The Immortal Duke’s Physician Is an Internist - Chapter 51

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“Ha ha ha! Forgive me for the late introduction. I’m Debright, Master of the Magic Tower. Just call me Deb!”
The boy laughed heartily as he introduced himself. I ventured to ask what had been puzzling me.
“Ah, yes. Um, is the Magic Tower Master perhaps… your age…?”
“Oh, I’m actually one hundred and one this year, but I used Forbidden Magic long ago and ended up with a boy’s body. It’s fine—don’t worry about age and just treat me comfortably.”
‘Treat him comfortably, he says….’
We walked through the forest toward the plain where a temporary shelter awaited us.
As we walked, the Magic Tower Master Debright chattered ceaselessly. I carefully turned to Everain.
“How did you know I’d come here?”
“Ah, well….”
“That’s because your teacher used the Teleportation Scroll I made!”
Debright interjected abruptly. Everain’s mouth closed again, and the Magic Tower Master eagerly explained the situation.
“The Teleportation Scroll your teacher used—I created it by infusing my own mana into it, so whenever someone uses it, I can sense it. So I flew over to check, and what do you know? There’s the Duchess I’d only heard about by rumor! That’s why I quickly cast a spell and—bang!—here we are.”
“Ah, yes. Now that you mention it, you saved me, but I didn’t properly thank you. I’m truly grateful for what you did just now.”
“Ha ha ha! No, no, sweet Lionel. Blassion really did marry a good woman. What a relief! You’re a completely different type from all the people he’s married before….”
“Please, shut that mouth of yours, Debright.”
The Duke, walking ahead, made his displeasure abundantly clear, and Debright hurriedly hid behind me.
“Listen here, Lionel. It’s best to avoid men with pasts they’d rather keep hidden. It’s all just a wedding for show anyway, right? We’ve got plenty of upstanding young men at our tower—want me to introduce you?”
“I appreciate your concern, but I believe one marriage is quite enough for me.”
“Sigh….”
The Duke sighed deeply, as if conceding defeat. I quickened my pace to walk beside him and spoke.
“Your Grace, I believe the Crown Prince may have visited the Mansion. That’s why my aide sent me here.”
The Duke answered calmly, as if he’d expected as much.
“Just as I thought.”
“Is there any way to return to the Mansion quickly? I’m afraid of what the Crown Prince might have done when he found me missing.”
“Kaelen won’t cause problems. I made all the arrangements before we left. He’s probably leisurely eating pastries by now.”
At his nonchalant reply, I furrowed my brow.
“…Are you truly certain about that?”
“Your teacher is here with us, so there’s no issue.”
It was just as the Duke said that.
Suddenly the view opened wide, and a vast plain came into sight. Realizing we’d left the forest, I let out a breath of relief.
“My lady?”
Theo, recognizing me from far off, came running over. The other knights with him advanced toward us as well.
“My lady, why are you here? Weren’t you supposed to be at the Mansion?”
“Well, that is….”
As I fumbled for an answer and glanced at the Duke for guidance, Theo suddenly cried out loudly.
“Heavens! You couldn’t bear to be apart from His Grace for another moment!!”
“…What?”
“At the Mansion you both were so cool and distant when you greeted each other that I thought you weren’t even upset. But to follow all the way out here…!! Truly, the power of newlyweds!”
Oh, divine powers, please strike down that mouth!
Even as I screamed internally, the misunderstanding spread swiftly in all directions.
The knights nodded with bright expressions.
“Ah yes, of course! With such a passionate new marriage, no wonder you were so desperate to be reunited!”
“Your Grace! My lady came all this way just to see you—won’t you embrace her once!”
“Ah, no….”
At a short distance away, Everain watched us with a sullen expression, while Debright observed with keen interest.
Under their gaze, I felt I might lose my mind, so I desperately objected.
“Just look at the state I’m in. I’m covered head to toe in mud.”
“Nonsense, our Grace wouldn’t mind such a thing. Isn’t that right, Your Grace?”
“Of course. She is my beloved wife, after all.”
Blassion looked at me. He said nothing, but bewilderment flickered plainly in his eyes.
Damn it. Now I had to make a decision.
‘Fine…. It’s not like it’ll wear out. Let me just put on a little performance and be done with it.’
I shut my eyes tight and suddenly embraced the Duke.
