Episode 35

Yvon found Petunia just before noon.

Brewing herbs, making potions, and gathering various items including ointments and antiseptics had taken longer than expected. Additionally, it was the day of combat training for the apprentice knights. On such days, there were always many injuries in the training grounds, requiring more medical supplies than usual.

After preparing the necessary medicines and giving instructions to the other doctors, Yvon was finally able to leave the infirmary.

As he climbed the stairs with his long legs, hopping like a water strider, Renée greeted him warmly, as if she had been waiting.

As soon as word spread that the chief physician had arrived, the tightly closed door opened. Yvon was taken aback the moment he stepped inside.

The room reeked of alcohol. The smell grew stronger as he approached the grand duchess’s bed.

It seemed she had already emptied her stomach, as a sour odor mixed with the smell of alcohol. It was quite a scene.

Sensing someone’s presence, Petunia, who had been rustling around on the bed, was helped to sit up by Selena.

“Greetings to the grand duchess.”

“Welcome…”

Her voice was barely alive. It was evident she had drunk a lot the previous night, or rather, the previous afternoon.

“You don’t have to get up.”

“No, I can’t greet you from bed when someone has come to see me… Ugh.”

Petunia grimaced, holding her head with her hand. Her stomach seemed very upset.

“You can lie down; it won’t hinder my examination at all.”

“Please do, Your Grace. Your complexion looks very bad,” Selena chimed in. Reluctantly, Petunia lay back down on the bed.

Yvon sat in the chair next to the bed and carefully examined Petunia. Fortunately, she only showed slight signs of dehydration, with no other major issues.

“You didn’t vomit any bile, did you?”

“Bile?”

Petunia asked, her face puzzled.

“I mean the very bitter, greenish-yellow liquid from the gallbladder.”

“Oh,”

Petunia nodded with a silly expression. So that was bile.

Before her possession, when she used to drink excessively with her college friends, she sometimes saw that color.

Back then, she had just thought humans could vomit green, but it could have been a serious issue.

“No, she didn’t vomit any bile.”

Selena answered on her half-dazed behalf.

Selena was gently massaging Petunia’s hand with a worried expression. Seeing Selena’s messy apron, it was clear how much trouble she had gone through.

“How much did you drink?”

“I… don’t know.”

Yvon sighed inwardly at Petunia’s evasive answer.

The rumor that the grand duchess had utterly subdued the intoxicated retainers had spread throughout the mansion in less than half a day.

Moreover, it was said that the grand duchess was the first person to ever outdrink Viscount Idneus, who was known for his drinking prowess.

The servants, including Yvon, were both impressed by and worried for the grand duchess.

Petunia had stumbled multiple times on her way back to her bedroom after defeating the drunk retainers.

She refused the helping hands of the servants, loudly declaring that she wasn’t drunk.

If Apollion hadn’t offered his back, Petunia would have ended up greeting the morning at the entrance, unable to reach her bedroom.

But the biggest problem was Apollion himself.

He was just as drunk as she was.

He had nearly stumbled several times while carrying Petunia on his back, performing a precarious balancing act between the mansion’s stairs and the underworld.

After all the chaos of the night, Petunia’s body was sure to be covered in bruises.

Yvon silently took out his medical kit instead of replying. He wanted to scold her, but she was the grand duchess.

He couldn’t be as informal with her as he was with the grand duke, given the short time they had known each other.

Even if they had known each other for a long time, Yvon’s attitude toward Apollion was still considered rude by many. Those unaware of their bond often looked at Yvon with shocked eyes.

Yvon handed Petunia a potion from his kit.

“This potion is good for hangovers. Drink it with water and rest well, and you’ll feel better soon.”

“Thank you.”

Petunia looked at the yellow-green liquid with curious eyes.

In the game, potions came in various pretty colors. But the potion Yvon handed her was somehow unpleasant in color. It oddly reminded her of a frog.

“It’s made from rare and beneficial herbs, so don’t be put off by its appearance.”

“…Sorry.”

Petunia scratched her cheek in embarrassment and apology, then gulped down the potion. The bitter taste was so intense it numbed her mouth.

She drank the water Selena handed her in large gulps. Despite being good with bitter flavors, Yvon’s potion was bitter enough to make her swear. Her tongue felt numb.

While Petunia was busy making a fuss, Yvon took out antiseptic, ointment, and clean linen from another kit.

“Let me check for other injuries. Could you roll up your sleeve?”

