Chapter 117 Blessing Or Curse

Contrary to the other buildings, Nial had been able to perceive while being rushed through a part of the basement, the hut of the Medic seemed quite ordinary in comparison.

In fact, the hut looked much older than the other buildings, and Nial was not sure what exactly was going on with the mana currents in the surrounding.

It was almost as if the hut itself released mana, which was something Nial had never sensed before.

While it was not unheard of for materials to radiate mana, the current situation was a bit different.

Not only was the hut radiating mana but it seemed as if it was generating mana as well.

This made Nial curious about the hut, and the crazy Medic.

Following Captain Clara, he entered the two-story hut.

Within seconds, he took in all the different smells, sounds, vibrations, and the things he was able to visualize with his mana perception.

It was certainly not easy to digest everything at once.

But from the smell of rotten meat, the aroma of various herbs, ethanol, clean clothes, and other medicines, Nial was able to tell that he had entered the abode of a great Medic.

However, it was the sounds and vibrations that made him feel as if he had entered the house of a witch, who specialized in brewing mythical potions and experimented on all kinds of living beings in order to pursue her dark goals.

This caused shivers to run down his spine, but luckily his mana perception helped him get over his nervousness.

The sounds, smells, and vibrations were helping him form an image of the surroundings in his head with everything he was able to perceive, making it seem as if he could see everything in a seemingly perfect manner.

Even without his precise mana perception, it would be possible to visualize a few things, but misunderstandings were unavoidable if he could not clearly see something.

After all, just by relying on his hearing, smelling, and touching sense, it was impossible to get to know everything.

With a faint smile on his lips, Nial stepped through the door frame and approached the large bronze cauldron that hung above a small fire.

He was not sure what the Medic was brewing inside it, but it had a distinct smell that pierced into his nose, overwhelming him.

Meanwhile, as Nial was struggling to not let his overly sensitive senses affect him, Mathias entered the hut hesitantly.

If not for the sake of his friend, he would have waited outside, instead of daring to venture into the Medic's hut.

He could see everything clearly, and that was exactly what made him feel as if the Medic was truly insane.

Stuffed corpses of beasts could be seen far back in the warehouses of which Mathias got a fleeting glimpse when the Medic forgot to close the door that separated the living room from the warehouse.

As such, Mathias felt like turning around and bolting out of the hut.

He was already bad at interacting with other people and would prefer to slink into the furniture instead of forcing himself to small talk with strangers.

It had to do with his experiences in the past…long before his childhood in Katu began…long before he was born on Jundra, to begin with.

After all, his father had already spoiled him while trying to give him the best possible education, to send him to the best school, and provide everything Mathias could have ever wished for.

However, even then, it had been too much for him to face other people, let alone be in a crowded place.

And all of this was because of the traumatic events of his past; the past he wished to forget.

Yet, even after death, it was as if his past had never left him and was still tailing him.

He was reborn in a desolate world where confidence and powers were required to fight against the hordes of ferocious beasts, and to prevent the mighty Originals from turning him into a doormat.

In such an era, being timid and hesitant could lead to the death of oneself, or the team one was traveling with. Sadly, it was in this exact era that Mathias' past life's memories were dragging him down, and turning him into a social cripple, an outsider…

Only through the unbending efforts of his own will, his father's resources, and unconditional help and love, had it been possible for him to gain some confidence while fighting beasts.

But even that was not enough to tend to the wounds of his past life that had left scars on his mind and heart.

It merely soothed the pain until Mathias was able to awaken his origin, where he was tested as a potential genius owing to his talent, the innate ability, and the natural mana affine constitution of his body!

This gave him the necessary confidence to apply to the Teradan military camp as his instincts told him that this was the opportunity he had been waiting for.

Yet, even then, it was impossible for him to act confidently, let alone as if he was able to interact with others normally.

He had felt like a social cripple once again, questioning himself again whether his reincarnation was a blessing or curse, only for his fate to make him encounter Nial.

Being blind, and at the lowest rank amongst all the participants of the Teradan military camp, Mathias believed that Nial would also be struggling like him.

Mathias felt drawn to him, as he had seemed to be in the same boat. However, Mathias quickly understood that Nial was neither shy nor an insecure person.

Instead, he was quite confident, in his own ways.

And that was the case even if he had some disadvantages owing to his blindness.

Overcoming the hindrances and advancing through them with an unbending will was what Nial had to do to become the person he was right now.

He didn't even believe that he was extremely powerful, let alone would reach the threshold to be on par with the average participant of the Teradan military camp.

Some Originals would think that Nial was simply exaggerating, or that he was just trying to get praised by others with that type of mindset.

