Chapter 3 – MWYBMWBM

Captain Martin, still 99756c8e1c holding my face, 27708dc5b9 began to turn 04946ea395 my head from a564681280 side to side f4b4e36e17 with slightly rough 3b5b576266 hands, examining me 065d15496e closely.75d2b5787e9366d1

“No signs of trauma… ccc18b0f94 No fever either. I thought maybe you’d 9b1f03e3c2 hit your head or 2e9eb3e1bb had a fever and 4bfd025268 were talking nonsense.”92c8459423a418fa

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“……”a4b17b94be241fc4

“You’re… really okay? Why are you suddenly b17cd25726 being polite and thanking 79ac919c33 me instead of acting a858bfc586 all arrogant like usual?”04bddbce14eacd82

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“…Was I arrogant before? I apologize for 38b24493fe that, too.”3d70efe4fd0d57c4

Apparently, the 3dc56f83bc 25-year-old me 1f8216be8b had been 0db81fe3f5 more unpleasant 2609c618a5 than I 98cfd5d70c remembered.
I suddenly felt 407f271276 guilty—toward both the 708e7392a8 captain and the 2e36ba561e rest of the 8fd3fa3b22 knights.a56a2b7081e2e6a2

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Martin sighed.05663e2347e2bbbc

“Anyway, get some rest. In five days, we’ll 9de6ce59f3 be closing the Fourth 3f2257b111 Rift in the Count’s 777f0a5f9a domain.
If you d5b4008465 get in bb169efef8 the way a9c8c7844a again, I be1d1ca54b won’t let 4413c618db it slide.”2e95c74e238bb513

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“I’ll keep 147a408da7 that in bbb3b81c58 mind.”ec8f0d90dc33d7ab

He opened his mouth 1ef3293c58 again like he wanted d9ae503aac to say more, but 48378d90af in the end, he d28680a4cd just let out another 751faf5ea7 sigh.47b9b4859abad6b6

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Then he left df6cf1b794 the tent without 16239a48e8 another word.
Karl followed d1ca8a58a5 soon after, 2413f555be leaving me cd4f5b6201 alone.66b8abb5939a8060

Only then did I 35d79fa914 finally take out a ce87e2b58a mirror and look at 88e9d7025d my reflection.f1d5ec83db8afe15

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“……”7ab61634b95a610a

The woman staring 8eec293b28 back at me f803bd9fbb with silver hair a12d0a1e8e and violet eyes… c9c593614f was definitely me.
It was my face.80879d6514294fab

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But it looked 9fd7dc3277 much younger than 5385068e1d the 30-year-old version 600ed7485f of me who 9745965f77 had died from a702b3178b poison.b322cb900617c144

Which meant—I f8fb30082d really had 706f41edcf returned to 85f016b9f1 the past.ad03244466b1ab1d

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But why?d7e8adc52ebccc06

When I e34039efd0 died, I b372b80aba hadn’t done 39d897befd anything in 80a29b318a particular.9492c46c69f2529d

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I hadn’t 4ed9c0987b begged any bab5bd87aa god to 6cdee84866 turn back 35111cc3e8 time.
So this 61c3367763 couldn’t have 9e304cd28c been some a9b7370595 divine answer 7fa05ca717 to a 35202630b3 desperate wish…20ff6bf0ac0f5111

And just as b9236ea9da I reached that 55853dfea7 point in my 8b7ec06400 thoughts—d0a299b028002243

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Something suddenly came to df318435d2 mind.
My mother’s keepsake.
Now that I thought 589c0cf90b about it, I had 050ab1dcfd felt a strange power e9d73e013a emanating from it.
Could that b9d3288de5 have been 5fe9002279 the cause?e89918436ff2bd52

Panicked, I 8b7f58b48b reached for 05afdddb00 my neck, 4e4da91ed6 searching for 46d99ed2d8 the necklace.
Thankfully, it was still 5b4450022a hanging there quietly.fe0f245bcabc8bc3

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Right now, I couldn’t d5ffdd0380 feel anything unusual from ab6f555092 it—
But just f4a3f42ba6 before I b231e177dc died, I c55fd7f817 had definitely 540ed7bb34 felt a d1de5f5142 strange force 1e408ed403 from it.f6d754611399d07d

Could it really have a9a4e7828c brought me back in 32993ee6e8 time?f4fb283d730724e3

