NON-DISCLOSURE

Jeremiah, although not this extremely intelligent Doctor Michael person, was still smart enough to know that the same promise that William had given him had also been made to every single person brainstorming in front of him right now.

He knew that based on how active and passionate they were about what they were doing.

Even he would act the same way they were when receiving a favor from the richest man in Beethoven, who also was amongst the top ten richest people in the world, was on the line.

"Isn't this kind of overkill?" Jeremiah asked, and William grimaced.

"Overkill? How so, doctor?"

Jeremiah cleared his throat and said "I mean, more than one thousand people are fighting for the same thing and only one out of all of them is going to be the winner. That's quite a lot if you ask me."

William looked at the crowd and said "If this is what Doctor Michael considers overkill, then I wonder what he would think about the actual scope of the think tank project."

Jeremiah jolted in shock.

"The actual scope of the think tank project? What do you mean by that?" Jeremiah inquired.

William cleared his throat and replied "Well, the building we are in is just one of the many different locations we have around the entire continent."

Jeremiah's eyes widened as his jaw dropped.

"What?!" he exclaimed.

"That's right. There's a think tank in every state in every country on the entire continent and each building is occupied by at least five hundred practitioners in the field of medicine. No brain power can be spared when it comes to finding a cure for my master's disease"

Jeremiah's mind was blown.

"If I understand what you're saying, it means that there are more than four hundred thousand people currently trying to find a cure for Mr. Gordon, and in exchange, they gain his favor?"

William chuckled proudly.

"Actually, there are more than five hundred thousand people the last time I checked, but your assessment is close."

Jeremiah looked at the hard-working people in front of him, and he could only be impressed by the entire operation.

"I could never fathom the possibility of having the type of money that conceived an operation like this in my lifetime. Just how much was put into all this?" He asked William.

William replied matter-of-factly, saying "As of right now, it's been over fifty billion dollars and climbing with each passing day. Not that it matters because an amount like that is just a droplet in the ocean of wealth my master has access to."

Fifty billion dollars was a droplet in an ocean of wealth that Gordon Folly had. Jeremiah couldn't believe what he had just heard.

He always knew that the man was rich, but to be rich enough for such a statement to be true was insane to think about.

"As you can see, with monumental amount of money comes great, if not the greatest, level of power, so now that you've seen what my master is capable of, doesn't it make you want to do your best to be the one who helps him get better?" William asked and Jeremiah gulped.

After seeing and hearing all he had, Jeremiah definitely wanted to help and, for the first time in his life, he wished that he was somebody else.

There was nothing he wouldn't give to be this Doctor Michael person that William needed, but alas, he wasn't and his ability to even stand a fighting chance was nonexistent.

Saddened by reality, Jeremiah sighed.

He still had to continue the original plan of acting like he was going to help and then tell William that curing Gordon Folly's illness was beyond his ability.

"So, what's the name of the disease that Mr. Gordon is suffering from?" Jeremiah asked.

William looked at Steven and told him to go get something.

Steven nodded, then separated himself from where they stood.

William then looked at Jeremiah and answered "My master's sickness is one that had never been seen or heard before until my master became afflicted with it"

"What?!" Jeremiah exclaimed as his eyes widened.

"Are you trying to tell me that it's a new type of disease?"

William nodded.

"Unfortunately, that is right, doctor. Information about the origin of the disease is nonexistent, and it can not be traced to any place in the world. With all the studies the doctors and scientists have done so far, we have only been able to—" William said, but stopped when Steven returned with what he had gone to get.

It was a file.

"Thank you, Steven", William said as he received the file from his personal guard slash assistant and stretched it to Jeremiah.

"Here you go, Doctor Michael."

"What's this?" Jeremiah furrowed his eyebrows, looking at the file as he took it.

"That is a report on everything the doctors have been able to find out about the disease. The name, symptoms, and everything available for now"

Jeremiah groaned and then opened the file.

"The Cross plague disease, and it says right here that it's not communicable. That's a good thing. At least we don't have to worry about it breaking out. As for the symptoms, they include—" Jeremiah read and then stopped.

He looked at William and asked "Is it okay for me to know all this? I haven't even signed a non-disclosure agreement preventing me from taking what I see and hear here elsewhere."

William furrowed his eyebrows.

"What?" Jeremiah asked, becoming nervous that he had said something wrong.

"Why would a doctor need to sign a non-disclosure agreement on a matter that involves a patient's health? You've already sworn to keep your patient's information a secret back when you were studying medicine, so I don't understand what you're asking me, Doctor", William said and Jeremiah's eyes widened.

"Oh, my mistake. Don't mind me." He chuckled nervously.

"I don't mean to be rude, doctor, but this is not the right moment to be joking around even if you intend to lighten the mood", William reprimanded with a frown.

"Yeah. I'm sorry about that. Anyway, I can take this and move forward, right?" Jeremiah asked.

"As you wish, doctor. Every other practitioner you see here was given a copy of the file when they first arrived, and it helped them get accustomed to what they are working on. Like them, its purpose is to help you, so you can take it anywhere you want."

"Okay", Jeremiah nodded "I'll go join the others and see if I can come up with ways to help Mr. Gordon"

"Please" William gestured that he could proceed.