The bright red “Surgery in Progress” sign above the operating room door finally dimmed. An exhausted doctor emerged, announcing, “The patient is out of critical condition.”
Even with the assistance of machines, psychic energy, and artificial intelligence, the hours-long intricate surgery had still been a grueling battle.
The few people waiting outside the door expressed their gratitude to the doctor. Kai Xue, the liaison officer responsible for Squad 47, patted the acting captain on the shoulder. “You all head back first. Zhu Ji will be transferred to the ICU for monitoring. Once he’s completely stable and moved to a regular ward, I’ll notify you to visit him.”
“The disciplinary decision from higher-ups has also come down,” he continued. “The acting captain showed insufficient consideration in command, but the appearance of the mutant was indeed unpredictable. Taking all factors into account, you are suspended for reflection and will forfeit half of this month’s bonus.”
The acting captain’s gaze followed the bed carrying Zhu Ji as it was wheeled away. He let out a sigh of relief before responding, “I accept the punishment.”
A few days later, upon learning that Zhu Ji had finally been transferred to a regular ward, several teammates immediately went to see him. Unfortunately, he was still unconscious. As a new mission notification arrived, they had no choice but to leave the gifts they had brought and depart in haste.
Several hours after they left, Zhu Ji regained consciousness. The nurse relayed the news to the liaison officer, who then arrived with a staff member from the Sentinel Tower.
After offering condolences and apologies, the staff member got straight to the point. “Comrade Zhu Ji, considering the severity of your injuries and the extended recovery time required, we recommend that you retire to recuperate.”
“…” Zhu Ji sighed. Even though he had anticipated this outcome upon waking, it was still difficult to accept retiring so soon after joining the Tower.
The liaison officer silently handed him a document outlining the Tower’s compensation and preferential policies for soldiers retiring due to injury.
Observing his expression, the staff member continued, “If, after your recovery, you wish to return to the Tower for medical work, or remain in a support role or pursue any other occupation the Tower is willing to provide assistance and support.”
“I’ll consider it carefully. Thank you.”
Months later, Zhu Ji, now stabilized and transferred back to the Sentinel Tower’s affiliated hospital in Wenzhou City for rehabilitation, stared at the compensation payment from the Tower on his phone. He let out a heavy sigh and leaned back against his pillow in resignation.
How was he going to explain this to Shen Huaiyun and Shen Tangmo? Should he say he got beaten back home by an Aberrant right after reaching the front lines?
That was just too embarrassing. Better not tell them for now, he thought dejectedly.
Thus, the Shen brothers remained under the impression that he was still at the Mengzhou Tower.
Over the past few months, both Shen Tangmo and Shen Huaiyun had been busy with work and training.
Shen Tangmo had worked overtime for two months to complete a portion of his tasks in advance, dedicating all his previous free time to work in order to clear his schedule for training.
Meanwhile, his younger brother had taken on more jobs facilitated by Ning Yanfeng while continuing his training. He relied on painkillers to mitigate symptoms like headaches, taking increasingly larger doses without realizing he was worsening his condition.
Due to their changed schedules, the two had not returned home together or shared a meal at the dining table for a long time. Their chat logs were increasingly filled with messages like “Working late today,” “I’ll be back late, you go to sleep first,” and “I’m training, you rest first.”
Every time Shen Huaiyun finished his extra training and returned to the bedroom, Shen Tangmo was already asleep. Or when Shen Tangmo came home after working overtime, a small desk lamp would be left on outside the bedroom door, while Shen Huaiyun lay frowning deeply in bed.
He thought it was because his younger brother had another nightmare. After gently smoothing out the wrinkles on his forehead, he would quickly wash up and rest, unaware that it was actually Shen Huaiyun suffering from headaches.
It wasn’t until Shen Tangmo’s schedule finally eased up, and his return to training proved effective, that he managed to come home early for once.
Shen Huaiyun had just finished his extra training and was taking a shower, while on the bedside table lay the pill bottle he hadn’t yet hidden away.
When the young man saw the bottle, he instinctively frowned. He walked closer, picked it up, and after reading the label, his breath hitched for a moment, his brows furrowing tightly.
The pills in the bottle were nearly gone. Why had Shen Huaiyun been taking so many painkillers?
