“Teacher! The Royal Princess…!”
Lars, who was summoned in the middle of the night, had to face Acella collapsed at the door.
He performed emergency treatment and barely stabilized her. He laid her down on the bed and wiped the sweat from her forehead when Acella weakly asked.
“Lars, you won’t leave me…?”
“Your Highness?”
“Why aren’t you answering…?”
It was a question Lars couldn’t be sure about.
One day, the day would come when he had to stop being her attending physician. After operating on Acella, there would be even less reason to stay in the royal family to deal with the Demon King’s army.
“…Are you trying to leave with the Hero?”
However, it wouldn’t be good to provoke a patient in such poor condition. Ultimately, Lars decided to lie and held her hand.
“Where would I go? I’m your Highness’s attending physician, after all.”
“…Right? If you disappear, I won’t forgive you.”
After that, Lars hurried his research for Acella’s surgery. As a result, Hugo revealed the nature of the curse and concluded that a Storm Stone was needed.
“I need to head to the North. Hugo, let’s go together. I’ll recruit the troops through Heike.”
“Understood.”
“Teacher! Urgent news!”
Just then, Chloe delivered the news. It was that the kingdom had discovered the Holy Sword and was launching an operation.
The news spread quickly, and an imperial decree was issued to prioritize the recovery of the Holy Sword at the Moonlight Palace.
“Isn’t it in the South of the kingdom? That’s the exact opposite of our target. What should we do?”
“It’s chaos. If we disobey the imperial decree, we might not be able to return to the royal family at all.”
Lars fell into contemplation. With no time to waste, he had to decide quickly, but no suitable plan came to mind.
Eventually, that day, Lars continued his work as usual.
Around three in the afternoon, he would leave the Inner Palace to examine Lishe, who was training with Tanya, and in the evening, he would go to check on Acella. This had become his recent routine.
“Good job today. You seem to be in better condition than yesterday?”
“Eheh, it’s thanks to you, Teacher.”
Without responding, Lars flipped through the charts. Lishe noticed something strange in his anxious demeanor and leaned in closer.
“Oh, you startled me.”
“Teacher, are you worried about something?”
“Oh, it’s nothing. But it does involve the Hero.”
“Uh-huh.”
While unraveling the story about the Holy Sword, Lars found himself feeling much more comfortable and ended up explaining the situation that required a trip to the North.
“Gah, wasn’t that supposed to be a top secret?”
‘Ah, that was confidential information.’
If Acella found out, she wouldn’t send him to the North. He had been careful not to let her hear it.
Of course, he could trust Lishe. She would never leak a secret to put him in a bind.
The trust underlying that unconscious thought opened his heart a little.
“Hmmm… well then, Teacher.”
Lishe’s suggestion was something Lars hadn’t anticipated.
“After we obtain the Holy Sword… how about I accompany you to the North? If I say the Holy Sword guided me, who would complain?”
“What, so you’re saying you’ll tell a lie using the goddess’s mouth to go against the entire imperial family, including the imperial princess?”
“Uh, um, that’s true…”
Lishe shrank her shoulders and licked her lips like a child caught doing something wrong.
Lars grinned and patted her shoulder.
“I really like this idea. Let’s do it right away.”
“Gah, is that really okay?”
“If the Hero is willing to cooperate, then I’m feeling reassured. If it leaks out, my head is on the line, but hey, what could go wrong?”
Lishe felt like she might turn into a sweaty mess again, but on the other hand, she was somewhat delighted.
‘A secret that only Teacher and I know…’
The thought that she could return even a little of the help she had received from him filled her with the utmost joy.
*
“Are you really saying you’ll join the expedition for the Holy Sword?”
“That’s right. Considering it’s an expedition to foreign lands, it’s essential to have the Hero’s knight, Tanya, accompany us. My role as a management official and temporary deputy will also be necessary.”
“Then I want to go too.”
“The Royal Princess’s health condition does not allow for an expedition. Please refrain from doing so.”
“Is it reasonable for the attending physician to be absent?”
“I’ll assign my trusted nurse. Don’t worry.”
Since there was also an imperial decree involved, Lars politely persuaded Acella, and she ultimately permitted his expedition. It might have been cowardly to take advantage of her relatively weakened state, but Lars was not in a position to be picky.
Lars headed toward the kingdom’s territory and carried out the mission to recover the Holy Sword with the Moonlight Palace Knights.
Recognizing the sirens by the lakeside, he cautiously proceeded with the operation.
They were able to enter the lake without disturbing them, and the party, including Lishe, was just short of obtaining the Holy Sword.
