The Pope's condition was just as the servant had reported—only minor injuries. The bump on the back of his head likely caused his loss of consciousness, and while there was a chance of a concussion, his pulse was steady, and there were no signs of internal bleeding. The fainting seemed temporary—he would likely wake up soon.
Raymond's situation, however, was more complicated. His right leg had been crushed, and the bones were shattered into several fragments. Reconnecting them would be a challenge. As for his unconsciousness, it was probably due to the extreme pain.
While Weiwei worked, Bishop Roberto continued to complain at Felix nonstop.
"Count Williams, His Holiness is unconscious and you're still refusing to let me move him to his room to wait for a doctor. If something happens to him, can your county take responsibility?"
"I am the doctor," Weiwei replied flatly, cutting off his tirade. She ignored the skeptical look he threw her way and continued her work. "His Holiness's injuries are superficial. He can be taken back to rest. Master Raymond's leg, however, is broken and requires setting. Have two stretchers prepared?"
She described how the stretchers should be made, and immediately some castle servants rushed off to follow her instructions.
"Kama, go get my medical kit."
"It's already here, madam," Kama responded.
Weiwei looked down—sure enough, her medical kit sat beside her.
The multi-tiered wooden box was locked and neatly packed with glass bottles, clean gauze, and various supplies.
She took out the gauze and had Kama find wooden boards to temporarily stabilize Raymond's leg. Given the fractures, he would need surgery. There were surgical bone-setting procedures in traditional Chinese medicine, and Weiwei could perform them. She had even commissioned a blacksmith long ago to make scalpels, forceps, and other tools. Equipment was not a problem—the only issue was the location. They needed to move him out of the tower first.
The Pope's injuries, though light, still needed treatment. Kama had already cleaned and bandaged the wounds. Weiwei wrote a prescription and told Kama to fetch the herbs.
"Once you've got them, give them to the kitchen to decoct. Then come back and help me prepare a few more things."
Since Weiwei had assigned Kama the task of foraging herbs, the girl had learned a lot of medicinal names, along with basic numbers and measurements. She read out both the prescription and Weiwei's checklist, then hurried off with the lists once Weiwei confirmed everything.
With time before the stretchers arrived, Weiwei finally had a chance to ask what had happened.
"From what we can tell so far, it was an explosion caused by an experiment. The exact reason needs further investigation," Felix said grimly. Having an incident involving the Pope on his land was no small matter.
If Kama hadn't insisted that the injured not be moved, he would've already sent people in to inspect the lab. But because everyone had stayed at the door, the scene inside remained untouched.
Seeing Felix finally speak, Bishop Roberto immediately jumped in with a sarcastic tone. "You assured us His Holiness would be safe. That's the only reason we didn't bring more people. Now that he's hurt, Sardinson must take full responsibility!"
Felix's expression darkened. "Bishop Roberto, accidents during experiments can happen anywhere. Unless you plan to forbid His Holiness from entering labs at all."
Why didn't you stop the Pope from going in, then?
Roberto had no retort. Accidents in alchemical labs were common—just look at Raymond's past. He'd been expelled from a university for blowing up a dormitory, after all.
And there was no way to stop the Pope from experimenting. Roberto didn't even care about Pope John's safety.
Soon after Weiwei finished stabilizing Raymond's leg and finished asking questions, several servants arrived with the stretchers, freshly constructed.
Together, everyone carefully transferred the two injured men. The Pope was taken back to his guest room, where Butler Barton assigned more attendants to care for him. The sudden incident cast a dark cloud over everyone's hearts—especially those within the castle. Many feared it was a plot against the Pope and worried something worse might follow. The Pope had to be watched closely.
On their way out of the tower, Weiwei noticed that the servant who had reported the suspicious behavior of the Pope's attendant was missing.
She shot a look at Felix, who immediately understood and slowed his steps. The servants stepped forward to block the clergy from overhearing.
"The servant who looked after Raymond said there was something off about one of the Pope's attendants. Do you know which one it is?"
"He hasn't shown up since the accident. I've already sent people to find him," Felix replied. Weiwei had told him about the suspicious attendant, and Felix had taken it seriously. When the explosion occurred, he had looked for the man—but he was nowhere to be seen. Even if he wasn't in the tower at the time, as the Pope's servant, he should have come running upon hearing what happened.
Raymond's servant was also missing.
The two exchanged a glance. Things were not so simple.
After leaving the tower, most people followed the Pope. Raymond was taken to a well-lit room nearby.
A proper operating room wasn't available, so they made do. The furniture was cleared to create an open space. Two long tables were placed side by side as a makeshift surgical platform, disinfected with alcohol, and covered with freshly dried sheets. White cloth was stretched around and above to diffuse the light. The scene resembled a wartime field hospital.
The afternoon sun filtered through the fabric, creating a bright but gentle light. Weiwei still had candles and bronze mirrors prepared—just in case the operation ran long. The mirrors would help adjust lighting, and the candles were back up.
