They had just recently left Slot, and yet, Wei Wei and her party found themselves returning there once again.
At this point, the Slot Wharf had officially begun operations. Transportation was inconvenient in this era, and information traveled slowly. Since no official announcement or publicity had followed the completion of the dock, few people were aware of its existence. As a result, it was far from bustling, though quite several ships had already begun docking there.
Most of those ships belonged to local serfs who took them out fishing, but some had arrived after hearing of the newly completed wharf while stopping at neighboring Prinsia. The two ports weren't far from each other and naturally influenced one another. Prinsia's dock was small to begin with, and during the busy shipping season, it would quickly become overcrowded, delaying berthing times. So, once sailors heard that Slot was now open for docking and cargo handling, those without urgent business in Prinsia started changing their routes and coming straight to Slot instead.
Among these vessels was one secretly dispatched by the King to retrieve them.
The royal messenger arrived in a flurry of urgency, explained his mission succinctly, and barely gave them time to pack. Wei Wei had just enough time to instruct the maids to prepare a few changes of clothes and grab some medical supplies from the apothecary before taking Anthony in her arms and rushing out with Felix. Only after the ship had set sail did she finally get the chance to ask what had happened that required her urgent presence in the capital.
Yes—this time, it was Wei Wei who had been summoned by the king, not Felix. According to the messenger, the king had suddenly fallen seriously ill and was summoning her to treat him.
This alone was surprising enough. In Sardinson, her reputation for medical skill had spread thanks to the doctors she had trained, but situations that truly required her intervention were rare. Most people had only heard about her abilities, and very few had witnessed them. It was hard for many to reconcile the image of the skilled doctor with the Countess of Sardinson, and so the rumors of her medical prowess were often taken with a grain of salt.
Even her subjects didn't know the full extent of her abilities—so how did the king, all the way in the capital, suddenly decide to summon her personally? It seemed… odd.
Some even began to suspect whether the king was truly gravely ill.
"He is quite seriously ill," the royal messenger replied. Unlike a courtier or noble, he was a personal attendant—one of the king's most trusted confidants.
Now that they were safely on the ship and underway, the man finally had the time to patiently answer the couple's questions.
He told Felix and Wei Wei that the king's illness hadn't struck suddenly. It had started two months ago when the king first began to feel unusually fatigued. At first, there were no symptoms of illness—no fever, no pain—just a persistent sense of exhaustion, which he assumed was simply the result of overwork. He took to resting more often but did nothing else.
Then things worsened. From mere fatigue, he began catching colds with alarming ease. His overall condition declined inexplicably, growing weaker and frailer. Yet when the royal physicians were summoned, all they could find were the normal signs of a cold. Nothing more.
But the king wasn't convinced.
He was still relatively young by noble standards and had always been in excellent shape, especially since he was fond of fencing and frequently sparred with his knights. He had always been robust and healthy, and such sudden, unexplained frailty didn't sit right with him.
So, when the royal physicians failed to provide answers, the king summoned many other doctors from across the kingdom—but none could determine the cause of his condition. And not long after that, he was bedridden.
The attendant said, "It was around that time that His Majesty heard about your skills, my lady, and sent me to request your aid."
Felix immediately caught a critical detail. "Who told His Majesty about her? My wife doesn't treat patients publicly, and her medical skills aren't widely recognized. Why would His Majesty think to summon her?"
Wei Wei was also eager to hear the answer. She was confident in her abilities, of course—but she had never treated anyone publicly. Even if her reputation had been exaggerated by local doctors, how could someone as distant as the king be persuaded just by rumors?
The attendant, being the king's trusted aide, was well-informed and saw no need to keep the answer secret. "It was Cardinal Adrian."
Cardinal Adrian?
Wei Wei paused, trying to recall the name. Only after a moment did she remember: this was the cardinal who had officiated her and Felix's wedding.
But why would he suddenly recommend her? They'd had little to no contact since.
Felix was more familiar with the man and quickly followed up, "Didn't Cardinal Adrian leave Pradi and return to the Roman Curia? Why would he suddenly mention my wife to the king?"
The attendant shook his head. "I don't know the specifics. But the cardinal returned to the capital earlier this year and has resumed his previous role overseeing the royal chapel."
Though he was a close servant of the king, there were still secrets within the Church that he wasn't privy to.
