Arknights: It Can't Possibly Be My Fault... Right? — Chapter 43

Chapter 43: Misha and the A1 Reserve Team

“So you’re only remembering her now?” M3 asked, her tone dripping with dry amusement.

“Ah, well, things have been a bit hectic since we got back,” Kai deflected, rubbing the back of his neck. “How is she holding up?”

M3’s tail swayed in a slow, rhythmic arc as they handled the metallic corridors toward Kai’s dorm. “Kal’tsit and Amiya already checked in on her before they even saw you. According to their logs, her condition is stable. The current medical facilities on Rhodes Island are more than enough to keep her Oripathy in check.”

“That’s a relief.” Kai let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. “Her brother, Skullshatterer, made me promise to look after her. It would be pretty embarrassing if I just forgot she existed the moment we boarded.” He scratched his head, feeling a mild twinge of guilt. “Let’s go see her, then.”

“Sure, no problem,” M3 agreed instantly. “What about Rosmontis? Should we bring the kitten along?”

“Yeah, that works.”

They reached the dorm, only to pause at the threshold. In their earlier rush, they had left the door wide open.

“Ros?” Kai stepped inside. The room was quiet. “Strange. Where did she wander off to? Did she head back to her own room?”

“Over here. Looks like she’s out cold.” M3 pointed toward the bed, where Rosmontis was curled tightly into a small, breathing roll of blankets.

Kai softened his steps, walking over to peer down at her. She was sleeping soundly, her chest rising and falling in a slow, peaceful rhythm. “Let her rest. She had a full physical check-up today; she has to be exhausted.” He stepped back, deciding against waking her.

“So, what’s the play?” M3 asked, keeping her voice low.

“What else? Just the two of us.” Kai gathered up a half-finished drawing scattered across his desk, stacking the papers neatly. He could finish it later. “Unless you want to drag Amiya away from her desk?”

M3 tilted her head, considering it. “Amiya is buried in paperwork right now. Even with the welcome party today, someone has to manage the fallout from Lungmen and the Abandoned City.” Rumor had it that the Doctor and Kal’tsit had already deployed multiple forward reconnaissance teams back into the ruins.

“Great. So we’re the only two people on this entire landship with nothing to do.” Kai clicked his tongue, amused by their own idleness. They had barely sat down before it was time to move again. He stepped out into the hallway, gently pulling the door shut until it clicked, and hung a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on the handle.

The Rhodes Island General Ward was a fascinating ecosystem. It was the one place on the landship where the brilliant, the reckless, and the downright bizarre congregated on a daily basis. It housed operators who had accidentally poisoned themselves trying to invent new nutritional meals, Vanguards who had tested their cranial durability against a sledgehammer, and Casters who, out of sheer academic curiosity, had subjected themselves to various elemental Arts just to see what would happen.

Naturally, there were normal patients too. Kai and M3 walked past a bed occupied by an operator recovering from an Originium Slug bite. As for why that operator had been caught closely observing the mating habits of a wild Originium Slug swarm in the first place… Kai decided it was better for his own sanity not to ask.

D7… D8…

“Here we go. This should be it.” After checking a few wrong doors, Kai finally got the right room number from a passing medic.

He pushed the door open. The standard Rhodes Island ward greeted them—pristine, sterile, yet surprisingly warm. The crisp white decor was softened by cozy, ergonomic furniture designed to make patients feel less like test subjects and more like guests.

Sitting on the bed by the window was Misha. A thick book rested in her lap. Kai stepped inside, noting that the other beds in the room had personal belongings scattered around them, though their occupants were currently missing.

“Hey, Misha,” Kai called out softly.

She jumped slightly, her attention snapping away from the pages. “Huh? Ah, Mr. Kai. You’re here.”

Kai glanced at the heavy tome in her hands. The cover read: Basic Medical Introduction Guide 1.

“Yeah, came to check up on you. Settling in alright? How were the physical exam results?” Kai pulled up a chair next to the bed. M3 trotted over to the window and pushed it open. For both psychological comfort and air circulation, the wards were designed with functional windows. It was a nightmare for the cleaning staff whenever the landship sailed through harsh environments, but tonight, the air outside was crisp and clear.

“Yes, everyone here has been incredibly kind to me,” Misha said, offering a shy, genuine smile. “Especially Dr. Sussurro. Even though she doesn’t look much older than me, she’s very professional.”

“And the exam?”

“Dr. Sussurro told me that as long as I strictly follow the treatment regimen and avoid direct contact with active Originium or Catastrophe zones, my condition can be managed. There’s a lot of room for alleviation.”

