LRAB Chapter 352 Detoxification – An Uninvited Guest
Chapter 352 Detoxification – An Uninvited Guest
Chapter 354 Detoxification – The Uninvited Guest
The detoxification treatment for Akromar has made little progress.
On the other side of the United Alliance headquarters building, a pure white medical room was filled with the mingled smells of disinfectant and anxiety, where several exhausted doctors looked gloomy.
It was evening, the time for shift changes, and the nurses who cared for Akromma had all gone to rest. Only these Alliance elites, who possessed top-notch medical technology, were still wrestling with death.
"The results of the local blood reaction test on the patient are in. The antivenom for snake-type Pokémon also failed to cure the patient, similar to the effects of the previous bee venom and scorpion venom antivenom. In addition, the fourth treatment plan previously discussed..."
- Healing methods that utilize Fairy-type Pokémon like Whimsicott to transfer life energy to them are also ineffective.
A male doctor, with a Pokkigu perched on his shoulder, solemnly announced the results of his treatment.
"Based on current test results, the patient does not have enough physical strength to undergo chemotherapy, and I do not believe that existing chemical treatments can be effective against this unknown toxin."
Sitting in front of the hospital bed, the female doctor, who was adding information to a test report, adjusted her glasses. Her expression was indifferent, and the lenses reflected the pale blue light of the monitor.
"But the blood test results after the blood draw were relatively normal."
An older doctor reminded everyone that he was a leading expert in pharmacology at the Alliance Medical Department and the most senior expert present: "The blood showed no abnormalities, at most only mild symptoms similar to common inflammation. The tests for radiation and heavy metals also came back negative. Perhaps this toxin is only targeting the patient's nervous system."
Are you implying that electroconvulsive therapy might be effective?
On the other side of the ward, a tall doctor observing the vital signs data turned around, the hem of his white coat casting a messy reflection on the glass surface of the sterilizer.
"I object to this idea. Didn't the chief physician already reject this approach when determining the treatment direction? Besides, it's too hasty to apply electrical stimulation before finding the lesion. Humans aren't computers; you can't just turn them on and off and restart them when problems arise."
"But there's no other way." The older doctor looked at Akroma, who was lying paralyzed on the hospital bed, with a grim expression. "We can't just watch him die weakly, can we? Even disregarding principles like treating and saving lives, what will happen to the reputation of our alliance's chief medical department if the patient dies here and word gets out?"
"I do have a solution." The female doctor seemed to have finished recording her observation report, so she spoke coldly, "Due to personal interest, I am particularly interested in the progress of biomedical engineering in the field of bionics. Recently, there seems to be some incredible news circulating in this circle."
"You mean Sinnoh's bionic neural interface technology?"
The tall doctor seemed to have heard the rumors as well, but he just smiled dismissively.
"Do you really believe that a TV presenter who's obsessed with evolutionary theory, a retired biology professor, can create a bionic robot that can perfectly replace the human body in the deep mountains and forests all by himself in just ten years? Don't be delusional and turn patients into cyborg monsters. Instead of believing such rumors, you might as well go to the Temple of Sinnoh or the Bell Tower in Johto and burn some incense for the patients."
That would significantly increase the chances of a cure.
Even if that were true, there probably wouldn't be enough time.
The male doctor in charge of the Pokémon therapy shook his head, offering a more neutral perspective: "The patient isn't simply incapacitated; that unknown toxin is relentlessly eroding his bodily functions. Even in the most optimistic scenario, if we don't find a viable antidote by tomorrow, the patient will likely stop breathing by tomorrow night."
"I'm going to see the medical director again." The pharmacologist stomped angrily toward the door. "What kind of time is this? Still rigidly thinking about the patient's post-operative health. He's almost dead. What does it matter if he's a little demented and drools a bit after he recovers? He'll thank us then. I don't want to be ruined at my age by this kind of inexplicable accident—"
The old man was furious, but the moment the door opened, his words abruptly stopped, like a "true qi fist" interrupted by an attack.
Is anyone home?
Two young faces appeared at the doorway. The young man in the white shirt wore a spotless red silk tie, a stark contrast to the casually worn sports jacket of the girl in the baseball cap beside him.
The two seemed to be about to knock on the door when they saw a doctor come out of the ward. The restless-looking girl immediately peeked out.
They peered inside the door.
"Ahem, are you two relatives or friends of the patient?"
