Chapter 25: Indecent

"Who are you? And who am I?"

The ethereal voice echoed through the dark room. Her blood-colored eyes were hollow, reflecting only Lien in her unfocused gaze. Her golden hair, once as radiant as sunlight, had faded into the pale silver of tarnished mercury, and her pink lips were parched from severe dehydration. Only her skin retained a rosy hue, but it was the excessive, baby-like pink that made her appear frighteningly fragile. Lien’s intense gaze filled her with an inexplicable dread, and she instinctively retreated. At this moment, the unclothed girl seemed incredibly small.

Was she trembling? Was she afraid? Was it a primal instinct for survival, or simply the cold?

"You are Lena... Lana." After a moment of contemplation, Lien gave her a new name.

"I am Lana, Lana... but who are you?" The girl tilted her head. She liked the name; it felt as if she had heard it before.

"I am your... friend." Sighing, Lien took off his outer coat and handed it to her. He had glanced at her original clothes; they were not only too large but had long since become foul-smelling rags, which was no wonder she had tossed them aside.

The young man lowered his head, watching the girl curled up like a small bird, feeling a sense of helplessness. A person who had completely lost their memory should have lost much more. Was there something still lingering in her body?

"What is a 'friend'?"

Feeling the warmth of the fabric, the innocent girl smiled instinctively. That pure, sweet smile was like sunlight, stinging Lien’s eyes slightly.

"…It is a good person who provides you with food, clothing, and shelter."

With that, Lien leaned down and lifted her. She felt incredibly light, as if she were made of nothing but skin and bone. Her skin was so fragile that it felt as though it might tear at any moment.

"Don't move..."

The girl did not struggle; she simply curled up in his arms, perhaps finding more warmth there.

"Warm... Friend! Good!" She even reached out, rubbing the stubble on Lien’s chin.

[Species Grade: Inferior Stone. Strength: 2, Stamina: 2, Agility: 2.] Lien scanned her stats, seeing numbers even more desperate than his own. If he let a girl like this out, she would likely be dead in a few days. Or, more realistically, she would die in some brothel or on the bed of some aristocrat.

"I'll raise her for now, at least until she has the ability to protect herself."

***

More than half an hour later, in Lien's living room, he asked the physician who had just finished his examination, "How is her condition?"

"The 'Blood Boiling' has not fully subsided, and the regression has likely just ended... Your comrade is in decent shape, all things considered. At least there are no obvious disabilities or symptoms. Aside from her lost memories, her behavior and cognition are normal. Many who undergo regression lose the ability to function or suffer from severe psychological trauma."

This time had been enough for Lien to fabricate her background. He was a 'Regressed,' and so was she. Generally, Regressed individuals were quite rare, as the injuries required to trigger it usually resulted in death, and a total loss of self was extremely uncommon. Basically, she could be considered a "lucky one" who should have been dead but survived. Lien had woven a story that they were both soldiers in the same squad who encountered a crisis and a curse, both falling into regression. She had come to rely on him, but her injuries were too severe, leading to total regression and the burning away of her memories.

"And her memories..." This was what concerned Lien most.

"It’s a miracle she kept her life. Mental illnesses in Regressed individuals are incurable."

Hearing that her memories were likely gone, Lien felt a sense of relief, though it felt somewhat immoral. The physician left with his fee, and the girl was left in the care of a professional. Fortunately, the domestic maid hired by the trading firm had already arrived. It would have been awkward for Lien to care for her himself, and he likely would have bungled it. At the very least, he could have someone teach her basic life skills.

"…Friend, friend, this clothing is so uncomfortable. I don't want to wear it."

"Pfft."

Lien, who was drinking water, sprayed it out in a stream. He stared at the girl, who was wrapped only in a bedsheet, and sighed. In the background, the maid was rushing over, clutching a maid’s uniform. This really wasn't Lien’s hobby. There were no other women's clothes in the house, so he had to make do with the maid's attire.

"Friend, people have to wear clothes..." Lien closed his eyes, refusing to look.

"Miss Lana! Don't do this! Don't run around wearing only your socks!" Fortunately, the maid caught up.

Oh, she wasn't wearing nothing; she had white silk stockings on... That was almost worse than wearing nothing! At this moment, Lien was completely drained. He might need to consider hiring a kindergarten teacher for her.

