“You’ve been feeling lethargic lately, is that correct?”

Roseline nods at Aeson’s question and he could sense the lack of energy that she usually possessed. Most of the time, the lady would be bright as she talked to him about the new books she had been reading or something she had learned in class. However, today’s checkup was different as she seemed as if she was going to doze off any given moment if it weren’t for her willpower to keep herself focused.

“Have you been staying up late? Eaten anything new? New activities?”

She shakes her head, “No. Josette makes sure I sleep at the same time and I haven’t eaten anything new. I’ve been doing everything just as I’ve always been.”

Even the color from her face seemed to be a tad paler if it weren’t for the makeup Josette had put on to mask away her complexion. Aeson was surprised considering she had been fine at the past few checkups and that he always used his Light magic in secret to ensure she was feeling fine – his magic should have prevented any sort of fever, cold or tiredness that Roseline was currently experiencing.

He puts a hand over her forehead, transferring his Light magic onto her without her knowledge. Not a lot of people were able to use Light magic so discreetly as this magic would usually showcase light when in use but he was an exception. He used more than he usually did, in hopes that Roseline would feel better.

“Hm, do you feel any different now? I don’t think you’re running a fever.”

Still, Roseline shakes her head and he can see how the tired look in her eyes remained. His worry continues to grow at her state not improving but he doesn’t let it show – he can’t have Roseline worry along with him.

Aeson takes hold of her arm, feeling for her pulse. Now, he was certain that something was wrong with her – he could feel that there was something blocking the Light from flowing properly into her body. A blockage of some sort that he couldn’t pinpoint where exactly it settled itself into her. Perhaps this was why Roseline was feeling lethargic and why his magic was ineffective.

“Roseline, are you free this weekend?”

Josette clears to catch their attention, particularly the Healer’s attention.

“Might I kindly remind you that Lady Roseline is engaged to His Highness, the Crown Prince?”

Aeson quickly puts up his hands in defense, shaking his head almost immediately, “No, no! Dear heavens, I would never even think of offending His Highness in such a way.”

He pinches the bridge of his nose and quickly explained in hopes of clearing up any misunderstanding with the maid, “I’m heading to the Holy Church this weekend, I was suggesting that you’d come along. Some people feel lighter once they step into the Holy Church – I thought that it would help you.”

“Can’t you just use your magic like you always do?” she tilts her head, wondering why she needed to do a different procedure.

“Well, depending on Light magic all the time isn’t good for the body,” he explains, which was technically the truth, “Everyone has Light in them which is why we’re able to heal naturally. For most people, it’s just a small bit but enough to heal you from cuts, mild fevers and colds at a slow rate. For Light Users, we have more than the average person and we’re able to transfer Light to others. In some way, we’re ‘charging’ the person so that they can amplify their own Light. The more light we have in ourselves, the better it is we’re able to heal others.

“The Holy Church – or any other churches affiliated with the Holy Church – is usually a good source of Light energy due to all the praying people do. So, people will often claim that they feel lighter or better once they visit the church due to the Light energy that surrounds the church,” he explains further and almost chuckles at how attentive Roseline was listening in to his words.

“Even if Milady did want to visit the church, her brothers wouldn’t allow it on such short notice-“

“Must I have their permission?”

Roseline wasn’t fond of cutting off people midway but at the mention of her brothers, she already knew which path this conversation would lead to unless she were to say anything.

“Lady Roseline, you know how much your brothers care for your well-being.”

“But it’s only 15 minutes away by carriage,” she pleads at Josette. She knew how long it would take for the letter to arrive to her brothers and how much longer she’d have to wait until they set up security for a mere 15-minute trip. Roseline didn’t want to burden her brothers and she most certainly didn’t want to hear them lecture her.

Josette wasn’t budging and Roseline knew if she couldn’t convince Josette now, the maid would send word to her brothers by today.

“I could disguise myself and travel without a guard or a maid,” she suggests, holding onto Josette’s arm, “Please~ I won’t be very long and I promise to not wander off anywhere without Aeson.”

“…It’s still risky.”

“What would happen if I delay my visit to the Holy Church? What if I get worse, Josette?”

