Rehabilitation Therapist for the Broken Warrior

“It hurts, it hurts… But I have to do it. If I can’t even do this, I can’t do anything! Nao did so much for me… even so, I… Ahh, but it hurts… It hurts so much, it hurts!!”

“Sion!”

The trembling in her hand had already spread throughout Sion’s entire body.

I grabbed Sion’s convulsing shoulders, her eyes wide open, having already lost focus, and checked her condition.

“Ah, ahh…!”

How could this happen… A seizure caused by trauma?

It wasn’t like we were talking about the war; we were talking about practicing driving the ‘wheelchair’, so how could it get this bad?

I had to deal with it differently from the last time she had a seizure from the trauma related to Airi.

Back then, it was a situation where her sadness and guilt were running wild, so it was okay to leave her alone, but this seizure caused by trauma related to physical pain was dangerous and had to be stopped immediately.

People who have seizures due to trauma are usually very difficult to deal with, but fortunately, this is a ‘fantasy world’.

So, simply…

“Sleep.”

I can put her to sleep and calm her down.

‘Sleep’ is a curse-type spell that puts the target to sleep.

It’s a ‘skill’ with very low priority because it has no killing power and is not very practical, but I’ve raised this ‘skill’ to almost master level.

“It hurts, it hurts…”

“?”

What?

Even though I cast ‘Sleep’ at almost maximum level, there was no change in Sion.

Complete immunity to curses?

Is it because Sion is a ‘hero’?

“Haa, heuk, heuk…”

Sion was still showing ‘panic symptoms’.

If mental ‘magic’ didn’t work, I would have to calm Sion down the usual way.

“Sion. Wake up. It doesn’t hurt.”

When dealing with someone having a seizure due to ‘panic symptoms’, the first thing is not to panic myself.

Calm them down quietly without raising your voice.

If the person next to them panics or becomes anxious, the patient will be negatively affected and their emotions will only amplify.

“You don’t have to practice anymore. Get out of there for now.”

I put my hand, which had been holding Sion’s shoulder, under her armpit and lifted her into my arms.

It was to separate Sion from the ‘wheelchair’, which was presumed to be the cause of her anxiety.

Sion, who had no strength in her body, was lifted from a sitting position, and she reached her arms over my shoulder, leaning her whole body on me.

“Haa, haa, haa…”

“It doesn’t hurt, so calm down. Breathe easily.”

I calmly patted Sion’s back as she was held in my arms.

I could feel Sion’s chest, which I was holding tightly, getting bigger and smaller with her breathing.

“How is it? It doesn’t hurt at all, right? So, trust me. I’ll definitely make you better.”

“……”

I had to keep talking to her in a calm voice to reassure her.

I may not be someone Sion can rely on, but someone in such a weak state would want to rely on anyone.

As I kept talking to her, thankfully, she gradually calmed down, and Sion’s breathing slowed down.

“Director Hope…”

“Are you calming down? If you’ve calmed down, take deeper breaths. For now, let’s calm down completely. I’ll do it too, so let’s do it together. Hooo… Haaa… Hooo… Haaaaa…”

“Haaaaa…”

For a while, I took deep breaths with Sion, trying to calm her down completely.

Holding Sion in my arms, I repeated inhaling and exhaling in the same rhythm.

Every time we inhaled, our chests pressed against each other, making it difficult to breathe, but we breathed deeply together, and after some time, I lifted my hand, which had been stroking Sion’s back, and checked her pulse by placing my hand on her neck.

‘I guess this is okay.’

Her heart rate was still a little high, but it was slowly decreasing. It seemed that she was getting out of the panic state and finding stability.

“Sion. I’m going to sit you down again now. Are you okay with that?”

“Just a little, just a little more…”

“Yes?”

“Huuuu… Haaaaa…”

Sion’s arms had no strength, but I could feel her arms very slightly hugging me.

I was so surprised by the unexpected situation that I lost the rhythm of our breathing, but Sion was still taking deep breaths on her own.

“……”

I decided to just hold her quietly and wait.

Every time I lift Sion, I feel that she has a surprisingly light body.

Her muscles were almost gone, leaving her with nothing but bones. But because of that, her body felt soft, and I could feel the warmth of the blood flowing through the blood vessels all over her body through her skin.

“You can put me down now.”

After a period of silence that made me feel dizzy, Sion asked to be put down, so I sat her back in the ‘wheelchair’.

“I showed you another embarrassing side of myself.”

“It’s okay. I’m just glad you’ve calmed down.”

It seemed I needed to correct my perception of Sion’s condition a bit.

Since she was a ‘hero’, I thought she would have a strong mentality even if her body was broken, and I thought that experiencing the trauma related to Airi was unavoidable since it was related to the death of a comrade, but this time it was different.

A seizure due to trauma from a conversation about practicing ‘wheelchair’ driving.

If she had actually lost control of the pressure and been thrown from the ‘wheelchair’ and hit a wall, it would have been enough physical pain to cause trauma. It’s a terrible thing to even imagine…

But this problem seemed to need a more fundamental approach.

‘Among the things Sion said earlier, there was definitely something like, ‘If I can’t even do this, I’m nothing.’ If there was a reason why she desperately clung to the ‘wheelchair’ even though she was in pain…’

“But I don’t want you to misunderstand.”

