Scarcely a moment had passed before Borin returned, his metal armor clanking wildly through the corridor, his lungs laboring for breath.
Following him, Priestess Lyra advanced. Her long, flowing robes enveloped her form, cascading to the floor and concealing her silhouette. Lyra was strikingly beautiful, despite the severity of her countenance. Her face was youthful, with delicate and harmonious features, and her azure eyes gleamed with a cold, alluring brilliance.
Her presence commanded attention—a stark contrast to the rough surroundings. Her rigid posture and the tight line of her lips hinted at deep displeasure.
Reaching the cell door, her voice rising to a sharp, accusatory pitch. "Elara! How dare you bring me here at this hour?"
Elara struggled to keep her voice level, retorting, "Do you think I wanted to see your ugly face? I brought you here for urgent matters."
"My face? Ugly face, indeed," Lyra sneered, narrowing her eyes, "Perhaps you should examine your own reflection... But never mind that. You told me I was late, and that... He hadn't survived?"
"Forget that," Elara dismissed her. "Can you just start examining his body? He's breathing, I've confirmed it."
"You know, even a simple examination like this will cost you," Lyra reminded her, her voice laced with a subtle threat.
"Yeah, yeah, I know…" Elara replied, sighing, anticipating the inevitable demand for payment.
Lyra stepped forward, wrinkling her nose against the cloying stench that permeated the cell. "It reeks in here, god! Can't you clean this place once? It's like a cesspit... And there are dead rats here too!" Her fastidious nature was evident; her distaste for the squalor was palpable.
Borin interjected, "Dead rats?!"
He muttered, "But I didn't get any of them. And my hand aches from all that swinging for nothing."
Lyra looked at the cell. It wasn't completely dark, but seeing the details was difficult for Elara. She frowned in frustration and said, "Don't you have a better way to light this place?" Lyra asked in a displeased tone. "A single lantern isn't enough to see anything clearly."
Raising her hands, Lyra whispered a soft incantation, and a gentle golden aura glowed from her palms. The golden light spread through the cell, steady and constant, like a small sun within. revealing its filthy details and the boy's body lying on the ground.
Lyra's gaze settled on the boy's body, examining him from a distance, her expression a mix of disgust and professional curiosity. Despite her revulsion, a clinical detachment took over, the healer within her assessing the damage—
Elara's eyes fixed on the boy's pallid, grime-glistening skin, her stomach churning. Evenly, with dry amusement, she said, "Forget his condition; surviving in this place alone is a miracle in itself..."
Lyra barely crossed the threshold of the cell, then turned, her face a mask of deep revulsion.
"I won't touch that." She pointed a finger, her voice sharp and decisive. "Borin, come here. Be useful."
She gestured to the boy's crumpled body in the corner.
"Adjust him. Lay him flat on the ground."
Borin, his voice trembling with a mix of fear and nausea, replied, "Ah... alright..."
He approached the body cautiously and with hesitant steps, as if the vision of the boy standing moments ago was still etched in his mind, like a phantom—his mind conjured the idea of the boy lunging at him at any moment.
He grabbed the boy's surprisingly light legs and dragged him to the center of the cell, then used the toe of his boot to roll the boy onto his back. With visible effort, he forced himself to touch the boy's hands, stretching them out, then fumbled with the boy's tattered shirt, pulling it aside.
The boy's chest was laid bare, revealing a horrifying tableau of crisscrossing scars, swollen bruises, and discolored wounds.
Old injuries mingled with fresh ones, rat bites, and the telltale marks of cauterizing irons formed a macabre pattern across his chest and arms. The skin was a canvas of discolored swellings.
A wave of revulsion, sharp and undeniable, washed over everyone present. They averted their gazes, their stomachs churning, trying to suppress the bile that threatened to rise, even Elara, accustomed to such gruesome sights, had to steel herself. Lyra's professional facade faltered momentarily, the sheer brutality of the boy's condition testing even her hardened resolve.
Lyra muttered, a hint of disbelief in her voice, "How is it possible he's still alive?"
She reached out to check his breathing.
A shocked, "He's alive?" She gasped, "He's breathing... it's very weak and erratic."
