I Work As A Healer In Another World’s Labyrinth City

Having been kicked out of Eris hospital and now officially homeless, Im at a loss. Eris is unyielding, and hanging around at the hospital entrance making an unsightly scene like a petulant child hasnt changed her mind.

What do I do now

My present concern is my future living expenses. The money Ive deposited at the bank amounts to three months salary at Eris hospital. The sum total is 60,000 Zeni. Considering the prices of commodities in this world, thats equivalent to about 600,000 Japanese yen?

By the way, thats not much compared to the median salary. Generally, employing a healer at a hospital requires about 50,000 Zeni a month. And, I may be saying this myself, but my healing magic ability is outstanding for this world.

I realized this after I came here, but even on Earth where mana almost doesnt exist, I seemed to be able to use a minor amount of healing magic already. Thats precisely why I was elevated to the position of the founder of a new religion.

What happened when I, who was able to use healing magic from the beginning despite having basically no mana, came to this world thats overflowing with mana? My mana-starved body greedily absorbed mana from my surroundings, and as a result came to store an incomprehensibly enormous amount of it.

Im able to make efficient use of healing magic thanks to my understanding of the human body based on modern knowledge, and as the founder of a new religion in Japan who garnered faith like a living god, I had an exceedingly high affinity with this worlds healing magic which originates from the power of faith.

Well, thats all well and good, but right now I need to focus on the matter of my living expenses. At an average inn with no bath Eris hospital didnt have a bath either, though a single nights stay costs around 500 Zeni. A solid meal is 100 Zeni, or thereabouts.

In brief, one day of living with three square meals and a roof over my head costs about 800 Zeni. Which means that with my current savings, after 75 days Ill be flat broke. This is exceedingly unpleasant.

Even if I try to work at a different hospital, there arent many places that would hire an otherworlder like me; a suspicious character who has never studied at any church. In that respect, Eris, who took me in when I had just arrived from another world, was a kind and deep-bosomed person.

Although maybe she just saw my talent for healing magic and caught the whiff of money.

If I use my talent with healing magic to appeal to them then perhaps Ill be picked up somewhere, but standing out too much wouldnt be good either.

As a healer with ability the likes of which has never been seen before, if I handle it poorly, some health-maniac aristocrat or whatever may conscript me against my will and keep me under house arrest. I have no power to resist something like that, and authority is a terrifying thing.

I want to try my hardest not to get involved with it. Also, since this is another world and all, if at all possible I want to make a harem.

Ah, its Shiki. Whatcha doing here at this time of day?

As Im having an early lunch at the tavern near the center of town thats a popular hangout, the red-headed Boyish-chan from earlier calls out to me. Saying Dya mind? she takes a seat next to me and orders.

I got fired from the hospital, so Im stress eating.

I give her a sullen glare. Oh yeah, I gave her a discount but in the end I didnt get to touch her boobs. Actually, she never even paid. Lemme rub em.

Not like I can say that in a place like this though. Given that its a popular tavern, we have plenty of gruff-looking company around us. The second I groped a beautiful girls chest in here, Id be surprised if these ruffians didnt step in. I basically have zero combat ability.

All I can do is heal. Thats why I dont want to cause any trouble in a place like this.

Ahaha. My condolences.

Boyish-chan awkwardly averts her eyes. She must be self-conscious about shouldering part of the responsibility for my firing.

Well, since Eris was so thoroughly prepared this time, the various things I did while peeping in on her swimming yesterday were likely the primary reason she was pushed past the limits of her patience, though.

Oh yeah, I didnt catch your name?

Ive met Boyish-chan a number of times over the past 3 months, but I dont remember her ever introducing herself. Im not sure how she even knows my name.

Na-, Ehhhh!! After I let you do all those things you dont even remember my name!? Havent we known each other for three months!? Eh, You really dont remember it!?

Dont say something that might be misinterpreted, youre gonna cause a scene. Besides, we havent interacted outside of giving medical treatment on a handful of days.

I guess youre right, huhhh.

Ruruka, Im Ruruka. Remember that, kay?

Is it that vexing for me not to remember her name? Shes sulking.

Yeah, I wont forget.

Since youre the devilish character whos partly responsible for me getting fired. Really, what am I gonna do from now on? No matter how much cheap liquor I drink, no good ideas are coming to me. Sigh.

Whaaat? You just sighed.

Im just wondering what Im gonna do now that Im out of a job.

Hmmm, why not try becoming an adventurer or something?

Adventurer, huh. I cant use anything but healing magic, you know?

