"Because I noticed you don't look well," Lin En said calmly."Dark circles under your eyes, pale complexion, icy wrists. No matter how much you eat, you still don't feel full lately, do you? And you often feel hungry?"
The Pig-Head Demon hesitated, then sat back down.
Despite how unreliable this human had seemed earlier, this time… he had hit the mark.
Recently, the hunger had been unbearable. Even binge eating barely eased it.
"How did you know?" he asked warily.
Lin En gave no obvious reaction. He stood up, went to the back of the shop, brought out a wooden basin, poured in clear water, then took a bottle of pale green potion from beneath the counter and emptied it into the basin.
Whoosh—
A wisp of green smoke shaped like a skull rose howling from the wooden basin.
Lin En clapped his hands."This is a Demon-Summoning Potion. Put your hand in. If there really is an evil spirit parasitizing you—or any other abnormal mutation—this potion will draw out the truth."
The Pig-Head Demon eyed him suspiciously, sniffed at it with his snout.
After confirming it didn't seem immediately dangerous, he cautiously lowered his hand into the basin.
In an instant, a chilling sensation slowly rose from his abdomen.
"T-This is—!" His expression changed.
The green liquid in the basin began to boil violently, while wisps of strange black mist surfaced from his body.
Then—
A sharp pain twisted through his stomach.
A grinning face suddenly bulged out from his belly.
"Heeheehee… heeheehee—"
"GRAAAH—!!"
The Pig-Head Demon's hair stood on end.
"My stomach! My stomach!!"
His belly began to deform grotesquely. The face struggled as if trying to crawl out, and soon, two arm-shaped bulges emerged beneath the skin.
The giggling abruptly twisted into eerie sobbing.
"Waaah—waaah—"
The Pig-Head Demon completely lost it.
"What the hell is this thing?!"
BANG—
Lin En grabbed a nearby frying pan and smashed it flat against the protruding face, slamming it back into the belly.
The crying and laughter stopped instantly.
Thud—
The Pig-Head Demon collapsed onto a stool, eyes vacant."Th-this… this…"
Lin En pushed the basin aside and said calmly,"Preliminary diagnosis: parasitic ectopic pregnancy caused by an evil spirit. Judging by how effective that hit was, the demon fetus hasn't fully formed yet. You're incredibly lucky you ran into me."
At that moment, the Pig-Head Demon was completely convinced.
With a thud, he dropped to his knees, trembling."Brother! Earlier… earlier I was too aggressive. Please don't take it to heart! Save me! Please, save me!"
He was truly terrified.
Fighting an evil spirit head-on? That, he could handle.
But something growing inside his belly?
That was beyond him.
Lin En calmly picked up his pen."Do you remember eating anything unclean?"
The Pig-Head Demon shuddered."About a month ago… when I was out, I think I ate a child. Just a little ghost, really—I inhaled it in one breath. Other than that, I only eat pork and human flesh."
Lin En pondered for a moment.
Then he looked up seriously."We operate."
A short while later.
Inside the dim operating room.
Several candles and copper mirrors focused beams of light onto the Pig-Head Demon's greasy, swollen belly.
He lay trembling on the operating table, deeply uncomfortable."You're really deciding to operate just like that?! You're not going to run more tests?!"
Lin En put on gloves and a mask, calmly sterilizing the scalpel."A swift cut resolves chaos. Simple and direct is the truth. Trust my diagnosis—and my ethics. I'll open your abdomen. If I can cut it out, I'll cut it out. If I can't—"
The Pig-Head Demon trembled."Then I'll cut you out!"
Lin En shook his head.
He took out the boning knife his teacher often used—and began sharpening it in front of him.
Scrape—shrrk—scrape—
The Pig-Head Demon lay stiffly, staring at the iron hooks hanging from the ceiling and the horrifying monster organs soaking in massive jars around the room.
For some reason…
He felt like a boar lying on a butcher's block.
Scrape—shrrk—
Sparks flew.
"Stop sharpening! Stop sharpening!!" he screamed, unable to bear the sound.
"Almost done."
Lin En rinsed the blade in disinfectant. When he lifted it again, it gleamed coldly.
He approached, pressed an ear to the demon's belly, listening.
Then, professionally, he took a pencil and drew a cross on the lower abdomen.
"Are you ready?" Lin En asked calmly.
"R-ready…"
Click—clack—
Lin En pressed a button beneath the table. Shackles snapped shut around the Pig-Head Demon's limbs.
"GRAAAH—!!"
"Don't scream," Lin En frowned."I haven't cut yet. These restraints are to prevent you from interfering with my technique. It's for your own good."
The Pig-Head Demon trembled."Have you… have you ever operated on anyone before?"
Lin En casually scraped his knife and fork together."I've watched my teacher slaughter pigs. You're my first patient. But it's close enough—I'm quite confident in my skills."
"..."
A brief silence.
"I'M NOT DOING THIS! LET ME GO!!"
The Pig-Head Demon thrashed wildly.
Lin En's gaze turned fierce as he roared,"Don't joke with me! The knife's already sharpened, and now you say you won't do it?! Aren't you afraid that thing will keep growing until it bursts out of you?!"
"Once you're on my operating table, I must take responsibility for you! Today, you'll undergo surgery whether you want to or not!"
SLASH—
"AAAAAAHHHH—!!!"
Half an hour later.
[Blade Skill EXP +10][Blade Skill EXP +10][Surgical Proficiency +1]
The Pig-Head Demon lay stiffly on the table, twitching nonstop. He no longer knew how many times he had passed out and woken up from pain.
Then—
"WAAAH—"
A piercing infant's cry echoed through the operating room.
Lin En, covered in blood, pulled a crying, underdeveloped, blood-soaked infant from the demon's belly. He smiled in satisfaction, wiped his sweat, and said:
"Congratulations. Father and daughter are safe."
Before his eyes, the infant's status panel appeared.
[Evil Spirit Blood Infant (Incomplete)]Race: Evil SpiritAlignment: Chaotic EvilLevel: 1Description:A ghostly entity formed from resentment and yin energy, fused with vast amounts of living blood essence. Once fully formed, it will devour the host's soul and flesh, gradually growing into a calamity.
The Pig-Head Demon stared blankly and muttered weakly:
"S-stitch… stitch it up…"