A Genius Pharmacist Whom the Empress Is Obsessed With

The Price of Choice.

Leta’s crying echoed throughout the dark prison.

“Please, I beg you.”

Sometimes in a pleading voice that knew no bounds of desperation,

Sometimes in a voice filled with resentment,

Sometimes in a voice that seemed to have resigned to everything.

Leta’s emotions constantly changed, and unfiltered words poured out of her mouth.

“….”

Iden said nothing. He didn’t avoid the resentment and pleas directed at him. He simply watched until Leta collapsed from exhaustion.

There was no special meaning behind it. He was just worried that Leta would succumb to her emotions and do something she shouldn’t.

After a long bout of cries, Leta regained control of her emotions, and only then did Iden turn away.

***

From the day after visiting Leta, Iden had to spend busy days. Since Iden was the only one tending to the majority of Mellow’s patients.

There were doctors and pharmacists in Mellow, of course, but they were the people who collaborated with Rember, the ones Leta called snake offspring.

Regardless of their skills, Iden couldn’t entrust patients to those who had betrayed their medical ethics.

Given the situation, the number of patients Iden had to take care of, ranging from those with skin diseases to ordinary patients, exceeded imagination.

“It seems more difficult than Umstendel.”

On the first day Iden began receiving patients at the temporary clinic outside the castle, Lord Peniard drew a sigh while witnessing the patients rushing in like a flood.

Lord Peniard promised to send people to Stolstad or other villages to bring back capable doctors, and he advised not to treat mild cases until then.

Despite Lord Peniard’s opposition, Iden took care of the patients with utmost dedication, conserving sleep and rest. It was his job to take care of the patients.

Some patients bowed their heads, realizing their foolishness, while witnessing Iden’s devoted efforts.

However, Iden didn’t say anything except for the words necessary for treatment.

Ignorance and the instinct to survive are not sins.

However, he couldn’t welcome those who did terrible things to Rophe and Sion with a pleasant attitude.

“… There’s no need to be close to the patients in treating the disease.”

Moreover, it wasn’t Iden who the townspeople should seek forgiveness from, but Rophe and Sion.

As if acknowledging them, Iden couldn’t forgive them or have the qualification to forgive them.

Iden’s work continued until late at night.

If he took care of Mellow’s patients during the day and evening, he had to assist Viscount Peniad at night.

“It’s Lembeel again this time.”

According to the Viscount, Lembeel was quite a big thorn in the empire. They were causing various medical accidents not only in Mellow but also throughout the empire, with three snakes twisted together in a sentence.

“They spread new diseases and sell the medicine they make at a high price. Literally giving disease and selling medicine.”

The moment Iden heard those words, he knew why this clean Mellow had such a strange skin disease.

The human body is more robust than one might think, and it doesn’t lose balance or become sick for no reason.

In other words, there had to be a significant change in the environment surrounding the patients for the body’s balance to be easily disrupted.

However, Mellow where Iden looked back was an impeccably clean place. If Rophe and the townspeople didn’t go anywhere, there was a possibility that there was a problem with the environment of Mellow for such a skin disease to occur.

“The Lembeel bastards intentionally spread the disease.”

Supporting Iden’s thoughts, medicines believed to have been prepared by Lembeel were found abundantly in the hospital and pharmacy in Mellow.

The Viscount began collecting all of those medicines to investigate. It was to find out Lembeel’s level of pharmaceutical knowledge and to anticipate what they were up to.

As some medicines in the Viscount’s collection looked really dangerous at a glance, Iden had no choice but to step in.

“Viscount, if it’s about medicine, I’d rather help.”

The most certain way to know the effect of a potion is to drink it.

Instead of the Viscount and his subordinates getting sick from consuming incorrect medicine while trying to figure out its efficacy, it was much more efficient for Iden to take the potion and find out its effects and side effects.

“Thank you. I wanted to let you focus on treatment as much as possible, but the conditions aren’t favorable.”

Viscount Peniad, feeling sorry but willing to accept Iden’s help.

