The Dark Fantasy Doctor Was Mistaken for a Saint - Chapter 49

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Haruto

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Dark Fantasy Doctor Was Mistaken for a Saint ◈

Chapter 49: Entering High Society (2)

──────

* * *

Around the time the bottom of the stew bowl came into view,

“Julian.”

“Yes?”

“Come to think of it, there’s something else we need to discuss about your engagement.”

Father pushed his now-cold soup bowl aside, reviving a topic I had thought was over.

I wiped my mouth with a napkin and met Father’s eyes.

“Is there something I need to do before the engagement?”

“Yes.”

Father nodded and neatly folded the napkin spread across his lap.

“Before we get into that, though, let’s go over something again. Do you know how Julian Nihirit is known in high society right now?”

I shook my head.

Come to think of it, aside from my position that I would need to become a live-in son-in-law to retain my noble title, I did not know much about my own reputation.

I mainly worked in Limbus Pit and Civitas Square, so I had no close noble acquaintances who could tell me.

Father nodded as though he had expected that.

“You are known as the eldest son of a baronial house who is reasonably handsome, whose family is somewhat wealthy, and who has never once been seen going out.”

Hmm. My reputation was even more of a mess than I thought.

The reason was probably the vaccine.

After I distributed the vaccine, quite a few black mages lost one of their main techniques.

In particular, the black mages who had been making a tidy profit from the Curse of Decay became unemployed overnight.

Naturally, they were not going to leave me alone.

So, on the day I invented the vaccine, I followed my teacher’s recommendation and applied to the Inspectorate for personal protection in advance.

‘The Inspectorate really does its job properly.’

After that incident, every connection between Director Schun and Julian Nihirit vanished.

I did not know what kind of maneuver they had pulled.

But people could no longer imagine that Director Schun might be connected to Julian Nihirit.

There had been a minor side effect, however.

Julian Nihirit had become an idle delinquent who had never left home until the age of fifteen.

‘Feels like I’m Spider-Man after No Way Home.’

Of course, it was perfect positioning for the protagonist of a misunderstanding story.

But the marriage market was another matter.

“Julian. I know very well how many good deeds you have done down below. But what can we do? Nobles only remember what happens in their own world. No matter how angelic your achievements are down there, they will not care much.”

That was true.

Volunteer work did not count as a credential in the marriage market.

If anything, it might even count against you.

“That is why next year is important. Within a year, you must make your abilities known among the nobles. Have you given it any thought?”

I shook my head.

“Do you know what other children my age usually do?”

“When children your age turn sixteen, they either help with their parents’ work or make a name for themselves fighting beyond the wall.”

“Then I suppose I fall into the former category.”

“I imagine so.”

Father paused for a moment.

After hesitating for a while, he spoke again.

“Julian. It seems my work will become busy from the beginning of next year. There are several backlogged cases.”

“By your work, do you mean your duties as a magistrate?”

“That is right.”

Hendel Nihirit, head of House Nihirit, served as a magistrate at court.

It was roughly the medieval equivalent of a prosecutor.

Magistrates mainly handled unsolved cases that might involve magic, investigated disputes between nobles, and dealt with various special crimes.

No wonder that priestess had panicked when she cast healing magic incorrectly on Freya last time.

With Father’s position, socially ruining a single priestess would be easy.

“Recently, unsolved cases have been piling up more and more. I would like you to help me.”

“Me? Could I really be of help?”

I was a doctor.

Not a detective.

Of course, I knew some of the basics of autopsies.

Forensic medicine was a required part of medical school.

And did they not say that assembly was the reverse of disassembly?

As a surgeon, I did know the basic principles of an autopsy.

But...

‘Would they even let me cut open a body?’

Given the era, I wondered whether they would permit autopsies.

I would be lucky if they did not accuse me of being a black mage instead.

Perhaps Father had vaguely guessed what I was thinking. He gave a small laugh.

“Do not worry. I am not asking you to catch criminals.”

“Then what exactly am I supposed to do...?”

“Do what you are good at. Save people.”

Save people?

Why would that be necessary for an investigation?

As though answering my question, Father continued.

“Usually, investigators who have gone to examine these cases, or witnesses who come to report them, have been injured somehow. It would be good to have you there then.”

“Ah, I see. Where are they usually injured? I should prepare in advance.”

Father slowly closed his eyes and stroked his chin.

“It varies. Some nobles cast curses to eliminate witnesses. Others arrive after being shot or struck by arrows on their way here.”

“???”

“There was once an investigator who died of a heart attack after returning from an investigation.”

“...”

Right.

This was dark fantasy.

There was no way investigations would proceed through normal procedures like they did in the twenty-first century.

