When I was suddenly summoned to the imperial palace, she said she might come home late due to attending an evening banquet, but I ended up returning home even later than Ileana.

I had said I would go to bed early because I was tired, but I got delayed talking about this and that with Ian.

“It was quite entertaining. Since Lady Monica attended the banquet, the conversation never ceased.”

I was secretly looking forward to Viscountess Monica’s eloquence. Of course, on the premise that I wasn’t the subject of her stories.

“Tea parties are always similar. Oh! How forgetful of me! Come to think of it, during yesterday’s conversation, the topic of Viscount Memelt came up. When I heard about it from the young lady earlier, I thought the name sounded familiar, and it turns out it was mentioned at the tea party.”

“Why Viscount Memelt?”

“Apparently, he’s a very famous healer among the nobles.”

“I suppose he must be skilled?”

Claire nodded at my question.

“He’s known to be quite exceptional. He’s particularly renowned in one field, which has increased his influence in social circles. Many nobles seem to like him.”

“What’s his specialty?”

Ileana looked around cautiously as if someone might be eavesdropping, then lowered her voice and whispered.

“Energy tonics. He’s so famous for them. They say the effects of his medicine are so good that while there are people who haven’t tried it, there’s no one who’s tried it just once. Those who have experienced its effects are desperate to get more, even willing to pay extra.”

Patients seeking energy-related medicines often came to me as well. It’s natural for strength to decline as the body ages. But most men found it difficult to accept this natural phenomenon.

They mistakenly believed that just by taking medicine, they could regain the strength of their youth. It seemed they didn’t want to believe that aging couldn’t be stopped even if a genius healer or doctor intervened.

Energy tonics were quite popular and profitable, so I did deal with them, but they didn’t make people as healthy and energetic as they were in their youth, as many hoped.

I prescribed medicines good for energy, but in reality, they only helped slightly with blood circulation, strengthened bones, or increased muscle strength.

Of course, the effect is more subtle than people expect. That’s why I tend to recommend exercise over medicine, but everyone prefers the idea of regaining youth just by taking medicine rather than doing strenuous exercise.

I wonder what recipe Healer Memelt uses that makes people so eager to seek it out. I can’t exactly examine someone else’s medicine…

As I was pondering about the recipe for his energy tonic, Ileana started another topic.

“Claire! Do you know Viscount Raven?”

“Well…”

I smiled with a troubled expression. Sometimes Ileana seemed to forget that I had no memories of the past. Hearing my response, she burst into an embarrassed laugh and said,

“Oh right! How silly of me. Viscount Raven is an extremely wealthy person who owns a shipping company.”

I nodded at her explanation. I’ve never been to a beach or harbor in my life.

But I’ve heard descriptions of ships from others. I heard that ships that sail to distant places are larger than houses. When I first heard it, I couldn’t understand how something so big could float on water.

To be honest, I still don’t quite get it. I felt like I wouldn’t believe it even if I saw it with my own eyes. Anyway, to not just own one such enormous ship, but a whole shipping company! He must be an incredible tycoon. I’m envious.

“He has a very young mistress, and their age difference is a whopping 41 years.”

41 years? Did I hear that correctly? I asked Ileana again.

“How many years?”

“There’s a 41-year age gap. Viscount Raven is 65 this year, and his mistress is 24.”

I would have been shocked even if it was a 14-year difference, but 41 years?

I couldn’t help but frown. They say love knows no age or borders, but such a difference felt creepy. With a 41-year gap, she’s not even young enough to be his daughter, but his granddaughter.

“It seems he was conscious of his age and asked Healer Memelt for an energy tonic. And apparently, the effects were incredible. It’s really unbelievable, I tell you.”

“Was the medicine that effective? Energy tonics aren’t usually the kind of medicine you can feel such strong effects from. It’s strange. What exactly are people saying that’s making its effects so notorious?”

When I expressed my doubts, Ileana explained.

“He didn’t say it directly, but rumors spread widely. They had a child at that late age. Because of that, Healer Memelt’s reputation skyrocketed.”

‘Is that why he was acting so arrogant and unpleasant?’

I frowned, remembering how he had raised his voice, insisting that he could never acknowledge a woman as a healer. No wonder his voice was so loud.

If he became famous for his energy tonics, there would likely be many high-ranking nobles supporting him, so it seemed he had strong backing.

“It seems Viscount Raven’s household is in turmoil. He originally had no sons, only daughters. So he brought in a son-in-law through his eldest daughter, but if that mistress gives birth to a son, things could get complicated.”

“Is that so?”

“Originally, the plan was for the eldest daughter to inherit Viscount Raven’s title and fortune through her husband, but if a son is born, that all goes out the window. No matter how much you consider a son-in-law like a son, would you give the position to the son-in-law when you have a real son?”

“But isn’t the child too young to inherit the title?”

“I heard the eldest daughter is being extremely sensitive about it. As for the company, she’s already managing it, so she could continue to do so under the pretext of management, but the title… The eldest daughter also has a son. She’s in an uproar because the title her son was supposed to inherit might suddenly go to a younger half-brother who was just born.”

“The household must be in quite an uproar.”

“I heard there are loud arguments day and night. Moreover, he hasn’t even written a will yet… It must be giving them all headaches.”

I shook my head sympathetically at her words.

Viscount Raven’s family matters were just other people’s business, merely a momentarily interesting story. But the tale of a man over sixty finding enough vigor to have a child rather than a grandchild caught my attention.

‘Is it really that effective? I’m curious about the medicine’s composition… If it’s a medicine that can restore that much energy, it could be useful in many ways…’

“Ileana, I have a favor to ask…”

“What kind of favor?”

“…Never mind.”

I was about to ask if she could get the prescription for that medicine from Viscount Memelt under the name of Count McCain, but I closed my mouth. Although I was very curious about the medicine’s composition, it didn’t seem right to go that far.

It wasn’t polite to secretly obtain someone else’s recipe in the first place, and I was reluctant to start rumors that I was trying to buy medicine from him.

Especially if I asked for the recipe out of curiosity, who knows what kind of rumors Lady Monica might create. I might be rumored to be a pathetic doctor coveting others’ recipes without any skill of my own.

“Why? What is it? You have a favor to ask? Tell me anything.”

“It’s nothing. Nothing at all.”

“I said tell me anything. I can do whatever it is if it can be solved with money. It’s rare for you to ask for anything, Claire… Anyway, whatever it is, just tell me!”

Her eager response caught me off guard. She said it was fine even if it was something uncomfortable to say, but I just couldn’t bring myself to tell her.

While I was in this awkward situation, fortunately, a maid announced that a carriage had been sent from the imperial palace. I hurriedly went outside, using the excuse that I couldn’t keep the person sent from the palace waiting.

The carriage sent from the imperial palace was not just ostentatious. It was made using wood that seemed darker than usual, giving a neat impression. In terms of extravagance, the McCain family’s carriage was a step above.

If it weren’t for the decorations carved from solid white stone, I would have thought it was a carriage sent by a merchant guild rather than the imperial palace.

But Ileana’s explanation made me realize that my judgment was lacking. It’s not just about being flashy; what it’s made of and who made it play a big role in determining the price, and this carriage seemed to have tremendous value just by existing.

“Oh my, it’s a carriage made from that rare ebony wood.”

“So it wasn’t just blackened wood, but ebony.”

Hearing my muttering, Ileana laughed and said,

“You and your jokes, young lady… But I heard only the Crown Prince owns carriages decorated with carved ivory…”

As if to answer her question, Ian came out of the carriage.