Chapter 20

What she Wants

Noah's conversation with the knightess took almost half an hour, and surprisingly, no one interrupted them. Noah himself got lost in the conversation with the girl—something he only does in rare and intriguing cases like this. He doesn't usually stray from his character much, but situations sometimes overcome appearances!

The last thing he discussed with the girl was a way to resolve her situation, and there he learned that her master hadn't reported her actions yet. His reason was that his priority was his mission to monitor Noah and the progress of his condition, and only after he was discharged would he address what happened. Noah suspected that wasn't the main reason and that the old man was just lenient, perhaps even sympathetic to the girl. But Noah planned to take advantage of such an opportunity—a chance to solve a problem peacefully.

After ending the conversation formally, Noah approached the double doors of the room and opened them, allowing the old knight and Lady Elara to enter.

Only after Noah closed the door, did the knight allow himself to remove his helmet. Noah looked at Lady Elara, expecting some questions, but her focus was on the girl, as if trying to see something inside her.

After a moment, she focused on Noah and nodded quietly before heading towards the bed as the old knight had done before her.

Noah wiped the strange exchange from his mind and followed Lady Elara. As he approached, he caught the question the old knight asked his student. "What did you gain from such a conversation? What's there to talk about?"

The girl on the bed smiled at her master and said in a sad voice, "I learned what I really want." Her expression turned to sadness, but Noah could see the deceit. "But now it's too late."

Her master in turn carried a sad expression and didn't forget to look at Noah with hatred as if he were the reason. "Your father was one of the knights I trained under me before I became an imperial knight. Every time he failed or made a mistake, he would mutter under his breath some words, and every time I saw him do that I felt curious. On the day he graduated as a noble knight for his house just under his father, I asked him about it. He said that those weren't his words, but his father's. 'Live and learn, mistakes and learn, learn and move forward.' ... I don't know if your father had the chance to teach you in turn, but I'm telling you now. Take what you want."

The conversation fell silent from there for a while, the old knight bowing his head as if at a funeral, the girl closing her eyes to think about the words she had learned. Only Noah and Lady Elara remained standing there, watching from the side.

After a while, Lady Elara stepped forward and announced, "Your master is here now, the healers should check your condition."

The old knight lifted his head as if from a deep sleep, but his movement to put on his helmet signaled his agreement. The girl on the bed nodded, or as much as she could move her head. Noah went ahead of Lady Elara to the door of the room and opened it, signaling the healers outside to enter. To his surprise, only one entered under the envious gaze of the others.

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Now, it was time for Noah to hide the traces of his healing actions on the girl. So instead of going and standing beside Lady Elara, he went and stood a few steps behind the old healer who assessed his condition.

The old healer sat at the edge of the bed, looking at the girl. Before doing anything, he began by asking her questions about how she felt, focusing on the heart area, which the girl insisted hurt just like the rest of her body.

The old healer didn't seem convinced, but he nodded and began casting a medical inspection spell. Noah watched from the side, his chance to intervene would be when the healer presented his assessment. But for now, he just watched as various spells were cast on the girl's body.

After about a quarter of an hour, the healer stepped back a bit from the girl, his expression one of confusion and self-pity. He wiped his sweaty forehead with a handkerchief from his coat as he adjusted his seat on the bed. Before giving his assessment, Noah stepped into the man's line of sight.

"I recognize you." Noah said inquisitively. "Are you the healer who was called when I woke up?"

The old man lifted his head at the interruption, and as soon as he saw Noah, his expression grew sadder. Noah stepped closer and took the man's hand in his. "It's you, I didn't recognize you in the dim light," Noah said happily. "My mother always says, show gratitude when it should be given, and I'm grateful to you for taking care of me back then. I looked for you to thank you personally, but I couldn't find you anywhere. This castle is a lot big."

Noah had indeed looked for the old man back then, but not for this reason. He wanted to hear about his condition from him personally, not trusting the words of Donfer Bornar. When he couldn't find him, he went outside to get some air, where he met Lady Elara, Eyolian, and Elowen.

Some color returned to the old man's expression, accompanied by some guilt. "We don't get many of those in our line of work, and I would have accepted it if I had done anything noteworthy. But I was too inexperienced to do my job..."

Noah interrupted the old man's words, squeezing his hand. "Even if you couldn't help me, I bet you've helped many before me and will help many after, like this girl here. So my thanks extend, not just for myself."

The old man's expression brightened with confidence as he looked into Noah's eyes. He smiled and held Noah's hands in return, saying, "Then I will accept your thanks."

Noah smiled brightly and declared, "It's only natural. I'll leave you to your work now, there are others waiting."

The old man's expression returned to professionalism, but this time, instead of confusion and self-pity, his expression showed confidence and professionalism. Noah stepped back, smiling inwardly.

As he stepped to stand beside Lady Elara, she gave him a brief sideways glance and returned to watching the healer. Noah accepted that warmly and listened to the old man. "Her physical condition hasn't changed from what it was, but her core's condition has improved significantly. In my previous report, I said the girl had lost the ability to manipulate mana, her core was damaged beyond repair. But now I retract those words, her core will regain its health over time, and the girl will return to practicing magic."

The old knight stepped closer to the bed but remained silent under his helmet. Lady Elara also stepped closer, but towards the healer, as she asked in a judicious tone, "And why this difference in your reports?"

Noah didn't follow Lady Elara but kept steady eye contact with the girl who was looking at him in turn. Her expression was one of absolute happiness, her eyes filled with uncontrollable tears.

The old healer stood from his seat on the bed and confidently announced, "I am aware of the differences in my words, but there is a logical reason for that. You see, I wouldn't have reached this conclusion from just one inspection, I needed at least two. And I think, no, I'm almost sure the girl has something that helps her soul heal. I'm not making accusations, but I'm confident in my words, if only the girl would share..."

Everyone looked at the girl, but she remained silent, her expression tense as she looked at each person around her in turn. Noah was surprised by the girl's great acting ability, but this worked in their favor. After a few moments of tense silence, the girl sighed and said, "The healer is right, but I prefer the healer to leave,.. I value my secrets."