Chapter 60: Debt Note

Healing pods were among the more impressive medical applications of spiritech, capable of treating injuries that would normally be fatal.

The machine itself looked complicated, but it wasn’t what actually healed the patient. That honor belonged to the liquid Rhos was submerged in.

Naiad water.

It was a naturally occurring spirit water most commonly collected from the deep springs and underground reservoirs of the Lakemere Biome. Unlike ordinary water, Naiad water absorbed and retained enormous quantities of ambient spiritual energy while possessing an affinity for living tissue.

When exposed to an injured body the energy contained within the water stimulated the body’s natural regenerative process, encouraging damaged cells, muscles, nerves and even organs to reconstruct themselves.

The problem was speed.

Leaving someone inside ordinary Naiad water would eventually heal injuries that conventional medicine struggled with, but serious damage could require days or weeks of continuous exposure, depending on the patient.

That was where the pod came in.

Its mechanisms constantly circulated the water while extracting, concentrating and redirecting its spiritual energy toward damaged areas. The patient’s own spiritual signature was monitored to allow the machine to synchronize the water’s energy with the body rather than just flooding the patient with it.

Damaged tissue was repeatedly stimulated, nourished and forced through accelerated cycles of regeneration while the pod maintained the patient’s breathing, body temperature and other vital functions.

The results were ridiculous each time.

Any fatal wound could be repaired as long as the patient entered the pod while still alive and the brain hadn’t suffered irreversible damage.

As miraculous as healing pods were.... There was just one problem.

They were expensive as hell!

"Shit, shit, shit! Ripley, what the hell were you thinking?!"

Rhos’s face became more horrified once that realization settled in. He quickly climbed out of the pod and took a couple of steps back.

"How long was I in there?"

The pod also worked to relieve any fatigue the body might suffer during treatment so patients could always wake up feeling refreshed. As such, he couldn’t tell if he was in there for days or weeks.

He grabbed the white gown from the chair and quickly covered his naked body.

"I’m broke! I can’t afford this! I don’t have a single qash to my name!"

His newly reconstructed heart began to beat even faster. Hearing and feeling it felt like a constant reminder of how much debt he was in now.

Heck, he didn’t know how much it cost to use a healing pod. All he knew was that it was expensive as hell. He could probably buy an apartment, clothes, accessories and food to last him an entire year using the amount they were going to charge him.

Rhos prayed, he prayed in his heart to Morrigan that the crazy woman did not put it under his name. But knowing her she probably did!

"I’m finished"

Finally accepting his fate, he stared at nothing with a grim expression.

"That bitch"

"It’s good to see you’re recovering well"

Rhos froze, surprised by the deep voice that came from the doorway of the small hospital room and saw two people entering.

Both were dressed in jet black suits. They were immaculate and plain, lacking the insignia associated with ordinary hospital personnel.

He had spent enough time in the Ranger Corps to recognize these people immediately.

’Government agents...’

Rho’s stomach sank at the sight of them.

He was definitely screwed now.

The man standing in front appeared relaxed. He was tall and slender. His dark brown hair was kept neatly combed back, although loose strands still fell across his forehead.

His face was narrow and refined with pronounced cheekbones and tired steel grey eyes beneath a pair of glasses

The man’s gaze traveled over Rhos before he offered an apologetic smile.

"It seems we’ve arrived at an inconvenient moment. Please, take whatever time you need to make yourself presentable. Considering you’ve only just woken up from a terrible injury, I believe you’re entitled to at least that much dignity"

Rhos stared at him, paying no attention to the way he was dressed.

"Who... are you?"

Government agents were individuals who acted as the Biome’s eyes, ears and hands. They enforced laws, conducted investigations, espionage and managed crises in the shadows.

They acted independently of the Ranger Corps and were separated into multiple agencies. Rhos wasn’t sure which these two operated in, he asked to be certain of how much trouble he was in.

The man’s smile didn’t change.

"Quite fortunate timing. We were informed that your treatment cycle was nearing completion, but arriving at precisely the moment you regained consciousness saves us the trouble of waiting"

He placed one hand lightly against his chest.

"My name is Sherlock Tedd. I’m an Intelligence Officer acting under the authority of the Elderwood Biome’s government, and for the foreseeable future, I’ll be responsible for asking you questions concerning recent events"

To support his claims he reached into his jacket and pulled an identification card, presenting it to the young man.

He gestured toward the woman standing behind him.

"And this is my junior colleague, Kay Loki. She’ll be assisting me today"

She gave Rhos a small hand wave.

"Sup"

The woman had soft facial features, pale skin and carried herself in a way that made her seem bored. Her wolfcut black hair fell carelessly around her face hiding one eye and revealing only a single emerald eye.

Just like Tedd, she was dressed in an immaculate black suit with slim trousers.

Her full name carried a different sequence than both men that made Rhos immediately regard her as one of the rare Deity-types.

This was not good. It was worse than the hospital bill.... Maybe not.

Looking at the two, they didn’t seem all that threatening. The entity they worked for was what frightened Rhos the most and the fact they found him so quickly.

"Before you start worrying, you are not in trouble. At least, not at the moment. We merely have questions regarding what happened outside the World Shell barrier approximately three months ago, regarding Ranger Division 14"

Rhos became still, he looked at the agent’s grey eyes for a moment then glanced toward the healing pod.

"Before we talk about any of that, I need to know something much more urgent"

Tedd raised an eyebrow, following the young man’s gaze.

"What would that be?"

With both of them looking at the healing pod, Rhos raised a question of utmost importance.

"Who paid for this?"