"Pain is proof of being alive?"
Elizabeth froze for a split second.
Immediately after, an unprecedented sense of humiliation rushed to her head like molten lava.
Who was she?
She was the Blood Queen! She was the Lord of the Night who had once made the entire continent tremble in fear!
Though she had fallen from grace, she wasn't someone any random nobody could make fun of.
This human wearing a bloodstained white robe actually dared to speak to her in a tone used for coaxing children? He even dared to question her hygiene habits?
Unforgivable.
"Arrogant ant!"
Elizabeth's gaunt chest heaved violently, and a rasping roar, like a bellows, issued from her throat.
"You think you can humiliate me just because you have some strange suppression method? I will drain your blood dry! I'll turn you into a dried corpse and hang you at the entrance!"
Every drop of blood in her body—though not much remained—began to burn frantically.
A surge of strength, like a final spark of life before the end, erupted from her decaying body, allowing her to force herself upright against the heavy pressure of the "Clinic Domain."
Ghostly claws lunged out, aiming straight for Victor's heart.
"Doing things the hard way, I see."
Victor didn't even move from his spot. He simply shook his head helplessly and checked the box next to the option labeled 【Refusal to Cooperate with Treatment】.
"Alice, restraint and immobilization."
"As you command, Director."
Alice, who had been waiting for a while, gave a sweet smile.
She raised her slender fingers and gave a light flick in the air.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Countless streaks of silver light suddenly ignited in the night sky.
It was the system reward, the 【Infinite Suture Thread】.
They were as thin as gossamer yet as tough as steel. Under Alice's control, they seemed to possess a life of their own.
Elizabeth's claws were still half a meter away from Victor.
At that moment, she felt a cold sensation on her wrists.
Then her ankles, knees, waist, and neck.
Dozens of silver threads tightened instantly, acting like an invisible net that bound her deathly tight.
"What is this?!"
Elizabeth struggled in terror.
But the more she struggled, the tighter the threads bit into her. They even cut deep into her shriveled skin, leaving behind black bloodstains.
"Behave yourself, old granny,"
Alice tilted her head, her fingers dancing as if she were playing a piano.
"These threads can cut through bone. If you move around too much, I can't guarantee I won't turn you into a pile of building blocks."
Thud.
Elizabeth fell heavily to the ground, bound as tightly as a stuffed bundle.
This time, she truly couldn't move.
That sense of helplessness originating from her soul drove her to utter despair.
"Sigh, are all patients these days so short-tempered?"
Victor sighed and stepped forward. Like picking up an old hen, he grabbed the knot of the ropes on Elizabeth's back with one hand and hoisted her up.
"Since you can't seek treatment voluntarily, we'll have to proceed with forced containment."
Carrying the former dark overlord, he strode into the clinic.
He passed through the hall and arrived at a private consultation room in the corner.
There was no operating table here, only a chair with an extremely complex structure.
【All-around Restraint-style Integrated Dental Treatment Chair】.
This was a second-hand item Victor had just exchanged for 50 points. Although it was used, its cold metal texture and the design filled with leather straps still exuded a chilling aura of interrogation.
"Sit properly."
Victor tossed Elizabeth into the chair.
Clack! Clack!
The mechanism activated.
Four mechanical arms made of refined steel snapped out, locking her four limbs. A wide leather strap crossed her forehead, fixing her head firmly against the headrest.
"Wu! Wuuu!"
Elizabeth twisted desperately, muffled curses escaping her mouth.
But this chair was clearly designed to handle rampaging orcs; her strength was as futile as an ant trying to shake a tree.
Snap.
Victor snapped his fingers.
The high-intensity searchlight overhead suddenly flared to life. Thousands of watts of brightness pierced Elizabeth's eyes.
She instinctively tried to close her eyes but found that the light was so intense her eyelids couldn't stay shut. Physiological tears began to flow instantly.
"Don't be nervous. It's just an oral examination."
Victor put on goggles and a mask, revealing only a pair of terrifyingly calm eyes.
He pulled over a small cart.
On the cart was a row of metal tools gleaming with a cold light.
There were no delicate probes or dental mirrors.
