Catching a Cold Is Foul Play (1)
“Pardon? Ah, w-well, that is…”
Catherine’s complexion drained abruptly, as if a bitter memory had just surfaced in her mind.
“Did something happen?”
“Well, I was still assigned to the annex back then, so I don’t know all the details, but…” Catherine stole a cautious glance toward the slumbering young prince before leaning close to whisper in my ear. “The previous nanny collapsed after drinking poisoned tea. Back then, His Highness ran all the way to fetch a physician himself.”
The 3rd Prince’s Palace was tucked away in the most remote, isolated corner of the imperial grounds. The Imperial Medical Bureau lay quite a distance away. Edwin had sprinted the entire way with everything he had for the sake of his dying nanny, yet not a single physician had followed him back.
“At the time, the Second Prince had come down with pneumonia, so every available doctor had been summoned to the Second Prince’s Palace.”
“Even so, couldn’t they have spared just one person?”
“That’s just it… Her Highness, the Second Imperial Consort, laid down a strict decree. She declared that not a single physician was permitted to set foot outside until the Second Prince had fully recovered.”
So that was it. Edwin had rotten luck—terribly, relentlessly so.
“The former nanny was quite advanced in years. Because the poison was never neutralized in time, she couldn’t hold on for long and passed away.”
“…I see.”
A memory flashed unbidden across my mind, carrying the words Edwin had once uttered to me.
“She died. Because of me.”
So that was why he had said it.
I shifted my gaze toward the small figure curled beneath the blankets. Ever since the incident with Prince Lloyd, the boy hadn’t spoken a single word to me for days. Aside from mealtimes, he had stayed burrowed under the covers without taking a single step outside. That was why I hadn’t noticed his illness sooner.
“Whatever should we do? His Highness detests physicians so intensely…”
“What else? We bring one anyway.” I gently transferred Emilia into Catherine’s waiting arms. “It will be dangerous if his fever spikes any higher.”
In my previous life, I had possessed a constitution so sturdy that I had never caught even a common cold. My former colleagues had jokingly nicknamed me the Iron Human. Because of that, I couldn’t truly fathom how miserable the boy felt. What I did know, however, was that plenty of people were left with severe lifelong aftereffects after suffering from prolonged high fevers.
My assigned role as his nanny isn’t over yet. If that’s the case, I have to see my duties through.
At the very least, so long as I held this post, I would not allow him to end up broken.
“I will pay a visit to the Imperial Medical Bureau myself, so please look after His Highness while I’m gone.”
“The Nanny herself? Surely it would be better if I went instead.” Catherine looked thoroughly uneasy, her voice dipping into an insecure murmur. “I feel as though… you would be of far greater comfort to the young ones than someone like me…”
It was not difficult to guess what troubled her. A near-catastrophe with Prince Lloyd had occurred right under her watch while she was tending to the children; naturally, she felt shaken. But I had no intention of sending her to the medical bureau.
It was a place that had slammed its doors in the face of an imperial prince. If I sent a gentle, naive woman like Catherine, it was obvious she wouldn’t be able to secure so much as a single vial of fever medicine.
“I have no talent for bedside nursing,” I replied flatly. “And considering how dreadfully ill His Highness is, he won’t have the strength to run away. You wouldn’t just be stepping out to the annex this time—he wouldn’t even notice if you slipped entirely beyond the palace gates. Why not take this chance to stretch your legs?”
“N-Nanny—!” Flustered, Catherine finally realized I was teasing her and pulled a tearful face. “Please don’t mock me! My heart practically stopped beating that day!”
“Then I leave him in your hands.”
Without lingering for Catherine’s reply, I slipped out of the bedchamber. The last sound I caught was Edwin’s breathing, which was growing raspier by the second. I needed to hurry.
Once I cleared the gates of the 3rd Prince’s Palace, my measured stride did not take long to break into a sprint.
The Imperial Medical Bureau of the Ventrum Empire was an immense establishment. Across its sprawling courtyard, instead of ornamental flowers, all manner of medicinal herbs grew in dense, cultivated beds.
I walked past the herbal gardens and stepped into the main hall. The bitter scent of dried plants and the sharp, pungent tang of foreign spices pricked my nostrils. Just as I reflexively furrowed my brow, someone strolled toward me.
“From which palace have you come, miss?”
It was an elderly man who looked to be in his seventies. Embroidered across the mantle draping his shoulders was the motif of a serpent coiled tightly around a wooden staff.
The emblem representing the god of medicine.
That meant this man was likely the highest-ranking physician here. I adopted a polite tone and replied, “I have come from the Third Prince’s Palace.”
“…The Third Prince’s Palace?” At the mention of the name, the physician’s expression twisted almost imperceptibly.
“Yes. The Third Prince is currently in critical condition, so I ask that you dispatch a physician at once…”
“Oh dear, whatever shall we do?” Cutting across my words, the physician offered a troubled, apologetic smile. “I’m afraid that won’t be possible right now. Every single one of our physicians is currently out on house calls.”
“Every single one? For what reason?”
“Goodness, don’t even get me started. Only recently, Her Highness, the Second Imperial Consort, collapsed from her chronic ailment, and word just arrived that she has collapsed yet again today. The entire bureau is on emergency alert.”
I narrowed my eyes.
