The timeline is around chapter 27 before and after, around the time of the Great Black Snake.
This is from Kariya’s perspective.
Please be cautious as this might significantly alter your image of the characters.
This is about the time we healed the melted Maito.
In this group, I am undoubtedly the weakest after Maito.
Still, my physical abilities aren’t as low as Maito’s, and in terms of defense, I’m slightly above the middle, so I don’t struggle much in my role as a healer, which was still a relief.
…However, I can understand how Maito feels, in a way.
I tend to be the one who is protected.
If I were to be defeated, the only ones who could heal would be Hagasaki-kun and Katori, making us extremely inefficient.
That’s why I’m usually protected during battles, and, well, it’s frustrating, to say the least…
…But, I can still participate in battles. I often think Maito must have it even harder.
Fighters have their own difficulties. Those who get injured are the fighters, especially the front-liners like Suzumoto, Kadomi, and Toriumi.
The rear-guard members like Hagasaki-kun, President, and Katori also frequently get injured, and they often cause their own accidents with their magic.
For example, there was this time when Hagasaki-kun was hit by fire from a fire-breathing monster, and he used ice magic at point-blank range…
…He ended up with severe burns and frostbite.
And then, there’s me.
I hardly ever get injured.
Not to boast, but there’s something like a lifeline about me.
But, I have my own difficulties.
…Not being able to fight is very hard. That’s the hardest part for me.
But, looking at gruesome images is the next hardest thing.
…Like with Hagasaki-kun earlier. I healed him, but you need to have a clear image when healing, meaning you can’t avoid looking directly at the wounds…
…Aaaah, I don’t want to remember it…
Um, so, the thing is, having to see people injured is really hard.
Both legs and the right arm are gone, and the right leg is almost boneless.
The head is relatively less injured, but it’s still a terrible sight.
In short, you wouldn’t recognize this as a human, let alone as Maito.
You can barely tell it’s Maito from the left half of the face.
…I started treating her immediately.
First, it wasn’t clear if she was alive. But, if there was even a slight possibility, we had to try.
Or rather, even if there seemed to be no chance, I think we would have done the same. Otherwise, it would be unbearable.
“I’ll take care of the arms and head.”
“Then, I’ll heal the legs, so Kariya, please take care of the torso.”
Hagasaki-kun and Katori started healing their respective parts, so I began as well.
After all, it’s my profession. It’s my job to do this.
…As I healed, I could feel that somehow, it might be okay.
Maito is amazing, really.
She has the vitality of a dandelion. It seems she might pull through even with her internal organs melted.
…But, as we healed, the third problem… occurred.
“Ah, wait… oh, what do we do, what do we do?”
Suddenly, Katori panicked and looked up at the ceiling.
“What are you doing? Hurry up and heal.”
Noticing this, Hagasaki-kun called out to him, and Katori awkwardly looked back at Hagasaki-kun.
“Could you switch with me, Hagasaki-kun?”
“Absolutely not. Hurry up and do it.”
His offer was flatly rejected by Hagasaki-kun with a stern voice.
“…Kariya.”
With no other choice, I took over. The internal organs were already healed.
…But then.
“…Hagasaki-kun.”
“I said no! I don’t want to do it!”
…Yes, this is the third problem.
Um, it’s about privacy, or rather, um, that… issue.
You can’t heal without looking, but it feels wrong to look.
“Ah, then, Hagasaki-kun, please take care of the upper body. Kariya and I will handle the lower half.”
Katori proposed this compromise, and Hagasaki-kun’s face contorted.
…If our genders were reversed, dealing with the upper body wouldn’t have been a problem, I think.
But Maito is a woman…
“Fine! I’ll do it if I must!”
Hagasaki-kun reluctantly began treating her, leaving Katori and me with a particularly difficult task.
“…Hey, um… about Maito…”
In the middle of it, Hagasaki-kun hesitantly asked Kadomi-kun, who was nearby.
“How big… was she…?”
…
Size.
…Katori and I decided to ignore this and focus on our task. Our morale was already low, and we didn’t want it to drop any further.
“Si-size… um, um…”
Kadomi-kun exploded when asked. It was a mistake to ask him.
