The Doctor Cured The Villainess And Ran Away-Chapter 3: The Delinquent of the Marquisate (1)

“That was close.”

Back in my room, I took a deep breath and ran a hand over my chest.

All I did was greet Asella, but it felt like my lifespan had just been cut short by ten years.

At this rate, I might survive the apocalypse only to drop dead from sheer stress.

“I need to erase those bad endings quickly. My heart can't handle this.”

Even when she was younger, Asella was someone I could never let my guard down around.

I should've noticed it the moment I saw those eyes of hers.

“Asella is responsible for quite a few bad endings.”

I scrolled through the list and counted roughly fifty. It was more than I remembered.

“The best option would be for Asella to just quietly die, but...”

The problem is her magic.

It’s not something that can be dealt with easily.

“Asella already has more mana in her body than she can control.”

If she finds herself in a life-threatening situation, her magic will spiral out of control and destroy the world.

That’s the [Mana Outburst] ending.

Magic isn’t my specialty, and even if some expert were to come, they wouldn’t be able to comprehend the extent of Asella’s abilities.

At least, she hasn’t reached that level yet.

“Assassination requires a lot more planning.”

If I were to assassinate Asella, it would have to be with a meticulous, carefully crafted plan.

I was lucky to get away just now. If Asella had summoned even one of her knights, I would’ve been dragged off and executed for treason.

The Gotberg family’s downfall would’ve been hastened by one foolish son. How proud would you have been of me then, Father?

“Why did she call me to her room, anyway?”

It’s not even her room to begin with. Wasn’t it just a guest room provided by my family?

“Oh?”

Grumbling to myself, I checked the Ending List.

A few entries had turned green, indicating some changes.

[No. 056: Villainess’s Wrath – 99% → 21%]

[Modified]

“It didn’t revert to its original value. That means she’s still suspicious of me.”

I couldn’t ignore Asella.

Once I was fully prepared, I would approach her again and try to gain her trust.

“Now, why did this probability drop?”

[No. 003: Execution of the Hundred – 87% → 64%]

[Modified]

Execution of the Hundred.

This ending occurs if the Hero’s Party fails during the subjugation of the Four Heavenly Kings.

Distrustful citizens rise up against us, and Asella, driven mad by stress, ends up beheading a hundred people — including the Hero’s Party and random commoners — and hangs their heads from the city gates.

A truly grotesque sight.

The only consolation was that my own head would be among them, so I wouldn’t have to witness it in third-person.

I looked through the Ending List again. None of the other endings had changed.

“Does this mean I now have the chance to erase this bad ending?”

If Asella didn’t come up with the idea of executing a hundred people out of nowhere, but instead got the inspiration from a particular event...

And if that event started just now, during my encounter with her...

Then it might be possible to alter Asella’s experiences to prevent the [Execution of the Hundred] ending.

“But what does beheading a hundred people have to do with me?”

I couldn’t even begin to guess what kind of twisted thoughts were festering in the mind of a villainess whose head was a bed of thorns, not flowers.

Well, if it meant preventing my own death, then there was no reason to refuse.

For now, it seemed like I needed to keep a close eye on the events that would soon unfold.

“There was one more change, wasn’t there?”

―――――――――――

· Good Ending

· ■■■ ■, ■■ ■■■■ 0% → 0.04%

―――――――――――

A probability that had been zero for a good ending had now appeared.

Looking at the value, it was about as likely as winning the lottery. Hardly worth getting excited over yet.

“What’s so good about a good ending, anyway?”

I checked the description in the status window.

―――――――――――

· Good Ending: The best possible outcome for Lass Gotberg at the point of clearing the game.

· Trigger Condition: Occurs probabilistically when no bad endings have occurred. If the good ending doesn’t trigger, a normal ending will occur instead.

· Probability Increase: Increases through the elimination of bad endings and Lass Gotberg’s achievement score.

―――――――――――

“Obviously, a good ending is better than a normal one.”

This seemed different from the original game’s ending.

Since it specifically mentioned my name, it appeared to be an ending prepared exclusively for me.

It might directly determine the circumstances I’d face ten years later.

“To accumulate achievements, I need to become someone remarkable. If that’s the case, it makes sense that the probability of a good ending would increase.”

Rising to a higher social status, spreading my name far and wide, and making impactful contributions in various fields.

Achievement scores would accumulate through such exceptional feats.

“If I succeed, it’ll definitely be as a doctor.”

That had been my dream.

Though it was a profession that didn’t yet exist in this world, ten years would be more than enough time to establish it.

From now on, my objective was to eliminate bad endings and aim for a good ending.

My direction was now clear.

“Alright, time to get moving.”

I left my room and headed to the annex lobby, where a middle-aged man in a neat suit was sipping tea.

Judging by the demeanor of the attendants, it was obvious who he was.

The head of the Gotberg family, my father, Balduor Gotberg.

My father glanced at me with a slightly troubled expression.

