“Notification, my Host,” Noe said as I finished up with the last of my observations for the day, “it is fast approaching noon, and Unit Noe suggests that Host Walter head to the cafeteria for lunch. It is imperative that you do not miss the meal, both for the Trial and for your health.”
Right, I had been so busy trying to memorize all the rules for the interns, doctors, and nurses that I had completely forgotten about lunch. I probably would have messed up somewhere down the line had it not been for Noe. I had been treating the little system like I had been before her upgrade and thought of her more as a tool than an actual companion, but I had to change that way of thinking now that she had most of her Emotion shard integrated.
Noe’s a lot more autonomous and even suggested helping me out with the Trial when she saw me struggling with all the new information and rules I had to be mindful of. I also noticed that she's a bit more... mischievous? Well, Noe's changed, but she still seems to have my best interests in mind, and I should accept that.
Strange quarks aside, having Noe help out was a welcomed relief. Trying to make sure I didn’t break any of my own rules was hard enough, let alone trying to be mindful of everyone else’s. But nothing could compare to the unfortunate interns; they had it especially bad.
They had over 35 different stipulations that had to be adhered to and that was just for surgeries. I didn’t even look at the multiple pages that outlined their conduct outside of those times. I’m honestly amazed that so many interns even made it past day 2, but then again, I didn’t know how many there were starting out.
Either way, I didn’t have to worry too much about keeping track of all that, since I could let Noe do a lot of the analysis for whether someone was breaking a rule or not. That way I could focus all my attention on the acting department.
This would have been so much harder if you weren’t helping me.
“It is a pleasure to be of assistance, my Host,” she answered back, “I have also taken the liberty to further insulate your mind from the corrupting nature of this Trial. I hope that my Host does not mind.”
I honestly didn’t even know what she was doing in the background, but I guess Noe must have been doing something important since I had so little trouble with the Trial so far. In fact, aside from the creepy appearances of the doctors and nurses, everything else looked pretty mundane. The hospital looked old and worn down, sure, but it was clearly a building made with medicine in mind. Even the procedures were tame, much to my surprise. That last patient I supervised was only getting some minor dental work done, even if she was squirming an awful lot.
Can you explain a bit more, Noe?
“I can, my Host. Unit Noe has detected elevated levels of mental pollution that may negatively impact my Host’s performance in this Trial,” she replied, “I have taken it upon myself to negate as much of this pollution as possible by slightly altering your perception. This is all to safeguard your mind, dear Walter.”
I remembered how I didn’t feel my changed appearance and thought that was most likely for the better. I didn’t want to find out what it felt like to have half my skin flayed off.
That’s all that you’re doing, right?
“Of course, my host,” she answered with a light chuckle; I hadn’t heard her do that before, “I always have the Host’s best interests in mind, even if you do not know what they are, dear Walter.”
Um, I trust you, Noe, keep it up if you think it’s for the best. I don’t want to go insane if I could help it.
“I will as I always do, my Host.”
With my head held high, I walked out of the medical hall and towards the cafeteria. The other staff quickly shifted out of my way. It was still a little strange seeing all of these deformed creatures being terrified of me, as if I were the monster here. I couldn’t get used to it.
Even my time pretending to be an Arbiter wasn’t like this, Central’s staff were more in awe of me there than scared. I’m still trying to wrap my head about exactly who this Dr. William Walter is for everyone to be so on edge whenever I even look in their direction. Whatever background the nurse gave me must have been impressive but I was worried about my alleged ties with the Director. In hindsight, I probably should have worded things better when I used that skill….
The hallway ended in a large glass door that led into the cafeteria, prominently displayed on the wall was a huge sign that outlined how everyone should conduct themselves during lunch hours. No surprise as to what would happen if someone chose to ignore those rules: more punishment.
LUNCH HOURS - 12 PM - 1:30 PM
Failure to follow the code of conduct will result in punishment!
