I’m Looking for the Backing of the Betrayed Villainess

Episode 09

I opened the potion bottle by biting down on its cap, then spat it onto the floor with a ptui. My injured left forearm was trembling as though it were convulsing. Without hesitation, I poured the potion over it.

The purple liquid was absorbed the moment it touched my arm.

The sight of the potion seeping into the gaping wound and slowly healing it unfolded before everyone’s eyes.

The throbbing pain gradually weakened along with it.

“…….”

A deathly silence descended all around. Even the others who had been rescuing people in the distance seemed to become absorbed in the atmosphere around here and briefly stopped moving.

I poured the rest over my arm.

The wound that had been split wide open was nowhere to be seen, leaving only a faint red line stretching across my forearm. This, too, would soon heal.

“I am.”

I closed my mouth for a moment. Was this really okay?

But my hesitation was brief. There was no time to think.

“I am a physician personally hired by His Highness the Grand Duke.”

The people who, only moments ago, had been whispering and rejecting me now stared at me in a daze.

“I was only delayed because of an accident on the way here.”

Tap, rumble…….

I casually dropped the empty bottle onto the floor. This time, everyone’s eyes followed the potion bottle rolling across the ground.

“If you find it suspicious, you can go to the Grand Duchy later and confirm it for yourselves.”

This was half a gamble.

But it was also a gamble with a high chance of winning.

That was one of the reasons why I had chosen the Grand Duchy of Wintergarten as my destination when I escaped from my place of exile.

Black hair, blue eyes. And even the beauty mark beneath the eye. A stunning beauty possessing all of those features had an appearance quite similar to that of the Grand Duke of Wintergarten as he was known to the public.

My mouth went completely dry.

“But for now, please let me save that child first.”

Someone who could still be saved was dying right before my eyes.

I was truly sick of helplessly watching someone leave this world.

If someone could be saved, I wanted to save them. I felt as though that was my mission.

If they still didn’t believe me after this, there was truly nothing I could do.

I looked at the people desperately.

Their gazes moved back and forth between the potion bottle rolling on the floor and me.

It was at that moment, when no one could easily bring themselves to speak.

“……Can you really save her?”

“Miriam!”

Miriam, Celine’s mother, who had been sitting beside Celine and wailing with lifeless eyes, grabbed my hand tightly and looked at me. Her eyes were filled with some indescribable emotion.

“I asked if you can save her.”

Miriam questioned me as though interrogating me. Neither her expression nor her tone was anything but aggressive, yet I obediently nodded.

“If we don’t delay any further, definitely.”

The eyes meeting mine trembled greatly once. Miriam, shaken and wavering, spoke in a voice mixed with tears.

“If something happens to my child because of this treatment……. I really won’t let you off.”

I answered without avoiding Miriam’s gaze.

“Go ahead.”

At those words, Miriam, who had been holding herself together until the very end, collapsed onto the floor. Tears poured from her eyes as she clung to the hem of my clothes.

“……Please save her.”

“Miriam.”

“Please, please save my child.”

The words she poured out as though vomiting blood weighed heavily upon me.

I closed my eyes and tilted my head back. The cold air of the winter night brushed against the tip of my nose.

Yes. Today, I will save that child, and the people here, no matter what.

“Maria.”

“Yes, yes?”

“Do you have Hwarancho?”

* * *

When Miriam realized that the breath of the child she had carried in her womb was fading away, she thought. At the very least, I must not let my child leave this world alone.

She had lost her husband early and had lived until now, relying on Celine and the two of them supporting each other. If even Celine were gone, Miriam had no reason left to continue living. Miriam’s entire world was gradually being dyed in black and white.

‘Please, anyone, please…….’

Anyone. Even if that person were the devil, it didn’t matter.

If only she could see Celine smile again, if only she could watch Celine grow up by her side, she was prepared to give her life to anyone.

And before Miriam, the devil appeared. No, that person was not a devil, but a god.

