Fabian rode his horse at dawn and climbed up the hill, looking at the horizon.
âYour Majesty, why did you stop?â Logan who followed him closely, asking with a worried face. He didnât want to see the Emperor push himself too hard even though he had only suffered minor injuries.
âNo â¦â¦ my ears are itchy.â
The Imperial family seemed to have been busy finding out about the Emperorâs whereabouts since Fabianâs return was too late.
âItchy? Letâs see the doctor!â
Hearing Logan, Fabian let out a short sigh, âYou canât be joked around like Serus.â
âWhat? Serusâ¦â¦?â
âForget it.â Fabian looked up to the sky. Soon, the long summer would be over and autumn was about to come. However, unlike the bright sky, the reality was really frustrating.
âDo you want to go to the forest fortress?â Logan followed Fabian faithfully and asked a difficult question.
âIâll think about it.â Fabian ran the horse as soon as the sun rose because his heart seemed to explode. But he couldnât leave Evelyn and back to the Imperial palace right away.
âThe direction weâre heading now is toward the fortress. I think it would be nice to go back first, clean up everything and then return to the Imperial palace.â Logan was the same persistent person as Serus, but in a different sense. âOf course, Your Majesty doesnât need to investigate alone anymore. Weâve already sent a capable knight to the place your Majesty has directed.â
âOkayâ¦.â Fabian waved his hand.
âThen, are you going back to the fortress now?â Logan was purely curious. But for Fabian, the situation itself was embarrassing. When he was with Serus, Fabian didnât have to explain anything as he could communicate with him without saying anything.
âThe mountain path is difficult, so Iâll take the lead!â The enthusiastic Logan seemed to have no idea what he was doing. âAh, Your Majesty, look! Thereâs a shortcut, so weâll be able to make a quick stop at the fortress and leave for the Imperial palace!â Instead of being sensitive to the situation, Logan shouted excitedly, shaking his head.
âIâll take you there safely, Your Majesty!â Logan took the lead before Fabian could say anything. He sighed for a moment, disbelieving his eyes. â⦠⦠Check that out.â But Fabian had no other choice but to follow him. Only then he could watch Loganâs action and hand him over to Serus later.
âGiddy up!â
Contrary to his intentions, Logan took Fabian to Evelyn. He was a passionate knight, a young man with a warm heart, and also a young man who soon would be dusted by Serus.
Fabian was half forced to return to the fortress, but he already said he didnât want to meet anyone and locked himself in his room.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Given that the fortress was small, the news of the Emperorâs return must have already been heard by Evelyn. But there was no sign from the two of them showing any movement. But, it turned out that there was one guy out there, Serus. He had just finished a private meeting with the Emperor and immediately dragged Loganâs neck after that.
âYour Majesty, your wound is still not healed.â The doctor said carefully while changed the bandage. Fabian took off his top and examined the wounds all over his sturdy body.
âIt will get better soon.â
âThe demonâs poison is strong. Please take a rest for two days or even one day.â The doctor looked worried, as Fabianâs life was also his life. âIf you donât want, please dismiss me. No, please let me go. It doesnât matter even if youâre Your Majesty. Kidnapping me is a crime.â
âI canât do that right now.â Fabian frowned while picking up his clothes on the floor.
Philip, the white-haired ex-Imperial medical doctor sighed again. After he retired as a medical doctor and dedicated his life to training his juniors, suddenly the Emperor kidnapped him and brought him to a place like this. Philip wasnât afraid of Fabian at all even though he was an Emperor. Because he thought that he already old and he would die before Fabian anyway.
âMore than that, Your Majesty. There must be a more important problem.â No matter how old he was, his bright eyes werenât dim. One of reason why Fabian hesitated to return to the fortress was because he didnât want to make eye contact with Philip.
âNo.â Fabian turned his back on him.
âThere is!â Philip caught up with Fabian quickly.
âNo! thereâs none.â
âYour Majesty, you canât deny what already exists. It wonât make it disappear.â
ââ¦â¦ Stop it, Iâm no longer a child who needs your teaching.â Fabian frowned at his words. Philip was Fabianâs doctor and one of his childhood teachers. He called him here because Philip was a trustworthy and reliable person. But, of course, Fabian had to put up with his babble.