Felix asked several more questions—about the king's symptoms, the current state of the palace—but the attendant only answered what he was permitted to. For the rest, he remained silent. Eventually, Felix could get nothing more from him, and their conversation ended.
This was Wei Wei's first time sailing on the sea, even if it was just a coastal voyage. The unfamiliar swaying of the ship, so different from land travel, made her feel somewhat unsteady. Fortunately, she didn't get seasick, and the discomfort gradually faded.
Meanwhile, little Anthony—cradled in her arms—seemed to treat the ship's rocking as a giant cradle. He wasn't even the slightest bit uncomfortable; in fact, he seemed to be thoroughly enjoying himself. He cooed and grunted like a little piglet, kicking and wriggling with excitement. If not for Wei Wei's strength, she might've had trouble keeping him in her arms.
There was much she wanted to discuss with Felix, but with too many people around, she held her tongue until they returned to the private cabin prepared for them.
The ship didn't fly the royal flag, but its interior was quite refined, and the room they had been given was clearly the finest onboard.
Once inside, Felix locked the door, and the two of them sat down to talk.
"Why would Cardinal Adrian suddenly recommend you to the king? Did the Pope or someone from the Vatican say something?"
As she played with their son, Wei Wei replied, "That's very likely. After all, the Pope and his circle know I cured Raymond. And if I'm not mistaken, Cardinal Adrian is one of their people, isn't he?"
Back when Pope John and his retinue had visited, Raymond was still bedridden. But given that the two men were close friends and kept in regular contact, it wasn't surprising that Raymond would inform the Pope once his leg was healed.
Moreover, Wei Wei still received occasional letters from Pope John, discussing medical matters. In those letters, he'd often mention other clergy and events from the broader Church. Wei Wei vaguely recalled the Pope speaking of Cardinal Adrian in particularly warm terms—clearly, they were on close terms.
"He is," Felix confirmed. "He's one of the Pope's faction."
Felix knew more about Church affairs than Wei Wei did. Back when the Pope was nearly assassinated in Sardinson, they had captured a treacherous servant and interrogated him, revealing who had orchestrated the attack. Though that man wasn't the mastermind, his connection to the Church's hawkish faction gave Pope John and Bishop Umberto the chance to uncover others involved and weaken their influence. Now, the Church's internal power balance was more even—no longer dominated by either the hawks or the doves.
Cardinal Adrian's earlier reassignment had been for unclear reasons, and during the time of his departure, Wei Wei had nearly been kidnapped. The culprits had hidden in a monastery. At the time, Felix had suspected Adrian might be involved—but later, Bishop Umberto subtly revealed that it was Adrian who had mobilized Church resources to help track down the criminals.
With that, it was clear Adrian was firmly aligned with the Pope's faction—so it made sense that he would recommend Wei Wei.
The Pope's allies knew Wei Wei's medical skills well, especially the Pope himself, who frequently consulted her on medical theory. Many within the Church had some knowledge of medicine, and though the king wasn't particularly close to the Church, it wasn't unusual for him to seek their help during illness.
If Adrian had personally visited the king and failed to diagnose his condition, it was only natural that he would recommend Wei Wei—someone he knew to be genuinely skilled.
"We can ask him about it when we get to the capital," Felix said. "Right now, I'm more concerned about the king's condition."
A king falling ill was no small matter. Felix had a deep respect for the monarch he once served loyally. Even though he was no longer a knight, his devotion hadn't faded. The king was also a political backer of their family—both personally and politically, they couldn't afford for anything to happen to him.
Especially now, when the battle for succession was at its peak: Crown Prince Edward was frail, Prince Andrew was dull-witted, and behind them loomed the ambitious Duke Romanov and other claimants. The only reason the two princes had survived this long was because the king protected them. If he fell now, Duke Romanov would never sit idly by. His most likely course of action would be to eliminate the princes before they could ascend the throne—thus securing the position for himself.
Which was probably exactly why the king had kept this matter secret—summoning Wei Wei discreetly to avoid Romanov interfering.
Moreover, the king might also be trying to protect her reputation. If Wei Wei treated him in secret and failed to find a cure, at least no one would know—so there would be no public backlash.
"The attendant said the king's weakness began about two months ago, without other symptoms. What do you think it is?" Felix asked.
Wei Wei's expression grew solemn as she voiced the suspicion that had been growing in her heart.
"I don't think he's ill at all," she said quietly. "I think he's been poisoned."