The Bear and the Healer
“In any case, it seems the business in Arnat has stalled for the time being. That means your task will be prolonged as well. I’m sorry about that.”
“Please, don’t give it another thought. Isn’t it thanks to you, Ondalan, that my wife and I haven’t suffered any great misfortune?”
“I’m grateful you say so.”
The two men looked at each other and shared a brief laugh.
Huran continued the conversation in a respectful tone.
“I’ve been thinking about what you said earlier. Does that mean the Prince hasn’t taken refuge in the temple?”
“It seems so. Personally, I hope the Prince is safe. But when I think of my father and my brother, I can’t bring myself to wish for it. There are times when the weight of our family’s status feels unbearable.”
Huran could read the sudden, profound exhaustion in Ondalan’s expression. The long silver hair falling over his slender face seemed to trace the lines of the agony he was enduring. Seeing the depth of his immeasurable pain, Huran spoke with a face full of concern.
“Um, then, what about your father, Lord Hartras Cellabris……?”
“He will remain in the prison until Arnat returns. My father’s crime is tied to the National Soul Festival, which was not properly fulfilled to the end.”
“……I am sorry to hear that.”
Huran said it because he truly felt it. In all of Cellabris, there was no one who did not hold the family of the Gravekeepers in high regard.
“No, I should be the one thanking you for your concern. If there’s nothing else to discuss, I should be going.”
Ondalan’s closing remark was abrupt, but Huran followed his lead without question. He had finished his guard shift and had only acted as a mail carrier as a favor to a friend. It was best not to do anything that might give the Sun Temple cause to hold a grudge against him.
“Come to think of it, Huran. Has it been half a year since you married your wife? How is it going?”
As they reached the end of the hallway on the way out of the mansion, Ondalan asked.
Huran smiled sheepishly. It wasn’t common for a man of power in the kingdom to ask after his well-being so sincerely.
“Thanks to your concern, we are doing well.”
“Good. Always be careful. If a letter from my brother arrives, I’ll be counting on you again.”
“Understood.”
Just as he was about to step out the front gate of the mansion, Ondalan’s voice came from behind him once more.
“Oh, and there will be good news soon.”
“Pardon? Good news?”
“It’s not my place to say, but you’ll hear it soon enough, so just wait until then.”
With that, Ondalan patted Huran lightly on the shoulder. Unlike Hamses, his touch didn’t feel entirely unwelcome.
“Then, I shall take my leave.”
“Safe travels.”
Huran nodded. It was only natural. That was Ondalan’s consideration for him. Behind Huran, who straightened his clothes and walked away, the sound of the mansion’s gate closing echoed with a heavy thud.
He walked a precarious line between the mundane and the extraordinary. Now, it was time to return to the mundane.
That evening, Huran returned home and enjoyed a rare, intimate moment with his wife. It was a time of eating well and cherishing each other’s touch, and the night was warm.
And when the next day dawned, Huran finally understood what the good news Ondalan had mentioned was.
“Oh, honey. I almost forgot to tell you.”
Arote, who was lying with her head on Huran’s arm, said. Huran turned his head, feeling the soft texture of her hair. His lovely wife, lying on her side, looked at him and spoke.
“What is it?”
“You know Mrs. Meradu, right?”
Huran tilted his head, vaguely pulling the name from the well of his memory. She was the wife of some gardener, if he recalled correctly. A woman with a sturdy build, a commanding presence, and a grip like iron.
“I think I remember. What about her?”
“She told me she’s been helping people find work as servants in noble houses. She asked if I had any interest.”
Arote asked as if the idea were completely out of place.
“A noble house? That’s way out of our league, isn’t it? Don’t you think? We’re happy just as we are.”
“Isn’t it fine? A noble house.”
“Huh?”
“Mrs. Meradu, she knows how to judge people. Someone like my wife could be a treasure of a worker for a noble house. Absolutely.”
“R-really?”
“I’m telling you.”
Huran laughed heartily and kissed Arote on the forehead.
‘If I can only protect you, what wouldn’t I do?’
That was why he was so grateful for Ondalan’s arrangements, reaching out to them in such a clandestine way.
