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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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The undeath had been reversed, but Rudhi was far from cured.
And I couldn’t just leave the necrotic flesh, a side effect of the undeath. I transformed Moonlight into a dagger.
“Need some anesthetic?”
The alchemists had some. I drew it into a syringe and asked.
Rudhi, lying on the cot, looked up at me blankly, her dry lips moving.
“S- Sage…?”
“Yes.”
“From the… Alchemist’s… Guild… I saw… you…”
“Is that all?”
“And…”
Her mouth was dry. She moved her lips. I moistened her lips with a wet towel, and she managed to swallow a few drops of water.
Good, her internal organs seemed to be fine.
I checked her temperature, prepared a new concoction, and readied the syringe.
“My sister… told me…”
“What did she say?”
“…Among humans… you… the Sage… are the only one… she can trust…”
“So, you’ll accept my treatment?”
Rudhi gave a slight nod. It seemed things would go smoothly, thanks to my title as the Sage and what Evangeline had told her.
This was good. Some elves were vehemently opposed to being treated by humans.
Especially the high-ranking elves… but she didn’t seem to be one of them.
“First, I’ll treat the necrosis. Now.”
I administered the anesthetic and observed her condition. Her ragged breathing calmed, and her eyes closed. Yeonhwa, pushing her way through the horrified elves, asked with concern,
“Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Not really… Ah, wait. Could you please stop those who are about to cause a scene outside?”
If the Healing Tree tribe priests saw this, they would surely voice their displeasure.
They might even try to take over the rest of the treatment, now that the undeath had been reversed.
“Understood. Anything else? Do you need any other support?”
I cut away Rudhi’s necrotic flesh with Moonlight, cast Heal, and said,
“No. Rotelo will assist me, so the rest of you can leave.”
The others left at my command. Rotelo, who seemed to be used to this kind of treatment, wiped away the black blood with a towel and applied a regeneration potion.
After I had cut away all the necrotic flesh, the black blood subsided, and a stream of fresh, red blood began to flow.
“By the way, is it really alright to treat her like this? It seems a bit… aggressive…”
“Normally, no. But if we leave it, we’ll have to amputate her limbs.”
I had to use the Healer’s Surgery skill and the Priest’s healing arts simultaneously.
As I performed the surgery, regeneration, and healing all at once, Rotelo watched in awe and said,
“I didn’t know you were so skilled in medicine. Where did you learn?”
“From the Healer’s Guild. I didn’t study for very long, though.”
“And you’re already this good? Amazing.”
“It’s because I’ve had a lot of practice, dealing with the Demon King and his minions.”
When the Demon King had been active, there were many who were injured or dying.
Holy power alone wasn’t enough to save them, so I had learned healing arts. And with practice, I had become proficient.
“And this isn’t perfect.”
I couldn’t use the Healer’s ultimate skill, Divine Surgery. I was just using the Priest’s skills, the Alchemist’s skills, and the support of other classes to increase the success rate.
“I heard the Sage can use all skills… that combination is truly amazing.”
Correct.
One of the reasons the Sage was a broken class was because of the ability to use all skills. It allowed me to compensate for the weaknesses of each skill, which had a significant impact on their effectiveness and success rate.
“…But it’s not… perfect.”
He cut away a piece I had missed and stitched it up, smiling faintly. I shrugged.
I wasn’t a doctor or a healer by trade, so it couldn’t be helped.
After about two hours of treatment, I had finally removed all the necrotic flesh from Rudhi’s body and regenerated the damaged areas.
Rotelo and I, drenched in sweat, stepped back. After confirming that Rudhi’s condition was stable, I administered the plague cure.
As Rudhi slept under the influence of the anesthetic, her fever began to subside. Only then did Rotelo collapse onto the floor.
“I’m exhausted…”
“Good work. Let’s go and get something to eat.”
“…That’s some amazing concentration. Are you really human?”
“It was nothing.”
There had been much more serious situations during the main storyline.
After finishing the treatment, I was resting when I heard a commotion in the distance.
I looked over and saw a group of elves pushing their way through the Lightwing tribe and the alchemists, heading towards me.
I had been expecting them.
Judging by their attire, they were priests. High-ranking priests.
Probably the highest rank.
At the head of the group was a golden-haired, voluptuous female elf, dressed in an elven silk priestess’s robe.
“I am Su-hwi, chieftain of the Healing Tree tribe.”
“I’m the Sage. So? What do you want?”
“I hear you’re treating the plague. And that you’ve had some success. That is commendable.”
“You don’t sound like you’re just here to praise me. We’re both busy, so let’s get to the point.”
“Very well. Stop the treatment immediately.”
Her voice was as cold as a winter frost. The Lightwing tribe elves and the alchemists frowned.
Stop the treatment…
They were later than I had expected.
I thought they would have come to talk to me before I treated Rudhi.
Anyway, I couldn’t just agree to that.
“But if we leave it, the plague will become incurable. Surely you’re not hoping for the plague to spread throughout the Elven Forest. Do you have a plan?”
