Chapter 13

“So before worrying about me, worry about yourself.”

“…Are you worrying about me?”

I frowned.

‘Wasn’t that obvious?’

Seeing Evan completely unaware of how serious the situation was, I scolded him with a tight expression.

“Of course I am, Evan. You were poisoned.”

As I looked at him with a grave expression, Evan scratched his cheek with an embarrassed smile.

“It’s been… a while since someone worried about me.”

I gaped at him.

‘People don’t worry about Evan?’

“Oh, don’t misunderstand. My parents treat me well. It’s just… mm, our family trains us strictly from a young age. And well… our house being what it is, we have quite a few enemies.”

He must have read my thoughts from my expression because Evan added an explanation.

He was the son of a ducal family, and the current Duke Weiss maintained neutrality. The Empress and the Emperor both wanted him in their faction. But conversely, that meant that if he sided with the opposite faction, he’d become a nuisance, so both sides kept their eyes wide open, wary of him.

And now that this incident had earned him the Empress’s glare, he’d be even more threatened.

It felt like a tray had fallen flat onto my head.

‘He’s sick—and now he’s going to be in danger too!’

My face turned ghostly pale.

If someone could see inside my mind, they’d probably see me shriveled up like the figure in <The Scream>, staggering in despair.

Trying to lighten the mood, Evan smiled slyly.

“It sounds boastful coming from me, but… I am fairly talented. I can defeat most knights with a sword, so there aren’t many people who worry about me.”

Even though he said it with a bright smile, it sounded lonely.

Even when he said he was hurting, people probably didn’t know how much. They just assumed.

As if they’d never truly worried about his pain.

“What is that supposed to mean…”

I clicked my tongue sharply. I did know he was a future Swordmaster. Obviously the signs would appear early.

‘Is a Swordmaster supposed to be superhuman? He’s still a person—he can get sick. And he’s nowhere near becoming one yet…’

Originally, he became a Swordmaster on graduation exam day.

But with his body like this, I even doubted he’d ever reach that day.

Another crime added to my list.

Somehow, my sins kept piling up and I felt myself shriveling further.

“So I’m happy. That you’re worrying about me.”

“Of course I am. Evan, do you know what kind of poison you ingested?”

“Yes. I heard from Father.”

“Then you know. Eventually all your organs will rot.”

Evan remained utterly calm.

I grabbed his shoulders and gently shook him—carefully, because he was unwell.

‘He’s not even blaming me… If I were the one who got poisoned, I’d be crying, screaming, grabbing someone by the collar demanding my life back…’

“Lep, I won’t die so eas—…”

His words cut off when he suddenly bent forward, clutching his chest. A harsh cough burst out.

I stared blankly for a moment.

“Cough, cough!”

It didn’t stop.

A trickle of red seeped through his fingers.

I panicked and rubbed his back.

His pale, trembling hand looked painfully fragile.

“Evan? Evan?! Someone help!!”

A servant must have been waiting outside, because the door burst open immediately. Calling “Young master!” he ran in, smoothly patting Evan’s back and placing a handkerchief over his mouth so he could cough freely.

The white handkerchief turned red.

The more the fabric reddened, the more my complexion drained.

He had seemed calm, but his organs were rotting. The blood he coughed up proved it.

His breaths came shallow and uneven—pitifully so.

I clenched my hands so hard my nails dug into my palms; I didn’t even feel the pain.

When the coughing finally subsided, Evan pushed the servant away.

The servant quickly cleaned the handkerchief and the blood-stained sheets. All I could do was watch blankly.

“I’ll bring the physician at once!”

He hurried out.

“Were you frightened?”

He was the one coughing blood, but he worried about me.

Somehow, after seeing that, his fingers looked even thinner.

Evan raised a hand and gently touched the corner of my eye. I hadn’t realized tears had gathered there.

His once graceful fingers were now gaunt.

A single tear clung to his fingertip.

