Grey didn't know how to describe the sight before them.
A three-story building stood in the middle of the Thorn Thickets like a silent giant sinking into its dying sleep.
Its appearance still carried faint traces of Victorian style. Massive and austere, it had long since lost its former grandeur with the passing years. The facade was badly cracked, exposing the brickwork beneath. Fractures stretched across the entire structure like scars on the body of some great beast, overgrown with moss and creeping plants.
A young forest had closed in right up to the fence. Trees and bushes tightly wrapped around the walls, their roots digging deep into the foundation. Nearby stood the ruins of an old gazebo and the shattered remains of fountains, now swallowed by ferns and thorny ivy.
The paths once paved with rough cobblestone had long vanished, returning to the embrace of nature. The roof had collapsed, and the windows had become yawning black holes. The air carried a mix of dampness, tree moss, and the faint scent of the past.
Only the semicircular clearing before the building itself, now resembling an overgrown forest edge, hinted that someone had once maintained the grounds long ago.
Without a doubt, the estate had been abandoned for at least a decade.
Everyone froze at the edge of the clearing.
"There definitely aren't any ghosts in there, right?" Hope finally asked, staring uncertainly at the building they planned to use as a shelter.
Her question was accompanied by the eerie creaking of rusted gate hinges.
"Even if there were, they should've found peace by now," Lily replied, trying to encourage the others.
"Well, at least the building's still standing. You didn't seriously expect us to live in royal chambers, did you?" Grey concluded. "Come on. Let's do a quick inspection."
He waved his good hand at the others, signaling them to move inside.
"Sunny, Lily, search the building. Look for any signs of living creatures. No telling who might've occupied this place while people were gone. Aileen, Irene, clear the area and start a fire. Sheryl, stay nearby and keep an eye on your friends. Hope..." he hesitated, looking at the pale girl still nervously clutching the amulet on her chest. "Stand guard while I go treat my wound."
Everyone nodded and hurried to carry out the orders. Those who hadn't participated in the battle were especially motivated, unwilling to remain a burden. Even the dejected Sheryl perked up a little after receiving a task.
As soon as the others got to work, Grey quickly found an empty room where he could isolate himself for a while.
"No matter what you hear, don't come into the room! You really don't want to see what I'm doing in there. Just stay where you are and make sure nobody disturbs me," Grey gave his final instructions, leaving Hope by the door.
The moment his figure disappeared behind the battered door, all his forced calm vanished. He immediately dropped to the floor, gritting his teeth from the throbbing pain. His breathing became uneven again, and the groans he had been suppressing for so long finally escaped his hoarse throat.
"Fuck, this hurts!..."
"Fuck, fuck, fuck!..."
"Damn that bitch in every hole. Cursed panther, I hope you're suffering just as much in hell."
"AAAH!" Grey cursed viciously as he pulled off his blood-soaked shirt.
The pain was so intense it felt like every nerve in his body was being pierced by needles. Alone at last, Grey never stopped the stream of profanity for even a second, trying to vent the emotions that had built up inside him.
After five long minutes of struggling, he finally managed to get the shirt off and leaned against the wall in relief. His face had turned pale. His once pink lips now carried a bluish tint, and his whole body trembled from chills.
The wound looked worse than he had expected. Although the tourniquet still tightly constricted his arm, stopping the bleeding, his hand had already started turning blue. Not a good sign.
"Junior, you there?" Grey called out to himself. "Fuck, wake up already... I'm about to use your elixirs..."
"No answer? Fine, fuck you then. I'll handle it myself," he kept cursing while searching through the bottomless pocket with his free hand for the right vial.
"You know, you got lucky. You passed out before you had to feel this hellish pain!"
"Right now, I'd rather fight that panther a few more times than do what I'm about to do..."
Nobody answered him. It seemed Junior's consciousness had fallen into a deep coma after the battle he endured. Just like the first time, when he woke up in the body of a child.
"Fuck! Then keep sleeping! Just hope you don't attack me when you wake up next time." Grey was still fuming.
He really didn't want to begin the next procedure. But looking at the mangled arm hanging limply as if it could fall off at any moment, he understood time was running out.
"Alright..." he forced through clenched teeth, trying to convince himself.
He raised the water flask to the mangled flesh and, without hesitating any longer, poured the liquid over his arm. Dirt and dried blood slowly washed away. The pleasant cold brought a moment of relief.
Unfortunately, it didn't last long. Grey knew what he had to do. His fingers dug into the flesh, sending a sharp flash of pain through his body. He tried to feel for the sharp bone fragments that had undoubtedly remained buried in the meat after the panther crushed his arm.
The procedure was necessary, but horrifying. It felt as if thousands of needles had pierced his flesh at once. The smaller fragments weren't a problem. The larger ones were.
"Alright... gonna pull it out. Just don't fucking die," Grey muttered to himself.
He inhaled. One. Two. Three.
A jerk.
The shard came out with a sickening crunch. The pain forced him to double over. His vision blurred as though someone had clamped his skull in a vise.
"AAAH! Fuck this whole goddamn world, it hurts so bad!"
He pulled out another one. Then another. It was pure torture. The world around him dissolved into a crimson haze. At some point, he nearly lost consciousness, but slapped himself across the cheek again.
"Hang in there, weakling. This is what happens when you train like shit. God help me if I ever have to go through this again."
When the final fragment hit the floor, Grey wiped the sweat from his forehead. His skin was drenched. His breathing had fallen apart, and his heart hammered wildly in his chest.
He looked at the result of his work. His arm.
The fingers were twisted at unnatural angles. The joints had swollen badly.
"If I don't set it now... it'll heal wrong later. Best case, I'll end up with a useless stump. Worst case... gangrene."
"Hope! Come in for a minute!"
