Chapter 18
“Miss, Young Lord! May I come in for a moment?!”
Someone called out to the two of them in a hurried voice.
Elias, unable to fully hide his suspicious expression, glanced toward the door.
“Come in.”
At his permission, a servant quickly entered the room in a rush.
Elias frowned.
“What is it?”
“The Duke and Duchess have urgently gone out. They asked me to deliver a message to you two.”
“My parents?”
Elias’s eyes widened slightly.
The servant nodded and continued respectfully.
“They asked me to inform you that they have gone to ‘Milena’s house.’”
In an instant, Elias stiffened.
Milena.
At this point in time, the girl most likely to be his real younger sister.
But why would they go to her house?
“I should leave as well.”
Elias immediately turned to head outside.
But then—
“…Brother.”
At that faint call, Elias glanced back over his shoulder.
Cecilia was looking at him, clearly unsure of what to do.
Concern for Milena.
Worry about her own situation.
Although he couldn’t fully grasp all those emotions, he could at least sense that Cecilia was deeply confused right now.
Elias was silent for a moment.
Then—
“Get some rest.”
With those words, Elias left the room.
But in his haste, he failed to notice.
The terrifyingly distorted expression on Lady Howard’s face as she glared at Cecilia like a demon.
I stared down at my mother, who was peacefully asleep, with an anxious expression.
Her complexion was better than when I first found her, but she was still pale.
At least her steady breathing gave me some small comfort.
“For now, she’s out of immediate danger.”
The doctor, who had just finished the examination, met my gaze.
Relief washed over me as I looked back at him.
“R-really?”
“Yes. However…”
The doctor trailed off with a dark expression.
My heart sank instantly.
“W-what is it?”
“I believe the patient’s illness is Kerno Disease.”
“Kerno Disease?”
I tilted my head at the unfamiliar name.
The doctor continued in a heavy voice.
“It’s a type of incurable illness. It begins with prolonged coughing and mild fever, and eventually leads to loss of consciousness like this. And then…”
He hesitated again.
But I could read what he could not bring himself to say.
‘It leads to death.’
My vision went dark for a moment.
I forced myself to breathe steadily and calm down.
Then, trying to remain as composed as possible, I asked—
“T-then… is treatment completely impossible?”
Even so, I couldn’t stop my voice from trembling.
Fortunately, the doctor shook his head.
“No, that’s not the case. However, she must take a specific medicine for a long time to be cured, and the treatment period is quite lengthy…”
“How long?”
“At least three years.”
“Th-three years?!”
Startled, I quickly asked again.
“T-then the cost of the medicine…”
“One dose is 10 derks. It must be taken twice a day, every day.”
“Ten derks?!”
I clenched my fists tightly on my lap.
Ten derks meant ten gold coins.
And my weekly wage for working at the Trancie barony was three silver coins.
And ten silver coins make one gold coin.
Which meant—
…There’s no way I can earn that much.
No matter how hard I worked until my body broke, I would never be able to afford the treatment.
The doctor added cautiously,
“And the patient’s condition is greatly affected by the weather. At least until she is fully recovered, she should stay in a warm place throughout all seasons.”
“A warm place…”
“Well, a trip to the southern regions of the Empire for recuperation would be ideal.”
I bit my lip hard enough to draw blood.
There was a way to cure my mother right in front of me.
But I couldn’t afford it?
Just as despair like a tidal wave threatened to drown me, my entire body began to tremble.
Then—
“In that case, how about the House of Lucerte covers the treatment costs?”
What?
I snapped my head up.
When did he even enter the room?
A middle-aged nobleman with sharp features was calmly looking at me.
And I know who he is.
“D-Duke Lucerte.”
My trembling voice slipped out between my lips.
Step, step.
The Duke walked toward me.
His deep green eyes, as he looked at me, were uncannily similar to mine.
“Three years—no, until your mother fully recovers—we will cover all medical and living expenses.”
“…Is that true?”
“Yes. However, there is a condition.”
I met his gaze defiantly.
“What condition?”
The Duke glanced at the doctor sitting beside me.
“Would you mind leaving us for a moment?”
“Yes, of course.”
The doctor quickly stood up and left the room.
Once he was gone, the Duke spoke calmly.
“There is a spell in the Magic Tower that can determine blood relations.”
“Blood… relation magic?”
“Yes. I believe you are the blood of the House of Lucerte.”
The Duke continued in an even tone.
Ah, damn it.
I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again.
It seemed the Duke was completely convinced I was his daughter.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t be saying something like this so openly.
So I decided to deny it.
“That’s impossible. I’ve lived my entire life in the Trancie barony. I’ve never even been to Lucerte…”
“If you are truly certain, then there is no problem in confirming it through the bloodline detection magic, is there?”
“…”
I fell silent.
The Duke continued.
“That is my condition. To confirm through the bloodline detection magic whether you are of Lucerte blood.”
“…”
“If you are not, you will be free to leave. However, if it is confirmed that you are of our blood, then you must be under Lucerte protection.”
I desperately tried to think.
Realistically, I could not refuse that offer.
My mother’s life is on the line.
However, considering the bad relationship between me and Cecilia in the original story, I couldn’t just obediently enter the ducal house.
I needed a countermeasure.
“Then I also have a condition.”
“A condition? What is it?”
The Duke looked at me with a firm expression.
I swallowed nervously and straightened my back.
“I want everything we’ve discussed so far to be written into a contract.”
“…A contract?”
For a moment, a deep interest flickered in the Duke’s eyes.
