The next day came by. The sun hung high in the air, shining fresh sunlight into Julian's hospital room. To his right was a wooden desk with a cup of bright yellow flowers soaking in water.
Further on that same right, two wooden seats separated by a round table occupied the corner. There, Saldair and Rar sat quietly.
Saldair sat leaning back, with a newspaper open in his hands. He wore a white shirt underneath a brown vest (that happened to match the color of his hair), his sleeves rolled up. He was around the same age as Julian, yet exuded a much more mature aura.
Rar was dressed much more loosely. A simple grey tunic with black pants. He was bandaged as well, facing injuries from the orc. In his hands was a newspaper as well. However, he was doing the wordsearch on the back, scratching and scribbling at it with a pencil.
...
I can't feel anything beneath the waist. I hit my spine so hard that I can remember the pain so vividly. Goodness, I don't want something like that to ever happen again.
I... can't walk. I can't do anything anymore.
Julian sat up, scooting backwards into the bedframe.
"You're awake," Saldair said, not shifting his position. Rar loosely turned his head, letting out a sigh of relief.
"Yeah."
The door slowly opened. A hefty man in a white coat entered the room. Brown slicked hair, with a youthful face. Upon entering, Rar and Saldair promptly left the room.
The doctor cleared his throat.
"Ahem. Young man, you're incredibly lucky to be alive. With the skill in this small village, if you were any later, you would've been completely paralyzed, or even dead.
"The traumatic injury to your spine, specifically the lumbar, has crushed into pure powder. Haha, not literally. You've probably noticed it, but your entire lower body- you can't feel it. It's gonna be like that for your entire life, unfortunately."
"... I understand."
"You will be provided with a wheelchair in a short time."
. .
Whirr..
The wheels rolled.
Rar pushed Julian's wheelchair. Saldair walked beside.
The sun hung just slightly lower. But it was still a bright day, nevertheless.
"If it makes you feel any better, Julian, there are a lot of things you can do as a paraplegic," Rar noted.
"Rar, you shouldn't joke. Be sensible."
"No, it's fine," Julian finally spoke. The light in his eyes was drained a bit. His face was stained with a solemn expression.
It's not fine at all!
This... I'm devastated. Utterly and efficiently. What did I fight for? I came to this world wanting adventure! I had just promised myself I wouldn't be as scared and as cowardly as I was before!
I'm pathetic!
Umilythe... I'm really not as brave as you claim. If I had the strength of Oscar... the contentment of Ailas... the playfulness of Veind. If I had any defining features, would this have happened?
.
"Ah, I heard about what happened. I'm... really sorry this happened..."
On their walk around the village, Julian and the two other boys stopped by and walked with Lyrei and Silva. Lyrei's head was tilted down, as if showing pity toward Julian.
"No, no. It's fine. I'll just have to adjust."
Though after seeing your face, my spirits are just the slightest bit lifted. A coy smirk grew on Julian's face. He moved his focus to Silva.
A quiet girl. She seemed like the type of person to write a bunch of poems that would only be found years after her death. She would then be regarded as a feminist icon. That's the type of person she seems to be.
Instead of creating fan fiction in my head, wouldn't it be better for me to get to know her?
"Rar, you got injured too?" Lyrei rushed to Rar, walking by his side. Their shoulders touched.
"It's not that bad. Compared to what happened to Julian. It's really nothing," Rar's head turned to the side. He did all he could to avoid her gaze. The tips of his ears grew red.
As his gaze averted, his eyes fell on a river.
Woosh...!
His eyes shot open!
He grabbed Julian's wheelchair, increasing his speed.
"Woa-"
"Rar!?"
"..."
Saldair was initially startled, but followed their speed, dashing forward. Silva and Lyrei just stood there, taken aback.
"Boys seem to get excited about... anything nowadays," Silva quietly giggled at her own joke.
. . .
The doors to the orphanage flew open. Rar and Saldair ran toward Sodror's room, and that door subsequently flew open.
"Sodror!" Rar yelled.
Sodror was there in his bed, throwing a ball of yarn to the roof, with an expressionless face. He lost his rhythm, the ball falling to the floor below. He sat up.
"What's up?"
"Your boat. Let's use it."
"You're crazy."
. .
The sun was finally starting to set. The sky was a very medium blue. Julian, Saldair, Rar, and Sodror were approaching the western shore of Venichian. The village was not too far from this point.
As they reached closer and closer, the soil became more and more coarse, till it became a beach. Two wooden poles dug into this sand, and tied to those two poles were heavy brown ropes. As they dipped toward the sea, they looked more and more rotten.
Following the rope, they saw it.
A three-masted sailboat, made of wood.
It's just like the pirate ships I've seen in the media. Wow... this is so.. haah, I'm getting a little excited. Julian did not take his eyes off the boat.
"I'll explain this to you once and only once, Julian.
"With how this peninsula is, there are barbarians smack dab in the middle. Underneath that barbarian territory is the kingdom of Gonteno. In that kingdom resides the great Saint Meri.
So that's who it's named after.
"She's apparently an amazing healer. A healer who will be able to fix your back with ease. So, since we can't cross through the dangerous barbarian territory, we'll make a U-shaped path through the sea and reach it. Then we'll request an audience with her, and she'll heal you! Heh! How does that sound?"
Julian repeated, "Requesting an audience..."
"Brother, the saint is an important person,"
"Right. Knowing Rar, he'll try to attack the saint and be executed on the spot!" Saldair spoke boldly, as if he were completely certain.
He's probably right...
"So we'll embark tomorrow. Early in the morning."