I Became the Wife of the Hero Who Killed Me - Chapter 6

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#Episode 6

“…What, what!”

Realizing my mistake, I pulled my hands out of the washbasin at the speed of light.

Washing hands at the clinic was something the Elderly Monk always emphasized as naturally as breathing.

When you come here, wash your hands first no matter what. Cleanliness is important for patients with weak immunity. Touching patients with dirty hands is like harming them.

He repeated it so much it was drilled into my ears to the point of brainwashing.

Just like how I instinctively bow my head when facing a noble lord, the Elderly Monk had engraved cleanliness into my body and soul.

Until it became an unconscious automatic reflex.

“My lady, are you perhaps experienced with volunteer work?”

“Th-that can’t be right?! Don’t talk nonsense!”

…sir.

“This much is just common sense! Don’t you know common sense?!”

…sir.

To overcome this crisis, I shouted loudly and kicked the washbasin.

Since it was actually difficult to properly throw a tantrum at this old monk who was like a grandparent, I respectfully addressed him in my mind intermittently to neutralize my guilt.

‘Phew, that was close.’

I thought to myself that I should be careful and threw a tantrum demanding a cleanly boiled towel.

Because wiping hands with contaminated cloth would make washing with soap pointless.

Count Baron, who was about to offer his own handkerchief, quickly put it back pretending not to.

Instead, Filio, who offered a sterilized towel, continued speaking.

“This way.”

“Hmm….”

As I stepped inside, I paused for a moment.

I hadn’t really noticed before, but after staying only in the Duchess’s Bedroom which was the height of luxury, seeing the clinic gave me quite a reverse culture shock.

‘It’s really old, cramped, and shabby.’

The cleaning was done thoroughly in every corner. It was spotless without a single cobweb or speck of dust.

However, looking at the exposed ceiling beams and old rotting pillars, I thought that just washing hands cleanly wouldn’t be enough.

I turned my head, trying to ignore some desire that was slowly rising from a corner of my heart.

“It’s just time to distribute meals to the patients. Would that be alright?”

“Of course.”

Filio suggested the easiest task in the clinic to me.

I gladly nodded and went around between the beds distributing hard bread and thin soup.

More precisely, Count Baron struggled to drag the food tray while I took out plates one by one and handed them to patients.

Most received them with reluctant expressions and just nodded their heads roughly.

‘There are more patients than I thought. Still, at this rate I can finish quickly.’

Since there were few clinics at the Lombard Outer Walls, this place was always crowded with poor patients.

Before long, no one was paying attention to Count Baron and me.

Just as I felt much lighter and was about to move to the next bed, a patient who spotted me began struggling and thrashing about.

“Damn it, you dirty whore from the Imperial Capital! If you lay even a fingertip on my body, I won’t let it slide!”

“Sure, sure, I won’t touch you so don’t worry. I’ll just give you bread and go—”

“Khaak, ptui!”

Then, before anyone could stop him, he spat at me.

His aim was off though, so Count Baron who was right next to me got hit instead.

“….”

Instantly the atmosphere turned cold as if cold water had been poured over it.

Everyone’s gaze turned this way. They were watching my reaction with anxious faces.

‘I wonder how I’ll react.’

Actually, Count Baron was the victim of the attack.

But the fact that the patient had spat at me, the duchess, remained unchanged.

Thanks to gaining justification, the baron began raging.

“Is no one here?! Drag that lowly bastard outside immediately and cut off his head!”

“Try it if you can! Because of that bitch, His Grace the Duke…!”

“What, why is everyone just standing there?! I should bring soldiers and beat everyone here to make them come to their senses!”

The baron seemed to have forgotten about me entirely now.

Having abandoned even the justification of doing it for the lady, the baron began rolling around grabbing each other’s hair with the patient.

People were secretly on the patient’s side so no one intervened, and only when the baron mentioned soldiers did they make half-hearted gestures of trying to stop them.

I watched that pathetic sight while subtly covering my mouth.

‘So this is why they say watching fights is fun.’

I would have been annoyed if precious me had been hit, but since it was that damn boss who had been tormenting me getting it, I was actually excited.

I pretended to be shocked while watching, but regrettably soon returned to my duties.

I wanted to watch more, but humanly speaking, nothing was as pitiful as being sick and hungry. I knew this well from being imprisoned and tortured.

“Take this.”

“Oh, yes….”

I held out a plate to the patient in the next bed who had a bewildered expression.

The hesitating patient looked quite anxious, so I directly placed the bread and plate in their hands and moved to the next bed to repeat the same task.

I also washed my hands intermittently to prevent cross-infection as the monk had emphasized.

I didn’t forget the annoying act of constantly muttering ‘I feel disgusted after direct contact with patients’ in case someone found it suspicious.

I worked as quickly as possible, but by the time I had distributed food to all the beds, the fight had unfortunately ended.

It was an overwhelming victory for the patient who was a carpenter.