I didn’t answer him. Instead, I exhaled shakily.

His voice was hoarse from all the coughing, which hurt to hear. He still let out small coughs.

“Cough, cough.”

“Are you okay? Does your throat hurt? Or does your chest feel tight?”

Panicked, I hovered over him.

Still holding his chest, Evan extended his hand to me.

“…Just… hold my hand.”

I didn’t hesitate.

I took it immediately, letting my warmth flow into him.

Evan smiled faintly, his pallid face relaxing.

I spoke gently.

“Evan, I’ll continue what I was saying. You being sick… is my fault. Accident or not, I served you poisoned tea, and you were poisoned while saving me. So I’m responsible. I’ll take responsibility.”

I held his hands tightly.

His widened eyes were right in front of me.

To someone who wouldn’t take care of himself, I declared firmly: I will.

I would make him stand again.

“Lep… will take responsibility for me?”

“Of course! I’ll take responsibility and cure you!”

‘My favorite deserves nothing but flower paths.’

I laid him down gently. Evan didn’t resist.

Then I pulled the blanket over him and lightly patted his chest, telling him to rest.

“So sleep. You need it. I’ll figure out a solution.”

The main story was still more than five years away, but I needed him healed long before that.

The years of suffering he endured couldn’t be undone… but I could ensure he didn’t suffer anymore.

Seeing him today strengthened my resolve.

Was he meant to endure this for five more years? Absolutely not.

Evan blinked up at me.

I thumped my chest confidently.

To fix this, I had to storm through medical texts, then head to Liphas village and find the player—the heroine.

She should currently be doing temporary clinic work in place of her ill grandmother, dreaming of becoming an apothecary and physician.

‘No—she must be. She has to be. Otherwise Evan won’t recover quickly enough.’

I mentally listed everything I had to do.

“Responsibility… I like the sound of that.”

Evan murmured softly, a faint smile on his lips.

Something in his voice made me stare at him.

His eyes gleamed with a strange heat.

“I should inform Father.”

“…What?”

“You said you’d take responsibility for me.”

I nodded.

To me, “responsibility” meant curing him.

Maybe he doubted me, so I quickly added:

“Don’t worry. I have a good memory. I even made medicine from herbs before! If I can get the ingredients again, stopping the spread of the poison is nothing—”

In the game.

A player hired by the Clies family had to make that medicine every day.

I still remembered the ingredients and recipe perfectly.

I tried to continue, but Evan suddenly squeezed my hand—hard.

So hard my brows knit in surprise.

‘What’s with… this strength?’

His grip was shockingly strong for someone on the verge of collapsing.

But Evan didn’t notice.

He just smiled radiantly, like someone who had achieved a long-held dream.

“Yes. I’ll trust only you, Lep.”

His strength was odd, but hearing he trusted me made my lips lift.

I cleared my throat and continued asking about his symptoms—how long each had lasted, what hurt, what made him uncomfortable. I told him he could use me however he needed.

‘I have to know his exact condition before making the medicine.’

Evan’s explanations surprised me. His state wasn’t as bad as I had feared.

‘Must be because his base physical stats are absurd…’

My gaze slipped to the faint line of muscle visible under his shirt.

My face heated, and I quickly looked away.

“Coughing blood is the problem… It means the poison still hasn’t left your system! And since we can’t see your organs directly, we need to be cautious. Your internal condition won’t be great, so we can’t use anything too strong. I think—”

Rattle—

Just then, as I was explaining, the door opened and an unfamiliar person entered.

“I heard the young master was coughing blood.”

An elderly man squinted at me, adjusting his glasses.

“We have a guest, I see.”

“Oh—hello.”

The faint scent of herbal leaves clinging to him told me he was the Weiss ducal household’s physician.

He carried medicine—a decoction already brewed.

The physician approached Evan naturally and held out the foul-smelling herbal mixture.

The stench was so strong it made me instinctively frown.