Last chapter of the first arc, well, I just finished it, I’m way too tired to reread it, I’ll do that tomorrow so you may find some mistakes and some repetition here and there but it should still be readable.
Anyway, I hope you’ll enjoy it!
First time outside
【 “Elena!”】
I start running after letting out a scream that surprised even myself.
I rush up to Elena-san and check on her.
The first thing I notice is her abnormally high temperature. Every part of her body is hot, she’s having some difficulty breathing and she’s sweating a lot as well. Though her condition is obviously bad, I stay put and I lay her down on the kitchen’s floor. I try calling out to her several times… in vain, she’s either unconscious or unable to answer. I don’t want to move her around too much but I don’t really have a choice.
After getting pumped up, I slip my hands under Elena-san’s body and lift her. As a three-years old child, I shouldn’t be able to lift an adult woman and that’s when my training comes into play. Though I somehow manage to put her on my back and to give her a rather clumsy piggyback ride, I try to walk slowly, step by step, in order not to hurt her. This is pretty hard to be honest, but Elena-san’s room is pretty close so I can handle it.
After arriving safely, I move her on her bed and I go back to the kitchen.
I studied medicine in my previous life but this is a different world. Though I do know an illness these symptoms correspond to, it could be a different disease.
I’ll postpone diagnosing her for now and I’ll focus on hydrating her. if she continues to sweat this much, she’ll be dehydrated soon. I prepare some water which I pour in a wooden cup and then I cut an Apu with a knife to make some tea. I take the parts of the cut up Apu with my hand, I squeeze them and then I mix them with the water in the glass. I get a bucket, I fill it with water and I put a cloth inside. I take everything I prepared and head to Elena-san’s room.
When I get back, Elena-san is already awake.
However, she looks pale and it seems like she can’t even raise her upper-body, she turns her eyes to me and gives me an apologetic look.
【 “Sirius-sama…… I’m sorry……”】
【 “It’s all right, don’t worry! For now, drink some water.”】
I stick the glass to her mouth and incline it slowly. She seems to be able to drink so I give her the water carefully to avoid making her choke on it. I put the glass away after she drank about half of the content and I start wiping Elena-san’s sweat off with the cloth that I squeezed in the bucket, then I squeeze it again after wiping her and I put it on her forehead.
【 “Ah…… I feel really comfortable. Thank you.”】
【 “Never mind that, more importantly, what happened? Did you get sick?”】
【 “Yes, it’s probably… the Water disease.”】
The Water disease? I heard about this somewhere… Oh I know! It’s in Alberto’s travel diary.
According to that book, there were a lot of people who died of that disease in a certain village…. Rather, this is bad! This illness might actually be really dangerous! Because it’s not a medicine book, it only tells the name and the consequence of that disease so I still don’t understand it in detail.
【 “Don’t worry, it’ll be all right by the time Dee gets back here.”】
I wonder if Elena-san noticed that I panicked… well, her words did manage to make me settle down.
【 “There actually is a medication that cures the water disease so it’s safe, but, since we didn’t have any left, the other two went to buy some.”】
【 “Is that so? Well, if you can recover, then it’s great.”】
【 “Yes, I only have to deal with it until tomorrow. Though this affects only the people from the water attribute, I still don’t understand your attribute Sirius-sama, so, please avoid getting too close to me until the others come back.”】
【 “All right, but I still want to nurse you, even if it’s just a little, you’ll need water.”】
【 “I guess it can’t be helped…. Thank you very much, I’ll be in your care.”】
After she said that, maybe because she felt relieved, Elena-san losed consciousness like some sort of switch was turned off.
Dammit! Is she going to stay like that until tomorrow? I can’t calm my mind at all. I start checking Elena-san’s room to see if there is something I can do about this situation. Elena-san has some documentation on pharmacology and she also has some compounding equipment in her room. Maybe she has some physical strength recovery medicine.
Unfortunately, she doesn’t, but, though it was not what I was looking for, I found another book instead. It has a ridiculously long title but I managed to translate it into something simple, 【(The Universal Encyclopedia of Diseases’)】.
