The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I'm a "Farmer", Not a Demon King! ~ - Chapter 540

The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I’m a “Farmer”, Not a Demon King! ~

Chapter 540   Lilia’s free medical examination

The previously noisy crowd fell silent as Lilia clapped her hands sharply once.

“Now, now, everyone gather around! From this moment on, I, yes, me! I’ll captivate all of your attention with my incredible presence! …Or not!”

She interjected with another incomprehensible onomatopoeic expression… or wait, wasn’t that onomatopoeia used incorrectly?

“Uwaaaah!”

In response to Lilia’s words, those present at the scene shouted once again.

Somehow, I felt like I’ve seen this scene somewhere before. Specifically, in our hometown or rather, our base.

I know Lilia was doing something in the background, but what exactly was she doing?

Let’s just say it’s fine for her to be popular. It’s nothing new. But these people here were quite hostile before. It might be natural considering they were starving to death every day, but…

In addition to that, there was animosity towards elves due to religious reasons.

Just because she did something small doesn’t mean they’ll accept her so easily. It’s the same as with idols. In fact, doing something like that might even provoke irritation instead.

These people didn’t cause any trouble so far because they were starving. Whether there were elves around or not didn’t matter compared to that hunger. That’s why nobody did anything.

But now, that hunger has been alleviated. They’re not fully satisfied, but they can eat a decent meal and temporarily forget about hunger. They can feel relieved that they won’t die of starvation.

However, once that relief sets in, humans naturally start looking for the next problem. The next problem being the elves right in front of them.

A rational person wouldn’t harbor hostility towards the elves who provided food. Even if hunger is temporarily relieved by this food distribution, it’s ultimately the same if there’s no next step. It just delays starving to death. So they’ll need to keep getting food distributions in the future.

If someone has the mindset to think like that, they wouldn’t harbor hostility towards elves. But not everyone is that rational.

Despite hunger being alleviated, there might still be people questioning the presence of elves, saying things like, “Why are elves here?”

Yet, despite that, they’re suddenly being celebrated like this… What exactly did she do? I could almost believe now if someone said she used enchantment or brainwashing.

“Hey hey hey! What’s up, young man? What happened to that hand? You’ve got bandages wrapped around your left hand. Quite fashionable, aren’t you?”

As she says this, he’s covering his face with his left hand.

There’s no way that’s fashionable. Well, maybe there are some who wear it as a fashion statement, but I don’t think that’s the case for that boy.

“Oh, no, this is because of an injury…”

“Oh really? …That’s too bad. …Huh?! You’re injured? Doesn’t it hurt?”

“Well, um… it happened over a month ago, so…”

“Hmm… Alright! Come over here! You’re the chosen one!”

With that said, Lilia called out to the boy with rough bandages wrapped around his left hand and brought him onto the stage, but the boy looked bewildered, not knowing what to do.

One of our companions, with a stern face amidst the crowd, pushed the boy forward onto the stage.

“Wow, she’s not performing, she’s genuinely speaking out of concern.”

“That’s something only someone who doesn’t overthink can do.”

Genuinely worrying about someone else’s injury isn’t something you can easily imitate.

Yet, Lilia can show such concern because she’s speaking from the heart, not just imitating someone else.

Perhaps that’s why Lilia is accepted by the people in this town.

After all, the healers in this country are probably just money-grabbers, right? To heal injuries or illnesses, you need donations or offerings, and if you can’t pay, you won’t get treated. Moreover, if the patient is in bad condition, the price goes up.

In a place where such things are accepted as unavoidable, someone who genuinely worries about others is rare… or even miraculous, you might say.

“Um, I, uh, came here…”

“Hehe. Then kneel down over there!”

“Huh, um, what…?”

“Just do it quickly!”

As the boy with bandages stepped onto the stage, Lilia looked down at him, arms crossed, and made him kneel.

And then, once satisfied with the sight, Lilia struck a strange pose and began to speak.

“You’re lucky! You’ve encountered me here, after all! ——Na-ore!”

With those words, Lilia made some pointless gestures, moving her hands in useless motions before transitioning into a pose where she pointed at the boy, activating her magic.

The light produced by that magic flowed towards the boy… or more precisely, it seemed to be absorbed into his arm, gradually fading away.

“Huh, w-what? My arm…?”

After the light subsided, the boy seemed to check his own condition. He let out a confused voice, indicating that something unusual had happened to his arm from what could be heard.

