Ch.199Brother NPC Prepares (1)

After defeating Elder Kanf, imprisoning the infected Kanf followers, and with the three female elf knights departing for Ponia to summon a priest for Green Dol’s treatment, two weeks had passed.

During this time, I still hadn’t fulfilled the Spirit King’s request to kill him and take the spirit water. The reason was…

“Salt Non, how are you feeling today?”

“…Isn’t it annoying to come and ask every day?”

“…You ended up like this because of me. How could I find this annoying? If anything, I’m sorry I can’t do more.”

“There you go again with that.”

Salt Non’s injuries were much worse than I had anticipated.

One of his legs was completely shattered as if it had been struck with a sledgehammer, one of his pointed ears—the symbol of elves—had been cut off, and he had suffered horrific injuries including blindness in his left eye and severed tendons in his right arm. When I asked how he had managed to escape with Green Dol in such a condition…

[That’s foolish talk. The Elder came to save me even with his arm cut off. I couldn’t possibly whine about injuries like these at my young age.]

Good lord! When stubbornness reaches this level, it becomes a disease. That’s exactly what I thought of his answer.

And when I casually asked if he knew the location of the spirit water, thinking I’d just check…

[Is that what Elder Green Dol instructed? Then, I’ll guide you right away…]

He tried to get up immediately to guide me, despite his broken body!

I was genuinely startled and reflexively struck the back of his neck, knocking him unconscious. It was truly a reflex action!! I mean, his arms and legs were dangling like a broken 3D model, yet he just popped up?! My hand moved before my words could!

“My condition isn’t bad. Well, except for the fact that I can never wield a spear again and can’t run like before, it hurts much less than the back of my head after you hit me.”

“…I really hit you because I was surprised. Seriously, how can someone just stand up when their leg is twisted backward?”

“It wasn’t backward. It was just turned sideways about 160 degrees.”

“160 degrees is generally considered backward. So, how are you now?”

“The beastkin’s medical knowledge is quite good. My leg has started to reattach in the right direction, and thanks to the potions you bring every day, even my arm with the severed tendons is somewhat… Look, I can move my fingers now.”

I smiled bitterly as his fingers trembled like a toy with a low battery.

Potions made from monster materials in the game.

Recalling the highest-grade potions that could be made in the Spirit Demon Kingdom of Siltra Field from Episode 2, I spent the past few days circling every monster den in the Siltra Forest gathering materials. I handed them all to the beastkin doctor and explained the mixture I remembered.

At first, the beastkin doctor asked if I had a medical license, and I thought, “What the hell, do they have medical schools here too?!” I made up a story about learning potion recipes from my parents when I was a forest keeper. He said, “I see, then let’s give it a try,” and mixed them for me.

After about 20 failed attempts, we succeeded in finding the right proportions, creating a high-grade potion that even surprised the doctors. I wrote down all the recipes and gave them to them.

Wow~ Thanks to my Intelligence increasing by 1, my past life memories were finally useful! The Episode 2 potion was effective enough to make severed tendons move again. Later, when I visit the Empire from Episode 5, I’ll try out their potion recipes too and bring them if successful.

Perhaps Salt Non’s legs and arms could be completely healed. Even if not, when I eventually reach the Celestial Realm in Episode 8, the highest-grade potions there will surely restore him!

“At this rate, I can at least manage daily activities and walking on my own.”

“I see. Then, could I ask you to guide me tomorrow after one more day of rest?”

“I could go right now. After all, human, weren’t you in a hurry?”

“Hahaha… I am busy, but not desperately so…”

I answered with an even more bitter smile.

I’d love to ask him to come with me right away! I’d even carry him on my back!!! But Green Dol aside, Salt Non ended up like this because he helped me pass through Siltra. A person with conscience can’t just say, “My sister is waiting, so stop exaggerating and let me carry you to guide me,” to someone who’s injured!!

Perhaps noticing my bitter internal struggle, Salt Non tilted his head and said I could go immediately if I was truly busy, but I firmly shook my head. Thanks to the potions and the beastkin’s devoted care, his leg was healing, but it was still wrapped in thin bandages.

“Besides, I have an appointment with Elder Perna today.”

“…Hah. I see. I wonder how strong a mere human wants to become.”

“Haha! As strong as possible, maybe the strongest on the continent?”

“…Your ambition in that regard is considerable.”

“I have a lot to protect.”

After this light conversation with Salt Non in his sickbed, I left the hospital.

By the way, Green Dol has been in an induced sleep state using the spirit magic of the demon spirit tribe. Since that day, Green Dol has been hearing voices in his head that provoke anger, preventing him from sleeping properly. He wanted this, saying his mind was weakening because of it.

When I asked if induced sleep would help, they said spirit magic could make someone hear or see desired hallucinations or voices while sleeping. So all the demon spirit tribe people who had followed the Grand Elder that day were now serving as Green Dol’s sleep batteries.

Of course, they seemed satisfied with this arrangement. Although the war ended before it started and they didn’t harm the beastkin, they said the current situation wasn’t bad for alleviating their guilt about briefly siding with the demons.

Reflecting on recent events, I slowly walked to the beastkin elder’s house that I had been directed to before.

“Elder! It’s Jack!!”

“Hoho. You’re here already?”

When I knocked on the door, Elder Perna opened it with a gentle smile. She said I was early, but she was already prepared to go out.

“Shall we go right away?”

“Yes.”

And so I moved with her.

*

Well, we didn’t go far. We just went to the cave where the chieftain was, where I had previously undergone my trial. And there…

-Hop!!