Because healing people with magic is a thing in this world, the medical knowledge is not advanced at all. That’s probably why the book is so thin, but it’s exactly what I need right now. I open it and I immediately look for the symptoms of the Water disease. I have a little trouble since it doesn’t have a table of content but I’m able to find what I’m looking for by skimming quickly through the pages.
Water disease:
A rare disease that releases the mana out of the body.
When that happens, the body starts generating heat abnormally to the point where it becomes too hot to be moved.
For unknown reasons, only people of the water attribute can get affected with this disease and it’s highly contagious.
It can be cured by using a medication made out of Kelpie grass.
If it’s not dealt with within half a day, it kills its host with the high temperature and the mana exhaustion.
Because of that, It is known all over the world as a horrible disease even if it can be cured.
It’s not safe at all!
Elena-san has been infected by the water disease this afternoon and Dee and Noel will be back by tomorrow afternoon. The sickness takes half a day to kill its host, if we wait for the other two, she’s gonna end up dying.
I need to calm down… I said that to reassure myself but there is no way I can do that. I don’t care anymore. I’m just going to do what I want.
I quickly make a decision.
I turn over the books in the room one by one until I find a book related to medical-herbs. That’s because I’m looking for 【Kelpie grass】 since it’s necessary for the treatment. And since I found a book with the compounding method a little while ago, the only thing I need now is the material. I settle down and turn the pages in a hurry, looking for the words “Kelpie grass”. And I finally find the page I was looking for.
Kelpie grass:
A kind of medicinal herb that grows by absorbing the underwater mana.
It’s used for various mixtures and has great effects on the people of the water attribute.
It grows naturally on the waterside where mana is thick and it is really easy to collect.
There is a picture of the Kelpie grass on the page too, so I record it in my memory..
I throw the book away and prepare to go gather the herbs. I take a knife from the kitchen to use as a weapon. It’s a knife used to make dishes so it’s not really strong, but it’s still better than nothing. I don’t take any protection ’cause it would obstruct my movements. I’m basing my strategy on speed this time and I want to return as fast as possible. I take a small bag on my shoulders and I put some water and a cut up Apu in evidence in front of Erina-san’s bed.
After getting ready, I dash out from the door and jump to the sky. It’s already dark outside, we passed from day to night during the events that happened. The moon, which is bigger than the one in my previous life, is shining more brightly than usual since it’s a full moon today.
From the entrance, I face my destination, that is, the forest. I never entered deeply inside because Elena-san never let me, but I do recall hearing the flow of water from that direction. If I search there, I might find some Kelpie grass.
In a world full of monsters, it’s insane for a child to rush into a forest at night. However, there is no time, I’ll never forgive myself if Erina-san doesn’t make it. If I can save someone, I’ll do it. With this determination in mind, I charged into the forest.
Because it’s full of obstacles and lacking in footholds, walking through the forest consumes more physical strength than expected. Though I got some experience in a forest before, this three years old body won’t last long. I keep suppressing the consumption while avoiding the tree branches that seem to pop out of nowhere sometimes.
I find a small river after a short while and I start looking for the kelpie grass there.
【 “…. Is that the right place?”】
Collecting the grass seems pretty easy, but isn’t it going to be difficult in the flowing river? Since it was written that it can be found on the waterside where the mana is thick, I have to head upstream or downstream. I stick a wood chip in the ground as a landmark and I run deeper in the forest while staying alongside the river.
After running for about 20 minutes, I reach a small lake connected to the river and I stop running. The lake is fed by several streams and seems to be what I was looking for.
If it’s here, I’ll surely find the grass. Since there are no big trees around it, the moonlight can be seen and I can fully appreciate the view. And suddenly… I feel an odd presence and I stop moving. I can’t just show myself in plain sight because it could be some sort of wild beast so I hide in a tree and I check the place from which I felt the odd presence.
And as I thought, there was something there.
A goblin.
It’s a humanoid type of monster with a green body and a horn on his forehead.
Its height is about one meter if I follow the scale of my previous life (TLN: 3’3 feet), it usually wears some dirty cloth on its waist and uses a stick as a weapon. Its strength is at the same level as the strength of an adult man but it’s not smart, as for its speed, it’s pretty slow. (TL:Strong dumb and slow if you prefer, like a zombie)
In compensation for its lack of speed and intelligence, it’s a very fertile species with an abnormally fast growth and a habit of teaming up in a group and that’s why they usually form attack corps units to hunt.
