Chapter 68
Chapter: 68
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 68
>Chapter Title: Gray Plague (4)
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>"Move Sir Haven to the lodging first, all of you together."
One of the knights asked with an uneasy expression at Seongjin's words.
"Shouldn't we leave him like this until the plague doctor arrives? What if we touch him wrong and the disease spreads..."
If the plague doctor came and started drawing blood, Haven might really die.
Seongjin shook his head.
"It's not the plague. I know what this illness is."
"...How can we believe that?"
Another knight standing nearby glared at Seongjin and demanded an explanation. He was a young knight with a long scar across his forehead.
Seongjin had recently become friendly with most of the resident knights, but this young one always shot him disrespectful looks whenever they passed each other.
"Even if Your Highness says so, if it turns out to be the plague after all, it'll be us lowly ones dying, won't it?"
"......"
His attitude was extremely insolent, but honestly, he wasn't entirely wrong.
It was only natural not to readily believe the infamous wastrel young prince—who had no medical knowledge to speak of—when he claimed it wasn't the plague.
Without responding, Seongjin slowly lowered himself and grabbed the fallen Haven's arm.
In that instant, the knights around him gasped in surprise.
Ignoring them, Seongjin slung Haven's arm over his shoulder and pulled him up to a sitting position. Haven had a small build to begin with, and by channeling aura through his muscles, it wasn't too difficult even with young Mores's body.
In that state, Seongjin looked at the knights surrounding them.
"Alright, I'll take half the responsibility, so you all gamble on the other half. He's your comrade, isn't he?"
"......"
The knights exchanged glances with each other, saying nothing and just gauging reactions.
Surprisingly, the first to step forward was the young knight who had confronted Seongjin. He silently grabbed Haven's other arm and helped Seongjin lift his body.
Soon, the two of them were supporting Haven and heading toward the knights' lodging.
'I thought he was a prickly guy, but he has some loyalty after all.'
Seongjin glanced sideways, but the young knight stared straight ahead, his eyebrows furrowed as if something bothered him.
"Which order are you from? How long have you been assigned to the Pearl Palace?"
"...Why? If I tell you, will Your Highness remember?"
"......"
What was wrong with this guy? Didn't he know how to get along in society or something?
The atmosphere was starting to turn tense, but fortunately, the distance to where they were moving Haven wasn't far. Sir Kurt had called for a physician and prepared a stretcher, rushing over.
The young knight handed Haven to the physician and vanished from the spot without a word of greeting. He really had a prickly personality.
Soon, Haven was loaded onto the stretcher and quickly transported to the lodging.
"How long has he been in this state?"
Physician Ninnias asked. His nose was red as always, making him look like he'd been dragged out from drinking.
"He was fine until yesterday afternoon."
At Sir Kurt's response, Physician Ninnias quickly examined Haven.
He checked his pulse, peered into his mouth, and flipped up his eyelids.
Of course, his severe hand tremors were still there, so it was questionable if he could properly take a pulse...
'This old man called the Liora School quacks before, didn't he?'
It suddenly occurred to Seongjin that he didn't seem to like the Liora School much. His trust in Physician Ninnias skyrocketed!
Oblivious to Seongjin's thoughts, the physician examined Haven diligently for a while before finally speaking to the group.
"As Your Highness said, it doesn't look like the typical plague that's commonly known."
"It's... not the plague?"
Sir Kurt asked, sounding somewhat relieved.
"Probably not. Most plagues start with high fever, but this fellow instead..."
His body temperature is dropping.
"Of course, as a plague progresses and worsens over time, the pulse weakens and the temperature drops like this, but you said the symptoms haven't been going on long for him."
"Then, Physician, if it's not the plague, why is he like this?"
At Sir Kurt's question, Physician Ninnias wiped sweat from his forehead with a troubled expression.
"It's hard to say for sure right now. We'll need to observe his condition a bit more, but..."
He glanced subtly at Seongjin, who was standing with arms crossed, listening quietly.
Since Seongjin was the one who first said it didn't seem like the plague, he was probably curious about how much knowledge he had as an apothecary.