“Two roots of Hwarancho, and squeeze the juice from the Noktil. I’ll start decocting the Sinta fruit. Can you have them ready within 5 minutes?”

“But Hwarancho—”

“There’s no time to persuade everyone one by one. If you’ve decided to believe me, then believe me.”

A woman whose face was half-covered by an old cloth, making it difficult to see her properly, but who looked quite young.

A physician personally hired by His Highness the Grand Duke, and someone who used ominous medicine in a way that was not ominous.

And……. a person who confidently stepped forward and claimed that she could treat Celine.

“Mrs. Miriam, give Celine this first. I can’t treat the respiratory tract directly, so we need to make sure the potion is absorbed as close to it as possible. Be careful not to let it go down her airway.”

Miriam held the medicine bottle handed to her by the suspicious physician. It was a ‘potion,’ with golden powder swirling in its center.

Miriam’s hand, which was gripping it with all her strength, turned white.

She did not hesitate for long. Miriam’s hands moved quickly. Carefully supporting Celine in her arms, she poured the liquid into her mouth.

“Celine, that’s it. Just a little……. For Mommy’s sake, let’s hang in there just a little longer. Okay?”

Strength was leaving the child’s small body by the second. Miriam held back her sobs as she slowly, very slowly, poured the potion into her mouth.

Fortunately, Celine was swallowing it little by little. Hope spread across Miriam’s face.

“That’s it, you’re doing well. There’s not much left now.”

Was it just her imagination? It seemed as though the child was swallowing the medicine more easily than before.

After giving Celine all the medicine, Miriam tightly bit her lip and slowly laid the child down again.

At some point, a head of pink hair suddenly popped up beside Miriam. The eyes visible above the old cloth sharply examined Celine.

“She’s okay.”

“……Pardon?”

“I mean the child. The immediate danger has passed.”

Miriam, startled, quickly lowered her head and looked at Celine.

“Ah, ah…….”

It was just as the physician had said.

Celine’s breathing had stabilized. She was still in pain, but her complexion had improved compared to earlier.

Miriam’s hands trembled violently. Her vision became hazy.

“I’ll use the cauldron for a moment.”

Now, no one here could interfere with the woman’s movements. They had seen her stabilize Celine, who had looked as though she would stop breathing at any moment, with a single bottle of potion.

The woman hurried toward the worktable.

“Give me the Noktil first.”

The people obeyed her commands as though entranced.

“The Hwarancho.”

Right before their eyes, medicine was being made in an instant. She requested the medicinal ingredients without hesitation, yet never once took her eyes off the cauldron.

Various medicinal ingredients were dumped into the cauldron in large chunks right before their eyes.

“Right now, this is—”

“Shh.”

Someone tried to speak, but that too was quickly stopped because the physician had placed a finger in front of her lips and closed her eyes.

She then immediately stretched out her hand and held it above the cauldron. Perhaps it wasn’t hot to her, because the physician remained completely still in that position.

“Uh, uhh?”

“W-what is that?”

“My God…….”

The wind blew. Something that was neither acrid smoke nor ash flying around here and there began swirling around the physician.

A brilliant golden light moved softly in accordance with the physician’s gestures.

The people now held their breath and focused solely on her actions. Noisy sounds could be heard from behind, perhaps because the rescue operation was nearing completion, but no one turned their gaze in that direction.

Everyone’s attention was focused solely on one place.

At that moment, the woman suddenly opened her eyes.

“Done.”

At the same time, the tense atmosphere rippled once.

Gazes filled with anxiety and fear, along with the faintest trace of hope, crossed here and there.

Having divided the medicine with familiar movements, she ran back to Celine. Like the sea parting, the gathered people opened a path for her. The physician glanced over them once and then gave a small laugh.

Miriam stared at the physician as though spellbound.

The physician tilted the potion bottle without hesitation. Celine drank it like a baby bird. And—

“U, uh, M-Mom.”

Celine, woke up.

