Translator and Editor: Lea and Aki
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Chapter 13
“I was just curious. Because what you do isn’t usually what a pharmacist does.”“Is that all?”“Well, there must be a certain reason. Anyway, you’re the one I was looking for.”
Maybe her words sounded rude to him. But Ian smiled as if he believed in her.
‘Why do you trust me so much?’
He was the first man, whom she was contracted with, to be so generous towards her. That remark made her heart ache. Immediately, she turned her face away from him.
“Those work fast, but their effect is temporary. They only eliminate the symptoms that appear.”“Like…..High fever or something?”“Yes, but it may differ from disease to disease. So, it’s necessary to examine the results after they’re taken.”
Ian noticed April dropping her head and replying in a lower voice. He frowned, worried that what he said was rude.
“So….I need to focus on my research again. You look tired, Marquis. Please take a rest.”“Okay then, I’ll leave now.”
As Ian left the lab, April leaned back on her chair. As her eyes moved to the spot where he stood, his expression and voice lingered before her eyes and her ears respectively.
‘When the contract period gets over, we’ll go back to our own lives anyway. So why does it feel strange?’
He was a man who always drew a line so as to not harm her conscience. What did he mean when he said he wanted to know more about April? Why was he treating her so carefully when their relationship was just a one-time event?
She was also curious, but she couldn’t ask him.
‘This will all be over……’
She walked out of the lab, brooding over the word “over” several times as her feet carried her to the top floor of the detached house.
She read the last book about the Langs until late at night, but she couldn’t make out how the disease was transmitted from generation to generation.
“Ah, so it only appeared in the…..Reykis family.”
Among the Langs descendants, this disease appeared especially in the men of Reykis bloodline, but there were many other variables.
Luckily, the disease wasn’t developed in the direct lineage from the Langs, and so the other descendants escaped from its claws. Rather, it developed in only one family and that’s how it was inherited from generation to generation.
“So, the only cure to the disease is not through a drug, but by repressing it?”
Although Ian wasn’t feeling well these past few days, she could not note any improvement of her medications since he had no abnormalities in his physique.
Naturally, there was no such theoretical proof. So, it was all hopeless.
“As if the person becomes more lustful? Like a real rut. The less sexual experience one has, the worse it gets…..”
The pretty plain sentence in the book reminded her of the day again. Ian had informed her that the blood of Langs in him made his instincts grow stronger and that he always stayed away from women in case his conditions became severe.
“The only thing that can beat this condition is that you must rule with it? What does it mean?”
Her eyes suddenly fell to the hand-written sentence at the bottom of the page. It seemed to have been left by one of the previous housekeepers of the Reykis family.
It seemed to have been marked as important as it was underlined twice, but April had not yet figured out the meaning.
“Well, what I can only do now is to create a proper fever reducer…..”
She thought she could create the right medicine for him if she took care of the right proportion of the reagents.
At this point, she wondered if she should delve into the study of linguistics that could boost the effectiveness of his medicine.
“I shall prepare that.”
The glass tube that was left over the lamp an hour ago had cooled down completely. She carefully filtered out all the sediments with a net, then bottled only the clear liquid.
Just then, she heard urgent footsteps stopping right in front of the door. The person knocked at the door without any delay.
‘Huh? At this hour?’
She put down her pen, covering everything that had been laid out before opening the door slightly. It was Klaus.
She was a little nervous. It was the first time that Klaus came to ask for her this late at night. The fact that he was breathless meant that he was running.
“Klaus? What’s wrong?”“Miss April! Haa, Master…..”“Marquis? What happened to him?”“The fever reducer didn’t work. For a second, I thought his temperature was going down, but the next second, it rose up!”
Before Klaus could finish his sentence, April turned her back. She picked up her coat and the medicine and rushed out of the room.
“Lead me. I’ll need to see him myself.”“But, Master pleaded not to……”“I wouldn’t be able to provide him the right medicine if I don’t note his condition. And whom should you be worried about? Me or your Master?”
April could easily guess that Ian didn’t want her to meet him on such occasions. He wasn’t even himself for the last few days. But now, she, being his benefactor, was in no position to avoid him like that.
“Please follow me.”
As soon as she shot back, Klaus bowed a little and took the lead. His hasty steps revealed his impatience. He didn’t wait for April, but she walked as fast as she could, regardless of it.
“Master is lying alone on his bed.”“Okay, I’ll go in by myself.”“Then, I’ll wait outside. Please be careful.”
As Klaus stepped back with a worried face, April took a deep breath and knocked on the door of his bedroom.
“Marquis.”
There was no answer, but a sound too small to be heard. April pushed the door slightly, feeling a bit frustrated. The heavy door, which had been tightly closed, crept open.
“Marquis Reykis?”
She carefully entered the room and locked the door. What caught her eye in the dark room was the faint light from the lamp on his bedside table. It was difficult to confirm his condition from the distance under the faint light.
“Are you okay…..?”
As she forced her trembling steps straight towards the bed, she could see him lying in a position as if he had been thrown into it. His rattling breath and low groan gradually reached her ears.
“Let me examine you, Marquis.”“April?! Why are you here….?!”
When she spoke in a low voice, Ian turned away from her, covering himself with the blanket. His crackling, grumbling voice was just like a beast’s.
She approached him, completely ignoring him.
“I had to come here when I heard the fever reducer didn’t work.”“Get out.”“This is serious, Marquis!”“This isn’t a fatal disease!”“I’m a doctor. I have an obligation to treat my patient.”
She understood Ian was trying to protect her, but when he ordered her to leave, she became furious.
“Damn it, Klaus.”
His chapped lips cursed his faithful butler.
“May I recline the blanket a little?”“That’s…..”“Only just as much as you’re comfortable with.”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he sat up and leaned on the bed headboard, still tightly holding on to the blanket. He didn’t let it go down, perhaps worried about his symptoms.
“In that case…..”
His slim upper body, with nothing on, shone with his cold sweat. His chest rose with every breath he took. His scent was much stronger. It seemed like his body was a flame that needed to be put out at once.
Ian shuddered as she reached to check his temperature.
“Don’t.”“What do you mean ?!”“Don’t touch me…..”
He grasped April’s wrist, as he had done once before. As April put her other hand over his, his fingers flinched.
“Ha…..”
Exhaling, his heavy upper self tilted towards April. His broad shoulders shook.
Half-leaning, he slithered his head up and stared at April’s eyes. His golden eyes were sharp and acrimonious enough to make her feel like she was facing a wild wolf in a remote forest on a dark night. It was as if he was enjoying the image of his prey.
“Why are you so stubborn……?”
He asked in a rough voice. In a flash, his other arm snatched her other wrist and her vision turned upside down. The thick blanket trickled down helplessly.
“Ah!”
April lay buried in his warm bed and looked up at him, who was leaning above herself.
Her gaze reached his eyes after traveling through his exposed waist and solid upper body. Her eyelashes trembled at the sight. She was buried under him.
“M-Marquis! Please get a hold of yourself!”
But now, such a determined word would not reach Ian. The thin string that was barely separating them was now broken. His actions were now uncontrollable.
She tightly clasped the sheet beside her. She thought he was about to reach his limit.
“I can’t s-stand…..y-your scent…..”
Burying his face in her neck, he inhaled deeply. His lips lightly grazed along the nape of her neck. The aroma of her skin made him feel much hotter.
His breathing felt stark. His nose touching her skin made her tremble. Her heart was beating so fast that she felt she could hear its sound loud and clear.
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