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“How’s Zion doing? Can he stand up?”

“……”

Zion is hanging from the parallel bars at waist height, his arms and legs tense as he fights to stay upright.

Even after a significant amount of buff power was used, he didn’t look like he was about to collapse.

It seems like if he gains just a little more strength, we could move on to walking training in the buff status…

“Zion?”

But Zion’s expression.

While he was moving in accordance with the exercise instructions, he looked completely spaced out, as if his soul had left his body, and he wasn’t hearing a word I said.

“…Let’s call it a day, Zion.”

“Yes?”

“Mirae, please record the buff intensity at 3.3.”

“Understood.”

While Mirae noted the assessment results, I gently supported Zion hanging from the bars, released his buff, and helped him sit in a wheelchair.

“Hop-san, I didn’t do anything today, you know?”

“If you can’t focus on the muscles during training, it won’t be effective anyway. I think it’s better for you to take a break today.”

“……”

Zion hung his head, looking dejected.

This too…

“Zion.”

“Yes?”

“Are you still bothered about what happened last time?”

“……”

Last weekend, when we went to the village, Zion suffered from a paranoia-induced seizure, and I barely managed to calm him down.

It was a dizzying situation since it happened in a crowded place.

He seemed to be feeling off because of that incident.

“…Yes.”

“It’s okay, Zion. What did I say back then?”

“I’m the most important.”

“That’s true, but what’s the other thing?”

“The other thing?”

Zion, with his head down, was deep in thought.

And after a moment, as if he had come up with something, he looked up to meet my gaze.

“…It’s not sorry to be in pain.”

“Right. So don’t stay too glum.”

Taking a day off from rehabilitation today isn’t a huge deal, but if his depression continues long-term, it could affect Zion’s mental health seriously.

I hope he can cheer up soon…

“Hop-san.”

“I’m listening.”

“I know I can depend on you. So from now on, instead of saying sorry, I’ll say thank you.”

So, Zion wasn’t feeling down because he was sorry after all.

That’s a relief…

“Really, I’m thankful. If you weren’t there, I don’t know what I would have done… I’m always relying on you.”

“It’s alright. It’s my duty.”

Even while expressing gratitude, Zion still looked gloomy, with his hands neatly placed on his knees.

“But with all these things happening, I’m starting to get scared.”

Is he feeling anxious saying he’s scared? It looked like the tips of his fingers were trembling.

“It feels like monsters are targeting me from somewhere, and sometimes I can almost see them. The screams from the battlefield and the piercing sounds of dark magic keep echoing in my ears. It feels like someone is calling for help… and I can hear the voices of those who weren’t saved. I know it’s an illusion, but it’s all too scary to bear.”

Has he been experiencing hallucinations all this time…? If he’s actually seeing them, that’s undoubtedly a symptom of schizophrenia.

Despite being in that condition, Zion had managed to show a bright demeanor, which must be thanks to his extraordinary mental strength.

Even with modern knowledge about schizophrenia, many patients can’t acknowledge their hallucinations, even if they’ve been diagnosed.

To them, these things feel very real.

“It’s like I’ve become someone else, and I end up behaving strangely without realizing it. Even though I know, just like you said, that witches can’t possibly exist… my mind gets all tangled up, and it’s hard to breathe…”

Zion’s hands quivered more and more.

I got down on one knee to match his eye level and held both his hands in mine.

“…Teacher?”

“Don’t tremble, just calm down. I know everything, so it’s fine if you don’t say it.”

Fortunately, the moment I took his hands, Zion’s trembling stopped immediately.

We looked at each other in silence for a moment.

Holding Zion’s hand like this, it was trembly, yet warm, and an unexpected smile came to my face.

“Zion, I was happy back then.”

“Yes?”

I smiled lightly at Zion, but he still just looked confused.

“When you were lost and couldn’t gather your senses, honestly, I didn’t do anything. I tried everything to calm you down, but your seizure didn’t stop. So in the end… I had to appeal to your faith. Do you remember?”

He nodded silently.

“When I asked you to believe in me, you said you would. The reason you could gather your senses was that you believed in me. That wasn’t something I did, it was you overcoming your struggle.”

Thinking back, that was a dizzying situation.

If Zion hadn’t trusted me back then, what would I have done?

“So I was happy. Because you called me a companion. And because you said you believe in me. So I’ll also say thank you to you, Zion. Really, thank you.”

Though I had told Zion many lies, this was a truth with no trace of deception.

Because of Zion overcoming it, we could make it through that seizure unscathed, and because he trusted me and called me a companion, I was genuinely happy.

Even though I had pretended to be his companion out of falsehood, I could truly become a companion he recognized.

“Hop-san…”

Zion, seated in his wheelchair, looked down at me as I knelt.