RULES OF CONDUCT FOR ALL STAFF SAVE DR. WILLIAM WALTER:
All staff and patients must eat the cafeteria’s daily menu Absolutely no talking or loud noises in the cafeteria All food must be eaten at your assigned seating All visitors to the cafeteria must remain in their seats from 12:20 pm until 1:25 pm without exception No food is to be left uneaten.Wait a second, I was exempt from the rules here? Well, I did stipulate that the normal rules didn’t apply to me when I had that initial chat with Sarah, but damn, was the outcome nice. That means I have a lot more wiggle room to work with. I mean, I doubt I could get much information in my lunch hour if no one was allowed to talk, but that doesn’t mean that I couldn’t use my time well. I still had that meeting with the dreaded Director tonight, and I needed to make sure that I was thoroughly prepared.
Without any information about what the woman was like, other than the horrifying rumors surrounding her, I was going in blind. All I knew was what Sarah told me about her need for law and order and punishment. That generally means making a nuisance out of myself so I could get some more scapegoats to absorb her displeasure. Better they suffer her wrath than I!
I peered through the glass before making my entrance, trying to see what to expect. Although I couldn’t see the whole room, I could make out most of the front. As cafetoriums went, this one was pretty standard, albeit strangely laid out and rather large. The room was divided into two main sections, one large one that seemed to seat mainly patients, while a smaller clump of metal desks seated the rest of the hospital staff.
In the back corner, just barely in my sight line, was a long lineup of mainly patients nervously accepting the food that was handed out by the workers. The sound of food being dropped on the metal trays was the only noise I could hear through the doors as each person hurriedly grabbed their lunches and went to sit down as quickly as they could. Everyone looked nervous.
The tiled floors were neatly swept and clean, and a whole army of Disciplinary staff that acted as guards were lined up along the walls, hawkeyed and ready to detain anyone who so much as break a single rule. Seeing that I couldn’t get any more information, I shoved the doors open and sauntered in.
The security detail stationed at all sides of the cafeteria almost lept to their feet when they heard the commotion, ready to take away the idiot who dared to so blatantly ignore the first rule of the cafeteria; they immediately retreated when they saw who it was. It was eerie seeing just how silent the room was, even the sound of mastication was muted.
Now that I was inside, I could fully appreciate the oppressive atmosphere in the cafeteria. This was normally a place where people relaxed and chatted, but it was the total opposite in this hospital. There was a dark air of paranoia present that infested everything here. I tried my best to ignore it.
I was about to walk up to the serving area for my meal when I noticed something strange. In the very back of the cafeteria, in a strangely dark corner, was a small girl who couldn’t have been older than 7 or 8. She was deathly pale with almost translucent blonde hair, and her dirty white dress almost camouflaged her with her surroundings. I almost thought she was a ghost that only I could see until I saw that everyone near the child was taking nervous peeks in her direction. Well, maybe she was still a ghost, it’s not like they’d be invisible in a setting like this after all.
Either way, it was clear that everyone was very, very afraid of her.
Even the Disciplinary members were giving her a wide breadth, and stranger still was the fact that she was obviously ignoring the rules put in place here. If she had the ability to circumvent the rules, then she must be someone or something important, yet the Regressor’s notes made no mention of the girl. That was probably what put me on edge more than anything else. Could it be something that he didn’t account for, or had he simply assumed that I would never encounter her?
Squinting my eyes, I could see that she was playing with a doll, one of those horrible cursed Japanese ones by the look of it, and she was muttering to herself every now and then. I glanced around to see if anyone could give me some insight on who that was, but no one was willing to even acknowledge her existence, or more accurately, no one dared to. What was it about her that caused everyone to be so afraid?
She didn’t seem to notice my arrival yet. Now I was faced with a question. Would it be wise of me to try approaching her? I debated this question for a long time but ultimately decided that avoiding the creepy ghost child in the room wouldn’t do me any good. For now, I’ll eat my food and observe her before making my move.
I’ve already accepted the fact that there will always be a degree of risk with everything that I do regarding the Trials. I couldn’t simply avoid my problems any more than I could just blindly follow Jae-Hyun’s instructions. I’ve realized for a long time that I had to be proactive, and I trusted my bullshitting abilities to get me out of any tough situation. This weird girl was an opportunity to find out more about this hospital.
My turn for food arrived and I absent-mindedly grabbed my lunch. I looked around for a spot to sit, preferably one close to the strange little girl, and saw that Marcus was amongst the people present. He saw me and gave me a small nod of acknowledgment before turning back to his meal.
