Chapter 53

In the forest around Sunrise City.

“Are you okay?” Captain Janor hurriedly rushed up to a military uniform garbed man who was limping toward her. She held onto his arm and helped prop him up, giving him some relief.

Sensing Captain Janor’s rough touch, even though he was injured, the man slightly blushed.

At the same time, Captain Janor tilted her head and gave some orders to one of the similarity uniform-garbed soldiers behind her. “Lenny, get me bandages!”

Immediately, the soldier standing directly behind her took off his backpack and began sifting through it, looking for the goods.

“Yes… barely. I’m glad I found you, Captain.” The injured man wheezed in a relieved tone. He was using both hands to hold down on his bleeding side, indicating some kind of injury. “He slashed my side, but luckily, it’s not much deeper than a flesh wound. Aside from some blood loss, with some treatment, I should be fine.”

“That’s a relief.” Captain Janor let out a breath. After ascertaining that the man wasn’t mortally injured, however, her face formed a concerned expression. “What happened? Someone attacked you?”

“Yes… some mysterious person attacked me,” the man replied, furrowing his brows. “I was on standard routine patrol, as you ordered, when I spotted a tall black-clothed person hiding in the bushes, spying on me. After getting discovered, he attacked me with a quick sword strike before fleeing.”

“Tall black-clothed person?” Captain Janor immediately questioned the man: “Did this person have a mask?”

“Um… no,” the injured man replied. “He just had a piece of cloth blocking his face.”

“Mm…ok.” Captain Janor slightly nodded. No mask… that meant that this aggressor was likely not what she was thinking.

“But I did notice something else that was strange,” the injured man continued. “The sword he used was not of the standard straight style, but curved. It was a scimitar!”

“Scimitar?” From the back, Lenny suddenly exclaimed out.

“Hm?” Captain Janor glanced backward at Lenny and raised an eyebrow. “What’s the problem?”

“People in our country of Osiron don’t commonly use scimitars,” Lenny glanced concernedly back at Captain Janor and explained. “Only southern countries do, like our Osiron’s southern border Laghastan. As everyone knows, ever since the war, tensions have been high between us and Laghastan. Maybe this person was a Laghastan spy!”

“Laghastan... spy?” Captain Janor rubbed her forehead. After thinking for a moment, she nodded. “I see. With the sword, it sounds like a real possibility. I’ll have to report this to the higher ups.”

“Tch…” Lenny scoffed, his face forming a peeved expression. “Are those Laghastan bastards scheming against us again, planning to make a move?”

“Laghastan?” The injured man was listening in, and asked with a worried expression. “Are they dangerous?”

“They are very powerful, having a population that is nearly five times larger than ours. You were barely born then so you may not remember, but over two decades ago, they attempted to flex their power and committed to an all-out attack on Osiron. They advanced far enough to hit our Rain Province, and Sunrise City was hit particularly badly,” Lenny turned towards the man and explained. “However, luckily, because of the actions of various famous heroes, we managed to defend and barely drive them out.”

“Oh…” The man’s eyes widened. “So we were almost taken over?”

“Yes,” Lenny nodded gravely. “Thankfully, we had many talented people in the battle that led our defense and counterattack. The king of Osiron recognized that, which is why he established the now incredibly famous Osiron Tournament. He provided incredibly extravagant prizes in order to invigorate the youth and create a competitive environment for the next generation.”

His words became more and more passionate. “Because the threat of an enemy attack is still more prevalent than ever, these actions were necessary to be prepared for inevitable conflict! And because of this system, amazing talents like our Captain were raised! Heroes like her will be able to protect the country in the future, lifting it out from its darkest moments!”

“Wow…” The injured man looked inspired.

“Shut up!” Captain Janor showed an impatient expression. “Did you find the medical kit for this man yet? It’s been ages!”

“Y-yes! Right away!” Lenny quickly lost his starry passion and began hurriedly shuffling through his backpack again. He found what he was looking for and pulled out a white box. “Found it!”

“Finally!” Captain Janor grabbed the medical kit from Lenny’s hand and opened it. After sifting for a moment, she pulled out a roll of bandages, found the loose end, and immediately began wrapping the injured man’s waist where his side was injured.

