[Dear Dr. Fran, the February monthly house call has been triggered. The consultation target is Fog Street physician 'Fran Herschel.' The ailment is 'Flayer Curse.' Since the subject afflicted is yourself, please plan the treatment course independently.]
After returning to Fog Street Clinic, Fran removed the Stellar Abyss Society academic overcoat and casually hung it on the coat rack in the bedroom.
However, she did not change into her most familiar white lab coat. Instead, she rummaged through the wardrobe and put on a set of blue-and-white striped patient gown.
After all, the patient needing treatment now was herself...
"Dr. Fran, is the Flayer Curse very troublesome?"
Sigrid inquired from the side, a trace of concern in her brows.
In fact, she had also participated in this academic symposium. She had just been carried by Fran in sword form the entire time, making her almost completely unnoticeable... Even Sister Haida hadn't realized there was another observer present.
"Hmm... How to describe it? It's like chewing gum stuck in your hair. Not unsolvable, but certainly bothersome enough."
Fran stretched her waist, her expression carrying a hint of languor.
Feeling sleepy after eating one's fill is also normal...
It's just that she still had a monthly house call to handle and certainly couldn't rest just yet.
Since Haida served as a medium, the self-hypnosis effect was quite good; the feeling of satiety could last for several days. In reality, even if the craving for flesh surged again, it couldn't truly affect her mental state... A little endurance would suffice.
However, due to the good habits of a clinical physician, Fran was accustomed to maintaining optimal condition during treatment.
During surgery, any single errant tremor of the fingertip could lead to unexpected malignant consequences... After all, what came into zero-distance contact with the lancet blade was the patient's soft internal organs.
Walking out of the bedroom to the main hall, Fran took the quill from Sigrid and began writing the treatment plan for this monthly house call.
[Option One: Use psychic energy to permeate the entire body, performing an immersive filtration of the curse. Estimated time: 7 days. Evaluation: Risk Factor. High.]
[Option Two: Attempt to use the Frenzied Flame-tainted Crown of Scarlet Rot to disperse and absorb the curse. Evaluation: Risk Factor. High.]
[Option Three: Use 'Beckoning Finger Remedy' to summon 'Lord of the Lands Between' Yvonne, allowing her to cleanse the curse-words with divine power. Evaluation: Risk Factor. Low.]
[Option Four: Use Luyala for deep dream entry to eliminate the influence on a purely spiritual level. Evaluation: Risk Factor. Medium.]
She lightly raised her hand, returning the quill to Sigrid, then pondered the feasibility of these options.
"Although the Crown of Scarlet Rot has sufficient 'rank,' it is almost uncontrollable, and the situation might even become more troublesome."
"Bringing Yvonne would have low risk, but the Beckoning Finger Remedy only has one dose left. And last time, I gave it to Haida..."
Psychic energy could be considered a universal solution.
The world Fog Street resided in did not contain the "Warp." Dispersed psychic energy gathered in the Astral plane, the Abyss, or other hidden separated spaces, and it also wasn't prone to easy loss of control.
"Let's go with the dream entry."
Finally, Fran decided on the specific plan.
Facing an incompletely researched ailment and immediately pulling out a universal solution was like applying L'Hôpital's rule upon seeing a derivative, prescribing Lianhua Qingwen capsules for a headache, or using a Mystic Mine deck in Yu-Gi-Oh... It indicated certain issues.
She preferred using unique and effective methods, which also facilitated subsequent technological optimization.
After completing the treatment plan selection, Fran leaned back on the main hall's soft velvet sofa, relaxing her entire weight into it.
As her pale, frost-like eyelashes slowly closed, she gradually fell asleep.
---
"Teacher Flamel! I've finished preparing the potion for the assessment. Please check it."
A somewhat expectant female voice reached Fran's ears.
Her tone was gentle, brimming with reassuring affinity.
Fran slowly opened her amber eyes. What came into view was a young woman wearing a horizontal prismatic pendant.
She wore a thin black vest, now damp with slight sweat, clinging to her skin... as if she had just finished the potion preparation work.
That was Viola, from before the Great Plague.
