Everyone in the clinic held their breaths, waiting for the patient who had just opened his eyes to say something. They all stared at him, and the badger beastman, who had been lying on the bed for a long, long time, suddenly got up on his own, and stood on his two feet, as if he hadn't been bedridden for probably a hundred years by now.
"I… I don't feel any pain. I have been cured!" the badger beastman yelled out of shock and excitement.
"T-the cure! The cure really works!" Irida yelled out of relief and joy as well. She had been treating them for god knows how long, and this was a breakthrough that they had been waiting for.
The cat maids were jumping out of excitement as well, especially when the other two patients were also cured out of their fever.
"This is a miracle! Your Grace, you've created a miracle for us!" Irida exclaimed as she hugged Odette tightly.
"We have to tell His Majesty about this! We can now start curing all beastmen with Crushian Fever in the kingdom as well!" Sir Zircon, who had the lowest expectation out of them all, was also drowning in euphoria.
Meanwhile, Odette was just glad that she could be of help. She never thought that her days as the assistant healer would come in fruition today.
When she was still in her pack, no matter how hard she worked in the healer's den, she didn't get any recognition.
On the contrary, her adopted brother, Iron, would always look down on her, saying that an assistant healer was not 'honorable' enough for him, at least not enough to allow her to stay in the pack.
When Sir Zircon said that he wanted to tell His Majesty about this, Odette quickly turned to him and asked, "Sir, can you bring me to him?"
"Sure, Your Grace! He is definitely inside his garden of thorns! I can escort you there," Sir Zircon agreed. He grabbed Odette's hand, and pulled her out of the clinic, leaving Irida and the cat maids, who were still celebrating this amazing finding.
The Royal Garden of Thorns was right next to the clinic, so Sir Zircon simply walked straight in while pulling Odette.
The last time Odette walked into the garden, she was sitting in a wheelchair, so she didn't have to worry about stepping on the poisonous thorns.
But since she was walking this time, she had to carefully thread her path, and couldn't help but implore, "S-sir Zircon, slow down! These thorns are dangerous to me!"
Zircon halted his step immediately.
He was so excited that he forgot that Her Grace had no idea these poisonous thorns were created with her own blood back then, so she was immune to the poison.
Her current self couldn't possibly know that, so he had to turn around and bow, "My apologies, Your Grace. I was merely excited to meet with His Majesty and talk to him about this. I will make sure you're safe."
Zircon wasn't allowed to carry her in bridal style, as he didn't want to incite the wrath of His Majesty.
Thus, he offered his back and said, "I will carry you to him, Your Grace."
…
Odette was hesitant at first. She wasn't fond of physical touch, especially with such intimacy. But looking at the confusing maze in front of her, she decided to give in and put her weight on his back, allowing Zircon to carry her to the center of the maze.
As they walked through the dangerous garden of thorns, she couldn't help but ask, "Sir, do you think that His Majesty will be happy with the cure?"
"I don't see it any other way. Crushian Fever has been plaguing us for a long time. It's no less than a miracle!" Zircon replied.
"It's just…" Odette tightened her arms around his neck. She felt scared whenever she remembered about His Majesty, especially when she recalled what happened last night.
He sniffed the scent from her nape before yelling at her, calling her trash.
She was glad to be off the hook, but at the same time, it exacerbated the inferiority in her heart.
'Am I such a wretched being to be called trash by the man who saved me? Iron said that I have no worth except for being a sex slave or a concubine. His Majesty also called me nothing but trash…'
Zircon noticed the air of sadness coming from the woman he carried. So he asked, "Your Grace? Is everything alright?"
Odette tried to swallow the bitterness in her heart and replied, "I'm alright. I'm just a little nervous to meet His Majesty again."
"Oh, don't be. I'm sure that His Majesty will treat you well!" Zircon stated.
'I guess, His Majesty hadn't said anything to his beta just yet, because Sir Zircon doesn't seem to know that I have been 'rejected' last night,' Odette thought.
The scent of blood was getting stronger as they reached the center of the maze.
Odette saw the looming, seven-feet tall figure with skull mask, stretching his hand to pluck one black rose filled with thorns. He turned around when he sensed two beastmen walking into his private garden.
"His Majesty, I've come with Her Grace. We bear great news," Sir Zircon reported. He slowly put Odette down.
Odette noticed a flicker in his red eyes when he saw Sir Zircon carefully putting her down. She also realized the scent of blood was getting thicker than a second ago, but had no idea why.
"My apologies for carrying Her Grace like this, Your Majesty. The thorns are deadly. It'll be dangerous if Her Grace accidentally steps or scratches herself," Sir Zircon explained. He knelt deeply, but his body tensed up due to nervousness.
Odette, who stood nearby, also noticed Sir Zircon's tense profile. She didn't understand why he'd get nervous in front of his own Alpha. The fear was obvious, so Odette directly stood in front of him and said, "Your Majesty, I've come with great news about the Crushian Fever."