Bonus Story:
Impatient Patient
SOME TIME HAD PASSED SINCE ZIG’S HOSPITALIZATION. The progress he made over a short time considering his heavy injuries was astounding. Dorea was at a loss for words.
Still, the fact remained that he hadn’t fully recovered and would need some additional rest. And yet…
“Zig’s gone.”
Siasha was greeted by an empty shell of a bed upon entering his room.
She started looking around for Zig’s escape route. There were no windows and he was too large to sneak out. He probably went outside to the courtyard on the roof. Zig was still recovering, but getting there would be easy for him.
“My goodness…” Her tone was deadpan, though there was a hint of annoyance, as if fully expecting that sort of behavior.
She had a feeling that he was going to do that sort of thing—he was a mercenary who never skipped out on training. Be it sword drills or endurance, he would always make time for exercise. She knew that being stuck in bed would bore him out of his mind. He needed a large amount of food to maintain his body and stimulation to keep his mind going.
“If only he could stay still until he was fully healed,” Siasha smiled wryly as she made his bed. She was like a mother with a troublesome child. Though, their age gap made it impossible for her to be his mother, and she was usually the one under his care.
“I have to tell Dr. Dorea, at least. He probably went out to eat, but he’s definitely eating again once he comes back.”
Zig probably didn’t enjoy hospital food because the meals were bland. However, Siasha had noticed that as much as Zig enjoyed delicious food, he was at his happiest when he could fill his stomach.
Not women, not gambling, not drinking—he was completely satisfied with a full belly. Kind of childish, but she found it strangely fitting. Though, he still felt uneasy about nourishing himself with an empty wallet.
Having fixed up his bed, Siasha left the room.
“Zig can be quite childish despite being an adult most of the time… Huh?”
Just as she was about to go see Dorea, she remembered something else. Did Zig leave with his wallet? And if he did, how much was in it? He still had some money left after paying his medical fees, but he had eaten a violent amount of food that morning. Siasha went shopping for Zig since he was incapacitated, but he should have little to nothing left after his buffet.
In fact, Siasha was the first one to notice that Zig’s inhuman hunger was outpacing his wallet. She didn’t mind lending him money because of the unpayable debt she owed him, but he had firmly refused. So, she took the liberty of paying for some of his meals. He wouldn’t be able to keep track of the expenses with the amount of food that she got him.
She remembered seeing a few copper coins left in his purse the last time she saw it. That might not be enough to get him some harder-than-a-rock rye bread.
“O-oh no, Zig would be so sad…”
The worst-case scenario would be if he didn’t have enough money to pay for the food he got. It was doubtful whether Zig would realize his wallet had dried up since he hadn’t been out in a while. Some of the shops had you pay up front, but others would only bill you after you were done eating.
“He might end up stripped of everything he has!”
While the military police wouldn’t be called to respond to something like a dine-and-dash, he might still get kicked out after getting his valuables taken from him. While forcibly getting his gear off of him would be difficult, he was surprisingly honest. He definitely would sell some of his gear off to pay for lunch.
“This won’t do. I have to find him!”
With the impending doom looming over Zig, Siasha left the clinic with determination, her robes trailing after her. She also forgot to inform Dorea that his patient was missing.
She couldn’t find Zig in the end, though he eventually returned that night with alcohol on his breath. Siasha gave him a proper earful, but that was a story for another day.