“My son, can we talk for a moment?”

His voice was calm and deep, fitting for the head of a marquisate. But there was a subtle hint of unease.

It must be difficult to face a son who was essentially a ticking time bomb.

“The sun has reached its peak, and I am blessed to behold my benefactor. Have you been well, Father?”

I greeted him with a formal, noble gesture.

His eyes widened as though he’d just seen a ghost.

“Lass, did you hit your head or something? Or did you drink so much that your mind finally snapped?”

My father stood up abruptly and examined me with a worried gaze.

“Haha, don’t worry. My mind is clearer than ever.”

“Really? Well, that’s a relief... Sievers was singing your praises out of nowhere, and now I see why. Your eyes do look different....”

His gaze remained cautious as he studied me.

For the Gotberg family, managing a territory as vast as a small country was no easy task. Even for a man like my father, the pressure of handling it all while having a delinquent son was palpable.

There was a strange warmth in that realization.

We both sat down to continue the conversation.

“I heard you met the princess.”

It seemed he was worried I might have botched the first meeting with my fiancée.

“Yes. She was a woman of great dignity.”

“A-And? Was she displeased or anything?”

My father realized his slip of the tongue and quickly cleared his throat.

“Don’t misunderstand. I was only asking because I thought the princess might not have liked our estate.”

“It wasn’t a bad feeling. In fact, Her Highness suggested a private meeting. I was just on my way to see her.”

“A private meeting? Already? Hmm.”

My father stroked his beard, his face full of intrigue. It was as if he had just noticed something new about me.

“I’ve been so busy with work that I haven’t had the chance to talk to you much lately. But now, looking at how neatly you’re dressed and how eloquent your words are, it seems like you really prepared for today.”

“Well, it’s not every day that you meet your royal fiancée for the first time. I couldn’t afford to let my guard down.”

The more I spoke, the more surprised he looked.

He was at a loss as to how to deal with a son who suddenly seemed to have pulled himself together overnight.

Honestly, I would’ve been the same.

He’d seen me for seventeen years, and now, out of nowhere, I was spouting sensible words.

If it were me, I’d be more likely to suspect my son had fallen into some black magic rather than suddenly become enlightened.

I decided to put on a more confident front.

“Don’t worry. Since such an important guest is here, I’ll make sure nothing happens to tarnish the Gotberg name.”

“...You’ve really changed a lot in such a short time. It couldn’t have been easy to pull yourself together like this, so thank you. I’ll be looking forward to it.”

“Yes. Please do.”

My father smiled warmly.

The Gotberg family was still a powerful marquisate at this point.

Later, we’d get involved in some incident, be accused of treason, and face destruction.

But if I could keep them from falling apart, they’d be a solid backing for me.

I knew exactly why the family would face ruin, and if I could prevent it, they’d become a powerful ally.

And seeing my father’s relieved expression as he looked at me, I couldn’t help but feel a bit... good.

“The official meeting with the princess was originally scheduled for the dinner banquet. But since you’ve already gotten acquainted, that’s great.”

My father’s words piqued my curiosity.

“By the way, Father, what brings Her Majesty the Empress and Her Highness the Princess to our estate?”

“Oh, I hadn’t told you yet, had I?”

My father took a sip of tea before getting to the main point.

“The imperial family is currently selecting a personal physician for the princess. Coincidentally, a competition exam was being held at our family’s healing institute. One healer will be chosen based on the results.”

A personal physician, huh.

Now that was an interesting development.

‘The Gotberg family was famous for its healers, after all.’

Ten years later, I’d become a fairly skilled high-rank healer myself. That was the reason.

Even though I hadn’t taken my studies too seriously, I’d still graduated from the best facility with the best bloodline.

‘If possible, I’d prefer not to use healing magic.’

Getting noticed as a healer would just end up dragging me back into that foolish Hero’s Party.

Even when I tried to use efficient strategies, I’d often be hindered by having to cast endless healing spells.

Honestly, I was sick of healing magic.

All my memories of it were unpleasant.

And no amount of money would make me join another party of lunatics like the Hero’s Party again.

“Each member of the royal family has their own personal physician, don’t they?”

“Yes. You may have heard, but the princess has been suffering from frequent ailments recently. Unfortunately, none of the healers who’ve examined her so far have been able to provide any real improvement.”

I knew about that.

It was a side effect of Asella’s increasing mana.

“Is there a strong candidate already?”

“I think Giss will likely be chosen. He’s the top healer from our institute.”

The institute was basically a healer academy.

The Gotberg family’s institute was regarded as one of the best in the empire, and it wasn’t uncommon for graduates to be recruited by the royal family.

If Giss was considered the ace of the institute, he was probably decent at least.

‘But healing magic won’t work on Asella.’

Healing magic and regular magic might both be spellcraft, but they belonged to completely different systems.

I’d heard directly from Asella that her powerful mana rejected healing spells.

