Chapter 132
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 132
“Lady Fellon. I didn’t have the opportunity to greet you properly earlier. How are you faring?”
Cedric had approached them before she even realized he was there.
Harriet felt a subtle pang of disappointment that he hadn't called out to her first, though she immediately felt blindsided by her own reaction. Why did she care?
“Much better, thank you. And I must express my gratitude to you as well, Duke.”
“To me? I haven’t done anything worthy of the esteemed Lady Fellon’s thanks.”
“Oh, you’re far too modest. Thank you so much for looking after our Harriet last time. Please forgive my late greeting; I’ve been quite unwell lately.”
Cedric smiled and offered a dismissive wave of his hand.
“You should direct those thanks to Her Majesty the Empress, not me.”
“Of course. But if the Grand Duchess and the Duke hadn’t exerted themselves, would Her Majesty have spared a glance for this humble child?”
“Humble? That is hardly a word I would associate with Miss Harriet.”
Only then did Cedric turn his gaze toward Harriet.
“Have you been well since we last met?”
His crimson eyes seemed to bore into her soul, leaving Harriet feeling flustered.
However, perhaps because she had grown brazen after everything she’d endured, Harriet managed to conceal her agitation by steering the conversation toward Trisha.
“Is there any reason I wouldn’t be? I’m simply always worried about my grandmother’s health. In fact, I wished she’d stayed home to rest today…”
Trisha clicked her tongue, looking utterly exasperated.
“I swear, I’ve never been nagged this much in my life. She’s so overprotective, even when I tell her I’m perfectly fine.”
“Hahaha. That is only because Miss Harriet is so devoted to you, Lady Fellon. I understand her concern, as I also know people who tend to brush off their own ailments.”
“It’s no joke; I really don’t feel sick anymore. The new medicine I switched to suits me perfectly. It’s quite miraculous, really.”
Cedric’s smile faltered ever so slightly at her words.
“It has improved that much?”
“I feel no different than I did before I fell ill. I sleep a bit more, perhaps, but that’s a minor side effect—nothing to worry about.”
“That sounds like a remarkable medicine indeed. It isn’t easy to achieve such potent results so quickly…”
His gaze briefly swept over Harriet, noting her worried expression, before returning to Trisha.
“As it happens, our family physician is scheduled to arrive later. Since the opportunity has presented itself, why don’t you allow him to examine you?”
Benjamin Nelson, the physician of the Ducal House, was a master of his craft who had treated Jeremia since her days as an Imperial Princess. He was a man of unwavering loyalty, having even resigned from his post as an Imperial Physician—the pinnacle of a doctor's career—to follow Jeremia.
Harriet looked at Trisha with pleading eyes, silently urging her to agree.
But Trisha shook her head firmly.
“Thank you for the offer, but I must decline. I can’t imagine coming to a tea party only to be examined by someone else’s physician.”
“Grandmother…”
“Quiet, now. The medicine I’m taking works well enough, so why should I trouble so many people?”
She was adamant, genuinely believing such a request would be an imposition.
Harriet’s heart ached with worry. She couldn't exactly drag Trisha in front of a doctor by force.
She thanked Cedric for his kindness and waited until Trisha became engrossed in conversation with the other guests. Once the timing was right, she quietly approached him. He was standing with a small group, but she didn't care about the attention. Her only priority was ensuring Trisha didn't notice.
“Um, Duke Kailas. Might I speak with you for a moment?”
She was anxious that he might rebuff her.
However, he merely raised an eyebrow in surprise and gave a slight nod. He smoothly detached himself from the group and walked alongside Harriet.
They headed toward a less crowded corner of the venue.
Cedric remained silent until they stopped and faced one another. He was waiting for her to speak first—to make the difficult request herself.
Harriet knew this was his way of maintaining control over the situation, but she had no choice but to play along.
“I’m embarrassed to bring up a matter that has already been settled, but… is your offer to let my great-aunt see Sir Benjamin Nelson still valid?”
“Of course. Anytime.”
Feeling some of the tension leave her shoulders, Harriet pressed further.
“Could I perhaps ask Sir Nelson for something other than an examination? I was hoping he could identify exactly what is in the medicine my grandmother is taking.”
She pulled a small glass bottle from her pocket.
It was the new prescription Joseph had given to Trisha.
Cedric frowned slightly as he took the brown bottle.
