THE DAY WE MET

I took her to my house deep in the forest.

I found this place by chance while strolling through the woods some time ago.

It was abandoned, so I cleaned it up and made it my home.

Living alone here hasn’t been difficult for me. I was an orphan even before all of this happened, so solitude is nothing new. This area is relatively safe too—no monsters roaming around—which is convenient on my part.

I lay her gently on my bed and started cooking dinner.

Being an orphan teaches you the things you need to survive. You learn to do everything yourself just to live a decent life. Cooking, cleaning, planting—if you don’t know how to take care of yourself, then you’re simply not going to last.

Honestly, it even irritates me that I don’t know basic planting—I think it’s not that hard.

I’m a healer mage. I do have above-average mana compared to others, but even that isn’t always enough.

Healing wounds consumes mana. And casting spells as a mage depletes it fast—especially when hunting.

Like the girl I just carried home, I also hunt alone.

But I’m amazed at her—she’s a close-range fighter, relying on potions just to stay alive.

Compared to her, I’m long-range. I can cast elemental spells from a distance, depending on a monster’s weakness. And if I’m cornered, all I need to do is manage my mana carefully—choosing the most effective spell, then using the rest of my mana to heal myself.

That’s the thing though—my mana regeneration is like a snail’s pace.

When I run out, I need to stay hidden and avoid drawing attention until it recovers.

Mana is everything to a mage like me.

Without it, I can’t use any spells.

Every spell costs mana, especially healing spells—which consume far more than offensive ones.

I finish cooking and begin setting the table when I hear her stir.

She’s awake.

“Who are you?” she asks groggily.

“I’m Masumi,” I reply.

“Are you the one who caught me earlier?”

I nod silently.

“Thank you. Did you heal me? Are you a healer?”

“Yes, to both questions.”

“Thank you… but I need to go now. My mother might be super worried.”

“Eat first,” I tell her calmly.

“You need to eat. I may have healed your wounds, but not your energy. And… you haven’t told me your name.”

“Oh—sorry! I’m Ysa Yamashita. Okay, I’ll eat. But after this, I really need to go. I’m afraid my mom might come into the forest looking for me if I’m not home.”

“Okay. But I’m going with you.”

She looks surprised.

“I’m not comfortable letting you go alone,” I explain.

“You might collapse again, and… you’re not familiar with this part of the forest.”

I don’t really know what got into me when I said that.

But something about her… I just couldn’t let her go alone.

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