The Doctor Cured The Villainess And Ran Away-Chapter 51: The Jealous Princess (1)

"I asked you if you wanted to be the fiancé of the imperial successor."

Heike posed the question flatly as she looked straight at me.

Alberich, who clearly couldn’t follow the flow of the conversation anymore, made a strangled choking sound, utterly aghast.

Let’s think this over, just for a moment.

The Emperor’s consort. A position called gukseo.

Your wife is the highest authority in the entire Empire—you’d barely even get to see her face.

And I’d be locked up in that suffocating palace for a hundred, a thousand days, until I dropped dead.

I wouldn’t be able to sleep properly for fear of assassination every night.

I get it. It’s the same situation I’m in now.

A prisoner in a gilded cage.

So yes, I decline.

"I’m afraid that position is not one prepared for a humble man like myself."

"Hmm."

At my answer, Heike gave the faintest twitch of her lips.

"To show not even a shred of greed at such an offer... You are the ideal servant."

Isn’t it the royal family that’s too greedy?

"Relax your face. I was joking. Even I wouldn’t go so far as to steal my sibling’s fiancé."

"I didn’t realize Your Highness enjoyed jokes."

Heike drew her lips taut, seemingly displeased by my comment.

"Even royalty can make a joke. But if you act this rigidly, there’s no opening to work with."

I hadn’t meant to come off that harsh—but maybe I’d raised my walls too high.

If I let Heike walk away now, I wouldn’t get tangled up with her again.

But I had a slightly better idea.

"Depending on the terms, I could consider selling penicillin to Mokhwigung."

"Truly?"

Heike uncrossed her arms, interest piqued.

"How could I let Your Highness, who graced this place with your noble presence, return empty-handed? That would be the height of discourtesy."

"You’re certainly a well-mannered noble scion. And the condition?"

As expected of royalty—they calculate profit and loss with cold precision. She was definitely cut from the same cloth.

Time to collect what I’m owed.

With a firm voice, I made my proposal.

"An alliance between Mokhwigung and Moonlight Palace."

"Hmm."

If my faction was to grow quietly within the Imperial Clinic, I’d need backing.

Even if I coaxed Falkenhein into supporting me, he couldn’t openly side with us while Asella and Georg were enemies.

And if Alberich kept obstructing me like this, working inside the Clinic would only become more difficult.

I hadn’t asked Asella’s permission for an alliance, but... well, I figured she’d understand once I explained it.

Once allied with us, Heike would inevitably enter open conflict with Georg.

If the two of them drained each other’s strength and collapsed together, that would be a win for Moonlight Palace.

It’d raise Asella’s odds of winning—but... the bad ending probability hasn’t changed yet, so I’ll think about that later.

"An alliance, you say."

What Heike wanted was my medical expertise.

Accepting this deal would allow her to trade with me long-term for medicine, equipment, and more.

If she saw it as an investment, it was probably a sweet enough deal.

Heike finished her calculations and replied.

"I’ll consider it favorably. I’ll meet with Asella myself."

"I look forward to your cooperation."

Already, I was bubbling with excitement over how much I could bleed out of this arrangement.

***

"I'm glad you’re safe."

I returned to Moonlight Palace with Tanya.

There had been enough chaos, so I left the office to Chloe and just wanted some rest.

Chloe had worked herself into a nervous fit worrying about me, but still managed to handle the office perfectly in my absence.

Right now, only I could create penicillin by applying alchemy to the blue mold she’d cultured.

At this pace, I’d be able to entrust Chloe with mass production soon.

We might even start making medicine without alchemy at all.

But when I arrived at Moonlight Palace, I found a face I hadn’t expected to see—and it was a welcome one.

"Big Brother!"

"Neria?"

The moment she saw me, Neria came sprinting in socks and beamed with a radiant smile.

Before I could help it, I smiled too, overcome with joy.

"You’ve been well?"

"Of course. Thanks to the ingredients you sent, I’ve been just fine. But what brings you here?"

"Hehe, surprised?"

She hadn’t hinted at anything in her letters. This was a proper surprise—and a well-executed one.

I patted the top of her head, and she giggled, her silvery-gray hair swaying. After all that suffocating palace life, I finally felt like I could breathe again.

"I came because there’s going to be an important social party."

Ah, she must mean the party honoring the Duke.

"Did Father come too?"

"Father’s busy, so I came in his place. Neria is the face of House Gotberg now!"

"That’s reassuring. I’ll leave the family honor in your hands."

"Haha, I think it’s time the Gotberg family got a younger public face!"

A loud voice joined in, and I turned to see Boris helping tidy up the horses and carriage they’d come in.

The wounds he’d suffered from the goblin shaman had healed completely.

"Have you been well, young master?"

"You look great, Boris."

"Thanks to you. It’s good to see you again, Commander."

"Hmm."

Tanya acknowledged Boris’s greeting with a nod.

"Boris and the knights escorted me all the way to the palace."

"That’s a long trip. Must’ve taken two weeks?"

"We lost a full day just at the palace walls. The entrance procedure is brutal. I can’t even count how many security checks they ran on us."

Boris grumbled, then grinned, showing his teeth.

"More importantly, young master, Commander—we’ve heard the news."

"What news?"

"We saw the footage from the Imperial Martial Arts Tournament. Commander Tanya was amazing."

"You flatter me."

