that make him basically an orphan?” “Yeah!
A pathetic little mutt even his own father abandoned!” The calf rammed his horns into Lidi’s head.
The goat kicked viciously at his legs.
The antelope yanked his tail hard.
Lidi wanted to fight back— but years of malnutrition had already drained the strength from his tiny body.
He wanted to run— but his feet felt glued to the floor.
He wanted to scream— but not even a sound would leave his throat.
All he could do was curl up and shield himself while silently praying for the homeroom teacher to stop them.
But… where was the teacher?
Lidi looked toward the corner of the classroom.
The teacher stood calmly by the window, sipping tea while reading a newspaper, as though none of this had anything to do with him.
The three beast children became rougher and rougher.
Their kicks grew harder.
Pain drilled wave after wave into Lidi’s nerves.
Frustration.
Anger.
Humiliation.
All of it twisted together inside his chest.
He did not understand.
He had done nothing wrong.
So why was everyone targeting him?
Why?
“…It’s not fair…” Suddenly— a scream tore through the air.
He did not know who screamed.
Nor why.
Lidi snapped back to awareness and looked down instinctively.
His right claw was dripping with blood.
Fresh blood.
But it was not his.
The three children stared at him in terror.
Especially the calf.
The wound on the calf’s arm looked as though it had been torn apart by a wild predator.
Blood poured endlessly from the shredded flesh, filling the air with a sweet, nauseating scent.
Lidi began breathing heavily.
Faster.
And faster.
The world spun violently around him.
He opened his mouth, wanting to explain— but only ragged breaths and saliva escaped.
It sounded almost… excited.
Hungry.
In that moment, reflected within the calf’s terrified eyes was the face of a stranger.
Savage.
Cold.
Terrifying.
The face of a true predator staring directly at its prey.
And that face was— his own.
…
“HAAAH—!” Lidi’s eyes snapped open.
His chest heaved violently as cold sweat soaked both his body and the large hospital bed beneath him.
The overly bright hospital lights flooded his vision with white.
Instinctively, he clenched his fists.
There was nothing in his hands.
And yet— the sensation of blood still lingered against his claws.
At that moment, a fox hologram flickered into existence beside his bed and spoke in a surprisingly human tone.
“Mr.
Lidi, abnormal heart rate and elevated psychological fluctuations have been detected.
Would you like me to administer a calming agent?” “Who the hell—?!” The sudden appearance beside his bed startled him badly enough that his already-disoriented mind nearly short-circuited again.
“Mr.
Lidi, please remain calm.
I am TX98, the medical ward nursing program of this hospital.
You may refer to me as Xiao Jiu.
According to my scans, you appear to be experiencing post-traumatic stress responses, possibly triggered by your dream.
I can provide psychological counseling services if you are willing to try.” After taking a few breaths, Lidi gradually calmed down.
Only then did he remember where he was.
The hospital.
Waiting for the test results that felt almost like a final verdict.
“No thanks… I’m just tired… What time is it?” “Mr.
Lidi, the current time is 8:37 AM.
The outdoor temperature is 29 degrees Celsius.
Weather forecasts predict a sunny day, making it an excellent time for walking—” “Alright, alright, skip all that.
That sheep doctor yesterday said my results would take a day.
Are they done yet?” The hologram showed no irritation at being interrupted.
“Yes.
Your examination results have been completed.
Would you like me to present them now?” “Go ahead.” “Understood.
Retrieving data from the medical database.” As Xiao Jiu spoke, his physical examination results and blood reports appeared across the wall display.
Lidi could not understand most of the professional terminology or numerical data, thankfully the AI explained things as it went.
“Mr.
Lidi, your overall physical health indicators remain within normal parameters.
However, mild symptoms of overwork have been detected.
It is recommended that you avoid staying awake late at night whenever possible…” Lidi listened absentmindedly while rubbing the sleep crust from his eyes.
He barely paid attention.
Until the report ended.
The hologram had not mentioned the Sudadi Flu results even once.
“That’s the whole report?” “Yes, Mr.
Lidi.
Those are your examination results.” “What about the new flu?” “Regarding your examination, although several symptoms initially resembled Sudadi New Flu, deeper analysis has revealed no trace of the Sudadi virus within your body.” For a moment, Lidi felt both relieved and irritated.
Relieved because his body was fine.
At worst, he was simply overworked and needed more rest and proper nutrition.
Irritated because he felt like he had been played.
They had locked him up in a hospital over practically nothing.
“So basically I can leave now, right?