Instead, there were half-meter-long bolt cutters, a large file that looked like it was for trimming horse hooves, and a speculum with barbs—no, wait, it was a mouth retractor.
Elizabeth's pupils shook.
Was this a dental checkup?
This looked like a tank repair shop!
"Now, open wide."
Victor picked up the cold metal mouth retractor and unceremoniously shoved it into Elizabeth's mouth.
Click.
The mechanism expanded.
Elizabeth's mouth was forced open to its limit. Under the deathly white searchlight, the wretched state of her oral cavity was fully exposed.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."
Victor held a metal rod and tapped on her several loose, rotting teeth.
"This is even more serious than I imagined."
As he examined her, he spoke as if reading a death sentence:
"Severe gum recession, more than two-thirds alveolar bone resorption. This fang... the root is rotted through, filled with pus."
"And this one, the enamel is completely stripped, exposing the nerve."
"Old lady, do you usually like eating raw food? And the kind of dirty, virus-laden raw food at that?"
Elizabeth wanted to speak, but with her mouth propped open, she could only make incoherent "aba aba" sounds.
She wanted to say she was a vampire! If she didn't eat raw food, was she supposed to eat hotpot?
But in Victor's eyes, this was a silent admission.
"That's the cause."
Victor set down the metal rod, his gaze serious.
"Long-term intake of unsterilized blood has caused an extreme imbalance in your oral flora. Plus, you never brush your teeth—I bet you've never even seen a toothbrush, have you? Dental calculus has almost completely encased your teeth."
"Bacteria entered your bloodstream through the periodontal pockets, destroying your hematopoietic system and leading to severe malignant anemia."
"To put it simply."
Victor removed his mask, revealing a smile that seemed to pronounce a death sentence.
"Your teeth are completely ruined."
"If we don't pull them, the toxins will continue to erode your brain. When that happens, you won't just starve to death; you'll turn into a drooling imbecile."
An imbecile?
Elizabeth trembled all over.
For the proud Blood Queen, becoming an imbecile was ten thousand times worse than death.
"Wuuu!!"
She rolled her eyes frantically, trying to express her fear and refusal.
Pulling teeth?
Pulling all her teeth?
How would she drink blood after that? With a straw?
"Don't worry."
Victor seemed to see through her concerns and patted her shoulder comfortingly.
"Out with the old, in with the new."
"I'll give you a much better set. I guarantee they'll be sharper than your originals with a stronger bite force, and..."
He leaned close to Elizabeth's ear and whispered:
"Lifetime warranty. They'll never decay."
After saying that, Victor turned toward the tool table.
He picked up the big guy.
A heavy-duty industrial-grade impact drill.
This was originally intended by the system for performing stone-crushing surgeries on rock giants, but now, it was perfect for dealing with these stubborn, rotten tooth roots.
Victor skillfully fitted a thick tungsten steel drill bit onto the drill.
That was a specification used for drilling holes in granite.
"Teeth rotted to the root like this can't be removed just by pulling. The roots must be shattered first."
Victor hefted the heavy electric drill in his hand, looking at Elizabeth's eyes, which were bulging so wide from fear they seemed ready to split.
"It might vibrate a bit. Just bear with it."
"After all, you don't have the money to pay for anesthetics. We'll just have to rely on the power of your will."
Elizabeth was in total despair.
She looked at the drill bit, which was thicker than her finger, and the spiral patterns on it.
How was this medical treatment?
This was an execution!
This was the most cruel execution imaginable for a vampire!
She wanted to beg for mercy, to say she had money, that she had vast treasures hidden in her castle.
But Victor gave her no chance.
"Alice, hold her head."
"Right away, Director."
Alice walked over giggling and pressed her small hands firmly against Elizabeth's temples.
"Don't move, old lady. It wouldn't be good if the drill slipped and went into your brain."
Victor gripped the electric drill tight.
His finger squeezed the trigger.
Whir—!!!
The sharp, piercing scream of the motor instantly filled the night sky—the sound of metal and air screaming in high-speed friction.
The drill bit turned into a blur, carrying a momentum that could destroy anything as it slowly approached Elizabeth's terrified, distorted mouth.
"Come on, take a deep breath."
"We're about to begin."
Whir, whir, whir—!!!
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