[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies":3,"chapter-notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-chapter-37":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Notes on Kraft Anomalous Studies",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2283515,4467,"Chapter 37: Chapter Thirty-Five: Testing the Edge","notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-chapter-37",37,"\u003Cp>“Kraft, Kraft? Are you in there?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft was awakened by a rapid knocking at the door; instinctively, he lifted his forehead, marked from resting on the desk, reaching for a nonexistent phone, terrified he’d miss an important call.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hilt of the sword at his waist pulled him back to reality; his mind snapped from the fantasy of a night shift, realizing he no longer had duty, and the person knocking was not a frantic colleague.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His black robe was warm from sun exposure—it was afternoon now, meaning he’d slept less than four hours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet his fatigue had vanished entirely; his drained energy had been restored. He rubbed his eyes and stood up, still unaccustomed to the sudden shift from dark sleep to blinding sunlight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had dreamed of discovering all sorts of strange things, using them to recreate a modern hospital here, where he had just been on night shift. Dreams are illogical—why would he still be on night shift if he’d already opened a hospital?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, he’d been woken up; otherwise, he’d have been stuck in this unpleasant dream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m here,” Kraft replied as he opened the door. “Lu Xiusi?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was indeed Lu Xiusi at the door; his brown hair was disheveled, and he carried a faint smell of beer. This sight made Kraft frown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’t you go to the tavern for drinks?” Kraft covered his nose. He didn’t think Lu Xiusi had come back specifically to find him—he looked like a man suffering from a hangover.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Xiusi ignored Kraft’s distaste and smiled. “I didn’t want to disturb your sleep, but Li Si has woken up. I thought you’d want to see her, no matter what.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Li Si woke up? Already?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft felt a disorienting sense of time displacement—as if the world had leaped forward while he remained frozen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Xiusi glanced at him, puzzled, then suddenly understood and burst out laughing. “You don’t think it’s still yesterday afternoon, do you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yesterday? I slept all day?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft jolted fully awake. “How is Li Si? Any complications? Why didn’t you call me yesterday?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His first thought was whether he’d missed the optimal window for managing complications; his second was that his patient file was incomplete and he hadn’t given Gris more post-op instructions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“She’s doing better than ever. Gris wants to thank you in person,” Lu Xiusi said, smoothing his brown hair, brushing it neatly to either side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where are they? Let’s go now. I hope Gris didn’t feed her anything.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the observation classroom, since Kraft hadn’t woken yesterday, everyone had strictly followed his orders and left Li Si undisturbed—she had slept there all night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, Li Sheng hadn’t completely forgotten the father and daughter; he had slipped away from the celebration, found the blanket Lu Xiusi had brought, and laid it under the patient. Today, he and Gris had waited together until Li Si awoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t know how to thank you,” said the father, who had forced himself to remain calm until now—his tears finally broke free. “I still have some savings. If it’s not enough, my tavern is worth quite a bit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s unnecessary. Truly unnecessary,” Kraft interrupted, grabbing a clean piece of unused linen from yesterday and handing it to him to wipe his tears. The scene made him feel like a corrupt black clinic scamming a single parent’s last savings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gris reminded Kraft of his grandfather. In his attitude toward the young Kraft, he always showed a gentleness and seriousness that contradicted his brutish appearance, even if his expressions were sometimes clumsy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft had seen this kind of emotion in many parents: worry for their children, total devotion, willingness to trade anything for their safety and health.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So illness never affected only the patient—it spread through the entire family, burdening them with suffering in every imaginable and unimaginable way: emotional, financial, and beyond.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Relax. About payment…” Kraft stalled—not because he was waiting for Gris to name a high price, but because he suddenly realized he had no idea how to calculate it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His understanding of medical fees in this world was roughly equal to his knowledge of the herbal decoction’s ingredients: he knew water was involved, and he knew payment was in coins—pure knowledge void.