SSS-Ranked Surgeon In Another World: The Healer Is Actually OP! - Chapter 253: Terms Have Changed...

Chapter 253: Terms Have Changed…

With the kinds of beasts Bruce had hunted… the kinds of things he faced.

Earning that amount of gold was no longer unrealistic for him.

It was only natural. Her shoulders slumped slightly as she exhaled.

“I see,” she murmured.

For a moment, pride welled up in her chest, strong and overwhelming. Pride in the son standing before her. In how far he’d come. In what he’d become.

But it didn’t erase her principles. Lucy then straightened.

“I’ll accept it,” she said firmly. “But not as a handout.”

Bruce frowned slightly. He was about to he raised a hand, stopping him.

“I’ll use every coin properly,” she continued. “I’ll rebuild the company. Expand it. Make it stronger than it’s ever been.” Her gaze sharpened. “And I will pay you back.”

Bruce opened his mouth to object.

She shook her head.

“No,” she said, softer now, but no less resolute. “Even if you’re well off. Even if you don’t need it. It doesn’t sit right with me to leech off my own son.”

Her voice didn’t carry guilt.

It carried dignity.

Bruce studied her for a long moment.

He saw it clearly now, the pride, the stubbornness, the unyielding backbone that had held the family together when everything else had fallen apart.

He knew then.

She wouldn’t change her mind.

So he didn’t push.

“…Alright,” he said quietly.

Lucy relaxed slightly, a faint smile tugging at her lips.

“Thank you,” she said. “Not just for the money. But for believing in this company. In your father’s legacy.”

Bruce nodded once. Inside, a quiet resolve settled in his chest. Whatever happened next, Lucy Ackerman would never lack again.

Inside the office, the quiet didn’t last long. Lucy moved first.

She pulled open a drawer beneath her desk and brought out several neatly stacked ledgers, thin crystal-slates, and folded documents bound with worn leather strings. She laid them out one after another, methodical, practiced, this wasn’t new to her. It was routine. Survival, refined into habit.

“These are the current books,” she said calmly, sliding one ledger toward Bruce. “Income, expenses, maintenance costs. I update them daily.”

Bruce took it. He didn’t need long. His eyes moved steadily across the numbers, lines, margins. Food costs. Beast supplements. Mana stabilizers. Pen repairs. Worker wages. Emergency medical fees. Loss deductions.

The margins were razor-thin. Too thin.

“This…” Bruce murmured, brows knitting slightly. “You’ve been barely holding things together.”

Lucy didn’t deny it.

“Beasts aren’t cheap,” she said lightly. “And after your father disappeared, I couldn’t afford to keep the full stock. Feeding, treatment, handlers, it adds up quickly. Fewer beasts meant fewer routes. Fewer routes meant fewer contracts.”

She tapped the ledger gently. “But fewer beasts also meant survival.”

Bruce exhaled through his nose. So that was it. The choice between pride and practicality, and she had chosen her family.

“What about manpower, is it really just five workers?” he asked.

Lucy slid another slate over.

“Yes it is. Five workers,” she replied. “All experienced though. All loyal but also stretched thin, had this continued on for long they too would’ve left too.” She sighed.

Bruce closed the ledger slowly.

“We’ll start there,” he said. “Increase wages. Hire more handlers. Proper rotations. No more cutting corners.”

Lucy looked at him, surprised. “You’re not worried about cost?”

He shook his head. “That’s what the funding is for. A business can’t grow if it’s constantly afraid of breathing.”

A faint smile touched her lips.

“Alright,” she said. “Then first priority, stability. Pens reinforced. Mana sanitation installed. No more parasite risks.” Her gaze sharpened, the businesswoman fully surfacing. “Then expansion. Gradual. Controlled.”

Bruce nodded. “That’s how it should be.”

She reached for another set of documents.

“These,” she said, tapping them lightly, “are the old contracts.”

She felt since he was funding the company, he had the right to know… Besides he’s her son

Bruce glanced at the titles and frowned. Some were expired. Some suspended. Others… exploitative.

“Guild clauses,” Lucy continued. “Merchant alliances. Route exclusivity deals that were forced on us when we were weak.” Her tone remained calm, but there was steel beneath it. “They never fully went away. Even now, there’s pressure.”

“From who?” Bruce asked.

“The Adventurer Guild, mostly,” she admitted. “Not directly. More like… indifference. When you’re small, they ignore you. When you falter, they circle.”

Bruce leaned back slightly.

“And the relatives?” he asked.

Lucy’s eyes flickered.

“They used those same contracts as leverage back then,” she said. “Legal pressure. Constant audits. Delays. But that’s stopped now.” She paused, then added casually, “Still, in a state like this, having a backer would help.”

She didn’t look at him when she said it.

But Bruce caught it. He smiled faintly. “That can be arranged.”

Lucy turned. “What?”

“I should be able to get the Adventurer Guild to act as a backer,” Bruce said. “At least in name.”

Her eyes widened slightly.

“In name?” she repeated.

“That’s all you need,” he replied calmly. “If word spreads that the Adventurer Guild backs the Ackerman Transport Company, even symbolically, people will pay attention. Merchants. Nobles. Independent guilds.” His gaze sharpened. “Curiosity alone will bring contracts.”

Lucy stared at him for a long moment.

“You can do that?” she asked quietly.

Bruce shrugged. “I have… leverage.”

It was about time he start making use of his anomaly title granted to him… The Guild will definitely not be able to refuse Bruce…

Meanwhile, Lucy didn’t press further. Instead, she let out a slow breath and leaned back against the desk.

“If that happens,” she said thoughtfully, “then half of these contracts become irrelevant. Pressure eases. Negotiations shift.” She looked up at him again, something like excitement sparking. “People won’t ask if we’re reliable anymore. They’ll ask how much it costs.”

Bruce nodded. “Exactly.”

Lucy chuckled softly, shaking her head.

“To think,” she murmured, “that for so long I was fighting just to stay afloat… and now…” She trailed off, then straightened, resolve returning. “Sigh…”

She gathered the old contracts into a neat stack.