I’m Looking for the Backing of the Betrayed Villainess Episode 009

I opened the potion bottle by biting down on its cap, then spat it onto the floor with a ptui. My injured left forearm was trembling as though it were convulsing. Without hesitation, I poured the potion over it.

The purple liquid was absorbed the moment it touched my arm.

The sight of the potion seeping into the gaping wound and slowly healing it unfolded before everyone’s eyes.

The throbbing pain gradually weakened along with it.

“…….”

A deathly silence descended all around. Even the others who had been rescuing people in the distance seemed to become absorbed in the atmosphere around here and briefly stopped moving.

I poured the rest over my arm.

The wound that had been split wide open was nowhere to be seen, leaving only a faint red line stretching across my forearm. This, too, would soon heal.

“I am.”

I closed my mouth for a moment. Was this really okay?

But my hesitation was brief. There was no time to think.

“I am a physician personally hired by His Highness the Grand Duke.”

The people who, only moments ago, had been whispering and rejecting me now stared at me in a daze.

“I was only delayed because of an accident on the way here.”

Tap, rumble…….

I casually dropped the empty bottle onto the floor. This time, everyone’s eyes followed the potion bottle rolling across the ground.

“If you find it suspicious, you can go to the Grand Duchy later and confirm it for yourselves.”

This was half a gamble.

But it was also a gamble with a high chance of winning.

That was one of the reasons why I had chosen the Grand Duchy of Wintergarten as my destination when I escaped from my place of exile.

Black hair, blue eyes. And even the beauty mark beneath the eye. A stunning beauty possessing all of those features had an appearance quite similar to that of the Grand Duke of Wintergarten as he was known to the public.

My mouth went completely dry.

“But for now, please let me save that child first.”

Someone who could still be saved was dying right before my eyes.

I was truly sick of helplessly watching someone leave this world.

If someone could be saved, I wanted to save them. I felt as though that was my mission.

If they still didn’t believe me after this, there was truly nothing I could do.

I looked at the people desperately.

Their gazes moved back and forth between the potion bottle rolling on the floor and me.

It was at that moment, when no one could easily bring themselves to speak.

“……Can you really save her?”

“Miriam!”

Miriam, Celine’s mother, who had been sitting beside Celine and wailing with lifeless eyes, grabbed my hand tightly and looked at me. Her eyes were filled with some indescribable emotion.

“I asked if you can save her.”

Miriam questioned me as though interrogating me. Neither her expression nor her tone was anything but aggressive, yet I obediently nodded.

“If we don’t delay any further, definitely.”

The eyes meeting mine trembled greatly once. Miriam, shaken and wavering, spoke in a voice mixed with tears.

“If something happens to my child because of this treatment……. I really won’t let you off.”

I answered without avoiding Miriam’s gaze.

“Go ahead.”

At those words, Miriam, who had been holding herself together until the very end, collapsed onto the floor. Tears poured from her eyes as she clung to the hem of my clothes.

“……Please save her.”

“Miriam.”

“Please, please save my child.”

The words she poured out as though vomiting blood weighed heavily upon me.

I closed my eyes and tilted my head back. The cold air of the winter night brushed against the tip of my nose.

Yes. Today, I will save that child, and the people here, no matter what.

“Maria.”

“Yes, yes?”

“Do you have Hwarancho?”

---

When Miriam realized that the breath of the child she had carried in her womb was fading away, she thought. At the very least, I must not let my child leave this world alone.

She had lost her husband early and had lived until now, relying on Celine and the two of them supporting each other. If even Celine were gone, Miriam had no reason left to continue living. Miriam’s entire world was gradually being dyed in black and white.

‘Please, anyone, please…….’

Anyone. Even if that person were the devil, it didn’t matter.

If only she could see Celine smile again, if only she could watch Celine grow up by her side, she was prepared to give her life to anyone.

And before Miriam, the devil appeared. No, that person was not a devil, but a god.

