Shortly after Michael left, Rebecca turned to Hilda with a serious expression. "Report this to Reinhardt. Do not leave anything out."
Hilda's face went blank, devoid of emotion. "Yes, miss." She stepped into the shadows and vanished without a sound.
Rebecca returned to her seat and flicked her finger. The scattered documents floated up and stacked themselves neatly on her desk.
Sighing, she thought, 'Why did you have to awaken now…'
The orphanage was the only one in the city, yet it was large enough to house every orphan and still have space to spare.Even though the higher-ups watched over it, that did not mean corruption was impossible.
Rebecca had been brainwashed. Since childhood, her ambition had been to become the head of the orphanage, though that had not entirely been her own will.When she finally became its head, the conditioning loosened. Her powers dispelled it completely.
Her mind was like a blank canvas. Everything she knew and remembered revolved around the orphanage. She did not know who had cast the control on her. The only clue was a name: Reinhardt.
Hilda worked for Reinhardt, which meant Rebecca could not avoid reporting Michael's awakening to him.
She was close to meeting him at last. When she did, she would kill him.
Rocking back in her chair, she thought, 'I do not know if I can protect you, Michael…'
Rebecca loved the children, but it was a surface kind of love. Deep down, she wanted to free herself from the grip of whoever lurked in the shadows.
There was one child whose company she truly enjoyed: Michael. Six years ago, she had found him sprawled on the sidewalk, severely malnourished, and brought him in.
Their bond had only grown stronger since.
Now it was being tested by a misfortune she had not yet erased.
Outside, Michael walked toward the recovery center. He passed several kids and a few adults along the way.
He grew curious and murmured to the system, "Is it really going to be this easy to level up? All I did was heal a bruise."
[You can only gain experience from the same person once per day. However, with the number of people in this orphanage, it will not be hard to level up. And yes, as long as a person has lost even a single unit of HP, healing them will grant EXP.]
Michael pondered for a moment. "What happens when I reach level 10?"
[You will gain a new skill. Every ten levels, you receive a random skill attributed to your class.]
"Right. Class. Is it always going to stay Common?"
[You will be able to increase its rarity and effects at Level 50. After that, every fifty levels, you will be evaluated and given a task to increase your class rarity further.]
"I see. Thank you." He continued toward the recovery center, the outline of the building now in view.
A few minutes later, he stepped inside. It resembled a simple hospital, only improved with magic, far beyond the hospitals of his previous world.
At the register, a neatly dressed receptionist asked for identification.Michael handed over the paper Rebecca had given him. The receptionist's expression shifted to understanding. They made a call and motioned for him to sit and wait.
Michael found a comfortable seat and prepared himself for a long wait. 'Hospitals are always like this…'
He did not wait long. Five minutes later, a man in a doctor's coat approached, hand extended. "Hello, Michael. My name is Salus. I am the head healer of this facility. Come with me."
Michael shook his hand and followed him into an elevator. They rode to the fourth floor and walked to Salus's office.
The office was spacious. Lab equipment lined the counters. The desk was spotless, a stark contrast to Rebecca's.
Salus pointed to a chair beside the desk. Michael sat. Salus took the chair behind the desk and studied him.
"Why do you want to join the recovery center?" Salus asked.
Michael had expected questions, but not this one. There were wrong answers. If he said he only wanted to level his skills, he would be shown the door.
He shaped the truth into something better. "I want to improve my healing so I can save more people."
Salus had not expected that from an eight-year-old. He had anticipated something childish. This was not.
"Are you planning to attend the Academy?" Salus asked.
Michael nodded. "Yes."
Satisfied, Salus pulled a marble-like sphere from his pocket and handed it over.Michael frowned, unsure what to do with it.
"Hold it to your clothes," Salus said, amused.
Michael did so. His regular clothing shifted into a white coat similar to Salus's. A small pin appeared near his wrist.He tugged it lightly. The coat vanished into the pin, the marble returned, and his previous clothing reappeared.
Salus chuckled. "Do you want to start working today?"
Michael was about to say yes, then remembered, "Am I going to get paid?"
Salus blinked, then nodded. "We provide food and necessities. Pay depends on the tips patients might give you. It gives everyone an incentive to try harder."
'Stingy,' Michael thought. He kept it to himself. At least there was a chance to earn something.'Tips in a hospital? Seems unlikely.'
Salus stood and walked to the door. "Put on the coat."
Michael did as told and followed him back down to the first floor.
People stared at him as they passed, faces curious.
They stopped at a room labeled "Emergency Room 3."
