episode_0177

Episode 177. Overseas Conference (3)

****

The discovery of the century. A scholar who comes once in a thousand years. But I don’t think that’s what I’ll remember today. What impressed me the most was… .

As expected, it was the princess. It was the moment when I personally confirmed that the saying that Princess Mint had the greatest beauty in the empire was not an exaggeration.

It was a bonus that I walked out with Professor Asterix’s arm linked. A sight that was vividly engraved in my mind.

Melissa scratched her head. The princess said a few words and immediately took Professor Asterix out, leaving the surprised people in the lab behind.

The healers gathered there were murmurs, forgetting even their manners. The princess left the practice room without even looking back.

Melissa looked at the person sitting next to her.

“The person who just passed by. You said princess, right?”

“Yes.”

The healers gathered in the practice room began to chatter again. It was a topic of conversation that was much stronger than academic curiosity.

Whether it was bacteria or vodka, if I didn’t write it down I would quickly forget it, but the princess’s face didn’t seem like something I would easily forget.

“Ah. So it’s true that the princess and Professor Asterix were lovers?”

“That’s right.”

“Why are you here?”

“Professor Asterix, didn’t you come to pick him up? Since she’s the princess, she might have wanted to speak in public with people from various countries.”

It seemed like the princess had said something.

“What did you say?”

“What did the princess say? It seemed like a cliche. Thank you for coming, medicine is important, something like that.”

Perhaps. The royal family did express their gratitude to the healers. I was so surprised that the princess came that I didn’t hear it properly…

As the thought reached that point, Melissa paused for a moment. Then, wouldn’t it be possible to meet the princess through Professor Asterix?

If you meet the princess – she’s still a student, so she might not have much real power. But she can tell the royal family what she saw.

In retrospect, it wasn’t such a simple matter. If it were, the Academy would be full of lobbyists trying to get in touch with the children of the nobility. That’s not the case.

Professor Asterix was a taller person than she thought. Melissa realized this anew. Although she didn’t show it often.

He was not only a big shot academically, but he also had great political influence. He was originally an imperial healer, so his influence may have been there from the beginning.

Let’s not overthink it.

“But, the princess is an undergraduate student, right?”

“Oh, I see.”

Melissa thought for a moment. Professor Asterix was quite young for a professor. Maybe about ten years older?

It’s a bit much.

Anyway, the biggest achievement of this study was probably that. The professor predicted that selling the drug overseas would have a high probability of success. It will probably happen.

****

After the princess finished speaking briefly, she took me out of the practice room. There were loud noises and sharp gazes pouring down on the back of my head.

I couldn’t even guess how long I would be staring at him. I shut my eyes tightly.

“Princess.”

“Huh?”

“Wouldn’t everyone be uncomfortable?”

Mint tilted her head at me, as if she didn’t quite understand what I meant.

“Isn’t the lecture over?”

“It’s finished.”

“Is it okay to go out?”

Actually, there was no reason why I couldn’t go out with the princess. I was just worried about what people would think. Even now, I can hear the murmurs behind me.

“I don’t know what you’re worried about, sir. Is there something wrong? It’s just that you’re not used to public attention, sir.”

That wasn’t the problem.

He was already being called a thief by those around him. His notoriety was spreading even overseas. The princess had a satisfied expression on her face.

I don’t know.

Even if other people treat me like a bad guy, there’s nothing I can do about it.

The princess seemed excited, whether she knew what was on my mind or not. Maybe it was because she had not been in public for a long time. I let out a sigh.

If the princess is happy.

“Let’s go eat. I think you’re tired.”

“Yes.”

“The teacher is also working hard. Are all those people from overseas? To meet the teacher?”

“That’s right.”

And those people just watched me walk out arm in arm with the princess.

How absurd those people must have been. It’s hard to put into words, but it was clear that they were truly absurd.

Mint looked back.

“Well, I know what you’re talking about.”

“Do you know?”