The reason she became a crazy villainess was because of her uncontrollable magic.

No, to be precise, she was already a villainess.

Going insane was just the result of her magic.

Maybe that’s just how magic worked.

Every mage or witch I’d met seemed at least two screws loose.

Asella, in particular, had a reason for it.

She’d reached a level of magic so extreme that her body couldn’t handle it, and she was living in constant pain because of it.

Unable to endure the pain, her magic eventually spiraled out of control, leading to a catastrophic incident.

After that, Asella became a tyrant.

And back then, healing magic was utterly useless.

I’d heard that directly from her, so I knew it was accurate.

‘It’s the price of having a gift.’

One of the rules of this world.

If you have a [Gift] that makes you exceptionally powerful in one area, you’re also bound to have a [Debuff] that drags you down in another.

A kind of karmic balance.

For example, someone with immense physical strength couldn’t possibly have powerful mana.

No one could have it all.

Right now, my gifts were still locked, so I didn’t have any debuffs.

But Asella likely had some kind of negative trait as well.

‘Wait.’

Not healing magic, but modern medicine.

Would it be possible to erase Asella’s debuff using the medical knowledge from my past life?

And in the process, could I possibly ruin her magic as well?

‘Nah, it can’t be that easy.’

In this world, there were no specialized pharmaceuticals, no basic surgical tools, not even antiseptics.

The odds of success were practically zero.

More importantly, if I became Asella’s personal physician, escaping from the royal family later would be nearly impossible.

Even if I managed to erase a bad ending or two, getting too deeply involved with Asella was a dangerous game.

As I was sorting through my thoughts, my father spoke up.

“I’ve kept you too long. You were on your way to see the princess, weren’t you? Go on. I need to attend to the Empress.”

“Understood. Let’s go together.”

I walked alongside my father as we exited the annex. Knights and attendants followed behind us.

We took the path that circled around the central garden.

There were lakes and livestock pens on either side. The estate was massive.

Beyond a wall, there was a church-like structure.

‘That must be the healing institute.’

Memories from this body’s past life flickered through my mind like a mirage.

The main building was divided into three sections — the east wing, west wing, and central hall.

The Empress was staying in the central hall, and Asella was in the east wing.

My father stopped in front of the east wing and gestured to me.

“Go ahead and see the princess. Since she personally called for you, I won’t worry.”

“Leave it to me. I’ll see you at the dinner banquet.”

I bowed and was about to head off when a commotion broke out beyond the fence.

“What’s going on?”

My father’s voice was stern.

An attendant, out of breath, rushed over and spoke quietly to him.

Whatever it was, it wasn’t good. My father’s expression darkened.

“The princess’s pet?”

Without another word, he strode quickly toward the scene. I immediately followed.

The scene was a mess.

On the lawn, a massive dog lay sprawled out, gasping for breath.

It was Asella’s pet, apparently.

Four healers in white robes surrounded the dog.

The dog was huge — probably a Great Pyrenees.

It was taller than me, nearly two meters, with thick, fluffy white fur.

The problem was that it was dying.

“What’s going on here?”

My father’s voice boomed. The healers, drenched in sweat, stammered their response.

“It suddenly collapsed...!”

“We’re healing it right now!”

But the dog kept gasping.

And that’s when I heard a familiar voice.

“Max!”

Asella came running over, her eyes wide with panic.

“Max! Max!”

“Asella, the healers are treating him. Please, just wait a moment,” the head maid said, holding Asella back as she tried to rush toward the dog.

“So, his name is Max.”

I glanced around at the so-called top healers from the institute.

They were standing around, wringing their hands and muttering prayers instead of actually examining the patient.

I stole a quick glance at Asella.

“......”

Our eyes met, just for a moment.

And at that exact moment, a number on the Ending List changed.

[No. 004: Sweet Poison – 56% → 71%]

[Modified]

What the hell?

How did I end up affecting the conditions for the [Sweet Poison] bad ending?

Was it because of this situation?

‘Alright. A crisis is also an opportunity.’

If this was the event that triggered the bad ending, then it was also a chance to erase it.

Besides, even without the Ending List, I wasn’t the type to just walk past a dying dog.

Dogs are cute, after all.

“Tsk. Let’s see.”

I crouched down next to Max and started examining him.

“No visible external injuries.”

So it had to be internal. Judging by his labored breathing, it was likely something in his airway.

The thick fur made it hard to see anything with the naked eye. I pressed my hands against Max’s body, feeling around carefully.

“Young Master, what are you doing?!”

One of the healers grabbed my shoulder and tried to yank me away.

“I’m identifying the cause. Don’t get in the way.”

I shoved the healer aside and focused on ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) Max’s neck.

“He’s strangling the princess’s dog!”

“That damned delinquent...!”

They could say whatever they wanted. There was no time to argue.

My fingertips brushed against something hard and round.

“What the...?”

The cause was simple.

“Airway obstruction.”

Something was lodged in his throat.