“Are any of them infected?” The envoy's inquiry, delivered with an emotionless expression, revealed the tension Lily had learned to read through his interaction with his sword. His hand was halfway to the weapon, a subtle indicator of his underlying anxiety. She was still fine-tuning her understanding of the envoy’s mood and had begun to decipher the signals: a fast grab signaled anger, while fear might manifest as a tightening grip. She was still exploring the specifics, but her observations had become an unexpected reliable guide to his emotions.
"As far as I can see, no," she replied, taking a moment for herself with a sip from the mug and a generous bite of the bread. The grueling hours spent crossing the tower district, marking those unfortunate enough to be afflicted for a grim fate, had finally ended with a brief break. However, even this pause was burdened with responsibilities, as she was tasked with checking the health of the tower's full contingent. The silver lining, however slight, was that her efforts were being compensated with a meal.
The watchers were a diverse group. Most were local warriors whose aspirations of becoming monster hunters had failed, leading them to enlist with the City Watch. This choice provided them with a stipend and resources for further training, each tailored to their individual talents. However, serving the Empire cast them in a difficult light among the townsfolk: simultaneously feared, resented, envied, and scorned. Seen by many as betrayers of their own, their gradual alienation from the community was a slow but inevitable drift, making them outsiders within their own town. And yet, in times of crisis like the mana surge, they were the ones called upon to defend the very community from which they had become estranged.
This complicated web of contradictions rendered them unpredictable. Throughout the day, Lily had encountered watchers who ranged from courteous to arrogant, indifferent to heroic. It was expected since they enrolled in the Watch because of need and not any shared conviction.
As Lily contemplated this, the envoy began to issue orders to the assembled watchers, about two dozen in number. "Your orders are to issue a curfew throughout the town. Residents are to stay indoors until further instructions are given. We will then proceed, district by district, to investigate cases and interrogate those deemed suspicious. Divide yourselves into four groups..." His voice carried on, outlining the plan as Lily tried to ward off the onslaught of a growing headache, the product of her realization that her involvement with the Watch would extend far beyond what she had initially envisioned.
The sudden intrusion of a breathless watcher shattered the impression of order that had been momentarily established within the tower. "Your excellency, there's trouble. The town is in chaos with reports of monster attacks stirring panic among the people," he reported.
Lily, momentarily caught off guard, narrowly avoided choking on her bread as she observed the envoy's reaction. His hand moved to his sword, gripping the handle with a resolve that made evident his underlying fear. What did this mean? She wondered.
The envoy's fear was indeed real, a reflection of the severity of the situation. If his suspicions of a witch orchestrating these events were correct, then the apparent randomness of the initial attacks had evolved into something far more sinister and coordinated. He had hoped to preemptively contain the threat by establishing a defensive perimeter around the tower, intending to expand this zone of safety district by district. However, the rapid escalation of incidents suggested that they were not just dealing with sporadic attacks but a deliberate assault on the town's stability.
Realizing that his strategy was progressing too slowly to counteract whatever evil was unfolding, he understood the need for immediate and decisive action.
With his resolve hardened by urgency, the envoy quickly adapted his plan. He directed the watchers to form six teams, each consisting of approximately three members, to accelerate their response. They would still follow the same basic path, ordering a curfew and checking district by district. This strategy was not without sacrifices; by not addressing the incidents of monster attacks directly, they acknowledged that some lives would be lost. However, the envoy deemed these sacrifices necessary to prevent the total collapse of the town's order and security.
To enforce this directive, he authorized the watchers to employ force, even lethal measures if deemed necessary, against any who defied the curfew or contributed to the spreading panic. In this moment of crisis, his leadership would be defined by the difficult choices he made, prioritizing the collective safety of the town over the individual tragedies.
