After crowning the Crown Emperor - now The Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand III - Heinrich had to return to the mansion. All this time, he had been scared that something might have gone wrong. Considering the procedures they had used to torture the Princess, Heinrich was scared.
His horse was even slower now that there was an extra layer of snow on the tracks. It had snowed nonstop since the first snow Heinrich had witnessed with the Princess. At that time, he had thanked nature for snowing because it made the Princess happy. Now, he was cursing nature for snowing.
In about 5 days, he finally reached Munich. The state of the capital was chaotic. Maybe the people had figured out that a war would break out soon. Heinrich kept his head straight and went to the mansion.
As Heinrich entered the mansion, the first thing he witnessed was Killian kneeling on the ground with his head down. He looked up at Heinrich and quickly stood up, rushing to him. He must have been waiting for him.
"M-Master!" Killian said desperately. He hated addressing him with respect but he had no choice. "My lady is in danger! Mr. Aldrich says he cannot save her!"
Heinrich frowned, "Take me there."
Killian quickly showed him the way to the infirmary. The Princess was lying unconscious with every single inch of her body bandaged. Aldrich was sitting and examining her. Heinrich exhaled at the sight of the Princess's complexion; pale as chalk.
"Aldrich…" Heinrich called him out in frustration.
Aldrich quickly looked behind, "Great Father!"
Heinrich pressed his lips together for the potentially bad news.
"Um," Aldrich cleared his throat, "I regret to inform you that saving Lady Sofia is beyond me."
Heinrich closed his eyes, "What is the problem?"
"There were deep wounds all over her abdomen. This was not torture, this was attempted murder. She lost too much blood." Aldrich broke the terrible news to him. "She is only alive because of the remaining resources. She might never wake up…"
Heinrich frowned, "Just give her blood then."
"Master, the methods you know are far too risky!" Aldrich reminded him. "What if the blood does not match? The future might have perfected it but we have not. We only have the equipment, not solid knowledge."
"Take my blood." Heinrich said, "It will match."
"Master-"
"We either take the risk or watch her die for nothing."
Aldrich nodded, "Please be seated. I will get the equipment ready. Guide your worthless servant along the way as my memory is not as fresh."
Heinrich sat down and nodded, pulling his sleeve up to reveal his arm. He straightened and flexed it to reveal his veins. Killian was confused but he quietly watched, putting his trust in him. Aldrich came back with needles and syringes along with peculiar-looking tubes. They were made with a clear material that Killian had never seen before.
"You are supposed to inject this vein," Heinrich guided Aldrich and he copied the words into actions. "Now let the blood fall into the bag. This might take a moment."
Heinrich's blood was extracted from the needle and it dropped straight into the clear bag that Aldrich was holding. All of this was very new to Killian. He was surprised to see how differently things worked here. If they were in Miraculum, the Princess would have died.
"This much should be enough, Great Father," Aldrich said while looking at the bag, filled almost to the brim.
"Let a little more fall. We never know just by looking." Heinrich wanted to remain cautious. "If a layman was to give this much blood, they would feel drowsy or faint, would they not?" He asked.
"Of course, Master." Aldrich said, "I believe they do these things in batches."
"Never witnessed it but I believe so too." Heinrich nodded.
Their conversation was beyond Killian. He knew for a fact that even if he wanted, he probably couldn't give his blood to the Princess. He had doubts - unlike Heinrich. He had doubts that his blood wouldn't match.
When even blood had collected into the bed, Aldrich looked at Heinrich for further guidance.
"Remove the needle from me," Heinrich ordered and Aldrich did as he was told. "Replace the needle," Heinrich said.
Aldrich looked at him in confusion.
"The fluid may be clean but the needle is not. We cannot insert the same needle in another person." Heinrich explained.
Aldrich nodded and replaced the needle, connecting it with a pipe that was connected to the bag of blood.
"Administer it to her the same way you did to me, just push the handle inward this time." Heinrich said, "We want the blood to go in."
Aldrich nodded and administered the needle to the Princess's arm, pushing the handle of the pipe inward instead of outward. The blood started flowing from the pipe, into the Princess's veins.
"Keep me updated." Heinrich pulled his sleeve down and walked out of the infirmary as quickly as he had walked in.
Killian looked at Aldrich in confusion.
"He is a busy man." Aldrich said, "This method is going to take a while. You should rest as well." He suggested.
Killian shook his head, "I am good."
Aldrich frowned, "Even so, I am not. Go take a rest. I will watch over her."
Killian unwillingly nodded and left the infirmary. Coincidentally, he saw Heinrich sitting on one of the benches of the lobby with his head in his hands. He must be tired, having his blood drawn out after a long journey - he was a human after all, not some sort of monster who could go on for days on end.
Killian noticed how uneasy Heinrich's breaths were. He looked like he would faint any time now. He wanted to reach out to him but at the same time, his hatred for him kept him from doing so.
Suddenly, Heinrich stood up and stretched once. He walked away toward the basement door. Killian narrowed his eyes, wondering why he had to go there. He remembered Lady Odila mentioning that the basement was off-limits for servants. Intrigued, Killian followed Heinrich only to be interrupted by Kaspar.
"Killian!" Kaspar called him from reception. "Come here."
Killian was left with no choice. He went to Kaspar. Kaspar wanted to know what had happened to the Princess. This was going to be a long, long story.