Eliza had no idea what kind of chaos was unfolding within the Stonor family at that very moment.
They didn’t depart until the last of the infected had recovered and the epidemic across Noganlul was fully under control.
As they prepared to leave, Kane personally came to see them off, finally finding a free moment after being swamped with logistics for days.
“Your Grace, don’t forget those two shipments of medicine I ordered!” Kane reminded eagerly.
Eliza chuckled. “Don’t worry–1 haven’t forgotten.”
The carriage slowly began to roll out of the county gates.
Exhausted from the past several days, Eliza turned away from the view and was about to lower the curtain to get some rest. But just as her gaze swept over the distant burial site near the road, something caught her eye.
There, among the ash–gray remnants of the mass grave, lay a body.
Eliza’s first thought was that it must be another poor soul who didn’t survive and had just been brought out for burning. But the next second, the “corpse” moved–barely, but unmistakably.
Her heart jolted. But when she looked again, there was no more movement.
‘Am I just seeing things?‘ she wondered. Maybe she was too exhausted–maybe she was hallucinating.
Still, the nagging feeling wouldn’t go away.
As the carriage drove farther, Eliza couldn’t help but glance back. This time, what she saw made her heart skip a beat.
“Wait–stop the carriage! Stop right now!” she shouted.
That wasn’t a corpse. It was someone alive.
Certain of what she’d seen, she grabbed her medical case, jumped down from the carriage, and ran toward the mass grave.
Nolan, already sensing something was wrong, had spurred his horse forward ahead of her. After confirming there was no immediate danger, he waved her over.
“She’s just a little girl,” Eliza said as she knelt beside the frail figure. “How is she this thin?”
Up close, Eliza saw that the girl lying there was gaunt to the point of deformity–nothing but skin and bone, caked in grime and blood, with dried vomit around her lips.
Eliza immediately donned her mask and began a meticulous examination. One thing after another, she ruled out every sign of the plague.
Her diagnosis shocked even herself–she wasn’t sick. She was starving.
Eliza glanced at the girl’s tattered clothes and suddenly understood. She uncorked a small bottle of diluted spirit water and gently trickled a few drops into the girl’s mouth.
Within moments, the girl stirred.
“Hurts… it hurts so much… my stomach… she moaned softly at first, curling up. But then, oddly, the pain began to ease. Realizing something was different, the girl slowly blinked her eyes open and looked up at the two figures besida ha-
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Chapter 251
“Where am I?” she asked weakly. “Who are you?”
The girl’s eyes settled on Eliza’s face. She was quiet for a moment, then asked, “Are you the Holy Lady?”
The moment the words left her mouth, she tried to sit up–but her body couldn’t follow. She coughed violently and vomited blood before collapsing again, pale as a ghost.
“Hey–don’t move!” Eliza quickly caught her. “Nolan, I need my needle kit.”
Nolan handed it over at once.
With swift, practiced hands, Eliza inserted several needles to stabilize the girl’s internal bleeding, then slipped a pill between her lips and gave her another sip of diluted spirit water. Only then did some color finally return to the child’s face.
Eliza asked gently, “Your stomach’s been in trouble for a long time, hasn’t it? Have you gone without food or water for days? Or eaten things like dirt or tree roots?”
The girl’s eyes welled with tears as she stared at Eliza. “You… you really are a goddess, aren’t you? You saved the whole county, and now you’ve even figured out that I once ate mud to survive…”
Eliza chuckled softly. “No goddess here. Just someone who knows a bit of medicine.”
She continued kindly, “You still can’t eat regular food right now, but that pill I just gave you will help rebuild your stomach. One a day for ten days. After that, you’ll be able to eat normally again.”
The girl clutched the medicine bottle tightly, her eyes brimming with gratitude. “Thank you…. I don’t know how to repay
you…
Before Eliza could react, the girl suddenly pushed herself upright and knelt on the ground with a thud trying to kowtoW. “Whoa, no need for that!” Eliza hurried to stop her. “You’ll hurt yourself. Take it easy”
She gently held the girl up. “What’s your name? You’re from Caslig County, right?”
The girl nodded. “Yes. I’m from Caslig County. My name is Renee.”
Eliza asked, “Is your home far from here? Do you want us to take you back?”
She was worried–what if Renee collapsed again on the way home? It would be meaningless to save her here only for her to die on the road.
But to her surprise, Renee shook her head, fear flickering in her eyes. “Th–thank you, but… I don’t want to go home. I want to go to Plutonville. Please don’t trouble yourselves.”
Eliza blinked. “Plutonville? That’s really far. Are you sure you can make it on your own?”
Renee nodded with determination. “I can. My brother went to Plutonville alone too. Our parents are gone…. so I’m going to find him.
Eliza froze.
She turned toward Nolan. Their eyes met, and both seemed to reach the same thought at once. Eliza asked softly, “Renee, can I ask… what’s your family name? And what’s your brother’s name?” Renee blinked, then answered, “My full name is Renee White. My brother’s name is Seth”
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