MP CH 4 (Patreon)

The air was slightly cold, clearly autumn was in full swing.

Halloween decorations could be seen all around him, on the buildings, cars, or other infrastructures. The atmosphere was festive but for him all of this did not matter.

After receiving the call, Adam ran out of the campus while searching for a taxi, he had never felt so disconnected from reality.

Thankfully, it seemed that luck was with him as he was able to hail a taxi rather fast.

A taxi finally answered him and stopped. Once he entered, he was met with a tanned old man with graying hair.

"Hello, young man! Where can I take you?"

Adjusting himself in the seat, he leaned back and smiled warmly at the driver.

"Hi old man, I would like to go to the university hospital of Los Angeles."

"Aye! Aye!"

Answering in a jovial tone, the old man turned his attention back to the road and began his drive to Adam's spoken destination.

The driver was silent on the road, which was a little surprising coming from a taxi driver...but he was grateful nonetheless.

He needed that silence now.

Sitting in the car, Adam blankly looked down, hundreds of thoughts flying in his mind.

Thanks to being a scholarship student, his life in school was not that bad.

But he was barely scraping by.

Being raised by a single mother was not easy.

All his life he had watched as she fought tooth and nails to create a better environment for him.

How could he talk about stress and lack of sleep when his mother did so much more for his sake?

Working three or four jobs at the same time. Raising him into a decent human. Even taking her time to train him and teach him self-defense.

Every step on the way, his mother had always silently watched over him, like a Guardian Angel. She played the role of a father, a mother as well as a confidant.

Even during his dark hours during high school, she never stopped caring for him, eventually making him come back to the right way through the painful power of her fists of love.

Still, despite her obvious strength, her body had always been extremely fragile and she was prone to sickness. Particularly at the time of this year.

He supposed it was the cold but his mother never went to check herself despite all his begging. Every time she would say that she knew her body more than anyone else.

It seemed that she didn't know it so well after all.

"We have arrived."

Opening his lightly shut eyes, he looked at the tall building of the hospital and sighed once again.

"How much?"

"No need, young man" Waving his hand, the old man smiled. "Now, shu, shu! I hope that whoever you are visiting is fine and dandy."

Smiling at the encouragement of this overly kind stranger while inwardly feeling a little weird from a sort of dissonance he couldn't point out, Adam gave a polite bow in thanks once he was out of the car.

The knowledge that not everyone in this world was money driven always warmed his heart. But it could change nothing to the sad reality.

No matter what era, money ruled this world.

Now alone on the streets again, the car already vanishing from his sight, he turned and faced the hospital.

'Well, let's go. Let's hope that she's alright.'

He silently prayed in his heart, as he entered the hospital entrance, eager to see if she was alright.

—

Adam had always hated the atmosphere of the hospital. He hated it even more now.

But as he passed through the door, none of the distaste could be seen. After all, while he absolutely hated hospitals, he appreciated the ones working in them.

Not all nurses or doctors were necessarily altruistic, but this did not change the fact that their job was to save lives. They were worthy of respect and he didn’t want to show them a scowl.

"Hello." Putting on his brightest expression, Adam entered the hospital and greeted the nurses that were on standby.

Even though it had been a long time since he came to this place, he had already become rather familiar and friendly with most of the working staff in this hospital.

"Adam! Welcome."

The one to greet him was an old nurse with a kind face. She had always been very helpful and when he first came here in a panic, he would have been lost if not for her help.

Looking around, he could see some Halloween decorations in the hospital as well as other nurses or doctors wearing disguises.

"So… What is going on?"

"Ohoho~! It seems like our chairwoman thought that making a party to help the patient feel better would be a great idea. I have to say, she is pretty right. We will hold it tomorrow."

The chairwoman was relatively new in her post. It was a family hospital in a way led by a powerful family.

Adam sneered at the thought of the previous chairman. In the past his Mom had been working here as a nurse. It was a pretty alright job and she liked helping people.

Sadly because of his subtle sexual harassment, his mother was forced to leave.

He learned that a few days later, all the proof of sexual harassment and worse that the bastard did were brought to light and he easily lost his job then was sentenced to prison.

A fitting end for such a bastard.

"How is my mom?"

The old nurse gave a strained smile, "Cecilia is… *Sigh* I believe it's better to go see her."

He did not insist. He was already preparing himself for the worst inwardly.

--

From the greeting hall to his destination, the walk didn't take too much time.

He finally stopped in front of a door. It was a single room.

When he opened the door, soft instrumental music sounded from the television fitted on the wall.

Stepping inside, he focused his full attention on the red-haired woman lying on a bed beside the window. Her chest peacefully heaved with her eyes closed. Her lips curved in a smile as if seeing a warm dream.

He took a deep breath and sat on the chair beside her bed.

Looking at her from up close up, it was easy to see that she should have been a stunner in the past.

But the weight of years, stress, and the disease were simply too much for her. Her current face looked a little gaunt, and her skin was extremely pale. Still, it gave her a new type of charm. That of a fragile and sickly beauty, which sadly–she was.

He would have been content with simply observing her, for he did not wish to disturb her sleep. But as always, she seemed to have a sixth sense for feeling him. Her smooth breathing was disturbed and her eyes slowly blinked away.

“Mom…,” he whispered.

“Mother… how are you now?”

“I'm the same as always. What about you? Is my genius son able to keep the rhythm at university?”

Her voice was calm, and her concern was heartwarming. Even though she was sick, her first thought was still about his well-being.

Adam smiled. His mother was strong

Stronger than anyone else.

Even in such a situation, she was still able to laugh and joke.

He still remembered how she punched the light out of him when she began teaching him how to fight.

Adam would have never believed that a woman could hold so much strength.

But now, looking at her frail body…Guilt rose in his heart.

'Everything is my fault.'

Refusing to put a damper to her mood, he answered simply.

“Professor Shuri gave me a recommendation letter. Did you forget? With her help, my acclimatization went rather easily.”

“So even that old hag can see the bright future of my son. Fufufu!”

He smiled wryly. “She isn't that old. You two are from the same generation.”

“Looks can be deceiving in this day and age.”

“That’s what you always used to tell me.”

“Indeed, you never know when a young woman would turn out to be a century-old witch.”

Adam gave a forced laugh. His mother had always been a fan of the supernatural.

He was not particularly interested in such topics, but since he was young, she had always forced him to read books about the occults.

This was the sole topic where she would never budge on, and Adam did as he was told since he did not wish to make her unhappy.

He knew that his mother loved him more than anyone else in the world. So, if reading some old book made her happy, then so be it.

After switching the topic, their talk went on for an hour, from daily life to girlfriend, his sick mother asked him everything she could.

"*Cough* *Cough*"

Seeing her cough like that, Adam's expression crumbled a little as it became filled with worry, but he hurriedly put back his smiling facade in order to hide his anxiety.

"Mother, it seems you are tired now, I will let you rest."

But just as he was about to get up. Cecilia suddenly caught his arms, looking at him with intensity.

"Tomorrow is your birthday, right? I am sorry that I can't be with you."

"What are you saying? You know it isn't a problem."

"Then, please. Adam. Tonight, I do not want you to be out. Okay? No matter what, you must be home before 3 am."

Adam was born on the 31th of October at exactly Midnight.

It has become something of a tradition during his birthday. She would never let him leave home on the night of his birthday. Be it when he was a child or even after he became a delinquent or now a University student.

"Mom. Why do you keep this rule?"

"You know it's my way of honoring her. I need you to promise me. Do not get out tonight! At the very least, be at home and pray in front of the altar before 3 am."

Her expression was grave and frantic, showing how important this was for her.