“My daughter, the Saintess Seong-ya, has entered into a prayer to perform the Great Divine Art, and she will be emerging soon.”
Oh, the Great Divine Art.
Only the highest-ranking priests could use that.
But that wouldn’t be enough.
I recalled the event from the game. The Pope had performed the Great Divine Art back then, but it hadn’t cured the plague.
“That won’t be enough.”
“How would you know?”
“I’m the Sage. I know all things.”
“Hmph. Even so, it is unacceptable for a noble elf to be saved by a human.”
“I’ve saved a lot of elves.”
“The elves who have left the forest are not important. The noble elves who reside in the Elven Forest…”
She was so stubborn. I tried to reason with her, even using my skills, but it was no use.
If words failed, I would have to resort to physical persuasion.
But that would turn all the elves here against me.
After all, the Healing Tree tribe was a powerful faction in the Elven Forest.
“Then I’ll stop the treatment until the Great Divine Art is complete. If it fails, then I’ll resume the treatment. How about that? But in the meantime, I’ll continue my research.”
When the reinforcements from the kingdom arrived, the number of alchemists would increase, and we could start mass-producing the cure.
So, I could just pass the time by conducting research.
It was a significant concession on my part, so Su-hwi couldn’t just refuse. It seemed she was trying to show me some respect.
Or perhaps she was trying to show respect to Lorelia, who had brought me here.
“Hmm… That should be acceptable. I know the alchemists are eager for knowledge. But we will not be needing your assistance.”
“Alright, well, I hope for the best.”
But it wouldn’t work.
As Su-hwi, after a brief glare, left, a few of the priests glanced at me and smirked before following her.
I should probably remember their names as well.
The list of elves in my mental kill list was growing by the day.
As the tension subsided, the Lightwing tribe members sighed heavily, and the alchemists couldn’t hide their disappointment.
“Sage, I’m sorry.”
“In situations like this, the priests hold a lot of power…”
“No, no, it’s fine. It happens.”
“Hmph. For a human, you’re quite decent. Sage, if you want, the title of Honorary Elf…”
“No, thanks.”
“Then how about the title of Friend of the Elves?”
I smiled at Rotelo’s faint attempt at humor.
“I’m not your friend.”
I don’t need that, so let’s just continue our research.
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A few days had passed since the human called the Sage had entered the Elven Forest.
The Healing Tree tribe was growing increasingly annoyed with his actions.
The plague had been shifting the balance of power in the Elven Forest from the Lightwing tribe to the Healing Tree tribe, but he was completely disrupting it.
“And Chieftain Lorelia, bringing a human here of all people.”
“Don’t be so harsh. The elves who were treated with his cure haven’t fully recovered yet. And the Saintess is about to finish her prayer, so everything will be resolved soon.”
The priests stopped grumbling and nodded at Su-hwi’s words.
She was right. Seong-ya, Su-hwi’s daughter, the Saintess with the strongest holy power in the Healing Tree tribe, was about to finish her secluded prayer.
When she emerged and performed the Great Divine Art, the plague would be cured.
This might even be a better situation.
They, who had saved the elves from within, would be more respected than Lorelia, who had gone outside and brought a human.
Perhaps, after this, the position of the Great Chieftain would shift to the Healing Tree tribe.
“Anyway, the preparations for the Great Divine Art are complete. We just need the Saintess to emerge.”
“Indeed.”
“Congratulations, Chieftain. Hahahaha!”
Su-hwi smiled as the elven priests bowed to her. They were all eagerly awaiting.
For Seong-ya, the Saintess, her precious daughter, her only family, to perform the Great Divine Art and save the elves.
And for her to become the Great Chieftain.
Then she had to make it happen.
She would make the elves even greater than her.
With that thought, she bid farewell to the priests and headed to the temple to greet Seong-ya.
The massive, ancient tree that seemed to pierce the sky.
Seong-ya would be praying alone in the holy sanctuary of water behind it.
And her prayer would end when the sun reached its zenith.
Su-hwi waited for her to emerge, holding the Saintess’s robes. When she emerged, with her immense holy power, she would be ready.
With that holy power, she would immediately perform the Great Divine Art…
As she envisioned a golden future for herself and the Healing Tree tribe, she looked up at the sun.
“…Hmm?”
Something was wrong. The sun was already at its zenith, and the time for prayer was over.
But why wasn’t Seong-ya coming out?
Puzzled, she felt her heart begin to pound.
Something, something was wrong.
Something was strange.
She swallowed nervously and, placing the Saintess’s robes aside, hurried into the sanctuary.
And there she found her.
A young elf with black hair, gasping for breath, collapsed on the floor.
Her beautiful, silky black hair, like the night sky, cascaded down her back. Her skin was as pale as moonlight.
But her beautiful face, which looked just like her own, was contorted in pain.
Seong-ya, the Saintess of the Healing Tree tribe, her daughter, the hope of the Healing Tree tribe,
Her beloved daughter, her everything.
“…Cough! Cough! Haaak… haaah… ugh… uh… cough! cough!”
“…No… it can’t be…”
She was showing symptoms of the plague.
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