HTLCCBFT Chapter 5

　　Oliver was unconscious from the moment he fell until early the following morning.

　　He was oblivious, but Fosse was nearly scared out of his wits witnessing his young master collapse.

　　The only two doctors in Laina were hastily brought to the castle by the anxious knights, their stomachs turning from the rough ride. They were dragged in front of the lord’s bed as if they were criminals.

　　The patient was the new lord of Laina?

　　Under the icy gaze of the stern steward Fosse, they timidly exchanged looks and approached the bed.

　　As a result, just as their eyes fell on the face of the person on the bed, the two people who had been terrified in the last moment opened their mouths wide in stupidity almost at the same time.

　　–God, how could there be such a beautiful person in this world!

　　Unlike those sick and sallow patients they were used to seeing, Duke Oliver, proudly called “the angel of the court” by the old king, lay unconscious yet as beautiful as a strand of golden sunlight left on the soft mattress, captivating and impossible to look away from.

　　His skin was as white and flawless as snow, without the deathly pallor of serious illness, but instead, had a faint pink like a budding rose.

　　His nose was straight and delicate, his eyelashes long and golden like his hair. His slightly curled, brilliant golden hair lay softly across his forehead, and more of it lay like a waterfall on the plain bedding, shimmering under the gentle sunlight.

　　Seeing that they had forgotten all about their fear and were only staring indulgently at His Highness with eyes of infatuated amazement, Fosse couldn’t stand it any longer.

　　With a cold face, he sharply tapped on the table, snapping them back to reality: “Did you come here for the sole purpose of staring rudely at His Noble Highness?”

　　If it weren’t for that despicable traitor Cameron, who not only ruthlessly and venomously drove His Highness out of the royal capital but also forcibly banished His Highness’s personal knight corps and the mansion’s valuable servants, he wouldn’t have been short of manpower to such an extent.

　　Now, he had to tolerate these useless rural doctors who were as good as trash!

　　Even with their backs to Fosse, the two men heard the heavy warning and anger in his words.

　　They snapped back to their senses, and after a few mumbled pleas for mercy, they finally took a proper look at the honorable Duke.

　　It was just that the more they looked, the more confused they felt and the more uneasy they became.

　　If it were not for the fact that the Lord Duke’s eyelids had not had the slightest flutter, and that his breathing had been gentle and steady from the beginning, and that there was really no reason to lie…… they would have simply thought that the other party was feigning illness.

　　Apart from the characteristic softness and slenderness of aristocrats, the Duke’s complexion, no matter how you looked at it, couldn’t be healthier.

　　Normally, their diagnoses were based on the patient’s astrology and urine, treating minor ailments with medicine and severe ones with bloodletting.

　　But the so-called cure-all potions were just tricks to fool the ignorant and can’t actually fulfill the promise of a cure at all, except to give the other side some psychological comfort.

　　Not to mention that they couldn’t bear to use such dubious treatments they couldn’t discern the composition and origin of on such a beautiful noble, especially not under the watchful eye of the strict steward.

　　Their only option left was the unreliable method of bloodletting.

　　They tentatively started with a request to observe Duke Oliver’s urine, which was unsurprisingly met with a cold glare from the cool and dignified steward, who warned them that “if you value your life, you should not make such an impertinent request a second time”.

　　When they were careful to say that perhaps a bloodletting was in order, they were, unsurprisingly, once again met with an angry refusal from the steward.

　　What do we do now?

　　They sat bitterly, stiffly, on the edge of the bed, not having the faintest idea what to do next, other than pray.

　　To be honest, of course they were immensely willing to do their best for His Highness the Duke …… but just relying on their ability, it was impossible to make an accurate diagnosis and treatment ah!

　　Fosse observed the helpless men for a while with a stern face, and quickly made the judgment that “these two are useless”.

　　His Highness collapsed in front of him without warning at the time, and that’s what terrified him.

　　But he was, after all, a person who had seen countless great storms and waves, and after sending His Highness back to the castle, he could see that his state seemed to be quite good, not like a sudden and serious illness, but more like sleeping …… his heart settled down a little.

　　Besides, His Highness had said himself that he was undergoing a “test from the gods,” so the god would not have let His Highness meet with misfortune, right?

　　Fosse nodded slightly to the knight Noel guarding at the side, who understood immediately and expressionlessly threw the two useless wastes out of the castle.

　　When the clock tower with its mechanical mechanism struck the first bell symbolizing dawn, and the first rays of the morning sun shone into the windows in response, the Angelic Duke, who had fallen into an unwakeable slumber since noon the previous day, finally slowly opened his eyes under the tense and watchful gaze of Fosse and the knights, who dared not blink.

　　”Your Highness!”

　　No matter how composed he appeared on the surface, the ice in Fosse’s heart only truly melted upon seeing the duke awaken safely.

　　The over forty year old steward couldn’t help but redden his eyes and kneeled on one knee by the bedside, “Your Highness, you have finally awakened.”

