"Dr. Fran, your provocation is quite skillful. But why choose to say it now? You could have waited until you were fully recovered… Aren't you afraid of death?"
Tamesis's hand was still on Fran's face. Her glossy, smooth fingernails had sunk slightly into Fran's skin, causing a slight sting. She wasn't necessarily doing it intentionally; it might just be an instinctive action in the heat of her fury.
"You couldn't refute me logically, so you instead began to showcase your greatest advantage over me—'violence.' And the essence of judgment is the measured execution of violence upon others."
"But I do somewhat admire you. Hearing all this, you can still maintain your composure and not try to strangle me directly… Your self-control truly is quite good. Is it because 'I' hold special meaning for you? I'm truly flattered…"
Fran still maintained her customer-service smile.
Tamesis frowned and pondered for a moment before speaking again. "You are more caustic than I imagined, but perhaps the real you should be like this…"
"As you said, I am obsessed with judging others, already mad."
"But I have decided to end my own life. I once swore an oath: if someone could pass the test, I would use my own life to repay the offense against them. Choosing you as the target was more about hoping someone sufficiently qualified would witness my death firsthand."
Fran did not accept this answer, instead pressing relentlessly. "Then what if I hadn't passed the puzzle? Would I have died silently, and would you have stopped? You would have just deceived yourself again and, with a clear conscience, gone to find the next 'sinner' needing judgment."
"Your mind has already become diseased. Malice has sprouted and multiplied, like out-of-control cancer cells. I am your third target; you can still exercise restraint… What about the tenth? By then, you might already be enjoying the screams of others."
Tamesis was taken aback. Her eyes like dim fireflies, dazed yet carrying a trace of resolve.
"I originally wanted to wait until you were completely recovered, but since it's already out in the open… Proving my determination directly is also acceptable."
"Then, please witness my end now!"
As she spoke, Tamesis took a scalpel from the nearby tray and aimed it at her own carotid artery.
…The expected splash of blood did not occur.
A cold and powerful hand firmly grabbed Tamesis's wrist, as if cast from iron, making her unable to break free. The scalpel she was holding also fell to the ground.
In her panic, Tamesis looked at Fran in confusion. Fran's build was slender, and having just undergone surgery, her body was at its weakest state. It was absolutely impossible for her to have stopped her. And indeed, it wasn't Fran who had stopped her.
Fran was still lying very obediently on the operating table, even innocently holding up her hands to show she had done nothing.
Then, whose hand was this? Who could be the third person in this absolute sealed chamber?
Tamesis turned her head sharply. In her panic, she saw a familiar face. An ashen-gray complexion, turbid pupils, the vaguely handsome features of his former self, and the faint smell of preservative aldehydes lingering…
It was her deceased fiancé, John Howard.
Fran's voice sounded slowly. Playful and ethereal, filled with hearty laughter, like reciting some kind of poem.
"Death is the ultimate solace. It can cure foolishness, and also cure madness. It may not be the best choice, but it is the final destination. Eternal tranquility is death's promise to all life."
Somehow, she had already sat up from the operating table and draped her doctor's coat back over her shoulders.
"But death is also a stubborn ailment. Like a bone-deep ulcer, it relentlessly clings to the living, never receding. Your deservedly punished fiancé unfortunately contracted the disease called death…"
"And I, cured him!"
Fran's face was hidden in a pale gray shadow, even her smile was indistinct. Only those amber-like, deep golden eyes were shining brightly. She was clearly smiling; even if unseen, Tamesis could see the wild, fervent laughter in those eyes.
"You… what did you do?! John clearly died… I saw him lose his pulse with my own eyes. He was almost rotting… But, why… can he still stand up?"
Tamesis became somewhat incoherent, having long lost her previous composure. Even with her death-seeking resolve, fear still uncontrollably appeared on her face.
The tower called common sense is built from one's understanding of the world. The tower in Tamesis's heart was now on the verge of collapse, for she had witnessed with her own eyes the absolutely impossible "return from death."
John Howard then grabbed Tamesis's other wrist, completely restraining her. He was clearly a body that had already become soft and putrid, dried out. His muscles should have mostly dissolved by now. Why were they so tough? Almost like some kind of metal…
Fran got down from the operating table and walked slowly to Tamesis's side. Her expression was normal, her movements light and nimble, completely unlike someone who had just undergone surgery.
