Chapter 13: Royal Cross Hospital
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It was nine in the morning the next day. The sunlight filtered into condo 706 welcoming all its inhabitants, my family. I slept on a tatami mat (A Japanese mat made out of straw. A/N: They are very comfy to sleep on!) set up in the center of the floor of my old bedroom before I left Shroelock. It was a white room with nothing in it. Just the hard wooden floor, the white painted walls, a rectangular window facing towards the apartment complex courtyard, a sliding door closet to my left, and a black lamp.

Shoving off the fluffy comforters, I pulled myself out of the fluffy futon laid on top of the tatami mat. Hatsu, who was curled up into a ball on top of a pillow, was sleeping soundly. He was still a cub so he needs some sleep in order to grow big and strong like his parents so I left him as is in the room.

Leaving the room, I shut the door quietly behind me and headed to the kitchen when I could smell an aroma of pancakes and bacon. Following the pleasant smell, I sat down at the dining room table where towers of pancakes and greasy bacon could be seen. Across the table from me was my brother, Ethan, who was icing his nasty black eye and swollen cheek. Dad gave him a good beating last night. But his face, it was a mess, which made me stifle out a small laugh.

"Shut up," Ethan grumbled at me with his swollen face.

"You got what you deserved." I sighed.

"Aren't you going to heal me?" He pouted impatiently.

"Nope!" I snickered.

"Come on! I'm the older one here." He wailed.

"Well, you did this to yourself." I laughed sipping a cup of hot water.

Suddenly, mom came out with another tower of pancakes which I snatched with my fork the moment the plate came in contact with the table.

"No hunting for a week you got that." Mom warned waving the spatula like a wand then chopped Ethan with her nondominant hand.

"Fine, I got it!" Ethan yelled in his pitiful state.

"Good," she gave a dangerous smile that emitted the aura of a demon. It sent shivers down my spine as well. 

"So what do you plan to do today?" Ethan mumbled to me. 

"I plan to visit Savior at Royal Cross Hospital today," I replied chewing with a mouthful of pancake in my mouth.

"What, you just got back yesterday though." My mother exclaimed.

"True, but I can't rest. I'm a part of the Savior's team so it's partially my responsibility. As the only unscathed member, I should make sure teammates are in good health. Plus, the Church will get on my case if I don't."

"The Church is quite annoying aren't they?" Ethan commented.

"They kind of have to. It's Savior." I let out a dry laugh swallowing the last of my breakfast.

"Don't you also have to register your Adventurers License here in Shorelock?" My mother asked.

"No, the Guild's System had changed so my License is registered in every city's Guild System. It's all computerized these days so it's rather convenient."

Ethan slammed his fork on the table.

"No way! I didn't know that." He said with astonishment.

"You've been in the Adventurers Guild two years longer than me and you still don't know this? For goodness sake, read the handbook will you for once." I sigh facepalming myself.

>>>

It was now ten in the morning. I left the condo complex with a half-awake Hatsu on my shoulder. Before heading out, my mother gave me a keycard to the condo so then I could get in without calling the condo, rather useful for the time being.

Savior was resting the largest hospital in the Eastern Continent, the Royal Cross, a facility known for its diverse staff and curse research facility which had made over hundreds of discoveries to curing curses and treating the injured with the best treatment possible. The hospital was located in the Civic District of Shorelock and it was going to be packed today. The news about the incident has been released on every new channel and spread over the net like a wildfire.

Since Savior saw the figure who eradicated the wyverns, many reporters would immediately flood to interview her in order to get the biggest scoop of the century! With big figures like Savior who only appear once every hundred years, there is no doubt that people would like to get as much info about her as they can. But the public was no longer interested in her but the Silver Knight who saved her. They no longer thought she was the Savior but a weak 'Princess' who had literally a knight and shining armor come to her rescue. Honestly, the public wants a soap opera. Sadly, I was her knight in shining armor. A nobody. Just a random civilian trying to play the role of a hero just like S*itama.

Standing in front of the ten-story building with my phone in hand, I scan the parking lot. There were a lot of iconic white reporter vans with a small satellite sitting atop each van. 

Seems they're already here. 

Not fazed by the number of reporters there, I walked into the hospital with indifference. Suddenly, a notification from the Hundred Quest was triggered. 

[New Quest has been added to [Hundred Quests] List] 

[New Quest: Savior's Gift]

[Quest Description: Visit Eren Mandell in Royal Cross Hospital. She will give you a gift. If all goes well, there may be additional rewards!] 

[Rewards: Basic Magic Book, Disguise Prop: ???] 

A [Disguise Prop]? I rose my eyebrows. I'll check it out later. 

As I walked through the white hospital hallways, the smell of sanitizer stung my nose. Doctors and nurses wearing N95 mask ran from every corner of the hospital. It was better to call it a second city. 