Everything Kama had been asked to prepare had arrived: surgical tools, medicine, a bundle of willow branches, a bowl of fresh chicken blood—and a carpenter.
The carpenter had been summoned to carve the willow branches. In traditional Chinese medicine, willow splints were used for bone grafting. A fresh branch would be peeled to preserve its sap, shaped like the missing bone segment, hollowed to resemble a bone canal, and then disinfected with licorice water. The ends would be coated with hot chicken blood and inserted between the fractured bones as a natural replacement.
The structure of willow fibers resembled trabecular bone, and once implanted, it functioned like a metal plate and gradually calcified, integrating into the body without needing removal.
Weiwei had drawn a diagram. The carpenter shaped the branch accordingly and soaked it in licorice water. The licorice had been grown last year—rare, since the castle's climate wasn't suitable. She had hoarded it, but with no suitable substitute, she used most of it here.
Weiwei anesthetized Raymond using a blend of henbane, hemlock, and opium—a known combination in ancient European medicine. She didn't know how early it had originated, but this formula was well documented. In this era, opium was still used mainly as a decorative flower or mild medicine, and its toxicity was not widely known. Weiwei didn't plan to enlighten anyone either. She merely told Kama that the flower had calming effects and could be fatal in high doses. The garden had a few growing already, and she had used them to make the anesthetic.
Once dosed, Raymond fell into a deep, unshakable sleep.
Kama assisted, passing tools and wiping sweat. As Weiwei cut away Raymond's pants and sterilized the skin, then sliced into the flesh with a scalpel, Kama's feelings were complicated.
She wasn't afraid—doctors of this time did perform surgeries. Her husband had once stitched up a sword wound, though the patient died of infection soon after.
Back then, surgeries were agonizing. Patients had to be restrained by several people.
But now, Raymond lay peacefully asleep as Weiwei opened his flesh. He didn't flinch, didn't stir—he looked entirely unaware, his expression serene.
Weiwei wore an apron, mask, and headscarf, working with quiet focus. Though this was her first time performing the procedure, muscle memory made her movements precise and practiced. She quickly located the bone fragments, removed them with forceps, and then had Kama bring the prepared willow splint. With tweezers, she set it in place, added medicinal powder to promote tissue growth, and stitched up the incision. A final layer of medicine was applied.
She looked up. "Time to do the cast."
She was referring to a plaster cast—made by soaking gauze bandages coated with calcined gypsum. While not as light and breathable as modern versions, it was better than the crude splints or Arab-style molds used at the time.
She'd thought of this when making tofu with gypsum and had made several rolls in advance.
Perfect timing.
Kama fetched hot water. Weiwei tested the temperature, then soaked the plaster bandages, wrung out excess water, and smoothed them out. A cotton pad was placed beneath—not a proper medical pad, just a clean cotton cloth disinfected and dried in the sun. Thankfully, the weather was good. The pads dried in time for use.
Together, they wrapped and secured Raymond's leg. But the final step was difficult. Raymond couldn't help, and Kama lacked the strength to lift his leg. They had to summon a strong male servant to assist. He lifted the leg, Kama held the pad, and Weiwei applied the cast.
All three were drenched in sweat by the time they finished.
Especially Weiwei. The procedure took hours. It had been broad daylight when she began—now the sun was setting.
Now that her adrenaline faded, even her strong constitution began to feel the strain.
Kama saw her soaked headscarf and gently said, "Madam, you should rest. I can finish things here."
Weiwei shook her head. "You've been helping just as long. You should rest too."
She opened the door, and her attendants Penny and Qin rushed over.
"My lady, are you hungry? Dinner's been waiting in the kitchen. Should I have it brought here, or do you want to eat in the dining hall?"
"Hot water's ready if you want a bath."
Weiwei realized she'd missed dinner. "I'll eat in the hall. First, have someone carry Master Raymond to a guest room. And where's Felix?"
She had assumed Felix would be waiting nearby. Not seeing him now, she felt a bit disappointed.
Qin said, "The Count asked me to tell you—he's questioning the Pope's attendant. Once you're free, he wants to see you."
"He's sure the man was involved?"
Qin nodded. "That's what I heard."
Weiwei turned to Penny. "Is Pope John awake yet?"
"Not yet. Bishop Roberto is still angry," she added with a pout.
Unlike Umberto, who had been faithfully sitting by the Pope's bedside, Roberto had left after only a short while. At dinner, he even criticized the castle for letting a woman treat the Pope, calling it absurd.
His reasoning was simple: they'd never seen a female doctor before.
Everyone in the castle was furious, but the servants couldn't speak out. Felix didn't address the comment either—his expression was pitch-black, but he said nothing, simply ignoring Roberto. The bishop, mistaking this silence for victory, got more arrogant. If not for Weiwei's status, he probably would've accused her of heresy.
No one could stand him.
Weiwei didn't know any of that. She only asked, "Has he taken the medicine?"
