Can't Leave

"Ugh!" Tiffany let out a strange cry.

"What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" Malone asked nervously.

"No... it's not that..." Tiffany whispered.

Although Malone hadn't hurt her, Tiffany still felt... was this "scoundrel" gentleman's behavior a bit too direct?

Tiffany understood Malone's actions, but there was always some mental barrier she couldn't overcome—the previous hug was one thing, at least there were clothes in between, but now...

Malone was actually holding Tiffany's bare foot!

Tiffany felt the little deer in her chest leaping even more frantically.

Malone carefully examined Tiffany's lower leg and ankle—this wasn't the first time he had seen a girl's lower leg, and Tiffany's little feet couldn't exactly be called fair or flawless.

After all, Tiffany hadn't worn shoes throughout this journey, and black dust and grit had stained the soles of her feet, masking the delicate skin beneath.

It seemed the situation was quite serious—Malone looked at Tiffany's ankle—a significant lump had swollen there, standing out starkly against her fair skin.

"What are you two doing?" Teron Gorefiend appeared at Malone's side at some point, looking at their strange posture and asking curiously.

"It seems she sprained her ankle," Malone replied—he recalled the fall Tiffany had taken when they were being held captive by the orc sentries.

"Let me see." Teron Gorefiend squatted down beside Malone, glanced at Tiffany's ankle, and then gently pressed his dark, greenish-black fingers against the lump.

"Ouch!" Tiffany's lower leg twitched violently, and Malone quickly held her down.

Looking up, Malone saw Tiffany's lovely face scrunched into a ball, with tears already shimmering in her eyes.

Perhaps the pain of a sprained ankle was far less than that of a sword piercing through one's chest, but for the pampered Tiffany, this level of pain was truly beyond her threshold.

Moreover, her foot injury seemed quite severe.

"She's badly hurt," Teron Gorefiend said to Malone. "In the worst-case scenario, even if it heals, she'll end up a cripple."

"A cripple?" Malone exclaimed, then secretly felt relieved that he had spoken in Orcish—if Tiffany had heard that, he didn't know how terrified she would be.

"It's not that serious, is it?" Malone looked at Teron Gorefiend and asked skeptically—how could a perfectly fine girl turn into a cripple? And wasn't Tiffany fine just a moment ago, with no issues? Could someone really become a cripple just from going to the bathroom?

"It shouldn't have been a problem, but she moved too much after the sprain, damaging the tendons and bones." Teron Gorefiend seemed to take a bit of pleasure in her misfortune. "Humans are fragile creatures; if it were an orc, this wouldn't happen."

"Cut the chatter!" Malone said to Teron Gorefiend, annoyed. "Then how do we treat her? Is there a doctor here?"

"A doctor? You mean a healer?" Teron Gorefiend glanced at Malone and shook his head. "What would we need that for? If those who get injured can't recover on their own, then let them die."

What? How could it be like this? Malone widened his eyes.

After confirming it in Maicomarlon's memories, Malone finally understood the real reason—the number of orcs who reached Azeroth through the Dark Portal was limited, and those old orcs proficient in medicine had been left behind on Draenor.

"Then what do I do? I'm supposed to take her away tonight!" Malone said loudly.

"Leave?" Teron Gorefiend narrowed his eyes; he had just remembered that he had come in to finish off this human woman.

However, Teron Gorefiend soon laughed. "I don't think you can leave, if you insist on doing that..."

Teron Gorefiend shrugged casually. "I think she will definitely end up a cripple."

"Then, if we don't leave... and she rests quietly, can she recover?" Malone asked.

"Who knows? I'm not a doctor." Teron Gorefiend didn't care if this human woman recovered or not; he actually hoped she would just die—though it was hard to die from just a sprained ankle.

"I think it's possible." Seeing the pained expression on Malone's face, Teron Gorefiend felt he might have been a bit harsh, so he thought for a moment and told the truth.

This... Malone fell into a deep dilemma—what should he do?

Malone didn't fully trust Teron Gorefiend's words; he felt this guy might be lying just to keep him here.

But Malone didn't want to take the risk—the risk of letting Tiffany end up limping for the rest of her life.

But if they didn't leave... Malone was worried about complications; while he knew the saying "it takes a hundred days to recover from a bone or tendon injury," the orc camp was simply too dangerous for Tiffany.

"Malone... can you... can you let go of me now?" While Malone was deep in thought, Tiffany's stuttering voice interrupted his train of thought.

"Oh..." Malone looked at Tiffany but didn't let go of her leg.

This... how could this guy be like this! Tiffany's face turned red again—why does he keep grabbing people's feet?

"Miss Tiffany, there is something I must make clear to you." Malone said with difficulty.

After much deliberation, he decided to leave the decision to Tiffany herself.

"W-what is it?" Malone's serious expression made Tiffany forget that he was still holding her leg, and she became nervous as well.

"Your foot injury is quite severe," Malone said in a heavy tone. "If you continue to move around now, not only will it be painful, but you might also end up... a cripple."

"A cripple!" Tiffany's scream startled Malone, and he almost dropped the girl's leg—heaven knows how such a petite body could contain such great power.

"W-will I become a cripple? By the Holy Light... I'd rather die!" Tiffany said in a panic.

"Y-you, don't get excited yet." Malone quickly comforted her. "If you rest quietly, you can recover. However..."

"However... we can't leave here now?" Tiffany still remembered the promise Malone had made to her—that he would take her away tonight.

"Yeah..." Malone nodded and said, "Although I promised you, with what's happened now... I don't know what to do either. You'll have to make the decision yourself."

"You can't walk right now," Malone said. "But even if I have to carry you, I will try my best to take you away from here, though I don't have much confidence in it."

"If you intend to rest here for a few weeks..." Malone watched as Tiffany's complexion turned worse and worse, and his own mood sank, but there were some things he had to make clear.

"If you intend to stay here, I will also try my best to protect your safety and won't let those orcs hurt you. However... I don't have much confidence in that either."

Malone said with a bitter smile, leaving the decision to Tiffany.