“Wh-who the hell are you!”
Lord Calendore, flustered by the two figures suddenly appearing at the bottom of the well, frantically pointed his gun at them.
Zenos calmly answered as he slowly approached.
“Don’t mind us. I’m just a humble healer.”
“Huh? W-what did you say?”
“I’m merely a guide,” Zofia added.
“Hah, don’t be ridiculous. What nonsense. Hey, is anyone there! Is anyone there!”
Lord Calendore shouted desperately, but there was no sign of reinforcements.
Outside, the roars of men still raged.
“My underlings are making a ruckus out there. No help is coming for a while.”
“Now that I get a good look at you, you’re a Lizardman… So, you’re the rumored thieves!”
Lord Calendore, with a triumphant look, placed his finger on the trigger.
“Hahaha, don’t try to intimidate me, you fools. I can shoot thieves from the slums, and there won’t be any problem. Stay right there, and I’ll execute you one by one.”
“It’s really disgusting, these types, even though we snuck in,” Zofia said.
“Are all nobles like this?” Zenos asked.
“It seems to depend on the person,” Zofia replied.
Zenos stepped forward in front of Zofia, who shrugged.
Krishna, who was barely breathing, issued a desperate warning.
“Mr. Zenos… B-be careful. … E-even if, you are a master of defensive magic… If he removes the limiter, it has considerable killing power…”
BOOM!
Before she could finish, the magic gun Lord Calendore held fired.
A bullet enveloped in flames shot out, spinning and directly hitting Zenos.
“Ha, hahahaha! You fool! Know your place, daring to enter the sacred grounds of a noble as mere thieves!”
“That was indeed a little painful,” Zenos said.
“Whaaaaat!!”
After the smoke cleared, Zenos stood there unharmed, rubbing his stomach.
“H-how! What happened!”
Lord Calendore fired repeatedly.
The gunshots echoed many times in the space, and white smoke filled the air.
Breaking through the smoke, Zenos closed the distance between him and Lord Calendore.
“You’re shooting recklessly. Don’t you have any restraint…?”
“A-are you a monster?”
Lord Calendore stepped back, and his back touched the iron bars.
“Eek!”
Startled by the chilling sensation, Lord Calendore dropped the magic gun.
Zenos calmly picked it up and pointed the muzzle at the man.
“W-wh-what are you doing, pointing a gun at me, a noble, you lowlife!”
“If you’re going to shoot people, you should be prepared to be shot yourself. You should remember that.”
When Zenos placed his finger on the trigger, Lord Calendore raised both hands and frantically knelt.
“W-w-wait, I-I understand. I-I’ll pay. You’re thieves, right? How much? How much do you want?”
“I’m not a thief. If you want to pay, give as much as you like to her.”
“If you’re offering, I might as well take it. Though I’m just a guide this time, so it depends on what sensei needs,” Zofia said, folding her arms behind her.
Lord Calendore, still kneeling, sidled up to Zenos with a fawning voice.
“T-then, what do you want? I-I’ll give you anything, just put down the gun. Okay?”
“Well… Honestly, I just met you, and I haven’t been directly mistreated by you in the past. The only grudge I have is that you just shot at me without hesitation.”
“I-I… I-I was wrong. I was wrong. I, this lord, apologized, so please let me go.”
“No.”
“W-why…”
Lord Calendore, taken aback, glanced at Krishna, who was barely breathing.
“S-so that’s it. I should apologize to that woman too. I-I was wrong. I was a little hot-headed.”
Lord Calendore bowed his head to Krishna and looked up at Zenos with pleading eyes.
“T-there, is that good enough?”
“Rejected.”
“W-why! I apologized, didn’t I, just now!”
“Come to think of it, I’m not Krishna’s friend, nor have I been indebted to her. If anything, I’m the one who helped her.”
“S-so then, what exactly is bothering you!”
“There’s still someone you need to apologize to the most,” Zenos.
Zenos looked at the children trembling behind the iron bars and pressed the muzzle of the gun to Lord Calendore’s forehead.
“How dare you do this to my future potential customers!”
BOOM!
The magic gun fired, and Lord Calendore’s obese body was blown away.
“Gobeaaaaahhhh!!”
His body spun vertically and crashed into the iron bars upside down.
“I’m… sor…ry…”
Bubbles gurgled from his mouth, and leaked urine soaked Lord Calendore’s face.
“…Did… you… kill him…?”
Krishna, still crawling on the ground, groaned.
“He’s not dead. I shot him with the limiter on. He won’t wake up for a while, though.”
Zenos threw the magic gun near Krishna.
“It’s not my job to judge this guy. Right?”
“…But, I…”
Aware of her weakening breathing, Krishna muttered.
“It’s… too late… P-please, report this matter… to the headquarters of the Imperial Guard Division…”
“Huh? Who would do such a thing? Like I said, that’s your job.”
“B-but…”
Krishna seemed to have no energy left to continue talking.
Zenos knelt beside her and examined her wounds.
“Left arm and flank. And some internal organs are damaged too.”
“Ah, ahh…”
“What’s with that resigned look for something like this? The name of <Stone Lady Rose> will be disgraced.”
“…Huh?”
Zenos held both hands over Krishna’s wounds.
“However, to completely heal you to the point where you can move immediately, it will take a good amount of effort. Don’t cry when you see the bill later.”
“W-what are you…”
White light overflowed from the palms placed over the wounds and spiraled in mid-air.
As it surrounded Krishna’s body, the lingering fatigue and premonition of death gradually faded away, and she was enveloped in a comfortable feeling like a cradle.
“Vascular damage, bone damage, soft tissue contusion, muscle tissue damage. I will perform hemostasis, pain relief, tissue repair, and regeneration simultaneously.”
“Mr. Zenos… Who… are you…”
“Shut up for a moment, I’m losing focus.”
The serious profile bathed in white light was like a hero of salvation clad in light.
Krishna, unconsciously muttering that, received a wry smile from Zenos.
“I’m not that grand. I’m just a back-alley dark healer.”
The light shimmered in seven colors, and then… It burst.