“That’s great news.” Kai nodded approvingly. He didn’t know the exact medical jargon, but he knew Sussurro. The tiny Vulpo medic was notoriously strict and highly responsible. If she said the prognosis was optimistic, it was a guarantee.

The conversation naturally tapered off. A quiet, slightly awkward silence settled over the room, filled only by the gentle evening breeze rustling the curtains.

“What about Mr. Kai’s exam—”

“Has Skullshatterer contacted—”

They both spoke at the exact same second, desperate to break the quiet.

“Pfft.” M3 clamped a hand over her mouth, her shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter.

Kai rubbed his forehead, chuckling. “My exam results were fine. Mostly good news all around.”

Misha’s smile widened. “That’s wonderful to hear… As for Alex, yes. I received an encrypted, pre-sent message from him right after I boarded the landship. He’s doing okay.”

“Is that so? Then it’s good news across the board. Perfect.” Kai leaned back, looking out the open window at the dark, peaceful horizon. He turned his gaze back to the heavy book in her lap. “By the way, where did you dig up that textbook? Taking an interest in medicine?”

Misha’s cheeks immediately flushed a bright, dusty pink. She hurriedly snapped the heavy book shut, hiding the cover. “Dr. Sussurro gave it to me… As for medicine, I’m just… a little…”

Kai waved a hand dismissively, his tone gentle. “Hey, why the embarrassment? I’m not going to laugh at you.”

Really? Misha thought back to the chaotic events of the day she boarded, but kept those thoughts to herself. She looked down at her hands, her voice dropping to a soft murmur. “I was just thinking about everything that happened. Alex was right about me. My personality is too weak. Even when I was given power, I couldn’t protect the people I wanted to protect.”

She traced the spine of the book. “After coming to Rhodes Island and watching the doctors in the Medical Department work… I realized something. If I can’t protect people with sheer strength, maybe I can try saving them a different way. When I told Dr. Sussurro, she fully supported the idea. She even went out of her way to find these books for me.” Misha turned her head away, her ears burning with shyness.

Kai’s expression softened into a warm, encouraging smile. “I think that’s a brilliant idea, Misha. There’s absolutely nothing to be ashamed of.”

Misha peeked back at him, her brow furrowing in frustration. “But… I don’t think I have any talent for it. Some of these chapters are just so hard to understand.”

Kai blinked, taken aback. Hard to understand? It was titled as a basic introduction guide. How complicated could a beginner’s science book be?

“Mind if I take a look at that?” he asked, holding out a hand.

“Huh? Oh, sure. Here.” Misha handed the heavy volume over.

Kai flipped it open to the title page and scanned the credits.

Author: The Entire Rhodes Island Medical Department.

First Editor: Kal’tsit.

Second Editors: Warfarin, Gavial, Shining…

Kai stared at the page, his eye twitching. Good grief. Are you people writing a beginner’s guide or a post-doctoral research thesis? With Kal’tsit’s cryptic academic jargon, Warfarin’s blood-obsessed tangents, and Gavial’s ‘hit it until it heals’ philosophy mixed in, it was a miracle the book didn’t spontaneously combust.

“Yeah, I’m going to go out on a limb and say this isn’t a ‘you’ problem,” Kai sighed, handing the dense brick of paper back to Misha. “I’ll swing by the library later and find you some actual beginner books that fit your current level.”

“Oh… okay.” Misha didn’t quite grasp the sheer absurdity of the author list, but she smiled gratefully. “Thank you, Mr. Kai.”

Just then, the faint, rhythmic sound of footsteps echoed from the corridor outside.

“Looks like your roommates are back,” Kai noted, leaning back in his chair.

Right on cue, the door swung open, and a group of operators shuffled inside. Kai immediately recognized the familiar faces of Fang and Beagle.

“Oh! Kai, you’re here too? And this must be Miss Mon3tr! Hello, hello~” Beagle chirped. She had thick white bandages wrapped securely around her head, but her energy was completely undiminished. For some reason, Kai couldn’t shake the feeling that the way she was staring at him was a little… off.

“So you guys are the roommates,” Kai said, eyeing the bandages. “Get roughed up on a mission?” He didn’t press for the gritty details. If his memory of the game’s lore served him right, Op Reserve Team A1 was supposed to have a few more members. “By the way, where are Kroos and Hibiscus? I don’t see them.”

Before Fang or Beagle could even open their mouths to reply, a lazy, drawn-out voice drifted in from the hallway behind them.

“Ri~ght~ he~re~”

Beagle quickly stepped aside. Framed in the doorway was Kroos, leaning heavily on a metal crutch, with Hibiscus holding her up by the arm.