Spoiler Alert!
It’s practically raining cats and dogs today!
And you without your umbrella!
Man, if this was a fantasy world, you’d use magic to stay dry.
*sigh*
Life is getting so boring…
“Eeek! It’s the Vice President Kazuki and President Suzune!”
Hmm?
Ah, Kazuki Ryusen. The perfect, handsome guy in the same class as you. If only a bus would run him down!
Suzune’s so beautiful and smart that even the girls admire her…too bad she’d never go out with a drab guy like yourself.
Ah, well…
Did Suzune…speak to you?
“Y-yes. Why?”
“I brought an extra umbrella today,” says Kazuki with a smile. “You can use it.”
“You sure?”
“Sure! Just call me Kazuki. We’re classmates after all!”
“Okay, call me Ken then,” you reply.
“Do you mind if I call you the same?” says Suzune.
The beautiful student council president herself calling your name? Is this heaven?!
“N-n-not at all!”
“Let’s go then!”
…
To think that you’d be chatting with the two stars of the student council!
“Hmm?”
What?
“Ken, did you hear a loud bell just now?” asks Kazuki.
“Yeah, I heard it,” says Suzune with a slight frown. “Strange.”
You shake your head.
A magic circle!?
“Are we being summoned to another world?! A place where heroes and magic exist?!?”
Did Suzune say that? You didn’t know she was into this stuff!
…
Unh…
“Greetings, heroes!”
Who…?
“I am King Lloyd Bluegust Lyngle…”
“I’ll be brief. We managed to repel an invasion by the Demon King two years ago, but he is steadily rebuilding his forces. You are our last hope.”
Suzune looks a little too happy!
You feel…disillusioned somehow.
“The ritual we used looks for suitable people and summons them as heroes,” says the King. “Didn’t you hear the sound of a bell?”
You didn’t so…does that mean you were just dragged along?
“My apologies, but the summoning was a one-way trip.”
WHAT?!
“Yes, there’s no excuse for what we did,” the King continues. “But we have to what we can to save this kingdom…no, the world.”
“Very well, then,” Kazuki sighs.
…
“Alright, Ken,” says the court mage. “Touch this crystal and we’ll what kind of magic you can use.”
Apparently, Suzune can use lightning magic and Kazuki can use light magic, which is supposed to be harmful to demons.
Alright, let’s give it a try…
It’s green. A very bright green, too!
Hmm? The mage looks rather pale for some reason.
“K-K-Ken! Y-your affinity is w-with…healing magic!”
The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic ~Healers Racing Across the Battlefield~ (治癒魔法の間違った使い方 ～戦場を駆ける回復要員～, Chiyu Mahō no Machigatta Tsukaikata ~Senjō o Kakeru Kaifuku Yōin~) is a web novel, light novel series and manga written by Kurokata (くろかた).
One rainy afternoon, the bored Ken Usato makes the acquaintance of two members of his school’s student council: Suzune Inukami, the beautiful president, and Kazuki Ryusen, the handsome vice president. While chatting with each other on their way home, the three students are suddenly transported to another world, where King Lloyd of the Lyngle Kingdom implores them to fight against the Demon King. Despite initial reluctance, the students agree and have their magical affinities assessed by a court mage, who becomes alarmed when she learns about Ken’s affinity with healing magic. Shortly afterwards, a tall, menacing woman in a white coat arrives and simply carries Ken off. King Lloyd awkwardly explains to Suzune and Kazuki that the woman is Rose, the feared and renowned leader of the Lyngle Kingdom’s Rescue Squad, which was instrumental in saving the lives of countless soldiers during the last war with the demons.
Over the course of the next two weeks, Rose pushes Ken through a grueling training regiment of physical exercise and magic training. After this, he is made an official member of the Rescue Squad. During a walk in the capital, Ken meets a young girl who takes his hand. He is suddenly overwhelmed by a brief vision in which a knight in full black armor stands triumphant over the bloody corpses of the defeated Lyngle army, including Suzune and Kazuki. Before disappearing into the crowd, the girl tells Ken that the future can be changed and he will owe her a favor.
