A Hospital in Another World? C.237

"Boss! Boss, are you alright?"

Garrett heard Bernard shouting desperately as soon as he landed. That barbarian voice, though lacking refinement, was certainly full of vigor, and even through the courtyard and the walls, Garrett could hear it clearly. He shouted back:

"I’m here! Open the door!"

"Coming!"

With a creak, the laboratory door opened, and the barbarian rushed out as if the ground was trembling. Seizing this moment, Master Decar turned to Garrett and asked:

"How many invaders? When did you notice? Did you come right away?"

"Only one..." Garrett focused his thoughts and reported to the legendary mage. Master Decar listened silently, then snorted:

"Why haven’t you advanced yet? With even a bit of second-level magic, you wouldn’t be in such a mess!"

Garrett lowered his head, not daring to speak. Master Decar pushed his monocle and looked at the young lad’s head, somewhat satisfied—

A mage who could hold his own against a warrior in close combat, retaliate, exchange blows, and even use unique magic to inflict damage. His instincts in battle were quite good indeed. But seriously, how could a child of the Elemental School not know how to fight?

We, the Thunder Horn, have always been the Magic Council’s foremost combat force!

Of course, his retreat afterward was timely and decisive. Fight if you can win, retreat if you can’t, children should never be reckless. The magic constant scheme of the "Endless Ink Pen" was designed by him personally, with the aim of maximizing the young lad’s chances of survival. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

Speaking of retreat—

He took off his monocle, flicked his finger along the edge, and strands of electric light flew out, shooting in all directions, followed by a beam of white light shooting straight up. Seeing Garrett eagerly looking at him, he casually pointed out:

"First, set up a spatial lock to prevent the use of teleportation in the surrounding area. Then summon the nearby patrol teams to seal off the area and capture the intruder. Oh, is the intruder still inside?"

Garrett honestly expressed that he didn’t know. The legendary mage waved his hand, and a magical wave swept out:

"Gone, escaped. When the patrol team arrives to make arrests, let’s go in first."

"Wait!" Garrett hurriedly reached out to stop him. "First, let’s check if there’s any leakage from the laboratory!" That thief, or whatever profession they are, must not have tunneled in and out!

"How do you want to check?"

The legendary mage raised his chin toward him. Garrett looked at him, then at Carlisle, who was standing beside him. Seeing both of them looking as if to say, "We won’t do anything, figure it out yourself," he pondered for a moment:

"Can you enchant me with a spell that can detect heat? Like dim vision or dark vision?"

The two high-level mages glanced at each other. Carlisle raised his hand, and a spell fell upon Garrett. Garrett felt a flash before his eyes, and suddenly his vision brightened several levels, as if from night to dusk. He carefully observed his surroundings, shaking his head:

"This won’t work. Can we try another one?"

Another flash. This time, what appeared before his eyes was a near-black-and-white image, with the door crack of the laboratory and the outlines of several people appearing brighter than the surroundings. Upon closer comparison, the two mages seemed slightly dimmer, while the barbarian’s torso, skin, and especially his mouth and nose, appeared particularly bright.

That’s it!

This is what I need—a thermal imaging function—infra-red vision!

Garrett jumped up and dashed towards the laboratory. Walls, roof, he inspected every inch. The temperature inside the room was definitely higher than outside, not to mention he had just cast a fire spell, raising the temperature even more. If there were any cracks in the walls leaking internal air, under infrared vision—

Nothing could hide!

"He’s quite quick to react," murmured the legendary mage behind him. The Lord of Thunder snorted:

"If he reaches the third level, you won’t need to intervene."

Carlisle smiled and sighed. The two high-level mages stood side by side, watching Garrett carefully inspecting the outer walls of the laboratory, almost leaning against them.

Midway through the inspection, a whistling wind overhead, a shuttle rushed over, and five senior mages emerged one after another. Clearly, the Tribunal had mobilized urgently, probably related to some factions, and all the mages were present. The one leading, in a black robe with a embroidered skull, was particularly impatient, heading straight for them:

"How’s it going? How’s it going?"

"Haven’t seen any leaks yet!" Garrett looked up and replied. The black-robed mage breathed a sigh of relief but also seemed a bit disappointed, slowing his pace. Another mage in red robes hurriedly stepped past him:

"Teacher!"

The Lord of Thunder nodded. "Here. Arrange the patrol team. When the enforcement team of mages arrives, instruct them to track down the intruder and capture them as soon as possible. I just saw it, there was only one intruder who used Shadow Jump to enter and exit the laboratory. The initial landing point was..."

He flicked his finger, and a beam of white light flew far away, hanging at the tip of the tall grass. The mage in red robes nodded repeatedly, immediately turning to the rear and pulling over a mage who seemed dazed, as if drunk:

"Hurry, help me find the intruder’s trail!"

