{Disclaimer: ofc, I did do some research going into this, but please do understand that everything I say within this webnovel regarding medical information might be slightly inaccurate, so please take everything w/ a grain of salt and consult a medical professional if you have a serious question. Other than that, please enjoy!}
- - -
"You fucker—MMPH!"
Midori's hand clamped over my mouth, her arms locking me like a straightjacket.
"MPHHH—LEMME GO!" I thrashed, heels screeching against the tile. She didn't budge.
Across the lobby, the professor looked ready to explode, while the doctor just stared like I'd lost my mind.
Midori forced a placating smile. "I-I'm sorry, sirs. Ms. Hiyomi only became a student today. Do you mind if I speak with her for a moment?"
She dragged me off to the washroom before either man could answer. My shoes scraped across the floor, my arms flailed, and—yes—I flipped the professor off.
More than once.
A lot more than once…
The washroom door slammed and locked with a sharp click. Midori finally let me go.
"Pfwah!"
I took a deep breath and glared at her. "Why did you hold me back?"
Midori placed her hands on her hips and snapped back. "Rather, what's in that mind of yours, Ms. Hiyomi? How can you be so rude to customers?"
The damp scent of soap and old stone clung to the air. I hissed. "You care about me being rude? Did you hear that professor? He doesn't care about patients. People are dying, and that bastard said pain builds character!"
Midori sighed, eyes down. "That doesn't excuse you."
The silence pressed in and was only broken by the faint drip of water from a leaky tap. Midori's knuckles whitened and she clutched her skirt. "…We must be careful. The Academy's power is immense. If we anger them—"
Ah.
I see.
My anger ebbed—only slightly. It was an understandable reaction from Midori. Lore wise, the Royal Academy provided funding for each of the class schools. Looking at the state of the alchemist school building, they probably didn't receive any funding at all from the Royal Academy.
Midori couldn't risk it.
However…
"Lives are still lives, Midori. What does the Academy even use healing vials for? Injuries amongst students? For fuck's sake, if the students are being hurt, then that's the professors' fault for not being able to intervene in time. Besides, with the Academy's reputation, no students will be dying anytime soon. However, a hospital that's been overrun with patients after an influx of monster activity? People are going to fucking die, Midori."
I almost laughed at the irony of the situation. Here I was, on my break from the general hospital, explaining medical ethics to an NPC
Midori stared at her feet, chastised, as she shrank under my words. This was the first time I'd seen her like this. Her shoulders drooped inward like a wilted flower and her voice wavered. "...We can't afford to lose favour from the Academy, Ms. Hiyomi. Even though we're doing fine from a funding perspective, we don't have any influence at all—it's entirely possible that they could shut us down."
"Therefore, you would let others die to keep the school running." I reiterated in disbelief.
Her eyes flickered with a sliver of determination as her voice trembled. "If that's what it takes, Ms. Hiyomi, then yes." She brushed her hair off of her shoulders. She took a breath, as if steeling herself to do something.
BANG!
Without warning, her hand shot out, pinning me against the wall with a thud. The wall shuddered and dust swirled in the room. My heart jolted.
K-Kabedon…? Oh god.
She leaned close, eyes shadowed, a dark smile on her lips. "So, Ms. Hiyomi, I need you to shut up. You mean well, but I can't let you ruin this. You have no idea how hard I've worked to get here."
Her breath brushed my cheek as I was once more enveloped in her scent. My face burned, but my spine stayed straight. I pushed weakly at her chest; she didn't move. My pulse thundered in my ears. Think. Think, Hiyomi. I was a genius—I could make this work.
Then it hit me. A reckless plan, disturbingly close to something I'd once pulled off back at Forest Brooke General Hospital. I didn't want to touch medicine again on my vacation, but… if it solved Midori's dilemma and cleared this quest…
I leaned toward her ear. "…What if I save the school and the patients?"
Midori faltered and her grip softened. "…Can you?"
"Yes." I smirked faintly. "Just watch."
- - -
The bathroom door creaked as Midori and I stepped back into the lobby. The professor and doctor had dialed down from yelling, but they still bickered like children.
I rubbed my temples.
"Inventory," I said. The thin-rimmed glasses issued with the school inventory appeared in my hands with a sharp *ping*.
I slid them on and straightened my posture before walking into the room.
