Kyle MD

I stormed through the streets of Othburten, my boots pounding against cobblestones like a drumbeat of pure, unfiltered irritation. The city's obsession with paperwork was bad enough – thank god I wasn't roped into it – but now I had to deal with Alaric's melodramatic exit? Hell no! If he wants to quit, let him. I don't need him. I don't need any of them!

I can just Plane Shift, Teleport, or Gate to the Demonlord's doorstep, rip whatever world-hopping artifact they have out of their hands, and go home. But no, I am too scared of some stupid eye in the void to cast a high-level spell! Forget it! Who cares if this world's eldritch god gazes at me?! I'm going there! No more prophecies, no more stupid heroes, no more-

A hand grabs my sleeve, pulling me from my thoughts. I whirl around, ready to unleash a verbal tirade on whoever dared interrupt my brooding, only to come face-to-face with a woman in a white apron stained with what I really hope isn't blood. What did a butcher need of me anyways? Her eyes are wide, desperate.

"Saint! Oh, thank the Mother! Please, you must help us!"

I blinked.

"What?"

"The hospital... we have a patient! A nobleman. He's dying, and none of our remedies work! The physicians are at a loss, but... you are the legendary Harmony Adept! You can heal anything!"

I opened my mouth to correct her – no, actually, I'm not sure I can, I just spam Cure Wounds like a glorified first-aid kit – but she was already dragging me down the street.

"Wait, hold on-"

Too late.

The "hospital" was less of a medical facility and more of a "place where people go to die slightly slower". The air reeked of herbs, sweat, blood, and despair. Beds lined the walls, filled with groaning patients, while harried-looking healers rushed between them, administering potions, poultices, and what looked like suspiciously like leeches. Great. Medieval medicine.

The woman, who was apparently the head healer, pulled me towards a curtained-off area, where a man lay sprawled on a bed, his skin had an alarming shade of gray. His breathing was shallow, his limbs twitched sporadically. A large group of healers hovered around him, whispering frantically.

"This is Lord Dyeyong", head healer said, "He collapsed at his house three days ago, and his wife called us! Fever, convulsions, and then... this. We've tried everything. Bloodletting, purging, blessed water... nothing works!"

I stared at the dying nobleman.

Oh no.

This is exactly like one of those medical dramas back on Earth. The kind where the patient has some absurd condition that only the genius protagonist can diagnose after a montage of wrong guesses.

Except I wasn't a doctor back on Earth. I was an office worker who played D&D, MMORPGs, watched anime and TV series and read novels. 

"Uh...", I said playing smart.

The healers looked at me expectantly.

Right. 

The Harmony Adept. Legendary healer. Saint. Miracle creator.

I can do this. Probably. First, let's try the basic things. I chant, in rapid succession:

"Cure Wounds. Lesser Restoration. Greater Restoration. Purify Food and Drink. Remove Diseases. Dispel. Remove Curse."

His body emanated green, then light blue, then deep blue, then light blue again, then green, then light disappeared, then purple light appeared. Nothing. It didn't help. Healers were looking at me with confusion.

"I was just testing the most basic stuff I can do", I said, reassuring them.

Oh boy, it seems like we actually have to do it this way. I make a step forward, channeling my best impression of a man who knows what he is doing.

"Alright. Symptoms?"

The "doctors" exchanged glances. One of them, a tall man, cleared his throat.

"Fever, initially. Then, muscle spasms. His skin turned gray, and his eyes... look at this."

He pulled back the patient's eyelid. His sclera was pitch black. What the hell. 

"Any recent travel?", I asked, trying to sound authoritative. 

"He returned from Freeholds a week ago", head healer replied.

"Diet?"

"Normal noble fare. Wine, bread, meat... though his wife did mention a new delicacy he'd tried. Some kind of... foreign mushroom, I think?"

Bingo.

"Can it be... a poisonous mushroom?", I asked.

The healers shook their heads.

"We checked with some low magic our head healer can use. It is not poison."

Ah, so they can use healing magic. Then how can I help?! 

"Did you try praying for him?", I asked as a joke.

"Yes, we did pray for his health, both to The Price and to the Mother..."

"Only stupid people pray for someone's health when they are in need of medical help. You are stupid."

I can't believe they actually did that. Actually, no, I shouldn't be surprised. Fine, let's check some other things.

"Parasite?"

"No signs of infestation."

"Allergic reaction?"

