I activated my Mana Vision and Anatomical Perception as I dropped to a knee next to Cecelia's prone figure. I unequipped my gauntlets so I could check her pulse from her neck. It was weak but still present. I used my enhanced vision and anatomical understanding to confirm that she had no injuries that would be agitated by me repositioning her body.
I started by undoing the straps on her mail chest plate. I needed access to the wounds to clean them before they regenerate to prevent scarring and materials being left inside. The steel plate made a thump as it landed on the hard rock beneath us, now free from her body. Next was to undo the leather bindings that held the segmented leather jerkin that she had on under the breastplate. This leather piece had been damaged by the piercing blow she had taken. The attack had gone just below the bottom of the hardened steel piece and punctured through several layers of leather, cloth and flesh on both sides of her body. This was the only life-threatening wound on her body. She also had a series of minor cuts and abrasions across her entire body, plus her left forearm had a shattered bone.
As I finished undoing the back of the leather piece, I could see an undyed cotton singlet, and I could make out her chest binding below that. I took a knife from Storage and carefully cut the back of the shirt to remove it to tend the wound. I was careful to leave the chest binding, as I wanted to leave the poor woman's dignity as intact as possible.
After making sure that I could get to the wound, I pulled several bottles out of my Storage. First, I sterilized my hands with water and alcohol. Once I had prepared to the best of my ability, I used water magic to run some freshwater over the injury to clean the area of the blood. Next, I used an anti-septic poultice to sterilize the area, as well as an adhesive bandage I had bought from the Adventurer's Guild. I secured the bandage over the wound to prevent contamination once I flip her over to work on the front. Next, I pulled some blankets out and sat them across the ground before my knees, providing some comfort before moving Cecelia. I brought her to face upright, lying on the blankets, before removing the leather and cloth clothing that I had loosened on that back. First, the leather came off, revealing the white sleeveless shirt below. It was stained across the front with blood, and as I went to remove it, I could tell it had stuck to the wound.
Knowing how much it would hurt if she was conscious enough to feel it, I apologized, "Sorry, sorry, sorry." Then, after peeling it away from the wound and hearing an involuntary whimper escape her lips, I cleaned the wound. I followed the same process on the back but stopped before applying the bandage. Before me was her bound chest, below which was her pale white stomach. Her dwarven physique meant she had a thick midriff that, while muscularly defined with an impressive six-pack, was still definitively feminine in appearance.
This time, I had to do the worst part. After sterilizing my hands again, I reached for the red gash of a wound that marred Cecelia's otherwise flawless stomach and used the fingers of my right hand to spread the wound open into a diamond shape. Now that it would have access to the internal injuries as well, I poured a whole Intermediate Quality Wounds Cure Potion I had made during our travels into the hole. A scream broke through Cecelia's lips and her face scrunched in pain as the potion immediately started reconstructing the severed tissues. I placed the bandage over the wound before wrapping a length of cloth around the wounds several times.
Placing my knees under her head and shoulders, I tilted her upper body so that I could feed her some additional alchemic products. First, and most imperatively, a healing potion to assist the wound potion. This healing potion would also cure then minor injuries that covered her body.
Next down the hatch were several poultices. First was an electrolyte-filled mixture made from honey, water and salt. Next, a protein and iron-enriched health drink would assist her marrow in producing new blood cells to make up for the large amount of blood loss. Finally, a calorically dense multi-vitamin fruit juice to give her body lots of energy.
After ensuring she would have everything she needed to get better, I gave her a sleeping draught to ensure her body would stay asleep and heal from the near-death experience while I returned her home. Then, leaving her to rest for a second, I used Storage to strip the men of all their possessions before storing their bodies in a separate folder to be disposed of properly, so they would not turn into more undead in this ruin.
Ready to leave, I wrapped the blankets around Cecelia's short, stout dwarven body, swaddling her like a newborn before picking her up in a princess carry. I also used Storage to extract the covered artifact from the wall without continuing the painstaking archeological tier chiselling. Then, with my quest objective in hand, I ascended the tunnel at a much slower and sturdier pace than I had descended. The whole time, I focused on making sure not to disturb Cecelia's rest.
I kept checking the minimap as we ascended, making sure there were no further enemies. Finally, we made it to the entrance without running across any adversaries. Opening the complete map of the area, I could see from the detection wards I had set down the other path that Jahk had made it halfway back already. Impressive. I am glad he is showing such drive to live. Here's hoping he takes the opportunity to better himself rather than seeking revenge.
Exiting the cave, half a day had passed, and it was now the early hours of the morning. The sky was just starting to lighten as the sun crept over the horizon, and the first birdsongs of the morning could be heard. I paused for a moment as I noticed one of the horses I had released early was in the trees nearby. Whistling, I attracted the horse's attention. It did as it had been trained to and headed over to me. I patted its neck as I pulled out the promised items from earlier. I tied a lead to the horse and secured it to a nearby tree. Then, my promise to Jahk fulfilled, I headed to our campsite.
Halfway to the clearing, Luna was waiting for me. She looked at the pale dwarf girl. "Good job," Luna smiled up at me. Then, coming to my side, she placed a hand gently on my back and gave it a quick rub as she placed a kiss on my cheek. "Welcome back. I am glad you are safe."
Giving Luna a peck on the lips, I told her the same as we headed the rest of the way to the campsite.