He took a bite of food and I shuddered when I saw that the inside of his mouth was a void of crawling insect limbs and wings. A huge bloat fly even managed to escape his mouth, fluttering around the priest briefly, before it crawled back into the man’s goddamn eyeball. He didn’t even blink. How was it that the Father was still the creepiest person around? Even the other priests around him, all horribly deformed with various burn marks and scars, looked practically nondiscreet compared to him.
I gave him a little wave back and then promptly ignored his existence. It was better for my sanity that way. I can always work with him later, much, much later. For now, I slowly ate my meal and quietly observed the girl. My rookie Arbiter skill only displayed her name with nothing else relevant, with that being Alice. Even after finishing everything on my plate, the girl didn’t really do much other than sit around and play with her doll. I half expected her to do something creepy.
I was about to get up from my seat and speak with the only unknown entity here when I noticed that a patient was standing right behind me looking more and more nervous by the second. It was clear that he wanted to say something to me, but I remembered that he couldn’t due to the rules. I just looked at the patient, unsure of what he wanted as he frantically flailed around trying to communicate something to me.
I wasn’t sure why Noe’s gesture translation wasn’t working here, but it wasn’t until the clock hit 12:20 pm did I understood what had happened; I had accidentally sat on someone else’s seat. He was practically begging me to leave but it was already too late, the guards standing by saw that one of the patients was out of their seat and promptly took him away.
I frowned. I had to remember to be a little more mindful of what I do since I was a lot freer to act than anyone else here, and although I wasn’t too concerned about the other patients here, I didn’t want to be the cause of too many patients failing this Trial. Everyone here represented someone who could help the Abyss guild after all. It was just so easy to overlook everyone else when I was in such a unique situation.
I pushed away these distracting thoughts and approached the weird ghost girl.
Want to read ahead? Check out my Patreon! It's what's keeping this project alive and well!
It's currently 29 chapters ahead with a new chapter uploaded daily!
Check it out if you want to support the author, and as always, thank you for reading!
“Notification, my Host,” Noe said as I finished up with the last of my observations for the day, “it is fast approaching noon, and Unit Noe suggests that Host Walter head to the cafeteria for lunch. It is imperative that you do not miss the meal, both for the Trial and for your health.”
Right, I had been so busy trying to memorize all the rules for the interns, doctors, and nurses that I had completely forgotten about lunch. I probably would have messed up somewhere down the line had it not been for Noe. I had been treating the little system like I had been before her upgrade and thought of her more as a tool than an actual companion, but I had to change that way of thinking now that she had most of her Emotion shard integrated.
Noe’s a lot more autonomous and even suggested helping me out with the Trial when she saw me struggling with all the new information and rules I had to be mindful of. I also noticed that she's a bit more... mischievous? Well, Noe's changed, but she still seems to have my best interests in mind, and I should accept that.
Strange quarks aside, having Noe help out was a welcomed relief. Trying to make sure I didn’t break any of my own rules was hard enough, let alone trying to be mindful of everyone else’s. But nothing could compare to the unfortunate interns; they had it especially bad.
They had over 35 different stipulations that had to be adhered to and that was just for surgeries. I didn’t even look at the multiple pages that outlined their conduct outside of those times. I’m honestly amazed that so many interns even made it past day 2, but then again, I didn’t know how many there were starting out.
Either way, I didn’t have to worry too much about keeping track of all that, since I could let Noe do a lot of the analysis for whether someone was breaking a rule or not. That way I could focus all my attention on the acting department.
This would have been so much harder if you weren’t helping me.
“It is a pleasure to be of assistance, my Host,” she answered back, “I have also taken the liberty to further insulate your mind from the corrupting nature of this Trial. I hope that my Host does not mind.”
I honestly didn’t even know what she was doing in the background, but I guess Noe must have been doing something important since I had so little trouble with the Trial so far. In fact, aside from the creepy appearances of the doctors and nurses, everything else looked pretty mundane. The hospital looked old and worn down, sure, but it was clearly a building made with medicine in mind. Even the procedures were tame, much to my surprise. That last patient I supervised was only getting some minor dental work done, even if she was squirming an awful lot.
