Early morning.
The mist had thinned slightly.
"A bit to the left... right, a bit higher."
Victor stood at the entrance, directing the construction like a picky client.
Alice stood on her tiptoes, holding a piece of rotten wood, trying to hang it in the most prominent spot on the gate.
On it was a sign Victor had written using glowing moss juice:
【Benevolent Heart Clinic】
【Specializing in: Limb reattachment, organ repair, curse removal, and skull polishing.】
【Today’s Special: No anesthesia, surgery is free!】
"Perfect."
Victor nodded in satisfaction.
Alice hopped down from the stool, tilting her head, her red eyes filled with confusion.
"Lord Director, why is it free if we don't use anesthesia?"
She poked the giant exclamation mark on the sign.
"Those anesthetics... they smell very sweet. Why save them?"
Victor pushed his non-existent glasses up his nose, his face a mask of grief and indignation.
"Alice, as a conscientious doctor, one cannot only think about making money."
In his mind, he was silently doing the math.
In the system mall, a bottle of finished anesthetic cost 50 points.
His entire net worth was only 200 points.
Give monsters anesthesia?
The clinic would go bankrupt before it even opened.
"Anesthesia damages the nerves and affects recovery."
Victor spouted nonsense with a perfectly serious face:
"For these thick-skinned monsters, pain is a part of their vitality!"
"We are practicing 'physical awakening therapy.' Only through pain can one heal quickly! Do you understand?"
Alice nodded, only half-understanding, her eyes filled with admiration.
"I see... the director is so kind."
"To ensure the patients' recovery, he even helps them save money."
"Alright, let's open for business!"
Victor straightened his collar and walked into the hall.
He said he was welcoming guests, but it was more like a fisherman waiting for a bite.
This was a forbidden zone for humans; no creature with a functioning brain would actively seek medical treatment here.
Unless...
【Ding! Lure Aura has been activated.】
【Attracting potential patients within a five-kilometer radius...】
This was a passive skill built into the clinic.
It emitted a unique pheromone that only injured or sick creatures could smell.
It was a lethal temptation representing 'salvation.'
Not long after.
A rustling sound came from the grass.
Here it comes.
The first fish.
Through the bulletproof glass, a green creature about one hundred and twenty centimeters tall poked its head out.
Pointy ears, a large nose, and covered in scabs.
Most notable was its right leg.
It was bent at an unnatural angle. It walked with a limp, baring its teeth in pain with every step.
A goblin scout.
Bottom-tier cannon fodder—greedy, cunning, and cowardly.
It had been on patrol when it was drawn in by the scent.
Is that the scent of healing?
The goblin sniffed, its cloudy little eyes flashing with longing.
Its leg had been snapped by a bear yesterday while it was stealing honey, and it had been hurting all night.
If it could be cured...
It shuffled forward a few steps and saw the wooden sign by the door.
It couldn't read.
But it understood that striking 'free' symbol (a gold coin with a cross through it).
No money?
There's such a good deal?
Greed overcame fear.
The goblin swallowed hard and dragged its broken leg, inching toward the main door one step at a time.
It got closer.
The moment it set one foot on the steps.
"Welcome!"
An overly enthusiastic voice boomed.
The goblin shuddered in fright, instinctively wanting to run.
Too late.
The little girl in the black dress, who looked harmless to humans and animals alike, was standing behind it before it knew it.
Snip.
A pair of great scissors was held against its neck, the cold blades pressing against its carotid artery.
"Dear patient, since you've come, make yourself at home."
Victor stepped out from the shadows, a professional fake smile plastered on his face, holding a...
Was that a giant iron sledgehammer meant for smashing walls?
The goblin looked at the hammer, which was larger than its own head, and its legs went weak. It fell to its knees.
"Gili-wala!!"
It let out a piercing shriek, kowtowing desperately.
Didn't the sign say free treatment?
This looks like an execution!
"Don't be afraid. I am a doctor, not a butcher."
Victor grabbed the goblin by the scruff of its neck like a little chick and hauled it into the clinic.
"Alice, close the door."
"Don't let the wind give our patient a cold."
Clang.
The door locked.
The goblin slumped to the floor in despair.
Ignoring its trembling, Victor threw it directly onto the operating table.
"Lie still."
Leather straps tightened automatically, firmly fixing its four limbs.
【Patient detected: low-tier goblin.】
【Condition: Comminuted fracture of the right tibia.】
【Plan: Open reduction and internal fixation (expensive), or... physical bone setting (free).】
Victor looked at the goblin’s shriveled coin pouch.
