Chapter 97: Chapter 91 – Fixing Bodies and Boredom

With the guidance of the person I just helped, we went around and healed up the others.

It turned out that there were quite a wide variety of wounds that people had. Some were combat related ones, a few were sores and infections caused by the environment and their daily habits caused by prolonged isolation, but the largest number were deliberate injuries caused when they resisted.

Listening to those who were lucid, the most common ones were people who had their Achilles tendon cut though. It seemed like it was the most popular way to restrain any woman that resisted. The men that did, it seemed had their heads caved in even before they got to the mansion.

As bad as things were, it seemed that things were even worse before they figured out that all they needed to stop someone from escaping was to cut their Achilles tendon, according to the stories, the ones before were hurt in much crueller ways to prevent their escape.

But those people hadn't survived in the end. Every one of them succumbed to their injuries before I had gotten here, so there wasn't anything I could do about it.

Or rather, it was something that most of the people here didn't really know much about it seemed, since the stories seemed to have come from quite a long time ago. And were merely passed down as a way to pass the time rather than anything else.

The sheer distance the people who told me had regarding these stories sounded more like they were telling some sort of fairy tale rather than things that actually happened to their predecessors, if such a word was even remotely appropriate.

I did discover though, that the healing spell I've been using had its limits.

While I didn't encounter any amputees, some of the people who've been injured had already healed over their wounds, and my spell didn't do anything to fix that. But I did experiment and found that if I reopened the wound and exposed the remaining parts of their tendons or whatever was severed, my spell could reconnect the parts.

Also what I learned was that I needed to come up with some sort of anaesthesia spell or skill. Having a person bite your thumb while you operated on them, no matter how quick, was very distracting. Also I worried that the muffled screaming would stay with me in my nightmares.

Or at least they would if I was capable of having dreams of any sort, so I supposed that there was a strange fringe benefit there to being a vampire.

The only silver lining to all of this though, was that there weren't any people with serious injuries that had any real chance of hurting their long term survival. Aside from the infections caused by leaving untreated wounds and forcing these women to live in such a dirty environment.

At least, that was what I kept telling myself. The alternative was a bit too morbid for me to want to think about.

In the end, there weren't too many people for me to heal up. From the best I could tell, not many people here made any serious attempts at escaping once they got locked up in here. Not after seeing the sort of punishments that were doled out so easily at least.

That said, it wasn't bad luck that there wasn't anyone able to heal everyone's wounds with magic that got captured, but that those sorts of people were all killed before they got this far.

While any concrete reasons weren't given, my hypothesis was that their skill of [Light Magic] was immediately identified and they were dealt with as they were considered a real threat to their master. How they identified that was likely that they were witnessed using it either to heal or attack at some point when they were attacked. The people I've faced here didn't seem to be high enough level to realistically have a high enough skill in magic to have detected the mere presence of light aspected mana as they readied a spell, so they most likely had been seen actually using a related spell.

After my little triage session, luckily enough, I found out there were a few people who had the [Tailoring] and [Leatherworking] skills. For those people, I handed all my spare clothes as well as all the lower level hides and skins of various monsters I was carrying on me to make basic clothes for as many people as they could.

While I had high grade hides as well, the lack of proper tools meant that they were probably impossible to process at the moment for them. The only tools I was able to offer them were simple things I made from bones I had in my bag on the spot. It was better than nothing, but only just.

I went around to check all the baths, clean and reheat the water, then checked the large pot of food. There was still a decent amount left, so if anyone got hungry there wouldn't be any problems for a little while at least.

"I'm going to go check the rest of the building for any signs of the remaining villagers."

For some reason the one who was guiding me to all the injured people continued to follow me even after I finished healing them all. She constantly followed me on one side as if she was waiting to attend me like some maid.

"Let me come with you!"

"I as well!"

"Me too!"

That was definitely not the response I wanted to get. Not only the one following me asked for permission, but several others within earshot did as well.

There were quite a few who were looking this way and there weren't just one or two amongst them who looked like they also wanted to come.

"I can't. It might not be entirely safe."

"But if you find any of the others, they won't treat you badly if you're with someone they recognize, so it's better for some of us to come!"

Her argument wasn't wrong at all. Except that the chances of actually finding any more survivors was exceedingly low, as I couldn't feel the presence of any within the building. They weren't likely to be anything more than pure baggage in the best case, and at worst, they might see something which would be better that they didn't.

"In that case I could just come back and bring a few of you with me."

"But it's faster if some of us just go with you from the beginning!"

"Like I said, it might be dangerous! There's no way to know for sure if there might be some traps waiting. I can take care of myself, and since my level is high, most traps won't be an issue even if something were to happen, but for you girls that's not true."

Most of the women looked down when I said that. Some of them clenched their fists and others shoulders trembled slightly, but it seemed like they got it, even if they couldn't accept it entirely.

"Th, that's our risk to take!"

But unfortunately the person that had been following me the last while gave me the absolute worst reasoning possible.

"That's right!"

