Please Leave The Sickly Villainess Alone

Ria’s bag contained so many handkerchiefs that she had to take them all out to retrieve the artifact hidden in the corner.

Watching this, Rachel’s face gradually turned ashen.

‘H-how sick is she…!’

The thought that they should take Ria to the imperial physician later wasn’t just Rachel’s; Luka’s expression was similar.

After rummaging around as if pulling tools from a magic pouch, Ria’s hand finally grasped the round artifact.

“This is an artifact containing my healing magic.”

“I thought healing magic no longer worked…”

“Please trust me, Your Majesty. Healing magic only works when both the caster and the patient have faith.”

Ria’s emerald eyes sometimes looked gentle, but at other times they shone sharply with an undeniable sincerity.

The Empress often thought that Ria resembled Gasent more than the Duchess.

And she couldn’t help but trust Ria.

Any doubt about failure had long since disappeared, and she vaguely felt that this child might just succeed.

Even if it was greed, it was fine. Unlike last time when she had only waited for her dying day, now she had developed a desire to live.

The start of this was the small girl standing before her eyes.

She didn’t want to burden Ria.

So the Empress nodded with a faint smile at Ria’s words asking her to trust her completely.

Having received an answer, Ria began to activate the artifact in earnest.

The artifact allowed the user to use magic by controlling amplified magical power that the original person had infused into it.

Through the artifact emitting a faint, warm light, Ria could glimpse where the Empress’s disease was growing.

Her weak heart was covered with something like rose vines.

It wasn’t that actual plants had grown, but something poisonous was visualized to Ria’s eyes in that form.

Bruelle wasn’t only incurable but also a rare disease.

Even its cause was unknown, but in the Empress’s case, it seemed the disease had manifested due to poisonous components.

And there was only one person in this imperial palace who would do such a thing.

‘Jeria…’

Ria gritted her teeth inwardly but outwardly smiled gently as she said to the Empress:

“It will take some time, so please lie down comfortably.”

At Ria’s words, the Empress laid her body back down on the bed.

Ria’s small hand touching the Empress’s was warm as usual, but it was also refreshing as she was using the artifact’s magic to purify various parts of the body.

The room was filled with healing light as if it were bright daylight.

Luka looked at Ria in that cozy atmosphere.

Her faint and fragile energy seemed like it could disappear at any moment, causing a sense of urgency in Luka’s heart.

Even though he thought there was no way that would happen… an inexplicable anxiety had taken root in his heart at some point.

Thinking it was just a groundless fear, he shook off that subtle emotion and silently watched Ria’s back as she continued to concentrate, wiping off the beads of sweat that had rolled down.

After about 30 minutes since Ria had activated the artifact, the light enveloping the room began to fade.

Ria finally opened her eyes, adjusting the flow of magic in the artifact, and said with flushed cheeks and a bright smile:

“Your condition is starting to improve, Your Majesty! I couldn’t completely eliminate it yet, but I think we can cure the disease if we repeat this treatment for a while!”

Seeing Ria smiling brightly as if she had finally let out a sigh of relief, the Empress murmured:

“Unbelievable… Truly, truly, the pain has subsided a lot. I couldn’t even breathe properly before…!”

Her trembling voice still sounded as if she found it hard to believe.

A tear dropped from the Empress’s glistening eyes onto the back of her clenched hand.

“I wasn’t afraid of death, but the thought of not being able to see you three anymore made me endlessly fearful…”

The Empress was still extremely thin, but her complexion was no longer that of a patient.

Perhaps that’s why she was able to embrace Ria, sitting in front of her, more tightly than ever before.

That small body was able to relax its tension in the infinitely warm embrace of the Empress.

“Please stay with us healthily and happily now. I’ll help until Your Majesty fully recovers.”

‘And it would be even better if I could give Jeria a taste of sweet revenge…’

Looking at the seemingly frail Empress, Ria set aside her greater ambitions.

For now, she decided to focus only on the fact that the Empress’s condition was no longer close to death.

Rachel and Luka, who had been sent out of the room briefly so Ria could concentrate on the treatment, received Ria’s message through a servant and came running in one breath.

Rachel, with tears soon pouring down her pretty face, embraced both Ria and the Empress at once.

Ria, bundled up like a tightly packed snowball, saw Luka standing by the doorway, unable to approach with his reddened eyes.

Ria reached out her hand for him to come closer, with a refreshing smile just like when they first met at the orphanage.

Taking steps forward, Luka was led by Ria’s hand and almost fell onto the bed.

And only then could he accept that an unbelievable miracle had occurred and smile back fully.

* * *

After calming down from the momentary intense emotions, I looked around the Empress’s room.

I couldn’t tell when the Empress had started being poisoned.

But coincidentally, the time she started getting sick was after she had been prescribed antipsychotic medication by the former imperial physician, who had now resigned.

I saw the medicine bottle that had been there last time, placed on a side table in the corner.

The large bottle contained so much medicine…

The one fortunate fact was that it hadn’t decreased at all since I last saw it.

I opened the lid of the bottle and checked the condition of the medicines while saying:

“It would be better to dispose of this. It’s best not to take any medication as much as possible while being treated with healing magic.”

“I haven’t been taking it lately anyway, but I think it’s best to do as Ria says.”

The Empress nodded and called a servant to instruct them to dispose of the medicine.

I wrapped a few pills I had in my hand in a handkerchief and put them in my bag.

I planned to carefully examine the composition of the medicine.

“And Rachel, please manage everything the Empress eats while she’s recovering. This is the most critical time, so every food item needs to be thoroughly checked.”

