Ryan sat up in his bed. His mind kept returning to the moment he saw his reflection, eyes glowing with an inner light. He could feel the power coursing through him, and it was both exhilarating and unnerving.
Just then, there was a knock on the door, and soon after, the door was pushed open. A black haired woman entered carrying a tray of food, she adorned a robe, a white apron and a small white hat. She had kind, black eyes and a warm glowing smile. "Hello, Sir. I brought you some food so that you can regain your strength."
Ryan smiled back, grateful for the interruption from his thoughts. "Thank you."
She set the tray on his bedside table. "If you need anything else, just let me know, sir" she said before leaving the room.
Ryan looked at the tray: a bowl of hearty stew, fresh bread, and a pitcher of water. He realised how hungry he was and began eating, savouring the flavors. As he ate, he felt his strength returning, the food a welcome comfort after days of unconsciousness.
However, as he continued eating, he started feeling a strange sensation in his stomach. His vision blurred, and a cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Panic set in as he realized something was very wrong.
Poison.
Help will take too long, I need to try solve this myself and quickly.
Ryan's mind raced but he remained calm. Ryan entered his meditative position and began drawing upon his mana and light element, he focused on the source of pain.
Please, please work
With a deep breath, he channeled his mana into a concentrated point of light within his abdomen, intending to burn away the poison.
He could feel the searing heat inside him, the light element working to eradicate the toxin. The pain was intense, but Ryan gritted his teeth, trying to maintain his concentration. As the poison dissipated, he felt a surge of relief, but it was short-lived.
The burning had taken its toll on his insides. He felt a new kind of pain, a deep ache from the damage caused by his own desperate action. His body shuddered, and he leaned back against the pillows, breathing heavily.
Just then, the door opened again, and Eleanor walked in, her expression turning from cheerful to alarmed as she saw Ryan's condition. "Ryan! What happened?"
Ryan managed a weak smile. "The food..." Ryan nodded towards the tray beside him, "it was poisoned. I had to burn it ou-out from inside."
Suddenly, for a split second, Eleanor closed her eyes, and in the next moment re-opened them, as if she was taking a long blink.
Eleanor's eyes widened in shock and anger. "Poisoned? How did they...?" She shook her head, focusing on Ryan. "Stay still, I'll fetch a healer!"
Eleanor dashed out of the room, her footsteps and shouts could be heard even when she was all the way down the corridor.
Thankfully, Ryan and Eleanor were already in one of the fortresses hospitals, so a healer nearly immediately arrived, a middle-aged woman with a calm demeanor. Her eyes shut as she used her mana sense to quickly assess Ryan's condition. A few seconds later she began to work, her hands glowing with a soft, soothing light.
"You're lucky you acted quickly," she said, her voice steady. "But you did some damage to yourself."
Ryan nodded, wincing as the healer's magic worked through him. "I didn't have a choice."
The middle aged woman continued speaking as she healed Ryan's internal wound, "That would be true for some of the more dangerous poisons, but this one, well, it's simply a few Grecken berries. Although lethal, it wouldn't have killed you for at least another ten minutes."
"If the attacker used something which acts much quicker, like Bloodthorn Elixir. Then your response would've been more understandable. But- if the attacker actually did use that then unless you are a much more powerful mage, you wouldn't stand a chance removing it from your system. But why did the attacker not use a better position? Hmm, well Grecken berries can be locally sourced, whereas- Sorry, I go on tangents quite often," the healer raised her voice slightly to catch the attention of Eleanor, who was biting her nails in the corner of the room beside the door, "Miss Eleanor, could you please inform General Aldric about this situation."
"Ah, yes! I'll do that now," Eleanor immediately rushed off again, and as she left, two guards came in.
"Are you okay hero? We heard that you had been poisoned!" The smaller guard of the two exclaimed.
Who are these two?
"I'm fine now, a little injured but nothing much!"
The two guards immediately fell to their knees and slammed their heads against the floor.
In unison, the guards shouted, "Please forgive us sir! We are the guards assigned to protect you and we have failed, please punish us as you see fit!"
… punishment?
"No, no, I won't give you any punishments, there is no need."
Immediately after Ryan had finished speaking, the door swung open and General Aldric came rushing in to find Ryan's guards on their knees and Ryan being healed.
Aldric fell to his knees, slammed his head against the ground and shouted, "Please forgive me Ryan, your life has come under threat twice in under a week under my watch, I have failed and allowed spy's and shapeshifters into my camp. I will resign from my post when we reach the capital."