At the faculty building of Draycroft Medical Academy, Alaric glanced up just as a familiar figure stepped into his office. He crossed his arms and dramatically turned his head to the side in a huff. The message was clear. “I’m mad. Come make it up to me.” Seraphina didn’t bat an eye. One hand in her pocket, she strolled over to his desk, calm and unhurried. From her coat, she pulled out a small black vial and tossed it onto his desk. Alaric gave it a glance, then gave a petulant snort and kept looking away, pretending to ignore it. Seraphina smirked. She mentally counted, one, two… She didn’t even get to three. Alaric bolted upright, knocking his chair into the wall as he lunged for the bottle. When he saw what was inside, he couldn’t contain his glee. “Holy hell, Seraphina! You actually got your hands on this?!” Inside the vial was a legendary medicine mentioned only in ancient texts—Voidflame Pill. It was said to be made from Voidflame Herb, a plant that grew only in deadly cold, shadow-soaked regions. It took three years to sprout, ten years to mature. A single one of these herbs was worth tens of millions. And even then, money wasn’t enough to secure one. Every time one hit the black market, it sparked a ruthless war. Getting it required serious power and connections. Seraphina sighed and rubbed her temples. “Watch your language.” For someone his age, he really needed to stop copying slang from the interns. Alaric just grinned, taking the pill out and holding it under his nose like it was the elixir of life. “You’re not mad anymore, right?” she asked, one brow raised. Alaric turned red, trying to hide his excitement. “Me? Mad? What are you talking about? I wasn’t mad. I’m not a child.” She could practically hear the sound of him smacking himself with his own words—but she let it slide. She watched as he carefully locked the vial in his safe, muttering to himself. “Gotta hide it well. Last time you gave me a Aethercore Pill, Cornelius took it away. Nearly killed me.” Then he whipped out his phone and snapped a picture of Seraphina, sending it via WhatsApp to Cornelius Hart with a smug voice message. “Hey, guess who I just saw? That’s right—Seraphina. She gave me another pill. Eat your heart out!” Seraphina scratched her head, already seeing the swarm of messages she’d be getting later. Cornelius could be exhausting. “Seraphina, have you finally considered coming to work at Draycroft Hospital?” Alaric said, jumping at the chance. “I’ll make you Vice Director. Hell, take my job. Be Director.” That way he could finally retire, travel, and rub it in the other professors’ faces. Every single one of them wanted Seraphina to join their team. Not one had succeeded. She shook her head lazily. “I’m still in school.” She hadn’t even graduated college yet. No rush to find a job. Alaric groaned at her answer, though he’d seen it coming. He’d studied traditional medicine since childhood. People called him a once-in-a-generation genius, gifted by the heavens. Until he met Seraphina. That’s when he learned the difference between being “gifted” and being fed by the gods themselves. There was just no comparison. He remembered a time when a child came in with a severe, stubborn cough. Alaric had thrown everything he knew at it, but the kid only got worse. Then Seraphina happened to stop by. She pulled out a set of silver spires, gave a few precise taps, and just like that, the coughing stopped. From that day on, Alaric never questioned her again. They became friends—and colleagues, at least in his eyes. Whenever he faced a complicated case, he’d ask her for input. Of course, she didn’t always reply. He’d once asked her why. Her answer? “You’re never too old to keep learning.” Ouch. “It’s getting late. I should go,” Seraphina said, checking her phone as she turned toward the door. She still had a family meeting to attend—and a mystery father to meet. Alaric was reluctant to let her go. He’d wanted to chat more about treatment techniques. But he knew her too well. She was independent, always had a mind of her own. If she was in a hurry, it meant she had something important to do. He sighed. “Fine. But you better come see me again soon.” “I will!” She left his office and headed downstairs. As she exited the medical academy and turned a corner by the main academic building, her peripheral vision caught a group of people in white coats huddled together. The embroidered patches on their chests read Draycroft Hospital. They were whispering urgently, visibly tense. “Professor Kael, what do we do? The patient’s condition is getting worse. We need a decision now,” said one of the senior attending doctors. “What? I thought we already did a corrective surgery,” Theodore Kael said. “Apparently it didn’t work. The second operation mistakenly reconstructed the atria as a single chamber. Now there are all kinds of complications…” “Shh! Stop talking,” a female doctor snapped. “If you don’t say anything, and I don’t say anything, who’s going to know?” The male doctor was on edge. “No one will know, sure. But if we delay any longer, that boy won’t survive the night.” “Then that’s just his fate.” “What if someone higher up investigates?” “He only has his mom with him. No dad in the picture. No influential relatives. She’s not going to cause any trouble.” One of the nurses chimed in, “She’s already spent over a hundred grand trying to save him. If he dies, she’ll definitely come after us.” Theodore finally spoke. His expression was dark, his words razor-sharp. “If it comes to that, we stick to one story—he already had a single atrium before the second surgery.” The female doctor’s eyes lit up. “Right! That first operation was done by Director Sable. It was rushed, and I heard no one assisted him. There’s no one to back him up.” Seraphina’s expression turned cold. They were trying to frame Alaric? Theodore’s lips curled into a cruel smile. He’d had it out for Alaric for years. They were both professors, so why was Alaric the one in charge, calling the shots from behind the scenes, while he was still sweating it out in the OR? Now, by some twisted stroke of fate, he might finally have a way to take that old man down. Seraphina narrowed her eyes, a frosty glint flashing across her gaze. This wasn’t just a medical mistake. This was a setup. And Alaric was their target.