Can you explain a bit more, Noe?
“I can, my Host. Unit Noe has detected elevated levels of mental pollution that may negatively impact my Host’s performance in this Trial,” she replied, “I have taken it upon myself to negate as much of this pollution as possible by slightly altering your perception. This is all to safeguard your mind, dear Walter.”
I remembered how I didn’t feel my changed appearance and thought that was most likely for the better. I didn’t want to find out what it felt like to have half my skin flayed off.
That’s all that you’re doing, right?
“Of course, my host,” she answered with a light chuckle; I hadn’t heard her do that before, “I always have the Host’s best interests in mind, even if you do not know what they are, dear Walter.”
Um, I trust you, Noe, keep it up if you think it’s for the best. I don’t want to go insane if I could help it.
“I will as I always do, my Host.”
With my head held high, I walked out of the medical hall and towards the cafeteria. The other staff quickly shifted out of my way. It was still a little strange seeing all of these deformed creatures being terrified of me, as if I were the monster here. I couldn’t get used to it.
Even my time pretending to be an Arbiter wasn’t like this, Central’s staff were more in awe of me there than scared. I’m still trying to wrap my head about exactly who this Dr. William Walter is for everyone to be so on edge whenever I even look in their direction. Whatever background the nurse gave me must have been impressive but I was worried about my alleged ties with the Director. In hindsight, I probably should have worded things better when I used that skill….
The hallway ended in a large glass door that led into the cafeteria, prominently displayed on the wall was a huge sign that outlined how everyone should conduct themselves during lunch hours. No surprise as to what would happen if someone chose to ignore those rules: more punishment.
LUNCH HOURS - 12 PM - 1:30 PM
Failure to follow the code of conduct will result in punishment!
RULES OF CONDUCT FOR ALL STAFF SAVE DR. WILLIAM WALTER:
All staff and patients must eat the cafeteria’s daily menu Absolutely no talking or loud noises in the cafeteria All food must be eaten at your assigned seating All visitors to the cafeteria must remain in their seats from 12:20 pm until 1:25 pm without exception No food is to be left uneaten.Wait a second, I was exempt from the rules here? Well, I did stipulate that the normal rules didn’t apply to me when I had that initial chat with Sarah, but damn, was the outcome nice. That means I have a lot more wiggle room to work with. I mean, I doubt I could get much information in my lunch hour if no one was allowed to talk, but that doesn’t mean that I couldn’t use my time well. I still had that meeting with the dreaded Director tonight, and I needed to make sure that I was thoroughly prepared.
Without any information about what the woman was like, other than the horrifying rumors surrounding her, I was going in blind. All I knew was what Sarah told me about her need for law and order and punishment. That generally means making a nuisance out of myself so I could get some more scapegoats to absorb her displeasure. Better they suffer her wrath than I!
I peered through the glass before making my entrance, trying to see what to expect. Although I couldn’t see the whole room, I could make out most of the front. As cafetoriums went, this one was pretty standard, albeit strangely laid out and rather large. The room was divided into two main sections, one large one that seemed to seat mainly patients, while a smaller clump of metal desks seated the rest of the hospital staff.
In the back corner, just barely in my sight line, was a long lineup of mainly patients nervously accepting the food that was handed out by the workers. The sound of food being dropped on the metal trays was the only noise I could hear through the doors as each person hurriedly grabbed their lunches and went to sit down as quickly as they could. Everyone looked nervous.
The tiled floors were neatly swept and clean, and a whole army of Disciplinary staff that acted as guards were lined up along the walls, hawkeyed and ready to detain anyone who so much as break a single rule. Seeing that I couldn’t get any more information, I shoved the doors open and sauntered in.
The security detail stationed at all sides of the cafeteria almost lept to their feet when they heard the commotion, ready to take away the idiot who dared to so blatantly ignore the first rule of the cafeteria; they immediately retreated when they saw who it was. It was eerie seeing just how silent the room was, even the sound of mastication was muted.
Now that I was inside, I could fully appreciate the oppressive atmosphere in the cafeteria. This was normally a place where people relaxed and chatted, but it was the total opposite in this hospital. There was a dark air of paranoia present that infested everything here. I tried my best to ignore it.
