Episode 138

It was obvious who that “one and only powerful healer” was supposed to be, without needing anyone to spell it out.

So, by the time the marquis finished his story, the room had fallen into a heavy silence.

I quietly pouted to myself.

‘Seriously? How ridiculous. It’s not even decided yet who the real Saintess is…’

And then—

A sudden realization struck me.

‘Come to think of it, it’s black magic again.’

I was starting to feel like there was always some black magic involved whenever it had anything to do with Diana.

From seven years ago until now, without fail.

I had thoroughly investigated Diana’s background.

Yet, I still couldn’t find any concrete link.

Even so, there was always this nagging feeling… and these suspicious stories.

‘Could all of this really be a coincidence?’

I rifled through my memories, trying to recall anything from the original novel.

But nothing specific came to mind.

Instead, what surfaced was a memory of Marquis Tebron from my past life—smiling brightly as he received healing, always favoring Diana.

He had liked her so much that he had even actively pushed for her engagement to Edwin.

At the time, I had hated and resented him for it.

But now…

‘If there was a hidden story like this behind it, and if it had been Diana who got rid of the parasitic monster instead of me…’

It started to make some sense why the marquis had favored her so much.

Besides, being from the far southern region, he likely wasn’t aware that Diana had failed to heal Joshua.

Of course, the Temple and the Barelotte family had worked hard to cover that up, presenting it as if no failure had occurred…

Lost in thought, I kept my gaze on Marquis Tebron.

“Why…”

The duke finally spoke again, his brow furrowed deeply.

“Why didn’t you mention any of this on the first day?”

“If I had said anything…!”

The marquis burst out, his face full of frustration.

“If I had spoken up, I was afraid Joshua might get cursed too!”

“What…?”

“What if I misspoke and that damned curse latched onto my grandchild too?! He’s only just finally gotten better…!”

“Grandfather…”

From where he stood at a distance, Joshua called out to the marquis with a voice full of pity.

It seemed that the real reason the marquis had kept to his room after arriving at the ducal estate wasn’t simply because of his injured foot.

Hearing his explanation, the duke let out a deep sigh.

“…And what if the monster had grown out of control and harmed the others?”

“You think I knew that damned thing was clinging to me? If I had known, I would never have set foot near here!”

The marquis, who had been practically growling moments ago, now spoke with a weary, broken voice.

Honestly, considering the marquis’s ashen expression just after the monster was destroyed—looking as if he had aged ten more years from the shock and pain—it seemed likely he was telling the truth.

With that, the fierce clash between the two men came to a halt.

After a moment of silent contemplation, the duke finally spoke.

“I’ll organize a delegation and send them to your estate for an investigation. Please be prepared.”

It seemed he found it hard to simply let the matter drop.

Though the incident had occurred months ago, and whether any evidence remained was questionable.

Still, I genuinely hoped, even if just a little, that something might connect back to Diana.

Maybe it was just my selfish wish.

But only by doing this could I finally be free from the original story’s shackles.

Free from the desperate rationalization that “Diana was the heroine, so it was only natural.”

“…….”

The marquis, now seemingly too drained to argue further, quietly nodded at the duke’s words.

“And Gordon.”

The duke then turned to Grandpa Gordon.

“Sorry to trouble you while you’re still injured, but please tend to the marquis’s wounds.”

“Of course. I’m perfectly fine, though. I told you I was fine, but this rascal here just had to! Absolutely had to heal me perfectly…! Ahem.”

Grandpa Gordon had started to boast, but the moment his gaze met the marquis’s, he awkwardly cleared his throat and fell silent.

The duke then turned his attention to me.

“You worked hard today, Belze.”

Thud.

A large, warm hand landed on my head.

As always, the duke ruffled my fluffy hair with that familiar, comforting touch.

Then, he gave his final word to the marquis.

“Even though it was our Belze who eliminated the monster.”

“…….”

“If you are still determined to summon Diana for healing, then I will allow it.”

His tone was quite smug.

The marquis, gritting his teeth in clear frustration, asked with a groan,

“……How much is the donation?”

“It’ll be quite expensive. About half a year’s worth of the Tebron estate’s budget.”

“W-What?! T-That’s outrageous…!”

The marquis’s face turned deathly pale in an instant.

As expected.

