OPDSP 47

But he couldn’t reveal the reason. Saying he couldn’t would only make things seem suspicious. He needed to end this conversation cleanly before it got twisted.

“Your Grace, you promised to grant me any reward I wanted, didn’t you?”

“I did.”

“Then please, I ask this as my request. I cannot serve you. Please withdraw your offer.”

Aeryl lowered his head as he spoke. The Grand Duke was a ruler of this land—he could have anything he wanted. What did the opinion of a mere physician matter? If he wished to force it, he could.

That was why Aeryl made a bold move. Since the Grand Duke had promised to grant anything, he wouldn’t be able to refuse this request.

“I wondered what you’d ask for, but I didn’t expect this—asking me to withdraw the offer.”

The Grand Duke’s voice fell. Aeryl furrowed his brow slightly.

Was that a yes? A no? It was hard to read his tone.

“Very well. I did say I’d grant you anything… Fine. Consider the offer retracted.”

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

Aeryl bowed even more deeply. Whew. He was relieved the Grand Duke had accepted it more smoothly than he’d feared.

“Raise your head. It’s uncomfortable being rejected and then having to accept a bow.”

“My apologies.”

Aeryl straightened up quickly.

“Consider it an honor. You’re the first man to ever reject me.”

“‘Reject’ is too strong a word. I wouldn’t dare.”

Thankfully, the mood had lightened enough for some joking.

“Well then, I’ll be going.”

“Ah—wait, just a moment.”

As the Grand Duke turned to leave, Aeryl called him back, ducked into the tent, and returned with a bag in hand. It was the bag containing the Grand Duke’s medicine.

“This is your medicine. It’s everything I have left.”

“You gave me some last time too—I still have a few of those.”

“Please take this anyway. I doubt I’ll get another chance to give it to you.”

He’d heard that after the purge ended, they would pack lightly and move out quickly. With all the chaos, it would be hard to meet the Grand Duke in secret at night like before.

There would be a festival celebrating the their return, and then they’d depart the very next day. Who knew when they might have a moment alone again? This was the best time to hand it over.

“There’s a sheet inside with the formula and my notes. If you pass it to the next doctor, it should be helpful.”

Aeryl had prepared it in advance, intending to give it to him when they parted. With this, the Grand Duke could hold out until he got back to the capital and saw a proper doctor.

“Thank you for following through so well until now. I wish you continued health and safety.”

Aeryl offered his final farewell. He still felt worried and regretful, but he hid it well behind a smile. If he showed even a hint of attachment, he was sure the Grand Duke would hold onto him.

“Indeed. Thank you for everything.”

The Grand Duke accepted the farewell and turned away cleanly. Aeryl stood in place for a while, watching his retreating back. He felt regret and sadness, but this was as far as he could go—since he couldn’t follow him.

Meanwhile, Grand Duke Asirion walked neither quickly nor slowly toward his own tent.

Hmm. A final farewell?

That was for him to decide.

He did intend to respect Aeryl’s wish. He would honor it. But since when did the world ever go according to one’s wishes? There were always unforeseen circumstances.

He passed his tent and walked up to the palisade, then, without hesitation, threw the bag of medicine.

The sound of glass shattering echoed through the air.

The righteous doctor wouldn’t be able to turn away from a patient in crisis due to unavoidable circumstances.

If he couldn’t take Aeryl with him, he would make Aeryl follow.

He never cared about the means—only the result.

Even if the price was his own body.

***

At dawn the next day, Innis quietly entered Aeryl’s tent.

She approached his bed and looked down at his sleeping face.

‘Why is he sleeping with his glasses on?’

Aeryl lay neatly on his back, glasses still perched on his nose. Innis hesitated, wondering whether to take them off—but since she had to wake him anyway, she gently shook his shoulder instead.

“Mmm… You’re here?”

Aeryl slowly sat up. His tousled brown hair stuck out in every direction, making for a ridiculous sight. He had a lovely face, but between the hair and the glasses, it was all hidden—it felt like a waste.