There’s no need for quarantine at all.” The fox hologram paused briefly, as though processing internal logic.
“Yes, Mr.
Lidi.
According to procedure, you are now eligible for discharge.
If you wish to leave immediately, I can process it for you now.” “Yeah, do it.
What a waste of stress.” “Understood.
Calculating your fees now.
Based on your medical coverage tier and hospitalization duration, your total payment will be—” “What kind of bullshit priority system is this?!
Does your hospital look down on herbivores or something?!
My mother’s bleeding all over the place and nobody gives a damn?!” A furious scream suddenly echoed through the thick ward door, causing Lidi’s sensitive ears to twitch painfully.
The hologram paused and turned slightly toward the entrance.
“A moderate-level dispute is currently occurring outside your room.
For safety reasons, would you like security personnel to escort you?” Xiao Jiu asked calmly.
“No need.
I can walk on my own.
How much was it again?” “Understood.
Your total comes to 110 Tera.
Medication for your symptoms has also been prepared.
Please retrieve it from the nutrition dispenser.
We wish you good health and freedom from illness.” Without another word, Lidi walked over to the nutrition dispenser and placed his hand against the scanner.
Ding.
A transfer notification sounded.
The dispenser compartment opened, delivering his medication.
After glancing over the labels, he headed toward the door.
The moment it opened, noise flooded in from the crowded corridor outside.
A young deer beastman wearing glasses was emotionally grabbing onto the sleeve of a cat nurse.
Behind him, his mother sat in a wheelchair with dried blood crusted beneath the bandages wrapped around her forehead.
The injury looked frightening— but in reality, it was only superficial.
Meanwhile, farther down the corridor, a squad of tactical operatives rushed a dying hyena beastman into the emergency room, a gunshot wound visible in his chest.
“That’s him from the news!” “The bank robber!” “I saw his face!
It’s definitely him!” Whispers spread rapidly among the surrounding crowd as several people secretly began recording with their phones.
“You people throw herbivore patients aside just to save some criminal?!
Are all of you damn carnivore-brained?!
Are we invisible to you people?!” The deer youth nearly broke down while screaming at the cat nurse.
“Please calm down.
Treatment order is determined by medical severity.” Several AI robots moved forward to restrain him.
“Don’t touch me, you scrap-metal freaks!
This hospital was never built for people like us anyway!” The deer youth’s voice nearly shook the ceiling itself.
Around them, spectators eagerly filmed everything on their phones.
At this rate, it would probably be on the afternoon news.
“…What a mess.” Lidi muttered quietly.
He had heard these kinds of complaints so many times that his ears practically developed calluses.
Herbivore beastmen constantly complained about carnivores.
Dangerous.
Emotionally unstable.
Smelled bad.
But the truth was that herbivores vastly outnumbered carnivores.
They were the ones controlling society’s voice.
Meanwhile— did anyone ever listen to carnivores?
Suddenly, the argument escalated again.
Glass shattered somewhere down the hall, followed immediately by the scream of a rabbit nurse.
“Stop it!
Are you insane?!
Why are you attacking the doctors?!” “If we don’t hit them, nobody will ever hear our voices!!!” Lidi frowned tightly and glanced toward the deer youth— just in time to see him slap the sheep doctor across the face.
The very same sheep doctor from earlier.
That voice.
That tone.
That way of speaking.
It all sounded painfully familiar.
Painfully irritating.
Lidi decided not to watch any further.
He simply turned and walked away in the opposite direction.
Along the way, several larger and more muscular beastman nurses rushed past him toward the chaos behind.
Shouting and furious roars echoed endlessly through the corridor.
At that moment, Lidi suddenly remembered something his middle school history teacher once taught.
The lesson described the first peace treaty ever signed between herbivores and carnivores.
The beginning of what became known as the Era of Peaceful Coexistence.
The textbook even featured a famous historical painting titled The Declaration of Peace.
In the painting, the leaders of both races shook hands beneath warm sunlight while smiling citizens stood peacefully behind them.
Lidi turned back toward the corridor behind him.
The entire scene before his eyes seemed to slow into motionless frames.
Shouting.
Shoving.
Arguments.
Camera flashes flickering endlessly.
Medical staff and civilians screaming at each other.
The enraged deer youth pinned to the ground while still struggling violently.
The entire scene resembled a stage play— except nobody here was acting.
Every bit of emotion was real.
For a brief moment, the chaos before him formed a grotesque contrast against the painting from his history book.
Lidi lowered his voice and muttered: “Peaceful coexistence… what a joke.”