The Little Devil Comes Late

Author: Iwashi-zukushi
Raw: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n3388fm/22/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

And then, when a new patient had come and I was examining them.

“Ye~s, excuse me a moment~… hm?”

I tilted my head at the lung sound I heard. This was, surely not.

“Oh? Is something the matter?”
“Ah, it’s all right, it will heal properly~”

I deflected with a smile the grandmother who was the patient when she asked.
But in fact, the situation was not very good.

“I’ll touch your wrist a moment.”

Hmh… the pulse is rather fast…

“Have you been eating properly?”
“Well, come to think of it, I haven’t had much appetite lately.”

There was no wheezing, no zei-zei sound, and little sputum, she said, but she got short of breath, and her chest hurt at times.

Pneumonia, probably. That the symptoms were still relatively mild was a blessing in misfortune, but if left it might progress all at once.
In older people, the symptoms of pneumonia can come on slowly and gently, and then suddenly become severe later.
And with these symptoms, I could not use the antipyretics I had on hand.
They might even make the condition progress.
In pneumonia one ought to use antimicrobials, especially antibiotics, but there were none of those.
Without X-rays or blood tests I could not even declare it pneumonia for certain…
I was still hesitating over what to do, when it happened.

“My, my. Quite the bustle. A thriving trade; I do envy you.”

A languid voice, and yet something in it pricked.
Nasti came in carrying a basket generously filled with medicinal herbs.
Dammit, she showed up, I thought, even as I answered with a polite smile.

“Ahaha~ thanks to you.”
“Well, well. So there was worth in our going about spreading the word~”

…Hm?
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