Rehabilitation Therapist for the Broken Warrior

“I’ve been waiting for you, Director Hope Harvey.”

My first experience with teleportation went more smoothly than expected.

This place was the Empire’s Magic Tower.

I had just closed and opened my eyes in the Kingdom’s Magic Tower, and now I was already in the Empire’s territory.

“It is an honor to meet you, Princess.”

“It’s nice to meet you too. I’ve heard a lot about Director Hope’s reputation.”

“To hear such words from the Princess of the world’s greatest Empire, I don’t know what to say.”

And the person who came to pick me up in a carriage and take me to the Imperial Palace was none other than Nao Newtroit.

I had been warned countless times beforehand that the Princess would be the one to greet me.

Also, this meeting had a slightly more special meaning for me.

Nao Newtroit was the third daughter of the Newtroit Imperial Family and…

‘Hero Sion’s most trusted companion. The magician of the hero’s party. So this is what she’s like in person.’

She was a member of the hero’s party that drove out the Demon King, closed the gate, and ended the war.

Was the reason she appeared here because she was a magician who could easily access the Magic Tower?

I didn’t think it was such a simple reason. After all, Princess Nao was currently…

“Please forgive the discourtesy of not being able to rise from my seat.”

“It’s alright. You don’t need to go to such lengths for me.”

She was sitting in a wheelchair.

“Let’s get in the carriage.”

“Yes.”

Since the Princess had mobility issues, I opened the carriage door first, quickly got in, and waited for her to come in.

The maid who had been pushing the wheelchair stopped it in front of the carriage and reached out to help her in, but,

“It’s okay. I’ll get in by myself.”

The Princess refused the maid’s help and firmly grasped the handles of the wheelchair.

Then, she used her arms to lift her body upwards, her straightened legs trembling slightly as she briefly supported herself, quickly reached out to grab the carriage handle, grimaced, straightened her legs while pulling with her arms, and threw herself into the carriage seat.

‘Good heavens, to think I’d see something like this as soon as I arrived in the Empire.’

The Princess, who was one of the highest-ranking individuals in the entire Empire, a beautiful and powerful magician, was struggling so much just to get into a carriage!

Really…

‘As I thought, I made the right decision to become a rehabilitation doctor in this world too!’

“Haa, haa…”

The Princess, who had barely managed to get into the carriage, leaned against the seat and took several deep breaths, in and out with all her might, before finally straightening her back and sitting up to face me.

“I keep showing you unpleasant things.”

“As I’ve said before, I’m fine.”

“How was it? My appearance just now.”

I almost blurted out, “It was utterly mesmerizing and breathtaking.”

If I had said that, my head would probably have been cut off.

“I assume you’re asking for my opinion as a rehabilitation specialist?”

“Yes, that’s right. Actually, I showed you on purpose.”

So, it was intentional.

The third Princess Nao, the magician of the hero’s party.

She had sustained a serious leg injury in the final battle with the Demon King.

It was something I already knew because it was included in the novel’s ending.

The reason she went out of her way to greet me must be because she wanted to show her body first to me, the creator and authority of rehabilitation medicine, the only rehabilitation specialist in this world.

“The fact that you can get into a carriage of this height on your own shows a remarkable recovery in your motor skills. It looks quite positive.”

“Oh my, recovery? Do you know what my condition was?”

“Ah…”

I had unintentionally spoken based on the novel’s ending.

At that point, Nao’s legs had been so badly damaged by the Demon King’s attack that she couldn’t move them at all.

“Well, yes, I can tell just by looking.”

“As expected of Director Hope, you’re different.”

It was fortunate that I held such a dominant position in this field.

“Although I’m in this state now… I fought alongside the Hero against the Demon King. Can you believe it?”

Since the third Princess had hidden her identity and traveled with the Hero in the story, what she just told me was something I knew, but most people didn’t.

“I have no reason to doubt you, Princess.”