"He has," Penny replied. "We gave it just as you instructed. He's unconscious but able to swallow. He didn't spit it out."
Penny and Qin had been with Weiwei the longest and often learned alongside Kama.
They took the chance to tattle. "Bishop Roberto tried to stop us from giving him the medicine. It wasn't until Bishop Umberto spoke up that he backed off—though he looked furious."
Weiwei waved it off. "Ignore him. The Pope will wake up soon enough."
The maids brought in people to carefully lift Raymond onto a stretcher and carry him to a nearby guest room. Everyone kept glancing at his heavily bandaged leg.
Raymond usually lived in the tower, but it wasn't suitable now. They placed him near the Pope's room for easier treatment.
Weiwei left two male servants to look after him, gave instructions for his care and recovery, and then checked on the Pope.
He was still unconscious, as expected. The back of his head had only a bruise, no bleeding. Kama had applied ointment. Thanks to the tonsure haircut of clergy—bald on top with hair around the sides—no shaving was needed. He lay on his side, pale and still.
Umberto was still praying at his bedside. When Weiwei arrived, he only nodded in greeting and continued praying.
She didn't interrupt. After taking the Pope's pulse and finding it slightly stronger than before, she knew he wouldn't wake just yet.
If she wanted, she could wake him with a few acupuncture needles. But she had no desire to flaunt more skills in front of the Church. He would wake naturally—no need to show off.
At last, Umberto finished his prayer and said, "I didn't realize you were a doctor, madam. How is Master Raymond?"
"The operation went smoothly. He's resting now. You may visit him tomorrow."
Umberto frowned—not because he opposed the surgery, but because surgeries were often a last resort, and many didn't survive them. In this era, most patients who underwent surgery died. It was only attempted when nothing else worked.
But Weiwei's calm, confident demeanor and visible exhaustion reassured him. He changed the subject.
"When will His Holiness wake?"
"Soonest, tonight. At the latest, a day or two," she said. "The bump on the back of his head is quite large. Let him rest."
Weiwei stayed a little while longer, then went downstairs to eat. Only then did she realize how hungry she was—her hands were trembling.
Thank goodness the food was already prepared. She devoured a plate of pasta at double her usual speed, then slowed down to eat more.
As she was slicing roast lamb, the familiar sound of wooden soles echoed from the hallway.
A moment later, Felix appeared in the dining room.
Seeing Weiwei, he smiled and walked straight over, not caring how disheveled she looked. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "You should've eaten earlier."
"I forgot once I got busy," Weiwei said, swallowing a bite of lamb. "Did you interrogate the Pope's attendant? Did you catch him?"
"It wasn't my men who caught him—it was the servant who reported him," Felix explained, sitting down. "Remember how we couldn't find him earlier? Turns out he'd gone after the escaping attendant. Without him, the guy might've made it out of the estate."
As for what happened—
The servant's name was Maike, Raymond's attendant. After Weiwei's instructions, he quietly discussed the suspicious attendant with the other three alchemist aides. The plan was to catch the man red-handed and drag him before the Count.
But Maike's surveillance was too obvious, and the suspect suddenly started behaving—staying at the lab door, no more sneaking around. Whether he still peeked inside, Maike didn't know.
Frustrated, Maike came up with a plan—make the guy move.
One morning, Maike requested leave in front of him, saying he had a family emergency. Raymond liked him and readily agreed.
Maike left the castle in a hurry, then changed clothes outside and snuck back in through a rear door the tower couldn't see. Avoiding Church members, he returned to the tower and hid in a storage room with help from the other three servants.
At noon, the other servants went upstairs, inviting the Pope and Raymond to lunch. The two were reluctant at first, but were persuaded by the mention of a small gathering with the other alchemists.
Naturally, the Pope's attendant followed them out. Maike waited.
Sure enough, the man returned and quietly slipped into the unlocked lab.
Maike emerged silently, creeping forward to catch him in the act.
He saw the man at the lab bench, back turned, fiddling with something.
Without thinking, Maike shouted and rushed in to grab him.
Startled, the man reacted quickly—throwing whatever he held and shoving past Maike to escape. He bolted for the rear exit.
Maike chased him through the grounds.
If the man hadn't chosen the villa path, trying to escape into the forest—only to be stopped by guards—Maike might never have caught him.
Felix added, "The lab was checked by the other alchemists. They confirmed that someone had added the wrong substance to the experiment—that's what caused the explosion."
Weiwei frowned. "So… was it an accident during the search, or deliberate sabotage?"
A good question. If it was an accident, then it was just an unfortunate incident. But if it was deliberate…
"Hard to say. He's still refusing to talk. But—" Felix gave a thin smile. "I asked around. That attendant has been with the Pope for years. He dabbled in alchemy and sometimes helped the Pope with experiments."
"And the substance he added wouldn't react at first. It only caused an explosion when something else was added later."
If Maike's testimony was true… then it was very likely that man had been aiming to harm the Pope.