Chapter 218: She’s safe now

Aaron’s face fell as soon as he entered the room.

Eva lay on the bed wearing an oxygen mask, with an IV drip attached to her arm. Her vital signs flickered on the monitor beside her.

"How did her condition become so serious?" Aaron asked in shock as he rushed to her bedside and gently took her hand.

"Thank God you returned in time. You weren’t bitten by those insects, were you?" Leo asked with concern. Although he was glad Aaron had returned safely, he had also been confident that his son would succeed in bringing back the insects.

"Dad, what’s going on? How did her condition worsen so much?" Aaron asked hurriedly, ignoring Leo’s question.

Leo sighed. His exhausted face revealed a rare moment of weakness, which only made Aaron more anxious.

"The doctor said her—" Leo began before explaining everything Glenn had told him.

By the time Aaron finished listening, his body felt too weak to support him. He sank to the floor beside Eva’s bed, his expression vacant.

"We can’t lose hope now. We have three and a half days to develop a cure. I trust Glenn. She’s one of the best doctors in all the underground cities," Leo muttered in a consoling tone.

It was difficult to tell whether he was trying to comfort Aaron or himself.

’How could this have happened? I can’t lose her again. Please, don’t let anything happen to her.’

Aaron gripped Eva’s hand firmly, refusing to let go.

Silence settled over the room, broken only by the steady beeping of the machines. Then they heard shouting from the room next door.

"Who are you pretending to care about now?! When have you ever cared whether Ethan lived or died?!" Alisa shouted at the older man standing before her, whose appearance closely resembled Ethan’s.

The man remained silent under her furious gaze, his hands clenched tightly at his sides.

He couldn’t blame anyone for his children’s hatred. He had brought it upon himself.

"I..." He trailed off, unable to finish his sentence.

It felt as though an invisible hand had gripped his throat. Shame and guilt washed over him, causing his once-straight back to slump.

Seeing his defeated expression, Alisa felt a brief flicker of sadness. However, her heart quickly hardened again.

"Dad, leave. Your presence will only make my brother’s condition worse," she said indifferently, unconcerned about how much her words might hurt him.

"I’m sorry," he murmured under his breath.

Then he turned and walked away slowly, his retreating figure radiating loneliness.

Alisa was stunned by his apology, but she hardened her heart and looked away.

’His apology came too late.’

When she entered Ethan’s room, her gaze immediately fell on her grandfather. Elijah seemed to have aged considerably since hearing about Ethan’s condition.

’Ethan, I know you’re strong enough to pull through this. You can’t die. I haven’t bullied you enough yet.’

Her eyes grew moist as she looked at her unconscious brother lying on the bed.

"Have the people we sent to bring back those insects returned?" Elijah asked hoarsely. His gaze remained fixed on Ethan as he waited for her answer.

"Not yet, but I heard Aaron has returned. He should have caught some of them," Alisa replied as she picked up a clean cloth from the table.

She dampened it with water and gently pressed it against Ethan’s dry lips.

Elijah’s heart finally settled a little, but his worry remained. All he could do was pray that the doctors wouldn’t disappoint them.

’My grandson cannot die.’

He repeated the words firmly in his mind, as though his determination alone could save Ethan.

In Julian’s room, Stone sat beside the bed with a despondent expression.

He had never imagined that the last island they explored would be home to such deadly insects.

All he could do was pray that they would survive.

Time ticked by, and fear and panic hung heavily over the spaceship. Night passed without a cure.

The doctors responsible for developing one felt the enormous weight of responsibility on their shoulders. Everyone was counting on them, and they could only continue working tirelessly without rest.

By the night of the third day, everyone was on the verge of giving up.

Their hearts ached with anguish as Eva, Julian, and Ethan went into shock and slipped into comas.

Aaron sat beside Eva, talking to her in the hope that she could hear his voice and find the strength to hold on.

"I hunted some beasts on the island. The chef is about to prepare your favourite braised meat... Please, hold on a little longer," Aaron murmured, his voice thick and nasal as he struggled to hold back his tears.

Grace sat on the other side of the bed, her head lowered. Tears gathered in her eyes as she fought to keep them from falling.

She felt that if she cried, she would be admitting defeat and accepting that Eva was going to die.

The pain in her heart was unbearable. It felt as though she were losing her daughter all over again, except this time, the loss would be permanent.