That was why Father, a Rank 3 knight, had been appointed as a magistrate in the first place.

It was rare for magistrates themselves to be attacked, but they had to protect witnesses and investigators.

“...Just in case, which is more dangerous, going beyond the wall or assisting you?”

“What a ridiculous question. Going beyond the wall is obviously more dangerous.”

Tsk. He was right.

So why did assisting Father not feel much less dangerous than fighting beyond the wall?

The one comfort was that nobody would openly try to kill me.

A magistrate on official duty represented the Imperial family.

Touching one carelessly could get someone charged with treason.

Naturally, I was treated somewhat the same for accompanying such a magistrate.

Of course, the more I helped, the more our opponents would try to deal with witnesses and investigators.

‘The hard road ahead is clear.’

“...All right. I look forward to working with you, Father.”

“You have made a good choice. We will not begin immediately. I will call for you once I am certain a case is safe enough for you to join us. Until then, continue as usual.”

That concluded every discussion related to my engagement at dinner that evening.

* * *

[...For that reason, Master, I believe I will often need to be away at irregular intervals from now on.]

A voice flowed from beyond the crystal ball.

Great Sage Louis Edelhardt looked at the crystal ball in one corner of his study and set down his teacup.

“You will be helping Magistrate Nihirit with his work. You certainly have it rough.”

[Do you know my father?]

“Of course I do. He is the magistrate in charge of unsolved magical cases. His name has been circulating quite a bit at court lately as well.”

[Is that so?]

“Yes. His record is exceptionally good. He is frequently mentioned as a candidate for the next chief magistrate.”

Chief magistrate.

To use Julian’s terms, it was the equivalent of a chief prosecutor.

[...]

“Are you surprised?”

[I would be lying if I said I was not.]

Great Sage Louis inwardly chuckled.

He did not say that a lion cub could hardly be raised beneath a cat.

“It is a good thing. There is always something to learn from everything. If you follow him, you will learn things I cannot teach you.”

Inspiration could come from unexpected connections.

The Great Sage himself had realized many truths in that manner, so he did not mind his disciple postponing lessons for a while.

“Go and see many things.”

[Thank you, Master.]

A brief silence followed from beyond the crystal ball.

Louis quietly gauged the texture of that silence.

Usually, Julian fell silent like this when something was troubling him.

Louis lifted his teacup, took a sip, and waited for Julian to speak.

Scratch, scratch.

The faint sound of a pen moving across a notebook came from beyond the crystal ball.

He was likely preparing to take notes before asking his question.

Eventually, the scratching stopped.

[...Master.]

“Speak.”

[When will it be possible to reveal Director Schun’s identity to the world?]

Louis set down his teacup.

It was the question he had expected.

He understood it, too.

A disciple of the Great Sage, the creator of the vaccine, and co-representative director of the Merkuer Trading Company.

It was only natural that Julian would feel wronged having to lower his head in the marriage market despite holding those positions.

But Julian was not yet ready to reveal his identity.

“Julian. As you know, your reputation is still too heavy for you to bear.”

It was truly contradictory.

His abilities were so exceptional that he could not bear the weight of his reputation.

But it could not be helped.

Julian’s vaccine had made too many black mages into enemies.

His other medicines would provoke the envy of nobles.

And considering that he had recently treated a demon disease, even the protection of a mere baronial house would struggle to keep him safe.

That was why the Great Sage was protecting Julian.

“You are asking for specific criteria for when you may reveal your secret, are you not?”

[Yes.]

“At the very least, once you have acquired a trustworthy Rank 4 knight as a guard, or gained enough capital that even a ducal house cannot ignore you.”

A moderate amount of capital could not replace a sword.

But overwhelming capital could become a sword in itself.

There were, in fact, several trading company presidents who were commoners yet held power comparable to ducal houses through overwhelming capital.

The Great Sage spoke as he recalled them.

“Do not be too hasty. You still have plenty of time, do you not? It is a problem that will naturally resolve itself once you turn thirty.”

Instead of an answer, the sound of a pen came from beyond the crystal ball.

Scratch, scratch.

Louis chuckled inwardly as he listened.

What exactly was there to write down here?

The Great Sage quietly waited until his disciple’s pen stopped.

A moment later, the sound of notebook pages rapidly turning came from beyond the crystal ball.

What was he searching for so eagerly?

Just as the Great Sage’s curiosity deepened, Julian’s voice sounded again.

[Then I think it is about time I started making money properly.]

“?”

What was that?

For a moment, the Great Sage wondered if he had misheard.

“...What do you mean by that?”

[Until now, I have made medicines that brought in little money in order to save people. But the company has grown to a suitable size now, so I think it might be all right to make a medicine that earns some money.]

Hmm. Yes.

