Episode 8
“That’s enough. Get out.”
“Huh? You’re not eating it? That medicine must be terribly bitter, though.”
When Serena widened her eyes in surprise, Azaid glared at her fiercely before biting into the chocolate—wrapper and all.
“Ah! Not my hand! Just eat the chocolate!”
Serena winced as he bit down on her hand along with the wrapper. The faint sting where his teeth grazed her skin lingered.
What the heck? Is he a dog or something? Why’s he eating like that?
Serena grumbled internally, shooting him a glare. Azaid spoke up.
“Happy now? Leave.”
Pointing to the door, Azaid ordered her out like an unwanted guest. Serena pouted. She had gone out of her way to offer him chocolate before imposing a sugar fast, but his response was cold and ungrateful.
The Emperor looked especially irritable after waking up.
He probably had a restless dream, Serena guessed.
Determined to complete her report and leave quickly, she opened her mouth.
“Just a moment, Your Majesty. I have something to report before I go.”
“What is it?”
“I reviewed the list of foods and medicines Your Majesty consumes regularly. Your nutritional balance is worse than I expected.”
“Now you’re meddling with my meals too?”
Azaid looked at her with a weary expression. Serena, unfazed, continued.
“There’s too much sugar. Especially desserts—you consume them excessively.”
“Can’t I eat whatever I want?”
“No, Your Majesty. If you keep eating like this, you’ll end up meeting the god of the underworld sooner rather than later.”
Azaid muttered under his breath about “that god of the underworld again,” but Serena ignored him.
“Like it or not, this is part of your treatment.”
“What’s the point of reporting if you’re just going to do whatever you want anyway?”
“It’s better to inform you in advance so there are no complaints later,” Serena replied with a shrug, her casual smile looking wicked in Azaid’s eyes.
He weakly rubbed his forehead. Serena took it as a sign of approval and continued.
“I’ll double-check the current medications. If necessary, I’ll prescribe something different.”
“Different medication?”
“Yes. The current ones don’t seem very effective. From what I observed earlier, they’re mostly focused on boosting energy.”
“Well, that’s because they don’t know the root cause of my illness. They’re just trying to keep me going.”
“That’s a bit too complacent, don’t you think?”
Can he really talk like that knowing he’ll be dead in a year? Serena’s blunt response made Azaid raise an eyebrow.
“Are you implying the imperial physicians are incompetent?”
“Well, they are. After all, they still haven’t figured out the cause of your illness.”
The imperial physicians had more access to Azaid than Serena ever did, yet they failed to uncover anything substantial. When Serena reviewed their records after being appointed as his physician, she was appalled. Their findings barely matched what she had deduced through casual observation—and were, in fact, far less accurate.
Isn’t that neglect of duty?
Given Azaid’s indifference to his health, the imperial physicians must have been enjoying easy, cushy jobs. Oblivious to the fact that his death would cost them their heads.
Serena, on the other hand, had no intention of dying this time.
“You’re harsh in your assessment of your colleagues,” Azaid remarked with a smirk.
“Objectivity is what makes an evaluation fair,” Serena retorted.
“Now that’s what I call a proper diagnosis.”
“I’ve always given proper diagnoses, Your Majesty. Surely you don’t think I’ve had ulterior motives?”
“Who knows?”
Azaid dodged the question with a faint chuckle.
He totally suspects me! What nonsense!
Serena, flustered, cleared her throat and firmly declared, “I have no ulterior motives.”
“……”
“You’re not my type, Your Majesty.”
“How considerate of you to say so.”
Azaid leaned back against his chair, a crooked smile on his face. His earlier calm demeanor was gone, replaced by visible displeasure.
Does he think everyone automatically likes him just because he’s handsome?
Though he seemed sulky, Serena decided to ignore it.
“Based on my examination, extreme changes in body temperature could be fatal for you, Your Majesty. The time you fainted was likely due to your body cooling too much.”
“Is that so? I’ve never heard that before.”
Azaid responded absentmindedly, covering his eyes with one hand. He seemed visibly bored, but Serena continued calmly.
“This is just my hypothesis, of course. I did observe one instance during my examination of Your Majesty’s mana core, though.”
“Ah.”
