Ball of Nothing - Chapter 119
Chapter 119
Zero woke up early the next morning and at pancakes with Lovina and Hua Tuo . Cleo was out in the fields and that gave the witch some time alone to teach the brunet what he needed to do .
Hua Tuo looked tense and Lovina was worried . Zero had been exhausting himself for the past hour to perfect the magic . He'd experimented on all types of plants available and even on himself . Hua Tuo panicked when Zero wanted to remove his big toe entirely and try reconstructing a new big toe . Naturally, they didn't allow Zero to practice on himself . Lovina's heart almost gave out when Zero suggested it the first time . In the end, they agreed to let Zero try it out on some flowers outside .
Zero regrew petals, leaves, stalks, and roots with increasing efficiency as he practised . He didn't stop till the sun was up .
"We should get going now . I heard that it will be a busy day . We have patients to check up on later so save your energy . After that, you'll help me prepare some medicine . "
The brunet agreed and thanked Lovina for her hospitality before they left .
Standing in her living room, Lovina looked at all the plants that bloomed with vitality after Zero's treatment . The witch had mixed feelings about Zero's talent . On one hand, her heart was at ease knowing that the village would probably be alright even if they faced Count Carrabas' army . On the other hand, she was worried and afraid for the young doctor . The path he has chosen would not be a simple or easy one . Lovina only wished she could become his ally and accompany him on his travels . Unfortunately, she couldn't leave the village . Perhaps, she could teach Zero some magic to protect him and share with him some stories to deter him from walking such a thorny road .
With her mind made up, Lovina left her apartment to seek Zoe out .
***
"Good morning Zero! Did you sleep well?"
The brunet saw Grandma Moppo and grinned . "I slept very well, thank you . How is your knee this morning?"
The fae-dwarf smiled warmly . "It hurts a little but it's not as bad as it was last night . "
She welcomed them in and Zero glanced at Hua Tuo nervously . The physician said nothing and only gave him a reassuring nod . Zero sighed and mustered all his courage before surprising Grandma Moppo with a question .
"Grandma Moppo, what is the first thing you'd like to do if you could run and jump again?"
The fae-dwarf blinked and thought for a while . Zero's heart pounded in his chest .
"Don't you think I'm a little too old to do such things?"
Zero shook his head . "Not at all . "
Grandma Moppo laughed at his honest answer and had to wipe tears from her eyes . Zero waited patiently for her reply .
"Oh Zero, if I could run and jump again, I'd visit the Sky Bridge . "
Zero nodded . "The view from the Sky Bridge is something that should not be missed out on . I'll take responsibility for bringing you there if I do not succeed . "
Grandma Moppo blinked . She knew they talked about healing her knees before but didn't expect it to happen so soon . She wouldn't be surprised if she was told to wait for another year so Zero's declaration was a very pleasant surprise .
"I'm in your care now, doctors," Grandma Moppo bowed humbly .
Hua Tuo assisted the old lady to the living room and made her comfortable before Zero started his work . Hua Tuo assisted by using acupuncture to numb all feeling in her legs . Zero cast a sleeping spell on the half-dwarf and concentrated . Hua Tuo's lecture stuck with him and Zero felt around Grandma Moppo's knees to feel the outline of the bone .
"Remember that once we cut open the skin to reach the bone, you have only ten minutes on each leg . If I think that she's losing too much blood, we stop immediately . Are you ready?"
Zero nodded and donned his mask . Hua Tuo wore gloves and a similar mask . Zero sterilised the surgical knives and Hua Tuo started cutting . Zero swallowed when blood began to flow without any signs of stopping for a while . The experienced physician held the skin open and was chanting some spell to keep the area around the wound isolated from the living room's air . Zero ignored the blood and focussed on examining the state of Grandma Moppo's knee . The bone structure looked frail and Zero noticed how badly worn her knees were .
As practised, Zero focussed his magic and reconstructed the bone to how it would have looked like . Hua Tuo was very alert and paid attention to everything from the spell to the blood, Grandma Moppo's condition and Zero's progress . He admitted that Zero worked very quickly . In three minutes, Zero had completely restored one knee . Hua Tuo had to stitch the cut back and Zero took over maintaining the area around the wound isolated . According to Hua Tuo, it was important so that the germs in the air will not enter the wound .
Once the wound was sealed, Hua Tuo took over the chanting and Zero focussed on closing the wound with normal healing magic . Once that was done, he cut away the stitches quickly and healed the rest . Hua Tuo let the spell drop once Zero was done . He needed a breather and it hasn't even been twenty minutes . Working with magic always tired him out .
"I'll be taking a short break to recover the mana . Please ensure that the patient does not wake up before we are completely done . Do you require mana potions?"
Zero checked his status and shook his head . Grandma Moppo's venison stew helped a lot and he still had some reserves for a few more operations .
