82: Each Person’s Admiration
“Sonia.”
“Yes?”
Chief Physician Louis addressed Sonia… and then hesitated slightly.
“…Is Lady Adelheid a good superior?”
What a strange question.
“Well, Lady Adelheid isn’t my direct superior… but… yes, it’s a good place to work. The food is delicious, the cafeteria has free tea and snacks all the time… it’s very comfortable.”
Chief Physician Louis looked at me intently, and I averted my gaze.
Well, I had told them not to skimp on such things.
I also remembered ordering them to provide delicious food.
While it felt like we had a clear advantage over the austere, state-run Royal Medical Corps in that regard, it was also a bit… embarrassing to be praised for it.
“And the work itself?”
“It varies depending on the person. As a researcher, I investigate the effects of medicinal herbs and develop new medicines. It’s similar to the pharmacology department of the Medical Corps, but on a larger scale. The main difference is that we’re also involved in cultivation and harvest planning. And unlike the Medical Corps, we don’t treat patients directly, although we do consult on cases.”
I had initially thought of Sonia as a quiet, delicate, and intellectual woman.
Perhaps the ‘intellectual’ impression remained. She was a brilliant researcher.
However, she seemed to have so much she wanted to say that she compensated by speaking rapidly, shattering any impression of quietness or fragility.
The fact that her reports, while lengthy, were well-written and easy to understand, showed that appearances could be deceiving.
“The Medical Corps had… a well-established, if somewhat limited, knowledge of medicine. They were, let’s say, too focused on patients, too… well-behaved. Always searching for useful herbs. Here, we have extensive knowledge of poisons! Poisons!”
Louis frowned.
“And the clinical trial data is amazing! After all, real-world—”
“—Sonia.”
I interrupted Sonia’s enthusiastic speech, which seemed to be getting more and more excited, with a cold voice.
“You’ve finished the tour, so return to your work. I’ll hear your report later.”
“—Yes, Lady Adelheid. Then, if you’ll excuse me, Chief Physician, Lady Leticia.”
Sonia switched gears seamlessly, bowed, and left.
As I started walking, feeling awkward, Louis and Leticia followed.
I had expected Chief Physician Louis to press the issue of ‘clinical trials’ after Sonia left, but he didn’t say anything.
…He probably understood.
In our territory, executions were carried out with poison.
And while we had reduced their frequency recently, we couldn’t afford to overlook illegal intelligence activities.
There had been many such cases shortly after I became the head of the family.
That valuable real-world data had continued to accumulate during my tenure.
Reduced to mere numbers, stripped of any identifying information, categorized only by age and sex.
The gecko emblem of the Vanderwaals had never been… pretty.
We entered a section designed as a garden… probably also used as a rest area for the staff, with stone benches and a fountain.
…Was this the background from one of the [Event Stills]? It had been… vague.
Louis stopped in front of the fountain.
He gazed at the water as it spouted and flowed, then turned to Leticia—and me.
“[While this may not be something to say to nobles]…”
That didn’t sound quite like the [Official Line].
However, he continued, so I gave up on comparing it to the [Text Log].
“[A world without class distinctions is my ideal.]”
While [Moonlight Liberium], the game starring my sister, was a romance, it occasionally touched upon serious topics.
Chief Physician Louis’s episodes, in particular, made nobles like me uncomfortable.
Well, few women would choose a man simply because he was wealthy and of high status… probably.
While Prince Konrad might be considered a frivolous nobleman, he was competent.
“[A world where everything isn’t determined by birth… All I can do is try to reduce the number of people who die from illness or injury, and even that isn’t enough.]”
The story concluded with this subtle hint, making you wonder what would happen to the aristocracy if you chose Chief Physician Louis’s route.
Surely he wasn’t foolish enough to abolish it outright.
Everyone on the continent knew what had happened to the Principality of Ruins, which had changed its name to a republic after doing just that.
――This chapter was supposed to end with him saying, “[Leticia, will you help me realize this ideal?]” which sounded like a confession, and her [Choice] in response.
I didn’t understand why I was here.
Then, the Chief Physician looked at me, not Leticia.
He turned his entire body towards me, facing me directly.
Why was he looking at me?
“…I’ve heard something several times since becoming Chief Physician.”
“Oh? What have you heard?”
I prompted him, trying my best to hide my confusion.
His black eyes gazed at me intently.
“—‘That’s how things were done under Lady Adelheid.’”
