The Prince's Nanny, Her Specialty Is Assassination - Chapter 39

Chapter 39: The Sage, Sage Rill (2)

‘A sage calling himself a fool.’

Well, he’s not entirely wrong.

I suddenly recalled the first time I met Sage.

“Spare me, assassin. If you truly value saving lives over taking them.”

Poisoned eyes, tightly shut mouth, a body trembling slightly all over.

More than the fear of imminent death, he was more resentful of not being able to share his achievements.

He feared being forgotten more than death itself.

And yet, he chose to be temporarily forgotten rather than die.

Waiting for the day ‘his time’ would come—when his work would finally be revealed to the world.

“So maybe that’s why I ended up relying on that damn girl without realizing it. She was the only outsider who remembered me.”

But ‘that time’ never came, and even I, who had hidden him, had long since died.

Had I not been reborn in Rachel’s body, he might have been forgotten here forever.

“You’re not the only one anymore. I know, and so does His Highness the Prince.”

At my half-hearted consolation, Sage let out a snort. “Ha! You think that counts?”

“And once you return to the capital, more people will remember you.”

“Now, now. Don’t think you can dodge this with sweet talk. Me going to the capital is a separate matter.”

He wagged a finger as if to say he wouldn’t be so easily swayed.

“If the little prince fails the test, I’m not going anywhere. Got that?”

“…You mean the test?”

“That’s right. I told you, didn’t I? He might be my last disciple. I can’t just take anyone.”

The sage grinned, baring his teeth.

***

“You there.”

Leo, acting as the guide, suddenly spoke up.

“You’re not really a cleric, are you?”

The direct question startled Edwin.

“H-how did you know?”

“Old man Sage hates clerics. If you were the real deal, he never would’ve let you in. And that fake wound.”

Leo pointed at the plaster-covered hand.

“It looks convincing at a glance, but up close, it’s obviously fake.”

“R-really?”

“Yeah. So what are you? Why are you here? Judging by those expensive silks, are you some noble or something?”

Faced with such sharp observations, Edwin couldn’t say a word.

He couldn’t reveal he was royalty, and no good excuse came to mind.

Even as he hesitated, he worried Leo might get annoyed at his silence.

“…Whatever.”

Seeing how flustered Edwin was, Leo just turned his head.

“Anyway, wipe off that shoddy disguise. It’ll just get in the way while we work.”

“Ah, okay.”

“And if you don’t want to say why you came, then don’t. I’m not curious.”

Leo showed him the axe on his back.

“Let’s finish this up quickly. I’ve got firewood to chop.”

With that, Leo marched off without waiting for a response.

It was practically dismissive.

And yet, Edwin strangely felt comforted by the attitude.

They had only just met, and yet Leo somehow felt more approachable than anyone Edwin had met in the palace.

After standing rooted to the spot, Edwin quickly followed.

***

‘They made it sound so horrible, like a hellhole.’

Edwin followed Leo along the stone path that cut through the plague village.

Then he realized something important.

Not everyone infected was simply waiting to die.

“Is that you, Leo? Nothing to help with today. Just send old man Sage my regards!”

“Oh my, Leo! Is the old man doing alright? Here, I baked this bread this morning—bring it to him, would you?”

“It’s Leo! Brother! Let’s play sword fight! Sword fight!”

Even as they fought off illness, the people of Luxen lived each day with more vitality than anyone.

Men wrapped in bandages plowing fields, women gathered at the river doing laundry, children playing soldier with sticks.

In fact, they looked happier than Edwin himself, who lived in the grand imperial palace. As ironic as that was.

Watching them quietly, Edwin looked up.

The sky over the plague village was blue, high, and clear.

No different from the sky above the capital.

The young prince’s eyes sank with quiet depth.

***

“Blegh.”

Edwin gagged from the unbearable stench.

‘I take it back. It’s not the same at all.’

The young prince clamped his nose and mouth with one hand and looked toward Leo on the other side.