Her scarlet eyes seemed to be trembling.

“Zion, are you crying?”

“Ah… No?”

Trying to hide her trembling eyes as if she didn’t want to be found out, Zion shut her eyelids and shook her head.

“I’m not crying yet.”

“That’s a tricky answer. With that much, isn’t it already crying?”

“But it’s true. Heroes don’t lie.”

“You were about to cry, though.”

“But I didn’t cry.”

Zion made a fierce expression as if she were holding back tears.

Wasn’t she practically on the verge of tears? Why couldn’t she just admit she had cried?

But I guess that’s not what mattered.

In any case, we had connected, and that was good enough.

I had properly expressed my gratitude.

“Anyway, let’s take a break today. Mirae will take you to the ward. I have many other patients to attend to…”

“No, it’s fine. Let’s proceed with the rehabilitation training as scheduled.”

“You really shouldn’t push yourself too hard, you know?”

“I’m really fine. I’ve said it many times, but I don’t lie.”

Zion, who confidently lifted her head, pulled her hands out of mine, clenched her fists, and raised them to her chest in a fighting pose.

“Heroes get up quickly even after falling. Especially…”

Zion locked eyes with me.

“When a companion lifts their spirits.”

This patient is now calling me a companion…

It feels like she’s using the word as a cheat just to do what she wants since that word makes me happy…

“But patients need to follow the doctor’s orders.”

“But I’m really fine!!!”

“Zion, this is my judgment. You need to rest.”

I can’t just let her get away with her cheat tactic like this.

“Do you trust me, Zion? If you do, follow my instructions.”

Countering cheat with cheat.

The situation where it’s impossible to say no isn’t something only Zion could create.

“That’s just cruel…”

Once I said that, Zion couldn’t seem to push her stubbornness any longer and put on a sad face.

In any case, I needed to let Zion rest now.

“Mirae, please take Zion to the ward. Explain the situation to Serin.”

“Understood.”

“Sniff…”

Zion couldn’t retort anymore and was led away by Mirae to the ward.

Since we missed today’s rehabilitation training, I’ll have to keep that in mind.

Rehabilitation is meant to be taken at leisure. Even if there’s a gap now and then, as long as consistency is maintained, it shouldn’t be a big problem.

More than that, tomorrow is the day of the kingdom’s monthly cabinet meeting.

So tonight, I had to finalize the reports on the operation and current state of the rehabilitation center.

‘To think I should have done this last weekend…’

How could I delay such important work and go off to have fun?

But since I already had everything prepared and just needed to check, not working during the weekend wasn’t something serious.

*********

“The next day…”

The cabinet meeting passed without any incidents.

As usual, the king and ministers were generous with their praise and support for me, and patients continued to come and go at the center as people returned to their daily lives.

However, my worries lingered…

“What’s bothering you?”

Although it was a day without duties due to the cabinet meeting, it was the day I was supposed to cast Recover on Zion, so after the meeting, I headed to the ward to restore Zion’s stats just a bit.

And it seemed Zion caught on to my sudden worries.

“I have another business trip planned. Apparently, a country is opening a new rehabilitation center.”

“Where is it?”

“Prey.”

“Oh… The Holy Law country, Prey.”

A country ruled by clergy where everyone believes in a god.

Since they have many people specialized in healing and recovery, they were the first to take notice of the rehabilitation centers.

The reason for the delay in setting up the center compared to the Keroa Empire was simply a matter of infrastructure.

Though Prey has high prestige and diplomatic power, its rugged terrain and lack of resources meant it wasn’t a wealthy nation.

“When are you going?”

“Tomorrow, right away. They must have requested for me to come as quickly as possible.”

“Oh.”

Under normal circumstances, I would have just taken the business trip, but since I missed Zion’s training yesterday, this became problematic.

Zion couldn’t train without me casting a buff, and if he skipped training for a week, it would surely hinder his recovery.

“So I was wondering what to do.”

“That’s a simple problem.”

“Are you suggesting I work out without you?”

“Come on, even though I have a history, you’re worrying too much. I can just tag along!”

Tag along? Zion is going on a business trip?

“They’re going because there’s a rehabilitation center there, right? It would be good for me to encourage the patients receiving rehabilitation, and we could do a demonstration and workshop together, right?”

Hmm, that seemed like a valid point.

Above all, the good thing is I could ensure Zion’s rehabilitation continues without any hitches.

The most important thing has always been Zion.

“That’s a good idea. Let’s go with that.”

“Yay! Serin, please get ready for my business trip tomorrow.”

“Understood.”

I had no worries with Serin; she could get things ready quickly even in urgent situations.

Thus, the business trip to the Holy Law country was decided.

As for accompanying Zion… I just hope nothing goes wrong.