Chapter 53: The Duke Who Became a Cat

A Russian Blue with sleek grayish-blue fur.

The cat buried in black uniform breathed laboriously. Its narrowly closed black eyes seemed like they would never open again.

“A beastman…! No wonder the holy power didn’t work!”

The healer retreated trembling and collapsed to the floor. Watching this, Rexton bit his lip. Unable to hide his bewildered expression, he bowed to me.

“It’s my fault. In my haste… I called this person. His Grace rarely gets sick, and when he does, Lord Melvin always takes care of him… I’m sorry, my lady.”

Saying he would handle it, Rexton turned his back to me. The sound of a sword being drawn from its scabbard was heard.

“Eek! Pl-please spare me! Lord Rexton!”

The healer began begging, clasping his hands together. He banged his head on the ground while curling up his body.

“Viscount Rexton.”

“……”

“Put away your sword. This isn’t the time for that.”

“…I apologize.”

Rexton slowly sheathed his sword and looked at me before quickly bowing his head.

“Forgive me, I overstepped.”

“It’s fine. Anyway, the Duke needs him now. You know that.”

“Yes, I understand.”

My eyes met the healer’s over Rexton’s bowed shoulder.

“Bring him before me.”

“Yes.”

Rexton turned and grabbed the trembling healer’s arm, bringing him to kneel before me. The pale-faced healer clasped his hands together and began pleading his case.

“My-my lady. I didn’t know. I will never reveal that His Grace is under a beastman’s curse, so please sp-spare my life!”

“Answer my questions well from now on. Then, your life might be spared.”

If only Xavier would wake up.

“Yes, yes!”

As the healer’s shoulders trembled, my heart was also pounding. My voice came out cracked from my dry mouth.

“You know why the holy power had no effect, right? Tell me everything you know.”

“I-I’ve heard that unlike normal people, when beastmen fall ill or are poisoned, holy power cannot heal them.”

“Why is that?”

“For beastmen, holy power only works against curses, I’ve heard. For illnesses and poisons, they must be treated medically to have any effect. Please spare me!”

I see. So that’s why Xavier transformed into a cat.

But there was something more urgent.

“Is there an antidote?”

“There’s a plant called ‘Valian’.”

“Really?”

Though I brightened at this, the healer uncomfortably avoided my gaze and looked down.

“Speak quickly! Where can we get it?”

“It’s a flower that only grows in the snow-capped mountains. It can’t be cultivated and only blooms in summer…”

The healer trailed off while sweating.

Ah, what a coincidence.

It must be the same mountain Xavier had explained to me during our carriage ride.

“It’s fortunate that it’s summer now. Rexton, is it the mountain we saw on our way here?”

“Yes, my lady.”

“I see…”

Suddenly, a sentence flashed through my mind.

「Saintess Yuria found the Valian herb in the eastern forest of the snow-capped mountain.」

It disappeared leaving only an afterimage.

What… was that?

‘Yuria instead of Rosetta?’

Like when I met Rosetta, and at the victory banquet, whenever original content appeared in my mind, I thought it was because I had read the book.

But now the saintess’s name changed from ‘Rosetta’ to ‘Yuria’.

What could this mean?

“Haa.”

“My lady, what’s wrong? Your face has turned pale.”

Rexton called out to me. I signaled to him with my eyes that I was fine and asked the healer.

“Healer, I will somehow get the Valian antidote herb, so please detoxify His Grace. Can you do it?”

“Yes… but you’ll find a flower we don’t even know where to look for in that massive snow-capped mountain?”

“That’s my problem to solve. Can you do it or not?”

“Yes, yes! If we have the herb, it’s possible. But His Grace won’t last long. We must get it within 48 hours.”

Leaving the questioning healer in the tent, we hurried outside. Rexton ordered his subordinates to guard the tent entrance and made sure no one, including them, could enter.

I quickly went to find Rosetta to pack supplies. We needed to get to the snow mountain as soon as possible.

*

‘Jude, congratulations on your first expedition.’

‘Th-thank you, my lord!’

‘I hope you become an excellent boxer. This is a gift.’

‘Yes!’

A freckled face was reflected on the well-maintained, shining gauntlet.

“My lord…”

Jude, who had been carefully touching it with her tightly bound hands, suddenly sat up on the bed. The gauntlet rolled onto the floor.

‘This isn’t what I wanted.’

She never expected His Grace to eat that seasoning made with henbane. Jude banged her red head against the tent pole and shouted.

“Why! That!”

She was about to shout why His Grace ate what that blonde woman should have eaten, but seeing Wilhelm’s shadow flickering between the tent flaps, she closed her mouth.