Leaving the newly "born" girl to the maid, Lien fled to his room. He pondered for a moment, entered the bathroom, and returned to that world within the book. There were things he needed to confirm.

"Isn't this just a pure metal chain? There’s no taming device at all. You’re playing with me again..."

The iron chair, once used to restrain beasts, remained so hard that even the Hero’s sword couldn't leave a mark, but now that the prisoner had escaped, it was meaningless. Perhaps, when he had the resources and skill later, he could melt it down to make weapons or armor. Metal that could baffle someone like Brother Surl must have significant value.

After her regression, Lena’s limbs had become slender and her frame had shrunk, allowing her to simply slide out of the iron chair. And given that the chair was designed to restrain only the limbs... this seemed to be part of the design. He had been waiting for her regression; the restraint didn't need a key or a mechanism.

"…As expected, no traces of the supernatural."

When Surl had possessed him, he had checked the chair and confirmed it was a pure metal restraint. Now, Lien had spent ages feeling it, and he couldn't find any hypnotic magic. It was just an iron chair used to bind Lena; there was no "taming" mechanism.

"Taming, starter kits... this is truly Lee Eun-sook's style of mischief."

Lien sighed. Like Brother Surl, he was growing increasingly annoyed with Lee Eun-sook. However, as he touched the pale red gemstone in his hand, feeling a warmth spreading through his body, he began to understand this terrifying "starter kit."

"I suppose if I absorb this, I'll be rid of this pathetic, disabled physique..."

Perhaps, in the initial design, this was medicine intended to compensate for his flaws. The room that had imprisoned Lena now held only an empty chair, which could serve as a storage space. The remaining "regression materials" were wrapped in rags, and there were quite a few of them. The severed tail tip still had smoldering burn marks, the three golden claws had startling hardness, and the orb emitting an eerie black light seemed to devour the surrounding illumination.

While there were various trinkets, these three pieces were clearly the most anomalous. Any contact with them gave Lien an intense feeling of discomfort, as if they were highly radioactive materials capable of killing him.

"These... can never see the light of day..."

Lien had already learned that the Hero Lena's species was "Alvark," a powerful evolved species, meaning "The Fire-Lion of the Sun God." Once this unique, quasi-mythical species was broken down, its materials contained the essence of its power. These were high-risk radioactive materials that could only be safely handled by someone on the same evolutionary path. Selling them could lead back to Lena.

However, the bag of red gemstones, calm as ice and red as blood, was likely the "Hero's Blood" that the Dragon Hunter had mentioned. Touching them, Lien could feel his body’s instinctive craving. Perhaps this was the reason for the "starter kit." In someone's design, if he had successfully infiltrated the city and waited patiently, he could have used these to complete his fragile body.

Given Lien’s personality, he wouldn't have used the Hero Soul card so early under normal circumstances; he should have waited for Lena to reach her limit and obtain the starter kit. But the two amateur thieves and the black market shop had completely disrupted his original plans.

Lien shook his head; dwelling on it was meaningless. Whatever he did, he had to be sure of his own strength. If he were to face a potential mastermind, he had to be at least stronger than the broken Lena.

"Maybe I should just give up..." This seemed a bit too difficult.

With a self-deprecating smile, Lien returned to the house. But as soon as he opened the door, he froze. The girl was waiting for him outside. Seeing him, she smiled sweetly.

"Friend, friend, Asha (the maid) said that if I wear this, you will be very happy. Is that true?"

A black-based dress paired with a white apron, white cuffs, and a white neckerchief—that simple maid uniform with its stark black-and-white contrast looked unexpectedly pure and lively on the girl. Perhaps the previous owner felt it was too plain, as there were cute cat-head lace patterns embroidered on the ruffles, collars, and hems—some laughing, some angry, some making faces.

The girl tilted her head, lifting her skirt as the maid had instructed. However, unaccustomed to the round-toed black leather shoes, she nearly tripped. Lien caught her, and in return, he received an overly pure, sweet, and silly smile.

The black cat ears on her head twitched... wait, why are there cat ears?!

"…It’s not good to leave those ears exposed, so I happened to have these fake ones," the maid behind her explained quickly.