Because she had to wear heavy anti-contamination suits during potion research, Viola would often end up drenched in sweat. The situation improved only after Fran specially modified the suit's air circulation system for her.
"Hmm."
Looking at the familiar face from the past, Fran's gaze faltered. She paused for a moment before taking the several samples Viola presented.
The first solution had a bright, mesmerizing color, looking more like an artwork or some strange toxic concoction... and in fact, it was indeed no different from a potent poison, even potentially more dangerous.
Spook.
It could briefly awaken a certain psychic trait in the user but also carried a high risk of willpower collapse. A relatively well-known Imperial prohibited drug.
Fran leaned close to the container's opening, fanning the escaping vapor, gave it a few light sniffs, and completed the quality appraisal.
"Average quality, completion rate above 80%, meets stability standards. Much better than the products made by ordinary Chaos lunatics, but compared to a true veteran apothecary... there's still a long way to go."
Putting down the first potion, her gaze quickly turned to the second sample.
It was a small vial of turbid, grayish wine, wafting a despairing yet intoxicating heavy twilight aura.
Final Kiss.
Distilled from the last few dying breaths of the loyal, carrying the cold fragrance of death... Though a liquid, it was neither addictive nor truly intoxicating.
It could awaken the deepest survival instinct in the dying, buying them one last chance.
Fran had technically optimized the formula, making the collection and distillation of the breath much simpler, obtainable even from ordinary severely wounded individuals. Of course, the effect would be weaker, more gentle.
She extended an index finger, dipped a little of the liquid, and lightly tasted it on her tongue. Closing her eyes briefly to savor it, she then gave her evaluation.
"Completion rate above 90%, quality quite good. The Secrets-Hunters are generally sufficiently loyal, and the number of casualties has always been high, making the raw material quality very good. Besides, your brewing skill has indeed improved greatly."
"Hehe... Thank you for the praise."
Seemingly not expecting her usually strict teacher to suddenly encourage her, Viola touched her cheek, smiling somewhat sheepishly.
Daze, relief, despair, regret, or unwillingness... The dying breaths of the departed transformed into the mellow fragrance of the wine, lingering between Fran's lips and teeth, refusing to disperse.
Fran fell silent again for a moment before beginning to appraise the final potion sample.
This potion's container was meticulously sealed, not left open casually like the first two.
Because it was indeed dangerous enough; even Fran wouldn't consider wanting to taste it.
Bylestim.
Refined using daemon blood and spiritbone powder, equivalent to liquid Warp crystals. Its effect is to greatly enhance the user's physical attributes and perception, but its essence is a potent stimulant with severe and fatal side effects.
Incidentally, the most frequent user of this drug is Slaaneshi Champion Lucius. That guy is a heavy drug addict; without relying on stimulants, he can't even move on his own...
Oh, come to think of it... all three potions above originate from the Slaanesh system. After all, only those guys pursue the most extreme sensory stimulation and pharmaceutical artistry.
And coincidentally, most of Fran's 40K medical knowledge came from an academic plagiarism during a house call on Fabius Bile...
Although Fabius is an atheist, even an unbeliever, he still has countless connections with Slaanesh.
"Hmm... The most dangerous potion actually has the best quality. Viola, you only seem to show some talent under these circumstances."
Fran gave a light laugh, gently swirling the potion container, observing the deep, gloomy glow the dark green liquid displayed within.
Viola blinked, seeming pleased that her work was recognized.
"You said this was the last set of materials, Teacher, so I spent a long time preparing for the formulation. Now I've memorized all the manuscripts you left."
"Diligence is your finest quality, Viola. You will be a very competent doctor."
"Hmm~ Your potionology assessment is passed."
"As for clinical surgical skills, I won't test you further. The Secrets-Hunters always have many patients needing surgery; your experience might not be inferior to mine..."
Fran gave a slight nod, announcing her acknowledgment of her.
"You can graduate."
"If you achieve accomplishments in the future, no need to remember me. Similarly, if you cause any trouble, don't implicate me. Be proud; now you are also a physician from Fog Street."
"Oh, it seems you've already become the Medicae Primus of the Secrets-Hunters, one of the four division leaders... You should be able to stand on your own now, right?"
