Rose (2)
"Get out."
The first words she uttered.
But it was a chilling sound, too cold to be directed at family.
Charlotte's lips faltered.
"······Elise."
"I said get out. I don't want to see that disgusting face."
"But."
"Can't you hear me? Get out, all of you."
"······."
The harsh words pierced deeply.
Her blue eyes wavered.
She seemed to shrink back from the fierce reaction, but it didn't take long for Charlotte to clench her fists.
It was a firm resolve not to give in this time.
"You need treatment. This opportunity won't come again."
"What does that have to do with you?"
"Because I'm your older sister."
"Hah··· Bullshit."
Rose let out a hollow laugh.
Her slender fingers grabbed something and threw it at the girl in front of her.
It was an empty flower vase that had been on the bedside table.
Crash-!
It narrowly missed Charlotte and shattered on the floor.
The shards of glass scattered at her feet were particularly eerie.
"······."
The violent act finally silenced her sister.
The younger sister simply glared at her not-so-distant sibling, her eyes filled with a terrible coldness.
Her bloodless lips whispered a warning.
"I told you, didn't I? Whether I die or not is none of your business."
"······."
"I don't need your pity."
"You know it's not pity."
"I didn't want to know. Not once have I ever wanted to be alive by your side."
"Why··· Why do you always say such awful things?"
The conversation took a suffocating turn.
I belatedly recalled the setting.
Elise's characteristics.
Her bad relationship with her older sister, Charlotte, and her terrible personality.
There were many similar scenes in the original story.
'Was it this bad?'
Looking at the subdued Charlotte, such thoughts naturally came to mind.
The atmosphere had become irrevocably cold.
It seemed as if neither of them had me in their sights anymore.
As I stood there wondering what to do, Elise suddenly started coughing, clutching her chest.
At the same time, blood mixed with her labored breaths.
"Cough, ugh···!"
A pained expression.
A momentary cough of blood added a red hue to her pale lips.
Charlotte stepped forward as if to run to her, but the words "get out" that followed stopped her from taking another step.
She froze, unable to do anything.
It was an uncharacteristically flustered look.
She wanted to stop the seizure, but she didn't know how.
She wanted to hold her hand, but that would only make things worse, so it was literally a situation where she couldn't do anything.
I sensed that this was the perfect timing.
"Your Highness."
I lightly touched Charlotte's shoulder.
When her trembling pupils looked back, I smiled reassuringly and spoke confidently.
"I'll try my hand at it."
"Can you do it···?"
"Of course. Isn't that why you called for me?"
Trust is truly deceitful.
It's enough to whisper the words they most want to hear at their most difficult moment.
Because humans are weak.
They tend to use the words they want to hear as a basis for trust.
I whisper sweet words.
"I think I can cure her."
Her blue eyes widened.
The words she wanted to hear most.
Just a short sound, but it filled the void.
I whisper a condition that she can't refuse between the loosely intertwined threads of trust.
It's the first step in putting a leash on herself.
"But in order to treat her, I need Your Highness's active cooperation."
"Cooperation···?"
"You need to trust me."
Poor Little Prince.
The possibility that she, who has cherished the rose for so long, would refuse this condition…
"······Alright. I'll do whatever you say."
Is nonexistent.
***
A few minutes later.
Only Rose and I remained in the room.
It was what I had requested.
That no one else should be present for the treatment.
The already half-mesmerized Charlotte nodded and headed out the door with the maid who had been tending to Rose.
The scene, devoid of human presence, was deathly quiet.
"Cough···!"
Only the occasional cough broke the silence.
I stared at the bed shrouded in darkness.
A single rose blooming pitifully.
She seemed to be holding back as much as she could, but her face was already etched with pain.
Her complexion was pale, almost bloodless.
"You're quite pitiful."
I muttered, making sure she could hear me.
Fortunately, her ears seemed to be working properly, as Elise raised her head, which had been lowered.
Her eyes glared upwards.
"Hah, hah···."
Even as she gasped for breath with difficulty, her eyes flashed with a venomous light.