“I’m glad you believe me. This leg injury was also caused by the Demon King’s attack, and I couldn’t move at all after we sealed the gate. So, I really… had a lot of negative thoughts. I even thought about just ending it all…”

It was a natural reaction.

The emptiness a person feels when they lose the function of a part of their body is indescribably difficult.

Even I, who had seen such people every day, couldn’t fully understand it.

“Then one day, I heard news about Director Hope. They said there was a place in the Kingdom that treated people who had been injured in the war and those who were unable to live a normal life. It sounded like a miracle was happening… There’s no such thing in the world, though.”

Certainly, when news of rehabilitation medicine spread, there were times when its effects were exaggerated.

Perhaps because this was a fantasy world, some people thought a new kind of healing magic had been developed.

“The reason I saw hope in Director Hope was because of that.”

Huh? What is she talking about all of a sudden?

“Rehabilitation wasn’t a miracle.”

‘Ah…’

“Constant exercise and training, continuous healing and meditation, learning basic life skills again as if you were a baby. As I learned more about the treatment process at the rehabilitation center, I felt a surge of motivation. I felt like I could do it…”

It was quite a unique case in terms of mindset.

Usually, people who expect treatment want immediate and definitive results.

They want the pain to disappear quickly and be freed from suffering.

For such people, rehabilitation training is hell.

Living a daily life of repeating the same difficult things with an uncomfortable body.

Not knowing if things are improving or not, and even if they endure it, they won’t be able to move like before.

But the reason such people eventually engage in rehabilitation is that if their body is uncomfortable, daily life itself is hell.

They endure the pain because they want to live in a slightly less painful hell.

However, this Princess thought the opposite.

She believed that precisely because there was pain, there was a way to get better.

As expected, a character who appears as a main supporting role in a work where the main theme is the celebration of humanity needs to be at least this level.

“I heard that you developed that wheelchair too? I’m greatly indebted to you.”

“If that’s the case, then I’m glad.”

“Anyway, I’ve talked too much. I just wanted to express my gratitude. Although it was through guesswork and self-study, thanks to a year of hard rehabilitation, I’m now able to move as much as I showed you earlier.”

One year to reach that level… That was quite an achievement for self-taught rehabilitation training.

“If you train at a proper center, I think we might see you walking in another year.”

“Really?”

“Yes, I can tell just by looking at you. Although it depends on your efforts, I have no doubt you can do it, Princess.”

“If you think so, Director, then it must be true.”

While being thanked and praised by the Princess throughout the carriage ride, we arrived at the Imperial Palace of the Empire.

Actually, I should have gone straight to the rehabilitation center to check how the Empire’s center was operating, but the Emperor had also requested to see me personally, so I had no choice but to stop by.

After an audience with the Emperor and a brief greeting, I moved to the lodgings prepared by the Emperor, unpacked my luggage, and stayed overnight.

On the second day of my business trip, I immediately went to the Empire Rehabilitation Center and checked the patients and interns.

Surprisingly, the third Princess I had seen yesterday was among the patients, participating in rehabilitation training.

The presence of Princess Nao, with her upright personality and diligent commitment to rehabilitation, had a very positive impact on the mindset of the other patients undergoing rehabilitation, which was a bit boring for me.

‘Hmm, as expected of the Empire, everything is properly set up.’

The rehabilitation programs for each patient type were being carried out exactly according to the manual I shared, and the intern training process was also well-established.

There were surprisingly few problems, so I had time to spare.

“Director Hope. Could you spare a moment?”

As I was checking the checklists and evaluating the Empire’s center, the Princess, having finished her rehabilitation program, was calling out to me from her wheelchair.

“What is it?”

“What do you think of our Empire’s rehabilitation center?”

“As expected of the Empire, it’s well-organized. It’s operating almost perfectly, to the point where there’s nothing for me to do.”

“Is that so? That’s good to hear. Would you mind going somewhere with me?”

A sudden request. Was there something unusual going on?