Leo wrapped his arms around her trembling body. Suppressing his own grief, he held her tightly, offering what little comfort he could.

In the other room, Alisa stared blankly at Ethan’s pale face.

She had made a promise to herself: if he survived, she would never beat him up again.

Her fingers trembled as she held his hand.

Elijah remained silent, staring blankly into space, his heart filled with unwillingness to accept what was happening.

Ethan’s father stood at the doorway, looking at his son’s pale figure with eyes full of anguish and self-blame.

’I’m truly a terrible father.’

Only now did he fully realize how the grief he had suffered after his wife’s death had driven him to behave in ways that pushed his children away and made them hate him.

But it might already be too late to make things right. He might never get another chance to apologize to his son.

’I’m sorry.’

In Julian’s room, Stone could no longer contain his grief and broke down in tears. His wife stood silently nearby, unsure how to comfort him.

Her gaze eventually shifted to her brother, who stood outside Ethan’s room, too overwhelmed by guilt to go inside.

Time seemed to move faster with every passing moment. They prayed for it to slow down, desperate for more time, but their pleas went unanswered.

Soon, dawn broke on the fourth day.

Just as everyone began to lose hope, Glenn rushed into the room with several doctors at her heels.

They said nothing. Instead, they hurried to the bedside and injected the potion into Eva’s IV drip under the stunned gazes of her family.

The same procedure was carried out in Ethan’s and Julian’s rooms.

"Fortunately, we arrived in time, before their blood solidified completely," Glenn muttered with relief as she stretched her stiff, numb shoulders.

Her bloodshot eyes were dark and bruised-looking, while her haggard face showed just how many sleepless days she had endured.

Grace sprang to her feet and pulled Glenn into a hug, her body trembling as tears streamed down her face.

"Thank you. Thank you so much."

Glenn patted her back with a smile.

"It’s my job. She’s safe now. All that’s left is for her body to recover."

Her words brought relieved smiles to Leo’s and Aaron’s faces.

But the moment the tension finally left Aaron’s body, his strength gave out, and he collapsed unconscious.

"Aaron!"

Leo’s panicked shout drew Grace’s and Glenn’s attention. They turned to see Aaron lying motionless on the floor.

Both women hurried over. After examining him, Glenn let out a relieved sigh.

"He’s just exhausted and needs some sleep."

Her explanation brought another wave of relief.

Leo bent down and effortlessly lifted Aaron over his shoulder before carrying him back to his room to rest.

Meanwhile, Glenn returned to Eva’s bedside to examine her.

Although her X-ray ability was still weak, she could scan the surface of Eva’s body. After confirming that the blood was flowing smoothly through her veins as it should, Glenn straightened with a smile.

"Everything looks good. She should wake up tomorrow, and then we can take her off the oxygen."

With that, Glenn left the room to check on Ethan and Julian.

After examining both of them, she felt an urgent need to improve her powers.

’If my X-ray vision were strong enough, I could examine their internal conditions directly without wasting so much time running blood tests.’

However, the thought of entering a dungeon to fight made her shake her head in dismay.

’I’d just be offering myself as a snack to those monsters. My combat skills are so terrible that an F-rank monster could kill me with a sneeze.’

’Sigh... What wishful thinking. I’d better focus on improving my medical skills instead of trying to fight in dungeons.’

With her priorities firmly in place, she headed back to her tent to get some much-needed sleep.

The heaviness that had hung over everyone finally lifted, and smiles began to appear on their faces.

All they had to do now was wait for Eva and the others to wake up.

...

Meanwhile, on the other side of the southern territory, Randall and his group had arrived in the desert.

Waves of scorching heat washed over them, causing them to sweat profusely.

"Those with water powers must not engage in combat if we encounter any beasts here. Your only task is to provide enough drinking water for everyone," Randall instructed as he wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Yes!"

Everyone agreed without hesitation. Randall’s strength during their encounters in the forest was still fresh in their minds.

"Let’s move out!" he called.

Those who had beasts mounted them, while those without one climbed onto the back of the giant bird.

Together, they journeyed deeper into the vast expanse of the desert.

The wind swept dust and sand into the air, forcing them to wrap cloth around their faces to protect their eyes and mouths.

Randall had no idea that he had almost lost his precious granddaughter. For now, his attention remained focused on the journey ahead and the kinds of beasts they might encounter in the desert.