Matryoshka Off-Limits Chapter 167

Chapter 167 Frank Hospital

The stark contrast between Patient 233’s distress reaction and the exceedingly enthusiastic doctor made for a striking scene.

Wen Shi easily became the center of attention in the ward.

The other two patients finally looked at him directly, then felt a momentary urge to vomit.

Under his【Cutting Princess】 aura, any man who saw Wen Shi would feel a slight tension in their lower body.

Ji Yuanzhi and the others had long become accustomed to it through prolonged exposure, almost equivalent to developing an immunity. Someone like the Seven Commandment Guild Leader would only become more annoyed, with their hostility increasing by a point or two, but this effect would generally be fleeting.

It was different for hypersexual patients. The official doctor status overlaid with this aura naturally made them feel uncomfortable. When Patient 233 watched through the live stream hosted by Patient You, this discomfort was weakened, until they met the person offline…

Patient 233, who still felt like vomiting, suddenly raised his eyes and looked at the blood-stained white coat with a meaningful glance, “Are you here to work as a doctor?”

“Yes.” Before the other person entertained any ill thoughts, Wen Shi said, seemingly lost in daydreams, “Working here is tough. I have to catch patients.”

He grinned, “It’s a good thing I met you. Take me to the room for runaway patients. They’re too fierce. I’m afraid they’ll bully me.”

Just from the friendly tone, he made it sound as if they had a close relationship.

Even though Wen Shi was cute during his teenage years, his voice had a slightly coquettish tone, like an unaware kitten. But to the patients, this was seen as provocation. His presence disrupted the hypersexual patients’ splendid dreams for the night.

Now, the other person was shamelessly giving them orders again.

“Take you there?”

Song Yan, the least timid of them, stood behind Wen Shi. He faced the unintentional hostility emanating from the patients, not taking a step back. He almost blindly followed Wen Shi, feeling that the more bizarre actions Wen Shi took, the more stable the situation would be.

Patient 233’s gaze gradually turned icy, “Quite demanding, aren’t you?”

Fear and physical disgust held entirely different meanings. He still possessed the ability to kill the others.

According to the hospital’s rules, doctors couldn’t cause the death of patients without reason, unless the patients tried to escape. Hypersexual patients had more than just a dream-invading power.

The overly sweet smell faded, and the air grew damp. Three patients lay in their beds, doing nothing. The words “Exemplary Group” on the opposite wall were brightly colored, as if reflecting how qualified they were as patients.

As the air passed through his respiratory tract, Wen Shi felt his bones loosening and shrinking, his body getting smaller at an increasing pace.

Whether making someone younger counted as an attack on a doctor was unclear. If he used his sword skill, there was a fifty percent chance he’d face punishment rule.

Wen Shi remained unruffled. He calmly stood in place, still wearing a smile. “Wanna play a game?”

Patient 233 had seen the same expression in the livestream, back when the other party proposed saving the journalist’s life using ten thousand viewers.

Patient 233 wouldn’t fall for it again. A hint of disdain flashed across his face as he immediately declined, “No…”

“Take me to the ward,” Wen Shi said casually, “Friendship Day is coming up, and I plan to make a surprise visit to the Director tomorrow for everyone’s amusement.”

“!”

Shocked faces in the ward, too many to count.

Whether patients or teammates, they were all left bewildered.

Song Yan, who had been so confident a moment ago, hadn’t anticipated that Wen Shi would take off so abruptly.

Three hypersexual patients simultaneously stared at Wen Shi, as if trying to see through him.

But Wen Shi only fixed his gaze on Patient 233. “Wanna play?”

It was unrealistic to expect the other party to lead them directly to catch the runaway patient. Since they weren’t in the same ward, the likelihood of Patient 233 knowing the patient’s hiding place was minimal. The game also didn’t leave such a significant loophole for players to exploit.

The air slowly returned to normal, and Patient 233, who had sworn not to make any deals just moments ago, had already forgotten his resolution.

“You’re going to kill A’Ao?”

Wen Shi glanced at his white coat. “Why else would I come all the way here to be a doctor? Life should have some excitement.”

With limited time, he decided to inquire about the host later. Wen Shi took the initiative to dispel the other’s suspicions, “I’m a trustworthy person. If you don’t trust me, you can deal with me.”

Working the night shift was an unavoidable fate. Ji Yuanzhi had mentioned that formidable patients could move across zones, making it easy for patients to ambush a night shift doctor.

With an indifferent tone and apathetic gaze, Wen Shi retracted his【Greenword Sword】, and naturally tucked his hand into his pocket, waiting with a sly smile for Patient 233 to make a decision.

Madman.

This was the most fitting description Patient 233 could come up with.

After becoming the director, not only would one possess intangible power, but patients were also prohibited from attacking the director. However, this couldn’t deny A’Ao’s immense power. If he were to unleash his full strength, except for a few patients, no monster could hold him down.

Patient 233 had a faint feeling that when the other person used that sword, he was borrowing power because a human’s own flesh and blood were very fragile.