As an omnivore, it eats everything, even people, and it reproduces by raping women.
Someone capable of defeating an armed goblin by himself is considered a novice adventurer.
This concludes the info I got on the subject from Alberto’s travel diary.
In other words, a goblin isn’t a creature that a three years old can challenge.
Also, they’re three…… No, it’s not weird for them to be three since they’re not human beings. (TLN:Animals usually stay in group) However, I accept this challenge. Because they’re obstructing my grass harvest. I jump down to the ground, I stay put and I don’t feel like moving right now, but I’m short on time so retreating is not an option.
I grasp my knife in my hand and I pick up a stone at my feet, I then throw it to the mountain right behind the goblins. As the goblins turn around to look for the source of the sound made by the stone, I dash out toward them.
I crouch while still rushing at them. (TLN: Crouch run, look it up)
Though the goblins turn around as they hear my footsteps, I’m already one step away from them. Since I’m smaller than them, I won’t be in their field of view for a short time. If they lower their glance even a little, I’ll be spotted.
I take advantage of this opportunity and thrust my knife in the throat of one of them.
While the blood that starts gushing out from inside him gets all over my body, the two foes remaining stop moving and open their eyes widely. How shameful of me to step unintentionally into a battle while I used to teach people how to avoid having to fight.
I pull out the knife by twisting my body, I direct it to the second goblin’s throat, I try to cut it, but the knife breaks halfway through. However, I don’t stop moving. I push the broken part of the blade with the palm of my other hand toward the goblin. the attack works, I don’t lose my momentum and I triple the distance between us as he falls down.
As I turn around, I see the last Goblin looking fearfully at the bodies of the other two.
Only one remaining.
However, I don’t have any weapon, I cut myself when I pushed the blade with my palm and it’s painful. The remaining goblin starts screaming angrily, he probably recovered from his earlier fear. And I just noticed that this one doesn’t have a stick as a weapon but a sword. Well, it’d me more correct to call it a short sword since its blade is small, he probably picked it up from a human. (TLN: Yes, he keeps defining the goblin as an “it” and then he starts defining him as a “he”, I don’t get it either)
When he sees me, the goblin stops moving and starts laughing loudly. Is he underestimating me because I look like kid? Does he get that I just annihilated his comrades in no more than a few seconds? Oh, right, it IS a pretty dumb creature. Though I just realized that I’m facing nothing more than a simple beast, I don’t relax my guard because fighting in a shoddy manner can be fatal. I’ll use his foolish confidence against him.
I don’t lower my posture this time and I dash at the goblin. As he keeps laughing, the goblin launches a rough attack but I’m easily able to avoid it by inclining my body, I then concentrate and start chanting. I make a mana ball at the size of baseball and I picture my hand as a grenade launcher.
【”Creatures of the night, paladins of the light, help me dis…”】
Oh whatever!
【”【Impact】”】
I shot the mana ball while aiming at the goblin’s at close range. As the bullet hits him, his body starts floating and he starts screaming with a desperate look on his face, I’m quite surprised as well by the power of my attack.
His swords is dropped so I take advantage of this opportunity, I pick it up and I thrust it in his throat with all my weight。.
Thus, the first monster hunt ended.
The fight is over, I confirm that there is no enemy around and let out a sigh of relief… rather, I try to. I have some difficulty to breath, am I more tired than I expected? Even if my mind is used to fighting, this is still a three years old body, I probably pushed it to the limit. I support my body which almost falls down and I start breathing calmly. I close my eyes and I slowly count to three.
It is a little trick to switch from a fighting state to a normal state. When I open my eyes and, I finally calm down. Now, Let’s get back to searching for what I was looking for.
I said that but I find it immediately when I approach the waterside. Though one piece of grass should be enough, I take five just in case, I put them in my bag and I prepare to go back. The blood will gather other monsters so I can’t stay too long. I wash my bloody face and I hurry back the way I came from.
Though I fall down several times from tiredness, I manage to return to the house without meeting any monster. It’s been about two hours since I went out.
