A bitter taste spread across the tip of my tongue. Then came the sweetness of honey, followed by the faint sourness of the Maekhyeolja.
I squeezed my eyes shut and swallowed the medicinal pill.
A moment later.
A warm sensation began to spread from deep within my chest.
The suffocating heaviness that had always pressed down on me gradually faded, and warmth even returned to my fingertips, which had been cold and stiff.
I carefully drew in a deep breath.
“Phew……”
It was much easier than before.
Father stared intently at my face.
“How is it?”
“It’s easier to breathe.”
When I pressed my palm against my cheek, even the skin that had felt cool just moments ago was warm.
Father immediately took my wrist and felt my pulse.
The fingertips that had been following my pulse for a while finally stopped, and his stiff expression softened ever so slightly.
“Your pulse has definitely stabilized. It isn’t a fundamental treatment, but while the effects of the medicine last, you should suffer less.”
He let out a quiet breath.
“Still, that’s a relief. Truly.”
For some reason, I felt happy and broke into a wide smile.
“How long will the effects last?”
“We’ll have to watch you more closely to know for certain, but…… I’d say half a day, about six shijin. However, it can upset your stomach, so you mustn’t take it for more than three days in a row. You need to take a day off in between.”
Half a day.
The medicinal pills I had made before couldn’t even last three shijin properly.
The effects had lasted twice as long, so this was undoubtedly a great improvement.
‘But it still doesn’t meet Grandfather’s condition.’
At least a full day.
And even then, I had to be able to take it consecutively.
‘It’s still not enough.’
Anxiety weighed heavily on my chest.
Perhaps Father had read my expression as well, because he looked down at the medicinal pill and asked,
“Are you disappointed?”
“A little…….”
“There’s no need to be.”
Father gently patted my head.
“The effects last twice as long as the first one you made. That means the direction you chose wasn’t wrong.”
“But it doesn’t last the full day Grandfather mentioned.”
“That’s right. It’s still not enough.”
Rather than pretending everything was fine, Father calmly acknowledged it.
“So we simply have to make it again.”
I looked up.
“There must be a way to make the effects last longer.”
“Do you think we can find a way?”
“We have to.”
A confident smile appeared at the corners of Father’s mouth.
“Whose daughter are you? You’ve already accomplished this much on your first attempt, and you’re already losing heart?”
I pressed my lips together before nodding firmly.
“Yes. I’ll try again.”
“For today, rest first. We need to observe how the effects change while your body stabilizes.”
“But we agreed that I would show Grandfather the medicinal pill I made tomorrow.”
With little time remaining until the entrance examination, Grandfather had instructed me to bring him the medicinal pill I had made by tomorrow.
“We’ll have to buy ourselves even a little more time for now. Don’t worry too much. I’ll explain things to him.”
Father spoke reassuringly, but I knew.
Tomorrow, the list of candidates for the entrance examination will be finalized.
If my name were added to the list only after the deadline had passed, there would obviously be gossip behind my back.
“……I understand.”
But there was nothing else I could do for now, so I answered weakly.
Then I looked down at the medicinal pill in my palm.
Half a day.
It was still far short of Grandfather’s condition.
But at least the direction I had taken was not wrong.
That fact was what mattered.
***
It was deep into the night, but I couldn’t fall asleep.
Father had returned to his quarters, and although I was lying in bed as well, I had lost count of how many times I had tossed and turned.
Whenever I closed my eyes, I heard Grandfather’s voice.
“The effects of the medicine must last at least a full day.”
Father had said I could simply make it again, but the truth was that it would be difficult to get permission with the medicinal pill I had now.
‘How can I make the effects last longer?’
I went over the process of making the medicinal pill during the day, one step at a time.
The order in which I removed the leaves from the Cheongmaekcho, the size to which I cut the Hwangjeonggeun.
The timing at which I added the Maekhyeolja and even the strength of the fire.
The medicinal herbs themselves weren’t wrong.
After all, using the same herbs had already doubled the duration of the effects compared to before.
Then perhaps the problem wasn’t the medicinal herbs, but how long their medicinal properties remained active inside the body.
“……Wait.”
I abruptly sat up.
‘If I change the proportions and the order in which I add them, the way their medicinal properties manifest could change as well.’
Several possibilities flashed through my mind.
I wanted to test them myself.
I couldn’t stay in bed any longer. I hurriedly threw on an outer robe and headed for the small medicine room behind the detached quarters.
Creak.
When I opened the door, the familiar medicinal scent tickled the tip of my nose.
This place had been prepared so that my medicine could be decocted there, so it was equipped with all the basic medicinal herbs and tools.
I lit the brazier and then lit the oil lamp.
The small flame flickered, bathing the medicine room in a yellow glow.
“All right. Let’s give it a try.”
I laid out the medicinal herbs I needed on the table.
There wasn’t much time until morning.
But now that I had to start preparing everything again on my own, I couldn’t work as quickly as I had expected.
