ALL NOVEL Chapter 97
It’s a good feeling.
My hands move swiftly yet gently.
The delicate tweezers meticulously sutured the torn organ.
Focused on the surgery, I called for the head nurse.
“Chloe.”
“Yes.”
“Can you diagnose the patient and provide initial treatment?”
Chloe tensed at my question.
“I, I can do it.”
“Bring the patient here. Prepare the second operating room, leaving only the circulatory system to be handled.”
“Then this means…”
“Only basic suturing is left. I could do this with my eyes closed.”
Princess Wanda’s surgery was successful.
There was almost a cardiac arrest in the middle, but we barely passed that dangerous moment.
“Are you all tired? Continuous surgeries must be hard?”
The healers answered immediately to my question.
“We can do it.”
“We’ll follow.”
“The patient’s life comes first.”
The surgical team responded reassuringly.
“I’ll prepare!”
Except for one nurse handling the circulatory system, Chloe left for the preparation room with her team.
With the support of the remaining nurse, we finished the surgery.
I glanced out the window.
It was the place where Alberich had been screaming just moments ago.
We had set up a double structure between the preparation room and the operating room for disinfection, so there was no infection risk.
After a while, Chloe’s team busily brought the next patient into the adjacent operating room.
Is it Alberich’s wife?
He had been a nuisance to me, but he was just a stubborn old man, not a villain.
I had no intention of mixing personal feelings into the life-saving process from the start.
“It’s finished. Let’s go to the recovery room. Now that we can use the healing spell, send everyone with free hands.”
“Yes!”
I stepped outside after finishing the surgery.
Washing my hands and changing into new surgical attire, I watched the scene of the princess being carried out.
“Wanda.”
A familiar voice rang out. It was the Emperor.
The Emperor opened the operating room door and locked eyes with me. I had no leisure to formalize my respect.
“Gothberg, Wanda is…”
“We’ve passed the crisis. Now we just need to monitor her condition.”
“…Hoo.”
The Emperor closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief. He spoke to me in a serious tone.
“Gothberg, I will give you a sufficient reward. What do you wish for?”
I didn’t answer that question right away.
I gave a slight, easy smile.
“For now, please stay by the patient’s side.”
The Emperor followed me, lifting the corners of his mouth, and moved to see the princess.
As I headed to the next operating room, Hugo approached me.
“Teacher, have you seen the time?”
“I have. It took three hours and thirty minutes.”
“It’s already time for you to prepare for the engagement ceremony. If you delay any longer, you will be late for the main event.”
It had started at six o’clock.
The current time was three in the afternoon.
Thinking about it, I realized I hadn’t eaten, and my stomach was growling.
I took out some candy, popped it into my mouth, and replied while chewing.
“Tell Acella I will definitely come, no matter how late.”
“Uh-huh… Understood.”
Hugo nodded.
“Teacher Gothberg!”
A voice shouted from outside the surgical room.
Understanding he shouldn’t just barge in, he knelt at the threshold and said to me.
“P-please, teacher. My wife is my everything. Please, please save her…!”
His face looked a decade older.
I patted Alberich’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry. Who am I?”
Emulating a phrase Acella likes to say, I put on a mask.
*
“Lars is late?”
Acella frowned at the news from the Inner Palace as she finished preparing for the party.
“Why today of all days…!”
Lars was tied up due to an urgent patient.
The twin princesses were technically acellas’ nieces but had never properly exchanged greetings.
Injuries to royalty are primarily handled by the attending physician, and only upon their request do other healers take over.
It’s a rule to ensure that the attending physician perfectly understands the main lord’s medical history, preventing side effects if another healer uses a general healing spell.
“I bet he butted in unnecessarily.”
That was so like Lars. I couldn’t help but feel resentment, even if it was an unavoidable situation.
‘As the attending physician, I should be prioritized above all else.’
I had emphasized how important today was countless times. Isn’t it common sense to leave the patient with another healer and keep his promise?
Acella anxiously looked out the window.
Guests were already gathering at the Moonlight Palace. Young nobles gathered from all over the country.
Miss Schwarzschweik, the Western Duke’s daughter, was entering with Lau, giggling.
Young nobles considered “doing well” surrounded them. They were the ones Acella needed to persuade with her speech today.
Neria and Marquis Gothberg, who had just received permission to use the teleport gate, were also visible.
Of course, as a princess, Acella wouldn’t greet them personally.
She would now act as a clear heir, so she needed a matching demeanor. She planned to make a grand entrance once the event started.
Needless to say, she didn’t intend to go out first.
Today, Lars was as much of a protagonist as Acella.
While the engagement ceremony was important, it was also Lars’s coming-of-age ceremony. Her plan was for him to appear first and lift the atmosphere.
“Your Highness, it’s time to go down.”
The head maid announced. Preparations were already complete.
“Alright.”
Acella walked down the corridor to the VIP room.
Underneath the window, the banquet hall was visible.
Those already gathered there were enjoying conversations without feeling obligated to socialize.
Acella didn’t particularly feel like mingling there. She could check what stories were circulating later through her attendants.
Interacting with people was tiring.