âBut thereâs one child here that I need to take care of.â
Huh, Fabian spat out a useless sigh and purposely avoided Philipâs gaze.
âYou kidnapped a retired old man, so now you have to listen to meâ
âI donât know anything.â said Fabian.
âThen, since this old man is no longer a part of Imperial family, may I go to study a miracle case through blood medicine?â Suddenly Fabian reached out and grabbed Philipâs arm tightly. If he said it any further, it seemed Fabian would break his arm.
âIf my arm is broken, no one can cure that child.â
Only then did Fabian loosen his grip. However, the threat emitted by his black eyes remained the same.
âYou have to admit it.â
âNo.â
âThen I canât heal him, either. â¦â¦No, is he a Prince now?â
Thereâs no point in hiding the childâs identity and lying to Philip. There was no other elder who was as smart as Philip. Plus, Adrianâs appearance was exactly the same as Fabian when he was a child. When Fabian looked for Philip, he was already prepared that the secret would be exposed. But, there was no other doctor he could trust besides him.
âYour Majesty, if you wanted to hide it, you shouldnât have called me here. First of all ⦠⦠from what you ordered me to heal Princess Evelyn, do you think you can deceive me?â
âYouâre noisy.â Fabian wouldnât call Philip if there were other choices.
âFor the Prince, heâll be fine right now.â
That was a question Fabian had wanted to ask ever since his return. But he felt a little awkward to ask Philip about that. âWhat do you mean by right now?â
âAre you interested?â
Fabian still hadnât really felt that Adrian was his son. Even so, he didnât consider him a stranger. Above all, every time he thought he was Evelynâs child, the time seemed to stop for a moment.
âI warn you, no matter what you sayâ¦..â
âI am not afraid of your Majesty because the day I will die is near.â Philip answered calmly, even though Fabianâs black eye glared at him.
âAll the books, teachings, and research youâve written all night long.â
Philipâs eyebrows were unexpectedly trembling.
âIâll burn it all. Donât think I canât do that.â
âWell, thatâs⦠â¦.â
âOh, thereâs more. All your hidden journals and the records of your disciples! I will burn it and make it nothing in this world.â
Philipâs waist shook. He took his cane and headed for a chair, sitting down with a sad face. From an early age, Philip knew that Fabian had a cold-blooded temper. But without knowing it, he became too cruel now. How could he learn such terrible ways. Philip sighed as if imagining that the world was coming to an end.
âPlease promise meâ¦â¦me and my students are fine, but the recordâ¦..Only the record⦠⦠.â
âYou just need to cooperate with me. I donât need your comment.â
âOnly the records, only the results of my researchâ¦just leave itâ¦â¦.â
âGood. Itâs our agreement then.â Fabian surely would keep his promise because he was the same with his father.
Only then did Philip sigh, âWell, I need to tell you his condition, after all.â
What a liar, if Fabian didnât threaten him, he wouldnât be softened like this. Because Fabian knew very well that Philip was a stubborn old man who wouldnât listen to anyone.
âThe prince is in a stable state right now, but not all of the demonâs poison has been detoxified. â
Fabian raised one of his eyebrows and looked at Philip, âYou can decipher it.â
âItâs impossible to do it here. Honestly, I donât know if itâs possible to return to the Empireâ¦..?â
âWhy you canât? Itâs just a little demon poison.â
âBut heâs still a child.â Philip brought up a very obvious fact. Adrian was only two years old. âI â¦â¦ When I checked the Princeâs condition, there were twenty one Devil Eyeâs bite marks all over his body.â
Although Philip had seen many more terrifying sights when he still worked as Imperial doctor, this was the first time he had seen a case like this. âAfter seeing his condition, I knew at a glance that he was bleeding badly at the scene. And Your Majesty probably gave him an emergency medicine made of blood to stop the bleeding.â
âIâ¦â
âIâm not asking about that. Letâs put it off for a moment.â Philip put his serious doctorâs face again. He understood, even if he asked, Fabian wouldnât admit it. But Philip himself, as a doctor already knew the truth.
