Chapter 11
Of course, it was a grave sin to kill soldiers due to malpractice. But to behead them with a single stroke right away?
The Crown Prince seemed to regard healers as little better than frauds, and Edith had an ominous feeling that if she herself made a mistake, her head would fly off without mercy.
As Edith’s face turned pale, Akanseth quickly gave a signal. Then Cedric hastily changed the subject.
“Anyway, now that Kalad’s curse has been lifted, wouldn’t His Highness the Crown Prince also deem it commendable?”
Who would deem it commendable? Surely that’s a joke?
As Edith’s eyes widened in surprise, Akanseth spoke.
“Perhaps not the Crown Prince, but I think His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress would view it favorably. After all, the number of people lost to Kalad’s curse was not insignificant.”
“Then would a victory celebration banquet finally be held as well?”
“A banquet?”
“Yes. Since we won the battle against Kalad. His Highness the Crown Prince achieved a great victory.”
Cedric said proudly.
“But since the soldiers were in poor condition, we couldn’t possibly hold a banquet, so it just kept getting postponed.”
That was unexpected. That ‘he’ would refrain from holding a victory banquet because the soldiers were unwell.
‘So he does have some consideration for the soldiers after all?’
Or perhaps it was the Emperor who decided that. They said His Majesty the Emperor of the Kesmel Empire was a strong, just, and wise ruler.
While Edith was lost in thought, Cedric asked.
“But if the victory banquet is held, would His Majesty the Emperor also attend?”
“I’m not sure about that.”
At Akanseth’s words, Edith tilted her head.
“Is His Majesty the Emperor staying somewhere else?”
“Yes, he is currently residing at the summer palace. He has been there since last year.”
“Since last year?”
“Yes. The Crown Prince is here, and since His Highness the Crown Prince has also come of age and has been governing the state affairs for a long time, His Majesty has been staying at the summer palace since last year, perhaps to take some rest.”
At Akanseth’s explanation, Edith nodded. She had wondered when she heard the Emperor wasn’t in the capital, but it didn’t seem that his health was poor or that his relationship with the Crown Prince was bad.
As if reading Edith’s thoughts, Akanseth continued.
“Even though it’s a summer palace, it’s not far from the capital. So Her Majesty the Empress frequently visits the summer palace.”
“And what about His Highness the Crown Prince?”
“His Highness the Crown Prince is governing the state affairs as the Emperor’s proxy. Since he cannot leave the city, he sends a letter every three days.”
If letters were being exchanged every three days, it was safe to say that the relationship between the Emperor and the Crown Prince was not bad at all.
“At this rate, there should be some response from the imperial family soon.”
As Edith looked puzzled, Cedric quickly interjected.
“Oh, might Her Majesty the Empress perhaps bestow something? For a man, the Emperor would bestow gifts, but since she’s a woman, I thought the Empress might give her something.”
“Oh, surely not. Nothing has happened yet.”
As Edith waved her hands dismissively, Akanseth shook his head.
“No, I think the imperial family will respond soon. It’s only that not much time has passed since Kalad’s curse was lifted, so there hasn’t been any word yet.”
But Edith could hardly believe it. That was because the Crown Prince always looked at her with murderous intent.
Just thinking about the Crown Prince made her wrist throb. Edith tried to shake off the unnecessary thoughts.
***
“It’s quite useful.”
Aidric said, looking at his healed hand.
Just as Edith had said, his hand had fully recovered in a little over a week.
A slight scar remained, but even that seemed like it would fade with time. Even the slight scar was barely visible anyway.
The downside was that it took longer for the body to recover compared to other healers’ healing techniques, but her skill seemed certain.
Aidric put down the documents he had been looking at on the table with a stern face.
“Come to think of it, there aren’t many critically ill patients left at the military encampment, are there?”
“Ah, yes. About ten people remain now.”
Edith said hesitantly.
At Edith’s words, Aidric frowned. He stared at Edith intently and then spoke with a displeased look.
“You saved those who would have died otherwise, so that merit is not small.”
“…Excuse me?”
