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~Chapter 33~
Noxian’s voice, giving short instructions to the doctor, was smooth as always.
Shariette felt relieved watching his usual demeanor.
Since he had brought a physician and not an undertaker, it didn’t seem like he planned to cut off her head immediately or do anything about Shasha’s existence.
‘Mia must have explained things well.’
She looked gratefully toward Mia, who was waiting near the door. Feeling her gaze, Mia winked back.
“Hmm… You said Cruzel poison was used?”
Heron, who had been examining Shariette, asked.
Though he was asking Noxian, Shariette reflexively answered first since it was her field.
“Yes. It was diluted in tea, but since the antidote was given within 30 minutes, it detoxified quickly. The stomach bleeding stopped, and there are no symptoms like headache or breathing difficulty. Her condition is good.”
“So, you’re the apothecary, then?”
Hearing her precise answer, a spark lit in Heron’s tired eyes.
“Cruzel poison causes extreme pain. If I had known Eden was such a rotten scoundrel…”
Clicking his tongue bitterly, he checked her pulse, temperature, skin, and eyes.
“I also heard you treated Madam and the young lady’s poisoning. This blind old man felt ashamed.”
“Feinil poison isn’t widely known. I just happened to see someone poisoned by it in the place I lived before, so I learned.”
Shariette spoke smoothly.
‘It’s not exactly a lie.’
Noxian would think she meant Willowhill, but Argen was also a place she once lived.
“May I ask about your antidote formula?”
“The main toxin in Feinil is a celloid type, so I used a Berit solution base, since it binds strongly, and mixed in Rictura extract, which is effective for cell regeneration.”
The three non-specialists in the room just nodded as usual, but the expert’s jaw dropped.
Heron pushed up his glasses, forgetting she was even a patient, and questioned her eagerly.
“Berit and Rictura? But how did you neutralize Rictura’s toxicity? The extraction is tricky enough, but neutralizing it is nearly impossible—the diluted extract is as rare as the stars!”
“I added nettle during the initial refining. If treated at high heat quickly, it stabilizes. I lived near a Rictura habitat before.”
“Ha! Amazing!”
Heron shook his head in awe. It was like answering—
Q: How do you walk on water?
A: Step with your left foot before your right foot sinks.
—an answer simple in words but almost impossible in practice.
“Unbelievable. Theoretically I understand, but to think it’s really possible…”
His voice carried pure astonishment.
“Even if you searched the entire Royal Medical Association, only a handful could pull that off!”
Heron grew so excited he didn’t notice his glasses sliding down his nose. He looked like a scholar discovering an ancient relic in what he thought was wasteland.
“Where in the world did you—ah, you’re Miss Verdette?”
“Shariette Verdette.”
“Yes, yes. In fact, rather than wasting time, I should—”
“Heron. I already know how excellent my physician is. Instead of admiring, give me your diagnosis.”
Noxian’s cold voice cut him off.
Snapping back to himself, Heron realized he had leaned close, clutching the young lady patient’s shoulders, his face right before hers.
“Oh, my apologies. This old man lost his manners. At this age, when I find an uncut gem, I get greedy, haha.”
He apologized, but he didn’t retract his enthusiasm. In his mind, he was already picturing a rosy retirement with a successor and research assistant at his side.
‘She no longer flinches when giving her name.’
Noxian thought absently.
The apothecary crow who once trembled at her own name now introduced herself naturally to others.
When Heron finished his examination, he lifted his head.
“As you said, there are no major problems. Even with the antidote, recovering this fast suggests it may be thanks to a special constitution like Rubellot’s.”
Shariette glanced triumphantly at Noxian, but he didn’t react.
“If there’s no major problem, what about minor ones?”
Heron shook his head.
“Maybe temporary fatigue or dizziness, but nothing serious enough to worry about.”
“….”
Noxian reluctantly nodded.
“Fine. You may go.”
“Before that, Miss Verdette, do you have any foods or herbs you cannot take?”
Heron asked kindly.
“Aconite doesn’t agree with me.”
The old doctor blinked.
“Haha, that can’t agree with anyone—it’s deadly poison.”
Poison that killed everyone equally, without exception.
“Not just the stem and root, but the flower too.”
Shariette added.
Compared to similar poisonous herbs, her recovery was always slower specifically with aconite.
“Good thing we don’t keep such a toxic herb around. Well then, let’s meet later in the apothecary room. I’ll also brew a medicinal tea, to apologize.”
Noxian raised an eyebrow.
The physician he had known since childhood had never been this warm or kind. Even to the duke, he was sharp-tongued behind a smiling face.
‘I thought he would like Shariette, but this much?’
Not a bad thing. In fact, it was good.
The Barren family wasn’t as powerful as Argen, but it had long produced medical geniuses. Eden had even disguised himself as a relative to get close to Heron.
‘For an apothecary like Shariette, this could be a valuable connection.’
He had brought Heron here for that very reason.
Still, Noxian glanced around the room—Luke, Joseph, now Heron.
‘They’re all far too interested in her.’
She might be a raw gem, but he was the one who discovered her. Yet everyone—even his sister Nixia—was eyeing her talent.
The apothecary herself seemed oblivious, only reciting formulas and mixing herbs.
Half satisfied, half annoyed, Noxian tried to understand the irrational irritation, but found no clear answer.
“Wait, what do you mean she has no license? With her skills?!”
Heron, speaking casually now, jumped up in outrage, spilling tea.
‘Hm. Adding licorice root would improve this tea.’
Shariette thought as she sipped.
“So about what you asked, I can’t really—”
“What kind of scoundrel did you apprentice under? They didn’t even give you the simple certification? Academy graduation isn’t even required! Shariette, how many years of experience did you say you had?”
Before she could finish, Heron burst out in anger, pacing across the apothecary room.
Shariette recalled when she first began making medicine.
“About 11 years.”
She couldn’t say she worked at Argen.
‘Though it’s true I learned over the shoulder as a child.’
“11 years?! That damnable wretch!”
Thus, her nonexistent master of 11 years became, in Heron’s mind, the worst villain alive.
Shariette looked at the old doctor shouting curses at the air with wide-eyed curiosity.
Seeing her innocent reaction, Heron rubbed his neck. His blood pressure was rising.
‘It’s obvious. She was exploited under the guise of apprenticeship. They used her, then deliberately blocked her from getting licensed. That such a bastard still exists in our field!’
At first, he had thought she was just lucky to cross his path. But the more he spoke with her, the clearer it became.
This girl was a genius. And like many geniuses, she must have lived a difficult life.
‘So clever, yet so naive… she must have grown up isolated, without seeing much of the world.’
He gulped down his now-cold tea. Its bitter aroma spread with the heat of his indignation.
