Pew!
A deadly poison capsule detonated in his mouth.
Kusmans eyes widened in shock.
Gasp!
This couldnt be happening.
It shouldnt be happening.
He desperately looked upward, questioning Raciels face with his eyes.
How? Impossible?
Had Raciel truly anticipated his secret weapon? Did he sohow know all his plans and manage to block his mouth?
Ku! Kuhuh!
His tongue tingled with numbness. It swiftly transford into excruciating pain, as if being relentlessly hamred.
His tongue grew rigid. The sensation within his mouth vanished. His lips froze, and saliva dribbled uncontrollably. Even his facial muscles twitched without his command.
Damn it! Damn it!
A shiver raced down his spine.
The poison capsule was his specialty. No one understood its potency better than him.
Kusman reluctantly accepted his predicant.
The dreadful poison capsule had erupted in his mouth. If he remained idle, he would lose consciousness in less than three minutes. Within 30 minutes, he would cease to breathe. In other words, he had a re three minutes to take action and survive.
Fortunately, he carried an antidote for the poison capsule, reserved for ergencies.
Quickly quickly!
His hand quivered as he moved.
He reached into the pocket of his vest, aiming to retrieve his sole lifelinethe antidote.
Yet, at that very mont
Thud!
An unexpected hand intervened, seizing his wrist and hindering his progress.
Huh?
He needed that antidote!
Kusman tried to shake off the restraining hand, but his arm lacked strength. The situation worsened when another hand erged, delving straight into his vest pocket. And then, as if claiming its rightful possession, it seized the antidote bottle!
What?
Kusmans heart sank.
His gaze fixated on the antidote, now snatched away and drifting farther from him. It ascended, angling diagonally upwards, before coming to a halt in front of soones face.
It was Raciels face.
However, Raciels mouth was agape.
What? What?
While Kusman remained in shock,
Raciel took hold of the antidote bottle with his open mouth, staring directly into Kusmans eyes, almost tauntingly.
Pop!
After uncapping the antidote bottle,
He promptly consud its contents.
Before Kusman had a chance to intervene, Raciel swallowed it in one gulp!
No!
Kusman scread, struggling to curse through his stiffened lips.
Thisson of adevil!
His only hope,
The lifeline for his survival,
Had vanished into the depths of that mans stomach.
There was no longer any glimr of hope.
Kusman writhed in despair. As his face and throat numbed, he collapsed to the ground. Foam, saturated with hopelessness, oozed from his barely moving mouth.
Observing this, Raciel grimaced.
Ugh, its even more bitter than I expected.
The antidote proved to be exceedingly bitter. Even as a forr practitioner of Oriental dicine, accustod to various levels of bitterness, Raciels expression remained sour since the mont he swallowed it. It felt as if his tongue had transford into the sole of a foot.
Nevertheless, he did not expel the antidote.
To further mock the fading Kusman? Or to instill greater despair in Kusman?
Neither was the case.
There was a reason and purpose behind Raciel deliberately stealing and consuming the antidote.
Ill utilize the dical Billing skill.
By doing so, he could effectively gain a bonus life. That was the motive behind stealing and ingesting the antidote. Thanks to his knowledge of Kusmans assassination technique, which he knew inside out, it all fell into place.
Kusman has used this technique several tis in the novel.
A poisonous capsule concealed in his mouth like a molar, an assassination thod where he spits it out and triggers an explosion.
Raciel had known from the beginning.
He was aware that Kusman was feigning being hit and falling by the guards. He made his adversaries feel safe, preparing himself to expel the poison capsule.
And that was when Raciel tid it perfectly and blocked his mouth, causing the poison capsule to explode inside.
And I took the antidote.
Kusman couldnt be allowed to administer the antidote to himself. If he did, it would imply that Kusman self-treated, eliminating any chance to use dical Billing.
Naturally, Raciel wouldnt gain the bonus life.
But what if he stole the antidote from Kusman and administered it to him?
That calculation would also be complicated.
Raciel shook his head internally. That thod would hardly be recognized as him providing treatnt to Kusman.
Kusman is the one who created the antidote. rely giving him the antidote he made probably wont be acknowledged as treatnt from .