âWas my treatment that timeâ¦â¦wrong?â Fabianâs dark eyes trembled. Philip shook his head, swallowing difficulties. âNo, I think it was the best wayâ¦.â
âThen whatâs the problem! Whatâs wrong with that child!â Fabian burst into a rage. He couldnât conceal his anxiety when the Princeâs condition report came out.
âThis medicine stop the bleeding and the poison spread. But it can only work to that extent. I canât decrypt it. But if the child was bleeding a lot before you used the medicine, it means that the poison had spread throughout his body first. And childâs body is much smaller than adults â¦â¦. â
âSo? Tell me the conclusion first.â Fabian hastened.
âWe have to give the blood medicine continuously. And decipher the poison little by little. Right now, thatâs the only way â¦.â
âThen, just do it that way!â
âThe duration of treatment in this way will take at least three years, and since this is blood medicine â¦â¦ I dare to say, Your Majestyâs blood is needed to be used as an ingredient â¦â¦.â
âOkay.â Fabian answered quickly but he didnât seem to know the real problem yet. Without doing so, Philip opened his mouth again. âYour Majestyâs blood must be used as soon as itâs drawn. So addiction treatment like this has to be done side by side. â
Fabian squinted his eyes.
âIn other words, the Prince must be by your side for at least three years. â¦â¦ And now the problem is, you will tell people whose son he is?â
Soon, Fabianâs mouth was half wide open, âThatâsâ¦â
âThere are no secrets that can be hidden in the Imperial family. Besides, now Your Majesty must return to the Imperial palace soon.â What Philip said was right and that made Fabian really upset.
âHe really resembles you. Even when the Imperial gatekeeper sees him, they will immediately know heâs your son.â
Fabianâs breath was disturbed, not like his usual self. He couldnât tell whether he was happy or shocked, âIs he really looks like me?â
âYes. I donât understand why you didnât know but â¦
âAs a result, I think thereâs no serious problem.â
âHave you consulted with Sir Serus?â asked Philip.
âYes.â
Philip sighed. That was why he had managed to hide the childâs existence so far. On the other hand, Evelyn, the Empress, was also amazing. How could he trick a child who was like his younger brother to help him to hide this crime, âYou canât empty the Imperial palace anymore. And itâs very likely that the child will die if heâs a far from Your Majesty.â
Fabian sighed as he listened to Philip. His face looked as if he was deeply distressed, âAre there any other alternatives â¦..?â
âThereâs not. If so, I would have told you.â Philip cut off his hopes. âI still donât know which medicine he should take. There is no guarantee that he will also recover immediately. The blood used in blood medicine cannot be used unless it is drawn immediately â¦â¦ Your Majesty knows that. If the blood provider is not by the Princeâs side, we donât know when and what medicine to make. â
âSo⦠⦠You need to use my hand.â Fabian said a heavy word. Then Philip nodded. And Fabian didnât think he needed any more explanation, âI need time to think.â
âYou shouldâ¦.â Philip nodded and left, as if telling Fabian to decide the answer himself. Fabian, who was left alone, felt very depressed. He promised to do his best for Adrian, but he didnât know this would happen.
âWhat the hell do you want me to do?â A sigh leaked out of his frustrated heart. Fabian had given everything he could give, but the knot kept getting twisted.
Only
âWhy⦠â¦weâre so difficultâ¦..â
The more he was tied up with Evelyn, the more he felt like they were mixed up. His intention to remarry the woman he loved and tried not to hurt her now became a very complicated problem.
Fabian couldnât even know where it was screwed up, âShe wonât believe me.â
It was the biggest problem. Evelyn would accuse Fabian of not keeping his promise. She had risked her life, so she wouldnât give up her child easily.
But he couldnât let Adrian die. Likewise, he couldnât abandon his throne.
âWhy everything itâs so hardâ¦..â
When he first saw Evelyn, Fabian wanted to keep that smile by his side. That simple thought brought him this far. He never treated her carelessly, but instead he was trapped in a mess. And that fact broke Fabianâs heart.
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