We were able to get Daelan and Sephtis a doctor almost as soon as we breached the gates. It was probably due to the alarming noises of horse hooves and Eveleen using her 'damsel in distress' voice to yell for a doctor.
That's what she liked to refer to as her tone of voice when she made herself sound desperate, and it worked, so who was I to stop her from calling it that? To be honest, I found the name quite inspiring and funny.
"Hsss!" Both Sephtis and Daelan winced in pain, seemingly at the same time. Though Daelans was louder than Sephtis since he was getting stitches, Sephtis was simply having his wounds cleaned with alcohol used for physical injuries.
"Try to bear with me here," The doctor said to Daelan with a tired voice, having probably just been waking up.
Eveleen was treating Sephtis, being rather gentle and comforting him with a pat on the head when he winced or hissed from the sting of the rubbing alcohol she was using on him.
Meanwhile, I was looking out the window at our horses and the growing crowd around the bonfire that was lit outside when everyone came to see what the commotion was.
"Are there no priests or priestesses in the village?" I asked, finding it a bit odd for the people in the world of the novel to be using practical medicine techniques and equipment.
Physical treatments were never described in 'How to Kill Demons Without Dying,' but they were mentioned quite frequently. So it wasn't that it just didn't exist; people of this world just found the holy power of the churches, shrines, and temples to be more practical and work better. So it surprised me not to see a clergy member rush in yet.
"...No, all priests and priestesses of Joacasta left a long time ago," The doctor responded solemnly, saddened almost, "So, we now have to rely on physical treatments.
"Hm, Goddess Jocasta? I have never heard of any deity of that name before," Eveleen commented, finally putting bandages on Sephtis.
'Jocasta? Now that is a name and tale I do recognize and know.' Jocasta was a plot point from the side stories and someone who was only a part of that small side arc. Since it was only a side story, readers only thought of it as an AU, not relevant to the original story, but it turns out that it was, and it was only just a small side quest.
"Well, you are both foreign travelers, so I am not surprised that you haven't," The doctor replied, also starting to put bandages over Daelan's stitches.
"Mmm, I am going to assume that she is a figure unique to your village or region," I commented, remembering the few chapters from the side story relating to her and another similar figure.
"Something like that," He trailed off, focusing on Daelan's bandages, making sure they were neat and not too tight on him. After all, we wanted to make sure it didn't start bleeding, but also not cut off his circulation.
We didn't talk for a few moments; all one could hear was the crickets from outside and the occasional whimper coming from Sephtis. But to my surprise, only minutes later, a strange woman came bursting through the door.
She had long auburn hair pulled into a ponytail bun, yellow eyes similar to Dealan's, and ears and a tail the same color as her hair, only at the bottom, they faded to gray. Her fair skin was brightened by the yellow 'peasants' dress that she wore, accessorized by a laced-up bodice and pouches.
"Daelan!" She shouted worriedly, seeing him bandaged up on the patient's bed, "I heard what happened in the woods, are you alright?!"
The woman ran over to Daelan, almost knocking the doctor off his stool to get to him. The two seemed close, and they looked like they could be siblings.
"Miss Zemira, I get that you are worried about your brother, but you must be patient and not crowd him and make such a big deal!" The doctor scolded, his ears drooping as he adjusted his glasses.
"It's alright, I know she is just worried about me," Daelan reassured, and smiled over at Sephtis, who gave a thumbs up, signaling that the loud noise she had made didn't bother him.
"Eugh! Don't ever scare me like that again! It would kill me to hear that my baby brother went missing in that damned forest!" Zemira exclaimed, tightly hugging her brother into her chest, "But could you please tell me what happened and why you are so banged up?"
"Mmm, mmm, mm!" Came Daelan's muffled explanation, still being smothered by his sister. He tried to break free, but even knowing that her brother couldn't really talk, Zemira didn't let go.
'Huh, she must really care about him…Poor guy.'
"Haaaa, according to these three gentlemen, and the lady here, Sephtis and Daelan were being attacked by high-grade spirits while out getting herbs and checking for nearby monsters," The doctor interjected, annoyed by the display of affection from the two siblings.
"Oh, hello there, Sephtis, I didn't notice you," Zemira smiled apologetically, then finally let go of her brother to turn to Eveleen and me and bow in thanks, "Thank you two so much for helping my little brother and Sephtis, if something happened to Dealan, I don't know what I'd do!"
It seemed to me that neither Zemira nor the doctor cared very much for Sephtis' presence, as if he were a mere shadow in the room. It honestly bothered me a little, but it wasn't my place to say something.
"Of course, we were happy to help! After all, we couldn't just ignore a sign of struggle. And you don't have just the two of us to thank when we got to the scene, Sephtis was already there, trying his best to defend both of them," I explained, smiling and making sure to let the two of them know it wasn't just Eveleen and my efforts.
Upon hearing his name and the credit that came after, Sephtis raised his head and ears at me. The emotion on his face was slight surprise, but his eyes held a sort of disbelief with longing.
Perhaps he had never given him the time of day before or given him credit for the good things he had done, but I could tell by the way he looked at me that what I said meant a lot to him.
