Chapter 395

A dim corner.

A spacious hall.

Bright lights.

Countless people behind him.

Chaotic, unorganized footsteps.

They were shouting.

Make him stop his foolish escape.

Doesn't matter if he's a doctor or a nurse.

Or a strong orderly.

No one.

No one could catch up to their pace.

Soon.

Escape this nightmare soon.

Leave that island.

Leave those memories.

Leave Baelil.

Spades are just a suit of cards.

The smell of rust is just the smell of rust.

Bloodlust and slaughter are horror movies.

Screams will never appear again.

God.

As if he had never saved him.

Never existed.

His heart pounded wildly.

As if it too wanted to run away.

The effect of the sedative had not yet worn off.

The light above his head dimmed.

Could not tell if it was the light's problem.

Or his consciousness.

Flickering.

He began to feel weary.

His breathing grew heavy.

His steps slowed.

The shouting voices came and went.

But he knew.

Once he stopped running.

He would never be able to run again.

It was he who gave him this chance.

Perhaps only one chance.

The warmth coming from his palm.

Was real.

Perhaps.

82 What exactly is he doing?

He is not a paranoid delusion patient.

He thought so.

"Patient on Bed 403! Return to your room immediately! This is your final warning!"

He did not know when, but he was already surrounded by everyone.

"I won't go back! Someone will take me away! He will take me away! I won't return to that terrible place! Even Baelil cannot stop me!" he screamed.

"What nonsense are you talking? Who will take you away? Your family left here hours ago!"

"No… it's him! Trafalgar! He's standing right beside me! Are you all blind?"

The doctor looked at him with regret, then instructed the nurse behind him.

"Patient on Bed 403's condition has worsened. Quickly bring more sedatives."

He stared in shock at the people around him; they stared back at him with the same expression.

"No… impossible. Tell me, are you real? Am I not insane?"

He was about to speak, but his entire body dissolved into the air.

He reached out desperately, but only saw specks of starlight vanish into his palm.

Am I… really insane?

"No! I'm not insane! I'm Patient 057, normal! I'm not insane!"

His voice echoed through the midnight psychiatric hospital.

He was seized by several strong orderlies and pinned to the ground.

The only thing that could resist was his words.

Yet his words ultimately vanished into the sedative flowing through his blood.

"It's time to wake up. You've slept for two days and two nights."

"Looks like they gave you a bit too much sedative this time."

"A few more grams, and it would've been a lethal dose."

Sima Di slowly opened his eyes, his mind hazy.

Sitting beside his bed was Baelir.

"I failed… I was so close… I could've escaped forever… and never had to look at your hateful face again…"

Sima Di's tone was slow, yet it seemed to exhaust every ounce of his strength.

The sedative's effect still lingered, stronger than ever before.

After all, they weren't giving him diazepam meant for ordinary patients—they were giving him chlorpromazine, with severe side effects, meant for the mentally ill.

"Yes. You were so close. No one probably thought a patient constantly dosed with sedatives could run that fast… Here, drink some water."

Baelir slowly fed him a spoonful of water.

That sip felt like heavenly rain, easing the parched, burning ache in his throat.

"Why... are you being so kind to me...? Is some worse punishment waiting for me? If so, that'd be perfect... preferably the fatal kind..."

"There won't be any punishment. This was just a mistake."

"A mistake?"

"Yes, a mistake. A careless nurse forgot to close the door, giving you the chance to run. But such an opportunity won't come again…"

"No… it was Ro. It was Trafalgar Ro. He broke the door and took me away from here. And this can't be an illusion, because he…"

He shook his head, trying to deny it.

"You mean he broke the door? No one can break this door so easily—especially not the door to your room."

"But he's Trafalgar Ro…"

"You're not insane, but delusions aren't what we want. You kept calling out that name while unconscious. I checked—he's just a fictional character." Baelir set the bowl down. "Teils, don't you know where you are?"

Teils is the English translation of the tenth sound—he always liked to call himself that.

Sima Di struggled weakly to sit up, taking in his surroundings.

This was his room. His dear roommate sat across the bed, watching him, grinning with a twisted smile—as if still dreaming of biting his neck hard.

Everything here remained exactly as it always had.