When the person caught red-handed pushed open the door in his pajamas, he saw Shen Tangmo sitting grim-faced by the bed, holding the pill bottle, looking ready to demand an explanation.
“What’s wrong with your body? Why didn’t you tell me, secretly taking painkillers alone?”
Shen Huaiyun froze mid-motion, towel still in hand.
Knowing he was in the wrong, he didn’t dare meet Shen Tangmo’s eyes.
All the pain he had endured alone, all the secrets he had kept thinking it was for the other’s good now, the pill bottle had torn through the facade, exposing his lies right in front of Shen Tangmo.
The young man took a deep breath, fingers gripping the half-empty bottle tightly, unsure what to say.
What else was there to say? Accuse him for not relying on him enough? Tell him he should go to the hospital? Or scold him for acting on his own, not taking care of his health?
More than the anger of being kept in the dark, what he felt now was disappointment: Shen Huaiyun never seemed willing to put his own health first.
Shen Huaiyun wanted to protect his family, protect him, wanted to become stronger, wanted to earn more money to support the household, to prevent the family from ever facing the same hardships they had when treating his illness back then.
He had so many things he wanted to do, yet he never thought about making himself healthier.
Or rather, in his eyes, both his mental and physical health were merely tools to be maintained in good condition for the sake of “becoming stronger.”
Shen Tangmo understood him well, yet because of this, he also didn’t understand him enough.
“It’s just occasional headaches,” Shen Huaiyun finally managed to organize his words, trying to make it sound trivial. “Taking some painkillers helps. It’s not serious.”
“When did it start?” Shen Tangmo didn’t use his mental tendrils. Instead, he grabbed Shen Huaiyun’s wrist, pulling him closer and pressing his forehead against his to sense the flow of his mental energy.
Shen Huaiyun’s breathing grew uneven. “A few months ago.”
“Hah.” The young man laughed bitterly.
“A few months, and you kept it hidden so well, not telling me a thing. If I hadn’t come home early today and seen the pill bottle, how much longer would you have kept it from me?”
He “saw” the other’s chaotic mental energy and regretted his words immediately, blaming himself: For so long, he hadn’t noticed.
The guide’s gentle mental energy delved deeper, patiently untangling the knots, following the flow of energy until it reached the mental landscape, where he found it swollen once again. Only after infusing it with soothing energy did he withdraw.
Shen Huaiyun dared not move until he sensed the other’s mental energy withdraw, then quietly sat down at the edge, discreetly pressing his still slightly trembling inner thigh.
Having his mental landscape so thoroughly combed through by Shen Tangmo’s mental energy while fully conscious was, for him, a bit too stimulating.
The young man didn’t notice his small movement, still pondering the earlier situation with a serious expression. “Tomorrow we’ll go to the hospital for a check-up. It seems your mental landscape can’t keep up with the growth rate of your mental energy again.”
After all, he had only learned how to treat common injuries and had some understanding of fragmented mental landscapes, but he wasn’t a professional doctor and couldn’t make a professional diagnosis.
“No need, I”
“We must go.” Shen Tangmo cut him off, his tone leaving no room for argument. “And the painkillers are almost gone too, aren’t they?”
Shen Huaiyun wanted to say something more, but meeting his gaze, he swallowed his words.
Shen Tangmo looked at him, then suddenly reached out and pulled him into an embrace.
The person who had just showered still carried a hint of dampness and the scent of shower gel soft and warm. Shen Tangmo rested his chin against the crook of Shen Huaiyun’s shoulder.
Shen Huaiyun froze for a moment before relaxing, burying his face in the other’s shoulder and neck. The familiar warmth and scent caused something hard within his heart to suddenly crumble at the edges.
“I’m sorry,” he mumbled.
Shen Tangmo didn’t speak, only tightened his arms around him.
“I should be the one saying that. I’m sorry for not noticing all this time.”
The next day, both took leave and went to the specialized mental energy hospital.
Meanwhile, in the north, observers at the Boliya Tower detected abnormal pollution levels.
“Another group movement of aberrants? Other watchtowers have reported similar incidents over the past few months. This isn’t right.”
Watchtower Commander Liang Ran glanced at his tablet. “The nearest team is… Squad Eleven. Have Captain Shen lead the team to clear out the aberrants, and be cautious of mutated forms.”