***
He put all his strength into his hand holding the sword.
Ethan clashed several times and was excited.
Gasp. Gasp.
Facing him, Xenon Clark had a violent look on his face, as if he was about to pounce. Xenon was the only one in Lorek who could give Ethan this look and show it.
He was as good a swordsman as Ethan, and he was the only one who could take the young duke’s sword.
It was interesting to see how Ethan, who was rarely impressed, could feel his opponent’s breathing and tension in the moment of demotion. Moreover, when he went sword to sword with him, the rush feelings were doubled because all the guard knights were no match for him.
It was the moment he breathed a little more intensely and swung the sword again.
‘What is it?’
A flying sound from behind him touched Ethan.
There were no leaves dancing in the wind, nor were there fruits ripening and falling.
It was more like the sound of animals moving.
‘I definitely heard something.’
Ethan was on the receiving end of Xenon’s sword, but his nerves were directed towards the forest. This was the moment when the boy’s keen senses fully grasped the unseen opportunity.
Xenon’s sword, which had not been disturbed in the slightest until now, went straight for Ethan. He hurriedly turned his body, but Ethan’s left arm was hit by the sword.
“Young Duke!”
Xenon thought that Ethan would naturally catch the sword. Even though he hit it with all his strength, Xenon was surprised by what he had done and dropped the sword on the floor.
He, too, was renowned in Lorek for his outstanding swordsmanship skills, but he was actually not strong enough to take on Ethan, so he did his best to take on the lighter counterparts.
“Young Duke, are you alright?”
Ethan’s wound looked serious.
He always wore light clothing without protective gear. If he had worn a protector, he would have only suffered minor bruises, but unfortunately, the only thing that could protect Ethan was his thin, white shirt.
The shirt soon began to stain with blood.
But Ethan didn’t seem the least bit interested in his condition and left. Then he walked to the woods.
“Young Duke!”
Since he had injured the Young Duke’s arm, it would not end up as a mere punishment. He may never be able to enter Bertrand Castle again.
Xenon’s face was colored with bewilderment. He had been practicing with his sword day and night to get this chance, and he could lose it all in an instant with his mistake today.
‘No, I will lose it.’
When it came down to it, the failure was the moment he took his eyes off the job, but it was his argument that he had to go through with everything.
‘It’s over, all over.’
It was the moment when Xenon, soaked in fear, completely froze in place.
“It’s you again.”
Ethan’s low voice toward the woods was heard.
“…….”
Xen looked only at Ethan’s back, still in a daze. It was then that he realized that there was someone behind the bushes, he picked up the sword that fell to the floor.
As he ran over to Ethan, the girl who had been hiding among the dark green bushes slowly stood up. She immediately turned pale at the sight of Ethan’s bloody arm.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”
The girl’s big eyes were filled with tears. Ethan lowered his sword and put it in its case, then spoke bluntly.
“If climbing the mountain is not enough, you are now breaking into the castle without permission?”
“No, no, Young Duke.”
The girl was trembling as if she was about to fall. She made a mistake and this reaction was normal, but it didn’t make Ethan feel any better.
It wasn’t just because she sneaked into the castle.
How in the world did she get in here?
“I foolishly lost my way. I followed the ridge down to the south as my father had taught me. …….”
The girl’s words caused Ethan to look up behind the overgrown thicket. Immediately, his gaze reached the grass in Ruelli’s basket. He didn’t know what kind it was, but he could tell that she had gone up the mountain to gather medicinal herbs.
It seemed she was lost in the mountains and wandered down behind Bertrand’s castle.
“I told you it was illegal to make medicine without permission.”
“More importantly, Young Duke’s arm ….”
Before he knew it, the bright red blood had completely soaked Ethan’s left arm. Ethan glanced down at his arm and sighed lightly.
“What a mess.”
When he realized that the wound was severe, the pain began to rush in. It was the moment when his smooth brows were slightly narrowed.
The fresh scent that he felt when he first met the girl flashed through my nose.
Ethan suddenly became curious about the girl and the medicine she was making.
He needed confirmation to determine if it was witchcraft or not.
“Yes ……?”
“Cure me.”
***
“My lord, Samuel Gross is here to see you.”
Lord Cedric, who was sitting in his office, looked up and saw a man walking into his office.
It was Samuel Gross, Lorek’s only pharmacist.
