If Only There Were More Like Her.
“There’s a limit to everything!”
Bam!
Baron Radius slammed the consultation room table the moment he heard the price.
“That damn double chin! 1,050 gold to get rid of it? Are you out of your mind? Even scams have to have some sense to them!”
That damn double chin? If you could do it yourself, you wouldn’t have come here.
Still, it was too early to get this pissed off. I hadn’t even finished talking yet.
“Just so you know, that’s the base price.”
“B-base?!”
“For the V-line procedure, you need sessions every month. But for an extra 50 gold to shorten recovery time, we can wrap it up perfectly in one day for 1,100 gold.”
The magic where a 1-gold dragon healer turns into a 50-gold miracle. That’s why Res was my favorite.
“Hah, just 50 gold? I’m so flabbergasted I can’t even speak. Let’s go, David. No need to listen to this barbarian who doesn’t understand the value of money.”
“I’m not lying, Baron. If you skip the recovery shortcut, you’ll look like a fish with eggs under your chin for the next week or two. It takes about two weeks for all the swelling to go down completely.”
“Shut your mouth! Don’t spout such nonsense!”
From his attitude, it was clear he’d never intended to get the treatment in the first place. And yet he had the gall to pull this stunt?
Time to shift tactics. A sly smile crept across my face.
“Ah, I see. That’s how it is.”
“……?”
“I can’t share patient details due to privacy, but a certain marquis house paid 5,100 gold for the same treatment. I should’ve accounted for the difference between a marquis and a baron house. My mistake.”
“D-did you just insult my house?!”
“Not at all. I know nothing about your house, Baron. But I’ve learned one thing today: from now on, the baron house only deserves the second-floor barbershop.”
I stood up as well, shooting Baron Radius a disdainful glance, smirking with one corner of my mouth as I brushed past them toward the door.
When they stopped in front of the elevator, I gestured smoothly to the emergency stairs beside it.
“Please use the stairs to go down.”
“What the hell is this? Did the magic elevator break already?”
“In magic towers, 1st Circle mages can’t use the elevators. And in our Beauty Tower…… haha, do I really need to spell it out?”
He got the point. Baron Radius’s puffy double chin trembled with rage.
“H-hahaha! How dare you…… tell me I can’t afford it to my face! Fine, let’s do it. Proceed with the treatment right now! But if there’s no effect, I’ll have your head on a pike in front of this tower!”
“Yes, payment upfront.”
“Fine! Upfront! ……Upfront? You want money before even doing the treatment?”
Of course. He reeked of a backstabber—what if he dined and dashed?
“That’s right. We usually allow installments or payment after, but…… honestly, your finances……”
“You scum!”
New money acts the same here or on Earth. Insult their status, and they splurge in revenge.
“Sorry, but it’s such an expensive procedure—we can’t risk it. I’d let it slide for a marquis, or even a count, but……”
“David! Pay this insolent bastard right now!”
David sighed without hesitation and pulled a money pouch from his subspace pouch. The jingle of coins—music to my ears, every time.
“Hahaha, as expected from a baron with such a distinguished presence. David, wait in the lounge. Baron, follow me. We’ll start the procedure…… right away.”
As we entered the procedure room, something soft settled on my right shoulder. Res, no doubt. I mouthed for her to get off to the side, and the slight weight vanished.
I told her not to cling to me in the procedure room. Time for another warning.
Before the main procedure, I cleaned the baron’s greasy target area and ran an ultrasound to measure the fat cells.
Ultrasound lets you precisely gauge fat thickness, formation, and distribution for more effective treatment. It also maps nerves and vessels under the chin to avoid them, making it safer.
Even among doctors, I hate calling those cheapo clinic hacks the same—some skip ultrasound entirely and go by feel. Patients, take note: you get what you pay for.
Swipe—
Swipe—
Swipe—
After the ultrasound, I finalized the injection sites for the V-line serum. Time to proceed.
“Baron, we’ll start now. But before we do, I need to mention one more downside I forgot earlier.”
“Fine, what’s the other one?”
Lying on the bed, Baron Radius glared at me, his chin layered like pastry.
