The Doctor Cured The Villainess And Ran Away

Acella is quietly sleeping under the blanket, hugging me.

Hmmm, what the heck is this situation?

My last memory was definitely of running away with Acella while chasing off an assassin.

Judging by my clear mind, I must have had a deep sleep thanks to fainting.

“Your Royal Highness?”

I timidly called, but there was no response. It just seems like Acella.

What the heck is this?

My body is clean, and my clothes have been changed. The maids must have cleaned me up.

Acella is in her pajamas. The design is the same as I saw during the X-ray check, but it’s black.

But why is she in my bed?

In my room.

“Your Royal Highness.”

Still, Acella sleeps soundly.

“Hey, Acella.”

…She must really be sleeping.

Thank goodness. If she had been awake, I would have been in serious trouble.

As I observed Acella, who buried her face in my chest, a strange impulse began to rise.

“Which one has plumper cheeks, Neria or Acella?”

Even as an attending physician, I can’t just touch her for no reason. I only check what’s necessary for the examination, purely for work.

It’s true that 10 years from now, Acella will be slender, and this might be the only opportunity to check her now.

“Where…”

I subtly brought my fingers to Acella’s face.

She turned her head slightly but didn’t react much.

…Is she a deep sleeper?

I haven’t done a sleep study, so I don’t know her sleeping habits.

“Should I touch a little more?”

I traced Acella’s cheek with my thumb.

It might feel similar to Neria’s, perhaps like a luxury linen balloon stuffed with flour.

Slightly, I also used my index finger to grab and squeeze.

Hmmm.

Comparison complete.

The cushion effect is much better with Neria.

Still, the fact that her skin is cold and I can mold it into desired shapes has a strange addictive quality.

“Umm.”

Did Acella feel uncomfortable? She completely buried her head in my chest.

Yikes.

I thought I was caught.

As I looked at the back of Acella’s head, which seemed to be digging for food like a mole, her protruding ears caught my eye.

They look soft too.

The moment I softly brushed Acella’s ear.

“Hyack!”

With a strange scream, Acella hunched her shoulders and pinched my side tightly.

Ouch.

“Your Royal Highness? Did you wake up?”

Acella was still trembling.

“Muscles don’t contract that long during sleep. You could just say you’re awake….”

Finally, Acella lifted her head groggily.

Her eyebrows were crinkled; it seemed something was bothering her.

“Why did you wake me?”

“You seemed to be mistaken about where you were sleeping.”

“…This is my palace.”

“That’s true, but it doesn’t have to be my bed, does it?”

“…I thought it was Max’s room.”

“Max?”

“Yeah. Sheila went to take a bath….”

“Who’s Sheila?”

“My puppet… Don’t worry about it!”

Acella complained, kicking the bed with her foot.

“Prince, why did you get up so early?”

“I usually sleep for a short time. But I felt like I slept well last night.”

“…So annoying. I was planning to leave before waking up.”

“What do you mean?”

“Shut up.”

I notice every day that Acella has a low pressure in the morning.

Since her blood pressure is low, I should understand.

“Considering what happened yesterday, Your Royal Highness, you should rest more. I will immediately assess the situation and respond.”

As I was about to get up, Acella suddenly pressed my shoulder down with her hand.

“You should sleep more too.”

“Yes? But….”

“Sleep.”

“Yes.”

Experience tells me that making Acella repeat the same order three times never ends well.

I opened my eyes wide and started counting the dots on the ceiling’s pattern.

*

“I’m sorry.”

Tanya knelt before me, bowing her head.

“I failed my duty as your knight. While you were attacked by the assassin, I couldn’t stay by your side…!”

Feeling a heavy responsibility for this incident, Tanya’s tightly clenched fists trembled.

I had sent her knowing this situation. I could handle the assassin on my own.

There was Acella’s command too, and capturing the culprit was essential.

Seeing her behave so humble like this for the first time made me want to tease her a bit.

I flopped back in my chair, pressing an ice pack to my forehead.

“Oh, my aching joints. Commander, can you see the wound at the back of my head? I fell yesterday and it got scraped. My whole body is sore from running.”

“Ugh, it’s all my fault….”

“I think I’ve developed a trauma. I get scared and shiver every time I see a sharp blade.”

“I’ll commit seppuku…! I will take responsibility with seppuku!”

Tanya closed her eyes tightly and desperately blurted out. I felt like if I teased her anymore, she’d really go through with it, so I decided to stop.

“I’m just joking, I’m fine. I heard you caught the assassin disguised as a maid. Good job.”

“However, it’s true that we failed our mission….”

“Since it was Acella’s order, it’s alright. I’m just glad Neria is safe.”

“I thought something terrible had happened to you, big brother….”

Neria had been quite startled yesterday, constantly sniffing into her handkerchief.

“Boris and Bruno evacuated you straight to the VIP room. Well done.”

“We just did our duty. You suffered.”

“I should have smashed that assassin’s head in.”

Bruno’s fist collided with his palm, and his thick muscles bulged threateningly.

“This assassination case is serious. It infiltrated the imperial family and targeted both the Duke and the Royal Princess. If we uncover the mastermind, it will be quite a feat. I can guess who might be behind it.”