Raciel most likely wouldnt be able to use the dical Billing skill.
And the bonus life?
Certainly, he wouldnt acquire it.
That would be regrettable.
Hence, he stole Kusmans antidote and swallowed it, storing it in the previously emptied circle slot.
[Storage in slot 1 completed.]
[Slot 1 Status]
[Maximum capacity: 10 liters]
[Current storage capacity: 0.01 liters]
Observing the circle slot now filled with the bitter antidote, he felt reassured.
Alright, lets do this.
Raciel glanced down at the fallen Kusman. Foam covered his mouth, and his eyes were rolled back. It seed unlikely he would last half an hour in this state.
I can do it.
The stage was set. Now it was ti to save this man and gain the bonus life. Raciel flipped Kusman over as if he were flipping a pancake.
His hands moved swiftly.
He felt the mans back.
Between the shoulder blades, below the spinous process of the 5th thoracic vertebra, he located a point 1.5 inches from the spine on both sides.
The Xinshu acupoint resided there. He applied firm pressure with the tip of his thumb, exerting all his strength.
Ahhhhhhhhhh!
Kusman, who had been unconscious, arched his back like a bow. As the foam he had been holding in his mouth escaped like a breath, a resounding scream escaped his lips.
Raciel grinned with satisfaction.
I pressed it correctly.
Pressing the Xinshu acupoint created quite a commotion. This indicated that the harmful Chi from the heart had accumulated at the Xinshu acupoint.
Just like in the novel. Kusmans poison not only paralyzes the face and nerves but also affects the heart. It was ntioned that the heartbeat becos irregular and eventually stops.
In other words, he deduced that Kusmans poison contained an elent that hard the heart. Therefore, he targeted the Xinshu acupoint, where the stagnant energy of the heart mainly gathered.
The diagnosis was successful.
Now, lets administer the antidote.
[The material stored in the circle slot is being released.]
Whiiir!
The circle initiated a powerful rotation.
It compressed the antidote contained in the slot, amplifying its potency. The concentrated antidote traveled through mana, from the heart to the shoulder, down the arm, and finally reached Raciels fingertips. With careful precision, he steadily pushed it into Kusmans Xinshu acupoint.
Grh! Ahhh!
Kusman convulsed violently.
The antidote Raciel administered began to perate the Xinshu acupoint, and through the Asrahan Core Technique, Raciel could sense the antidote gradually spreading throughout Kusmans body.
Initially, the antidote gathered in the Xinshu acupoint like a well. Soon, under the intense pressure, it began to flow.
From the Xinshu acupoint, it extended to the center of the torso, soothing the diaphragm before reaching the small intestine. It then branched out, traveling to the throat, both eyes, and passing through the area of the lungs. It finally reached the deepest part of the armpit.
At the pinnacle of the Hand Shaoyin Heart ridian, there existed a point known as the Geukcheon acupoint (), considered the most superior acupoint.
The antidote infiltrated the Geukcheon acupoint, spreading along the Hand Shaoyin Heart ridian. It passed through the Small Sea Point () in the elbow, crossed the Yin Cleft Point () and the Shenn Point () in the wrist, until Raciel forcefully struck the Lesser Palace Point () on the inside of the palm.
The shockwave reverberated through Kusmans body, expanding broadly. It echoed, scread, and returned. Finally, it settled in the heart, coursing through the blood vessels, reaching every corner of his body.
Simultaneously, Kusmans convulsions subsided, and his face regained a serene expression.
Hes not dead, is he?
Raciel quickly checked his breathing. Fortunately, Kusman was breathing steadily.
It was then.
Finally, the awaited ssage appeared.
Ding dong!
[You have successfully treated patient Kusman with the appropriate antidote. His severe poisoning symptoms have been eliminated, and he can make a complete recovery with adequate rest, without any side effects.]
[The dical Billing (Lv.1) Skill has been activated.]
It worked!
Raciel exclaid in joy.
The plan unfolded flawlessly. With sparkling eyes, he read the following ssage.