"Fran, whatever you want to do, you need rest now. The newly reattached organs are still fragile…"
Tamesis pressed her lips together, her body trembling slightly, advising Fran with a touch of concern.
"So kind of you, thank you for your concern."
Fran extended her slender index finger and thumb, precisely pinched the suture thread end at her wound, and then, like pulling a zipper… she opened her own wound.
But the whole process wasn't bloody at all. It was smooth and seamless, as if the wound area was originally a zipper. Snapped sutures, writhing entrails, spurting blood plasma… None of that appeared.
Beneath the skin and flesh of her wound was a vast, boundless expanse of cosmic space. Vast nebulae churned and billowed disorderly in the darkness, like a warm breath tinged with a hazy, colorful glow. Profound, immense, terrifying yet captivating.
"Dear Ms. Tamesis, whatever you saw, you just need to understand one thing… Don't worry about me."
As she spoke, Fran pinched the wound again and pulled it to the other side. The entire incision closed accordingly. Like a master magician showcasing their 得意 trick. Her abdomen was pale and smooth, with a faint sheen… and showed no trace of any suturing.
"Today, you are not a doctor, but a patient. Relax. I will cure the disease in your mind…"
Tamesis looked at Fran, her pupils dilated, gaze unfocused, unable to recover from the shock for a long time. Immense terror enveloped her. This lovely-faced doctor girl before her eyes had already transcended the category of human in her view. What exactly was beneath this delicate skin and flesh? A demon? An evil spirit? Or some unspeakable horror…
"What exactly are you?" This question nearly blurted out. Fran's eyes held a smile, but she did not answer.
"You… plan to turn me into something like him too?"
Tamesis gritted her teeth slightly, glancing back at her cold, unfamiliar fiancé's withered, decayed face.
"Of course not." Fran wagged her index finger.
"Those who misuse death can't even be called quacks; they are just butchers. Your so-called 'disease' is a manifestation of a desire for judgment. As long as another way to resolve this desire can be found… the illness will also be readily solved."
She propped her cheek with one hand, carefully observing the immobile Tamesis.
"…What do you mean?" She failed to understand what Fran intended to do.
"I mean, you don't have to kill yourself, nor do you have to completely abandon this interesting little hobby. But you must give yourself more constraints… You can be more cruel than worldly laws, but be more just than Jigsaw's executions."
"How could someone establish laws with only life and death as outcomes? You aren't a Trisolaran."
Fran sat back on the operating table, her fingertips tapping rhythmically on the bedside, visibly excited.
"Of course, you can choose to return to a normal life. I can erase those unpleasant memories of yours. I can also eliminate the enormous impact you've already caused."
She leaned slightly closer to Tamesis, then changed the subject.
"But, I wonder if you have the willingness to become the true, literal 'Themis'? To become a humanoid courtroom walking in the shadows, recovering the justice truly deserved by real victims with a set of laws of your own…"
"The salvation from bloody, physical punishment is just the illusion of sensory stimulation. Discard it, and try to get closer to truth! I will teach you how to do it, and also grant you the 'violence' needed to execute all this."
Fran maintained a sweet smile and extended her hand to the other, like an invitation at a ball. Somehow, John had loosened his restraint on Tamesis. In her daze, almost as if bewitched… Tamesis took hold of that pale hand covered in suture marks.
"Oh, dear Ms. Tamesis… Thank you for being willing to cooperate with the treatment. I believe we can get along quite pleasantly."
Fran took Tamesis's hand and helped her up, like facing an awkward dance partner, her eyes full of meaningful amusement.
Tamesis's body trembled instinctively, just like a mortal who had just signed a contract with a devil, only beginning to feel genuine fear afterward. But now it was too late to turn back.
She glanced at the John corpse that had retreated to stand in the shadows. Her thoughts were a tangled mess. This doctor before her could even deprive others of death… She probably had no room to change her mind.
"What exactly should I do? This sealed chamber is my life's work, but it will eventually be found by the outside world… Detectives and police are looking for me all the time. Just maintaining the status quo, I've already exhausted all my strength."
Tamesis removed her surgical cap and mask, revealing her lovely face with a few strands of soaked hair clinging to it. Her brows were tightly furrowed, her expression weary and bewildered.
