As Theodore had predicted, Annette did not die easily.
She stubbornly held on to her lifeline until Hans brought the nurse.
A nurse named Lisa checked Annette's condition as soon as she arrived and gave her doses of medication.
Annette's body was dangerously weak, and she had a skin disease because she lived in a moldy sanitarium room.
Theodore was very surprised by the nurse's presence, but it was a serious situation that they had to deal with quickly without him having time to object.
So the treatment continued.
Theodor and Hans left Annette's room so she could receive her treatment comfortably and sat on the sofa.
While waiting for the treatment to end, Hans endured Theodor's indignant look.
“I asked you to bring a doctor to save the Grand Duchess.
But why did you bring a nurse instead?”
“I had no other choice.
Do you think it would be easy to find a doctor who would be willing to come here and stay locked up?
You should be thankful that I was able to find a nurse.”
“Does she have any skills?”
Theodore had strong doubts.
Saving Annette was very important.
However, Lisa's disheveled hair and frightening expression did not convince him much.
The nurse who was brought in to save Annette was dying herself.
“She is better than most doctors.”
“I told you to get a doctor.”
"If I had continued to look for a doctor, Miss Scheringen would have stopped breathing before we got here.
Shouldn't her condition be kept a secret for now?
I wondered what would happen if rumors spread that the First Grand Duchess died in the wedding hall and the Second Grand Duchess died in the villa."
Hans averted his gaze, but Theodor's questions became more urgent.
“Why did that nurse accept risky work that most ordinary doctors refuse to do?”
“Because I told her we would give her a lot of money.”
“If she had such great skills as she claims, people other than us would have said they would give her a lot of money.
What is the real reason for her accepting this job?”
“She lost her job because she committed a medical error.”
No matter how much money is offered, the average person will not do anything risky.
However, Lisa accepted the job, although Hans did not reveal their destination or who she would be caring for.
Accepting a questionable job means that the person also has a weakness that he cannot talk about.
Theodore did not overlook this loophole.
"She made a medical error, but she has skills and is better than most doctors.
How am I supposed to believe this?"
“This lady was the best I could get for Miss Annette before she died.”
Hans sighed heavily.
He may have seemed lacking in many ways while dealing with his master's strict temperament, but he was a valuable human talent that Theodore saved and placed at his side.
“Are you sure she'll keep her mouth shut?”
“It was easy for me to intimidate her because she had so many weaknesses.”
“If that woman gets over her illness, find someone else.
A doctor this time.”
“Okay, I get it.”
Hans avoided reprimand for bringing in an unqualified nurse, but things became more complicated.
Now that he had more time, next time, he would have to look for someone who suited Theodore's taste.
The latter was not a generous person who gave three chances.
Hans was a legal lawyer, but his life became miserable because he was good at things other than legal matters.
He took on the role of Theodore's assistant and became his right-hand man and took charge of all the secret work.
Since Theodor had not even told Hans about Annette's identity, from the point of view of Hans who knew nothing, his master's actions were extremely crazy.
He was asked to make legal documents to make Annette Grand Duchess, and bring her here from the mental hospital.
He even said he would make her Grand Duchess.
One of the people Theodore detested most was Annette, those crazy women who loved Prince Hugo.
Of course, Hans had also heard about Annette's reputation in the social world.
She was a woman who always carried a fan in her hand because it was the only thing she could use with her thin arms, and her empty mind was less useful than her hands.
Annette was the kind of person Theodore hated the most.
What the hell would he do to her here?
Hans was the one who tolerated Theodor the most and spent the most time with him, and yet he still felt a shiver run down his spine whenever he looked into those cruel eyes.
Hans didn't know what use Annette was for, but could a dying woman in the room survive Theodor?
'Surely, this is not because of love.'
Even if Hans thought about all the possibilities of a relationship between Annette and Theodor, including the possibility that they were sisters and separated at birth, the point that he could never imagine as impossible as the stars appearing on a sunny summer afternoon was the existence of a love relationship between them.
'I don't know what this crazy master wants to do.'
The attempt to make Annette the Grand Duchess will fail, because Annette will not be able to bear Theodore's madness.
When Hans was deep in thought about Theodor's suspicious actions, the door opened and Lisa came out.
“First of all, first aid has been completed.”
Lisa was confused and bowed her head in front of Theodore.
However, Lisa had no idea that Theodore was here.
She knew it was no ordinary job, but she didn't know that it was connected to the Grand Duke who appeared as a fool in the newspapers and a monster in people's mouths.
