This young master truly has the ambition of a hero.

In previous years, this would only occur during the coldest part of the winter, which means that this year's extreme winter is more severe than expected, and the ice element will be even more violent.

However, with the change in circumstances, Dick's plans also need to be adjusted accordingly.

The sled team will then regularly travel between the villages to bring patients suffering from cold-related illnesses to the castle, where they will be gathered together for treatment.

After seeing Robert off, Dick turned to the hospital bed. Several nurses looked somewhat frightened, hesitant to touch the patient.

Natasha and Shizuka Marikawa, on the other hand, demonstrated the professional qualities expected of doctors.

Especially Shizuka Marikawa. Natasha remained calm and composed, which didn't seem to bother him; after all, she was a woman who had seen it all. Shizuka Marikawa, on the other hand, seemed like a completely different person. Her eyes revealed a serious and earnest expression, and her composed demeanor exuded the intellectual radiance befitting a mature woman.

This naturally adorable and somewhat naive female school doctor is damnably charming at this moment!

Dick had to admit that he absolutely adored this type of older woman.

Dick was so engrossed in watching that he only realized he had been a little out of line when he came to his senses. Fortunately, the two female doctors were focused on the patient and didn't notice him.

How is the patient?

"It matches the description of the early symptoms of cold-related illness in the information, a very strange condition."

"The child's body temperature is 34.8℃, and he is drowsy, weak, and confused, which indicates moderate hypothermia. However, the child is unusually peaceful and his body is not trembling violently."

Shizuka Marikawa frowned as she looked at the thermometer in her hand.

The medical equipment in the clinic was all purchased by Dick using his own savings before he left the capital. Some of it was even second-hand equipment he obtained from the "Imperial Capital Scientific Hospital (a hospital composed of Earth doctors)" through the Duke's connections. These were the kind of high-quality items that are not usually available for purchase.

The world has been influenced by Earth's technology for so long that, although the nobles have no interest in promoting technology, they can still put some effort into matters that concern them.

In order to ensure that the summoned Earth doctors could not use their professional skills, the nobles brought in local magicians and alchemists to assist them. They also created a lot of medical equipment that resembled Earth's, and the performance of some of these instruments, enhanced by magic, was far superior to that of similar products on Earth!

Dr. Shizuka shook the thermometer and casually tried to hand it to the nurse next to her, but the nurse's hand was trembling as she took the thermometer, and she lost her grip, causing it to slip from her hand.

The nurse was terrified. This thermometer wasn't cheap. Just when she thought it was about to break, the thermometer floated up and flew into Dick's hand.

Seeing that it was the Governor who had come to her aid, the nurse was filled with shame, but she couldn't help but steal glances at Dick's handsome face, and unconsciously became a little infatuated.

But Dick frowned and rebuked him without any politeness.

"You're so clumsy. Why were you trembling just now? Were you afraid of catching something?"

"I……"

The nurse felt a little wronged, not expecting the seemingly gentle governor to be so harsh on her. She wasn't a native of Lagug; she was a new immigrant who had just arrived this year. But she had heard terrifying tales about cold-related illnesses.

According to rumors, this elemental disease is fatal if contracted and is also contagious.

So when she saw Dr. Shizuka hand her the thermometer that had just been used to take the patient's temperature, she was immediately terrified, and her hands trembled uncontrollably.

But in reality, this is just a rumor!

The spread of cold-related illnesses is different from that of the flu; it does not spread from person to person. It is an "elemental disease" caused by the rampage of elements that invade the human body.

Similarly, there are "self-immolation" caused by the fire element and "drowning" caused by the water element.

It's worth mentioning that elemental diseases are ineffective against mages and warriors of intermediate or higher ranks, so they are jokingly referred to as "weakness diseases."

If nothing unexpected happens, Jasmine must have been somewhere before, passing through a special area where elemental energy was surging, which is why she contracted the Coldness Syndrome. She's just an ordinary person and can't see the restless magical elements in the air, so she couldn't detect it.

Dick placed the thermometer back into the storage box and then touched the girl's forehead with two fingers. The touch was slightly cool, indicating that her body temperature was lower than normal.

