The Reluctant Healer (5)
There was one problem that worried me the most after arriving at the Labyrinth.
“You’re not planning to enter the Labyrinth the moment it opens, are you?”
It was the question of when we should actually go inside.
When I asked Sir Raffel about this, I received a reassuring answer. We were simply an advance party sent in haste to secure a good location.
Seeing tents going up everywhere, it made sense that there had been a need to move quickly. No one could object to the Holy Empire expanding its territory. Other countries were also sending people steadily, and it seemed frequent fights broke out over land claims.
Only our country can’t be touched by anyone. The nerve of everyone claiming they had gotten here first was no joke. In times like these, I couldn’t help but acknowledge how impressive the Holy Empire truly was. Call it national pride, I suppose.
Is this what being a superpower tastes like?
It was completely different from my previous life, where I had been born in a small country, invaded from all sides, and subjected to every kind of underhanded scheme. Reborn now, I could take pride in my nation as a citizen of a great power.
A superpower that could brazenly throw its weight around with other nations! As a citizen of the religious state known as the Holy Empire, if there was any arrogance to be had, we were the ones dishing it out. We were never on the receiving end.
Unaware that my chest was swelling with patriotic fervor, Sir Raffel continued.
“Soon other countries will send their own advance parties to the Labyrinth. The remaining land won’t be in very good locations, though.”
Moreover, only fourteen days remained until the Labyrinth opened. The later the preparations, the later the entry, and the greater the losses would naturally become.
Even if it is our country, they really are playing dirty. It was a shame that their overly aggressive tactics gave the nation such a poor international image.
“I hope the other countries prepare thoroughly as well. I hope there aren’t too many casualties.”
“Since Priest Arthur will be managing the treatment center, that shouldn’t be a problem, right?”
Why was this man putting such a heavy burden on me?
“I’ll do everything in my power, but not everything goes according to plan.”
My healing wasn’t omnipotent, and there was no way I could treat and save everyone injured by monsters. Sir Raffel must have known that and was simply saying it anyway.
…He had to be. He couldn’t actually believe I was capable of such a thing.
There were ten days left until the Labyrinth opened. Over the past four days, the area around it had undergone a staggering transformation. Have you ever seen a two-story building appear overnight? I had. The spot that held only construction materials that morning now boasted a clean, finished building by evening. It was the work of dozens of burly men laboring a full day, but anyone familiar with construction would know how absurd that speed was.
The reason mage labor costs are so high is no joke.
Our priests were expensive too, but not to the same degree. Those near-bandits known as mages frequently demanded compensation equal to the price of an entire building.
It wasn’t just one or two buildings that dozens of muscular men and mages had thrown up; the place had become something you could reasonably call a village, if not quite a city.
Because each nation had staked out its territory and was building within it, a very distinctive village was taking shape.
Our Holy Empire had constructed a temple alongside our accommodations. A statue of the Sun God was erected, prayer rooms were built, and the treatment center and training grounds went up in no time.
Is this what they call throwing money at a problem?
The speed at which the temple was built was astonishing. Since the Holy Empire was always throwing its weight around and acting like thugs everywhere else, when it came to projects that truly mattered (especially building temples), they spared no expense.
The temple created by mages and architects working together was splendid, enormous, and majestic.
“It’s on a completely different level from our church.”
The Palmore Church was an old building that had clearly once been white but had since turned gray. The newly built temple was a pure, immaculate white without a trace of impurity.
It would be nice if our church could be remodeled like that.
Because the bishop had no interest in the church’s appearance, the neglected building remained shabby as ever. Since running a treatment center meant there could be no shortage of funds, the complete lack of will to improve anything made me wonder if the Palmore Church was beyond saving.
There’s actually another reason the difference is inevitable.
Wasn’t it obvious that the “donations” collected at the Palmore Church treatment center and those at the Labyrinth Temple treatment center would differ by an enormous margin?
The Holy Empire had no reason to be frugal when constructing a temple that would generate massive donations.
People from all over the world will come walking to the temple of their own accord.
The opening of the Labyrinth was a global crisis, but from the perspective of expanding the Holy Empire’s influence, it was extremely welcome news.
It wasn’t for nothing that I had supported being dispatched to the Labyrinth for this mission.
From now on, the future will revolve around the Labyrinth anyway.
That was why it was advantageous to arrive a little earlier and claim a good spot.
The problem is that we’re still in such an early stage that I have no idea what I should even be doing.
As I said before, buildings were rising at an incredible pace all around us. With the Labyrinth’s opening day fast approaching, everyone was rushing. Construction sites were dangerous even when every safety rule was followed. But with orders to build as quickly as possible, accidents were inevitable.