“They say it’s a calamity you brought upon yourself.”

From the next day, Iden had to go to Viscount Peniad’s office to become an experimental subject.

“Shall we have a cup of tea?”

Lord Pheniad spoke, stroking his temples. He was reviewing the report submitted by Iden once again.

“Since you disappeared, you seemed to have studied a fair amount of medicine and potion-making, but now it seems like you were just a frog in a well. The more I look at the report you wrote, the more embarrassed I feel.”

“You flatter me.”

There was no way to catch up with him. The lord playfully wagged his tongue and shook the bell. Shortly after, a young servant brought tea and a simple snack.

“How was your day at the clinic today?”

“It was a bit quiet.”

After several days of struggle, most of the patients with skin diseases seemed to have been treated by Iden.

“Is that so? That’s fortunate. How about your health?”

“I’m fine, except for feeling a little tired.”

“It’s difficult to properly solve anything without your help, but don’t push yourself too hard. Take care of your health.”

The lord still seemed concerned about the fact that Iden’s eye color had changed due to that incident.

Iden faintly smiled and picked up the teacup. The cup contained a pale orange tea. It seemed to be the osmanthus tea that Iden had given before.

Iden sipped the tea, then opened his mouth.

“By the way, my lord.”

In response to Iden’s call, the lord nodded as if to say speak up.

“I apologize for bringing up this topic while you’re resting, but it’s about that Melo Lord.”

“Why that Lord?”

“Are you truly planning to send him to the monastery as is.”

The shadow above the lord’s face darkened at Iden’s words.

“I don’t particularly want to raise any objections to your thoughts. I just want to know if you truly intend to do so.”

“To be honest, I have many worries as well. After confirming the testimonies of those around, it seems that all those deeds were indeed committed by the Lord’s adopted daughter.”

The lord seemed to be having the same worries as Iden.

“However, it’s not enough to absolve him of responsibility. Even if he was confined to the sickbed, the fact remains that he couldn’t fulfill his duties as a lord.”

“….”

“If his daughter had contacted the royal family for help at that time, or if she had offered to step down from the position of Lord, this wouldn’t have happened.”

In big cities like Stolstad, they might not know, but in places like Melo where villages grew into towns, the royal family didn’t send people separately.

The people of that region knew the best about their own affairs.

For the sake of administrative efficiency, they used to appoint the maintainers or village chiefs of the area as the Lords until the area grew large enough. The Melo Lord was also in that situation.

“But his daughter didn’t step down as a Lord. I don’t know the reason behind it.”

“…With your permission, my lord, if it’s alright, I would like to help him a little.”

“According to imperial law, we cannot treat criminals who have been sentenced to exile or execution.”

“I know. But if you could turn a blind eye, My Lord, I would like to help them in any way I can.”

Edun brought up this uncomfortable conversation with the Count because of Lopne.

“Pharmacist. Please help the Lord. He must have suffered greatly because of me.”

For several days, Lopne had been continuously asking Edun to help Melo Yungju. It seemed that she was tormented by guilt because her wrong medication had worsened his condition.

Edun had helped heal his illness, but in return, Lopne had sacrificed himself to save Edun. He couldn’t simply ignore a request from a woman like that.

“I know, but I still want to help, no matter what…”

The Count, lost in thought for a while, spoke slowly.

“Listen, Edun. Rumors spread quickly indeed. So, even if we’re imprisoned, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find the treatment method and ointment.”

Quick-witted Edun realized the Count’s underlying meaning. The Count was speaking indirectly. He wanted Edun to only inform them of the treatment method without directly treating the other patients.

“Of course, it will be impossible to save the disciple from the Monastery.”

Edun nodded slowly in response to Pheiniado’s point.

Although they had committed actions they couldn’t avoid in order to survive, not everyone in such circumstances made the same choices as Leta.

Leta had to take responsibility for the decisions she made.

*

After Edun left, a bird flew into the office where the Count stayed.

The bird was heading towards the capital of the empire.