The old man before me was lying. It was written plain across his features: a benevolent, practiced smile, yet the corners of his eyes remained entirely unmoving; a gaze that flicked upward and to the left throughout the entire excuse. It was the universal signature of a dishonest man.
But why?
The real question was what reason he had to lie to me.
“Then dispense some medicine at least.”
The moment I requested medication, a different gleam entered the old man’s eyes—the hungry glint of a hunting hound seizing its quarry. His smile broadened warmly.
“Why, of course! Medication is a simple matter! Tell me, what seems to ail His Highness?”
“A persistent cough accompanied by a severe fever. It appears to be a cold.”
The physician gave a series of understanding nods as he listened to my description. “Judging by those symptoms, it is unmistakably a cold. I shall write up a prescription in the dispensary right away. Follow me.”
The aged physician led the way to the dispensary located immediately behind the bureau’s main building. Befitting an apothecary situated within the imperial palace, the facility was vast. Yet within the cavernous hall stood only a single young pharmacist.
The moment the lad spotted the old man, he hastily bowed his head to the floor. “G-Greetings, Chief Physician! What brings Your Excellency here in person…?”
“Oho, what else? I’ve come to prescribe medicine.”
A Chief Physician meant he served as the Emperor’s personal doctor. This old fox held a rank far higher than I had anticipated.
“There now.” With practiced ease, the man penned a prescription right on the spot. “Prepare it exactly as written.”
“Y-Yes, right away, sir!”
The young pharmacist accepted the parchment with both hands and immediately set about selecting and blending various dried herbs. It was while I was quietly tracking the boy’s hands that the Chief Physician stepped directly into my field of vision.
“By the way…” The old man offered a genial smile. “I have served in the imperial palace for fourteen years, yet I do not believe I have ever laid eyes upon you, young lady. Have you recently entered service?”
“Yes.”
“If it is not an imposition, might I inquire as to your name?”
Instead of answering, I merely stared at him in silence. Met with my unblinking gaze, an awkward twitch tugged at the corner of his mouth before he laughed bashfully.
“Ah, forgive my rudeness. I neglected to introduce myself first. I am the director who oversees this medical bureau, Sars Zaill.”
Sars Zaill. Apparent age in his seventies. Chief Physician. Director of the Imperial Medical Bureau.
A name that feels entirely out of place in an institution of healing.
Running through his background in my head, I let my voice soften into polite flattery. “It is an honor. I never imagined I would meet Count Zaill in a place like this.”
“Oh? You know of me?”
How could I not? In my previous life, I had handled more than a few contracts involving the Zaill Countdom. I flashed a faint, pleasant smile at the surprised Sars Zaill.
“I have heard that you frequently provide charitable medical aid to workhouses and temples for those who cannot afford care. Rumor holds that your benevolence is widely admired.”
I let the smile linger on my lips, my eyes narrowing just enough. “And that you are renowned across high society as one half of a deeply devoted couple.”
At those words, Sars’s face crumpled slightly.
“Haha… Calling us lovebirds is rather embarrassing. We merely share the ordinary affection of any married couple.” He offered an uneasy chuckle before briskly steering the topic elsewhere. “In any case, you must endure a great deal of hardship, my lady. Having to toil in such a wretched place, of all palaces.”
“Such a place?”
“Haha, let us be frank with one another. Is there anyone in the palace who doesn’t know what a miserable post the Third Prince’s Palace is?”
A meaningful smirk crept across Sars’s face. He leaned in close, his voice dropping to a confidential murmur near my ear.
“The truth is, I happen to enjoy considerable favor with Her Highness, the Second Imperial Consort. What say you? Why not use this opportunity to transfer your service to the Second Imperial Consort’s Palace?”
He crept even closer, his breath uncomfortably near. “From where I stand, a shabby hovel like the Third Prince’s Palace hardly suits a beauty such as yourself.”
The edges of my lips curled upward into a chilling smirk.
Sars Zaill. A wretched piece of filth who gropes young female patients at charity wards and freely extorts impoverished female believers visiting temple clinics.
They say an old dog never forgets its tricks. To think he was trying his hand at palace maids now.
If his famously jealous wife, the Countess of Zaill, caught wind of this, all hell would break loose. He had quite the nerve.
“I appreciate the gracious offer, but…”
With a subtle flick of my wrist, I casually brushed away his hand as it tried to slide over mine. “I am quite content where I am.”
“Hmph, what a pity. It truly is a golden opportunity.”
Just as Sars opened his mouth to spout more nonsense, an interruption cut him short.
“U-Um, the preparation is complete!”
The young pharmacist stepped between us, nervously extending a small glass vial. Inside the transparent container swirled a liquid of vivid, brilliant yellow.
“Ahem! Well, that is regrettable. But since you refuse, I shall not press the matter further.” Sars turned his head away, his expression souring into a haughty grimace. “You may take your leave now. I am a busy man.”
Discarding his earlier sweetness, the Chief Physician gave an arrogant flick of his chin—a silent command telling me I had outlived my usefulness and should clear out of his sight.
However, I had no intention of leaving as quietly as he wished.
Something had been bothering me from the moment he handed over that slip of paper.
Conveniently enough, a very suitable tool sat resting on the reception counter. My fingers closed around the pen he had used to write out the prescription—a fountain pen with a remarkably sharp, pointed nib.