Chapter 177: An unfamiliar warmth

Thanks for helping me reach the 1.200 P.S. milestone: Bonus Chapter 2 / 3 (^_^)

----------

Only a few minutes after the car left the mansion district, Erik realized that the situation outside was more serious than he had imagined.

Through the tinted windows, the streets that had once been bustling throughout Silver Moon were now packed with people and emergency vehicles.

Red warning lights continuously swept across the buildings, while female soldiers in silver armor stood at intersections, directing traffic and using magical loudspeakers to order everyone to make way for ambulances.

A stretch of road ahead had been sealed off. Half the street had collapsed, exposing a tangled network of mana pipes beneath it. White steam poured from a ruptured pipe, while large stones lay scattered everywhere. The car was forced to slow down as it passed through a temporary route opened by the female soldiers.

Erik saw a woman sitting by the roadside, both arms tightly wrapped around a crying child. Not far away, another Succubus knelt before a pile of rubble, continuously calling someone’s name. Even as the rescue soldiers urged her to retreat, she continued digging through the stones with bloodied hands.

The car slowly rolled past.

Behind the glass, the chaotic sounds continued to drift inside.

Ambulance sirens wailed in rapid bursts. Glass crunched beneath tires, metal scraped against the road, and female soldiers shouted as they lifted stone slabs from the ruins. Mixed among them were cries, calls for loved ones, and pleas for help that were continuously drowned out by the sounds of a city in chaos.

"Has anyone seen my daughter?! She was wearing a blue dress! A blue dress!"

"Mom! Mom! Where are you?!"

"There are still people here! Call a Healer quickly!"

A young Succubus was supported out of a shop whose roof had collapsed halfway. Her left arm hung limp, blood soaking one side of her clothes, yet she kept looking back, crying as she said her friend was still trapped inside.

Elsewhere, three female soldiers were trying to lift a massive concrete slab. One had an injured leg and had to kneel to keep her balance, but she still gritted her teeth and helped her comrades pull someone trapped beneath it free.

Stretchers were continuously loaded into ambulances. Some people remained conscious, still able to call the names of their loved ones. Others lay motionless beneath white sheets, with only female Healers around them hurriedly checking their pulses.

Far away, the black column of smoke from the collapsed tower in the eastern district had not yet fully dissipated. The light of enormous floodlamps pierced the dust and smoke, plunging the entire area into a heavy gray-yellow haze.

Above them, Silver Moon’s protective dome had closed once more.

Yet the cracks left by the tremor were still clearly visible. They spread like silver scars across an enormous sheet of glass, occasionally flashing as the magic within struggled to stabilize.

The citizens kept looking upward.

No one knew whether those cracks would widen again. No one dared claim that the earthquake had truly ended.

Inside the car, Erik silently watched everything.

His right arm was still fixed in a brace, while his ribs had not fully recovered. Every time the car passed over an uneven stretch of road, a dull ache spread through his chest. He wanted to get out and help, but even a slight shift in his seated position caused enough pain in his side to make him stop.

Elowen beside him immediately noticed.

"Erik, what are you planning to do again?"

"I am not doing anything."

"Then stop looking at the door handle."

Erik turned toward her.

Elowen was looking at him sternly, her pointed ears raised. She clearly did not believe a word he said.

He had no choice but to sigh and lean back against the seat.

"I was only thinking... it would be good if I were a little stronger."

"You have already done too much." Elowen pulled the blanket over his lap into place again. "Let the others do their jobs now. If you get yourself hurt again, Mother will make me tie you to the bed."

"You would not do that, would you?"

Elowen smiled very sweetly.

"Do you want to find out?"

Erik decided to remain silent.

In the front seat, Laviana was continuously speaking on the phone. The snake eyes she had placed on streetlights along the road kept sending back images of blocked routes, helping the driver choose the path least affected.

She frowned now and then when she heard casualty reports, but her tone remained calm as she coordinated the necessary information.