"Can I use healing magic to improve Grandma Moppo's overall health? From the examination earlier, it's not only her knees but all her bones suffer from calcium deficit . "
Hua Tuo thought about it . Normally, he didn't want to interfere that much but with Count Carrabas' army prowling around, they could use any help they could get . Even if Grandma Moppo couldn't fight, it would be good if she could carry her own weight to run .
"Alright . Don't overdo it, we still have two more patients before lunch . "
Zero agreed and Hua Tuo took a short break, drinking the mana potion he brewed yesterday with Lovina's help . It took about a minute before the potion's effect kicked in and the physician glanced over to his student . Zero was still busy feeding mana and Hua Tuo didn't think the brunet would be done soon . He took that chance to inspect Grandma Moppo's knee . The cut had been beautifully healed and Hua Tuo frowned . Zero did a really great job and there was no scarring . Normal magicians less proficient with healing magic tend to over-heal which causes scarring so Hua Tuo was proud of his student for not making such a rookie mistake .
"Have you recast the sleep magic?" he asked .
Zero blinked and looked at the still sleeping half-dwarf . "The magic is still in effect . . . ?"
Hua Tuo smiled . "You're right . It's not necessary but sometimes there are people who have magic resistance so it doesn't last for as long as it should . Casting it twice is simply a precaution . You can dismiss the spell when we're finished . Zoe will cook a lot later for you to replenish the energy you require so until then, use it sparingly . "
Zero nodded and they commenced operation on the second knee . Zero no longer flinched at the sight of blood . In fact, the success for the first round had boosted Zero's confidence and he moved with greater ease . Hua Tuo didn't feel as tired as he did the first time . Zero worked very quickly and the physician felt pride swell in his chest, watching Zero pass him the scalpel before he asked . It wouldn't be long before Zero could become a real doctor .
The process took no more than fifteen minutes this time but Zero was mentally fatigued . The operation atmosphere was so stifling that Zero needed some time to recover his state of mind . Hua Tuo saw how his disciple slumped over in exhaustion and grinned . To cheer the brunet up, he patted the boy's head .
"Congratulations on having helped perform your first surgery . Once we return, you'll be training how to hold a knife and practice stitching . Speaking of which, maybe we should ask Mitchnew to teach you the basics . "
Zero grinned .
After Zero dispersed the sleep magic, they waited for Grandma Moppo to wake up . At first, the half-dwarf didn't feel anything strange . Hua Tuo ran an assessment of her health and had her walk around .
Out of habit, the fae-dwarf reached for her staff to help her stand and was surprised to find the staff heavier in her hands than without . The next thing she noticed was how she was able to straighten her back . That never happened in years . Lastly, when she took her first step, the half-dwarf noticed how light it was . Soon, she was trying to jump and threw her staff down .
"Does anything feel funny?" Zero asked nervously when the old lady didn't speak after a while .
Grandma Moppo startled Zero by hugging him with a force he never knew she had .
"Thank you, child . This old bag of bones still has a few more years of fight left . With this, I can take down some of Carrabas' men with me . "
Hua Tuo tried to dissuade the old lady but Grandma Moppo was fast . She swung her staff with amazing speed and grinned .
"You shouldn't underestimate the blood of dwarves in me . In my youth, I could easily win against a wolf . I'll have no issues taking down a few hastily recruited farm lads in Carrabas' army . "
Unable to convince the rejuvenated Grandma, the physician and his apprentice left to visit their next patient who lived not too far from the lively half-dwarf's home .
"Hello, Zero . I hear Grandma Moppo laughing from here . Is everything alright? She doesn't sound very sane . . . "
"How did you know that it was me?" Zero blinked .
Amaraline giggled . "I can identify who it is by hearing their footsteps . Unlike Leon or Jacqueline, your footsteps are lighter and calmer . "
Zero chuckled . "What about Rima?"
Amaraline frowned . "She doesn't make noises when she walks . The same goes to Zoe, Hyelin and Moona . "
Zero followed Amaraline in and Hua Tuo wondered how Amaraline would feel if she knew that her sight would be returning to her today .
"Wouldn't it be nice if you could tell who it was without having to hear their footsteps? Especially for the villagers who do not have footsteps . . . "
Amaraline smiled sadly . "Yes, it would be nice . . . unfortunately I'll have to do with guessing . Don't worry . I'm getting better all the time!"
Zero swallowed and became nervously silent for a while .
"Zero?" Amaraline grew worried when her guest grew silent . Somehow, the atmosphere was weird . Could it be because of what she asked of Hua Tuo yesterday?
"Amaraline," Zero started . "What if we can bring your eyes back? Of course, it's just the sense of sight . I'm not sure if you'd regain any cockatrice ability like Lowis or Clowis but just your sense of sight . . . would that be good enough?"
Amaraline froze "Is that why Grandma Moppo has been jumping? That new healing magic . . . did you find a way to perfect it?"