Besides the temperature, Dick could also feel a trace of flowing magic within Jasmine's body.

For a magician, this is nothing; they can effectively guide it with their mental power. But Jasmine is just an ordinary person; she has no such ability. She can only let the rampaging ice element flow through her body, completely consuming her body temperature and life force.

Then Dick remembered that in the research materials Hughie had given him, he had mentioned a treatment method that could alleviate the patient's symptoms: a magician would try to use his mental power to guide the rampant magical elements out of the patient's body.

However, this requires an extremely high level of mental strength from the magician, and it is only a temporary solution.

Because magical elements have a convergence effect, it's not a matter of how much you acquire and how little you retain. Once a magical vortex forms within a patient's body, elements of the same type will accumulate more rapidly.

Dick pondered that with his thirty times the mental strength, the effect should be stronger than that of an ordinary magician. The key was to first alleviate Jasmine's symptoms, restore her consciousness, and find out if she had been to any places alone before.

Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense that out of the more than 300 people in Kevin Village, she was the only one who suffered misfortune without even leaving the village.

Taking a deep breath, Dick began to focus his mind, his mental energy drilling into his little daughter's body like invisible tentacles.

It sounds simple, and even a little erotic, but it's actually a high-end, meticulous job.

Because Jasmine is a living person, and living people have self-awareness, they cannot tolerate the intrusion of another consciousness. Dick's mental strength is thirty times that of an ordinary person like Jasmine, which is absolutely overwhelming. If Dick were to weaken even slightly, he could destroy her self-awareness, turning her into an idiot or a vegetable.

Fortunately, Dick had solid basic skills as a magician. He had grown up in the Duke's mansion, a place that was all show and no substance but a place where intrigue and power struggles were commonplace. Ever since he learned that he had magical talent, and quite a bit of it, Dick had been working incredibly hard to cultivate it.

Under his precise control, some of the restless ice-type magic elements were guided out, but they flowed directly into Dick's body through the mental link.

Within minutes, Dick felt his entire arm getting cold.

Jasmine's complexion visibly regained some color, and her body temperature also rose slightly.

Dick quickly stopped, shook his stiff right arm, and began to use his mental power to tame and stabilize the rampaging elements that had entered his body.

"As it turns out, some of Hughie's treatment plans were too simplistic. I'm using thirty times the mental strength, and it's still so difficult for me to extract the rampaging magic elements. If a mid- to low-level mage came over, they would probably kill themselves."

It took Dick nearly fifteen minutes to calm the restless magical energy within him, all the while complaining about how unreliable his academic friend was.

Natasha took a vial of medicine from her pouch and carefully injected about a third of it into Jasmine's arm. She pushed the syringe in slowly, constantly observing the patient's reaction.

The potion Natasha used was brought from Beloborg when she traveled through time. She was still studying the plants and animals of this world and dared not use some things rashly.

This medication can effectively improve the patient's physical functions and raise body temperature. It is a commonly used medication in Belloberg's clinic for treating hypothermia and utilizes some of the research findings of her late adoptive brother.

With the combined treatment of Dick and Natasha, Jasmine, who had been unconscious, finally opened her eyes slowly. However, what she said left Dick speechless.

"Little brother, where is this place?"

"..."

Dick, who was actually eighteen years old, was called "little brother" by a twelve-year-old girl. Dick frowned deeply, then tried to smooth out his wrinkles, silently reassuring himself not to get angry with a patient.

Dick straightened his expression slightly and asked Jasmine softly.

“I am Governor Dick Best of Lagug. Little Jasmine, I have some unfortunate news to tell you: you have contracted the Coldness Syndrome. But don't worry, we will do everything we can to treat you. Now I need to ask you some very important questions, which also concern the safety of your family. I want to know if you have gone to any strange places alone in the past period of time?”

The author says:

Author's note: During the seven-day National Day holiday, I will increase the amount of content but not the number of updates, with the word count per update increasing from 4000+ to 5000+.

Chapter 022: There's Something in the Woods

I remeasured Jasmine's temperature with a thermometer, and it rose from 34.8 to 35.9. Although it still falls into the category of hypothermia, at least she has regained consciousness and can answer some questions.

