Transmigrated as the Crown Prince's Mate
Chapter 82: What Do They Know?

Chapter 82: What Do They Know?

"Tell me, Evelina, where exactly did you learn such... refined techniques? They remind me of methods I’ve seen before, but surely that’s impossible."

Evelina stopped moving, her hand pausing just above a vial. Lord Luther’s question lingered, and his words circled in her thoughts, each one causing her confusion and unease.

The way he phrased it—methods he’s seen before—made her stomach churn. That’s not possible, Evelina thought.

Chromatography wasn’t even supposed to exist in this time and setting, let alone resemble anything familiar to him.

She shifted uncomfortably, her thoughts racing.

Relia’s voice broke through her haze. "What’s that you said? Chromato-what-now? Sounds like a spell for summoning something... or maybe something you catch if you eat raw meat."

Evelina groaned inwardly. "Not the issue, Relia. Focus."

Relia huffed, but her tone softened slightly. "Alright, fine."

"Did the real Evelina, you know, the one I’m borrowing this body from, have a long-lost relative dabbling in alchemy or something?"

"I’ll have to think about that..." Relia replied.

Evelina’s pulse quickened.

Did Evelina, the healer, or anyone in this world possess knowledge of alchemical science? Her mind struggled to come up with an explanation, but all she came up with was blank.

Relia’s growl was barely restrained. "Better come up with something, genius—Luther looks like he’s about two seconds from dissecting you with that stare."

Evelina cleared her throat, glancing at Jasper and Damian. "Uhmmm... I don’t know, Lord Luther," she began, attempting a calm tone. "I think I may have come across it in... one of the books we were studying the night before, right?"

She lifted an eyebrow in desperation, glancing at Jasper and Damian for backup.

Jasper’s eyes widened slightly, his usual quick wit taking a second longer than usual to engage. "Uhm... which book, milady?" he stammered, scratching his head and glancing toward the cluttered pile of tomes in the corner.

"Was it... the one about advanced... herbal infusions? Or—oh!—the rare fungi extraction techniques?" His voice became higher when he spoke, causing Evelina to cringe inside.

She shot him a sharp glance, but Jasper’s exaggerated shrug did little to help her situation.

At the same moment, a sharp twinge in her mind made her wince. Damian had opened a mind link, his voice cutting through her thoughts. "Just relax, don’t say anything."

"Are you alright?" Luther asked, taking a step.

"Just nod," Damian instructed firmly through the link.

Taking a deep breath, Evelina nodded, offering an apologetic smile. "I’m... I’m fine," she said aloud. "Just a slight headache."

Lord Luther raised an eyebrow, staring at her a bit longer than she preferred.

But before he could ask more, they both heard the sounds of boots echoing down the hallway.

A guard entered the room, standing straight. "Lord Luther," the guard said, bowing slightly. "The King wants to see you."

Luther straightened, his sharp eyes flicking briefly to Evelina before returning to the guard. "Of course," he said smoothly. Then, with a final glance at Evelina’s table, he added, "Lady Evelina, I trust you’ll be willing to show me some of your... methods another time."

With that, he strode out of the room, leaving a tense silence in his wake.

The moment the door clicked shut, Damian turned to Evelina, his silver eyes scanning her intently. "Are you alright?" he asked aloud this time, his voice steady but laced with worry.

Evelina nodded, though the lingering tension in her chest slowed her words. "I’m fine. Really. Let’s just get back to work," she said firmly though sounded weary. "The faster we finish this, the sooner we can rest."

Damian didn’t look entirely convinced, but he didn’t argue. Instead, he moved to help prepare another set of samples while Jasper returned to flipping through one of the scattered books.

Evelina exhaled shakily, refocusing on her task, but her mind refused to settle.

Why did Luther recognize my methods?

*************

Lord Luther walked quickly through the palace hallways, his boots making a sound on the polished stone floors as he thought deeply.

The alchemical setup caught his attention, but what really disturbed him was Evelina’s methodical approach. It was unusual—much more than he would have anticipated from a disgraced noblewoman or anyone from this time period.

He thought back to the previous day, to the way she and Damian had been dressed when they returned from the infirmary.

Wrapped in improvised protective layers like nothing he’d seen before.

Standard contamination protocol, his mind supplied, but that didn’t make sense. No one in this kingdom would even think to take such precautions. How did she know?

Then, there were her techniques in the lab.

Every movement of her hands was precise and done confidently. She performed the processes with an efficiency that hinted at significant prior knowledge.

Her method of using stabilising agents and the sequence in which she mixed the reagents reminded him of something.

However, this shouldn’t be common knowledge since most people typically add citric acid before using polysorbate 80.

In contrast, Evelina did it the other way around, just like he would have done.

Luther looked ahead, but his thoughts were focused on Evelina. There was something about her that intrigued him—something carefully concealed behind her calm demeanor. Her techniques weren’t just based on personal study or instinct.

They showed signs of a deep and advanced knowledge of alchemy that went well beyond the basic practices taught in this era.

He reached the grand doors to the throne room, his thoughts still replaying her actions.

The way she wiped her brow with the back of her hand, the subtle hesitations before she measured certain compounds—these were not coincidences.

The guards at the door nodded briefly and then opened the heavy doors. Luther entered the grand throne room, where tall windows let in glowing beams of light illuminating the shiny floor.

King Lucian was seated on his elaborate throne, looking stern as he glanced up from a letter in his hands.

"Luther," the King said, his voice carrying across the expansive room. "You’re just the man I was looking for."

Luther inclined his head, stepping forward calmly despite the questions swirling in his mind. "Your Majesty," he greeted smoothly. "How may I be of service?"