Episode 63

Robert fell into a daze at Sierra’s words, and memories of the past suddenly came flooding back.

[I’m a failure. A useless man. I’m sorry, my love.]

The woman, lying limp on the bed, had grabbed his tear-soaked hand and said,

[You’re not a failure. The medicine you gave me did work. It just came a little too late… But your efforts will one day help others who need it, not just me.]

[No, I’ll never practice medicine again. I’m a worthless doctor who couldn’t even save the person dearest to me.]

[I believe in you. Sure, it will hurt at first, but you’ll overcome it. And then, just as I loved you, you’ll use your strength to help those who need you.]

She had said that with a painful smile… a smile he had forgotten long ago.

[Give hope to those standing on the edge of despair. You, more than anyone, know how they feel.]

“……”

Robert couldn’t speak for a long while.

Seeing this, Sierra gave him the space to reflect.

In truth, her last words had been from the original story, when Robert had opened up to Jenna about his wife’s final wish.

‘Did I move him?’

Robert’s trauma seemed deeper than she expected, making him more resistant to her plea.

But there was no turning back now.

This wasn’t just for her own sake.

“The girl, Sharon, who’s with you—she’s also a Lisbeth patient, isn’t she?”

At my words, Sharon, who had been quietly listening, flinched in surprise.

“…How did you know?”

It was something mentioned in the original story.

The girl Robert took in was a Lisbeth patient.

She suffered from the same rare disease that had taken Robert’s wife. During his wandering life as a traveling doctor, he had met her by chance.

Robert had been giving her medicine that he had developed back then, trying to delay the progression of her illness as much as possible.

While it wasn’t a cure, it at least brought some improvement.

Of course, Sierra couldn’t mention that she’d read it in a book, so she made up an excuse.

“I heard it from a child I met on the street.”

In the original story, Jenna had also learned about Sharon’s illness from a child on the street, so it wasn’t a fact that was completely hidden.

“I see. Yes, Sharon is a Lisbeth patient.”

Robert said, looking at Sharon.

“…Father.”

Though still young, Sharon knew what her illness was.

She also knew how it would eventually end.

In Sharon’s eyes, Robert saw a flicker of desperation.

“Sharon, do you want me to help this lady?”

“…Yes. Not just her—I need your help too, Father.”

Sharon, who had never asked for anything, was making her first request to him.

Though he had taken her in because she reminded him of his late wife, over the years he had grown to love her like his own child.

If he rejected this offer, he knew he would eventually lose her—and experience the same sorrow and regret as before.

“I see.”

At those words, Robert smiled as if he had no other choice.

Then, turning to Sierra, he spoke.

“I can resume my research on that disease. But I can’t make any promises. Back then, I risked my life, staying up for months on end, but I still failed to develop a cure.”

“I understand. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. But giving up without trying just isn’t in my nature.”

Sierra smiled brightly.

She had such a radiant smile—it was hard to believe she was suffering from an incurable disease.

It reminded him of his wife in a way.

‘I’ve completely fallen into her trap. I’m weak to people like her.’

Despite these thoughts, Robert found himself smiling along with her.

“If we can mass-produce the medicine and distribute it to the residents of the East District, the epidemic will naturally end. After that, I’ll accompany you to the capital.”

“Great!”

Sierra responded cheerfully.

* * *

Robert insisted that 10 million gold was too much and requested only 5 million gold for sponsorship.

He said that amount would be more than enough to produce medicine for all the residents of the East District.

Since a significant quantity of medicine needed to be made, Robert hired temporary assistants for the first time in a while and focused entirely on manufacturing the cure.

[It should be enough within a week.]

Robert estimated that he would have the medicine ready and distributed throughout the East District in a week.

In the meantime, Ludwig, I, and the Queensbury agents decided to stay at the Karsian villa located in the northern part of Neyvon.

Though it wasn’t a large place, it was more than sufficient for a short stay.

By now, night had fallen, and the sky was pitch black.

I had heard that the southern region had beautiful stars, and indeed, as soon as the sun set, the sky was filled with stars that looked as though they could tumble down at any moment.

The vast sea visible in the distance also looked unrealistically beautiful.

“By the way, Philip didn’t come with us, did he?”

I asked Eveline as we walked toward the villa.

“He’ll be keeping an eye on Robert for the week.”

“Oh, come on. Robert’s not going to run away.”

“Of course, everything seems resolved, but you never know. We’re trained to be suspicious,” she said with a smile.

Now that I thought about it, Ludwig had gone off with Raven for a bit. They seemed to be talking with the villa’s caretaker.

This was my chance.

“Hey, Eveline.”

“Yes, my lady?”

“There’s something I want to ask. What exactly was the request that Ludwig made to Queensbury?”

It was the thing Raven had almost mentioned but was stopped from saying.

Eveline looked around as if startled by my question.

“There’s no one here. Ludwig’s meeting with the caretaker, remember?”

“Ahaha. That’s true.”

Eveline shrugged and said, “It’s not really that much of a secret. The Grand Duke simply didn’t want you to worry, so he asked us not to mention it…”

That only made me more curious.

“It’s the same reason you came to find Robert.”

“The same reason I came to find him…”

It was for the cure to Lisbeth’s disease.

“Could it be…”

Did Eveline—and by extension, Queensbury—already know about that?

“We found out while investigating Robert. We discovered that his wife had suffered from Lisbeth and that Robert had extensive knowledge of the disease. It seemed like the reason you were searching for him.”

“That’s right. So, does that mean Ludwig’s request to Queensbury was also about…?”

“It was quite the challenge. He outright demanded a solution for an incurable disease. But you know us, we combed through ancient records and did a lot of research on your illness. We discovered some fascinating things.”

Eveline turned to me as she continued.

“We’ve gathered a significant amount of data and information, which will undoubtedly help that genius doctor. Once he starts his research, he’ll push even harder. After all, our goal is always to fulfill the request.”

“……”

I couldn’t speak for a moment.

I was a little surprised. I never imagined Ludwig was working on something like this behind my back.

He wasn’t the type to go out of his way for others.

I had never talked to him about my illness either.

‘He was thinking of me…’

A strange feeling washed over me when I realized that.

“When he came to us, before he even became the Grand Duke, he was so forceful—almost half-threatening us. Raven said from that moment on, he was sure Ludwig would become the Grand Duke,” Eveline said with a chuckle as she reminisced.

“He cares about you a lot, my lady.”

“…….”

By now, we had reached a door, and Eveline stopped in front of it.

“This is your room, my lady. A maid will bring you some comfortable clothes soon.”

“Thank you.”

“No need to mention it.”

She smiled warmly before leaving.

When I opened the door and walked in, I found a rather spacious room.

The servants had already cleaned it, and it was spotless, not a speck of dust to be seen.

I flopped down onto the bed.

The unexpected revelations at the end of this long day left my mind in a bit of a whirl.

‘This is strange.’

Ludwig’s behavior and my own feelings… it was all strange.

But for some reason, it felt nice. Maybe I was a little touched by the fact that he had been thinking about me.

Not long after, a maid brought in new clothes and helped me change.

I hadn’t planned on staying for a week, so I hadn’t packed anything in advance, but thankfully, everything I needed was already provided in the villa.

After the maid left, I stepped out onto the terrace and gazed at the distant sea.

‘Now that I think about it, this is the first time I’ve seen the ocean in this life.’

I had spent all my time in the capital, and my health had prevented me from ever dreaming of traveling.

The sea here was peaceful.

The darkened night sea reminded me of someone’s ebony-black hair.

Just then, a familiar voice floated up from below the terrace.

“Can’t sleep?”

It was Ludwig.