　　In Oliver’s clear, lake-blue eyes, reflected the bewildered silhouette of his stern, but now visibly moved, steward. 

　　The person with a face on the verge of tears was his cold and serious steward?

　　Oliver slowly sat up.

　　He wasn’t the least bit uncomfortable and even felt energized enough to beat a boar to death – it was just that his memory was still stuck on the satisfaction of having finished tilling the land, and he couldn’t comprehend the scene before him for a moment.

　　His eyes couldn’t help but twitch when he recalled what had caused him to faint.

　　It was really stupid.

　　–Why did he forget the fact that his energy bar was about to bottom out!!!!

　　Since it was a forced rest triggered by the complete depletion of his energy value, he was not only down for more than twelve hours but also realized, helplessly, that his energy bar had only recovered by half.

　　Ignoring his regrets, he rubbed his brow, and apologized, “I’m sorry for making you guys worry. With God’s blessing, I’m perfectly fine now.”

　　”I understand, Your Highness.”

　　Fosse replied, always taking the duke’s words to heart, his earlier suspicion seemingly confirmed.

　　Barely suppressing his dissatisfaction with the irresponsible god, he hurriedly ordered the servants to bring in toiletries and clean clothes, and then asked the chef to prepare food as soon as possible.

　　The chef, having been admonished by Fosse, had finally given up on adding too many spices. Instead of making the mashed bean soup that had so profoundly troubled Oliver, she prepared a modest dish of scrambled eggs and hash browns to serve.

　　Of course, the so-called hash browns were only Oliver’s guess: they might not have the crispy shell of the modern version he was familiar with, but the soft texture and slight sweetness were unmistakably potato.

　　The scrambled eggs, hard to mess up in cooking, did not disappoint this time, allowing his meager half-filled energy bar to inch a tiny bit closer to being full.

　　His original speculation had been correct; energy could be restored by consuming food.

　　As for why the previous night’s bean soup and smoked meat feast didn’t have the same effect, it probably boiled down to the awful taste, not having been recognized as ‘food’ by his body.

　　Speaking of potatoes ……

　　Oliver’s expression suddenly changed.

　　He lifted the bedding the next moment, and, followed by Fosse’s astonishment, went straight in the direction of the bay window, overlooking the fruits of his labors from yesterday.

　　Motivated by the lord’s personal involvement, even without the overseers’ fervent whipping, the normally numb serfs worked with unprecedented earnestness.

　　Though their efforts, no matter how meticulous, couldn’t match the precision and perfection of Oliver’s game system-enhanced hoeing… they at least resembled the “plots” of land Oliver remembered from his standards.

　　Gazing at this thriving scene, his sapphire-blue eyes became oddly distant.

　　Oliver silently watched the serfs, already back to work in the fields following the clock’s toll, and then despairingly at the entire set of corn seeds in his game backpack that he hadn’t had the chance to plant.

　　He calmly asked, “Have all those places that have been cleared been seeded?”

　　Fosse respectfully replied, “Yes, Your Highness, everything is just as you’ve ordered.”.

　　Realizing the foolish loss of a day’s growth for corn seeds due to his own oversight, Oliver found himself without the energy for anger.

　　It’s okay, potatoes were pretty good too.

　　Besides, there was only one set of corn seeds in his backpack, it was simply impossible to plant all those fields by himself, and the source of the experience points wasn’t from plowing the fields themselves, but from harvesting the crops ……

　　Oliver barely managed to convince himself.

　　He actually wanted to work the land himself and finish reclaiming the other plots in one fell swoop.

　　But after yesterday’s scare, his ever-vigilant steward would hardly be easily persuaded.

　　He would at least need a few days’ delay.

　　Although, just seeing those green weeds from afar evoked a strong desire in him to wield a scythe to clear them ……

　　Feeling the old steward’s blazing gaze full of concern, Oliver reluctantly suppressed the urge to dash out and take action.

　　He rubbed his brow and said in a compromising manner, “For the fields that are undergoing reclamation today, let them only be watered, and don’t rush to seed them yet; I have other uses for them. Fosse, you’ll go ahead with Johan and accompany me to the river to fish later.”

　　Fosse nodded, “I understand, Your Highness, are there any other orders?”

　　Oliver: “They are not allowed to move the stones in the ground either, I’ll deal with them myself.”

　　Fosse: “…… Yes, Your Highness.”

　　”Good,” Oliver, thinking of the weeds that sparked his intense desire to clear them, said, “Before we set out, bring the person in charge of managing to me; I have questions for him.”

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The author has something to say:

Though not strictly historical research, due to the incorporation of some medieval elements, I’m adding a disclaimer (to avoid accusations of fabrication):
“Your physician might not actually examine you, instead, diagnosing your ailment based on your urine and astrology.”
“Doctors dispensed medicine with a spoon, a scene comparable to modern life. But what was in the spoon? Almost certainly: nothing.”
From “The Time Traveler’s Guide to Medieval England” p13, by Ian Mortimer, Commercial Press

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