Felyn sat in the back, one hand holding onto the seat, silently listening to the sounds coming from outside. She could not see the ruined city, but the cries and calls for help were enough to wipe the usual smile from her lips.

Erik looked over everyone before his gaze finally stopped on Runi.

She sat beside Carmilla, both hands neatly placed on her knees, her back straight, eyes turned toward the window. Since leaving the mansion, she had barely spoken.

Several small crystal fragments still clung to her hair.

Erik suddenly remembered what had happened in the dining room. While everyone else had panicked and searched for cover, Runi had stood motionless amid the falling glass.

"Runi."

The maid turned to him immediately.

"Yes, Sir Erik?"

"Are you alright?"

"..."

Runi looked at him as though she did not understand the question.

Erik pointed to her hair.

"When the window shattered, you were standing very close to it. Are you hurt anywhere?"

Runi raised a hand to her head and touched a small crystal fragment. She removed it, looked at the sharp object in her palm, then answered calmly.

"It is nothing serious."

"Nothing serious?"

"Yes."

Erik looked at the crystal in her hand, then at the small scratch near her wrist.

"Then what is this?"

Runi looked down.

A thin line of blood ran along the back of her hand. The glass had likely cut her while she stood in the dining room. The wound was not deep, but it clearly had not been treated.

"It is only a scratch."

"I did not ask whether it was big or small." Erik shook his head. "I asked whether you were injured."

Runi fell silent again.

Inside the maid’s body, the thing borrowing it slowly considered the question.

She did not understand.

That scratch did not cause any significant loss. The body still functioned normally, the fingers could still move. If she wished, she could even return the torn skin to its original state.

Then why did this man care?

Moreover, he was far more seriously injured than she was.

His right arm was still immobile, and his breathing occasionally slowed from the pain. Yet instead of paying attention to himself, he was looking at a small scratch on someone else’s hand.

It was difficult to understand.

"Does it hurt?" Erik asked again.

Runi thought for a moment.

"No."

"Really?"

"...It does not hurt very much."

"Then it still hurts."

Runi looked at him, not knowing how to respond.

Carmilla, seated beside her, finally spoke.

"Give me your hand, Runi."

She took a clean cloth from her pocket and carefully wiped the blood from the back of Runi’s hand. Then Carmilla checked the remaining crystal fragments in her hair, gently removing them one by one.

"Next time, if you are hurt, tell us." Carmilla instructed while she examined her. "Do not endure it alone."

"But..."

"No buts."

Carmilla raised her head, her dark red eyes looking directly into Runi’s.

"If you are in pain, uncomfortable, frightened, or need help, tell us. No one will blame you for those things."

Runi blinked.

"Even if... I cannot finish my work?"

"The work can be done later."

"But if I do not do it..."

"Then I will." Carmilla answered simply.

Erik laughed.

"You heard her. If even Carmilla gets tired, let Elowen do it."

"Wait!" Elowen immediately turned around. "Why am I suddenly the one doing it?!"

"You just said I should let others do their jobs."

"I said other people, not me!"

"Is that so?"

"Erik!"

The small argument made Felyn unable to hold back her laughter. Even Carmilla’s lips curved faintly, while Laviana, still speaking on the phone, had to cover her mouth to hide her laughter.

For a moment, the heavy atmosphere inside the car eased slightly.

Only Runi remained still.

She looked at Erik, then at Carmilla, who was wrapping a small bandage around her hand.

No one demanded that she give anything back.

No one asked how long she could keep working.

No one seemed irritated to learn that she was injured.

Before this, she had inhabited the bodies of many creatures. She had seen fear, rage, pleas, and even those willing to betray their own kind to survive.

But she had never truly understood care like this.

"Runi?"

Erik’s voice made her start.

"Yes?"

"Stop spacing out. Carmilla is talking to you."

Runi turned toward her.

Carmilla had finished tying the bandage and was looking at her with faint exasperation.

