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Chapter – 23
Lafine frowned slightly without realizing it when she saw Elizabeth lying on the bed as if she were dead. However, many people were watching, so she spoke to the imperial physician with a worried expression.
“Thank you for taking such good care of my sister. Is her condition that bad?”
She didn’t want to get caught up in any more ridiculous rumors.
If something happened to Elizabeth, who had collapsed in front of her, gossip-loving nobles would surely spread all kinds of stories again. They would definitely talk about a love triangle involving Cedric and the three of them. Even the thought of such rumors made her sick.
At Lafine’s question, the imperial physician hesitated with an awkward expression before speaking.
“That is not the case. His Majesty simply ordered us to take great care of her.”
Lafine let out a quiet sigh.
The Emperor’s consideration felt far too excessive for her. She didn’t want to owe another debt.
“It’s too much.”
“No, His Majesty said to treat your family as if they were his own.”
Lafine glanced at Elizabeth again and then shook her head.
“There is a personal doctor at the Marquis’s residence, so once she regains consciousness, we’ll send her back—”
“Elizabeth!”
Before Lafine could finish speaking, someone rushed in, calling Elizabeth’s name urgently.
It was the Marquis, his face full of worry, as if he had just heard the news.
His loud entrance drew everyone’s attention.
Behind him, Cedric entered with a sullen expression, looking only at Lafine. It was almost laughable how he didn’t seem concerned about Elizabeth at all.
“Elizabeth! Are you alright?!”
The Marquis quickly went to the bed, grabbed Elizabeth’s hand, and looked as if he were about to cry.
The imperial physician beside them stepped back in confusion. He was the physician who treated only the Emperor, and yet he had personally examined Lafine’s sister because she possessed special abilities.
Lafine sighed again without realizing it.
“I’ll be leaving now.”
It seemed the Marquis didn’t even realize Lafine was there.
Even more ridiculous was Cedric’s behavior.
Perhaps because of what he had said to Lafine earlier, he didn’t even try to go near the bed. Instead, he kept glancing at Lafine, watching her reaction.
Ignoring him, she turned to leave.
Then the imperial physician quickly spoke.
“Wait, I have something to tell you.”
“……”
Holding back a sigh, Lafine turned back.
“Please tell the Marquis about Elizabeth’s condition instead of me. He knows her health better than anyone.”
Not wanting to be involved any further, Lafine spoke coldly. The Marquis nodded eagerly and raised his voice.
“My daughter has a chronic illness. How is it? Hmm?”
He questioned the physician as if trying to dig something out, making the physician even more flustered.
“She’s been weak since childhood. You must examine her carefully.”
The physician hesitated, choosing his words, but under the Marquis’s sharp gaze, he had no choice but to speak.
“Well…”
“Well?”
The physician avoided the Marquis’s eyes and looked at Lafine instead.
“His Majesty ordered me to examine Miss Elizabeth’s chronic illness as well, so I checked her condition thoroughly.”
His voice sounded unusually firm, and the atmosphere grew tense.
“R-Right! So, how is she?!”
The Marquis asked urgently, barely breathing.
“Hmm.”
The physician’s expression changed subtly, as if he was struggling with what to say.
“Go on, speak!”
Unable to wait, the Marquis pressed him.
The physician glanced at Lafine once more before speaking slowly.
“For now, it seems she fainted simply due to shock. However…”
He swallowed dryly, still hesitant.
“I heard she has had a serious chronic illness since childhood, so I paid close attention, but…”
The Marquis stared at him intensely.
“There are… no symptoms.”
“What?”
Lafine gasped in shock without realizing it.
“What do you mean?”
“I cannot speak about her past condition, but right now, her body is perfectly healthy. If she had a chronic illness, it seems it has already been completely cured. And I believe it has been some time since she recovered…”
Lafine stared at him blankly, unable to believe it.
“C-Could you say that again?”
The imperial physician, who treated the Emperor himself—the most skilled among all physicians—would not lie.
Yet this situation made no sense.
And everyone present felt the same.
Back in her room, Lafine wondered if she was dreaming.
The physician’s words kept echoing in her mind.
It didn’t feel real.
Elizabeth isn’t sick? No… she’s completely cured?
Still wearing her outer clothes, Lafine sat on the bed and replayed everything that had just happened.
He clearly said there were no symptoms. And the imperial physician wouldn’t lie.
All this time, Elizabeth had been lying in bed like a lifeless body. Whether she was unconscious, asleep, or pretending—no one knew—but she hadn’t moved at all while the physician spoke.
Even if she had regained consciousness, she wouldn’t have been able to get up. If her illness was already cured, what could she possibly do?
“Does this… even make sense?”
Lafine barely suppressed her pounding headache.
All this time, she had given up many things because Elizabeth was sick.
To others, it might seem trivial—but to her, they were sacrifices.
And now she was being told that Elizabeth had been cured long ago. How could that be possible?
It felt like she was being dragged back into that moment again and again.
Because the physician’s words kept repeating in her head.
“She’s cured. That means… her illness is gone…?”
She muttered as if speaking to someone.
Even more absurd was the Marquis’s reaction after hearing the news.
At first, he was happy—but then he began to question the physician aggressively.
“How can you be sure she’s cured?”
“Is that really true? Can I trust your skills?”
“What if Elizabeth collapses again after you say this?!”
“Can you take responsibility for that?!”
It was shameless.
Yet despite the Marquis’s accusations, the physician remained polite.
The questioning only stopped when the physician mentioned the Emperor.
“I am the imperial physician responsible for His Majesty’s health. How could I dare to lie?”
At the mention of the Emperor, the Marquis immediately fell silent, as if nothing had happened.
The change in his attitude was so ridiculous that Lafine was speechless. If the physician hadn’t mentioned the Emperor, the Marquis would have continued harassing him.
Even while speaking to the Marquis, the physician kept glancing at Lafine, as if he wanted to tell her something. But with so many people present, he seemed to be waiting for the right moment.
However, Lafine couldn’t stay there any longer.
The familiar sight of Elizabeth lying in bed and the restless Marquis suddenly felt unpleasant.
More than confirming whether Elizabeth was truly cured, Lafine simply wanted to leave.
So after briefly thanking the physician, she returned to her room.
“……”
Since when had Elizabeth been deceiving her?
Did she know, or did she not?
Lafine almost hoped it was the latter.
But whether intentional or not, the time she had devoted to Elizabeth now felt pitiful.
She had given her everything.
And now it was all meaningless?
She still couldn’t believe it.
“Lafine! Lafine!”
Someone interrupted her thoughts. Loud knocking echoed at the door, making her flinch.
“……Who is it?”
She stood up without thinking and walked to the door.
“Lafine!”
As soon as she opened it, Bayern rushed inside, his face flushed.
