Health Festival Day 3 – Treatment Room (3)

Mirabilis kissed Serina’s hand for quite a while before calmly raising his head. The look in his eyes as he gazed at the maid was uncharacteristically soft and warm. He cast a glance at the box the Empress had given him.

“Are you disappointed?”

“How could I ever be, Your Highness…?”

Serina trailed off cautiously, but Mirabilis was not oblivious to his true feelings. A gentle smile played over his quietly sparkling green eyes.

“Your expression already speaks volumes. But open it. Royal Mother-nim personally came to bestow it, so I guarantee it’s no ordinary item.”

As Serina struggled to sit up from the bed, supporting himself with his hands on the floor, Mirabilis quickly rose and helped him. Thanks to that, Serina was able to sit on the bed a little more easily. He slowly untied the string that bound the wooden box and opened the lid with a strange sense of anticipation.

But inside, there was only a cloth doll. It was a shoddy thing, sewn together from ragged scraps of cloth, with mismatched proportions and a generally terrible construction. It looked like something a poor child might play with, and it was so absurd that the words popped out of Serina’s mouth involuntarily.

“What is this?”

But Mirabilis peeked inside and nodded as if he recognized what it was.

“Indeed, Royal Mother-nim had good reason to speak so vaguely. Lela Welananda, a rare treasure that is not easily obtained.”

Serina held the doll in his hand and looked down at it. He couldn’t believe what he had just heard.

“This… cheap doll, you say?”

“Do you find it preposterous?”

Mirabilis’s eyes crinkled with amusement.

“Think about it. Would Royal Mother-nim bestow something worthless after coming all this way? If that were the case, she would rather not have given a reward at all. Since she personally took action, it must have a value befitting her status and dignity. Lela Welananda… what you received is perfectly appropriate.”

Noticing that Serina’s hair was disheveled from lying in bed, Mirabilis briefly got up and tidied it. Serina was a little embarrassed because he hadn’t washed his hair properly yet, but the Princess didn’t seem to mind at all, simply smoothing his hair with her hands before sitting back down.

“Serina, cherish it. It’s as if you’ve been given a spare life. If this fact becomes known, there will be greedy bastards who would raid your family home in the middle of the night to kill you and take it, so watch your mouth. Royal Mother-nim must have taken that into consideration when she expressed it as ‘bestowing’ something insignificant and omitted formalities.”

The Princess explained calmly. Lela Welananda, in ancient language, means ‘doll to be wounded.’ It was a doll that, only once in a lifetime, would take the owner’s injury or danger in place of them when their life was on the line due to illness or physical trauma.

Of course, it wasn’t omnipotent. This was also just a tool created by humans using magic technology, so it couldn’t perform miracles. It couldn’t revive someone who was dead, nor could it restore body parts that had been severed beyond a certain point. It couldn’t prevent natural aging, and it was less effective against poison, and once someone had saved their life with it, they couldn’t use it again. But despite all these limitations, its value was immense.

Mirabilis pulled a chair closer to the bed, placed her hand over Serina’s, and stroked it affectionately.

“Royal Mother-nim really cares a lot about the authority of the royal family. She’s giving you another life because you sacrificed your body to save a member of the royal family. The Lela Welananda is a treasure that some people wouldn’t be able to obtain even with a thousand gold pieces. That’s why the box is in that shape, and the doll is made to look worthless and crude. So that no one would think it’s a treasure just by looking at it… so that no one would be tempted to steal or take it.”

The Princess paused for a moment.

‘Even so, it’s too much of a treasure to give to Serina right away. Does she mean to reward him greatly on this occasion and make him definitely my person? My cold-hearted Royal Mother-nim still cares about me as her own daughter.’

Until now, apart from Mullaba, there was no one who could be called ‘Mirabilis’s person.’ Therefore, she was helping her daughter to secure Serina. Mirabilis also guessed that fact. While she was pleased with that help, a corner of her heart ached with self-deprecation, wondering if she was such an unreliable daughter in Royal Mother’s eyes.

But the relief that Serina wasn’t seriously injured overshadowed everything. Even when she felt like sinking into lonely emotions, caressing Serina’s hand like this faintly erased the pain, and a strange joy bubbled up like ripples, making the smile on her lips never cease.