Borrowing power had its limits, and one couldn’t withstand it without risking bodily destruction. Under such conditions, he still had the audacity to say he was going to kill the director. If that was not a madman, then what was?

The three patients simultaneously had the same thought: This is going to be an entertaining show!

The teammates attempted to discern cunning on Wen Shi’s face, at least expecting some hidden agenda, but all they saw was a faint smile.

The cat doctor was smiling on the outside but shedding tears inside.

He wasn’t a madman! Why on earth would he kill the director out of the blue?

This was one of the main quests assigned by the crappy game. What could he do?! Tonight, he had to play along.

Judging by the patients’ expressions, Wen Shi already knew the outcome. He beckoned to Patient 233, “Come on, take me to the ward first.”

Patient 233 stared at him for a few seconds but eventually chose to stand up from the bed.

…The battle of the evil doctor against the director.

Just thinking about it got their blood pumping. Any staff member at Frank Hospital dying would be met with applause and cheers from the patients.

Returning to the dim corridor, the endlessly stretching hallway sent shivers down their spines.

Unlike the Fantasy Zone, XX Zone slept better the later it got. Patient 233 turned and headed towards a certain ward at the back, wearing an enigmatic expression, “Patients in our zone have quite the temper when they wake up.”

Wen Shi moved with the grace of an expert. “That’s why I need a reliable guide.”

He guessed that Patient 233 now wanted him to stay alive, so that he could watch him and A’Ao destroy each other. Within his capability, the other party would help him navigate through it all.

“Patient 209 always knows how to hide.” Patient 233 pushed open an old ward door, his smile contorted. “I hope you’re lucky enough.”

Inside the ward, three beds could be seen under the dim light. One of them was unoccupied, neatly made, with no signs of ever being used.

Wen Shi and the others’ eyes lit up. It was this ward!

The switch for the light fixture was right by the door frame, but they carefully avoided touching it. If the light suddenly came on, there was a high chance the patients would react violently. The dampness that had been closing in on them stopped about a meter in front. The patients in the beds turned their heads, puzzled by Patient 233’s unexpected visit.

It had been seven or eight minutes since the last size change. While Patient 233 chatted with old acquaintances, Wen Shi sidled to the middle bed, bent down, and directly opened the cabinet door.

Ji Yuanzhi and Yu Xingzhou searched in the common area of the ward.

The patient in the first bed rolled their eyes indifferently and asked Patient 233, “Did you hook up with the doctor?”

Otherwise, they couldn’t explain why the other was helping medical staff search for something.

The patients knew very well what these people were looking for. If they didn’t catch the patient who loved playing hide and seek in time, all these night shift medical staff would have to answer for it.

However…

The patient in the first bed stared expressionlessly at the ceiling. Whenever it was that guy’s turn to go out and play hide and seek, no doctor could catch him. The number of staff who had died at his hands was countless.

Wen Shi quickly searched through the cabinet and found some odds and ends.

【You found a bit of broken soil.】

【You found a bit of lime.】

Ji Yuanzhi and his group found a hammer in the common area.

This was not good news. If a patient had dug a hole and crawled into it, it would indeed be difficult to find them.

Besides the eleven wards, XX Zone also had three treatment rooms and a dispensary. Additionally, there was a prayer room here. According to the instance’s mechanics, entering the wrong room might trigger a side quest. In another five minutes, they would age another half round.

Wen Shi stood up and looked around to check for any overlooked areas.

He happened to see the patient in the first bed staring intently behind him. Patient 233 was doing the same. When Wen Shi turned around, he found that even the patient in the third bed was looking at one person: Li Nan.

Li Nan bent down, his nose gently touching the surface of the bedding before moving to the pillow and the discarded patient gown, carefully sniffing everything related to the patient in the first bed.

His ears had shifted position, moving to the top of his head, covered in black fuzz, and a fluffy tail had appeared behind him at some point. As his body shrank, the loose male nurse uniform covered a small part of his tail. Li Nan approached everything with great seriousness, sniffing the patient gown with a dignified yet peculiar air.

Patient 233 had a complicated expression. “Is he a fellow patient?”

Playing such an obscure role.

After noting the scent, Li Nan turned to his teammates and said, “We can go catch the person now.”

The others instinctively followed up, but as they walked to the doorway of the ward in a daze, they snapped out of it, and asked in astonisment, “Do you have a transformation skill?”

Li Nan frowned slightly, not understanding what was so shocking. “In Crimson Sunset instance, I chose the burglar quest.”

At that time, the game offered three choices. Among them, choosing to hunt shadows would significantly boost overall abilities, while stealing an Ultra-Rare Evolution Potion would grant a transformation ability.

“And the look on your faces when you heard it at the cosmetic surgery hospital was exactly the same as it is now,” Li Nan reminded them.

He had already been looked down upon once.

Among the five of them, four had completed Crimson Sunset’s burglar quest, and the dead memories began to attack them.

It was indeed the case. Back then, apart from Wen Shi and his shadow reaching an agreement, most of the elite players from the same batch chose to hunt shadows.