Clack, clack, clack… my boots padded against the wooden floor. Midori trailed behind me, hesitant. Both of the arguing men turned towards us as we approached.
I took a deep breath. Alright, time to bullshit my way through this.
I'm sure you've all been absolutely dying to hear my brilliant plan. (Wait… you haven't? And now you say I have to check my ego? Aw… too bad.)
Here's the genius scheme I came up with: first, I'd give the Academy exactly what they asked for—no more, no less, to cover for Midori. Then, I'd knock that pompous prof down a peg, back the doctor, and cover the potion shortfall by working at Agëmon Royal Hospital myself. (Not-so-fun-fact: I once carried a twelve-person infectious diseases shift solo. That's where this idea came from.)
Would a normal NPC survive that? Probably not. A normal doctor? They'd probably find it suicidal. Me?
Nah.
This was exactly the kind of ego-trip solution I didn't just think up—I made it work. And I'd fucking do it again.
I was first disturbed by the professor's grating voice. "How dare you keep me waiting," the professor snapped. "My time is not to be wasted!"
I tried my best at a poker face, though inside I really wanted to tell the professor exactly where to shove his robes. My eyes flicked between the two sitting down at the couch. The sleazy professor wore flashy robes like he was trying to cosplay nobility, while the doctor was still in bloody scrubs and probably hadn't even stopped to change before rushing here.
I gritted my teeth.
"I apologize for my behaviour earlier. However, Midori and I have discussed the matter. May I offer a resolution?" I asked.
The professor sneered and crossed his arms. "No, young woman. I will be seizing all of these potions. Respect my authority. Who knows what would happen to your school if I didn't get these potions…? I shudder to think of it." He ground his foot against the floor, making a scritch-scratch sound.
Beside me, Midori stiffened, her fingers twitching against her skirt. I gritted my teeth. Alright, change of plans. Humbling this stuck-up bitch of a prof was now my first priority.
I held out my hand. "Midori. The request letters, please."
She blinked, and I sternly met her eyes. She looked away, hesitated, then placed them in my palm.
Ordering Midori around left a sour taste in my mouth, but she was bound by her own dilemma. I had no such qualms when dealing with this quest. If this meant dragging the professor face-first through the dirt, so be it.
Hell, I'd fucking enjoy it.
The paper rustled as I slid the Royal Academy's request letter for the healing potions out of its envelope and raised it for both the professor and the doctor to see. There was no need for me to reread its contents—I'd already memorized every word.
"Professor, the Academy's order was for one hundred vials. No more, no less. That's what you'll be getting. There is no reason for you to need more. If you'd needed more, then you should've said so."
The professor sputtered. "If I'd known you had more, then—"
I cut him off, placing one finger on my lips. "But you didn't know that we had more. If you truly wanted more, then you could've specified in your request, or, if we're talking about pure numerical value, could have come by and checked ahead of time."
"Th-this is absurd. Do you know who I am? The Academy—"
Yeah, no, I'm done playing with your ass, professor. I snapped my fingers, a smart crack that cut the professor off once more. He turned livid. Hehe~ man, interrupting this fuckface was so fun.
"Oh, that's right. I heard that the crown recently began to accept complaints from the general populace? Maybe I should write directly to the Crown. A professor of the Royal Academy attempts to hoard medicine while patients die in Agëmon Royal Hospital. How does that sound?"
I tried for my best sadist smile. How did it go again? Right—the corners of my mouth would curl up in mock innocence while my eyes sharpened with a glint. Perhaps with a tinge of insanity, too.
My smile distorted.
Yeah… that was it.
Hehe~
I did this all the time when my subordinates at the hospital refused to listen to me.
I sighed and shrugged. A slight instability made its way to my eyes as I let the grin stretch wider, my gaze glittering unnaturally in the dark, fixated on the professor like a cat regarding its prey.
My voice lowered dangerously, hovering just above a whisper in the echo-quiet room. "Could you imagine the scandal, professor~? I'm sure that the hospital would come to back us. Do you think the Academy will shield you then?"
His face went white and he shut his mouth. A bead of sweat trickled down his brow.
Oh, yes.
Seeing him wordless, a shiver ran down my spine. I almost wanted to chuckle. Maybe I was actually mentally unstable.
Ehe~
Man, shutting up stupid people was funnnnnnn~
I turned to Midori. "Midori, we'll give one hundred vials to the Academy."