Serina examined the crude doll in front of him from every angle. Faded cloth, wooden beads for eyes, stubby limbs, and clumsy stitches. The precious item called ‘Lela Welananda’ was so shabby that you could believe it was made by a young child playing with a rattle in a poor house.

But to him, the doll felt as heavy as a lump of iron. Because the weight of the box was light, he had imagined valuable jewelry that could be sent to his family home right away. But what he actually received was a treasure that he couldn’t dare to show to others, a treasure that was difficult to put a price on.

“This is a treasure that I cannot handle.”

With trembling hands, he carefully put the crude doll back into the wooden box and closed the lid. A precious item that was too much to keep personally or send to his family home. He couldn’t possibly sell a gift personally bestowed by the Empress. A treasure that he couldn’t handle the aftermath of was not a treasure but a disaster.

Although he didn’t know what the contents were, the story that the Empress had given him something would quickly spread throughout the Rose Palace. He had no idea how to store it or what to say to the other people in the Rose Palace. Far from being happy, he felt suffocated by the burden.

“…If we’re friends…”

Mirabilis muttered quietly under his breath. Serina raised his head and tilted it, asking, “Your Highness?” but he was embarrassed and waved his hands vigorously, smiling brightly.

“It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.”

Seeing that Serina’s face was still dark, Mirabilis took his hand again and held it tightly.

“If you find it too much to keep the Lela Welananda, I’ll take care of it while you’re in the Rose Palace. I’ll give you some money separately, so tell others that you received wealth from Royal Mother-nim. Wouldn’t that be helpful to your family home as well?”

Mirabilis liked Serina. Something akin to trust and goodwill grew in his heart, and from some point on, he kept catching his eye. He had felt similar emotions before, but after taking the sword for him, it became even more clearly etched in his mind and wouldn’t disappear. No other maid could replace him. Whenever he saw the faces of the other palace people attending to him, he realized that Serina wasn’t by his side and felt a strange sinking feeling in his heart.

The word amica (friend) sounded so sweet to Mirabilis. He was embarrassed to actually express it and couldn’t be sure how Serina would take it, so he couldn’t bring himself to say it, but he wanted to hug Serina tightly, fully embrace his warmth, and say, ‘Let’s be friends.’ He was overwhelmed with the feeling that he wanted to do anything for him, but he didn’t know how to say it or approach him.

Even if Nazadillex hadn’t bestowed the treasure, Mirabilis would have given as much as he could within his means. Taking care of the Lela Welananda and giving wealth was the greatest expression of goodwill and affection that a princess who was clumsy at making friends could show to a maid.

“Really… will you do that?”

Then the Princess smiled broadly and tilted her face forward slightly. And she pouted her lips as if feigning displeasure.

“Why would I lie to you?”

Mirabilis’s words were so welcome to Serina that his heart fluttered. He couldn’t have asked for more if the Princess herself would keep the treasure that was too much for him to handle. Moreover, there was a sufficient reason. Serina respectfully handed over the wooden box with both hands.

Mirabilis received the box and carefully placed it under the window in a conspicuous place. And he returned to the front of the bed, sat down on the chair again, and just held his hand tightly, looking at Serina without saying anything. As if he wanted something, his eyes were filled with a tender resentment. Serina opened his mouth, wondering if that was the case.

“Uoko Sororem Pauram.”

The moment Mirabilis’s personality changed to ‘younger sister,’ tears welled up in his deeply shining green eyes and flowed down his cheeks. The Princess, who had become a younger sister, climbed onto the bed as it was and hugged Serina tightly.

“Older Sister-nim… Even though Older Sister-nim was hurt, I couldn’t do anything…”

Mirabilis kissed each of the bruises on Serina’s face, the scratches on his skin, and the bandaged areas, and he ached as if he had been hurt himself. He wanted to lean on Serina’s chest as he usually did, but because he had injured his chest and was bandaged, he could only hug him. The tears Mirabilis shed fell and dotted the bed.

Serina placed his hand on Mirabilis’s head and stroked it.

“It’s not like I’ve suffered a serious injury that I can’t fully recover from, and I’ve obtained an unexpected treasure, so it’s all good, right? Stop crying, shh.”

