A week has passed since my request got approved. At the end of the audience, Janus and his father looked drained, for some reason. Well, whatever I got what I wanted, a good schedule with weekends for the magic school, my freedom, and most importantly, a sary of ten gold per month. Ten gold per month was considered the yearly standard income for a farmer.
Interlude: Janus side:
Ruby had just left my father’s office, and we were still sitting in our respective seats, but the calm, productive work environment was gone. Instead, it was repced with an exhausted and heavy silence. After several minutes, I managed to ask,
“Did you really forget to pay her for her work?”
My father shot me an accusing gre, “You forgot to tell her that she isn’t a prisoner anymore!”
Again, there was silence. After another ten minutes, we agreed to solve this tomorrow because we were mentally drained. Even a week after Ruby’s Offer, I’m not sure my father has fully recovered.
Interlude: End.
Achoo!
“Are you getting ill now, Ruby?”
“Humph, I’m not ill. My nose just started itching for some reason.”
Me getting ill, yeah, no way I designed this body for years, there is no way I could ever get “ill”.
Achoooo!
“You sure?”
“Ah, shut up. Instead of talking nonsense, you can restock the shelves.”
“What, come on. Do we even need all this stuff with you and me here?”
“Of course we do. In case of an attack, which can happen at any moment, the two of us won’t be enough. And besides, you haven’t made much progress. Remember what happened two days ago.”
Benjamin has made little progress since forming his core. He struggles to understand my lessons and still can’t properly grasp his Mana. I hope he overcomes this soon, or I will look like an idiot for ciming he could be the strongest in the world.
Two days ago, he cimed he had made significant progress, but when I let him prove it to our newest Patient, he failed miserably. The Patient’s foot had begun to rot. The Moment we took the boot off his foot, the entire room began to fill with the smell of rotting flesh. If I hadn’t killed my sense of smell with death magic, I think I would have vomited right then and there, just like Benjamin.
While he was relieving himself, I started to meticulously pick the Maggots out of the necrotic flesh. These Maggots had been pnted by Father Rond himself. He couldn’t restore the dying flesh, so he resorted to Maggots. Even on Earth, Maggots are still a part of modern medicine because they only eat dead flesh and don’t harm the Patient. Without them, the poor guy would have lost his foot long ago.
Benjamin had wiped the remaining Vomit from his mouth and approached the Patient’s foot while pinching his nose. He put his other hand on the perforated limb and channeled his Mana into the wound.
In the beginning, it looked good, but after the first few seconds, there was almost no progress. The wounds had healed, new skin had formed, but the lost flesh hadn’t been restored. The necrotic flesh was still definitely there, and the Patient still couldn’t feel his foot. I tried to take over, but Benjamin insisted he could do it.
In the end, I took over while Benjamin slept off his Mana exhaustion in a neighboring bed.
After I reminded him of his past failings, Benjamin began refilling the shelves while mumbling compints.
When I started to close the clinic, a familiar face looked through the open window frame. It was Rika, giving me her signature mischievous smile.
“Hey, Ruby, are you free today?”
“Ehm,” I had to be careful, this could be a trap. I squinted my eyes, trying to gauge what she was pnning.
“Why are you asking?”
“No need to be wary. I just wanted to leave the Fortress to make some errands in town. And I just wanted to know if my Best Friend wanted to come along.”
Rika put a lot of emphasis on the "Best Friend" part but The Town Rika was speaking of was right behind the Fortress. It was full of Family members who came along when their husbands, fathers, and sons had been called to the Fortress Rosedorn to serve under Lord Yuwen. Otto had told me that there were only a few houses at the beginning. Still, many never left, even when their Family members had died in service or retired. Over time, a small town formed under the Fortress Walls, and many fields and vineyards grew on the mountain slopes.
I haven’t explored past the Fortress walls. This would be the first time.
“I’m not sure.”
“Urgh, just come on. You have stayed cooped up in here the whole time. Just say yes. I promise you won’t regret it.” Rika looked at me with pleading puppy eyes.
“Ok fine, I will come along, just let me finish up.”
“Yes! Girls Night!” Rika raised her fist into the sky, striking a triumphant pose
I feel like I made a big mistake.