Misfortune 72

Chapter 72

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***

"I don't think you need to see the doctor anymore.”

After a meticulous examination, the doctor finally pronounced Delnia cured.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Despite the doctor's reassurances, Leticia's face remained grim.

"Then why does she still look so groggy, doctor, are you misdiagnosing her again like you did when you said she had pneumonia when she had a cold?"

"Oh, Letitia, when was that ever a story!"

The young woman doctor blushed at the mention of her shameful past. Still, Leticia remained suspicious.

Watching the two, Delnia and Margaret exchanged secret glances and let out a silent chuckle.

The sight of Leticia, who had been drooling over the best doctor in Blois, but was now busy complaining like a child watching its own ugly head, made them laugh.

"Even if she were cured of her illness, she’d never be as strong as Leticia. She was born weak, and no medicine can fix that."

At that, Delnia tilted her head slightly and looked down at her body.

While her limbs were certainly more bony than before, there was a difference between being thin and weak.

Delnia knew the difference very well. She was definitely on the healthy side compared to her mother, who was sickly.

"I don't think I'm that frail."

Delnia retorted in a small but firm voice. The woman doctor who had been arguing with Leticia narrowed her eyes and looked at Delnia.

"I've lived my life without any major illnesses up until this point, and most of the time I've made it through the season without a single cold."

"Uh, that's..................."

"So you’re a quack after all? Camille, you."

"No!"

Reflexively, the doctor coughed, embarrassed that she had shouted.

"It's just that you're in a weakened state. To use a simple analogy, let's say your body is a box that holds ten apples. Sometimes something happens and you lose four or five of them, and one day you'll be able to fill the box with ten again. But right now, the box itself has shrunk, and even if you fill it to the brim, you can only fit seven."

The analogy of teaching math to young children rang out in the room. The doctor also taught the neighborhood kids, so she must be a pretty good teacher.

"Why is that? Is it because I don’t eat enough?”

"I'd say it's more the result of accumulated fatigue, both physical and mental. Have you been doing much physical exertion or suffering from heartburn lately?"

Delnia couldn't find the words to answer. In that way, her entire life right now could be considered a problem.

Just then, Leticia let out a worried sigh, one cheek cupped in her hand.

"She's having a hard time adjusting to her new surroundings. Is there any way she can get better?"

"Well, the way to get your strength back is pretty obvious, isn't it? Eat well, sleep well. Move your body regularly."

"Are you calling that a prescription? I'm not sure I like the doctor today.”

"No, really, that's all it is. What do you want me to do…”

Camille muttered in frustration at Leticia's exasperation.

Delnia laughed quietly again at the cat-and-mouse game they were playing.

How she took that smile, the doctor said in a serious voice with a somewhat disapproving look on her face.

“Well, it’s an obvious statement, but it’s better not to ignore it. When your body is tired, it naturally affects your mind, whether you know it or not. When you’re tired, your thoughts tend to drift into negative directions. Then, your body becomes even weaker. It becomes a vicious cycle.”

It was quite a bit of stinging advice.

But somehow Delnia didn't understand what she said. Although it was clearly true, it felt strangely vague and unrealistic, like grasping at clouds.

The eyes behind the glasses stared at her as if they could see right through her mind, then the doctor let out a shallow sigh.

"I know. It's understandable that it doesn't sink in right away, it's just that it's been such a shock, and it's not like you can make it up as you go along."

Delnia's eyes widened in disbelief.

Was she that traumatized?

To be honest, she couldn't disagree more. She'd already forgotten most of it, to the point where she wondered if she had really drowned.

"But know this, you were very lucky that it didn't get worse. If they hadn't gotten first aid in time, and you had gotten water in your lungs, you would have gotten pneumonia.”

"Oh, my God, what could have happened if it were a second too late."

Leticia threw her hands up in the air, as if the thought was too horrible to contemplate.

But not for long. A mischievous grin spread across her face as she thought of something.

"The Colonel. He jumped in and saved her without hesitation, and everyone was talking about how it was like something out of a hero's tale."

Leticia shot Delnia a meaningful look and covered her mouth with her palm, laughing hysterically. Delnia didn't have to ask to know that her misunderstanding of Roan's mistress had deepened.

"Of course, you should take good care of yourself for the 

Colonel’s sake who saved you so desperately."

The doctor, who nodded her head in agreement with Leticia's words, turned to Delnia and offered her one last piece of advice. Perhaps the doctor also believed that Delnia and Roan had a special relationship.

Delnia let her words slip out of her ears, as she had enough of the unnecessary advice.

Above all, she had never thought of taking care of herself, so she had no greater worries than this.

However, there was one statement in particular that had stuck with her.

Therefore, Delnia pondered. Of the man to whom she owed her life, of the cold salt water that had welcomed her, of the hot hands that had tried to pull her up out of it.

***

Right then, Roan was paying the price for not being honest with Leticia.

"...."

He had just entered his study when his gaze fell upon a large bunch of clear, light green grapes.

"As expected, the grapes at the market are just not good enough, so I begged an acquaintance of mine to give me this one, and he grows blue grapes of good enough quality to supply the brewery. It's precious, so you must eat it all yourself, not give it to anyone else, understand?”

With that, Leticia placed the grapes, each one carefully washed, on a tray and stealthily carried it to his study.

For Roan, the whole affair was a waste of time.

For one thing, he didn't like grapes. Especially green grapes.

They brought back unpleasant memories, for obvious reasons.

Still, he'd risked the misunderstanding because he thought that if he said so, Leticia would take it upon herself to distribute the bounty of grapes evenly among everyone in the house. She had a very big heart, like all the other women of the fiery Blois.

But as it turned out, Roan ended up with the grapes he didn't even like.

But he couldn't bring them to Delnia, not when it would put him in a difficult position.

With a shallow sigh, he tore his gaze away from the fruit tray and returned to his work.

The now-disposed green grapes seemed destined to remain in the corner of his desk and be forgotten forever.

That was, until a gentle knock on the door broke the silence of the study.

"Come in."

Delnia opened the door with a graceful step and entered.

Roan leaned back in his chair and watched her approach.

He was not surprised, for he had noticed her presence even before he heard the knock.

But when he realized that the woman's hands were empty, he couldn't help his curiosity and opened his mouth.

"What's going on?"

She never came to him without a reason. Not since the last time he'd destroyed the flowers that adorned his room.

Her obedience to his will was certainly commendable. It meant that she fully accepted her position as a slave.

But the idea that the woman would come to him, even when she had no business doing so, was somehow more gratifying than offensive.

But Roan couldn't focus on his own discomfort. He was too distracted by the woman's next words.

"I haven't gotten around to thanking you yet."

"Thank you for ......?"

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