Chapter 34: Fever

My wrist hurts so much…

Ivy’s heavy eyelids slowly opened, but before her was still a void of darkness; her vision had yet to return.

She felt her whole body burning hot, and her head was unusually dizzy.

Ivy shook her head, trying to shake off the dizziness, but the movement only worsened her headache.

It also caused her wrist to rub against the rope several more times.

Her wrist, already chafed from being bound for so long, finally gave way under the strain.

Blood began to trickle down her arm.

A sharp pain radiated from her wrist, causing Ivy to furrow her brows and let out a painful “Hiss…”.

Her consciousness felt scattered, and her entire body was scorching hot.

Her eyelids burned, her head burned—her whole body felt as if it had been stuffed into a furnace.

Though Ivy had just woken, her half-awake mind was still drifting through dreams.

And every dream was a terrifying nightmare.

Though she couldn’t recall the details, every time she woke up, the pounding in her head and the sense of panic deepened.

After a long while, Ivy finally understood one thing.

She was probably running a fever.

What should one do when they have a fever…?

She didn’t know.

Ivy pondered for a moment, but her mind was a blank; she couldn’t remember anything.

She moved her body again, and a sharp pain immediately shot through her wrist.

The pain made Ivy determined to find a way to ease it.

She tried to stretch her foot down toward the floor. Soon, her toes brushed against something cold.

She must have touched the ground.

Ivy wanted to stand fully on the floor, but as soon as she tried, the tearing pain in her wrist stopped her.

Tears welled up in the corner of her eyes, and she hurriedly rose onto her tiptoes.

The tightness of the rope cutting into her wrist eased significantly, far less painful than when she had first been suspended.

Now, Ivy’s hands were suspended high above the ground, and she balanced herself by standing on her toes.

At first, Ivy thought this would make things much easier.

But after just a few minutes, pain and exhaustion returned to her face.

Her legs trembled uncontrollably.

Her legs ached, and her feet hurt terribly.

Gritting her teeth, Ivy tried to stop standing on her toes and pulled her legs back.

But the moment she did, the rope bit deeper into her wrist wound, causing an even sharper pain.

To escape that agony, she had to rise back onto her toes again.

Her head felt… even more dizzy…

Ivy’s consciousness blurred. Her eyes slowly closed again, unable to distinguish reality from dream.

In her dream, she seemed to see someone chasing her, and… a twisted, bizarre pattern.

That pattern looked as if it was composed of countless spirals and strange shapes.

Within those spirals and grotesque designs, many pairs of eyes blinked incessantly, staring at her.

A wave of nausea and disgust spread relentlessly through Ivy’s heart.

Her mind was filled with a piercing whistle. Ivy tried to lift her eyelids, forcing herself awake.

But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t open her eyes.

It was like she was paralyzed by a nightmare, trapped in a dream, struggling desperately to wake, but powerless.

The harsh whistle mixed with ringing filled Ivy’s head. Her mind buzzed loudly.

Ivy felt herself burning up even more.

…

She didn’t know how long passed before Ivy opened her eyes again, her face etched with exhaustion and pain.

She may have fallen asleep just now, or perhaps not.

Because Ivy remained in a half-sleep, half-awake state, and what she saw before her was still the scenery of her dream, though her mind was unusually clear.

That very clarity only deepened Ivy’s fatigue instead of easing it.

Her face was full of pain, overwhelmed by unrelenting drowsiness and an aversion to falling back asleep.

Under such miserable conditions, sleeping was impossible—and she was running a fever.

If salt had been poured into the wound, it wouldn’t have been worse than Ivy’s current state.

Perhaps pouring sulfuric acid would be a better metaphor.

A sarcastic thought flashed through Ivy’s mind but was quickly washed away by chaotic, jumbled thoughts.

She was still standing on her toes, but she felt like her legs no longer belonged to her.

This was probably an unconscious reflex she had during her half-sleep, half-wake state to avoid the pain in her wrist.

She had maintained this posture for a long time now.

Suddenly, Ivy felt a chill run through her body.

As if, in winter, she was wearing thin clothes and exposed to a cold wind.

This chill was different from the cold shivers caused by her mental state earlier.

This time, she genuinely felt cold.

Ivy’s body shuddered, trying to warm herself, but her hypothermic state didn’t change despite her trembling.

There was no real wind in the room, yet she felt a faint breeze brushing against her.

The temperature, usually cool and comfortable, now tormented Ivy mercilessly.

Her body trembled more and more violently, nearly collapsing several times.

If she were to fall now, the full weight of her body would slam onto her already overburdened wrist.

Her wrist might be destroyed completely.

Cold sweat formed on Ivy’s forehead as she took deep breaths, trying to suppress the shaking.

This helped slightly, but Ivy’s situation hadn’t improved.

The heat of the fever and the cold invading her body waged war inside her, and for the first time, Ivy truly understood what it meant to be caught between fire and ice.

Her eyes squeezed shut, and the toes she stood on trembled with unbearable strain, shaking harder and harder.

No, she couldn’t hold on like this.

Ivy locked onto that thought amidst the chaos.

The words began to loop endlessly in her mind, filling every corner of her brain.

Summoning all her strength, Ivy followed her instincts and made a decision.

She would return to the position she had before she lost consciousness.

Otherwise, if she lost focus or gave out, her wrist would be ruined.

Fear gripped her as she remembered losing consciousness earlier.

Fortunately, she had remained in a half-dream state during that time, recovering some strength; otherwise, she might have already been finished.

Ivy’s mind began to wander again, but thankfully, she hadn’t forgotten what she needed to do.

She slowly lifted one foot off the ground—but in less than two seconds, she lost her balance and nearly collapsed.

Her heart raced as she quickly put her foot back down.

Pain stabbed her wrist again, but Ivy had no time to care.

Gritting her teeth, she lowered her body, letting the ropes bear her weight and slowly shifting the support to her bound hands.