The Golem Adventurer

Chapter 44 - Infirmary

The soft glow of morning light filtered through the window of the Guild Hall; the rays visible due to the numerous particles of dust that floated in the air. I was enjoying the serene view as I sat on a chair with the cub curled up next to my leg, yawning all the while. She didn't sleep a wink. In fact, neither did I.

I stayed awake for most of the night in an effort to get her to sleep. My body looked too lifeless during a sleep cycle and whenever she saw it when she awoke during the night, the wolf cub would begin to howl and whimper. So much so that it was disturbing the other guests along with the innkeeper. He had given me an earful afterwards about the noise complains. I apologized profusely since he was kind enough to bypass the usual rules about animals for me and gave him a bit of extra coin for his troubles. It couldn't be helped. The wolf cub was already separated from her father and I was the only friendly face for her here. The empty doll look I had when I slept bothered her that badly.

I remember Tessa gave me a bit of shit about the way I looked when I slept. Like a mannequin, when I would go to sleep leaning back against a tree, I would sometimes tip over into a compromising position. I imagine it would look hilarious watching me fall flat onto my face with my ass in the air and STILL not wake up until first light arrived.

My thoughts were suddenly interrupted as Aaric finally strode in. He gestured a greeting as he caught sight of us and moved closer, a look of disappointment covering his face.

"Aaric, good for you to be here," I responded.

"Mm." The elf muttered, "Unfortunately I can't say the same for Mateo. He forgot he had some personal business to attend to this morning before he could join us."

The clang of cutlery rang out from the room behind the counter, "Is that Mateo reneging on his offer already!?" Guildmaster Rhodes' voice boomed out as she appeared holding two bowls in her hands.

"He did say he would only take an hour or two," Aaric replied.

Rhodes arrives to our table with a small tray in both her hands "Hmph, well, I can't pay you but I can feed you two at least." the Guildmaster says as she sets two bowls of porridge and wooden cutlery at our table, "Mateo will have to get his own breakfast."

As she left and returned with  food for the cub I decided to voice out something I've been meaning to ask, "Hey, Guildmaster... do they need any more help treating the bandit victims?"

"Hoh? Well, the local healer already treated  the victims. No one there is at risk of dying from blood loss." she paused for a moment to think before something popped into her head, "Oh! She did say she was having trouble curing patients with infected wounds and her magic wasn't having any effect at all."

"Would she mind if I took a look at it?" I asked as I began eating. I've become pretty proficient at consuming meals though at a cost of looking even more bizarre while doing so. Rhodes and Aaric were trying their best not to shy away from the strange sight.

"I don't think so. As long as you don't do anything before asking her first." she replied, "Are you skilled at healing magic, Arlan?"

"I'm not. But I do have some knowledge that could help her." With the abundance of healing magic available, the practice and study of medicine was primitive at best. Why learn to suture when a spell can close a wound immediately? But if you needed complex medical treatment, you needed to find someone capable to do so. And in this world they were few. Dedication can only take you so far when your own magical limits prohibit you.

"I'll leave it to you then when you finish your meal. When Mateo comes by, I'll send him over to the shelter to meet with you." the Guildmaster says with a smile, "Not enough people in this world willing to help folks out for nothing."