Chapter 124

Episode 124

“The Lady is ill? How?”

“She’s had a cold for three days, and her fever suddenly spiked. It’s not going down.”

Fevers were dangerous. They could lead to permanent complications.

And this world was set in a medieval era. There was no knowledge of microscopic entities like bacteria or viruses. Naturally, there were no antipyretics or antibiotics.

Of course, there was the cheat skill of “Healing Magic,” based on holy power. It wasn’t as effective as penicillin, but it was an alternative.

But judging by Balzac’s expression, even Healing Magic hadn’t worked.

“Did she see a doctor?”

“The most skilled doctor in the Barony examined her, but there’s been no improvement. He said Healing Magic isn’t very effective on her.”

This happened occasionally. Some people were born with weak or even nonexistent receptivity to Healing Magic.

But it couldn’t be a congenital issue.

‘If that were the case, Duke Kalisto and the other family members would have been extra careful about her health.’

It meant the current problem was temporary.

The recent missions, which had been rather sudden, flashed through my mind like shards of glass. The retrieval of “Dark Souls” and the sommelier’s new “potion”…

“What about medicine?”

“She’s taking it, but she’s barely conscious…”

How sick was she if she was barely conscious? I couldn’t grasp the severity.

I immediately headed for the Lady’s quarters. Balzac followed me.

“Send a summons to Jericho in Alpheon.”

“I’ve already sent a messenger pigeon. I sent it yesterday, so it should have arrived by now.”

“Good work.”

“I haven’t decided whether to inform the main family. What do you think we should do?”

I couldn’t answer immediately. If her illness became known, I wouldn’t be able to avoid responsibility.

But I didn’t intend to blame the administrator or the other servants. I gave him an order.

“Send a messenger to His Grace immediately.”

“As you command, my lord.”

We soon arrived at the Lady’s quarters.

The maids guarding the room looked distraught. They had accompanied her from the Kalisto main castle and had been serving her since she was a child.

“My lord! The Lady…”

I rushed into the room without acknowledging their greetings.

The Lady’s face was as pale as a corpse. An elderly maid was wiping her face with a wet towel.

The maid saw me, put down the towel, and bowed respectfully.

I stood by her bedside, observing her condition.

‘This is strange.’

The Lady wasn’t usually pale. If she had a fever, her forehead and cheeks should be flushed, but there was no such reaction.

She looked perfectly fine. As if she were just sleeping.

I moved closer.

“My Lady, I’ve returned safely from the mission. I heard you’re not feeling well.”

“…”

Her eyes fluttered open. Her gaze, which had been wandering aimlessly, focused on me.

She smiled weakly.

“Good work, Aubrey.”

“I heard a doctor examined you. Are you still feeling unwell?”

She shook her head slightly. I gestured for the maids to leave.

“It’s alright. I’ll be fine soon. I’m taking my medicine.”

“I heard Healing Magic isn’t very effective. Has this happened before?”

“I don’t know…”

“Excuse me for a moment.”

I rolled up my sleeve and placed the back of my hand on her forehead. It was alarmingly hot.

“You have a high fever, my Lady. A cold compress would be good.”

I picked up the wet towel the maid had left behind and cast “Enclave” with a flick of my wrist. I channeled my magical energy, cooling the towel.

I adjusted the temperature carefully, so it wouldn’t be too cold and cause frostbite.

I placed it on her forehead. She was startled at first but soon relaxed and thanked me.

‘The mastermind has a cold.’

Of course, I didn’t think this was a normal situation. All the circumstances and “The Legend of Aldebaran” pointed to something else.

‘But even in “The Legend of Aldebaran,” the protagonist never suffered from a high fever.’

I had read the book more than ten times, so I could recall any detail.

“I’ve sent a messenger to Duke Kalisto. He’ll probably find out about your illness by the day after tomorrow. The family physician might even come personally.”

“…Alright.”

“But I don’t think the situation will change even if the physician comes. Could it be that your illness is related to the Inspection Unit’s seventh mission?”

The unease I had felt when Balzac first told me about her illness…

It was because of “Dark Souls” and the new “potion” the sommelier had mentioned.

When I had given him the two horns I had obtained from the Baphomet-like demonic beast, he had said that he could make a more effective potion thanks to the fresh horns.

He had said he could create something on a completely different level from what he had made before.

Could it be that the potion he was making was for the Lady?

‘But he didn’t tell me about the purpose of Dark Souls.’

If “Dark Souls” was also an ingredient for the potion, it would have strengthened my hypothesis. I was a bit disappointed.

“…Are you suspecting me again?”

“I’m not suspecting you. I’m just curious. Don’t worry about it. Even if you need the soul stone of a great demon, I’ll go to the demon realm without complaint.”

“Thank you. You’re truly…”

She drifted off to sleep. I stayed up all night, tending to her.

