144 - Evil Husband (15th Anniversary Edition) Chapter 144
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Soon, she drawled out her reply with a sneer.
"No?"
Her eyes held an arrogant glint, as if daring Aileen to say what she had to say. Normally, Aileen would have been intimidated by that force, but for some reason, she didn't feel that way now. Aileen continued without stopping.
"I've created a new painkiller in liquid form, like a sweet syrup. It has different ingredients from Aspilia, and I think it might be better suited for Ornella."
It was a medicine she had made, thinking it might help improve her relationship with Ornella.
Back when she was selling medicine at the inn, there were customers like Ornella who couldn't take Aspilia. She had slightly improved the medicine she gave them, so it should be quite effective.
"You may not have found anything that works among the existing painkillers on the market, but this might be different."
At Aileen's words, Ornella frowned as if offended.
"I didn't know the Grand Duchess was investigating me."
"It's not an investigation... It's just that people who don't respond to common painkillers often share similar traits, so I mentioned it."
Ornella stared intently at Aileen, trying to find any falsehood in her words.
She leaned closer to Aileen, her large eyes fixed on her without a single blink. It was unnerving.
But Aileen only shrugged, not backing down. Ornella asked expressionlessly,
"Surely, you're not going to offer me a medicine that works for me in exchange for stopping the release of a drug similar to Aspilia... are you?"
Aileen secretly wished that were the case, but she knew it was impossible. Aileen shook her head.
"The medicine developed by Parbellini, please let me be the first to test it."
"...What?"
Aileen calmly continued, addressing Ornella's dumbfounded question.
"The development period for the medicine is too short. I'll be the subject of the clinical trial, so please give it a little more time."
Ornella was speechless, unable to comprehend. In fact, Ornella was well aware that the medicine created to imitate Aspilia had not been verified.
The reason she was pushing ahead despite knowing the risks of the drug was simple: to tarnish Aspilia's name.
If the drug showed side effects, she planned to spread rumors that it had the same ingredients as Aspilia on a large scale.
If it worked perfectly well, she intended to tell the media that Parbellini cared about the people, unlike Erzeht, who used medicine for profit.
In any case, Ornella had no interest in what effects or side effects this medicine would have on people. She was only deeply interested in the consequences.
But now, Aileen was volunteering to be the first to take this dangerous medicine. To volunteer for something that would bring no benefit, but only harm.
"Why?"
She couldn't understand Aileen's behavior, which seemed to be helping Parbellini. Ornella couldn't help but ask if Aileen was planning some scheme she didn't know about.
"Why are you saying you'll take it yourself?"
"I'm..."
Aileen thought of Count Domenico and his wife. The moment she brought a peaceful night to the suffering wife, and the moment the tormented Count was able to smile faintly.
And she uttered the words she had never dared to say before.
"Because I'm also a pharmacist."
There was no hesitation in her resolute answer. It was a firm answer that felt like a conviction.
Rather, it was Ornella who faltered. Her eyes flickered briefly. She, who always looked down on people and sneered, as if everything in the world was ridiculous, looked at Aileen with bewildered eyes.
Ornella's agitation soon disappeared. Ornella leaned back and moved away from Aileen. Ha! A loud, hollow laugh burst out.
"It's not even funny..."
But the mumbling voice was a little weaker than before. For some reason, Ornella couldn't meet Aileen's eyes. She looked at the altar and said,
"Do as you please. I'll send it to you, so go ahead and eat it until your stomach bursts. Don't be surprised if it works better than Aspilia?"
She snapped back as sharply as usual and gestured towards the prayer stand.
"The offering is done, so let's pray now."
Since Aileen had come all the way into the temple for the first time, she thought she would like to pray as well, so she headed to the prayer stand without complaint.
Ornella and the priests were surprised that Aileen was willing to pray so readily. They had assumed that Aileen, like Cesare, was an atheist.
Aileen clasped her hands at the prayer stand. The rough texture of the wood pressed into her skin.
Does God exist?
There was no answer to the question she had held for so long. In fact, Aileen found it a little difficult to believe in God, because there was no proof, only a vague existence.
But that didn't mean she was an atheist. The miracles that sometimes happened in everyday life, those moments that could not be explained by human power, might be proof that God exists.
So Aileen prayed.
Every time Cesare went to war, she offered fervent prayers to all the gods in the world, hoping for a miracle for him. She was desperate enough to cling to even an uncertain existence.
Fortunately, her prayers were answered. Cesare had returned alive from a war where everyone had expected him to die. Whether it was a miracle by God or a miracle created by Cesare himself, she didn't know...
'But there's so little I can do for Cesare.'
Aileen always prayed to all the gods.
'Would it be more... effective if I prayed here?'
She knew it was a ridiculous thought, but being in such a solemn and sacred space made her think that way.
Aileen looked at the altar filled with flowers. All kinds of flowers were scattered on the altar. Among the many flowers, she focused on the lilies and gently closed her eyes.
For now, she forgot everything else. Ornella, Aspilia... She prayed, thinking only of Cesare.
If God exists, please remove the darkness that hangs over Cesare. May he always be filled with bright light. Please grant him a dazzling miracle.
As she was praying, deeply immersed, Aileen heard a strange sound. It was the sound of a clock ticking.
The ticking noise made her open her eyes involuntarily. But there was no clock to be seen around her. Even if there was, it was impossible for it to be heard so close to her ear.
Looking around in confusion, she saw Ornella raising her eyebrows. She didn't seem to hear the sound at all.
'Is it a hallucination?'
Aileen hurriedly recalled the medicines she had taken recently. The most suspicious was Morpheus, but enough time had passed that the ingredients had almost disappeared from her body. So it was difficult to hear hallucinations so late.
Then the candles decorating the altar flickered slightly. Aileen felt a faint tremor. This time, it wasn't just Aileen who felt it; Ornella and the priests also looked around in confusion and examined the floor.
But Aileen looked up at the ceiling. It didn't seem like the vibration was coming from the floor. As Aileen checked the domed ceiling, the doors of the temple opened.
"Aileen!"
Along with the sunlight pouring into the dim interior, a very familiar voice was heard. Cesare was visible beyond the open door.
Why was he, who should have been in the middle of a conversation with Leone, appearing at the temple? Aileen was about to call out his name in surprise.
A rumbling sound, like thunder, echoed. At the same time, the marble pillars supporting the temple and the round domed ceiling cracked like glass. Thick cracks, like lightning, were etched into the solid stone.
"Ce, Cesare..."
Aileen called out his name, and just as Cesare was about to rush into the temple,
The pillars collapsed and the fragmented ceiling fell down. Fragments of huge stones instantly covered everything.
