Chapter 172

Altair couldn't believe it.

He was cursed, and the culprit wasn't an enemy but an ally?

"Yes. And it seems you've been ingesting it for a long time."

That explained the recurring drowsiness.

The accumulated effects of the Sleeping Rose had finally taken their toll.

It was only because he was Altair that he managed to survive by relying on potions after collapsing.

Anyone else would have long exceeded the lethal dose and lost their life.

"But why do you call it a curse instead of poison?"

Altair couldn't understand.

Usually, something that caused harm through ingestion was called poison.

The concept of a curse caused by ingestion was unfamiliar to him.

Jeong-Hoon nodded.

"Yes. To be precise, this Sleeping Rose is a cursed herb. It's impossible to detoxify."

Consuming the Sleeping Rose triggered an invisible debuff, and the potency of the debuff increased with the amount consumed.

Therefore, detoxification couldn't remove the debuff caused by the Sleeping Rose.

However, Altair had to vomit dead blood as a side effect of the process.

"...Hah, who could have done this to me?"

Altair frowned.

"Well, we'll have to find out."

"Find out? Do you think we can?"

The culprit had been secretly administering the poison to him for a long time.

It wouldn't be easy to catch them.

"Yes."

Jeong-Hoon nodded.

"How...?"

"Who's in charge of cooking here?"

"Cooking...?

Altair's eyes narrowed.

Roscantor answered for him.

"It's Hila."

"Hila?"

"Yes. She came to the City of Archer ten years ago and started working in the kitchen."

Hila.

He heard that she wasn't originally from the City of Archer but from a small village called Ardion.

However, the village was destroyed by a monster attack, and she was the only survivor.

She was quite skilled in archery and had worked as a mercenary, traveling all over the country.

Then, she caught Altair's eye and settled in the City of Archer.

"I'm telling you this so you don't misunderstand, but Hila could never be the culprit."

Altair trusted Hila deeply.

She was a loyal subordinate who would lay down her life for him.

The idea of her trying to assassinate him with the Sleeping Rose?

It was preposterous.

"I'm not saying she's definitely the culprit."

Jeong-Hoon smirked.

The culprit was trying hard not to get caught.

The fact that the Sleeping Rose was ingested meant that someone had tampered with Altair's food. The culprit likely set it up to cast suspicion on Hila, who was in charge of cooking.

"So?"

"First, we'll leak the information that the leader has awakened."

"Hmm? Not announce it publicly?"

"Yes."

"I don't know what method you're planning, but I'll follow it unconditionally."

This was Jeong-Hoon, the one who had cured him.

So he intended to trust him completely in catching the culprit as well.

Roscantor hurriedly interjected.

"Leader! Then what should we do about the war preparations?"

"War preparations?"

"Yes! You gave the order before you fell asleep, and I've been continuing the preparations as the acting commander."

"...Cancel the war preparations."

"What?!"

Roscantor's eyes widened in shock.

The preparations were already past the halfway point.

And now he was saying to let it all go to waste.

"I'm sorry for the trouble. But I think starting a war will do more harm than good."

It was true that before he collapsed, he wanted to finish things with the City of Warriors.

But after waking up from a three-month slumber, he realized how absurd that order was.

Even with full preparations and current strength, countless casualties were inevitable.

Not only that.

He hated to admit it, but if they clashed now, they would surely lose.

In the end, it would be him, the commander, who would be sending them to their deaths.

'I almost became an incompetent commander.'

He regretted giving such an order six months ago, driven by anger.

It was time to rectify that.

"...Understood. I'll stop the preparations immediately."

Roscantor readily complied.

The leader had awakened and ordered the cancellation of the war.

As the ruler, his orders were absolute, and it was only natural to follow them.

"Thank you for understanding."

"Of course... It's only natural for a subordinate to follow his lord's will."

Roscantor knelt on one knee and bowed his head.

"Then can I just stay in bed?"

Altair asked Jeong-Hoon.

"Yes."

"What about the bathroom? Do I have to relieve myself here?"

Until now, Roscantor had been personally taking care of Altair's bathroom needs.

"Yes. The leader has awakened, but his condition is still very poor, and he's unable to move, according to the set-up."

"I have my pride, you know..."

"If you insist..."

Jeong-Hoon brought an empty container from nearby.

"What's this for?"

"Use this to relieve yourself."

"..."

***

In the kitchen of the Archer's Sanctuary

Fifteen cooks, including Hila, were busy preparing meals.

With so many people to feed, they had to work quickly to keep up with the demand.

Just then, Roscantor entered the kitchen.

"Hila."

At his call, Hila, who was leading the other cooks, hurried to greet him.

"Yes. What brings you here?"

"Oh, it's nothing major. I just wanted to see if you could spare a moment."

"Spare a moment?"

Hila tilted her head in confusion.

There was no reason for him to have a private conversation with her.

She had been deeply saddened by the current leader, Altair's, collapse and had practically been living in the kitchen ever since.

Roscantor had only observed her from afar.

Perhaps that's why his summons felt a bit awkward.

"Yes, just for a short while."

"...Alright."

Hila handed over her duties to Ter, who was under her, and followed Roscantor out of the kitchen.

