Chapter 10: Chapter 10: Could it be a placebo?_1
Translator: 549690339
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A gentle breeze caressed the face, and the bright sunlight filtered through the window, casting a warm glow on the person within. The familiar noise of modern society buzzed in the ears, everything that felt so familiar, after a brief and magical experience, seemed all the more endearing...
"Back home..."
Colin glanced down at himself.
His clothes were neat and tidy, fatigue had vanished, and he had returned to the state he was in before entering the other world.
His legs had reverted to their weak and powerless condition...
And on his knees, there lay a slightly yellowed parchment—
[Countdown to next descent: 167 hours, 58 minutes, 44 seconds.]
"Another seven days, so from now on, spend seven days there and spend seven days here, huh? No, wait..."
Colin noticed the electronic clock on the wall nearby—
It was Monday, three in the afternoon.
He clearly remembered entering at exactly noon, which meant that in reality, only three hours had passed.
But he had clearly spent over ten hours in that world!
"Could it be, the flow of time is different?"
Colin had a sudden realization, he didn't understand it, but couldn't say he couldn't accept it either.
It was at this time that new lines of text began to appear on the paper.
[Your evaluation for this event is: A-.]
[You have completed this event with an outstanding performance.]
[Below are your rewards after completing this event's tasks—"Bonfire Points*2100," "Random Item Draw Scroll*1," "F Level Gene Compensation," "Silver Clearance Certificate*2."]
[All items have been transferred to the "Storage Room," please check them.]
"Transferred to the Storage Room? What the heck is a Storage Room? When did I get a Storage Room?"
Colin frowned...
At that moment, the content about the completed task on the parchment disappeared, and new writing surfaced.
[Congratulations on becoming a Bonfire Employee, Level F Company Authority will now be opened for you, please wait...]
When this message appeared, an eyeball sketch was drawn on the parchment, staring straight at him.
As he made eye contact, Colin felt the drawing of the eye become more and more real.
As if there was actually an eye watching him through the paper.
Strangely, Colin felt an indescribable sense of shame... as if it had seen through every part of him.
Even the types of art he preferred seemed transparent to it.
What is this thing?
Why does it feel like my innocence is at stake...
Thinking this, Colin noticed that the simple sketched eye finally disappeared after about twenty or thirty seconds.
He let out a sigh of relief from the bottom of his heart.
Feeling seen through was not particularly comfortable.
At that moment, a character data chart emerged on the parchment.
[Personal Profile]
Internal Name: Unnamed123456 (name can be reset once).
Title: None.
Authority: Level F-
Status: "Early-stage Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)," "Early-stage chronic myocarditis"...
Personal Experience: "Completed one descent task and received an A- evaluation".
Conditions required for the next round of authority promotion—
Requirement one: Reach Authority Level F+.
Requirement two: Undergo three "F Level Gene Compensation Medicine Liquid" treatments, current number of treatments (0/3).
Requirement three: After meeting requirements one and two, apply to undertake the Level E authority trial (opening the Level E authority promotion trial for the first time requires three Silver Task Certificates).
...
"What? When did I get myocarditis?"
Colin gazed at his personal profile bewilderedly; he knew he had ALS, but had no idea about the myocarditis...
Well, no matter. It's not a big problem.
Compared to "ALS," it's just a minor issue.
After he was done reading, the page kindly faded away, leaving behind a selectable [Personal Profile] option.
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Not only that, but there were also some other functional options next to this choice.
[Storage Room], [Trading Ground], [Interaction Hall], [Task Bar]...
"Is this what they call 'Level F Authority'?"
Colin reached out and clicked on [Storage Room], only to find his hand extending into a separate spatial area.
An inspiration emerged—
This was a personal independent space of about 100 liters.
He could store or retrieve items in it through parchment.
To Colin's surprise, aside from the normal mission rewards, he saw a familiar revolver lying within.
When his attention focused on it...
Information related to it materialized on the parchment.
[Revolver Contrarian (severely damaged, unusable): Repairing to the minimum usable status requires 337 points.]
"Is this the equipment of that former colleague? Did Bonfire Company leave it to me as spoils of war? Rest in peace, old friend..."
Colin licked his wounds with tears.
However, without being sure whether repairing it would be a loss or profit, he didn't rush to fix it but instead turned his gaze to the most concerning "F Level Gene Compensation Medicine Liquid."
["F Level Gene Compensation Medicine Liquid": A special medicament provided by Bonfire Company for F Level employees. It can comprehensively strengthen bodily functions after ingestion, with a maximum of three vials available per person (can cure or alleviate various types of currently known genetic defect symptoms).]
"Just the name tells me it's what I need."
Colin took it out and examined it in his hand; it seemed ordinary—a transparent test tube with a stopper, filled with a black viscous liquid.
Without hesitation, he pulled out the stopper and drank it all in one gulp.
Well, it had a faint salty taste, nothing special, felt like he just drank a bit of... saline?
Colin closed his eyes, trying to sense any changes in his body.
But...
It seemed like there was no change.
It couldn't be a fake medicine, could it?
Just as Colin was thinking this, he suddenly discovered that he seemed able to move his legs.
Colin was initially shocked, looking at his legs incredulously, then he tried moving his toes, stretching his legs...
"Finally..."
Colin was emotionally charged.
A year! It had been a whole year!
He had finally seen hope.
Colin felt an inexplicable urge to cry.
Weakness in the body, paralysis in the legs, it wasn't just as simple as being confined to a wheelchair...
The looks from others, the physiological indignities like incontinence, they were continuously destroying a person's dignity.
Now, everything was starting to get better.
Although it was only an alleviation and he couldn't even stand up, Colin knew that as long as he did not die, it was possible to recover to his previous state.
After a while, he managed to calm down and sat back in the wheelchair, his fingertips gliding over the parchment, looking at other items.
["Silver Task Certificate": Non-transferable, non-tradable, it is the item that certifies you have completed a mission, commonly used for purchasing special items and career advancement.]
A silver coin the size of an inch, shining with a metallic luster, like a chip from a gambling house.
"This is also quite important."
Colin nodded, his attention shifted to another item.
A scroll about the length of a pair of chopsticks.
["Random Item Draw Ticket": Can randomly obtain a special function item manufactured internally by the company.]
[Would you like to use it?]
"A lucky draw? Hmm, no rush, I need to prepare well, take a bath to wash off the bad luck... now's the time, single-draw for a miracle!"
Colin used it immediately, hoping to pull a powerful item off guard.
Then, he suddenly paused...
Flickers on his retina, wisps of pale golden light appeared.
He really hit the jackpot!
One line of gold text after another surfaced on his retina.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone