"Shut up! Stop screaming!"
"This is a clinic, not a goddamn brothel!"
"Aryan! Cover his mouth! If that doesn’t work, just knock him out!"
"..."
At the Sawing and Sewing Clinic, Bai Ya sat on the bed, leaning against a duck-feather pillow. The constant roars of Elder and a bloodcurdling scream echoed in her ears.
Clearly, a gruesome surgery was underway in the next room.
Anesthetics without side effects were extremely expensive, far beyond what most patients could afford.
And the cheaper drugs had drawbacks like addiction or poisoning, making people steer clear of them.
Coupled with the fact that many people were overconfident in their own "pain tolerance," they often chose to go without any anesthesia.
And then came to regret it bitterly.
Experience had proven that unless one was a [Barbarian] with extremely high pain tolerance, few could endure the agony of surgery, which was several times more painful than childbirth.
Fortunately, Elder was very experienced. If he sensed a patient had reached their limit, he would immediately use a fast-acting method of anesthesia to put them out of their misery.
"THUD!"
Suddenly, after a muffled thud, the wailing stopped abruptly. Silence finally returned to Bai Ya’s ears.
She glanced toward the treatment room and breathed a small sigh of relief, thinking that if she hadn’t passed out last night, she probably would have received that kind of "physical anesthesia" as well.
’Hasn’t he come back yet...’
Her gaze shifted to the window with its pane of Inferior glass. Due to the angle, all she could see was the evening sky, dyed red by the setting sun.
The color was like diluted wine, bringing an inexplicable sense of peace.
She had waited all day. Although Lu Wei hadn’t returned, Bai Ya’s injuries had healed considerably, and she had recovered a great deal of her strength and spirit.
If all went well, she should be able to get out of bed tomorrow and be "discharged" in three to five days.
Then, by eating and sleeping well, ensuring she got enough nutrition and rest, and avoiding strenuous labor, she could make a full recovery in half a month at most.
At worst, she’d be left with a scar.
Bai Ya wasn’t worried about a scar. After all, she wasn’t some noble lady.
She was just worried about what to do next.
’I’m penniless now, and I still owe Mr. Lu Wei a lot for the medical expenses.’
’I guess I’ll have to ask Aryan to keep an eye out for job postings in town.’
’I have to pay Mr. Lu Wei back as soon as possible.’
’And then I’ll work hard to save up, and try to open a small inn in Heitai Town...’
Gazing out the window, Bai Ya curled her legs up, rested her chin on her knees, and quietly contemplated her future.
After a betrayal that had nearly cost her her life, she was now completely disillusioned with the idea of "adventuring."
Or rather, she never had much passion for it to begin with.
She had been lured into Gelan Forest with the excuse, "You just need to be in charge of cooking."
But who would have known that by the second day, she’d go from being the "cook" to the "ingredient."
’Do I really look that gullible...’
Biting her lip, Bai Ya felt a pang of sadness as she recalled the memory.
Just then, Aryan, carrying a wooden club in her hand, hurried in and reported excitedly:
"Bai Ya! Lu Wei is here!"
"Hm?"
Startled, Bai Ya quickly adjusted her posture, then frantically straightened her cheap shirt and linen skirt—which didn’t really need straightening—wanting to look as presentable as possible.
After all that, she took a deep breath and asked in a low voice, "Where is he?"
"He’s right outside. He came with a friend."
Aryan beamed. "I’ll go get him now."
"Okay..."
With her savior about to appear, Bai Ya grew more and more nervous, unconsciously clutching the bedsheet.
Aryan didn’t notice these details. She gave a quick reply and ran off, soon returning to the room with two people.
Without a doubt, it was Lu Wei and Furen.
On the way over, Lu Wei had briefly told Furen what happened last night.
Furen, of course, praised his actions highly. Full of admiration, he even boldly declared that Bai Ya must be a beautiful and charming young woman... after all, that’s how it’s always written in novels.
But Lu Wei didn’t agree.
Although Bai Ya’s face had been covered in mud and blood last night, making it hard to see clearly, he judged from his years of experience that she was definitely not "pretty."
And now, it seemed...
Lu Wei and Furen exchanged a glance, unsure for a moment which of them was right.
Because the woman’s appearance fell somewhere right between their two assessments.
She wasn’t stunningly beautiful, but she was certainly a bit more attractive than the average person.
Her skin was very fair, but it lacked the delicacy of a noble lady’s.
