After defeating the gargoyle and
collecting the magic stone as a drop item, I looked back at my classmates
behind me.
The man called "Jean" was
healing his friends. All three of them were unconscious, including Arisa, who
seemed to be his girlfriend. Arisa is in particularly bad shape. Her chest is
bleeding and her face is pale from the loss of blood.
“Are you
all right?”
“Oh... I'm
sorry, Baskerville. Thank you”
Jean, who was treating his friends, turns
to me and bows his head lightly. He immediately turns back to his friends and
resumes first aid.
It seems that the wounds of his
companions are too deep to be treated with only the healing medicine he has on
hand. I take out several bottles of potions from my toolbox and place them
beside Jean.
“You can
use them, don't you need them?”
“Are you
sure? I don't have any money”
“It doesn't
matter. It's a cheap one anyway, so don't worry about it”
Jean looks at me hesitantly for a moment,
alternating between my face and the potion, but soon puts the lives of his
companions ahead of his own and proceeds to give them the potion.
Their wounds, which had knocked them unconscious,
disappear in a green recovery effect. Their color improves and they will wake
up soon.
“You look
okay. It's good to see you all alive”
“Sorry,
Baskerville. Thank you so much”
After confirming that his friends were
safe, Jean turned his body toward me and bowed deeply. I responded with a light
wave of my hand.
“Don't
worry about it. We are classmates, after all. It's only natural”
“...I see.
Thank you so much. And thanks for the medicine, but also for defeating that
crazy enemy”
Jean looks at the place where the
gargoyle had been a moment ago, his face contorted in vexation.
“I didn't
know there were such strong monsters in this dungeon. I didn't mean to be so
careless...”
“That
monster is probably an anomaly. Don't worry about it”
“And yet,
my friends were injured because I, the leader, was not good enough...? Damn!”
Jean spat in frustration as he hit the
ground.
Apparently, this man has a strong sense
of responsibility. He seems to feel a heavy responsibility for the injuries of
his comrades. He is an honest man. It would be a shame to leave him in the mob.
“If you
feel responsible... you should be strong. Next time, be strong enough to
protect your friends”
I didn't know what to say to him at a
time like this, but I said the usual words of comfort.
It may not have been a witty comfort, but
it brought a slight smile back to Jean's face.
“Yes... be
strong. Like Baskerville, I must be strong”
“You don't
have to follow my example, though... you have a long school life. Just do your
best”
“Yeah,
thanks. And I'm really sorry”
Jean looks mysterious and says sorry for
what seems like the umpteenth time.
“I already
heard you say thank you, didn't I? Enough of your pestering”
“It's not
that... uh, I guess I misunderstood you. I just wanted to apologize for that”
Jean scratches his cheeks awkwardly with
his fingertips and starts to talk.
“I thought
you were much more of a jerk. You have a scary face, and... you know, I never
hear good things about the Baskervilles”
“...Ah
that? I know it”
“But you
were a good man. You could've left us alone, but you risked so much to help us.
You gave us medicine. I'm sorry I misunderstood you and ignored you in the
classroom. Please forgive me”
“......”
Jean takes the trouble to stand up, bends
at a right angle at the waist, and bows his head. He is an upright man.
“Ah...”
This may be the first time for me to talk
to my classmates in a straight face, since I have been a bit of an outcast at
the school. I don't know what to say back to him, and I turn my face away from
him with a subtle look on my face.
I feel a little embarrassed and take out
an item from my tool bag to hide it.
“...Don't
worry about what happened so far. It's true that I have a scary face and that
the Baskervilles are villains. I'll go on ahead and you can use this to get out
slowly”
“This
is...?”
What I handed to Jean was a consumable
item called [Amulet Incense] that drives away monsters. It only works on weak
monsters, but if it is an enemy of this dungeon's size, they should be able to
escape without encountering them.
“...Thank
you again. I'll be sure to return the favor”
“Just pay
me back with a promotion and you'll be fine...see you later”
I said bluntly and left the place with a
wave of my hand.
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)0x65c54bbc69a08fd4ce5d4c58a7eb92fc6a3f08a0
USDC address Copied!
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)Address : GC4KAS6W2YCGJGLP633A6F6AKTCV4WSLMTMIQRSEQE5QRRVKSX7THV6S
Memo* : 2127737
XLM address Copied!
XLM memo Copied!