IPSC 17

Chapter 17

At the word take it off, Theodore looked at me with a bewildered expression, like he’d just heard something he really shouldn’t have.

“What did you say?”

“Take it off. I need to stop the bleeding.”

Wasn’t that what people did in movies and novels—treat the bleeding first in situations like this?

I wasn’t a medical professional, but even I knew you couldn’t just leave a wound like that alone.

Theodore stared at me for a moment, then, apparently agreeing with my reasoning, obediently removed his armor.

When he rolled up the underclothes he wore beneath it, a set of abs hardened by training came into view.

Normally, I would’ve enjoyed the sight, but now was definitely not the time.

The wound on his abdomen was worse than I’d expected. The skin around the gash—shaped like a wyvern’s claw—was charred black, as if burned, and bright red blood kept flowing between the darkened flesh.

Theodore spoke, breathing heavily.

“…It’s because of the poison in the wyvern’s claws.”

Cold sweat formed on my forehead.

Is he going to be okay?

He’s not going to die here, is he?

I’d even taken him off the攻略 list just to avoid a burned-at-the-stake ending.

No matter how much of a game character he was, I couldn’t let Theodore die here.

And honestly, I wasn’t confident I could escape the cave alone without him.

‘Ah—right.’

I hurriedly rummaged through my clothes.

Luckily, I still had some antidote pills left over from when I’d made them to treat wounded soldiers during the battle with the basilisk.

After helping Theodore sit against the wall, I handed him one of the pills.

“Swallow it.”

“…What is this?”

“An antidote. I made it to counter basilisk poison, but it might work on wyvern poison too.”

Back then, I’d used it together with Lowell’s healing magic, but doing something was better than doing nothing.

Theodore swallowed the antidote.

Before long, the blackened burn around the wound began to fade.

“How is it?”

“Haa… it’s better. Much better.”

Good. It worked.

I looked around for something I could use to dress the wound.

Fortunately, I still had the handkerchief Jerome had lent me. Even so, it wasn’t enough to properly bandage the injury.

So I lifted the hem of my skirt.

As my bare legs were revealed, Theodore started coughing violently.

“W–What are you doing?!”

His previously pale face flushed bright red.

At this rate his face was going to explode.

“Stay still. I’m not doing this to show off my legs. Do you have a dagger or something?”

With a beet-red face, Theodore pulled out a palm-sized dagger.

I took it and tore a long strip from my underskirt.

After placing Jerome’s handkerchief over the wound, I wrapped the torn fabric around Theodore’s abdomen.

What came next again?

I think you were supposed to press down on the wound with your palm.

Replaying every first-aid scene I’d ever seen in movies, I pressed around the wound. Theodore let out a low groan.

“Kh—!”

“A-Are you okay? Should I go slower?”

“…Be honest. You’re not a mage. You’re an assassin, aren’t you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re supposed to press the wound itself, not the area around it. Doing it like that just makes the bleeding worse.”

“Oh.”

Right.

I’d avoided touching the wound directly because I thought it would hurt. Apparently, that wasn’t proper first aid.

Even as he struggled to breathe, Theodore narrowed his eyes and glared at me.

“You sure you know how to stop bleeding?”

“…Actually, this is my first time.”

“……”

He looked at me with pure distrust.

Hey! I’m the one helping here!

“S-Still, it’s better than you doing it yourself, right?!”

Theodore half-listened, half-ignored me as he traced a small sign of the cross in the air and muttered.

“…Oh gods, another pitiful soul ascends to you—khk!”

Before he could finish, I firmly pressed my palm directly onto the wound.

Judging by how much nonsense he was still spouting, it didn’t seem like a fatal injury.

Thinking I’d worried for nothing, I kept applying pressure. After some time passed, Theodore spoke again.

“That’s enough. I think the bleeding’s stopped.”

I lifted my hand. Just as he said, the bleeding seemed to have stopped.

