Naro squeezed his eyes shut and lowered his head. But the atmosphere was different from what he’d expected. He’d definitely anticipated a reprimand would come flying at him, but unexpectedly, a small laugh came from across the table.
“It’s fine. You don’t need to bow your head like that. I heard your Imperial language is still rough, but do you think I can’t understand that? Imperial language is one of the difficult languages to learn. I understand completely.”
Naro stared blankly at the smiling Bern for a moment. When his face was expressionless, he’d thought he had quite a cold impression, but seeing him now, that wasn’t the case at all. A warm and benevolent feeling emanated from him.
Naro recalled what Jerian had told him earlier.
‘Most of the successive Dukes of Hernia have had gentle dispositions. They don’t carelessly look down on people using their status as nobles as a weapon, nor do they turn away hands reaching out for help.’
Those words applied to the current Duke as well. He could easily have taken issue with the behavior of not speaking politely to a noble, yet he was understanding so generously.
“Mm, you said you came after being in a foreign country for a long time? I was just thinking from when I saw you earlier that you’re a handsome man, rare to see in the Empire.”
Bern smiled brightly at Ray.
“I’ll accept being called handsome as a compliment for now, since it’s praise.”
“Ray…”
“Haha, that’s right, that’s right. I’m happy if you accept it as such.”
Bern burst out laughing as if amused. Naro thought it was fortunate that his personality was so good. If someone like the Young Master of the Viscount Kailey family had been sitting in this spot, he might have had to grab Ray and run away immediately.
“And you said your name was Naro?”
“Yes, Duke.”
“Actually, when I heard from Jerian, I thought you’d be someone of a certain age. I didn’t expect you to be such a young man.”
“Ah…”
Naro couldn’t find words to say and just made a low sound in his throat. Actually, this wasn’t the first time he’d heard such words. Now he had regular customers at the medicine shop and was recognized by the villagers, but when he was first getting established, there were many times when customers who came to the shop saw Naro’s youthful face and said he seemed untrustworthy.
Since using medicinal herbs was related to health, people couldn’t help but be sensitive. While he understood inwardly, honestly it hurt when he heard people say what would a kid know.
“But when we shook hands earlier, I realized that thought of mine was hasty.”
“When we shook hands?”
Naro wondered if he’d done something particular and tried to recall the situation from a moment ago in his mind. But really, they’d just shaken hands.
“You had the scent of grass on you. If I could smell it just from a handshake, I couldn’t help but know. How much you’ve studied and handled medicinal herbs.”
“Do I smell like grass?”
Bern nodded.
“Naro always smells like grass.”
Ray said while sniffing. Naro fiddled with his clothes for no reason. Since he always met and interacted with the same people in Rodelus Village, this was the first time he’d heard such words.
“Moreover, you identified what tea leaves were used for this tea in one try.”
Naro felt relieved. When Bern had mentioned age earlier, he’d secretly worried he might send him away saying there was no business to discuss.
“Um, Duke. I heard through Teacher Jerian that you wanted to meet me.”
“That’s right. When Jerian came to the capital before and stopped by my mansion briefly, he shared some medicinal herbs saying they were good for the body.”
It was exactly as Jerian had initially said.
“May I ask the reason?”
Bern carefully set down the teacup he was holding. The face of Bern reflected on the calm surface of the tea was full of worry. The face that had been warm and gentle just moments ago was rapidly colored with anxiety and concern.
“Actually Naro, the person I’d like you to meet isn’t me.”
“Pardon?”
It was truly unexpected. Bern let out a sigh for a moment and then opened his mouth again.
“My daughter, Mellian Hernia—I’d like to ask you to help her.”
At Bern’s words, Naro couldn’t answer rashly. Though he hadn’t guessed at all what purpose the Duke had in calling him here, he hadn’t expected at all that talk of his daughter would come from his mouth.
“The Young Lady?”
“Yes. The truth is, my daughter was born with a congenital chronic illness. Fortunately, the illness was completely cured as she grew, but she’s still in a weak state. Because of that, outdoor activities aren’t easy, so right now she mainly lives only at home.”
