Chapter 11
“Let’s have you take a pulse diagnosis.”
“Suddenly?”
“But on one condition.”
“Hm. What is it you want?”
“Before that, let me ask you one thing. Do you know why they didn’t completely get rid of my father? Do you have any idea?”
The physician smiled faintly.
“Well, that’s because of me. How could I let a guest who summoned me just die?”
“A guest?”
“Your father entrusted me with curing you. Though now, of course, that request has lost all meaning.”
I looked at the physician anew.
From the start, he hadn’t seemed ordinary, but I hadn’t expected a story like this to be hidden behind him.
I grew even more curious about who he truly was, but as long as I achieved my objective, that truth would come out naturally in time.
One question was answered. It was time to get to the real point.
“The condition I have is…”
My words trailed off as my gaze shifted toward his waist.
There, securely fastened for easy use at any moment, was a needle case.
Yes.
My business had never been with the physician himself, but with that case.
“I’d like to have a look at that needle case.”
At that, the physician’s expression twisted sharply.
He lashed out in anger.
“No such thing! You’d best leave now. The patient still needs to rest.”
He turned his back on me as if to say there was nothing more to discuss.
An unmistakable dismissal.
It was a natural reaction.
He might not be able to converse directly with the case, but no one would know its nature better than he.
But… would the needle case feel the same way?
‘A… a reaper?’
The case showed interest in the reaper who had followed me into the physician’s quarters.
‘I—I’m sure I saved the man who was poisoned, but… wait, is someone else going to die!?’
Its trembling voice revealed clear fear.
In contrast, the reaper barely reacted, utterly indifferent even after realizing the case was a divine artifact.
That was strange. In my time, that wouldn’t have been the case.
Well, then again…
Comparing to me wasn’t exactly fair.
Since the case was clearly unsettled, I decided to step in.
“Why don’t you…”
I stopped mid-sentence.
If I spoke aloud, the physician would only think I’d gone mad.
So instead, I conveyed my thoughts with divine power.
‘It can’t calm down like that. Say something to put it at ease.’
The reaper reluctantly opened his mouth to the case.
‘I have not come to take souls. Rest easy.’
And then he fell silent.
The case, having some sense, didn’t push further with the reaper, but instead turned its attention on me, peppering me with questions.
‘Just what are you? How can a human converse with a reaper? And just now—you even gave him an order…’
So this thing was a chatterbox.
Better a talker than a mute in this situation, but if I left it alone, it’d go on forever. I cut in.
‘So, you’re not afraid of me, but you’re afraid of him?’
I gave it a small scare on purpose.
Hic!
Startled, the needle case actually hiccupped.
The effect rebounded onto the physician, making his body jolt and sway violently.
“What on earth is wrong with this thing!?”
Startled, he quickly unfastened the case and held it in his hands, inspecting it anxiously for damage.
‘You treasure it deeply, I see.’
Well, divine artifacts were treasures indeed.
His care for the case was obvious.
But that was his concern, not mine.
I continued conversing with the case as if nothing had happened.
‘Silent now? Got frightened, did you?’
‘N-no, not like that.’
‘No need to be so tense. I don’t intend to harm you. I’m just curious about you.’
‘…About me?’
‘Yes. It’s been a long while since I’ve found a divine artifact I could converse with so freely. And a needle case at that? A first for me.’
‘I-I appreciate your interest, but I’m hardly worthy of being called a divine artifact…’
‘So you’d rather I left you alone?’
‘N-no, not at all!’
‘You keep acting up, but I don’t mind. I just wonder—will that reaper over there stay silent too? Do you think you can handle it if he doesn’t?’
The case fell silent, trembling again.
The reaper shot me a look of exasperation, but he wasn’t clueless.
When I signaled him, he fixed the case with a cold stare, backing me up.
That did it.
‘Wh-what must I do!’
The needle case surrendered.
The conversation became much easier.
‘I told you, I just want to talk more comfortably. Isn’t there some way?’
‘I-I don’t know if…’
‘You still don’t understand the situation. Hey, reaper.’
‘N-no! Wait! Perhaps… perhaps try this instead?’
‘Oh? Let’s hear it.’
The case proposed a method.
It sounded plausible.
‘Good. Let’s try your way.’
The moment I agreed, the case shook violently, far more than before.
Rrrrrrrip!
“A-again…!”
The physician stammered in panic, powerless to stop it.
That was when I stepped in.
“That’s a sign the case’s lifespan is nearly spent.”
At my offhand remark, the physician spun toward me like lightning.
“What do you mean? Its lifespan nearly spent!?”
“Exactly that. When a divine artifact nears the end of its life, such phenomena often occur.”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“You can doubt me if you want, but if you leave it alone, it’ll be destroyed. Will you just watch?”
