CHAPTER 87: FINALLY
Érica saw how the young militiaman who had pushed her to save her was hugging his family in the medical tent.
He had a daughter and a wife.
Érica, even though she was grateful, she still kept thinking how was it possible that he pushed her, risking his life to save her.
There were so many reasons not to risk it that way.
“You wonder why I did it?” the young militiaman asked as he held his daughter in his arms, seeing her expression.
Érica nodded.
“I never really thought about it. I just did it,” replied the young militiaman and, noticing that his wife was giving him a stinging look, perhaps for his recklessness, he coughed and commented. “But I think I did it because you protected us before. I’ve seen you fight and risk your life to protect us. This was the same.”
A simple enough answer.
The volunteers who came in the caravan were people who worked hard with the goal of helping.
It was true; they were making a profit and now with the elimination of the last hordes and this one they would make a good profit, however they were volunteers risking their lives.
They were putting their lives on the line on a mission that they would earn a pittance compared to other missions.
“I’ll let you get some rest, Okello,” Érica said with a sigh at that answer.
She kept to herself that she was thinking of rewarding him with something he needed.
Perhaps he did it of her own free will, but Erica needed to make up for the risk the young man had taken, and a reward would be her form of gratitude.
Stepping out into the medical tent, Érica surveyed the surroundings.
There were no fatalities, however, that didn’t mean there were no wounded.
Situations changed and no matter how experienced a skill user was, there was always the possibility of them getting hurt.
Walking around the surroundings, Érica could see how some of the wounded had cuts on their bodies or bites and among them, there were some with more serious injuries and even mutilated without part of their limbs.
It was unbelievable that for a volunteer mission, people would risk so much to protect others.
The worst thing was that there were no media present to spread their actions and they would end up like the previous times Érica had heard about Arcas’ missions.
They would go unnoticed... Just like the refugees in Nakuru City went unnoticed.
While there was no need for fame, the important point was the distribution of information and their actions so that other people would realize what was going on.
Perhaps outside their homes, outside their beds and comfortable armchairs, situations like this were happening.
Maybe they would not change at all and everything would remain the same, but maybe some would open their eyes just like her, who had been in ignorance for quite some time.
Opening your eyes to realize that heroes were not only in big cities or that they were not even called heroes ... They were simple people who helped others.
Without flashy titles, without important news, or simply without popularity.
Érica sighed heavily, and then, opening her holographic watch, she placed her order.
******
There was silence in the infirmary room as several individuals looked at an adventurer.
“Don’t look at me like that. I only lost an arm,” Commented one adventurer with a half-smile.
“Are you kidding? You’ll overwork Cardinal Brousseau!” chided Vazquez with a bitter tone.
It was the jovial attitude that caused Vazquez to scold, and the response was...
“It was losing my arm or getting my neck ripped off by a cat. I chose the lesser evil.” Replied the adventurer with a goofy grin.
Even though that adventurer now had no arm and was pale from blood loss and pain, he was giving a smile that let on that his mood wasn’t all that bad.
“You still owe us beers for saying we could ‘siege’ an SS Rank creature,” Vazquez said, shaking his head as he let out a sigh.
This time the adventurer’s expression changed more obviously than before.
Aurora, who was watching, shook her head and continued to walk around the infirmary.
There were quite a few injured, some with scratches, bites, or broken bones that were considered minor, and then there were those who suffered more serious injuries, such as loss of limb or mutilation.
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Seven people lost their limbs in combat or lost the functionality of some of them.
Claws that severed an eye, bites that ended up tearing off an arm, or simply some spell from some magical beast with attribute affinity that ended up damaging part of the body.
Aurora was going through all the nursing tents and would go over to talk to those in the worst condition.
As the leader of the caravan, it was her duty to take care of them.
They were volunteers who had followed her, and Aurora had learned to take care of their own.
This time was no different.
They would come over and talk about their situations, informing her of the possibilities the city offered.
Losing an arm was not something fatal or of great concern.
Whether it was magical healing or medical advancement, both were highly developed, making it possible to combine magic with traditional medical techniques.
So recovering an arm was easy for an S-Rank healer or through some advanced healing techniques related to technology.
Of course, magical healing was more advanced, as ‘Terra nova’ from where most of humanity learned magical knowledge, was a highly developed world in terms of magics.
Now Zerzura City had programs for those who fought for the city.
That program included regeneration of lost body parts and, in the waiting and post-recovery period, an allowance.
It may not be enough to compare to what they earned on other missions, however, it was enough to allow them a brief vacation while they waited for their body to return to full health.
Adding that the individuals doing the healing were the Church of Time and Space, the results came fairly quickly.
Since Cardinal Brousseau regenerated lost members for free in the church to help people.
And in the church, there were multiple very capable healing mages.
In as little as a month, they could be back to doing whatever they wished, fully recovered.
That information was not classified and was public knowledge.