>>> 

The hospital was split into five segments. Each segment belonged to a certain class and a person within that class would receive services and treatment in that designated segment. The first two floors are designated to Servants, employees who work for Nobels, who are the lowest on the social pyramid. They used to be called slaves but they have more freedom in modern times than Dark Era. Next, are the commoners which have the next two floors. Commoners are just ordinary citizens who live ordinary lives with much more independence than Servants. Going up a tier, there are the Merchants who are Adventurers, originally from the Commoners Class, that stroke gold basically made a lot of money during the Treasure Rush a century ago. Now they are just people who work on the frontlines, like myself and Ethan. However, they are not as wealthy as Nobles and occupy the fifth and sixth floors. 

Next, there are the Nobles, the class Rishi belongs to. Nobles are people who've had money for generations, old money is what they call it. Most Nobles belong to prominent families which have served under the Church since the Dark Era and each Noble family consists of the Main Family and the Branch Family. Branch Family members receive treatment on the seventh floor since they are not part of the Main Family which consists of the Family's immediate descendants. That's not all. The Noble hierarchy gets even more complex. Nobles are internally ranked into three tiers depending on how close their relationship is to the Pope, the head of the Church, and the number of achievements that the family's members have achieved. These tiers are low, middle, and high and Rishi's family is part of the low tier meaning their connection with the Pope is not the strongest despite having a lot of achievements. After all, the Pope rules all. Rishi himself is a low ranking Noble and part of the Seohang Branch Family so he's not much wealthier than a third rate merchant nor me in terms of status. 

Finally, there are the Royals, or that what they were called back in the day. The class gets the ninth and tenth floors and used to consist of the Continent's princes, princess, queen, and king until the Pope's position, two thousand years ago, and Savior's position, eight hundred years ago, came into the system. I'm heading to the ninth floor where Savior has her own VIP room. Visitors are not restricted from visiting different floors, only patients are, and the Hospital is open 24/7 even visiting hours are 24/7. 

Stepping into the elevator, I pressed the nine button which was encircled in gold leaf, untainted by the fingerprints of 'Commoners'. The elevator was made out of glass so it allowed for a nice view of Shorelock City's Stadium as it ascends. The doors of the elevator opened to my destination, a long red carpet was laid out without a single wrinkle from the exit of the elevator to all ten entrances of the VIP rooms. On the white marble walls, were portraits of the past founders of the Church and rulers of the East Continent painted with traditional oil paint. A guard stood under each painting, five meters apart from each other, each giving off an intimidating aura. A guard standing at the exit of the elevator blocks me until I pull out my Adventurers License Card. 

He snatches the license out of my hand and his eyes widen. After confirming who I was, he moved away from the elevator.  

"This way," he gestures to the second door to my right.

"Thank you," I said as he handed back my license. 

>>>

Now you are probably wondering why the guard allowed me to pass easily despite being a commoner. The reason is, I have a special seal on my Adventurers License that gives me access to certain things other Adventurers do not. The seal on my License is the seal I got when I registered as a member of the Savior's Adventurer Party. Only parties recognized by the Church can receive this seal. For a Party to receive the Church's seal was the highest honor a person could dream to have.

>>

I head over to room the guard gestured to. On a plaque next to the door it read: "Here is where the Holy Maiden rest, Savior Eren Mandell". Why do they make it sound like she died? Silently laughing to myself, I knock on the wooden door. No response. I knock on it again. 

"Come in." A female voice behind the door called. 

Pushing the door open, I find Savior sitting on her king-sized hospital bed in the corner of the room gazing out into the scenery from the ninth floor window. A chair rested beside the bed for visitors as well as a small wooden nightstand. On top of the nightstand was a nice fruit basket arrangement with pineapple flowers and a small reading lamp. Other than these four things, there was nothing else but a dresser in the opposite corner. 

"How are you feeling?" I asked as I swiveled the chair around. 

 She turns her head violently, whipping her long hair at my face. I took a glimpse at her face once I recovered. The life in her azure eyes had been mostly restored and the color of her skin had returned to its original shade, a light peach. She was draped in a white hospital robe which sleeves covered her wrist making her appear to be a saintess. No other word could describe her beside beautiful, a maiden who the Heavens sent to save our world.

Well, she is Savior. Radiant as always. I could not help but smile.

She smiled, not in relief, but in disappointment. Hatsu, looking at her face jumped onto the bed. 

"I'm fine, just a little shocked from yesterday." She forced a smile, catching Hatsu in her arms.  

"Isn't everyone?" 

"Yeah, they're all recovering on the floors below." She sighed looking down at her hands. 

"You seem like something is still on your mind," I stated. 

"It's about what you said yesterday," She began as she averted her eyes away from mine as if she were trying to avoid embarrassing herself, "I'm not strong. I'm just a weak girl who is burdened with the title of Savior, the one who shall cleanse the world of darkness. Why was I chosen? Why?" 

"Isn't that obvious?" I tilted my head in slight confusion. "Was it not the Heavens that chose you? If they choose you then there must have been something they saw in you that could make you worthy of that title." 

