It was noon in Morgana's chamber. Nearly all the members of the Royal Family were gathered there. King Uther sat by the bedside, tightly holding Morgana's hand, anxiously watching Gaius (the Royal Physician). Arthur and Merlin stood near the door, while Kay stood behind Uther with a dark, serious expression.
Everyone was waiting for Gaius's diagnosis.
Gaius placed his fingers on Morgana's neck and then gently pulled back her eyelids, carefully examining the dilation of her pupils.
After about ten minutes, Gaius carefully tucked Morgana back into bed and turned to King Uther, his expression grave.
"Well? Gaius, is my Morgana going to be alright?" Uther asked, full of hope. Like any parent, he wished his child would never be ill, or at least that any sickness would be minor and non-threatening. King Uther was no exception. He desperately hoped Morgana was just exhausted from preparing for the feast the night before.
"...I'm very sorry, Your Majesty." Gaius was an apothecary, a role that effectively made him the kingdom's top doctor in this era. In fact, Gaius was the best physician in all the kingdoms—otherwise, he wouldn't have been sent by Uther to treat the neighboring king. But precisely because he was a doctor, Gaius absolutely could not lie; the most important rule of his profession was to be truthful about the illness. "It's encephalitis."
All of Morgana's clinical symptoms were identical to late-stage encephalitis (brain inflammation). Gaius would not mistake this. In this era, while encephalitis wasn't common, it wasn't rare either. Many children could contract it, and generally, it wasn't often fatal, usually only causing developmental issues like cerebral palsy or other long-term side effects. However, there was a chance it could be fatal, and once it reached that stage, the symptoms were exactly what Morgana was exhibiting:
High fever, unconsciousness, and dilated pupils. When it got to this point, it was usually considered untreatable.
"How could this be..." Uther suddenly felt dizzy, his vision tunneling. If he hadn't quickly grabbed the bedpost, he might have fallen to the floor. Kay, standing nearby, was quick to steady the King.
"Uther..." Kay said worriedly.
King Uther pushed Kay's hand away, shaking his head to signal he was fine, then turned back to Gaius.
"Why is this happening? How can Morgana have this cursed encephalitis!"
Encephalitis was known as a 'child killer,' a disease that families with young children feared. Uther had raised three children, so he naturally knew about it. This disease primarily affected young kids. Morgana was twenty-three—how could she contract this now?
Gaius was just as perplexed about how Morgana had contracted it. Her age was one factor, but the other was that this disease typically had clear preliminary signs, such as several days of fever, headaches, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and cognitive impairment. It only progressed to Morgana's current symptoms at the very end!
This entire process seemed to have been completely skipped. When the feast ended last night, Gaius had seen Morgana, and she had appeared bright and energetic, showing no signs of illness. How could it have progressed this far in just a few hours?
Of course, Gaius felt that dwelling on this was useless now. The patient was in this state, and the details of how were less important. Furthermore, this rapid progression wasn't impossible; since encephalitis is an infection of the brain, the pathogens and symptoms vary from person to person. Morgana's case was just faster than usual, not entirely outside the realm of possibility.
"Perhaps it's a severe infection..." Gaius could only offer his best guess to King Uther. As Uther's old friend, Gaius knew the King was not a man of patience. If he didn't explain clearly and allowed Uther's mind to wander, it could lead to much more serious consequences.
In truth, Uther wasn't focused on how Morgana got sick; he wanted to know how to cure her!
"Gaius, you can fix this, right?"
Gaius opened his mouth, troubled. In this state, he could basically pronounce her beyond help. But seeing his old friend's eyes bloodshot and looking ten years older from despair, he couldn't bring himself to refuse.
"I will first use some sedatives to keep Morgana's condition from worsening, and then I will try to find a way..." That was all Gaius could promise. As for his chances, he had none; he was just a doctor, not a god.
But King Uther didn't see it that way. Like many family members, he believed that as long as a doctor was present, his loved one could be cured. Uther's emotions stabilized for the moment. He sat by the bedside, affectionately holding Morgana's hand, kissing it gently, and whispering, "Don't worry, my girl. Your father will make you well. I promise!"
Almost everyone was deeply distressed by the state of King Uther and Morgana—except for one person: Kay!
The person who should have been the most visibly shaken remained completely calm throughout. Though he looked worried on the surface, his eyes were remarkably steady. No one noticed Kay's composure, however, except for Merlin.
Merlin's senses were sharp, a benefit he attributed to his magical talent. He was acutely aware of Kay's unusual calmness. Merlin didn't want to think ill of Kay, but he couldn't understand: Was Sir Kay truly such a cold-blooded person?
Kay stood behind King Uther, his mind meticulously reviewing every piece of information about the situation, checking for any anomalies.
Suddenly, Kay felt someone watching him. He turned and saw Merlin looking right at him. Kay wasn't surprised; the name Merlin practically guaranteed he was a supremely talented sorcerer, and Kay had observed him personally—his talent was very strong, certainly much stronger than Kay, the cheating amateur.
Kay met Merlin's gaze for about half a second, then gave Merlin a subtle look, signaling him to think for himself.
Seeing Kay wink at him, Merlin was immediately startled and quickly lowered his head in confusion.
By this time, King Uther had finally calmed down, and Kay decided to take action.
"Gwen," Kay softly called over the young Black woman, Gwen (Morgana's maidservant), who was crying with worry nearby. The others weren't sure what Kay was doing, but since King Uther didn't pay any attention, they kept quiet.
Gwen walked over to Kay, but her heart was heavy. On one hand, she was worried about Morgana; on the other, she felt anxious. As the Princess's maidservant, she felt somewhat responsible for the Princess's condition, no matter what.
She was afraid Kay might hold her accountable. After all, King Uther didn't have the best reputation, and it would be perfectly normal for him to punish a few people on account of Princess Morgana.