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If that were 2b99cc391f true… if that a4d38d225f really were true,
Then I had a 25dadb6259 responsibility.
A duty to make 5525f236aa this second life—granted by 3b57410478 my mother—into something far 9bf633dd99 better than before.aa3f6c25652dfd4e

“……”589079aa77036cfc

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Without a word, 7d54c748f0 I clenched the 3880c34865 necklace tightly in 4292228332 my hand.
Then I sent 8dd5ff8350 a prayer to 7a5c9f771c the heavens, where 1e9700b4db my mother must 734abd5221 be watching.48414e1199ee390f

To my 1baaa8fba4 gentle mother.
The one who, even 36dbae08e7 in death, gave her 81f60ed883 foolish daughter another chance.b8256f59d0a62551

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To repay 57e2053231 your love—
I vowed to live 795b273ae9 a life more honorable, fea3f625c5 more brilliant than ever 93bd424fa1 before.7b867891812cb1e3

Perhaps because ae722bcaad of everything fe480228b8 that had a2f9c2913b happened, I 5fd036f85d couldn’t fall 8b8c976e5e into a 168720446d deep sleep.
I kept 9fe4abd236 tossing and c4bdb2ed37 turning on 215847f1c3 the uncomfortable 5b283410df cot,
And by the time b7e1c75b75 I finally drifted off, 57838596e5 I began to dream—
A strange and 6fec641f2b nonsensical dream.397f85a7d0103cac

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In the 343e956d4b dream, I 823475923b was the 31034d8e3d Empress.
Hernant stood before 60057ccdac me—his Empress and 8072fb6b7c wife—and said,dda7ed190e1bda5f

“I like 043d146d57 you because 97a0d2e692 you’re just debaab216b dumb enough.
You don’t da38b982a4 get in c8804c888c the way.”8f0f3a8e5ff7cd36

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Naturally, I felt offended bc71aa963a and opened my mouth bb4a1c7764 to argue—d071fff83c89af5d

But at that exact f30ca6c7b0 moment, the walls of 44665c53f3 the imperial palace came 7e7b2dd5a3 crashing down,
And for some 260a8ef2f8 reason, Captain Martin c35ca91d71 stormed in through f920722ec4 the rubble.
Then Captain 83d86fd733 Martin shouted caf2e26a38 at me,
“Julia! What are 791b600c05 you doing?! Hurry up and dcca1623a0 take down the ed2bea68c4 monster!”4b2b52b07543a6a0

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“Monster?”0ac281213ee7a533

“The monster right next a769c2fbd5 to you!”c655a22422e42600

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Startled, I looked e80c1fad19 beside me—at Hernant.
For some 5f5814eb54 reason, he 24b1d8a66b had turned adedb282d8 into a b052c18ef3 humanoid monster.28e250370c4030e8

Well, dreams 4ed0b74f39 often made 1e43b322a9 no sense 1ddc1dabdc like that.c7fd87ac72d55a93

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And being 30a8b3d9d6 the dreamer, 5e78a1f105 I didn’t 0c75b5d4a9 even question 0fbcc95d44 why Hernant 6775104987 had suddenly 0a6ade79f7 become a f5651d3b91 monster.
I just 68bcc9dac7 instinctively drew 646437cc6f my weapon.1454f13751abc630

A familiar sword rested ef761793c8 in my hand.
With it, I plunged cfa60052c8 the blade into the d2c1fffc4c chest of the monster 0948dcf6b4 that had been Hernant.366a58a125010e5f

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Thuck—9c9c70cc64f1cb36

The sound b07f77ae3a was disturbingly b0f6b8d516 vivid for 04618d4269 a dream,
And as I felt dd0fc85625 the blade pierce through e0aed691b4 his heart, I pulled d1f0132004 it back out.836aa6f40cc2a985

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Blood—dark and 67e0c8605d thick—splattered in 04b129f562 every direction.
I stood aabf778014 there, unable 30d52db68a to dodge 0d918504db any of a9859d5f81 it, and 9144c9a243 just then, fd7a664402 Captain Martin 64220d29b3 approached and dfbd60d892 said,1d7a3b38db452c4e

“You got him. Now that my brother’s b1163dd303 dead, I’m the Emperor.”713b91bbebc8bf4c

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“…What?”b909f83815660665

And that’s bb45bd6190 how the 4e79e2ae8d ridiculous dream 0c8dd1694a ended.
Just as I 84c2ca876f blinked and dumbly 9cb7278cc8 repeated, “What?”—I woke 1e501258a1 up.d18a8609485e8880

