184 Recovery (1/2)

Everyone yelled as the heard the young hero crash through all kinds of undergrowth.

Some of the last few bears also eyed Jack, intent on killing the one responsible for harming their pridelord. But they wouldn't get the chance because the adventurers used the bears' distraction to give quick lethal blows.

In less than a minute, the fight was over and all the girls hurried to Jack's side with Keela and Eliza in the lead.

Seeing that Jack would be well taken care of, Maynard and Rydel decided to charge the pridelord. But their hopes of finishing it off ended before they even began.

Charred and burned beyond recognition, the Flat-nose Bear pridelord laid on the ground, no longer breathing. It was sad for them to see it like that because now they wouldn't be able to harvest any of its materials. All the fur had been destroyed, its meat was ruined, and even the bones had become brittle.

”Man… What the heck was that fire?” Rydel asked himself.

”Maybe it has something to do with Bowzer reaching adolescence?” reasoned Maynard. ”I'm curious, what will Bowzer be like after his done evolving? If it means Jack's flames get stronger, then it would definitely be amazing!”

They bantered as they walked over to Jack, who was surrounded by women.

Barely conscious, Jack groaned as he looked around him. Even though Keela had already started to heal his injuries, his body was beyond exhausted after drinking three elixirs in a row. He struggled to move his head back and forth, let alone walk.

”It's okay, I'll be fine after some good rest,” Jack joked around with them, trying to lighten the mood.

”Be quiet, you shouldn't exert yourself.” The playful, teasing Keela was gone at the moment. Instead, she was much gentler and stared at Jack with worried eyes.

”Really, I'll be fine after I sleep it off.”

”Shut up! Can't you see that you're too injured to even walk? Just let us help you and relax.”

Eliza yelled at Jack, showing a bit more of her true self. She had never been outside of Federal City, so this was her first large scale fight. And with this being the first time she's had a party member be so injured, it was hard for her to keep calm.

That's when Jack was suddenly lifted up, carried away by Maura. She looked at the other girls. ”I've seen this before. Because it involved his flame body, he really will need time to rest. It's not as bad this time, but we should get him back to the inn.”

Keela and Eliza found it hard to believe that letting Jack sleep it off would do much, but Daliea also spoke up, ”She's right. This happened after his fight with a troll captain not too long ago. At least this time he's still conscious, so that's a good sign.”

”Well… If you really think that would be best.”

That was the first time she'd experienced something so strange. Her family was reputed as the best clerics in the Zuran Empire, yet she was unable to heal her own party member. In her heart, she felt like she had failed.

”Don't worry about him, they're right, ya know,” Maynard chimed in. ”That kid's flame body is strange. It gives him crazy boosts of strength, but his defenses remain the same. And if he's hurt in that form, then he can't be healed magically. Jack said it had something to do with the fox's bloodline.”

Feeling a bit better thanks to Maynard's explanation, Keela nodded and followed the others toward the dozens of bear corpses.

Still depressed, Eliza also felt like she had failed. She felt that if she had been able to buff Jack, then maybe it wouldn't be as bad as it was now. But that was no longer a possibility and would serve as a reminder for Eliza in the future.

The party divided up the corpses equally, letting everyone get their own share, including Jack.

Rydel gathered Jack's portion for the time being and offered to carry Jack. Even if it would be easier, they couldn't use their beasts to carry him or they would risk revealing them to people unnecessarily. For that reason, Rydel offered to take him from Maura.

”No, I'll be fine.”

Now that she was higher leveled, carrying Jack wouldn't be too difficult. So long as she doesn't have to fight, Maura could handle carrying him back the rest of the way.

Returning to the small town was much faster than tracking the bears. Since they didn't have to conceal their movements, the party ran most of the way.

Before sunset, they reached the inn with Jack on Maura's back.

”Oh, you're back--” The waitress saw them enter and greeted them, but she cut herself off when she saw them covered in blood and the half-conscious Jack. ”What happened?! Are you okay? Let me get a medic--”

”That won't be necessary,” stated Keela, waving her hand and releasing some holy type energy to show that she was a cleric.