Chapter 221: The Potion of Happiness
As Armand stepped into the living room, a strong smell of medicine immediately hit his nose.
The man didn’t try to hide anything. He casually let Armand in, revealing the floor covered with bottles and jars.
“I’m a potion maker,” the man said, leaning against the doorframe while holding the restless black cat in his arms.
“…A potion maker, huh.”
Armand repeated the words softly, letting his eyes scan the bottles.
Each bottle had a label, but the markings were clearly ones the man had made himself. Armand, who had some basic knowledge of medicine, still couldn’t understand any of them.
“What kind of potions are you working on lately?”
“Potions that make people happy.”
“Huh? What?”
That strange answer made Armand turn his full attention back to the man.
“Just as the name suggests, Sir Knight, potions that make people feel happiness. Hmm… How should I put it? Like eating a poisonous mushroom that only gives you good dreams.”
The man chuckled. Even his smile seemed full of exhaustion. But if Armand could see the bright orange-red eyes hidden under his bangs, he would have noticed how the man’s eyes lit up when talking about something he was passionate about.
“You mean… hallucinogens?”
The man hadn’t mentioned any ingredients, but from his description, Armand was able to guess the type of potion.
Still smiling, the man shook his head.
“Yes and no. To me, it’s no different from alcohol. I just want people to live a little happier.”
As he spoke, he walked over to the messy pile of potions on the floor and pulled out a sealed bottle of highly concentrated coffee. Without caring about the bitterness, he gulped down more than half of it in one go.
“I’m a potion maker, and a doctor. My job is to help those who want to live be healthier, and to let those who want to die go peacefully. In a world like this, chasing happiness has become a luxury.”
“So you rely on drugs for that?”
“Ah, no, don’t get me wrong. This is more of a—well, okay, you’re right. It’s like a hallucinogen. But there are no addictive substances here. If we’re talking about addiction, even caffeine in coffee is worse. Whew… talking this much really makes me thirsty…”
Mumbling to himself, the man chugged the rest of the coffee. As he drained the last few drops from the bottle, he stared directly at Armand. Even though Armand couldn’t see the man’s eyes, that gaze made him feel slightly uneasy.
“—By the way, do you have a wish?”
“Huh?”
“A wish. Just a small one. Don’t you want to be happy? To be with the woman you love? To always stay close with your friends? To enjoy a warm and gentle home? Don’t you want that?”
“......”
Armand paused for a moment, then crossed his arms and sighed.
“If you’re going to ask me like that… I think everyone wants something like that. I’m not someone who tries to sound noble or impressive, so yeah, I’ll admit it, I do want that kind of life.”
Armand wasn’t shy about this kind of question. He was the kind of person who was blunt and a little old-fashioned. Even though he figured the man wouldn’t say anything sweet in return, Armand still said what he honestly thought.
He had a high-ranking job, commanded the entire knight order, earned lots of honors, and even had a mansion. But the peaceful life he longed for still felt far out of reach.
If the Crown Prince asked him whether he wanted to retire right now, Armand would probably hand in his resignation the same day.
“You’re a really interesting person.”
From his expression, the man clearly didn’t expect Armand to admit it so openly.
He originally thought that someone like Armand would speak in riddles or try to go around in circles during their conversation. But to his surprise, Armand was completely straightforward.
After saying that, the man went quiet again. He and Armand just stared at each other, neither of them speaking, as if both were waiting for the other to say something first.
After about a minute, the man glanced at the corner of the room where a bottle of clear potion had fully evaporated. Then he looked at Armand, who showed no reaction. Behind the coffee can he was lifting to his lips, a slight, excited smile appeared on his face.
“But, Sir Knight, even though you say you want that kind of happy life… your dark circles don’t look light either.”
“—Ah, really?”
Armand reflexively touched the corner of his eye. For a brief moment, an image flashed in his mind, Evelia reaching out to touch his face.
“It seems you’re dealing with something too. And judging by your complexion… is your body not doing so well either?”
“My face, huh.”
Armand lightly slapped his cheeks and said casually, “Been staying up late. It’s normal to look a bit pale.”
Although Armand said that lightly, he had a feeling the man’s words carried another meaning behind “not doing well.”
If this man really was a skilled doctor, it wouldn’t be surprising if he could tell something just by looking at him. And to be honest, with the cold weather and everything that happened with Evelia, Armand did feel more worn out than usual lately.
But there was no way Armand would casually tell someone that his body was still being eaten away by a slow, spreading poison.
“I see. Well, if you ever need anything, feel free to come to me. You see… I like all kinds of patients. Only by meeting different kinds of patients can I figure out how to treat them. Like I said, I help those who want to live become healthy, and I let those who want to die leave peacefully.”
“Thanks, but I don’t have time to see a doctor right now.”
The man clearly had a deeper meaning behind his words, but Armand didn’t feel like wasting time trying to read into it. Maybe it was because the memory of Evelia’s face had flashed through his mind. He suddenly remembered that he didn’t have much time left.
And there didn’t seem to be any useful clues here.
The floor was scattered with bottles and jars, and the table was full of empty coffee cans. Even if he couldn’t be sure how long the potion maker had been living here, the amount of coffee suggested it had been several days at least.
“……”
Then, after his eyes scanned around the room, Armand noticed a dusty medal case in the corner.
It was the case that once held the medal granting the Scassia family its noble title. The royal crest was still engraved on the box, but the medal inside was gone. Only the outer crystal case remained.
Suddenly, seeing that medal case, Armand remembered something.
He had seen this before.
Not in this house, and not in the new estate either. It must have been—
“…I see.”
Armand muttered, his eyebrows slowly furrowing.
How dare he hide there.
How dare he go to that “old house.”
“Are you leaving now?”
Seeing Armand turn to go, the lazy man didn’t bother walking him out. Instead, he simply sat down on the carpet and, somehow, pulled out another bottle of coffee.
“Yeah. Sorry for the trouble. I’ll be leaving now.”
Without any polite words or goodbyes, Armand just said that, closed the door with a thump, and left.
The man, listening to Armand’s footsteps fade away, pushed aside his messy bangs and looked at the medal case Armand had noticed last.
Whatever he was thinking, he didn’t say. He simply petted the black cat now rubbing against his foot and drank half the bottle of coffee in silence.