Serina treated him as if he were a child, but Mirabilis had no complaints about that attitude at all. Rather, like children whose moods change quickly, he couldn’t completely erase the tears, but the mood that had been dark and gloomy like a cloudy sky easily cleared up.

“Ah, Older Sister-nim… good Older Sister-nim.”

Mirabilis took Serina’s hand, kissed the back of his hand, and rubbed it against his cheek again. Serina thought that skin contact had really increased since he had made the Princess his ‘younger sister.’

“By the way, Mirabilis, the fake said he would change the bandages for me earlier, so I need you to do it.”

“Yes!”

Mirabilis was happy to be able to do something for Older Sister-nim and answered readily. He was a little clumsy because he was more used to being served than serving, but he wanted to help Serina and tried his best with all his enthusiasm. He happily took off Serina’s top.

The bandages around his chest were soaked with blood and stained red. He struggled to untie the knot that the medical woman had tied tightly, and when he took off the bandages, he saw that the wound was covered with a square cloth. The cloth was also soaked, blooming red like a rose.

As Mirabilis carefully opened the cloth, blood suddenly flowed from the wound and touched his hand. Originally, the blood should have already hardened and dried up blackish. But even though Mechio had washed away the magic power, the aftermath remained, and Serina’s wound was still pouring out red liquid as if vomiting. He stared at the droplets drawing crimson lines on his older sister’s white ribs, then brought his face closer and licked them.

“You, what…!”

Serina was startled and flinched, but Mirabilis didn’t answer. Rather, he forcibly laid him down on the bed and climbed on top of him. The black fabric of Mirabilis’s clothes draped down to the floor like a curtain. He grabbed both wrists, forcefully restrained him on the bed, and pressed down on Serina with all his weight. The face of the younger sister, who was pressing down on him with his whole body so that he couldn’t move, was flushed with a strange rosy color, and his eyes were filled with a strange passion.

The green stones hanging from his earrings dangled down and shone brilliantly, but Serina couldn’t see them properly. In the narrow section of the treatment room where the sunlight was shining brightly, Mirabilis put his mouth to the cut and diligently licked his tongue, sucking the blood flowing from the inner flesh. Serina’s sweat and the medicine he had applied earlier mixed together, giving his skin a strange taste, but he didn’t care at all.

Every time his younger sister’s tongue brushed against the flesh inside, Serina felt a strange heat spreading from his chest to his limbs, and he felt dizzy as if he were staggering due to the strange pain. He didn’t want to push him away forcibly, nor did he want to tell him to get off. Mirabilis had already released his older sister’s arms, but Serina put his arms around his back and panted, just hoping he would get off on his own.

It was a truly strange sight. The sight of an adult woman suppressing another adult woman and sucking blood looked like a baby sucking on its mother’s breast, or like a man and woman embracing and rolling around. Serina’s heart seemed to bend to the force and passion expressed by his younger sister.

Mirabilis finally raised his face after a long time. His eyes, looking down with joy, were full of satisfaction, and his lips, smiling seductively, were stained with red blood.

“You have blood on your mouth.”

Hearing that, Mirabilis stuck out his tongue and licked his mouth, which was strangely sensual. Serina couldn’t look away. Mirabilis kissed his lips again. A faint metallic, fishy taste swirled around like a hallucination, and the heart of the maid who had become an older sister pounded.

“I’m sorry, Older Sister-nim, I’ll change it for you now.”

He first stopped the blood with the removed bandages, applied the disinfectant medicine as Mechio had told him, covered the wound with a clean cloth, and tightly wrapped it with newly taken out bandages. He was clumsy and awkward because he was suddenly doing something he wasn’t used to, but Mirabilis sweated and did his best as he had seen and heard. Although the skill of tying the bandages was clumsy, it was to the extent that even if Mechio saw it, he wouldn’t bother ordering the medical woman to treat it again. Moreover, the end of the bandage was tied in a cute butterfly shape that didn’t match.

“Why did you do that?”

Looking at Mirabilis, who was sitting back in his chair with a bright smile, Serina moved the question to the tip of his lips. The question was ambiguous, but it was not insufficient to grasp the meaning.

“Are you talking about drinking Older Sister-nim’s blood?”