"Why me... Can’t we wait for the enforcement team..." The mage he pulled over grumbled. The mage in red robes pushed him hard: "Hey, you’re a divination mage! Finding this is your specialty!"

"But my expertise is in stargazing..."

The divination mage seemed reluctant. He glanced at the pile of grass, casually cast a spell, and suddenly froze:

"Danger! Great danger!"

His movements suddenly accelerated, his ten fingers rolling rapidly like he had switched from 0.5x speed to 2x speed. In a moment, a faint green light shot out from his fingertips, illuminating a large string of footprints on the ground.

The hooves thundered like thunder. A patrol team had just arrived and was scolded by the Tribunal:

"Go! Follow the tracking magic and capture the person!"

The divination mage sighed in relief. The next moment, he turned towards the laboratory, his eyes bulging, a finger trembling like it was convulsing:

"Ominous signs, I see ominous signs—enough to destroy Nevis City—greater danger, inside here—"

"Then destroy it!"

An abjuration mage and an evocation mage walked over together. The temporary mage on duty had a decent expression, even nodded and smiled at Garrett, but the abjuration mage’s face was icy. One hand grabbed the red-robed mage, while the other pointed at the laboratory, saliva flying, spraying the other’s face:

"Who approved the construction of this laboratory?! Huh?! How could such a dangerous thing be entrusted to a child to play with? It’s even built in the city, without any protection. If something really happens, won’t the entire council suffer?"

"A child" Garrett Nordmark trotted over happily

, about to announce that there was no leakage in the outer wall, but was stopped in his tracks by the thunderous roar of the senior mage.

A second-level mage—at the time when this laboratory was built, he was still a first-level mage—in the eyes of the high-level mages, had a combat power close to zero. The unspoken rule of the Magic Council was that mages below the fifth level could not independently oversee mage towers, which was equivalent to being unqualified to oversee important projects. Insignificant little things, everyone just pretended not to see them. A laboratory that could potentially destroy a city...

How could such a thing be left in the hands of a second-level mage?

But—

"It can’t be destroyed! The outer walls are intact, there’s no leakage inside at all!!!"

Garrett exclaimed. He had purified so many pathogenic bacteria, given a little more time, he could produce penicillin! And can a P4 laboratory be destroyed casually?! Do you want to blow it up, or bury it? With just a little carelessness, pathogens could leak out to the entire city!

"It can’t be destroyed!" The necromancy mage on duty was also anxious. He stepped forward, blocking Garrett, facing off against the abjuration mage:

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"This project was commissioned by us! It’s almost done! I’ve seen it, what’s produced is very potent, extremely useful for our plague branch! We’re responsible for protecting this laboratory. If something goes wrong, Black Crow Swamp will take responsibility!"

"It’s not your turn to step forward." Beside the senior mages, the Lord of Thunder snorted coldly. He pushed his monocle, pointed directly at the red-robed mage, and reprimanded him fiercely:

"The child doesn’t understand, and you don’t either?! Whatever he wants to do with the laboratory, you just let him do it? How can such a large laboratory have no magical defenses?! —He only knows how to prevent leaks, but doesn’t know what defenses are needed against external invaders! What use are you?! Did you not use your brain before approving this project? What’s inside your head? Is it all magma from staying in the Elemental School for too long?"

As soon as the legendary mage spoke, the red-robed mage, Sam, straightened up immediately, bowed his head, and stood still, obediently receiving the reprimand. The laboratory, part of Garrett’s reward, with its scale and construction budget determined by the entire Tribunal, was not decided by him alone, nor should he shoulder all the blame. But, being scolded by the teacher...

Then just listen, what else can you do but comply?

The abjuration mage quietly released his grip, took two steps back, and dodged the legendary mage’s anger. The Black Crow Swamp mage breathed a sigh of relief but also felt a bit resentful, his eyes rolling back and forth between Garrett and the laboratory. As for the other two, they also felt a bit scared in their hearts, only hoping that the Lord of Thunder’s anger wouldn’t fall on their heads, so they didn’t dare to say a word?

Master Decar scolded for half an hour straight, electric currents flickering on his monocle as if they could burst out at any moment. The surrounding mages stood solemnly, silently listening, and dutifully accompanying for half an hour. Garrett observed with his eyes, nose, and ears, standing aside with his ears pricked up, finally understanding why the legendary mage had to come in person:

If the Lord of Thunder didn’t come, which Tribunal gentleman would write "dismantle" on the laboratory? Could he stop them?

Or did he want to watch the senior mages fight on the spot?

The storm of reprimands finally came to an end. Master Decar turned to Garrett, his expression softened:

"Young lad, since you claim there’s no leakage here, then prove it to us."

"Alright! I’ll go in first and tidy up!"