The door carefully creaked open, and the girl peeked inside. She almost fainted when she saw the bone fragments scattered across the room.
"You... You okay?"
"Of course. What kind of stupid question is that... I'll outlive all of you..." Grey chuckled, though he looked like a man who had just survived a meeting with a messenger from hell. "Be a good girl and bring me a couple of straight sticks. Strong ones."
He glanced at his damaged arm once more and, realizing he wouldn't manage alone, added:
"...And call Lily too... please."
Hope nodded and immediately rushed to carry out the order. While she searched for what he needed, Grey leaned against the wall, enjoying the last few moments of rest. Soon, the young succubus appeared in the doorway.
Lily looked at him with a trace of pity, but quickly tried to regain her calm expression. Not very successfully. Her pupils still trembled, and her gaze kept drifting toward the drops of blood and white bone fragments scattered across the floor.
Although Grey had thought locking himself away in a separate room would spare him from witnesses, his painful groans and endless swearing could hardly stay contained in a place where every window had become a gaping hole.
Soon Hope returned carrying everything she could find. Her eyes were wet, though Grey failed to notice. His mind was occupied by entirely different things.
"Thanks, you can go now. Don't come in until I call for you."
His words brought a painful smile to the girl's face, but she obeyed.
"Lily, you know what to do. I need someone to set my bones. Ha, finally you get to torment me to your heart's content!" Grey tried to joke again, handing the girl the straight sticks.
"You..." At his words Lily almost burst into tears. "Do I really seem that heartless to you?"
Lily was sobbing uncontrollably, burying her face in her knees. Her shoulders trembled, and her small purple horns, usually something that made Grey smile, now looked so... helpless.
"I never wanted to hurt any of you... sob... Why would you think I'd enjoy watching you suffer?!"
Grey stared at her for a few seconds, stunned. His harmless joke had turned into something completely unexpected.
"Idiot..." he cursed himself mentally. "She's just a child. Yes, sharp-tongued. Yes, self-centered. But still just a normal child whose friend is injured. Maybe she even blames her own weakness... just like the others."
He struggled to straighten up, leaning against the wall with his healthy arm. Every breath sent pain through his chest, but he still walked over to Lily and gently patted her head.
"Lily... that's not what I meant," his voice came out softer than he expected from himself, "It was just a joke. A stupid joke. Please, don't take it to heart."
He kept gently stroking her purple hair.
"I just know you're the bravest one in this group. Who else could I ask for something like this?" He lifted her chin so she had to look him in the eyes and forced himself to smile, though the corners of his lips trembled.
"You'll help me, right?" His fingers gently wiped the tears from her wet cheeks. "I promise I won't make a sound."
"Mm..." Lily nodded, her face turning slightly pink from Grey's unexpected closeness.
She sniffed and tried to regain her composure.
"D-dummy. One more inappropriate joke and I'll break all five of your limbs!" she muttered, grabbing his injured arm.
Grey could only nod in agreement, drenched in cold sweat from her not-so-subtle threat. Even though inside he kept grumbling that only a prophet could know which jokes were appropriate and which were not, he wisely decided to keep his mouth shut.
They sat down on the floor.
The straight sticks and pieces of cloth were carefully laid out beside them, ready to be used. Lily had already calmed down and was carefully examining the damage to his arm. Her movements were slow and focused.
To Grey's surprise, she started whispering something under her breath. Her voice became blurred, almost ethereal. His vision began to fade, and the pain grew distant and unreal, allowing his body to relax. In a half-dazed state, he heard her soft voice.
"Ready?"
Without waiting for an answer, she suddenly pulled, setting the joint back into place. Grey felt only a faint sting, one that tried to drag him back into full awareness, but Lily kept whispering...
"On the count of three..."
"One, two..."
Another sting. Again the sweet whisper. Again. And again. The further it went, the clearer the waves of pain became.
When Lily finished, his eyelids trembled slightly, and he returned to the world of the waking.
Lily was right in front of him.
Her breathing was uneven, and tiny beads of sweat covered her forehead. Grey immediately understood what she had done: she had used her abilities to dull his pain. Seeing his arm already bandaged, he felt warmth spread through his entire body.
Unconsciously, a memory surfaced in his mind—how this same girl, long ago, had been the only one brave enough to take care of his wounds. Was it half a year ago? Maybe a year? Back then, he had just become a slave, and had been beaten by the hateful Quintilian.
He had been preparing to die, but she had treated his injuries and kept him from ending up in an unmarked grave.
"Who else can I call my best friend and benefactor if not this little succubus?" he thought with a faint smile.
"Save..."
Lily didn't let him finish. She pressed a finger to his lips.
"Enough talking. You need to rest, and I'll take care of the others."
She turned away and walked off, not wanting to show how exhausted she was from using her power. Grey silently watched her fragile figure disappear into the doorway.
In the end, he let out a relieved breath. It really did feel nice, being taken care of.
With that thought, he pulled a vial of emerald liquid from his pocket. A medium healing potion. It should be enough to get him back on his feet in a few days. Even now, he had no desire to use his last two bottles of the high-grade healing potion.
He removed the stopper and drank it all in one go. At that moment, it felt like he was swallowing gold coins. But he had no choice. Better this than cementing his status as a cripple and becoming permanently disabled.
A familiar warmth spread through his body.
"You better heal properly," he muttered a threat to his own arm, and finally blacked out.
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Author's note:
Hey guys. Sorry for the delay in releasing chapters. I was going through a pretty difficult situation, but today is my birthday, and I felt I simply had to release new content for you.
Just a reminder—if you want to support my work, you can follow the Patreon link and toss me a few coins for a drink. Maybe that will make me even more inspired.
Thank you so much for continuing to read my story.