...A gun to my head right now... Cold sweat began trickling down my spine. Ugh, yeah. There's no way I could escape that easily.
"I-I'll go! I'll follow you, so please lower the gun!"
I whined pitifully. Rishar lowered the gun with a stoic expression. Then he pulled a black cloth from his bosom. What are you planning to do?
"I'm sorry. I'll have to blindfold you until we arrive at the Underground City. We can't risk exposing its location since you might try to escape at any moment."
Rishar said as he blindfolded me with the black cloth.
...Would the original Astrid have been dragged away blindfolded like this? Probably not. Rishar wouldn't do something like that to an angel walking into the tiger's den of her own free will.
And so, I began being led by Rishar, unable to see a thing ahead. Waaah... I tried everything to avoid going to the Underground City, and now my plan has gone up in smoke like this.
Now it was time to come up with Plan B. Either save Jin using the medical knowledge I'd honed over 15 years of otaku life, or bide my time and escape from the Underground City.
Of course, I knew the latter was next to impossible. Having already voiced my refusal once, I'd be under strict surveillance going forward.
That left only one option...
'I'm not even a doctor—how am I supposed to save a patient who's doomed to die in three months?'
I let out a deep sigh. From the side, I felt a small hand grasping my own, damp with cold sweat.
Waaah, Rodent... You're the only one I can rely on, after all.
I briefly contemplated Rodent's fate unfolding ahead. In the original story, Astrid, Jin, and Rishar weren't major characters.
After Jin dies three months later, the Liberators—having lost their leader—are dismantled by the Black Spider, and many meet their deaths.
The Black Spider is a shadowy organization led by a woman named Arachne, opposing the imperial army just like the Liberators.
The key difference is that the Black Spider is an organization 'tainted by evil in order to fight evil.' They didn't hesitate to commit crimes like assassination and smuggling to build their power. After Jin's death, Astrid is killed by a Black Spider assassin.
Having lost Astrid and Jin, whom he followed like parents, and everyone he saw as family, Rodent burns with a thirst for revenge.
After hiding in the shadows and building his strength for several years, eight years later he restores the Liberators to their current scale and liberates all the citizens of the empire. That was the original plot.
And Astrid was the character who falls in love with Jin after nursing him for three months at his dying bedside. Though Jin kept pushing her away until the very end.
The dying Jin leaves her with these final words, in a profoundly sad and poignant voice.
"My death is not your fault. So please, don't grieve too much."
Though not explicitly stated in the original, it was clear that Jin loved Astrid as well.
Astrid, having sent away the man she loved so deeply, accepts the death that comes for her as a blessing. Because now she can join Jin at his side.
...It's a truly beautiful relationship. But thinking about it as my own future ahead made me a little sad.
Of course, since I'm not Astrid, I won't fall in love with Jin. Still, the high likelihood that I'll die when he does remains unchanged.
Considering Jin's illness as depicted in Liberators of the Underground City, I figured it was a respiratory condition. He suffered severe coughing fits, spat up blood-tinged phlegm, and soon began vomiting blood.
By the time Astrid became his attending physician, he was so debilitated he couldn't even walk on his own.
Severe coughing and hemoptysis. I racked my brains, recalling the dramas I'd fanned over for 15 years. Respiratory illnesses weren't common tropes in medical dramas, so unfortunately, I didn't know much about them.
What could it be? No matter how hard I thought, only tuberculosis and lung cancer came to mind.
If it was terminal lung cancer, there was nothing I could do. With metastases throughout the body, it was a case even a genius doctor possessing me couldn't save.
But lung cancer became prevalent after smoking rates rose and air pollution worsened; before that, it was rare. A 32-year-old non-smoker probably doesn't have lung cancer... Please, anything but that.
There was no mention of severe pain, so hoping against lung cancer, I considered tuberculosis. But... probably not TB either. It's a contagious disease.
If Jin had TB, wouldn't it have spread to Rishar or the others nearby? No, then what on earth is it? I'm not even a doctor...
But if it's not lung cancer, couldn't I try treating it with rigorous hygiene and high-quality, balanced nutrition? Even if not a full cure, maybe extend his life a little?
Thinking this far, a sliver of hope began to form.
How long had we walked blindfolded? After descending countless stairs and reaching level ground, it seemed we'd arrived at the Underground City.
'I thought an underground city would have really stuffy air, but it's fresher than expected.'
I couldn't help but be surprised. The air was far better than the sewer-stinking alleys above ground. Somewhere, the hum of massive ventilators could be heard.
The Underground City was a civilization built by dwarves who vanished thousands of years ago. No one knows where they went after leaving behind such an incredible legacy.
"We've arrived, Teacher Ober. Please wait just a moment. I'll remove it now."
Rishar's voice rang out. As he untied the cloth over my eyes, a blinding light assaulted them, and I couldn't see a thing.
After a short while, as my eyes adjusted to the light, the Underground City came into view.
"Wow..."
It was a truly magnificent sight. Golden metals and colorful jewels adorned everything, with streetlamps illuminating the streets. The Underground City was far more beautiful than I'd imagined.
Stunned by the overwhelming vista before us, Rodent and I looked around in every direction. Was this really a city located underground?
Maybe the dwarves had a more advanced civilization than the modern people of my era? What if they were actually aliens or something?
Our sightseeing didn't last long. Soon, we were escorted to an enormously grand door.
Yeah. For Jin, the King of the Underground City, he ought to live in a place like this. How many jewels were embedded in that door? If I could pry off just the panel and escape, I could live leisurely for life. Though it looked so heavy, I doubted I could carry it.
Suddenly, the opulence on a grander scale than expected sent a chill down my spine. They say when the king dies, the royal physician drinks poison too... What if I can't save Jin and end up dying?
Of course, the original Astrid wasn't harmed by the Liberators even after Jin's death—but that was because Jin loved her.
I was different from Astrid. My warm brown hair and sparkling green eyes retained their beautiful appearance, but my personality was entirely different. There was no way Jin would love someone like me.
Standing before the door, I recalled Jin's first impression as described in the original. He was like a living skeleton. A gaunt figure who couldn't even swing a weapon with his own hands.
Long black hair draped over his bloodless face, with only his deep blue eyes signaling he was alive. How emaciated must he have been for such a description?
"Please, enter, Teacher."
Rishar pushed open the heavy door. Steel myself with a trembling heart, I stepped inside the room.
A feeble cough sounded, as if it might extinguish at any moment. This must be Jin.
"Jin. I've brought Teacher Ober."
Someone lay on an ornate bed draped with curtains. True to the description, it was an incredibly slender silhouette.
The coughing grew even more violent. Is he going to die right here?
Rishar strode heavily to the bed. It seemed Jin couldn't even sit up by himself.
And the moment Rishar helped prop Jin up into a sitting position, I thought my breath had stopped.
'Ah, no. Author-nim...? There was no mention that Jin was this handsome.'
It wasn't much different from the original description. Skin and bones, no trace of flesh—a body shriveled to nothing. So emaciated that the cleft between his chest muscles was visible beneath his loose clothing.
But! The original had omitted one crucial detail.
No, how could they leave out that he was this handsome? His skin was parched without a hint of moisture, pitifully gaunt... but...
A straight, prominent nose; beautiful blue eyes shadowed by long lashes; and the small tear mole beneath his right eye added a sultry allure.
I can state with certainty: If he gained just 5kg—no, 10kg—from his current state, he could conquer the world with his beauty.
There was a reason Astrid fell in love with Jin on his deathbed. Because he's this handsome.
