Chapter 22: ■■■■■
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The “treatment method” that Ryuguin proposed was surgical operation. He simply thought that he could excise Melissa’s affected area.
After receiving Annabelle’s explanation, Ryuguin immediately considered the removal of the affected area, remarking, “Well, saying something like cutting out the affected area would probably be incomprehensible to the people of this world.”
That was indeed an arrogant way of thinking. Ryuguin was unaware, or rather, had no intention of knowing, that not only hygiene concepts but also surgical treatments had already been introduced from Earth to this world. Furthermore, healing magic existed in this world, eliminating the need to rely solely on natural healing for recovery, making the combination of surgical procedures and healing magic quite favorable.
However, even taking these points into account, it was rare for medical practitioners in this world to choose the method of excising the affected area when treating the Excessive Mana Production Organ Failure Disease.
The main reason for this was the difficulty in fully grasping the extent of the affected area.
Even for those who had undergone considerable training, it was extremely challenging to identify every single spot afflicted by this disease. If even a slight abnormality was left behind after surgery, it would soon spread again from that area, causing the condition to return.
Moreover, this disease had particularly troublesome characteristics—
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“I see. Still, if it’s me, your daughter—what was her name again? Well, it doesn’t matter—she will definitely be cured.”
After hearing the explanation, Ryuguin flashed a bright smile at Annabelle. At that moment, his mind was already filled with visions of himself succeeding in the treatment and being praised by everyone.
—The Hero, who had conquered the unprecedented seven Newly Constructed Ultimate Labyrinths, now showing his wisdom like a saint to elevate the quality of life of the ignorant inhabitants of another world.
—Now, he would also shine in the field of medicine.
—The Hero, with miraculous knowledge and intellect, helped a young girl suffering from a difficult illness.
The next article would likely cover something like this. Ryuguin was breathing heavily, and it was evident to anyone that he was excited, his pants tightening uncomfortably.
“Time is money! It’s my favorite saying!”
With that, he completely disregarded his supporters and left the shop with a spring in his step.
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That night, Ryuguin shamelessly stayed over at Annabelle’s house. No, it was more accurate to say he imposed himself on her hospitality. The next morning, when he faced Melissa, he was overtly disappointed.
Inside, he thought, I was expecting a beautiful girl, but what is this? Her skin is sickly pale, she’s too thin, and her cheekbones are sticking out. Plus, she has no chest, and her arms look like twigs… I feel like I could break them with a flick. I’d rather be dealing with a silent skeleton than this. Despite these vile thoughts, he swallowed his emotions and forced a smile.
“Don’t worry, I’ll help you.”
He tried to convince himself that this was an investment to showcase his competence in a different field, but due to the peculiar nature of Melissa’s illness, which occasionally caused her consciousness to waver, she struggled to respond to Ryuguin properly.
In response to her lack of reaction, Ryuguin trembled with anger, thinking, I was kind enough to speak to her, and his eyes widened in frustration. The Machiavelli couple, standing beside Melissa’s bed, gasped at the sight of the Hero’s bloodshot eyes.
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“Thank you, Haro-chan, for today as well!”
“Don’t mention it!”
“Take this and share it with everyone.”
“Is it really okay? Yay!”
“Haro-chan, why don’t you just become my daughter?”
“Auntie, come on now, even if you say that, Haro can’t offer anything!”
Haro, a girl living in the church of Lemone, was cheerful and loved by everyone.
“Come on, Haro. If you keep acting like that, Sister Margaret will get mad at you.”
The senior Sister who admonished her also adored her bright and cheerful personality. Moreover, shortly after, as usual, Haro would be scolded by Margaret, who was the leader of the Sisters, saying, “Straighten up,” but Margaret would never voice it; she loved this adorable girl dearly.
Now, although Haro often faced reprimands for her childish behavior, she was the best healer in the Town of Lemone, having healed many people in the community. Her reputation was immense, and there was hardly anyone in town who didn’t know her.
Additionally, Cardinal Gilbert, who had once visited Lemone for work, held her in high regard. He admired her qualities and abilities as a Sister, as well as her earnestness and kindness towards everyone, often thinking, It’s ironic that a cynic like me would be charmed by such a girl.
However, that day, Haro’s fate was about to change.
“Haro, I have a message from Sister Margaret. She said, ‘You must not leave your room.'”
Although Haro received this message from a friend (colleague), she grew worried about Sister Margaret, who hadn’t returned from the reception room for a long time, and ended up leaving her room.
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In this world, there are practitioners who perform roles similar to doctors in Japan. They prescribe appropriate medicines for symptoms, treat fractures like orthopedic specialists, and even perform minor surgeries like appendectomies, making them an indispensable profession in people’s lives. In the Town of Lemone, there was a young man named Riku who worked as a practitioner.
He was straightforward, brusque, and often misunderstood by others, but his work ethic was nothing short of sincere. Even on his days off, he would not turn away a patient in need, treating them with genuine care, earning the trust of many. In short, he was also a beloved figure in the Town of Lemone.
After the peak of noon had passed, he finally took a breather, hanging a “Closed for Break” sign on the front door and sitting down to a slightly late lunch with his female assistant.
While he nodded along to her lighthearted chatter, he was suddenly interrupted by loud, rude knocks on the door.
“Can’t you see the sign? I dislike this kind of thing.”