Lily's world seemed to hover on the edge of chaos, her mind awash with the horrific images of what the envoy's orders could mean for the townsfolk. The thought of her neighbors, the familiar faces that had become a part of her daily life, potentially falling victim to the harsh enforcement was unbearable. Panic gripped her, a tightness in her chest that threatened to suffocate her as she envisioned the worst outcomes for those she cared about, including Draven.
Panic surged through Lily as she thought about Draven alone at home. The terrifying possibilities playing on her mind – what if, in their panic, someone sought refuge in their home? Worse yet, what if a monster breached the walls, bringing harm to her slumbering brother? She clamped a hand over her mouth, silencing a cry of desperation that threatened to escape. An urgent need propelled her; she had to reach Draven, and quickly. The safety of her brother was all that mattered, and every second wasted was a second too long.
In a moment of despair, the reflex to cast a 'clear' spell was desperate and instinctive. The calming magic settled over her, steadying her trembling hands and granting her the clarity to stand. Her attempt to slip away unnoticed, however, was abruptly halted by the envoy's call. “Mendicar Lily, please stop!” The word mendicar rooted her to the spot, confusion replacing the panic that had momentarily consumed her.
"Mendicar?" she echoed. The title was one she had aspired to but had not dared to believe she could attain so suddenly.
"Yes," the envoy stated firmly. "Master Kali and I officially acknowledge you as a licensed novice mendicar. Given our current situation, we're unable to complete the usual formalities, and your official identification will be issued once this matter is resolved. Nevertheless, you are granted special authorization to practice healing independently, without the need for supervision from another mendicar."
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
The envoy's declaration left Lily at a crossroads, caught between the joy of achieving a significant milestone in her journey and the grim reality of the situation that had expedited her qualification.
The 'clear' spell, though effective in granting her temporary calm, could not fully shield her from the overwhelming mix of emotions. Joy, fear, and responsibility – all converged, threatening to bring her to her knees.
"Your Excellency," Lily began, "I must get to my brother. He's ill, alone, and unconscious. If our home is invaded by someone or some monster..." She trailed off, her fears unspoken but clear to anyone who heard.
The envoy's response was not immediate, his annoyance briefly piercing the veil of his usually stoic demeanor. In any other situation, Lily's insistence and potential defiance might have been met with harsh rebuke or dismissal. Her value to their efforts, however, placed her in a unique position where traditional disciplinary measures had to be set aside. The possibility of threatening her with a treason charge flickered through his mind.
"Where do you live?" he finally asked. "I will send a patrol to retrieve your brother and bring him to the tower." His decision, while pragmatic, acknowledged the necessity of keeping Lily cooperative and focused on the task at hand.
Lily's reaction was a complex blend of relief and apprehension. The promise of her brother's safety lightened one immediate concern, but it also deepened her entanglement with the City Watch, binding her more tightly to their directives. Yet, there was nothing she could do here. She quickly provided their address and handed over her key.
With Draven's safety momentarily assured, Lily accompanied the envoy back into the fray. The presence of Master Kali's student, previously a source of confusion, now made perfect sense to Lily. How would they manage without a mendicar's supervision? Had she been on her own, the prospect of practicing healing would have enticed her to act. But with the envoy's presence, the idea of breaking Empire Law was unthinkable. Suddenly, the pieces fell into place, explaining the earlier interactions and Master Kali's hesitant looks during her discussions with the envoy. Perhaps the elder mendicar was hesitant to make a definitive call before the completion of the examination, or maybe she harbored intentions of leveraging Lily's situation to extract information about her unique abilities. Thankfully, with her new status, the Master mendicar had nothing on her. However, the possibility lingered that the envoy might still exert pressure to uncover something.
Armed with healing supplies and now recognized as a mendicar, she could actually help with healing and not just pointing out infected.
As they advanced towards the designated district, Lily noticed that other mendicars had also been mobilized, setting up temporary stations at the edges of a hastily erected 'safety perimeter' around the tower. Their task would involve treating a potentially large number of patients, with the financial burden of the treatments being covered by the tower. However, their services were confined strictly to emergency interventions, and with the tower reimbursing just one silver per patient, the scope of treatments they could offer was significantly constrained.
