episode_0019

019 – New groom Hyde is a novelist #2

The count’s mansion was spacious and large.

How many rooms are there?

Psyche’s younger brother Dihon was also sitting in a room on the second floor where I had never walked.

Is it here?

“Uhm.”

I cleared my throat in front of the room of Dihon, the eldest son of the count, Psyche’s younger brother, and my brother-in-law. Then the maid guarding the entrance frowned and asked me.

“Lord Hyde, what is going on here?”

Wariness appeared on his face.

The count’s only son.

As she is the maid guarding the room he is staying in, her loyalty to the Count Agarpe family must be high. I spoke to her lightly.

“I realized that I had never seen my brother-in-law’s face as a member of Agarpe’s family. I would like to say a quick hello, but is my brother-in-law Dihon inside?”

Sze-.

It was when I was about to put my hand on the doorknob.

The maid was very embarrassed, saying “Wha-what!” and blocked the space between the door and me.

“There was an order from the Count not to allow anyone except those who were specifically permitted to enter the room where Dihon was staying! Let’s go back!”

The security was tighter than necessary.

Originally, being the only son of a great nobleman might have been treated like that.

Since they are descendants who need to be passed down from generation to generation, they must be raised with care.

Of course, the Agarpe family had a daughter named Psyche, but she swore to herself to live as a purist.

Since Psyche decided not to have children, the only one among the children of Count Agarpe’s family who had the possibility of having children was Dihon, the eldest son.

for a moment.

That meant that if Dihon had a serious accident or was unable to have children due to an unexpected illness, the count’s family would be cut off forever.

Indeed, that means the Count Agarpe family is trying to hide and protect Dihon.

“If the boy inside loses his life, Lady Psyche will have no choice but to break her oath of chastity. The young lady would not want the Agarpe family to be cut off.”

“What are you saying? Come on! Dihon is not feeling well, so he can’t meet people or even go out of his room!”

“… … .”

Because I’m not feeling well, I can’t meet people or go out of my room―?

I felt like I had heard some very important information from the blushing maid.

And it also felt like one of my questions had been resolved.

When Psyche Agarpe was suffering from a malingering illness.

The Count Agarpe family spent a huge amount of money purchasing “medicine” to make people think that their daughter was truly suffering from an illness.

Even without that, the declining economic situation of Agarpe would be shaken.

While I wondered if there was a need to go to such lengths to simply act to avoid marriage, I also wondered where those medicinal herbs were being used.

But now I see that this is where the medicine was used.

The musty smell of medicinal herbs spreads through the hallway even though the door is closed.

There was a real ‘sick person’ in the Agarpe family.

“How can it still not work? I want to see your face.”

“No! How do you know whether you will harm Dihon or not? If Dihon’s illness worsens and he loses his life, you are the one who will benefit the most!”

Indeed, that was true.

If Dihon disappears, the future power of the count family will be concentrated on his only daughter, Psyche.

And as her husband, I will be able to pick up and eat tons of the falling beans.

“There was a reason why Oscar Archibald was aiming for the position of the count’s son-in-law.”

They were trying to completely take over the Durgien region by eating up the entire count family.

This Durgien region is divided between nobles, including the Count family, and the Archibald Church.

“Scouty, what’s the fuss?”

Again.

It was right then.

I heard the sound of shoes behind me.

The maid hastily lowers her head.

“Ma, ma’am… !”

This grumpy maid had only one person to call Madame.

Wilhemina, Countess of Agarpe.

She appeared and looked at us.

“Mother-in-law, you are still beautiful.”

“Hyde, you were in a place like this instead of at the celebration. Have you come to see Dihon? But it turned out to be a pity. Dihon is a child that cannot be met carelessly, even if it is with its mother.”

Is it that serious?

Soon, Wilhemina began to cry, tears streaming down her beautiful face, making it hard to believe she was in her late thirties.

“Dihon was weak from birth. It is clear that the reason Dihon and Psyche are suffering from illness is because our family has betrayed trust and is being punished from heaven. Maybe it’s good… !”

I felt unfamiliar with parents who had to watch their children suffer because they were born without a mother.

However, even in that country, I could clearly see that the Countess was quite sad and blaming herself.

“It is said that the reason Psyche vowed to remain single for the rest of her life was because of her younger brother’s illness. Hyde, didn’t you ever cure Psyche’s illness? Then wouldn’t it be possible to cure Dihon’s illness?”

Whisper-.

It was the countess who grabbed my arm with quite strong force.

“Please, cure Dihon’s illness!”

Crunch, crunch -.

Why is it so strong? I feel like my arms are aching!

Is this what it would feel like to be captured by a mother bear who goes berserk while protecting her cub?

However, there is one thing that must be said for sure.

“Mother, being punished for your sins comes only after death and judgment. Suffering from illness cannot be the penalty for sin. Because the Lord is love, He does not punish emotionally.”

“… Are you saying that Dihon’s illness and Psyche’s illness were not divine punishment? Dr. Selim didn’t say that? Selim said that we must repent and pray hard.”

Selim.

Was this a doctor of theology employed by the Agarpe estate?

The face of Sannim, who had emerged as a potential groom along with Loras, briefly appeared in my mind and then disappeared.

I really understand how things work inside the Agarpe family.

I spread my arms naturally and spoke.

“The way of thinking that considers all human misfortunes as punishment from God is an unhealthy view of faith. Look at me. I was an orphan from birth. Is that because of divine punishment?”

