After the bandits vanished into the forest, I turned to Bob.
He was wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, then pulled me into a hug.
"Nice to have you back, dude," he muttered, voice slightly choked.
"Yeah," I said, the only word I could manage. There were too many emotions tangled inside me. Relief. Shock. The weight of survival. And somehow… power.
He finally pulled back from the hug, his face lighting up like a curious puppy.
"You were so cool, bro! How did you use the same skill as me? Are you awakened now? Did something happen when you died? Come on, spill! You totally died, right? What happened in your death? Did you see someone or not?"
He fired off questions like a machine gun, eyes wide and sparkling with a weird mix of awe and nosiness.
I chuckled. As much as I wanted to tell him everything, there was something more important right now.
"I'll explain later," I said, patting his shoulder. "Let's heal them first."
I pointed toward the others.
William was limping toward Maya, supporting Evelyn with one arm. Maya was slumped against a tree, breathing heavily, her hands clutching her side.
We jogged over to the group right away. Bob immediately helped William lower Evelyn gently to the ground.
"It's alright, Bob. You can go heal Maya first," Evelyn said, trying to wave him off.
"Alan's already checking on her. Come on, show me your wound," Bob replied, kneeling beside her.
But his expression… yeah, it didn't exactly looked like "professional healer." More like someone who just discovered healing magic might involve touching.
Evelyn narrowed her eyes like a sniper lining up a shot. "Do something funny, and I'll shoot you in the head."
"Aye aye, Miss!" Bob straightened up and gave a mock salute, his grin not disappearing but definitely retreating a little.
William, watching the exchange from the side, let out a quiet chuckle.
They can still joke around after all that… he thought. They're really tough.
Bob hovered both hands over the wound on Evelyn's hip. A soft green glow began to shimmer from his palms. Warmth spread through Evelyn's body, soothing and gentle, like a cozy blanket after a long day of being stabbed.
After a few minutes, the wound closed up completely, no scar, no trace.
"Phewww…" Bob wiped his forehead like he just bench-pressed 10 times.
"Alright, next wound!" he declared confidently, reaching toward her abdomen.
But Evelyn scooted back a little, eyeing him with suspicion.
Bob sighed like a man falsely accused of a crime he definitely looked like he could commit. "It's okay, Evelyn. I'm just trying to help. Do I really look like some pervert who'd take advantage of an injured girl?"
William and Evelyn answered without hesitation.
"…Yes."
Bob clutched his chest dramatically. "I'm not! I'm just a kind-hearted man trying to make the world less bleedy! As a future adventurer, I have a duty to help my teammates!"
He puffed out his chest like a proud goose. Evelyn looked at him for a moment, then let out a small sigh, rolling her eyes.
"Fine," she muttered, flipping up the side of her garb to reveal the next wound. Blood had soaked into the fabric.
"Whoa… okay, yeah. That looks painful," Bob mumbled as he knelt beside Evelyn and began the healing process again.
On the other side, I was tending to Maya. She looked completely drained, leaning against a tree.
"Are you alright, Maya?" I asked, trying not to sound too panicked.
She didn't answer. Just stared blankly to the side.
"Are you in pain? Let me help," I offered, scooting closer. With the first aid knowledge I picked up from my office's annual safety course ,the one with free donuts, I felt decently confident I wouldn't make things worse.
I saw her eyes begin to fill with tears. Then, suddenly, she looked at me and shouted, "Why did you cover me back then? Why did you risk your life for me? I've never done anything good for you, so why go that far?!"
Her voice echoed through the clearing, and the outburst stunned not just me, but also Bob and the rest of the group.
I froze for a few seconds, unsure of how to respond. Then, with a quiet sigh, I sat down beside her, my gaze drifting toward the center of the forest clearing. The signs of battle were still fresh—trees broken, stones shattered, and gaping holes in the ground.