Roseline didn’t like guilt-tripping others but it seemed this would be her final chance if she didn’t want Josette to go report to her brothers. Plus, it had been ages since she was allowed to step foot outside of the academy without a guard or a maid accompany her.

She turns to the healer to coax him into her little scheme, “Don’t you agree, Aeson? With how my condition is?”

The lady winks at Aeson, hoping he would give his own statement to persuade Josette into letting Roseline travel. He could see how desperately she wanted to leave the academy for a change of scenery as well as how she didn’t want to Josette to report every single movement of hers back to the Beaumont Brothers. He found it amusing how cheeky Roseline could be, biting back a chuckle.

“I fear that this would be the best choice she has now,” the tone of his voice drops into a very serious one, “To delay any further would cause side effects to her health.”

Glancing a peek at Josette, Roseline could see the maid sighing heavily and closing her eyes as she contemplated her next response. If she were to report to her masters, Lady Roseline’s visit could be delayed longer and could possibly cause her health to deteriorate while the maid was simply following procedure. However, if Roseline were to get the help she needed faster, the problem could be solved before her brothers could find out but at the cost of defying orders.

Both sides had their own pros and cons yet none of them seemed to be the ‘right’ choice to make. She takes a while longer to answer, Roseline and Aeson’s stared at her as they awaited her response. The maid would have a final say in the matter and all Roseline could do was hope it was the answer she wanted to hear.

“…Alright, I’ll keep this a secret from the masters,” she gives a stern look to Aeson who was sweating under Josette’s intense gaze. Her protectiveness to the only daughter of the Beaumont family was on the same level as Roseline’s older brothers.

“But, if anything were to happen to Milady while she’s with you – I won’t hesitate to blow the whistle on you, Sir Aeson.”

“Then, it’s decided! I’ll see you this weekend, Aeson,” Roseline nods rather excitedly, quickly tugging on Josette’s arm, “We best be on our way, my class starts soon.”

Aeson watches as Roseline exits the infirmary with a smile despite how he could see the depleting Light in her. Thankfully, it wasn’t affecting her too badly for now but who knows how long it would be until the real effects would begin to settle. Despite all his worries, he still gives a smile and a wave back as the doors close behind the two.

Finally alone in the infirmary, his worried expression makes an appearance as he sits back down on his table.

His daily thoughts were always filled with Roseline for the past few weeks but it wasn’t as if he had taken a romantic interest in her. Being a close friend to one of her brothers, he was assigned to keep an eye on Roseline during her recovery to ensure her health hadn’t been affected in any way. He had thought nothing more than an old friend asking for a small favor until he got to meet Roseline face to face.

When the lady had first came into the infirmary after the fire incident, she was glowing with Light energy. It was more than the average person and if he hadn’t known Roseline was a Fire user, he would have thought she was a Light user instead. Her glow was radiating and warm and he found it dazzling every time she came to do her daily checkups for the past few weeks.

It wasn’t until a few days ago did he realize how that glow of hers was dimming and today, it was a weak glow. Her radiating warmth was nowhere to be seen and that was the start of his growing worry for her. He could see how her condition was affecting her – from her heartbeat to her blood flow, she was showing symptoms of an illness that would slowly make its way throughout her whole body. Even his own Light couldn’t seem to return her glow back to its mesmerizing state and could only recover her by a tiny bit, so small that Roseline couldn’t sense it herself.

Truth be told, he didn’t know if visiting the Holy Church would make any difference to Roseline’s current condition but he held a strong belief that it would, at the very least, slow the process down just so he could do some more research. The Light energy from the biggest church in the kingdom had worked wonders before so perhaps if Roseline started visiting weekly, she could cleanse her Light just enough to hold the illness at bay. He refused to give up so early on – there had to be something that he could do for Roseline. He just hoped it wouldn’t be too late by the time he found the answer.

He removes his spectacles, pinching the bridge of his nose as he already knew how her brothers would react if he were to deliver this startling news right away.

“No… Just give it some more time. Just a month more and I’ll tell the truth,” Aeson convinces himself that he would delay the news for a while longer. He didn’t want to imagine the heartache they would have to go through for a third time.

“Just a month and I’ll come clean, I swear.”

Exiting the final class of the day, Roseline was eager to leave the classroom and head back to her dorm. She had waited u