“Dear, if you’re talking about the White Rot, it’s already been taken care of.”
“I’m not talking about the White Rot. I’m talking about an unknown disease.”
Besides, in this life, I’m the one who dealt with the White Rot, so there’s no way I wouldn’t know.
At my response, Diana leaned forward again.
‘If that illness hadn’t spread in the Tenus territory, I probably would have kept my distance from Ekati too.’
As with any disease, early response is absolutely critical. The Tenus territory failed to act swiftly at the onset, which made it easier for Ekati Terminus to fall when she descended into darkness.
The illness was later named ‘Pond Poisoning.’ Once symptoms began, the lips would lose color, and black blotches would gradually appear around the body. The eyes would become cloudy, fingertips would darken, and both movement and speech would become sluggish.
In rare cases, symptoms could arise suddenly, almost like a seizure—but this only happened to about 1 in 5,000.
At one time, since the cause was unknown, the disease was simply regarded as an endemic illness. But after Tenus succumbed to darkness and the Sixth House was assembled to eliminate the ‘corrupted being,’ a member of the House of Wita not only cured it but also uncovered its cause.
Thanks to that, I already knew what caused the disease.
‘When I think about it, something seems off.’
Why didn’t Terminus ask Wita for help with the ‘Pond Poisoning’? Maybe in other territories, Wita wouldn’t have been a priority, but Terminus was one of the prestigious Sixth Houses.
Even if Terminus wasn’t the most sociable among them and didn’t actively engage in inter-house relations, everyone knew it was because they were tasked with guarding the Empire’s borders.
‘Of course, since they rarely showed themselves, all sorts of rumors circulated… but I doubt she was the type to care about that.’
When I first heard those rumors, I too thought the lord of Terminus must be indifferent to her domain, especially since I hadn’t met her in person.
It wasn’t unusual—there were plenty of lords who hired managers to run their domains and didn’t care to be involved.
‘Or maybe I just assumed she was a cruel lord.’
But after meeting her, I felt differently. Ekati, Selene, and Diana all turned out to be lords who genuinely cared about their territory.
Though, it seemed that due to a divine curse, maintaining lasting relationships with others was a struggle for them.
Diana now looked at me with a noticeably desperate expression.
It was quite a burdened look for someone to show to a mere six-year-old like me.
“If you can solve this, I’ll do anything.”
Diana voluntarily took the weaker position in the negotiation.
That’s how desperate she was. But from a bargaining standpoint, it wasn’t the most strategic move.
“…I apologize for my earlier rudeness.”
“…..…”
“But I don’t want to weigh gains and losses when it comes to the lives of my people.”
“……!”
I had been trying to read Diana’s stance, and her words made my lips part in surprise.
Could someone so upright truly exist? I struggled to respond, mouthing silently before asking myself.
‘Is she doing this on purpose?’
From the start, anyone could tell that I had no political power. Not just me, but my whole family.
So even if she adopted a less advantageous position here, there was no way someone from the Sixth House of Terminus could genuinely be the underdog.
At most, she might have been trying to see whether I was serious about the deal or bluffing, by making it easier for me to open up.
‘I didn’t control my expression well.’
I was so taken aback by her unexpectedly sincere attitude that the emotion showed right on my face.
Unless I was mistaken, all of this was part of her calculated plan.
‘I thought she’d be clueless about politics, always hiding away from society like that…’
Maybe she lacked social skills, but that didn’t mean she lacked political instincts.
“By any chance, was the children’s book The Loner of the Black Forest created by the House of Terminus?”
“You catch on quickly. Yes, that’s right. One of our ancestors wrote it long ago. There were often twisted beings lurking in the Black Forest.”
It was essentially a form of indoctrination to prevent anyone from entering the forest out of curiosity.
Because the people of the Tenus territory had heard such tales for generations, they stayed away—whether it was superstition or not.
Ironically, that made the Black Forest a convenient place for smugglers to operate.
‘In other words, Terminus was merely being used.’