When I go to check on Elena-san’s condition, I find her hyperventilating and barely conscious. There is not much time left, I begin the compounding by using the book and the tools I found in the room earlier.
I put the Kelpie grass in a mortar and start pounding it with a pestle until there is no more impurities on it, then I do the same for a walnut-like fruit named “Kurumeshia”. Once it becomes a green paste, I have to put it in hot water…… Wait, there is no hot water?!
I go to the kitchen which is equipped with a magic tool that produces fire and I infuse it with mana. Though it usually works just fine, nothing happens this time. I try several times but I get the same result, I check on the magic tool and I see where the problem comes from, there is a missing part on the drawn magic formation.
That reminds me that I was told this morning that a fire magic tool was broken.
Then, I look for the box of fire stones that should be in the corner of the kitchen but it’s on the floor and all the fire stones are broken. That probably happened when Elena-san fell down earlier, the only reason why the fire stones didn’t turn on is because the floor is made of rocks, I don’t know if that’s fortunate or unfortunate. However, I wonder if I can… No, I have to light the fire by myself.
There is some fire stone fragments remaining. I sharpen some firewood with a spare knife found in the kitchen and I stick the tip of the wood to a fire stone fragment. I’m using a primitive way to light fire by rotating firewood to produce frictional heat. Though this method demands a lot of strength and a certain amount of furniture, the fire stone compensated for that by taking the role of the ignition material and the fire lit up easily.
I raise the heat by sending wind at the fire until the mixture of medical herbs and hot water boils. Though the top of the water takes a weird muddy green look when I put the medical herb in it, it becomes transparent after a little while. The part that becomes transparent is the medication used to cure the Water disease. I collect some of it, put it into a glass and I’m finally done.
It says in the instructions that the final result should be transparent and leak out a colorless light, since I managed to obtain that result, I guess that I nailed it.
I cool down the product then I rush to Elena-san’s room.
【 “Elena, drink this, it’s medication”】
【 “.. ah.. ah……”】
She seems to have regained consciousness but also seems confused, she mutters something while staring at an empty space.
This is really bad, but I have to make her drink it, even if I have to do it forcibly.
【”I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I… I…”】
What the hell are you apologizing for?!
Dammit! I have to calm down, but my feelings are taking over me, I’m being too emotional. This is too much, I’m trying to suppress my adrenaline but it’s not working.
【”Just drink it! I won’t forgive you if you don’t drink it!”】
Elena-san’s body trembles as she hears me shouting angrily. As I glare at her, I stick the glass to her mouth. I let her drink for a few minutes or so until she finishes the medication, then I give her a one word order.
【”Sleep.”】
Though my tone is harsh, Elena-san quietly closes her eyes and begins to breath calmly. Some tears are falling from her eyes but those are probably tears of relief (TLN: All right, I have no idea what he said here, but I’m sure it doesn’t matter.)
I put the empty glass on the floor as I realize that I’m done. There is nothing more I can do now, I can only wait for the results. As I reach my limit, I pass out while clinging to Elena-san on her bed.
I feel something soft touching my head.
I’m being patted in a way that feels familiar.
【”Elena.”】
I wake up instantaneously, and I raise my face in a hurry.
【”There there…”】
That was Elena-san who had her usual smile on her face.
Even though her clothes and her hair are soaked in sweat, she looks pretty healthy and has her upper-body standing as she pats my head. I feel a little relieved as I look outside and notice that morning has come.
We’re past the delay of half a day.
【”….It all went well in the end.”】
I can settle down at last when I look at Elena-san’s face.
She seems to have recovered from the Water disease, she only has to rest now. As I try to stand up to get her something to eat, my leg fails to work, probably because I slept in a weird position, and I fall down toward Elena-san. I can’t let a convalescent person do housework. I try to get up while feeling pathetic and stupid but I’m unable to do that.
Why? Well, because Elena-san suddenly hugs me.
【”Elena?”】
【”Thank you. I just want to say… thanks”】
My face is buried into Elena-san’s bosom and, though it hurts a little, it feels kinda nice….No, wait a minute, I still didn’t change my clothes since that fight.
