Chapter 42: Scars

Finally permitted by Koumei-san, Emma reaches out to her right cheek.

*grab*

Not Koumei-san, but William stops her.

“Wait nee-sama, don’t peel it off that quickly!”

I thought it’s okay since it’s already allowed, is there any problem?

Emma tilts her head confusedly.

“…I will call Father and Mother, so wait first for now.”

George goes out of the room while sighing.

The people around Emma is more worried about her wounds than the person herself. Especially George and William, who had seen the wounds directly, have serious faces.

“Emma-sama. I will call the skilled doctor I have at home. Can you wait until then to remove it?”

Even Joshua tells her that with a pitiful and begging face, she can’t possibly remove it now.

“A doctor? But it doesn’t hurt, you know?”

Emma’s a bit surprised by Joshua’s worried face that she’s never seen before.

“Even so… We don’t know what it is like, so please let us make the perfect preparation. …for everyone’s sake.”

Joshua goes to call the doctor after putting his hand on the downcast William’s head.

Emma herself thinks that it’s a wound from her own carelessness, so more than being prepared, she is more or less already resigned.

Now, she is only thankful to Violet for not having that burning pain anymore.

Koumei-san, who becomes worried from seeing the reaction of the surrounding people, wraps around Emma.

The fluffy touch and warmness relax her body that was a little tensed from seeing everyone’s reaction.

“Koumei-san… Thank you.”

She buries herself in the fluffy body and waits until Joshua said preparation is ready.

・・・

“Emma— Emma—”

Wrapped in Koumei-san‘s fluffiness, Emma fell asleep before she knew it and was gently woken by Leonard.

“The preparation is done?”

When she wakes up while rubbing her sleepy eyes, Leonard, Melsa, George, William, and Joshua are looking at her.

A lady wearing white clothes is sitting directly beside her.

“Doctor?”

Emma nods slowly at the chestnut-haired lady that looks slightly older than her mother.

“My name is Elia. I specialized in dermatology, so please rest assured to leave it to me.”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

She is the doctor that Joshua called over from the royal capital for Emma.

She had examined Emma once before she woke up, so everyone other than Emma is already acquainted with her.

“Elia-san, we are in your care.”

Everyone in the family bows their head to the doctor.

Elia extends her hand to Emma’s right cheek as she breathes in and watches.

*peel*

*rip rip rip rip*

*tear*

Violet’s thread peels off very easily.

“—haah—”

Leonard’s face is clouded. Melsa put her face on Leonard’s chest.

“Ah”

George and William look unexpectedly a little relieved.

Joshua wears a gentle smile from beginning to end.

The reaction of her family who saw the wound is so varied, and it makes her anxious. Elia hands a hand mirror gently to Emma.

Even though Emma already resigned herself, her heart still beats faster. The hand mirror reflects her face.

The melted outer skin has regenerated nicely.

According to George and William, her outer skin was so damaged that it would peel off just by being poured water, but the skin has no keloid and doesn’t taut. Of course, it doesn’t bleed either.

…it’s just.

In the part that was directly hit by the slime’s fluids, the deep radial wound left countless fine scars that look like connecting the radial lines.

Purple scars, like the color of Violet’s thread, are engraved on her arm and body.

Elia informs the parents that further medical treatment is not needed after examining Emma’s skin condition.

“It leaves scars, but from the story of how she got injured, there is no better recovery than this. I was worried that the skin would tear when I peeled the spider’s thread, but it has regenerated completely like this. It has healed so beautifully that it can be called a miracle.”

Elia explains Emma’s condition calmly and matter-of-factly to encourage her mother, who cries after seeing the scars.

“The scars— will not heal?”

Even so, Mother couldn’t help but ask.

“…regrettably, yes.”

Emma fixedly stares at her face reflected in the mirror.

She is checking the deep scars without making a single sound.

“Emma… it’s alright. It left scars, but it doesn’t change the fact that Emma is cute.”

Leonard hugs Emma tightly.

“Emma, there’s no keloid and taut skin. You have to thank Violet for getting this better from slime wounds!”

“Nee-sama. It has healed very, very beautifully!”

George and William, who had seen the wounds directly, also try to cheer Emma up, but Emma keeps looking at the scars silently.

“…it’s cool, isn’t it?”

Joshua, who has been silent all along, opens his mouth.

Emma turns her face toward Joshua before her family could get angry at his out-of-place remarks.

Those eyes are shining blazingly.

“Hn?”

“Emma?”

The family and Elia are confused at Emma’s unexpected reaction.

“Joshua also thinks so?”

Emma looks at the mirror again happily.

“Yes, it looks like a spider web and very cool. The scars are.”

The deep radial scars and the countless fine scars that look like connecting lines look like a spider web when being told that.

Or rather, you would only see it like a spider web once you noticed.

“…nee-sama… perhaps?”

William timidly says.

“Uh-huh! These scars, I like it!”

Emma answers, smiling ear to ear.