“I will grant you what you wish in recognition of your service. If you have something you want, say it.”
Edith’s eyes widened. She never thought that anyone, let alone the Crown Prince, would ask her what she wanted.
“If you don’t have anything, get out.”
“I, I do!”
Aidric’s eyebrow twitched in dissatisfaction, but it seemed like this was her only chance.
“What is it?”
“I need more supplies.”
“I’ve been sending enough supplies so that there wouldn’t be any shortage.”
At Edith’s words, Aidric looked at Devis. Devis bowed his head.
“We’ve been sending enough supplies. However, the soldiers keep getting injured during training, so it seems the supplies are being consumed quickly.”
“Simply put, the rate of supply consumption is becoming excessively fast.”
Aidric said that and found a document and handed it to Edith.
The document recorded the consumption of supplies used at the military encampment. It was concise enough even for Edith to understand.
“Doesn’t it seem like too much is being consumed?”
“…That is true, but.”
The servants and maids were stealing them, so the consumption rate was undoubtedly increasing.
But unable to say that, Edith could only bow her head.
“I, it seems that’s because the auxiliary personnel are learning medical skills.”
“Is that so? So that’s it.”
Then Aidric made a thoughtful expression and picked up another document.
“Is it enough to warrant establishing a clinic?”
Edith raised her head in surprise. Aidric furrowed his brow.
“There’s a proposal to establish a clinic.”
“From whom?”
Could Akanseth have really proposed establishing a clinic?
She asked with a half-believing, half-doubting expression, and as if confirming her guess, Aidric mentioned a familiar name.
“Duke Felix said your medical knowledge is quite decent.”
Edith bowed her head in bewilderment.
“I was just lucky.”
“That may be. Still, it’s a fact that your medical knowledge helped lift Kalad’s curse.”
Akanseth said that and brushed his hair back in annoyance.
“So Duke Felix suggested taking the auxiliary personnel from the military encampment to set up a clinic so that people could receive treatment.”
Edith’s eyes lit up at those words.
If a clinic were established and more people could receive treatment, that would be nothing but a good thing.
Of course, it would mean that Edith’s workload would increase accordingly. She would have to teach medical skills to those who would go to the clinic.
Still, the thought that more people would have access to proper medical care made her heart race.
“Then…”
“We plan to move about half of those at the military encampment to the clinics. We’ll establish two clinics.”
Aidric picked up the relevant documents and glared at Edith.
“Can you read?”
“I can read for the most part.”
Edith nodded. Then Aidric looked at Edith with a surprised expression.
“Read it.”
He didn’t want to, but he had no choice. Aidric handed over the documents with a displeased look.
“Am I allowed to see this?”
“If you can read it, take a look and give your opinion.”
Even if she gave her opinion, would it be accepted?
As Edith looked at him with a half-believing, half-doubting expression, Aidric said.
“If there’s something worth considering, I’ll accept it.”
If unnecessary talk came out, he planned to cut it off.
Edith glanced at Aidric and carefully took the documents.
She had worried about what if she couldn’t read them, but it wasn’t to the point of being completely unreadable.
Moreover, Edith was not an ordinary person but a reincarnator. She could roughly skip unfamiliar words and combine the ones she knew to infer the context, making it not difficult to guess the meaning of the sentences.
‘So they’re establishing a clinic in the square with imperial support and assigning about ten personnel each. Are they keeping the imperial clinic as the exclusive domain for severe cases and nobles?’
Certainly, it would be better for severe cases to be treated at the imperial clinic. Edith hadn’t taught all that much.
‘There’s also something about education. Is it that I take one day off a week while they learn medical skills from me?’
Edith finished reading the documents and carefully placed them on the desk. Aidric picked them up and asked.
“Did you check it?”
“Yes.”
Edith nodded.
Aidric didn’t ask whether she had actually read the entire document. Instead, he said something else.
“If you have an opinion, speak.”
“You said you’d establish two clinics, but rather than consolidating them all, I think it would be better to divide them into a clinic for mild cases and a clinic for severe cases.”
“Why?”
As he said that, Aidric’s violet eyes were razor-sharp.
