Doomsday Wonderland Vol. 10: Lava [Complete]

1228: The Ship of Theseus Sanjiu

Before leaving the payment counter to find Puppeteer's new patient room, Lin Sanjiu didn't forget about other trivial matters. Using the method of exchanging [Hospital Passes], the group transferred some of Puppeteer and Bohemia's excess points to her. Aside from repaying her debts upon discharge, she still needed a whole left hand and a kidney.

After applying the Lava Wound Repair Ointment to her skin, Lin Sanjiu watched as the color of her flesh gradually spread from the severed part of her left wrist, as if a painter who knew her limbs well was meticulously restoring it. After several applications, her left hand returned to her, unmistakably hers. Lin Sanjiu couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

She hadn't carefully looked at the arm that had grown back in her sleeve. Besides the constant turmoil and lack of opportunity to sit down and examine it closely, she was also worried that it might be a stranger's arm that she wouldn't recognize. What if it was different in length or size? What if it was loose and flabby? Even if it looked symmetrical, it still felt odd to her. She could accept growing bone wings, but she felt uncomfortable with being attached to someone else's arm.

"The so-called being swallowed by the lava... is just a temporary deduction," she whispered, repeatedly looking at her palm and back of her hand. "The hospital provides an opportunity to get it back, so what you get back must be your own."

With that, she finally understood what Puppeteer's head reconstruction surgery was all about. Although the name sounded intimidating, his head had always been there. In a way, the surgery was like tuning a channel they couldn't see so the head's image appeared on a channel they could see.

"Yes and no. For limbs, it's like that, but organs are different," the male NPC replied as he took out a nail grooming kit and began filing his nails with a squeaky sound. "The first organ you exchange for will be your own. For example, if you lost a kidney," he said, flashing a toothy, knowing smile at Lin Sanjiu, who hadn't yet had a chance to tell him which organ she wanted. "The first kidney you take back is yours. But if you want another kidney, you'll have to take someone else's. So, when that person comes to exchange for a kidney, they won't have their own to take back; they can only exchange it for someone else's kidney."

Lin Sanjiu subconsciously nodded, then suddenly paused. "Then I definitely won't be able to get my own kidney back."

The NPC looked at her as if to say, 'Ah, you figured it out,' then lowered his head and continued filing his nails.

Bohemia leaned over and asked, "Why?"

"It's like a domino effect," Lin Sanjiu said impatiently to the NPC. "As long as the first person takes two kidneys, everyone else won't be able to get their own kidneys back. Unless," she turned to Bohemia and explained, "you can exchange for your organ back as soon as it's sold. Unfortunately, I can't catch up with this ship."

As for whether that first person has appeared yet, it was a question that didn't need to be asked at all. Just the Gamers Club group alone has used the organ monopoly method countless times to earn points.

Bohemia wiped her face hard, looking like a student who couldn't keep up with the teacher's lecture and asked, "Then... for the brain inside the skull, is it considered an organ or a limb? Huh, if it could be exchanged for a gentle brain, that doesn't seem so bad."

'Making a big fuss,' Lin Sanjiu thought, raising her eyes as the NPC answered, "Your uncle's situation is special. His brain was taken away with his skull, so surgery can restore it to its original state. It's different for your kidney," he made a clicking sound with his tongue, "Want to exchange for one?"

Could she not?

Thankfully, organ transplantation was a familiar concept, much easier to accept than someone else's left hand. Lin Sanjiu paid the points and watched the NPC flip through a large book for a while.