Volume 1 Chapter 47 Mr. Michael And Olive
Patients who had been resting in the hospital room came to me with steady steps, thanking me as they left.
I felt really shy and bowed my head.
It makes me happy to be thanked, but I'm not very good at it.
I can't help but think I didn't do much.
I just cooked some food.
The nurses encouraged the patients to return to their beds to check on them.
I felt a bit relieved because otherwise, there would have been a crowd around me.
"Big sister...!"
After finishing all the risotto and tender octopus, Olive ran over to me.
"Big sister, thank you! It was really delicious!"
"I'm glad you liked it... Thank you for eating the food."
"Big sister, you're crying again!"
Hehe, Olive laughed and hugged me tightly around the waist.
"It feels so light to be this way. I wonder when was the last time. I got sick 3 years ago. I thought every day that the white moon might come to take me today or tomorrow."
"Olive..."
"It was really scary. Everyone told me that going to the white moon is a happy thing, but if I go to the white moon, I won't be able to see my dad anymore... I don't want that."
"Ugh... Olive, that must have been tough for you. Even though your body and heart are hurting, you still thought of me and ate the food. Thank you..."
"Big sister, cute things. I like cute things. You are cute. That's why you have 2 boyfriends."
"Boyfriends...?"
"Yes. They are really wonderful!"
"...N-no, Sir Ciel is a friend, and Sir Roxas is... well, Sir Roxas is a kind acquaintance."
"A kind acquaintance..."
Next to me, Sir Roxas repeated my words.
Sir Ciel knelt down on one knee and looked into Olive's face.
"...Ms. Olivia, does the sound of the bug wings in your head not bother you anymore?"
"It doesn't bother me anymore. Thank you, Sir Ciel, for always worrying about me."
"I'm glad you're feeling better. You don't hear a woman's voice anymore?"
"I don't hear it. ...Recently, it was especially loud. It was a voice calling me, saying, 'Come here, come here.' I thought it was the voice of the white moon."
"I see... Thank you for telling me."
"Big sister is a friend of Sir Ciel, right? Not a girlfriend."
"Yes. Just a friend."
"I see... I thought you and Sir Ciel looked close, so I thought you were a couple."
Olive moved away from me and whispered something in Sir Ciel's ear.
Sir Ciel smiled and nodded slowly.
I couldn't hear what was whispered, but it looked like a sweet scene, like an older brother and his younger sister.
"Thank you, Sir Ciel and Sir Roxas, for bringing big sister here."
Then, with a graceful gesture, Olive held her skirt and bowed.
Mr. Michael, who had stepped out to check on the patients, returned and stood next to Olivia.
Olivia tightly held Mr. Michael's hand.
"Ms. Lydia... thank you so much. Even those who had trouble walking can now eat and stand up. The patients were all fine physically, but they seemed to have lost their spirit and life force. Now, it's like nothing ever happened, and they're back to their lively selves."
"N-no, I just cooked for them."
"But that cooking saved everyone, especially Olivia... I can't thank you enough."
"Everyone, even though their bodies are weak, worked hard to eat. I'm so happy... I..."
For me, that was enough.
Maybe──just maybe──the patients got better because I prayed to Goddess Alexandria.
Since I also carry the blood of the Rest priest family, maybe Goddess Alexandria heard my wish.
"As you know, Sir Ciel and Sir Roxas, I was originally part of the Holy Knights and worked as a military doctor. This clinic belonged to my father. I used to look down on my father for taking in patients with White Moon disease. I thought there was no point in treating an incurable illness."
"B-but, Doctor Michael, you are so dedicated to the patients..."
"Three years ago, my only daughter Olivia got sick. At that time, I was so busy with work that I hardly came home. Her mother, my wife, was left alone to worry about Olivia, and by the time I noticed, she was both mentally and physically worn out. ...I thought it was my fault. I used to make fun of my father, who was treating White Moon disease, saying it wouldn't get better anyway. It was my fault."
Doctor Michael's voice was a bit shaky.
Olive looked up at Doctor Michael with a worried expression.
"I quit being a military doctor and took over this place from my aging father. To cure Olivia. To atone for my sins to the other patients. But still, I couldn't find a treatment... Ms. Lydia brought hope to this clinic, which had only despair. I thank you."
"Y-yes... um, I'm glad. ...I'm glad that Olive and everyone are getting better."
I managed to say just that.
Then, Olive hugged me again, so I returned the hug to her small body.
Since I couldn't say anything more, Sir Roxas and Sir Ciel talked with Doctor Michael for me.
After that, we were seen off by everyone and left the clinic.
From the small hill where the clinic was, I could see the horizon across the sea.
As I stumbled down the stone steps, Sir Roxas firmly took my hand.
"...Lydia. Your cooking has healed everyone. There's no need to be sad when there's joy."
Sir Roxas said as he walked, pulling my hand along.
"Well, but I'm feeling anxious... they're a little better now, but they might go back to how they were tomorrow. The day after tomorrow, they might return to that state again... Thinking about that, I..."
"You're overthinking it... People lose their lives for many reasons. It could be due to illness or accidents, or even being killed by monsters. It's not uncommon for one human to take another's life."
"That might be true, but..."
Sir Roxas's words sounded very cold.
But──Sir Roxas hated my power, which only brings death.
He has always wished for Sir Rail to live.
So, I know he's not a cold person.
"...Among those, there were people who had accepted death, thinking they could never recover, but they were able to eat and walk again. Even if it's just for a moment, isn't that something to be happy about?"
"...Yes. ...That's true, isn't it?"
"And Rail is doing well no matter how many days pass. He's running around outside since early morning. There's nothing for you to worry about."
I wonder if that's true.
I hope it is.
I'm happy that Sir Roxas is trying to encourage me.
How kind. Maybe he's a good person after all.
"Ms. Lydia... Olivia's mother was trying to commit suicide with Ms. Olivia... Doctor Michael happened to find them when he came home, and he managed to save only Olivia."
At the bottom of the stone steps, Sir Ciel quietly spoke.
"...That's terrible."
"Doctor Michael has been blaming himself all along. He thinks it's all his fault. 'I would even die if it means I can help Olivia,' he said."
"Sir Ciel, I don't know anything... Olive was so kind and such a good girl."
"Ms. Olivia's memories of that time are completely gone. But, her heart is hurt. A hurt child understands things well. ...But today, Ms. Olivia was smiling from her heart. ...She looked like she was happy to be alive."
Sir Ciel gently holds my free hand.
"Ms. Lydia. You should be proud that you did a good thing, I think."
Sir Ciel's words sink into my body, spreading warmth. Tears fall, and Sir Ciel wipes them away with a handkerchief. Sir Roxas holds my hand tightly without saying anything.
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