It seemed he was hearing things because he had stayed up all night researching.

The Great Sage mixed a little diluted potion into his tea and took a sip.

Unfortunately, nothing Julian said beyond the crystal ball changed.

[However, I would like you to guarantee the patent rights. It is a medicine other nobles may covet, so there is a risk that it could be taken from me.]

“...What kind of medicine could it possibly be?”

[It is a secret. For now, let us just say it is a medicine that may improve heart function.]

“...”

Quinine, insulin, heparin, IV fluids, colchicine...

Julian had raised the trading company to a Grade 1 trading company with those medicines alone.

Grade 1.

A trading company without equal anywhere in the Empire.

Yet Julian was saying those medicines had not been particularly profitable.

A past conversation flashed through the Great Sage’s mind.

“You need not feel bad about the vaccine patent, Master.”

If those had not merely been empty words...

‘Should I stop Julian now?’

A medicine that would make quinine, vaccines, and even insulin seem ordinary.

The Great Sage felt curiosity toward the medicine, but fear as well.

‘...It seems my imagination has grown worse with age.’

Surely it could not be that extraordinary.

The Great Sage shook his head and brushed away his unease.

“Ho ho. My disciple is quite the exaggerator.”

[I suppose you will find out when you see it later.]

“Then may this teacher perhaps join you in researching that medicine?”

[Um... I am sorry, but I completed the research while making quinine when I was young. I have only been considering when to release it on the market.]

“...”

Hmm.

The Great Sage stopped thinking at that point.

Instead, he pressed two fingers firmly to his throbbing temple.

He seemed to need much more tea mixed with diluted potion than before.

‘That Baron Nihirit, honestly. Why did he have to provoke the child? If he had just left him alone, things would have worked out on their own.’

From Louis’s perspective, Julian’s engagement problem had never been something to worry about.

If left alone, a good match would have come along naturally.

‘Tsk... It is far too dangerous if his reputation grows further before he has enough protection.’

Making a great deal of money was not bad in itself.

If anything, it was a good thing.

The problem came afterward.

When a medicine became a massive success, his reputation would grow.

When his reputation grew, more eyes would turn toward him.

Black mages and greedy nobles were already searching for Director Schun’s identity. This could amount to pouring a whole barrel of oil onto the fire.

The Great Sage himself was not sure he could handle all of that.

That concern had reached its peak and manifested as a headache.

‘Tsk. But as his teacher, I cannot block my disciple’s path.’

What else could he do?

He simply had to work harder to cast a wider shadow over his disciple.

Louis let out a deep sigh and leaned toward the crystal ball.

“Julian.”

[Yes, Master.]

“Let us leave the medicine discussion there. There is something more important now.”

[Yes. Understood, Master.]

“Before you begin accompanying your father, there is something you need to review.”

[Please tell me.]

“Reverse tracking and dispelling black magic. Your level has already surpassed one where I can presume to tell you what to do, but it would still be best to review them once more, just in case.”

[That is certainly true. Thank you, Master. I will train until they become second nature.]

Louis gave a small laugh.

Most disciples who reached this level would hear such concerns and let them go in one ear and out the other, saying that there was such a thing as worrying too much.

The world treated mages so well that they ended up becoming arrogant.

But mages were not invincible.

If an assassin wielding battle aura launched a preemptive attack, a mage might have their throat pierced before they could even prepare a catalyst.

Countless mages also lost their lives in vain to curses or magic that struck before they even knew about them.

He had lost too many disciples that way to count on his fingers.

Yet even after reaching this level, Julian had never lost his humility.

‘He will become someone great. Truly.’

“With reverse tracking and dispelling, the only variables you need to consider are inside your own body. Even you should be fully capable of it if the conditions are right. But catalysts will be difficult for you to obtain, so I will send some in a parcel. Wear a protective magical tool as well, just in case.”

[Thank you very much, Master.]

“Yes. And Julian.”

Louis chose his words for a moment, then added briefly.

“Do not overextend yourself while accompanying your father. A cornered beast sees nothing else. There are always those who would rather drag someone else down with them than lose everything alone, so be careful. Very careful.”

[I will keep it in mind.]

Louis withdrew his hand from the crystal ball.

The light within it gradually faded, and the study became quiet once more.

The Great Sage leaned back and looked up at the ceiling.

After staring at the ceiling’s lattice pattern for some time, he muttered to himself.

“...Perhaps this may even be a good opportunity.”

He rose from his chair, picked up his pen, and began writing a letter.

“My child. There is someone I would like you to meet.”

After writing that short sentence, the Great Sage whistled.

Squeak.

A silk weasel appeared at the window, and the Great Sage tied the note to its back.

“You know where to go, do you not?”