“Congratulations, my Host,” Noe’s voice interrupted, “You have achieved the clear conditions for the Third Stage. The Trash Matrix wishes to initiate end-of-trial procedures, does the host accept?”

I frowned. What would happen if I don’t accept?

I still had some things to do before I left the Trial, I couldn’t just disappear right away. My main goal for helping out, aside from just being nice to Alice, was to establish a proper relationship with the Director and have her help with getting rid of that piece of shit Overseer.

“You will delay the clearing of this Trial until you accept the Trash Matrix’s request,” Noe answered, “With my upgrade, you may delay it indefinitely, although Unit Noe does not advise that as it may alert Central’s higher-ups.”

But they probably won’t notice if I delay it for a day or two, right?

“The probability of that outcome is negligible, my Host,” Noe replied, “You are safe to ignore the Trash Matrix for the time being.”

Perfect, ignore the Trash Matrix right now, I’ll let you know when I want to clear this stage.

“Acknowledged.”

“Is something wrong, Will?” The Director asked, “You were spaced out for a while there.”

“Sorry,” I answered quickly, “Just a little tired. The operation took longer than I anticipated.”

“You should get some rest in that case, it’s not good to push yourself like this. The hospital can survive a few hours while you’re sleeping, doctor.”

I shook my head, “I’ll rest in a bit, I need to speak to you about the invaders, I think I have a way to infiltrate them. Mind getting me that coffee while we chat?”

The Director looked at me sceptically, “Alright… I’m not sure what kind of crazy scheme you have, but you were able to solve Alice’s problem, I’d trust any hair-brained plan of yours. I don’t know how you do it, Dr. Walter.”

“Talent, Director,” I answered with a smirk, “And a lot of luck.”

She rolled her eyes, “It’s not like you to be modest, although it’s a nice change of pace. Now go sit down and relax, I’ll go make you that coffee. And call me Abigail, I think you more than deserve it now.”

“Alright, Abigail.”

The Director or I guess I should call her Abigail now, left towards the kitchen with a spring in her step. I wanted to sit down but strange noises were coming from the back room, and it didn’t sound like anything the two kids could make. I was a little curious about what the kids were doing and opened the door just a bit to poke my head inside. Alice and Toby were busy in the back, playing with something that I couldn’t make out, while Molly watched on. The doll waved at me in greeting.

“Sorry if the noise is disturbing you, Doctor,” Molly said as she made her way over towards me, “I’ll make sure Henry’s quiet from now on.”

She threw one of her hair darts into what I could only assume was the person making all that noise, and the room immediately quieted down. Now I had to strain my ears to hear the patient over the giggles and chatter of the children. Alice and Toby were so engrossed with whatever they were doing that they didn’t even notice my presence. I didn’t choose to disturb them.

“Henry?” I asked, moving a little to get a better view but failing, “You mean that first escaped patient?”

I could just about make out some flailing limbs and muffled screams, but most of my view was still obscured by the backs of the two children. Some instinct deep down told me that it was better that I didn’t see what was going on. I trusted that instinct.

“Yes,” Molly replied, “The madam chose to save that particular patient as a present for Alice and her new friend to play with. She never doubted that you’d succeed, you know.”

I smiled, “I try to keep my promises, after all.”

“And I would also like to give you my sincerest thanks, Dr. Walter,” Molly continued, “I’ve been the only companion for Alice for far too long, and seeing her interact with someone like her is… nice. I also know that you’re in a very interesting situation yourself, doctor, you’re not from here originally, are you?”

Oh… The doll knew. I didn’t know what to say; do I deny it?

The doll shook her head before I had to make a decision, “Don’t be so nervous, Dr. Walter. I don’t care what your background is. You’ve done more for Alice and the madam than anyone else had, and that counts for more than anything else. Like I said, doctor, you have my gratitude.”

I nodded slowly, still unsure what to say.

The doll took out a little trinket, which looked like a tiny laminated paper charm, and gestured for me to take it, “I’m not sure what you’ll do in the future, but I know that you’ll go headfirst into danger with the invaders. Take the charm, Dr. Walter, and keep it safe. It will allow you to communicate with us here, no matter where you may be. Make sure you talk with Alice every now and then, she’ll miss you, you know.”

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Molly’s Cursed Charm (S Rank):

Description: A charm containing the concentrated resentment from a child’s doll. The holder of this charm will be haunted by the spirit of the doll and its owner. Prolonged exposure to the curse will allow the spirit of the doll and its owner to manifest in the holder’s dimension.

Well, that’s an ominous description that I got from my Arbiter skill. If I didn’t have any background context, I’d probably throw this thing away as far as I possibly could, but knowing the friendship I established with Molly and Alice, I think the haunting would be quite pleasant honestly. Plus, if they could both manifest into the Trials and help me out… yeah, I’ll keep this safe.

“Thank you, Molly, and I’ll make sure to keep in touch,” I answered and took the charm from her.

I looked at it and saw that there was a little piece of hair placed inside the plastic, probably from the doll. I placed the trinket carefully in my breast pocket. I felt a chilly sensation when I did so, which I assume is the curse working, but that sensation quickly faded.