Tanya answered Neria’s praise with humility.

"The Commander kept mentioning you the whole time. Word spread like wildfire—that the eldest son of House Gotberg turned the tournament on its head as a personal physician."

"Hmm, is that so?"

It was good news for me. The wider my name spread, the easier it’d be to rack up achievements.

"Thanks to that, the whole marquisate is in a festive mood. They say applicants for next year’s training academy are already lining up."

"Father was happy too. He sent a letter—I'll give it to you later."

"Looking forward to it. Shall we go inside and talk? Neria, I’ll prepare some tea."

"Yes!"

Excited to be in the palace, Neria looked around curiously as she entered Moonlight Palace.

"I’m due to switch shifts with Bruno, so I’ll excuse myself for now."

Tanya left to take care of other duties.

I brought Neria to the receiving room and asked the attendants to prepare refreshments.

"About those golden roses you sent—they’re growing fast. I think we’ll be able to harvest them soon. It’s getting hotter, but they say we can use higher altitudes. And the roads near the estate..."

Neria began rapid-firing everything she hadn’t been able to say in her letters.

If I left her alone, she’d pass out from lack of oxygen, so I popped a cookie into her mouth to slow her down.

"Palace snacks are so sweet!"

She munched away, unaware of the crumbs on her cheeks.

After a while, once we’d caught up a bit, I brought up the topic I wanted to discuss.

"Neria, have rumors about my medicine reached the marquisate?"

"Yes. Ice... uh, sorry, I forget the name. Something about curing a capital-wide epidemic without using healing magic?"

"Right. Only I can make it for now, but with proper training, other healers could too."

"Really?"

"Yeah. The key ingredient is willow bark—the same stuff you used to send me."

"Ahh... that’s amazing."

I hadn’t brought this up to Neria just to show off.

When Heike made [N O V E L I G H T] her offer...

The idea of setting up an environment to mass-produce and monopolize medicine had tempted me more than I expected.

But then I thought—wait. If it’s that good of a deal, why don’t I just do it myself?

And since Neria happened to be here, it seemed like the right time to float the idea.

"Neria, want to start a business?"

"A business?"

"Yeah. The healer academy only brings in tuition and donations—it’s not a huge moneymaker. And our family isn’t exactly rolling in wealth. Running an estate takes serious funds."

"That’s true. I want to grow up fast and help the family like you do. But what kind of business?"

I pulled out a medicine case from inside my coat.

It was a sample kit, with everything sorted by type.

"Aspirin—for colds and headaches. Penicillin—antibiotic that prevents secondary infections. Red balm—topical antibiotic. Seasickness pills, antiseptic. I’m also working on digestive aids and burn cream."

I explained the plan while jotting it down in a notebook for her to follow.

"That’s a lot of different kinds."

"The more advanced medicines only I can make, but these basic ones could be mass-produced with the right training, equipment, and materials."

Then I said what I’d really been leading up to.

"Let’s build a pharmaceutical factory in the marquisate."

"A medicine factory...!"

Her eyes widened with interest.

Neria had a good education and was naturally bright—she understood right away.

I had no plans to run House Gotberg myself. Being both a doctor and a lord would be impossible.

The pharmaceutical business would have to be led by Neria once she inherited Father’s duties.

"We could help so many sick people!"

Right now, I sell the medicine at high prices because I’m the only one who can make it.

But with a factory, we could lower the cost dramatically.

Ordinary people wouldn’t have to pay so much to see a healer—the burden would shrink massively.

She really was sharp.

"I heard there’s a candy factory in the Empire."

"There is."

"Could we make sweet-tasting medicine like that too?"

"Hmm... maybe?"

She was probably imagining some kind of chocolate medicine.

That her mind shifted so quickly was a reminder—she was still a kid.

"But wouldn’t building a factory that big cost a fortune?"

"It would. Starting without investors would mean heavy risk for our family."

We could maybe begin as a cottage industry, but even then, it’d take serious time and money to train pharmacists and set up the infrastructure.

"We’ll have to find investors. Either way, this will take years—so let’s start slow."

"Okay, Brother. I’ll do my best!"

Neria clenched her little fists with determination.

She was clearly trying to look serious—but her flushed cheeks just made her look even cuter.

If Neria took the lead on this, I could relax.

Hopefully, the factory would be ready by the time I retired from being a personal physician.

How nice would that be? A peaceful, prosperous life.

"I’m counting on you. First, let’s convince Father and start planning."

"Leave it to me! Father always lets me do what I want!"

So energetic. I suddenly wanted to stuff those puffed-up cheeks with more sweets.

"Want a candy?"

"Yes!" fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

I unwrapped a honey drop and passed it over. She popped it in her mouth in one bite.

Just as I was thinking I wouldn’t be bored for a while, I heard a commotion.

Clanking footsteps—knights moving fast.

The palace guards flooded into the receiving room and took position along the walls.

Only one person could be making an entrance like that.

Asella.

"Ah, Your Highness!"

Neria quickly turned and bowed politely to her.

But Asella ignored her greeting.

Arms crossed, chin raised, she stared down at me with a sharp glare.

"Physician."

"Yes."

Golden mana blazed in her eyes.

Now what was she angry about this time?

Asella spoke in a frigid voice.

"Is it true you were proposed to by Heike?"

How in the world did that story get that twisted?