Maxi started to feel anxious.
If there were no clerics capable of performing divine magic in all of Anatol, that meant that Ruth was the only person who could use healing magic.
And if a bigger crisis were to arise, what would happen then?
Seeing the worry on her face, Ruth gently blinked a finger to distract her.
"Now is not the time to worry, my lady.
Please call the servants.
I will prepare the herbs."
“I g-understand.”
Ruth turned on her heel and left the room.
Maxi put on a thick cloak and began ringing the bell to summon the servants.
As he could not neglect the castle, bringing them all with him, he chose ten strong young men and five maids.
After giving them instructions, she left the great hall.
Maxi pulled his hood over his head to block the wind and ran to the training field.
There, servants were loading luggage onto three large carts.
She checked that they hadn't left anything behind before getting into a carriage with them.
Moments later, Ruth appeared with a heavy bag of herbs over her shoulder and piled the bag on top of her other luggage.
Maxi moved to the edge of the seat to make room.
It was only then that Ruth, who had climbed into the carriage, noticed his presence.
He looked surprised.
“Will you go with us, my lady?”
Maxi's eyes widened.
She had assumed it was her duty to accompany them.
“W-Would I be getting in the way?”
"No way.
It was just unexpected.
Your presence will certainly be useful."
The wizard gave her a friendly smile and sat down opposite her.
One by one, the three horse-drawn carts passed through the castle gates.
As they crossed the drawbridge, the carriage began to shake violently, and Maxi held on to the handle in fear.
They were descending a steep hill, and the carriage was tilting dangerously forward.
Maxi was afraid she would capsize.
“No need to worry, my lady,” said Ruth, slowly shaking her head.
“The wheels are equipped with a device that prevents the carriage from turning.”
Realizing she had made her ignorance obvious, Maxi blushed and released the strap.
They continued to travel in that precarious state until they were safely at the base of the hill, at which time they turned east.
Through the window, Maxi could see that they were heading down a secluded path in the forest, surrounded by bare trees.
Cobweb-like shadows from thin branches spread across the ground, which was covered in a thin layer of ice.
Maxi looked away from the desolate landscape.
She tried to control her breathing to calm her racing heart.
Eventually, the carriage stopped.
“We’re here.”
Ruth jumped out of the carriage as soon as a servant opened the door.
Maxi descended after him, then froze at the sight he encountered.
Among the tree stumps in an open clearing, there were piles of carcasses of huge black beasts.
Ruth looked down at a werewolf's head on the ground.
"So they were werewolves.
That explains why the sentries were taken by surprise.
I'll have to devise measures to prevent this from happening again."
Maxi looked away and suppressed the urge to vomit, reluctant to show the others that disgusting sight again.
“Wizard Ruth!”
Maxi turned to see where the scream was coming from.
A group of riders were setting up tents near some ruined huts, nestled in the dense forest.
One of the knights approached Ruth.
"Sir Ursuline injured his shoulder during the commotion.
Could you attend to him?"
“Was Sir Ursuline injured?” asked Ruth in surprise.
The young knight sighed.
"There was heavy fog, so we didn't see his distress signal right away.
He had to face the beasts alone before the rest of us arrived."
"Heavens!
Where is he now?"
"This way." The knight led Ruth away.
Maxi, who had been listening silently, found herself lost.
After instructing the servants to unload the luggage, she hurriedly followed Ruth.
When he reached the dark cabin he had seen Ruth enter, he found rows of wounded men on the floor.
As he scanned the dirty room with his eyes, his eyes fell on the nearest sentry.
She gasped at the sight of his horrendous injuries.
The man's arm was at an odd angle, his burned face contorted in pain.
His robe was covered in dirt and blood, and his entire body emitted a foul smell.Maxi took a step back, feeling repelled.
She had come to help, but she knew nothing about caring for the injured.
He panicked, starting to break out in a cold sweat.
Then he heard Ruth's voice coming from the back of the cabin.
"My lady!