He was the cousin of a competent doctor, claiming to have studied medicine at Asborne College,the pride of the Empire.
However, his abilities were so poor that it overshadowed his luxurious background.
“I’m Samuel Gross, a pharmacist selling herbs and medicines in Jerton Square.”
Samuel looked pale, took off his hat, and bowed his head.
Cedric knew roughly why he came, having asked his aide. However, he opened his mouth, putting the ledger down in an appropriately solemn voice.
“What’s going on?”
“My lord, I’m very sorry to have to tell you this.”
Cedric was certainly not an intimidating lord. But the air in the office was heavier than he expected, and Samuel kept feeling intimidated, as if he was a defendant coming to stand trial.
It was as if his mind was in a haze, even though he organized what he had to say many times before entering the castle.
“I tried to make light of it, a child’s prank, but it was my livelihood at stake, and I couldn’t hold back any longer, My Lord.”
He made a rather long and impassioned speech about how unhappy the family he had worked so hard to build had become.
“I don’t believe that the Lord gave permission for the child, but this is strictly illegal.”
Samuel took pride in the ointment he made, although people did not approve of it.
He knew that Fadenos’s daughter was a perceptive child. He knew that the abbot praised her to the point of sobriety, and that she read more medical books than he did.
Frankly speaking, he thought it was ridiculous.
He wondered lightly once or twice if it would be so easy for a child to make medicine when all she had to do was mix a few herbs with some cheap oil.
However, while Samuel was making light of the matter, people were no longer seeking Samuel’s medicine.
As for Samuel, it was an embarrassment.
“In addition, not long ago, Gauner was taken to the labor camp unfairly because of the child’s disturbance.”
Actually, Samuel wondered if he should talk about Gauner’s work.
Whatever the reason, the Lord’s son punished him and he was not in a position to admonish the Young Duke for his decision.
Still, the reason he started the conversation was that the situation was so bad and he wanted the Lord to know and resolve the matter quickly.
Cedric, who had been listening to Samuel’s exasperation for a while, opened his mouth with a frown.
“I already know what’s going on.”
“So My Lord knew about it too!”
Samuel clasped his hands together happily. However, Cedric’s words that followed made him lose all the strength in his hands.
“I’ve heard that the potion she made is quite effective, is that true?”
“I’m not sure about that either. You can’t call it medicine just because it happened to work once or twice, right, my Lord? If that’s the way it’s done, the system of territories will have to collapse. There is a strict law.”
Samuel was never going to say how effective the medicine the little girl had made was.
It wouldn’t do him any good to reveal that applying the ointment would make a remarkably quick recovery, as long as the bones weren’t broken.
“Yes, it is something that is in order in the territory.”
Cedric nodded with a stout expression.
“Thank you for understanding, My Lord.”
Samuel didn’t come to the castle with a light heart.
He hoped that the Lord would punish Ruelli and Fadenos. He wanted to make an example of them and punish them so severely that no other people would even try in the first place, and if possible, get them out of the territory.
“Bring the girl to me.”
“Yes, My Lord.”
Samuel had a rather dazed look at Cedric’s order, but soon rolled up the corners of his mouth.
Seeing that the child was about to be brought in immediately, the lord had the will to settle the matter. Samuel intended to enlist the help of his cousin, Lord Xavier, if this was not resolved in today’s meeting.
It would take some time for the foreman to find the girl and bring her to the castle. It was at this moment that Samuel was sitting in the large parlor of the Bertrand house, drinking tea and waiting for the girl.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps in the distance and a neatly dressed boy walked in.
It was the son of the lord.
“Young Duke.”
Ethan’s appearance was somewhat intimidating, but Samuel was polite. He felt awkward because of Gauner’s incident not long ago.
As he bowed his head, he saw the long sword Ethan was wearing. With a nervous heart, he hoped the girl would be caught soon.
O’Connell, who had come in with Ethan, bowed and reported.
“My Lord, the child’s father is ill. Shall I bring her back to her father?”
“No. She’s safe in the carriage, isn’t she?”
Cedric waved his hand in a simple gesture.
‘What is it? What are they talking about now?’
Samuel glared at O’Connell, his large eyes full of wonders. He didn’t know who the child they were talking about was, but he had a vague sense of foreboding.
And unfortunately, the premonitions that tickled his temples always came true, like a prophecy.