Thanks to the soundproofing of the doors purchased collectively by the Alliance headquarters, the doctors' discussion inside did not seem to have reached the outside. The old doctor straightened his collar and asked the two in a dignified, old-fashioned tone.
"The Mr. Akromar inside is a friend of the new league champion, and we are here on behalf of that champion to perform some special examinations on the patients."
The speaker was the young man in the red tie. He spoke methodically and clearly, like a teacher, "Due to the special nature of the examination, which may involve some confidentiality obligations, we hope that the doctors can temporarily leave the examination room during our examination. Of course, we also know that it is difficult for strangers like ourselves to gain the full trust of the doctors. Therefore, we have brought a token representing the champion. If you still have any doubts, you can contact the head of the medical department or the vice president of the league, Ms. Gloria."
Black Lian showed the other party a gold card with a crown pattern printed on it—it looked exactly the same as the one Hugo had used to pass through the internal passage.
In fact, this was the champion's pass that the detective had specially applied for for the champion's agent. However, because he was worried that if the card were held by the eccentric Touko, it might not be convincing enough, so Hei Lian was asked to communicate on her behalf.
"It's the 'King's Proof'—you guys go in first, I'll make a call to those two people you mentioned."
The elderly doctor yielded with neither arrogance nor servility, holding his head high as he placed Douzi and Heilian into the ward. In reality, he didn't have the vice president's phone number at all; his claim of needing to confirm with the two men was merely a pretense of authority.
"Hey, are you Hei Lian and Dou Zi?"
Upon entering the ward, the doctor, who was sitting on Pokkigu's shoulder, showed a disapproving expression.
"I served as the medical advisor for the Higaki Tournament three years ago, and I have a very strong impression of your duel. What are you two doing here?"
"They must be the two eyewitnesses who were supposed to meet the patient. I saw them when we arrived at the scene for the emergency treatment." Before Douzi and the others could answer, the tall doctor had already walked up to them. He looked Heilian and Douzi up and down. "You said you were coming for some kind of special examination. What exactly is it? Can you identify the type of toxin?"
"The specific details need to be kept secret, but—" the girl with the high ponytail wore a mysterious expression, "some toxins are like the illusions of dream demons; the more people watching, the harder they are to manifest. Perhaps this is a poison that can be immediately neutralized once its true form is recognized."
"Hehe, are you Googer or Sableye?" Togekiss with two cute little wings darted past Douzi, and its trainer joked, "Well, we're currently in a dilemma and don't know what to do. If you could help identify toxins, that would be really great."
"Do you need these test reports?" The female doctor, who had been sitting next to the hospital bed, stood up and waved the documents in her hand.
"Thank you for your kind offer, but we plan to try other methods," Blackie politely declined.
It was at this moment that he and Douzi finally saw the plasma cluster scientist again, whom they hadn't seen for half a day.
Akroma's complexion was much paler than when she had seen him in the reception room that morning, like a blank sheet of paper that had been inexplicably erased many times. Her once distinctively highlighted hair, which resembled satellite orbits, now lay listlessly in a messy clump.
"As mentioned above, there are no issues with the identities of these two individuals, so let's allow them to undergo that so-called special examination for now."
The ward door opened again, and the pathologist walked in, waving his smartphone which he had just hung up.
"Thank you for your hard work, doctors. Our examination will take about an hour. Please go and rest for a while. I will let you know immediately if anything changes."
Hei Lian politely bowed to the medical staff in gratitude, while her childhood friend was rolling up his sleeves, eagerly looking at Akroma on the hospital bed, as if he was about to pounce on her and unleash his fists.
Seeing the girl's actions, the doctors seemed to have something to say, but in the end, they were asked to leave the ward by Hei Lian and the old doctor.
Before leaving, the pathologist hesitated for a long time in front of Hei Lian, finally asking in a low voice, "Have you figured out the type of toxin? What are your plans for testing next?"
Seeing the old man's self-doubting eyes, the young man, who was still a candidate for the position of museum director, could no longer keep up the pretense. He had no choice but to whisper a few words in the doctor's ear: "Your methods for detecting poison are comprehensive and thorough enough. So, after eliminating all possibilities, the one that remains is Akromma's true lesion."
After saying that, the door to the ward was tightly closed.
The sound of a lock being turned on came from inside.
"The remaining one—" the old doctor murmured, lost in deeper doubt.