“Is it because you think I’m too much for you, teacher? I didn’t know you’d be humble in this regard, teacher. But still-”

Mint was a smart person, and he wasn’t clueless either… … but maybe because he had never used his senses to survive, he only used half of them.

It was a bit of a different problem from being a person who had too much mint. It could be a needless worry, though.

The princess held my hand tightly.

“You don’t have to worry, teacher. You don’t have to worry about being too much. I don’t think other people will think that way either, right?”

“That would be great.”

I’m not sure about that.

I don’t think Mint is the type of person who deserves to be called a thief…

Mint just smiled brightly. The weather was cold, so every time she breathed, a little bit of white breath could be seen, but she didn’t seem to care.

****

The princess sat down next to me, holding a teacup in her hand. The weather outside seemed cold, but fortunately, the weather inside the restaurant was warm.

The princess looked around.

“Should I have spoken longer?”

“No.”

“It’s a pretty big event for the royal family, too. Scholars from all over the world gather there. That’s why I went to the conference.”

It may be regrettable to have missed the opportunity to show off the royal influence, but it would have been uncomfortable if the princess had been there longer.

I might have gotten cursed at more.

“Well, I wonder if the princess’s sincerity wasn’t conveyed? Since it wasn’t a banquet or anything, there might not have been a need to speak at length.”

“Is that so?”

The princess tilted her head.

I didn’t tell her that if Miss Mint was there, everyone would feel uncomfortable. She had such an innocent expression.

“How was the teacher?”

“The conference went well. We taught what needed to be taught this time, and we exchanged papers and techniques as much as possible.”

The conference was a great success. There were no problems, and everyone who gathered learned how to use alcohol properly. Mint nodded as if she understood.

“An elf was sitting in the front seat.”

“Ah, this is Teacher Linea. From the East Forest-”

The princess cut me off.

“Do you know him?”

“No. I just saw it briefly the day before.”

Oh. This is not it. It was only then that I realized something was wrong. There was a hint of irritation in the princess’s voice.

“Really?”

“There was some academic conversation.”

The princess stared blankly out the window. The window was covered in fog. Outside, a little bit of cold snow was falling today as well.

“I think it was Linea. She was pretty.”

“Oh, is that so?”

Mint sighed.

“Well… … . There’s nothing I can do. The better the person is, the more people will have their eyes on them.”

“No, that’s not it.”

The princess smiled with her eyes and picked up her teacup again. I scratched my head awkwardly.

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“The elf healer sitting in front. I saw her lying on the sofa in the lab yesterday.”

“Ah.”

Oh, right. When did you see that?

I sighed inwardly.

Since Linea was lying down in the lab for quite some time yesterday, the princess may have seen Linea on the lab sofa as she passed by.

There was no real answer to that. It was a strange situation for anyone to see. But it was entirely Linea’s fault.

Why are you lying around in someone else’s lab and causing misunderstandings? At least Mint doesn’t seem upset.

Mint leaned against me.

“Teacher. You can’t run away?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Isn’t it true that Teacher Linea didn’t say anything?”

Again, I don’t know if this is a joke or not.

Mint was smiling, but I couldn’t tell if she was really smiling, if she thought my reaction was funny, or if she was just laughing to get over her annoyance.

“Oh, don’t worry. Miss Linea is not a princess, she’s not prettier than Miss Mint, and she’s not close to me.”

Mint nodded.

“Are you worried?”

“I’m not worried.”

I looked into Mint’s eyes, but surprisingly, the princess didn’t have a serious expression on her face. She just had a slightly amused expression on her face.

****

I returned to the lab.

The conference was over, but there was still time for the overseas guests to leave. It would take several days for everyone to leave.

There was nothing left to do.

Things to take abroad. You can do practical training where you go to see patients together, do dissections together, do experiments… … .

I need to think about it.

The subject under consideration was the anatomy of the gastrointestinal tract.

The gastrointestinal tract is relatively less important than the lungs or the heart, but many patients come to the hospital with stomachaches. Let’s study that area.