The Last Day in Mokdong
"All right~ Your treatment's all done, so no more getting hurt from now on, okay?"
"Thank you, big sister!"
The little boy in front of me bounced away on light feet, clutching his mother's hand as they left.
"Next, please~"
For a week now, I had been treating the wounded at the Mokdong Settlement.
I had decided to do it because I simply couldn't walk past the people still drowning in grief after the shantytown incident and the gang raid.
There had been a reason I'd hesitated about healing in the first place. Back when I was a man, the holy power I could wield only restored vitality or boosted the body's natural regeneration. That was all.
So when I treated Ara, I'd assumed that was the limit of what I could do — which was why I'd left her there and come back alone.
After handing Dusik the photograph and heading toward Yeonseo, I'd watched Hyeonseok helping people and found myself wondering how I might help them too before I left.
But no matter how hard I thought, the only thing that came to mind was assisting with the Paris Park expedition that Dusik, Ara, and I had already planned. Of course, that alone would be a real help to the settlement — yet every time I saw those grief-stricken faces, I couldn't help remembering the lonely end those children had met the first time I returned to this world.
I wanted no more lonely deaths for children anywhere I could still watch over. So while I was talking it over with Yeonseo, Ara showed up at the camper and suggested I try treating people in the medical ward for a week. My answer was to draw my knife and slash my own arm, intending to prove my healing was too weak to be useful —
"Huh? What the— why did that heal instantly...?"
"U-Unnie! What are you doing?! That's dangerous!"
"No, I mean — if I was going to show you my healing is weak, this was just the fastest way..."
"Even so! Do you have any idea how much you scared me, suddenly cutting your arm with a knife?!"
"S-Sorry. But more importantly — you both saw that, right? The wound vanishing in an instant?"
"Yes, and thanks to that my heart still hurts from the shock...!"
Watching Ara puff out her cheeks with an indignant Hmph! as she scolded me, I felt both guilty and strangely aware of how cute she looked.
"Judging by that reaction, things didn't go the way you expected, huh?"
Yeonseo, stretched out on the sofa scrolling through travel routes on her device, immediately zeroed in on exactly what I'd been thinking. That little demonstration had made it clear — my abilities had improved far beyond anything I'd imagined.
"Yeah. I used to think all I could do was restore vitality or max out regeneration to speed up natural recovery. But it's changed a lot."
"Then you can treat people in the medical ward now, right?"
"Yeah! Thank you. Thanks to you, I'll actually be able to help people before I leave."
"You're something else, you know that? You could just rest and go, but you're going out of your way to help people first. Truly birds of a feather."
"Ah~ Like Hyeonseok oppa? Well, he didn't have to either, but he came to our settlement and keeps helping people every day. He's such a good person."
"Good, my foot. He's just a soft touch. And now look — she's turning out the same."
"It's only because there's nothing else to do. And even if Hyeonseok is a soft touch, he's kind, so that still makes him a good person."
At my answer, Yeonseo smirked, sidled over to Ara, pointed at me, and said,
"See~ Told you. Birds of a feather."
Ara tilted her head, then seemed to catch on, grinning as she looked at me.
"Ah~ You're right. Heehee."
"Wh-What?"
"Your behavior keeps getting more and more like a little temptress, but you refuse to admit it."
"Really? Hmm~ Now I'm looking forward to what comes next~"
"W-Wait, what are you even saying?! I already told you earlier! That's not—!"
Leaving me flustered behind her, Yeonseo headed for the bed, waving a dismissive hand.
"Fine, fine. If you say so, then so it is. I'm going to sleep, so if you're going to help people, you'd better head out now."
"Ah! You're right. Everyone should be on break by now, so this is a good time. Let's go, Charlotte unnie!"
"Yeah. See you later!"
And that was how, from that day on, I ended up healing people in the medical ward.
I'd thought the only things I could do were take down the outlaws threatening the settlement or the magic beasts around the towers. But just as the amount and efficiency of my holy power had changed with this body, my healing abilities seemed to have transformed as well.
Being able to treat people like this meant I would never again fail to save someone because I couldn't heal them properly — the way I had in the other world. The thought made me smile.
I was still smiling when the next patient arrived, so I greeted them as usual.
"Hello. Could you show me where you're hurt?"
"Oh~ What an honor to meet the Saintess I've only heard about."
"Pardon...? Saintess...?"
An unexpected word had come out of his mouth. Saintess? Who on earth was he talking about?
"Ah! It's nothing much. Word got around that there's a girl who heals people, so everyone's been calling her the Saintess reborn. Please don't feel burdened by it."
"I see. So then — where are you injured...?"
Hearing the word Saintess left me with a vaguely uneasy feeling, but I told myself it was only because the term was unfamiliar — something I'd never heard before — and looked at the wound he showed me.
"It may look a bit gruesome. I got it fighting a magic beast not long ago, you see..."
The wound hadn't come from claws or fangs, nor from any weapon. It was covered in black, swollen boils that looked like the work of poison.
"It's fine. I've been through enough that wounds like this don't bother me."
"Is that so? Truly remarkable. Aah, so a god really must exist — for someone like you to be here."
I half-ignored his words and sent holy power into the wound. The boils vanished, but the blackened skin remained. If anything, the darkened patches seemed to sink deeper into the flesh — like skin that had already rotted through.
