The white hospital lights blazed overhead—sharp, sterile, and far too harsh for human eyes. They made your vision ache if you stared too long. Definitely not the kind of lighting you'd want in a room meant for rest.
Against the pale wall stood a broad-shouldered man, arms folded . His face seemed to shift every other minute—calm one second, sharp the next. But now, he watched in silence, his gaze focused on the young man sitting beside a woman on the hospital bed.
That young man had a tired but relieved smile tugging at the corners of his lips. His fingers gently patted the unconscious woman's hand. The lines of exhaustion on his face seemed to ease as if a heavy burden had finally been lifted.
He stood up slowly, leaned down, and pressed a light kiss to her forehead. Then he turned toward the man by the wall.
"Thank you, Mr. Charles," he said, walking over.
Mr. Charles pushed himself off the wall, his presence carrying a quiet intensity.
"Hah, Bai Wuchen, why are you thanking me? It was you who saved your mother. I couldn't do anything before, and that's exactly why I didn't hesitate this time."
He gave Wuchen's shoulder a firm pat.
Bai Wuchen lowered his head, his voice faint. "Still… what I did… it was wrong."
Mr. Charles narrowed his eyes. "What's this about?"
There was a pause.
"It's about that girl, isn't it?" he said, answering his own question. He gently lifted Bai Wuchen's chin, forcing their eyes to meet.
"I defamed her," Bai Wuchen admitted.
"I framed an innocent girl. It's not something I do lightly… but I did it. For my mother's sake. Still… it was wrong. It could've ruined her life."
Mr. Charles exhaled and stepped closer.
"The important thing is, your mother's going to be okay."
"But what about that girl?" Bai Wuchen asked suddenly, his voice strained. "She's innocent, and now she's—"
"I said don't worry," Mr. Charles cut in, his tone firm. "She's in containment, but not for long. Maybe within a month, she'll be released."
Bai Wuchen clenched his fists. "A month is a long time… she might have family. I acted selfishly."
Mr. Charles chuckled dryly. "You really are one of a kind, kid. But no, she doesn't have any family. She's a foreigner in the public registry. No job. No relatives. Just a quiet existence. Maybe jail will give her some company."
"That's not funny."
"Relax. I'll make sure she's treated well for your sake. I'll even get her a valid ID when she gets out. Deal?"
"…Alright."
Just then, the door opened with a soft click. A man in a white coat stepped inside, his glasses slipping slightly down his nose. The kind of glasses smart people wore after studying too many white pages.
"Mr. Charles," the doctor said, approaching them with a respectful nod. "We've completed all scans. We're certain—your patient will wake up from the coma."
Even the doctor bowed to Mr. Charles. That wasn't unusual. Charles wasn't after all just any man, he was the Fourth Commander of the Federal Crime Unit of Bright Moon City. Despite being weaker in combat compared to other top enforcers, his rank still placed him among the elite seven. The pressure he carried wasn't just metaphorical, it made standing in the same room feel heavy.
The doctor had to steel himself just to speak, as though he were presenting a research thesis in front of a national board.
"Doctor, are you sure?" Bai Wuchen asked, trying to suppress the smile already forming.
He needed confirmation. Real confirmation. His mother had been in a coma for years and he wasn't ready to celebrate until he was certain.
The doctor nodded. "Yes. With the help of the Widow Hornet Spider's beast core blood, there's an 85% chance she'll fully recover."
Bai Wuchen's knees nearly gave out. He stepped forward and hugged the doctor tightly, tears pricking his eyes.
It had taken him three years to track down a living Widow Hornet Spider beast core. Not just any part of the creature would work—only its wisdom spiritual essence, the concentrated life force housed within the core, was potent enough.
When his mother was attacked two years ago by a rare poisonous plant known as Cat Myth, her body began to mutate rapidly. The Cat Myth's toxins weren't normal, they altered human cells at a genetic level, warping DNA like a chaotic virus. No ordinary antidote worked against it.
Doctors had slowed the mutation with aggressive treatments, but her blood began changing too. That triggered another wave of mutations. This caused unbearable pain causing her body to collapse under the strain, and she slipped into a coma.
The only cure was the rare essence inside a Widow Hornet Spider's core. Its blood contained natural restructuring agents that rebalanced DNA while purging foreign, mutating elements.
But finding such a beast and keeping it alive long enough to extract a pure sample was nearly impossible.
Still, Bai Wuchen had done it even though he did tbr wrong way, still he had done it.
He wiped his eyes and stepped back. "Sorry," he murmured.
The doctor smiled gently and left the room, the door sliding shut behind him.
"I still can't believe it," Bai Wuchen said, walking over to the bed. "Three whole years… I'll finally get to see her awake again."
"Don't get too confident. The doctor only said the chances are high," Mr. Charles warned with a grin.
"I know, but it's more hope than I've had in a long time." Bai Wuchen turned and bowed deeply. "Thank you, sir. I'll never forget what you did for us."
Mr. Charles gave a rough laugh and slapped his back. "If you really want to thank me, buy me a drink. And not just any drink—I want the kind that comes with beautiful ladies and more."
Bai Wuchen blinked. "Aren't you engaged?"
"I'm not ready to be trapped in marriage, boy and who told you those who get engaged would definitely get married. But I am ready for a drink,tonight."
He pulled out his phone and glanced at the screen. Two alerts blinked—one shaped like a red triangle. Suppressor malfunction. It had been active for over an hour. The second alert made his eyes darken.
"…Look after your mother," he muttered. "Someone at the station needs a beating."
He turned and strode out the door, the tension in his frame crackling like electricity.
Left alone, Bai Wuchen stepped toward his mother and picked up a towel. He poured a few drops of cold water from the bottle on the bedside table and dabbed her forehead gently. The AC wasn't strong enough to fight back against the heat flooding the room or maybe it wasn't working at all.
Then he moved to the window and pushed it open.
Morning air drifted in, cool and crisp. The city stretched out in every direction beneath the soft sunrise. After so many years of darkness, this moment felt like the first breath of light.
He stood there for a while, eyes closed, breathing in the new day.