Azaid suddenly looked intrigued, as if something had occurred to him.
“Now that I think about it, I have a question for you.”
“What is it?”
“When were you first able to use your mana core?”
“That’s… I don’t really remember. I don’t recall the exact moment it manifested.”
Serena scratched her cheek, looking a bit sheepish.
“You don’t remember?”
Azaid’s expression was one of surprise. His reaction was understandable; most people had vivid memories of the day their mana first manifested. It was an unforgettable experience, seared into their minds.
But Serena wasn’t lying—she truly couldn’t remember.
“Yes. It just… appeared one day, like a blemish. Besides, I can’t even use magic.”
“Is that why you didn’t tell Viscount Vincent about it?”
“Wait, did you investigate me?”
Serena’s eyes widened in shock.
“It’s only natural to look into the background of those who serve me.”
“Unbelievable.”
Serena staggered back dramatically, her hands covering her mouth.
It was a timid act of defiance against Azaid’s earlier grumbling. His behavior had been so shameless that Azaid scowled.
“What’s with that look?”
“What’s wrong with my look?”
“You’re looking at me like I’m trash.”
“Did you notice?”
“What?”
“Nothing.”
Serena quickly smoothed things over and stepped forward again, smiling as if nothing had happened, seemingly unaware that her smile was even more irritating. Azaid, with a dissatisfied expression, pressed on with his questions.
“You seem to handle mana well for someone who can’t use magic.”
“Oh, that’s a slightly different principle. While I can’t use magic, I can manipulate mana itself.”
“Manipulate mana?”
“For example, I can transfer mana to someone else or even draw it out of them.”
This peculiar ability was something Serena had accidentally discovered in her second life. Back then, she had been caught up in the emperor’s mana-core rampage caused by an overload.
Thinking she was about to die, the emblem engraved on her side suddenly shone, and when she opened her eyes, the emperor’s rampage had ceased.
When the emblem glowed, it implied the use of magic. Serena thought she had awakened late and tried to use magic, but she found she couldn’t cast any spells.
She had the emblem but didn’t know what magic she could use—or perhaps there was no magic she could use at all.
However, after that day, she felt as though the mana within her body flowed more freely, as if a slight crack had formed in a previously blocked pathway.
Since then, Serena had been researching ways to manipulate mana itself. She had managed to stop the emperor’s rampage once, so she thought optimistically that she could survive if it happened again.
But before she could test anything, the emperor succumbed to his fever and died, bringing her to the present.
‘Even if it’s a worthless ability compared to other awakened ones, it’s quite useful for treating the emperor’s illness.’
Serena was determined to find a way to cure the emperor’s illness using her mana core. The one-year deadline she confidently proposed wasn’t entirely baseless.
But, of course, Azaid couldn’t possibly know her true intentions.
“It’s an utterly useless ability.”
Out of nowhere, he harshly criticized her powers.
Should I just leave him to die?
Serena felt the desire to give in but suppressed it. She still had too many things she wanted to accomplish.
One day, I’ll shave off that thick head of hair of his.
As she imagined herself pulling out Azaid’s hair, he suddenly grabbed her hand and sniffed it.
While forbidding her from touching him, he had no reservations about doing so himself.
“Did you meet someone before coming here?”
“What?”
Azaid’s sharp blue eyes were now gleaming as he sniffed her hand inquisitively. Serena blinked in confusion, her lips moving soundlessly.
He had grabbed her hand, sniffed it, and now he was interrogating her.
Why is he suddenly so interested?
As the interrogation-like atmosphere grew tense, Serena instinctively pulled her hand back and lied without thinking.
“I didn’t meet anyone.”
It was a hasty excuse, and once the words left her mouth, she couldn’t take them back. Awkwardly fidgeting, she realized how strange his touch had felt.
In her previous life, Azaid had never initiated contact like this, so the sensation was utterly foreign to her.
Azaid murmured with a suspicious expression.
“Then why do I smell a stray cat on you?”
“Gasp! How did you know I touched a cat? I washed my hands afterward!”
Startled, Serena sniffed her hands, but they didn’t smell like a cat.
What’s going on? Is he turning into a dog after acting like one?
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Esraa• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •