Aozaki Aoko Case File [505] (Patreon)

“My old friends, I’ve missed you so much!!!”

As Aoko’s group neared Edgin’s house, they heard his voice from a distance—he was shoveling snow in the yard, since a few hours without shoveling would bury the place.

Edgin rushed over to hug Simon and shook hands with Doric and Aoko. He seemed relieved, as if he’d finally found a solution to a big problem.

“You look like you’re doing well,” Aoko observed Edgin. The man looked much better since his wife was revived—at least he wasn’t a scruffy mess like Simon.

“Hahaha, it’s all thanks to my wife’s care,” Edgin laughed. He seemed a bit tired, but his spirits were good. “Let’s go inside, there’s plenty I need your help with. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have sent that letter.”

They followed Edgin inside. The house, which was a dilapidated mess last time Aoko visited, was now warm and comfortable—even by her standards. Clearly, Edgin had spent his money wisely.

“Hey guys, you finally made it!” Holga called, carrying a bundle of firewood from the kitchen. She grinned at the group. “It’s only been a few months, but it feels like years.”

“With this endless winter, you can’t even tell day from night in Ten Towns,” Edgin sighed, sitting at the table and pouring himself hot tea. “Honestly, the situation here is pretty bad—that’s why I called for your help.”

“Where are your wife and daughter?” Aoko looked around and didn’t see them, so she asked.

“Kira’s sick, my wife’s taking care of her,” Edgin replied. “Hey, Aoko, you have some cleric levels, right? Can you take a look at Kira? She’s had a high fever for two days and it won’t go away.”

“I should remind you, I’m only a level two cleric—my abilities are limited,” Aoko said, standing up. “But I brought some medicine from my hometown that might help.”

“Thank you so much,” Edgin said, quickly opening the door to a bedroom.

Aoko entered Kira’s room. It was warmer than the living room, as Edgin had set up a stove with a safe chimney.

The little girl, lively the last time Aoko saw her, now looked utterly miserable, lying weakly in bed as her mother cooled her forehead with a damp cloth.

Aoko chatted briefly with Edgin’s wife, confirming that Kira’s fever started two days ago and hadn’t gotten better.

Though Edgin thought it was just a cold, he was worried because he knew little about medicine.

“There are no signs of curse or magic on Kira,” Aoko said after carefully using her aura sight. “It should just be a regular cold, not something supernatural.”

“That’s a relief,” Edgin sighed. “Is there a cure?”

“I don’t know the spell for curing disease, but I can make her feel better,” Aoko shook her head. “A normal cold takes seven to ten days to go away on its own. Just make sure she gets plenty of water and rest.”

Aoko went to the window. Kira smiled at her, as if thinking she was dreaming, then closed her eyes and whimpered in discomfort.

Aoko cast Detect Poison to make sure Kira hadn’t eaten anything strange, then cast Resistance and Cure Light Wounds, which eased Kira’s expression noticeably.

“Thank you, Miss Aoko!” Edgin’s wife Zia said gratefully. “Kira rarely gets sick—this time it’s so severe…”

“This is for you,” Aoko produced a glass bottle from her imaginary space and handed it to Zia. “It’s cold medicine from my hometown. If she takes it every six hours, it should bring down her fever.”

It was actually a bottle of ibuprofen. Aoko wasn’t sure if drugs from her version of Earth would work on Faerûn, but it was worth a try.

She wondered, since ibuprofen’s tech level was far ahead of this world’s, whether the rules of Eberron would allow such medicine to work.

Following Aoko’s instructions, Edgin brought a cup of hot water while Zia helped Kira sit up and swallow a capsule.

“If all goes well, it should kick in within half an hour,” Aoko said, checking her pocket watch. “I brought plenty of food—shall we eat together?”

Edgin nodded, and everyone left Kira’s room. Zia joined them at the table, sitting next to Edgin.

“Honestly, I haven’t had such delicious fresh food in ages,” Edgin said, gulping down some of Aoko’s drink. “Since the Everlasting Rime began, all we’ve had is dried rations—Kira and I have complained about it a lot.”

“Yeah, you can’t even hunt a rabbit anymore,” Holga said, biting into a chicken leg. “When was the last time I brought back a deer?”

“It was three weeks ago,” Zia reminded Holga. “That deer fed us for a whole week.”

“That’s exactly why I’m here,” Aoko said. “I gathered some intel in Luskan, but aside from rumors that the Arcane Brotherhood might be in Ten Towns, I found nothing useful.”

“Targos is in even worse shape,” Edgin said. “But since you mentioned Luskan, there is something I know about that happened here in Targos over the past month…”