The sun had already set and we were in our hotel room. I decided to devote the rest of the day to treating Raphtalia.
We re-dressed Raphtalia's wounds by soaking the bandages in the holy water I bought.
After the bandages had been applied, black smoke started rising from the wounds.
Raphtalia: "U......Ku....."
Naofumi: "Are you okay?"
Raphtalia: "Y-yes. There's a feeling of stiffness leaving my body and it's also quite itchy."
Naofumi: "I see......"
I want to heal her as fast as possible, because I injured her.
The black bruise seems to have gotten lighter.
Raphtalia: "The place Naofumi-sama wounded is healing quickly."
Naofumi: "That's good."
I want you to recover as soon as possible.
Firo: "Ah, Raphtalia Onee-chan is so sly! Taking advantage of the situation to flirt with Master!"
Although Firo says that, she was clinging to me throughout the treatment.
Raphtalia: "We're not flirting!"
Naofumi: "That's right, all I'm doing is treating Raphtalia's wounds."
Raphtalia and I are flirting...... what's with that? Raphtalia and I aren't in that kind of relationship. Rather than that, where did you learn something like that?
Firo: "Raphtalia Onee-chan is Kuroi-mon!" [1]
Raphtalia: "Please don't say it like that as though my belly is black."
These two get along quite well.
Naofumi: "Well until the wave comes, try and take it slow."
Firo: "Okay~!"
Raphtalia: "That's right. We have been quite busy recently, so relaxing occasionally is not bad."
Naofumi: "Yeah."
Firo: "Master, when are you going to make food?"
Naofumi: "Let's see...... How about tomorrow?"
Firo: "Yaay~!"
In this way, while giving Raphtalia treatment, we slept at the inn.
The next day.
The equipment I asked the old man to make hasn't been finished yet.
There's nothing particularly important to do, though it may be a good idea to show up at the magic shop or the pharmacy.
Or should I go to the Dressmaker’s shop and take a look?
Naofumi: "Now then, what should we do today?"
Raphtalia: "Let's see......"
Firo: "Food!"
Naofumi: "Yes, Yes. I know."
As for recovery medicine, I have already prepared a lot in between the waves......
Since Raphtalia and Firo have already hit their Level limit, I was the only one who could level up. It might be a waste, but it would be fine to take a rest for a while. Besides, Raphtalia's wounds aren't completely healed either.
Naofumi: "Should I go get more holy water?"
Raphtalia: "Eh? There's still some left."
Naofumi: "Is this enough for a complete recovery?"
Compared to yesterday, the blackness has faded quite a bit but it’s still far from a complete recovery. The amount remaining is still making me feel uneasy.
Also, The effect won't be as potent if holy water is not changed every day.
On a more positive note, at this rate, the blackness left would be almost gone when the wave comes.
Naofumi: "I sincerely apologize."
Raphtalia: "It is a wound I got myself. Don't worry about it."
Naofumi: "Okay."
Naofumi: "Then, let's go to the pharmacy shop first. We can get food after."
Firo: "Yeah!"
Raphtalia and Firo nodded, so we left our baggage at the inn and headed out.
When we got to the pharmacy, the storekeeper’s attitude is as usual as he welcomed us.
Pharmacy SK: "It's been a while."
I replied to his comment.
Naofumi: "Ah, the intermediate recipe book was received and put to good use."
Pharmacy SK: "I see......"
Looking at how he handled the medicine made me realize that I am still not up to par.
Pharmacy SK: "That reminds me, my old friend the Accessory Merchant seems to be your acquaintance."
Naofumi: "Huh?"
I was surprised that the storekeeper knew him.
Pharmacy SK: "How did you get so friendly with that miser? He praised you highly."
Naofumi: "Are the both of you acquainted?"
Pharmacy SK: "We knew each other since the old days. That guy, he had an aptitude for guessing the medicine that I made just from the smell alone."
Back then, that guy used only the smell of my medicine to guess that I was making Intermediate Class medicine from the recipe received this pharmacy!? [2]
Accessory Merchant, what kind of person are you? I cannot fathom what else he might be hiding......
Pharmacy SK: "Hmm...did you guys know each other when you were peddling?”
The storekeeper seems to have heard about me peddling from an acquaintance in Forest village.
Naofumi: "While we were peddling in a place where there was a turf war, we were attacked by thieves aiming for the Accessory Merchant. Of course we retaliated against their attempt."
Pharmacy SK: "I don't think that guy would have been very happy about being attacked."
I don't understand. Accessory Merchant, are you some kind of celebrity?
Naofumi: "Ah, where was I? Oh right, after we captured the thief, I stripped him of all his possessions and confiscated everything from his hideout."
