Suteko Ni Narimashita 27

"Ugh…"

Hylo groaned as he regained consciousness.

"Oh, you're awake?" I asked, breaking his stupor. 

As I carried him on my back, I could sense his confusion.

He panicked upon realizing I was carrying him, thrashing about. 

"Huh?! Why, you—?!"

"Please, don't squirm so much. I'll set you down if you can stand," I said, slightly irritated by his antics.

Carefully, I placed him on the ground and released his hand once his feet were steady.

"How did I end up here?" 

Hylo looked around, bewildered.

"…Wait, didn’t I steal a fancy-looking bag?"

"Yes, but then you were caught and beaten badly," I explained.

"Eh?"

Upon hearing this, Hylo reflexively reached for his arm and winced in pain.

"Ouch!"

"I know it hurts. I'll take care of you once I get to Rico. Just follow me for now," I reassured Hylo.

However, my words seemed to irk him momentarily. He didn’t say anything, though, and followed me in silence.

We quickly reached Hylo's side without any interference. Glancing back, I noticed Hylo was struggling to keep up.

I should've slowed down. It reminded me of when I walked with Mr. Nyxie and had to adjust my pace…

I silently apologized and paused by the door.

"Come in," I invited, opening the door for Hylo.

I felt like a concierge…

"What's all this about?" 

Despite his pain, Hylo eyed me skeptically.

Understandable.

He walked in unsteadily, and I followed.

"—Hylo? Where did you get those injuries?!" Rico, who was somewhat better, sat up against the wall, clutching my ice pillow.

"It's nothing," Hylo muttered, looking away in embarrassment.

He shouldn’t be so stubborn about it.

Now that we were in Hylo’s hideout, I knew I should leave soon. But first, there was something I needed to do.

I meant what I said about treating his injury. 

Though it was his own doing, something about Reshid’s conversation with those men earlier seemed off.

It was clear that if Reshid dealt with me, he'd receive a hefty sum.

Reshid, always chasing profits, was undoubtedly working for someone.

And that someone was almost certainly Haman. 

After our recent altercation, Haman developed a grudge against the slum dwellers, leading to this unfortunate situation. Gustav's fears had come true.

Although Hylo was partly responsible, without that incident, he wouldn't have been beaten so severely.

To alleviate my guilt, I needed to heal him.

Apologizing seemed pointless; Hylo didn’t even think it was my fault. It would just make things awkward.

By healing him, I’d erase the injuries he shouldn’t have had to endure.

If I didn’t do at least that much, I’d feel remorseful.

"So, let me treat you," I said. 

"Can you please stand there?"

"W-why?" 

Hylo asked, puzzled, and froze against the wall.

As I concentrated my magic, I assessed Hylo’s condition.

I quickly identified the extent of his surface injuries, muscle inflammation, and bone damage.

"You have severe bruises all over, as well as abrasions on your cheeks, back, and arms. I can heal the bruises immediately, and the abrasions aren’t serious. However, your right upper arm is completely fractured and dislocated. That's the most serious injury."

The words flowed from me effortlessly, strangely reminiscent of knowledge from a past life. It was odd but valuable, so I didn't question it.

"For now, I’ve healed the bruises and wounds. Please take a day off to recover."

I cast the usual healing spell, repairing his skin and tendons. By extracting some blood from his vessels, the swelling subsided, and his skin regained a healthy color.

With that out of the way, I braced myself for the more challenging task: mending his broken bone.

I could set his bone as it was, but there was a risk it might bend and harden incorrectly.

"Is it just your arm that's hurting now?" I asked.

"Y-yeah…" Hylo replied, his forehead dotted with sweat.

"Okay, this will hurt quite a bit, so try to bear with me."

"…Huh?"

His voice was laced with confusion.

Positioning my hands on either side of his broken arm, I carefully aligned my thumbs with the fractured area. Then, with a firm push, I set the bone back in place.

"Ouch, ow, it hurts!" 

Hylo screamed out in pain.

"Stop it! Please stop! Enough, enough…!"

It was rare for Hylo to say 'please,' but I couldn't dwell on that now.

After checking the alignment of the fracture, I used telekinesis to carefully straighten it, being mindful not to harm the muscles and nerves.

Slowly and meticulously, I managed to align the bone properly.

Now, it should connect properly.

During the process, Hylo started thrashing, making my task harder. I employed telekinesis to stabilize him as well. Finally, he was healed.

That should do it.

Oddly enough, Hylo, now free of injury, collapsed to the floor, gasping for air.

"…Strange, you should be mostly healed by now. Are you still in pain?"

"B-bastard…" Hylo glared at me resentfully.

Despite my healing, he was far from grateful.

"H-Hylo, are you alright?" Rico asked, concern evident in his voice.

Hylo, still in disbelief, checked his body.

"Huh…? I'm healed, I'm healed!"

Hylo couldn't contain his amazement, vigorously rubbing and patting his body as he exclaimed.

He'd been making quite a racket for some time now.

"Remember to take a day off to rest," I reminded him. 

The spell I used wasn't a conventional Legal Art but an improvised healing technique of my creation. It was always best to be overly cautious.

"O-okay…" 

Hylo agreed, looking bewildered and a bit overwhelmed.

With Rico around, I was confident Hylo wouldn't push himself too hard.

That wrapped up Hylo's treatment.

Turning my attention to Rico, I noticed he was observing everything from a distance, seemingly intimidated by my presence.

I wondered, 

Why does he seem so frightened?