Chapter 147
“I think I need to go there myself.”
At Hestia’s sudden words, Hilde and Basil stopped what they were doing and looked at her.
“…Go where?”
“There’s a place I need to check. Hilde, could you get a carriage ready? I’ll probably be gone for about four days, so please pack some luggage for me.”
“Uh? Ah… yes, understood.”
Hilde quickly moved to prepare.
Basil, still confused, asked,
“Where exactly are you planning to go at a time like this?”
Hestia paused for a moment before answering slowly,
“…Novelli Town.”
“What?”
“And… Valeron.”
“Wh—WHAT?!”
Even though she had spoken softly, Basil caught it instantly and reacted in shock.
Hestia quickly gathered her things and hurried outside before Basil could start nagging.
Of course, Basil followed right after her.
“This is a bad idea, Lady Hestia! Why would you go to those two places? Novelli Town is one thing, but Valeron is dangerous! Do you know how many patients there are right now?!”
“I know. But I have to go. Don’t worry, I’m not going inside Valeron itself—just to the city gate to meet Young Lord Humphrey… No, he’s Count Humphrey now.”
“Still, no! At least get the young master’s permission before you go!”
Hestia’s shoulders twitched.
Luciard was currently away from the ducal estate.
In fact, that was why she was trying to leave now—because she knew if he were here, he would never let her go.
‘If Luciard knew, he’d be furious. There’s no way I can tell him honestly and still go.’
She stopped walking when Basil kept clinging to her arm.
“He’ll be back this afternoon. Can’t you at least wait until then—”
“Basil, if you keep this up, I’ll take you with me.”
Basil flinched so hard his whole body jolted.
“I actually do need an assistant. Do you want to come?”
“Uh… well…”
Hestia knew very well Basil was a coward. He was good at paperwork, but courage was another matter.
When his grip loosened, she quickly shook him off.
“Don’t worry, I won’t do anything dangerous! I’ll take guards with me.”
Before Basil could react, Hestia was already gone from sight.
‘No, no, no! This is bad!’
He knew her personality—she’d probably stop by other dangerous places too.
And what if she caught the disease?
‘But I can’t just let her go alone! If the young master finds out and asks why I didn’t stop her—’
“Ugh… this job! Why am I still working here?!”
Of course, he knew why—nowhere else paid this well. The workload was heavy, but the salary and bonuses were far above average.
Still, moments like this made him want to quit on the spot.
After weighing his safety against the scolding he’d get later, Basil made a decision.
“Lady Hestia! You can’t go alone!”
In the end, Basil chose to follow her.
Naturally, Hestia hadn’t seriously intended to bring him along.
“…Tia went where?”
“Just a little while ago, she left with Basil, Morgan, and some guards. She said she’d be gone for four days, but didn’t say where.”
Four hours after Hestia left, Luciard and Galleon returned to the estate and were met with this news.
Luciard hurried to her desk.
“…Gone.”
Several of her belongings were missing. Where could she possibly be going in such dangerous times?
“Y-Young master, look at this!”
Galleon, standing at Basil’s desk, held out a hastily written note:
Lady Hestia said she’s going to Novelli Town and Valeron, so I followed her in a hurry. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she doesn’t cause trouble. We’ll be back soon!
“Valeron?! What is she thinking?!”
Galleon suggested they should chase after her right away, but Luciard just crushed the note in his hand, his shoulders trembling in anger.
“Hestia!”
His shout echoed through the estate.
“I’m telling you, if we catch the disease, we’re done for! I’m not even married yet, I don’t want to die!”
Basil whined, sniffling, begging her to turn the carriage around.
Hestia had long since reached enlightenment from listening to his whining since yesterday.
“I told you I’d go alone. Why did you follow me then…?”
“If I let you go alone, how could I face the young master? He’d roast me alive!”
And he wasn’t wrong, so Hestia just turned her head away.
‘Luciard’s probably furious by now.’
She pictured his face when he realized she was gone.
‘Yep, I’m dead.’
If she was going to face his wrath, she needed to bring back some kind of achievement.
“Lady Hestia, we’ve arrived at Novelli Town.”
The coachman tapped on the carriage window.
Basil trembled in fear while Hestia looked out at the tightly closed gates of the town.
They didn’t enter the town but instead stopped at a small area nearby—Novelli’s refugee quarantine facility.
Before refugees were allowed into Novelli Town, they stayed here for two weeks. This facility was Hestia’s idea, created to prevent outbreaks.
“Did you receive the notice from Winston?”
“Yes, to be careful because of the epidemic.”
“We have no issues here. No patients at all, even in this facility. The village head said he sent a letter to you—did you not receive it?”
“I did. That’s why I came—it’s strange that you have zero cases.”
The doctors here were confused. No patients should be good news, but Hestia found it suspicious.
“How have the refugees been over the past month?”
“Similar to our last report—tired, some with blisters or colds, but nothing serious.”
“And no one has shown the epidemic’s symptoms?”
“No, none.”
It seemed they were telling the truth.
“…There are rumors the epidemic started because of refugees.”
“What?!”
Both the doctors and some nearby refugees reacted in shock.
She explained that the South already had over 200 patients, with 6 in her duchy alone—but none here, which was odd.
“Has the Northern refugee camp also had cases?”
“Yes, but interestingly, more patients have appeared outside the camps than inside.”
The doctors muttered in confusion.
“What are the epidemic’s symptoms again?”
“Fever, cough, runny nose, headache, later red rash-like spots on the skin, which can turn black in severe cases. Sometimes vomiting.”
“Do any refugees here have these symptoms?”
“Fever and colds are common, but not the full set.”
It was clear—they didn’t know exactly what disease it was.
In her previous life, they had eventually made a cure, but no one ever figured out exactly what it was.
‘So even Novelli’s people don’t know…’
Just then, an elderly doctor spoke up.
“That sounds like bloodpox.”
“What did you say?”
“Bloodpox. Starts like a bad cold with high fever, then red spots appear all over the body, which later turn black. Classic bloodpox.”
This man was the oldest doctor here, in his 60s. He didn’t live in the facility but came by occasionally to help.
“Bloodpox? I think I’ve heard of it before…”
“Oh! I read about a mysterious illness that once swept through Novelli long ago—it was called bloodpox!”
The old doctor nodded.
“That was over 50 years ago, when I was a child. It was an epidemic then.”
“Do you know the cure?”
“Of course. No Novelli native would forget it.”
Hestia’s face lit up at this unexpected good news.