She had only done what Margaret told her to do, but she couldn’t understand why things turned out this way.

Before departing for the neutral city of Berg where the compensation meeting would be held, Margaret had come to see her.

‘It’s just an herb that makes you sleep deeply. Don’t hang around the kitchen and get caught, just slip it in with the luggage when unloading. I used the kitchen’s seasoning container so no one will know.’

‘I won’t do it! If you want to do it, go do it yourself. I already got the henbane from the back alley and gave it to you.’

‘Listen, General. I’m just a trainee maid who arrived recently. Would the chef take me on such an important compensation negotiation journey?’

Hearing Margaret’s sharp retort, Jude reluctantly accepted the seasoning container. When she still hesitated, Margaret spoke in an insinuating voice.

‘It’s nothing serious.’

‘What if we get caught?’

‘Just do it well so we don’t get caught, right? I heard the Duchess likes meat.’

At those words, Jude’s purple eyes sparkled and her hand gripping the seasoning container tightened.

‘And even if we’re discovered, never reveal my name.’

‘What? You’re going to let me take the fall alone?’

‘That’s not it.’

Seeing Jude’s glaring face and growling, Margaret sighed.

‘It’s for your sake, General. If they find out I’m sent by Count Willem, His Grace would be so pleased, wouldn’t he? About the General who betrayed him by becoming the Crown Prince’s pawn.’

‘Be-betrayal! I just want to get rid of that woman!’

Even seeing Jude’s outburst, Margaret only emphasized this:

‘If caught, blame it on the kitchen staff. The moment you mention my name, it’s over for you, General.’

“Damn it!”

She should have slapped Margaret’s smirking face then.

Jude bit an innocent pillow on the bed and threw it to the floor, seething. Unlike Ethan who was good at judgment, Jude had a hot temper and acted on emotions before thinking.

But seeing how things were unfolding, she became scared.

Margaret said the henbane would only make one sleep, but seeing His Grace’s face turn blue like he was poisoned, it seemed that wasn’t all.

Remembering His Grace’s pale lips, Jude’s body trembled.

‘It looked serious. He won’t die, will he? Then what about me? What about me?’

What would happen?

A great fear began to take root in Jude’s heart.

‘I can’t go down like this! Th-that’s right.’

The magical device Margaret gave her! Contact!

[Here, take this. Just press it once. You need to let me know how things are going.]

Jude began gathering all her strength in her arms. The ropes tightened and the blood vessels in her forearms bulged. After several attempts that nearly burst the blood vessels in her eyes, one arm’s binding loosened.

She couldn’t escape, but she could reach her pants pocket with her fingers. With her fingertips in the pocket, she struggled to press the magical device.

With a beep, a young woman’s voice was heard. It was a very small voice that only Jude could hear.

[General, why are you contacting only now! How did it go?]

It was Margaret.

*

“I leave His Grace in your care, Rexton.”

“My lady, are you sure you’ll be alright? I should go with you.”

I shook my head.

“As you know, we need someone to watch over His Grace. It’s better if this situation isn’t known to others.”

Though the healer was following orders out of fear, it would be a big problem if he escaped the camp and spread word about Xavier’s condition.

Understanding my meaning, Rexton nodded heavily.

“…Yes, but for you to go to such a place, my lady… even if you received an oracle, we have knights here…”

Rexton naturally opposed my decision to go to the snow mountain alone. So I had no choice but to pretend I had received an oracle about the location of ‘Valian’. Though he reluctantly agreed, he was still worried and assigned Ethan as my guard.

“General Ethan, please protect my lady well.”

Ethan, sitting in the driver’s seat, nodded.

“I’m here too, so don’t worry!”

Rosetta, who had prepared to go with me, poked her head out from inside the carriage. When I said I would go alone, she insisted on coming along.

When Rosetta volunteered to go with me instead of the injured Maya, Maya took Rosetta’s side. In the end, Rosetta would accompany me in place of Maya who had hurt her knee.

I took out the portable magical device given by Pope Melvin and handed it over.

“This is the magical device His Holiness gave me, so use it to contact him. And about the healer…”

“I understand. I will watch him carefully.”

Rexton’s eyes flashed as he placed his hand on the sword at his waist.

The carriage began moving, gradually leaving the campsite. Whether it was because we were retracing our path, or because of Xavier’s completely bloodless face I had last seen, my stomach churned and my heart tightened.

‘If we can’t find the herb, Xavier might die!’

The last pale face I saw wouldn’t leave my mind.

‘I absolutely cannot let you die looking like that.’