"Lisa!" I exclaiming loudly.
Where am I?
I felt very warm, but there seemed to be a black cloth covering my eyes.
At a closer look, this 'black cloth' was actually studded with blue lights.
It was as if I was in a sky full of stars.
My heart sank, "Am I... dead?"
I closed my eyes, trying to recall what happened.
Last thing I remembered, we were in the horse carriage...and I passed out.
***
Flashbacks...
I suddenly heard a deafening 'boom' as the ground beneath me shook twice.
"Lisa!"
With no time to care about assessing the situation behind the hill, I pushed myself up to go and search for her.
In my hurry, I tripped over an exposed tree root, crashing on my front.
I slid for a good distance until I came to a stop.
I was caught completely off guard, hence this crash was very heavy.
I had even heard a muffled noise coming out from my chest...
Tears filled my eyes all at once, blurring my vision.
Even so, I did not stop for a single moment.
Right now... it's as if nothing but death could stop me from looking for her.
I bit hard on my lower lip.
Holding my breath, I climbed up from the ground, then staggered around the small hill and raced back to the original spot.
She was still there, but she was lying on the small hill, and unconscious...
I pounced to her side, dropping to my knees...
It was only when I touched her that I opened my mouth, "Lili."
Once my mouth was opened, the breath I was holding was released too.
I started to tremble as pain swept through my body.
My tears kept coming out.
"Lili?"
Her face was as white as paper.
The only response... was the fresh blood slowly flowing from her left eye and nose.
"Lisa! No... no, no, Lisa...!"
Seeing the fresh blood spilling out from her eye, I lost my cool completely.
I did not know what happened just now.
I had never seen such force before, but I had no attention to spare discerning it.
All of my mental energy was focused on Lisa.
I bit hard on my lower lip as I forced myself to calm down.
I took deep breath after deep breath, but big teardrops still kept coming out beyond my control.
I desperately tried to recall what I had read in medical books, what I had heard from physician Jill, and the medical knowledge that Lisa told me intentionally and unintentionally.
My urgent breathing stopped suddenly.
I held my breath as I raised my trembling fingers to Lisa's nose...
"Hu..."
I breathed out the air I held in my chest, then began to sob intermittently.
She was still breathing...
These were tears of both fear and joy.
Besides my body... even my emotions had escaped my control.
I wiped my entire face with my sleeve.
I sniffed, then took out my handkerchief to wipe the blood away for Lisa.
I was aware that I should pry Lisa's eyelid open to check the state of injury inside, but I couldn't dare to.
Fortunately, there wasn't too much bleeding.
It finally stopped slightly by the time my handkerchief was completely soaked with blood.
"Wife~ remember this, okay~ if, I'm saying if, you accidentally fell down and it really hurts somewhere, don't rush to get up right away. You have to think of a way to check if it's a bone fracture. If it is... just shout for help, and don't move around carelessly, so as to not cause more damage. Did you get that?"
The things that Lisa taught me in the past echoed in my mind.
I called it something like, 'wilderness survival tips'...
I touched her limbs and neck in the way she taught me.
After checking, I concluded that her injury should be internal.
There was no bleeding on the surface or signs of bone fractures.
I let out a slight breath.
"Lili, Lili? Can you hear my voice?" I tried to wake her, but it was a futile effort.
I tried to carry her next, but even if she didn't seem to have that much meat on her, this still wasn't a weight that I could easily maneuver...
After a few failed attempts, I decided to find a better way.
Otherwise, even if I could somehow pick her up, I would still be unable to complete the three to four hour trek down the mountain...
I got up, but the intense pain that swept over my body made me fall back on the ground.
I raised my hands for a look and found that my palms had been scraped open.
It was oozing with blood, and some pieces of gravel were sticking to my flesh.
I lifted my trousers for a look.
There were dark bruises from my knees all the way to my shin with different levels of swelling.
By focusing all of my mental energy on Lisa, I had overlooked my own pain.
Once I returned to my senses, it's as if all of my neglected pain from before had been stored in my body; it burst out all at once.
I began to tremble uncontrollably again, and tears brimmed my eyes once again...
I clenched my jaw, cursing myself mentally for being useless, but these reactions were beyond my control.
I gritted my teeth, and got up again.
I took a deep look at Lisa, then turned and started on the path down the mountain, staggering away.
... ...
In just a short fifteen minute walk, I nearly fell down a few times.
