"Come on," Lucinda says, taking a big breath.

"Well, this is going to suck," I say, looking at the slightly familiar door in front of me.

"I’ve already sent word to them. The Misery Dispeller should be here as well to make sure you are right."

"Isn't that peachy?" I say, turning to the redhead and her hypnotic, purple eyes that look at me sadly but also infuse my spirit with vigor.

Goddamnit.

"Knock, knock," I say as I, well, knock.

The door opens a few moments later, revealing Antoninus and his sister, Livilla, right behind him.

"Joey," the man says with uncertainty in his voice.

That's what happens when you tell someone that you have found out through mysterious means what's wrong with their mother but that it's a conversation better had in person.

I can feel Lucinda's hand pushing me inside, and I nod to the man.

"Hey, man," I say. For a moment, I don't know what to do, and awkwardly, I jab at Antoninus's shoulder. "Well, huh…"

I look around the house and see a middle-aged man sitting at a table reading a book. I sniff the air a couple of times and notice a thick herbal scent.

"Oh, are you the [Healer]?" I ask. He looks up from the book and closes it with a snap. More of a thud, actually. But that's not important.

"I am being paid to help patients, not to listen to wild theories. Speak," he says curtly.

"Sure. What's your name again?" I ask.

"Joey," Antoninus nudges me, "that's the Misery Dispeller."

I know.

I do know.

I really know.

It's just that right now, I would like to take out my sword and bat the Cock Feller out of this house at the speed of light. I understand that he might have wasted time with other people before, but he hasn't even heard me yet. Some goddamn manners wouldn't hurt.

"Joey," I hear Lucinda's voice from behind me.

Goddamn… alright, alright.

Lucinda took some time off the Watch for the whole morning to help me out with this. I told her I was going to compensate her for her time, but she didn't want to hear it. Heh, whatever, I'll just put it in her legal bill without her knowing.

"Mr. Cock Feller," I tell the man, "I have a growing suspicion that Antoninus's mother is affected by more than just an ordinary [Curse], especially knowing which [Necromancers] she faced."

"What did you just call me?" The Misery Dispeller looks at me with a frown.

"So, I have very high perceptivity to magic, and I saw way more magic inside Antoninus's mother's body than it has any right to be. So, given where I saw the magic – which would be in her bones – and given the symptoms, I think Antoninus's mother's got…" I pause for a second, cringing. "She's got [Rottenbone]."

The gasp comes from neither of the people I’ve seen so far but from an almost hidden Lucillus, who was lurking behind a door.

"[Rottenbone]?!" Lucillus takes a few steps toward me. "Are you sure?"

"Pretty much," I bite my lips, turning to Antoninus. The big [Guard] just looks confused. "What's that?"

"I've never heard of it," Livilla adds from the side.

Everyone looks at the Misery Dispeller. I suspect everybody’s expecting that the man will bash me for saying something extremely stupid, but he just stares at me. He stares in silence with a neutral expression. Then, he slowly turns to the book he left on the table.

"Let's wake up Miss Claudia," he says after a beat. "I need to run a second examination."

…

"This is going to hurt," the [Healer] tells the strong woman lying in bed, "quite a lot. I don't have any pain-numbing skills."

"Go ahead," Claudia shrugs. "I have [Major Pain Resistance]."

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

"You," the [Healer] points at me as he wields a scalpel. "What is your name?"

"Joey Luciani," I say.

"Where is it?"

"The bones in her ribcage have a lot of it. Especially here," I point at the seventh rib on the right side.

The man doesn't even flinch before plunging the scalpel into the rib, with Claudia barely blinking. In a second, he's cut out a chunk of flesh and bone. The next second, he's already applying a paste to the wound.

"All of you, I need a moment. Mr. Luciani, come with me."

…

We are back in the kitchen, alone.

He looks at the bloodied fragment and takes out a petri-dish-looking glass. He also takes out several tinctures and starts applying them. There's not much happening other than him doing that.

After a few minutes, he looks up from the piece of bone and exhales slowly.

"Rotten [Necromancers]… You are right."

…

I asked the [Healer] to let me give the news as I've known Antoninus since the day I came here. I avoided mentioning the fact that I'm going to try and actively cure Claudia, but I need to tell that to the people here in front of me. It makes me want to puke from anxiety, but it's either that or she dies.

Lucinda keeps looking at me encouragingly, and I can feel the silence in the room stretch as everyone looks at me with different looks. Antoninus, his sister, and his mother are mostly just curious. Lucillus looks pale. Lucinda looks worried.

I wonder what my own eyes look like, you know?

I wish I could be anywhere but here. Even back on Earth would be fine with me.

