If I were being honest, the whole affair in the village felt almost too straightforward—straightforward to the point of being a little underwhelming, at least for my taste. I came in, spent a day examining patients, and before I knew it, a team of replacement doctors was supposedly en route to take over.
The payment, though? No complaints there. It was generous, to say the least. Plus, it gave me the perfect opportunity to test out the true capabilities of my armored vehicle. And let’s be real—it was ridiculously overpowered. The thing shredded everything in its path, whether it was drakes, helicopters, or even that small dragon.
Now, after the chaos of the assault, I found myself back in the clinic, sitting in the examination room with a steaming mug of tea the nurse had given me as thanks for defending the village. I offered her all my Snickers bars in return—they were just dead weight for now. Besides, while everyone might have seen my actions as heroic, for me, it was all in a day’s work. And if I were being honest? I had a lot of fun doing it.
As I sipped the coffee, the bitter warmth a welcome contrast to the cool night air, I couldn’t help but wonder—where were those paratroopers of doctors Eleanor promised? Two drake hordes, countless enemies down, and still no sign of them. I let out a sigh, leaning back in my chair.
I stared at the ceiling above me, letting my thoughts drift. It was surreal to think about how far I’d come—from an overworked, underpaid resident to a wandering healer whose wealth might now rival the top 5% of earners in the United States. Heck, I wasn’t even American, so to even match the income of the top 5% in the USA was never in my mind.
Still, not enough money to buy an F-15C…
Thinking about it, I realized I hadn’t checked my iPhone in… well, forever. Seriously, what would it even look like in this world? Would there still be YouTube or something similar? Maybe some kind of magical app store?
Curiosity got the better of me. I pulled the phone out of my pocket and unlocked it with a quick tap of my finger on the screen. Click. The familiar interface blinked to life, its glow cutting through the dim clinic lighting.
“Voila,” I muttered, half expecting something bizarre. Instead, it looked remarkably normal—notifications, apps, the works. Yet, a quick scan of the screen revealed a few unfamiliar icons. Intrigued, I started swiping through, wondering if this phone was a real iPhone or the fake version of it.
Sure, it had applications that I was familiar with. Still, an application stood out, the application called Chatty with five unread messages, all of which came from David. I opened the application, looking at the message.
David: “Hello.”
David: “Welcome to this world.”
David: “Haven’t you open the phone?”
David: “Are you alive?”
David: “Ain, did you lose your phone?”
I hesitated for a second. David’s last act didn’t give me a good impression, especially with how he abandoned the whole task force since it wasn’t his job to rescue them, but on another hand, I might do the same if I were him. I sighed, well, it wouldn’t hurt to reply to him, would it?
Ain: “Alive.”
David's reply was almost instantaneous as if he had been waiting for her response.
David: "Ah, good to know. Thought a drake might’ve eaten you. Or worse—forgotten about me."
Ain: "Forgotten? No. Annoyed? Kind of. What do you want?"
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
David: "Harsh. I was just checking in. You’re still in the village, right? "
Ain: "That’s me. Why? Planning to drop in for a visit?"
David: "Funny you should mention that… Look up."
I blinked, confused for a moment before the sound registered. A low hum, steadily growing louder—the unmistakable drone of propeller blades slicing through the night sky. Her eyes darted to the window just as the shadow of an aircraft passed overhead, illuminated briefly by the moonlight.
I grabbed my mug of tea and walked outside, my boots crunching on the gravel path. The villagers were already looking up, murmuring amongst themselves as they pointed at the sky. It was a C-130 with a Federation flying right above our head.
My phone buzzed again.
David: "That’s me. Thought you’d want those replacement doctors sooner rather than later."
Ain: "You? Flying a transport plane? You don’t strike me as the type."
David: “Hey, if she needs a cheap pilot, I’m always up.”
The cargo aircraft's back ramp swung open, releasing a surge of cold air as a heavy container was ejected. In an instant, a massive white parachute unfurled, catching the night wind and slowing the descent with practiced precision.
As the container floated down, a group of military personnel leaped from the aircraft, their figures cutting through the air in perfect sync. One by one, their parachutes blossomed against the black sky, forming a stunning constellation of white against the abyssal backdrop. It was quite… a message of the Federation’s power.
Still, if the doctors were from the Federation, did that mean the Federation didn’t respect the authority of this village? I wasn’t sure anymore, but one thing seemed clear: if the goblins didn’t open fire on them, then they couldn’t be hostile… could they?
A group of soldiers touched down on the grassland just outside the village, followed by a container that landed with a heavy thud. They didn’t have the Federation’s signature blue-and-red flag on their uniforms, but instead wore a strange black-and-white roundel with an unfamiliar symbol. Maybe it was a mercenary insignia, but I wasn’t certain. What I was certain of, however, was that they wore red cross armbands.
The soldiers moved swiftly toward the village, weapons in hand—men and women of various races and sizes. Among them were goblins, elves, ogres, humans, and kins. But there was no sign of David.
The goblins seemed just as confused as I was, but they didn’t shoot. Then I spotted Albert at the village entrance, standing as if he were waiting for them. An ogre led the group, gripping a massive M134 minigun with ease.
I stepped closer to the support team, eager to find out if they were the doctors I had been waiting for.
“The Guild Master sent me,” the ogre said.
“Welcome to our village,” Albert replied with a nod.
“Thanks for the warm welcome,” the ogre said, returning the gesture with a nod of his own.
And you greeted me with RPGs and TOWs, really? I sighed, a little bit of jealousy in my mind, but whatever, I was here for the thrill and the money anyway. Then, one of the support soldiers approached me, the elf asked me whether I had the guild master’s special device or not.
I pulled out the sensitive container from my inventory and gave it to the elf. The elf retrieved the container and thanked me for the help. She said the transport was a little bit late, but she was glad that the device arrived on time.
“Can you give me the rundown of the clinic? Give me a small brief of the situation,” the elf asked.
“Sure,” I nodded.
I escorted her to the clinic, introducing her to the nurse and giving a detailed rundown of the patients' conditions. She nodded attentively as I explained each case, her demeanor calm and professional. It felt like a familiar routine, almost like being back on Earth—except back then, I didn’t have an IFV armed with 30mm autocannons or access to healing magic. Funny how life changes.
“Thanks for the help,” the elf said with a polite nod, her voice carrying a quiet confidence. “We’ll take it from here.” As we reached the front door of the clinic, she turned to me with a gentle smile. “Give my regards to Eleanor, will you?”
“I will,” I nodded.
“Have a good one, Ain,” she said, before entering the clinic.
[Quest Complete: +800,000 UC]
[Current UC: 1,372,947 > 2,172,947 UC]
“Alright, that’s it for today,” I smiled, looking at my bank account.
I made my way to the IFV, lowering the back ramp with a press of a button before stepping inside. The familiar hum of the engine greeted me as I climbed into the driver’s hatch, settling into the seat. My destination was the safehouse hidden in the grassland. I figured the goblins wouldn’t appreciate me casually opening a portal to the safehouse right here in the middle of their village—it seemed better to keep that part of my operations discreet.
The midnight darkness stretched out before me as I activated the thermal imaging. The world transformed into shades of black and white, revealing the terrain and any potential obstacles that lay ahead. With the IFV's engine purring steadily, I navigated my way back toward the grassland, the rumble of the vehicle a steady companion in the otherwise silent night.