Rosie's Games

Chapter 73: Bitter Apples 1

"So?" Mr. Pratt could not hide the anxiousness in his voice as he watched Miss Lin examine the Duke's knees. Despite his calm appearance, he could not help but feel nervous. This was not part of the plan! And if Miss Lin told him what she was planning he would have told her to stop immediately.

One of the reasons why the Four Quarter Masters were very good at doing business was because they do not involve themselves in politics. All they did was pure business!

One would ask why he was reacting like this when Miss Lin was just checking the Duke's knees and his answer would be quite simple. Healing the Duke would bring a storm to the whole Empire.

Miss Lin might not know this and perhaps her motive was really pure, but the Duke was the greatest threat to the Emperor when he was younger. He was stronger, more famous and the citizens adore him. He was supposed to be the crown prince before he encountered a problem on the battlefield that led to his damaged knees.

When the people heard about his knees, many were dismayed. They wanted him to be the next Emperor and this would affect the selection for the crown prince. Naturally, this did not go well with many princes at that time, and the one who felt so much anger was the new crown prince who was not even as famous as the Duke.

Emperor Nicholaus hated the Duke and this is the reason why he was keeping the Duke alive. He wanted to show the Duke that he was more capable, more talented and that he could manage the empire better than him.

These were things that merchants like him knew as he had studied all seven empires since he was younger. He did not want to make any mistakes in interacting with the nobles and their families so Mr. Pratt did all of his research before he came here.

"This is strange," Miss Lin's words surprised both men inside the room.

"What is it?" the Duke asked.

"Well I was certain that the ehem " Miss Lin went back to his seat and finished her tea as if she was trying to compose her thoughts. "I always thought that the curse that infected the Duke was already on every part of the Duke's body but this "

"Whatever you mean?" the Duke frowned. "Can you do something about it? Is there a way to heal my knees?"

"Yes." Miss Lin uttered. "There is." Confidence laced her voice. "But first, you must stop whatever it is that you are taking every morning that is giving you the subtle pain every night and is the reason why it has been very difficult for you to walk "

"Miss Lin, this is not something that you can just say," Mr. Pratt decided to intervene. "Even the Blessed ones cannot heal this type of curse and this was given by a cursed weapon."

"I can heal all curses, Mr. Pratt," Miss Lin blinked at him, she looked confused. He immediately wondered if she understood what she did just now. Healing the Duke would create chaos in the whole empire!

While the Duke already lost a lot of noble supporters, Pratt was almost certain that his recovery would somehow make the citizens remember his past grandeur. With his legs healed, the Emperor would once again feel threatened and would do everything to destroy him.

"Even the ones that were caused by a cursed weapon."

"You" the Duke's eyes were wide as he stared at Miss Lin. "Can you really do it?"

"Yes, Your Grace," Miss Lin responded. "I can heal your legs, however " Miss Lin met Mr. Pratt's eyes. "That would bring chaos inside the empire."

Her words surprised Pratt. Does this mean she knew about the possible repercussion of this action?

"The Emperor would surely not approve of this. He might even use the Princess to threaten you. The chaos that would follow would be severe and would surely affect normal citizens like us," Miss Lin said. "I might not look like it, but I have read books about politics when my Master asked me to take some rest. So I know what is going to happen if I heal you."

"That"

"However" Miss Lin smiled. "I can heal the Duke only if you promised not to reveal this to other people."

"What is that"

"Aren't you interested to know who caused that accident, Your Grace?" Silence followed Miss Lin's words. "My Master had been very curious about the matter and had become obsessed with studying the details of what happened in"

"Preposterous!" the Duke's voice echoed inside the room.

Miss Lin flinched and Mr. Pratt immediately frowned at the Duke.

"Are you trying to imply that my brother did it?"

"Your Grace, Miss Lin was simply blabbering about the things that her Master did and said. She did not mention anyone, not especially the Emperor. Please stamp out your anger. Miss Lin was only showing how much her late Master respected the whole Duance Family."

The Duke glared at Rosalind.

"Miss Lin, I let you check my wounds because I wanted to empathize with what you are going to feel for the sake of my daughter, but that does not mean you can just tell lies in front of me. This will be the last time that we will be talking about this matter."

Miss Lin frowned but said nothing. So, the Duke slowly approached the Door.

"The money will be the same. Please send a letter to the mansion once you are ready to do the first treatment. Though, I would really appreciate it if you do it as soon as possible," the Duke said without sparing her another glance.

Mr. Pratt thought that this was enough to scare Miss Lin. He was utterly wrong.

Just as the Duke was about to open the door, the silent Miss Lin spoke.

"Is this what you want, Your Grace?" Miss Lin asked.

"What?"

"Walking around being called useless and one day dying without a legacy. Is this what you want?" Miss Lin said again. This time, the Duke looked visibly upset. However, he said nothing and left the room.