“Uhm…” Seeing this sudden movement, the injured man unconsciously looked away and blushed. “You don’t have to do that… I can…”

“You’re injured, let me do it,” Captain Janor said monotonically, seemingly unaware of the injured man’s meekness.

“Ok…” The injured man blushed shyly and continued looking away.

“Alright, done!” Captain Janor finished wrapping the bandage and tied it, before putting away the roll of bandages and clapping her hands. Lenny immediately picked up the box and put it back into his bag. “Anything else you need?”

“N-no!” The injured man immediately insisted, waving his hands in declining manner. He suddenly blushed once again, his face turning beet red. “Bandages… placed on by the Captain herself… how can I ask for anything else?”

Furrowing her brows, Captain Janor stared at the injured man for a moment, seemingly thinking about something. Seeing this look, the man couldn’t help but blush again.

A moment later, she spoke again. “You know what, I’ll give you a healing pill.”

Reaching into her bag and shuffling through it for a few moments, she pulled out a small jade jar. Flipping off the top, she tilted it over, spilling a small white pill onto her palm. “I recently received these healing pills from someone and don’t know how good they are. Want to try one?”

“Healing… healing pill?” The injured man immediately stammered. “That would… it would be an honor!” His eyes shone with anticipation. Healing pills were valuable goods, and would be rarely used on regular foot soldiers. The fact that Captain Janor wanted to use one on him… did it mean she valued him? The soldier involuntarily blushed again.

Nodding her head slightly, Captain Janor casually passed the pill over. After observing it in his hand for a moment, the soldier eagerly swallowed it.

“Alright, are you still hurting?” Captain Janor put the cap back onto the jade jar and put it away. “Do you need anything else?”

“No, no!” The soldier hurriedly insisted. “I’m good now. Thank you so much!” Bowing deeply, he took one more timid glance at Captain Janor before immediately scurrying off to join the line of other soldiers.

All the soldiers immediately crowded him and began pestering him with lowered voices.

“You lucky little shit! Getting bandaged by the captain herself!”

“All because you were injured a little bit? Is that all it takes? I want to get injured too!”

“Hehe…” The injured man rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “She was so nice. Too bad for you!”

“Attention!” Lenny called out.

The soldiers immediately stopped talking and stood at attention.

“We’re setting out,” Lenny declared, with a slight expression of mirth.

Everyone promptly set out.

----------------------

Half an hour later. Everyone was still marching.

“Hey, I don’t feel any more pain,” the injured soldier suddenly said. “It’s like I’m all better.”

“Hm? Already?” The soldier next to him made a questioning expression.

“Yeah,” the injured man nodded with furrowed brows. “It’s weird, I had to limp earlier but now it doesn’t hurt at all.”

“Maybe it was the healing pill,” another soldier added. “Anything given by the captain must be good.”

Everyone nodded. They had all been jealous that he had received a valuable healing pill.

“Or…” The injured man blushed. “Maybe it was the Captain’s love that…”

“Shut up!” Everyone exclaimed annoyingly. “You think she likes you? Stop dreaming.” The guy had been rambling on about the Captain for the past half an hour and they were getting annoyed.

“You’re feeling all better?” Lenny suddenly asked. From the front of the group of soldiers, he was listening in.

“Umm… yeah,” the injured man confirmed, blushing a bit. “In fact, I feel better than normal.”

“Can you take off your bandage? To see how well your injury has healed.”

“Uh… ok,” the injured man slightly reluctantly responded. After a moment’s hesitation, he unwrapped the bandage.

Everyone gasped. His side was bare and smooth, completely untouched.

“...it’s gone!” The injured man exclaimed as he looked down at his side. Rubbing where he had been slashed earlier and feeling nothing, he mouth gaped open. “Not… not even a trace…”

Even Lenny was shocked, both his eyebrows raising. “Let me go take you to the Captain.”

Dragging the man behind him, Lenny walked up a couple steps to behind where Captain Janor was walking. “Captain.”

“What do you want, old man?” Captain Janor asked with an annoyed voice.

Lenny’s face twitched. So rude...