Faced with that curious little gaze, Lien reached out and touched them; they were indeed cloth headpieces. As for why there were fake cat ears in a world where everyone had animal ears? Well, the despicable feudal lords always wanted a change of pace; rabbit ears were fine, but cat ears were not bad either. Little Lana was still unaccustomed to them, instinctively shaking her head as if trying to flick the objects off.

Looking at the "cute little maid" before him, Lien silently looked up at the ceiling.

Well done, Asha. I’m giving you a raise!

"Silver hair, red eyes, cat-ear maid... they actually exist. I suddenly feel like my life as an transmigrator has hope again."

Cough, cough. Setting that aside, Lien noticed that after a few minutes, the girl started shivering again.

"Cough, cough, cough." The girl began to cough, clearly in discomfort. The "Inferior Stone" species grade wasn't just about low base stats; it was a degradation of the normal Orc-type "Raw Stone" physique, making the entire body comprehensively fragile—in short, sickly and likely to die young.

Lien sighed and, under the maid's subtle gaze, brought her back to his room. He took out a blood-colored gemstone and placed it against her skin... but after a long while, there was no reaction. It was completely different from when he held it, at which point it would glow and warm up. It seemed the Dragon Hunter was right: Regressed individuals could not use their own "materials," and that included universal materials like Hero's Blood.

"Perhaps I need to spend some money to find her a private tutor and a doctor." The previous doctor had mentioned that Regressed individuals needed long-term care, hinting that while he couldn't handle it, he could provide contact information for more capable doctors or even priests. As long as he paid.

"Uncomfortable... I'll wait until the rent comes in. Tsk, my wages are gone too."

Lien hadn't gone to work today. Partly because of this little incident, and partly because he had been dismissed. Just this morning, an order from a high-ranking police official had descended upon the task force. Never mind Lien, who hadn't even worked a full week as a consultant and hadn't received his weekly pay before being kicked out; the entire task force had been suspended for several days. It seemed someone at the top was unhappy with Lien stirring up the "order" in the docklands.

"Reacting this quickly... it looks like I touched some people's interests. I wonder if those corrupt cops filed the report."

Lien didn't really care; this was within his expectations. Talia, however, was furious and had run over to vent as soon as she received the order. Lien could tell she was mostly trying to comfort him—but as they talked, it ended up being the indifferent Lien comforting her.

"Don't worry. If nothing goes wrong, the task force will be back up and running soon." At this point, there was no need for Lien to keep up the act.

"I hope so. Sigh, sometimes I feel the biggest pressure in this job never comes from the opponents. Oh, is this the new maid you hired?"

At some point, little Lana had crept over, sticking to Lien like a newborn cub that had bonded with the first person it saw.

"No, she is my comrade. My former comrade..."

"What?!"

Lana's existence instantly diverted her attention and anger. Hearing Lien "introduce" her as a former comrade, she began to imagine difficult crusades and the heavy costs involved, and moved by the story, she hugged Lana, comforting the poor girl who had lost everything for the sake of justice.

When Lien asked her to help obtain identity documents for Lana, she agreed without hesitation.

"Too trusting." She was so easy to deceive—believing ten percent of the story even though he'd only told half—that Lien felt a bit embarrassed. He had woven a long tale about how Lana had endured along the way, secretly entering the city before finally collapsing into regression, but he hadn't even needed to finish it.

Seeing her resolute eyes when she finally left, Lien was a little worried she might take extreme measures and explode at her superiors. If he heard in two days that she had run off to scream at her bosses and been dismissed, he wouldn't be surprised at all. With her help, Lien felt a sense of relief. At least she had promised to help get some normal feminine products and clothing, and she could personally teach Lana not to run around without clothes on.

"Cling-clang."

Just as Talia left, another visitor arrived. And the lady she brought in left Lien struggling to maintain his composure.

"I... I came to see you. I heard you were dismissed..." His former fiancée, now the executor of a honey trap, Miss Sariman Sudar, was clearly not a professional; she couldn't even recite her lines convincingly.

Especially when, the very next moment, the silver-haired girl wearing only a bedsheet ran past behind Lien.

The poker face she had been struggling to maintain shattered on the spot.

"Obscene!!"