“How many times do I have to tell you? That’s not a vein. The angle is all wrong.”
Hieek, hieek.
I recruited Chloe as a nurse and trained her during the week I had left.
She’s diligent and has basic skills down pat. The problem is her timid personality.
“Are you going to poke more than once with the needle? If you can’t see it, just slap the arm.”
“I-I can’t just hit the teacher’s arm…!”
“Later, you’re going to have to slap the royal princess’s arm too.”
Gyahh!
Blood sampling is a bit tricky. I thought it was a necessary skill to teach her, but I could postpone it.
The blood analysis tools are still in development, so I’m the only one who can use them for now.
I’ve been teaching her the basics of medical theory, starting with techniques like blood pressure measurement.
Maybe because she has knowledge of folk remedies, she follows along well even when I skip scientific explanations.
It’s funny how she lights up like a baby chick just from explaining basic biology concepts like the virus or human anatomy.
Healers who are deeply immersed in religion find it hard to accept medicine.
Chloe was the perfect candidate to become a nurse.
“Get through the practical training quickly. You’ve got a lot to do. You also need to prepare medication materials.”
“Y-Yes, it’s okay. I-I usually only sleep five hours…”
“What about your days off?”
“Um… once a month?”
She was an extreme laborer being exploited.
Well, I haven’t had a moment’s rest since I started working as an attending physician either. I had to check on Acella daily.
Wasn’t the Sabbath mentioned somewhere in the scriptures? Where’s the five-day workweek gone?
“From now on, sleep for seven and a half hours. If you’re sleep-deprived, your brain efficiency drops.”
“R-Really? Is that okay?”
“Yup. Sync up your REM sleep cycles. I’ll explain it to you later.”
Once Chloe reaches a level where she can manage on her own, I’ll take a break too. The medical field never really has a good work-life balance.
I should travel for vacation a bit. I miss Neria.
“But you must do your duties meticulously. You’ll be busy writing medical texts too.”
“B-B-Booooks!”
“Yup, books.”
It’s always difficult to explain verbally, and it’s necessary to create medical literature for my medicine to be accepted by more people.
It’s also meaningful work to enhance my accomplishments.
“Now, let’s continue with the practical. Quickly draw blood and wrap it up.”
“W-Wait, are you serious? The needle? Poke it?”
“Are you going to pretend to do it? Now, hold your arm straight.”
Hiyahh!
Even while screaming, Chloe didn’t take her eyes off my arm.
She’s got some guts.
Just then, thud, my door swung open.
“Prince, there’s something to convey…”
Acella barged in with the escort knights.
Even from the marquis family, she could come and go in my room like it was her own.
The Moonlight Palace is indeed Acella’s place.
“Hwaahk, His Royal Highness! I-I greet you!”
As soon as Chloe saw Acella, she stood straight like a frightened porcupine and fell prostrate, bowing deeply.
Acella, acting as if it was natural, didn’t respond to her greeting.
Instead, she stared at me with a disapproving look as she entered the room.
What now?
“Prince.”
“Did you need something, Your Highness?”
“What’s going on here?”
Acella pointed her chin toward Chloe.
“She’s my lead nurse. She’ll be assisting me and working diligently for the royal princess’s health.”
“You were just holding hands, weren’t you?”
“Was I?”
“I came in, and you jumped in surprise and dropped everything.”
“She’s a timid friend, but her skills are decent. I’ll make sure to train her properly.”
“Is that your entire excuse?”
“What excuse?”
“You’ve been under some kind of delusion ever since the martial arts tournament. The deception is off the charts.”
Acella’s icy voice pierced my eardrums.
[No. 077: Incarnation of Jealousy 14% → 86%]
Ah, I must’ve messed up again.
Did she think letting a healer from Heike’s faction into the Moonlight Palace without permission was a betrayal?
I called her here since important tools, like blood sampling equipment, weren’t taken to the inner palace, but that was a poor judgment.
“Your Highness, pardon me, but may I say something?”
Tanya, who had been silently standing in the background like a prop, stepped forward with her armor clanking.
Acella shot her a glance.
“Tanya, speak.”
Prince?
Right now, Acella was showing Tanya a level of respect.
Why doesn’t she call me ‘teacher’ like that?
“The teacher has been training the newly recruited nurse to assist the royal princess. What you witnessed was an inevitable part of blood sampling training; there was no other intent.”
“Hmph.”
Acella looked down at me disapprovingly after Tanya spoke.
“Tanya, how long have you been serving the prince’s family?”
“Seven years.”
“Come see me during my lesson time later.”
“Yes.”
Just like that, the conversation progressed rapidly.
“Your Highness, Tanya is my escort knight. If she isn’t around, it could endanger my well-being…”
Acella shot me a sharp glare, making me close my mouth.
[No. 077: Incarnation of Jealousy 86% → 22%]
For now, since the percentage went down again, I decided to stay silent.
No, it didn’t return to normal. It actually went up slightly.
“Prince.”
“Yes?”
“From now on, training should be done while wearing gloves.”
“Hygiene is important. That’s a brilliant idea.”
Acella abruptly turned her back to me, her dress flaring.
“Lucy, deliver the message in my place.”
“Understood, Your Highness.”
If that’s the case, just have Head Maid sister do it from the start.
She was a royal pain, coming in and storming through my room.
I could finally relax once Acella left the room.
“They’re just causing trouble. Tanya, don’t you think this is too much?”
“Well, right now you did something wrong, Prince.”
“I did? And why call me prince again?”