【”Hmm, Elena? You’ll get dirty if you stick to me like that…”】
【”I don’t mind the dirt of the one who saved me.”】
【”If you say so. However, I don’t want you to get blood on yourself.”】
【”Blood?! Did you get injured?!”】
She hugs me so tightly that I feel like my eyes are going to pop out and then she lets go of me.
She then starts scanning me and licking me with her eyes and immediately find the big red stain of goblin blood on my clothes. Even though I went through so much to make her look healthy, her face turns pale again.
【”Calm down, this is not mine.”】
【”But, you’re full of blood. “】
【”Well…”】
Well… I’ll just be as honest as I can. I wanted to wait at least a year to reveal my true nature but I have to advance my schedule.
【”This is a goblin’s blood. When I gathered the Kelpie grass, I knocked one down because he was obstructing my searching.”】
【”A goblin?! You defeated a goblin while looking for the Kelpie grass?”】
【”Well, yeah. I just took a kitchen knife and…”】
I reproduce the movement I used to stab the goblin’s throat.
Though Elena-san is dumbfounded as I expected her to be, I stare at her with a serious face. I don’t know if it’s because she understands that I’m being serious, but she calms down.
【”Sirius-sama, just what are you?”】
【”There are many things we have to tell each other. I’m willing to confess, and you are as well, right?”】
【”…Yes”】
【”But, let’s rest for now. We’ll take care of that once we’re done with taking care of our bodies, it’s still pretty early and we’re in a pretty bad state.”】
【”That’s right. I’m sorry for showing this shameful side of myself.”】
The story I’m going to tell her is pretty crazy so I’d rather talk once we both settle down.
I give a change of clothes to Elena-san and I leave her room, I then return to my room and start changing myself. Now that I see it, there is an awful lot of goblin blood on my clothes. I realize just how clumsy I was in that fight
After cleaning my body with the water of the well, I decide to make a snack and I get out of my room. I cut a share of bread into two equal parts which I soak into a mix of eggs, milk and sugar. I burn it lightly until it gets hot enough and there it is, the new world edition of the French toast. it’s kinda strange to call it a toast since there isn’t the necessary bread but that’s not a problem. I’m quite confident in the taste as well. I prepare my favorite tea and I take everything I just made to Elena-san’s room.
I knock at her door and then enter after waiting for a reply. I told her not to move from her bed but as I expected, she didn’t listen to me, she tidied up all her room neatly and dressed properly. I guess I should let her eat before having that conversation.
【”What is this? I’ve never seen this kind of food before.” 】
【”It’s a french toast, It’s sweet and it’s delicious.”】
【”Then I’ll have some”】
I actually wanted to make some porridge since it’s more effective to recover but there is no rice. That’s why I improvised and tried to do something soft that should be easy to eat. Elena-san eats the meal with a big smile on her face and nods several times.
【”It really is delicious. I feel the kindness you put in this meal”】
【”I see. Well, you’re still in convalescence so don’t overdo it.”】
【”I’m not trying to compliment you, those are my real thoughts. I am so happy that you’re taking care of me this much”】
I feel how glad she is by looking at her as she keeps eating happily.
She finishes eating quite fast, we then take some tea and rest a little.
Now then, it’s time to have the talk that will change the outcome of my whole life.
【”Elena, it’s now time for us to get to the important matter.”】
【”I see…”】
【”Well, the thing is, there is something about me that I—“】
【”Please wait.”】
I wanted to say it quickly but I’m stopped.
Give me a break. I had to gather lots of courage to start talking, you can’t just stop me midway…
【”Please let me speak first. It’s about your mother.”】
Oh, I’m gonna find out who’s my mother at last?
However, Elena-san’s expression is complicated, the thing she’s trying to tell me might be something that’s not easy to say.
【”I am sorry, there is a picture in the desk. Could you…”】
I look inside the desk as she said to and I find an A4 picture.
There is the drawing of a woman on it.
In other words, this person is…
【”That’s Maria Eldrand, your mother, Sirius-sama.”】
Though it’s not at the level of a photograph taken with a camera, the picture is in color and looks very good.
I suddenly start feeling at peace when I look at the gentle eyes of the raven-black haired woman. I recognized my mother instinctively.
【”And… she died giving birth to you.”】