Dick desperately needs to know where she contracted the cold syndrome.

Few in the magical world study Cold Aura Disease; Hughie's research into it is merely a side project due to his interest in all elemental diseases. Furthermore, places susceptible to elemental diseases likely possess an elemental vortex composed of active ice elements, and this vortex is also mobile.

Ordinary people cannot see the elemental vortex with the naked eye. At most, they will suddenly feel a chill, and depending on individual differences in constitution, it will take some time before symptoms of coldness appear.

Because many characteristics of elemental diseases are similar to those of chronic diseases, they are caused by the corrosive effects of elements invading the body. Some people are young and strong and can withstand it for a longer period of time before they feel something is wrong.

Children like Jasmine, however, tend to show symptoms earlier.

This is also what Dick is worried about: the actual number of infected people in Kevin Village may not be just Jasmine; some people just haven't started to show symptoms yet.

Dick needs to roughly pinpoint the location of the magic vortex, then find it and neutralize it.

This is also one of the "root cause solutions" provided in Hughie's materials, which directly eliminates the magical vortex that causes the spread of cold-related illnesses from its source.

This plan sounds simple, but in practice, it's about as difficult as "going and eliminating Tang Sanzang and his disciples."

The magical elements in this world are like the wind. They are everywhere and their activity level is like the wind speed level. Winds below level four will make people feel comfortable, but if they exceed level ten and start spinning, then they are natural disasters that can kill people!

The same principle applies to magical elements; the higher their activity level, the more destructive they become. Some high-level mages have even developed a spell to intentionally induce magical vortexes to blow towards the enemy's head.

Eliminating the magic vortex, however, is a skill in itself.

As it stands, Dick is probably the only one in the entire Lagug region with this ability.

"Your Excellency, this is too dangerous! You mustn't put yourself in this risk!"

At the military conference, upon learning that Dick was going to personally go to Kevin Village to find the magic vortex and then destroy it in a dangerous way comparable to "throwing firecrackers into a swamp," Knight John, the recruit training instructor, was the first to stand up and object.

This man was an exemplary honest person in terms of character, so after a period of observation, Dick brought him into the second core team as a "local with potential for development".

The core team, of course, consists of the beautiful girls summoned by Dick.

As a (apprentice) knight, John swore allegiance to House Best, but when it came to the specific person who bestowed the knighthood upon him, it was naturally Dick, who had given him the knighthood.

Therefore, for the safety of his lord, he was the first to stand up and oppose Dick's risking his life.

But Dick had his own reasons. He didn't want to play the hero, nor did he simply hope to use this to further win over the hearts of the people.

But damn it, this damn job is something only he can do. There are only seventeen registered magicians in the entire Lagug region, and most of them are second-rate nobodies. There are only four with intermediate level magic, and the worst one has never even done a rating. He is a self-taught apprentice.

Therefore, among all the magicians in Ragug, at least for now, Dick is the strongest in the region.

Although the certificate issued by the Mage Association only showed him to be at the beginner level, he was deliberately hiding his true abilities by not going to the association to take the test and update his certificate.

So the matter was decided, fifty men were drawn from the private army, and the four most skilled mages living in the town were conscripted. The "attendants" included Rita, Kasumi, Ayane, Black and White Gunner, and Natasha, while the rest stayed at the castle.

After everyone set off, they rode in twenty dog ​​sleds.

The dogs pulling the cart are a local breed, the Laguge Snow Wolf Dog, a hybrid created by locals by crossing large dogs with snow wolves. They are large, like small foals, and are not only very cold-resistant, but also have top-notch endurance and running speed.

When Dick first saw this large, snow-white dog, Black Gunner took the opportunity to tease him, saying that he could ride this wolfhound.

While the statement may be offensive, it cannot be considered entirely wrong.

The team set off in the morning and arrived in Kevin Village at noon.

When the village chief saw that the governor had come in person and brought so many people with him, he came out to greet him, trembling, and for a moment he was not sure what was going on.

As the saying goes, "the common people fear seeing officials." In the Hessian Empire, noble lords sometimes only need a trivial excuse to kill civilians, without having to worry about anything else.