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The herbalist from Wood Town came to the castle to treat people; they used the family’s private funds, Old Wood reviewed them, Anderson calculated them—what did it have to do with Kraft? He’d never seen it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Anyway, don’t worry about money. Let me check Li Si first. It’s her first day—she needs fresh bandages.” He quickly changed the subject, and as he walked toward Li Si, out of Gris’s sight, he shot a pleading glance at Lu Xiusi and Li Sheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Xiusi shook his head helplessly—he was still a student, his routine limited to reading and assisting professors in experiments; he had no idea about this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Li Sheng, as always, proved reliable. After a moment’s thought, he pulled his hand from his sleeve and held up five fingers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft nodded, understanding. He bent down to examine Li Si.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hello, little Li Si. Still in pain?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Si watched the man in the black robe warily. She remembered being fed a strange liquid yesterday—she closed her eyes, opened them, and found a faintly throbbing wound on her stomach.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Li Si, be good,” Gris said, kneeling beside her and taking her hand, giving her comfort. “Tell the doctor where it hurts.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Here,” Li Si pointed to the wound, still staring at Kraft with suspicion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft studied her expression. The flushed, acute illness look had faded; she had enough energy to question who he was. The pain was likely just normal post-op discomfort.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He unwound the gauze around her waist, lifted the bandage covering the wound. Only a trace of blood seeped out; the wound looked good—no redness or swelling. He hoped the internal condition was equally favorable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So far, it looks fine. But don’t think this is over.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He replaced the bandage with a fresh one, securing it with linen strips. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could apply directly for disinfection. Days since he’d last seen povidone-iodine solution—he silently missed it in his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he ever got the chance, he really should develop distillation technology—then he’d have high-proof alcohol for disinfection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I should have kept her for a few more days of observation, but the academy environment isn’t ideal for recovery.” Kraft pinched the blanket beneath the stone slab. One night was fine; two nights, even if nothing went wrong, would invite trouble. “So go home. For now, only give her thin liquids.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As for the wound, the surface will heal in six or seven days. Avoid walking as much as possible. I’ll come back to remove the stitches.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, right—the fee.” Kraft slapped his forehead. Li Sheng’s five fingers flashed before his eyes. “Five silver coins?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This estimate was based on Li Sheng’s gesture and Kraft’s understanding of medical fees in this world. Five royal silver coins felt a bit steep—one official coin could be worth two or three privately minted black silver coins, depending on circumstances.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t specify which silver coins. If he named too high a price, Gris could still choose how many of the five were royal coins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gris’s reaction differed from what Kraft expected. He froze, confirming Kraft wasn’t joking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He opened his mouth, but said nothing. He wore the same look of respect Kraft had seen many times these past two days—but it was different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From his money pouch, Gris counted out five royal silver coins and handed them to Kraft. “From now on, your meals at my tavern are free—forever, as long as I live.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft, bewildered to have received a lifetime meal voucher, watched Gris carry Li Si out of the classroom until they vanished from view. The man’s eyes were still red as he left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tch,” Li Sheng muttered behind him, tone ambiguous. “You think if Saint Simon returned, what would he do to you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh?” Kraft realized he might have misunderstood Li Sheng—but the topic jumped too wildly. He, who had barely touched a holy text, could only utter a simple question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He’d have to kill you. For unfair competition,” Lu Xiusi covered his face. “Even going to church for a priest to mutter a few words costs several royal silver coins.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Isn’t it free?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They claim it’s a blessing—how could it be free? Don’t tell me you’ve never been to church,” Li Sheng’s voice dripped with bitterness and envy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft really hadn’t been to church much. His grandfather’s reverence for religion ended where his authority reached; the local part of his soul had absorbed no religious habits from such a household.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The otherworldly part belonged to the kind of “pragmatic believer” who danced on the edge of a pyre—believing in gods like using the toilet: mutter a few words when desperate, forget them completely afterward, even worse than a heathen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I really didn’t know. But what does that have to do with us?” Kraft steered the conversation back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I actually meant five gold coins.