"You're not responsible for us!"

"It's nor your fault if something happens!"

"That wasn't the point! Not even close. If something were to happen to you and I couldn't have prevented it, what would happen?! Just because it's not my fault?! That wouldn't change anything at all! I don't want to see something happen to you people if simply staying here for a little longer would prevent that!"

I may have had selfish motives for all this, or maybe it wasn't really that selfish, but still, it didn't change that they were definitely being selfish regarding all of this.

"L, let us go with you. We want to get out of this room, even if it's just for a little while!"

Many of the others nodded.

I could understand that. Being trapped here for months, maybe years for some of them. Even if it was dangerous, they'd want to be able to get out, even if it was just the hallway and adjoining rooms.

"The others will be here soon. A few days at most. When that happens, we'll have to walk back the entire way. You'll get to enjoy the outside all you want then!"

If I remembered right, that investigation leader had some sort of communication tool. If he used that to send word for reinforcements to the city's leadership, then those people should have already started getting ready to send some soldiers or something.

While how long it would take to prepare wasn't something I'd know, it shouldn't take much more than a week to reach this place.

Asking for the people here to wait that long without doing anything was a bit much, but depending on how things went, it might be possible to meet the returning group halfway?

"It's...not just that. Let us do something. Let us be of use somehow! There's probably more than just other people in other rooms, right? Like supplies that they stole from the village? Or maybe weapons and other things that vampire and his children used? We might not be strong, but we can help you find and carry them as well!"

"..."

That earnestness really hurt. And especially the way many of the others were nodding.

Maybe I was being too nice for my own good, but I really wanted to let them have their way.

On the other hand, the risks to them were likely pretty low. There hadn't been any traps of any sort in this mansion so far and since it was a residence, the actual chances of finding any past the front doors were exceedingly unlikely, especially at this point. There weren't any enemies left either, so ambushes weren't waiting for us anywhere.

Frankly speaking, there really was only one reason why I shouldn't let any of them go with me, and that was that it was unfair to pick a few of them to follow me when most of them probably wanted to come.

"Look, I get that you want to stretch your legs and all, but that's the same for everyone. How can I take just a few of you and not the rest? That's not exactly fair."

The girls looked at each other, concern rising up visibly and they even started to whisper amongst themselves, looking over their shoulders to see if any of the others noticed what we were talking about.

Really, it was one thing to take a group well over a hundred people through the forest while keeping any monsters away, but another to try to move around inside of this building.

The halls were pretty wide and there were few obstructions due to the lack of decorations, plenty of space for people to move around in. But that was only if we were talking about a few dozen people. This was a group many times that size.

Not to mention the lack of any point of doing this in the first place.

No, rather, I did understand the point. It wasn't to explore, or to find survivors that didn't exist, or anything of use, but to merely let people out of the room that was their prison until just recently.

I didn't really think the rest of the mansion was much better, and until they had something warm to wear, outside didn't seem like a good idea, with it still being early spring. I didn't have problems wearing next to nothing in the cold air, but I had a high level, and was a vampire on top of that.

I didn't even know if I could get sick in the first place. The cold didn't bother me that much in the first place.

But that wasn't true for the others.

No, some of them were more vulnerable than normal. Spending a long time in a dark room with little light and barely moving their bodies couldn't have done any favours for their health.

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The trip back to the village was going to be tough and would have to be done on foot, so it was better that they save their strength rather than waste it on running around outside of what was their prison.

(But the moral...)

I've definitely improved that front by cleaning things up and giving them some decent food. Some of them were working to make clothes from what random things I had as well, but that wasn't going to be much. Most likely, at most it would be little more than bikinis for everyone.

(Should I decorate the walls or something?)

Maybe spend some time making stone sculptures of flowers and stuff? It's better than bland, featureless walls as well.

But would that be enough? It might only be a handful of days before the reinforcements arrive, but at the same time, that was that many days doing almost nothing with the temptation of doing something, anything, niggling at them the entire time.

(It's not possible.)

If it was one or two days, I could just distract them somehow, but what they craved wasn't entertainment, but release. To feel freedom with their own bodies rather than just be told repeatedly that they had it, yet not be able to exercise it as much as they want.

"*sigh*, if you can organize yourselves into groups of ten, I'll take you out one group at a time, as long as the ones who stay behind behave. How's that?"

My words, which I managed to squeeze out despite a big part of me screaming that this was a bad idea, caused a flurry of excitement as expected.

The others around me exclaimed and spread the word. The warm atmosphere that was threatening to cool off into apathy then depression quickly started to boil up with excitement.

I was already starting to regret my words, but at the same time, it was clear that this was the right move. If I didn't do something like this proactively, I wouldn't be able to hold them back the entire time. It was only a matter of time before someone went off outside and got attacked by a monster in the forest while wandering around.

"So is that fine?"

After they've had a chance to talk about it, I tried asking, fully knowing the answer.

"We'll do it!"

"Alright. But I have two conditions."