However, he still replied normally. “The injured man is now completely better. There’s not even a trace of injury anymore.”

“What?!” Hearing this, Captain Janor turned around and formed a surprised expression. “Really? Let me see.”

Immediately, the man lifted his shirt, revealing his bare and uninjured side.

“...Whoa…” Captain Janor’s eyes widened. “It’s… all healed. It really is all healed. How long has it been… half an hour?”

“The injury-healing pill,” Lenny exclaimed with amazement. “It must have been that. What kind of miracle pill can do that, though…?”

Her expression filled with amazement, Captain Janor immediately pulled out the jade jar from her backpack again, flipped the top open, and stared with wonder at those small white pills.

-----------------------

“So, what do you think?” Captain Janor asked, leaning forward with focused eyes.

Captain Janor and a slightly older woman with blue hair and a bright floral dress were sitting across from each other at a small wooden table, situated in a small earthy-smelling room. The woman had several crystal necklaces around her neck, and from looking at her, she gave a sense of wisdom.

Pasted on the walls of the room were various notes, recipes, and medicine-related musings - it appeared to be some kind of apothecary lab.

Resting on the center of the table in between the two women was the familiar small jar that Captain Janor had received from Zairen, and in the blue-haired woman’s hand was a small white pill. In the woman’s other hand, she had a small metal tool that she channeled a light gold spirit energy through. Looking down onto the pill and poking it with the small tool, she appeared to be inspecting it.

The blue-haired woman was silent and unresponsive as she continued to poke the pill.

“Shen… did you hear me?” Captain Janor asked slowly. She began waving her hand in front of the woman’s face in an attempt to get her attention. “Come on, help me out, Shen! How long have we known each other? Fifteen years?”

Yet, there was no response from Shen. She didn’t even look away from the pill she was staring at.

Looking at the entranced Shen, Captain Janor sighed a small sigh, yet also couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle. This familiar scene reminded her of the past. Thinking back, Captain Janor could remember frequent scenes of Shen losing herself in study or research, obsessively trying to look for a solution. She had always been the type who would immerse herself in her studies for days on end, sometimes forgetting to even eat. The two had known each other for many years, having attended the same school. They had both been known as absurd geniuses in their respective fields, and consequently, had become great friends. This friendship had continued even after they had both graduated.

The reason for their current meeting was simple: Captain Janor wanted to figure out what the deal with the healing pills she had received were. After witnessing a soldier’s stab wound seemingly mystically heal from it in only half an hour, she had been completely amazed by its effects. Thus, she had immediately contacted her old friend, hoping that she could give her some answers. Was there something special about the pills?

The tone of Captain Janor’s voice suddenly changed to a teasing one. “You’re now the head and supposed genius of Sunrise Pavilion, Sunrise City’s esteemed medicine department. It’s already been a few minutes… could it be that even you, the genius, is stumped?”

Yet again, there was only silence in response from Shen. Still poking at the small white pill in her hand, Shen seemed completely engrossed.

Just when Captain Janor was about to repeat the question once again, Shen suddenly looked up, a completely intoxicated expression on her face. “Where… where in the world did you get these?” Staring at Captain Janor with wide eyes, she seemed to be completely obsessed.

“Hm?” Captain Janor was surprised at Shen’s response, but after a moment’s hesitation, compliantly answered. “I told you already, I got them as a gift from this random guy who was traveling to the city. Can you explain their rapid healing properties? Are they really potent? You still haven’t answered me."

“Nara.” Shen suddenly leaned forward and grasped Captain Janor’s shoulder, causing her to shake and widen her eyes in surprise. It had been a while since someone had referred to her by her first name so passionately.

“Listen to me. Nara. Let me tell you…”

She suddenly began a large ramble.

“In all my years... In all of my 25 years… I have never seen a pill this beautiful…! ...this pure! So pure… so pure... I feel like I might’ve lost my senses! If I’m reading it right, it’s a nearly… nearly 97% potency! Did you hear me, Nara?! 97%! Do you know what that means? It means that there is virtually no waste of any ingredients or spirit energy in the pill! It has exponentially increased effects! Do you understand? ...Do you understand, Nara?! Experts have been attempting to find methods to increase potency of medicine for eons! Eons! Yet, they have only had limited results - it simply seemed impossible to make something with such potency. Yet today… this… this human-made pill has 97% potency!! I’ve never even heard of this! Do you know how insane it is? Even I, using the finest ingredients and exorbitant amounts of time, could only create one with around a 40% potency! That’s the best of anyone around here, just so you know! Yet, it completely pales in comparison… in comparison to 97%! What a godly number!”