With a sigh, Riku opened the door.
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The surgery would take place in Riku’s treatment room. Both Haro and Riku were unceremoniously roped into assisting Ryuguin with Melissa’s treatment. Faced with the situation where a young life was at stake, and suddenly thrust into a task beyond their abilities, the two desperately tried to refuse Ryuguin’s request. However, their efforts were in vain.
“You’re refusing the offer from the Hero, who is beloved by the Saintess? That means you’re denying the Saintess and, by extension, the Church, right? If that’s the case, then I guess we don’t need such a faithless Church or its Sisters, do we?”
Faced with Ryuguin’s glare and threats, Haro had no real choice. She was cornered, with her beloved colleagues and their home—the Church—used as leverage against her, and she broke down in tears, nodding her head in resignation.
Riku was in a similar predicament.
“Recently, the security around here has been poor. You know that jewelry store a little further down? Apparently, it was robbed. It’s really dangerous. You should be careful. No, no, what am I saying? This is just me being overly cautious. Some people might be in trouble if this place disappears… but it can’t be helped.”
He too succumbed to Ryuguin’s typical threats and reluctantly agreed.
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Melissa’s affected area had progressed to a point where it could be roughly identified. Thus, Ryuguin declared,
“If we can identify the affected area, then we can just remove it all. No worries! This is where thinking outside the box is crucial! It’s like Columbus’s egg! Even if we remove everything, we can use healing magic powerful enough to regenerate the organs, and that’ll solve everything! How about that? You never would have thought of this, right?”
He explained this to the two, but such explanations were of no help whatsoever. On the very day Ryuguin approached them, they were suddenly thrust into the procedure. It was a complete blunder on Ryuguin’s part, hasty and reckless.
The two, suddenly burdened with the life of a young girl, were left trembling, facing her without even being given time to prepare.
And so, under the insistence of Ryuguin, who said, “It will definitely be fine,” and “Let’s help the girl suffering from illness,” I was forced to perform treatment on the girl lying sick before me.
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To put it bluntly, the treatment ended in failure. There were two main reasons for this.
The first was that some of the abnormal cells had already metastasized to another organ. The second was that I had cast a Healing Magic powerful enough to regenerate organs.
The latter was a far more fatal mistake. The treatment method devised by Ryuguin for the “Excessive Mana Production Organ Failure Disease” already existed in this world. However, it was rarely used due to its inherent flaws.
If I were Yamada the Holy Knight, I would have thought, “Perhaps someone has already considered this; I should check with an expert,” but Ryuguin lacked the humility and diligence that someone like me would possess.
Ryuguin’s shallow actions led to a tragedy that involved everyone connected to it.
This was because the abnormal cells of this disease had the property of being “stimulated to grow by Healing Magic.”
Thanks to Haro’s unparalleled Healing Magic, Melissa’s condition progressed explosively. What could have sustained her life for several more months was suddenly reduced to just a few days.
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“Because of your immature Healing Magic, her time has drawn near. What are we to do… A young girl’s life… No, it’s not just that! Thinking of Melissa’s family tears my heart apart! How do you plan to atone for this?!”
Haro, who had been made an accomplice in further tormenting the sick girl, turned pale as paper, broke down in tears, and vomited from the overwhelming guilt that trapped her in that spot.
“You too, you. You may have a grand title of ‘treatment specialist,’ but all you did was carve up a frail girl’s body. If you hadn’t recklessly toyed with Lady Melissa’s body, no one would have suffered!”
The young man, who had become a treatment specialist with the hope of saving others like his father, collapsed, holding his head in despair.
“Well, what’s done is done. I’ll handle the discussions with them. So, uh—Haro, was it? In return, you’ll come to my room.”
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Two days later, Gilbert Rasmus happened to visit Lemone for work. He learned of everything only after it was all over. Immediately, he set to work on the cleanup as best he could. A few days later, it was decided that the “Garden Plan,” led by Gilbert, would take place.
In this plan, the heroes would be referred to as “Suk”—a name derived from the Earth term “Schwein.”
“Schwein,” or “シュバイン,” means “pig.” The intent behind the name was to imply, “Live like a pig.”
To Gilbert, Ryuguin was nothing more than an enemy now.
The hero continued to act arrogantly, unrepentant and without reflection, based on his half-baked knowledge.
Did he think of this world as a mere toy? With a smile, he trampled over everything around him.
Gilbert understood. As long as he existed, such actions would continue. Unconsciously, insensitively, and without consideration, he would persist in causing harm to this world for as long as he lived.
It had always been this way. He had gone through numerous reports that he had compiled. This time, under the guise of medicine, he had plunged many innocent people into misfortune.
But this was not the end. For instance, if he were to carelessly spread knowledge of modern weaponry used on Earth, one could only imagine the scale of the disaster that would ensue if something similar happened again.
Then, then all the more—
Gilbert embraced the girl before him. She was a bright and cheerful girl, one whose smile lit up the room. Yet now, she was like a shell, continuously shedding tears, sometimes lost in confusion from her guilt.
“‘Time is money,’ right? It’s a good saying, truly. Just as Hero-kun said, I’ll manage every aspect of your fun and joyful life in no time. And in the end, I’ll enjoy using it all up.”
With that, he uttered a voice that sent chills down the spine.