If misfortune comes as a reward for sin, it would mean that I was born into misfortune, so my very birth was a sin.

Of course, in a way, it was true.

Humans are born because of Adam’s original sin and embrace a sinful nature.

But I dare say that it was not because of my sinful nature that I became an orphan.

“God sometimes has plans for us that cannot be understood by human reason. It may seem like misfortune, but sometimes it can be a guide to salvation.”

“… There are things that seem like misfortune but can lead to salvation?”

The Countess didn’t seem to understand, but she looked at me with some anticipation in her eyes.

You really want to hold on to the rope.

Faith permeates even more deeply into these desperate people.

chuck-.

I said, pointing my palm to my chest like an eager theater actor.

“Mother, remember that Job, who suffered one-sidedly, ultimately achieved salvation through him! Also, wasn’t the Agarpe family lucky enough to have a son-in-law like me because Lady Psyche got sick? In this way, suffering becomes a ladder toward salvation in providence!”

“Hyde, you can cure Dihon’s illness!?”

Mother-in-law Wilhemina’s face shone like a star.

I said that to my mother-in-law.

“To do that, you have to see the patient first. Do you mind if I take a look at Dihon, the count’s only son?”

Once you see the patient, you will know what the condition is.

It was then.

“No visits are allowed with Dihon today. This is the authority given to me by the Count, so the Countess must also follow it.”

Rattling, rattling-.

A bespectacled gentleman appeared in the hallway holding a washbasin in his hand.

His hair was blond like Loras’s, and his face was thin but with passion in his eyes.

“Everyone, please get out of the way. Master Dihon, now is the time to bleed.”

Sereung-.

It was Selim, the man holding up the blade that was lying on the washbasin.

“You’re drawing blood with that hook-shaped knife?”

I frowned.

Was that knife disinfected?

I don’t think I did.

I don’t know if it’s a knife used to cut grass, but there’s straw still on it. That was the law with surgical tools in this barbaric world that had no concept of disinfection.

However, Selim looked at me and raised his eyebrows greatly.

“Lord Hyde, bloodletting is the latest trendy treatment even in universities.”

Giik-.

At that time, a door that seemed like it would never open opened.

And a boy who seemed to have just graduated from elementary school peeked his pale face through the crack in the door.

“Se, Sir Selim. Should I have blood drawn today? As much as that treat?”

“Be patient even if it is painful. And you should not breathe the outside air carelessly. When I draw your blood, I’ll tell you about a book I saw in the library while I was still in college.”

“Last time, I didn’t like the story about the conman Al-Haddin marrying the princess using a magic lamp. In the end, the princess was fraudulently married to a man who had nothing of value to her other than a lamp.”

As he said that, the boy’s blue eyes looked at me.

Although she was thin and had a pale face, there was something about her spirit that reminded me of Doban and Psyche.

For some reason, that look seemed to be saying that my marriage to his older sister Psyche was a fraud through my tricks.

Kid, I got scammed.

Do you know the husband who became a stuffed animal from the first night?

# # #

Giik, chin-.

Soon Selim and Dihon entered, closing the door behind them.

Dihon screams, “Ugh,” probably because of the pain of bloodletting.

I finished the diagnosis while listening to that sound through the door and Wilhemina wiping away her tears with a handkerchief.

“Lethargy. Difficulty breathing. Nausea with occasional nausea. Malnutrition due to indigestion. There are quite a few diseases that come to mind, but the most likely one is brain… ”

“… … .”

Sze-.

Wilhemina’s expression remained worried.

I hastily turned the horse’s rudder.

The heart, not “─… I guess it’s a disease from the side?”

“Oh my god, do you know that just by seeing it!? The disease Dihon suffers from is a heart disease!”

Countess Wilhemina Agarpe was very surprised by my diagnosis.

If I said it wasn’t heart disease, I was planning to name a variety of diseases, including stomach ulcers, but it seemed like I guessed it right away with the first picture.

I’m glad that my mother, Wilhemina, is a person who can clearly see various things in her facial expressions.

“If you know the disease, you can cure it!”

Wilhemina liked it very much.

Do I really know how to cure heart disease?

To be honest, I could say I knew and I could say I didn’t know.

I know the method, but I’m not a professional doctor, so I can’t do surgery.

In the first place, is it possible to collect working tools for surgery in this world?

“I think I can take on some challenges. Before that, I think it would be best to get to know Prince Dihon first. In order to recover from both faith and illness, it is important to improve community relationships.”

“Improve community relations… ?”

Countess Wilhemina seemed unable to understand what I meant.

And “Selim didn’t say that… I muttered, .”.

Selim, doctor of theology.

I will first take away your position as the advisor and mentor of this family.

What should we do to do that?

Of course, we need to form a rapport with Dihon, who is both a patient and an important party.

And the method had already been estimated.

“Prince Dihon probably likes listening to or reading interesting stories, right? Since he is someone who can’t even move around outside his room, I don’t think there will be much else to do for fun.”

“That’s right. Our Dihon likes to read books. Also, Sir Selim always told interesting stories to Dihon. Sir Selim read a lot.”

“Mother, can you give me paper and a pen?”

I’ll show you what a really interesting story is.

After all, I am the winner of a 21st century novel contest filled with all kinds of media.

“The title is “The Village of Back Alley Nymphs.” very good. Dihon, you little bastard, wait. I’ll tell you what a really interesting story is.”

I received paper and pen and completed a masterpiece of 50,000 characters in two hours.