Chapter 25
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Does Dia Really Hate Ganeghan? (3)
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In the end, I ended up giving Hildia an injection too. Vitality around 5.
Even though there wasn't anything particularly wrong with her body, her persistence wore me down.
Honestly, I felt a bit wronged myself.
I'd rushed over because someone who'd been perfectly fine had supposedly fainted, but not only had she not fainted—she was already almost back to normal.
She seemed desperate for treatment from me in any form. Maybe she was attaching some special meaning to the act of being treated itself.
So in the end, I couldn't withstand her pleading and gave Hildia the shot.
It was just nutrient-level stuff, so there wouldn't be any real harm, but it still wasn't good. Getting people used to needles like that.
'Somehow... my body feels better? My mood too?'
That was the last thing Hildia said after the injection before she left. In hindsight, I should've grabbed her then and there.
"Could you give me some of that nutrient shot too?"
"Me too!"
And this was the result.
In the parlor where I should have been receiving guests, I was now dealing with a line of other maids.
'What the hell did she tell them...'
I glanced at Hildia standing near the end of the line of slouched maids, and she cheerfully flashed me a V-sign with both hands.
As if to say, I brought all the other maids. Good job, right? It was ridiculous.
This was volunteer work with no pay—who would want more people? Or were they planning to keep me tied down here forever?
Either way, it was enough to make me sigh.
"I heard from Hildia. She said one shot and all your fatigue just flies away."
"My knees hurt. Got anything good for knees?"
"Anything that doesn't make you gain weight?"
"I'll take whatever. Just give me one, please?"
And apparently, I wasn't even getting a moment to sigh. The maids' urging and demands showed no sign of stopping.
It was regrettable that I couldn't meet their expectations, but I didn't have the leeway to fulfill all their requests. Dia's condition was still worrying me, after all.
So, to calm them down, I waved my hands dismissively.
"I'm happy that you're all coming to me with such high hopes, but I'm not that great a doctor. I don't have the ability to cater to every single one of your requests. For starters, I'm Dia's personal physician."
At that, the maids' expressions softened and fell. None of it was the reaction I'd expected.
One of them was even stomping her feet, muttering, "Oh no, what do we do, what do we do?"
What was with that? I couldn't exactly ask outright, and when I stared, she flushed red with embarrassment and turned her head away.
As a human myself, I could feel the nuances of human relationships right away, and I took them all in.
It felt like I'd become some popular attraction—did I enjoy it or not? I was a bit dazed—but one thing I could definitely sense...
...at least they didn't hate me.
'That's a relief, at least.'
In this world, Lady Overdose, the high difficulty came partly from how everyone looked at the protagonist doctor.
A sinister face and zero connections. Trying to clear the game's tasks without anyone's support made it brutally hard.
But now, things were different. Very different.
The only flaw was that I'd never experienced this before, but that just meant I had to think and think and think some more, creating a favorable situation without mistakes.
'So, the best move I can make right now is...'
Win them over. This sharp appearance was one of my biggest assets in this life.
"Hey, do you have a girlfriend?"
"Are you married?"
"Tell us about your first love!"
The girls were still buzzing with excitement.
I'd only been thinking of shooing the maids away, but I changed my mind and slowly moved my lips.
"Alright. I'll give you all shots. Just wait your turn in order."
At that, they instantly fell into perfect, orderly lines, as if they'd never been rowdy.
Call it an investment or whatever. Of course, I wasn't declaring free shots out of pure goodwill.
It was just far more effective to give the shots first and then bring it up.
It didn't take long to use my ability and inject them one by one.
And as always, the effects were quick. They exchanged glances, flexing their hands, checking themselves out.
When their chit-chat paused and their gazes turned my way, they carried even warmer feelings.
Every time those faces turned to me, I just met their eyes steadily. They'd be the ones to look away first anyway.
"Thank you." "Thank you so much."
As they murmured their thanks and started to drift away reluctantly, that's when I finally called out loud enough for all to hear.