Her gaze shifted to his chest. She observed "His chest seems full from the inside, and there are some broken ribs..."
Then, she began thinking of the cause "Given the weak breathing and filled chest, internal bleeding seems likely, with the lungs potentially involved."
She turned to Elara. "He's breathing, but if you leave him like this, he won't survive for long, you know."
"If you want me to treat him, this will cost you more than you anticipated." Lyra stated calmly, her eyes calculating.
Elara replied firmly, "Just do it, we'll discuss the cost after you're finished."
A flicker of satisfaction crossed Lyra's face, a subtle tightening of her lips into a near-imperceptible smile, before she quickly returned to a professional demeanor while checking the boy—she muttered,
"Okay, his body condition is very bad... It's severe. Now he can't be moved, and my magic isn't able to purify all that blood..."
Lyra's brow furrowed into a deep frown of concentration as she muttered," I need to act fast... There must be another solution to get that blood out..."
Lyra turned to Borin again with a serious look.
"Borin, there's a tool pouch inside The Healer's Cell. Bring it here. Quickly!"
Borin responded reluctantly, grumbling, "Alright, alright... I'll get it." He hurried to fetch the tool pouch.
While she waited for Borin's return, Lyra spread her palms over the boy's chest, closed her eyes, and whispered the magical incantation: "Sacred Light Magic, Healing Eleventh Gate: Life Essence Revelation"
As her hands glowed with a distinctive golden aura, they moved slowly over the boy's body, tracing his wounds.
Another glow appeared on the boy's body, revealing his arteries and blood vessels glowing with light. Her hands stopped over the chest area, her focus intensified, and she began to examine it carefully, focusing on a small vein cut, a result of the rib fractures.
She whispered to herself, "Excellent. The source of the bleeding and the blood pooling are revealed. I will drain the blood quickly..."
She paused, her brow furrowed in concentration.
Borin had already returned by the time Lyra finished her examination. He carried a pouch filled with what appeared to be medical tools.
Lyra quickly opened the pouch and removed a piece of cloth and a bottle of herbal antiseptic liquid. She thoroughly cleansed and disinfected the boy's chest. Then, she retrieved a small, sharp knife and moistened it with the antiseptic. With a precise movement, she made a small incision between the boy's ribs, on the right side, carefully avoiding damage to the internal organs, pinpointing the incision site with her magic.
Dark blood began to flow slowly from the incision, mixed with some air bubbles. It was viscous, and it flowed steadily, as if something were pushing it out.
Lyra watched the flow intently, her expression serious.
Finally, the boy's body responded, coughing blood uncontrollably, a desperate attempt to expel whatever choked him from within.
His eyes, barely open, saw only vague shadows and dim lights. His mind, muddled and hazy, couldn't form thoughts or understand. Vague sounds swirled within his head.
His body remained invaded by pain, the pain in his chest, in particular, pressing on every nerve, every cell.
He breathed with difficulty, his breath irregular, broken, as if trying to inhale air through a straw. His limbs gave weak, almost imperceptible twitches and tremors, a mere echo of movement, as if even the act of involuntary spasm was a monumental effort for his exhausted body
Incomprehensible and vague murmurs escaped his mouth, cries that expressed his pain and confusion, but his body was too weak to utter them. They were muffled cries pleading for help, but reaching no one.
Nevertheless, there was a spark of will to live within him, a force driving him to breathe, to cough, to return to life. He was merely a faint consciousness floating in a world of pain and confusion.
Lyra's eyebrows raised slightly, her gaze analytical with sharp professional focus. She watched the flow of blood, calculating its volume and assessing its color and consistency, studying the boy's response, searching for evidence of her intervention's success.
Behind her, Elara watched the scene with narrowed eyes, a mix of curiosity and anticipation on her face, her hands clasped tightly in front of her chest, as if she were watching the outcome of the first stage of her gamble.
Meanwhile, Borin flinched, gasped, and stepped back, his eyes darting between the blood and the convulsing boy. Shocked—he had thought the boy was dead.
The boy looked extremely tired, pale, and exhausted, fatigue evident on his face.