Blank stared. Right. Medieval world. No concept of allergies. I rubbed my temples. Considering my magic did work, but had no effect, it was no wound, no status condition, no curse, no petrification, no food poisoning, not even a disease! What can I even do except asking?!

"Was he bitten? Like, by a mouse or something?"

"Not that we know of."

"Stung?"

"No."

"Exposed to any weird, curse magical artifacts?"

"No."

"Did he... I don't know, licked a mossy rock?"

Silence. Yeah, should've known. I'm drawing a total blank. If only I was a competent doctor back on Earth, I could probably diagnose him with something, but... wait, diagnose! Right, time for a nuclear option. I place a hand on the patient's forehead.

"Diagnose!"

Nothing happened. Well, of course nothing happened, "Diagnose" spell doesn't exist! The healers stare at me.

"Uh, testing his aura", I coughed, "Very advanced technique."

They nodded, impressed. God, this is humiliating.

I closed my eyes, reaching for something – anything – that could help. Think, Kyle, think. It wasn't anything from things I tried to lift before. So it must be either natural, or it is some really weird thing. But I can't know what "weird thing" it is! Unless...

"When exactly did that condition appear? What was he doing and where was he at the moment?"

"He recently returned home and was writing a letter after a dinner, so..."

Here it is.

"We need to search his house."

"But-", said one of the healers.

"It's his private property!", said another.

"I forbid this!", said the head healer.

Honestly, why do I even bother? I don't even know this man. I can let him die, and nothing in my life would change. I can just say "even my powers can't help" and go away!... but it doesn't feel right. I do not want to have him, or anyone else die on me.

"I don't care. I need to cure the patient."

All the "doctors" shut up, looking at me with inspiration. Did I really sound that kind and selfless?

"Where is the man's house?"

"Please, follow me!", said the head healer.

We rushed from the hospital, navigating through the city.

After the long dash, after which I could barely breath, we arrived at a huge mansion... he really is a nobleman. I knock at the door, but... no answer. 

"His wife, who is his only family, said she will spend a week away...", said the head healer.

"I see... in this case, Haste, Haste."

I used Haste on myself twice. I could feel the time slowing around me. Well, "speed" is also "strength", so I break down the door with a shoulder bash, knocking it wide open, destroying any hope it will ever be able to lock again. Then, I Dispeled Haste on me. 

"M-minster Saint?!"

"What's more important – man's door or his life?", I say and take a step inside.

The mansion's interior was exactly what I expected from a noble's home – ostentatious, overdecorated and utterly impractical. Gilded furniture, velvet drapes and enough candles to burn the place twice over. The head healer trailed behind me, nervous. After all, technically, we were trespassing. In a city obsessed with law. But what is a law in front of a life?

"Where would he have been writing that letter?", I ask.

"His study, most likely! He probably dined there, too."

I march upstairs, checking door by door. Finally, I find a room that looks like a study a rich person could have. Well, another proof of it being the room I was looking for is that its door was ajar. Inside, a massive oak desk dominated the room, littered with papers, papers, quills, bottles of ink, more papers, and...

Huh.

A small, ornate dish sat near an inkwell. Inside it were shine, irregular pellets. I picked one up, rolling it between my fingers. It was soft and metallic.

Silver.

Raw silver.

"No way...", I muttered. 

The head healer finally caught up, gasping for breath after running upstars in her apron.

"What... what did you find?"

"Your patient's problem", I held up the dish.

"Is that... metal?", she squinted.

"Silver, to be exact. And from the looks of it, I'm betting Lord Whateverhisname was eating it."

"That's absurd! Why would anyone... he's a nobleman, not a goat!"

"It's the same thing!"

I shove the dish into her hands. 

"Look. Smell it." 

She hesitated, then sniffed. Her nose wrinkled.

"It smells like mint?"

"Exactly. Someone coated these in something to make them palatable. Probably thought it was a delicacy. Or a 'health elixir', how some people long ago thought of mercury back at my world. Maybe, he lost a bet. Or he's just stupid", I rolled my eyes, "Rich people."

"But... silver isn't poisonous..."

"In small doses, maybe. But eat a lot, or eat it continuously for a long time, and it'll turn your insides into a jewelry box. I have no idea why I didn't consider it. Gray skin? Black sclera? Muscle spasms? Classic argyria."

"Argy... what?"