Inside were several patients: some with broken bones, others grimacing in pain.
"Watch me. Afterwards, you will try," Salus said.
He approached a man with a broken leg and cast a healing spell. Unlike Michael's earlier heal that covered the whole body, Salus's magic only covered the injured area.
Before Michael's eyes, the bone popped back into place, mended, and the torn flesh sealed as if it had never been injured.
Salus turned. "Any questions?"
"Why did you only target the broken area?" Michael asked.
"Using mana to heal the whole body is wasteful," Salus said. "As a healer, you must conserve as much as possible. You will be treating patients all day."
He gestured to another patient with a broken leg. "Try."
[Host, when you say Heal, focus on the body part you wish to heal. It will generate a new skill.]
Michael nodded to both Salus and the system. He had thought new skills only came from the random pull every ten levels. He had been wrong.
He faced the patient, focused on the broken leg, and said, "Heal."
Light washed over the man's whole body, then tightened around the injured area.
DING
A blue interface appeared.
[Focus Heal +15 EXP]
+--+
[New Skill Generated]
[Bonus: +1 INT]
Focus Heal [Level 0 | 15/100 EXP] [Common] [Active]
Heal the target's injuries in the focused area / Restore 50 HP
Cost: 15 MP
+--+
Michael stared. He had expected the skill, but a new question formed. The system answered first.
[Yes, this is the power of the system. Even when you focus on one area, you still restore 50 HP. You now have a cheaper full-body Heal with the same effectiveness. Congratulations.]
Salus beamed. "Wow, Michael, you are a prodigy."
The men with the newly healed legs thanked them and left. Neither tipped a single coin.
Salus motioned for Michael to watch as he moved to patients without visible injuries.
He stopped at a man with a small bump on his neck. "What seems to be troubling you?"
"This appeared over a week ago," the man said. "It only started hurting recently."
Salus examined it and glanced back at Michael. "This is a cyst. They form when regular humans are exposed to too much mana. They can appear anywhere and are dangerous if ignored."
He pointed a finger, cast a focused heal, and the cyst swelled, then popped without discharge. It simply vanished.
Michael repeated the procedure on another patient, successfully.
[Focus Heal +15 EXP]
Salus praised him again. "From now on, you are in charge of Emergency Room 3's healing. Most patients here can be treated with simple healing magic, like the ones you just saw."
"If your skills reach the required standard, you will be moved to Emergency Room 2, and perhaps even Emergency Room 1."
Michael kept nodding. This was an excellent chance to level up. He was still a little salty. 'Tch. A big shot better give me a tip.'
[Host, while I do not expect you to be a monk, please refrain from being shameless.]
Michael ignored the comment and continued healing. Five patients remained: deep cuts, broken bones, and one more cyst.
Salus left after informing him of the schedule: four hours a day, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. It was 1:30 p.m., so Michael had time.
When he finished, five blue boxes floated before him. They merged into one.
[Focus Heal +75 EXP]
He waited for the level-up message. Nothing came.
[Host, until Level 10, you must level up manually. Open your status and press the plus button next to the skills you want to level. The same applies to your general level.]
Michael checked the room, then whispered, "Status."
+---+
Name: Michael
Age: 8 years old
Race: Human
Class: Healer [Common]
Level 0 [120/100 EXP] (+)
—Titles:
Born Anew [Unique] [Temporary]
Increases experience gain by 50% until level 10
—Stats
HP: 110/110 / Regen 2 HP per hour
MP: 0/155 / Regen 11 MP per hour
STR: 4
END: 2
AGI: 2I
NT: 10 -> 11
CHA: 5
—Skills:
Hand-to-Hand Combat [Level 5 | 0/2500 EXP] [Common] [Passive]
Discipline [Level 4 | 0/2000 EXP] [Uncommon] [Passive]
Shooting Mastery [Level 6 | 0/3000 EXP] [Uncommon] [Passive]
Heal [Level 0 | 15/100 EXP] [Common] [Active]
Focus Heal [Level 0 | 105/100 EXP] (+) [Common] [Active]
+---+
New lines had appeared for health and mana regeneration. He had not been able to see those before.
He pressed the (+) next to Level.
DING
[Level Up! 0 -> 1 | 20/1000 EXP]
[Health and Magic Points fully restored]
[5 Unassigned Stat Points obtained]
He pressed the other (+).
DING
[Skill Up! Focus Heal 0 -> 1 | 5/500 EXP]
[Restore 50 -> 60 HP]
[1 Unassigned Stat Point obtained]