“…………”
“The… returnees, as they’re called… Those who, like Sonia, once took off their coats. Their perspectives are fresh, and I’ve incorporated many of their ideas into the reforms… I think I understand the reason now.”
Louis continued,
“I don’t believe what the Medical Corps has built is inferior to the Vanderwaals… but I don’t think it’s superior either.”
“—It’s not a matter of superiority or inferiority. Our organizations are different in scale and approach. That’s all.”
…And in purpose.
Peace for Eustasia.
And profit for the Vanderwaals.
Compared to the noble, virtuous Royal Medical Corps, with its mission to heal all citizens, our family was much more… pragmatic.
However, ideals couldn’t bandage wounds.
Those who had left my service were no longer my subordinates.
But if their experience, gained under my command, was now benefiting the country elsewhere, it wasn’t bad… it was a… good feeling.
Chief Physician Louis opened his mouth, then closed it, looked down at the ground, then at the fountain.
Wondering what was wrong, I waited patiently.
He swallowed, took a deep breath as if to compose himself…
…and looked at me with a determined gaze.
“…Lady Adelheid, I… I’ve always admired you, in a way.”
“What?”
Admired?
“The Vanderwaals family doesn’t play favorites… in this royal court, swirling with schemes and power plays, your independence, your aloofness… it seemed… admirable.”
“The reality is much more… complicated and messy.”
I scoffed.
Our family was known for its notoriety, and our independence and aloofness were merely a result of being feared, disliked, and kept at arm’s length.
“…Even so, if that’s how it appeared…”
Even if the reality was different.
If that was the impression he, a young man like Louis, had…
“Then it’s probably because our family acts according to its principles.”
“Principles?”
“—Peace for Eustasia.”
The Vanderwaals’ mission remained unchanged.
No matter how many generations passed.
No matter how times changed.
Even after I died.
“Our family protects the nation. Not innocent citizens.”
Duty and loyalty.
I had sworn loyalty to the kingdom—not to the people.
The massive national machinery known as the Kingdom of Eustasia, built by our predecessors.
My role was to keep its gears running smoothly.
…Even if the rust on those gears was the tears, blood, and sweat of the people, that was none of my concern.
“So, you should be the one to protect them. I don’t know anything about that.”
“…Yes.”
He nodded firmly.
…I, too, had admired him.
The rumors of a young physician, two years younger than me, from the nomadic people, with no roots in this country, who had earned trust through his sincerity, his skill, and his character.
Something I could never achieve, having been born into a ducal family.
Something I probably wouldn’t even try to achieve, even if I had been born in the same circumstances.
I didn’t believe what the Vanderwaals had built was inferior to the Medical Corps… but I didn’t think it was superior either.
We were in different fields.
Even poisons that killed could sometimes be medicine.
Even though I understood that…
…I couldn’t help but feel envious… jealous… of Chief Physician Louis.
I was disgusted by my own pettiness.
Just as I was about to sink into self-loathing, Leticia spoke.
“Elder Sister… you’re… who I admire. Ever since… we first met.”
…Admire?
I still couldn’t understand the words that came out of my sister’s mouth.
Leticia looked at me, her blue eyes, the same color as mine, shining with sincerity.
“Can I… become like Elder Sister… too?”
“That’s impossible.”
I dismissed her flatly.
…And my sister visibly deflated.
Her lips tightened, and she looked down.
I touched her shoulder.
And then, as if pushing her away, I gave her a gentle nudge.
I spoke to my sister, who looked up.
“…You shouldn’t.”
My sister shouldn’t become like me.
She shouldn’t admire someone like me.
If there was anyone who could wash away the stains clinging to the gecko emblem of the Vanderwaals, it was my sister.
She was the only one who could make the crest I was so proud of… clean.
“Leticia, walk your own path—…”
My precious little sister.
I swallowed the last words.
We, as sisters, couldn’t walk the same path, as she had said earlier.
Even so.
Even if our paths diverged.
Even if my head was separated from my body.
“—Yes, Elder Sister.”
I would always be your big sister.
…By the way, where was the final [Choice]?
Did this mean she wasn’t choosing the Chief Physician’s route?
They seemed to be getting along well.
While the Chief Physician’s visit to the herb garden concluded without incident, I still felt… unsettled.
Well, tomorrow was the [Joint Training Exercise].
It was official business, something I couldn’t miss as the head of the Vanderwaals family.
I would face it with renewed resolve.