“Two roots of Hwarancho, and squeeze the juice from the Noktil. I’ll start decocting the Sinta fruit. Can you have them ready within 5 minutes?”

“But Hwarancho—”

“There’s no time to persuade everyone one by one. If you’ve decided to believe me, then believe me.”

A woman whose face was half-covered by an old cloth, making it difficult to see her properly, but who looked quite young.

A physician personally hired by His Highness the Grand Duke, and someone who used ominous medicine in a way that was not ominous.

And……. a person who confidently stepped forward and claimed that she could treat Celine.

“Mrs. Miriam, give Celine this first. I can’t treat the respiratory tract directly, so we need to make sure the potion is absorbed as close to it as possible. Be careful not to let it go down her airway.”

Miriam held the medicine bottle handed to her by the suspicious physician. It was a ‘potion,’ with golden powder swirling in its center.

Miriam’s hand, which was gripping it with all her strength, turned white.

She did not hesitate for long. Miriam’s hands moved quickly. Carefully supporting Celine in her arms, she poured the liquid into her mouth.

“Celine, that’s it. Just a little……. For Mommy’s sake, let’s hang in there just a little longer. Okay?”

Strength was leaving the child’s small body by the second. Miriam held back her sobs as she slowly, very slowly, poured the potion into her mouth.

Fortunately, Celine was swallowing it little by little. Hope spread across Miriam’s face.

“That’s it, you’re doing well. There’s not much left now.”

Was it just her imagination? It seemed as though the child was swallowing the medicine more easily than before.

After giving Celine all the medicine, Miriam tightly bit her lip and slowly laid the child down again.

At some point, a head of pink hair suddenly popped up beside Miriam. The eyes visible above the old cloth sharply examined Celine.

“She’s okay.”

“……Pardon?”

“I mean the child. The immediate danger has passed.”

Miriam, startled, quickly lowered her head and looked at Celine.

“Ah, ah…….”

It was just as the physician had said.

Celine’s breathing had stabilized. She was still in pain, but her complexion had improved compared to earlier.

Miriam’s hands trembled violently. Her vision became hazy.

“I’ll use the cauldron for a moment.”

Now, no one here could interfere with the woman’s movements. They had seen her stabilize Celine, who had looked as though she would stop breathing at any moment, with a single bottle of potion.

The woman hurried toward the worktable.

“Give me the Noktil first.”

The people obeyed her commands as though entranced.

“The Hwarancho.”

Right before their eyes, medicine was being made in an instant. She requested the medicinal ingredients without hesitation, yet never once took her eyes off the cauldron.

Various medicinal ingredients were dumped into the cauldron in large chunks right before their eyes.

“Right now, this is—”

“Shh.”

Someone tried to speak, but that too was quickly stopped because the physician had placed a finger in front of her lips and closed her eyes.

She then immediately stretched out her hand and held it above the cauldron. Perhaps it wasn’t hot to her, because the physician remained completely still in that position.

“Uh, uhh?”

“W-what is that?”

“My God…….”

The wind blew. Something that was neither acrid smoke nor ash flying around here and there began swirling around the physician.

A brilliant golden light moved softly in accordance with the physician’s gestures.

The people now held their breath and focused solely on her actions. Noisy sounds could be heard from behind, perhaps because the rescue operation was nearing completion, but no one turned their gaze in that direction.

Everyone’s attention was focused solely on one place.

At that moment, the woman suddenly opened her eyes.

“Done.”

At the same time, the tense atmosphere rippled once.

Gazes filled with anxiety and fear, along with the faintest trace of hope, crossed here and there.

Having divided the medicine with familiar movements, she ran back to Celine. Like the sea parting, the gathered people opened a path for her. The physician glanced over them once and then gave a small laugh.

Miriam stared at the physician as though spellbound.

The physician tilted the potion bottle without hesitation. Celine drank it like a baby bird. And—

“U, uh, M-Mom.”

Celine, woke up.