Not that Aeryl seemed to care. He lazily tied his hair back, went to the corner to brush his teeth and wash his face, then returned.

“Thanks for coming.”

“Not at all. You only have to call, and I’ll come.”

The reason Aeryl had called Innis so early was to complete her treatment.

Today, he would finally use healing magic directly on her body. She no longer reacted uncomfortably to it, so there was real hope.

I’d like to finish her treatment before we reach the Edge of the World Village.’

Since he was the one who started it, he wanted to be the one to see it through.

Aeryl sat Innis on the edge of the bed and pulled over a chair for himself.

“Are you mentally prepared?”

“Hum, yes.”

Innis let out a sigh. The tension in her expression was obvious.

“I’ll endure it somehow.”

Her determination was admirable—but her body was rigid. At this rate, nothing would go smoothly. Especially since psychological stability was so crucial for this kind of treatment.

“Innis.”

Aeryl took her hand. It was cold, so he instinctively covered it with his other hand. Maybe his warmth would help ease her tension, even just a little. He wasn’t sure if it was right to go through with treatment when she was this frightened.

“Don’t try to endure it. You might end up worse off.”

“No, I’ll endure. We don’t have much time left, do we?”

It would take about two days to reach the village. In two days, they would part ways. That was all the time Aeryl had left to treat Innis.

And yet, she was worrying about that for his sake. He was starting to feel ashamed of himself.

“We still have two more days.”

“If I can’t do it now, then two more days won’t change anything.”

Innis met his eyes.

“You decided to treat me today because you believed it would help, didn’t you?”

“I did. I thought now was the time to take a bold step, regardless of the time left.”

“Then that’s enough. I trust you.”

Her answer was plain and blunt, like a soldier’s—but that made it hit even harder.

His chest ached and swelled at once, a sting of emotion mixed with resolve.

Right. She said she trusted him—how could he back out now?

If his patient believed in him, then as a doctor, it was his duty to do everything in his power to help her.

‘Let’s start by loosening the stiff muscles. Help her regulate her breathing. There was a spot that responded well to touch… Should I prescribe a sedative? No, that’s too much.’

Aeryl’s mind raced. The countless things he had studied and researched rose and fell like waves in his head.

That short conversation had helped both of them.

Innis had reaffirmed her trust in her doctor and managed to ease some of her pressure, and Aeryl had recalled different treatment approaches beyond pheromones and gained confidence in the process.

“Alright, let’s begin slowly. Please put on the necklace.”

“Okay.”

Innis placed Jenx’s necklace around her neck.

“Pardon me for a moment.”

Aeryl asked for her understanding and placed a hand on her shoulder.

As expected, she was completely tense, so he gently massaged the area to help her relax.

Once he saw that she had eased a bit, he stepped back.

“I’ll first show you the healing magic, like before.”

“Alright.”

Since she had already succeeded in watching it multiple times, Innis accepted it without resistance.

Aeryl cast healing magic in front of her, and as expected, she calmly watched his hand.

It was a huge improvement compared to just a few days ago.

Then, Aeryl decided to reveal a small secret.

“You know something?”

“Hm?”

“I didn’t use pheromones just now.”

“What? Really?”

Innis’s eyes widened in surprise.

As a beta, she couldn’t recognize pheromones even when affected, so that reaction was only natural.

“Of course. That just means you’ve gotten that much better.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“Give me your hand. I’ll come closer now, slowly. It’s fine to tell me to stop—but don’t close your eyes. I will use pheromones this time, but I can stop anytime, so don’t worry. Nothing will hurt you.”

“Okay…”

Maintaining the healing spell, Aeryl took a half-step forward.

Innis’s hand trembled slightly, but she stared wide-eyed at the magic.

Her will to endure the treatment was strong—but her body couldn’t keep up.

This is where pheromones come in.

He released his pheromones.