"Sometimes people stung by bees show similar symptoms. Back in my old village, there was a young man who died from a bee sting—rashes appeared, his face swelled, breathing got hard, and most importantly, his temperature dropped sharply like this. He said his father and grandfather had died the same way from bee stings, generation after generation."
Of course, this fellow's condition isn't deteriorating as rapidly as if he were about to die suddenly, Physician Ninnias added.
"Plus, the reason he lost consciousness before his pulse weakened is hard to guess right now. It's not typical poisoning, but we should consider the possibility of some new toxin."
Seongjin examined Haven, who lay unconscious on the bed.
His complexion was deathly pale, his skin almost gray. His lips had lost all color, and scattered red rashes swelled on exposed skin like his face and neck.
And below his chest, a section of skin had turned grayish.
Could it be there?
[Yes, there's a Roperum egg embedded in his chest area. It's already dead.]
The Demon King admitted.
'What effect does a Roperum egg have on humans? Is it poisonous?'
[Who knows? I've never laid eggs in humans.]
Seongjin pondered for a moment.
Even having lived a modern Earth life, he didn't have much medical knowledge. Before the Gate incident, he was just an ordinary office worker, and after, as a superhuman hunter, he never worried about diseases.
But even he knew that sudden death from a bee sting was due to anaphylactic shock from an allergy.
A Roperum egg couldn't parasitize a human body and would just die over time.
But what if the dead egg was triggering something like an allergic reaction? Or if it was continuously releasing a toxin-like substance from its corpse?
Then, the symptoms wouldn't improve without removing the dead egg from his body.
The task was clear. Extract the egg.
"Physician Ninnias, doesn't that skin color look a bit off? It seems different to my eyes..."
At Seongjin's words, the physician closely examined the chest area Seongjin pointed to. It must have been hidden by the blotchy rashes and pallid skin.
As Physician Ninnias carefully pulled open Haven's shirt, a palm-sized discolored patch of skin came into view. And in the center of that gray skin was a small wound the size of a pinky nail, covered in scab.
That wound was probably where the Roperum egg had burrowed in.
The physician touched the discolored chest area and tilted his head.
"Now that you mention it, you're right. The color is different. There's a wound too. And somehow the skin feels a bit hard? ...Huh?"
He tapped the discolored skin with his fingers and stroked it gently. Then, with a more serious expression, he looked up.
"There's... something strange inside that I can feel."
It had burrowed in shallow enough to feel from the outside? That made things easier.
Seongjin brightened and suggested to the physician.
"Shouldn't we take it out?"
"Pardon?"
"I mean, if we just make a small incision in the skin, we could probably extract it."
"...What?"
Physician Ninnias and Sir Kurt both jumped in shock, staring at Seongjin.
"No, even if it's something strange, it's not certain. Sometimes lumps can be felt in the body, and it's not that rare..."
The physician rubbed his nose awkwardly, his already red nose turning bright crimson as if on fire.
"Y-Your Highness, won't cutting into an already sick man make his condition worse?"
Sir Kurt protested with a panicked face, clearly anxious that this immature prince's meddling might worsen Haven's state.
Persuasion like this might not work after all. Seongjin frowned.
But help came from an unexpected source.
Francis, arriving late at the knights' lodging with Masain, had overheard Seongjin and chimed in to the physician.
"It's different from demonkin demonic energy, but I still sense something suspicious. Removing it seems best."
"......!"
It was the vice-captain of the Saint Aurelion Knights speaking.
The physician hesitated, glancing around, but gave up at Francis's resolute expression and prepared for the incision.
"The academy students have the same symptoms as this knight."
Francis briefly explained to Seongjin the symptoms he'd seen at the tribunal.
Pale complexions, cold body temperatures, and rashes all over the body. Most importantly, he'd sensed something odd near the students' chests.
It was an energy that repelled holy power.
"It definitely wasn't demonkin. If I had to compare it to something similar, maybe that bizarre creature from the Digory estate."
At the time, the presence was so faint he hadn't thought much of it and assumed it was just the plague.
But after hearing Seongjin's explanation, he now suspected the academy students' symptoms might stem from that same alien energy.
"If it repels holy power, isn't it something like a demonkin curse?"
Masain asked, his face paling slightly. Francis clicked his tongue lightly as he turned to him.