"I said I am done. If you are hurt anywhere else, tell us immediately."

"...Yes."

Runi lowered her head and looked at her hand.

A small white bandage was neatly wrapped around the scratch. It did not offer any significant benefit to an entity like her.

Yet for some reason, she did not want to take it off.

A strange sensation was appearing somewhere in her chest.

Not hot. Not painful.

Only warm.

She placed her other hand over her chest and silently memorized that feeling.

...

When the car reached Meira’s hospital, the area around it was already crowded.

The main gates had been opened wide to receive the wounded. Dozens of female Healers moved in and out without pause, pushing stretchers covered in healing barriers through the corridors.

Female soldiers stood in lines outside, directing family members to different waiting areas so they would not obstruct the emergency teams.

Announcements rang continuously through the loudspeakers.

"Healing Team Four, report to the eastern sector!"

"Bring more blood-stopping medicine and recovery crystals!"

"Families of the injured, please wait in the reception area! Do not enter the emergency rooms without permission!"

Laviana got out first and quickly spoke with a female soldier responsible for security. Because of that, the car was guided through the staff entrance, avoiding the crowd packed in front of the main gate.

Carmilla and Elowen worked together to help Erik out, securing the wheelchair before pushing him into the hallway.

"Where is Vylana?" Erik asked.

Laviana glanced at her phone screen.

"On the second floor, in the emergency section. Saraya has already been taken into the treatment room."

Hearing that, Erik let out a breath.

At least they had managed to bring her to the hospital in time.

But when the group arrived, the sight before them still made him fall silent.

Vylana sat on a long bench outside the emergency room, both hands on her knees. Her normally well-kept red hair was a mess, one shoulder of her clothing was torn, and dried blood streaked along her arm.

She stared fixedly at the closed door.

Even when Erik was pushed close, Vylana did not notice.

"Vylana."

She startled slightly.

The moment she saw Erik, Vylana’s eyes immediately reddened.

"Erik..."

She shot to her feet, but after taking only one step, her legs wavered. Carmilla quickly reached out and supported her elbow.

"Sit down first."

"I... I am fine."

"You are trembling."

Carmilla did not argue further. She gently helped Vylana back onto the bench.

Erik gestured for Elowen to push the wheelchair closer.

"How is Saraya?"

That question made Vylana bite her lip tightly.

"The doctors said... she took a very hard blow to the head. They are checking her now. I do not know... I do not know anything."

Her voice broke apart. Her bloodstained fingers kept clasping each other, making the scratches on the backs of her hands grow redder.

"The shelf fell." Vylana lowered her head, tears falling onto her knees. "I slipped. Saraya ran over and pulled me away, but she did not have time to dodge. I only heard a very loud sound, and then she fell."

Erik silently listened.

"When I called her, she did not answer. I kept calling her, Erik. I shook her shoulders, but she would not open her eyes. The blood kept flowing... so much..."

"Vylana."

"I tried to stop the bleeding. I did what you told me to do. But she still did not wake up. If..."

"Look at me."

Vylana raised her head.

Erik held out his uninjured left hand toward her.

"Saraya is in the emergency room now. You followed the instructions and got her here. The next thing to do is let the Healers treat her."

"But I..."

"I know you are worried."

He looked at her trembling hands, then continued.

"So am I."

Vylana froze.

"Your hand is injured." Erik said gently. "Let Carmilla treat it. If Saraya wakes up and sees that you have been admitted too, she will have even more to worry about."

Vylana let out a tiny laugh between her tears.

"At a time like this... you can still joke?"

"If I do not joke, are we supposed to sit here and compete to see who can cry more?"

Elowen sighed softly behind him, but did not stop him.

Carmilla took a clean cloth and wiped away the blood on Vylana’s hands. She checked the scratches, then called over a passing female Healer to examine the swollen wrist.

Vylana sat still as they treated her, occasionally lifting her head to look toward the emergency room door.