The Doctor Cured The Villainess And Ran Away-Chapter 28: The Princess’s Magic (3)
“Phew.”
I caught my breath and kept my eyes on the two of them.
My head was still spinning, but I had to stay focused.
As Camilla stepped forward, Asela took a step ahead in defiance.
Golden mana shimmered at her outstretched hand.
“Asela, what on earth are you thinking?”
Camilla barely suppressed her fury as she spoke.
Asela, in the ruthless tone I’d come to associate with her, answered firmly.
“Mother, my vassals are all essential assets to be used in my succession.”
“Not a wrong statement. But so what? You think that justifies interfering with my magic?”
“You truly believed I would just stand by and watch as you damaged my assets and undermined the authority of my faction?”
“Hah. Your faction?”
Camilla scoffed.
“Your faction, you say? Where exactly is your faction in this Imperial Palace? Every knight and attendant here swears loyalty to me, the Empress.”
“That may have been true—until now. But not anymore.”
“What did you just say...!”
Ignoring Camilla, whose veins were visibly bulging in her temples, # Nоvеlight # Asela gave a light command toward the door.
“Knights, enter.”
The door burst open immediately, and Asela’s escort knights marched in.
They surrounded her protectively.
Camilla had issued an order for them to leave, and Asela had issued one to enter.
The two commands directly conflicted.
But the knights chose to obey Asela.
It was proof that they now clearly recognized who the true master of Moonlight Palace was.
“You... Asela. When did you—!”
“Mother, now is the time for you to choose. Will you stand by me, Asela von Württemberg, and the Third Princess’s faction—or will you continue opposing my will and be pushed into the shadows?”
Faced with her daughter’s threat, Camilla raised her chin defiantly.
Murky black mana churned in her eyes.
Asela didn’t back down in the slightest, as if to say she wouldn’t yield this time.
Sparks flew between them, and the flow of mana surged violently.
After a tense moment of standoff, Camilla finally turned her back and walked out.
Her personal guard followed silently behind her.
‘The imperial mother-daughter dynamic is brutal.’
And here I was, stuck in the middle of it for no good reason.
[No. 058: Magic Torture 14% → 0%]
[Deleted]
All because of that dumb bad ending.
Still, I managed to erase another one.
I was satisfied, in my own way.
“Cough, cough.”
I suppressed a bout of coughing into my sleeve.
“Doctor, are you all right?”
Tanya came over to help me up. I waved her off to show I was fine.
The fact that the Empress had been using real combat magic to effectively torture her own daughter... She really wasn’t sane.
The bad ending was gone now. Meaning, Camilla would no longer bother Asela with her magic.
And more importantly, my own future torture was officially canceled.
I decided to consider the earlier suffering a cheap preview.
“Asela.”
Once I’d regained my composure, Asela approached me.
“You called, Your Highness?”
She didn’t say anything—just stared at me.
What now?
Was she upset that I stepped in and worsened her relationship with the Empress?
“Is there something you wish to say?”
“...Why did you do it?”
Asela’s voice was weak, subdued.
There was no way I could explain the ending list, so I gave the expected, proper answer.
“I simply did my duty as your personal physician. Preventing any harm from coming to Your Highness’s body is part of my job.”
“That’s all?”
“That’s all.”
Asela sighed softly at my reply.
“Sighing is a common symptom of stress. I recommend some rest and exposure to—”
“Silence.”
“Then I shall remain quiet.”
“...Did it hurt?”
To be honest? It hurt like hell.
...Hmm.
What was the point of that question?
Asela seemed hesitant, almost wary of my response.
Unless it was Max, I didn’t think she’d worry about someone else getting hurt.
...Could it be?
Was she actually worried about me?
No way.
I shook my head to clear the ridiculous thought.
“My strong body barely felt a scratch. That feeble magic couldn’t possibly harm me.”
“Pfft.”
Did she just laugh at me?
Yeah, yeah, I know—I’m weak.
“Still, it’s a spell that could’ve caused Your Highness serious harm. I recommend suspending any further special lessons with the Empress.”
“That’s... sigh.”
“This palace doesn’t belong to the Empress, after all—it belongs to you, the heir.”
“You’re not wrong. But still...”
Asela trailed off.
“She is... my mother.”
Her voice was barely a whisper, but I heard it clearly.
Since becoming her doctor, I’d come to see sides of Asela I never expected.
“Did the confrontation upset you, Your Highness?”
“Doctor, don’t pry into matters that aren’t your concern.”
“Understood.”
Asela turned away abruptly and crossed her arms. She looked visibly unsettled.
That’s when the head maid leaned in to whisper to me.
“Professor, it’s the first time Her Highness has ever clashed with the Empress like this. She might be more shaken than she lets on.”
“I was shaken too. Can’t you comfort me instead?”
“You should ask Her Highness for that kind of favor.”
“I’d rather go on a date with the guillotine, thanks.”
The head maid shook her head and added gently:
“Tomorrow, Her Highness has a magic lesson scheduled. Wouldn’t she be happier hearing it from you directly?”