I met her gaze head-on.
An unwavering clash.
I provoked her with a sarcastic tone.
"Are you in pain?"
"Get, out··· I clearly, told everyone, to get out···!"
"It's for the sake of treating Your Highness's illness. Please forgive this foolish subject's disloyalty."
"I don't, cough, need, that···"
"I need it. When I want something, I don't let it go."
"You're, talking, nonsense···!"
Crash-!
As I walked closer to the bed, a glass cup suddenly flew past my cheek.
The missed projectile shattered noisily once again.
"My, my."
She has bad habits.
Once she's tamed, I'll have to correct these habits first.
"Ugh, ugh··· Cough!"
For now, stopping the seizures is the priority.
I immediately approached the girl.
Elise hadn't stopped coughing up blood since earlier.
Even though her fierce reaction might have made it seem less severe, she must have been suffering from pain beyond description.
Because that's what the 'disease' she was suffering from was like.
'Mana Stone Disease'
A condition where each and every mana vein that makes up the body hardens like stone, eventually causing the entire body to shatter into pieces.
A mysterious disease with an unknown cause.
It has existed in records since long ago, but no one has ever survived it.
An incurable disease with a survival rate of 0%.
In other words, it's like a curse with nothing but despair left.
Although theoretically incurable, the story changes if I'm the one performing the surgery.
Because I intended to defy fate and save this girl.
'But not too hastily.'
Slowly, taking my time.
So that I can completely devour what remains around me.
Snap-!
I lightly snapped my fingers.
An invisible barrier formed in the room, completely blocking out any noise from the outside.
This turned the surrounding space into a perfect sealed room.
Charlotte would be guarding the entrance, and no sound from inside would be heard from outside.
No matter what kind of scream she let out, the outside world wouldn't notice.
"Hehe."
Before I knew it, I was standing in front of Rose.
Was she trying to resist?
The red-haired girl sat up, threw back the covers, and clenched her fists.
It seemed she was trying to lash out to avoid treatment.
Of course.
"That won't do."
Clap-!
I clapped my hands lightly.
Several shadows stretched out, accompanied by a clear cracking sound.
The jet-black ropes bound the girl's limbs one by one, immobilizing her.
Elise flinched in surprise.
"Wh-what is this all of a sudden···?!"
The first sign of agitation she had shown since entering the room.
I smiled ominously.
Did she realize something was wrong?
Rose hurriedly tried to resist, but the tightly tied knots wouldn't come undone.
She could only lie there spread-eagle.
"Wait, what are you trying to do···!"
"I'm going to fix you in many ways. Whether it's your painful illness or your bad habits."
=I'll heal your internal injuries little by little so they don't spread.
I slowly reached out my hand.
Perhaps because she was ill, the girl was only wearing a thin nightgown.
The curves of her body were clearly visible.
Swoosh-.
I grabbed the fabric covering her skin and slowly lifted it up as if to peel it off.
With a subtle movement, the girl's stomach was revealed.
Her skin retained its pure white complexion.
I gently traced her slender abdomen with my fingertips.
'I need to focus.'
Since this was the area where the mana veins in her body converged, it required delicate work using lies.
I intended to regenerate them slowly so that there would be no aftereffects.
As I placed my palm on her stomach, her warm body temperature seeped into it.
"Hmph···?!"
Elise moaned at the unexpected situation.
She then saw her own state and trembled uncontrollably, unable to hide her shock.
She stammered, unable to even scream.
"Y-y-you··· Do you know what you're doing?!"
"I know better than anyone."
=I'm treating your illness.
"Let go of me! Cough! Did you make everyone leave the room from the beginning just for this?!"
"You're quick-witted. This was all for this."
=It's a bit embarrassing to show this to others, you see.
Her emerald eyes shook violently.
Reflecting myself in her clear pupils, I curved my lips into the most gentle smile I could muster.
It was the smile of a doctor looking down at a patient.
"Don't worry. I won't hurt you."
=I'll treat you without causing any pain, so don't worry.
I pressed down firmly on the girl's dantian.
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