POV: Adela
Moving the last crate into the cellar, I start to head back up to the hotel lobby where Mrs. Orana is waiting for me.
“Oh thank you dear, you’re always so much help I could never get those heavy things put away by myself”
“It’s no trouble at all ma’am, those boxes barely weigh anything for me”
“If you say so, so how much do I owe you?”
“Oh no, I couldn’t accept money for something like this, your hospitality is more than enough payment”
I can’t possibly take money from Mrs. Orana for something as trivial as this, it didn’t even take an hour to get all the crates away. I make enough money to feed myself, and that’s enough for me.
“Besides, I’m leaving soon anyway, think of it as a parting gift”
“Oh really, you finally got a real house did you? That’s good, you can’t keep living here forever”
“Sure did, but don’t worry, I’ll visit to help out every now and then”
“But where did you get the money for that? You didn’t tell me you got a job, or are you still doing that dangerous mercenary work?”
“It’s not mercenary work! People pay for me to get rid of monsters that they can’t handle alone. I get to help people with problems they can’t solve on their own, what could possibly be better than that?”
“You’re going to get yourself killed, if not from a wound then from a toxin or illness. There are a million ways to die hunting beasts, and it only takes one mistake for you to lose your life”
I knew she wouldn’t understand, Mrs. Orana is a nice lady, but she’s far too paranoid. She doesn’t do anything if it’s even slightly risky, though that’s probably how she’s lived this long
“Mrs. Orana, I’m strong, I wouldn’t die that easily. I haven't come across anything that could touch me, let alone kill me. Even among the other Paladin ranked hunters, My strength is considered exceptional! On top of that, I’m getting a teammate tomorrow, someone real smart to take care of all the things I can’t do alone”
"No matter how strong you are, you can be killed. You are not invincible, even a single mistake, just one slip-up, could cost you your life. Far too many young people throw their lives away in the search of fame and fortune"
"I'm not interested in all that, I just want to help wherever I can. What's the point of being given power if I don't use it to help others who weren't as fortunate as me? In a world as dangerous as this one, where anyone could be attacked and killed at any time, how can I not try to prevent things like that from happening?"
"Please Adela, you were lucky enough to be born in the safest nation in the world, with a strong, healthy body. You ought to get a safe, stable job and settle down, instead of throwing your life away trying to save others. I understand your desire to help, but there isn't any reason for you to die for people who you don't know, and will forget about you by the end of the week"
"Mrs. Orana, I just can't sit around as people die when I could do something to help. If given the choice, I would gladly give my life for even a slight chance at saving another, even if they forget all about me, it doesn't matter, all that matters is that I’m making a difference”
“Please, I’ve seen far too many people die just trying to help out, and none of them ever achieve their goals. It doesn’t matter how strong you are, how perfect your plan is, even if you make no mistakes, just one instance of bad luck is enough to end it all.
I’m not telling you to not care, I’m asking you to please consider reality, and understand that you aren’t making a difference, and that you’re merely delaying the inevitable.
You don’t get to my age without learning a thing or two about how the world works, and believe me, the world is unforgiving to those who do not take its dangers seriously”
Mrs. Orana is right, this world isn’t kind to those who take it lightly, but that doesn’t mean I should just keep my head down and hide my whole life
“I can see that I’m not getting to you, there’s no point in continuing to attempt to convince you, so I’ll just say one last thing. You might be able to keep yourself low, and hide from the dangers of this world, but I just can’t do that, I need to help, to feel like I’m making a difference, even if the reality is that I’m not.
I understand where you’re coming from, I know that you just want what’s best for me, but I simply can’t follow your advice. I can’t, no, I won’t just sit around when I could actually help someone. But, it’s getting late, I ought to head out, I’ll come an visit so you know I’m alive, see ya”
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And so I head toward the door, I do need to get home and get ready for tomorrow, I do want to make a good impression on my new teammate after all
"Please, reconsider, I can't bear the thought of such a kind young lady like yourself dying in an attempt to help those who don't care for your life. Please, you really don't have to do that kind of work, you can work here, anywhere, just please stop putting your life at risk. You really don't need to do thi-"
Mrs. Orana's final pleas for me to give up are stifled when the door closes. But as I get further away from the building, they're replaced with another sound, a very faint sound, so faint I can barely hear it. Enhancing my hearing with mana I can hear the sound more clearly, and it sounds like some kind of commotion.
