1.35 Life Detection
"Go ahead. He needs more help than I do."
Liam relaxed visibly.
What did Liam think of him? Michael did not know whether to be offended or not. He was not about to let someone they could save die.
The man laid the injured boy on the bed Michael was sitting on just a minute ago. His injuries had not healed completely, but Michael could move now. Even if he had to wince in pain every few seconds.
The woman cradled the boy's head with her hand. "You are doing good my boy. Liam will heal you right good. You will be better in no time."
Liam sat next to the boy, hands over him, pulling on Michael's Mana to heal the boy, though Michael saw no visible sign of healing.
After about half an hour, Liam stopped channelling Michael's Mana and stood up.
"What happened?" The woman said. "Why did you stop? Is he going to be OK?"
"He will survive," Liam said.
"Then why did you stop healing him? Are you out of Mana?"
Liam shook his head. "No, I am channelling his Mana," Liam said, pointing at Michael. "I was out of Mana hours ago, but he has enough to help the entire village. But for now, I must stop healing your son."
"Why? What's wrong."
"I have done what I can for him, but he does not have enough energy in his body for me to continue healing him. If I do so, he will die. We'll have to wait for him to wake up and eat something before I heal him again. But do not worry, he will wake up in a few hours. I have used a spell for it. Just make sure you feed him something light. I will have to heal him in multiple seasons."
The woman nodded. And after a flurry of thanks, she and the man carried that child to leave.
"Don't forget to clean and bandage his wounds," Liam called after them.
Once they were gone, Liam approached Michael to continue healing him. Michael stopped him. "Rest for a while. I can survive with my wounds for an hour or two.""Are you sure?" Liam said.
Michael nodded. "Yes, casting spells for so long must be taxing. Rest for now."
"Thank you," Liam said, slumping onto the bed. "I am exhausted."
"What happened to that boy?" Michael asked.
Liam looked up, wiping away his sweat.
"The landslide destroyed half the village. There are still about 50 people missing. 20 of the villagers are dead. And many who survived being hit by the landslide are heavily injured. But they are safe and will survive."
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Michael said. "Is there anything I can do to help? You did save my life."
Liam spoke hesitantly. "If you allow me to draw on your Mana to heal anyone we find, that would be appreciated."
"Of course," Michael said. It was the least he could do.
"I don't want to be rude," Michael continued. "But did you find any of my belongings?"
"Anything we found is in that pile." Liam said, massaging his forehead.
Michael approached the pile in the corner of his room and rummaged through it. It was the pack he was carrying and a few other things. There was his axe, the magical locket he had found in the forest, and the pouch filled with coral stones. He discreetly counted the stones—none were missing.
These people are humble around here, aren't they? Michael thought. If it was anywhere else, he would have lost those stones. Maybe he could do more for these people than just a living battery of Mana for Liam.
"Say Liam," Michael said. "How many people did you say were missing?"
"More than fifty," Liam replied, his voice heavy with the weight of the tragedy. "We've been trying to dig them out, but it's slow going."
"Why don't you use Life Detection?"
With that skill, it should be easy to find the people buried in the landslide.
Liam shook his head sadly. "That's a rare skill, and no one here has it. We've been relying on sheer manpower and luck."
These villagers had saved him, treated his injuries. Now it was his turn to help them. "I can do it. I can't use the skill for long, but it should be better than nothing. I'll help find your missing villagers."
Liam jumped out of bed, eyes widening. "You would do that for us?"
"Of course! You saved my life."
"Thank you, you have no idea what it means to me," Liam said. Were those tears in his eyes? "After my family died, these people took care of me."
"Come, let's go to the site and save your people."
With that resolve, Michael gathered his strength. Despite the pain in his body, he walked to the site of the landslide and focused, his skill, [Life Detection]. Closing his eyes, he extended his senses, feeling for signs of life beneath the rubble.
Michael immediately found multiple people buried alive. He ran around the area, marking the location and telling the villages about depths they needed to unearth them. Then he moved to another location, then another.
Slowly, painstakingly, they began to uncover the buried villagers. Each one they found was a mix of relief and heartbreak—some alive, clinging to the last dregs of hope, and others silent and still. Michael pushed himself to the limit, ignoring the pain assaulting him.
As the hours passed, the village echoed with shouts of joy and cries of mourning. Families were reunited, some were happy reunions, others not.
Through Michael's efforts, they unearthed survivors who might otherwise have been lost forever. When the task was finally done, and the last villager was pulled from the rubble, Liam stabilised his condition, channelling Michael's Mana and collapsed next to him. The other villagers gathered around them, expressing their gratitude in heartfelt words and gestures.
"You've saved us…"
"We owe you more than we can ever repay…"
"My son is alive …"
"My daughter can continue singing because of you…"
"Thank you, thank you."
Some even kissed him and Liam, tears in their eyes.
"We saved each other," Michael said, with a huge smile on his face that showed no sign of vanishing.
"Does helping people always feel this good?"
"Always," Liam said, falling asleep.