Within the next half hour, Eren arrived at the second floor of Tidewatch City's Healing Hall.
The Healing Hall was the fantasy equivalent of a hospital in this world, where healers, life mages, and spiritual menders treated the injured and the ill.
Most of the people brought here were combat profession holders, as they frequently suffered fatal injuries while fighting.
On the other hand, ordinary illnesses were extremely rare.
Awakening a profession not only increased a person's power but also enhanced their constitution to an unimaginable degree, including their immune system.
Huff
Huff
Eren gasped for air as he slid across the polished floor before stopping abruptly, startling the staff who were moving around with healing and cure potions.
He had run all the way from the Beginner Dungeon area to here on foot.
His half-transformed appearance frightened several people slightly.
At the entrance of the emergency ward, his sister and mother were sitting on a bench, devastation written all over their faces.
Eren also saw his friends standing nearby, looking deeply worried.
"*Huff… Huff* M-Mom… what happened to Dad?"
Eren asked immediately as he rushed toward them.
Elena shook her head blankly, as she were barely holding herself together.
"I—I don't know… Your father went to hunt wild monsters just like usual with his teammates. Nothing was different from any other day. Then three hours ago, we received a call saying your father was fatally injured by a boss monster during the hunt."
She tried her best to appear calm, but her trembling hands, while holding Mira close, betrayed her completely.
Through the door glass, Eren saw his father lying on a bed as healers tried desperately to treat his injuries.
With his heightened senses, he could smell the thick scent of blood.
His father's left arm was completely gone.
Worse still, a dark corrosion effect was spreading from the wound to other parts of his body.
Even from outside, Eren could hear his father's painful groans.
Eren clenched his fists tightly.
He turned to his friends and asked, "Did the healers say anything about Dad's current condition?"
Kael shook his head.
"No. We came here immediately after receiving a call from your sister. She was anxious and didn't know how to contact you."
"We've been here for three hours,"
Rowan added quietly, "but they haven't told us anything about Uncle Alan's condition yet."
Eren felt a heavy weight settle in his chest.
Without saying another word, he sat down on the bench beside his mother and sister.
Mira spoke in a low, trembling voice.
"Father will be okay… right?"
Her eyes were red, clear signs of crying visible on her face.
Eren simply held her hand, silently assuring her that everything would be fine.
His friends were the only ones who stayed beside him.
They bought coffee and some light food for his mother and sister, as neither of them had eaten anything the entire time.
"Eren, you've arrived!"
Eren turned toward the sudden voice and saw three people approaching.
The one who called out to him was a man with dark brown hair and gray eyes, looking to be in his forties.
He had broad shoulders and stood nearly two meters tall. Beside him stood two others, one tall and lean with sharp features, and the other of medium build with a steady expression.
All three looked to be around the same age.
Eren immediately stood up and walked toward the man, who just spoke.
"Uncle Garrick! How did this happen? My father has been hunting in that same forest for a decade. How did he end up like this?"
Garrick, Selene, and Bram had been Alan's teammates for a long time.
The four of them regularly hunted monsters together and sold the drops and corpses to the Awakened Association.
Even though they weren't wealthy, they weren't poor either.
All four of them, including Eren's father, Alan, earned a decent sum daily and were able to provide for their families comfortably.
Their earnings usually ranged between 80,000 to 200,000 Alliance Coins each.
It was a respectable amount, considering none of them belonged to a guild or any major organization.
All four of them were at the peak of their Tier 2 professions, Swordsman, Archer, Cleric, and Guardian.
Together, they formed a well-balanced and experienced team.
That was exactly why Eren couldn't accept that his father had ended up like this out of nowhere.
He could also see that the other three were completely fine, without any visible injuries.
It simply didn't make sense.
As if understanding Eren's doubt, Garrick spoke in a saddened tone.
"It was truly bad luck for us… We decided to hunt a little deeper than our usual area. None of us expected a monster of that caliber to appear before us so suddenly. If your father hadn't blocked its attack for us, we would have been severely injured as well."
He paused before continuing.
"We will do everything we can to help Alan. So don't worry…"
Seeing the sincerity in their expressions, Eren calmed down a little.
Still, Eren felt a little puzzled.
Why would they suddenly go deeper into the forest out of nowhere?
But he kept that doubt to himself as he watched a middle-aged man in a healer's uniform walk out of the emergency ward.
The man first looked toward his mother and sister before his gaze settled on the three teammates standing beside Eren.
"We are sorry to inform you of this," he began in a professional tone.
"Not only was your friend's arm completely severed, but the corrosion effect of the dark element has penetrated his tissues and begun affecting his internal organs."
Eren's heart tightened.
"We have temporarily stopped the curse and poison from spreading," the healer continued,
"but we must administer a Vitality Syringe to maintain his body's energy, a Regrowth Elixir to reconstruct his arm, a Purification Draught to purge the curse from his body, and several high-grade detoxification potions to neutralize the corrosive poison as soon as possible."
He paused briefly.
"The required potions alone will cost 50 million Alliance Coins. Please prepare the money as soon as possible. Our preventive spells can only maintain his condition for another 24 hours at best."
Selene, the team's archer, stepped forward urgently.
"But we already paid 10 million! You're asking for more?!"
The middle-aged healer raised his brow and looked at them sharply.
"Who told you to go against a Tier 3 Abyss creature when you are only Tier 2? You don't even have proper protection measures against Tier 3 curses."
His tone grew colder.
"And I am not the one in charge here. I merely work here and have stated the exact amount required for treatment. We will wait for the next 24 hours. If you cannot pay, please take the patient elsewhere and admit him somewhere you can afford."
With that, he turned and walked away without another word.
Eren's mother collapsed to the floor instantly.
"F–Fifty million?!… How are we supposed to get that much money in such a short time?!"
"Mom! It's okay… It's just fifty million. I can arrange that. You don't have to worry," Eren immediately rushed to her side, trying to reassure her.
But she wasn't listening.
She kept muttering about selling everything immediately, including their house and all their properties.
"Elena, don't lose hope… Alan's teammates are here too. We'll go and try to gather the money…"
Garrick said firmly before he and the other two hurried out of the Healing Hall.
No matter how much Eren and his sister tried to calm their mother down, she wouldn't listen at all.
Gritting his teeth, Eren turned to his friends and said, "Guys, stay here with my family for a little longer. I need to go somewhere…"
With that, he immediately rushed out of the Healing Hall, ignoring their calls.
"Wait!… Eren, where are you going?!"
"Hey!… Don't do anything stupid!"
His partial transformation dramatically increased his speed, leaving them no time to react or stop him.
"Dammit! Those bastards from the Crimson Rampart Guild have gone too far this time! Not only did they attack our Alan out of nowhere, they even cast a powerful curse on him like this… It's a blatant attempt at murder!"
Suddenly hearing Garrick's familiar voice, Eren stopped in his tracks on outside of healing hall for a moment.