When Asdin opened his eyes, the scenery that greeted him was the familiar ceiling of the cave.
[Asdin. Are you alright?]
“Urnil……?”
[Yes, it seems there’s no problem with your head. That’s a relief.]
Asdin wore a look that asked what exactly was so relieving. As he tried to use his arms to push himself up, he broke into a cold sweat from the sudden, sharp pain.
He couldn’t move his arms. Only a moment later did Asdin realize that both his arms were splinted and fixed in place. His arms, swollen and discolored to a dark, bruised hue, looked severe even to his own eyes. The sight of the wounds was enough to make his stomach churn.
“What on earth is this…….”
[It was an open, comminuted fracture. I healed you as much as I could before that hunter saw you. Among the Exiles, the fate of those treated as useless baggage is obvious.]
Urnil added hastily before Asdin could say anything.
[Ah. I didn’t mean that hunter. I was talking about other Exiles.]
While they were on the subject, Asdin looked around. He was alone in the cave, and a campfire was burning quietly.
Judging by the state of the firewood and the intensity of the flames, not much time had passed. Asdin tried to push his body up by tensing his waist, but he bit his lip hard. His body had been sent flying by a bear’s paw. There wasn’t a single part of him that didn’t ache.
Asdin managed to speak through his groans.
“Where is Mr. Slem?”
[He went out with his weapons. I don’t know what he’s doing, but seeing as he managed the fire before leaving, he didn’t just leave for good.]
As Urnil said, Slem hadn’t just left. When he returned, he was carrying the hide of a Taung, which looked like it had been skinned with great difficulty. The sheer volume was so immense that at first glance, Asdin thought he had brought back a pile of thick blankets.
“Oh? Asdin! You’re awake!”
Slem approached with a welcoming face, set the Taung hide down at the cave entrance, and came over. He then examined Asdin’s body under the dim light.
“I was just wondering when you’d wake up. Thank goodness. How does your body feel? Any strange sensations in your arms? Too tight, or anything like that?”
Faced with Slem’s intense reaction, Asdin decided to answer one by one, feeling a bit dazed.
“Aside from the throbbing, I’m fine. My arms will take some time to recover. But how long have I been asleep?”
“You were out for a full day. Good grief. Making a judgment call like that in such a situation… What would you have done if you’d died?”
The conversation that started with laughter turned into a scolding of the boy who had gone through such a harrowing experience. Asdin replied with a guilty expression.
“I’m sorry. But if I hadn’t, you would have been in danger, sir.”
“Why are you so precocious, kid……? Why is a little boy worrying about adults like that?”
Asdin offered an awkward smile instead of an answer. Because that catalyst was a very painful, sensitive spot that Asdin wanted to hide. Slem took the reaction as shyness.
“Never mind that, just rest and don’t worry about anything else. Since I caught the Taung, no prey will dare come near this place for a while. I’ll have to be busy with tanning and hunting, though.”
“Tanning?”
Slem pointed his finger toward the pile of hides at the entrance as if to show off.
“The clothes you have are a bit crude. I thought I’d make you some clothes out of the Taung hide. Well, that’s that. For now, just rest. You need to eat something since you’re awake.”
While Asdin lay there, Slem moved busily. Whenever he had a spare moment, he would work on the large bear hide, while also roasting wild potatoes, jerky, and spices on a flat stone over the fire. The smell of the tenderized meat and well-seasoned potatoes filled the cave, stimulating Asdin’s empty appetite.
Slem moved the food onto another flat stone and fed Asdin directly.
“Eat slowly. You’ll choke.”
Unable to use both arms properly, Slem tended to Asdin like a mother bird, with the utmost devotion.
When Asdin thought about when he might ever experience such care again in his life, he felt a sting in his nose.
He wanted to say something in thanks, but the boy’s hands were more attentive than his words could ever be. With every spoonful of food that came his way, Asdin simply accepted it quietly.
Thanks to such meticulous care, Asdin’s condition improved visibly as the days went by. However, Urnil remained Asdin’s companion during the peaceful days. And every time Asdin thanked Slem, Urnil insisted that his own contribution could never be left out.