“Huh?”

Petunia, who was sulking with the candy Selena had given her in her mouth, hurriedly rolled up her sleeve. A severely bruised elbow was revealed.

Yvon applied ointment to the bruise and wrapped it with clean linen. As the ointment touched her elbow, a cool feeling accompanied by a quick relief of the dull pain set in.

“Do you have any scrapes or bleeding?”

“Oh, yes.”

With Selena’s help, Petunia struggled to sit up in bed.

She slightly lifted her skirt to reveal scabbed wounds. Seeing this, Yvon furrowed his brow involuntarily.

“My goodness.”

Petunia’s body tensed slightly at his words. The tension stemmed from experience—such reactions from adults often preceded a barrage of scolding.

“No matter how much you enjoy drinking, what do you think will happen if you drink until you can’t control yourself?”

Yvon frowned deeply as he poured antiseptic onto her leg. The antiseptic fizzed and bubbled as it seeped into the wounds.

“Ugh…!”

Petunia squirmed.

“Stay still. I need to apply the medicine.”

At his words, Petunia obediently stopped moving. Her hands, resting on her knees, were unusually docile.

Yvon wiped her knee and shin with a towel. The clean towel quickly became stained with a mixture of dark red blood and antiseptic.

“In my 50 years of life, you’re the first noblewoman I’ve seen drink to the point of injuring her legs like this.”

Petunia felt slightly offended at that. The virtue of noblewomen in this world was to be demure and restrained.

But she was from the open-minded society of the 21st century.

Although she understood intellectually that the values of the two worlds were different, she wasn’t the type to let such discriminatory remarks pass unchallenged.

“Is there a law that says noblewomen can’t get drunk?”

Petunia said with a slight twist to her lips.

Yvon glanced at her once before returning to applying ointment to her leg.

“Not just noblewomen, but no one should drink to the point of losing their senses.”

“……”

“Last time, an apprentice knight broke his ribs falling down the stairs while drunk.”

“……”

“There was also that insane apprentice who jumped into the sea in the middle of the night.”

Yvon said, looking out the window. Petunia gazed at the deep blue sea, her mouth agape. Jumping into the sea at night was tantamount to suicide.

“Light drinking can improve your mood, but excessive drinking harms both body and mind.”

“……”

“I wasn’t trying to lecture you on your behavior as a noblewoman. Most of my patients are men, and it’s the first time in my life I’ve seen a noblewoman with such severe injuries from drinking. Please forgive my words.”

There wasn’t much to say to that.

Instead, Petunia felt embarrassed by the genuine apology for seeing a noblewoman behave like a drunken mess for the first time in his life. She quickly masked her embarrassment with a composed expression.

“…I understand. Ah!”

She had tried to speak with dignity, but as the cold, wet linen touched her skin, a scream slipped out involuntarily, resulting in a strange sound.

Yvon tightly wrapped the linen around the wound. Then he handed several palm-sized cold packs and ointments to Selena.

“Apply cold packs until the day after tomorrow, then switch to warm packs.”

“Yes!”

“Clean and disinfect the wounds daily, then apply the ointment.”

“Yes!”

Selena nodded vigorously, accepting the items.

Petunia, glancing at Yvon, decided to ask a question that had been nagging her.

“How did you know to come? I didn’t call for a doctor.”

Petunia looked at Selena as she spoke. Selena shook her head, indicating she hadn’t called him either.

“The Grand Duke asked me to come.”

“…What?”

“He visited the infirmary himself this morning and asked me to check on the Grand Duchess, as he was concerned about your condition.”

“Apollion, himself…?”

“Yes. He was very worried.”

Yvon nodded, recalling Apollion’s visit that morning. The usually shy and reserved man had initiated the conversation, showing how concerned he was about the grand duchess.

Considering the many injuries on her body, it was only natural for him to be worried.

Yvon maintained his usual indifferent expression as he packed his medical bag, unaware of how Petunia’s face had brightened considerably.

Only one phrase echoed in Petunia’s mind.

“He was very worried.”

That cautious, timid man had been worried about her. Not only that, but he had personally asked the doctor to check on her.

Petunia’s lips curved into a gentle smile. It was true that persistence pays off.

With a very bright smile, Petunia saw Yvon off. Though he was somewhat taken aback by her sudden change in demeanor, Yvon didn’t show it.

Flowers of unknown origin seemed to bloom around her.