The blood continued to flow for a few moments, then stopped. It seemed the lungs had rid themselves of most of the accumulated blood.
Then Lyra raised her hands again, and with magical incantation: "Sacred Light Magic, Healing Ninth Gate: Inner Essence Restoration," A faint golden light glowed from her hands and then spread into the boy's chest, reaching the inside of the lungs.
Lyra felt the magical life energy interacting with the boy's body, removing the remnants of blood and accelerating the healing process. She saw the damaged tissues heal, the damaged cells regenerate, and the state of the lungs return to normal; the broken rib was slowly healing.
After a few moments, the boy's breathing stabilized, becoming normal and regular. Then, as if the last vestiges of his strength had finally abandoned him, he slipped into a deep, unconscious slumber. His body, exhausted from the ordeal, finally surrendered to the overwhelming need for rest, a fragile peace settling over his battered form.
Lyra said, "Well, we've passed the danger stage. Now, let's move on to the rest..."
As Lyra's incantation, 'Sacred Light Magic, Healing Third Gate: Outer Essence Purification,' a soft golden aura enveloped her hands
Then she approached the deep wounds that were slowly healing. She moved between the wounds, treating them carefully.
"Such deep wounds, yet his body fights back with surprising strength," Lyra thought, her brow furrowed in concentration. An unusual resilience. "The damage is extensive, but the magic is taking hold". Lyra focused intently on the major wounds—the deep and severe ones, The boy's body responded noticeably, his natural healing powers pushed beyond their normal limits. The wounds closed gradually, tissues regaining their natural color, leaving only scars.
After a few moments, Lyra stepped back and examined the boy carefully. "Well, I think that's enough. I've healed most of the fatal wounds that were threatening his life. There are still some wounds left."
Then Lyra asked casually " Do you want me to continue, Elara? That will increase the bill."
Elara looked surprised for a moment, then began to wonder, "Okay, okay, but how much do I owe you so far?"
Lyra's eyes lit up, and she smiled slyly, as if she had been waiting for this question from the start. "Oh, Only twenty silver coins!"
Elara's eyes widened in astonishment and dread. "TWENTY silver coins? That's... that's too much! I could buy four slaves with that..."
{1000 bronze coins = 1 silver coin, 1000 silver = 1 gold coin}
With a pleading voice, Elara tried, "Is there any discount?"
Lyra raised her eyebrows coldly. "No discount. You called me ugly, and let's be honest, you were jealous of my face. So, no discount for you."
Elara stepped back, her face sweating. "But... but that was just a joke! You can't take all that money for a few wounds!"
"A few wounds?" Lyra retorted sharply. "This boy was on the verge of death. I saved his life. Twenty silver coins is a small price for that."
Elara looked at the boy, now breathing quietly, then back at Lyra. "Okay, I'll pay."
With a curious tone, Lyra asked, "Is he really worth it?" "I understand why you're interested in him," Lyra said with an understanding tone, then elaborated, "On his two hands, you know these branding marks represent different groups, like the 'Masters of the North,' the 'Mine Traders,' and others... This significantly reduces his value."
Lyra sighed deeply, and whispered to herself: "Five marks on his body... this boy has seen hell."
She knows that the slums are a slave's hell. Every gang steals them from another to exploit them to the utmost.
The marks etched on his body are not mere tattoos or decorations, but brands indicating his repeated servitude. Five different marks, each telling a story of repeated sale, enslavement, and neglect. This boy had passed through the hands of many masters, as a commodity to be bought and sold, yet he survived despite everything...
Elara replied nervously, "I don't know what will happen, but I don't have choices..."
Lyra looked at her, her gaze piercing. "Anyway, it's a gamble you've decided to take. I hope it works out for you. But don't forget to move him to another cell, a clean one."
"Ugh... he'll also need cleaning." she said, waving her hand in the air, as if to dismiss an invisible, unpleasant smell.
She began gathering her tools, stating: 'Well, I've finished the essential part. The rest will heal with time. But don't expect him to return to normal quickly. His body is extremely exhausted."