Why me?
“She’ll be studying with the court mage?”
“Yes.”
Since the head maid was being unusually helpful, I decided to play along.
“Your Highness.”
“You’re still here?”
“You have a magic lesson scheduled for tomorrow.”
“A magic lesson... Right.”
At the word “magic,” Asela’s cheeks visibly puffed in delight.
Come to think of it, Asela really did love magic.
“You’ll be coming with me, right?”
“Yes, at least for now.”
“Hmm... What kind of magic should I show you?”
For the first time since returning to the Imperial Palace, Asela left the room wearing a small, genuine smile, her steps light.
***
“Ugh... Huff... Huff...”
My office on the fourth floor of the royal medical wing still left me winded every time I climbed the stairs.
Turns out it had been assigned there because all the lower floors were already claimed by other factions. Not a single room was left.
It was their way of saying, Take your weak little faction and stay out of sight. Makes sense, but still pissed me off.
“If I manage to grow a faction of my own here, maybe I can relocate to the first floor. Just you wait.”
“You could always just train your legs and be done with it.”
Half-lounging in my chair, I was met with Tanya’s disapproving glare.
“Carry me, Commander.” ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
“My back’s full.”
Tanya had just hauled two large boxes on her back up the stairs. They looked heavy enough to fit an entire person each—yet she didn’t look even remotely tired.
“A package from the estate.”
With a thud, Tanya set them down.
It had only been a week since I arrived at the palace, and I was already receiving my first delivery.
I peeled off the seal of the Shupre Merchant Guild and found the sender: Neria Gotverke.
Judging from the date, she must have mailed it the moment I left. She really was something else.
One box was filled with individually plucked rose petals, a bulk supply of honey candy, willow bark, and other useful ingredients.
—
Dear Brother! Today the weather was beautiful at the estate!
—
A handwritten letter began with that bright, cheerful opener. I read it carefully, then tucked it inside my inner pocket.
The other box was packed full of local specialties: coffee beans, jerky, and other snacks. Apparently the jerky had been prepared by Boris.
“Jerky’s always good.”
Protein’s vital—especially for a body like mine that was practically crying out for it.
Comparing Tanya’s solid biceps to my own spindly arms made the necessity painfully clear.
“If I want a proper strength booster... steroids would be the most straightforward.”
Risky stuff, sure—but considering situations like the last physician exam, I was bound to need my body again soon.
I should probably prepare a fast-acting strength potion as a contingency.
“At my current alchemy rank, I can’t quite manipulate molecular structures at will...”
If I could push past that bottleneck, I might be able to produce real pharmaceuticals.
In the end, medicine is chemistry.
“For now, I’m observing Asela’s magic lesson.”
Time to meet the one they call the “Sage” — the Imperial Court Mage, Seymour.
***
“Hahaha! Look who it is! Asela! Meeting this tiny magic prodigy again’s got this old geezer practically bouncing in his seat!”
Seymour looked like a madman, his curled mustache twisting every which way.
“It’s been a while, Master. I’m honored to learn from you again.”
Asela, in contrast, bowed to him with impeccable courtesy—something I found downright surreal.
Like watching a high school girl respectfully learn Capoeira from a homeless man in the park.
I stood off to the side, observing the lesson alongside the guards and attendants.
“Hoho! It’s been so long I can barely remember where we left off. Ah yes—the method for casting arrays in overlapping planes without formulaic interference. An essential skill for developing high-tier spells!”
Asela’s expression was intensely focused.
Her golden eyes sparkled with more brilliance than I’d ever seen.
Brimming with curiosity, she absorbed knowledge like a sponge and practiced relentlessly until her mana ran dry.
—Pazzzzz...
Asela drew strange glyphs and shapes in the air.
It looked like a Möbius strip brought to life, endlessly looping and morphing in strange geometries.
Honestly? I had no idea what I was looking at.
Eventually I gave up trying to understand.
Asela kept glancing at me throughout, as if checking whether I was still doing my job properly.
Two hours in, I pulled out a candy and popped it into my mouth.
Seymour immediately walked over and peered at my face.
“That tasty?”
“It’s a specialty from the Gotverke estate. Would you like one?”
“Hand it over.”
Luckily, I still had one of the original candies Neria sent—the unaltered kind. I offered it to him.
He popped it in and crunch—bit straight through.
Guess his teeth were in better shape than expected for someone his age.
“How is it?”
“Hahaha! Beats me!”
“...Beats you?”
“I’m the Sage, my boy. And you’re Asela’s new physician, yes?”
“Laz Gotverke.”
Seymour gave me a sly grin and leaned in a little.
For someone who looked like a hobo, he didn’t smell bad.
He chuckled and said:
“You’ve got quite the talent, haven’t you?”
Clearly the Sage title wasn’t for nothing—he had a sharp intuition.
“Interested in incantations?”
He asked me, his tone oddly conspiratorial.
Hmm.
“Do you have one for brewing a strength-enhancing elixir?”