I was about to walk up to the serving area for my meal when I noticed something strange. In the very back of the cafeteria, in a strangely dark corner, was a small girl who couldn’t have been older than 7 or 8. She was deathly pale with almost translucent blonde hair, and her dirty white dress almost camouflaged her with her surroundings. I almost thought she was a ghost that only I could see until I saw that everyone near the child was taking nervous peeks in her direction. Well, maybe she was still a ghost, it’s not like they’d be invisible in a setting like this after all.
Either way, it was clear that everyone was very, very afraid of her.
Even the Disciplinary members were giving her a wide breadth, and stranger still was the fact that she was obviously ignoring the rules put in place here. If she had the ability to circumvent the rules, then she must be someone or something important, yet the Regressor’s notes made no mention of the girl. That was probably what put me on edge more than anything else. Could it be something that he didn’t account for, or had he simply assumed that I would never encounter her?
Squinting my eyes, I could see that she was playing with a doll, one of those horrible cursed Japanese ones by the look of it, and she was muttering to herself every now and then. I glanced around to see if anyone could give me some insight on who that was, but no one was willing to even acknowledge her existence, or more accurately, no one dared to. What was it about her that caused everyone to be so afraid?
She didn’t seem to notice my arrival yet. Now I was faced with a question. Would it be wise of me to try approaching her? I debated this question for a long time but ultimately decided that avoiding the creepy ghost child in the room wouldn’t do me any good. For now, I’ll eat my food and observe her before making my move.
I’ve already accepted the fact that there will always be a degree of risk with everything that I do regarding the Trials. I couldn’t simply avoid my problems any more than I could just blindly follow Jae-Hyun’s instructions. I’ve realized for a long time that I had to be proactive, and I trusted my bullshitting abilities to get me out of any tough situation. This weird girl was an opportunity to find out more about this hospital.
My turn for food arrived and I absent-mindedly grabbed my lunch. I looked around for a spot to sit, preferably one close to the strange little girl, and saw that Marcus was amongst the people present. He saw me and gave me a small nod of acknowledgment before turning back to his meal.
He took a bite of food and I shuddered when I saw that the inside of his mouth was a void of crawling insect limbs and wings. A huge bloat fly even managed to escape his mouth, fluttering around the priest briefly, before it crawled back into the man’s goddamn eyeball. He didn’t even blink. How was it that the Father was still the creepiest person around? Even the other priests around him, all horribly deformed with various burn marks and scars, looked practically nondiscreet compared to him.
I gave him a little wave back and then promptly ignored his existence. It was better for my sanity that way. I can always work with him later, much, much later. For now, I slowly ate my meal and quietly observed the girl. My rookie Arbiter skill only displayed her name with nothing else relevant, with that being Alice. Even after finishing everything on my plate, the girl didn’t really do much other than sit around and play with her doll. I half expected her to do something creepy.
I was about to get up from my seat and speak with the only unknown entity here when I noticed that a patient was standing right behind me looking more and more nervous by the second. It was clear that he wanted to say something to me, but I remembered that he couldn’t due to the rules. I just looked at the patient, unsure of what he wanted as he frantically flailed around trying to communicate something to me.
I wasn’t sure why Noe’s gesture translation wasn’t working here, but it wasn’t until the clock hit 12:20 pm did I understood what had happened; I had accidentally sat on someone else’s seat. He was practically begging me to leave but it was already too late, the guards standing by saw that one of the patients was out of their seat and promptly took him away.
I frowned. I had to remember to be a little more mindful of what I do since I was a lot freer to act than anyone else here, and although I wasn’t too concerned about the other patients here, I didn’t want to be the cause of too many patients failing this Trial. Everyone here represented someone who could help the Abyss guild after all. It was just so easy to overlook everyone else when I was in such a unique situation.
I pushed away these distracting thoughts and approached the weird ghost girl.
Want to read ahead? Check out my Patreon! It's what's keeping this project alive and well!
It's currently 29 chapters ahead with a new chapter uploaded daily!
Check it out if you want to support the author, and as always, thank you for reading!
