A Genius Pharmacist Whom the Empress Is Obsessed With

Sacrificial Lamb (5)

Eldun felt Leta’s body, holding his front lapels, stiffening.

Leta was not the only one surprised by the knight. Eldun also felt his mind turning white at the sight of a familiar face.

“….”

Fenyard, who revealed himself confidently, also stood still without saying a word.

From Leta to Eldun, and even to Fenyard. The three adults froze on the road as if playing a game of freeze tag.

Eldun was the first to regain his senses among the three. Somehow, it was thanks to Sion, who had approached Eldun at some point, pushing Leta aside and patting his shoulder.

“Sir, are you okay, sir?”

Meeting Sion’s eyes full of concern, Eldun could finally move.

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“I, I’m fine. Is Sion okay?”

“Yeah, thanks to you, Sir.”

Sion tidied up Eldun’s messy clothes with delicate hands like ferns.

‘Sir?’

Based on the situation, the commander that Sion was mentioning seemed to refer to Viscount Fenyard.

“Sion, did you bring that commander… sir?”

“No, I didn’t bring him. I was looking for Uncle Eldun and met the commander while heading to Stolstad.”

Eldun’s frozen mind quickly started spinning.

If Sion met Viscount Fenyard while heading to Stolstad, it meant that Viscount Fenyard was already coming to Mellow.

“I knew that the Inspector Mellow would come, but it seems that the inspector is not just one person.”

But of all inspectors, it had to be Viscount Peniad.

In this unclear situation, Lydeun was lost in thought for a moment, so Sion discreetly tugged at his sleeve.

“Did I do something wrong?”

“Is Viscount Peniad a bad person?”

Although she did not voice the question, Sion’s pleading eyes seemed to ask it.

After patting Sion’s head, Lydeun slowly stood up from his seat.

He didn’t want to make the child anxious, and there was still urgent work to be done, so he couldn’t behave like a fool anymore.

“The most important thing now is to deal with Reta and uncover the mastermind behind this snake.”

Sharing stories with Viscount Peniad was important, but the investigation was a race against time. If they wasted time meaninglessly, the snake-like individuals would surely escape without leaving any evidence.

“Director?”

When Lydeun called him, Peniad flinched. His face still showed traces of confusion that he couldn’t erase.

“It’s as if he’s reacting as if he’s seen a ghost.”

It was understandable. After all, Viscount Peniad believed that Lydeun was dead.

Lydeun gestured towards Reta, showing his intention. The experienced knight, Peniad, seemed to understand what Lydeun was thinking.

Even now that both Lydeun and Peniad had regained their composure, Reta was still trembling on all fours.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

Peniad approached Reta and spoke in his distinctive solemn voice.

“I am Inspector Peniad. Are you Reta Dosopher, the adopted daughter of the lord?”

“….”

Despite Peniad’s call, Reta remained in the same position, still prostrated. No, even as her body trembled, she kept muttering incomprehensible words. It was surprising, but she appeared excessively tense.

“It will be difficult to talk like this.”

Peniad grabbed Reta’s arm and forcibly pulled her up. Then he called for the guards to surround her.

The guards who had just been under Reta’s command obediently followed Peniad’s orders. Despite being Reta’s people, Peniad, as a member of the royal family, had an overwhelming presence that could subdue people just by being seen.

“It would be difficult for an ordinary person to resist Peniad.”

While the guards restrained Reta, Peniad turned around to face Lydeun.

“I plan to go to the castle for the investigation. If it’s alright, it would be good if the alchemist, you, could come with me.”

“….”

“I don’t have any ulterior motives… I just think you can be helpful for the investigation.”

Despite his indifferent tone, the eyes of the old man, who had been dignified just a while ago, looked mournful and desperate.

Idun asked Peniad for a few favors under the pretense of cooperating with the investigation.

The first was to allow Lophene to be treated in Mellous Castle. The second was to provide support from the royal court for the treatment of Lophene and the villagers. Lastly, appropriate measures should be taken to ensure that Sion and Lophene can live safely in Mellous.

“The apothecary is indeed a good person…”

Peniad smiled with a hint of loneliness upon hearing Idun’s conditions.

“Is it difficult?”

“I doubt it. Those conditions are more than enough for me to fulfill.”

As if to prove that it was not a lie, Lord Peniad approached Lophene and lifted her up as if she were a blanket.