Zero grimaced . "I'm only asking because it isn't perfect . Things could go wrong, we don't really know because I've only tested it on plants . Plants do not have magic in their blood so I'm not sure what would happen if I restored your eyes . They may not be able to paralyse or turn items into rocks if you stared at something . . . "
Amaraline smiled . "Don't worry about it . If you could bring my sense of sight back, I'll be very thankful . Living in this dark world can be rather lonely at times . I want to see how much my brother has grown too . Besides, I have never been able to paralyse or petrify anything . The magic in my blood only allows me to see the future in my mind . "
Zero nodded at Hua Tuo and explained what they intended to do .
"Of course, once you wake up, there should be no signs of having them removed in the first place . Unfortunately, the scars over your eyes from the old wound cannot be removed . "
Amaraline was slightly frightened . The thought of removing her eyes and have Zero reconstruct new ones scared her . However, it wouldn't make a difference if she had faulty eyes or no eyes at this point . Her sight would not be returning to her .
"I-I would like to take the risk . If wouldn't make a difference if I had no eyes or defective ones now so I don't mind . Just . . . will it hurt?
Hua Tuo reassured Amaraline that she wouldn't feel a single thing during the entire operation .
"I see . . . Is it alright if I let my brother and uncle know? I don't want them to worry . "
Hua Tuo nodded and told the fortune-teller that they would be back soon . Zero bounced away to find Clowis and Hua Tuo left to find Lowis to convey the message . The fortune-teller took that time to look into her future . After a few moments, a small smile appeared and she wiped the tears that fell from her closed eyes .
***
An hour or two later, Hua Tuo felt like he needed a nap and Zero downed an entire bottle of energy potion . He checked his reserves . Amaraline's operation was tricky . It was a lot messier too and Zero was only thankful that it worked . Although he got the colour of her eyes wrong, the fortune-teller laughed it off . Zero genuinely felt bad for not realising that the siblings shared the same eye colour . When they removed Amaraline's eyes, the cells were dead so her pupils turned black . He should've known that they were yellow and blamed himself for it . Hua Tuo had a different explanation for what happened .
"There is something called genetic in those cells you used to recreate the eyes and any body part . That genetic code in the cells usually decides how a person would grow . In this case, both yellow and black eyes in Amaraline's genetic code were equally strong . Yellow eyes won the first time they were created . However, during the second creation, black eyes won so that's what happened . It's not your fault . You need to remember that Amaraline is a cockatrice descendant and from what I know, the creature has two kinds of eyes . "
Amaraline nodded in understanding at the explanation and grinned . "Zero, your teacher is right . The yellow eyes were the snake part of a cockatrice . My black eyes could've come from the rooster part of the cockatrice . You did a great job, although it is still slightly blurry now, I can see . "
Zero nodded and promised not to beat himself over it . Clowis and Lowis who had been waiting outside were finally let in and Amaraline who saw them for the first time in a long while cried . The three were sharing a moment so Hua Tuo and Zero took their leave stealthily, not wanting to disturb the family .
"Who's next?" Zero asked, sounding tired .
Hua Tuo felt weary too but couldn't sleep just yet .
"Let's head back first . Wiser's cough can be treated with simply medicine and some normal healing magic . I'm also going to be making a new rule . Unless it is an emergency situation, no more than one operation that requires reconstruction magic in a day . "
Zero agreed as they trudged back to their apartment .
For the first time since his apprenticeship, Hua Tuo allowed Zero to use his lamp to sleep and recuperate . Zero had Isis' permission to use the time dilution effect to allow them more time to prepare medicine later .
The nap lasted four hours in the lamp but only forty minutes on Earth . Refreshed, the doctor and apprentice duo started making pills and syrup with vigour .
Wiser wasn't expecting guests so he was badly startled when he heard someone knocking on his door . At first, he thought it was a product from all the stress lately . With new information from the scouts and Amaraline about Carrabas' army, the strategist had his work cut out for him . The coughing only got worse but Wiser ignored it .
"Who is it?" he called out as he went to get the door .
The moment the door was opened, Hua Tuo grabbed the human from behind and Zero shoved something into his mouth, making him swallow it . The man was too startled to react and allowed them to manhandle him to the bedroom .
"What-?! Hey, stop that! You have no right trespassing in my property even if you are a-" Wiser's rant was interrupted by more coughing and Zero watched as the man hacked out blood .
"I can't believe you let it get so bad . Lovina and Cleo could have easily treated it before it reached this stage . You're a strange person . . . " Hua Tuo mused and pulled out his needles .
Zero agreed and cast a spell of paralysis on the struggling Wiser . The strategist was appalled by their forcefulness but wasn't able to protest to their treatment . Whatever they made him eat was helping and Wiser allowed Hua Tuo to do what was needed . He almost fell asleep when Zero worked gentle healing magic into his system . It was so warm and comfortable that Wiser had difficulty paying attention to what Hua Tuo was saying .
"Take it twice a day . Use this whenever the coughing gets too bad and you'll be alright . Remember, eat and sleep at regular intervals . No cold drinks at night!"
As sudden and as quick as they came, they were gone . Wiser was left blinking at the door from his bed, wondering how that happened . Were doctors usually this forceful when it came to treating their patients?