After breakfast the following day, she felt better. Still aching, but...not with that fierce pain in every inch of her body, as though a demon was trying to claw itself free.
As she well expected, Tieya poked her head into the room shortly after Isabelle woke.
"How do you feel, ma'am?" she asked, standing in the doorway with concern evident on her face. "Has your fever broken?"
She rolled her eyes fondly. "I'm fine, Tieya, please don't fret. The one I'm worried about is you...! You worked until you collapsed!"
"Ah!" she gasped softly, putting a hand over her mouth. "My empress-I'm sorry for worrying you. But...but I've always been good about this before. It wasn't supposed to come on this way."
"Sit." Isabelle patted the space in the bed beside her and Tieya tentatively approached to sit at her feet. "That was a nasty sickness. You have to take care of yourself. As the royal maid of the Imperial household, your health is essential!"
