Chapter 1720 - 239 - Give Up (2)

"It's fine, isn't it?"

Leon-san suddenly spoke up from nearby and looked over at us.

"I don't think there's going to be much of a problem, as long as they're properly protected," he said in a calm voice.

Doctor Natasha looked at him for a moment, seemingly considering what he had just suggested, before eventually letting out a quiet sigh.

"Well, I suppose that could work," she said, sounding like she wasn't completely convinced but also didn't see much reason to argue against it. "However, I'm only going to allow this one time. The medbay is always busy, and I don't think it would be reasonable to have them coming in here repeatedly whenever they want to visit."

She looked back at all of us before continuing in a slightly softer tone.

"I hope you're all alright with that arrangement, because that's about as much as I can allow under the circumstances."

Well, it was something, and considering that we had originally been waiting outside without knowing whether we would even be allowed inside, I wasn't about to complain about the conditions.

So we all nodded in agreement without putting up any argument.

"Well then, let's go inside," Doctor Natasha said before turning around and heading toward the entrance of the medbay.

"Thank you," I said to Leon-san, turning toward him.

"I didn't really do anything to warrant thanks," he said. "You've been worrying about Sakai so much that you've been staying here all night since yesterday."

My expression immediately changed when I heard that.

"Y-You noticed?"

"It's not exactly difficult for anyone to notice," he replied rather casually. "Although, I suppose... they wouldn't notice you after all."

He looked at me for another moment before eventually turning his eyes away.

I stared at him for several seconds while trying to understand what exactly he had meant by that comment, and then it finally clicked in my head.

My face immediately turned bright red.

"A-Are you saying that I was unnoticeable and that I don't have any presence?!"

"I'm not saying you don't have any presence," he replied. "It's more like... your presence is kind of stunted, I guess."

Hearing that somehow made my face turn even redder, and I puffed my cheeks out while glaring at him with an annoyed pout.

"I'm short, and nobody notices me because I'm too small! Is that it?!" I complained. "I'm not that short at 152 centimeters, so you don't have to make it sound like I'm practically invisible!"

"S-Sensei, that's not exactly tall..." Morofuji-san quietly pointed out while looking at me like I had just presented the most questionable argument imaginable.

I knew I was short.

Of course I knew I was short.

That wasn't exactly some shocking revelation that had suddenly appeared in my life.

I had known about it for years, and I had already gotten used to being smaller than most people around me.

Still, knowing something about yourself and having someone else casually point it out were two completely different experiences, especially when that person sounded like they were trying very hard not to laugh.

I really didn't want them making fun of me for something I couldn't exactly change.

"Leon is probably just making fun of you, sensei," Morofuji-san added, apparently trying to defend me while also failing to hide how amusing she found the situation.

I gave her an unhappy look before deciding that arguing about my height any further would probably only make things worse.

After we spent a little more time dealing with that conversation, we finally made our way into the medbay.

Before we were permitted to enter the main treatment area, we were guided into a separate chamber that appeared to be designed specifically for sanitizing anyone who entered the facility. We had to remain there for a short while while the equipment around us went through its procedures, making sure that we weren't carrying anything dangerous into the medical area.

Once the process was finished, we were given protective suits and facemasks that we were required to wear before being allowed any farther inside.

The precautions made sense, especially considering that the medbay was filled with people whose conditions could potentially make them extremely vulnerable to infection.

They needed to make sure that we didn't become infected by something inside the facility as well, while also making sure that we didn't accidentally bring something from outside and infect any of the patients who were currently being treated.

It was a little uncomfortable having to wear all that equipment, but I wasn't about to complain when the safety of the patients was involved.

Leon-san also left us after we entered the medbay, leaving us in Doctor Natasha's care as she continued guiding us farther into the facility.

Eventually, she brought us to the place where Sakai-san was being treated.

Doctor Trisha was already there when we arrived.

"Oh, you're back," Doctor Trisha said as she looked toward us, although her expression quickly became slightly confused.

I couldn't really blame her for that reaction.

With the protective suits and facemasks covering most of our appearances, we probably looked like a group of random medical personnel who had somehow wandered into the room.

"It's the heroes," Doctor Natasha explained. "They wanted to see her."

"I see..." Doctor Trisha replied after hearing that, apparently understanding why we had been allowed inside.

We turned our attention toward Sakai-san.

She had been connected to a large number of tubes and medical devices that seemed to be supporting her in various ways. I didn't understand what all of them did, but just looking at the number of tubes attached to her was enough to make me realize how serious her condition had been.

"We're going to leave you for a little while," Doctor Natasha said. "Please try not to touch anything while you're here, especially if you can avoid it."

"We won't touch anything," I replied immediately. "Thank you for letting us come inside."

Doctor Natasha and Doctor Trisha eventually stepped away, leaving us with Sakai-san for the time being.

I slowly looked back toward her.

She looked peaceful right now.

That simple sight alone made me feel a little more relieved than I had expected.

When I had first seen her, she had looked absolutely terrible.

Her face had been frighteningly pale, her lips had been cracked and almost completely drained of color, and she looked like someone whose life could disappear at any moment if the doctors stopped whatever they were doing.

Seeing her like this now was completely different.

There was color in her skin again, and her face no longer looked nearly as lifeless as it had before. Her vitality seemed to have returned to her, at least enough that I could look at her without immediately feeling that same overwhelming sense of dread I had experienced when I first saw her condition.

I knew there was still a long way to go, and I knew that I couldn't simply assume everything would be fine from this point onward.

Still, for the moment, I allowed myself to breathe a little easier.

For now, right here and right now, I was genuinely grateful that Sakai-san was still here, that she was still alive, and that her vitality had finally begun to return.