Chapter 44

Benny Shire had a quiet admiration for Heath.

Though he often spoke harshly, there were times when he displayed chivalry. Ever since the time he had discreetly retrieved Benny’s pen, which had rolled onto the terrace during class, she found herself glancing at him more often.

But she was well aware that Heath liked Aidalia. That was why she had consulted Alecto a few times.

– ‘You’re good at dealing with people. How do I naturally start a conversation with Heath? What should I do to approach someone who has no interest in me?’

Alecto found trivial love consultations uninteresting but listened anyway. She even gave some advice.

– ‘You’re not popular because you just sit there. Go make a move!’

And yet, now she was being accused of betrayal?

Was it about their conversations? What was wrong with them? Now that she thought about it, Benny hadn’t shown up for class yesterday. Had she actually confessed and gotten rejected?

“I did what?”

Alecto instinctively went on the defensive—she couldn’t exactly explain everything to Heath.

Taking advantage of the moment, Aidalia stepped back a few paces, while Heath took a step closer to Alecto.

“Benny Shire has a crush on me? What the hell, do you know how that makes me look? She hasn’t left the dorm since yesterday!”

What? Alecto was taken aback.

So, the rumor had spread. That was one thing. Benny could have spoken to someone else about it. But why was Alecto being named as the source?

“What are you talking about? I never said that!”

To be fair, Alecto had mentioned Benny once. In front of the two quietest kids in class.

But they would never tell anyone… right? Oh, and maybe she had said something in front of Angharad and Rhiannon too. But they didn’t have anyone to talk to either…

Still, she couldn’t admit any of that, so she denied it outright.

“Liar! If not you, then who? Benny said you were the only one she talked to!”

Aisling, who lived next door to Benny, stormed over furiously. Before Alecto could react, Aisling grabbed her inkwell and hurled it onto the floor. The children around them screamed and quickly stepped back.

Crash. The inkwell shattered, splattering black ink all over Alecto’s clothes and shoes.

Aisling was just as stained, but being tall and unshaken, she showed no concern. Instead, she glared at Alecto with open rage.

“Just wait. You think being smart makes you special? You go around spilling people’s secrets! If something happens to Benny, I swear, I’ll kill you!”

The threat was simple, but Aisling’s towering height and fierce expression made it intimidating. A student nearby sneered.

“Yuna Berthold wants to kill you too. What’s your problem?”

Yuna was another girl who had sought Alecto’s advice.

Since the day before yesterday, Yuna had been glaring at her whenever she passed by. Alecto had dismissed it, thinking, ‘Is she out of her mind?’

“Yuna? Why?”

“They said you called her a fat, ugly pig and said losing weight wouldn’t help her. Weren’t you supposed to be her friend?”

Objectively, Yuna was just adorably plump, but she thought of herself as overweight.

The cause was obvious—comments from the boys in their grade.
“Hey, Yuna Berthold. You ever think of losing weight? Look at Megara—she’s thin and pretty. If your face is a lost cause, at least slim down…”

Alecto was aware that she was often lumped into the category of “ugliest girls in class” alongside Yuna, and it bothered her.

But to appear confident, she deliberately stuck close to Yuna, telling her that looks didn’t matter at all.

Yuna had found some comfort in those words but still hated her appearance. She began eating less in an attempt to lose weight.

She often confided in Alecto about how people’s stares made her self-conscious. Alecto found it exhausting but listened anyway.

And yes, she had made a few remarks about Yuna in passing. But only to a handful of people.

At least she had never said it to Yuna’s face! That was restraint, wasn’t it? Nobody liked listening to endless whining.

And now that ungrateful brat had the nerve to turn on her? Alecto snapped.

“What the hell are you talking about? When did I ever say that?”

“You’re a horrible girl.”

Aisling’s voice dropped to a chilling whisper.

By now, the entire class was focused on the commotion, but as soon as the classroom door creaked open, they hurriedly pretended not to notice.

“What’s going on here?”

Sir Humbert, the history teacher, stood in the doorway, blinking at the scene.

Aisling, her pride wounded, lifted her chin but merely muttered, “Nothing,” before returning to her seat.

But even as class resumed, Alecto couldn’t shake the feeling that everyone’s eyes were still on her.

Nerys nodded as she listened to Diane.

“So that’s what happened.”

“I was seriously shocked. I thought they were about to fight!”

Diane animatedly recounted the incident from the first-year history class. Since Alecto had often mocked the wealthy yet shallow MacKinnon family, Diane took a bit of satisfaction in describing the scene.

However, unlike what she had hoped, Nerys didn’t look particularly amused. She merely listened with a neutral, matter-of-fact gaze.

Diane hesitated, sensing a lack of reaction. Eventually, she leaned in, cupped her hands around her mouth, and whispered.

“I kind of enjoy seeing Alecto getting ostracized.”

Without so much as a raised eyebrow, Nerys replied immediately.

“Me too.”

“Really?”

Diane’s eyes sparkled.

She knew that Alecto had spoken ill of her, of Nerys, and of many others. Alecto never really bothered to hide it—even making snide remarks in front of them.

– “Hey, everyone! Guess who actually deserves to be at this school based on merit, and who’s only here because of money?”

– “Honestly, if I didn’t need to attend school, I wouldn’t bother. Who wants to feel indebted to distant relatives?”