However, considering the situation, it wasn’t that his arm had gotten worse, but rather the opposite. It seemed that Lilia’s magic had healed his injury.

“How is it? Is your arm healed? …It is, right?”

Initially, Lilia asked arrogantly, but she seemed genuinely worried if it had really healed. She furrowed her brows with concern, ruining her previous performance, and asked in a small voice.

“Y-yes!”

“Good then!”

Seeing Lilia’s reaction, the boy seemed to feel the need to respond. Although still visibly confused, he answered loudly, and upon seeing this, Lilia nodded satisfactorily with her previously arrogant attitude restored.

But it didn’t end there.

In this country, when you receive treatment from a healer, you must pay according to the severity of your condition. Healers are rare and are owned by the church. In other words, there is no such thing as goodwill treatment.

“No, um… well, I don’t have any money with me… um, so…”

However, someone who was receiving food from a relief effort like this certainly wouldn’t have any money for medical fees.

So it was only natural that he hadn’t received treatment for his arm.

“Huh!? You don’t have any money!?”

“…No.”

Lilia was surprised to hear that the boy didn’t have any money, and she frowned discontentedly. Because of that, it seemed like a sense of disappointment spread among the people gathered there for a moment.

But that was just for an instant.

“Well then, you haven’t eaten either, have you? That won’t do. You need to eat properly. Go over there and eat a lot! Off you go!”

Lilia moved to the edge of the stage, gesturing for the boy to come closer, then crouched down and spoke to him.

But yeah, that’s how it is. It’s not that she doesn’t want money, but that’s only in normal circumstances. She’s not the type to ask for money when someone is injured or in trouble. First and foremost, she helps people.

For her, money is just a hobby, or more like, something to play around with.

It might seem pretty bad to consider earning money as a hobby, or give off a nouveau riche vibe, but that’s just how Lilia is, I guess.

…Oh, and by the way, in that position, your underwear is visible. Maybe you should be aware of that when you’re in a higher place wearing a skirt?

“But, um, as a thank you for the treatment…”

“You can repay me a million times over once you’re feeling better! So come on, hurry over there!”

Just as I was getting curious, it seemed the boy inadvertently glanced under Lilia’s skirt. Blushing, he turned away, but that seemed to make him feel like his words were being ignored.

Lilia jumped down from the stage, grabbed the boy’s shoulder, turned him around, and pushed him out.

The direction the boy was pushed towards was where the relief effort was taking place. There were still people lining up there, so it wouldn’t be immediately available, but if he stayed in line, he would eventually get something to eat.

Receiving treatment without having to pay, and on top of that, even sharing food in such circumstances.

That’s truly like a goddess, isn’t it? The boy’s eyes welled up with tears, and he bowed deeply before joining the line for the relief effort.

Well, I’m the one providing the food. Lilia is just distributing it… well, not even distributing, really. What she’s doing is… healing and… advertising? It’s not a big deal, though. With this, the reputation of elves will surely improve, and if that happens, persecution against elves will decrease in the future.

Lilia nodded in satisfaction as she watched the boy walk away, then returned to the stage.

…Instead of climbing up, why doesn’t she use a step stool properly? She must have prepared one herself. Or she could just jump. She’s also a Tenth Rank, so she should be able to do that much.

But, well, saying “repay me a million times over once you’re feeling better” sounds a bit exaggerated, doesn’t it?

But maybe it’s because it’s such a large amount that everyone thinks it’s a joke… But she’s probably serious. I feel like she’s seriously thinking about demanding a million times over later. Well, that’s probably just the value or rate where one can easily repay after playing along once.

A playmate for a million yen! Or rather? It’s not directly a million yen because it’s a million times over, and it’s not even yen in the first place, but I can’t tell if she’s cheap or expensive.

“Hey, Manager! We’ve got a new customer!”

“Well then, who among the next flock seeks my power?”

After that, Lilia continued treating those who were injured, following the boy. But somehow, with each treatment, the direction of her lines seems to change.

It feels really off, yet at the same time, there’s a strange contradiction where it doesn’t feel off at all.

“…It’s amazing how she seems consistent even though her character is all over the place.”

“…Maybe it’s because she’s not thinking about it.”

Kyle responded to my muttering, and he might be right.

Perhaps it’s because she’s not thinking about it that she’s able to become so popular.