“Chief, why is this woman suddenly…”

“I will send someone later, but if I personally carry this woman and go to the castle in a hurry, the people of Mellous will not dare to cause trouble for a while. They will regard her as someone under the protection of the royal court.”

Peniad treated Lophene, who had fallen asleep, with the utmost care, as if she were a princess.

“I am planning to go to the castle now, what about you? Will you come with me?”

“I think I should take care of things here first.”

“…Take care of things as you please. But make sure to come to the castle. Understand? You can come even if it’s late.”

After finishing his words, Lord Peniad immediately left the apothecary. Sion also followed his mother and Lord Peniad, heading towards the castle.

Thanks to that, Idun was able to tidy up the apothecary quietly.

“I must come…to the castle.”

Idun repeated the last words she heard from Lord Peniad over and over again.

***

By the time Idun arrived at the castle, Lord Peniad had finished all the preparations.

Not only were there rooms where Idun could stay comfortably, but temporary clinics and apothecaries for treating the villagers had also been arranged.

After unpacking her belongings, Idun headed towards Lophene and Sion’s room first.

She needed to check Lophene’s condition, but it seemed that Sion also had quite a few injuries. Although she had provided emergency treatment in the apothecary, Idun wanted to take the time to examine her carefully.

However, when Idun entered the room, she was greeted by the sound of the two of them breathing quietly.

Lophene and Sion were holding hands, sleeping side by side on the bed. Unable to cuddle up, they resorted to holding hands as a temporary solution. Their peacefully sleeping faces looked so comfortable and happy.

“For now, it’s best to let them sleep deeply.”

Treating their wounds was important, but more than anything, it was important for the two of them to rest peacefully.

Idun quietly left Lophene’s room. Now, it was time to meet with Retta and Lord Peniad. Just then, a servant was walking towards Idun from the other end of the corridor.

“Inspector, Lord Peniad is looking for you. If you have any remaining tasks, please wait, and I will escort you.”

“Please take me to him immediately.”

The place Edun followed behind the servant and arrived at was the study of the castle. It was not a prison located in a tower or underground, so Edun could tell that the investigation about Leta was probably over.

Standing in front of the door, Edun pushed the servant aside and knocked on the door.

“It’s Edun.”

After a moment, the door opened with a creaking sound. Instead of inviting him in, Viscount Pheurniad personally opened the door and came out.

“….”

The Viscount held onto the door handle and stared at Edun for a long time, and Edun also carefully examined Viscount Pheurniad. The Viscount’s hair, which used to look like high-quality chocolate, had faded in color.

“It’s been quite a while.”

Having lived for over five hundred years and being accompanied by a long-lived dragon, ten years was truly nothing for Edun.

However, looking at the Viscount’s wrinkled eyes and the fading hair, Edun realized for the first time in a long time that ten years was definitely not a short time.

“….Come in.”

Just like Edun was lost in thought, it seemed that Viscount Pheurniad also needed time to organize his thoughts and emotions. After a considerable amount of time had passed, the Viscount let Edun enter the room.

The luxurious study was filled with various documents, and a large fireplace that occupied an entire wall was burning.

“If it’s too hot, let me know. As you get older, your joints get stiff.”

The Viscount said as he filled the fireplace with water.

Spring in the north was cool rather than warm, and the Viscount was weak against the cold. Knowing that better than anyone else, Edun couldn’t ask him to turn off the fireplace.

“I’m fine. Ah, I’ll make the tea myself.”

“…You?”

“Yes, I brought good tea leaves.”

Without a word, the Viscount willingly gave up his seat in front of the fireplace to Edun, and Edun took off his cloak and started preparing the tea.

After lightly rinsing the dried tea leaves, as the boiling water waited to cool down, the sound of the Viscount’s voice resonated softly in the room.

“I’m sorry.”

Edun’s hand, which was diligently breaking the tea leaves, momentarily stopped.

“I’m truly sorry.”

“…I’m sorry, but is there something you want to apologize to me for, Viscount?”

Worried that the atmosphere might become awkward, Edun intentionally spoke in a cheerful tone. At that moment, as if the water had cooled down to the right temperature, he didn’t forget to put the oak leaf into the teapot.

“At that time, you trusted and supported me, didn’t you? Isn’t that enough?”

Although there were some significant occurrences, it was not the Viscount’s fault. The Viscount had worked hard for his lord.

“No, I should be the one asking for forgiveness. That day, I left without looking for you.”

Like an oak leaf floating in the kettle, the Viscount’s words began to wander around the study.