Chapter 8: Chapter:8 (Poisoning the Prince?!!!)

Prince Shen stood up and toasted for the Queen mother's long life and good health. The Queen was happy and wanted me to go serve the prince a drink to reward him. I walked over to his majesty's table and took the jar and poured a cup. As I was doing these, from the corner of my eyes I noticed a maid looking at my actions intensely, she even flinched slightly. Suddenly I remembered her bringing the drink to the prince's table.

Out of instinct, I looked at the cup in my hand, the liquid looked a little different though very unnoticeable. It was a little muddy instead of clear golden.

The prince was waiting for the cup. When he realized I wasn't putting it down or giving it in his hand, he looked up confusedly. I took the cup close to my face and sniffed. My instinct was right! It was surely poisoned!!!

Everyone was now looking at me confusedly for my delay. I quickly opened the jar and took a sniff, yes the whole drink was poisoned! It was kinda slow poison, hard to detect, and by the time half of the jar was finished, the prince would have been turned paralyzed and in a few minutes dropped dead!!!

I saw the maid's eyes widen in panic and I shouted, "Guards, arrest that maid, she tried to poison his majesty!!!"

Everyone gasped in shock and that maid started to run for escape, as the guards chased after her. I was under great pressure, I had to detoxify the poison in his majesty's body as soon as possible before it can spread. I remembered he took one shot of that drink and sighed in relief. Now I need some medicine but everyone was shouting and panicked! I ran to the closest maid and asked her to bring her some medicine, and herbs and told her it was her majesty's order to get her moving fast. She did. After a few, minutes all the things I needed were here.

The prince ordered everyone to remain silent and not to leave this place. I bent over my knees and made the solution I learned to make to detoxify this particular poison. I went to his highness, bowing, and said, "Please drink this, it will help you detoxify the poison, your majesty!"

He looked at me suspiciously and asked, " How did you know it was poisoned? Could it be you were one of them? And how can I trust you to drink what you made? It could be poison itself."

Ughhh, I was trying to save him and now I'm the one he is being suspicious about?!!! Well, it's kinda understandable.

I quickly brought a normal cup from her majesty's table and the poisoned cup and showed him both. I said, "Your highness, I am specialized in detecting poison and detoxifying them. When I poured the drink into your cup, it looked a little different to me because I was taught to notice this kind of thing but it won't be caught by inexperienced eyes. Then I noticed that maid flinching and looking guilty. So, I sniffed the drink and it had the smell of some sweetness that normal drinks don't have. It was the smell of poisonflowers. It can be used as a fatal poison. It slowly incapacitates when someone drinks it. And after you drink at least half of this jar, it will fully incapacitate your body and in a few moments, you will be dead."

Hearing my explanation, many people around hearing distance gasped aloud include her highness. But the prince was unruffled and just nodded. He had great composure surely. He said, "I've heard of it before and your explanation makes sense. But isn't that poison super rare?"

I replied, "Yes, your highness. Only the herb-collectors in the mountain area know about this poison and they often use this to make rare medicines."

He seemed to trust my words and he took the antidote and drank it in a gulp. He didn't even wince at the bitter medicine, anyone else would have puked at its bitterness.

The royal physician arrived a few moments later. He took a look at his majesty's pulse and all over. He was surprised at how quickly the poison in his body was detoxifying. He was stunned at how quickly I recognized the poison and how fast I made the antidote without having any medical degree. He even said it would have taken him more time though he was so experienced. The prince thanked me for saving his life.

The Queen mother was relieved that the prince was alright but she became very furious, "Who dared to kill my son?!!! I will behead them all! Is that maid caught yet?!"

Kang Ji Han came in and bowed to her majesty and said, "That maid was trying to escape, but we caught her before she could get out of the palace."

The Queen smiled, a very scary-looking, cold smile, and said, "I'll interrogate her myself! And punish her and those who were behind her!"

Prince Shen nodded at Han and he went away. The party was dismissed too.

When it was only the Queen and the Prince and his personal maid and me, her highness smiled at me and said to me, "You have done such a great job today Kim, I am really happy because of you. I want to reward you, tell me what do you want?"

I bowed and said, "Thank you, your highness. It was my duty."

She said, "When you decide on what you want, come to me, I'll grant your wish, after all, you saved my son's life today."

All the while, I felt his highness's eyes on me, watching me very carefully. I was soooo nervous!

Then Prince Shen said to the Queen, "Mother, this servant saved my life and he seems to be useful and also quite knowledgable. I want to keep him beside me and he may help me in the future. Will you permit him to work for me from now on?"