He had wondered if she was just acting on a whim, but to his surprise, Cassandra kept taking care of the injured for several hours. With those nine men, plus Orwan, helping, her list was done in no time, and she read it over.
“Most slaves don’t know how to read or write,” said Evin.
“I know,” simply answered Cassandra, before writing something.
Then, she kept writing, under the men’s surprised eyes. They had no idea what to do in the meantime. Only when she was done, did she show them her list. There was actually quite a lot written down.
“It’s unfortunate we couldn’t get everyone’s information, but at least we know where to start. First, we need to split them.”
“Split them?” asked one of the men.
“Yes. I saw several empty rooms on my way in here, it’s fine to use them, right? So, we should first separate the men with diseases and infections from those who only have wounds, before they get infected, too. Also, some of them are already in a terminal state, and sadly they won’t make it, no matter what we do. It’s better to give them a calm place, separated from the others.”
“Madam, do you mean there is…hope for the others?”
“Of course,” said Cassandra with a nod. “From what I saw so far, I think at least half…no, two-thirds of the men here can be treated and sent back to camp.”
The men were left speechless. They had thought everyone here was bound to die! How come this slave concubine said otherwise, and with such confidence, too? They had been here a lot and knew how bad some of the injuries were. No matter what though, the concubine’s words seemed hard to believe. But Cassandra kept writing again and frowning a lot, looking concerned.
“Actually, I don’t know much about the resources you have here. Do you get any medicine?”
The men looked at each other, totally clueless on the matter. Cassandra wasn’t surprised, however. The Dragon Empire wasn’t very advanced in healing techniques, herbology, or medicines. The very few doctors they had weren’t affordable for most people, who only went to their local apothecary for basic treatments and natural remedies. The common folks didn’t have even the most basic knowledge on how to properly tend a wound or treat a common cold. She sighed and turned to Evin.
“Do you know anything about that?”
The servant sighed. He had initially thought his job would simply be to follow a whiny, airhead concubine on her wanderings around the camp, making sure she doesn’t break her nail, or hinder other people’s work. Turns out he had it all wrong.
“We have some dedicated accountants who make sure of the stocks provided and trade weekly with merchants. If there is anything that is needed urgently, we put a request in for some of the cavaliers to go and fetch it from the nearest village. Also, any trip the Prince makes is supposed to be to bring more provisions.”
Cassandra nodded.
“I guess we could gather herbs around the camp, but it would be better if Krai could fly me to the nearest village to buy the first necessities.”
All the men around looked at her as if this woman was completely crazy. Did she just suggest she would borrow an Imperial dragon?
As if it was too impossible to think, the men present didn’t even dare to comment on Cassandra’s suggestion. How would a mere concubine borrow a Prince’s dragon anyway? Wasn’t she just a delusional woman? They all decided to just ignore it. That slave was already weird enough to willingly take care of all those sick or injured soldiers, so why wouldn’t she think she could actually use the Prince’s dragon. Maybe the Commander-in-Chief just had a thing for crazy ones.
“Evin, could you tell me where I can find those accountants? I want to speak to them, and see if we can get some necessities.”
“I don’t think that is a good idea, Madam. It is quite late already. His Highness might be looking for you.”
Cassandra suddenly realized she had spent a considerable amount of time there. The Red Room didn’t have any windows, and was only lit up by candlelight, so there was no way to even know if it was day or night outside. She had been so caught up in her task and notes, she had completely lost track of time.
“I’ll…I’ll go back. Is it very late?” she asked, a bit worried.
The Prince didn’t even know where she was! There was no way he would look for her all the way here, was there? She had to go back soon, or he might really be mad this time.
“We’re a couple hours away from dinner, Madam.”
Cassandra felt guilty. She still had some time, but she should definitely head back. She nodded and turned to the men, who assured her they would carry on without her, making good use of her notes. At least she could go feeling like she had done some good around here, but Cassandra still wanted to do more for the injured.
She said goodbye to the men present, and left, escorted by Evin. Orwan had gone back to the forge earlier, and the trip back with the Imperial Servant was a bit awkward without the young man present. Cassandra could feel Evin was against her actions, but he didn’t voice it outloud, which made it worse somehow.
Once outside again, she noticed the sun was going down already. The days were short here, which meant it was even later than she thought. Cassandra walked quickly to try and make her way back to the Prince’s camp, but a sudden loud growl stopped her. The familiar sound had everyone around her freeze and look up. In the sky, the large silhouette of a dragon was throwing its shadow over them. Krai growled again, and suddenly flew down towards Cassandra. She knew she shouldn’t move, but it was hard to repress that urge to run when a giant, black-scaled beast was flying towards her. Many of the closest soldiers did run away in a fright, impressed by the dragon’s size and speed.
However, Krai landed a few steps away from Cassandra, its huge paws splattering the snow around.
“Hi,” said Cassandra with a smile. “Were you looking for me?”