Rachel nodded vigorously at my words.

From now on, we couldn’t allow Jeria’s schemes to succeed through any means.

* * *

“Is she asleep?”

“Yes, the servant said it’s been a long time since Mother, who couldn’t sleep due to her worsening condition recently, has fallen asleep so comfortably.”

The Empress’s body needed rest after receiving such extensive purifying energy.

And I too, having concentrated for a long time controlling the artifact, went to the imperial physician to receive a potion for my anemia.

If I endure the bitter taste for a moment…

“This really is the best. I should take a few back to the Duchy.”

I could achieve the best physical condition.

Although it couldn’t prevent the occasional coughing up of blood that came with a twisted feeling inside my body, it would at least guarantee my condition afterward.

“Fill this bag with as many of these potions as possible.”

The bag Luka handed to the physician with those words was large enough for me to fit inside.

The physician looked at Luka for a moment with a face that seemed to doubt whether he had seen and heard correctly, but after receiving a silent gaze, he busily started putting bottles of potion into the bag.

That much… is necessary. I wanted to cheer inwardly and hug Luka.

Finally, after the physician had carefully fastened the strap of the bag, Luka said:

“Now, please examine Ria’s physical condition.”

As I hadn’t planned on getting an examination, I looked at Luka with a questioning face, but Luka said firmly:

“You caught a cold and were coughing severely earlier, weren’t you?”

That’s…! I have nothing to say to that.

I sat down in the chair in front of the physician as he said.

The physician began the examination, checking my pulse with trembling hands.

But the diagnosis that came was as expected.

“There’s no major problem with your body. It seems you’ve caught a mild cold, so if you just take the potions you’re taking with you…”

The pitiful eyes of the physician fell on the potions in the bag, which seemed like they could not only cure a cold but might even make one immortal if all were consumed.

The potions were worth their weight in gold.

Of course, the imperial family would bear the financial burden, but it was the physician’s job to manufacture them again with numerous ingredients.

My conscience subsided at the thought of coming back again next time to take as much as I wanted.

“Alright, Luka. These potions are enough.”

I stood up briskly with my refreshed body.

I led Luka, who was about to add something to me, out of the physician’s office.

“Thank you for the examination!”

The physician, who had been looking at the bag in Luka’s hand while hiding his tears, bowed politely to us.

With the door closing behind us with a thud, I put my hand on Luka’s shoulder and…

‘Damn, I have to reach up quite a bit.’

Finally lowering my hand from Luka, who had grown so tall that my arm hurt, I said:

“The ‘Elven Stone’ you mentioned earlier. You said you’d show it to me.”

Luka looked down at me as I muttered with my pride slightly damaged, and soon a mischievous light entered his red eyes.

That gaze, as if looking at a small animal, once again poked at my pride, so I walked ahead towards the Crown Prince’s palace with large strides.

Luka, who caught up to me in an instant, said with a grin, ‘Sister, you can put your hand on my shoulder if you ride on my back.’

And then he showed his broad back!

“You think I can’t do it?”

My competitive spirit activated, and I jumped with all my might towards Luka’s back.

‘A jump like this should make even Luka stumble forward ridiculously?’

I thought, but to my surprise. His back, straight as a mountain that seemed able to withstand any storm, received me as if I was nothing.

Rather, it was so stable and comfortable that it made me feel embarrassed for having been so fidgety, and I buried my face in his shoulder.

Not liking the pleased laugh coming from Luka’s mouth, all I could do was give his shoulder a light hit.

“Just put me down.”

“No. I’m going to carry you all day today.”

A Crown Prince’s palanquin, the glory of the family… did you think I’d say that?!

“Ah, don’t pull my hair, Sister!”

* * *

Hazel headed to the Crown Prince’s palace to deliver homework in advance to Luka, who had postponed today’s imperial lessons to the evening.

Having seen him complete the last assignment perfectly at a monstrous speed, the homework in his hands this time was truly mountainous.

Even the passing servants and maids’ eyes widened.

Hazel interpreted those eyes, which seemed to pity the Crown Prince somewhat, differently.

Thinking ‘Haha, I am the teacher who has a student who can easily handle such assignments,’ he walked down the corridor of the Crown Prince’s palace with a smiling face when he saw something strange.

One body… but two faces?

Due to recently getting the wrong prescription for his glasses, things looked blurry, so he approached closer and squinted to confirm…

“Your Highness!”

It was none other than his proud student, Luka.

And the girl on his back was undoubtedly Princess Rayes.

She was the younger sister of Young Duke Drehan, who had been another of his students at the academy.

As Hazel quickly blocked Luka’s path, a few pages of homework flew away in the wind.

Ignoring that, Hazel said:

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Princess Rayes. I am Hazel, His Highness’s tutor. You really resemble Young Duke Drehan! How fascinating.”

Seeing Hazel speak in a friendly manner with a kind face, Ria’s face instantly turned red.

“It’s nice to meet you…”

After saying that, she whispered while hitting Luka’s back so Hazel couldn’t see:

“Put me down now! You said you’d put me down if people saw!”

Luka carefully lowered Ria to the ground and glared at Hazel with piercing eyes.

At the look as if seeing his worst enemy, Hazel flinched and laughed, saying, ‘Haha, I was tactless, wasn’t I?’

Ria walked in front of him and greeted him properly.

“I am Laveria Jenne Rayes, Sir Hazel. Is that Luka’s homework? It must be heavy, please come inside quickly.”

Only then did Luka take his eyes off Hazel and open the door as Ria said.

Hazel, smiling as if he had just caught his breath, kept thanking Ria.