Sirius Chapter 19: Chapter 18: Memories (1)

Read chapter 19 of Sirius by Dealer on NovelPedia.

Flashes of light strobed across the woman's eyes as she lay on the hospital bed, her ears catching only fragments of voices cutting through the air around her. "Take him to the ICU immediately; we don't have a moment to waste!" "And what about her, sir?" "The woman's case isn't as severe. Two days of mana-induced hibernation should be enough." The next time she opened her eyes, a powerful sensation of drowning gripped her mind. A capsule opened in the middle of a room that resembled a hospital ward. Before she could properly see, she heard a low voice. Cof Cof Clutching her own throat, Akemi coughed out a blue liquid. "She's awake; call the attending nurse." Beside her, a blond man sat in a chair, watching her. A second man in a black suit slipped out through the door. "Who are you?" The woman asked, instinctively pulling back from him. "Well, I won't demand manners from someone who just woke up from a coma. My name is Michael." "Michael? I've never heard of you. What are you doing here?" She asked bluntly. "Hahaha; what do you think? My client was perfectly fine two days ago, then suddenly he shows up half-dead, and the only lead I have is you." "Half-dead? What happened to Jihan? Is he alright?" The desperation in Akemi's voice was unmistakable. "Easy, princess; one question at a time." "By her tone, she doesn't seem to be the cause." Michael thought to himself. "He's alive; that's what I can say with certainty. Now, I'd like you to explain what happened; Li will be unconscious for a while before he can speak for himself." The half-elf's eyes wavered; a weight of guilt settled over her. After a short pause, she began to recount what had happened, from the moment she first encountered him to the moment she woke up, leaving out, of course, the conversation Jihan had shared with her father in the cave, along with a few other details she didn't feel were worth mentioning. "If what you're telling me is true, I can say with complete certainty that none of this is your fault." Noticing the emotional weight behind the woman's words, Michael made a point of saying it clearly. "That said, he's quite the idiot for letting himself get to that point." "Is there anything I can do to help?" "Not a thing. Mr. Li risked his life to save you; I'm certain he wouldn't want you suffering for it." Looking at her own wrist, Akemi noticed an extraordinary number of points, around five thousand. Remembering a few lessons her father had given her before they entered the trial, she quickly said: "I want to transfer my score to him." Michael was caught off guard by the woman's decision. "Are you sure? If you're making this decision, you should understand what that score means. You know how important it is, don't you?" "I know; that's exactly why I'm doing it. I was protected, carried, and nearly got us both killed. I don't deserve even a hundredth of it; keeping my life is already more than enough." Seeing no other path forward, Michael accepted the transfer on Jihan's behalf; he would pass the points to the boy later. To make a payment required the recipient's consent; receiving, however, had no such rule, only proximity. "Alright. Is there a message you'd like me to pass along when he wakes up?" "No. Instead, I'll have to ask you not to tell him anything." "Why? I'd think having a friend is always a good thing when starting out here, and now that you're on your own, how do you plan to go on?" "I'll manage that part," Akemi said, immovable. "I can't keep leaning on other people. If I'm going to pass this trial, I need to at least be able to survive on my own. "Besides, from what little I know of him, I'm certain he'd refuse and try to help me anyway if he found out what I did." "Have it your way..." Michael sighed, rising and heading toward the door. "I still think it's a bad idea. Depending on someone else isn't a weakness; not everyone is lucky enough to have a person like that." When he opened the door, he paused before leaving. "Even so, you have