“Is this the ‘miraculous’ medicine?”
“Yes.”
His gaze shifted from the bottle back to Harriet.
“She seems to have improved significantly. Why do you want the medicine verified?”
“It’s just… something is bothering me.”
“I need to know what that ‘something’ is if I am to explain it to Sir Nelson.”
Harriet hesitated, then took a deep breath and met his eyes.
“If I say the medicine is… too effective, does that sound strange?”
“Please, continue.”
“Before taking this, she was using a prescription from the late Sir Atworth. That was also an excellent medicine that suited her well, but even then, she occasionally suffered from pain and coughing.”
It had been heartbreaking and frightening to witness.
But when a single change in medication caused all those symptoms to vanish instantly, that, too, became frightening.
“No matter how advanced a medicine is, I wondered if such a drastic change was even possible. She also sleeps longer now and seems to have less energy… and there is one more thing.”
Harriet found it deeply unsettling that Joseph, who claimed to follow Jasper’s methods, had flatly declared hot spring therapy to be ‘ineffective.’
“Sir Atworth strongly recommended the hot springs, but Sir Alden said they would have no effect. It might just be a difference of professional opinion, but usually, if there’s even a slight chance of helping a patient, doctors recommend trying everything. The fact that he dismissed it so readily is…”
“You’re suspicious.”
After hearing her out, Cedric nodded slowly, looking down at the bottle in his hand once more.
Harriet, overcome by a sudden wave of anxiety, added, “Please, I beg of you. I will repay this favor someday, no matter what it takes…!”
“Very well.”
He replied with a tone that was neither too hesitant nor too eager.
“It will take some time to verify the components. We will need the cooperation of the Imperial Health Bureau, after all.”
Harriet nodded repeatedly in relief.
To be honest, she hoped Benjamin would tell her there was no problem at all. Until the results came back, Trisha would have to keep taking the medicine, regardless of Harriet's fears.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Cedric didn’t put the bottle away immediately. Instead, he fiddled with it, his eyes fixed intently on Harriet.
This moment, where she was the one making a difficult request, was a rare opportunity to satisfy his own curiosities. He had thought of her face often since the Imperial Banquet.
Her eyes, which seemed to grow more expressive with each passing day, were fascinating. It pleased him that she, who usually met his gaze with such defiance, was now looking everywhere but at him.
Of course, if she had been looking at another man her age, he might have had far more unpleasant thoughts. But Harriet’s gaze was merely sweeping over the walls, the pillars, the passing servants, and the floral arrangements.
“How have you been?”
When Cedric asked the question in a low, private voice, Harriet’s wandering gaze finally snapped back to him. But there was no smile on her lips.
“To be honest, I spend every day on tenterhooks because of my grandmother’s health. I can’t focus on anything else.”
“…You were serious.”
“What… do you mean?”
“It’s nothing.”
He had suspected Harriet was using Trisha as a shield to keep her distance from him. But seeing the genuine worry that lingered in her expression even after his repeated questions, it was clear that Trisha’s health was the only thing on her mind.
In that case, his path forward was clear.
‘I should tell Sir Nelson to hurry as much as possible.’
He decided to abandon his relaxed approach.
The more he helped Trisha, the more indebted Harriet would feel toward him. Being the creditor in a relationship where favors were exchanged was a position he intended to enjoy to the fullest.
As Cedric allowed a subtle smile to play on his lips, Jeremia, who had just returned after tidying her hair, witnessed the scene.
‘Cedric?’
Her gaze wasn't drawn to her son simply because he was speaking to a young woman.
Cedric had many acquaintances and social obligations; it wasn't strange for him to be seen with anyone, Harriet included.
But the way he was looking at her felt… wrong.
Cedric was a man who understood the boundaries of etiquette perfectly. He never held eye contact with others for too long—especially young women—to the point of impropriety.
Yet, that very man was now staring at a woman who was actively ignoring him, his gaze bordering on rude in its intensity.
‘Is that how he looks at a business partner?’
She was well aware that Cedric held Harriet in high regard. She had even teased him about it before, but at the time, she had dismissed his interest as a fleeting impulse or a passing crush.
‘Surely he isn’t serious, is he?’
Jeremia watched Cedric with a complicated expression before resuming her walk. The thoughts swirling in her mind were not so easily dismissed.