A few days later, a demon army appears at the Lyngle Kingdom’s border, led by a familiar black knight. They are confronted by the Lyngle army while the Rescue Squad saves as many of the injured as possible. The black knight almost kills Suzune and Kazuki before Ken rescues them at the last second. Learning that the knight’s armor is a solidified magic spell that reflects any attacks done to it, Ken attacks the knight with punches while using healing magic on the armor to neutralize its reflection ability. When the black knight is defeated and captured, the demoralized demon army quickly retreats.
Later, Ken meets the mysterious girl from before, who introduces herself as Amako and, in return for the vision she gave earlier, wants him to accompany her to the Beastfolk Nation to heal her ailing mother. Knowing that the demons will eventually return in greater numbers, King Lloyd assigns Ken, Suzune and Kazuki to deliver letters requesting aid to other countries. Their first destination is Luqvis, the City of Magic. After that, Ken and Amako go their own way to Samarial and the water city Millark, where they can eventually reach the Beastfolk Nation. Along the way, Ken shows the world that healing mages are not to be trifled with…
Main Characters
Ken Usato (兎里 健, Usato Ken), a 17-year old healing mage, a member of the Rescue Squad and a former high school student. Brave, considerate and cooperative, he has become much more aggressive, focused and tenacious as a result of completing Rose’s hellish training. Once bored with a humdrum life on his own world, Ken now wishes to do his best to support his new friends. He also constantly looks for ways to improve himself, though the degree of such “training” often unnerves those who see a little of his terrifying mentor in him! In addition to his powerful healing magic, Ken is extraordinarily strong and fit as a result of using his magic on himself while training constantly. He is also skilled at unarmed combat, which he can combine with his healing magic. Ken is usually accompanied by his loyal pet Bluey, a Blue Grizzly cub, whom he carries as part of his training.
Amako, a 14-year old fox beastfolk girl. Quiet, reserved and sometimes impolite, she has gone through many hardships during her lonely journey to find a healer who could cure her mother’s mysterious illness. Because most countries except the Lyngle Kingdom scorn or enslave beastfolk, Amako is usually wary of humans, apart from Ken. She has the rare ability to use prophecy magic, which allows her to anticipate danger or see brief prophetic visions.
Suzune Inukami (犬上 鈴音, Inukami Suzune), an 18-year old heroine and a former high school student. Having maintained a composed, graceful façade as a student council president, she is now surprisingly easygoing, excitable and outgoing as a result no longer feeling the need to restrain herself. Suzune is a fan of fantasy stories and is intensely curious about the fantasy world she is now in. She is attracted to Ken as a result of his recent heroics, but he is somewhat discouraged by her overenthusiasm. After some training, Suzune is now a skilled swordswoman with the ability to use lightning magic.
Kazuki Ryusen (龍泉 一樹, Ryūsen Kazuki), a 17-year old hero and a former high school student. Caring, friendly and sensitive, he is popular with women but other men tend to avoid him. King Lloyd’s daughter, Princess Seria, is attracted to Kazuki. He has the ability to use light magic, which is particularly effective against demons and undead.
Personal Thoughts
This story is a deliberate defiance of the common assumptions about healers in many fantasy roleplaying games and stories, which often depict them as weak and vulnerable. In such cases, healers often need to be defended by stronger, more aggressive characters, making it easy for most modern-day people to dismiss the importance of healing in combat. The roles of fighters in any story seem more glorious compared to healers, but healers are the ones who allow the fighters and others to stay alive and keep fighting.
Outside the Lyngle Kingdom, most people assume that healing mages are weaklings who hide behind the “real heroes”. The main character Ken is skilled unarmed fighter who could stand against all but the most powerful of monsters. The Rescue Squad itself is the fantasy equivalent of an experienced paramedic team that provides quick emergency medical aid and makes sound decisions that mean the difference between life and death for their patients. They are also trained physically and mentally to take care of themselves and reduce the risk of them getting killed in battle. The Squad leader, Rose, is a fearsome and demanding drill sergeant who expects the Squad to be prepared for any kind of medical emergency, be it from a plague, an invading army or a monster destroying a city.
It’s important to understand that premature assumptions can lead to conclusions about people and other things that are not necessarily true. Just as a knight is a hero for slaying an evil dragon, a healer is also a hero for saving those who would have died. As this story demonstrated, healers are not necessarily weak and passive either!
Moral
Do not let preconceptions drive you to premature conclusions.
Isekai Eye 