Summoned and Unwanted

370 A place I don’t want to visit again

[What is this old cog saying? Is he insinuating that unless she is forced to warm someone’s bed, no one will take care of her?]

Vincent became angry when Kazumi put it this way. He concluded that the elder spoke as if they were doing a huge favor that needed repayment with her body.

*Sigh* Vincent tried to keep his calm. He feared his wives were about to start a bloodbath when he felt bloodlust brushing against his back. Hearing such words after they took care of Zefine made all of them furious.

“No need to show your kindness by helping this woman. I saved her so I will take care. Also, since she has nowhere to go and no one to depend on, she can work as a maid for me in my residence.” Vincent decided to take Zefine home with him.

They were lacking man... maid power. Even if she has one arm, she could work without being shouted at since no one in the Emerald Lionheart Mansion is a foul person. He might decide to heal her if she proves to be a trusted person as well.

Vincent looked back and said, “Please wait here while I get the reward. Then we will leave.”

The elder became interested in the words “maid” and “my residence.”

“As the elder of the village, I will need to know who is going to take one of our people away. I will need to notify our lord when we inform him of what happened.” The elder used his position to force Vincent to reveal his identity.

“Vincent Lionheart. That is the noble’s property she will stay in after I save her life.” Vincent looked at the villagers with a condescending gaze and continued, “A live-in maid for a noble is much better than a bed warmer.”

.....

The elder and all the villagers behind him stared at Vincent. The moment they saw a golden card waving at them in between two fingers as if taunting them, some villagers gasped, some gulped, some wanted to hide from the noble’s sight, and others had beads of cold sweat forming on their forehead. They offended a noble.

Vincent stored the corpse of the Great Gray Wolf with another show of green light. “Chop chop, I don’t have all night. Aren’t you going to lead me to my reward?” He walked forward and stopped in front of the elder.

The elder nodded respectfully and led Vincent to his house. He quickly provided the reward and apologized once again. The angry old man changed into a boot licker as quickly as turning a switch on and off.

[Vincent. Look to the far left. Five corpses are covered with a stick-mat next to a standing torch.]

Vincent moved his gaze to where Kazumi indicated and used Inspection. The reason for their death became clear. Three people died from a heart attack. One person died from a shock, and the last one died from a death unrelated to the Great Gray Wolf’s attack. The reason was written as fever.

Vincent went over to the corpses. With a glimpse, his remorse was soon relieved. The five of them appeared to be in their sixties and older.

Even if there is magic in the world that can heal people or plants with unimaginably beneficial effects, most poor people can’t afford such luxury. The village didn’t look rich, and if their attitude is worse than a person suffering from daily mood swings, their lord might not be too happy to assist such demanding people.

[Death by old age and a shock instead by the fangs of the wolf. As for the other one, I feel sad he couldn’t receive treatment for his fever.]

-Sometimes, I feel blessed to have learned healing as the first spell. We didn’t have a fear of cooking and eating spoiled meat on our way to the city.-

[Yeah. To be honest, you didn’t keep the boar meat in an ideal condition. But at least none of you got sick.]

[It would’ve been dangerous yet very and extremely hilarious to see you suffering from diarrhea and having the need to...]

-Ahem!-

Kazumi giggled, and her joke brightened the mood. Vincent raised his gaze and looked at the sky. It was a bit cloudy, and the night was darker, with the moon most of the time concealed.

Vincent returned with a bag of money in his hands. “Let’s go.” He said while walking away from Okan Village.

Later, they found a place to call it a day.

Lupa and Plow immediately slept after eating as they only had a quick shuteye before waking up again. Lilith was the next one to sleep after her legs begged to stop walking for the day. Vincent, Ester, and Sakura helped Iris tend to Zefine before going to sleep.

Kazumi was on night guard, but it was different from usual. She had to keep an eye on Zefine in case she woke up or her condition worsened, which was almost impossible with the treatment she received.

*Day 81 – 29 August – Morning*

The next day arrived, and the sun dawned. The birds chirped a pleasant, harmonious tune offering Zefine a great rest.

One after the other, they woke up. After having a light breakfast and tending to Zefine’s wounds, Vincent received a full body massage while Lilith received a leg massage as they woke up sore.

Later, they continued heading back home. It was twenty-ninth August which meant the academy started in two days. They could make it even with a slower pace because Lilith had to walk, and Sakura pulled the cart carefully on uneven ground.

An uneventful day passed, and they weren’t too far from the city now. The night hindered their sight, and they called it a day.

*Day 82 – 30 August – Morning*

Another day dawned on the seven people, a cute fox, and a little blood-sucking plant. They had a carefree sleep in Yevala Forest because of Kazumi.

Lilith and Sakura got used to sleeping outside in these couple of days out of the city. Both slept much better after the tension and anxiety with the death of the Great Gray Wolf. Only some worry about Zefine remained, but they placed their trust in Kazumi to wake them up if anything happened.

After doing their now-familiar routine, they continued going to their home. It took them about half a day for them to return to the west gate.

Fortunately, the gate soldiers offered no problems when Vincent flashed and flexed his golden identification card. He also showed them his adventurer’s card and pointed at the rising star icon.

Vincent explained what happened in their commission, and the gate soldiers took account of his words. The gate soldiers later let them pass.

*Emerald Lionheart Mansion*

The front gate with Lenn and Renn standing guard entered their sight. The long walk attracted the attention of many people. They wanted to go home, enter the living room, and rest lazily for the day.

The twins became happy about their return. Both brothers smiled and opened the gate quickly. Soon, their eyes landed on a woman with her body covered.

“Teacher. Who is that woman?” Lenn asked.

“Is that woman going to live? Her face is pale.” Renn asked.

Vincent looked around, but no person was nearby. “Follow us inside for a bit. I will explain what happened and the tow of you can return to your post.” He patted their shoulders and asked to be followed.

The twins did as Vincent asked. They closed the gate behind them while feeling a bit happy to be included instead of being left guarding the gate.

The twins knew it most probably wasn’t going a pleasant talk after seeing Zefine on the cart. She looked injured, and her complexity wasn’t very good.

Later, everyone in the mansion gathered in the living room.

Vincent explained what had happened. How they defeated a strong Great Gray Wolf and how they saved Zefine.

The following subject was about the unfortunate fate of Zefine and how Vincent had two choices to choose from.

The first was to leave her with the villagers, and if she survived, she would be forced to live a life she had no say in.

The other choice was to treat and let her live here with them. However, in the end, the choice of what to do next would be decided by her when she gets better.

Everyone, even the children, looked at the unconscious Zefine with a gaze of pity. Zefine suffered a lot and has nowhere else to go.

As they were about to start preparing a room for Zefine, she weakly moaned. She opened her eyes and contorted her face. It appeared she was in great pain.

[Vincent, I think we should be too stingy when it comes to the precious Soul Power. Now that we are going to take care of Zefine, I suggest healing her one more time.]

-I want thinking of doing that when I saw little Leah, Clara, Beth, Olive, Lian, and Tula close their eyes.-

Kazumi became pleased when Vincent told her he was of a similar thought. Soul Power was a precious commodity, but only remorseless people would keep looking when they could help.

“It is all going to be okay now.” Vincent touched Zefine’s hand and cast Minor Heal on her.

.

[-20sp used for Soul Power Minor Heal on Zefine. 200sp Remaining.]

.

A layer of green healing light encased her body. The contorted face relaxed, and after the healing light faded, Zefine looked much better than before.

Iris went to check on her condition. Zefine’s face didn’t look pale anymore. The bite holes in her arm and legs closed much better than before. The bite scars weren’t too deep now.