Taking a big risk to enter a standalone but getting a transformation skill wasn’t very cost-effective. After all, the enhancements a transformation could provide were limited, and in most cases, players could find alternative items.

Li Nan as the guild leader of the First Commanment always made people subconsciously think that he would choose a more challenging task.

In reality, Li Nan had different intentions.

His purpose in taking the standalone was for the key. After weighing the survival rate, Li Nan made a straightforward decision. Later, there were several types of Ultra-Rare Evolution Potions to choose from, and he picked the one that turned him into a dog because no item could replace a dog’s sense of smell.

Although this ability was practically useless in high-difficulty instances, it was always good to be prepared.

And now, it could be put to perfect use.

In the eerie corridor, it was really hard to feel nervous when someone was calmly sniffing around.

Wen Shi and the others quietly trailed behind like a few extra tails, unable to do anything. After a while, Wen Shi whispered, “I tried to stay calm during the daytime too.”

A few “rookies” started exchanging personal attacks.

Ji Yuanzhi adjusted his glasses and asked, “Calm enough to kill the director?”

Wen Shi raised an eyebrow, recalling his actions in the archives room. “I was super calm back then. I don’t know what happened, but then the alarm went off, and the NPC ran away.”

Ji Yuanzhi, the one who triggered the first alarm: “……”

He chose to bury the truth and changed the subject, “Have you figured out how to kill the director?”

“Not yet.”

Muttering to himself, Li Nan, who was working alone, stood outside the dispensary, where the trace of the similar scent disappeared.

He abruptly stopped without any warning, and Wen Shi, who was still talking behind him, almost collided with the fluffy dog tail.

The door was unlocked. Li Nan easily opened the dispensary’s door.

A burst of dust and the smell of formaldehyde hit them simultaneously. The dispensary in the fourth floor was twice as large as the one on the first floor, with two inner rooms. It was cluttered with piles of stuff, and one could easily kick into objects if not careful.

The corridor’s light couldn’t invade the inner rooms. Wen Shi took out the small lantern and asked softly, “Which room should we check first?”

Li Nan hesitated for a moment and pointed to the left.

The air was unpleasant, causing some interference. The left inner room was filled with tables and cabinets. Some unsealed containers were emitting a strong and pungent odor.

Li Nan covered his nose and mouth, sealed the bottle’s opening, and opened a window for ventilation.

Wen Shi walked to one of the long tables next to the continuous cabinets, raised the lantern, and noticed cracks in the wall extending upwards like a spiderweb. He lowered his head and saw some scattered soil near the cabinet’s feet, corresponding to the clues found in the ward.

Yu Xingzhou went to one side, while Wen Shi and Song Yan stood on the other side. Ji Yuanzhi and Li Nan faced the direction of the table, ensuring that no matter what happened when they pulled it open, they could react immediately.

Scrrrrch—

After a slight nod from everyone, Yu Xingzhou pulled hard, and instantly, the cabinet’s feet scraped across the floor, producing a harsh, grating sound, causing several medicine bottles on the table to tip over.

With no object to conceal it, the hidden hole in the wall was exposed in front of everyone.

The patient, dressed in a blue and white striped hospital gown, had an incredibly soft and supple body, almost like a baby, hugging his knees tightly against the recessed area of the wall.

His expression carried a hint of astonishment, more surprised at being discovered in such a short time than failing at hide-and-seek.

How on earth did this group of people manage to do it?

Just before leaving the ward, Li Nan had taken a scent sample with the patient’s gown. Now, he compared the scent and nodded. “Yes, it’s him.”

The patient stiffly turned his neck, wide-eyed, watching a man with dog ears and a dog tail sniff his clothes. Suddenly, he understood how he had been found.

Song Yan, who had witnessed the whole process, involuntarily recalled an old saying from ten years ago: High-end patients often use the simplest methods for hiding.

“Got you,” Li Nan looked down at the patient in the narrow opening, calmly announcing the outcome of this hide-and-seek game.

In the next moment, everyone received a game notification sound.

“Side quest – Capture a runaway patient*1 completed.”

“You successfully apprehended a patient from XX Zone during the night shift.”

“Quest rewards have been added to your inventory.”

Lacking the usual mechanical tone, this time the system announcement carried a faint chill in its subtle modulation of voice.

Especially after the word “reward” was mentioned, everyone shivered inexplicably. It felt as if the facade of the instance, which had been killing with a blunt knife, was finally about to be unveiled, replaced by direct violence and bloodshed.

Only Wen Shi’s lips curled up slightly. He hadn’t escaped the night shift tonight. This side quest coincided with his deep zone quest. Whether it was on the third or fourth floor, runaway patients definitely held important clues.

The patient didn’t immediately come out from his hiding place. In the dim light of the small lantern, his eyes seemed frozen on Li Nan, unable to accept the fact that he had been caught.

Finally, the patient’s lips moved.

Song Yan asked in a hushed voice, “What’s he muttering?”

It seemed like he was swearing at someone.

Wen Shi, a level ten master in lip reading, recounted word for word, “F—cked a dog.” [T/N: it’s a colloquial expression of intense frustration or failure]

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