第９９７堀：一夜明けて人は慣れる？ (Part1)
Chapter 997: People Get Used to Things After a Night?
Side: Yuki
*Chirp, chirp...*
A magnificent morning chorus.
The sky is clear, and I feel refreshed.
Well, it’s still a bit dim out.
The eastern sky is brightening; it’s just about dawn.
"Sigh, it’s a hassle to talk business first thing in the morning, but... Kirika."
"Yes. I am here."
As always, my intelligence agent, Kirika, appears the moment I call her.
"How are the Emperor of Eupia and his party doing? I haven't been involved since the bathhouse yesterday."
I couldn't exactly barge into the bathhouse, so I left the rest entirely to Aslin and Rurua. I would have done the same if I didn't have other work to attend to.
"I heard from Rurua that Shou’s burns were treated without issue?"
"Yes. I monitored the treatment via surveillance footage. They were quite surprised and deeply intrigued by how easily the injury was healed. I suspect the treatment will be the first topic they bring up during today's meeting."
"I see. And then it’s on to the introduction to Weed, right?"
"Yes, I believe so. They will likely prioritize questions regarding Rurua’s healing and recovery magic. For their nation, improving medical technology directly translates to reducing war casualties, so it will be their top priority. We should prepare a response for that."
"Got it. That means I’ll have to adjust the schedule."
Things that couldn't be cured before, now can be. And as Kirika mentioned, Zurable is currently in the middle of a war, so they would naturally covet that technology.
*Sigh*, how should I rearrange the schedule...
"Yes. Furthermore, I have ordered the subordinates and maids to scatter and observe the town, so we should assign surveillance and guides to them as well."
"Ah, right, that happened."
Tch, I have to make arrangements for that too.
...Alright, my thoughts are a mess.
"For now, let's head to the inn."
"Yes."
With that, I headed toward the inn while it was still slightly dark outside.
The inn was located in a corner of a dense forest, and in the dim surroundings, lights leaked out from the windows here and there.
"By the way, how was the movement during the night?"
"Aside from the guards taking turns on night watch, everyone slept soundly."
"I see. Doesn't look like anyone is suffering from lack of sleep or poor health."
As we were talking, I ran into Rurua the moment I stepped into the entrance.
"Ah, Master. Good morning."
"Yo. Morning. Wait, what are you doing, Rurua?"
"I’m here to observe Shou’s progress. It’s the first time I’ve ever healed such severe burns, especially ones that had been left untreated for so long."
"Ah, I see. Still, it’s impressive you managed to heal it with just Extra Heal."
"Fortunately, I was able to recognize the state of the skin as a 'wound.' If I had perceived it as a 'loss of tissue,' it would have been much more difficult."
"I see."
Hmm, recovery magic still seems to have many mysteries.
What is the difference between a "loss" and a "wound"?
Well, in a broad sense, a "loss" usually refers to something being severed or a body part going missing.
Then what does a "wound" refer to? An injury *is* a wound.
Wait? If that’s the case, aren't "loss" and "injury" the same thing?
No, wait—a "loss" means there is no original part left to restore.
But even with a wound, you are supplementing and restoring cells that were damaged—that is, cells that were lost.
At the root, they really do seem to mean the same thing.
Well, I suppose a "loss" is just an injury that exceeds the body's basic regenerative capacity...
Not that an amateur like me thinking about it will solve anything.
First, I need to check on the Emperor of Zurable and his party.
"So, where are Shou and the others?"
"They’ve already woken up and are heading to the morning buffet."
"Then, let’s grab a bite too."
"Yes."
It’s awkward to show up at breakfast and not eat anything while everyone else is dining.
When I arrived at the cafeteria...
"This too! And this! Eat your fill! It’ll be a while before we leave Weed, so everyone, stuff yourselves!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Yay!"
I had stumbled upon the Emperor of Eupia personally ordering his men to gorge themselves.
Not just the Emperor, but all the soldiers were piling their plates high with buffet food and devouring it.
And right next to them, Aslin and the others were enjoying their breakfast happily.
"...For now, let’s take an empty table."
"Yes."
I didn't feel like interrupting people who were so desperate to eat just to discuss future plans.
Actually, I’m impressed by the mental fortitude of Aslin and the others, who could eat breakfast so calmly amidst that commotion.
As I was feeling half-impressed, Shou, who had been picking out his breakfast among the others, suddenly noticed us.
"Oh, if it isn't Yuki-sama. Rurua, Kirika-dono. Good morning."
"Good morning."
While we were exchanging greetings, Shou walked over to our table.
"How was it? Was the inn comfortable?"
"Yes. It is surprisingly comfortable. I enjoyed the bath first thing this morning. May I join you for a meal?"
"Sure, go ahead. It’s just casual talk."
When I said that, Shou tore off a piece of bread and brought it to his mouth.
"Hmm. Even the bread is different. It’s soft and slightly sweet. In our country, this level of white bread—which we only serve to the Emperor—is treated as common fare here. I am astonished."
"Ah, come to think of it, the bread in the Zurable Empire was a bit on the hard side."
Black bread is usually crumbly. Plus, it has the added bonus of being as hard as a baguette.
But that doesn't necessarily mean it tastes bad.
I think that’s just the taste of black bread, and I think it has its own appeal.
It’s like how in the modern world, barley rice is considered healthy and people go out of their way to eat it, even though it used to be called "poor man's food" back in the day.
Thinking about that, I ate the breakfast I had picked up.
Yeah. It’s delicious.
Even though it’s a buffet, the food is high quality.
Buffets at cheap inns aren't necessarily lazy, but because the budget is low, they usually taste just "okay." The buffets at the business hotels I stayed at for work were always a bit too simple.
"...Is it fair to call it 'a bit' hard? By the way, Rurua, why are you here..."
"Yes. I came to check on Shou. It seems there are no issues."
"Indeed. Thanks to you, for the first time in a long time, I didn't have to change my clothes this morning. Usually, the burned skin would crack while I slept, and blood would seep into my clothes. But there’s none of that today."
...He says such terrifying things so casually, but he really did have a horrific injury.
Well, considering he survived what would have been a life-threatening injury even in modern medicine, Shou clearly had the foundation to be called the "Great Emperor."
"I see, that’s good to hear. However, I still need to perform a proper examination, so could you spare some time after you finish eating?"