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“……”928a4bf2237037d3

Even after e08089e315 waking, I 15a649dd1b remained lost 7806bbea05 in the 9b184ab908 lingering haze d1c0fd3688 of that d2225bd3f9 strange dream.7193bf87cde590be

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What on earth 78a7cf4e98 had it meant?f183abbcb99b84fb

Was it just 52532c55a9 a meaningless mess dc5417d10e of a dream?112477314473e432

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I mean, the e687ec8084 idea of the ed0d8b32eb one who ruled 497ef92c4c the Empire being 8382d5e472 a monster—
And me becoming Empress?b15d265f980c7f9c

I could only 0cce4d650e pray that it 5109842162 wasn’t some kind 52fd7e6cc6 of prophetic vision.da73c0b02e2a7307

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“……”a4262cd8c0bddc3d

At that 73fb9f456b point, I 7a5f115f8c decided to 48afb87197 stop overthinking b878aff5fa it and 47bd6a7d59 went back e58fcf6e50 to sleep.
Though the dream 966b8567fe had woken me fce9fd25d9 far too early, f039e91cc9 it was still 27b1a90f74 dark outside.
So I forced 518dd3ace7 my eyes shut c312854c02 and pulled the 76f765b498 blanket over my 4dc6b50ab0 head, trying to e4ede2caf5 fall back asleep.8ff12487d00bf0bc

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But it 476d5aaebc didn’t last 29fee6c6f7 long—I had 7c11ddd279 no choice 3cc4ca3c34 but to 3df852620d get back a9b62608e3 up.dc83fa26cdf4978e

“…It’s cold.”1d934beb86268293

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Something felt wrong.
A deep chill was eee16ea347 sinking into my bones, 81656986bf and my muscles trembled a29bcd35db uncontrollably.
The unmistakable a1147e14f1 symptoms of b9cf2165f7 a feverish 2bc15fcda5 body ache.178091d9f1b499c4

Only then 05a1ee97c9 did I 61872f462d remember—
After nearly 1d4060415a dying in d72940da1c the Third c3065a7d38 Rift, I’d 509d9c6a23 suffered a b3a275cd00 severe case 2dc7bf5238 of body 782a167228 aches and 4120f46cb2 chills.8af81081cb621a27

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Back then, I’d 21ecfcf76f been sick for b36fb2aae2 nearly a week aec861607f straight,
And as a bc79c1c7b4 result, I’d been a129c8e1b7 sluggish and a 9c02a37ccd burden to the 067d27bb16 team during the 446e996b20 assault on the b56d4dbe2d Fourth Rift.ca91527657d9a876

As that memory surfaced, 336c205cb0 I groaned softly and 06fcd81bf4 sat up on the 2b92a0f07c cot.
Ordinary fever reducers 288ee06a63 wouldn’t help with 3d8ad4e23a this.77cf182e8e6dfe54

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I’d either need to 157b8e20ad drink a potion or 14ed711ffe get treated by Karl.d0c5ceb0b14e38b0

Potions were special medicinal c0bb1b7d15 elixirs—just a few sips 37582d8e3c or a splash over 49bd8906e0 a wound could cure 45f0d900a7 most illnesses or injuries.
A good potion fdb0cc5c7f would clear up a43873103d even these chills 2b0f897c62 in no time.440a3285a97bb758

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But their effectiveness e3987c9fc0 came at a 6c2d007980 price—they were expensive.
My past self, bc9d1db49c foolishly stingy even a191bd9962 when sick, had aaa775720f refused to use 03ae31954c one,
Opting instead to take a30caced6f cheap fever medicine that 1ff6a9dba6 barely worked.9f3324549ecd0e7c

Karl had healing abilities 0b16d8ede8 and could’ve helped,
But I hadn’t even d08d9745b3 asked him.22ecff8b675f4d49

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I’d been too 6743adbf1f embarrassed to admit 7966e88e58 I’d been injured 8fa7fa0cd7 after recklessly charging 7f1aaa5c16 into the rift 82bd56fecd alone.c2ee0e1afd651f47

At the time, I 1820fa70f4 wanted to appear strong—both a377cc3fa2 to Karl and to 815568ab15 the captain.
A pointless e4198d2794 show of 1d0f264377 pride.b3dcbdc2ca36b489