The problem arose halfway across the lake.
“The Imperial bastards are taking the initiative!”
“Cowardly scum!”
“Don’t let them take the intelligence!”
The royal troops, who had only just crossed the woods, were outraged upon seeing them.
The royal soldiers charged toward the lake, and a battle began as they thrust their spears forward.
“Royal soldiers! Counterattack!”
“Do not break formation!”
They were the elite Moonlight Palace Knights. Comparing combat power alone, one knight could take on four royal soldiers.
However, the situation was unfavorable as they were isolated on the thin terrain above the lake. Above all…
――■■■■■■■!!
The sirens, waking up with bizarre screams.
The scene was on the verge of chaos.
“Damn it, this isn’t good.”
Lars sensed that things were about to spiral out of control.
In just ten minutes, everyone present was sure to die.
“Lishe!”
“Yes, Teacher!”
If there was hope, it lay in Lishe reaching the Holy Sword.
Having determined so, Lars injected himself with a Strength Enhancement serum as best as he could, grabbed Lishe’s wrist, and dashed through the water’s edge.
“Whoa!”
Splash!
In the midst of it all, Lars slipped and fell into the lake.
Seizing the opportunity, the sirens began to cast their black hands over his body, dragging him down into the dark depths of the lake.
“Teacher!”
“G-Go!”
Lars pointed to the Holy Sword even as his head sank beneath the water.
Lishe was confused. Fear made her lips tremble.
Lars was dragged away by the Demons, and the lakeside turned into a battlefield.
Could a mere sword, no more than a lump of metal, really solve all this for her, an inexperienced one?
—You should’ve saved us!
Voices echoed in her head.
She felt trapped.
But.
‘Because Teacher believed in me.’
Lars didn’t ask for help.
He told her to go, to run.
He told her to grab the Holy Sword.
She had to believe in him too.
—Swoosh!
Lishe jumped forward, kicking off the ground.
Her entire body was covered in mud, and water splashed in her eyes, obscuring her view, but…
Somehow, she stretched her legs and reached out, grabbing the handle with all her might.
And then.
—Kaboom!!
A column of light burst out, sending all the water from the lakeshore soaring into the sky in an instant.
The droplets, floating in the air, created an illusion, as if time had stopped for that brief moment.
After the trajectory passed, the Demons fell.
“…What in the world just happened?”
“…Did something just pass by?”
The royal soldiers and knights, completely dumbfounded, ceased fighting. Captivated by the dazzling light, they unknowingly dropped their weapons.
Hero Lishe.
With the Holy Sword scattering streams of light, she approached her collapsed attending physician and gracefully knelt before him.
—Whoosh!
The water that had shot up began to pour down like a heavy rain.
“…Lars.”
The Hero, cherishing him like a very precious treasure, gently embraced the physician.
She caressed his body warmth for a long while.
*
“Hero, do you absolutely not remember anything?”
“Um… No. I remember grabbing the Holy Sword.”
The situation had come to an end, but no one really knew what had transpired.
According to Lars’s examination, there were no major issues with Lishe. In fact, it was he who needed to worry about his own health.
‘Even in the future, there were times Lishe wouldn’t remember the battle.’
It could be a trance state induced by the Holy Sword. Highly immersed, Lishe would display tremendous combat power while having her memories fade away.
That might be a manifestation of the Hero’s talent and debuff, but now it was just speculation.
‘Drinking alcohol also often led to memory loss.’
There were times when entire days of memories would vanish, so Lars felt chills whenever Lishe suggested having a drink.
“There were no casualties, and it turned out alright. I’m just relieved you’re safe, Teacher…”
Lishe let out a sigh of relief. More than anything, she was glad that Lars wasn’t hurt.
“Anyway, everything went according to plan. Now we just need to head to the North, right?”
“Yes. If we send a communication sphere now, we should be able to join the Mokhwi Palace Knights smoothly. It will be a long journey. Let’s take a good rest today, Hero.”
“Oh, um.”
“Yes?”
Lishe sat wiggling in her seat, holding her thighs. After a moment of contemplation, she spoke to Lars in the most natural manner she could manage.
“Um… Rather than calling me Hero, I’d prefer you to call me by my name… I’d appreciate it if you could speak casually… after all, you’re a year older than me…”
Avoiding eye contact, Lars chuckled and stepped closer to Lishe.
Lifting his hand in front of her, he removed a azalea leaf that had stuck to her bangs as she flinched, closing her eyes tightly.
“Got it, Lishe.”
“Oh.”
Lishe’s cheeks turned the exact color of the azalea leaf he had just removed.
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