“Yes, of course. But what’s the matter…”

“There’s something I really want you to see.”

“?”

The Princess signaled with her eyes to the maid who was pushing the wheelchair, and the maid nodded silently and began to lead the Princess somewhere.

The place she headed to was the Empire’s National Cemetery, located behind the Imperial Palace.

“Hydrangeas, please.”

The Princess bought hydrangeas at the flower shop that was naturally attached to the cemetery.

Hydrangeas, in the National Cemetery… I was starting to get a sense of where we were going.

Upon entering the cemetery, the Princess reached out her hand as if requesting something from the maid, and what the maid handed her was, surprisingly, a pair of crutches.

“I apologize, but I’ll be going slowly.”

“Are you going to walk?”

Due to her almost immobile legs, the Princess was in a state where she couldn’t even stand, let alone walk. Yet, she insisted?

“Yes. That’s what I intend to do.”

“Are you sure you don’t need my help?”

“Of course…”

Although the Princess said she didn’t need help, after placing the crutches under her armpits, she made a slightly troubled expression for a moment and eventually held out the bouquet of hydrangeas she was holding towards me.

“Actually, could you hold this for me?”

“Certainly.”

As I accepted the bouquet, I decided to ask a question that had been on my mind.

“But is there a reason why you’re going to the trouble of walking?”

“……”

The Princess lowered her head and continued to move forward slowly, relying on the crutches with her hands and feet trembling slightly.

“I don’t want to show you how much I’m struggling.”

I had asked why she was going to the trouble of walking, but I never expected to hear that she didn’t want to show me how much she was struggling.

I understood what she meant, but…

The place we were heading to must be Airi Harmony’s grave. Airi, the rogue of the hero’s party, who came from the back alleys.

A member who lost her life in the final battle.

Did she not want to show Airi her wheelchair-bound self?

“She’s over there.”

Walking at a snail’s pace to match the Princess’s speed, I felt like I was walking at the speed of a rock being pulled by mouth in a strongman show.

And what was in the place the Princess pointed to… was not a grave.

‘Who is that?’

What was there was another wheelchair.

A woman with long, black hair tinged with purple was staring blankly at a grave with her head hung low.

The grave she was staring at was, as expected, a tombstone with the words ‘Airi Harmony’ engraved on it.

“She’s always here at this time.”

“That person, could it be…”

“Do you know her?”

“I have an idea, but I wasn’t sure if it was really her…”

“Haha, she’s changed a lot.”

She said she didn’t want to show how much she was struggling, but it wasn’t a dead person, it was someone who could actually see the Princess’s current state who was there.

Was the person I was guessing correct?

The circumstances seemed to fit, but even as I was looking at her with my own eyes, I couldn’t believe the truth.

Did she hear us talking?

She slowly turned her head and looked in our direction, her expression blank, barely revealing her subtly shining vermilion eyes through her long bangs as she quietly opened her mouth.

“Nao…”

“You’re here again today, Sion?”

The name that came out of the Princess’s mouth was as I expected.

That… was Sion?

Although I had never actually seen her in person, I knew better than anyone what kind of person Hero Sion was.

The hero who had always delivered hope in the face of any hardship and adversity.

More than anything, she shone beautifully, was stronger than anyone in the world, and had a presence like the sun that always illuminated everyone, the strongest swordsman and the greatest adventurer.

Justice, will, conviction, responsibility, and all the other noble values that a human being could possess – the protagonist of a story that proved them all, Hero Sion Lorel, was in that state?

‘No, way…’

A person like me could tell at a glance.

What I was seeing before my eyes now was someone completely broken.

Not just her body, but her mind as well, was completely shattered.

Something to live for… was thoroughly lacking.

The bottommost appearance of what was once the most brilliant was unfolding before my eyes.

And what was welling up in my chest as I looked at it now…

‘Ah, aah……!’

It was something that absolutely must not be discovered.

Something that I had to desperately suppress.