She had to pick up cues from their gaze, tone, and other minutiae to understand their thoughts.
She would need to lead the conversation through that to achieve her desired goals.
Even minor actions could hold political meaning in social circles, especially in the royal family, where every word needed careful attention.
Acella was confident she could handle it better than anyone, but she didn’t find socializing enjoyable.
What was actually enjoyable was magic.
‘And Lars.’
When talking to him, she could throw away trivial topics or meaningless chatter.
Lars often had plenty of useless things to say to her.
But she didn’t feel burdened when wasting time indulging in those trivial conversations.
The reason she had been comfortable with Lars up until now was that she believed he would provide help when she was in pain.
Acella finally realized that this comfort extended into her everyday life.
He was a man who was hard to delve into, so she had also stopped analyzing him.
‘Thinking about Lars again.’
Acella shook her head to clear her mind.
“Acella! Here you are!”
Lost in her thoughts, Lau suddenly burst into the VIP room, warmly greeting her.
“The party isn’t underway yet, Lau. Go enjoy some snacks down there.”
“Oh my, is our youngest considering her sister’s feelings? How touching.”
Acella, wanting to be alone, had intended that as an invitation to leave.
Of course, Lau wouldn’t be oblivious to that.
She was a woman with a thick face.
“Look at how pretty your dress is. Hehe, are you pre-celebrating your engagement? Come here, let me see how much you’ve grown.”
“Touch me, and I’ll throw you out.”
“Oh, you’re so cold. Do you treat Gothberg the same way?”
“Of course.”
She answered too quickly. She didn’t want to leak what was going on with Lars and ended up clumsily lying.
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I was really surprised. When did you and he become so close? To think a political engagement would evolve into a romantic engagement within the royal family. How romantic!”
Indeed, Lau’s mind was like a flower garden.
Or perhaps pretending to be a flower garden?
If she showed such a blatant lack of interest in politics to other heirs, it would ensure that whoever became the next emperor wouldn’t antagonize Lau.
Perhaps Lau had chosen this as a survival method after deep contemplation, Acella thought.
Just like how she had made many choices to survive within the royal family all along.
This engagement was no different.
‘Wait, is that really the same?’
Believing it to be an excuse to call in the young nobles, she realized that the engagement was something Acella had impulsively initiated without considering the aftermath.
‘How did it come to this?’
Of course, it was because of Lars, but Acella didn’t want to admit that.
It made it seem like she liked him more.
Lars… would definitely like her.
…Or would he? What would his true thoughts be? Acella couldn’t imagine at all.
Her head began to throb.
It was all Lau’s fault.
“But where’s Gothberg? There’s no law saying you can’t see someone before a wedding, even if it isn’t one. Is everything ready?”
“…It’s in progress.”
“Oh dear, I wanted to greet him before the meal. What a shame.”
Another person entered the VIP room.
It was Lady Freda, flaunting herself in an extravagant dress as if she were the star of the show.
“Greetings, Your Highness the Princess. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
As if it wasn’t annoying enough, another presence added to it.
Acella sighed.
“Honestly, I apologize for last time. I wasn’t aware you two were in such a deep relationship to warrant a formal engagement.”
Such an impudent girl. Acella was starting to feel irritated.
“Don’t glare at me like that. I’ve already been confessed to three times and am three times the object of his affection by the Gothberg family? My father also told me to keep a good impression with you today.”
“Keep that mindset until the end. I’m still in contact with the Grand Duke, so don’t mess it up.”
“Of course.”
Freda cutely lifted her skirt and winked.
At least, since she had drawn a clear boundary, it seemed that she wouldn’t do anything ridiculous.
‘…Wait a moment.’
Seeing Freda made Acella suddenly feel uneasy.
‘…What if Lars is late for work and doesn’t show up until the very end?’
She would end up in the same position as her.
If the betrothed one didn’t show up at the engagement, it would imply she was dumped.
It would reflect poorly on the family, implying there were strong negative feelings toward that family.
Even if it were not the case, that’s how it would appear in social circles.
‘Huh.’
Acella took a deep breath inward.
*
The proper party started at six o’clock.
The orchestra played music, and with the brilliant lighting, all the guests gathered in the banquet hall.
‘…Lars.’
Acella bit her lip.
He still showed no sign of arriving.
The plan to kick off the opening ceremony with his coming-of-age event had long been washed away.
Ten minutes, twenty minutes.
Every second burned like fire in her heart.
As an hour passed without the formal ceremony starting, the atmosphere in the banquet hall had significantly cooled.
At this point, they should be entering the main course after the initial ceremony.
Yet, she couldn’t just change the order now.
How could she announce the declaration of participation for the critical succession battle in front of those who had just stuffed their faces at dinner?
“Where’s the prince?”
“He hasn’t come out of the Inner Palace yet…”
“I see.”
Judging that no more time could be wasted, Acella stood up from her seat.
The head maid signaled, and with majestic music, the lights illuminated the second-floor balcony.
All eyes were focused on her.
Acella straightened her gaze and boldly moved towards the bright area.
Her figure bathed in light shone, and all the nobles bowed to her.
Looking down at them, Acella confidently declared.
“I shall ask. Who am I?!”