The next day, Helia found herself beside Lord Bellair in the tent they referred to as the morgue, a grim space where the air was thick with the acrid smell of death mingled with that of blood. The tent was dimly lit, barely illuminated by a few flickering lanterns, and in the back, she could make out several corpses covered with linen sheets, stacked up awaiting cremation at the week's end.
Lord Bellair gently lifted the cloth covering the face of a young knight, a man barely in his twenties with red hair, frozen in the rigidity of death. Helia, though familiar with human anatomy, had never seen a corpse so close, except in magical simulations. The sight of his livid body intimidated her, and the unbearable stench stung her nose. She forced herself not to appear weak, closing her mouth to avoid inhaling the fumes. Observing her discomfort, Lord Bellair offered her a small jar of scented balm. "Here, this might help," he said, his tone understanding.
She thanked him, applying the balm under her nose. It somewhat alleviated the odor, but the sight of the body still shook her.
"I doubt a lady like you has ever analyzed a corpse. Are you certain you wish to proceed?" Lord Bellair asked, a hint of concern in his voice.
"Yes, I am doing this for science," she replied firmly, straightening slightly to observe the body more closely.
Both of them wore gloves and masks, necessary precautions in this place where death and pain mingled. Lord Bellair slowly slid the cloth covering the knight's body. Helia observed with care the marbled skin, streaked with violet spots, concerning discoloration marks that seemed to spread beneath the surface like small explosions.
"What are these marks?" she asked Lord Bellair, pointing to the bruises and micro-hemorrhages visible under the skin.
"These are the traces of internal hemorrhages caused by the rupture of blood vessels," he replied, his gaze serious. "The victim's heart rate spiked, forcing the blood to pass through already weakened vessels. These swellings you see are the result. One of the many side effects."
Helia nodded, her eyes scanning for more subtle signs. She felt that something was still missing from this explanation, but she kept her thoughts to herself. She asked Lord Bellair to help her open the knight's chest to examine the internal organs. Together, they made a precise incision along the chest.
As soon as the incision was made, a shocking sight presented itself: deep bleeding, bruised organs, and traces of red lesions staining the liver and kidneys.
Helia frowned. "This kind of damage is... impressive," she said, delicately touching the swollen tissues with a scalpel.
"The vessels are so torn apart that it's visible from the outside," Lord Bellair explained. "It's as if the body imploded from the inside."
Helia nodded, wondering if there might be something else at work. There was an element she couldn't quite grasp, an invisible trigger. Everything seemed to indicate a more insidious action, perhaps directly linked to the blood cells.
They spent a few more minutes carefully examining the organs, and Lord Bellair patiently answered each of Helia's questions, clarifying her doubts with detailed explanations. Finally, he sighed and stood up. "I fear this doesn't provide much new information," he said, removing his bloodstained gloves.
Helia nodded thoughtfully, removing her own gloves and mask, which she threw into the small trash bin designated for them. "Perhaps not directly, but every detail counts. This has opened up new avenues for me to explore," she replied calmly but with determination.
She thanked him for his help and left the tent to find Sir Aldric standing guard outside, her mind unsettled by what she had seen. She returned to her own tent, grabbing her notes to organize her thoughts. She needed to reflect on all this calmly; every observation, every clue had its importance. After almost an hour of jotting down hypotheses and comparing symptoms, a few ideas began to form in her mind. Yet, nothing was still clear enough.
Sensing the rising tension in the camp, Helia decided to step outside for some fresh air. The surrounding forest, though dense, offered a temporary refuge, an area considered safe, guarded by soldiers stationed on the outskirts. She needed to think, but more importantly, she needed to act. The idea that had been germinating in her mind for several hours urged her to check if certain plants, essential to her theory, could be found in these woods.
Before leaving, she asked Sir Aldric to accompany her, giving him a specific task: to search for yarrow, a plant she knew to be useful for its coagulant properties. "It's a plant with small white, sometimes pink flowers. You should find it near streams or sunny clearings," she explained to him before they parted ways, Aldric heading off in one direction without straying too far from the secured perimeter.
Helia ventured deeper into the trees, her mind focused on the information she had gathered about the poison that was ravaging the bodies. Her pace, slow at first, quickened as she spotted thick ferns and some herbs she recognized. She brushed her fingers over the green stems, sizing them up with her eyes, trying to determine if they had the properties she sought. Light shards filtering through the branches blended with her thoughts, every element of nature reminding her of the urgency of the situation.
She recalled the harmful effects of the poison on the body, notably the acceleration of the heart rate, when a thought surfaced. Perhaps hawthorn could be found here, in this forest. It was a plant she knew to be cardioprotective, but she still didn't know if it grew in this particular area. The search remained a risky bet, but she had no other option.