Fortunately, I had managed to steady myself by holding onto a tree trunk nearby at the last second.
I staggered my way back to the platform.
I went into the tent, and retrieved something Lisa called a 'sleeping bag', then I picked up the blanket, and a rope.
Carrying them in my arms, I went up the mountain again without looking back.
When I returned to that same hill, Lisa was still lying there quietly.
Actually, I had been secretly hoping on the way back that Lisa would be awake by the time I returned, just like that time when she was poisoned.
When everyone was at a loss as to what to do, she woke up by herself...
In my heart, Lisa was always brimming with the power of life.
She was always able to create miracles that others couldn't achieve.
It's a shame that this time, my hopes were disappointed.
Bearing the pain, I crouched by her side, then put her in the sleeping bag with enormous effort.
This thing was tough and smooth, and it was made with a material that I had never seen before; it should be able to withstand getting dragged on the ground.
I wrapped the blanket around the sleeping bag and secured it with the rope.
I thought for a moment, then broke off a few branches and stuffed them underneath it.
I carried the other end of the blanket on my shoulder.
The first step took some effort, but once I started walking, it wasn't as hard as what I had imagined.
I let out a breath, but the situation still wasn't optimistic.
Getting down the mountain was only the first step...
This was a remote mountain.
Even on a carriage, it would still take us half a month to find human settlement, and it was only a lone village...
Whether there might be a physician there or not was still an uncertainty.
Could Lisa hold on for so long with her present injuries?
What gave me the most despair was that: I did not know the way, and I did not know how to drive a horse carriage either.
Every single logical analysis gave me nothing but despair.
I had no choice but to force myself to stop thinking, and only look at what was in front of me.
The path down the mountain was longer than what I had imagined.
There was also one time where, because the blanket and sleeping bag slipped from each other, I was caught entirely off guard; I fell forward with the blanket, rolling far down the slope.
I only stopped once my waist knocked against a tree trunk.
I laid there for a long time.
My ears were ringing, and my vision turned blurry too...
There was one moment where I really wanted to just fall asleep like this.
The combined impact of the pain all over my body and the despair in my heart nearly broke me down.
"Lisa, I..." My lips fluttered, then snapped my eyes open.
Her name seemed to act like a cardiotonic; when I thought of her, strength returned to my body once again.
I pushed myself up with great effort, but found that my left arm hurt too much to move.
I raised my hand for a look.
My forearm was bent in a peculiar way...
... ...
... ...
... ...
Thunder boomed.
The horse whinnied, and the horse carriage swayed a few times...
I opened the carriage window and put my head out.
Once I looked down, light faded from my eyes once again.
Lisa had been unconscious for three days now.
Heavy rain had fallen for two of those days.
I drove the horse carriage for two days under the rain, until a carriage wheel accidentally sank into the mud just now.
The rain was too heavy, and I could only move one hand right now.
Even if I wanted to push the carriage, I couldn't.
My eyes were thoroughly red, and my clothes were completely drenched.
Some fabric was missing from my skirt, and my hair was a mess.
The arm that I kept close to my chest was secured with a few branches and what seemed like dress fabric, hanging from a knot behind my neck.
I had never been in such a sorry state in my entire life.
Lisa was lying quietly in the sleeping bag.
Her breathing was very faint, but it had become steady.
I had already cleaned all of the blood from her face.
Her pale face was in stark contrast to my sorry state, but... it was so pale that it looked somewhat frightening.
Especially when lightning streaked across the sky; Lisa looked just like... a corpse that had already cooled.
Pale, and bluish.
I poured a cup of water for myself.
I sat right on the floor of the carriage compartment, leaning back against the seat where Lisa was lying on.
Once I finished the cup of water, my right hand dropped powerlessly with the cup.
I turned to look at her.
Feeling hot under my eyes, I said weakly, "Lili, I'm sorry, I... might not be able to bring you out. We're lost. The horse carriage is stuck in the mud. I'm cold... and it hurts, this is already..."
My eyelids turned heavy.
I fought hard against it for a while... but I still closed my eyes.
My head dropped, and lost consciousness.
***
I was pulled out from my memories when suddenly a "beep" sounded, then a ray of light shone in.
I squinted my eyes, then heard a woman's voice by my ear, "You're awake?"
Once my eyes adjusted to the light, I took a proper look.
