Suddenly, Aidan lifted Brody.

“My back, is it injured?”

“Yes? Injured?”

“Huh, you didn’t know. Your movements seemed unnatural.”

“…”

Due to focusing on the treatment, Brody also forgot. Perhaps when supporting the staggering River, she might have been injured.

Aidan tried to leave, seemingly heading towards the room.

What, what is this? Is he really going to the room to examine the wound?

Examining the wound means… licking the back, right?

Brody struggled.

The speculation about the act of treating the wound itself was embarrassing, but more importantly, there was something else.

“My lord! Wait! Just a moment! This wound treatment is not urgent. It’s not life-threatening…!”

“No, I might have hit my head accidentally. In that case, a druid or something might instantly… execute me.”

“So, that’s just an assumption. I’m not dead, and I won’t die. More importantly, we need to tidy up here!”

“What’s so urgent? You did well with River’s first aid. She’s not dead.”

“Please!”

Brody grabbed Aidan’s cheeks as if smacking them.

Aidan finally looked at Brody with surprised eyes.

With raised eyebrows, Brody spoke firmly, “I need to brush my teeth!”

(Note: The last part seems to introduce a humorous twist, possibly indicating that Brody wanted to clarify a different urgent matter instead of examining the wound.)
“I’ll tidy up first, Your Excellency. I don’t want to raise suspicions.”

Aidan’s head tilted slightly. Was it a statement that he didn’t want others to know? Why?

Smiling, Brody responded with a complex expression to the question thrown with a gesture.

“I’ll explain little by little. First, let’s move River… and also…”

Then, he pointed to the woman who had collapsed on the floor.

“This woman… I want to treat her… Will you help me move her?”

Aidan looked at the woman lying on the floor. The disheveled black hair and rough appearance felt eerie. And above all, wasn’t this woman the one who made River like this? But rather than interrogating her, he wanted to treat her?

Aidan inferred from Brody’s words and questioned.

“…Don’t tell me. Does she have a face?”

Brody awkwardly laughed and replied, “Well, she only… has a face.”

There were two rooms on this floor. One was the room where the Duke and his wife stayed, and the other was currently vacant.

Fortunately, the vacant room had two twin beds, so each person could lie on one bed.

Aidan roughly threw both River and the woman on the beds.

For some reason, whoever it was for, Aidan seemed to be in a bad mood since earlier. He looked angry to the point that it seemed like something had happened.

‘Is it because the important staff got injured?’

Having surrounded the woman who tried to kill River, Brody felt uncomfortable.

Aidan asked, “Is it right to leave the person who tried to kill someone and the person who almost died together?”

“Well… for now… right? Since they won’t be able to wake up for a while…”

Brody extended his words, seemingly embarrassed by having caused them to faint.

“Is it the plant you used on that McCarthy guy before? The purple one…”

“Oh, yes… that’s right.”

You remembered it briefly. However, you don’t know that remembering it can be disturbing. It was an useful but troublesome herb that he didn’t want to publicize.

Without giving a lengthy answer, Brody immediately laid Caleb down and checked River’s wound again.

Fortunately, the sutured wound wasn’t tearing.

The plant used as a substitute for a thread could be removed tomorrow. Anyway, it had to be dealt with before someone found out.

Aidan, who was leaning against the wall with a dissatisfied face, asked, “But why is this guy here? What’s with this situation of getting involved with a woman so foolishly? If you’re going to get involved, do it alone, don’t drag others into it.”

Hmm, Chief of Staff River. If he heard this, it would be quite upsetting.

‘It’s all true, but still… sigh.’

However, judging by the way he spoke, it didn’t seem like Aidan was angry because River got injured.

Then why?

Rubbing leaves with analgesic effects around the wound, Brody answered his question.

“She came to talk to me.”

“Why in a place where I’m not present?”

“Well, yes. She asked about my relationship with Duke Jax.”

“Huh…?”
“It can’t be helped. You were making such a fuss in front of Perdan Fortress… If it were the Chief of Staff, he would have noticed who the attacker was even with a brief look.”

Aidan nodded. It was true. How could someone not know who River was?

“Even if that’s not the case… They probably intended to put me in a difficult situation. Anyway, soon the rumors will spread in all directions.”

Thinking of Duke Jax and the princess’s group, Brody sighed.

You were good at it when you were there. I don’t understand why you’re so obsessed after running away.

“Anyway, it doesn’t seem necessary to hide it from the Chief of Staff. A battle of legitimacy is a public opinion battle, and a public opinion battle is a matter of speed. We need to prepare quickly.”

Aidan also sighed.

‘Right. That’s why River, who returned to the Duke’s castle, was quickly summoned.’

Brody, who had been living in the Duke’s residence, and who was recently admitted by Jax, had quickly held a wedding.

…Telling River about this fact would probably upset him a lot.

But it was still right for River to know and deal with it.

‘But that’s something River should worry about after waking up.’

Aidan urged Brody to go back to the room and treat the injuries once the business was done.

Brody felt uneasy for some reason.

Because he hadn’t figured out the reason why Aidan was angry yet.

No, he didn’t know if Aidan was angry or what was going on…

Seeing his restless appearance, Brody also became restless.

After entering the room, the sound of the door closing behind Aidan added to the anxiety.

“Come here.”

He was gently pulled, but due to his restless attitude, the action felt rough.

Sitting on the bed following his touch, the posture was awkward because he had to show his back. But Aidan didn’t hesitate and removed Shurko and untied Blyo.

Embarrassed, Brody stuttered as the awkwardness came to mind.

“I’m less important than River. Just lick River instead.”

“Am I supposed to lick that guy’s side?”

“……”

“Just because I have healing abilities doesn’t mean I have to lick wounded soldiers all the time. Even River doesn’t know about this ability.”

“Uh.”

Aidan spoke as he pulled down the Schmitz.

The loose Schmitz was pulled back, revealing the protruding bones of the exposed back.

Feeling the sudden cold air, Brody shivered.

Checking Brody’s back, Aidan felt an unbearable feeling.

There were bruised areas spread with a bluish tint over a wide area.

The feeling of every cell tingling and the skin becoming sensitive to the end felt strange.

He grabbed Brody’s shoulders and wrapped his waist with his other hand. Then, Brody’s posture was firmly fixed.

He anticipated what he was going to do, but Brody was perplexed at every moment.

“Your Excellency, can’t we just do a regular treatment and wait for it to heal?”

“No.”