 "Yet," she coughed, "I could never figure out what it was? Did the Church perhaps interpret the signs wrong?" 

"Who knows? You don't have to know now. Maybe later, on your journey, you could discover it." I reassured. 

"But what if I don't?" She cried. 

"Even if you don't know, as long as you can leave a lasting imprint on people's hearts, giving them hope for the future, you know you've done what you could." 

"Ha," she let out a small laugh, "at least, I figured why I recruited you." 

"I've always wondered that as well." 

"You're strong. Despite being weak, you run onto the battlefield as if you have nothing to lose. Your mentality is by far stronger than mine. I'm envious." She looked down once again stroking Hatsu who seemed comfortable resting in her arms. 

" I should be envious of you! In terms of everything else, I'm worse than you." 

"Don't say that!" She laughed again punching me lightly in the shoulder. 

"You don't want the flattery but I'm being completely honest," I replied. 

"Really?" She questioned. 

"Really!" 

"Well," she crossed her arms letting go of Hatsu, "I appreciate your honesty but first come first. Where the heck did you get that adorable fluffball?"

"Hatsu?" I raised my brow as Hatsu jumped back onto my shoulder. 

"Yes!" She nodded. 

"I picked him up in the forest a few hours before the attack yesterday. His parents died so I took him in and I'm raising him." 

"CAN I KEEP HIM?"

"NO!" I furiously shook my head squeezing Hatsu in my arms. 

"AWWW." She pouted. 

"NO IS NO! HATSU IS MY CONTRACTED PET! Don't you already have one?" I argued. 

"Yes, but Morgana is an Owl not an adorable pup like this one." She pouted even harder. 

"Wait, where the heck are the reporters?" I quickly changed the topic. 

"Huh?" She cocked her head as she restrained herself from attacking me. "I kicked them out. I told them there would be a press conference once I recovered."  

 "Very typical of you, Savior." I sighed. 

"Hey, the public expects a lot from a figure like me who carries the weight of the world on her shoulders." She boasted pointing to her chest. 

"How shameless. Well, at least you're back to normal." I laughed.

"Not quite," She smirked, "but you did make me feel better. I have something to give you." 

She props herself up from the bed and walks over to the dresser. Opening the second drawer on her right, she pulls out a red cloth wrapped object. 

"What's that?" I ask.

She hands the object to me and stares at me. It was heavy. 

"A thank you gift." She replies. 

I push away the red cloth from the object. My eyes widen. It was a green book with drawings of magic circles on its cover. Protruding from inside the book, was a golden card with a star on the front and a red string threaded through the card's hole. 

[Quest: [Savior's Gift] Completed!]

[You have received [Basic Magic Book] and [Mandell Estate Entry Card] from Savior] 

So this golden card was the Mandell Estate Entry Card.  

The Mandell family, a family of high ranking Nobels, are known for their large estates in every city of the Eastern Continent. However, each estate was more like a training facility for Adventurers and only the best are accepted to train in the facility. To get into the facility, a card is needed. One must have special connections to a Mandell family member or go through a rigorous exam in order to obtain one. This was a huge gift! 

"Are you sure about this?" I stuttered. 

She shook her head. 

"It's not a big deal. You healed me when I was on the brink of death. This gift is nothing in comparison."

I gave her a wry smile. 

"I'm shocked. Thank you." 

"No problem. I should be thanking you instead." She laughed. 

I pushed myself up from the chair and walked to the door. 

"I'll be taking my leave then. Rest well." I said from the doorway. 

"I will take care."She waved as she hopped back into her bed. 

Shutting the door quietly, the guards bowed to me and the one standing at the door of the room accompanied me to the elevator. As I waited for the elevator to arrive at the ninth floor, the guards were still emitting the same intimidating aura the did when I first arrived. Suddenly, the System sent me another notification. 

[Additional Notification: Because you completed [Savior's Gift] with outstanding results, the System has given you a [Disguise Prop]]

[You have received [Disguise Prop: Assassin's Clothing]]  

The elevator arrived and I walked in, it was empty. Pressing the one button, I left the ninth floor. As it descended, I continued to read the notifications but what was this [Assassin's Clothing]? I pressed on it to check out its details. 

[Assassin's Clothing: The clothing worn by assassins, they're pretty comfortable. It comes with a black mask, hood, boots, pants, and gloves.]

[Bonus: Comes with a white wig and gold contacts]

[ Level Required: 15

Attack: 50 ~ 65 (Middle Green Rank)

Defense: 44( Middle Green Rank)

Speed: 69 (Middle Green Rank)

Intelligence: 33 (Middle Green Rank)

Wisdom: 48 (Middle Green Rank)

Dexterity: 60 (Middle Green Rank)

Mana: 43 (Middle Green Rank)

Bonus 2: 10% critical hit if using a dagger.]

I'm dying here. This also took forever to do. See you people in a few days.

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