“Kkyu?”
Rustle, rustle.
Then, a familiar sound came from behind me.
When I turned around, a pair of black, bead-like eyes were staring intently at me through the crack in the door.
“You……?”
Whoosh.
The otter slipped inside as though it had been waiting for this moment.
Then it hopped toward the table covered with medicinal herbs and sniffed around.
Sniff. Sniff-sniff.
Its eyes sparkled like jewels when it spotted the medicinal herbs.
There was already a drool gathering at the corner of its mouth.
“D-Do you want some?”
—Yes!
The otter looked up at me with its front paws neatly clasped together.
Then, perhaps realizing that I was trying to make medicine, it grabbed the small pestle and mimed pounding something with it.
—I’ll help! I’m good at it! I’ve been to all the places that smell good!
It thumped its chest as if telling me to trust it.
I ended up bursting out laughing.
“You’re going to help me again?”
—Yes! Ryeonghwa is our precious child, so I’ll help!
I had just been wishing I had more hands to work with.
It seemed I had gained a little assistant at just the right time.
“All right. If you help me hard, I’ll share some medicinal herbs with you.”
—Old ones! Bitter ones!
It made its demands with perfect accuracy, as though it had been waiting for me to ask.
“All right. But you can only eat ones that aren’t poisonous.”
I cut off a tiny piece from the end of the Hwangjeonggeun and placed it on my palm.
The otter eagerly gobbled it up and let out a happy cry.
—Promise!
No sooner had it finished speaking than it darted between the piles of medicinal herbs.
“Huh?”
I was startled, thinking it was going to eat them without permission, but after a moment, the otter returned carrying a stalk of Cheongmaekcho in its mouth.
It dropped it in front of me with a little thud, then tilted its head.
—This is next, right?
“How did you know?”
—I know everything in Ryeonghwa’s heart! I know what you want to make even without you saying anything!
“You can tell what’s in my heart?”
—Yes!
The otter puffed itself up for no reason, swishing its tail from side to side.
‘Just as I can vaguely sense the otter’s feelings…… Can the otter sense my intentions as well?’
I had no idea exactly how it worked.
But for now, I was simply happy that I had gained such a reliable assistant.
“……You really are amazing.”
—Right? I’m cool, aren’t I? I’m the best, right?
“Yes. You’re really cool.”
“Kkyuu-aang!”
The creature, delighted by the praise, spun around in place before jumping back into the pile of medicinal herbs.
Rustle, rustle. Rustle, rustle.
Whenever I pointed out the medicinal herb I needed, the otter quickly carried it over.
It somehow picked out the herbs with spoiled parts and pushed the ones in good condition somewhere within easy reach of my hands.
Before I knew it, we had gotten quite used to working together.
When I picked up the mortar, the otter brought the next herb. When I put ingredients into the medicinal pot, it brought over the ones I would need afterward in advance.
It was almost like a colleague I had been researching medicine with for years.
“Come to think of it, what should I call you?”
After we had been working for quite some time, I asked, and the otter tilted its head.
—A name?
“Yes. What does everyone else call you?”
The otter thought for a moment, then innocently shook its head.
—I don’t have a name!
It seemed that spiritual beasts recognized one another without needing to call each other by name.
“Then can I give you a name?”
—Ryeonghwa will call me?
The otter’s ears perked up.
Its bead-like eyes sparkled with anticipation.
“You’ve helped me so many times. I want to help you too whenever you’re in trouble.”
I hesitated for a moment before carefully adding,
“And if it’s possible…… Would you be my friend?”
The medicinal herb slipped from the otter’s front paws and fell with a little plop.
—M-Me……!
The creature’s round eyes widened as it began stamping its feet.
—I will! I want to be friends with Ryeonghwa! Give me a name! I want to have a name too!
I thought for a moment as I looked at the medicinal herbs it had picked out.
Then I suddenly remembered something Father had once told me.
Good medicinal herbs grew well beside streams where clear water flowed.
“……Yeoul.”
The otter’s ears perked up.
—Yeoul?
“Yes. You’re better at finding medicinal herbs than anyone. How about Yeoul?”
The otter blinked for a while before its face lit up with a broad smile.
—I like it! I’m Yeoul!
Boing!
Unable to contain its joy, Yeoul leaped into my arms.
Its soft fur tickled my cheek.
“Thank you for becoming my friend, Yeoul.”
—Yes! I’ll help Ryeonghwa too!
A being who told me it liked me without any suspicion or calculation.
That warmth was still unfamiliar to me, but I didn’t dislike it.
I hugged its damp, warm body a little tighter.
“I’ll treasure you.”
In my arms, Yeoul purred contentedly.
A little while later, we began preparing the medicinal herbs again.
That night, the sounds of the mortar and Yeoul’s excited cries continued late into the night in the small medicine room.
And just before dawn.
At last, the final medicinal pill was placed in my palm.
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