"I don't even know why I did that," I said, letting out a short, dry laugh. "You know me, I'm a coward. I always try to run from responsibility. But at that moment, when I saw you… and everyone getting beaten down, I just felt completely useless."
I paused, taking a breath. "But I thought, if my sacrifice could let someone survive, even just a little longer, then maybe it'd be worth it. Pretty stupid, huh? I mean, even if I had died back there, there was no guarantee any of you would've made it."
I looked down at my hands, one glowing faintly red, the other blue. The insignias shimmered with energy. "But now… with this power, I'm just grateful I got to see you all again."
Maya looked at me, and the tears in her eyes began to flow even harder. Did I say something wrong? I barely had time to think when, out of nowhere, she dropped her head and hands onto my chest, crying. Loudly. Very loudly.
I froze, completely stunned. Slowly, I turned my head toward the others for help, or at least backup.
Bob met my eyes, nodded with a wide grin, and gave me a thumbs up while casually keeping other hand on Evelyn's arm. William also gave a knowing nod, like he'd been waiting for this moment. Evelyn, on the other hand, was making exaggerated hand gestures that clearly said: "What did you do?"
These guys… not helping at all!
I let out a quiet sigh, then gently placed my hands on Maya's back, trying to calm her down. After about a minute, her loud sobbing began to fade.
"Please... please never do that again," she said softly, raising her head while sniffling and rubbing her nose with her sleeve.
"Alright... I promise," I replied, glancing down at my shirt—which was now thoroughly soaked with tears and, judging by the damp splotch, maybe a little snot too.
Well… that shirt's done for.
"So… can I heal you now?" I asked Maya.
"Yeah," she replied, giving a small smile.
Wow… she's actually really cute when she smiles like that.
I bet my cheeks were blushing right now.
Maya leaned back against the tree, letting out a soft sigh. I knelt beside her and gently began to palpate along her arms and legs.
"Any pain here?"
"Not really," she replied, wincing only slightly.
"Where does it hurt the most?"
"My abdomen," she muttered, eyes avoiding mine.
When I asked to take a look, she casually opened her robe, revealing a massive bruise across her stomach, deep blue and ugly, like someone tried to paint and gave up halfway.
Yikes.
"That looks… painful," I said, trying my best not to sound too awkward.
A woman… showing her abdomen to me. This is a first in my entire life. Maybe for other guys, it's no big deal. But for me? It felt like discovering a new continent. Suddenly, that "Loner" title the old man gave me didn't sound so exaggerated after all.
I hovered my hand over the bruise, unsure what to do next.
"Hey, Bob! How do you cast Heal?" I called out to him, while he was busy healing William.
He looked at me like I'd just asked how to breathe.
"What?! You literally summoned four different elements earlier, and now you're asking me how to cast Heal?!"
"I mean… yeah, I did that. But that was all the Hero Grace skill and I was mostly just trying to look cool. Honestly, I have no idea how I pulled it off."
Bob sighed heavily. "You are so useless," he muttered, shaking his head. "Alright, follow me. Ahem... Oh, spirit of nature!"
"Oh, spirit of nature!" I repeated earnestly.
"Grant me, your child, the power to heal the unlucky!"
"Grant me, your child, the power to heal the unlucky!"
"And the one in pain!"
"And the one in pain!"
"Heal!"
"Heal!"
To my surprise, my hand began to glow with a soft green light, just like Bob's. I stared at it in awe. "Bob, I did it! I actually did it!"
"Good job, dude," Bob said with a proud grin.
I turned back to Maya and resumed healing her, repeating the chant each time I moved to a new spot.
Meanwhile, Bob was doing his best not to burst into laughter.
Evelyn squinted at him. "You're totally messing with him, aren't you?
"Shhh." Bob put a finger to his lips, eyes glinting mischievously.
And so, there I was, completely unaware, muttering a ridiculous chant with dramatic flair every time I used Heal, all while Bob barely held in his laughter.