Yeah, I think thats asking too much if youre on your own, but wont it work out if you form a party? Im pretty sure theres a demand for healers? If I didnt have my own party Id go with you, yknow.

Is there no way I could join your party?

Ahaha, my party has a pretty uptight girl in it, so

A girls-only party, huh? I really want to join, though. And given that Ruruka is often showing up at the hospital, she probably doesnt have a healer. Is it no good?

If I were Ruruka theres no way I would introduce a habitual sexual harasser to my friends, especially if theyre girls.

Hmmm, wont it be hard for a newbie adventurer to find partners? Im not proud of this, but I dont exactly have many friends or acquaintances.

In the first place its only been 3 months since I came to this world. I dont have anyone I can depend on.

Wah, that looks yummy! Well, Im sure itll work out, good luuuck.

How careless. Looks like her attention has shifted to the food that was just delivered. I cant expect anything out of her anymore.

Sigh, what am I going to do from now on?

I finish my meal and aimlessly wander around, at which point I come across a side street off of the main street where a crowd has gathered.

In the middle of it there are men and women wearing thin sheets of cloth lined up in a row.

Its a slave market. There are slaves in this world. Because they committed crimes, or they ran up debt, or they wanted to go on living even if they had to give up their freedom. There are various reasons for becoming a slave, but theyre basically handled the same way.

The master guarantees the slaves bare necessities. The slave unconditionally obeys the masters orders. If they dont, a magical seal known as a slave crest activates, forcing them to comply.

Thats it, how about I become an adventurer by forming a slave party? If its a slave, I dont have to worry about being backstabbed inside the labyrinth, and I can take all the earnings. The question of whether I can trust my partner is hugely important as a healer who has almost no combat potential.

I just might have hit upon a great idea.

I take a look, and there are various races. Every one of them is wearing a single filthy sheet like a poncho, but there are dog ears and elf ears, and their ages range anywhere from 10ish up to 40ish. But man, theyre all expensive. Even the cheapest 40-something human auntie is 200,000 Zeni.

An elf slave thats good-looking, and moreover has combat experience as a wizard, is over 4 million Zeni. You could build a house with that kind of money.

The amount of Zeni in my possession is 60 thousand and change. No matter how I look at it, I cant afford one.

Im reluctant, but I should give up. Theres nothing I can do if I dont have the means. But the second I decide to turn around and go find an inn for the night, a 50,000 Zeni price tag enters my field of view.

Over there is a young girl of about 12 years. The first thing that catches my attention is her face. Theres a huge wound on it like she got caught by a monster or something, and with the exception of her mouth its all ruined. Looks like shes completely lost her sight in both eyes.

The color of her skin is a pale brown, about the shade of a tan? Her hair is a dull gray, and an elf ear is poking out from the side of it. Only one side. Perhaps she cant eat very well, but her figure is too thin.

I get the impression that if I leave this dark elf girl alone, shell die.

Just from a quick inspection, shes missing both eyes, her nose, and one of her ears. Itd probably take quite a pile of money to heal them. To heal missing body parts, especially eyes, requires bishop- or archbishop-class healing magic from the church.

Even if she doesnt get healed, a slave that cant see wouldnt be very useful, and Im not sure anyone would want her as a pet either since her face is all smashed up. It makes me wonder why shes even up for sale.

I activate Appraisal, and find something very interesting in her status.

Name: Yuel

Race: Dark Elf

Possessed Skills: Dagger Arts

She has a Dagger Arts skill.

A skill holder. Skills vary widely, but the highest-grade ones guarantee you enough ability to take on several lowest-class monsters at the same time, thats how skills work in this world. She might not have much power since shes still a child, but dark elves are a nimble race.

I bet she could get by with a fighting style that makes use of her agile movements to dance around her opponents.

Hey man, I want that dark elf kid over there.

That dark elf? Errr, Yuel, I think it was. That ones eyes are totally shot, you okay with that?

Yeah.

Really! Oh boy, am I glad to sell that one. Thought I was gonna have to dispose of it. Thatll be 50,000 Zeni, so how would you like to pay?

By bank card.

I place my bank card over the slave merchants. Then I visualize a 50,000 Zeni payment. Bank cards, magic items that can transfer money according to the owners wishes, are used by most people.

They enable to you deposit and withdraw funds freely, like electronic currency where you can make transactions with nothing but a card.

Yes, certainly.

The slave merchant retrieves the dark elf. Is her gait unsteady because she cant see out of her eyes, or else because shes malnourished? Maybe a little of both?

The slave merchant takes the magic-imbued seal hes carrying, sprinkles a drop of my blood onto it, and lightly presses it it against Yuels shoulder.