Hans felt sympathy for Lisa, who was shaking after learning Theodore's true identity.
He felt compelled to quickly find another doctor and send her away from here.
So far, Theodore hasn't said anything, let alone accept Lisa's greeting.
Lisa shook her fingers, not knowing what to say.
Hans, who was worse off, opened his mouth instead.
“How is the patient?”
“It's very bad.
She needs to go to the hospital as soon as possible and get the proper tests done...”
Theodore, who was listening, interrupted her.
“If this is possible, why do you think we summoned you here?”
“I'm sorry.”
Lisa apologized without knowing why, and then Hans asked the next question before Lisa started crying.
“She has a high fever.
But why?”
“I'm sorry, but I suspect poisoning, not illness.”
"poisoning?"
"She is shaking violently, and her body is not responding well to antipyretics.
It appears that she may have ingested poison, as her condition is not a common condition."
Lisa's voice was shaking slightly as she relayed the patient's condition, but she stood up straight.
This was an inappropriate situation for a nurse who was fired from the hospital after causing a medical error.
“What is the cause of the poisoning?”
"I don't know that much.
It takes time to find out."
“Can you find an antidote?”
“Until we find out what type of poison it is, we cannot rush to treat her recklessly.
If I give her an antidote that is not compatible with the poison in her body, something worse could happen to her.”
"if?"
“There is currently no treatment.”
Of all Lisa's words, these were the most confident.
Theodore's expression hardened at Lisa's firmness.
The fact that the person, who didn't even show his hatred, so clearly expressed his displeasure meant that he didn't like Lisa's answer at all.
Hans felt that his wish to send the nurse away had just been fulfilled.
Theodore will order Lisa expelled or killed now.
“Hans.”
"Yes."
“Did I tell you to get a fake nurse who says there is no hope of treating patients?”
“It's not because I'm not good enough, but the poison...”
“I never gave you permission to interrupt me.”
Theodore objected to Lisa's excuses.
Lisa covered her mouth with her hand, probably feeling sorry for herself.
Then Hans touched his forehead.
If possible, he wished to send this nurse alive, but it was becoming difficult now.
When the situation became twisted, someone came along and seemed to solve Hans' concerns.
“If I knew what poison I ate, could you cure me?”
Annette, who had regained consciousness, left the room with the help of the maid.
Lisa hurriedly ran to Annette.
“You're in a very bad state.
Even if you wake up, you need to rest.”
She was a very clinical person who thought about patients.
This was the first logical remark Annette had heard in this villa.
“I heard your words from the inside.
If you know what kind of poison I ate, can you find a way to detoxify my body?”
“I pride myself on the fact that I know about medicines much better than any doctor.”
“Aren't you a doctor?”
"I am a nurse."
Annette checked Lisa's answer and asked Theodore this time.
“Did you bring her here?
Are you confident in her skills?”
“I never trust her, but my lawyer believes in her and says she is a qualified person.”
“So it's not the worst, is it?”
Lisa's face turned red as words of evaluation were exchanged in front of her.
The two of them talked as if there were no other people in the same place with them.
“I can see that you are the only person with medical expertise I can trust in this situation.”
Annette put something in Lisa's hand.
"This is the medicine I took.
They made me take it about a month ago.
There's a possibility I ate another poison without knowing.
Do you know what this medicine is?"
“I think I know it, but I need to analyze the ingredients to be sure.”
Lisa took the medicine with a puzzled face.
“Find a way to dismantle the formula of this medicine and save me.
Otherwise, this man will kill you.”
When Annette pointed at Theodore and said this, Lisa was stunned and dropped the pills to the ground in shock.
“This is the poison on which both of our lives depend.”
After hearing what Annette said, Lisa hurriedly picked up the medicine.
Within an instant, Lisa was not only afraid of Theodore, but also afraid of Annette.
She sensed an intimidating aura, equal to Theodore's, in a woman who wouldn't be surprised if her breathing instantly stopped and she died.
Hans thought that Annette's menacing skills, which had terrified Lisa in an instant, were very useful.
The woman, who did not know anything, had to distinguish between cards that she could use in the current situation and cards that threatened her opponent and used them immediately.
So Annette used Theodore.
Hans thought that she would not be able to survive Theodore, let alone survive, but her actions were surprising.
Hans was not alone in his thoughts.
Theodore looked at Annette and said softly.
“Can we talk alone for a minute?”