Unlike himself, who was recoiling from the smell of waste, Leo calmly wiped the pus dripping from the bodies of critical patients.

“Today, our job is to manage the hygiene of severe patients.”

They cleaned houses, bathed those who couldn’t move, and changed their clothes.

For Edwin, who had only ever been waited on, it was an extremely difficult task.

The bodies of those with Scale Disease, which oozed blood and pus at the slightest touch, were too much for a young prince to handle.

Leo sighed every time Edwin gagged at the sight of boils and pus.

“Just stick to cleaning. You seem to have a knack for that.”

Eventually assigned solely to cleaning, Edwin scrubbed the floor clumsily.

Imitating the palace maids he had seen, he looked somewhat dependable.

As he tried not to vomit while scrubbing, Edwin kept glancing sideways at Leo, who tended to the patients silently.

‘Isn’t he scared?’

Wasn’t he afraid of catching the disease?

Didn’t the blood and filth disgust him?

How could he care for the sick so effortlessly?

Suddenly, Leo seemed incredible.

Unlike himself, Leo seemed like someone everyone would want to have around.

‘Pathetic. I can’t even do this properly.’

With a small sigh, Edwin resumed scrubbing.

‘Why am I not good at anything? All I’ve learned is how to read and write, and that’s useless here.’

At the same time, a strange question popped into Edwin’s head.

‘Then what makes me different from everyone here?’

The young prince widened his eyes at the sudden thought.

Unaware of what that question truly meant.

***

“Hey, you okay?”

“Mmh…”

Leo turned to the boy following behind him.

Edwin looked like a mess compared to earlier.

The hair powder had melted with sweat and streaked down his face, and his silk clothes were stained with dirt and filth.

But his expression looked more resolute than when they first met.

Leo glanced at him, then kept walking without a word.

‘Huh. For a spoiled noble, he’s got guts.’

Cleaning the pus and feces of plague patients was a task even visiting clerics hesitated to do.

Yet the kid had completed every chore he was assigned without complaint.

‘He’s got a weak stomach and no knack for work, but still.’

Leo had initially frowned at the silk-clad boy, but now he found him surprisingly tolerable.

By this point, he was genuinely curious about who the kid really was.

“Hey.”

“Um.”

They both spoke at the same time and awkwardly looked away.

“You go first.”

Leo scratched his head and gave way.

Edwin lowered his head.

“Um, sorry.”

“What? What for?”

Leo looked puzzled at the sudden apology.

“Well…”

Edwin hesitated, then blurted out in a small voice, “I don’t think I was much help today. I wasn’t good at anything and just caused trouble.”

“Trouble?”

Fancy words for a little kid.

Leo let out a small laugh. “Yeah, pretty much. Looks like you’ve had an easy life until now, huh? Can’t even manage what kids younger than you can.”

It wasn’t like Edwin had lived in luxury as a prince, but he couldn’t say anything.

“You nearly fell into the well when fetching water, cut your hand trying to gather grass, and shredded the laundry instead of hanging it.”

“…Sorry.”

Edwin drooped his head with a gloomy face.

Leo stared at him for a while, then looked away.

“But you were still somewhat helpful.”

“Huh?”

“You’re pretty decent at cleaning. If you can do one thing well, that’s enough.”

Leo placed a hand on Edwin’s head and gave it a light ruffle.

“So no need to apologize. You helped plenty.”

Edwin’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Yeah. When I go around with Old Man Sage, I end up doing all the cleaning too. And he takes all the credit.”

“Oh…”

“Come on. We need to head back to the village before sunset. Let’s move.”

“Yeah!”

Leo smiled for the first time, then immediately turned and started walking.

As Edwin hurried after him, he suddenly spoke up.

“Hey, um.”

“What?”

“What were you going to say earlier?”

“Oh, it was nothing.”

Leo tried to brush it off, but Edwin’s stare was too persistent.

So he eventually answered, “I was just wondering what your real identity is. Though it doesn’t really matter.”