When I flinched in surprise, Betty glanced back and forth between me and the direction of the sound, looking troubled.
“…What was that just now?”
I asked, and after a moment of hesitation, she carefully replied.
“I think young master is very unwell. That’s his room. Shall we head back?”
She gently tugged at my hand.
But I didn’t move.
Arsene’s voice?
That was strange. When I saw him earlier in the garden, he had looked perfectly fine.
I tugged on Betty’s hand instead.
“…I want to see him. Is that okay?”
“Huh?”
“He’s my friend, right?”
Betty’s eyes widened in shock at my words, her lips parting slightly as if she were at a loss.
“Miss, I don’t think the young master is in good condition today…”
That’s exactly why now’s the perfect time.
Right now! This very moment!
When Arsene is sick and crying, I’ll appear—ta-da!—and heal him with my ability.
That’ll be the perfect way to prove how useful I am.
Even though I’d already gotten his word that I wouldn’t be thrown out, I still couldn’t shake the anxiety…
Clutching Betty’s skirt, I begged her. She let out a deep sigh.
Then, still holding my hand, she carefully led me toward the room.
Meanwhile, muffled sounds of distress continued to seep out from beyond the door.
When she knocked lightly, a maid with dark hair poked her head out, looking flustered.
“Betty? What is it? Whatever it is, now isn’t a good time, the young master—”
“Chloe, the young lady wishes to see him.”
As Betty gently guided me forward, the maid—Chloe—stared down at me with wide eyes.
“The young lady? Ah! Could you be from the new clan?”
“That’s right. So, will you open the door?”
Chloe’s face instantly brightened.
“I heard the master would be bringing home a child from the new clan, but I didn’t expect it so soon!”
She beamed and flung the door wide open.
So the rumor had already spread—that a child of the new clan was coming here.
Well, it would have been stranger if rumors hadn’t spread, considering the wolf clan’s leader personally went to Raniero.
No wonder they opened the door so readily.
The door creaked open, and I peeked into the room.
At that very moment, I locked eyes with Arsene, his face flushed bright red.
“…Hi?”
I gave a little wave.
Arsene’s eyes went wide, panic written all over his pale face.
It seemed he hadn’t yet been told about the arrival of a girl from the new clan.
Maybe they’d planned to tell him later, afraid the news would upset a sick child.
That explains why he didn’t recognize me in the garden earlier, too.
Well, I had only arrived here yesterday, so it wasn’t unreasonable.
I walked closer to Arsene’s bed.
He hesitated, then quickly yanked the blanket over his head and hid.
Huh?
I’d thought he’d be glad to see me since we’d already met once. Apparently not.
To be fair, our first meeting hadn’t left the best impression.
Judging from the medicine bowl in the maid’s hand and the stained blankets, Arsene had been throwing a tantrum about taking his medicine.
And now he was embarrassed I’d caught him at it, so he was lashing out.
I pushed past the cluster of maids and plopped down on the bed without asking.
“Hey! What are you doing?! Get off my bed!”
“Am I not allowed to sit here?”
“Of course not! Get down right now!”
His face grew even redder.
I looked at the spilled medicine, the awkward maid still holding the silver spoon, and then at Arsene’s sulky expression.
“I’m Linci,” I said brightly. “From the new clan. I came to heal you.”
I introduced myself first, hoping it would ease his guard.
“The new clan? Why would one of them come here? Don’t tell me—”
But instead of relaxing, Arsene only looked more wary at the mention.
This won’t do.
I quickly grabbed his small hand. His face flushed crimson, and he yanked it away in a panic.
“Don’t touch me!”
“Okay, I won’t. Can I touch your arm instead?”
“No! Don’t touch me at all! Get out!”
What a prickly boy.
“How about your foot?”
“Not that either! Don’t touch any part of me, you idiot!”
Arsene fumed, his voice sharp with indignation.
The maids, clearly used to this, began coaxing him gently.
“You mustn’t be like this, young master. She’s meant to be your friend.”
“Who said I want a friend?!”
He yanked the blanket back over his head.
But I pulled it down again.
Something felt… off.
There’s no wolf scent on him.
As the Eckhart heir, he couldn’t be a half-blood. If he had no wolf scent, it meant one of two things: either he was very ill… or a mutation.
Or, like Kendrick, he could be hiding his aura deliberately.
But in Arsene’s case, it was clearly the first.
I studied the boy squirming under the blanket, then yanked it away completely.
“What are you doing?!”
Arsene shrieked, his face flushed bright red.
“…Hey, Arsene. You don’t want to take your medicine, do you?”
At my blunt words, his small body flinched.
After a moment, he gave a reluctant nod.
His sweat-damp hair clung to his forehead.
I glanced at the bowl. The thick green liquid looked as bitter as it smelled.
No wonder a seven-year-old didn’t want to drink it.
I grabbed his hand again—this time lacing my fingers with his so he couldn’t escape.
“Listen. If you do what I say, you won’t have to take the medicine.”
“…Liar!”
“It’s true. I never lie.”
“…What?”
“And not only that—you might even be able to run outside and play.”
Arsene peeked at the bowl, then back at me, uncertainty in his eyes.
“…Really?”
Got him.
He still looked doubtful, but the fact that he didn’t pull his hand away said everything.
“Of course. I told you, I don’t lie.”
I nodded firmly. After a moment, Arsene nodded too, his soft gray hair falling into his eyes.
I brushed his bangs aside and squeezed his hand.
“Remember how I healed your wound in the garden earlier?”
“…Yeah.”
“If I hadn’t, they’d have put a bunch of stinging medicine on it.”
I made a scary face, and Arsene winced.
“Right?”
“…Yeah.”
“So this time, trust me again.”
He nodded meekly, no longer resisting.
Once I was sure he’d stopped fidgeting, I focused on our joined hands.
The power of special abilities is something you’re born with—it’s only the timing of awakening that differs.
Every child born with a blessing from the gods learns to wield it eventually.
I closed my eyes.
Fresh greenery tickled my senses. Warm wind wrapped around me.
I focused on the point where our hands met.
Slowly, I felt my ability flowing into Arsene.
Each family member had their own method of healing. Father would pour his power in all at once. My half-brother Gail, heir of Raniero, solidified his power and fed it like food.
But I’m different. I insert my power directly into the body, sense the condition, and then heal from within.
It was less taxing than their brute-force methods. In my previous life, if I was in good condition, I could heal up to four people a day.
Green light spread through Arsene’s body, filling every corner.
The vibrant glow spilled across the room, as if a forest had grown within it.
Some of the maids gasped softly in awe.
Arsene’s eyes went wide too, but he stopped struggling, watching quietly.
About five minutes passed.
…This is hard!
All my brave words about healing him seemed hollow now—treating Arsene was overwhelmingly difficult.
This isn’t normal. It’s never been this hard before.
It felt like if I didn’t stop, not just my power but my very life force might be drained away.
But I have to heal him. That’s the reason I came here. If I fail, they might send me back to Raniero…
And I can’t let that happen.
I forced my power to continue.
The green wind swirling around us grew rough, reflecting the instability of my ability.
And then—
A familiar green mist began to rise from my feet, curling upward.
No, this can’t be happening!
Arsene’s eyes went wide in confusion.
The maids sensed something was wrong too, rushing to pull us apart.
But by the time they managed to separate our hands, it was already too late.
Bang!
