"Please step aside everyone."
Walking near the pale princess, I commanded everyone who was standing close to the princess.
"Save our daughter… please. She's all we have."
Nobody would believe that such words came out of the mouth of the princess's stepmom. Harold's first wife, Helena, was a woman of extreme beauty and grace, and when the couple found out that she couldn't have children, instead of being conceited, she allowed Harold to not only get another woman but also make her his wife, instead of a concubine.
Ena was the daughter that Harold had with his second wife, and Helena loved her just as much as her original mother. Ever since the death of Harold's second wife, Helena had taken on the role of Ena's real mother and treated her with utmost love and adoration.
Helena had been sick ever since Ena had fallen ill like this, and there didn't pass a single day when she didn't pray to all the gods to cure her daughter and give her better health, even if it was at the expense of her own health. Yet, the gods seemed to have forsaken her as all she got out of her prayers was the continuously deteriorating condition of her daughter.
She had almost given up hope when all the doctors and alchemists of the continent were unable to cure her. Until this demon-like boy appeared in front of them like a messiah.
"Please don't worry, your grace. I'll try my best to save her."
I comforted the mature woman sitting at the corner of bed. Her eyes that had turned red seemed dull and tired from crying.
Walking in front of the sleeping princess, I took out one of the pills of separation and slipped it through her delicate lips.
"....."
Seconds passed by and everyone waited with their breaths held back in their throats, but there was no motion from the princess.
"Did it not work?"
Harold asked with uncertainty. I was about to reply to him when the priest from the church of Aphrodite let out a shout.
"The saintess's mark….!"
Everyone looked toward the princess at his sudden exclamation and was stunned to see a shining leaf pattern appear on the princess' forehead.
"What's that?"
"It's the mark of the saintess! Why did it appear now of all times?"
"Look, something is coming out of it!"
The green coloured leaf mark was lit up in white light, and the light kept getting brighter and brighter by every passing second, to the point that engulfed the whole room, making everyone, including me, cover our eyes on instinct.
The next moment I opened my eyes, I immediately checked up on the princess. The leaf mark on her forehead turned into pieces of ash as if it never existed.
The eyes that hadn't blinked even once ever since I arrived finally showed some movement as they slowly opened.
Beautiful hazelnut pupils greeted the world as the princess slowly blinked her eyes, trying to adapt to the well-lit room's brightness.
".....Mother…?"
A soft, and sweet voice escaped her lips as she addressed the person sitting just beside her. Helena, who heard her daughter's voice calling her mother after months, looked at the princess, shocked. Her lips trembled and her eyes watered, threatening to break into tears.
"D-daughter… oh my sweet child. How long have I waited for this moment… I was almost scared to death."
Helena immediately hugged the princess who managed to sit up.
"E-Ena…"
Harold, who was watching from the sides with a body trembling with emotions, immediately ran towards his daughter as he hugged her tightly, crying his eyes out and complaining about how he was starting to lose hope, how she had worried them to death and how much he missed having the meals with her.
Looking at the current family reunion, everyone else in the room silently agreed to leave, as one by one, everyone left to give them space.
I looked at the princess's condition just to be sure, before leaving.
[Night Alchemist's Appraisal has been used on a living target.]
[The target's current physical and soul conditions will be revealed.]
[Ena Wenselm
Current status: Physical Exhaustion (Low), Recovery (Medium)]
'Well, this looks much better.'
She still had some fatigue remaining, but that was only natural and the effect of the pills recovery still hadn't subsided, so probably the physical exhaustion should disappear after some rest.
Looking at the happy reunion of the trio, I felt a sudden surge of warmth in my heart, as if nothing mattered more than this feeling of warmness right at this moment.
Chuckling to myself, I decided to leave too, and give some space to the family.
Turning around, just when I was about to go out, I heard the princess's voice.
"Wait!"
Hmm?
I turned back again only to see the princess staring at me with unpredictable eyes.
"I… Thank you, for saving my life. You have my deepest gratitude."
"Ah, don't misunderstand. I didn't do anything much, I was just lucky to find the right medicine at the right time. Although I would like to warn you to never pray to the forest goddess, it will most likely bring more misfortune. And…. I am sorry, you are no longer a saintess."