"""*gulp!*"""

With only a few words, I had fully caught their attention and they audibly gulped in anticipation.

"First of all, if there's something I need help with, like transporting materials or searching a room, everyone who's with me will help. Alright?"

"Of course!"

"If it's only that much!"

"Rather, let us help!"

Despite how I made it sound, they really did have it right in the end. I didn't really need help on anything that was likely to be found, but it would let everyone move their bodies and feel useful, even if they knew that they were just doing stuff that I could've easily done on my own.

"Good. And the other. Everyone who stays behind has to stay in this room. If anyone leaves while we're exploring, I won't take anyone else with me next time. Is that fine?"

"Okay!"

"That's fine!"

"We can be patient!"

It seemed like negotiations were successful.

Well, it was really only a matter of people being patient after all, and most people tend to be much more amicable when they know they can get what they want within a reasonable time frame.

"Alright. Form the first group! If you have a child with you, your child doesn't count towards the total! Also, even if we finish exploring the whole place, I'll still take groups out until everyone's had a chance!"

With that, there was some arguing and negotiating, but the first group of ten was formed after a short while.

For some reason, that woman that had been following me a whole bunch ended up in the first group.

If I remembered right, her name was Epione?

The fact that I remembered her name meant that the efforts I was putting into remembering names was working? Or maybe it was just because her name was weirdly as persistent as she was? Maybe it wasn't either of those though, yet I did remember it somehow.

That said, her thin, black tail stood erect as testament to her triumph at winning a position in the first group.

"Alright, we'll head off when everyone's ready. And when we do, I'd better not find anyone had exited the room while we were away, or I'll stop these excursions. Maybe I'll even seal the door until the others arrive."

"Don't worry! We'll make sure nobody leaves!"

Someone from what looked like the beginning of the second group immediately stood at attention. While it wasn't really a real military pose, the way she did it gave off a similar feel. Except for the fact that she did it in the nude, ruining everything in the first place. It wasn't like it was her fault, but it was hard to take things seriously when this place was feeling more like a public bathhouse than anything else.

But with that, I gathered my things, stuffing my robes into my bag and shouldering the plush before the eleven of us made our way through the large stone doors. For most of us, the first time in weeks, if not longer. The stay-at-home group waved at us like we were the husbands and boyfriends being sent to the front on trains or something.

Well at least there wasn't much screaming and no confetti.

Just in case, I mostly closed the doors behind us, but left it open a little so that people wouldn't feel claustrophobic or anything seeing the door closed entirely. Even still, it wasn't open enough for anyone to slip through without opening it further, and there was a good chance most of the people inside weren't strong enough to move the doors. Even if I was wrong, it would be a telltale proof that someone slipped outside.

Though I could just figure that out by sensing their movements.

While maintaining the illumination in the main room, I raised a simple orb of insulated plasma heated to a few hundred degrees, enough to make it glow yellow, over my head to provide light for everyone else.

Glancing left and right, I tried left, heading back the way I had originally come. Since I had skipped all the rooms on my way to the prison so I figured why not.

I opened the first door on the right. Like all the doors here, it rumbled as the heavy stone scraped on stone.

There wasn't much to see here. Just a table and a few chairs, all made of stone. But we checked it anyways.

Everyone spread out and examined everything there was to see, from the floor and walls to the simple furniture. There were a few plates and the remains of...something...on them, but otherwise there wasn't a single remarkable thing. It looked mostly like some sort of waiting room or something.

But we spent quite a lot of time there as everyone checked over things repeatedly just in case.

Or more like as an excuse to relieve their boredom a little.

(Huh? Did some of that scrap food disappear?)

There seemed to be less of it than when I first entered the room. Was someone just that curious or something? I was sure that I had fed them all more than well enough. There was still some soup left over after all.

Once everyone seemed satisfied with the examination, we moved on to the next room.

This room had several large tables with stacks of plates on them, some open boxes and bags of foodstuff, and an open pit filled with burn marks. The ceiling was covered in soot and there was a small window at the top of the far wall.

If I had to say, this looked like a kitchen, but it was so crude that actually calling it so felt like blasphemy or something.

The women got pretty excited at finding food, but as expected, or perhaps thankfully, I didn't have to stop anyone from eating any of it. For some strange reason, just I couldn't decide which line of thought was more appropriate. It was really difficult for me to relate with these people as our life experiences were just so different.

I created a stone tablet and etched a list of findings and called for everyone to return once I felt like they have had enough.

There were some complaints and a few offers to carry the food back to the main room, but I declined. I still had plenty of food in my bag and I'd rather preserve this food until we could figure out which ones originally belonged to the villagers and which ones weren't.

Though, if I had any say, I'd save everything that we could and bring it back to the village. The more that the villagers had to jump-start their lives again, the better off they'll be.

"We've keep the others waiting long enough. Once all the others have had a round, you girls can come with me again."

It wasn't much, but we did manage to eke out a good hour exploring just those two rooms, and I hoped that this would be enough to placate them until their turn came around again.

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