"Excuse me, ladies."
The moment my lips parted, their commotion died down. They halted and perked up their ears to my voice.
Confirming their ears twitch like rabbits, I continued.
"You've prepared for the cost, right?"
Their faces darkened in an instant.
At best, they were maids of the Menesil Family. No matter what noble name prefixed it, a maid was a maid. They had no financial means for expensive drugs.
"Huh?" "Ah!" "Oops!"
The maids gasped and turned to Hildia en masse, their eyes demanding an explanation.
But naturally, Hildia just looked aggrieved and stared back at me.
She opened her mouth, her face a bit pale with fear.
"Uh, um... I never heard anything about costs. I thought it was free, of course..."
Grumbles mixed with resentment erupted here and there. The other maids glared at Hildia, their eyes heavy with reproach.
But then.
"Please take good care of Dia, everyone."
I just said that much, wearing a friendly smile.
The maids' faces filled with question marks, as if they'd never expected my words.
Good. That's exactly the reaction I'd anticipated.
They wouldn't find it easy to refuse this deal. No matter what price I named for the drugs, they couldn't afford it anyway.
That's why I'd given the shots.
Since I'd possessed this game with cheats, my premises as the protagonist doctor were vastly changed. But Dia's were the same as ever.
I needed to shift the atmosphere around her first. If it helped her, I'd do it. That was the plan.
No skin off my back. Using the ability made drugs a breeze anyway. No cost at all.
"I know Dia's reputation makes it hard for you all to even approach her. But she's really just sick. So please look after her a bit more carefully. Like helping tidy her room, for example."
As the maids nodded one by one, I finally felt a little relieved.
To plant a pretty flower, you have to prepare the flowerbed first, after all.
"Well then, I'll be off."
Now it was time to tend to the flower again. Just as I parted from the other maids and turned toward Dia's room.
"Mr. Ganeghan!"
Bang.
A maid flung open the parlor door in a rush.
I followed the frantic maid calling me into Dia's room.
Cleaning up the vomit on the floor was the maids' job. Giving her the injection was mine. We each had our roles.
"Ugh..."
Dia opened her eyes shortly after the injection.
I could tell her condition had improved just from her eyes. Still cloudy, but with a lively pinkish hue.
"...Ganeghan?"
What followed was much the same.
Lately, whenever she woke up in decent shape, I was always there beside her.
"You... get out! You liar!"
The moment she regained her senses, Dia shoved me away.
At that pure malice, I could only tilt my head.
"...What lie?"
"Get out, get out! You liar. Hypocrite! Trash!"
I'd hoped for a rational talk, but Dia wasn't in that state.
Did the drug not work? No way. And I hadn't messed up the dosage either.
"Get out! I said get out! If you don't... if you don't? I'll kill you. No, I'll kill myself! That'll do it, right? Doctors can't save dead people. Yeah, that works. Right?"
"Calm down first..."
"Get out! Get out! I said get out! I don't need trash like you. You're the person I hate most in the world! Never show your face in front of me again. If you do even once more, I'll bite my tongue off and die! Got it?"
The door was slightly ajar.
I hesitated, wondering if I should close it or actually leave her be.
That near-pathological rejection directed at me. No idea why she was suddenly like this.
But then.
"That's how it is, huh...?"
Click-clack. Abera de Menesil's high heels echoed on the floor. She slipped in through the gap in the door.
Before I could even compose myself from the shock, Abera spoke.
"You're really hated, aren't you? You gave her the shot, right?"
"Yes. The injection just..."
"Then let's go. Dia hates you that much, after all."
"Ah..."
Still puzzled by the unresolved mystery, I faltered. Then something wrapped around my arm. Abera's arm.
Abera linked arms with me. Why? Right in front of Dia, no less.
"Come on. Let's go to my room for a bit. There's something I need to check..."
"Check what? No, Lady...?"
Only then did I see it. Abera looking up at me with trembling legs and strange eyes.
Dia staring at us in a daze.