However, Aurora would take it upon herself to inform them to keep their peace of mind or see how they could help in other ways, as sometimes some had their own personal circumstances.
While there were emergency cases where they were in fatal situations, the support members could stabilize them and send them through the portal, receiving immediate medical attention upon arrival.
That was why the atmosphere in the medical area was not heavy, but very busy.
The mission was already ending, and there were no fatalities. From this point on, they could handle calmly everything else.
Wounds could be healed, lost limbs could regenerate, and trauma could be treated.
She was close to leaving the medical area when she noticed Nicole and Clémentine helping.
Although they looked exhausted, they were carrying some medical supplies or plates of food around.
Aurora didn’t say too much, just smiled at them as she left the medical area.
After seeing Leslie helping to serve plates of food since it was noon, Aurora received the message from Érica about taking pictures and allowing her to distribute the information about the mission.
Since there were no problems, Aurora agreed calmly.
She knew that both the adventurers of the Orisha Oko guild and the Church of Time and Space also took it upon themselves to use these events to attract charitable contributions or to increase their image and attract members.
Even the army itself advertised its recruitment with these missions.
Aurora didn’t mind, as the repercussions never went far and mainly... She always asked for other people to be given more importance.
The first reason was that she disliked the media and reporters who could always pile up looking for any news and even misrepresenting it.
The other reason was that she preferred to keep a quiet life.
Heading towards the main tent, she walks in and noticed Alice, who was lying on the couch eating chips.
“Boss. We have analyzed the objects the Smilodon Fatalis were carrying. They have no company or blacksmith markings, it was specially designed by some human without leaving their mark.” Reported Liam, who was also present.
“Humans engaging in relations with a Smilodon Fatalis that are known to be enemies of humanity. That sounds problematic,” Akira muttered with a frown.
“Welcome to Africa,” Aurora replied and with a smile, asked. “Or should I say welcome to the magic forest?”
She knew that the magical forest had its own magical beast society that was also just as chaotic as the human society.
The Queen of the Magic Forest was strong and under her she had other subordinates, however, the magical beasts were varied and the magic forest large.
Like the Smilodon Fatalis that was literally marked as an enemy, at first sight, there were other intelligent magical beasts just as dangerous.
And there were even magical beasts with which they were at peace that had a poor relationship with humans.
It was normal for there to be conflicts when humans kept entering the magical forest for its resources and to hunt all kinds of magical beasts without distinguishing irrational creatures from peaceful magical beasts.
The relationship of the magical forest with Zerzura was that of a friendship, but regarding the other humans, it depended on how they acted.
Those who came to hunt them did not leave the forest, and those who passed with their permission were even helped.
On other levels, the magical beast tribes maintained their own relationships with different international organizations, and the magical forest, in general, was the same.
Relating with some tribes was a challenge, as the magical beasts rarely trusted humans too much.
After all, before Zerzura appeared, the situation was very conflictual and tribes were at war with humans and sometimes with each other.
Even now, it was normal for some humans to make deals with dangerous magical beasts for profit from the magical forest.
Whether it was collecting some magical plant that would be worth millions or allowing them to go deep into a natural dungeon with valuable resources and even get the materials from another magical beast.
For some people, it was all about profit, so a situation like someone providing items to a magical beast was sadly common.
Still...
“I will see that the Apicius Company reports the situation to the Magic Forest authorities. I’m sure the ‘Queen’s Guards’ will report as well.” Aurora commented without making a big deal out of it.
An S-ranked magical beast with magical artifacts was undoubtedly dangerous and, in this case, it was a Smilodon Fatalis that could dominate other beasts.
This was not an A-Rank magical beast, but an S-Rank Smilodon Fatalis... A beast that, if not treated with care, could be very dangerous.
If they had attacked another caravan instead of their group that had S Ranks and support from Zerzura, then the situation could have been completely different.
“By the way, I’ll take the meat,” Alice reported, and looking at Aurora, she stated. “I want to use it for dinner on July 27.”
Akira’s expression quivered so simply, and Aurora, for her part, nodded in acceptance.
July 27th was Zerzura’s anniversary, and having something to eat with her sister was quite nice for Aurora.
Although she concealed the fact that someone would probably have to attend the anniversary party of the higher ups.
The problem was, she didn’t want to be that someone.
“The army will be in charge of accompanying us for the rest of the trip. I would like to arrive by tonight in Yuba and by tomorrow afternoon be in Wau to return to Zerzura.” Aurora commented with a slightly exhausted sigh.
There were some wounded and tired, so Yuba being a few hours away was as far as they could get today.
The good thing was that the portal could be used to send the wounded, and Colonel Makeba had offered to take over protecting the caravan so the primary force could rest.
Aurora would not squander that opportunity.
“Finally. I want to get to Zerzura and take a long bath.” Akira muttered with a long sigh.
Aurora nodded quietly, agreeing.