Episode 5: The Beginning of Catastrophe

Doctor Peem's eyes widened upon hearing the report. The plague had erupted in the market! He turned to the soldier who brought the news, his voice urgent, "Close the market now! Let no one in or out, and separate the sick from the healthy." The soldier looked doubtful, but Doctor Peem stared hard. "If you don't want the whole city to die, do as I say!" He ran to the market with Lin amidst the clamor of people. Bodies, frail and weakened, lay scattered about. Doctor Peem saw the lifespans of many patients dimming to orange and red. "High fever, coughing blood, darkening skin... This is a disease that spreads through blood and breath." Lin's eyes sparkled. "The herbs in my shop can ease the symptoms." "Not enough," Doctor Peem shook his head. "We must cut off the transmission cycle. Boil water and have everyone wear face coverings." Suddenly, the city lord's chief soldier rode up on horseback, pointing and shouting, "You quack! Who gave you the order to close the market and cause panic everywhere?" Doctor Peem remained calm. "Sir, the city lord is in the incubation period of this deadly disease. He will die within three days!" The chief soldier laughed coldly. "Arrest him!" But Lin stepped forward to shield Doctor Peem. "Let him prove it first! If he can help the sick in the market, will you let him go?" The chief soldier hesitated and agreed to take Doctor Peem to see the most critical patient. An old man lay breathing faintly. Doctor Peem checked his pulse and glanced at his dwindling lifespan. He used a knife to cut the patient's skin to let blood flow, while grinding herbs that Lin handed him and feeding them to the patient. Within just one hour, the fever began to subside. The chief soldier turned pale. "This... How is this possible?" But before Doctor Peem could feel relieved, Lin tugged his sleeve and whispered shakily, "Doctor Peem... look." She pointed to a dark corner of the market. A man stood staring fixedly without moving, his eyes vacant. Doctor Peem felt a chill run down his spine, because above the man's head was a lifeline that was pitch black, and on his chest was a strange mark similar to one he had seen in nightmares. It was the same symbol that had appeared in his notebook before he crossed dimensions!