Clearly, this one couldn't afford the cost of materials.
"Tsk, a comminuted fracture. Troublesome."
Victor reached out and squeezed the broken leg hard several times.
"Aow!!!"
The goblin screamed, its eyes nearly bulging out of its head.
It hurt!
This human's fingers were like iron pliers, pinching directly onto the bone shards!
"Stop screaming!"
Victor slapped its forehead.
"I'm checking the bone alignment! What if it heals crooked because you're moving? How will you steal things with legs of different lengths?"
The goblin shut its mouth aggrievedly, letting out whimpering moans from its throat.
Victor pulled out the brutal 'medical bone hammer.'
It was a part of the 【Basic Bone Tools】 exchanged for 10 points in the system mall.
Although it was called 'basic,' it looked no different from a forge hammer in a blacksmith's shop.
"Listen, little green-skin."
Victor weighed the hammer in his hand.
"Your bone is shattered into crumbs. According to the procedure, I'd have to cut open the flesh, drive in steel nails, and put on a steel plate... the whole set would cost fifty gold coins."
"Gii?!"
The goblin's eyes widened.
Fifty gold coins? It wasn't worth that much even if it were sold!
"It seems you have no money."
Victor sighed, wearing an 'I knew it' expression.
"Since you have no money, I can only use my exclusive secret recipe—physical bone setting."
"The advantage is that it's free. As for the disadvantage..."
He glanced at the hammer.
"The disadvantage is that it hurts a bit. And since you can't pay the anesthesia fee, we have to skip that step."
Although the goblin didn't understand 'physical bone setting,' it understood the hammer.
It shook its head frantically, snot and tears flowing.
I won't be treated! I'd rather be a cripple!
Let me go!
"That won't do."
Victor's face darkened, his voice righteous and stern.
"Once you enter my door, you must be cured before you can leave. Those are the rules of the Benevolent Heart Clinic!"
He looked at Alice.
"Hold it down. This little thing has quite a bit of strength; don't let it struggle and snap its bones."
"Yes, Lord Director."
Alice stepped forward, her slender hands pressing down on the goblin's shoulders.
In that instant.
The goblin felt as if it wasn't a hand pressing down on it, but a massive mountain.
The pressure of a high-tier undead made its entire body go stiff.
"Very good, hold that position."
Victor's left hand felt for the position of the broken bone, finding the protruding point of deformity.
His right hand raised the iron hammer high.
There were no fancy movements.
He was like an experienced blacksmith facing a glowing red iron.
"Bear with it, deep breath!"
The goblin subconsciously inhaled, staring in horror at the falling shadow.
Bang!!
A dull thud was accompanied by the crisp 'crack' of the bone snapping back into place.
Time stood still for a second.
Then.
"GIIII——————!!!"
A scream so shrill it sounded as if its soul were being torn apart instantly pierced the morning silence.
The goblin's body snapped straight, thrashing violently like a fish out of water.
Its eyeballs protruded, covered in red veins.
It hurt too much.
The excruciating pain of having misaligned bones hammered back into place was simply not something a living creature could endure.
If Alice hadn't been holding it down, it would have flown off the table long ago.
"Not done yet! There's one more section!"
Victor's eyes were calm, completely ignoring the carnage.
He raised the hammer again.
Bang!
"Ah!!!"
Bang!
"Ugh..."
After three strikes.
The screaming stopped abruptly.
The goblin foamed at the mouth, its eyes rolling back as it slumped onto the operating table.
It had passed out from the pain.
"Phew... done."
Victor put down the hammer and wiped away non-existent sweat.
He checked the right leg again.
The originally twisted calf was now straight.
Although it was swollen like a radish and covered in purple bruises, the bones were indeed perfectly aligned.
【Ding!】
【Treatment complete!】
【Evaluation: A-rank (Simple and Crude)】
【Points gained: 10.】
Victor nodded in satisfaction.
"My skills haven't gotten rusty."
He took out two wooden boards and quickly applied a splint.
"Alice, throw him... cough, carry him to the door to get some sun."
Victor gave instructions while washing his hands.
"When he wakes up, tell him that to thank him for his cooperation, he can come back for an eighty percent discount next time he breaks a bone."
Alice picked up the unconscious goblin as if she were picking up a dead rat.
She walked to the door and tossed him aside.
Looking at the foaming, pitiful creature, Alice tilted her head and revealed an innocent, pure smile.
"The director's medical skills are truly amazing."
"With just three hammer strikes, the patient became so quiet."
Rate on N.U.