The storekeeper was silent, put his hand on his forehead, and nodded.
Pharmacy SK: "That certainly does seem like you. I see, no wonder that fellow would be very interested in you. It’s because you did something like that.”
Naofumi: "Afterwards, he taught me a lot of things."
Pharmacy SK: "Oh, he was praising you as a quick learner and said you were his successor in commercial spirit."
Naofumi: "Please leave me alone."
I was peddling because of my equipment costs and not because I was greedy for money.
Pharmacy SK: "So, what do you need today?"
Naofumi: "Ah, do you have any High Class Recipes to sell?"
The storekeeper stops mixing.
Pharmacy SK: "...... That’s fast. But I do not think that you are ready yet."
Naofumi: "Yeah, there is also medicine that is not on a recipe that I can make too."
Strong Acid water, Magical power water and Soul Medicine water can't be made yet. There has been no need for these yet, but it is possible to acquire the rare materials through a distribution route learned from the Accessory Merchant.
Naofumi: "But...I was not able to save people with the medicine I made. Fortunately, the Treatment Master there was able to make High Class medicine. Because of this, I felt inadequate in terms of ability."
The store keeper is convinced with my reply and nods.
Pharmacy SK: "I see...... Still, I think that it is still too early for a High Class recipe."
Naofumi: "Is it that difficult.....?"
Pharmacy SK: "There are a lot of applications to medicine in Intermediate Class recipes. Besides, there are other things you can make without a recipe."
Is it the materials necessary for compounding? Certainly, it can't be that bad......
Pharmacy SK: "I can still sell a High Recipe book though, but it will be expensive."
Naofumi: "How much is it?"
Pharmacy SK: "It's 500 silver coins. It cannot be lowered any further."
I understand that I am getting a good deal.
I can easily imagine the guilds here behaving like organizations and companies in my world that would want to have a monopoly over the number of people knowing about High Class medicine. [3]
And he is willing to endure that kind of pressure and sell the recipe to me.
Naofumi: "I'll take it."
I obediently hand over 500 silver.
Pharmacy SK: "Hmm...... Next is this."
I receive a book with the title, 'Poisonous Plants and Poison Recipes'. I am slow but I am able to read the letters of this world, to some extent.
Naofumi: "Recipes for poison?"
Pharmacy: "It is impossible to avoid this topic if you want to learn about medicine. They are, so to speak, the latter part of the Intermediate Class medicine.”
Naofumi: "Hmm......"
I skim through it. It contains a simple anesthesia and other such drugs. This looks difficult, but it won't hurt to learn it. Beside, learning the High Class recipes are out of my reach at the moment.
Naofumi: "Thanks. Do you have Beginner Class recipes such as the heal pill and regular medicine?"
The storekeeper of the pharmacy almost did a splendid fall.
Pharmacy SK: "...... You were making Intermediate Class medicine without even knowing the fundamentals?"
Naofumi: "I saw how you did it and remembered."
Pharmacy SK: "Are you a boy from a temple who can't read.....?"
Those words are a proverb from Japan. The shield is probably translating the corresponding phrase from this world. The Shop Keeper sighs and fluently writes something onto parchment.
Pharmacy SK: "I wrote the basics of the Beginner's Class on this. Remember it."
Naofumi: "Yeah."
When we left, Firo was already outside because she dislikes the smell from the medicine and Raphtalia was looking at medical herbs.
Soldiers: "Hero of the Shield-sama!"
I hear an unfamiliar voice after leaving the pharmacy.
There were two 14 or 15 year old kids dressed as soldiers standing there who were out of breath.
I start escaping at once. Raphtalia and Firo also start running. I could think of many things why this would occur.
Solder A: "Please wait! We are not here to capture you! Please Wait!"
Naofumi: "Then what do you want?"
Soldier A: "I only want to talk for a little!"
...... Suspicious..... For now, we stopped.
If it is a lie, I guess it would be fine to let Firo rampage.
Soldier A: "Haa.....Haa..... At last, I can finally meet you."
The boy's shoulders are heaving as he gasps for air.
Naofumi: "What do you want with me?"
Soldier A: "Umm. Can you please let us go with you during the waves......?
Naofumi: "Come again?"
What are you saying? I look at the boy with a puzzled expression.
Soldier A: "We are junior soldiers who were impressed with the fighting method of the Hero of the Shield-sama during the earlier wave."
The boy's story is like this.
During the previous wave, the low rank soldiers were impressed by the appearance of Raphtalia and I, who were the only ones to stay behind and protect the Forest Village.
It seems the Knight's Order was complimenting me after the wave, seems like there were new rumours spreading about me while I was away.
Soldier A: "During our town patrol, I