But Roscantor was heading towards the reception room.

What on earth did he want to talk about that he had to bring her all the way here?

"There's a guest who wants to meet you."

"A guest? Who is it?"

"You'll see when you get there."

Roscantor opened the door, and inside, a stranger was sitting.

"...Who is this stranger?"

He was incredibly unattractive.

"...I've brought you here, so I'll be taking my leave."

But Roscantor left the room without any explanation.

"Wait...!"

Hila hurriedly tried to grab his wrist, but he was a step ahead.

The door closed quickly and was tightly shut.

Now, only the stranger and Hila were left in the reception room.

"I have something to discuss with you, so please take a seat."

The stranger gestured for her to sit in front of him.

Hila looked at him with a dumbfounded expression.

"Can I just ignore you and leave if you're spouting nonsense?"

"Yes."

"...You're quite confident."

Hila reluctantly sat across from the stranger.

As if unnecessary pleasantries were pointless, he went straight to the main topic.

***

After the conversation ended, Hila's pupils were trembling uncontrollably.

"You're lying...?"

"It's all true. Why else would the acting commander bring you to the reception room, and why would I be sitting here?"

"No... That's absurd, no matter how you look at it!"

"Is it absurd for someone to fall asleep and not wake up for three months?"

"..."

Hila, overwhelmed with guilt, started pulling at her hair.

If what Jeong-Hoon said was true, it meant that the food prepared in the kitchen was the cause.

Altair, as the leader, had his meals prepared separately using only high-quality ingredients, unlike the ordinary archers.

'There's no need to prepare my meals separately. Just give me the same food as everyone else.'

'That's not possible. How could the leader eat the same food as the ordinary archers?'

She had strongly opposed Altair's suggestion.

If they had followed his wishes, he wouldn't have been cursed.

"Are you alright?"

"It's all my fault! It's because of my unnecessary actions...!"

"You can still rectify it."

"The leader can't even get up because of the curse! How can I rectify it?"

"You can catch the culprit."

"That's impossible!"

She shouted in frustration.

Jeong-Hoon sighed softly and took out a note from his pocket, handing it to her.

'Give this to her.'

It was a note that Altair had personally written and given to him.

He said that if she read this note, she would indirectly realize that he was alive.

"Do you believe me now?"

"...Is this real?"

Hila's pupils trembled.

"I'll explain the details once everything is over. First, we need to catch the culprit."

Catch the culprit.

Her eyes turned cold.

"What do I need to do?"

***

Ter was in charge of the kitchen.

In reality, it was more like overseeing than commanding.

The skilled cooks were perfectly handling their respective parts, so he was merely observing.

"Ter!"

Hila returned to the kitchen.

"You're back already?"

Ter, who was overseeing the work, greeted her.

"Yes! I have good news."

"Good news?"

"Don't be surprised. The leader has awakened."

"Is that true?!"

Ter's face lit up.

The leader, who had been asleep for three months, had finally awakened!

"Really?"

"Wow! That's such a relief..."

The other cooks also rejoiced upon hearing Hila's words.

Some even had tears in their eyes.

"So today, we'll prepare a special meal separately. Understand?"

"Yes! What should we prepare?"

"Let's make it a liquid diet. The leader's condition is quite serious after being bedridden for three months..."

Hila's eyes welled up with tears.

No one in the kitchen was unaware of her loyalty to Altair.

The tears meant that the leader's condition was worse than imagined.

"Chef..."

"We'll prepare it right away!"

The cooks were fired up.

"Remember those mushrooms we got recently? We'll use them to make a soup, and warm up some premium milk."

As her instructions were given, the cooks moved swiftly.

'This should be enough, right?'

The outsider had instructed her to prepare Altair's meal.

He would surely be anxious after hearing the news of Altair's awakening.

'Just wait until I find out who you are. I'll make sure you pay.'

She gritted her teeth inwardly and observed each of the cooks.

***

'What in the world is going on?'

Hudin struggled to hide his confused expression.

The plan had gone terribly wrong.

He wasn't originally from the City of Archer but from the Rogue City.

There was only one reason he had come to the City of Archer.

'Only a few know about this Sleeping Rose. Use it to assassinate Altair.'

To assassinate Altair.

He had entered the kitchen and worked diligently for six months, gaining their trust.

Then, he started adding small amounts of Sleeping Rose to Altair's meals.

He had been doing this for two years and three months.

'The leader hasn't woken up... Stop preparing his meals for the time being.'

Finally, the effects of the Sleeping Rose began to show.

He hadn't woken up for a long time, so it was only a matter of time before Altair died.

But the guy was still breathing even after three months.

He thought he was a tough one, but he never expected him to wake up.

At first, he was flustered, but it was actually a good thing.

'Now I can finally leave this dreadful kitchen.'

He had tried to add the Sleeping Rose to the life-sustaining potion, but Roscantor's strict management made it difficult to find an opportunity.

In the end, Hudin had to keep working in the kitchen until Altair breathed his last.

Hudin fidgeted with the small vial he kept in his pocket.

He always carried the Sleeping Rose with him, just in case.

If he added this to the liquid food, Altair would truly die.