“Yaaawn…”
It was morning in the dining hall.
Umin, rubbing her sleepy eyes, let out a big yawn all by herself. She hadn’t been able to sleep well, bothered by the mysterious spirit, resembling a wraith, that she had seen the night before.
“I came here to rest and recover, this is not good…”
She stretched once, then began to eat her breakfast.
“Mm, delicious.”
Despite its simple appearance, the food was seasoned carefully and meticulously. This inn, though old in appearance, had a skilled chef.
As she was taking a relaxing sip of tea—
Suddenly, the building shook violently with a sound like the rumbling of the earth.
“Wh-What’s happening?!”
Umin rushed out of the dining hall. Looking around, she saw that the door at the end of the hallway was broken and had fallen down dramatically.
“Whoa.”
Entering, she found herself in the kitchen. Burnt food and cooking utensils were scattered on the floor, and even the walls were blackened.
A man was lying on his back on the floor.
“Hey! Heyyy!”
The innkeeper’s wife was screaming, her face contorted in terror.
“Are you alright? What happened?!”
Umin knelt down beside them. The innkeeper’s wife, her face pale, spoke in a trembling voice.
“M-My husband went into the kitchen to prepare the food, and then there was a loud noise…”
“Perhaps the fire magic stone exploded,” Umin said quickly, looking around. Fragments of magic stones, used to start cooking fires, were scattered around.
But the burns were severe. The right half of his body was red and swollen, and the tip of his right arm was carbonized.
“Oh, I told him to throw away the old magic stones… Hey, answer me!”
The innkeeper’s wife shook the man’s body, crying and screaming, but he showed little response.
“O-Oh, yes, the healing doctor should be making his rounds…”
“I am that healing doctor,” Umin said.
The innkeeper’s wife grabbed her hand and pleaded.
“Y-You, the guest, are the healing doctor? Please, I beg you. Save my husband. We’ve been doing this together, just the two of us, for so long!”
“Yes, I’ll do what I can.”
Umin chanted and activated her healing magic. A faint light enveloped the man, and his expression of agony softened slightly.
However, this was only first aid. Minor burns could be treated sufficiently with this, but deep burns required much more effort and time to heal. It would be best to transport him to the Royal Treatment Center’s branch in the central district while the magic suppressed the pain and prevented further damage. There was a powerful recovery magic circle there that would aid in healing.
“Doctor, my husband…?”
“I believe he will live.”
“Really? Thank you, thank you!”
“But—”
It would take a considerable amount of time for him to recover. Moreover, the carbonized fingers seemed unlikely to heal, and there was a high probability that he would never be able to hold a knife again.
She was momentarily lost in thought, wondering how best to convey this to the innkeeper’s wife, when,
“What’s going on?”
A carefree voice asked as a man entered the kitchen. He had black hair and wore a black cloak.
“Who are you?”
“A guest. I heard an explosion, so I came to see what happened.”
“That’s good timing. I need to get this man to the central district.”
When she asked for help, the man looked at the injured man and slowly approached.
“Hmm, burns. Looks like a fire magic stone explosion. You have to be careful with the old ones, this kind of thing happens occasionally.”
Even though he saw the severe injuries, he didn’t seem particularly surprised.
“Um, could you help me? He’s heavy, so it would be helpful to have a man’s strength.”
“By the way, why are you taking him to the central district?”
“There’s a branch clinic of the Royal Treatment Center there. They have a high-level recovery magic circle.”
“Oh, there is? That’s quite interesting.”
“Interesting…?”
“But for this level of injury, that shouldn’t be necessary.”
“Eh?”
Umin blinked, and a voice came from the hallway.
“Zenos, are you okay? The carriage seems to be leaving soon.”
“Ah, I’m fine. I’ll be right there.”
The elf girl she had seen in the bath last night was peering in.
“I’d hate to lose out on the delicious food here, so consider this a special service.”
The man said only that and left the kitchen.
“H-Hey, wait a minute! Help me carry him…!”
Unbelievable. To just calmly walk away in front of an injured person.
But, immediately after, something even more unbelievable happened.
“Nn, huh… I…?”
The man who had been lying on the floor suddenly sat up. No, it wasn’t just that he sat up. The burns that had been so severe they were painful to look at had disappeared completely, as if nothing had happened.
The innkeeper’s wife, overcome with emotion, gripped Umin’s hands.
“I’m so glad! Doctor, thank you, thank you!”
She thanked her, tears streaming down her face, but the most surprised person was Umin.
“H-How…?”
Did the healing magic I cast earlier take effect? No, the injuries were not at that level.
To completely heal those burns without an auxiliary magic circle would be impossible even for a high-level healer. The only ones who could do something like this would be a Saintess or a select few special-grade healers…
—!
Umin hurriedly rushed outside. She ran as fast as she could to the stop, but the carriage had already departed.
“But…this time, it’s not a dream.”
Gasping for breath, Umin muttered.
It was there, after all.
Hidden in the darkness, a genius healer of special-grade level.