Chapter 300 Misunderstanding
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
After getting a massage from Stella, my body felt lighter—but my heart sank like a rock.
Trying not to think, I threw myself into work. With no stray thoughts to slow me down, I finished early and headed straight to Mei’s lab.
”What’s wrong, Neil? You look like you’re about to throw up.”
”Had a little accident. Don’t worry about it.”
”With that face? Hard not to. Anyway, you came for something, right? Let’s hear it.”
Sensing I didn’t want to talk, Mei changed the subject.
”I wanted to ask about Bearty’s left arm.”
”Oh? Planning to grow her a real one?”
”I wish. I don’t have the time or the skill for that. I’m thinking of making her a prosthetic.”
”A prosthetic, huh…? Doesn’t sound exciting. Wouldn’t it be easier to buy one?”
”That was my first thought. I even asked Gibbett from Harvest Hoe to find one that fits what I wanted, but he said, ‘We couldn’t find any prosthetic like what Neil-sama requested.’”
”What exactly did you ask for?”
”Nothing crazy. Just one that moves like a real arm.”
”That’s already crazy. I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
”Really? I figured with magic you could make something even better than the real thing.”
”You could—if you had a fortune and years to burn. But anyone rich enough for that would just pay a cleric to grow a real arm instead.”
”…You’ve got a point.”
It made sense. Why spend a fortune building a fake when you could regrow the real thing and use that time for rehab? Even Golarf’s prosthetic was little more than a stick. Healing magic made proper prosthetics practically obsolete.
”This is tough,” I muttered. “We can’t take Bearty to a cleric.”
”Even if you could, healing magic only restores what once existed. It can’t replace something that never formed. For her kind of condition, a cleric would just cut off the arm again.”
”Yeah… and if there’s no precedent for this, I’ll be starting from scratch. Who knows how long that’ll take.”
Mei folded her arms. “Neil, this is late to bring up, but—you don’t owe that girl anything.”
”That’s… new. What’s with you?”
Usually, she’d grumble and still help me. Hearing her sound reluctant was strange.
”This time, it’s not just about you wanting to help,” she said. “You can’t keep her in the settlement forever, so you’re hoping to fix her arm and send her home. Right?”
”Exactly. It’s the best way.”
”I think you’re misunderstanding something.”
”Misunderstanding?”
”You think she left because she felt like a burden to her tribe—like she didn’t want to trouble them anymore. Right?”
”Yeah?”
”Well, I don’t think that’s it.” Mei’s tone softened. “You know my past. I hate being a burden. Especially a well-meant one.”
”…”
”That’s why I know Bearty’s feelings aren’t that simple. Even a sheltered girl like her would understand that vanishing would only worry her family more. No, she left for a different reason.”
Her words clicked.
If Bearty just wanted not to cause trouble, running away was the worst way to do it.
She must have left because there was something she couldn’t stand anymore.
I retraced her story in my mind—and then laughed.
”You’re right, Mei. I’ve been a fool. Thought she was like me and missed what was right in front of me.”
”So? What did you figure out?”
”When she said ‘family is important’ and ‘I don’t want to trouble them,’ I assumed she left out of kindness. But no. She didn’t leave for them—she left for herself. If that’s true, the prosthetic I planned would only be a nuisance.”
Mei smiled faintly. “Better to realize that now than after she calls you a nuisance to your face. So, giving up on the fancy arm—what’s next? You’re not the type to drop it.”
”Of course not. I gave up on making a ‘high-performance prosthetic that moves like the real thing.’ So instead, I’ll give her a ‘prosthetic that moves like the real thing.’”
”…What?”
Mei’s face cycled through confusion, curiosity, and finally worry. “Neil… are you sure you’re not overworked? Should I tell Diana you need rest?”
”I’m fine. Listen—what I’m making is—”
”—Are you sure it even counts as a prosthetic?”
”I’ll be using it as an arm, so it counts.”
”By that logic, tying a spear to your shoulder would count too.”
”Well, mine will at least look like an arm. Besides, something like this won’t be a nuisance.”
”Maybe not, but she might take it as an insult.”
”I’ll explain it properly.”
”Let’s hope she doesn’t lose her temper before you finish talking. If she kills you on the spot, that’s on you.”
”…Guess I’ll put it in a box first.”
She wasn’t the type to lash out, but considering what I was about to give her, a little buffer wouldn’t hurt.
I could only hope it went well as I started crafting the so-called prosthetic for Bearty.
Notes:
• Stella – Female. A young woman from a village in the territory of Count Cordis. Her appearance is that of a young girl with a fixed smile, reflecting her traumatic experiences. She was renamed Remia by the brothel owner in Malm. Her relationship with others is marked by survival and adaptation, as she endures sexual exploitation and bullying. Her inner thoughts reveal a deep sense of despair and disconnection from her original identity.
• Bearty – Gray-haired Lycus girl from a remote settlement, ran away from overprotective family, appears after collapsing from exhaustion, becomes the girl Neil protects and mentors.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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