So, I smiled over at him, curious as to where this would get us. Perhaps I'd get this mysterious hound's help, a good replacement for Eveleen, someone who has lived in the Silversun Kingdom and knows their way around the terrain and people.
"Really!?" Zemira gasped, seeming almost surprised, about both the attack from the spirits and Sephtis' protection over her brother.
"Yes, he also helped get us here and aided in moving Daelan, especially with his injuries," I claimed, smiling once again and nodding at Sephtis.
Sephtis' eyes were now slightly tearful, his pupils shaking while looking at me like I just gave him the biggest gift he's ever received. But his gaze was abruptly interrupted by Eveleen grabbing his jaw and turning the side of his face towards her so that she could bandage him.
"Oh, thank you three, truly! And thank you, Sephtis, for protecting my brother; it means a lot to me!" Zemira bowed again, tears forming in the corner of her eyes, Daelan holding her hand in reassurance.
"I-it's no problem, I was just happy to help another villager," Sephtis said quietly, his gaw still in Eveleen's grasp.
'Heh, he is quite cute when I really take it all in. I definitely wouldn't mind having this guy as my travel companion if I could convince him to come with me.
There were a few reasons why I was thinking of asking Sephtis to be my new travel companion, which I thought were rather reasonable. Though…I was also intrigued by him, mostly due to his appearance.
'It would be nice to have someone strong and intimidating by my side…Though I can't deny that he is good eye candy.'
"It was no biggie! Anybody would try to help in a situation like that," Eveleen chimed, breaking her concentration for a split moment before focusing back onto Sephtis' treatment.
"How kind! Please, if you need help with anything at all, just ask us! I would happily repay both of you in kind," Zemira exclaimed again, startling Daelan, whose ears shot up.
I could tell that she wasn't the type of person to do random acts of kindness; she seemed to focus solely on her brother and their problems. But then again, it wasn't odd for werewolves to revolve around their family.
"Thank you for your generous offer…we might have to take you up on it," I replied, suddenly stopping my smile and putting on a serious face to nod at Eveleen, who nodded back, "Actually, the two of us were looking for somewhere to stay at tonight."
"Yes, and we thought it to be awkward to go around knocking on doors, since the village isn't exactly large enough for an Inn," Eveleen added, standing up from her stool and being done with Sephtis.
The two siblings turned to each other in thought for a moment, then turned to Sephtis, who looked like he wanted to say something. Staying silent for the time being, Sephtis put his head down while sneaking glances at me.
'Pfft, how cute! I didn't think I'd stumble upon such a cute guy in a place like this…huh, I suppose small town guys really are better than city guys.'
"Pardon me, but could you please pay for the treatment and get out of my clinic?" The doctor exclaimed, clearly very tired. Which one could tell by the giant bags and dark circles under his eyes, you would almost think that he was a panda instead of a wolf.
"Ah, right, sorry about that!" Eveleen chuckled, taking her coin pouch from her waist, "No need to worry about this one, Kallisto, I can take care of it."
"...You sure? I kind of feel guilty letting you pay," I admitted, almost forgetting that right now I am 'Kallisto', not Lev.
"Oh, it's fine! Here, this might be more than the actual charge, so you can just keep the change," She laughed again, opening the pouch and handing the doctor a gold coin.
"Hm, thank you," the doctor replied, examining the gold coin before putting it in his pocket. And with that, the five of us left the clinic to go continue our conversation outside.
"Hehe, alright, now where were we?" Zemira chuckled, trying to get back on track with the conversation, "We are able to house the both of you, but there is a slight problem…We only have one extra bed."
"Hm, now that could be a problem," Eveleen commented, looking over at me, "I'm sorry, but it would be quite inappropriate for the two of us to share a bed, or even sleep in the same room."
"Here, Eveleen, I'll let you take the bed at theirs. If I can't find anywhere else to spend the night, I'll just crash on the couch…if that is alright with you both," I suggested, wanting Eveleen to get as comfortable as she could be while here.
"It is okay with us, but will it be right with you, Sir?" Daelan replied, tilting his head at me with droopy ears and a sad face full of guilt.
"Of course, my own comfort is the least of my worries for now. You guys just go and get some rest, it's rather late," I smiled, waving them off as they waved back and said goodnight.
Then, it was just me standing there…or at least that's what I thought when I heard Sephtis shuffling behind me. Though it was cute that he stayed behind, it was annoying me that he was taking so long to speak up.
"Sephtis, shouldn't you be getting home as well? Those wounds won't heal without proper rest," I commented, turning towards him with a caring smile, which was visible even with my hood shading my face from the light of the bonfire.
"Oh, um…actually…" He started to say, but then paused, then looked at me again, and upon seeing my smile, he seemed to muster up the courage to continue, "If it isn't too bad of an offer, my cabin has an extra bed that you could use…if you would like to, of course."
"..." I was silent for a while, thinking of the pros and cons, and also watching the emotions on his face from worry, "Alright! I guess there really isn't a better option than someone I am already familiar with!"
At that moment, seeing Sephtis' face brighten up with a smile, I remembered that this world wasn't all bad. I just hadn't gotten to the good yet, and perhaps the people I would meet in this journey wouldn't be so bad.