Light Novel Volume 07

Volume 7

Japanese
English

Japanese

薬屋のひとりごと７

Romaji

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto 7

Trans. Title

Apothecary's Monologue 7

English

The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 7

Cover Character(s)
Maomao, Yao, En'en

Release Info

Format

Light Novel

Release (JP)

February 28, 2018 (Hero Bunko)

ISBN (JP)

ISBN-13：ISBN 978-4-07-429772-6
ISBN-10：ISBN 4-074-29772-8

Pages (JP)

344

Release (EN)

Digital：March 1, 2023 (J-Novel Club)
Print：Expected November 4, 2025 (Square Enix Manga & Books)

ISBN (EN)

ISBN-13：ISBN 978-1-71-836130-0
ISBN-10：ISBN 1-718-36130-0

Volumes
◄ Previous	Next ►
Volume 6	Volume 8

"The Apothecary Diaries: Volume 7" ( 薬屋のひとりごと７, Kusuriya no Hitorigoto 7 ) is the 7th volume of the The Apothecary Diaries light novel series written by Natsu Hyūga and illustrated by Touko Shino. It was first published in Japan on February 28, 2018. The translated digital English version was published via J-Novel Club on March 1, 2023. The translated print English version is expected to be published on November 4, 2025.

Blurb[]

Maomao attempts the court service exam once more, winning herself a position as an assistant in one of the medical offices. That’s only the beginning of her troubles, though, as a new consort enters the rear palace and brings new riddles with her. What does a former emissary to the court want with three young medical assistants? How is that connected to a mysterious shrine maiden from Shaoh? And will one particular monocled freak ever just mind his own business?

Chapters[]

Prologue
Chapter 1: The Court Ladies' Service Exam (宮女試験, Kyūjo Shiken^?)
Chapter 2: Harassment (嫌がらせ, Iyagarase^?)
Chapter 3: Medical Assistant (医官手伝い, Ikan Tetsudai^?)
Chapter 4: The Rear Palace (後宮, Kōkyū^?)
Chapter 5: Fortune Cookies (運命饼干, Unmei Binggan^?)
Chapter 6: Strategist Down (軍師倒れる, Gunshi Taoreru^?)
Chapter 7: Aylin's Intentions (愛凛妃の思惑, Airin-hi no Omowaku^?)
Chapter 8: The Thought Behind the Thought (思惑の思惑, Omowaku no Omowaku^?)
Chapter 9: Empress (皇后, Kōgō^?)
Chapter 10: Covert Ops (暗躍, Anyaku^?)
Chapter 11: Before the Celebration (祭の前, Matsuri no Mae^?)
Chapter 12: Child of a Foreign Land (異国の娘, Ikoku no Musume^?)
Chapter 13: Lady-in-Waiting to His Majesty's Younger Brother (皇弟付侍女, Kōtei-tsuki Jijo^?)
Chapter 14: Meeting the Shrine Maiden (巫女との対面, Miko to no Taimen^?)
Chapter 15: "Mom" (妈妈, Mama^?)
Chapter 16: The Dinner (食事会, Shokujikai^?)
Chapter 17: The Suspect (容疑者, Yōgisha^?)
Chapter 18: A Man and a Woman Play the Game (男女の駆け引き, Danjo no kakehiki^?)
Chapter 19: The Truth Behind the Truth (真実の真実, Shinjitsu no Shinjitsu^?)
Chapter 20: Mushroom Congee (茸粥, Takekayu^?)
Chapter 21: The Shrine Maiden's Confession (巫女の告白, Miko no Kokuhaku^?)
Chapter 22: The Future Shrine Maiden (未来の巫女, Mirai no Miko^?)
Epilogue

Synopsis[]

Gaoshun suggests that Maomao should become a court medical assistant. In the past, while working as Jinshi’s subordinate, she had failed the court ladies’ service exam. To force Maomao to study, Gaoshun bribes the Madam of the Verdigris House.

Maomao takes the exam for court ladies who wish to serve in the medical office. On her way home, she runs into Kokuyou, who is looking for a new job because the doctor he assists in the village is soon retiring. Maomao decides to hire him to teach Sazen and work in the apothecary at the Verdigris House.

Jinshi writes to her to inform her that one of the envoys from Shaoh, Aylin, has recently entered the rear palace as a middle ranking consort.

During her time working at the medical office, she gets familiar with her colleagues, Yao and En'en. The three of them accompany Luomen to perform medical check-ups on the consorts in the rear palace. Aylin gives the medical assistants fortune cookies as a gift, which contain a riddle. Yao, En’en, and Maomao work together to solve it.

Later, they see Aylin again when they go with Luomen for her next routine checkup. In their meeting, they hint that they solved the puzzle, and in the next batch of cookies there is a letter telling them to use a coded message at a particular establishment. Upon being led inside, they meet Lahan there.

Lahan was involved in helping Aylin into the rear palace as she was seeking asylum from her cousin Ayla. The Shrine Maiden of Shaoh was also brought into the country to be treated for illness. Lahan speculates that the Shrine Maiden may have secretly given birth in the past, and that her child was the White Lady, making her unfit to hold her current position as the Shrine Maiden is supposed to be unable to menstruate. He asks Maomao to investigate this matter while giving the Shrine Maiden an examination.

Maomao does an examination on the Shrine Maiden. She is unable to tell whether she had given birth before but suspects that the Shrine Maiden is weakening due to effects associated with hormonal changes, in which the onset would be earlier for a woman who doesn’t experience menstruation. However, her ladies-in-waiting are already treating her with the proper medicines for her condition, so she surmises that the Shrine Maiden was merely sent to Li for political reasons.

Lakan requests Maomao to be his food taster at an upcoming banquet. Yao will also be attending as a food taster of the Shrine Maiden. Maomao’s suspicion is drawn when Yao has a severe reaction to being poisoned, while the Shrine Maiden and her other food taster experience less adverse effects. Privately, she speculates to Jinshi that the Shrine Maiden poisoned herself with the aim of framing Aylin, under the premise that Aylin was next in line to be her successor. However, if Aylin came to Li to seek asylum due to knowing that the Shrine Maiden gave birth, then the Shrine Maiden’s true intention is to silence Aylin to keep her secret from coming out.

Despite Maomao’s speculation, when pressed, Aylin confesses to poisoning the Shrine Maiden. Maomao believes she is lying. While speculating with Lahan, Maomao reviews the list of foods the Shrine Maiden is eating and realizes the Shrine Maiden’s secret is not pregnancy, but rather that they are a castrated male posing as a woman. The real reason why the Shrine Maiden came to a foreign country was to commit suicide so that the secret would never make its way back to Shaoh.

The Shrine Maiden was unknowingly raised as a woman from birth by the previous Shrine Maiden’s Oracle to be used as a political tool to depose the war-hungry former King of Shaoh. Before that Oracle passed away, she revealed everything to the Shrine Maiden. As a result of this, the Shrine Maiden felt deceived and planned to disappear so that a legitimate Shrine Maiden could be instated. With Maomao’s intervention, they fake the death of the Shrine Maiden and help shelter the Shrine Maiden at Ah-Duo's villa. Maomao also learns that Jazgul, the foreign mute girl who accompanied the Shrine Maiden’s Oracle, is prophetic. Through simple drawings she prophesied that the Shrine Maiden and Maomao would meet long before coming to Li. However, her most recent prophecy, a drawing of a line with black scribbles above, leaves Maomao feeling unsettled.