“Even if I believe you, if its life is over, what can be done?”
“Ordinarily, nothing. Ordinarily.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s not impossible to restore it to its original state. At least, not for me.”
His eyes widened slightly, though suspicion lingered.
He didn’t seem convinced even that the case’s lifespan was ending.
I shrugged.
Of course he wouldn’t yield so easily.
But our clever little case had already thought this far ahead.
‘I’ll damage myself. That way, he’ll have no choice but to entrust me to you.’
And it acted at once.
Crack!
A fine fracture appeared along its surface.
Barely larger than a fingernail scratch, but enough to make the physician panic.
“No… no! The Life-and-Death Needle Case that has been passed down for generations, to be lost like this? Impossible!”
His eyes, filled with dread, soon hardened with resolve.
He thrust the case into my hands.
“…You can keep your word, can’t you?”
So it really worked.
The case’s gamble paid off exactly as it predicted.
Its part of the story was over.
Mine was just beginning.
“Surely you’re not asking me for help for free.”
“…What do you want?”
“Well…”
I drew it out.
After all, I wasn’t the desperate one here.
And more importantly…
‘To think I’d find you here.’
At first, I hadn’t recognized the physician.
But with the insight I’d recently gained, it was clear.
He was a physician from the prestigious Zhuge clan—
none other than Zhuge Ming, the Divine Physician of Life and Death.
Though infamous for demanding a patient’s entire fortune as payment, his skills ranked among the top five in the martial world.
‘All the more reason not to waste this chance.’
I almost felt sorry for deceiving him… but only almost.
“If I succeed in restoring this, I want you to help me for ten years.”
“W-what?”
“A divine artifact, and one you value so highly. I reckon that’s worth about ten years.”
“I’ve heard you demand entire fortunes to treat patients. Compared to that, my terms aren’t so harsh.”
His eyes widened—not just at the demand, but that I’d recognized him.
“When did you know?”
His tone toward me shifted, but I shook my head.
That wasn’t what mattered now.
“Ten years might sound long.”
And indeed, it was.
So I offered a compromise.
“You don’t need to follow me everywhere. Only promise not to refuse when I call on you.”
That softened his expression.
“If you truly restore it, I’ll agree.”
“Then I suppose the lord’s medical fee disappears too.”
“…You knew?”
“How could I not?”
It was Zhuge Ming, after all.
I fully expected him to demand payment.
But this was a good bargain for him too—aside from whether he trusted me.
“Can you truly repair it?”
He still doubted me.
Silently, I held out my hand.
After hesitation, he surrendered the case.
The case trembled violently.
‘A condition? You never mentioned that!’
Upset I’d added terms, it faltered.
But when I glanced at it, it quickly composed itself, even trying to laugh it off.
‘On second thought, forging ties with someone like you may not be so bad, even for the old man.’
I smirked.
A fun personality, this one.
Different from the taciturn Destructive Sword, but not bad at all.
“Ah!”
As the trembling ceased, Zhuge Ming gasped in awe.
He must have handed it over with only desperation.
Now, though, his eyes brimmed with trust, hope, and desperation alike.
‘Well, I did deceive him. So…’
I decided to throw him a small boon.
“You must have sensed it. Divine artifacts have wills, like people. They like and dislike things. This one, for instance…”
I looked to the case.
‘I like basking in warm sunlight! It purifies the stale energy I absorb while healing, and even lets me store up a bit of energy.’
“It says it likes being in the sun. Makes it stronger, apparently. Try it sometime.”
Zhuge Ming’s eyes widened again.
That was payment enough for my deception.
“I’ll need to focus to repair this. Please step outside for a while.”
Though reluctant, he obeyed.
My initial goal was accomplished.
“Well then, shall we finally have a proper talk?”
‘Gladly.’
I began asking the case about its origins—when it was made, when it gained self-awareness, and so on.
Much like the reaper once questioned me.
But my reasons were different.
‘A well-forged sword may develop a soul. With will and faith, it gains divine power.’
That was how I was born as the Purple Heaven Divine Sword.
Of course, not all divine artifacts came about that way.
The case before me was proof—born through a wholly different process.
That meant there were methods of forging divine artifacts beyond what I knew.
Not wrong, but perhaps incomplete.
And knowledge was never a bad thing.
‘After all, it could lead me to what I need—like the Destructive Sword.’
And so, the needle case told me its story.
‘I don’t recall the exact time, only that long ago, there was a great healer.
Before ascending, he saved countless lives. When he had healed ten thousand people, I was born.’
Summarizing it made the truth plain.
“So, in the end… it all comes down to people.”