Then, the sharp scrape of my boot cut through the quiet as I turned back to face the doctor.
"The rest of the healing vials go with you, Doctor. I'll personally accompany you back to the hospital and cover the deficit myself, while Midori and the rest of the alchemist staff prepare the next batch for later pickup. Does that sound fair?"
The doctor paused.
He looked me over, then barked a laugh. "Bold words for a student. How will you make up for that shortage? For all I know, you've no medical training. Even if you do, you're just one person—you'd hardly make a difference."
My twisted grin shifted, sliding from the professor to the doctor. "Then test me."
His brows rose. "Very well." He fiddled with his thumbs before he tapped the table with his finger and leaned forward, a confident smile on his face. "A soldier comes in with a severed femoral artery. What's your—"
I clicked my tongue, cutting him off.
"Apply direct pressure first, then prep for transfusion. Blood type, vitals, specifics… Assuming everything goes well and everything's average, I'd say three minutes tops to stabilize the patient before exsanguination[1]. Priority one would be to stop the bleeding, then stabilize, eval, then proceed."
The smirk faltered. "…And a child seizing after head trauma?"
I tapped my lip.
"Airway first—I'd roll them onto their side to prevent aspiration[2]. Then scan for intracranial[3] bleeding, stabilize with what's available."
His gaze sharpened. "Mana-burn from overcasting?"
…Shit.
Nothing in real life lined up to Mana.
I struggled to recall Lucidia Online's lore. The game flavoured mana like a bodily fluid, didn't it? If it functioned like blood volume or electrolytes, then overcasting would be like draining a body dry.
The doctor's stare pressed into me. I drew a breath and pieced it together with what lore I could remember.
"Cool down the spellcaster externally—ice packs would probably be the easiest. Mana depletion mimics hypovolemic shock[4]. Immediately begin restoring mana through potions and other fluids to make up for lost volume. After that, give the patient small sips of mana potions and warm liquids, then restoration by a healer if possible. Oh, then bedrest, of course."
The doctor's lips parted. He looked shocked. "…Last one. A hunter with a deep gash from a chimaera's claw down his side. You've got heavy bleeding and the wound is laced with venom. What do you do?"
GAH.
Stop giving me lore questions already!!! Think, Hiyomi, think...
I tapped the reception desk behind me idly with one finger as I thought.
Fuck, uh… I think chimaera venom did necrotizing[5]-like DOT[6], so I guess it could be similar?
"I've never personally dealt with chimaera victims before, but I'd apply direct pressure first, then sterilize and pack the wound. Afterwards, keeping the patient calm is important so circulation doesn't spread the venom faster. Toxin behaves like a necrotizing infection, so I'd flush and dilute with an antivenom if available. Only once the poison's out of the system would you seal their wound with a potion. If you close it too early, you'd just be trapping the venom in."
The doctor froze and let out a low whistle. "…Well, damn. You're no student." Midori looked at me like I'd grown a second head.
I smiled thinly, dialing back the sadistic grin. That had mostly been to intimidate the professor, so there was no need for that anymore. I met both of their gazes. "So. The Academy gets one hundred healing potions from us. No more. The rest go to save actual lives."
Something softened in the doctor's expression.
He gave a short nod. "…Then I'll hold you to it, Doctor. While your practical skills remain to be seen, I trust your associate that you'll have the next batch of healing potions done within a reasonable time."
The professor stayed silent, swallowing his humiliation like poison. Midori exhaled softly, her eyes flicking to me as I set my hands on my hips. When I caught her gaze, her cheeks flushed, a slow, almost teasing bloom of color.
…
???
Hold on. Is she blushing?
A game system chime cut through my thoughts.
Ping!
…? What?
I looked down at the faintly glowing semi-translucent screen in front of me.
Oh, fuck yes.
Yes, yes, yes, yes!!!
———
NPC (?) Name: Midori, The Re[ept*[]n1st
Relationship Level: Acquaintance (High / Admired)
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[1] Bleeding out
[2] Kind of hard to explain, just look it up.
[3] within the skull (with context in this case it would be 'bleeding within the skull')
[4] Severe loss of blood or other bodily fluids
[5] infection that kills the body's soft tissue
[6] Damage over time- in games, the most common is probably a status effect like poison, or burns / fire, etc.