Amidst the chaos, a woman's scream pierced the air, "Please, let me go. Please, the monsters are coming... Aaargh!" Her pleas were abruptly silenced by the harsh action of a watcher. Lily recoiled at the sudden violence. Even if they saved the town, the Watch wouldn’t be gaining any goodwill.
The routine of identifying the infected had become normal for Lily, her initial horror gradually numbed by relentless repetition. She would categorize them by the severity of the 'infection,' and let the watchers deal with the rest. However, she could no longer shield herself from the harrowing consequences of her actions. With time pressing against them, there was no opportunity to move the most serious cases back to the tower or to a more isolated location for the execution. Instead, the appointed enforcer would carry out the mercy killings right there on the streets. Witnessing the execution of her judgments was a brutal ordeal. Each strike felt like a wound to her soul, as if she were being cleaved alongside them.
The operation was painstakingly slow, a meticulous process of evacuating homes and scrutinizing each individual, only for Lily to then determine their fate. This methodical approach, chosen by the envoy to ensure no infected person was overlooked, was exhaustive and nerve-racking. Beyond the immediate objective of containing the infection, the envoy had an ulterior motive at play – the hunt for the witch.
Their progress, however, was not swift enough to prevent tragedy. An old woman, one among the many awaiting inspection, became the epicenter of a horrific scene as a monster burst forth from within her. The eruption of the creature amid the crowded street, filled with people exposed and vulnerable, was the first major incident of their mission.
As panic swept through the crowd, chaos unfolded with people fleeing in terror, their screams filling the air, colliding and trampling over one another in their haste. The watchers struggled to contain the situation, but they couldn’t reach the monster fast enough, prompting the envoy to spring into action. His aura blazed momentarily before he surged forward at an abnormal speed, inadvertently causing harm to those who found themselves in his path.
Upon reaching the monster, he dispatched it with five swift slashes of his sword. The creature, barely tier 2, was no match for his strength. Such monsters were deemed weak by seasoned hunters, and could easily be outrun by even the untrained. However, its abrupt emergence in a populated urban area allowed it to wreak havoc.
Still, the pandemonium persisted, the crowd unaware of the monster's demise.
"Quiet!" the envoy bellowed, his voice enhanced by visible embers that subdued the masses. Left with no alternative, he used a significant portion of his mana to calm the frenzied crowd.
Caught in the wave of suppression, Lily felt a force pressing down on her, weakening her knees and clouding her mind. Before panic could resurge, the envoy declared the monster's defeat. With a quick glance for confirmation from Lily, he commanded everyone to retreat indoors. Fortunately, he did not question Lily's rapid assessment.
The crowd dispersed, leaving nearly a dozen individuals strewn across the ground. A swift evaluation revealed two fatalities. Among the injured was a watcher, her leg grievously wounded by the creature's bite.
Lily momentarily hesitated but quickly started to move once she remembered her new title. 'Health sense' guided her towards an elderly man with multiple fractures and a laceration on the back of his head. However, the envoy intercepted her, ordering, "Treat the watcher first," without further elaboration. Despite the urge to contest his order, Lily recognized the futility of such an argument. Resolutely, she redirected her attention to the watcher, understanding that attending to her promptly would allow her to sooner aid the elderly man.
"You will take a break here. Fifteen minutes," the envoy declared, moving towards a watcher. "Bring mendicar Lily something to drink and eat."
Lily's initial impulse was to protest that fifteen minutes would hardly suffice for treating the wounded, let alone for eating. However, she quickly shelved the idea. He had already allowed her to aid others aside from the watcher, in addition to providing food. Pushing for more seemed unwise. She acquiesced, recognizing the need to conserve her strength for the challenges ahead.