But Mathias knew that his friend was genuine of the belief that he was just weak, that he had too many flaws, and that there were too many things he had to improve and work on.

Because of that type of mindset, Mathias had warmed up to Nial, only for him to end up being befriended by Bella as well.

As such, after recalling the way in which Nial had protected them, leading to the severe injury he sustained, Mathias felt that staying by his friend's side was the bare minimum he could do.

After all, even after sustaining a brutal injury from the impact of the Titan's punch, Nial was forced to continue fighting to prevent his friend from getting wounded, or even killed.

Bella was not there right now and was doing her best to warn everyone about what was happening on the nameless island, and now, it was on him to act as a pillar of support!

Thus, Mathias was trying to calm himself down by clenching and unclenching his fist, repeating the process over and over again, only to silently wait near Nial.

While Mathias' mind had been occupied by the tormenting thoughts that made him relive his past, Nial was pulled to a medical bed on which an old woman pushed him.

It was the crazy medic Captain Clara had told them about.

However, Nial didn't expect the Medic to not say a single word, but just move him however she pleased.

"Lie down!" She instructed in a commanding tone.

Nial followed her instructions before sensing transmuted mana currents sweep through his body.

The Crazy Medic had inserted her mana into his body for a quick check-up on his condition.

As such, she could clearly sense his arms and shoulder's condition causing her to lift her eyebrows.

"You don't feel any pain?" She asked nonchalantly. Simultaneously, she was inspecting his arms while waiting for Nial's answer.

This caused a pained expression to appear on his face that disappeared a moment later.

"It's fine as long as nobody treats it like you are kneading dough…" He blurted out, feeling as if the old woman was intentionally manhandling him.

"Looks like it's not that bad if you can still joke around. Your body is in a really good condition considering that you are at the 3rd Origin rank.

Even if I were to do nothing, you would be healed in a few weeks. Maybe it would take less time with the use of some bone healing serums!"

Nial listened intently and was silently agreeing with her statement, only to sense that she suddenly flinched.

He visualized a change in her expression, and couldn't help but frown upon perceiving this.

"You…what kind of energy did you use to hold together your broken bones?" She suddenly asked, startling him.

She could sense nearly untraceable remnants of the dark energy currents, which piqued her interest.

Smiling from ear to ear, the Old woman looked truly crazy, causing chills to run down Mathias' spine.

He nearly jumped up, feeling that his friend might be in danger, only to sense that Captain Clara was holding him back.

Mathias had nearly forgotten about the young woman and turned to look at her with an uncertain expression.

"It will be worse if you intervene….even if she looks old and weak, most Instructors, let alone you, or the other participants of the military camp, will be squashed by her wrath the moment she feels like killing you…"

Captain Clara was whispering in a low voice, but Mathias could clearly hear her.

This made him forget the fact that he didn't like being touched by others as it would usually cause his mind to react by forcing him to relive memories of his past life.

Staring at her in dumbfounding, his disbelief was visible, and so was the question he had in mind.

'Are you joking with me?'

However, Captain Clara was just shaking her head, indirectly answering his question as she let out a weak sigh.

But it was not only Mathias who heard Clara, but also Nial owing to his exceptional senses, and the Crazed Medic herself, as well.

Her senses had been enhanced owing to the vast amount of mana that coursed through her body.

Thus, both Nial and the old woman turned their head toward Captain Clara, though their reason for doing so was different.

'I cannot sense any mana from her. How can she be the strongest?!' This was Nial's first thought, only for realization to strike him.

'Concealment?'

Nial had never fought an opponent, who was able to perfectly conceal one's mana currents.

This was quite interesting because there had to be a specific technique behind the concealment.

However, that was not something Nial was able to focus on much as he sensed a soothing sensation spreading through his body.

The potency of the soothing sensation increased as it flowed through his body and reached his arms moments later.

All of a sudden, his upper body issued several cracking noises followed by various other weird noises that caused everyone inside the room, except the Old woman to flinch.

Nial felt the weirdest as he heard, sensed, and felt everything that occurred in his body.

Several minutes passed in which Nial felt like his upper body was being twisted, torn apart and the bones and muscles re-attached themselves over and over again before everything stopped.

The ability of the old Medic seemed to have worked wonders, healing Nial almost entirely.

It was a painful process, but he couldn't help but feel quite satisfied with the end result.

After all, he had already accepted that it would be impossible for him to move around for a few days.

However, just when he was done, Nial sensed that the Old Medic had already vanished from his side.

She was standing next to Captain Clara and holding her arm as she asked,

"Little Princess, it looks like you decided to help me out, and do the hard work that I, the old woman cannot do anymore, right!?"