A woman who looked twenty was standing next to me.
Her hairstyle and clothes were both very strange.
My brows furrowed slightly.
I immediately thought that this person's way of dress... was very similar to what Lisa described of the people in her world.
Could this be... earth?
I calmed down, then asked, "Are you the one who saved me? Where am I right now?"
"This place is... The Endurance, but that's the name my sister gave it. It is actually just a life space laboratory. I am Android 18, but you can call me Zelda."
My mind was spinning from the woman's explanation.
I was stunned for a moment, "Many thanks for saving my life."
Zelda smiled, then she said indifferently, "It's nothing, don't mention it."
Once I got up, I was surprised to find that my body didn't hurt anywhere anymore.
It was as if all of my bitter experiences before were just a dream.
I felt my forearm that was broken before, and it really didn't hurt anymore.
However, everything that I was seeing right now made it clear that it was not a dream.
"If I may ask, have you seen my husband? He's the person who was with me." I asked.
"Do you mean Lisa?"
"That's right! You... know Lili?"
"Lili? Oh... that's her courtesy name, right?"
Hearing that from her, I felt a chill rush to the top of my head.
Why was this young woman who I had never seen before so familiar towards my Lisa?
And she knows that she's a woman too.
"Her injuries are more serious, so you won't be able to see her for the time being..." she casually said.
"Where is she? How are her injuries? Please... Take me to her, alright?"
She held me down in a hurry, "Wait for a while first, you have already been lying in the life capsule for half a month, you need to let your body get used to the present situation before moving. Lie down first, I'll give you a check-up."
"Half a month? I'm already fine, can you take me to her? How is she now?"
***
Zelda
I suddenly felt somewhat out of my element.
Sure enough... the love of ancient people or something was always so tear-jerking...
"She's fine right now, it's just that her injuries are more serious, so she needs more time to recover. All of your injuries are surface injuries, so ordinary capsules can heal you up just fine. Lisa mainly suffered internal injury and damage to her organs. Her left eyeball was blown up, her optic nerve, nerve center, and the skin underneath her outdated mimic skin was burned seriously too. In summary, this is already way beyond what the human body can heal by itself. With this era's medical treatment conditions... if I hadn't made it in time, her death would only be a matter of time. That's why I put her in the Slumber of Restoration. It can help her regenerate and repair her injured tissues. Your injury was just simple repair, while her injuries, especially her eyeball, is regeneration from scratch. The time that requires is completely different, so just wait here obediently. Regeneration fluid is very precious! I wouldn't even bear to let any ordinary person use it."
Disregarding all obstruction, she got out from the capsule's bed, then she overlapped her hands by the side of her waist and gave me a deep courtesy, "Benefactor, words of gratitude are not enough for your great kindness. I will not forget what you have done for my husband for the rest of my life... I will definitely repay you."
I helped her up, then strongly asked her to lie back properly in the capsule.
While preparing to arrange a physical examination for her through the system, a trace of bashfulness appeared on my face.
Her words, actions, and conduct...
Those were all things recorded in ancient texts.
There was no longer anyone on earth who would act like that.
I hadn't experienced such peaceful and warm interactions with other people for a very long time too.
The earth I was on in the present day... had completely fallen into the dark ages.
Even if warmth still existed on earth, it wouldn't belong to someone like me, who's... listed as an SSS-tier wanted criminal in many dimensions.
I gave her a check-up through the system.
It showed that her body had already recovered to full health, a result that I was very satisfied with.
I waved casually, and a drawer opened up in the distance by itself.
A long, watch-like thing flew out of it.
I handed it to her, "Just ask it any question you have. There are food and utilities in here. Entertainment that you know of, and those you don't know of, are all available here... I'm going on a trip to collect some information. Lisa will only be able to wake up in about six months. If waiting gets too boring, you can lie inside that same capsule from just now. Tell the system in your hand to start 'deep sleep mode' and wake you up once Lisa is awake, you'll be able to see her once you wake up again."
I stopped walking when I didn't hear any response from her, "Just tell her about earth's history then, start from 'the beginning of the world' all the way to 'the Twilight Ages'. The rest doesn't need to be told."
"Understood, boss."
A projection suddenly jumped out from the dial of my 'watch' and answered respectfully.
Then I left...
I wasn't actually worried because I knew that the system would take very good care of Jennie, just like how it took care of me when I was an infant.
==================