With this, the slave contract is complete. Please be advised that we do not accept returns.

The slave merchant leaves Yuel behind and quickly takes off. It sounded like he meant that all she can do is sit around and eat with no hope of being sold, so I better not change my mind.

I am known as Yuel. Pleased to make your acquaintance.

The dark elf girl introduces herself facing in the wrong direction. Looks like she really cant see.

Yeah, how do you do. Im Shiki. First off, why dont we go to an inn?

For 2000 Zeni I buy her one set each of female undergarments and used clothes, plus some cheap shoes, then we enter a luxury inn that has a bath in each room.

Rooms with attached baths are often used for that sort of purpose. If its a couple, well, thats usually the goal. And Im bringing along a not-very-aged girl with a smashed face.

No matter how you look at it, I can only be seen as a dangerous man with unique tastes, and furthermore rather extreme ones. Thats a misunderstanding.

Enduring the gaze of the Onee-san, I fork over the high price of 2000 Zeni for one night and two meals, and we enter the room. I dont have the money for double or twin or anything, so of course its a single room. First, I need to get off all the dirt and filth thats clinging to her.

Were gonna take a bath first. Okay?

Yes, thank you very much for purchasing me. I have no experience, but I will do my best to service Master adequately.

Incidentally, this is the first thing shes said since her self-introduction. She was completely silent on the way to the inn. Though that mightve been unavoidable since she couldnt see what was going on around her and had no idea what I was up to either.

Even so, that proposal just now was dangerous. If you ask me what I prefer, I like big boobs, and Im no lolicon, but her earlier words sent a shiver down my spine. I wonder if this feeling is immorality? For a second I thought I was gonna smirk like a corrupt nobleman.

Be cool. Stay calm.

Even with my tiny, opportunistic conscience, I would definitely feel guilty for doing something to a kid of this age. Besides, I cant get excited with those horrible wounds on her face. Or rather, I dont have a taste for lolis in the first place.

No, your treatment comes first.

Treatment, is it?

Whether shes surprised or bewildered, I cant read her expression. Although it might be more accurate to say that rather than it being unreadable, she doesnt have one in the first place. Yeah, I should really get around to healing her.

Yeah, dont open your eyes right away. EX Heal.

I feel my mana rapidly flow out. EX Heal is the highest-ranked spell of single-target recovery magic. As you might expect for EX Heal, I can actually feel my mana decreasing. And, right before my eyes, Yuels eyes, nose, and ear rapidly regenerate.

Eh? Ah, eh? Uwahhh!

Ahhhhh, didnt I tell you not to open your eyes? You wont be able to see for a while, so keep them closed and wait right there. Ill come back once I get our meals.

Leaving Yuel behind temporarily, I grab some sandwiches at the dining hall on the first floor. Oh hey, theyre free. Thats a high-class inn for you. Well, this places rates are high enough to cover sandwiches for dozens of people, though.

When I return to the room, Yuel isnt there. Eh, no way, did she run away?

No wait, I can hear a sobbing voice from the direction of the dressing room.

She didnt run away. Thank goodness. If the young girl was spotted running off by that front-desk Onee-san, I cant imagine the look I would get the next time we met.

When I check the dressing room, Yuel is there, standing in front of the mirror and skillfully patting her face over and over as she looks into the mirror, sobbing.

My eyes are there my nose, my ears are there uwahhhh

Oh, looks like you can see already. Cmere, I got some food.

Nh, that voice, Are you my Master?

The very same, aint I handsome?

In a flash, Yuel embraces me.

Yes, so very cool. Cooler than anyone Ive ever seen!

Sure. How do I react to a reply like that? Or was it because shes my slave?

Thank you very much. You healed my face. I thought I was I was going to die just like that back there because of it.

The face looking up at me is all soggy with tears. Well, in this world theres no safety net like Japans public assistance. You could call the slavery system a safety net of a sort, but still, a slave with no eyesight wouldnt know when they might stop getting fed and starve to death.

Thinking about this girl, even my relatively heartless self cant help but feel sympathy for her.

Its okay, youre okay now. Look, wanna eat a sandwich? I have some water too.

Sniff, yesh, thank you very much. Thank you, so much.

Yuel begins to voraciously devour the sandwich. Perhaps the slave trader had already stopped feeding her. I guess that means she was left in a corner to rot and die as a useless item when I bought her. That treatment seems cruel, but that may just be how slaves are dealt with.

Its forbidden in this country to needlessly take the life of a slave, but its something to the degree where so long as the slave doesnt actually die, theres no problem. In addition, if its your own slave, outside of brazenly killing them in the presence of the public, anything goes.