"Silver poisoning. Spells I casted back then didn't fix it because it isn't a disease or a curse, or even poisoning in normal sense. It's literal metal in his body. We need to get it out."

Her eyes widened.

"Do you plan to... open him up?!"

I twitched.

"What?! No, of course not! I mean, I could probably revive him even after his body will be split in half, but... there's much easier and more humane way!"

"How then...?"

"We get creative", I grinned.

Honestly, I had no idea if it will work, but I don't have actual medicine on me. Besides... silver is a metal, right?

And I'm back at the hospital. The storage room was a chaotic mess of herbs, vials and questionable surgical tools. After a few minutes of frantic digging, we unearthed a pair of lodestones. Crude, but... magnetic enough. Back at Lord Dyeyong's bedside, the healers clustered around, murmuring nervously as I waved the stones over his abdomen.

"This... this feels like heresy...", one muttered.

"No, heresy is letting a man die because you're too proud to admit he is stupid. I, however, am not letting Dyeyong... die young. Now hold him still."

I pressed one lodestone against his stomach and slowly dragged it upwards. For a moment, nothing happened. Then... a faint, silvery sheen rose beneath his skin, drawn towards the magnet like iron filings. The healers gasped. 

"By the Mother's Tears...!"

"Told you", I said, "Now, someone, grab a bowl. We've struck gold. Or, shall I say, silver?"

Two hours later, the nobleman's fever broke. His skin regained color, his breathing steadied, and the ominous gray tinge faded. The bowl beside his bed gleamed with a small amount of extracted silver particles. The head healer stared at it, then at me, then it again, then at me again... her expression was caught between awe and horror.

"You... magnetized the silver out of his blood."

"Yeah."

"That... shouldn't work."

"It shouldn't. Perhaps, a miracle performed by a Saint?", I dusted my hands off, "Tell him to stick to gold next time. At least, that would be expensive and prestigious poisoning."

She opened her mouth, then closed it, then sighed.

"Thank you, Saint."

"No problem. I can't stand seeing innocent people die."

As I waved my hand and turned to leave, a weak voice croaked from the bed.

"Why... did you do that? I was eating silver to live forever... why did you remove?..."

I paused and looked back. Lord Not-Die-Young was starting at the silver-filled bowl, now awake, groggy and utterly sheepish. I burst out laughing as healers exchanged glances.

I left them to their gossip, stepping into the fresh air. Huh. For once, I actually helped someone without pissing them off... or burning them alive first. It almost feels good. But not good enough to continue being a local doc. Especially since it really was miracle... I expected him to vomit silver, or... get rid of it from another exit, yet I removed it from his blood, through the veins, through the flesh, through the skin. Did I use some form of magic I didn't even realize I am casting, without saying a thing? Or was it divine miracle? Or both? Who knows. Well, I am in high spirits again. Time to traverse to east, find the big bad, and go home. Perhaps, help a few more on the way. Or shall I find Alaric first? Decisions, decisions...

As I go to a nearby inn gate, after asking directions from citizens, I notice that I am being watched. A strange figure appears here and there, at the edge of my peripheral vision. Finally, after I reached a street, where there wasn't a single soul, I stand still.

"You don't need to hide. Your presence is so obvious I could find you while sleeping."

"Oh nooo!~ My cover was blown, what am I gonna do?~", says the female voice behind me.

I turn around to find a hooded, cloaked person. I can only see the lower half of her face. Considering she isn't using lipstick, I doubt she's a noble... well, why would a noble stalk me, hiding behind a cloak anyways? Also... "gonna"? Huh, interesting talking style.

"What is it you want? I'm kinda busy", I say.

"Well, I was watching you all this day, so I just have to ask", she replied, "first, you resurrected a man who was ready to kill you in a duel. Then, you spent a good hour or two trying to help a person you never met. What prompted you to do that?"

Oh no, not that. Well, I have a good excuse.

"I'm a Saint. That's just what I do."

"Oh, don't make me laugh, boy. We both know you are not a Saint. How did you say? A summoned hero CANNOT be a saint, right?"

She was watching me from all the way in the capital. Who is this woman? Granted, the only woman I know in this world by name is Inquisitor Seraphine, but... it's clearly not her. Seraphine is a giant, taller than 2 meters. This person is barely 165 centimeter tall.

"What are you getting at? Perhaps I just felt like it."