Please tell the servants to start boiling water.
We will need a lot of it!"
Maxi composed himself and ran back to give instructions to the servants.
They rushed to light a fire in front of the hut and carry a large cauldron to the water source.
Meanwhile, Ruth finished treating Sir Ursuline and went out to unload the bag of herbs.
“Do you have any experience caring for the injured?”
Maxi shook his head.
She knew lying wasn't a good idea at that moment.
Ruth nodded as if she had expected this and took several smaller bags out of the bag.
"These contain coagulants.
The powder should stop the bleeding.
But first, you must carefully cut off any pieces of clothing covering the wound and wash the wound with clean water.
After spreading this powder, use a cloth to compress the wound until the bleeding stops."
“W-Wouldn’t it be faster to use magic?”
"My magic won't be enough to heal all of these men.
I can heal ten of the most seriously injured, but the rest will have to be treated without magic."
“E-Eu entendi.”
Hiding her apprehension, Maxi took Ruth's bags.
She didn't have time to hesitate.
After repeating the instructions in her mind, she opened the bags with shaking hands to check their contents.
Suddenly, Ruth handed him another bag.
"These dried leaves are detoxifying.
If you notice purple swollen wounds or patients with a fever, have them swallow one of these.
If the patient is unconscious, please call me."
“E-Eu entendi.”
"You don't need to be so nervous, my lady.
Many of the servants have experience caring for the injured and will know what to do as soon as they receive instructions."
Ruth took the remaining herbs and returned to the cabin.
Maxi said a silent prayer before approaching the servants boiling water on the fire.
She delivered Ruth's instructions with some difficulty.
The servants then quickly divided the herbs among themselves to take along with the sheets and bowls to the huts.
Maxi hesitated before following the maids.
The women were already tending to the wounded with skillful hands.
Maxi watched the injured men.
Some had escaped with only minor injuries, but most were in serious condition.
She could see seven sentries and a dozen men who looked like lumberjacks due to their humble attire.
Combined with the men in the other huts, the wounded must have numbered at least forty in total.
Their number filled her with fear.
Chastising the urge to flee, she leaned over the nearest sentry.
He was barely conscious.
After a brief pause, she discovered the blanket covering the man's body.
He seemed to be one of the oldest.
His right thigh was covered in thick, dark blood, as if it had been ripped open by a werewolf.
Fighting nausea, Maxi used a pair of scissors to cut away his torn pants.
A weak moan escaped her lips.
Afraid that she had caused him more pain, she quickly removed her hands.
After calming her nerves, she went back to cutting off the sentry's pants.
The wound underneath was stomach-churning.
Chunks of dark, viscous blood surrounded an open wound where flesh had been torn away.
Suppressing a scream, Maxi soaked a piece of linen in water and cleaned the cut as Ruth had instructed.
The sentry twitched every time the cloth touched his skin, and it took a long time before Maxi managed to clean his wound of the blood.
After tossing the blood-soaked linen aside, she spread the powder with shaking hands and clumsily wrapped a strip of cloth around the wound.
His shoulders were tense and his back was drenched in sweat after treating just one patient.
Is this enough?
Maxi looked anxiously at the sentry for several moments before standing up.
She comforted herself with the thought that she had followed Ruth's instructions.
The sentry would be fine for now.
With hesitant steps, she approached the next patient, treating one sickening wound after another.One man had a bone sticking out of his arm, while another's face was covered in blood from a head injury.
Maxi went to the last one first and inspected his wound.
Her stomach dropped when she felt the slick blood on her hands, but she forced herself to bear it.
She had come to help, not to hinder.
Once again, she cleaned the wound and spread some coagulant on it before bandaging it with shaking hands.
The powder soon seemed to stop the bleeding.
With a sigh of relief, she turned to see how the servants were faring.
They were using the same method to treat patients.
Relaxing a little, she started to approach the next patient, but a dry hand stopped her from behind.
"It's best not to touch him, my lady.
We'll have to realign his bones first."