Its the next day after I treated Fran and Sera. While Im gazing out the hospital window, theres one thing in particular on my mind.
Depending on how I deal with it, the direction of my life might change from now on. Its that important of a concern.
Yuel-chan, I baked cookies, want some?
! Thank you very much, Eris-san!
Surveying the inside of the hospital, Eris seems to have made some pastries for her afternoon tea, and Yuel receives them with an ear-to-ear smile and runs back over to me.
Pinching a cookie, I pop it in my mouth and it crumbles apart. Delicious. However, that has nothing to do with whats troubling me.
Yuel-chan, is it tasty?
Ifts delifiouf!
Neither does the fact that the habit Eris is wearing today is getting a little tight around the bustline, yet she continues to wear it since itd be wasteful to throw it out. Nor the fact that I cant help but notice how her breasts are straining against it.
The fact that Yuel is happily munching on the mouthful of delicious cookies stuffed in her cheeks has nothing to do with my concern either.
Theres only one thing troubling me.
Visible from the window, half-hiding behind the rustic hospital gate, theres a green-haired woman in armor peering in this direction. An unknown woman, whom Ive never met. Im racking my brain to figure out how to deal with this woman who neither Yuel nor Eris have noticed.
It would be great if the woman at the gate were just an ordinary lady. Oh, a fan of mine? and that would be the end of it. However, even though I dont recognize her face, I do recognize the armor that shes wearing.
Ive seen it at times defending the city gates, at times subduing violent criminals. Occasionally lined up in ranks, marching through the gates to subjugate monsters outside the city.
That is the armor of this citys knight brigade.
Why is there a knight peering in at this privately-owned hospital? Moreover, it looks almost like shes performing surveillance.
The first thing that comes to mind is that this female knight has come to the hospital for medical treatment. But that cant be it. The knight brigade supposedly has its own dedicated healers. Excellent ones, capable of using High Heal.
After I overhunted the Huge Slime, word got around among adventurers that I was an excellent healer who uses High Heal, although I didnt show them that Im capable of using EX Heal.
Eris, Yuel, and Eights group aside, nobody should view me as anything other than a healer merely capable of using High Heal. I did claim to be able to use EX Heal at the slave market, but they never believed me in the first place.
Since the knights have their own healers who wield that same level of healing magic, and not to mention wholl use it free of charge, she should elect to use them. Besides, shes peeking in from the gate and not even entering the hospital in the first place.
Though she came to the hospital, that female knights purpose is not treatment. In other words, shes here not as a customer but as a knight, which means she must be here to carry out her duty.
Thats right, arresting criminals.
As far as what job the knights have within the city, thats it. Who did she come to arrest? Theres no need to think about it.
Its me.
Neither Eris nor Yuel are the type who would ever commit a crime. If they had their backs up against the wall and were forced to choose between the law and their lives then maybe it would be different, but they wouldnt engage in criminal behavior during their everyday lives.
But what about me?
Im the type of person who gets kicked out of a hospital due to sexual harassment. Ive peeped on a chaste sister in the bath, and Ive groped a waitress ass at the tavern. Ive rubbed a fellow adventurers breasts, and flipped another ones skirt.
Ive been involved in so many other minor incidents up to this point that I cant even remember them all.
It wouldnt be strange if one or two people reported me.
No, but, its hard to believe that a knight would expressly come to arrest me over such things. Its only at the severe reprimand level, hopefully.
However, in addition to all that I also visited an illegal gambling den to try and make money. I hid my face at that time, though.
Its not like nothing comes to mind. But rather, I cant think of a reason that would be enough to cause a knight to set up a stakeout in front of the hospital.
Errr, to cope with this poison mist, its necessary to periodically suppress the symptoms by casting Heal, but the present members of the knight brigade would be unable to keep up with the required healing, based on the captains judgment.
Krankheit Turtle. Its the first time Im hearing the name, but it sounds like a troublesome monster. To put it in game terms, doesnt a wide-area poison attack give off a boss monster vibe?
Im betting the reason they say it was the cause of the monster outbreak is because it drove other monsters out of the forest as it drew nearer to the city or something like that.
If Im not mistaken, it would be a disaster if it reached the town. Yet in that case the customers would also! No, nevermind.
Upon Mariettas words, Eris eyes widen as if shes realized something, but immediately afterwards she vehemently shakes her head in shame. Did she imagine how many customers the hospital would get? Maybe its because of all the money troubles shes been dealing with until just recently.
Then, as Im watching Eris feel conflicted-
-abruptly, one of the buttons on her chest snaps off with a *ping*.
The button traces a slow arc through the air.
Having lost a button, her chest spreads slightly.
Holding her head and stooping over while wrestling with guilt, Eris herself doesnt notice.
At that very moment, as my eyes are being drawn towards the delta zone born in the gap between the cloth, Yuel enters my line of sight. As Yuel follows the buttons flight, her jaw drops and she pats her own vacant chest as she stares on dumbfounded.
And then, for just an instant, our eyes meet. I wish she wouldnt look at me like that.
Its impossible. No matter what she does, its impossible. I cant console her.
Lets pretend I didnt see anything.
Pretend I didnt see anything, and resume the conversation.
That sure sounds like a troublesome monster, doesnt it?
Eh? Ah, err, thats right. The Krankheit Turtles poison is slow-acting, but its extremely potent. If the Krankheit Turtle were to come to the city, it would outpace the treatment and there would most likely be enormous casualties.
But the Krankheit Turtle is slow, and its still deep within the forest, so theres no need to be concerned about that point.
Marietta glances briefly at Eris chest, but continues talking. Good girl, you can read the atmosphere. Yuel composes herself, then carefully takes a peek at the gap in Eris clothes.
Although its within the forest, if youre going to subjugate it, do you know its exact location?
Yes, it was early this morning, but an adventurer came to us asking for separate compensation for the treatment fee when her party members came down with a strange illness after entering the forest.
Those girls were exposed to a small quantity of the Krankheit Turtles poison mist, so if we go to the location where the incident occurred then it shouldnt be far off.
This sounds like a familiar story somehow. Is it about Ruruka? That shamelessness certainly sounds like her. Its probably Ruruka.
I see, so that monster called Krankheit Turtle or whatever was the cause of their fever. They ended up like that from the Krankheit Turtles slow-acting poison after they were exposed to just a small amount of the poison mist.
And the symptoms didnt develop for Ruruka because she came to me and received healing magic right after they got back from the forest.
While Im making connections in my head, Marietta corrects her posture and opens her mouth.
Although the Krankheit Turtles movement speed is by no means fast, if we allow too much time to pass, theres still the possibility of losing sight of it within the vast forest.
In order to counteract the poison mist and safely subjugate it, we wish for an excellent healer like Shiki-san to accompany us by all means.
And then, after informing me with a sincere expression-
Also, um your chest button, came off? Its impressive.
she approaches Eris, and says that.
Eris face turns red and she hides her voluptuous breasts as Yuel stares at them in amazement.