But behind that single door, the girl appointed as the champion's substitute bluntly revealed the final answer—
"Mr. Akromma wasn't actually poisoned, was he?"
In this windowless and soundproof ward, the girl's clear voice shattered against the metal walls, echoing throughout the room.
Hei Lian watched his childhood friend's solo performance in silence, his fingers touching the Poké Ball hanging at his waist, like a dutiful guard, never leaving the door that had just been closed.
"You planned to kill Mr. Akromma when all the doctors and nurses had left, or when only one or two remained, so that they wouldn't be looking. Wasn't that your original plan?"
Douzi's boot heels tapped crisply on the ground, each step coinciding with the intervals between the monitor's pulses. Her speech was delivered with conviction, as if a real criminal were standing before her.
"It wouldn't have been a problem to let Akromar die weakly like that, but the situation has changed. The two Champions and the Champion himself arrived at the League headquarters at the same time, which made you nervous."
The atmosphere around them seemed to have changed in some way, but the girl remained unmoved.
"We can't wait until tomorrow night any longer. If the Champions and the two Heavenly Kings discover something in the League and then figure out the true nature of this poison, all our previous efforts will be wasted. That's what you must be thinking, right? That's why, during the chaos of the treatment, while the Heavenly Kings and Champions went to the crime scene to investigate, I quietly came here alone."
Do you really think your plan is flawless?
Douzi jumped onto the chair the female doctor had just sat on and raised his voice.
"A toxin that leaves no trace, haha, how utterly laughable! This is nothing but a facade you created using Pokémon moves. The real toxin is within you, flowing through the circuits of your wicked brain! Two ordinary moves that were originally completely harmless have been transformed into an unknown poison that harms people invisibly through your combination. How despicable and shameful!"
The ward remained silent, with only the monotonous and faint echo of the instrument monitoring Akromma's heart rate.
"It seems the murderer isn't going to reveal himself until the whole scheme is exposed," Blackie reminded his childhood friend.
"You think we're bluffing you?" Douzi's expression was a mix of amusement and exasperation. "It's time to end this farce! We'll use 'Immobilization Spell' to lock down your movements, then simulate poisoning symptoms with 'Electromagnetic Waves,' thus evading the search for psychic energy—you think you can fool everyone with the 'cloaking' property of the Invisible Dragon?"
.
The silence was like the darkness before dawn, leaving one wondering how long it would last.
But suddenly, the electrocardiogram monitor recording Akromma's vital signs burst with ripples, and the sudden burst of energy in the room caused the monitor to emit a mournful cry.
Almost simultaneously, the Poké Ball that Black Lian threw drew a silver arc in the air—"Clang!"
The Zangoose Slash's claws collided with the dark purple energy blade, and the exploding Ghost-type energy splashed viscous, ethereal water droplets in the air.
In the void reflected in the crimson pupils of the feline Pokémon, there is a red pattern.
Centered on this pattern, ripples of light spread out in scale-like patterns, and the outline of a pale green lizard gradually appeared—the shadowy claws at the tip of the dragon's tail still shone with a faint glow.
It is the Kecleon, which has the ability to change color!
Blackie reached for a new Poké Ball from his waist, his gaze sharpening as he looked towards a corner deep within the room: "Your breathing rate when commanding Pokémon is far more noticeable than a Kecleon's heartbeat. Why continue to hide?"
After a long silence, a voice as cold as winter suddenly rang out from the corner where Blackie was looking: "That guy is from Team Plasma. It would be beneficial for you to let him die at my hands. Why don't we each take a step back?"
Hei Lian was stunned for a moment, and just as he was about to choose his words to refute, his childhood friend shook his head decisively first: "Stop with the sweet talk, we won't let you kill someone in front of us."
A Poké Ball landed, and a vibrant green Serperior appeared beside the girl. It glided its body like flowing water and coiled itself around the unconscious Akromar's hospital bed.
"Well, there's nothing more to say then."
With a long sigh, the light in front of the two people distorted.
Swish, swish—like silk threads strung together, another green figure revealed its true form where the voices came from.
It was a huge bird, as tall as a person, with emerald green head feathers, a black neck, and patterns on its body like intricate ancient totems. It raised two white wings like flags—and in the shadow of the fluorescent lights, a figure emerged from the embrace of this Pokémon.
Douzi's eyes widened in surprise—"It's you, the vice president of the alliance!"