02

THE HERBAL DOCTOR

“Be careful next time, milady. Don’t let just anybody touch your beauty, arasso?”

That very same phrase was kept on playing at Dara’s mind. She doesn’t know whether she would feel happy for the compliment or mad because a stranger dare scolds him and just say things like that!

“Ha! He dared rant on me as if he knew me. How dare he?!” Dara hissed while cutting the vegetables she is about to cook for dinner rather forcefully.

He doesn’t think she is incapable of taking care of herself, does he?

Well, she can perfectly take care of herself and that scenario with the bandits isn’t new to her anymore. Since the day they live in the town, she and her sisters endured that everyday living. It’s not the first time that the bandits tried to harass the vendors in market. Almost every day they went there to extort bronze from the poor merchants as if it’s their responsibility.

That didn’t go for Dara. She doesn’t submit from their threats. She would fight back in the name of her bronze coins if necessary. The bandits won’t and never going to get any penny from her. She’ll die first. She learned to fight for her rights and always get away with it without the help from anyone.

Except for that day.

“Who is he anyway? I’ve never seen him before. A tourist? Or maybe a traveler?” she mused to herself. Aish! Why I am even bothered? He’s annoying,” she added with a frown.

Dara clear her mind off of that guy and focus with preparing their dinner. Her sisters will be coming soon. Most probably Minji will be the first one to arrive. Her dance class for the nobles is a whole day session. And speaking of their maknae, Minji warmly smiled at her when she entered the kitchen to greet her.

“I’m home, unnie!” Minji beams at her.

“How’s your day, Minji-ah?” she asked as she flashed her simple smile. She is now adding her newly tortured cut vegetables which became the victim of her frustrations in the hot pot.

“The nobles are still being a brat as per usual,” she answered while occupying one o fteh empty wooden seat. “What’s for dinner?”

“Vegetable soup and French bread,” she responded.

“Sounds great! I can’t wait for it unnie.”

“Arasso. Let’s wait for Chaerin and Bom then we’ll eat together,” Dara said while mixing the soup.

“Okay!” Minji claps her hands and stood up to get the bowls and chopsticks to help Dara prepare the table. “Unnie, how about yours? Did you sell a lot today?”

Dara smiled widely at her. She actually earn a lot of bronze in selling’s Bom’s herbal tea and medicines also Chaerin’s ragged towels. It was indeed a good day for business. The bandits who always the pain in their lives stopped harassing them ever since that day. The whole market place was now relieved. They are very grateful for the two lads who helped them. If it wasn’t for them maybe the merchants still have to deal with those extortionists.

Somehow that fact marked as good impression to her.

“From the way you smile, I know you had a good day, huh?” Minji concluded with a smile.

Dara chuckles and winks at Minji.

She is now filling their bowls with the fresh from the hot pot vegetable soup. Just in time, Chaerin arrived with Bom tagging along behind. They can smell the food Dara made from the kitchen-slash-dining area of their humble abode. Their stomach grumbles in hunger.

“Dara must be finished cooking already. Let’s join them,” Bom said putting down her medicine bag.

“I agree. Let’s go! I’m hungry!” Chaerin declares walking her way to the kitchen where Dara and Minji are.

Bom just shakes her head looking at Chaerin’s back before following her.

“We’re here! God, I’m famished!” Chaerin cheers cheerfully grabbing her own chair and settled in front of the table.

“Oh hello to you too, Chaerin,” Dara sarcastically muttered.

“Hello to you too, Dara-unnie,” she said with sarcasm.

The two starts playing but reprimanded by Bom so they could start their dinner.

“Enough playing Dara and Chaerin. Let’s start eating shall we? I want to rest immediately. I still need to be in the local clinic early in the morning tomorrow,” she said tiredly and seat beside Minji.

Dara and Chaerin stops goofing around and look at Bom. The latter really looked haggard and spent. She must be having a hard time in the clinic. A lot of the villagers are getting sick lately. Oddly, they get well right after the Lantern Festival. That’s the main reason why people in that town believed that lighting the lanterns during the festival brings good health and prosperity.

