The old Dwarven woman’s eyelids fluttered open, her gaze hazy at first, then slowly focusing. She blinked a few times, a soft groan escaping her lips.
"Myra...?" Durnik whispered, his voice thick with unshed tears, hope and fear warring in his gruff eyes. He knelt beside the cot, his calloused hand reaching out hesitantly to touch her cheek.
"Durnik...?" Myra murmured, her voice weak but clear. She turned her head slightly, her eyes finding his. A faint, tired smile touched her lips. "You look... like you haven’t slept in days, you stubborn old goat."
Tears finally spilled from Durnik’s eyes, tracing paths through the soot on his weathered face. "Myra! Oh, my Myra! You’re... you’re awake!" He gently took her hand, pressing it to his lips, his broad shoulders shaking with emotion. "I thought... I thought I’d lost you."
"Lost me?" She chuckled weakly. "Takes more than a bit of a chill to get rid of this old battle-axe, Durnik. Though... I do feel like I am waking up after a very long sleep. My muscles are aching." She tried to sit up, and Durnik immediately moved to support her.
"Easy now, love. Easy."
Riku, Lila, and Elara watched the tender reunion, a small, genuine smile. It was always a nice feeling to watch old couples express their love for each other.
Durnik’s face flushed, and he quickly turned to Riku, bowing deeply from the waist, nearly thumping his head on the low ceiling of the sick ward.
"Master Riku! I... I don’t know how to thank you! And I... I am so deeply sorry for my earlier words. I was a blind, grieving fool. Please, forgive my rudeness. I owe you my wife’s life. Anything... anything you ask, if it’s within my power, it’s yours!" He looked like he was about to bow again.
"Durnik, please," Riku said, stepping forward and gently helping the Dwarf straighten up. "There’s no need for apologies. You were worried. Anyone would be. I’m just glad I could help." He smiled at Myra. "And it’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Myra. I’m Riku."
"Thank you, kind human. It looks like my stupid husband said some things that he shouldn’t have. But how did you help me? Last thing I remember, I was in a deep pain from the creep. But I feel almost normal now."
"Just a small trick. However, even this is powerless to completely cure your disease."
With Myra awake and Brina already feeling much better, a spark of renewed hope shone from Borin’s eyes.
"Master Riku, could you also.. help the others?"
"Of course. I will heal everyone here."
Riku started moving from cot to cot. He used his ’Advanced Heal’ on each of the afflicted, even casting it multiple times in case the situation was too severe.
As the healing light took its effect, a common pattern emerged – the crimson rashes, while not vanishing completely, visibly lightened, and the burning pain subsided. And with the return of energy came a sudden, ravenous hunger.
Lila, Elara, Elder Borin, and even a now-beaming Durnik, bustled about, offering sips of water and small pieces of the matcha buns Riku had brought.
"More water, please!" a young human woman croaked, her eyes bright for the first time in days.
"I... I think I could eat a whole boar!" another Dwarf exclaimed, already looking much stronger.
Lila laughed, handing out another bun. "Looks like your magic also works up an appetite, Riku!"
Borin chuckled, shaking his head in amazement. "It’s the life force returning, young miss. A good sign! A very good sign!"
As Riku finished with the last patient, the system dinged softly.
[Goodwill Points Consumed: -570]
[Goodwill Points Earned: +1,000 (Healing the Sick in Underbelly)]
[Current Goodwill: 1024 Points]
Special Unlock: Chocolate (Cost - 2 goodwill points per scoop)
Whoa, a new unlock. When was the last time it happened?
Riku thought for a while, and then it struck him.
Ah! Cause I asked for more things earlier? That has to be the reason!
This system.... was just a Tsundere type, wasn’t it?
"Master Riku, thanks a lot for helping all our sick. We will be forever in your debt."
Borin’s voice broke Riku out of his reverie.
"Well, not bad for a day’s work," Riku said, a little tired but satisfied. "But this Crimson Creep... It’s stubborn. I still don’t have a solution to completely cure it."
Riku leaned against a pillar, observing the recovering patients. He noticed Elara, who, despite her own lingering marks, was diligently helping an elderly Dwarven woman sit up and drink. Many other dwarves who had recovered were all eating or walking around with a smile on their faces.
Then, an observation struck him. He scanned the room again, more carefully this time. The sick were mostly Dwarves, with a few humans mixed in. But the Half-Orcs he’d seen earlier, the ones who lived in the Underbelly alongside the Dwarves... none of them seemed to be among the afflicted.
"Elder Borin," Riku called out, pushing himself off the pillar. "A question, if I may."
Borin hurried over. "Anything, Master Riku."
"The Half-Orcs who live here," Riku began, "have any of them fallen ill with this Crimson Creep?"
Borin paused, stroking his beard thoughtfully. He looked around the sick ward, then back at Riku, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
"Now that you mention it, Master Riku... no. Not a single one. The Orcs, they complain of the foul smell in the air sometimes, same as us. But this... this red sickness... it hasn’t touched them." He frowned. "I... I never truly thought about it that way. Strange, isn’t it?"
Very strange indeed, Riku thought.
Dwarves and humans are susceptible, but not Half-Orcs? What’s the difference? Is it genetic? Or something to do with their inherent... lack of magical sensitivity?
Most Half-Orcs and Orcs in EverRealm had little to no mana affinity. Also, magic that uses mana didn’t seem to be able to deal directly with the disease itself.
Could there be a connection?
Riku also recalled Korgin mentioning a medicine, ’Sunpetal Draught, which was apparently the cure the church had come up with.
That medicine... maybe I should get my hands on it. It might be possible that the Church had done some research, which would be built into the medicine. Perhaps that can give me more clues.
Riku’s mind was already forming plans.