“Your Grace, I missed you so much!”
“Ohhh!!”
These weren’t teenagers, yet their reactions were so enthusiastic at every turn. Amid the applause of the knights, I eagerly waited for them to be satisfied.
But then something unexpected happened.
“…?”
Without a word, the Duke wrapped both his arms around my back.
My face flushed instantly as we embraced before everyone’s eyes, and the crowd roared with even greater fervor.
“What a marvel! To witness the Duke so tender and affectionate in my lifetime!”
“Be happy! Congratulations once more!”
I could no longer face them, so I simply buried my face in the Duke’s broad chest.
Despite my embarrassment and shame and the heat flooding my face, his embrace was comforting and warm.
And the Tower Master and the Knight Commander, watching this newlywed couple……
“Everain.”
“Yes.”
“It seems Blassion has grown far fonder of that physician than I initially expected.”
Everain gazed at the two of them for a long moment, then nodded.
“That does appear to be the case, sir.”
* * *
Not having to spend the night in that frightening forest was a genuine relief, but another crisis awaited me—one born of the men’s excessive consideration.
They all treated me with remarkable kindness, seeing me as an overly devoted wife who had followed her husband on campaign.
“Surely the lady should share quarters with the Duke.”
“They’re newlyweds, after all!”
“Ah, yes…….”
I was neither warrior nor asset to the expedition, and I hadn’t the audacity to demand separate lodgings for myself.
I had no choice but to enter the Duke’s tent.
The Duke sat at a makeshift table studying maps, and looked up as I approached.
“How did you find bathing in the river?”
“It brought back memories of playing in the river with my mother when I was small.”
“A pleasant memory, then.”
With that, he returned his eyes to the map. When I continued to stand awkwardly, he gestured toward a camp bed.
“You can sleep here.”
“And you, sir?”
“I’ll keep the Night Watch.”
Of course—this man was an Immortal who had no need for sleep.
Still, I felt too guilty to move, and remained standing. The Duke then rose from his seat and brought over a blanket.
“Get some rest tonight. Tomorrow’s troubles can wait for tomorrow.”
“Yes…….”
The Duke draped the blanket over my shoulders and left the tent.
Left alone, I lay down on the camp bed.
It had been such an eventful day that I felt I might fall asleep instantly, yet……
‘I can’t sleep.’
My hope that the crickets’ song and the gentle breeze would make a soothing lullaby proved entirely wrong. My mind grew only more alert.
After tossing and turning for perhaps two hours, I finally sat up.
I stepped quietly to the tent’s entrance and opened it, and there—at a short distance—I saw the Duke’s back.
Crack. Crackle.
I was gazing blankly at his shadow, cast by a small campfire, when he suddenly called out to me.
His gaze remained fixed ahead.
“Doctor.”
“Yes? Yes?”
“If you cannot sleep, you may come over here.”
Did he mean for me to sit beside him?
I approached the Duke cautiously. He was perched on a log, and he shifted slightly to make room.
I bowed my head and sat beside him.
“……What were you doing?”
“Observing the constellations.”
“Ah…….”
Taken aback by his answer, I too looked up at the sky.
In the night when all slept, the clear heavens glittered with stars both large and small.
“Do you care for the stars?”
“I cannot say I am fond of them one way or another, but when keeping Night Watch alone like this, there is little else to occupy my attention.”
“I think I used to gaze at the starry sky with my mother as a child. I remember knowing quite a few constellations then. But those memories have faded now.”
How many years had it been since I had gazed at the night sky together with someone?
The memory stirred something soft in my heart. Back then, I never could have imagined myself sitting like this beside an Immortal.
“Doctor. I owe you an apology.”
The Duke’s sudden words made me tilt my head in confusion.
“Is there something you did wrong to me?”
“When I hired you as a teacher, I conducted a background investigation. And in the process, I learned about your origins—where you came from.”
“Ah…….”
A background check, I could understand that much. I already knew there had been thirty-two suspicious applicants, which was a headache in itself.
But it seemed odd that he’d suddenly brought up my hometown.
“Well, you could certainly investigate me that way, but why my hometown?”
“I came to the western frontier on the Emperor’s orders, yes—but I had another purpose. And now that you’re here, I’ve decided I must reveal it.”
The Duke paused, exhaling slowly before continuing.
“I want to investigate the plague that destroyed your hometown.”

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