Viola's hands hung before her abdomen, showing both the excitement of being acknowledged and a trace of hesitant sorrow at the impending separation.
"Thank you for your teachings and care all along, Teacher Flamel."
"I, I will remember you..."
Fran rested her cheek on one hand, tapping Viola's forehead somewhat reproachfully.
"Don't raise such strange flags for me, as if I'm entrusting an orphan on my deathbed. Your teacher isn't dead yet."
"I am indeed leaving for a while, but it's not a permanent farewell... After all, I live on Fog Street; I'm not moving away."
"Yes!"
After receiving her admonishing tap, the corners of Viola's lips actually curled into a slight smile.
Within the Secrets-Hunter cult, she was hailed as a true prodigy in the medical field, almost single-handedly constructing an entirely new medical system.
Later, with the assistance of the Chief Hunter and the majority approval of the General Affairs Council, she finally ascended to the position of Medicae Primus.
Simultaneously, the social status represented by the position became a mask covering Viola's face. She had to uphold the mystery and dignity of the Medicae Primus while balancing her true self, preventing it from becoming alienated by fame and power.
Apart from occasional leisure moments with Marian, only within Fog Street Clinic could Viola completely return to her unguarded self.
The teacher herself was the finest psychologist; any psychological change in her couldn't escape her notice.
Fran gazed at her newly graduated student. Her amber, deep golden eyes reflected the dim lamplight and also mirrored Viola's face.
She lightly raised a hand, bringing it close to the face before her, but ultimately did not make contact.
"Twenty years passed so quickly. I almost can't remember your face clearly."
"Even if it's a malicious trap, please let me look a little longer..."
Before she finished speaking, Viola's cheek began to crack with web-like fissures, like a faded, peeling old photograph.
Black insects surged wildly from within this skin, revealing the decayed bone and flesh wrapped inside.
Facing this sudden change, Fran's eyes remained as calm as ever, showing not the slightest ripple.
Viewing beauty as bleached bones was a mental state cultivated to suppress desires. But to glimpse a past acquaintance from within stark, bare bones... required greater fortitude and serenity.
As the face disintegrated, the gentle smile on Viola's face turned bizarre and ghastly, like an Abyssal devil tearing off its disguise.
"Teacher Flamel... If you hadn't fallen asleep before that calamity, could I have survived, completed that unfinished wedding?"
"If your technology had never existed in this world, would the Withered Crown cult not have coveted it? Would the Lytic Disease and Rotten High-Crown not have manifested in Norlington City? The cult colleagues, the children in the medical stations, those who exhausted themselves for a living..."
"Could they have been spared from death?"
Facing her interrogation, Fran merely closed her eyes lightly and let out a shallow sigh.
"Perhaps so."
"The former me was obsessive and arrogant, believing everything would proceed according to my grand blueprint. But reality is always far more absurd. Without any warning, a higher-tier existence abandoned restraint and propriety, reaching out to overturn the chessboard..."
"But."
Her tone shifted. Though her lips still curved in a smile, it carried an indescribable chill.
"You are but an echo, a trace, a nightmare... Who allowed you to use my apprentice's face and voice to question me?"
The tailbone of the Chimera Spine Sphinx instantly lashed out from beneath the hem of her white coat, piercing Viola's chest. Then, with an upward flick, it split the skin of her entire upper body into tattered halves.
Beneath the shattered skin surged a tide of black insects... and a skeleton with eerily glowing green eyes. Shrieking souls wrapped around it like a formal dress, also like a veil.
"A trace amount of C'tan remnant thought combined with Ant-Scale Door pollution... more troublesome than anticipated, full of annoying things."
Though calling it troublesome verbally, Fran seemed quite interested, to the point that the entire dream began to shimmer with intense heat.
"Luyala."
"Na!"
The glazed-colored little deer manifested her form from one side. She lightly tapped her hooves, her posture elegant, almost dancing.
She had been lying in ambush nearby, not appearing... waiting for this doctor to finish reminiscing about the past scene.
Pure white light rippled outward, dyeing the form of this ant-transformed skeleton, gradually consuming it step by step.
Once all color faded from its body, it would be completely purified.
+++
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