Then she looked at Borin, who had been watching everything with wide eyes, and said sharply: 'Don't just stand there like an idiot. Bring me clean water to wash my hands!"
Borin gave a swift nod and hurried out, coming back with a bucket of water.
Lyra commenced washing her hands. Upon completion, she dried them with a clean white cloth retrieved from her bag, and then meticulously returned it.
Then, with a sharp tone and narrowing eyes, she said, "Now, it's time to pay..." her lips pressed into a straight line, as if mentally calculating every silver piece.
Elara sighed nervously, then turned to Borin and asked, "Borin, do you have any money?"
Borin replied in his deep voice, "No, I only have some bronze coins... barely enough to buy a loaf of bread."
{His monthly payment is 1,800 bronze coins, equivalent to 1 silver, 800 bronze coins}
Elara sighed again, then took a small pouch from her pocket and opened it. It contained a few silver pieces, which she handed to Lyra. "Take these ten pieces. I'll give you the rest next time..."
Lyra looked at the silver pieces in her hand, then at Elara, her eyes narrowing with suspicion. "Only ten pieces?"
Elara replied, "I know, but that's all I have right now. As I said, I'm practically Ruined at the moment..."
Lyra's brow furrowed slightly. "Hmph. Alright, I'll accept this for now, but don't expect any further assistance from me until you settle the remaining debt."
Elara, with a hint of forced bravado, added, "I don't need you again."
Lyra started to yawn, stretching slightly, and replied, "You always say that..."
Then, her voice laced with drowsiness, she continued, "My work here is done. Don't forget, the boy needs a cleaner cell... I cast a spell on him; he will sleep for two days at least. His body needs that, at the very least."
Then she turned and walked towards the cell door. Before crossing the threshold, she cast a final glance at the boy's body lying on the floor, a quick look devoid of any clear expression, as if checking something. She continued down the dark corridor, wondering curiously, "There's something... something strange..."
Soon, silence returned after her departure.
As Lyra disappeared into the dark corridor, Borin looked at Elara, then at the boy lying on the floor, and then back at Elara. Borin's face was filled with worry, and his deep eyes held questions he dared not ask.
"What now?" Borin asked in his deep voice, which carried a hidden note of anxiety.
Elara looked at Borin, her eyes fixed on him seriously. Her features were pale, but she maintained her composure. "Now, take him back to his previous cell, that's your job," she said in a firm tone that brooked no argument.
Borin continued, in a hesitant tone, "I know, but this boy is suspicious, how can he still be alive! He was dead! I won't dare approach him again." His voice trembled slightly, and his eyes looked at the boy with suspicion and fear.
Elara replied in a practical tone, "In any case, just take him. We'll discuss his matter tomorrow." She didn't want to prolong the conversation on this subject; she felt extremely tired and had an urgent desire to end this long day.
Lyra left, leaving Borin alone with the boy.
Borin muttered with a grumble, "Why is it always me..."
He looked at the unconscious boy and hesitated to approach. He remembered the wounds, the flowing blood, and felt a shiver run down his spine, especially as he looked at the boy's tattered, mud- and blood-stained clothes. At that moment, Borin wished someone else was in his place.
Borin sighed, then spoke to himself, "Elara would be angry if I dragged him on the ground again, especially after she paid and Lyra went to so much trouble to heal him."
Then he mumbled, "A cart will be easier."
He quickly set off to find a cart and soon returned with a small wooden cart that he left beside the boy. Borin approached the boy and extended his hands, his heart pounding as he lifted him. He was surprised by how light and cold the boy's body was, and exclaimed, "Damn, is he dead again?!"
He quickly placed the boy in the cart and rushed to the boy's cell. He quickly entered, tossed the boy from the cart onto the straw bed, then hurried out and closed the door quickly, as if the boy would follow him.
"Finally, I'm done," Borin sighed in relief. "Now, to my room."
Borin left the cell, heading to his room, yawning wearily...
Inside the new cell, the boy remained still, his breathing shallow and even. His eyelids fluttered slightly, as if in a light sleep. But beneath the facade, his mind was sharp, his senses heightened. He had heard their every word, felt their every touch, but his body didn't respond...