Chapter 28: CH 27

Hannah’s evaluation of her friend—Jay, or Reina—was that she’s maybe timid, but not to the point of self-deprecation, and she’s a bit weird, so it’s not quite right to call her normal. However, the moment Hannah saw what Jay did, she freaked out and grabbed the other girl’s hand.

Reina smiled casually, lowering Hannah’s frantic hand.

“Ah, this? It’s the vaccine, you know. The vaccine. It’s fine.”

And then.

[ Reina Chantra : the first to receive a shot of a man-made vaccine. ]

It finally appeared—the guide message that had kept silent for a few days now.

“Whoa…!”

Whenever it came to Ethan though, the guide message didn’t give me the impression that it was the docile type.

“I don’t think that something like this popped up in the original work though.”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“Ah, nothing.”

She was perplexed by the guide message’s system—the standards of which she couldn’t figure out—but at the end of the day, she found out the identity of the epidemic anyway. The end justifies the means.

“And I got the vaccine, so.”

Reina started muttering to herself, and seeing this, Hanna grew anxious. She asked Reina.

“Jay… You’re okay, right?”

“Of course!”

Hannah’s expression was serious, but Reina just patted her on the shoulder and then stood up, a smile on her lips.

It’s a vaccine, but she knew Hannah wouldn’t understand if she tried to explain the concept now. So, she tried to word it a different way.

“The forty-nine people, including you, didn’t get hit with the epidemic because of this cow pus.”

‘I mean… If I didn’t have prior knowledge about smallpox, then I also wouldn’t have believed these words either.’

“Um… It’s a bit complicated to explain, but anyway, the cow pus is the key to stopping this epidemic. But to make sure of the results, an outsider and not a villager should test it out. That’s why I injected myself with it.”

“…Really? It’s not dangerous, is it?”

“Yup, it really isn’t.”

Reina smiled wider than usual to reassure her friend. Then, a small sigh left Hanna’s lips.

“I can’t stop you, Jay. You always surprise me like this every time.”

Hannah shook her head and closed her eyes.

“But the results of everything that I do are always good, right?”

“That’s why I’ll follow you without saying anything.”

Once again, Hannah sat down next to Reina.

“Now that we’ve identified the disease, all that’s left is the treatment.”

“Do you know the cure?”

“Umm…”

With her brows knitted, Reina fell into deep thought for a moment.

There’s no specific treatment for smallpox. The only practical treatment that could be done was to treat the symptoms.

‘In other words… The answer isn’t to find out the cause of the disease and eliminate it, but to manage the symptoms such as the inflammations and high fevers, but…’

Of course, even if you’re vaccinated already, all that would do is to alleviate the symptoms when you catch the disease. The only problem was the ‘within seven days of exposure’ rule.

“Hmm… That’s a bit too vague.”

If that ‘exposure’ meant ‘exposure to the virus’, then the incubation period should usually be around two weeks, and that’s the only time you’ll realize you’re sick. In the end, there’s still no answer.

“How do we make it possible to know that you’re ‘exposed to the infectious disease’ before the symptoms even start appearing?”

Of course, logically speaking, it’s best to still vaccinate the patients who already have smallpox since its purpose was to alleviate the symptoms.

“But I’m not so sure about that, really.”

Thus, it wasn’t possible for her to blindly vaccinate the patients who already have smallpox.

After thinking for a long time, Reina looked up at the sky that was dyed pitch black. There’s still some time before the sun rises.

“Well… Firstly, let’s start with you, Hannah.”

“Huh?”

She milked cows every day, so she must be immune already. However, getting vaccinated twice wouldn’t make her sick, and it’s better to make sure.

“This vaccine works. I’m sure of its efficacy.”

The guide message that popped up in her mind was enough proof that it works.

“Umm.”

Hannah hummed quietly to herself as though agonizing over the decision, but she soon nodded. She couldn’t understand everything that her friend said. Still though, if Hannah were to think back on her friend’s constant good results despite her unpredictable behavior, then it’s worth trying.

“Alright.”

“Then first, let’s go find some needles that aren’t rusty.”

They left the meadow where the cows were gathered and returned to the village. Reina’s steps were much lighter than before.

“By the way, we still have a problem about what to do for the patients.”

Once Hannah was vaccinated, Reina could let her go now. But apart from her, Reina wasn’t exactly sure of what to do from this point on.

“I think Ethan’s going to send me back to the capital soon.”

Reina murmured to herself, but Hannah spoke up.

“Well, you’re smart though, Jay. Don’t you think you can just explain it properly so you can stay?”

“Not sure. I don’t think it’ll work with Ethan.”

“He does seem to be kinda finicky.”

“…Not just ‘kinda’ but ‘very much’.”

“I think he’s different around you, Jay.”

“You think…? Haa… I dunno. But I need to stay here for the results.”

“You know how you persuaded everyone in the village, Jay? That’s why you can also do it with that man called Eth…”

Hannah was speaking enthusiastically until now, but she suddenly stopped.

However, because Reina was so focused on ending the epidemic, she didn’t notice this. Thanks to this, she chattered on more instead of stopping altogether.

“Yeah! I can do it, can’t I?”

“J-Jay…”

“Yeah, you’re right. If I explain it well, it just might work.”

“J-Jaayy…”

“Yes, it certainly seems that you have to explain it ‘very’ well.”

“Right. If I do it in a terrible way, it’s never going to work. Because Ethan is super smart, right?”

“That’s true.”

“Right? As expected of my man… Huh?”

Reina belatedly realized that the voice that responded to her was quite low. For a second, she paused and raised her head to see who it was. Then, soon enough, she gasped.

“E-Ethan…”

“I do believe you owe me an explanation, Reina Chantra.”

Do take note— This was the first time he ever called her by her full name.