She had a high-bridged nose, but her eyebrows were faint.
Her eyes could be considered pretty, yet her gaze seemed vacant, as if she wasn’t particularly bright.
Perhaps her most striking feature was her long brown hair, simply tied back with a bandana.
It was thick, smooth, and slightly wavy, giving off a rustic, "down-to-earth" feel.
’Huh? Have my aesthetic preferences started to go native?’
Lu Wei couldn’t help but mutter to himself when he realized he found this "farm girl hairstyle" surprisingly attractive.
Meanwhile, Bai Ya was staring blankly at him and Furen.
Reliable, righteous, brave.
A straight posture, a clean smile.
And a head of dazzling blond hair...
A moment later, she fixed her gaze on Furen, then lowered her head and said with the utmost sincerity and gratitude:
"Mr. Lu Wei, thank you for saving me."
"..."
Furen: ??
Lu Wei: ????
...
...
"M-Mr. Lu Wei, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!"
"I’m so sorry I didn’t recognize you!"
"P-Please forgive me!"
Three minutes later, Furen had gone with Aryan to get his shoulder treated, leaving only Bai Ya and Lu Wei in the room.
Bai Ya clutched the hem of her clothes, her face bright red as she apologized profusely. She had probably never been this embarrassed in her life.
Lu Wei, for his part, was also feeling quite awkward.
Because honestly, Furen did look more like a "brave Adventurer" than he did.
Even his 14 points of "Charm" were no help.
Not to mention, Furen’s Charm might be even higher than his.
After all, his hair color alone probably added 5 points.
Blond hair symbolized nobility and divinity. This stereotype was widespread on the Falanis Continent, to the point that even blond-haired slaves were far more expensive than those with other hair colors.
"Ahem, it’s fine."
After a moment, Lu Wei cleared his throat. "You don’t need to apologize for that."
"No, no, I must apologize to you."
Bai Ya’s voice trembled more and more, and she sounded on the verge of tears. "Y-You saved me, but I was so rude. I must have disappointed you terribly..."
’I’m not really disappointed.’
Lu Wei gave her a helpless look and shook his head.
"Alright, I forgive you. Can we drop the subject now?"
"A-As you wish..."
"Good... So, are you feeling any better?"
"Much better, thanks to you."
Bai Ya’s voice was earnest as she tried hard to make up for her earlier mistake.
"Thank you for saving me. Please, rest assured, I will definitely repay you!"
"There’s no need for repayment. Just sign this IOU."
Lu Wei reached into his shirt and, under Bai Ya’s blank stare, quickly pulled out a neatly folded piece of papyrus.
He unfolded it, revealing an already-written IOU.
"Miss Bai Ya, correct? To be honest with you, I’m actually a freelance merchant."
"Yesterday, to save you, I used up all the goods I was planning to sell to treat your wounds."
"You should be the one to cover these losses. You don’t have a problem with that, do you?"
"...No! Of course not!"
After a moment’s pause, once she processed what he said, Bai Ya nodded quickly. "That goes without saying!"
"Good, that’s settled then. But for the sake of fairness, I should still break down the costs for you."
Lu Wei pulled a fountain pen from his pocket and began to explain seriously:
"For the medical supplies: one Hemostatic Ointment for 1 Silver Coin, bandages for 30 Copper Coins, low-potency pain relief powder for 40 Copper Coins, and Sleeping Powder for 40 Copper Coins. That adds up to exactly two silver coins."
"Then I also paid for the cleaning and suturing of your wound, which was 1 Silver Coin."
"So in total, that’s 3 Silver Coins."
"Do you agree to this?"
"..."
’One Silver Coin for Hemostatic Ointment? 30 Copper Coins for bandages?’
Staring blankly at Lu Wei, Bai Ya was of course aware that this price was far beyond the realm of "reasonable."
But she quickly nodded firmly again.
"Okay! I will pay you back!"
"Good. Then sign it."
Lu Wei handed her the IOU and the pen, adding, "I won’t charge interest, but please pay me back within three days. I need the money to restock my goods."
"Huh?"
Bai Ya was just about to sign when she froze at his words.
The hand holding the pen trembled slightly. She looked up and pleaded in a small, mortified voice:
"I’m sorry, could you give me a little more time? I really don’t have any money right now..."
"Hm? If you don’t have money, that makes things difficult."
His plan about to succeed, Lu Wei furrowed his brow, deliberately putting on a troubled expression.
"Then it seems you’ll have to pay your debt with something else."