Captain Janor could only sit there with her mouth open.

“And the pill itself… it’s completely different from any pill I have ever seen, or even heard of! I’m unable to even immediately identify most of the ingredients because they were manipulated and fused so well. The refinement process may even be completely different from all current methods. This is… this is… so fascinating!” She began panting heavily and couldn’t help rub the side of the pill she was holding excitedly.

Captain Janor stared wide-eyed at her obsessed friend, completely speechless. This was the first time she had ever seen her like this. Not even when she had earned her title as head of Sunrise Pavilion had she showed so much emotion.

Was the pill really something that amazing? Captain Janor didn’t really understand much about medicine or pill-refining, but by Shen’s descriptions, it sounded almost like a miracle drug. Shen was at the top of her field. Anything she considered a miracle drug was almost surely something out of this world. Captain Janor knew first-hand how effective and in-demand her medicines were.

“Who made this pill? Can you find them?” Shen continued to speak enthusiastically. “It must be some unfathomable wise old master... If only I could meet them, I’d have so many questions. If so, I could advance so much farther… Nara, I just have to meet them!” She looked up at Captain Janor expectantly, clearly asking for a favor.

“...um…” Captain Janor hesitated. She made a strange face.

She clearly remembered that she had gotten the pills from that little black-cloaked midget. That guy was a wise old master? That guy?

She furrowed her brows. Okay, maybe that was a little harsh. But the feeling that she got from the cloaked fellow was that of someone younger, more immature. Was that guy really such a godly expert? Thinking about it now, Captain Janor couldn’t help but feel like something was wrong. That guy did not have the aura of a master apothecary. Yet, looking up at Shen and thinking again, she suddenly felt that Shen didn’t have that aura either. Maybe, master apothecaries were just really eccentric - it was impossible to predict how they would be like.

Thinking back on it, she was glad she had given him her seal and made a good impression. If that guy was really such an expert, having a good relationship could pay big dividends in the future.

As she thought back to the little black-cloaked fellow, however, she couldn’t help but rub her chin. After meeting him, they had parted ways at the city gates. Where could that guy have gone? She hadn’t been able to see his face, so she wouldn’t know who to look for even if she went searching.

However, thinking back on it… she had seen the faces of his three companions - a little boy, a little girl, a large middle-aged man, and an old grandfather. She supposed she could search for them? However, the city was enormous. That group could have gone anywhere... millions of people lived within the city, and thus, it was a huge labyrinth that made it hard to find anyone.

“Well, I might be able to find him. I know he’s in the city… but as you know, it’s a big city.”

“Please, find him! You have to promise me!” Shen immediately insisted, shaking Captain Janor’s shoulders once again, causing her to wince.

Emitting a strange squealing sound, she let go of Captain Janor’s shoulders and heaved herself down, casually grabbing the entire jade bottle of pills that were on the table. “While you look for him, let me continue to study this for now. I must uncover its secrets!”

“…hey-!” Captain Janor reacted a moment too late late and jolted as she saw the jar snatched from her. She reached back over toward Shen. “Give it back! That’s… that’s mine!” Those pills were apparently invaluable. She wouldn’t just give them up like that!

“Hey, don’t be like that!” Shen immediately chided, immediately moving the jar out of reach and then pocketing them. She gave a happy smile. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll return it to you. You don’t trust me? We’re friends!”

After a moment of stubborness, Captain Janor could only withdraw her hand and glare annoyedly at Shen. However, she eventually released her expression. Giving a sigh, she finally nodded exasperatedly. Seeing Shen being so obsessed like this, Captain Janor could only acquiesce. “You’d better return them.”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry!” Shen reassured Captain Janor, patting her on the back. “Just make sure to find the guy!”