And used by someone who knew their situation and nature all too well.
I touched my lips thoughtfully and then nodded to myself.
‘There’s no need to fixate on this for now.’
For now, I needed to resolve the immediate issues. Once that was done, the truth would gradually come to light.
“As I said earlier, I’ll give you the cure for the disease spreading in Tenus. But in return…”
“In return?”
“Please provide me with the environment I need to produce the cure.”
I pointed to myself lightly.
“I might be a genius, but I’m still only six years old. I don’t have a private lab or anything like that.”
“Of course, I can provide that much. But what if you fail?”
“I don’t propose plans that include failure.”
“Is that so?”
Diana lightly tapped her thigh with her fingers for a moment.
“Even if it means staking your entire family’s lives?”
***
The tall, old castle was barely maintained, kept only in a minimally usable state.
It must have been beautiful and charming once, but the passing years had worn it down. Rather than grand, it now felt eerie.
‘Well… I guess that gives it a certain intensity.’
“A r-ruin… I mean, it’s just so—ack!”
“Oh ho ho ho, how atmospheric.”
Dexter, lacking tact, was about to call it rundown when Clara drove her fist into his side.
Pretending not to notice, I leaned toward Nereus. He looked thoroughly excited.
“Wow, thanks to our daughter, we get to visit a place like this!”
Ekati had accepted my request right away and told us to wait briefly. Not long after, a large carriage arrived—larger than the one we had come in, and marked with the seal of House Terminus. It looked big enough to be a small house.
From the carriage emerged Evelyn, who introduced herself as the butler of House Terminus, and handed us a formal invitation.
Meanwhile, Caelum—after hearing the situation from me—looked completely dumbfounded.
‘Well… I did just throw our family into a deal with our lives on the line.’
Some family members panicked and wanted to flee immediately, but surprisingly, both Captain Nereus and First Mate Gilbert remained calm.
Part of that was because we hadn’t gained much here so far. But more than anything, Nereus genuinely seemed to believe that I could pull this off.
‘That’s why I came up with this backup plan.’
Being invited to the castle was essentially a way of keeping us as hostages. It might have looked like a kind gesture on the surface, but we knew better.
So, we decided only a select few would go—those who had already encountered Ekati or were essential to the plan.
Those chosen were: Nereus, Isaac, Dexter, Clara, and Titan.
Nereus and Isaac had already been seen, so there was no choice.
Dexter and Clara were valuable for identifying the layout of the castle and the people within it.
And Titan… well.
“Whoa! What a magnificent building! If only we could build something like this on a ship!”
Being a shipwright, Titan claimed he’d be able to understand the building’s structure quickly—which was the reason he insisted on coming.
‘What does being a shipwright have to do with architecture?’
Anyway, since we didn’t actually plan to run away, I decided not to worry too much about it.
“This way, please.”
Said Evelyn, guiding us toward the guest rooms.
“The interior… is surprisingly nice—urk!”
“Oh my~ The room is so pretty. Thank you for being so thoughtful.”
The room they gave us had a shared central lounge, with several rooms branching off through individual doors. Evelyn, who showed us around, explained.
“You are free to move around anywhere except the top floor. Also, there will be a banquet tonight. The head of the house would be pleased if you attend.”
“Thank you.”
“Not at all. I hope you have a comfortable stay.”
As soon as Evelyn left, Clara quickly wiped the smile off her face.
“There don’t seem to be many servants here.”
“Huh? You already figured something out?”
“First, the carriage that picked us up—Evelyn, the butler, was also acting as the coachman.”
I nodded. That was true.
“And the garden here—it’s all planted with low-maintenance plants. Except for the main paths used by carriages, the grounds were pretty neglected.”
“…..…”
“Some windows weren’t cleaned all the way up, and several doorknobs I saw on the way here were worn out. Overall, the place isn’t being well maintained.”
Even though she’s my sister, sometimes Clara’s attention to detail is downright scary.