“There might be some pain during the procedure. We have numbing cream to reduce it, but it’s an extra 10 gold. Shall we proceed with anesthesia?”
“……No need.”
Oh? Really?
I’d skipped it on purpose. Let’s see how long he lasts.
“We’ll do five rounds total, so if you change your mind after the first, just say so. Of course, even if you want it on the second round, it’s still 10 gold, haha.”
“Just do it already!”
“Yes sir, here comes the needle. It might sting a little?”
Pok!
Pok pok!
Pok pok pok!
Pew pew pew!
Pok!
Pew pew!
With precise, swift hands, I injected the V-line serum perfectly at the marked depths.
“Kuh…… huuuh…… th-theh……”
His pain threshold must’ve been low; he groaned horrifically each time the needle pierced and withdrew.
“Baron, first treatment done.”
“Y-you mean I have to do this four more times?”
“That’s right. Want anesthesia now?”
“No…… I can handle it.”
Sweating bullets, but too stingy for an extra 10 gold. Explains why the rich stay rich.
—Miner! Heal him with magic now?
Res’s telepathy rang out. I shook my head and held up five fingers.
—Five fingers…… ah! In five minutes?
I nodded. We could heal now, but I wanted him to suffer a bit more—to appreciate this pricey treatment.
After a short break, Res cast her healing magic, and the effects kicked in visibly.
Pok!
Pok pok!
Pok pok pok!
Pew pew pew!
Pew pew pew pew!
Pew pew pew pew pew!
With healing spells between, we finished rounds two through five.
“Wha…… wow.”
The baron’s transformed face shocked even me.
“Wh-what’s that suspicious noise? Did something go wrong?!”
“N-no, sir. The final treatment’s complete. But……”
“Damn it, you quack! If it’s even a little off, I’ll……”
“Haha…… the double chin treatment went perfectly, Baron.”
The treatment succeeded. But the chin fat…… well, only the chin fat vanished too much.
His face looked like it’d been shrunk unnaturally by a smartphone filter.
“Heh…… hehehe…… ahahaha!”
“Congratulations, Baron. Your jawline is now beautifully V-shaped.”
Thankfully, he seemed thrilled with the somewhat eerie result.
Baron Radius’s double chin had been beautifully erased.
The patient’s happy, and my wallet’s fatter.
* * *
After Baron Radius left, the Beauty Tower’s reputation only grew.
Weird. Baron Radius didn’t seem like he came with pure intentions……
Before the treatment ended, he’d seemed shady. But seeing his overly sharpened jaw, he loved it. He even brought his wife later.
He seemed decent after that…… though micro-expressions aren’t foolproof.
“D-Director, can I ask a question?”
“What is it?”
“Why do we do it every two weeks, but Josephine—”
“Ahem! Josephine Captain.”
“……Why does Captain Josephine do it every two months? Because she’s captain?”
The Jo family wasn’t just working the total beauty care shop—they were active in mandatory blood donations. Paying for calling me a heretic, but blood’s best prepped in advance.
George, their former leader, was griping again during donation. Even though he wasn’t captain anymore.
“George, Joy, and Jonathan do plasma, platelets, and platelet-plasma donations respectively. Interval’s two weeks. Josephine does whole blood, so two months minimum.”
Typically, drawing 400-500ml costs men 236mg iron, women 213mg. Daily intake’s 2.8-6.0mg. Whole blood recovery averages 50 days, hence two months.
George hated that.
“No health issues, don’t worry. After two months, we’ll rotate with whole blood donors.”
“Th-thank you, Doctor!”
Thanks, George? You’ll be last. Your whole blood turn’s half a year out.
“Director, looks done. Can I wrap up like you showed?”
“Go ahead. I’ll watch—finish strong.”
Rebecca was assisting with the Jo family’s blood draws.
Witch background? Or her claimed genius? She picked up my medical knowledge fast.
Cache and Walter handled sales; Res bodyguarded the half-elves gathering potion ingredients.
The Jo trio got bled every two weeks and snipped away at the beauty shop.
But among staff, Rebecca gave the most help now—and would in the future.
If only there were more people like Rebecca.