"I know what you're worried about, but that's impossible. As long as His Holiness the Holy Emperor is here, no demonkin curse can take root in the Delcross Imperial Capital."
And with that, they fell silent and watched Physician Ninnias incise Haven's chest.
The physician first disinfected the skin with strong liquor, then sweated profusely as he made the cut.
There wasn't much bleeding. The Roperum egg had truly lodged right under the skin.
Soon, Physician Ninnias tremblingly extracted a dark gray egg the size of a pinky nail.
Part of the egg cracked during the incision and was soaked in blood, but it was clearly not something that could normally form inside a human body.
The physician meticulously checked around the incision, disinfected again with liquor, then took needle and thread to suture the wound.
For someone who'd been reluctant, it was surprisingly neat work.
Which school's apothecary was Physician Ninnias, anyway? He seemed eager to hide it, but Seongjin decided to ask slyly later.
Seongjin and Francis carefully examined the extracted egg.
The dark gray, translucent egg was elongated like a grain of rice.
Knowing it was a magic beast egg, Seongjin could make out faint segments inside it. If it hadn't died and hatched, it would have become a larva.
"This... looks just like some kind of egg, doesn't it?"
Francis, sharper than expected.
As Seongjin nodded inwardly, Francis turned toward the lodging entrance.
"I'll head to the tribunal, Your Highness. I should tell the plague doctors to halt the students' 'bloodletting' treatment and search for eggs."
Hopefully, they haven't died from excessive bleeding yet.
Francis left those ominous words and departed swiftly.
Once the suturing was finished, Physician Ninnias bustled about, pulling out various herbs. He ground them into powder, mixed with water, and dripped it into Haven's mouth.
Perhaps it was his imagination, but even though he was still unconscious, Haven's complexion seemed a bit better.
After watching for a moment, Seongjin instructed him to report immediately if there was improvement, then left the lodging with Masain.
'That chest wound looked like someone had deliberately injected the egg...'
His mind was a whirlwind.
Who was doing this, and for what purpose?
Did the Holy Emperor know about this incident? How far had the investigation gone, and what measures had been taken?
"Your Highness."
Turning at the sudden call from behind, Seongjin saw Masain looking at him with a stiff expression.
"I heard briefly from Lady Maria about what happened in the training grounds. You personally supported that sick knight?"
"Yeah."
Masain sighed and continued.
"That was too rash. Your Highness should have retreated from the spot immediately. Couldn't you have heard the results from your subordinates later? This time it luckily wasn't the plague, but if something like this happens again..."
"Sir Masain."
Seongjin cut him off, not wanting to hear more.
"I'm not a child who needs a nanny."
Masain's eyes wavered at the unprecedented firmness.
But Seongjin thought he needed to make this clear.
If Masain decided to remain as knight commander rather than Mores's brother, the time would come when he had to define his attitude more sharply.
"I know you're saying this out of concern for my safety, but I had my own reasoning and convictions."
"......"
"I'll gladly take sincere advice. But you mustn't mistake that for grounds to restrict my thoughts and actions."
Seongjin stared straight into Masain's clearly flustered face. After clamping his mouth shut and meeting Seongjin's gaze for a moment, Masain lowered his eyes and bowed his head.
"I... overstepped. My apologies, Your Highness."
"Yeah."
Seongjin nodded and turned to resume walking.
The two ate lunch in silence and safely completed the afternoon swordsmanship lesson.
After parting with the somewhat dejected Sir Masain, Seongjin returned to his bedroom late in the evening and entered premature meditation.
He didn't feel great about being harsh to that downcast puppy of a man.
Training was the answer in times like these.
But the meditation didn't last long.
[Lee Seongjin. It's that woman.]
With the Demon King's warning, Seongjin also detected the stealthily infiltrating presence.
It was still extremely faint, but having experienced it once, it was easier to sense than yesterday.
Soon, a black shadow dropped lightly onto Seongjin's third-floor balcony and into his window. It was Dasha, the elite agent of the Monkey Watchtower.
She crept into the room through the open window, only to flinch in surprise upon spotting Seongjin sitting on the bed, staring right at her as she entered.
"No, Your Highness. How do you always know when I'm coming?"
She wore an expression of deep wounded pride.