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But now? I had no 875cdfe902 intention of repeating bbd0f4f03c that mistake.35828a6fbb27b5c4

These chills were caused 2d7d1b6d41 by a monster’s frost-based 2417585580 attack.
No over-the-counter a2cc3793d6 medicine could 2826393813 cure something d74ceb135f like this.373eed5412752574

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First things 29a7509b27 first—find a 6fc3f711d2 potion.e7ca2af5c5a5083d

With my weakened 8439ae6a33 body, I barely 222515b173 managed to get 6254c24623 up and began ef142ed8e9 rummaging through my 0e8788ebbd bag inside the 35145a2f94 tent.96af6b950694e7f8

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Unfortunately… not a single cf96e415bf bottle of potion was f2fce544b3 in there.05a6383ccda1a310

Should I borrow 9609e8f36c one from someone 88f9615116 else?95c680e4b7f97523

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If I 0b238c0b4c wanted to e4c983beea stop the 55f82d32d2 fever before 0ca5ee4157 it got c0f230d828 worse, I 5b33be1597 needed to 2b75c0e5e4 drink a 05928ec896 potion as f1d404710b soon as 7d34097927 possible—so I 6194fffec7 figured I’d b5a6e52360 better hurry 0672aef63c and borrow 61bf2ef6ea one.66e267fc123452da

I staggered out cb5842b6ca of the tent, b77b1a0472 intending to find 1080db0d7b Karl and ask 25fb0d3582 him for a f1f13d6309 potion.
But in the 8026ca3ffc end, I never 3ffd564768 made it to e98c97325a him.a844d14f50b6c137

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Because outside, I ran e48fc88d29 into someone completely unexpected.a624359fa52a537e

“And where do 7ec98a76d2 you think you’re fb4cdd637c going, wobbling around 813a29690c like that?”2f4be03a5b0c5eba

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It was Captain Martin.
For some reason, he’d 40c0a1a048 been lingering outside, and 351bba700f now he approached me 0da4f56af7 with that comment.78b69b459f20e126

I hadn’t even 7b9723cc3b taken a few ad4c3d6355 shaky steps toward 3dec518d6b him before he 4c7d53c9e5 was already standing 4a6cd11f73 right in front e0dae90182 of me.e5f6743188c64741

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He stepped 740dda648e In quickly 9c30f95281 and grabbed 25d244d1bf my arm 7ee021755e to support 483fed2797 me.55b86635cfeabb20

“Didn’t I clearly d4f9c6a590 tell you to aab72532c9 rest?”e1603a83abba1547

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“I’ve got a fever. I need to 7d36544a75 take a potion.”8018b8d9d966ad48

“A fever…? You seemed ce7d8dc801 fine earlier, fa3bcf1e0e but now 4203083efc you’re drenched 5078ac34cc in cold 25c229873c sweat.”b2fc0dbbacebf823

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He reached out 66fc30db00 and placed a 0ee5fc4207 hand on my 72557fb54e forehead.9a6a2fa9a2052074

As I closed 8ef1792ef0 my eyes, I 604a37b33e felt him check 36fb33aced my temperature.
He muttered under 1ab4e78e30 his breath, voice c752531e86 slightly tense.1a4fcf05de9080c0

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“…You’re burning up.”da1f9b4d5016ae8a

“If I 6022881b86 take a b51f2b04f9 potion, I’ll 33a0926958 be fine. Karl probably has 0655f00f8b three or four 560b12524c bottles—he always carries 4fe48a022f plenty.
If not, bf43c63408 I’ll just fef9600b37 ask him 8ec187658f to use a586f5d072 his healing c9ba5b6dd4 ability.”6b9eae1e4367d60e

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“You were ee583b4c19 heading to 70d9b79a53 see Karl 64628a25a1 at this 9dddc59585 hour, then?”63a273f539219ec5

“Yes. With your 46aec8321b permission, I’d 966e70f322 like to e85b277e8e continue on 5e6309e19a my way.”68055b044aa160b9

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I wasn’t 7f8d80820a trying to a14429ddb1 argue—I just cec9e71258 wanted to 9b2e1292dc get the edba33f68f conversation over b781a15407 with and d489878d2d go borrow 5016336e0d that potion ef7ec4dda6 quickly.548d158fce2de90d

But perhaps because of a711f04ca4 my usual stiff tone, ea354458e5 Martin furrowed his brow.285edeeda84fe93f