When work was rushed, all sorts of problems arose.
“Patient! He fell from the building during construction!”
“Please treat this patient! A steel beam fell and pinned him underneath!”
Even though the Labyrinth hadn’t opened yet, the treatment center was already full of patients. It wasn’t only accident victims who came. People with chronic conditions also visited the temple seeking treatment.
One chief healer and eight regular healers. Nine priests in total had to care for all of them.
Fortunately, the regular priests adapted without major issues.
The problem was me.
I’m going to drop dead from exhaustion.
Pray, treat patients, eat, treat patients, relieve myself, treat patients. After treating patients all day, once work ended I still had to soothe the exhausted chick healers and hold classes for them.
After class came the final evening prayer. But even that wasn’t the end. The moment I finally had some time to myself and thought I could rest, one of the chick healers would timidly knock on my door.
They had questions from their personal studies, they said.
It was admirable, but honestly I needed time to recover from my own fatigue as well.
The problem was that I had told them to come ask me anytime they had questions, so I couldn’t very well tell them to stop coming.
“Ha, I’m so tired.”
Only after the continuous visits from the chicks finally ended could I truly be free. This routine had continued for several days now.
What surprised me was that the chicks’ passion for studying far exceeded my imagination.
I didn’t support them for nothing. They all have a real desire to grow.
I wasn’t sure if they had applied knowing, like me, that the Labyrinth held enormous potential. But it was clear they possessed the courage to choose a high-risk, high-return path.
In short, they must have been deeply interested in advancing to chief healer.
That was why they tackled even tedious studies with such sincerity.
“I came here for a mission, but who would have thought I’d suddenly end up working as a teacher?”
The saving grace was that teaching brought real rewards. And that the chick healers respected me and treated me like their master.
If they hadn’t won me over, I wouldn’t have taught them this diligently. Because the kids did such adorable things, I ended up sharing all sorts of know-how.
When the kids’ skills improve, it’ll make my own life easier too.
Right now they came running to me chirping at every little problem, but once the chicks grew into proper chickens, wouldn’t they lay their own eggs and raise the next generation?
“But when is the bishop in charge of this place supposed to arrive?”
As the most senior person here, I had unintentionally become the representative, communicating with Sir Raffel and managing the temple. But I couldn’t keep doing this forever.
The bishop needs to arrive before the Labyrinth opens…
Even if someone coveted the position, it was impossible with only the rank of chief healer. It was a temporary post that had to be handed over. Since it could never truly be mine, I preferred to pass it on and live with peace of mind.
“I thought I was going to die for sure, but I’m alive! Thank you! It’s nothing short of a miracle. You’re my lifesaver. I’m truly grateful!”
The patient who had fallen during construction and nearly died was being discharged. Honestly, even I hadn’t been certain I could save him. I barely remembered what I had done. It had been that urgent, that chaotic a moment.
I had simply focused on using my divine power exactly as the Sun God had taught me.
Considering my usual healing output, he was a patient I absolutely should not have been able to save. If you asked me to replicate it now, I don’t think I could.
So yes, this person’s survival was a genuine miracle. A miracle is fortune granted by the gods.
“Wasn’t it the Sun God watching over him with favor? Rather than me, you should thank His grace.”
For reference, the patient who had been crushed by rebar during construction did not survive. Two critically injured people had been brought to the temple at the same time, but one died while the other lived by a miracle. Both injuries had been so severe that it was impossible to tell which was worse. That was why I couldn’t help but conclude that life and death were not decided by the treating priest.
“I will live a more devout life of faith from now on!”
It was what He had decided. The man, who declared he would live the rest of his life meaningfully, placed a generous donation in the box and was discharged safely.
“Priest Arthur!”
While I was watching the patient leave with a sense of satisfaction, one of the chick healers called me.
“What is it?”
“This gentleman keeps saying strange things.”
Next to the chick healer stood a large, fierce-looking man.
“What brings you here?”
“Are you the one in charge here?”
“Yes. Temporarily, at least.”
“If there’s a skilled priest available, could you lend me one? I want to hire them and am willing to pay a donation.”
“Do you have an injured patient? If they cannot come because they’re bedridden, we can provide treatment on location.”
I doubted our chick healer would have described a simple request for an outpatient visit as “strange things.” Sure enough.
The man continued with what was not “strange things” but outright nonsense.
“Not for a quick treatment before sending them back. I’m looking for a healer to enter the Labyrinth with us and provide treatment inside. I’ll pay whatever it takes, so please assign me a skilled priest.”