“Good girl. Now you’ll just nap for a little bit, and it’ll be over before you know it,” he told Gina with a smile as he gave her the sleeping medicine Becker had previously supplied him with. The girl fell asleep in moments. “Scalpel.”
A magical blade manifested in Zenos’s right hand, and he pressed the tip of it against the center of her chest. Carefully, he made a vertical incision, revealing a lump underneath—the tumor.
“Gina,” Liz said, lacing her fingers together in prayer.
Zenos meticulously shaved off the tumor while using healing magic on the healthy tissue and stopping the bleeding with protective magic. He quickly switched back and forth between those and the Scalpel spell, making steady progress. Next to him, Lily was efficiently preparing things like gauze and cleaning water as he worked.
“Wow...” Liz murmured in admiration, her hands still clasped.
Soft white lights twinkled and danced around the clinic, their glow gentle and warm. Despite the tense situation, Gina, enveloped in the faint lights, looked almost blessed. Time passed quickly, and finally, the procedure was complete.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Zenos said, “It’s done, Liz.”
“Gina!” Liz exclaimed, hurrying over.
There wasn’t a single mark on the girl’s chest. She was still asleep, but her usually pained expression already seemed lighter.
“I think she’s good now, but just to be safe, let’s keep her here for today,” Zenos said.
“I-I can’t believe this,” Liz murmured. After all her suffering since leaving the orphanage, all in the name of her sister’s treatment, everything had been resolved in less than a day. Drained, Liz slumped to the floor, then lifted her head, hesitant. “Zenos, about the payment...”
“Normally this type of surgery would cost around this much,” he said, showing her a piece of paper with the amount.
Liz clenched her fists. “I-I’m sorry. I don’t have it right now, but I’ll work hard and pay you back.”
“Hmm? Oh, you don’t need to pay me.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Remember back at the orphanage when they accused me of stealing the director’s money? They even talked about selling my organs. And then you came to my rescue. Thanks to you, I didn’t end up with a debt of several million wen.”
“Y-Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?” she asked anxiously.
“That means you’ve paid me already. Way back when.”
Speechless, Liz brought a hand to her mouth, and soon tears began to spill from the corners of her eyes. “Th-Thank you. Thank you, Zenos,” she murmured, her tearful voice carrying across the clinic, the place aglow with bright sunlight.
Hee hee hee. Ah, the joys of youth, echoed a quiet whisper from the second floor.
Epilogue (I)
A week had passed since Gina’s surgery, and the incessant cries of cicadas filled the air, heralding the arrival of summer.
Liz stopped by at the clinic in the ruined city, with her little sister at her side and a large man, Gaion, following behind them.
“Hey, Liz. What’s up?” Zenos asked as he came out to greet the trio alongside Lily.
“Oh! I just came to tell you something,” Liz replied, a bright expression on her features.
“What is it?”
“We’ve decided to quit the Black Guild.”
“Oh, you have?”
The leader of their faction, their boss Dalitz, had vanished. With that, the whole faction was disbanding.
“So...” Liz continued, her hands rubbing together nervously for a moment before her voice took on a determined tone. “I’m thinking of starting an orphanage.”
“Oh...” Zenos murmured.
“A lot has happened, I know, but... I want to make it a place where children can smile.” The sins she’d committed would never disappear, but she wished to atone, even just a little.
“I see. I think that’s amazing, honestly. And I know you can do it.” Zenos nodded several times, then shifted his gaze to Gaion. “And you’re going with her?”
“What’s the problem with that? I’ll protect Lady Liz.”
“He says that, but he’s just following me around. Though we will need someone strong to do the heavy lifting, and he’s a good guard, so it won’t be an issue,” Liz explained, seemingly concerned. “It’s just... I mean, I’ve been using my succubus powers on him, so...”
A mutant’s powers manifested quite suddenly—and conversely, they could just as suddenly become unusable. Now that Gina was cured of her condition, Liz was conflicted about continuing to command Gaion using her powers.
Zenos glanced at the bigger man, then turned his gaze back to Liz. “Speaking of which, Liz, how long does your manipulation ability last?”
“Well, if I do it via blood, it lasts only a few hours before it’s metabolized.”
“And what do you do when the effect wears off?”