‘Well, she’s on my side, so it’s okay. She’s on my side…’
It’s absurd, but sometimes I think Clara might be the first to figure out that I’ve returned from the future.
Shivering slightly, I left the room.
“You going somewhere already?”
“Yeah, I’ve got things I want to check out.”
Since it would take some time to create the cure for the Maddie disease, there was no time to waste.
‘I also need to study the matter of the darkness.’
“Do you even know where you’re going?”
“Yep. Lady Ekati told me.”
Technically, it was Diana who told me, but to the outside world, only Ekati and Selene were known publicly.
I sternly warned my family not to cause any trouble and set off for my destination: the top floor of the Terminus castle.
‘That’s where the medical lab is supposed to be.’
Our guest room was on the second floor. The top was the fourth floor, which meant only two more to go, but…
“Huff… gasp…”
Ugh, this stupid body. I was breathless just from climbing two more floors.
‘Why are these steps unnecessarily tall?’
The stairs here were steeper than usual, requiring more strength to climb. Not because I was weak or anything, of course.
‘It’s strange, I don’t feel this tired when making medicine or doing physical work.’
I had thought I was much healthier now, since I could move around easily even when I was sick or injured. But apparently, I was wrong. Out of breath from just two floors—this was still my body.
“Oh my, Lala~ Are you alright?”
A familiar voice in a bright, cheerful tone. It was Selene.
‘Ah, this must be Selene’s time.’
Selene suddenly lifted me up.
“I heard from Sister Ekati. You came here to try and fix this and that, right? She’s so mean—asking you to risk your family’s lives and all.”
“My promise also involves the lives of others, so it’s fine.”
“You’re impressive. Still, if you fail, your whole family could be in danger.”
“I won’t fail.”
Who says they plan to fail so confidently? If anyone did, they’d be either a fool or a con artist.
As I declared this, Selene’s eyes widened, then she smiled.
“You’ve got guts. But don’t worry—I’ll tell you a little secret. Sister Ekati isn’t such a bad person.”
‘She does seem that way.’
She’s almost too kind—more of a pushover, really. How could someone sign a contract with someone they barely know?
‘Though I suppose calling us to this castle proves she’s not entirely naïve.’
It’s likely she did that to keep an eye on us, to maintain control.
Still holding me, Selene began walking slowly.
“This place used to be ours, but I don’t think it’ll be too bad for you to use as your lab.”
‘Truthfully, I’m not expecting much.’
Clara mentioned there weren’t many servants here. And while the infirmary was said to be in regular use, Selene’s choice of words—’used to be ours’—suggested it might not even have a resident doctor anymore.
I might need to start by ordering supplies before I can even begin research.
As I mentally organized a list of materials to procure, Selene opened the door to the infirmary.
“Here, use whatever you need.”
“….…!”
What I saw took my breath away.
It was an enormous room. Shelf after shelf of medicines—many of which were rare and difficult to obtain.
“I know it’s a bit messy—sorry. Things have been so hectic, I haven’t had time to tidy it properly.”
Selene set me down near a table strewn with various failed experimental remnants.
‘Devoir mint and manjuline shell…’
Scraps of paper with formula notes, crossed-out recipes—I could immediately tell what they’d been researching.
‘They’ve been studying the disease spreading through the domain all on their own.’
Even without identifying the exact cause, they kept researching—failure after failure, refusing to give up.
They must’ve been desperate. Even as they failed, people in the territory kept dying.
They had no choice but to trust the word of a six-year-old child.
‘And all the while, they were being consumed by the darkness…’
Living a life on the edge of losing control—some had already begun to show signs of that collapse.
There’s no telling how long it will take to develop a cure. But even so, they had no choice but to cling to this work.
‘Because no other territory will accept someone infected by disease.’
Especially if it’s classified as an endemic or contagious illness.
Even healthy people from the same origin were being rejected from migrating.
Perhaps that’s how the Tenus territory met its end in the past.
As if mocking the desperation of those clinging to hope—the world remained cruel and indifferent.
