The Terminally Ill Youngest Daughter of a Medical Dynasty Is a Genius Physician - Chapter 52

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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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Episode 52
Dark Magic.
It was a form of sorcery that transcended the realm of Medical Art.
Once believed capable of curing even illnesses that Medical Art could not, it had been thoroughly forbidden after its side effects spawned wraiths in the northern territories.
‘So a book like this still exists in the Central Archives.’
I opened the book again.
‘There was a time I wondered if the cure for my condition might lie not in Medical Art, but in Dark Magic.’
I flipped rapidly through the remaining pages, excluding the sections that had deteriorated.
The archaic language made it difficult to grasp the content at first glance.
Still, scattered characters here and there caught my eye.
‘Just as I thought. It’s almost entirely about the origins and history of Dark Magic.’
How to actually practice Dark Magic was not addressed.
Perhaps that was precisely why this book had survived in the Central Archives until now.
Then my hand stopped on one particular page.
“……Flower?”
A single character caught my eye with unusual force.
Flower—the character for it.
In the margin of the final page, someone had written it in ink, a single character rendered with perfect clarity.
‘What is this?’
Why would a character meaning flower suddenly appear in a book about Dark Magic—
“What are you doing there?”
“Ah!”
Startled, I lost my grip on the book.
Thud!
The ancient volume fell to the floor.
“……!”
I landed hard on my backside and turned to look behind me.
Fortunately, a familiar figure stood there.
“Father!?”
“…….”
He looked every bit as startled as I was.
He widened his eyes and stared at me, then quickly raised both hands.
“Are you hurt? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
“My heart nearly stopped!”
“That’s exactly why—what are you doing in this place alone at such an hour, so absorbed in reading that you didn’t hear me call? I tried three times.”
“You called for me?”
“Three times.”
I hadn’t heard a single word.
It seemed I’d been far too engrossed in the book.
Father came over and helped me to my feet.
Then he carefully straightened my rumpled clothes with his own hands.
“What were you doing, coming all the way to the archives at such a late hour?”
“I was looking for a book.”
“A book?”
“Yes. I wanted to verify something about Byeok Cheong-yeon’s symptoms.”
At those words, Father’s expression shifted slightly.
“Ah. You came because of the treatment.”
“Yes. I need to report on the progress in two days, and there’s something I absolutely wanted to confirm before then…….”
“I see.”
Father simply nodded instead of pressing further.
“Then you should have told your father about it.”
“I’m a proper practitioner now, after all. I learned that independent reflection and inquiry are essential virtues for a practitioner!”
I drew on the lesson from class and stood with my hands planted confidently at my sides.
At that sight, Father let out a helpless chuckle.
“So which book were you searching for?”
“Oh, that’s right!”
Only then did I remember the book I hadn’t yet retrieved.
I quickly pointed to the volume I’d been eyeing.
“That one!”
Father looked up.
“That red book there?”
“Yes. But it’s too high for me to reach.”
“So you made all this mess trying to get it down yourself? This is an absolute disaster.”
Father looked down at the books scattered across the floor.
“…….”
I quietly glanced away.
“I almost… I was almost able to reach it…….”
“Almost doesn’t count—you didn’t get it down, did you?”
Father sighed softly, then reached up with such effortless ease.
Slip.
The book I’d been straining to pull free came loose in one smooth motion.
“Here.”
“…….”
I took the book and pouted at my lips for no good reason.
“Well, you’re tall, Father. That’s why it’s so easy for you.”
“Then next time, when something is up high, call for me.”
“You’re not always nearby, though.”
“Then call for someone else.”
“I can manage things on my own…….”
“Yeong-hwa.”
Father cut me off firmly.
“You are not alone. There is no need for you to do things alone.”
His words struck something tender in my chest.
“……I understand.”
When I answered obediently, Father finally broke into a soft laugh.
I looked down at the old red book now in my hands.
The cover was worn and faded in places from the passage of years.
The title was faint as well, but when I peered closely, I could make out the words clearly enough.
Medicinal and Toxic Herbs Infused with Phoenix Power
‘That’s it. This is the book.’
It was the very same one I’d found in my past life.
Father seemed to notice my recognition and asked with a puzzled expression.
“Why are you looking for this particular book?”
“Because of the Branch Family Head’s poison.”
“Poison?”
“Yes. No matter how many toxic plants I know of and compare, none of their properties match exactly with the Branch Family Head’s symptoms.”
Most of my knowledge of poisonous plants came from my past life, but there was no reason to mention that.
I tapped the book in my hands.
“So I wondered if it might be a rare toxic plant that only grows in other territories.”
“And that thought led you to consider the Jeok-hyeon Family Territory.”
“Yes.”
Father fell silent for a moment, lost in thought, then nodded.
“Your reasoning is sound.”
“Really?”
“Yes. The Jeok-hyeon Family Territory is a land where not only medicinal herbs but toxic plants grow abundantly.”
Father gestured to the old book in my hands.
“Especially because it’s blessed with strong Phoenix energy, rare herbs and toxic plants that can’t be found in other regions grow there. Some of them can’t even survive if transplanted elsewhere.”
“Does that mean the Yak Ryeong-ga can’t obtain some of them either?”
“Some of them, yes.”
I nodded quietly.
‘Then it’s possible.’
If the poison remaining in Byeok Cheong-yeon’s body was one not commonly encountered through the Yak Ryeong-ga, it wasn’t strange that we hadn’t been able to identify it yet.
Moreover, where and from whom Byeok Cheong-yeon had been poisoned still remained unclear.
‘I’ll just have to check through them one by one.’
I opened the ancient book right away.
Rustle.
The old paper crackled as I turned the pages.
Inside, numerous medicinal and toxic plants that had once grown in the Jeok-hyeon Family Territory were documented with illustrations and descriptions.
Many of them had since vanished or could no longer be found there.
A grass bearing red berries.
Medicinal herbs with leaf tips blackened as if scorched by fire.
Toxic plants that curled their leaves shut when night fell.
I’d pored over this volume several times in my previous life, but many of the herbs were recorded under their old names, so I needed to verify each one again.
I read through each symptom and toxicity profile methodically.
‘Not this one either.’
I turned the page.
‘Not this.’
Another page.
‘Not this one either.’
Comparing against Byeok Cheong-yeon’s symptoms, I crossed off each mismatched entry one by one.
Then, at some moment.
Soft rustle.
My hand stilled on the page I was turning.
“…….”
Slowly, I brought the book closer to my face.
‘This is it.’
I held my breath and scanned the passage.
[Upon initial poisoning, the toxin spreads rapidly, much like ordinary poison.
However, even after passing through the critical danger, it does not vanish completely—a portion of the Poison Qi lurks deep within the Meridians.
With time, the visible symptoms gradually weaken, but the toxicity itself does not disappear.]
‘That’s it.’
My eyes raced across the characters.
That was exactly what had happened to Byeok Cheong-yeon.
When I first found her at the Marketplace, the Poison Qi was spreading so rapidly her life hung in the balance.
After I administered detoxification, we passed the acute crisis, yet strangely her arm’s sensation never fully returned.
A faint Poison Qi continued to linger in her Meridians.
But the text did not end there.
I read the next passage.
‘If left untreated for prolonged periods…….’
My fingers stopped.
[The Poison Qi advances along the Blood Vessels upward, and if it reaches the eyes, it can cause blindness.]
“……!”
I swallowed hard.
‘Byeok Cheong-yeon will lose both her eyes.’
The present symptoms.
The lingering Poison Qi.
And the blindness that awaited her in time to come.
Everything aligned.
‘This is the poison!’

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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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