Under the Oak Tree - Chapter 140
Chapter 140: Chapter 140
Maxi did not visit the shelter out of a great sense of righteousness. It was mostly because having something to do instead of being idle at the monastery made her less anxious, and being physically tired helped her sleep. She had been suffering from severe insomnia recently. The gruesome faces of dead soldiers would fill her mind as she lay awake in the dark.
It was only on days she went to the shelter that she was able to sleep undisturbed by nightmares. Were it allowed, she would have visited every day. However, the women were required to ask the clerics for permission to leave the grounds and were obliged to use the basilica’s carriages and guards. Since they did not wish to burden the clerics who already had their hands full, they limited their visits to once or twice a week.
They would gather at the pavilion on days they did not have an excursion to sew tunics and blankets for the orphans. Even the maidservants helped with the sewing from time to time, but no matter how many new clothes or bedding they donated, they were all tattered or gone after five or six days.
The missing items were apparently due to thieving vagrants. Food and other necessities were also stolen, but the shelter did not have the resources to prevent it.
Word that the nobles were supporting the facility must have spread; more and more people came to seek help, leaving the shelter sorely lacking in food, clothes, and room. Maxi quickly realized that Levan was not as peaceful as it appeared on the surface.
The consequences of the monster invasion sprouted across the capital like poisonous mushrooms. The outskirts of the city overflowed with refugees from the north fleeing from the monster army, and the prices of goods soared.
Though merchants from each kingdom arrived at Levan’s ports with full ships, it did nothing to alleviate the food shortage. Most of the stock was sent as military provisions. It went without saying that it was the poor that suffered the most.
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Whenever she visited the shelter, Maxi saw starving people wandering the city like ghosts. Although vagrants rarely gathered near the city center or port where security was tight, they took up most of the space along the city walls.
As the number of impoverished people surged by the day, the sighs of the clerics at the shelter grew heavier and heavier.
“If we fail to separate the sick from the general population soon, a plague might break out.”
One early afternoon, Maxi was at the shelter with the other noblewomen when she heard a cleric’s terrible prediction. She looked at him in horror.
Dozens of infirmed men and women lay crammed together on the floor of the wide room, their bodies reeking of vomit. One of the noblewomen struggled for air as she backed away toward the entrance.
“A-Are you saying… that they are all sick with a contagion?”
The cleric hastily shook his head. “Please do not worry, it is only food poisoning. Things have been spoiling quickly in this hot weather, so more and more people are coming down with stomach ailments. But the problem is especially serious in the refugee camps. Since they are already so debilitated, even a minor illness could be life-threatening.”
The old cleric clicked his tongue.
“Many have died already. We could not leave their bodies unburied, so they were apparently thrown into ditches or secretly buried in the forest… The situation is dire. If the dead are not given a proper burial, the death energy might spread throughout the city and cause a plague.”
At the cleric’s bleak words, the noblewomen’s faces grew as white as sheets. Abruptly realizing that his audience was comprised of ladies who had spent most of their lives within the confines of their bedchambers, the old cleric cleared his throat.
“Do forgive me for such unpleasant talk. It appears that all the bleakness has made me quite insensitive. I should not have mentioned it in front of such exalted company…”
The cleric smiled in an attempt to lighten the mood, but the air remained heavy.
Idsilla asked gravely, “If what you say is true, shouldn’t you treat the sick as quickly as possible?”
“We would if we could, but with the herb prices rising so drastically, it is sadly impossible.”
Idsilla pressed her lips together. The shelter was already struggling to feed its supplicants. With prices soaring several times over, the clerics had already used up most of their donations.
“Why don’t we send messages to our relatives asking for donations?” a young noblewoman who had been silent until now cautiously suggested.
Idsilla snorted. “Do you think the other territories would be better off when the capital is in such dire straits? Have you forgotten that the king has already levied exorbitant taxes to fund the coalition army? They would all be pressed for money.”
“Then, what are we to do? Even the monastery would not be spared if a plague breaks out,” Alyssa said, her eyes welling with tears.
The cleric, in what appeared to be an attempt to reassure her, said cautiously, “If we keep the refugees isolated from the rest of the city before an outbreak occurs, we would be able to prevent a scourge from besetting the capital, so-”
“I-I have noticed copious amounts of lizard grass on our way here…” Maxi interjected. She had been deep in thought until then. “Could we not u-use that?”
Everyone’s gazes flew to her.
“Lizard grass? I’m afraid I have never heard of such a herb…”
“Lizard grass is quite e-effective against stomach pains. Giving it to people… w-with indigestion… is said to quickly alleviate the s-symptoms…”
Her knowledge of lizard grass was purely based on what she had read in the illustrated book on herbs, and her voice lacked conviction.