I wouldn’t typically bother with something like this, since it’s usually nothing big, but this time it’s worrying me because it’s coming from the Infirma district, which means that either someone is purposely trying to hurt the people there, or the residents are fighting over something. Regardless of which it is, it isn’t good, most Infirma don’t get proper meals, or sleep in proper beds, so if there’s a fight that could easily lead to someone’s death.
I begin running over to the conflict, picking up speed as I go, I need to get there as quickly as possible. One meter, three meters, nine meters every step, as I go faster and faster, I eventually get close enough to see the fight. It looks like there’s a group of people crowded around one area, with some of them being thrown by magic every couple of seconds.
It’s strange, while there is clearly magic at play, as far as I can tell, none of the people in this group are mages. Regardless, something is causing this commotion, and I ought to stop it.
As I get closer, I can see that the group is surrounding a single person, who is likely the cause of the issue. For some reason, a crowd of people are all attacking one person. It’s likely that this person had something to incentivize, but I just can’t imagine what might have caused so many people to go after this one person. Regardless of the reason however, the fact remains that this person is in severe danger, and definitely needs help.
Just as I get close enough to see the situation fully, the man who is in the center of the commotion is suddenly hit in the head by a rock thrown from the crowd. This is when I can see him a little better, and he appears no different from any other Infirma, bringing even more confusion as to where the magic is coming from. However, I don't have time to be pondering such questions, as the man is knocked to the ground by the stone. This opening gives the other people a chance to jump on him, with most of them taking the opportunity to search his person for anything of value. I need to get rid of these people, but I can't just move them with force, most of them would likely not survive if I were to move them myself.
"What's going on here? Why are you people attacking this man?"
In an attempt to scare them off, I scream out at them, which does work for the most part, with only a few staying after that. Even those few however, follow the rest once I get nearer.
Standing over the man, he's covered head to toe in blood, most of which being his own. It still doesn't make sense, why would people just suddenly attack this man so violently? Even if he had food, which the Infirma rarely get, it shouldn't have caused them to attack like this. This question can be answered later though, since my biggest priority should be getting him to safety.
He definitely won't survive with his injuries, his only hope is that I can get him to a hospital, but the nearest hospital is quite far away, and moving too fast could easily make his injuries worse. My only option is to get him there as quickly, and safely as I possibly can, and pray that he doesn't die on the way.
"It's okay, it'll all be fine, you just have to hold on for a bit, I'll get you to a healer and you'll be fixed up in no time"
Offering whatever consolation I can, even if he cant hear me, I pick up the man and begin my run towards the town center, which is luckily, a mostly straight path from the Infirma district, so there aren't many turns. The hospital, like most buildings in this town, is in the town center, so getting there is my current goal.
Running fast while still keeping the man steady in my arms takes all of my concentration, and every one of the few turns risks a fatal injury. I can't tell if he is even still alive, but I have to keep telling myself that he is, he needs to stay alive. Rounding my last turn before the town center, I slow down a bit so that I don't stop too suddenly at the hospital, very soon after I emerge into the crowded area. My arrival with a half dead guy in my arms causes a commotion, but I cant worry about that while I run over to the hospital.
Bursting though the door, I'm greeted by a mostly empty room, with maybe four or five patients waiting to be treated, all of which look over to me when I enter the building. There's no one stationed at the front desk, and behind it is where the hospital rooms are likely at.
"Please, this man needs a healer quickly, he's dying!"
Right after I say that, a young woman, who is likely a nurse, comes from the hospital rooms looking slightly annoyed.
"Please don't yell, it's late and we hav- OH GOD! I'll get the healer, you need to follow me into the back where we can get him onto a bed"
Immediately she heads back to the rooms, where I'm quick to follow. Heading through the doorway, there's a long hallway with many rooms to either side. I follow the nurse quickly into one of the rooms, and place the man onto the bed, and the nurse heads out to get a healer. Not one minute later, she returns with a healer following her, an older guy with a long, white coat, and a short beard.
"Wow, that's not good, he definitely needs healing, it'll be difficult but I think I can handle it"
These words are a big relief, as I wasn't sure if he would be okay, but the healer seems confident in his survival. Taking the first good look at the man, I can see that he's wearing a strange pair of glasses, and has somehow kept hold of a metal stick throughout the entire run here. He also looks better somehow, like ha's already been healed somewhat. Regardless, the healer removes the mans personal items, such as the glasses, stick, and coat, and begins administering healing magic.
"It'll probably take all night before he's fully healed, you should go and come back tomorrow"
"Okay, thanks for all the help"
"I'm just doing my job ma'am"
Taking the healer's advice, I head back to my own home, since it isn't too far from here I can come check on this place before I head off to meet my new partner.