Ernest felt his heart ache seeing her . He had thought that after her marriage to the crown prince, she would live a comfortable life. The last time he saw her, she had still been dressed like a noble lady. Now she looked so pitiful.
Remembering that she had been missing for more than half a month, he wondered how she had managed to escape and appear here. But thinking about her situation again, Ernest walked over. Seeing that she was burning with fever, he quickly scanned her body to check if she was hurt.
"Are you injured?" he asked. The source of this content ɪs novel•fire.net
"No... snake," Anastasia answered. She could not bring herself to form full sentences, so she said the words she felt were most important.
Ernest looked at her leg, which was tied up. If she had been injured, he could have treated the wound immediately, but he had no antidote for a snake bite.
He could only pick her up and leave in a hurry.
After taking a few steps, he remembered that she must have escaped from kidnappers who might still be searching for her.
He did not know how many people were involved. If there were several of them, he would not be able to fight them off and protect her at the same time.
After careful thought, he retraced his steps to where he had killed the tiger. He hid the tiger’s carcass among the woods before leaving again.
He tried his best not to leave any trace as he hurried back towards Lowe.
"My Lord," the young man was feeding the horse when Ernest returned. He was surprised to see Ernest back so soon, and even more shocked to see him carrying someone. The person seemed to be a young lad.
"Are there any physicians within Lowe who can treat a snake bite?" Ernest asked, ignoring his subordinate’s shocked expression.
"My Lord, there is an old physician. I heard he can remove the poison, as long as it hasn’t reached the heart," the young man replied.
"Then bring the old cart. We’ll take her over," Ernest said.
"My Lord, allow me to take her. Why don’t you go and rest?" the young man suggested. Although Ernest was merely the illegitimate son of a Duke, in everyone’s eyes, his status was still sensitive.
If he were seen having contact with someone else in the village, especially a woman it would not be easy to explain.
What if the woman, after discovering his identity, wanted to cling to him?
Village women and servants always dreamed of a better life. Moreover, there was supposed to be no obvious contact between Ernest and the villagers.
"Take the horse and bring the physician," Ernest said.
He understood his subordinate’s concern but did not care.
He would not be at ease if he could not personally witness what was going on. He also knew a horse would make the journey faster.
The young man bowed and left without another word.
Ernest then took Anastasia into the courtyard and laid her on the bed.
"Why are you always in harm’s way whenever I meet you?" Ernest asked quietly.
Anastasia still had a bit of consciousness, although she could not speak. Hearing his question, she wondered if he had mistaken her for someone else or if he truly knew her.
She had not met many people in her life, as the Duchess had kept her confined in the Duke residence.
She wondered who she might know who could say such a thing.
Then suddenly, her mind recalled the handsome man she had met twice.
The first time, she had bumped into him in the royal palace, an utterly embarrassing incident.
The second time had been at the royal army camp when she went to see the crown prince off.
She had missed a step and would have fallen if not for his timely rescue.
Truly embarrassing. Anastasia sighed internally.
But she could not remember if she had seen him leave with the army to the north. Even if he had, her location was still far from Lowe, much less the military camp.
Unable to figure out who her savior was, she assumed he had likely mistaken her for someone else.
It did not feel bad either. At least, she felt saved at last.
She felt the man gently wiping her face with a cloth, then helping her take off her shoes.
Ernest frowned when he saw her foot was swollen.
He wondered how far she must have walked to end up .
He gently placed a wet cloth on her forehead to help reduce the fever, then took out a small bottle containing an ointment.
After carefully wiping her foot with warm water, he applied the medicine to help with the pain.
When he was done with everything, he stepped outside to check if the young man had returned, but there was still no one in sight.
"Why so slow?" Ernest muttered, frowning.
He regretted his decision to stay back and have the physician brought over instead.
Meanwhile, at the physician’s house:
"I hear you are good at removing snake venom," the young man said to the physician, who seemed dazed.
This physician was the same one who had been kidnapped by Gavin.
He had just woken up and realized he was back in his own house.
Seeing that it seemed to be morning, he wondered how long he had been unconscious.
He had not yet recovered from his shock when another stranger appeared before him.
"Have I become an easy target?" he wondered. After he lost his family a few years back, he had decided to become a wandering physician. He decided to stay in Lowe for a few months to regain his strength after fallen journey sick. He did not expect to become a target.
The young man had no time to waste. He knew his master wanted to save the lady he had brought back, so he threw a small pouch of coins onto the table.
"Come with me and treat a patient. I assure you, the reward will be good," the young man said.
Seeing the offer of payment, the physician took a deep breath.
Perhaps this person is just a traveler stuck in Lowe looking for help, he thought.
With that in mind, he took a small bag and began preparing the things he would need.
His movements were at a normal pace, but to the young man, they seemed painfully slow.
Without another word, the young man moved quickly as soon as the physician finished packing; dragging him with one hand while carrying his medical chest in the other.
He helped the physician onto the horse and immediately started riding back.
"I must go for prayers if I survive this," the physician thought as the horse rode away.