Even though he couldn’t use one arm at all due to splints and bandages, he showed remarkable spirit by thoroughly beating the baron who had all his limbs intact.

I gently patted the loser’s shoulder.

“You fought well enough, Baron.”

“What? No, but thinking of my lady’s honor, I should immediately mobilize soldiers….”

“What would you accomplish by getting angry at a patient? It’s a fight with nothing to gain, isn’t it.”

Actually I had gained satisfaction, but I decided not to mention that.

But perhaps because it was unexpected that I was stopping the baron, hushed whispers could be heard from all around.

“What’s wrong with that woman?”

“Who knows. She was probably annoyed.”

For some reason, the way they addressed me had changed from ‘whore from the Imperial Capital’ to ‘that woman.’

I thought my decision to prioritize meals over watching the fight had probably formed a consensus. Food was an important matter for everyone after all.

Just then.

“Th-this is terrible! Everyone please help!”

“What’s wrong, Joseph?”

The clinic door opened roughly and a boy rushed in breathing heavily and shouting.

He was an apprentice who handled errands for Monastery Head Filio.

Before the surrounding monks could ask back with surprised faces, Joseph continued.

“An accident, there’s been a collapse accident in the Western Mine…!”

“What did you say?!”

When a collapse accident happened in the mine, there were usually quite a lot of casualties. Enough to paralyze the clinic’s operations for a while.

‘But that’s not supposed to happen today?’

Since it was one of the few major accidents, I clearly remembered the circumstances at that time.

The mine accident was supposed to happen two weeks from now.

The timing was shortly after Elisia had married into Lombard.

At that time, she had issued a ban on residents entering the mountains for two weeks, saying she would go winter hunting. There was much opposition but she ignored it all.

And the accident happened on the first day after the entry ban was lifted.

Perhaps because of the timing, people claimed that divine punishment had fallen on Lombard land because the wrong mistress had entered.

I really heard it until my ears were sick of it.

“Please clear these beds!”

“We need to bring medicine and bandages. As quickly as possible before the injured arrive…”

“Patient! Father, please look at this patient!”

The preparations hadn’t even begun when injured miners came pouring in.

Most of those carried on carts were covered in black dust, making it difficult to tell at a glance exactly where they were injured, and a considerable number were unconscious.

Moreover, there wasn’t just one or two of these carts.

“Over here! Please come quickly!”

“The patient isn’t breathing!”

Urgent cries could be heard from all directions. Not only inside the clinic but the entire outdoor area was in chaos.

Some of the lightly wounded were sent to other clinics, but most were those requiring urgent treatment.

Now, noble or not, we needed every available hand.

Unfortunately, I was experienced in clinic volunteer work, and no matter how desperate my own situation was, I wasn’t cold-blooded enough to ignore patients dying right before my eyes.

“Start with Patient Triage!”

I grabbed the confused volunteers and patients who could move and gave orders.

“Unconscious patients are the priority. Bring them inside regardless of the severity of their visible injuries, and if they’re conscious, send them quickly to other clinics!”

“What? Oh, yes!”

The people who had been blinking blankly at the sudden orders belatedly nodded and ran outside.

I handed the Imperial Seal Ring to trainee Joseph.

“You go into the inner castle walls and gather as many physicians as possible. If you show them my seal, they’ll come without question, but if they still refuse, tell them they can’t guarantee what happens next.”

In Lombard, there was only one person who could use the Imperial Family’s seal, so no matter how much they disliked it, they’d have no choice but to come if they didn’t want to face execution.

‘I’ve wanted to do this for so long. It feels so refreshing.’

I recalled the past.

When the same incident occurred before, not one of the many physicians from the inner castle walls came to help this place.

Even when the families of dying miners knelt before the physicians all night begging, not a single one stepped forward.

They were originally reluctant to care for patients from the outer castle walls.

To become a certified physician, one had to graduate from the Academy, which required the status and wealth to afford the high tuition.

In other words, their reason was that as nobles, they didn’t want to care for lowly people.

Joseph, who knew this well, clutched my ring like his life depended on it and ran off.

“Count Baron, why are you just standing there staring? Quickly wash your hands and apply pressure to their wounds to stop the bleeding first. Try not to touch anything else.”

“But my lady! How can I, a noble, do such dirty and arduous work…”

“What did you say? I can’t hear you well.”

“Yes, yes, you must have misheard!”

When I gripped the club, Count Baron knelt without hesitation.

This was exactly what made the Count Baron useful.

I selected the cleanest cloth available and applied pressure to the bleeding areas.

It would have been better if an expert had done it, but the situation didn’t allow for that. Patients kept flooding in while we were severely short on medical staff.

We had to do what we could until this person’s turn came.

“We’re running out of medicine!”

“We’ve used almost all the bandages and linen cloth!”

“Um, we’re about to run out of firewood to boil water too…”

Urgent cries came from all directions.

Naturally, a poor clinic had no means to stockpile herbs or supplies abundantly.

I squeezed my eyes shut tight.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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