“Ahem! Oh, you came?”

“Yeah. Have you been out here all day again?”

“Y-yes. Miho hasn’t come out yet, so… Hmm.”

A fox beastkin in a kimono, Chikuyo, Miho’s older sister, was kneeling but stood up quickly to greet me and the elder.

“Hoho. Were you really just waiting for Miho?”

“Huh? Elder, what do you mean…?”

“I mean, if you’re going to wait anyway, you could do it in the village. Why bother staying out here?”

“…Miho is undergoing the trial, isn’t she? As her sister, where else would I wait but here?”

Right, Miho’s broken fist healed in just three days, and she immediately went in for the trial.

That was also thanks to the potions I brought. The doctors said it would take two weeks even with one potion per day, but the game-based combination potions showed more than twice the effectiveness of what the beastkin knew. That was truly fortunate. The only problem was…

“The trial is taking a long time.”

“…Yeah. Mine took three days, but Miho has been in there for over a week now.”

She entered the trial exactly 7 days ago. My completion of the trial in just one day wasn’t extremely rare, but it was considered quite fast. Elder Perna said she took exactly two days when she underwent her trial. But Miho has been submerged in that water for 7 days now.

I understand why her sister Chikuyo is waiting anxiously outside the cave. If it were Ira in there, I’d be demanding to find a way in too.

-Pat, pat.

“Hah?!”

Seeing her drooping her eyebrows with trembling orange eyes, I gently reached out and stroked her head. As a fellow older sibling, I understood her worry for her younger sister, so to comfort her…

“Hyaaah♡ Hauu♡! Haung!♡ Heung!!♡”

“…Can you do something about that voice every time I pat your head?”

“B-but…!! Heuung♡!!”

…It was meant to be comforting, but well…

A day after Miho entered the cave for her trial, Chikuyo was standing outside the cave, pale as a prisoner awaiting execution. Although her own trial had taken three days, she was extremely worried about Miho since she had experienced the trial first. So I unconsciously asked if there was anything I could do to help…

[Then… p-pat my head. When… when we were little and our father was still okay, he often calmed us down that way.]

So I patted her head quite solemnly. Truly, I stroked it gently, just like I would pat Ira’s head! But then!!

“Heuuut!!♡”

-Stop.

“……”

“Heu… eh?”

“Hohoho, I can see you have another purpose, so why bother.”

“Ah, uh?! N-no, I don’t?!”

Since I was the one who made something like a confession first, how was I supposed to know she’d make such sounds when being patted? Now I really can’t pat anyone’s head anymore!!

When I stopped because I couldn’t bear to hear more, she drooped her eyebrows even further and turned her crimson eyes toward me, trembling like an abandoned puppy. However…

“I need to train now.”

“Kiiing…”

“Hoho. ‘Kiing,’ she says. A female should only whimper like that in bed. Besides, if you claim to be worried about your sister but have such ulterior motives, even males will get tired…”

“E-Elder?!!”

I pretended not to hear their conversation and took off my outer clothes to warm up.

For the past few days, I’ve been training here in front of this cave every day. I gained quite a few levels from hunting monsters with the Grand Elder, but this recent battle made me realize there was something else I was missing.

“Do you understand? If you react so favorably to just having your head patted, males will think you’re already theirs and become negligent. At minimum, you should be at the stage where he strokes your tail and bottom…”

“R-really? B-but his touch is so gentle and caring that it feels… a-and my tail is…”

“Elder. Please stop with the unnecessary talk. Let’s train.”

“I-it’s not unnecessary?!”

No, it is unnecessary. And you shouldn’t be responding, not the elder.

Chikuyo shouted with a reddened face, but I shook my head and urged the elder. She also warmed up, following my lead.

“Hoho, is it so enjoyable to exchange flesh with this old woman every day?”

“By flesh, you mean just arms and legs.”

“Eying, have you forgotten that I touched your bottom at first too?”

“You touched me one-sidedly, Elder.”

Yes, what I lacked was technique.

I was trained as a forest keeper and lived as one, and my opponents were always “beasts.” My battles were always ones I could win. But the ancestor I met in the trial was stronger than me and had superior combat skills. If the ancestor had truly tried to kill me back then when I had no skills or stats, I would have definitely lost.

And the people who were actually holding back the Grand Elder—among them Elder Perna, whose level was relatively high but still far below the Grand Elder’s.

When I heard that she had landed a hit on the Grand Elder, I thought I had something to learn from her.

“Hoho, then may I touch you again today?”

“Elder!! J-Jack is our sisters’ male…!!”

“Well, evading and blocking that is also part of the training.”

As a result, I asked her to train me, and she’s been showing me techniques in a practical format. In the process, I occasionally get sexually harassed, but even that is helpful to me. Yes.

[-Profession: Martial Artist- Name: Perna. Level 319 Age: 229 years]

[Skill: Beastkin Transformation Active]

A skill that should activate at level 700 in the game, Beastkin Transformation. Yet Elder Perna uses it constantly at level 300.

“Hoho. Then here I come.”

-Tap, slide! Whoosh!!

“Ugh!!”

“Hohoho, you block better than yesterday! You’ve grown already.”

[Beastkin Transformation Effect: The beastkin blood manifests strongly. All stats increase dramatically. (Status: Beastkin Transformation active. (Details: Hybrid of monster [King Ghoul] and [Human]. Current form: Human form.))]

Sliding in without a sound, thrusting her fist at me—she was a hybrid of the Episode 2 Siltra field boss (corpse) and a human.