The Lady Only Deals With the Real Ones - Chapter 4

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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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***

I first learned about Grandfather’s illness half a year ago.

It was literally like being struck by lightning out of the blue.

“Who are you?”

Grandfather, who had just woken up, asked me who I was.

“Don’t joke around, Grandfather. What do you mean who am I?”

When I said Elisha, he asked what I was talking about since his granddaughter was only fifteen years old.

I knew instinctively. This wasn’t a joke or anything else.

“My grandfather is acting strange. He wasn’t like this until yesterday…”

I barely managed to convince Grandfather by showing him all kinds of evidence and took him to the hospital.

The doctor who heard my explanation tilted his head.

“This is really strange. It doesn’t seem like dementia at first glance. There were no warning signs either.”

“Then what could it be? Memory loss? Grandfather, did you slip this morning and hit your head or something?”

“It doesn’t appear to be memory loss either.”

“…Then could he be under some kind of curse magic? As you can see, my grandfather’s appearance and personality are a bit… He’s not exactly someone who couldn’t make enemies.”

“I’m not an expert on curse magic, but that’s probably not it either. The test results show that patient Michele’s internal mana concentration is 0. It’s so low you’d wonder if it could even be this absent.”

I met with other doctors and mages, but they all gave similar answers.

Except for one doctor who claimed to have been a personal physician to some noble family.

“Hmm, perhaps…”

The doctor who had been muttering like that handed Grandfather a tea made from boiled black herbs.

The color looked like oil. Is it safe to drink something like that?

I watched with half doubt and half anxiety as Grandfather drank the tea and coughed.

“Why is this so bitter? Elisha, bring me some water. Something warm. And if there’s lemon or something for the aftertaste, add some of that too.”

“…Oh, Grandfather! Do you remember me? The way you’re naturally bossing me around makes it seem like your memory really came back…!”

“Bossing around? What bossing around? This kid, cough.”

I immediately ran out and somehow managed to get warm water with lemon slices as requested.

Grandfather’s expression finally relaxed after drinking the lemon water.

“Thank goodness, we found a medicine after all. What kind of herb is this? No, more importantly, what’s the cause?”

I asked brightly, but the doctor couldn’t readily answer.

From his hesitant expression as he seemed to gauge my reaction, I had a feeling.

This definitely wouldn’t be hopeful news.

“…It’s suspected to be a disease called Mendax. It’s a rare illness, so this is the first actual case I’ve seen.”

“Wh-what kind of disease is that?”

“It’s known to be caused by long-term exposure to certain toxic substances. However, the incubation period is long, making it difficult to pinpoint the exact cause.”

“But there is medicine for it, right? Right? Can’t he be cured by drinking that tea?”

“This is an herb called snowdrop root, which is a very powerful antidote. Fortunately it worked, but I actually wouldn’t recommend it. It’s not a fundamental cure, and it’s an herb with many side effects…”

“Give it to me.”

“Grandfather!”

While I was listening in a daze, Grandfather cut him off.

I was horrified and tried to stop him.

“No, he said it has many side effects. Let’s go to other places. Now that we know the disease name, if we ask around, there might be someone who knows other treatments.”

“Just today we met five doctors and two mages. Over the week, it’s been even more. Among them, this doctor was the only one who gave anything resembling an answer.”

Grandfather was right. The other doctors couldn’t even get a clue.

Grandfather persuaded me as I hesitated.

“So wouldn’t it be better to ask this doctor to inquire and research for us? He would know far more doctors in this field.”

“Still…”

“If you succeed in curing me, I’ll gladly become material for your thesis. How about it? Isn’t it worth the challenge?”

Grandfather laughed heartily. The doctor nodded.

“I’ll do my best.”

“See? We just need to wait. Ugh, my mouth still tastes bitter. Don’t you have any candy?”

Grandfather left leisurely, and only I remained.

