ATMM 14

Chapter – 14

After hearing my words, the Empress seemed to ponder for a moment, then, as if making up her mind, spoke to Blanche, the head maid.

“Summon the physician. Tell him I need him immediately.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Blanche bowed to the Empress and quickly left the bedroom with hurried steps.

A sense of foreboding began to creep into my mind.

Blanche, who had never left the Empress’s side even for a moment until now, was taking it upon herself to go—something she could have easily delegated to a regular maid.

‘If there’s any connection between the physician and the head maid…’

Blanche must not be allowed to go to the physician alone.

I glanced at Yulion, who was also watching Blanche’s retreating figure. I spoke up before any more time was lost.

“The physician is said to turn away anyone who comes. I’m not sure if the head maid can fetch him quickly on her own.”

“Even so, I cannot go myself. It might really be a contagious disease.”

“In that case… what if His Highness the Crown Prince accompanies her? Even if the physician ignores the head maid and me, he certainly wouldn’t dare ignore His Highness.”

I subtly hinted that the physician was ignoring me.

It was true.

If I went, the physician would likely make excuses and stall.

But Yulion was different. He was a person with authority comparable to the Emperor himself.

As if reading my thoughts, Yulion immediately nodded.

“That’s right. I’ll go with her.”

Yulion swiftly turned and followed the path Blanche had taken.

The long sigh of the Empress echoed through the now-quiet bedroom.

“I don’t understand all this commotion… If this medicine truly is a poison, then what should I do…”

The Empress’s fingertips trembled ever so slightly. It seemed this was the first time she had gone without the medicine for so long, and the pain was not easily subdued.

“Your Majesty, feeling pain means your nerves are still active. That’s actually a positive sign, so don’t lose hope.”

“A positive sign…? You mean it’s really possible to treat it?”

“I need to examine you properly to know for sure. So please, Your Majesty, allow me to examine you.”

The Empress furrowed her brows even more deeply.

She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples repeatedly, letting out a faint breath.

“Hmm… I suppose I should first confirm with the physician.”

Not long after, Yulion returned amidst a commotion.

Of course, Blanche and the physician had returned with him.

Blanche stood rigidly behind the Empress, her expression stiff. Her steps were precise, yet she somehow seemed uneasy.

“Y-Your Majesty!”

The physician sensed the gravity of the situation and immediately knelt before the Empress upon entering.

“My apologies, Your Majesty. I have not been able to visit you these past few days due to my failing eyesight. I beg for your forgiveness…”

“Is it true, then, that you have contracted the same illness as I?”

The Empress spoke before the physician could finish. Her sharp voice made him flinch and tremble.

“N-No, Your Majesty. I only have poor eyesight, never the illness…”

“Draw back the curtains!”

Once again, the physician’s words faltered.

The Empress gestured to the maids by the window to pull back the multiple layers of blackout curtains. Even though the bright light would cause her tremendous pain, she showed no hesitation in her command.

“Your Majesty! The sunlight will worsen your eye condition—ahk!”

The physician recoiled, trying to stop her, but as each curtain was drawn, the light flooded the bedroom before he could finish his sentence.

He clutched his eyes in agony, shivering all over, letting out anguished cries.

The sight of the physician’s face in the bright light was shocking.

His eyes were caked with residue from all the medicines he had been putting in, not even wiped clean, and his whole body was swollen.

It seemed he had recklessly used the concoctions without considering their interactions.

‘It wouldn’t have worked anyway.’

The physician’s symptoms were caused by the medicine I had made.

Recently, in his office, Zenid had brewed jasmine tea. I had added a certain drug to it—a poison that would make exposure to light extremely painful and restless. After about a month, the effect would naturally wear off, and he would return to normal.

Of course, he would endure pain that no ordinary painkiller could suppress during that time.

Compared to the Empress, who had suffered for over a year, this was nothing.

“Why are you like this, physician?”

The Empress glared at him with her eyes wide open, her gaze radiating a cold intensity that contrasted sharply with his bloodshot eyes.