“I can’t picture it at all for healing.”
…To be clear… none of us have ever had a girlfriend.
They’re like urban legends. Yes. It’s natural not to have something that doesn’t exist!
So, our only images of them are flat.
…Say what you will! I’ve had enough!
“D65.”
When we were struggling, President muttered something like a code.
“…What’s that?”
“That’s the size. D65, apparently.”
…Why does he know that!
“So, what does that mean!? What is it!? Some kind of code!?”
“I don’t know. I only heard it from Senior Itoigawa.”
Ah, if it’s that senior, it’s not so strange for her to say something like that.
“So, what does it mean? How do we decipher it?”
Even the usually reliable President couldn’t answer Hagasaki-kun’s question.
“Um, how are sizes determined?”
“Like the circumference?”
Toriumi made it easier for us to imagine with that comment.
This is a math problem. Yes.
“Does that mean a 65 cm circumference?”
“But we haven’t solved the mystery of ‘D’.”
…Even we know that ‘A’ is small and ‘B’ is next in size, somewhat.
But we don’t know the specifics. It would be strange to know specifics about an urban legend!
“Hey, that size, it’s probably a measure for underwear, right?”
Toriumi offered a helping hand when we were stuck. Truly a dependable comrade.
“If that’s the case, then skinny and chubby people can’t have the same size, right?”
“Ah! I’ve heard of ‘Top and Under’ before! I don’t know what it means though! So, it means there are two standards for determining it?”
Inspired by Toriumi’s words, Hariu had a flash of insight.
“That’s it.”
“That’s right.”
“Yes, that’s it.”
Everyone praised Hariu, but then another question arose.
“Since it’s called ‘Top and Under’, I guess it means maximum and minimum values. So, the problem is whether ‘D’ or ’65’ is the maximum value.”
We had to think again.
“Um, if ‘A’ is small, based on that standard, then the alphabet represents the maximum value, right?”
Hariu had another moment of inspiration. His ability to come up with ideas is incredible. Yes.
“So that means ‘D’ is the maximum circumference value, and the minimum is 65 cm.”
“…What’s the cm for ‘D’?”
…
“…A is the smallest, right?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s say the difference from the smallest value, ‘A’, is 5. It can’t be 0.”
“Right.”
“How about for each letter increase in the alphabet, we add 5 cm?”
…So, 65 + 5 + 5 + 5 + 5 equals…
“The answer is 85 cm!”
“Alright, that’s it! Go for it, Hagasaki-kun!”
“Wait, let me draw a diagram and calculate it. Paper and pencil?”
“Here!”
“Thanks. So, roughly like this…”
And so, Maito’s recovery was completed.
…In the end, we managed to heal her with encouragement from those who couldn’t heal, like Suzumoto and President.
It was a matter of life and death for Maito.
But… ahhh, I want to erase that memory! Ughhhhh!
…Due to the delays, some scars remained.
This is something to reflect on.
…Right. While Maito was on the brink of life and death, we were wandering on a different brink…
…Yes. We are reflecting.
“…After replenishing MP and healing a bit more, most of the wounds disappeared… I’m sorry, but some remained on the right leg, side, and… of all places, the face. And the hair. I’m truly sorry.
When Maito woke up, we explained the situation, and Suzumoto apologized on our behalf.
Maito is a girl, after all.
“No, it’s okay! It was my own fault for getting eaten and melted. I’m grateful for the help, so that’s the least of my worries.”
But Maito is a girl, and she didn’t seem to mind too much… at least, she behaved that way.
She didn’t seem too concerned about us seeing her body, which made us feel both relieved and guilty.
In the end, it seems the “Disguise” skill somehow managed to deal with the scars, so I think it’s all right now.
…I wonder if we’ll encounter something like this again…
…This job is difficult in many ways.
The deduction in the story is incorrect, so here’s a correction.
Feel free to skip this if it’s not of interest.
The understanding of the underbust and top bust is roughly correct, but the correlation between the alphabet and numbers is mistaken.
An A cup represents a 10 cm difference between the underbust and top bust, and each cup size increases by 2.5 cm.
Therefore, the correct “maximum value” is “82.5 cm.”
Please be mindful of this if such a situation arises.