[Patient: Kusman has received an extended expected lifespan of 21 years and 2 months through your detoxification treatnt. As a result, you are rewarded with a bonus lifespan equivalent to 1/2000 of 21 years and 2 months.]
[The calculated bonus lifespan amounts to 3.81 days.]
[The minimum unit for lifespan settlent is 1 day.]
[The calculated bonus lifespan is rounded up.]
[A total of 4 days of bonus lifespan have been awarded.]
Chirang!
A refreshing sensation montarily enveloped Raciels entire body. A confirming ssage followed.
[Expected lifespan: 118 days]
.
It had increased.
The expected lifespan had genuinely increased by 4 full days.
This is it!
He had gained a bonus lifespan by treating soone else. Moreover, he had acquired it by afflicting a wrongdoer with an illness and then curing it. There was nothing more desirable than this.
And I have effectively eliminated a potential threat.
Kusman, as depicted in the novel, was an exceptionally tenacious individual. He would cling to those who posed a danger to him until their dying breath.
But if Raciel had let him go today?
Kusman would have remained a botherso presence for a long ti.
Take him away.
The guards dragged the utterly exhausted Kusman away. As Raciel returned to the arena, the punitive operation was also nearing its conclusion. He passed nurous captives along the way.
And at that mont
Excuse , Your Highness?
Gardin, who had been silently trailing behind Raciel, finally spoke up.
Um, Im really curious about sothing.
Go ahead, ask.
Yes, Your Highness. Did you plan everything that happened tonight?
Yes, I did.
Why do you ask?
Gardin stumbled over his words, almost letting slip an expression of admiration.
Our prince hes like this.
He had always seen Raciel as soone frail, in need of care and protection due to his constant illness. But tonights events proved him wrong.
How did he know about the basent of the restaurant?
Even Gardin, a regular patron, was unaware of its existence.
So how did the crown prince find out?
He couldnt even begin to guess.
Does being royalty give you access to certain ans?
Their access to information must differ in quantity and depth. Gardin found this idea sowhat plausible and couldnt help but feel admiration.
Our prince he has this side too.
At so point, Raciel had begun to display his power. He frequently surprised people, evoking their admiration. And considering the outco of tonights actions, Gardins admiration grew even stronger.
An underground organization was thriving in the heart of the capital, unbeknownst to the public. It was like a festering wound, disrupting public order and security. But the prince swiftly put an end to it.
Thanks to that, peace and order were restored in the capital. They had managed to create a slightly fairer society.
He had a strategy in mind for that purpose.
Gardins heart swelled with pride as he thought of this. Following behind Raciel, his eyes gleaming with admiration, Gardin couldnt help but feel this way.
However, Raciel felt a sense of awkwardness.
Hmm, Gardin, I think I know what youre thinking.
He had an intuitive feeling.
Gardin was misunderstanding sothing. He was regarding Raciels intentions for tonight as sothing sacred and lofty.
But its not like that.
A bitter smile crept onto Raciels face.
He headed toward the gladiators waiting room. The front of the room was in disarray, with around five guards unconscious on the floor. Dozens of other guards crowded the corridor.
Across from them stood Demian.
Behind Demian, the gladiators were visible. In other words, the guards and Demian were locked in a standoff.
Tsk, I told you to wait quietly.
Raciel intentionally raised his voice.
Could his words reach them?
Demian flinched. Soon, his gaze turned in Raciels direction. His eyes twitched and widened in surprise.
A smile naturally spread across Raciels face.
Do you believe now? That Im the crown prince.
Did Demian nod?
It seed likely.
Demian, who had been pointing his sword at the guards, lowered it. His fierce deanor lted away like snow. A smile ford on Raciels face once again.
Public interest? A just society?
Perhaps this was the misconception that Gardin held. Raciel felt a tinge of embarrassnt when he thought about it. In reality, he had no such lofty intentions. He had never aspired to a life of selfless dedication.
He couldnt be that great of a person.
He didnt even dare to hope for it.
I pushed for tonights events simply to prolong my own survival.
Demian Cayenne, the protagonist of the novel.
The gladiators stood behind him.
Raciel directed a brisk smile, brimming with vitality, towards themas if greeting his first patient.
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