Making someone who was willingly going to their death live on, they will instead feel at a loss in the short term. This is also a very interesting phenomenon.
Fran clearly had great experience with this. She placed her hands on Tamesis's shoulders and looked directly into her eyes.
"All external things can be abandoned, no need for regret… I will teach you some trivial little knowledge. After understanding it, you will possess the ability to resolve any trouble. The societal impact already caused will be eliminated by this, and you can also use it to maintain your new hobby."
"Why exactly are you helping me?"
Tamesis tried hard to steady her breathing. Her gaze had gradually regained its calm. The fear stemming from instinct had already dissipated with time. Since there was no way back left… then forge ahead on this single path. After making up her mind, composure gradually returned to her.
Fran tapped her lips with her index finger, seemingly thinking very seriously about this question.
"Recently, I've had some thoughts on law and divinity. Coincidentally, your circumstances are suitable… So I acted on a whim, preparing to conduct a small experiment."
She raised an eyebrow and said: "Your questions should be more than just these, right? If you don't take this chance to ask, I might not be in the mood to answer later, you know?"
"Now, you can ask me three questions."
Tamesis glanced at John Howard in the corner shadows and tentatively asked.
"How exactly was John's return from death achieved?"
Fran had probably anticipated Tamesis's question, answering with exceptional decisiveness. "Actually, this isn't difficult. Just use some Haemonculi Coven technology. But a quicker, more convenient method is to let a corpse contact 'Fallen Star Child' blood, turning him into a Corpse-person. The difficulty lies in how to make him possess obedience after transformation."
"Don't worry, you will learn all these things later."
Although she didn't understand what "Haemonculi Coven" and "Fallen Star Child" were, Tamesis could sense Fran was indeed answering her question seriously.
Thus, she asked her greatest doubt.
"Then, that starry sky in your abdomen, what exactly is it?… It's like horror novel descriptions. Are you an 'Outer God'?"
"Hah…" Fran gave a sly, light laugh.
"Silly child, of course not."
"Compared to really stuffing a universe of stars into your belly, directly deceiving someone's eyes is much simpler. That's just camouflage. If you had been a little braver at the time and reached your hand in, you could have touched soft internal organs."
"Really… so that's it?"
"It's just that simple. When a master magician reveals the secrets behind those incredible miracles, the audience will be shocked to realize it was all so shallow and uninteresting."
Tamesis clearly hadn't expected the answer Fran gave to be like this. But her smile was sincere and earnest, completely unlike she was joking.
Tamesis took some time to digest this information, then said: "I shouldn't have anything else to ask for now… Can the last question be saved?"
"It can."
Fran nodded, appearing quite tolerant.
"Okay, Q&A time is over. Then let's start the lesson directly."
"You are an excellent doctor. You'll probably learn very quickly."
——
A week later, the surgeon named Tamesis had completely disappeared from the world.
And the missing medical pioneer "Fran" reappeared in the public eye. She had never actually been missing; she had to conceal her whereabouts due to participating in a confidential experiment. Probably due to a confidentiality agreement, she remained tight-lipped about everything during her disappearance.
Police and detectives found the abandoned sealed chamber, the corpses of John Howard and Julie Jane, and a large amount of written materials. But from then on, they lost all traces of Tamesis, as if she had never left any evidence of her existence.
Meanwhile, a new legend also began to spread in the shadows of the city's alleys…
If you have suffered injustice, encountered oppression, and cannot obtain the justice you deserve through normal judicial channels… Then, please carry your reason and hatred, and go to a deserted block at midnight.
There, a lady calling herself "Themis" will listen to your story and recover for you what is rightfully yours.
No one can lie to her, nor can anyone escape her judgment. She is the judge holding high the courtroom gavel and the executioner lowering the blade of the guillotine.
⸻
T/N: Hey readers~! New Translator here! Before I say anything, I'd first like to thank the original author for creating this wonderful story. Without them, I wouldn't have the chance to share this adventure with you. I hope my translation does justice to their work, and that together, we can enjoy this story.
With that said, I'm happy to let you know I'll be uploading daily chapters. And for those who wish to support my work and gain early access, I've set up a Patreon where advanced chapters will be available.
[email protected]/PeakTL