That conversation continued even on the seventh day of Asdin’s recovery, when Urnil had stepped away for other business.
However, today, the direction of that conversation was a little different.
[Eating well is important, of course, but in truth, your arm wasn’t the kind of injury that could be healed with just that.]
“Was it that bad?”
[If you were an ordinary person, you would have had to have your arm amputated.]
Asdin, his face turning pale, still thought to himself, ‘Was it really that bad?’
Honestly, Asdin couldn’t quite grasp the gravity of Urnil’s words this time. It was difficult for someone who hadn’t truly experienced incurable or difficult-to-treat conditions to understand. The dark, bruised portion that had covered a significant part of Asdin’s arm had almost vanished, and it was regaining its original, sun-scorched skin tone.
However, Urnil’s words were never mere boasting when a reason was needed. Furthermore, Asdin found it hard to believe that his god was simply speaking out of a hunger for praise. Therefore, the words that followed from Urnil carried a great deal of reality.
[Thanks to that, I had to draw out all the Essence I obtained from the Red-Tree. From now on, it will be difficult for me to manifest unless you provide Essence separately.]
Asdin was quite shocked.
He had consumed a lot of Essence when his abdomen was bitten by the eel, but that was only the Essence contained in a few stones.
The Red-Tree, on the other hand, had held dozens of times that amount. Asdin had considered it an asset he could use for a long time. Now, it had been depleted all at once.
“Was it that severe of an injury?”
[It wasn’t just a matter of tissue regeneration; it was essentially saving an area that was biologically impossible to recover. Still, there is one good thing, as they say, a blessing in disguise.]
“A good thing?”
[Perhaps because you used a large amount of Essence at once this time, I think you’re getting a feel for 「Morore」.]
Asdin looked down at the Karmatio in surprise.
“「Morore」?”
The three training methods for using Essence. Until now, Asdin had focused his training on 「Firmo」, one of the three, for the sake of physical conditioning and survival. The limits of the methods Asdin, who had little Essence and had only recently begun training, could practice were clear.
If 「Firmo」 was a method to keep Essence in one place for a long time, 「Morore」 was a way to increase the power of the Essence residing there. It was directly linked to the density of power. Therefore, as 「Morore」 increased, the power of 「Firmo」, which held it in place, also increased.
However, as Urnil had explained several times, 「Morore」 was ultimately a power that increased secondarily as one trained in Firmo, and in some cases, Aurio. There was a reason Asdin had only trained in Firmo all this time.
But the 「Morore」 Urnil was speaking of now was not that conceptual thing, but the ‘recovery technique’ Asdin had dreamed of mastering for so long.
A technique he had vowed to learn after losing someone. Asdin’s heart swelled as he asked.
“Then, can I finally learn the recovery technique?”
[From your body to your abdomen, and both arms. You’ve had to accept Essence in an instant several times over. With your current hands, you’ll be able to concentrate more Essence than you ever imagined. The foundation for Morore is sufficiently laid.]
“But I still don’t know how to do 「Aurio」? You said that to properly learn 「Morore」, I had to learn how to release Essence outside the body. Besides, I don’t have that much Essence…….”
[If you lose control of the Essence that has moved to the extremities of your body, it will leak out whether you like it or not. Controlling that Essence on the surface of your skin is the first step of 「Aurio」. Of course, I will teach you a better way than that.]
Urnil added in a cheerful tone.
[And I clearly told you before. I said that if you properly master 「Morore」, you can draw in Essence from outside the body. Don’t you remember?]
“……You’re saying that’s possible for me?”
Asdin asked with a face full of disbelief. Urnil said with certainty.
[It’s fully possible. Of course, since your 「Aurio」 is still pathetic, your absorption of Essence won’t be much for now. But if you try, what’s impossible?]
Asdin nodded and looked down at his hands. His hands, catching the light inside the cave, glowed orange as if bathed in the sunset. Asdin, who had been staring at his two hands with his mouth pressed shut, spoke with a voice full of resolve.
“If so, can I heal my own injuries with my own power?”
[That depends on how you do it. Of course, on the premise that you follow the words of a fantastic teacher well.]
Urnil said in an excited voice. Teaching this little boy was one of his small joys.