Chapter 1-11 : The Girl And The Cat Are Doing Their Best To Repay The Old Couple For Their Kindness
「ーNo…! No way!!」(Elle)
Elle panicked when she saw black spots on the elderly couple’s faces. She took a few steps backward and stopped by the door. She nearly collapsed to her knees but managed to keep standing.
Yoyo who was waiting outside the room noticed Elle’s strange behavior.
「Elle what’s wrong? D, don’t tell me… Are theyー」(Yoyo)
「Black spot… disease…」(Elle)
「Dammit! Then you should get away from here or you will get infected too!」(Yoyo)
「B, But…!」(Elle)
Hearing Elle’s voice, the elderly couple opened their eyes.
「Ojou-san… are you… there…?」(elderly man)
「I’m sorry… I promised you to make you… grilled chicken… but… I feel weak…」(elderly woman)
「Dear… I think it’s because we got infected… Ojou-san, you better go now… Don’t worry about us…」(elderly man)
The elderly couple were talking with trembling voices. They looked so weak that they would die any time soon.
Black spot disease is spread by fleas that suck the blood of small animals. They transmit the disease-carrying bacteria from one host to another when they suck blood.
The elderly couple said that they had prepared chicken to consume. They must have been infected when they drained the chicken’s blood.
「Elle, you heard them. We have to get away from here!」(Yoyo)
「…….」(Elle)
「Elle! Hurry up!」(Yoyo)
「…No.」(Elle)
「…Elle…」(Yoyo)
「Yoyo, I’m not going anywhere!」(Elle)
「I understand your feelings, but do you want to get infected too!?」(Yoyo)
「No, but I’m still not going!」(Elle)
Yoyo persistently told her to get away, but Elle took a deep breath, trying as best as she could not to panic.
She then folded her arms and started thinking, trying to recall what she read in Moritz’s book about black spot disease.
「Black spot disease develops a high fever soon after it gets inside the victim’s body, and the fever usually continues for two days to a week depending on how strong the victim’s immune system is. However, no matter how strong their immune system is, this disease will still eventually kill the victim within a few days after the incubation period.」(Elle)
「So… What does that mean?」(Yoyo)
「It doesn’t much, but we still have time to save them.」(Elle)
「Are you sure you can save them? You don’t even have the medicine.」(Yoyo)
Elle had the antibiotic to cure black disease, but it was wasted because of the mad woman from the cursed village.
「No, I don’t, but I know how to make it. I have the equipment to make medicine I took from Master’s room, and I have magic stones. I think I can make it.」(Elle)
「Elle…」(Yoyo)
Yoyo still wanted Elle to get away from the village as soon as possible, but he gave up after seeing her determined eyes.
Elle took a clean handkerchief from her magic bag and wore it on her face as a mask to cover her mouth and nose.
She then took out a pair of gloves, put them on, and approached the elderly couple in their bed.
「Ojii-san, Obaa-san, I want you to listen to what I say. Don’t worry, I will definitely save you!」(Elle)
「Ojou-san… what are you talking about…? You should go… now…」(elderly man)
「The Miraculous Saviours will save us… so don’t mind us and go…」(elderly woman)
Of course, there was no way Elle would leave them to those suspicious people.
「I don’t have any proof, so you might not believe me, but you shouldn’t trust those people. I know how to cure this illness. Please, Ojii-san, Obaa-san, let me help you!」(Elle)
Seeing Elle’s serious expression, the elderly couple looked at each other with troubled faces. They felt that Elle wouldn’t leave no matter what they said.
They then slowly turned their faces to Elle and nodded. They seemed to trust her.
Elle nodded back at them and turned her face to Yoyo who was waiting by the door.
「Yoyo, I’m sorry. Will you help me?」(Elle)
「Hahh… I wish you would listen to them, but I know how stubborn you are. Alright. Of course, I will help. Let’s save them, Elle!」(Yoyo)
「Un! Thank you, Yoyo!」(Elle)
Elle approached the table in the living room, took out the necessary magic stones and equipment, and started working.
「Yoyo, there’s a huge wooden container at the back of the house. I want you to boil water and put any contaminated things in it.」(Elle)
「Got it.」(Yoyo)
Yoyo took the fire magic stone and the water magic stone on the table and went to the backyard.
Hot water is effective in disinfecting black spot disease pathogens. They will die after staying for about fifteen minutes in boiling water.
Because the disease was still in the early stage, the elderly couple still had the energy to move for a bit.
Elle helped them undress, wipe their sweat, and put on clean clothes for them. After that, Yoyo came to take the clothes, the pillows, and the bedsheet and put them in the boiling water he had prepared.
Elle spread two clean mattresses on the floor in front of the fireplace and helped the elderly couple move there from their bed.
After she covered them with clean blankets to keep them warm, she helped them eat. It wasn’t much, but luckily, they still had the leftover stew from yesterday.
After feeding them, Elle went outside to look for the ingredients to make the antibiotic.
The antibiotic to cure black spot disease was made from certain microorganisms that lived in fertile soil, so she went to the field tended by the elderly couple.
Elle grabbed the hoe by the fence and started digging.
「Phew… I think it’s deep enough.」(Elle)
After digging for about a meter deep, she then collected the soil and put it on a sterilized iron plate.
From this point onward, it would be delicate work.
First, she used a fire magic stone and a wind magic stone to dry the damp soil.
After that, she carefully heated the soil with a fire magic stone to kill unnecessary microorganisms. The ones needed for the antibiotic had resistance to heat, so they would survive.
While Elle was doing her task in the worn-down gazebo by the field, Yoyo approached her.
「Elle, I’ve finished sterilizing and washing their clothes.」(Yoyo)
「Thank you, Yoyo. How are they doing?」(Elle)
「Not very good, but they’re sleeping like logs.」(Yoyo)
「I see. That’s a good sign.」(Elle)
「How’s the medicine?」(Yoyo)
「Umm… I think it will take time until midnight. The extraction process will be very difficult.」(Elle)
「I see. I’m rooting for you, Elle.」(Yoyo)
「Un. I’ll do my best.」(Elle)
While talking with Yoyo, Elle kept repeating the process of drying and heating the soil.
Her forehead started to sweat, but Yoyo wiped it with a handkerchief, trying to be a good assistant for her.
「I hope they will get better.」(Elle)
「Yeah, me too.」(Yoyo)