Impressions.
Aristocratic social parties are exhausting.
I'm nothing more than Asella's brooch. Like a decorative ornament, I stayed quietly by her side.
Since this was Asella's first party appearance, she received greetings from countless nobles. It's impressive how she memorized all their names.
Standing there like a smiling ornament without saying anything, as she instructed, was manageable enough.
"So you're the eldest son of the Marquisate of Gotberg. It would be an honor if you'd shake my hand."
"I saw the footage from the martial arts tournament. Sword Expert Tanya! It's clear she's loyal to a worthy master!"
"I heard you single-handedly cured the epidemic that spread through the palace. Ho ho, I'm curious about your secret."
Dealing with middle-aged nobles is tiring.
Well, even if Neria had come as our representative, it's common sense that forming connections with the Gotberg family would have to go through me.
There will certainly be relationships worth using when our business expands later.
Since Father wasn't the type to frequently appear in social circles either, I needed to make a solid first impression.
"Brother, look at these cakes! They're piled like mountains!"
Neria, forgetting her duty, excitedly wandered around the refreshment corner.
"Oh my, Princess. Try this Mont Blanc too."
"The crème brûlée here is sweet as well."
Still, she was steadily raising our family's favorability.
She was receiving affection from various noble ladies with her whole being.
With Boris and Bruno standing guard, there was no risk of other problems arising.
Well, putting those old men aside.
"My goodness, is that really the Young Lord of Gotberg? He's completely different from what I've heard!"
"Hey, he's the chief physician of the Imperial Medical Office! I heard both the First and Second Princesses are sending him love calls because he's so capable!"
"What rascal? He's completely gentlemanly. If I'd known this, I would have met him when the marriage proposal came."
"How did Princess Asella know to claim him first? I'm so envious. The imperial family's intelligence network is truly different."
"Young Lord, do you happen to have any brothers?"
"Or even cousins!"
"I'd be fine as a concubine. If I send a letter to the Medical Office, will it reach you?"
I never knew the Empire had so many noble families. There were just as many young ladies swarming around.
They would each greet Asella, then come to me to say a few words before leaving.
Because of Asella's orders, I couldn't even open my mouth, which was torturous.
I'm worried I might become known as a mute at this rate.
Surrounded by young ladies, I glanced at Asella and noticed she seemed somewhat pleased.
Is she unexpectedly suited for social circles?
'Well, when Asella became Emperor, about 80% of the imperial nobles supported her.'
"You ask what my weakness is? Ahaha! That's the most foolish question I've heard this year, Healer. How could I possibly have any weaknesses?"
"I mastered all academic subjects, magic, and politics from a young age. Even the nobles in social circles couldn't keep their wits about them when faced with my eloquence. Now they must all realize they were deceived."
"But why do you ask? To memorize it and make sure to kill me next time? You'd have better luck shooting down the moon from the sky."
Any arrogance becomes confidence when it comes to Asella because she truly is a genius.
Even now, she's probably laying groundwork to recruit young nobles.
She must have memorized each of their profiles like studying, though I don't know when she found the time.
"I will receive the next round of greetings in an hour."
Asella's knight escort stepped forward. Royalty has designated rest periods at parties since the stream of greetings never ends.
Moving away from the crowd, Asella sat at a secluded table. When a servant brought over a cocktail, I spoke to him.
"Bring herb tea instead of alcohol."
"Herb tea, understood."
As the servant removed the glass at my words, Asella complained.
"I want coffee."
"Not allowed. You can have it when you're an adult."
"I've had it before. It was fine."
"You said you'd listen to me when I became your physician. Oh my, what's this? An Imperial Medical Office access badge on the floor. I wonder whose it is?"
"How annoying."
Asella grumbled while looking around, then pointed with her chin at someone.
"That's the daughter of Duke Schwarzschweig. Today's guest of honor. Her father earned the merit, but it's certain their ducal family will be on the rise."
"Indeed, there's quite a crowd gathered around her. That must be the Western Duke on the upper level."
"That's right. I'll wait since it would look bad if I approached first. I outrank her."
Asella had everything calculated despite this being her first social appearance. She seems to intend to win over the ducal family at this gathering.
"Is His Majesty the Emperor not attending?"
"The Duke probably had a separate audience with him. He finds these occasions difficult. Besides, the atmosphere here is relatively youthful."
"That's certainly true."
"...Are you bored?"
Asella asked me somewhat restlessly.
"You mean this gathering? Is enjoyment the issue? This is an important occasion for you, Princess."
"That's true. But still..."
"What is it?"
Asella fidgeted with her mouth before finally swallowing her words.
"Nothing."
"During your rest period, it's best to just relax rather than doing anything else. What they call 'spacing out.'"
"I know that. Stop being so strict even here."
I decided to keep quiet since Asella was getting irritated.
Soon after, music began playing and the lighting changed.
The stage was illuminated, and several nobles paired up to dance.
"Do you know how to dance?"
"Haha, not at all."
"...Really? What have you been doing instead of learning?"
"Studying healing arts?"