I was organizing my thoughts for a while when Sion suddenly spoke to me.

“Yes? What misunderstanding?”

“Th-that… I…”

Sion averted her gaze and fidgeted with her fingers.

“When I asked you to hold me a little more, it wasn’t that I… had any other intentions…”

She asked me to hold her?

Ah, was that the part where she said, “Just a little more” earlier?

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been that close to someone… Haha, people are warm. I thought maybe I’d feel better if I was held a little longer…”

“Sion.”

“Y-yes?!”

The fact that someone who had just suffered a panic attack due to trauma was worrying about such a trivial thing.

I needed to correct my perception of Sion’s condition, and I also needed to correct Sion’s perception of me.

“When Sion went into a panic state, I picked you up and held you to get you out of the ‘wheelchair’. What does Sion think about that action?”

“What do I think about it…”

Sion, who had been avoiding my gaze with a somewhat embarrassed expression, tilted her head as if she didn’t understand what I was saying.

“Was it appropriate medical action?”

“That’s right. Sion, if I thought of you in that way, I wouldn’t have been able to deal with it the way I did earlier. I know that Sion has naturally been loved by everyone and has lived her life…”

Because she was more beautiful, brave, kind, strong, and cool than anyone else.

But wait a minute, I understand that she’s been loved and lived her life…

“Wait a minute, Sion. Then, does that mean there were often people who saw you as a romantic interest?”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

“Obvious… Your self-esteem is quite high.”

“I thought so at first too. That it must have all been my misunderstanding.”

In the original novel of this story, there was no love line, let alone anything resembling affection?

And Sion’s physical condition… How much more of this world is implemented that wasn’t expressed in the novel?

“But ‘Hanamana’ always used to say things like, ‘I’m sure I’m wrong because I’m ‘Hanamana’, but I think that person is looking at Sion with strange eyes…’ And ‘Hanamana”s predictions were never wrong.

Those people always confessed just before they left.

Every time that happened, Airi would curse them and chase them away. What kind of people are they…”

Were there any characters in the novel who would do that?

I thought hard about it, but no one came to mind.

Actually, it’s been over 20 years since I last read that novel, so I don’t really remember who the non-main characters were, other than the main ‘Hero’s Party’ members.

“Come to think of it, you were my colleague, ‘Director Hope’, so don’t you know about that?”

“Well… that didn’t happen when I was traveling with you.”

“Hmm, I guess that kind of thing doesn’t happen just because there’s a man in the party. Are men more cowardly than I thought?”

Is that something to call cowardly?

Well, when I think about it, the idea of ‘There are only women in the group, so I might as well confess’ does feel cowardly.

But that wasn’t important right now, so I had to make it clear to Sion so she would understand.

“Anyway, Sion. I know you’re attractive, but I’d be troubled if you thought I was looking at you in that way.”

I really wasn’t looking at her that way, and I was really troubled, so I was speaking so firmly, but I couldn’t help but feel a little guilty.

Sion probably couldn’t even imagine how I was looking at her.

“I’m a doctor, and all I do is work to heal Sion.

But if Sion can’t even properly ask me to hold her because she doesn’t want to be misunderstood, how can we treat her?

Of course, it’s not like I often have to hold her in the course of treatment… Do you understand what I mean?”

In the future, there would inevitably be physical contact during ‘rehabilitation treatment’, such as correcting her posture, checking her muscle mass, or conducting examinations like last time, and I would have to take care of Sion until Serin arrived at the ‘kingdom’.

If Sion misunderstood and refused, there would be nothing more troublesome.

“……”

I had spoken so clearly, so she must have understood.

Perhaps because I had spoken a little sternly, Sion lowered her head with a glum expression like a child being scolded by their parents, and fidgeted with her fingers on her knees.

“I understand. I’m sorry for saying unnecessary things.”

“It’s good that you understand. Anyway, I’m glad. It could have been a big problem.”

“That… I’m sorry. And thank you.”

“If possible, please refrain from saying such things, Sion.

I’m a doctor, and you’re a patient.

Being sick is not something to be sorry for, and my treatment isn’t something to be so thankful for.

If you say thank you every time you receive treatment, we won’t be able to make any progress.”

“……”

Was I pushing Sion too hard?

But since we had two years of treatment ahead of us, it was essential to clarify our attitudes toward each other.

In addition, I could see Sion’s sulky expression.

Sion, who had always been just, righteous, and strong, only showing a confident appearance, pouting her lips like a child and being scolded was a delicacy that only I could taste in this world.

“Anyway, let’s go now. I haven’t been late once in the three years I’ve been running the ‘Center’, but today will be the first time I’m late.”

“Th-that…”

“Are you going to say sorry again?”

“Y-yes…”

“Now, Sion. Repeat after me. ‘Being sick is not my fault.'”

“‘Being sick is not my fault.'”

“Well done. Let’s really go now.”

Sion nodded silently.

Something unexpected happened, so we were a little late, and the ‘Center’ must be in chaos again.

But more than that…

‘How has Sion been living for the three years after the ending?’

Even events that happened after the ending were triggers for her seizures.

I only saw Sion’s story up to the end of the novel.

What kind of impact did the events after that have on Sion’s mental state?

Anyway, after the morning commotion of seizures and misunderstandings was over, it was time to move to the ‘Center’ and start ‘rehabilitation treatment’ in earnest.