After the students were dismissed from the Eastern Grand Hall, the entire second-year class moved toward the infirmary in a slow, uneven tide of exhaustion. Some walked with their own strength, others leaned on friends, and a few were practically carried by classmates who looked only slightly less miserable than they did.
The infirmary staff had clearly been prepared for them, because the moment the second years arrived, healers, assistants, and senior medical instructors began separating them according to severity.
Those with deep injuries, unstable Myst flow, fractured bones, poison exposure, or signs of severe depletion were taken in first, while those with lighter wounds were made to sit and wait on benches, cots, or even the floor. No one complained too loudly. After seven days in Nalim, even the infirmary floor seemed more comfortable than most places they had slept.