“You looked exhausted, Bom. Busy with the patients?” Dara asked worriedly.

Bom sighs deeply.

“The amounts of ill patients are multiplying everyday than last year. The doctors are panicking because they’re under staff. Worst they don’t know yet what’s the cause of the virus spread. So they can’t make any inoculation. If it wasn’t for the herbal medicine I make, the people might not survive,” she stated sadly. “What’s more frustrating is   that the children are severely affected. The doctors won’t ask for my help if only three kids didn’t die a week ago. They’re completely helpless.”

A deafening silence covers them upon hearing the devastating news. The four felt bad. Dara bites her lower lip and furrows her brows in deep thought. She put down her spoon and looks at her sisters. She is contemplating whether to voice out what she was thinking at the moment or hold her tongue.

Minji stares at her soup sadly while stirring it slowly. Bom have the same tired expression while Chaerin sighs audibly for the nth time.

“Um... Girls, do you think…” Dara mumbles. The three other girls looked at her expectantly. She eyes them one by one before speaking. She had decided to voice out what she’s thinking. “It’s because of us why this tragedy is happening? The Blood Moon is coming. I was just thinking—”

Bom cuts her instantly before she can even finish her statement.

“DARA!” she yells in horror. “How can you say that? We… We are not…. We have nothing to do with all of this!” she vehemently rebuffs.

“But Bom… how can you explain everything that happening now?” Dara shots back.

Bom didn’t answer and keeps shut nothing to say. Chaerin and Minji look at their unnies interchangeably. They knew deep in their thoughts that what Dara had said might be true. They are just afraid to admit it.

“Can’t you feel it? The powers we have are getting stronger as the day passed by. It’s getting unbearable for normal beings as the Blood Moon is looming. The villagers are so much affected that it almost kills them already.” The truth hurts but for the four of them they have to endure it.

“Still…” Bom whispers dejectedly.

Dara rolled up her cloak’s left sleeve up to her elbow to show her blue birthmark in her wrist. “See this! My birthmark is turning to cold blue. It only means one thing and you know it!” she said frustratingly as she shut her eyes.

It’s easy to admit the truth than to deny it and lie to yourself. If they will just keep on denying it to themselves, they’ll just end up suffering.

“It’s happening Bom. It’s inevitable,” she mutters quietly.

Chaerin and Minji gaze at their own mark discreetly. Chaerin’s birthmark in her chest is pale white than the usual. Minji’s ankle mark is colored in bloody red. Bom grips her hands together. Her birthmark in between her middle and ring fingers darkens. Soon, the real form of their birthmark will be revealed whether they like it or not. Just like what Dara said, it’s inevitable.

*********************

A week had past but the four warriors still doesn’t have any clue about the four Priestesses. They could feel strong powers around the town but source is unidentified. Even so, they very well knew what powers it is.

The prominent powers of the Four Gods are getting stronger. They can feel it. The day when the powers lying inside the maidens completed is approaching. They must find them before or during that time. They have to find them first before the enemy does.

“The powers of the Four Gods are all over the town. It won’t take long for the enemies to sense it too. We should, no we need to find the Priestesses as fast as we could,” Jiyong firmly said tightening the knot on his blue lace wrist band.

“It’s too strong. The villagers can’t even take it,” Taeyang said watching the villagers by their window.

“Yeah. I heard a lot of people are getting sick this time of the year,” Seungri chirped in.

“How the doctors manage to treat the patients?” Top asked clearly curious.

“I heard that there is a herbal doctor helping the local clinic in making medicine. She’s really good at medicinal plants according to the villagers. They preferred confiding their health to her than the real doctors. The question is, how can she retaliate the powers of the Gods that obviously the reason why people is suffering right now?” Seungri mused while tapping his fingers through his chin.

“She? The herbal doctor is a girl?” Top frowns.

“Neh. She’s a pretty maiden. That’s the villagers I asked said,” he nodded.