I explained. I didn't want her to go back to devoting her life to a goddess who couldn't handle her prestige.
Her complexion looked a lot better now, and the pale skin was returning back to healthy fair skin with a tinge of red.
Hearing my remark, she chuckled weakly as she shook her head, both Harold and Helena looking at me with grateful eyes.
"No… It's not about that. I…saw you in my dreams… you looked devastated, barely keeping your sanity… It looked painful. No one understood you. No one believed you. You kept losing people close to you and in the end, all that remained of you was a man in regrets. And even then, you reached out a helping hand to me."
".....that's funny. You aren't a saintess any longer, princess. Please keep your dreams to yourself. Anyways, I'll be waiting outside, your grace."
I said my greeting to the duke and the duchess as I left the room in a hurry. My heart was pounding loudly again, and the princess's words kept repeating inside my head.
"Fuck!"
I banged the stone wall on my way out, regretting it the next moment due to the pain in my hand.
"Walls should be made out of marshmallows, Fuck!"
I banged the wall again in irritation, only to clench my teeth more.
***
Inside Ena's bedroom, Harold and Helena were currently talking with her.
"What did you mean by that, Ena? Is that one of your prophetic dreams?"
Harold asked Ena about what she had just said to make her saviour so agitated.
"No, it wasn't. Although it's unfortunate, I am no longer a saintess, but it is for the best I guess."
Ena cleared his doubts, which just made him more confused.
"Then how did you know about Shura's past? According to his reaction, it seemed to be true to an extent."
"Those were the vague memories and feelings that I got after eating the pill he made. It's still in my mouth, it tastes like fruit candy."
Ena showed the crystalline purple pill inside her mouth, which was sending energy throughout her body, making her body recover steadily.
After that, Harold and Helena started talking to their daughter about everything that had happened in the past few months, what she was exactly suffering from and how everyone had mistaken the symptoms for poison, until the legend arrived.
"He's a legend??!!"
Ena, who was a very composed girl, couldn't keep her cool when she heard that.
"Yeah… he is a newborn legend. It will take tens of years before he can be labelled on the same level as his predecessors."
"Is this what a father and daughter should be talking about after the daughter had just gotten up from almost death's door?"
Helena shouted at the duo who seemed to be more interested in worldly affairs than Ena's health.
"Mother, look. I am completely fine."
After spending some more time with each other, Ena's face finally turned serious as she asked Harold.
"What did you promise?"
Harold knew what Ena was asking about and couldn't help but feel bittersweet about the whole situation.
Ena was currently asking for the rewards that he had promised if someone did manage to cure her, as she was well aware that when it came to family, her father was an emotional fool.
"Uh… there were many rewards, most of them were manageable. But…"
Ena felt an ominous feeling looming over her.
"....but what?"
"I am extremely sorry for this daughter… I just couldn't bear the sight of you slowly dying on your bed while I couldn't do anything…"
"Father. What is the actual reward?"
"Your hand in marriage to the person who saves you."
"..."
Ena felt speechless. She understood her father's desperation, but she couldn't believe how he promised such a thing. Not to mention, if she was still a saintess, she would need to maintain her chastity for life, how could her father even promise something like that.
Ena slowly rubbed her temples as she felt a headache coming.
"What were you going to do if it was some weird old man? Or a creepy guy?"
"....I would secretly assassinate them…"
Helena looked at Ena shouting at her father for his rash decisions, and couldn't help but smile. This was the truth behind the dukedom's success over the last decade. Harold was an emotional but strong guy, and he had gotten the brain named Ena, who despite being the saintess, was interested in worldly affairs much more than her own father, the duke.
"Let's see what happens now."
Ena sighed as she grabbed her head.
"Oh right, father."
"Yes?"
"Bring me the account books."
"....no. You should be resting dear daughter."
"Just bring me the book, you are fooling no one here."
The proud duke of the Sahhan empire shrank at the thoughts of getting the account book checked in front of her daughter as if his daughter was the teacher checking homework. Helena chuckled at the duo, her eyes wet with emotions and love.
...
//DreamNote//
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