In addition, the outrageous practice of forcibly conscripting men to mine during David's previous rule had already left a considerable psychological scar on the locals. So when the governor came to visit with so many people, the people of Kevin Village would shiver even in the sweltering heat of summer, let alone in the freezing cold.

But just then, a timid little figure, bundled up tightly, was carefully helped down from a sled by Natasha. The village chief was astonished to see that it was Jasmine, whom her brother had sent to the castle for help.

The child was suspected of having contracted a cold-related illness; her hands and feet were ice-cold, and she fell into a coma. This caused panic throughout the village, with everyone fearing they too might have "caught" the terrible cold-related illness. Therefore, when her brother said he wanted to take her away, most of the villagers readily agreed.

To my surprise, the child returned unharmed, as if he had been rescued!

At this moment, an older woman rushed out from among the villagers who were watching, shouting Jasmine's name and calling out to her. Jasmine also called out "Mom!" and they hugged each other.

Seeing this touching scene, many villagers were moved to tears.

Dick, meanwhile, exchanged a silent glance with Natasha.

Dick had been planning to visit Kevin Village, but just before setting off, he suddenly remembered something and insisted on taking Jasmine, who had just regained consciousness, with him. This decision was immediately met with strong opposition from Natasha and Shizuka, because the child had only regained consciousness and her body had not truly recovered; she was still very weak and should stay in the warm castle clinic to recuperate.

But Dick had his own reasons; he brought Jasmine along to appease the people of Kevin Village.

Because the authorities have never conducted proper popular science education and propaganda, and various sensational rumors have spread widely among the public, not only ordinary people believe them, but even many nobles who are not well-educated believe them.

Therefore, in Laguge, which is a high-incidence area of ​​cold-related illnesses, this is a "terminal disease" that people fear and that is extremely contagious.

The key issue is that there were too many incompetent and despicable governors in the past. Dick went through the official documents left by the governors and found that more than one governor had massacred villages simply to stop the spread of cold-related illnesses.

They even recorded this heinous act as a testament to their "decisiveness," believing it would bring them praise in posterity.

So just as Dick was about to lead his men off, he glanced at his group and suddenly realized something was amiss.

Put yourself in Kevin Village's shoes. Imagine you are a villager who firmly believes the rumor that the cold disease is contagious between people, and you have heard from your elders since childhood the terrifying story of a governor who massacred the entire village to stop the infection.

Not long ago, a little girl in your village contracted a cold-related illness. Her brother took her to the castle and then disappeared. Then, less than two days later, your newly appointed young governor, who had been in office for less than a month and was rumored to be very bloodthirsty, personally led fifty soldiers through the heavy snow to your village.

In this situation, what would you think?

Do you think the governor has come to rescue you? Or is that bastard coming to "eliminate the source of infection"?

Therefore, in this situation, Jasmine's safe return became crucial to calming the villagers of Kevin. It was to prevent them from having unfounded accusations, and if a conflict broke out, Dick couldn't very well actually kill someone to establish his authority, could he?

To make Jasmine look better, Dick helped her expel some ice elements from her body, and Natasha and Shizuka also made some anti-cold ointments based on the information provided by Hughie.

This ointment cannot eliminate ice, but it can raise body temperature, at the cost of a significantly increased appetite.

To make her look better, Dick prepared a lot of high-calorie food for her, and the little girl ate non-stop the whole way.

In front of all the villagers, Dick called Jasmine to stand on a high place and loudly announced that he had come to help the villagers. He explained the true cause of the cold syndrome in the simplest language possible, so that even illiterate people could understand it, and told everyone not to panic, as the cold syndrome was not a terminal illness!

Upon hearing this, the villagers breathed a sigh of relief and cheered, "The governor is wise!"

After temporarily requisitioning the village chief's house as Natasha's makeshift clinic, Dick instructed the chief to arrange for everyone in the village to come for a check-up to see if there were any other people infected with the cold-induced illness.

After learning that the coldness syndrome could be cured and seeing Jasmine full of energy while eating lard bread, the villagers naturally had no more doubts and lined up in a long queue at the village chief's house.