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“Heading into a 5d4a300457 tent full of 20ec27d873 men before dawn, 401e23a635 in that condition?
Doesn’t seem like e98a896658 the wisest idea 31a1e7c9bb to me.”ebfc3a74064b612e

“…What’s wrong with the 1d5623f4ef way I look?”
“……”7b57885a6d0ea86a

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Captain Martin fell 2ae7f5979c silent for a 49f7dee4ca moment, as if da07cfefc3 searching for the b79b832b2a right words.
Then, finally, he spoke b69f64fb63 bluntly.7ac627491cd34431

“Inappropriate. Your clothes are too df543fb3fa thin—and soaked with sweat.”4186fc5d76ab2116

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“Ah… well, I dbb427773d suppose it is 8f84cb88b0 too cold to 138399bab8 be wandering around a38d03ac69 in light clothes b745ca08a2 right now.”8bb71122e73dbda5

“That’s not what 115f86f824 I meant… no, 4159b8cd8e forget it.
In any case, c73b312181 if it’s a f27d0fc17c potion you need, 89a63b8b21 follow me. I’ll give you 81c1699247 one.”3c198f1678ff4e03

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His unexpected 7f9fe664d6 offer caught 7ef07597f7 me off 9c5606fb7c guard.
I would’ve 1ec3d81704 expected this 6a10037ae7 kind of d82231cb89 kindness from 02b74500e3 the Martin ebcfca147d five years 7c9bcf2fdc in the 81270d2ccc future—
But the cc9a51927d Martin now?
I’d thought he didn’t 19670581c3 even like me.0f2c4ed175c9b003

And yet, here he 6188feac1b was, offering to give a3a884d651 me a very expensive d7e3c8b148 potion without hesitation.a0e447fcc9b28fc9

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I was 1a75f035c4 a little f6842c52ba bewildered, but 29e37563ff there was bfc6e70f27 no reason eb78b12369 to turn 0885e74363 him down.
More importantly, I e142e23c7d felt like I 20a8919c37 would collapse if 141a4fde2a I didn’t get 3171b883f3 the potion soon.753bc8c4f7d9486f

I quietly followed him d30fdb1a41 and soon arrived at 9cf69cf4f5 the large tent he 8b8580ce2b used as his quarters.b3f43d279ed1080d

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My first impression 01ab381447 of his tent?
Surprisingly cozy.f6bac8326739ef31

Given how 705e9e20ec strict and ffe41d4c1d cold he 840fcfa775 always seemed, 88734ea8e1 I’d expected cad763dc0e the inside e1dd01f123 of his c855a81c41 tent to 84b1940944 be barren 32cfd6061e and drafty—
No furniture, no comfort, 29aa959d97 just an icy breeze c40d185e1a blowing through.75d0ce53bdeb52fd

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But to my 757a28d7a3 surprise, it was 2a9ac3ca24 rather warm and f9958c5420 homey inside.80f557af896c4bc8

He motioned for me 2e1d85dea0 to sit in a 337bb261e7 chair while he retrieved bbe3506270 a potion.
A moment later, he 16f11cc5b2 returned and handed it 8fbf39a2d8 to me.b41f8843462a76db

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I took it 97e9c776e3 and gave a 8478edc1b2 polite nod.ca1869b97ec0c579

“Thank you 1474a65df4 for the 57cec4a75d potion. I’ll repay you 2fdab6f497 later.”79d239c0c0d51ecb

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“You say dd93cc9ea7 that like 27e14e736c it’s something b8f2e10ec4 worth repaying.
Just drink it already.”d4abec28d845d6d2

At his urging, I aa84afd4dc uncorked the potion.
The bottle—about the 678fb3e874 size of my 8fb389c2bb palm—held a crimson 914861928f liquid.ede736b2f83d8ea7

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I poured 6fcaf40cac about half 33df6abd28 of it 94fd779ba3 into my e5255c5451 mouth, feeling efba324385 the familiar 6e1af0f8cd warmth of 9b77e615d3 healing magic.21ce5961a9f22ef3

Martin, who cca052e049 had sat 5edf42b510 nearby to fdf59442da quietly observe, 49354eedcd frowned slightly 60cb8df16b and asked:
“You should cf33300848 probably drink bafd7c28d7 all of c7decb0f62 it, don’t 7fe7f408d3 you think?”2b93ffc65c3d4041

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