Top raise a brow at their maknae. It seems like Seungri did not just investigate for the Priestesses.

“At time like this, you still had your way with your ?” he stated while shaking his head in disbelief.

“Yah hyung! It’s not my fault that girls swoon over me. Is it a sin to have a face like mine? And May I inform you, I didn’t do that on purpose. The villagers were willingly told me stories about her,” Seungri pouted defensively.

Jiyong and Taeyang snicker while Top almost clobbers the poor Seungri with his swords sheath but the latter quickly took his spare arrows and run for his life. Not for long, they followed him to check out what’s happening to the town. Maybe, they will also look for the herbal doctor Seungri had told them. She is very intriguing.

*********************

Top was walking along an alley of houses when he passed by an old lady crying. She’s cradling a six years old looking child. Must be her daughter?

The poor child is thin and pale. She is coughing every now and then. She looks weak and ill. She even looks dying with her state. The mother is weeping while asking for help.

Top immediately approached the helpless villager.

“Let’s bring her to the doctors, milady. She needs immediate medication,” he said and carried he little girl himself.

“No! The doctors can’t save her,” the mother refuses.

“But, she needs to be treated,” Top insists.

No! L-Let’s bring my daughter to the herbal doctor. She… she can save her,” she suggested while wiping the tears on her cheeks.

“The herbal doctor?” Top frowns.

The mother didn’t answer but instead pulled him somewhere probably to the herbal doctor. They arrived at a small clinic. Top was surprised to see the line of villagers outside. There is some lying on the ground seemingly dying.

“Ahjussi come here.  Bring my daughter to Lady Bom,” the mother said holding the rag curtain of the door to make a way for him.

Top hesitated for a moment but nodded anyway.

He found himself inside while carrying the child in his chest. A lady with red long hair with straight bangs busy instructing two local doctors and few nurses. She hand them few bottles she got from her shabby medicine kit.

“Give everyone a shot every four hours. Send them home and tell them to rest. If the coughing continues tell them to go back here as soon as possible, arasso?” he heard her ordered softly. The clinic’s staffs quickly moved and complied.

“Lady Bom! Please see my child! Heal her, milady!” the mother cried out once Bom is free.

“Where is she?” she asked.

Top instantly approached them. Bom looked at him for a second and turns her attention to the child.

“Lay her in the mattress,” she ordered.

He silently put the girl in the mattress and steps back to give Bom space.

“She looks bad. How many days she’s been this sick?” Bom inquired while checking the child’s breathing.

“It’s been three days, milady. Tell me, she’s going to be fine, isn’t she? Please save her, lady Bom,” the mother begs desperately.

“I will see what I can do. Don’t worry. Just let her stay here for few days for observation. I’ll give her a shot of my vile and wait if anything changed with her condition,” she said while laying a set of needled in the table and the same bottle she gave earlier to the doctors.

Top watched her silently in the corner while Bom picks one needle and soak it in the bottle contents. After a minute or two, she removed the needle from the bottle then gets hold of the child’s arm. She squeezed the pale arm until a green vein appears. She quickly the needle to the vein earning a groan from the child. She cooed the girl who slowly closing her eyes after.

“It’s okay. You’ll be fine… I’m sorry,” Bom whispered softly.

Top furrowed his brows together at her last statement. I’m sorry? He thought. Why did she have to apologize? She’s doing a great job as far as he can see. But why sorry?

Eventually, the little girl slumbers finally. The mother instincts alarmed and begin to panic.

“Why is she closing her eyes? Is she dying? No! She can’t!” the mother exclaims.

“Milady, she’s just sleeping. Calm down, juseyo. That’s only the side effect of the medicine. Once she wakes up everything will be fine,” Bom calmly said. The mother cries out while thanking her for healing her daughter.

Top observes at Bom who tries to calm the old lady. There is something about her that he finds suspicious. She is not ordinary villager that’s for sure. But what is she the? An enemy? Or maybe…?

“No. it can’t be…” he shakes his head to clear out the thought.

She is not one of the Priestesses, is she? But she could.