Still, the antidote and bandaging were only emergency measures. In this condition, he couldn’t fight properly.

This was bad.

In the game, Lowell and the knights had cleared out all the monsters in the cave.

But we were bound to run into more. And right now, I was the only one who could fight.

Me—with strength, stamina, and mana all stuck at level 1.

‘We have to get out.’

Rather than gambling in a situation where our combat power was basically nonexistent, the priority was to leave the cave and regroup with the others.

The problem was the pile of rocks blocking the entrance.

‘There’s no way I can clear that while carrying an injured person.’

We had to find a side path and escape without running into monsters.

That was when Theodore murmured softly.

“Lumen dominare, malum avela.”

A small flame flickered to life above his palm, illuminating the cave a little more.

In the brighter light, the flame wavered gently, as if pointing in a certain direction.

Seeing that, Theodore explained.

“When the flame leans to one side, it means there’s airflow. And where there’s airflow, there’s usually an exit.”

“Then we just follow the flow of air.”

“Exactly.”

Theodore tried to push himself up using his arm, but his body swayed, unable to support itself. I quickly grabbed him.

As I slung his arm over my shoulder, he spoke in a flustered voice.

“Wait—what are you doing?”

“Unlike someone, I help people who need support. Besides, no one’s watching anyway.”

“You’re some kind of girl, I swear…”

Maybe it was just my imagination, but his body felt hot where we touched.

Just then, a system window chimed.

[Theodore Blair’s affection has increased by 5.]
[Theodore Blair’s affection: 10]

…Huh.

Why does the affection that shouldn’t be going up keep rising?

I glanced sideways at Theodore, who was inching ever closer to a burned-at-the-stake ending.

“Just in case, let me say this now.”

He turned his head toward me.

“Don’t fall for me.”

I continued, holding his gaze.

“It’s dangerous if you do.”

I’d warned him.

Told him not to fall for me.

I’d just saved a life, that’s all.

Theodore’s expression as he looked at me was serious.

I wondered if he’d taken my warning to heart—when the corner of his lips twitched slightly.

And then—

“Pfft!”

He burst out laughing.

“Puhaha! Hahaha!”

What? Why is he laughing?

I stared at him in disbelief as he laughed like he was about to pass out.

“Hahaha! Khk! Cough! Ngh—!”

He grabbed his wound, apparently having aggravated it by laughing too hard.

Even so, he kept snickering.

Ugh. I can’t even hit a patient.

“Why are you laughing?! I’m being serious here!”

With his shoulders still shaking, he replied,

“What can I do? Even I can’t cure delusions.”

“….”

This guy.

I’m giving him serious advice, and he can’t even pretend to listen.

Wiping away a tear from the corner of his eye, Theodore continued,

“When we get back to the imperial palace, make sure you get that fixed. High self-esteem is good, but too much of it is a disease. Moderation in all things.”

My face burned with embarrassment and anger. Apparently finding my reaction amusing, Theodore kept chuckling.

How does any of this say ‘injured patient’?

Seeing how relaxed he was, he must be feeling a lot better.

As I briefly imagined leaving him behind in the cave, he held out a weapon that looked like a hammer.

“Take this.”

“What is this?”

“You should have at least one tool to protect yourself.”

True enough. Since Theodore couldn’t fight properly, I’d have to deal with any monsters that showed up.

I took the weapon and examined it closely.

It was slightly larger and longer than a hammer, with large spikes on both sides of its square head. It had some weight to it, but it was manageable.

So this was a mace—the weapon monks used.

My decade-plus of gaming knowledge finally paid off.

“Oh! This thing, right? A mace!”

“Nope. It’s a meat tenderizer.”

“…A meat tenderizer?”

I stared at Theodore blankly. He made a chopping motion, like pounding meat.

“You don’t know what a meat tenderizer is? You use it to beat meat flat.”

It’s not like I asked because I didn’t know.

“…You just handed me a cooking tool and called it a weapon?”

“Yup.”