While I was lost in thoughts, the prince spoke again.
"Well, that's all I came to talk to you about"
He said, getting up and walking towards the door. As he touched the doorknob to open it, he turned around and looked in my direction.
"I'm sure we'll see each other soon. Goodbye, Ren"
With that farewell, he opened the door and left. I stood there for a while, trying to digest what had just happened. I thought that the first time I saw him, but now I'm sure: this prince is someone difficult to deal with. After that, I stayed in the room for a while. In the meantime, a maid brought a tray with tea and cookies. If there's one thing I can say, it's that the cookies in this world are extremely delicious. These cookies I'm eating are made from a fruit that resembles the cocoa of my world, so they're basically chocolate cookies. While savoring the cookies, the door opened again. This time, it was Aria who entered, but with her were also two people I didn't expect to meet so soon.
"Sorry for the delay, Ren. I thought it would be better if my brother heard from your own mouth the method to cure my sister-in-law. Besides, Emi insisted on coming with us too"
Aria said as she entered the room. Behind her were the king and the princess. Remembering what the prince said a few minutes ago, my cheeks turn red, but they return to normal within seconds. I need to focus on what's important now. Soon, everyone was seated, looking in my direction.
"All right, then, I'll start by explaining the basics"
I said, and the three nodded.
"The queen was probably poisoned, considering the symptoms. I believe it was a mixture of different poisons, which explains why none of the remedies tested by the doctors had any effect"
As I said this, the king seemed to ponder something for a while and then spoke.
"Even if you're right, I can't understand what the motive would be behind an assassination attempt on the queen. Her is extremely loved by the people, always visits orphanages, and makes generous donations"
Listening to the king's words, I nodded, agreeing with his point of view.
"I share the same opinion. However, this suggests that the attempt didn't come from the general population"
I added. When mentioning this, I noticed that everyone started pondering the matter. Surely, they also noticed something suspicious about the queen's illness.
"I apologize if my question seems untimely, Your Majesty, but do you know of anyone who has direct contact with poisons?"
I asked. Surprisingly, the person who answered my question was not the king but the princess.
"From what I've been informed, Marquis Barton is involved in business related to poisons, although he has claimed that these activities can contribute to medicine"
The princess said. Her observation is not entirely wrong. There are indeed poisons that, when created and applied correctly, can be used as medicines.
"Yes, I heard that too"
Confirmed the king.
"But why would he try to kill the queen? What is he trying to achieve with this?"
The king questioned. Hearing the king's words, some ideas came to mind, but they are mainly ideas I've seen in anime and manga.
"By any chance... does Marquis Barton have an older daughter?" I asked. As soon as I said that, the king seemed to remember something.
"Yes, Marquis Barton has an older daughter, twenty-five years old"
The king said, with his gaze slowly turning into a mixture of understanding and concern.
"Well, I think we have a motive. He probably wanted to marry his daughter to you in order to ascend to the position of duke"
I stated. Upon hearing my words, the king clenched his fist tightly. I'm sure he's quite angry, but with this atmosphere, it's a little difficult to continue.
"Changing the subject, the method I'm going to use to cure the queen will be quite simple. I intend to extract venom from snakes and spiders that have similar symptoms to the queen's and use them to develop an effective serum"
I continued. The princess seemed interested in my idea.
"How exactly would that work?"
Her asked.
"First, I'm gonna inject the poison into a big animal like a horse. From there, the horse will produce defense agents against the poison. Then, I'll extract the horse's blood and use it to make a serum for the queen"
I explained. The princess, Aria, and the king shared the same surprised expression.
"I never thought of that method. It's true that horses rarely die from snake bites, but to think you could make a remedy using their blood..."
The princess said, lost in thought.
"I'd start making the serum right away if I could, but unfortunately, we lack the main material to do it"
I added, and everyone seemed to understand my point. Basically, we need specific snake venoms to create the serum. The challenge is that we don't know which venom to start with.
"No need to worry about that. Begin preparing everything you need to create the serum. The royal family will cover the expenses involved. Additionally, we'll issue an order to search the mansions of Barton. Perhaps we'll find some clues there"
The king stated.
"As you wish"
I replied. After that, Aria, the king, and the princess started getting ready to leave the room where we were talking. Just before leaving, the princess turned around and looked in my direction.
"You know... I enjoyed talking to you. I hope we'll have more opportunities to converse in the future"
Her said. Upon hearing those words, a smile formed on my face.
"I hope the same. It would be a pleasure to talk again"
I responded. The princess then turned and left, along with the others, leaving me alone in the room again. After sighing, I sat on the sofa, trying to shake off all the nervousness I was feeling. This vacation is turning out to be quite intense.
"Alright, time to start the preparations to make the serum"