If her body was weak, even a common cold could strike her more frequently and more severely than others. The same would be true of other illnesses. So he could understand to some degree the explanation that she was living only at home.
“But when I had her drink a decoction of the medicinal herbs Jerian gave me, she seemed to regain some energy. Naro, it was thanks to your medicinal herbs.”
Now he was beginning to understand why Bern had wanted to see him.
“I was wondering if you could meet my daughter, examine her condition, and use appropriate medicinal herbs. Of course, I’ll procure all the necessary herbs from my side.”
“Um… I’m sorry to say this, but I’m not a doctor.”
He was just someone who knew a little more about medicinal herbs than others. He wasn’t even a doctor, yet to be asked to manage the health of a ducal house’s young lady—to Naro, it only sounded like a burdensome request.
“I understand your reluctance. But as I said earlier, Mellian doesn’t have an illness. The illness she suffered from in the past has been completely cured. It’s just that her constitution is weak because of that influence. From what I know, I’ve heard there are cases of people with such constitutions overcoming it using medicinal herbs.”
That was as Bern said. People’s constitutions were truly varied. Not only being weaker in stamina than others, but also getting indigestion easily, or having frequent stomachaches, or having hands and feet that became bitterly cold. Usually such cases couldn’t be considered having caught some illness, but they could still sufficiently interfere with living daily life.
And such constitutional problems could be alleviated to a certain degree if medicinal herbs were used well.
“But aren’t there many people in the capital who handle medicinal herbs more professionally than me? There must be people whose skills are far superior to mine…”
Bern nodded as if he understood.
“As you say, I’ve asked renowned doctors and pharmacists. But the only thing Mellian showed any response to was your medicinal herbs. Moreover…”
Bern trailed off for a moment. It seemed like there were more important words remaining, so Naro waited without interrupting.
“Because my daughter has such a constitution, her personality is a bit sensitive. She doesn’t easily accept outsiders besides family. Because of that, quite a few people have quit.”
That was why Bern had no choice but to request help even from Naro, who ran a small medicinal herb shop in a land far from the capital.
“I know well that you’ve made a difficult and arduous journey. I also know well how burdensome it must feel to suddenly be asked to look after my daughter. But I really want to ask you, Naro.”
The Bern reflected in Naro’s eyes wasn’t the head of a family with a long history who was respected by the Empire’s people. He was simply the unmistakable appearance of a father trying somehow to seek help for his daughter.
“If it wouldn’t be rude, could I meet the Young Lady once?”
“Haah… I understand for now. You’ll need to think carefully before accepting this work, after all.”
Bern called for Hayla, who was waiting outside, with a somewhat gaunt face. At the words that they would move to the Young Lady’s room together with the guests, the head butler also looked somewhat tense.
And so Naro, together with Ray, followed Bern and the head butler out of the reception room, climbed the stairs in the center, and came up to the second floor. The Young Lady’s room was located at the very end of that floor.
“I should tell you in advance that the Young Lady is quite sensitive. So I would appreciate it if you would be mindful of your words and actions.”
At Hayla’s words, Naro nodded. While doing so, he told Ray to keep his words to a minimum as much as possible. After all, it didn’t seem like Mellian would laugh off Ray’s informal speech as well as her father did.
The head butler took the lead and knocked on the Young Lady’s door. She conveyed that the Duke had brought guests, but there was no response. Bern moved Hayla back and stepped forward himself.
“Mellian, it’s Father. I’ve knocked, so I’ll come in.”
Bern carefully opened the door. Naro also entered inside somewhat tensely.
The first thing visible was a large bed. And even though it was broad daylight, the inside of the room was somewhat dark. Peculiarly, curtains were completely drawn inside the room. Because of that, the sunlight pouring down from outside couldn’t invade that room even slightly.
A woman with deep purple hair was sitting leaning against the bed. In the hands of the woman who had braided her long hair to one side was a single book. Even though people had entered, she didn’t give them a single glance. As if nothing had happened, the speed at which she turned the pages remained constant.
“Mellian, you have a visitor who’s come to see you.”
