Chapter 34: Recovery

When I next open my eyes, it was as Verei first. It took me some time to get out of bed, my body exhausted more than I originally thought. It didn't help how stiff I was. But I eventually reached the window and saw the sun high up.

'The sun should've been close to setting back when I...' I then remembered everything what happened to me. I survived being poisoned by hobgoblins that acted as assassins. 'Right... So I was out for the entire night...' 

I woke up alone with no one else in the room, not in Veda's room either when I could have her wake up a minute after Verei could stand. It's a late awakening but not too late for Veda to collect the dress and chainmail. I also need to check up on the aftermath on Verei's side for what happened after collapsing. 

After taking a moment to stretch, I move Veda to the VIP bath while Verei leaves the room to go for the bathhouse. 'This late in the day likely won't have many people if any so I should be able to avoid seeing other people naked.' 

When one of the maids spots Veda walking the halls, they rush to check if I'm okay enough to be walking. I let them know I'm alright and will be heading to the bath. But as I continue on, the maid rushes off, likely reporting to the Queen I've regained consciousness. 

'How should I explain what happened to me?' 

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Verei walks downstairs to the bar area of the inn where I spot Floris sitting at a table alone. He notices me and almost knocks over the chair when getting up. "Y-you're awake! H-how do you feel?" 

He collapsed before I did, so he didn't get confirmation from me on his success. "Feeling good. A little stiff from sleeping for so long but I don't think there's a drop of that poison left." 

He exhales in relief, "That's good. I was so worried the spell had some kind of side effect." 

Can't fault him for not trusting an unknown incantation but that spell is the only one I could remember the description of that could fix every problem affecting my body. 

With us both taking a seat, I reassure him in an attempt to help him trust himself more. "You were able to cast it so you shouldn't worry over anything else. It was entirely on me and my memory whether I lived or died in that moment." 

Floris was still reluctant in accepting that seeing as he was the caster. "But that's not how it works! I'm the caster, if I can't cast a spell I should be capable of casting, then it's my fault for being born with such a small mana capacity!"

"I concur. People can't help how they're born, they can only strive to do as they can in that moment. I gamble whether you could cast it or not but a choice I made." 

He stares at me for a while before giving in. "Alright, it was your gamble. But I have to ask, where did you learn such a spell?" 

I already thought of the excuse, especially effective considering it's not a lie. "It's from my grandmother's, or I guess it's now my sister's book. I was interested in magic too before learning of my inability to use any spell no matter how hard I tried. But that spell stuck with me because it was the most useful spell for someone with a reckless fighting style like me." 

The biggest weakness of being a fighter is accumulated wounds that eventually affect their ability to swing their weapons or even stop their ability to dodge when faced with a fatal attack.  Just as well, Veda's body is weak and anyone resistant to her spells or able to silence her words would be the worst matchup. 

I need to work on those weaknesses if I continue to remain separated. 

Veda can work on her fitness in order to dodge and maybe eventually use a weapon herself, but Verei is still in a difficult situation. Maybe I'll find an artifact that can heal. 

I'm brought out of my thoughts by Floris's exclamation on hearing about my grandmother's book. "That's amazing! I wonder who your grandmother was to have a book on amazing incantations! Did she discover it herself, or did she contribute to scholars in its discovery?!" 

While Floris is enthusiastically asking me questions I don't know the answers to, I try calming him down to ask about the others. "I'm not really sure, my grandmother died before my time and Uldrei didn't talk much about her!" 

He apologized when he heard that, a bit disappointed that I didn't know more, but just as we finished talking, the door opened with Sapheir and Jikani entering with some plates of food. Just behind was Gradon, the B-rank tanker adventurer who challenged me two days ago, along with others who must be his team. 

Everyone saw I was awake and rushed over, thankfully not dropping anything in the process. But just as I was about to greet them, blood began running down my nose once more. 

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As I enter the bath, I quickly look around before sighing in relief that there was no one else inside. 

I really don't enjoy the culture of being bathed by servants and am in the perfect situation to take care of it myself for once since I arrived in the capital. 

I must've been one to bath myself before as the feeling of being scrubbed by another was far too foreign a feeling for Veda, even through the amnesia. Maybe that's a hint I wasn't someone of nobility. 

'So, who and what was I before getting amnesia? Apparently, Veda is a mage and Verei a fighter, but I don't think they were adventurers, at least not normal ones. Maybe Veda had a job that required a bodyguard, so she hired Verei. The two of us don't look that much alike beyond our eyes either... beyond that we are practically opposites. And the thing about my eyes, it feels different than looking into everyone else's eyes, as though I'm looking at... my soul...' 

Snapping out of the trance of staring into my own eyes in the mirror, I wash out these thoughts using the nearby water bucket before heading over to the hot water. 

Unfortunately, just as I do the door opens. I freeze in place, swallowing saliva before slowly turning to see the one person I hoped I wouldn't run into the most during this time. 

Emeri's eyes were wide the moment she saw me, her outfit being something I could only guess was for working out. And considering she was sweaty; she must've just come back after a jog. 

My attempt to stay perfectly still to seem invisible failed as she slammed into me during her sprint, screaming my name so loud I wouldn't be surprised if the entire castle heard her. 

Thankfully I saw this coming and held my breath before getting slammed into, protecting my stomach so I'm not in fear of drowning... yet. We were underwater for a couple seconds before Emeri realized what she just didn't, bringing me out of the water as she apologized profusely.

"I am so sorry! But, but, but... I was so worried! After hearing about you being in inexplicable pain till you passed out, I wanted to see you right away! But then Ulda screamed at me that you needed rest so I wasn't allowed to be there to check on you myself despite wanting to desperately to see you...!" 

Emeri talked extensively about her plight only taking a breath once through the entire spill of words coming out of her mouth, steadily speaking faster and faster till I could barely hear what she was saying. 

"...The only thing I could do to calm down was work out! That's when I came here to take a soak in the bath only to see you! Oh right... I'm still in my workout gear." 

Getting an up-close view of the now soaked skin-tight gear was the final straw. 

-------- 

I take a deep breath, "No worries, it will stop in a minute." 

Everyone groans at the recurrence of the 'random' nosebleed that has just ruined all tension in the room. But my body seems to be getting resistant as it stops so long as I don't look directly at nor touch the revealing silky-smooth half-elven skin. "So, has anything happened while I was in the half a day long coma?" 

With everyone sat down to enjoy a meal, Sapheir, the only one awake between the three of the men there at the time, filled in the gaps. "Thankfully, there weren't any hobgoblin sightings after the ambush, so we only had to wait for Jikani to return. She brought an alchemist to identify the symptoms of your poison to which we were in luck the bandages you set aside were coated in it as that apparently made a great sample for him to analyze. Upon our return, I reported to the guild on the appearance of the Hobgoblin Assassin variants." 

Jikani begins telling her part. "Along with the bandages, Floris picked up the weapon used by the hobgoblins alongside your equipment, allowing the professional to get enough samples to possibly work on an antidote in case of any future appearances of that poison." 

'Those hobgoblins were a variant? I knew they weren't normal, but I didn't expect them to be different enough to be classified on par with something like that of a goblin mage. Or a goblin champion, the last step before goblins evolve into Orcs.' 

Jikani shrugs. "But you're in luck. You awoke just as we were heading to the guild to hear the announcement on changes for entry to Varen Valley." 

'An announcement on changes for Varen Valley?'