In a Standard Fantasy Setting, a young apothecary buying ingredients for his shop runs into a pawnbroker who offers to sell him an enslaved elf girl. After seeing the extent of the abuse and torture she's suffered, the apothecary becomes enraged, brings her home, and swears to nurse her back to health. Finding that she's nearly catatonic, with no memory of her home or who she is, he decides to name her Reszurre. Finding treatment for her ends up becoming a full-on quest, and the two slowly begin to grow closer to one another, as they discover more and more about each other's pasts.
Aiding the two of them in their journey are Adam, a benevolent Mad Scientist with a knack for medicinal magic, and a Frankenstein-esque creation by the name of Gauche; Anne, the apothecary's neighbor; Mone, Anne's young daughter; Madrilly, a dwarf blacksmith mechanic who doesn't look too kindly on elves; and Idria, Reszurre's sister come to look for her.
Unfortunately their quest will bring them into conflict with more than just disease and injury. As it turns out, the oldest and deepest wounds aren't physical...
The Apothecary is Gonna Make This Ragged Elf Happy was written and drawn by Giba-chan, and can be found for free on Manga Dex, here.
This work contains examples of:
- Artificial Limbs Are Stronger: The new arm and leg Madrilly makes for Reszurre are apparently "over-engineered" for daily life, though it's an entirely Informed Ability.
- The Atoner: The apothecary helped trigger a bloody coup d'état for the sake of the demon who raised him. He explicitly admits to Reszurre that part of why he's healing her is his need to atone.
- Babies Ever After: The apothecary and the elf end up having two children together.
- Cast from Lifespan: Early on, the apothecary considers using a High Potion, which can cure any injury in exchange for a chunk of one's lifespan, but he doesn't have the resources necessary to make one. At least until he visits Reszurre's village, and receives a mana crystal powerful enough. Reszurre goes through with it, restoring her body in exchange for a shorter life.
- Dark and Troubled Past: It's obvious from the beginning that Reszurre has been through a lot, but before her kidnapping she seemed to have a mostly normal life. The apothecary on the other hand, was an orphan who was raised by a demon and groomed to fight in a rebellion against the demonic king. After killing so many people, healing Reszurre is part of his atonement.
- Easy Amnesia: Zigzagged. Reszurre lost most of her memories over the course of months of Cold-Blooded Torture, and trauma is a real-life cause of amnesia, albeit not to that extent. On the other hand, just seeing her former master/tormentor is enough to instantly regain everything.
- Elves Versus Dwarves: Madrilly is reluctant to make new limbs for Reszurre, but relents after Reszurre grows on her.
- Fantastic Racism: Apparently, interspecies prejudice only became common less than a hundred years ago. Humans (called Ildain) and elves are highly mistrustful of each other, which is somewhat warranted given the violence they've committed against each other.
- Florence Nightingale Effect: At the very end, Reszurre and the apothecary marry and start a family.
- Given Name Reveal: When Reszurre's sister Idria tracks her down, she reveals that Reszurre's true name is Lumirea. However, after being fully healed, she asks the apothecary to keep calling her Reszurre, as she wants to stay with him from now on.
- The very last line of the comic reveals the apothecary's name is Allen Thildean.
- Happily Ever After: The last words of the comic are "And to this day, we're spending the happiest times of our lives together."
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Chapter 28.5 is a silly non-canon interlude that only exists for the sake of getting Reszurre into a Mrs. Claus suit. The following chapter begins with Reszurre and the apothecary both thinking "I feel like I just had some weird dream..."
- Parental Abandonment: The apothecary was abandoned by his parents shortly after his birth, and was taken in by a demon. Wanting to pass on this good karma is part of why he takes such an interest in Reszurre.
- Speaks Fluent Animal: Reszurre seems to have an instinctive understanding of animal emotions, and can use elf magic to non-verbally communicate with them to some degree. The apothecary realizes they can monetize this by making a recording of her voice and selling copies to woodland travelers. Unfortunately, this draws the attention of other elves who typically keep this magic secret.