It wasn’t because I was kind or had feelings for her.

It was because I had to re-infuse the wet towel with magical energy whenever it warmed up.

“My Lady!”

Jericho arrived shortly after the Lady fell asleep. He was drenched in sweat, which was unusual for someone who hated walking and running. He must have rushed here.

“She just fell asleep. Keep your voice down.”

“What’s going on? Balzac told me Healing Magic didn’t work.”

“Examine her first.”

Jericho placed his hand on the Lady’s forehead and closed his eyes. Blue magical energy seeped out from his hand and flowed into her body.

“…Huh?”

The blue light disappeared.

It didn’t seep in it vanished into thin air, as if a ball had bounced off a wall.

“It’s true. Healing Magic won’t work in this state.”

“Let’s move somewhere else.”

I took the still-cold wet towel and returned to the office with Jericho.

“Has this happened before?”

“No. About two years ago, the Lady fell and injured her knee. Healing Magic worked fine back then.”

“As I suspected.”

It meant Lucia wasn’t inherently resistant to holy power.

“Is it possible for someone to suddenly develop resistance to Healing Magic?”

“There have been rare cases reported. The world is vast, and there are many people. But it’s not something we see often.”

“Then, there’s only one possible explanation.”

Jericho, as if he had also reached the same conclusion, nodded and spoke.

“It’s most likely a curse. For now, at least.”

“I agree.”

“We finally agree on something! Then, it must be true. Being the top graduate of the Kalisto Academy isn’t easy, you know.”

I sometimes envied his ability to make jokes even in this situation.

“But isn’t it a bit premature to conclude it’s a curse? You’re a direct descendant of the Tulu family. There’s no way you wouldn’t be able to detect a curse.”

“Uh… you’re right, but… ahem, well, you see… there might be curses I’m not aware of. Anyway, I didn’t detect any traces of magic when I examined the Lady earlier.”

Then, the situation was different.

It was either a curse of an unimaginable level or a serious illness that our current civilization hadn’t discovered yet.

Either way, it wouldn’t be easy without any information.

But I wasn’t too worried. I had never heard of a mastermind dying from a cold.

“Further discussion would be pointless. Put the code deciphering on hold for now and focus on taking care of the Lady. Here, take this.”

“What’s this?”

Jericho examined the wet towel that had been placed in his hand.

“Cold compresses are the best for fevers. Use your magic to lower the temperature. It’ll be effective.”

“…You didn’t call me here just for this, did you?”

“Didn’t Balzac call you?”

“Tsk!”

Jericho grumbled but quickly left the office. It showed how much he cared for Lucia.

I had something else to do.

I told Balzac I would be back soon and left the castle. I knocked on the door of the newly renovated Lucius Club.

“You’re back, Mr. Walker. What brings you here?”

Thankfully, the sommelier hadn’t left yet. Or did he even have a concept of “leaving work”?

“I have a question for you. Do you have a moment?”

“Of course. Please come in.”

“It’ll just take a minute.”

I stood at the door and asked quietly, “Did you know that the Lady is ill?”

“Yes, I heard. Is something wrong with her?”

“No, nothing like that. Sir Jericho is treating her.”

“Sir Jericho is reliable.”

I wasn’t swayed by his friendly smile and asked the real question.

“The potion you’re making… Is it for the Lady?”

“Oh, what an unexpected question.”

“Healing Magic didn’t work on her. It suddenly stopped working. And this Inspection Unit mission feels different from the previous ones. There’s enough reason to be suspicious.”

“I believe there’s been a misunderstanding.”

The sommelier politely invited me inside again. It seemed like this conversation would take a while, so I accepted his invitation.

He closed the door and led me to a table with teacups.

But there weren’t just one there were two.

‘Did he know I was coming?’

I felt a shiver run down my spine, but I calmly sat down where he indicated.

“You must be worried about the Lady’s illness. I’ll make you some herbal tea that’s good for calming the mind and body. Is that alright?”

“Yes, please.”

The sommelier brewed the tea with elegant movements. A sweet aroma filled the room. Just smelling it seemed to ease my mind.

“Here you go.”

“Thank you.”

“First, I need to clarify a misunderstanding. The potion I’m making is for the Lucius Club, for the Inspection Unit. It’s not medicine for the Lady.”

That was within my expectations. I took a sip of the herbal tea and put down the cup.

“Then, what is the purpose of Dark Souls? As you know, it’s a very dangerous object.”

“You’re right. But Dark Souls is worth studying seriously. The recent monster tr… troub… problem… the cause… energy… pow…”

What was happening?

My hearing became muffled, and my vision blurred. The world started spinning.

I couldn’t move my body. My aura was also unresponsive.

“…Mr. Walker, are you alright?”

That bastard. What did he put in the tea?

But his expression was too surprised for it to be a simple drug. My memory ended there.