“Please, the, the curtains!”

“The curtains? Didn’t you say your vision is poor? Then a little light is needed to see clearly.”

“Y-Your Majesty…!”

“Not enough, it seems. Bring a lit candle closer to him.”

Even as it was, the physician was in extreme pain; bringing a candle close could make him faint.

He ultimately collapsed to the floor in a convulsive spasm.

“I have committed a grave sin, Your Majesty!”

Tears—whether from pain or something else—streamed down his face as he pleaded.

“I believe I too am afflicted with old age, Your Majesty. My symptoms resemble yours, and light is unbearably painful… I beg you to show mercy!”

Spewing words like a rapid-fire, the physician cried tears and snot alike. At last, the Empress slowly closed her eyes.

“Hah… Why did you lie about your poor eyesight?”

“I feared Your Majesty might mistake it for a contagious disease.”

“So it’s not contagious?”

“Of course, Your Majesty! It is merely a condition of old age. Please rest assured.”

Blanche had tried to suggest isolation by claiming a contagious disease. While it wasn’t contagious, it was threatening enough to the Empress. Yet the physician insisted it wasn’t contagious, even going so far as to conceal his symptoms.

It seemed the alliance between Blanche and the physician was genuine, but their words were inconsistent.

‘They’re not particularly close. Most likely, they temporarily joined forces.’

And that alliance was now broken by the physician’s unexpected affliction, with Blanche abandoning him.

A glance at Blanche confirmed my suspicion—her expression was far from pleased, especially her eyes toward the physician, full of ill will.

Once a rift forms, it’s difficult to repair. Fragments will continuously fall from the broken part.

I was pondering how to make use of those fragments when the Empress’s sharp voice cut through.

“I doubt this is simply old age. The Crown Princess said even a seven-year-old child had the same illness as I.”

“Please remember, Your Majesty, I am not a specialist. Had I examined the seven-year-old, I would have diagnosed different symptoms from yours.”

“Yet you lied to me. If once, why not again?”

The physician had clearly lost the Empress’s trust, and continued to do so.

The Empress pressed further.

“Besides, I was told I was a rare case. No one around me showed the same symptoms. But now that you’ve shown symptoms too, it seems reasonable to assume it is contagious.”

Her reasoning was flawless; the physician could barely refute it.

All he could do was insist it was due to old age and shed tears, begging her to believe him.

“Your Majesty, prolonged exposure to light will be dangerous. Please forgive me and draw the curtains again to block the light!”

“You look worse than I do.”

The Empress commanded the curtains to be closed again and tossed the brown medicine bottle she had nearby toward the physician.

The bottle rolled across the floor and stopped in front of him. The physician swallowed hard.

“Use it.”

“Eh?”

“This is the medicine you made for me when I suffer from light pain, is it not?”

“Y-Yes, but why give it to me now?”

“I’m in pain from the light, so I’m giving it to you specially.”

“I… I’m fine…”

“You don’t look fine. Use it.”

At the Empress’s firm words, the physician picked up the bottle with trembling hands but dared not open the cap, bowing his head instead.

“Your Majesty, this medicine is for you alone. It won’t suit me.”

“For me alone?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. The dosage is strong for severe cases like yours. For me, in the early stages, it must be diluted.”

I knew he would resort to this excuse as a last measure.

It was my turn. I retrieved the medicine I had prepared in advance and approached him.

“I have prepared medicine for early symptoms based on the Empress’s medical records that you gave me.”

I smiled and handed him the bottle containing light brown medicine. The physician, unable to grasp the situation, merely opened his mouth in surprise.

“Based on the root of Perphenol and diluted Hepvet, I added Napyrim, Nabullet, and Nachilid. The same proportions you first prescribed for the Empress.”

“Th-This…”

“Now, there should be no problem. Your eyes are bloodshot; use it quickly to relieve yourself.”

The physician’s brown eyes, soaked in pain, trembled like a leaf in the wind.