The cleric regarded her skeptically. “May I ask how you know about this herb?”
“I-I am… a healer. I also studied herbs… while I studied the art of healing.”
Idsilla’s eyes grew wide at her words. “I didn’t know you had such talents, Lady Calypse.”
“I-I am afraid my talents are not good enough t-to be mentioned. Monster attacks… a-are rather common in Anatol… s-so I began studying last year.”
“What does the herb look like?”
Sorting through her memory, Maxi tried to describe the herb as precisely as possible.
“I-It is a grass with diamond-shaped leaves… that have black spots on them. It grows in the shade… and emits a t-tangy scent when you snap the stems.”
“I see that you are referring to the weed that grows in the yard. I was not aware they could be used as herbs.”
Maxi gave the cleric a cryptic look. Considering that most of the books Ruth had recommended to her were from the south, it was not surprising that the cleric was unaware.
In general, books were a luxury only the rich could afford, and scholarly books from the south were especially valuable. They could practically be traded for their weight in gold. It was therefore unsurprising that the knowledge they contained circulated at an ant’s pace.
There were things she had not fully explained, and Maxi rushed to tell the full story.
“Lizard grass is p-poisonous, so eating it as is… might worsen the stomach ailment. It is usually boiled… to remove the harmful properties… before being used as a treatment.”
“Would you mind checking the weed in the back to make sure it is lizard grass?”
Maxi nodded, and they immediately made their way to the yard. There they found lizard grass growing in the plot of land overrun with shrubs and weeds.
Although she had practically memorized the contents of the book on herbs, it was only knowledge in her head. Her personal experience with herbs was limited to twenty types of plants.
Concerned that her memory might be wrong, Maxi only opened her mouth to speak after she had meticulously studied the plant.
“Lizard grass… with leaves as thick and dark as this a-are highly poisonous, and cannot be used as herbs. You must o-only collect and brew… those with thin leaves and lighter spots.”
The clerics promptly plucked a few leaves and showed them to her.
“Will these do, my lady?”
Maxi measured the thickness of the leaves with her fingers and nodded.
Wanting to test the herb’s efficacy right away, the clerics collected a handful of lizard grass and took it to the kitchen. As they boiled the leaves inside a cauldron, a peculiar smell filled the shelter. The clerics looked skeptical but slowly fed the concoction to the patients nevertheless.
Fortunately, the herb proved effective, and the patients’ breathing grew less labored after an hour or so. The lizard grass was more potent than Maxi had hoped, and she let out a sigh of relief. She had been secretly sick with worry that it might be ineffective. Even the faces of the clerics brightened.
“It seems to be working well. To think that we had such a useful herb right under our noses…”
“I-I’m sure not many know of its herbal properties… because of the fastidious care required to prepare it.”
“Do you know of any other herbs we might find around us?”
The effectiveness of the lizard grass must have removed all doubts the clerics harbored about her. They now regarded her in a different light. After calmly inspecting the area around the shelter and pointing out some of the useful herbs, Maxi returned to the monastery with the other noblewomen.
When they came back to the shelter a week later, those stricken with food poisoning had markedly decreased. However, for some reason, the total number of patients had increased. The sick from all around Levan had apparently flocked to the shelter as rumors of the ill miraculously returning to health began to spread.
Since most of the skilled healers had gone with the campaign party, there was currently only one running hospital in Levan. Sadly, even this hospital was unable to provide proper treatment because of the exorbitant herb costs, and the church lacked the resources to tend to the sick. Thus, it was hardly surprising that people came flocking to the shelter when they heard rumors of a talented healer at the facility.
Before she knew it, Maxi was acting as the healer of the shelter. She scoured the forest with the clerics to search for herbs whenever she could and occasionally even healed patients with magic.
The other noblewomen actively helped in caring for the sick. Though some frowned and considered the work below them, most of the women were grateful to have something to do.
“This is nothing compared to the hardships my husband is going through on the battlefield! This is a hundred times more gratifying than trembling in fear while I pray, terrified that he might return on a wagon. My act of kindness might induce the heavens to look kindly on my husband.”
Maxi was certain that everyone felt the same. The women tended to the sick as an act of prayer. They gladly took on menial tasks such as patiently feeding feeble patients or wiping them down with wet towels. Some even learned to prepare the herbs from Maxi.
As the days passed by in a flurry, the women slowly regained their vigor, and Maxi also began to sleep and eat better as she took on the laborious work at the shelter.
Levan’s food shortage was resolved when merchants from the south arrived in an enormous vessel carrying cargo holds full of food. With this, the conditions inside the shelter improved. With news after news of victories coming from the north, everything seemed to be changing for the better.
