Yin Lin went to a familiar hospital, landing at the rooftop entrance reserved specifically for Magical Girls.
Stumbling downstairs to find the old physician, she instead ran into a nurse first.
“Wow, Miss Yin Lin, you looked so cool just now,” the nurse praised her immediately.
Twenty minutes later, the old physician finished the basic examination. He kept shaking his head as he looked at various scans in his hands.
“By the way, those two girls, Jin Luan and Huanhong, were here earlier. They didn’t have any major issues; they left after a single checkup because they couldn’t get a hold of you.”
The old doctor spoke while peering at the films through a magnifying glass.
He continued, “Jin Luan asked me to keep an eye out. She said if I saw you, I should contact her. What do you think?”
Yin Lin thought for a moment before nodding.
The old physician then began to list her problems.
A concussion was the least of it. There were also fractures to her scapula and ribs, a pulmonary laceration, pleural effusion, and emphysema.
Tsk, Green Field had hit her quite hard.
Recalling that whip strike, Yin Lin felt like it hadn’t hit her directly. The angle had shifted slightly, as if Green Field had intentionally altered the trajectory at the last second. It was as if a 100% head-on car collision had been turned into a 25% offset collision.
This caused the physical damage to decrease, leaving Yin Lin to shoulder mostly magical and secondary status damage.
“Surgery isn’t strictly necessary; minor procedures can handle it, or we could go with conservative treatment. It just heals slower that way. What’s your preference?” the old physician offered.
Yin Lin snapped back to reality and asked, “If I have surgery, how long until I’m recovered?”
The old physician frowned. “In your condition, at least a month. And that’s already taking into account the superior recovery abilities you Magical Girls possess.”
Yin Lin replied, “Fine, let’s go with the surgery.”
The old physician added, “By the way, you should probably transform back. I’m afraid if you revert while I’m operating, it’ll be a huge mess.”
“It’s fine,” Yin Lin said. “I can maintain my Transformation State almost indefinitely. Oh, and while you’re cutting me open, try to see if there’s a mana-storage organ in my gut, or any other organs that differ from a human’s.”
This actually made the old physician laugh. “This is a hospital, not a research institute or a forensic lab.”
***
A few minutes later, Jin Luan arrived.
Yin Lin and the old physician had finished their discussion, so everyone else left the room to give the two girls some privacy.
“I sent you messages, why didn’t you reply?” Jin Luan looked extremely worried.
“My phone is broken.” Yin Lin pulled out her bent smartphone.
The two were silent for a moment before Jin Luan suddenly rushed over and hugged her. Yin Lin felt a bit awkward being pressed against her chest.
After a long while, Jin Luan let go and got down to business. “Do you know what happened with Green Field? Why did she do that today?”
Yin Lin leaned back against the hospital bed, grimacing as the pain flared through her body.
Recalling Green Field’s state today, she answered, “She didn’t want to talk, and I didn’t want to ask. Even if I don’t know the specific reason, I think I know the trigger.”
After a brief pause, Yin Lin continued, “She might have had some specific experiences regarding ‘heroes.’ A few nights ago, Huang Yi called me out for an award ceremony, saying it was to thank me for my contributions to Next Day City and humanity. I suspect Green Field was there too.”
“Huh? Why didn’t you and he call me?” Jin Luan sounded a bit bitter, feeling like an outsider.
Yin Lin didn’t answer, steering the topic back. “I don’t know why Green Field reacted so strongly, and she didn’t elaborate. That’s likely the trigger, though.”
Jin Luan sighed. “Fine, I’ll find Huang Yi later to look into it. My mana is running low, and I can’t maintain my Transformation State much longer. I’m leaving for now, but I’ll come find you tonight. Just stay in bed and don’t move around.”
Yin Lin nodded.
The rest of the day was spent recovering, lying in bed and resting until evening.
Jin Luan, having recovered some mana, returned in her Transformation State. She brought Yin Lin a new phone—the same model and familiar silver color as before. The previous SIM card had been canceled and replaced with a new one.
She stayed and ate dinner with Yin Lin before finally departing.
***
In the night, Yin Lin used her phone to log into her main account. She received quite a few work-related messages, including a leave request from Gretta.
The woman claimed she had been in a car accident and needed to be hospitalized for a while. She even sent photos of the hospital and a pathology report.
Looking at them, they seemed strangely familiar. Why was that pathology report so similar to the one the old physician had just shown her?
Checking the X-ray, it showed fractures. It looked incredibly familiar.
Yin Lin quickly sent her regards. Was it serious? How long would it take to heal? Did she need to apply for workers’ comp? Who was at fault? Did the other person hit and run?
It took a long time for Gretta to reply and explain everything point by point.
Ultimately, Yin Lin helped her out by relaying the leave request to the Manager. Since she needed more than a month off, this wasn’t a holiday that Team Leader Song could approve on his own.
At the same time, Yin Lin needed to take a long leave for herself. She had originally planned to use a car accident as an excuse, but since Gretta had coincidentally “been in one,” it wasn’t convenient for her to use the same lie.
After thinking it over, she had an idea.
[Copywriting Team 2, Song Wuli: Manager, something happened on my end too. I fell off a mountain today while gathering materials. It was over ten meters high; I almost died. I need to request leave. [Image 1] [Image 2] [Image 3]]
She sent several photos—some of the hospital, along with pathology reports and X-rays.
Because Yin Lin’s body was too small, she couldn’t take a full X-ray. It was clearly the frame of a teenage girl, not a thirty-four-year-old man. So, she only took a close-up of the scapula area where the fracture was clearly visible.
Then, she waited anxiously.
A message arrived.
Manager: [Gretta got into a car accident, and you fell off a mountain? How did you both end up in trouble at the same time?]
Manager: [I looked at your X-ray. Aren’t your bones a bit too thin? Your skeletal structure looks quite weak.]
Huh? He noticed?
Yin Lin quickly began typing, about to explain that she had sent the wrong photo.
Another message came from the Manager: [Sigh, we aren’t young anymore. Look at how poor your bone density is, so small and thin. Don’t work yourself to death with overtime in the future.]
Yin Lin immediately deleted her draft and replied: [I’ll stay within my limits from now on.]
Manager: [I can approve your leaves. I’m not heartless. Just come back to work once you’re better.]
Manager: [By the way, which hospital are you in? I’ll come see you tomorrow. Don’t you dare refuse. You’re a veteran of this company; you’ve given your all for us.]
Manager: [Seeing you two request leave just now made me realize that in this era, we ordinary people are quite fragile. I’ve been negligent in my concern for you.]
Manager: [I’m going to pay you a visit on behalf of the company. It’s decided.]
Crap. This is a disaster. What do I do?
Yin Lin thought for a long time before finally agreeing, providing the name of a nearby hospital.
She already had a plan in mind. She would just have to put on an act and find a way to deceive the Manager first.