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re insane?” Kraft was stunned—his entire concept of money had been rewritten.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gold coins had almost no counterfeit versions, because only the king and a few great noble houses had the means to mint them from gold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So all gold coins were assumed to be Westmin gold coins—diameter less than half that of a silver coin, thickness only one-third, about the size of a modern fifty-cent piece.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite this tiny surface, they’d stamped the tower of Westmin Castle on it, innovatively adding side and edge patterns to prevent people from filing off the rim and passing it off as full value.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One Westmin gold coin was worth seven royal silver coins, used only in large transactions, rarely circulating in markets. This absurd exchange rate wasn’t natural—it had shifted from an original 1:5 due to changes in precious metal prices.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“A groundbreaking treatment method, unique to us, using medicines I’ve never seen before,” Li Sheng held up five fingers. “Two lecturers dropped a day’s class to perform it personally—thirty-five silver coins isn’t too much. Gris isn’t poor—he can easily afford it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then this surgery is completely inaccessible to most people.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’t you say it was your last family secret herb? How could it be scalable?” Li Sheng had always doubted the claim, and now he was surprised Kraft had changed his mind so quickly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I changed my mind. Doesn’t matter where it came from—it’s no longer the last one.” Kraft looked toward the direction Gris and Li Si had left, as if he could see through walls to their retreating backs. “It’s still risky. Let’s observe Li Si for a while before deciding.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So we’ll have more chances to perform this surgery?” Li Sheng was overjoyed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Maybe. If there are no problems, maybe even more than us. I’ll go back and compile the key anatomical points of this case for future lectures.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He said he’d observe further, but anyone could see Li Si’s condition had deeply satisfied him—he was already preparing for more surgeries, just waiting for one final push to make his decision absolute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft gathered his things and left the classroom; Lu Xiusi followed. They returned to the professor’s room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I want to talk about the black liquid,” Kraft said, closing the door. The surgical procedure could be discussed openly, but the black liquid must remain private.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Xiusi wasn’t surprised. “I knew you’d eventually realize its value—and change your mind.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What about the professor…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When the mentor returns, say it was my idea. The outcome is already set—Morrison’s status as the discoverer of the black liquid won’t change regardless.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No. Say it differently: you merely suggested using the black liquid for surgery. I decided to carry it out. If anything goes wrong, Professor Karlman will come to me first.” Kraft stopped Lu Xiusi from taking full blame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This matter was already stepping on the edge of the professor’s confidentiality rule. If Lu Xiusi bore the main responsibility, it would harm his trust with the professor. Better for Kraft to shoulder the blame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When the professor returns with his findings and decides to announce them, we can jointly reveal the true composition of the dilution solution—without violating confidentiality.” Kraft thought this logic worked. He could always claim he conducted the experiment at Professor Karlman’s request.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A leap from discovery to application was exactly what Professor Karlman would welcome.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So we can start performing many surgeries?” Lu Xiusi’s enthusiasm matched Li Sheng’s.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Far from it. We must observe Li Si—at least half a month, preferably longer.” Kraft gave what he considered a conservative timeframe. “And you too—you’re included in the observation. Daily checks, starting tomorrow. I’ll keep written records myself.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Si’s case had gradually strengthened Kraft’s resolve to use the black liquid—but not to the point of irrationality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If nothing goes wrong, we’ll slowly accept only those patients who require surgery, continuing observation. By the time the professor returns, we’ll still be operating on a very small scale.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was Kraft’s plan: cautious, gradual expansion. When the professor returned, he’d have completed preliminary validation, reached agreement with Karlman, and then scale up to benefit as many as possible.\u003C\u002Fp>",2202,"2026-06-20T02:15:55.761Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","7694d456b0f81a9875df200b388d3d06ee15fe7882592f5ce1b0c5dfd456ed05","notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-chapter-38","notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-chapter-36",406,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fnotes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-cover.jpg"]