ABSCS 07

Chapter 07

 The Black Death (2)

When Mars found out about the condition of my eyes, he was skeptical at first. But after I repeatedly insisted, he finally carried me on his back and headed toward his home.

“It must be uncomfortable for you. But don’t worry about it.”

It seemed he had misunderstood something. Not that I had any intention of correcting him.

‘Well, yeah. My eyes don’t exactly look normal.’

From a distance, it might not be obvious, but get even a little closer, and anyone could tell something was off.

“Here we are.”

As the man had said, his house was fairly close to the inn. After walking for about thirty minutes, we reached a small village near the harbor.

The place he led me to was a rather shabby wooden structure, even compared to the rest of the village.

“Amy, are you feeling any better? Is it okay if Dad comes in?”

After bringing me inside, he knocked on a room door. A young girl’s cough came in response.

“Amy!”

Mars flung the door open in a panic. The layout of the room came into view.

A small desk. A bed stained with blood. And on it lay a girl about my age, coughing painfully without pause.

Cough, cough! Haah…

I quickly assessed the girl’s condition with my eyes.

‘It’s worse than I thought.’

The skin below her knees and elbows was all necrotic. Being young, it seemed the disease was progressing quickly.

“Here, drink some water. That’s it, slowly now. You’re doing great.”

Mars was flustered, trying his best to help his daughter drink. But even as she sipped the water, she began coughing again—this time even harder.

“Amy!”

This time, she coughed up blood.

It was a serious case of pneumonic plague.

I hurriedly opened my status window.

[Perfect Healing: 100,000p]
Completely heals all physical injuries, illnesses, and abnormal conditions in another person. When healing, the user temporarily experiences the patient’s pain. Cannot be used on oneself.
Tip: Depending on mastery, a special class may be unlocked.

A skill worth a whopping 100,000 points.

But it was also a skill I’d been eyeing for a while, thanks to its insane usefulness.

‘The penalty kind of sucks, but…’

Still, with just this one skill, I could easily pass for a real doctor.

Without hesitation, I purchased the Perfect Healing skill.

[Purchase complete.]
You have acquired ‘Perfect Healing’.
Tip: Physical contact is recommended for effective healing.

Alright. Time to begin.

I walked past Mars and slowly approached the girl.

“You’re…?”

Amy didn’t seem particularly wary of me, even though I was a stranger. Probably because I looked to be her age.

I gave her a soft smile and took her hand.

“Just hold on for a moment. I’ll make sure it doesn’t hurt soon.”

“…?”

Amy tilted her head in confusion.

In that moment, I shouted inwardly with all my might.

‘Perfect Healing!’

Then something incredible happened.

White light began pouring out from my heart and flowed into Amy through our clasped hands.

“W-what?”

Mars made a startled sound. Amy, too, was looking at me with wide, rabbit-like eyes.

“What in the world…!”

The light began healing the girl.

Her hands and feet, once blackened and dead, regained their original color. Her face, once gaunt and lifeless, transformed into the youthful radiance appropriate for her age.

In contrast, I—

‘Ghk!’

I stifled a cough that was trying to burst out. My head spun, and chills ran through my body.

A metallic taste spread in my mouth, probably from blood. To keep myself from screaming, I bit the inside of my cheek.

‘They didn’t say it would hurt this much!’

Getting hit by a truck would’ve probably hurt less.

“H-how is this possible…”

“Daddy! It doesn’t hurt at all anymore!”

Amy cried out with wide eyes.

“My head and chest were hurting so much before, but now I’m not even coughing!”

“A-Amy…!”

Mars wept at the sight of his daughter, now healthy again. The tough-looking man, tears streaming down his face as he hugged her, made for a touching scene.

If only I weren’t in pain.

‘Damn, this hurts like hell.’

With trembling hands, I pressed hard against my chest. If I let my guard down, I’d probably collapse, so I forced myself to sit upright.

But that didn’t last long.

“Ugh.”

Unable to hold in the groan, I collapsed to the floor. Cold sweat drenched me.

“A-are you alright?!”

Only then did Mars look my way, rushing over with alarm to support me. I forced a smile.

“I’m okay. This ability just makes me a little dizzy when I use it…”

I had no idea what kind of expression I was making right now. Hopefully not one too twisted in pain.

Mars had a strange look on his face.

He looked at me for a moment with unreadable eyes, then suddenly knelt down and bowed his head.

“I am forever in your debt, Saint.”

“…Excuse me?”

What? Saint?

[Mars feels deep gratitude toward you.]
[Good Deed Points +100]
[Amy feels deep gratitude toward you.]
[Good Deed Points +100]

Startled, I stared at the status window, then clenched my fist in triumph.

That pain was instantly offset by the point boost.

‘This is why you do good deeds!’

Points are everything!

“I deeply apologize for my rudeness earlier! I have nothing much to offer, but I will gladly give anything for you, Saint!”

“No, it’s alright. You’ve already given me more than enough.”

“…Huh? What did I give you…?”

You gave me 200 points, dear customer.

Of course, I couldn’t say that, so I licked my lips and spoke sweetly.

“Hearing the joy in your voices makes me very happy. That alone is more than enough.”

“How could someone be so…”

He murmured, dumbfounded.

Then, another status message popped up.

[You have been called ‘Saint’.]
Tip: If over 100,000 people recognize you as a Saint, you may acquire that class.

‘…Huh?’

A class?

My eyes paused as I carefully read the tip.

‘A Saint class…?’

I wasn’t sure what it meant to have a class, but this was a comic world, after all.

And not just any world—one where the Hero’s party are the main characters.

‘This could be a golden opportunity.’

Obviously, to join the main party and ride their coattails, I needed to have some kind of special ability.

‘And being a Saint is perfect as the Hero’s partner!’

I had originally planned to join the temple as a trainee priest and slowly get close to the main characters. But if I became a Saint, I could skip all that hassle.

My brain was spinning for the first time in a while.

I slowly opened my mouth.

“If you truly want to give me something in return… there’s one thing I’d like to ask.”

“Ah, yes! Anything! Just say the word!”

“By any chance, are there other patients around here showing symptoms like Amy?”

“Patients…?”

He looked flustered for a moment, but then began to explain.

“Actually, every household in the village seems to have someone like that. The doctors say it’s some kind of plague, but they don’t know what’s causing it.”

As expected.

‘The Black Death is highly contagious.’

Pneumonic plague spreads through droplets, and it’s both fast-moving and infectious.

Under normal circumstances, I would’ve been cautious because of the risk of catching it, but—

[Cleanliness Maintenance]
Even without washing, you remain fresh and fragrant. Provides immunity to all infectious diseases.

After confirming the skill in my status window, I took Mars’s hand with a serious expression.

‘It’s almost like someone’s pushing me to go solve this.’

At this point, I had no choice.

“Mars, please take me to the other patients.”

It was time to become a chain-healing mage.