Apparently, the court physician had screamed the following: “It’s true that Her Highness is somewhat frail, but that was mostly the fault of the corrupt quack who preceded me! He was a scoundrel who deceived Their Majesties by telling them that the princess might not live for long unless she drank his medicine! Her current poor health isn’t because she has some incurable illness. It’s just the anemia caused by her unhealthy lifestyle! I’ve said that so many times! But Their Majesties keep spoiling her, so her condition will only get worse! I’ve been her physician for many years now, and I know she’s not actually sick!!!”
Jeanette wasn’t surprised when she first heard what the doctor had said. She’d already had some doubts regarding the princess’s weak constitution because of her lively, vigorous voice. Yes, Meltia did often get lightheaded, but her voice and her sparkling eyes were full of life. Claus’s letters had mentioned that the princess was overflowing with vitality too. In light of all that, Jeanette had become suspicious. Just what sort of illness did Meltia really have?
There are many illnesses which cannot be seen just from the person’s appearance, so I didn’t want to assume anything based on that. But when Dr. Jaquilla said it was just anemia, I was convinced.
As a side note, Dr. Jaquilla had made a nourishment tonic in order to improve Meltia’s symptoms. The ingredients were pig liver and ground spinach, which made it taste spectacularly awful. Although it was effective, it wasn’t exactly drinkable.
“That’s why I brought with me Matheson’s newest product: one bottle a day keeps the anemia at bay!” Jeanette announced, pulling out a bottle from the multipurpose apron she wore under the maid outfit.
“Wh-What? ‘Keeps the anemia at bay’? What is it?” Meltia asked, confused.
Jeanette grandiosely held up the bottle and began explaining.
“Yes! This here is called Anemia-Be-Gone! It’s a tasty tonic designed to improve symptoms of anemia! And it doesn’t taste like pig liver. It’s made of lovely, sweet-tasting prunes!”
“Prunes...?”
“Ah, I’d better explain that part too!” Jeanette searched through her apron and pulled out a round, purple fruit which resembled a large raisin. “This is a plum. Once you dehydrate it, it becomes a prune, like the ones in this vial!” She raised said vial above her head as though it were a precious gem. “Plums are a bit odd. For some reason, when you dehydrate them, their nutrients get concentrated. You can then gather a large amount of them, grind them, and turn them into syrup! And that’s what Anemia-Be-Gone is! If you take it once a day, you can become anemia-free!”
“Waaah! How wonderful! It’s perfect for women!” cried Sara, purposely offering a follow-up to Jeanette’s spiel. When Meltia glared at her, the maid cleared her throat.
“By the way, although this tonic isn’t commonly used in our country, it’s been safely employed as a supplement against anemia in other nations, so you don’t have to worry!” Jeanette continued. “Your Highness, if you’d like to test whether this is a trick, please just try it yourself!”
Jeanette tried to approach Meltia, but the head maid butted in with a furious shout.
“Her Highness isn’t going to ingest that questionable tonic!”
That’s a fair point!
No member of the royalty would accept such a dubious proposition. While Jeanette deliberated on how to handle this, Claus stepped forth.
“If Her Highness is to drink this, I’d like to personally feed her.”
“I’ll drink it.”
“Your Highness?!” the head maid screeched when Meltia swiftly agreed. “What are you saying?! You mustn’t drink that suspicious substance!”
“Oh? If you’re so concerned, then you can be my tester,” Meltia responded. “I want Lord Claus to feed it to me. Besides, it’ll be a plus if this actually manages to make me feel better. I’m sure my parents will be pleased too.”
“Ugh...” The maid looked troubled.
“Please?” the princess asked in an exceptionally saccharine tone of voice.
That finally made the woman cave.
“Very well...” she replied reluctantly. “In that case, I’ll taste it first! Some poisons have delayed effects, so we’ll wait for at least three hours until—”
“It’ll be fine, ma’am.” The court physician, Jaquilla, suddenly interjected. He must’ve entered the chamber at some point. “I can guarantee this syrup’s safety. It’s nothing more than a nourishment tonic.”
“I thought this might happen, so I called for Dr. Jaquilla,” Claus whispered to Jeanette. “He was very interested when I told him about Anemia-Be-Gone.”
“I see! You’re as thorough with the behind-the-scenes maneuvering as always, Lord Claus!” she replied admiringly.
Meanwhile, the head maid spilled a little bit of the tonic onto her hand and licked it. She took a sip and rolled it around in her mouth, then waited for ten minutes.
“Well... It seems fine,” she said at last with a sour look on her face.
“Come, Lord Claus! Quickly! Feed it to me!” Meltia demanded.
“Very well.”
Claus retrieved the bottle from the head maid and approached the princess. He stopped in front of her and grasped her chin.
“Ngh...”
The adorable, fairylike Meltia’s cheeks quickly flushed red. The two of them looked like a prince and princess from a fable, causing all the nearby maids to sigh dreamily. Yet for some reason, Jeanette felt a painful pang in her chest. She pursed her lips at this odd sensation.
What is this pain...? Maybe I tied that a little too tight?
“Lord Claus, it smells sweet...” Meltia said.
“That is what prunes smell like. Now, go ahead and drink.” Claus placed the opening of the bottle against the princess’s mouth and gently tipped it up. “Nice and slow...”
Meltia’s pale, dainty throat slowly moved as the man spoke. At first, she was frowning cautiously, but the more she drank, the more her expression relaxed. Before long, with Claus’s guidance, she finished the whole bottle.
“It tastes better than I expected,” the princess admitted.
Jeanette lifted her head at that.
“Doesn’t it?! And this tonic isn’t just good for anemia. It’s also a great source of nourishment for a weakened constitution!”
“Humph... I couldn’t drink Dr. Jaquilla’s tonic, but this one isn’t so bad. So are you saying that if I keep drinking this, I’ll get cured?” Meltia inquired.
Jeanette shook her head.