The implication of the law is to not spill blood in public places, and to not do anything barbaric. In the event that a slave were to grow weak and die unnoticed, it likely wouldnt even be investigated.

Well take a bath once youre done eating.

Yes, Master is my savior. To the best of my ability, I will wholeheartedly service you.

Wrong. Thats not it. Although I must admit, Yuels healed face is well-featured to the point that I would have no problem calling her a beautiful girl. Its enough to surprise me a little.

But its at least 3 no, 4 years too early for that.

Ahh, Yuel-san. Thats not what I had in mind when I bought you. I bought you so we could explore the labyrinth together.

The labyrinth? Master is an adventurer? I thought for sure that you were a high-ranking priest, though.

Ah, you see, I can use healing magic, but Im not actually a priest. Whats more, today I got fired from the hospital I was working at so Im jobless now. I had just decided to become an adventurer when I saw you, Yuel. You can use daggers, right?

Is that so. Err, indeed I have a dagger skill, but how did you?

From the way your muscles are built.

Actually, I was blessed with an Appraisal skill, so that has nothing to do with it, and Yuel is emaciated so she doesnt really have muscle tone in the first place-

To think that you could tell just from a glance, as expected of Master. Incredible!

Yuel gives me an innocent look of reverence.

Being flattered by a girl feels great.

Im thinking of entering the labyrinth first thing tomorrow morning, so Ill be counting on you.

I dont have much more than 5,900 Zeni on hand. That amount of money would disappear in 3 days at this inn. Yuel is emaciated, but so long as I give her plenty to eat today and tomorrow morning, if I cast healing magic she should be able to move normally.

I dont intend to overdo it, but exercise is important for building muscle.

Yes, please leave the fighting to me. I will protect Master with my life!

Shes extremely fired up.

Well then, time for a bath.

Yes. I-Its my first time, so, um, please be gentle.

No, Im telling you, thats not it.

Without anything particularly eventful happening, I wash Yuel and change her into the clothes I bought for her. When we leave the bath, she asks me things like You really arent going to? and So Im not appealing enough after all?, but I cant possibly follow through on that.

Plus Im not a lolicon.

After that, when its time for our meal, Yuel eats with gusto. She easily goes through as much as two or three adults. I visit the dining hall on the first floor to get her snacks so many times that the staff think Im overeating and tell me to stop.

My Engel coefficient seems to have climbed steeply, but with Yuel crying tears of joy and exclaiming delicious, so delicious as she chomps down the food, I cant possibly tell her to stop.

Even so, she still seems unsatisfied, so in the end we leave the inn and have a second meal at the tavern where we ate lunch. My remaining Zeni is now a little over 5,700.

Leaving the tavern, we go to a weapon store to buy weapons for Yuel. Yuel is awfully serious about choosing, and finally she settles on two 20cm-long iron knives. Together they come to 5,000 Zeni. Im left with barely 700 Zeni.

Uh oh.

We return to the inn, and after another meal I climb into bed.

Yuel lies down on the floor.

No, wait, wait, its fine for you to get into bed, Yuel. Youre small, so theres still room.

As youd expect, Id feel guilty getting into bed myself and making a girl sleep on the floor.

Um, is it alright? I, well, dont have any charm and all.

Lowering her gaze, she hangs her head in shame.

Should I have said something to follow up after not putting my hands on her? I did say its because shes a child, but apparently she didnt understand. What should I do?

Button A: Yuel is a charming woman.

Isnt it strange not to put your hands on a beautiful slave?

Game Over.

Button B: I already think of Yuel as family.

How could you possibly think of someone as family on the same day you met them? Besides, for someone in her circumstances, the word family is complicated. She might be delighted, but the possibility of it being a horrible land mine is rather high too.

Ahh, err, thats a little, look. Yuel is cute, but youre still a child. But in three of four years Im sure youll become a fine lady. When you do Ill have you sleep with me even if you hate it.

For now, you can get used to sleeping in the same bed.

Three years is it? Yes, I understand. Ill look forward to it with pleasure!

No, thats not it. Yuel wouldnt get up off the floor. I just wanted her to sleep in a bed so I went with a future promise, thats all.

Oh well. I temporarily get out of bed and lift Yuel up.

Picking Yuel up when shes not even 140cm tall is an easy victory.

Hyaah!?

Ignoring Yuels surprise, I transport her to bed in that manner.

Then, using Yuel as a body pillow, I pull up the covers and go to sleep. Theres not much of a sexual feeling, but as a kid her body temperature is nice and warm.

I should have done this from the beginning.