Since there really weren’t any other options, I was about to say goodbye and leave as well.

The hesitant doctor stopped me.

“Excuse me, guardian.”

“Yes?”

“The patient… will continue going back to the past.”

Just like how he forgot me from age sixteen to twenty, Grandfather would eventually go to a time when I didn’t exist.

It meant that Grandfather would eventually forget me completely.

“Please try to avoid questions that make him recall the past as much as possible. There’s a risk that the symptoms could rapidly worsen.”

“Yes. I understand.”

“Are you alright?”

“…No.”

Tears fell drop by drop.

The crying I had been barely holding back burst out all at once, and I collapsed, sobbing as I spoke.

“I’m not alright at all…”

Much later, I came out pretending to be fine.

Grandfather must have seen my swollen eyes, but he didn’t say anything.

Instead, he just handed me a blueberry-flavored candy, my favorite, and roughly patted my head.

Since that day, I haven’t been able to eat blueberries or anything that tastes like blueberries.

***

There’s no way I could ask such a grandfather about this.

The effects of the snowdrop root were gradually weakening too. For the past few days, it hadn’t even lasted an hour.

The side effects had also become noticeably worse.

‘He would suddenly fall asleep as if fainting and couldn’t be woken up no matter what.’

In my previous life too, he happened to fall asleep when the relatives came…

I had no choice but to let them take Grandfather away.

‘That can never happen again.’

To-Do List

[1. Reclaim the Rionet Family]

[2. Run the pawnshop well]

[3. Find a way to cure Grandfather]

Looking at the third item I had pressed down hard while writing, I resolved to do everything I could.

“I won’t be able to visit for a while anyway.”

I muttered as if making a vow.

The Rionet people might put a tail on me.

After going through the trouble of even writing a confidentiality agreement, I couldn’t let Grandfather’s location be discovered because of me.

Visiting Grandfather would have to wait until the Rionet people were dealt with.

“And while running the pawnshop, I might be able to get clues about Grandfather’s illness.”

I might be able to obtain old books or ancient documents with treatment methods written in them.

‘For now, let’s focus on running the pawnshop.’

I had already made all the plans.

‘Whose granddaughter am I? I can do this!’

I was fiddling with my necklace when I fell asleep without even fully drying my hair.

***

I woke up at dawn and packed my few belongings.

Among them was Hugo’s pouch of silver coins. I thought about throwing it away since it came from that annoying bastard, but whatever else I might discard, money isn’t something you throw away.

“And he kept the gold coins for himself? What a petty little mind…”

Walking briskly to the cheerful jingling of coins.

I suddenly realized it had been an incredibly long time since I’d gone to the pawnshop.

“It’s been almost 10 years, I think? I haven’t been there since I was ten.”

Grandfather didn’t really like me going to the pawnshop.

He’d threatened me not to even think about coming before I became an adult.

It was the same even during the six months when he couldn’t open the pawnshop due to illness.

When I asked if I could go and run the business for a few days, Grandfather shook his head firmly.

“No. Opening and closing sporadically is worse than not opening at all. I’ve taken care of all the urgent matters, so you don’t need to worry about it for a while.”

Was it because of the neighborhood atmosphere?

‘It’s not really a place for a young girl to wander around alone.’

The pawnshop is located in an alley below the Old Fortress, in what’s called ‘Ashen Street.’

It got that nickname because the streets are narrow and dark, with many old buildings.

‘True to its name, there’s an Information Guild and even mages who take on somewhat illegal requests.’

From Grandfather’s grumbling about people coming to sell stolen goods, there seems to be a Thieves’ Guild there too.

Still, I wasn’t scared.

I’d heard all sorts of stories from Grandfather, and more importantly.

‘If you think about it, Grandfather is probably the scariest person there.’

The pawnshop was getting closer. I could see familiar shops.

“What should I start with before opening?”

I wanted to open right away, but there were things to do before officially opening the doors.

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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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