LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 86
86. The Curse of the House of Serulice (3)
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The Duke of Serulice looked strict, with a somewhat sharp and edgy appearance—a middle-aged man. Quite different from the typical noblewoman who was his duchess.
“Good day, Your Grace.”
“Ah, please speak freely.”
“Yes.”
“I heard you’re a hard person to see. I’m truly grateful that you’ve come to my estate. Please, take a close look at the children. See what’s wrong with them.”
“Thank you. One thing though—do you happen to remember when your children first started feeling unwell?”
“Hmm… Their health has always been fragile.”
“I see.”
“It’s been a week since all three collapsed. My household staff is very worried. They fear divine punishment or a curse may have befallen our family.”
“It’s no one’s fault. Uh, if there’s nothing else you’d like to say, I’ll go ahead and begin the examination.”
“Will you accompany me?”
“No, focus on the examination. I’ll visit the children later on my own.”
I nodded.
There’s no time to waste. After paying our respects to the Duke of Serulice, we set off for the examination with the butler in tow.
I thought he’d follow us naturally, but if he believes staying out of the way helps more… then why?
The thought process of ordinary people is sometimes different. Normally, parents wouldn’t leave a sick child alone during an exam.
Especially in cases like this where the illness might cloud the patient’s judgment. There were several possibilities I considered.
Maybe they’re unconsciously denying their children’s illness. Or perhaps the duke and duchess think it’s not that serious.
The more I think about it, the bigger the mystery becomes.
We must hurry to see the patients.
****
We stopped in front of a tightly shut door. A sign read “Emilie,” so this must be Miss Emilie’s room.
“Is this the eldest daughter’s room?”
“Oh, yes. I wonder what she’s doing inside.”
The butler earlier furrowed his brow, looking troubled. Well, he did mention something about erratic symptoms. This could get tricky.
“We’re healers. We’ve seen it all, so nothing will surprise us.”
“It’s not much, but when I told her a doctor was coming, she screamed, threw up, and caused quite a commotion. She hasn’t said a word since.”
I nodded.
If the patient isn’t cooperative, it makes things difficult.
“Let’s start the examination. Since she’s quiet now, we’ll proceed carefully.”
“I’ll wait outside the door. If anything happens inside, call me immediately.”
The butler decided to wait outside. Istina and I entered the eldest daughter’s room together.
There must be clues here regarding the illness. Since talking to the patient seems unlikely, finding these clues is especially important.
I thoroughly inspected the room. Let’s see… by the bedside, there’s a glass with water that was apparently drunk just minutes ago.
There aren’t many signs of illness here. It doesn’t seem like the room of someone with a mental disorder. Of course, the patient herself doesn’t appear entirely normal either.
The patient sat quietly on the bed, muttering softly. The room was surprisingly tidy, though something was under the bed.
A book? Why would it be there?
On one side of the room stood a vanity. Perhaps she used cosmetics containing lead. I took a closer look at her vanity.
“Istina, do you know anything about cosmetics?”
“Not really…”
Since the ingredients weren’t listed, I couldn’t tell. There were definitely a few white cosmetics, but does lead cause these symptoms?
Lead poisoning can indeed cause neurological issues, but the symptoms don’t match the patient’s condition.
In adult lead poisoning, common symptoms include dizziness and headaches—not sitting quietly while muttering, which resembles hallucinations.
Let’s keep it in mind for now.
I turned my attention back to the patient.
“Miss, can we talk for a moment? We’re healers here to help you.”
No response. Her muttering only slightly increased. Her gaze shifted restlessly.
“Istina, try holding the patient’s hand.”
“Now?”
“Yeah.”
“But what if she bites?”
True… What if she does?
“Just try. I’ll help if she attacks. She seems calm right now.”
“Uh… Excuse me.”
Istina cautiously approached the patient, who ignored her completely. Istina gently took the patient’s hand.
I examined the back of the patient’s hand.
“That’s good. You can step back now.”
“Phew, that was scary.”
“Did you notice anything unusual?”
“There was a strange wound on the back of her hand.”
Right. That’s what I wanted to check. On the back of the fingers and part of the palm, there were distinctive marks—but only on the left hand.
“Istina, do you know how wounds like those on the back of the patient’s hand could occur?”
“Maybe she fell somewhere?”
Nope. People don’t usually fall onto the backs of their hands—it’s physically awkward.
“You’re wrong. I’ll explain later.”
In medical terms, it’s called Russell’s sign.
It’s a common injury among patients with bulimia, caused when they insert their fingers into their mouths to induce vomiting, leaving scratches from their teeth on the backs of their hands.
She probably avoided using her right hand because getting it covered in saliva would be unpleasant. Still, Emilie didn’t look like a typical bulimic patient.
This patient seems to have induced vomiting not due to bulimia, but rather to fake being ill.
Not everything is as it appears. Based on observing Emilie, this is my conclusion:
It seems like she’s inducing vomiting not out of genuine nausea or pain, but likely to pretend to be sick.
Why?
I don’t know.
But deliberately vomiting to look sicker or lose weight isn’t behavior typical of someone lacking rationality.
Though I’m not a psychiatrist, it feels calculated and deliberate.
Could it be that upon hearing a doctor was coming today, she exaggerated her symptoms by forcing herself to vomit?
Still, there are ways to verify. I glanced briefly at the half-drunk glass of water with lipstick stains still visible.
Perhaps it’s easier to confirm than I thought. After pondering for a moment, I slowly spoke.
“Luckily, Istina.”
“Yes?”
“The glass contains sleeping medication. If the patient has hysteria, the coolness of the sleeping drug should suppress her symptoms, making her fall asleep soon. Then we can conduct a more detailed examination.”
Actually, that’s not true. There’s no sleeping medication, and the “cool sensation” is a fabrication. Istina looked thoroughly confused.
Yeah, it’s ridiculous.
But the patient has no way of knowing whether what I just said is true or false. While she’s distracted, the patient leaned over.
Caught red-handed.
“Istina, pass me the notebook.”
“Ah, yes.”
I took the notebook, pulled out a pen, and wrote two words on a blank page before showing it to the unconscious Emilie.
– It’s just plain water.
Emilie’s eyes snapped open.
See? She understood everything we said from the beginning. Pretending not to listen, muttering nonsense—it was all an act by Miss Emilie.
Even though it’s obvious she’s faking, healthy people don’t usually feign such severe illnesses. Istina tilted her head.
“Um, there wasn’t actually any sleeping medication, was there?”
“Yeah.”
Emilie clearly has some deep psychological or physical issue causing her to behave this way. We need to figure out what it is.
“Let’s talk, Miss Emilie. I’ll do my best to keep secrets from others around you.”
“Really…?”
That’s the principle. Even if the parents ask, it’s improper to disclose information the patient requested to keep private.
Though it’s unfortunate to deceive the duke and duchess, I nodded. Emilie sighed.
A moment later, the butler peeked in, concerned, probably having heard Emilie move earlier.
“Uh, when did the young miss regain consciousness?”
Unable to resist laughing at the irony of the situation, I chuckled. The butler widened his eyes, utterly clueless.
“It seems she regained consciousness momentarily.”
“Ah, yes. She’s regaining consciousness.”
Emilie awkwardly scratched her head. The butler noticed nothing amiss and exclaimed in relief multiple times.
“Amazing! The rumors are true—the empire’s greatest physician! Just your presence seems to already make the young miss feel better!”
Now let’s uncover the real problem.
Faking illness. Recognizing patients whose symptoms don’t match their actual condition is also an important skill for doctors.