Even in this life, the marquis, newly arrived in the capital, was still clueless about how things worked here.

Of course, Diana would likely heal him for free without demanding a donation, but there was no reason for me to point that out.

The duke, as if not yet satisfied, added another bombshell.

“Belze’s healing would cost double. No, triple.”

“……!”

Startled, I looked up at him.

It wasn’t just me—Marquis Tebron widened his eyes and glanced between me and the duke in disbelief.

“So don’t even think about looking down on her or trying to command her to heal you. You do realize that everyone in the ducal estate are my eyes and ears, don’t you?”

“Tch, forget it! Forget it, you damn brat!”

The marquis, whose spirit had been steadily crumbling, finally exploded again.

“I’ll just slap some spit on this wound and be done with it! I don’t even need that old geezer to heal me! What, do you think I don’t have a personal doctor? I’ll head straight back to my estate and—urk!”

It happened then.

The marquis, who looked like he might jump up and storm out at any moment, suddenly collapsed back onto the bed with a loud cry.

“Ugh…”

The wound on his foot was still bleeding heavily, and the pain seemed to be unbearable as he let out a series of groans.

“Gordon.”

The duke gave Grandpa Gordon a look that clearly said, Deal with it, without even bothering to hide his irritation.

“Old geezer, he says… I’m a good eight years younger than you, you know…”

Grumbling under his breath, Grandpa Gordon grabbed the disinfectant and walked over to the marquis.

Seeing that, the duke turned away without the slightest hesitation and left the room.

“Alright, alright. Everyone, back to your places.”

The butler, sensing his master’s foul mood, quickly and skillfully dispersed the gathered crowd.

He even smoothly ushered Joshua away.

“Young master, you should return to your room as well. I believe you have homework due tomorrow…”

“W-What?! How did you know?!”

I hid myself among the crowd as they shuffled out, killing time.

However—

“Belze.”

“…!”

The duke, who I had thought had already left, was standing right at the door, staring straight at me like a ghost.

Ssshhhh.

The gathered crowd parted around me as if by the miracle of Moses.

Thanks to that, my hiding spot was completely exposed.

The duke tilted his head slightly, signaling me to follow.

Blushing furiously, I had no choice but to shuffle over to him.

The duke looked down at me sternly.

“Don’t even think about healing him behind my back.”

“But…”

I glanced back at the still-groaning marquis and mumbled softly.

“I’m really fine though…”

“I told you, no saying you’re fine so carelessly.”

“……”

“From now on, don’t concern yourself with the marquis.”

“But, Duke…”

“This is an order.”

With him putting it so firmly, I couldn’t insist on healing the marquis any longer.

“Go upstairs, wash up, and rest.”

And as if that wasn’t enough, the duke watched me with his piercing eyes until I climbed the stairs.

In the end, I couldn’t heal Marquis Tebron and had no choice but to head back to my room.

“Milady! I heard the news! A monster appeared, didn’t it? Oh heavens, oh my! Are you hurt? Are you alright?”

“I’m fine! Perfectly fine!”

As soon as I entered my room, Tara rushed to me with a face full of worry.

I casually reassured her and flopped onto the bed.

When I thought of the marquis’s face, contorted in pain, I couldn’t help but feel restless.

It wasn’t that I didn’t understand why the duke had been so cold.

Beyond his affection for me, it was also a matter of pride for the duke and for Kallios.

No matter that Tebron was his father-in-law, no matter that they were family.

For a house that officially sponsored a Saintess candidate, turning to another was absolutely unacceptable.

It would feed Barelotte’s sense of superiority and make them look foolish in the eyes of society.

Of course, I hadn’t expected the duke to forbid healing altogether…

‘If I just leave it like this and Tebron meets with Diana… it’s going to be a real problem.’

Imagining Diana visiting the ducal estate again under that pretense sank my mood even further.

Besides, it wasn’t hard to understand how the marquis had grown into such a prickly old man after losing both his wife and daughter early on.

“…What should I do?”

No matter how much I worried, the answer was clear.

Time passed, and before I knew it, night had fallen.

After eating dinner and washing up under Tara’s devoted care, I waited until deep into the night, when everyone was fast asleep.

Then, I quietly whispered to the darkness.

“Teddy… teddy bear. Thief mode!”