Master Of Astral Summoner

His heartbeat pounded hard. The longer Shaan hesitated, the closer Theo edged toward death. He quickly turned his gaze around, scanning the area, and his eyes instantly locked onto a wooden beam lying among a pile of crates a few meters away.

"That's it. Maybe I can use that."

"Shaan, why are you just standing there?" Dr. Marshal frowned. "Get away from there, now!"

Shaan jumped to his feet and sprinted toward the crates. He grabbed the wooden beam from the floor without hesitation as quickly as possible. Without wasting a second, he swung it with all his strength straight at the muscular man's head. The beam snapped in half from the impact.

"No way...." Shaan tossed aside the remaining piece of wood when he saw that the man didn't collapse like he had hoped. "Looks like that plan didn't work as—"

Before he could finish his sentence, the man lunged forward and wrapped his hands around Shaan's neck. He lifted Shaan off the ground effortlessly and tightened his grip, making it nearly impossible for Shaan to breathe.

"D-damn it. I need to get out of—"

'THNK!'

A loud impact rang in Shaan's ears, and the man suddenly let go of him. Within seconds, the man's body dropped to the ground, unconscious.

"Luckily, I'm still alive." Shaan sighed deeply. "But what exactly..." Shaan fell silent when he saw someone standing there holding a metal rod in his hand. "Dr. Marshal?"

"Shaan, we need to get out of here before that guy wakes up," Dr. Marshal said quickly and tossed the rod aside. "Move. We don't have much time."

"B-but we can't leave Theo here alone," Shaan said. "We need to get him somewhere safe."

"Good grief, this kid…" Dr. Marshal shook his head. "Courier 020, help me move the man next to Shaan."

"Understood, Mr. Marshal."

"…We're probably in serious trouble now."

Without wasting time, they ran as far away as they could from the large man until they reached a safe distance.

"Shaan, have you lost your mind?" Dr. Marshal stopped and turned to him, shaking his head. "You know what you did was extremely risky."

"I know, Dr. Marshal. I'm sorry." Shaan lowered his head, exhausted. "I just couldn't leave Theo behind. He could've died there."

"Uhm… I agree with Shaan," Chelsie nodded. "Even though Theo did something terrible, I think he deserves a second chance. Maybe he can change. Right?"

"Naive," Nalira said while shaking her head. "Both of you are still too naive. Not everyone deserves a second chance—especially that bastard."

"Enough," the courier said, cutting in. "Arguing won't help us right now. Let's focus on what we should do with this man. He hasn't woken up at all. Is he even still alive?"

After hearing that, Dr. Marshal walked over to Theo. "Hmm... I can still feel his pulse. He's conscious, but his condition is weak."

"I think we should take him to the nearest hospital," Shaan suggested. "He looks badly injured and needs medical attention as soon as possible."

"Alright, that sounds reasonable," Dr. Marshal said while stroking his chin. "The doctor will know what to do. Come with me. We're taking this man to the hospital."

***

"How is he, Doc?" Shaan asked, his curiosity showing. "Is he going to be okay?"

The doctor nodded. "Yes, he's fine. There's nothing serious. He just fainted, and I'm going to try to wake him up. Give me a moment," he said, walking toward a nearby supply tray. "Here it is. This might do the trick."

Shaan frowned as he noticed a small silver cylindrical bottle in the doctor's right hand, roughly the size of his index finger. On the surface of the bottle, he spotted a label that read "Smelling Salts"—a term completely unfamiliar to him. Strange. What even is that thing?

"Uhm… Doctor, what is that?" Chelsie asked, her curiosity piqued. "I've never seen anything like it before."

"Smelling salts," the doctor replied. "This stuff gives off a really sharp smell. We use it to help wake people up when they faint. When someone inhales the fumes, their body reacts with a small shock and forces them to breathe in—so they usually snap out of it."

"But it's not medicine," he added. "Just a first-aid tool. I'm hoping it can bring him back."

The doctor opened the cap and slowly brought the bottle close to Theo's nose. Within seconds, Theo flinched awake and immediately covered his nose with both hands.

"What the fu*k is that! Smells like a sh*t!" Theo shook his head. "Huh? Where am I? Why am I here?"

"Thank goodness." Chelsie let out a sigh of relief. "It looks like your method worked, Doc."

"Yes, and at least this isn't anything serious," the doctor said, gently patting Theo's shoulder. "You fainted earlier, and your friends brought you here because they were worried about your condition."

"F-Friends? What friends—" Theo turned his gaze toward Shaan and the others. "Wait, I don't even know—"

"Well, my job here is done. I suggest you rest here to recover properly," the doctor said as he walked out of the room. "I'll check on you again tomorrow."

"Doctor, you've got it wrong. They're not—"

'Click!'

"Ah, sh*tty. That doctor didn't even hear me," Theo muttered and turned his face away. "Hey, why are you all still here? Get out! I don't need your help."

"Hey, watch your mouth, Theo." Nalira's face showed clear irritation. "Shaan and Chelsie went out of their way to save you. Say thank you or something—if not for them, you'd probably be dead right now," she said sharply. "We should've just left you there."

"…"

"Nalira, don't talk like that," Shaan said, trying to calm things down. "Let's not make this any worse. We should leave and let Theo rest, like the doctor said."

"Fine. I'm already sick of looking at this guy anyway," Nalira snapped, turning and walking straight out of the room.

"Lira, wait!" Chelsie called out, quickly running after her.

'God… nothing about this feels okay,' Shaan thought as he watched Chelsie and Nalira disappear down the hallway. He could only shake his head.