"So," I clear my voice, "the news isn’t good. As you all know, the [Necromancers] are followers of Mauser… well, I've been studying quite a bit of Vanedeni lore and have come across a few things. We've just confirmed it with the Misery Dispeller..."

I scratch my head, starting to feel dizzy.

"Yeah, so… It's called [Rottenbone]—the curse, I mean. The curse seeps into the bones. It starts from there but affects every other organ until failure. It's extremely rare because Mauser himself created it, and the [Necromancers] able to use it must be around level 60."

Until I said 'level 60,' the family in front of me looked fine. Now… well, now they look scared.

"Joey, what does it mean? Isn't there a cure?" Antoninus asks, disturbed.

"Not really…" I clear my voice. "[Rottenbone] is… superior magic. It's like… imagine the worst disease you can catch and add magic on top. It's not looking good."

"Joey Luciani is being very charitable with his words," the Misery Dispeller intercepts, "[Rottenbone] has never been cured in our known history. While it is true that there have been very few cases and that it cannot spread, unlike some other plagues, this is a terminal disease. Claudia, you might want to start getting your business in order."

I look at the Misery Dispeller, who just looks back at me with a plain face.

"I am not in the business of lying to my patients. I cannot do anything. I don’t know any [Healer] who could tackle this without making it worse. My deepest condolences, but this is beyond the ability of any [Healer] on Epretos, including me."

"Well, you do you," I say before turning to the family, "but I might be able to help. I can slow down the development of [Rottenbone], and I'll be working on a cure. It just so happens I know how it might be cured."

"Joey… you?" Antoninus cringes as his eyes start pooling with tears.

Everyone in the room seems to be drowning in a thick cloud of dread, the tension so palpable that it could be cut with a knife. The weight of silence is interrupted only by the sound of strained breaths.

Claudia blinks away a tear, her voice barely a whisper, "What does this mean for me, Human? How much time do I have?"

"More than a year," I say. "Maybe two. It depends on how effective I'll be at slowing this down."

Yo, old man. Start working your magic whenever you want.

"But how do you know?!" Livilla starts raising her voice, panicking. "How can you know?!"

Lucinda interjects softly, her purple eyes filled with concern, "One step at a time. Joey has been doing some extensive research."

Lucillus, who has been holding back, finally speaks, his voice quivering, "We need hope now. Joey, whatever you've found, we need to know."

"I can't divulge the details of what I know," I say, feeling like a heavy rock is squeezing my chest. "But I can tell you that I have some ideas that might work. Might, obviously, is the keyword. I'll try my absolute best, but I only have so much Mana to use in a day. You should wait. I'll need a few minutes with Claudia to cast something that will slow down the disease. After that, yeah... you'll have to wait."

Livilla’s eyes light up with a spark of hope, “So, there's a chance?”

Antoninus, who has always been the pillar of strength in his family, is visibly shaken. Taking a deep breath, he locks eyes with me. "Joey, if there's even a sliver of hope, I'll move mountains. Just tell me what to do."

"Again, I can help, but... you can only wait."

The Misery Dispeller sighs.

"While I respect your optimism, Mr. Luciani, magic of this kind is not child's play. It's dangerous and unpredictable. Attempting to combat a curse of this caliber could very well make things worse. What's even your level? Are you what, in your thirties?"

"None of your business," I turn and wink at the man. "I need some faith," I add, looking at the others in the room.

...

Will you practice magic all the time now, Joey Luciani?

"No," I reply curtly as I walk to the Pratus. "Healing Claudia is of paramount importance, but it's not my only obligation. Hers is one life—it matters. I owe it to my mother to do this. But I have others to take care of as well."

Your rekindled interest in this baking hobby of yours?

"Call it whatever you want," I tell the [Archmage].

You want to risk her life because you need to... bake some bread?

"First, we don't know if actual magical food might also help combat the cancer. Second, I can help hundreds if not thousands of people directly by stepping up the business; potentially tens or hundreds of thousands indirectly."

Magic, baking, business... I suspect that Adventuring is going to be a part of your life as well, whether you like it or not. How will you reconcile all these activities? What if trying to do everything at once means that your friend's mother dies, your business fails, and the next time someone tries to kill you, they will succeed?

"I never lived up to my potential," I speak out loud, "if I gotta die, I might as well do it while trying to make up for it."

As I finish my sentence, I can see a distant figure resting in the shadow of the big statue of Vespasianus at the center of the Pratus. The man sits against the cold stone together with his massive wolf-dog.

"Plus, I don't intend to do this alone," I tell the [Archmage] as I speed up my steps.