She smiled inside but kept her face calm as she slowly fixed her gaze on Oswyn. She stopped talking and deliberately looked Oswyn up and down, from head to toe, bit by bit. Oswyn started to feel stiff and awkward in his walk, and a few hints of enduring humiliation showed on his face before she finally smiled and said to him:
"Oswyn, tell me, how should I deal with this ugly and useless bunch?"
Elara's secret smile was so strong that System 92, who sensed some of her mischievous thoughts, couldn't help but speak up for the poor Oswyn who was stiff from her stare:
[Master, please stop teasing him! You've made him all stiff. Since he's the only skilled healer with you now, don't bully him!]
[Hmm? System 92, what are you talking about? I'm not doing that. Don't say things without proof.]
System 92: …You think I don't see how much you're enjoying teasing this little healer?
Oswyn stiffly walked in front of Elara and slowly raised his hand. He performed the first respectful kneeling bow she had ever seen from him since she came to this world.
"I… beg the princess not to drive away these patients for now. If you agree, Oswyn…" He paused, bit his teeth, closed his eyes, and said in one breath, "Oswyn will obey your orders!"
He just sold himself to her! Elara couldn't help but curl her lips into a wider smile. This blunt and sharp-tongued healer, who also got annoyed easily, was really like a proud outside but soft inside cute cat!
Elara watched Oswyn's serious "self-sacrificing" expression, staring until he felt stiff again. Then she suppressed her laughter and repeated slowly, "Obey my orders?"
Oswyn, half-kneeling, took a deep breath and said firmly, "Yes!"
"Good!"
Elara never planned to drive these patients out of the estate. She knew very well how dangerous infectious diseases could be, having lived through a pandemic in the modern world. So not only the patients here in the estate but also those suspected outside, Elara wanted to find a way to cure them.
This estate was a perfect place for treatment. But she still had to keep the original character of being a princess. She couldn't just let people in without reason. Otherwise, the people in the princess's mansion might notice. Worse, Lord Gregory and other schemers could catch on.
So there needed to be a good, proper reason that matched her identity as the princess. It was best if Oswyn took the initiative to ask her!
Luckily, the young master of the healer valley, Oswyn, really had a heart to help others. He smoothly said what Elara couldn't, actively solving the urgent epidemic. He even set a trap for himself, giving Elara the chance to "enslave" him freely.
Such a thoughtful gift, Elara naturally accepted it with a smile.
She looked at Oswyn's tense face, waiting for his "terms" with a smile in her eyes. "Since Oswyn is asking, I care more about Oswyn than those ugly useless people. Fine, I remember your terms. I won't delay—now I hand over the management of this estate to you. You take full control. How about that?"
Oswyn, who had prepared to "sacrifice" himself, was stunned. He really didn't expect her to agree so quickly and give him full power over the estate.
His "brave warrior going to death" expression faded a bit. Though he didn't know if he'd lose his dignity or his life for this, he couldn't help but look at her.
He saw her smiling warmly, no longer cruel or violent, but teasing him like a playful illusion.
Just as Oswyn doubted his eyes and wanted to look closer, Elara looked away toward the back garden.
"But I only allow sick people to enter this estate. Those who aren't sick, I won't let them stay and eat for free."
Hearing this, Oswyn didn't object much. Although the cause of these refugees' misery was the rotten Plumera Kingdom, the problem was too deep and complicated. It wasn't Elara's fault, who liked men and was harsh. Oswyn disliked this chaotic kingdom but was not unreasonable enough to blame her.
Also, Elara seemed to have changed a bit today. Oswyn suddenly didn't want to argue with her or cause trouble again because of his bluntness. So he nodded and said nothing more.
He stood and picked up a clean white cloth to continue the interrupted work, checking on the patients. Suddenly, Elara called him and pointed to the nearly thirty medicine furnaces he had passed by earlier.
"You have almost thirty furnaces, but you only make two batches of medicine each time?"
From the experience of making medicine, Elara almost understood what these furnaces were for but still didn't get it.
Though she wasn't trained in medicine and the herbs here were different in name and look from Earth, she was able to identify Oswyn's needed herbs thanks to System 92's instant translation.
But even so, using nearly thirty furnaces to make only two batches of medicine was very inefficient.
[Master, medicine here is still in early development. It's different from Earth's ancient medicine. Many herbs and their effects are still unknown. Even though Oswyn is the young master of the healer valley, the types of herbs he learned are few compared to later times. Especially those important herbs for treating cold, infection, and plague are not yet discovered.]
[But Oswyn's strength lies in his natural understanding and flexible use of herbs. With limited herbs, he uses substitutes to treat patients. That's why it's complicated, but he still achieves the same healing effects. His skill is really amazing.]
[By the way, the first reward I gave you for the pacification mission was the "Pandemic Handbook," which combines this world's era and medical knowledge. Too bad the Francis brothers are still on their way to finish the mission. Once done, you can get the handbook and use its prescriptions to solve the epidemic.]
Elara listened to System 92 and recalled some common herbal medicines and prescriptions from her past life.
Though she didn't study medicine, she often had physical exams and took herbal soups from a professional medical team behind her. So she naturally remembered some basic common herbs and formulas.