It was winter, but the dormitory where Diane stayed was warm with a well-lit fireplace. The two girls sat together, a quilted wool blanket covering their laps, as they worked on their respective assignments—Nerys focusing on her subjects and Diane on hers.

Betty, watching the two girls with affection, was suddenly addressed by Nerys.

“Betty, I have a favor to ask.”

“Yes, Lady Nerys? Anything you need.”

“You’re from Malsoz, right? I need some information about Letorn for an assignment.”

Letorn was the name of a large region that included Betty’s hometown of Malsoz.

Betty, the third daughter in a large family, had come to serve the MacKinnon household through an introduction from her sister, who had married into a faraway land. Because of this connection, Letorn was quite distant from the MacKinnon estate. Diane’s eyes sparkled with interest.

“I’ve heard of it before! Letorn is famous for its herbs, right?”

Betty smiled and nodded.

“Yes. They say the medicinal properties of its herbs surpass those found anywhere else in Vista, which is why even noble households use them. The most famous is Bias Grass—it’s even mentioned in the scriptures. And then there’s Sting Pouch Grass, which grows abundantly in Kinia Village but nowhere else. It’s excellent for nerve pain…”

She continued, rambling about different herbs, where they grew, and how even young children in some villages were taught to pick them from the age of three. Betty’s explanations were scattered, but Nerys, ever patient beyond her years, listened attentively. When Betty finally finished, Nerys spoke in a calm voice.

“Letorn sounds truly remarkable. But now that I think about it, isn’t Kinia Village completely reliant on Sting Pouch Grass? They don’t farm or raise livestock—what happens if the supply suddenly dwindles? Wouldn’t their livelihoods be at risk?”

“Oh, there’s so much of it that we could never pick it all. In that village, it’s practically a weed,” Betty replied nonchalantly. She had even sent her younger brother there for work.

Nerys smiled.

“That’s a relief, then.”

Though her tone remained composed, inside, she was elated. Her true purpose for asking about Letorn was unfolding even faster than she had anticipated.

The assignment had merely been an excuse.

Beyond the tuition covered by the Elandria estate and the small allowances from home, Nerys needed funds she could use freely. After all, mobility required money.

However, a twelve-year-old academy student had limited earning options—at best, helping a teacher with chores for a meager stipend. Asking Cledwyn for pocket money was out of the question.

She needed money for more than just flower seeds. She needed a discreet way to earn without drawing unwanted attention.

And then she had recalled something from her previous life.

When she had been the Crown Princess, she had once served Lady Moriah, a noblewoman in seclusion. Though her isolation had nothing to do with old age, she occasionally suffered from joint pain.

One of the physicians in Lady Moriah’s household was from Letorn.

He often boasted about his unique herbal remedies, and indeed, his medicine was incredibly effective.

Yet, he stubbornly kept its ingredients a secret, claiming it was his trade secret.

Nerys remembered overhearing another physician, one who despised the Letorn doctor, drunkenly grumbling about it.

– “That arrogant fool—taking credit for his assistant’s discovery! If only I had a Lantville apprentice, too…”

Later, when Nerys casually reported this to Lady Moriah, the noblewoman burst into laughter.

– “Oh? So, it’s Lantville, is it?”

– “Yes, Aunt.”

– “I had a feeling. That man did have a woman from Lantville once. I think I can guess what’s going on.”

At the time, the Letorn physician had been extorting more and more money from Lady Moriah, using his ‘secret herb’ as leverage.

Lady Moriah was known for her cold demeanor, so the physician failed to notice that she was quietly searching for an alternative.

Nerys, who served by her side, however, had seen the signs.

Eventually, the Letorn physician was exiled from the capital over a minor offense.

His position was taken by a boy—his illegitimate son and former apprentice.

The boy, terrified, had confessed everything. Though he had resented his father, as a bastard child, he had no one else to rely on.

And now that his father had been banished overnight, he had been so stricken with fear that even Nerys felt pity for him.

– “Sting Pouch Grass disappeared over fifteen years ago. But back when it still existed, it could ease an old person’s joint pain in an instant… My father scoured the Kinia area for it. He managed to find a few plants, but they were withered… Then, by chance, I crossbred it with Hallograss from my mother’s hometown. It grew healthier and became even more potent.”

That same Sting Pouch Grass, now supposedly abundant, was destined to be wiped out soon by a sudden plant disease.

Though the Kinia villagers quickly pivoted to cultivating other herbs, and thus suffered little economic loss, Sting Pouch Grass became nothing more than an artifact of the past.

Based on her previous life’s timeline, the disease should emerge within six months.

So, what if she used Hallograss before the Letorn physician even thought of it?

It hadn’t been long since Nerys learned Betty was from Letorn. But now, she saw this as an opportunity.

After all, Lady Moriah wasn’t the only elderly noble suffering from joint pain.

The doctors in her household had worn expensive clothes and carried themselves with arrogance.

Nerys herself had no means of cultivating plants to a marketable level—her only experience in horticulture had been growing flowers for a brief period in her past life.

But Betty could introduce her to someone trustworthy.

Someone capable of cultivating a ‘new’ herb that could change the landscape of high-society medicine.

“Thank you. That was a huge help,” Nerys said sincerely.

Betty responded with innocent enthusiasm.

“It’s nothing, my lady! If you ever need anything, just ask!”