“I don’t know. I should get ready to have tea with the royal princess.”
“Are you just going to leave so quickly? Hey, isn’t that job abandonment?”
“The royal princess ranks higher, so her orders take precedence. Just don’t trip and fall over in the Moonlight Palace.”
Tanya seemed so full of herself it almost seemed kind of nice.
“Geez, Chloe, don’t learn anything weird. Got it….”
Agaga, gagagaga.
Chloe couldn’t handle the pressure from Acella and was flopping around on the floor.
“Chloe, there’s no time to be laying around. Thanks to the royal princess, our practical training ends here, so go back and continue your cultivation experiment.”
“Ugh, yes!”
“Is everything okay with the process? We’re going to need materials soon.”
Chloe wobbled up and hurriedly brought over the papers.
“I’m culturing blue mold. This is how it’s progressing.”
She had detailed notes written in round letters.
She had even sketched pictures, making it easy to understand.
I had been telling Chloe to gather up bread and cheese that the royal kitchen was discarding to culture the blue mold.
“Antibiotics? That’s the material, right?”
“Yup. Aspirin is a medication that alleviates the symptoms of an epidemic. To prevent reinfection, we’ll also need antibiotics.”
Once Chloe’s cultured blue mold reaches a sufficient quality, I plan on creating penicillin.
The current epidemic going around is a virus from the cold family.
Usually, when patients are about to recover, their immunity weakens, leading to bacterial infections as well.
I plan to prescribe antibiotics to knights showing those symptoms.
Chloe timidly asked me for a favor.
“I-I’d like to see you practicing pharmacy….”
“Well, you’re going to be bored watching me from now on anyway.”
“B-But…”
Chloe’s eyes sparkled as saliva dribbled from her mouth.
At this rate, we should be getting usable samples soon.
“Shall we go test it?”
I headed to the inner palace with Chloe.
*
In a neatly organized office with angular wooden furniture.
Heike von Württemberg, the first royal princess of the Empire, was busy dealing with the piled-up work since the martial arts tournament.
“Hmm, the barracks’ availability has dropped significantly. Bring me the surplus budget ledger.”
“Yes.”
With a charismatic demeanor, she wielded her quill pen, showing no signs of weakness.
Because he was a man, Gunter, the first prince implicitly designated as the next emperor, was weak-hearted.
George, the second prince, was overflowing with ambition, but his excessive enthusiasm often led to misguided actions.
Neither Lau nor Acella, who were a step away from succession, was considered.
If one were to pick the person most fitting to be the next emperor from the royal family, many would choose Heike.
A strong woman who had led the knight order and quelled barbarian invasions before reaching adulthood, she wasn’t afraid to go into dangerous battlefields even now if incidents arose.
Many were drawn to her abilities, and her faction had come to form a power structure with George within the royal family.
“All training has been canceled. Isn’t that going a bit too far, even if it’s after the martial arts tournament?”
The secretary replied while presenting a report.
“It’s due to the epidemic. Particularly, since the martial arts tournament, the long-term injury rate among knights has risen above 60%.”
“The epidemic.”
Even Heike couldn’t solve every problem nonchalantly.
The epidemic that spread to the imperial palace had already been a headache for two months. The number of citizens reserving spots at the inner palace had greatly increased.
“Knights continued their intense training during the martial arts tournament, right?”
“That’s correct. If you look at the confidential documents, you can confirm that the current fighting strength of the imperial knight order has significantly decreased.”
“If an enemy country invades, that would be a crisis.”
The Empire has plenty of troops.
There are the imperial knights guarding the borders and the ordered knights patrolling the system. Only elite knights gather within the imperial family.
With so many defensive barriers, it’s unlikely for an enemy country to invade, but Heike was not the type to let her guard down.
“Just how much is being spent on a flower viewing festival? And don’t forget there was also a demon attack.”
“That was the work of a black magician.”
“If it were me, I would have taken the black magician’s head before they summoned a wyvern.”
Heike continued reading documents related to the epidemic.
“What is this? The Moonlight Palace is using the barracks training facility?”
“That’s….”
Hearing the content, Heike fell into contemplation.
“The knights of the Moonlight Palace were all healthy. There shouldn’t have been a healer from the inner palace assigned. Even now, no new knights seem to be falling ill.”
Heike turned to her secretary and asked.
“What’s the cause?”
“I’ve heard rumors…”
The secretary replied.
“Apparently, a new medication has been developed that prevents reinfection from the epidemic, and it’s being used by the knights of the Moonlight Palace.”
“I’ve heard of that. Is it aspirin?”
“They say it’s a new medication called penicillin, in addition to aspirin.”
“Penicillin.”
Heike pondered over the unfamiliar name.
“I heard that various royal factions have come seeking the medication, but they were turned away at the door.”
“That kind of technology is worth monopolizing. Acella must have brought in a capable attending physician.”
“That is…”
“What is it?”
Heike urged her secretary, who was hesitating to speak.
“The healer who developed penicillin this time is not the attending physician of the third princess.”
“Then who is it?”
“They are a low-ranking healer, but currently, they are the apprentice of Gotherberg…”
“Currently? Then who were they before?”
“…They were in our faction.”
Heike’s face froze, icy cold.
“Why did they change sides?”
“I’ve heard that following their dismissal by the bishop, Gotherberg immediately re-hired them…”
The secretary’s voice faded as she felt a shiver run down her spine.
In a low voice, Heike commanded.
“Bring in Bishop Alberich.”
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