The doll nodded, “Alright, the Director’s coming back with your coffee, doctor, best not to keep her waiting. I’ll keep the two kids out of trouble… and thank you again. I mean it.”

I closed the door behind the doll and went to the table where the Director was waiting with two hot cups of coffee. It smelled amazing.

“Checking up on the kids?” she asked before handing me my cup.

“Yeah,” I answered, “And chatting with Molly. She gave me a charm to keep in contact with everyone here as well.”

The Director nodded, “That doll knows a lot more than she lets on.”

“What is she, anyway?” I asked as I took a sip of my drink, it was honestly some of the best coffee I had, “I know she’s always with Alice, but I don’t think anyone else can even talk with her.”

Abigail shrugged, “That’s because no one else can, I’m honestly not sure how you’re able to understand her honestly. As for what she is? I’m not sure myself. My mother gave Molly to me as a child, and she got it from her mother. Honestly, the doll’s been in my family for as long as anyone can remember. It’s a tradition to pass on the doll to the youngest, so she’s with Alice now.”

“I see.”

“But getting that charm means you’re planning to leave, aren’t you?” Abigail said with a hint of sorrow, but she didn’t seem to press the matter more.

“Yeah,” I answered, “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. You said that we needed to take the fight to them, but how can we do that when we don’t even know where they’re headquartered? We can’t fight back without adequate information about our foes.”

“That is true…” the Director conceded, “I was hoping to get that information out of the patients if we can just understand what’s preventing them from saying anything intelligible when questioned. It’s all Trials this and Levels that. They don’t seem to know anything about the inner workings of the invaders, but certainly one of them must know more.”

I shook my head, “I don’t think that’s the way to approach it, the patients can’t be trusted, they’re sick after all.”

“Fair,” Abigail answered with a sigh, “That is true. I guess relying on information gotten from the sick and dying’s not exactly accurate.”

I continued, “We need to find this information ourselves and I think I found a way to infiltrate the invaders.”

Now that got the Director’s interest, “How so, Will?”

“You know how some of them would disappear when one of them escapes the hospital grounds?”

She nodded, “Yes, it’s one of the more annoying aspects about the strange patients the invaders send here.”

“I think I found out the method they’re using to disappear,” I continued, “My research suggests that the invaders are governed by some kind of system that’s allowing them to transport people where they please. I should be able to tweak it so that I get transferred with them if we allow the patients to escape all at once.”

“All at once?” The Director asked with a frown.

I nodded grimly, “It’s the only way I can think of for my plan to work.”

“That’s asking for a lot, Will, you know what would happen if too many patients escape,” The Director said, “I can deal with the fallout now that Alice is stable, but it’s still a risk. Our shareholders will not be happy with a mass escape like that unless you can provide them with solid intel about the invaders. How sure are you that you can do this?”

“Almost certainly,” I answered honestly, “If the patients all leave at once, the system responsible for taking them all out will be overloaded for a brief period of time. I can use that instance to slip in myself.”

“You’ve done the impossible before, so I trust you, Will,” she replied, “Can you take any others with you? Even one more physician or doctor helping will be a boon.”

“No, there’s only room for one to go through, and since you can’t go yourself, it’ll have to be me that enters. I can’t wait too long either, we’re losing more and more patients each day, and I need to have a minimum number of them alive to have this plan work.”

The Director frowned but she couldn’t argue with my logic. If I was speaking the truth, then the most logical person to go for such a mission would be the best doctor in the hospital. She couldn’t refuse.

“I can’t argue with you when you put it like that, Will,” she answered with a sigh, “I’ll… I’ll need to get things ready. If you’re going to an unknown location, I’ll have to make sure that you’re well-equipped. Molly’s charm will allow you to communicate with us here, but what if you need emergency backup? How would you be able to get back to us if you need to? Give me… give me a day to prepare. Can you wait that long?”

“One day should be fine,” I answered, “And I’ll be glad to take anything you think will help.”

The Director finished the last of her cup of coffee and got up, “Alright, I’ll go get things set up. The hospital won’t be the same without you, Will, but we all know how important it is to get rid of the pests hounding our home.”

“I’ll miss it here as well,” I replied in truth, “But we can’t continue like this, and you know it. Alice being stable’s just the first part of our fight back against the invaders; there’s a lot more work to be done.”

Abigail sighed again, “I know… Get some rest, William, and take the rest of the day off. I’ll contact you once I’m done. Just make sure you say goodbye to Toby and Alice before you go. I’ll let them know beforehand.”

I nodded, “Make sure you let them know that we can still chat, and it’s not like I’ll be gone forever.”

“I know,” she answered, “But they’ll still miss you.”

Abigail took my finished drink and shook her head, “Anyway, get to bed now, Will. You’ll need all the rest you can get.”

I yawned. The Director was right, I had been up for over an entire day, and despite my massive boost in endurance, I was still exhausted. A few hours of sleep would be nice. I still had to inform the Regressor and Marcus about what I did, or at least a censored version of it, but I don’t think they’ll mind waiting a little longer for me to give them the good news. For now, I quickly made my way to my dorm and all but passed out on the soft bed.

I think I really will miss this cozy hospital after I clear this stage. I hope Abigail will find a way for me to come back sometime.