“Really? Big brother, is the imperial family always this dangerous? I don’t want anything to happen to you….”

Neria trailed off. It seemed she realized being the imperial family’s physician isn’t just about good things.

But it’s not like I can quit on the spot, so maybe she was feeling conflicted.

“Don’t worry; it’s not something that happens often. I’ll respond together with Acella.”

“Yes… sometimes I wish you would come back to the mansion.”

“I’ll take a vacation next time.”

I patted Neria on the head to reassure her.

I want to go too, I really do.

But for the time being, there are still many things I need to take care of.

“Commander, are you going to stay like that forever?”

Tanya was hitting her head on the floor, slowly transitioning to a bow.

I helped the dazed Tanya up and headed to examine Acella.

*

“The assassin who ordered the hit confessed?”

“Yeah. He’s a baron from a small faction who doesn’t even know how he got invited to the party. He’s probably just a pawn I bought off beforehand. If we execute him, the case will end!”

Bam!

In the middle of my examination, Acella slammed the table in frustration.

“Don’t be angry. We need to measure again.”

“Am I not supposed to be? We almost died, and you want us to blatantly fall for the enemy’s plot!”

Acella clicked her tongue and glared.

“Two of our knights have died. Prince, I won’t show mercy to the enemy. Vengeance—”

“Must be repaid tenfold.”

“How did you know? Exactly that! I’ll rip them to shreds.”

Acella was expressing her anger quite vigorously; it’s understandable sometimes.

Why does it always feel worse when you return home and calmly think things over after an incident?

The news about the pawn being a bluff likely became a catalyst for her anger.

She must have sensed that the true culprit was likely the Togin Palace.

“If the Duke was the target, there would probably be other interests involved.”

Nobles or royal family members attending the party could have been targets.

But I believe the assassin aiming for Acella has only been limited to the heirs until now.

“I won’t let this slide. I’ll declare war on the Togin Palace.”

Acella’s heart rate and blood pressure are higher than usual.

Her pupils are dilated, indicating excessive adrenaline.

I gently rubbed Acella’s back.

“Yikes, what are you doing?!”

“It’s not good for your health. Calm down. Remember the breathing techniques I taught you for moments like this?”

“Prince, you need to express your anger when the time calls for it.”

“Do it in front of the enemy. Everyone around you is an ally right now.”

“Allies….”

Acella seemed to accept my advice as she slowly regained her breath.

“Stretch yourself too. Raise your head up.”

“Alright. I’ll handle it myself, so don’t touch me.”

Didn’t she hug me in the morning?

Acella’s sense of distance is strange.

“If you need it, should I bring you your plushie? It’s over there on the table.”

“Uh? Ah.”

When I pointed to the plushie quietly placed next to the bed, Acella panicked and licked her lips.

“Um… Prince, that’s, um.”

Acella was seemingly embarrassed, scratching her neck and mumbling.

“It’s a plushie, I mean. You remember I said I washed it, right? It’s not a lie….”

“Looks like the laundry was done quickly.”

“Ah, right. That’s what happened… Why is it over there?!”

I told her to stretch, yet Acella shrugged her neck and clicked her tongue.

After a moment, Acella calmed down, but her anger still seemed to linger.

“Still, war is war. Prepare for a military confrontation with the Togin Palace.”

“It seems you haven’t calmed down yet. If you were a Royal Highness, you could make a more rational decision.”

“Are you refusing my orders? I can’t stand being attacked.”

“That’s not what I mean. But do we really stand a chance against the Togin Palace in an all-out war? If we bring even the 2nd brigade’s full strength, we’ll be crushed.”

“…You’re right.”

Acella, being wise, couldn’t refute me.

“Considering the severity of this matter, it’s probably the Emperor who personally made the decision to execute the baron and close the case, right?”

“Prince, you only notice these things at times like this. Exactly. The Emperor knows it’s a power struggle within the imperial family.”

“Is that so? Then isn’t there a lack of punishment?”

“The competition among heirs is common sense. The Emperor believes that assassinations can happen as part of the power struggle.”

Common sense, huh?

The imperial family decides what common sense is.

With that in mind, it’s no wonder Acella and other heirs worked so hard to grow their factions.

After all, while the current Emperor has siblings, he doesn’t have a brother.

Since the Emperor wasn’t the firstborn, there has been a history of purging during the succession process.

And this cycle repeats itself for the children.

“For the Emperor, it might be unfavorable for the scandal of the imperial family to get out. The Western Duke could demand compensation from the royal family.”

“That’s true. So, they accepted the baron as the culprit because it’s convenient for the duke.”

“Yes. We should also refrain from taking action, especially if we charge in now without a good reason; we’ll only be treated strangely by whichever faction it is. We don’t have justification.”

“So should we just curl up and hide?”

Acella was serious.

If this continues to pass over just like the previous issue, there will be ongoing attacks in the future.

Not only will we trigger a bad ending, but the Moonlight Palace faction will also lose its strength.

Georg must be dealt with right in front of me.

“Your Royal Highness, you’re right; we must take revenge. However, there’s a way to turn the power gap around.”

“How?”

I answered.

“Let’s apply for a trial by combat.”

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