"I'm sorry. I can't heal any further than this..."
"It's quite all right!! Meeting someone called the Saintess is more than enough for me. I'll take my leave, then."
"Huh? W-Wait a moment! Excuse me!"
Before I could even finish saying further treatment was impossible, he wrapped the wound, stood up in a rush, and vanished.
"What on earth was that...? Ah, whatever. He said he was fine and left, so it's not like I can chase him down... Next, please!"
The man who left the medical ward hurried straight through the settlement's eastern gate and out. How long he walked after that, I couldn't say — but he crossed the river and made for the underground waterways beneath the great bridge.
There, several people draped in ragged robes like tattered cloth were waiting for him.
"You've arrived, brother. Sooner than expected. So — how was she? This so-called 'Saintess'?"
"Well met, brother. Yes, she was truly remarkable. It seems a god really does exist."
"Is that so. And no one followed you?"
"Don't worry. Everyone's too busy with reconstruction and daily life to spare a thought for anyone else. What else would you expect? Once people decide they're at peace, they stop looking at others entirely. More importantly — look at this."
He turned the wound he'd shown Charlotte toward them and continued.
"Isn't it incredible? She nullified the blessing our god bestowed as if it were nothing. I came back earlier than planned because staying any longer risked being found out."
"Indeed. This confirms that a god who opposes ours also exists. As expected, the Cult Leader's words were true."
"Yes. And what about that gang matter? I was terribly worried when I heard that ignorant fool who knew nothing of the god's word had been captured."
"Don't concern yourself. The Cult Leader's puppet — the one already tied to us — apparently holds quite a high position at the Blue House Settlement. He stepped in and eliminated both that fool and everyone who was getting in our way. There's nothing to worry about."
"That's a relief. Shall we move on, then?"
At those words, he donned the robe they handed him and set off with the group. Emblazoned on their robes was a mark shaped like a tower.
"Whew~ That's it for today. Thank you for your hard work!"
I stretched my arms high and worked the stiffness out of joints that had been sitting still for far too long.
"You worked hard too, Charlotte. You're leaving tomorrow, aren't you?"
An older woman I'd grown close to while working in the medical ward spoke up.
"Yes. I'd like to stay a little longer, but there's something I have to do."
I needed to go to the Blue House Settlement at Seoul City Hall about the pills, and meet a man named Yu Jiseong who might be my older brother. I also had to conquer towers and gather the things Partruna had called divine fragments.
Come to think of it, those fragments went straight to Partruna instead of me, so I had no way of knowing whether everything was proceeding properly.
It'd be nice if she at least showed up for a moment like last time and said something...
"Well, having a goal in a world like this is a good thing. Your boyfriend will be here soon, so hurry along."
At that, I nearly toppled out of my chair, barely catching myself.
"Whaaat?! N-No! He's just a close friend. Besides, we haven't even known each other that long."
"Oh my? Is that so? But Charlotte, dear — there's no such thing as 'just close friends' between a man and a woman. And what does how long you've known each other matter? It's the heart that counts."
"Still, though..."
No matter what she said, even if my body was a woman's, my mind was still a man's — so the kind of relationship she was imagining was impossible. With a man or a woman, for that matter.
Hm? Why not a woman either? Over this past week, there'd been quite a few days when Yeonseo, Ara, and I bathed together, and... nothing. What I mean is, looking at their bodies produced no reaction at all. So I clearly didn't like men, and looking at women's bodies did nothing either — which probably meant I was destined to live alone.
"Well, you're still young, so I suppose you can think that way. Anyway, you've worked hard all this time. I'll talk to Hancheol and have him pack you a few extra meals."
"I'm not a little kid, you know... Thank you for everything. Next time I'm in Mokdong, I'll stop by. Take care."
I left the medical ward, and right outside I spotted Hyeonseok talking with Ara.
Huh? When did those two get so close?
Watching them chat so happily somehow rubbed me the wrong way, so I walked straight up and threw my arms around both of them.
"What, were you waiting for me?"
"Whoa — unnie, I almost fell over!"
"You're here. Shall we go, then?"
Ara nearly toppled from the sudden tackle, while Hyeonseok calmly stroked my hair as if nothing had happened.
I was in a weirdly bad mood just a second ago — so why does one head-pat fix everything...?
Since today was our last day in Mokdong, Ara would be staying the night in the camper with us. Of course, waiting for everyone to wash up inside the camper would take forever, so midway through, Ara and I joined Yeonseo in the shared shower room while Hyeonseok stayed behind in the camper to wash and prepare food.
Maybe because it was our last night, we talked and laughed about everything under the sun. Part of us wanted to stay up all night, but we'd already done that a few times — and with the departure ahead, better not risk it. We turned in at a reasonable hour.
A week had passed, and tomorrow we would finally leave the Mokdong Settlement.
The thought of leaving already stirred a small ache of regret. But at the same time, I felt that same flutter of excitement I used to get as a child on the eve of a field trip.
The people I'd met first after returning to Earth had been so wonderfully kind. I hoped these bonds would last a long, long time.
Wondering what still lay ahead and what kind of people I would meet, I spent the night beneath a sky cleaner than the old world's had ever been — a night lit by stars shining with brilliant light.