 "Oh, no, no, I know the reason. It is because you don't want to be a reason people die, do you? Because you are afraid of the responsibility", she said with a sarcastic voice.

"Perhaps. So what?"

"What if you encounter an enemy, alone, with no one to take the 'burden' of killing off of you... an enemy, who will not back down, even after you kill them and revive, no matter how many time. What will you do? Will you just run? Or will you cut their life short yourself?"

"I am not going to debate philosophy with someone who isn't even brave enough to show their face."

"Oh, I just wanted to see your reaction, really! Don't worry, you will see my face in its full glory in a time being."

"Is that all? I would rather find an inn before the sunset."

"Nothing more, thank you very much, doggy!"

Her body suddenly disappears, letting the cloak fall down. What a weirdo... although, I have a guess or two who it could be. 

"I can bet my life that it's the Demonlord in one of their avatars. Anyone wanna bet otherwise?"

I shrug and look around.

"Right. I forgot I am completely alone."

I sigh. I turn back and make a few more steps forward, walking past a dark alleyway. Alas, I don't get to just walk past it... after sensing a rapid motion to the right of me, I instinctively yell: "Shield!" 

"Aah!"

A yellow aura surrounds me, blocking a strike of a huge hammer, and then breaking from the impact. Despite I wasn't hit, I am still thrown backwards and my back hits a building, breaking its wall. Shocked residents of that house look at me, and then run away. Can't blame them. "Cure Wounds!" I say in advance, in case I broke something. The pain from hitting a wall still lingers. As the dust raised by a sudden attack dissipates, I see the assailant. I could never mistake such a posture.

"Completely alone? I don't think so", says familiar voice.

"I should've expected this confrontation... miss High Inquisitor Seraphine."

"Tsk. Don't get cocky after blocking one strike. You aren't leaving this city alive, walking blasphemy."

From the same alleyway, a few more... well, a dozen more ironclad knights. All of them had the red square inside of a triangle symbol at their chest plates. I don't even know what she is capable of... let alone what a whole squad of Inquisitors is capable of. 

I stand up, and whisper: "Haste. Haste." Now, I am 2 times faster than normal... but considering I couldn't even see them, I'm probably barely at their level. Yet hastening myself any further is dangerous. 

"Well then, I guess fight is inevitable?", I say, speaking very slowly, so that for them I will sound at normal speed.

"There won't be a fight. It will be an execution", she says, clinging her teeth with rage.

"You are right, so I will act smarter."

I turn around and run. Right through that building that I crashed in. On the go, I pick up a poker that is sticking from a fireplace. Great, just what I need. "Holy Weapon!", I yell, enhancing the poker. With it, I slash through the front door of that house, now back at the streets. I expected that a squad of armor-clad knights won't be able to dash as fast as I could, especially through a building, but... I clearly underestimated what warriors of this world can do.

A bright line flashed above the ground... and the two-story building I had just fled through groaned and collapsed. Dust billowed, and from that chaos, Seraphine lunges right at me, her massive hammer aimed to crash me into the cobblestones, just like she did with the house. I swing my enhanced poker, expecting it to slice through her weapon like paper, but our weapons clash. The impact rattled my bones. I managed to hold her – probably thanks to Holy Weapon – but her strength advantage was undeniable. In a prolonged clash she will overpower me. I jump back, ready to run again, but it's too late. The rest of the knights already encircled me, cutting off any hope of escape.

The citizens, who were still near, started running away in panic. It seems like a large battle isn't something people of this city are used to... can she even do that?! She is damaging a private property, Inquisitor or not! Wait, no, what am I thinking?! It's a theocracy-based nation, of course an Inquisitor of all people will be able to do that!

"Not bad, managing to blocking my righteous anger. But it was the last time", her hold on the hammer tightened.

"You miscalculated, High Inquisitor. Now, that I have a weapon, I am not going to lose. For a simple reason. Hold Pe-"

"Silence!"

Some of the knights behind me yelled "Silence!" when I was midway through casting... and now I can't make a sound! Sound just doesn't happen when I try to speak! And due to it... damn it! I can't Hold them and make it an easy victory! Moreover, all my magic was sealed! I still had 2 Hastes on me, and a Holy Weapon in my arms, but... if I get hit once, I'm dead! I can't use healing, I can't Spare The Dying now... I need to... no! I can't rely on "miracle" and "subconscious voiceless casting", it may as well be a one-time deal! let's hope my HEMA practice will finally pay off!