"You're lying."
"It's true."
Where would I have had the chance to dance when I was busy hunting monsters, fighting demon folk, and roaming battlefields?
With only the stage brightly lit and myself hidden in darkness, it feels like watching another world.
As I stared blankly at the stage, I noticed Lauga excitedly dancing with some noble lady he'd found somewhere.
While watching them, Asella suddenly grabbed my wrist.
"Follow me."
We left the party hall and walked down a corridor.
The place Asella took me was beyond a secluded balcony.
"We can still hear the music here."
"Indeed. The scenery is nice too."
I looked down from the balcony. There was a life-sized goddess statue standing in the well-maintained garden.
That served as a checkpoint in the original story. It's occasionally seen in the Imperial Palace too.
"Princess, did you know? When you're near a goddess statue, you receive subtle beneficial effects. For instance, it can neutralize low-grade black magic..."
"Enough of that talk right now. Look at me instead."
Orders must be followed.
I stopped showing off my knowledge and faced Asella.
"Take my hand and raise your arm."
I moved as Asella instructed, and she brought her body close to mine.
Her hair almost brushed against my nose.
"Move your right foot first on the next beat."
"Pardon?"
"Now."
Without warning, Asella put force into her body. I took a step as if being pushed.
I looked down and followed Asella's footsteps.
I'd already lost track of the music. I was so focused on not stepping on Asella's feet that I lost the rhythm.
In the end, I just produced an unseemly series of rapid steps like horse hooves clattering. If the genre had been tap dancing, I might have scored highly, but unfortunately, it was a blues.
"Hmm, you really can't dance."
"I told you I've never done this before."
Asella looked up at me with a satisfied smile.
She seems to have enjoyed tormenting me.
"Is it more fun now?"
Asella's golden eyes stood out like cubic zirconia, reflecting the light from inside the terrace.
They say the eyes are where mana flows most easily.
It feels like swimming in a lake under the evening glow.
"Somewhat."
Well, it is a fresh experience.
Asella snorted at my answer and lowered her gaze to our feet, continuing the steps slowly.
Swish, swish.
As I moved my feet while admiring Asella's flowing hair, she slowly began speaking.
"You know, Young Lord."
"Yes, Princess."
"There's something I'm curious about."
"Please ask."
"...Do you dream often?"
"Dreams?"
I wonder why she suddenly brought this up.
I can't imagine where this is going.
"What about you, Princess? Sleep quality is important. Nightmares often occur when breathing is impaired, such as with rhinitis."
"I... hear voices speaking to me."
"Voices."
"Yes. They say terrible things I would never think of."
I suspect it might be traces of the black magic still inside Asella's abdomen.
Georg said they had inserted the soul and talents of the great witch.
If he heard it from Camilla, it's probably not entirely incorrect information.
I have no expertise in black magic, so I don't know what Asella is fighting against.
But I do know what kind of pain she feels as symptoms.
Whether it's a soul or a curse or whatever.
To me, it's a pathogen causing pain to my patient.
Something that needs to be eliminated.
I ask her again the question I once asked before.
"Does it hurt a lot?"
Asella shook her head lightly at my question.
"It's fine. For now."
"Princess, about the disease tormenting you from inside your abdomen."
"Yes."
"I will definitely cure you."
Asella received my declaration impassively and answered quietly.
"You promised."
I can feel her grip tightening on our clasped hands.
Her fingers were excessively thin even considering her age, and frail compared to my not particularly robust strength.
Like a rose that would snap if you just held its stem.
Silence followed for a moment.
The night breeze in the middle of full summer is warm enough that there's no need for an overcoat.
Time passes as I take steps with Asella, one by one, slowly.
"Answer me too, Young Lord."
"You mean about dreams?"
"Yes. Do you... have nightmares too?"
Nightmares.
Not a topic I particularly want to recall.
"Why that expression?"
I must have tensed up without realizing it.
"No, it's nothing."
Since experiencing my first death, I've continued to have flashbacks of that scene in similar situations.
Naturally, the more deaths I experienced, the more scenes I saw.
Exactly 101 of them, to be precise.
It wasn't necessarily a bad phenomenon since it helped with my strategies.
It happens even when I sleep, so I often wake up in the morning dying in my dreams.
It's better when I faint because then I don't see them.
I tend to forget immediately after waking up. I can't let my unconscious brain activity ruin my day in reality.
But sometimes.
I see them even during daytime activities.
"Young Lord? Why did you go quiet?"
Like now, when I'm directly facing Asella.
I raised the corners of my mouth.
"I'm human too, so of course I have nightmares. But I have good dreams too. Oh, this morning I rode a unicorn and flew through the sky."
"If you flew, it would be a pegasus. Unicorns won't carry playboys like you."
"Haha, a dream is just a dream."
Despite her criticism, Asella didn't seem as cheerful as usual and appeared somewhat uncomfortable.
Asella showed a contemplative attitude for a moment.
Her thin lips slowly parted.
Finally, she asked me that question.
"...Then what's written in your notebook?"