Kneeling before a thorny plant that seemed promising, Helia carefully examined its leaves and stems. Focused, she gently touched the thorns, observing the shape of the leaves. Her thoughts wandered into the analysis of various botanical properties, trying to confirm whether it could be useful. It was at that moment that a furtive sound behind her made her jump.
Turning abruptly, she found herself face to face with Arthur and Léon. Their silent approach had completely caught her off guard.
Arthur, always stoic, fixed her with his sharp gaze, a brow slightly raised as if assessing every detail of the scene. He stood upright, arms crossed, a magnetic coldness emanating from him, like a cold gleam cutting through the air. Beside him, Léon exuded the complete opposite: a warm smile lit up his face, his arms relaxed by his sides, and a warm aura seemed to surround him. Together, they formed such a striking contrast that Helia couldn't help but think, for just a moment, that she was gazing upon the moon and the sun, a breathtaking beauty in all its duality, like a work of art in perfect contradiction.
Léon stepped toward Helia with a warm smile. "Lady Helia, it's a pleasure to see you again."
But before she could respond, Arthur intervened in a stern tone, cutting the lightness of the exchange. "What are you doing here, alone?" he asked, his piercing gaze settling on her. "And where is your knight?"
Helia, still slightly unsettled by their sudden arrival, straightened up, brushing off her gown. She tried to appear impassive. "Sir Aldric went to look for plants on the other side," she replied calmly, not letting Arthur's accusing gaze unsettle her. "I'm just conducting some research for… remedies."
Léon, visibly intrigued, watched her with curiosity. "Remedies?" he asked, this time more serious, his interest evident.
Helia shrugged, responding lightly to divert their attention. "Nothing too extravagant, just some plants that could help treat the effects of venom."
But before she could finish, Arthur interrupted again, visibly annoyed. "Are you out of your mind?" His tone was harsh, almost accusatory.
Surprised by his sudden aggression, Helia looked at him, her brows furrowed.
"Pardon?" she said, not immediately understanding what had triggered such a reaction.
Arthur looked her straight in the eye, his expression hardening further. "You are walking alone in a forest, near a camp full of men. Men who certainly do not all have noble intentions."
Helia's eyes widened, shocked by his blunt remark. She had never imagined that this could be a problem, but in that moment, she suddenly felt vulnerable.
What she did not know was that Arthur had not spoken these words out of mere irritation. He had overheard unsettling conversations the day before, whispers uttered by men who had been deprived of flesh for months. Her father had ordered him to protect her, a task he was not particularly fond of, but one he was obligated to carry out. And though the idea of having to manage this additional burden annoyed him, he remained someone who took his responsibilities very seriously.
Léon, ever faithful to his nature, tried to lighten the mood with his usual levity. "Arthur, don't be so harsh. There's no need to frighten a lady like that."
But Arthur, unshaken, refused to relent. "It's a reality," he insisted coldly. "In the future, I advise you not to stray from your knight."
At that moment, Sir Aldric reappeared, a plant in hand, most likely the one Helia had asked him to find. He bowed respectfully to Arthur, but the prince, still clearly annoyed, turned his back without a word and walked off, not sparing him a glance.
Léon, feeling sorry for Arthur's reaction, smiled at Helia before following him. "Forgive him, Lady Helia. He's... been a little tense lately." Then he went off after him.
Helia stood frozen for a moment, still in shock from Arthur's severity. Until that moment, she hadn't truly felt the omnipresent threat in the camp. But now, everything seemed suddenly much more dangerous, more tangible. Eager to return to the safety of her tent, she turned to Sir Aldric, who was waiting in silence, before hurrying toward the camp.
Back in her tent, Helia hurriedly placed the plants on her desk, her mind preoccupied with her hypotheses. The flickering glow of the oil lamp bathed the space in a familiar warmth as she calmly set out her instruments. It was only a simple trial, but each attempt brought her a little closer to a solution.
She scanned the plants she had gathered. Sir Aldric had done well in finding the one she had sought, a rare species whose properties she hoped would prove useful. With precision, she ground the first leaves, letting their subtle aromas fill the space. The evening promised to be long, but for once, she didn't have to bear the pressure of immediate results. It was a chance to freely test her ideas, with nothing to lose.
A faint smile appeared on her lips as she mixed the ingredients in a small vial. She watched the liquid slowly begin to take shape under her expert hands. A wild idea, but perhaps a brilliant one, was coming to life. She hadn't expected to be able to test it soon, though. It was just one experiment among many, a glimmer of hope in the darkness of her research. She finally placed the vial on the table, ready to let the night pass. But fate had other plans for her.