He nodded calmly. The younger sister twirled his fingers around and pondered deeply. It took a while, but Serina silently waited for the next words.

“I want to get closer to Older Sister-nim. Serina-nim is already my soul’s Older Sister-nim, but not my physical Older Sister-nim. My physical Older Sister-nim is me…”

Mirabilis wore a bitter smile on his lips. A stuffy feeling welled up in his heart, and the words swirled around in his mouth for a moment.

“I want to get closer in any way. So I thought it would be nice to have a ‘blood tie’ with Older Sister-nim too. So when I saw the blood Older Sister-nim was shedding…”

He muttered the rest of the words quietly in his mouth, so it was difficult to understand them right away. Eventually, Serina directly took the words and asked back.

“…You wanted to drink it? Because you wanted to get closer to me physically too?”

“…Yes, I’m sorry for not getting permission. I didn’t think you would allow it.”

Mirabilis lowered his head as if he were ashamed, but he couldn’t hide his flushed cheeks. He really seemed to be in a good mood. Seeing that, he himself felt somehow happy and his heart was pounding, so he didn’t feel like questioning him further.

If he thought that Mirabilis ― even if he was a younger sister created by hypnosis ― was so earnestly trying to approach him, his heart warmed. He felt a lump in his throat, thinking that there was no need to try to create a master-servant relationship.

Even if the ‘fake’ was full of goodwill and treated him meticulously and sincerely, would there be any need to force it? If Mirabilis really liked Older Sister-nim with just sisterly love and he himself was so happy, wouldn’t there be no point in forcing a new relationship? Serina felt like he would be immersed in a subtle joy if he just maintained his relationship with ‘Mirabilis’s two personalities’ as it was now.

He couldn’t figure out what emotions he was feeling for him. But the expression didn’t matter. All that mattered was that he had really come to like him. If he could only be with Mirabilis, he wanted to willingly dedicate himself as someone who had become ‘Older Sister-nim.’ Serina vowed to himself, ‘Let’s not be greedy anymore.’

“But it’s blood… wasn’t the smell of blood disgusting?”

The younger sister raised his head. When the sunlight coming through the window of the treatment room hit Mirabilis’s eyes, they sparkled like jewels. He couldn’t breathe as he saw the emerald-like, deep green shining like a shimmering lake.

“O, Swesor sola carisema mea.”

(Ah, my one and only Older Sister-nim, whom I truly love.)

The moment Mirabilis opened his lips, Serina felt like time had stopped. Every time his red lips moved and uttered a sound, the sound sweetly permeated his ears.

“O, Swesor genoina anamas meas.”

(Ah, my soul’s true Older Sister-nim.)

Every time Mirabilis pronounced a sentence, every sound that made up the words seemed to turn into a sweet light and fill the surroundings. He became dizzy as if he were blinded by the beauty of the sounds crackling in the air.

Serina knew ancient languages. The ancient language that Mirabilis was speaking was also a very simple sentence. But he understood the meaning a beat late, not because it was difficult, but because the way he spoke was really dazzling. Just as other sounds are hidden by the soft sound of the wind, Serina’s ears were filled only with his brightly smiling voice.

“Sanguen puros tuos gaudom magnom eti pacem mehei donat.”

(Your pure blood gives me great joy and peace.)

After finishing his words, Mirabilis lowered his face as if he were ashamed, but his eyes were endlessly warm. Seeing that, Serina’s heart pounded. He could no longer be satisfied with just a sisterly relationship. He wanted to dye his entire soul with the dye called ‘Serina.’ Even imagining Mirabilis leaving his hand and going somewhere made the blood in his body feel sticky.

‘It’s not my fault, Mirabilis, it’s your fault.’

Serina made excuses in his heart that he himself didn’t believe.

“Regina Lecta.”

Now it wasn’t to live or to avoid destruction. He was merely desiring a certain human being named Mirabilis, who was originally his master but had become his younger sister. Both his body and his soul, even his joys, sorrows, and passions. The black, wriggling desire was as clear as pain, and the maid who had become Older Sister-nim panted like he was thirsty. Serina took a step towards Mirabilis.

Though this body is twisted,

Even if the smell of blood is clear,

Looking at your figure,

I pant with thirst,

I wish I could possess

Your complete existence.