Black-Haired Dad Isn’t Something You Reap - Chapter 241
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 241. Procrastination is One of the Best Coping Strategies (1)
Tears streamed down my face as I choked back a sob. It wasn’t over. Nothing was over yet. I had never been this furious in my entire life, had no idea where to direct this rage, my heart was constricting even as it hammered wildly, and I felt suffocated, trapped, utterly suffocated.
Father said he would handle it somehow. But nothing has been resolved yet—how could he abandon me in the middle of this? Nothing is solved. Nothing is finished. Nothing at all. Didn’t I say so myself just moments ago?
Father won’t die just from not breathing for a while!
“Choco!”
“Yes, yes!”
“When was Father discovered?!”
“I ran straight to Pisha the moment I saw him!”
“Physician!”
As I glared while speaking, the court physician, apparently sensing he was about to be held accountable, immediately begged for his life as though he’d committed a capital crime. But I’m not some tyrant from a storybook—I wouldn’t execute a physician for a misdiagnosis. What exactly has my image become in the Imperial Palace?
“When did Father… stop breathing?”
“Well, rigor mortis doesn’t appear to have begun yet…”
“Don’t talk about rigor mortis!”
“There’s no livor mortis either! I estimate he stopped breathing within the last hour!”
“Emily! Call Nanakda and Yupi Grandmother! Send the healing divine elixir to the Princess Palace! Choco, bring Father and come with me to my chamber!”
From this moment on, it’s a race against time. I need to quickly summon experts, hear their opinions, and then either revive Father or preserve him.
Now that I think about it, because I’d stuffed all the alchemy tools I received from Lorowi into my chamber, the Princess Palace has become an Alchemy Workshop. I’d moved all the furniture I was using to the Emperor’s Chamber.
I hurried to the Princess Palace alongside Choco, who was carrying Father like baggage, and quickly briefed Nanakda and Yupi Grandmother, who had arrived before me.
“Father stopped breathing an hour ago! What should I do!”
The two of them, who had been staring at me in disbelief, changed their expressions the moment they saw my pale Father being carried on Choco’s back.
“The healing divine elixir?”
“It’s on the way.”
“We need to stop his body’s time first.”
I pulled out the workshop key and quickly summoned Lorowi, then opened an alchemy book. As I’d suspected, there was no resurrection alchemy formula for the dead. So I’d have to resort to preservation, but preservation… preservation… freeze-drying… no, I can’t dry him out!
“Young Descendant! I’m telling you in advance—since I’m a spirit right now, I can’t perform such advanced alchemy!”
“We can use Kisomalos’s divine power!”
“Wow…”
At my bold and quick judgment, Lorowi’s mouth fell open and he looked up at the ceiling. Apparently Kisomalos had been watching this entire situation, because the ceiling flashed with golden light and a golden fleece doll dropped down.
“Wait, Descendant! Your brother’s problem is the most urgent right now—how can you waste divine power on something like this!”
“This is urgent too!”
“But still.”
“Saving Father is important! And me not dying is important too!”
Both are equally important. I have no intention of abandoning either. I’ll have both. That’s how I’ve always lived.
“Since it’s been an hour without breathing, can the healing divine elixir resolve the oxygen deprivation to the brain?”
“Hmm… I’ll need to arrange a new recipe.”
Nanakda, having lost Hisperon once before, clearly had ideas flowing readily when situations like this arose. Though it’s only my guess, Nanakda must have agonized and regretted countless times over what he could have done if only he’d discovered Hisperon even slightly sooner.
It’s selfish, but I sought out Nanakda first because I sensed he would be useful. Nanakda was the person most capable of making rational judgments in this situation.
“If we’re going to use the healing divine elixir, shouldn’t we prepare the divine elixir by matching the grade of the other ingredients as well?”
“That’s right, isn’t it? Yupi’s point is sound, but the problem is finding the materials right now…”
“Nanakda, I’ll pay any amount of money!”
“Haha, let’s skip the money and have you owe me a favor instead.”
What is this bastard planning to demand from me later?! I felt a chill run down my spine, but I answered that it would only be possible within the scope of what I could actually do. Nanakda recorded my words meticulously, then played them back with a sinister grin spreading across his face.
Damn it. Was that a hasty decision? This guy is making me deeply uneasy.
“You promised, right?”
“Fine, fine—now go gather the materials!”
“Grandmother, what should I bring?”
Yupi Grandmother, a master alchemist, discussed the formula with Lorowi and rattled off a list of ingredients that sounded absurdly expensive just hearing them named. I was already anxious about whether I’d end up issuing national debt, when Grandmother frowned as she mentioned the final material.
“The heart that holds life… it should be in Lutia’s chamber. If you assign a guard to accompany me, I’ll retrieve it myself.”
What? Mother had something like that? When I expressed my confusion, Grandmother’s expression darkened as she explained the item’s origin.
“It was Lutia’s life-support device. Since she didn’t go to the battlefield after giving birth to you, there was no need to use it.”
What is it with these dark histories? Why does Grandmother carry such a bundle of terrible, brutal pasts that ordinary people would never possess? Come to think of it, is this Lorowi’s taste? Now that I consider it, my own life has been rather cruel too. I’m like an alchemy deity who goes mad for tragic narratives.
“Hmm… so it’s more like Mother’s keepsake? Is it alright to use it as an alchemy material?”
“Lutia is already dead. My granddaughter needs it, so what else can I do?”
Grandmother grumbled endlessly as she headed toward the Empress Palace to retrieve Mother’s keepsake. Lorowi held himself back until Grandmother left the room, then immediately began making exaggerated poking motions at my ribs.
“Yupi is just embarrassed, that’s all.”
“Yeah, I know.”
I’ve been watching Grandmother for ten years—I don’t need it spelled out.
I began preparing the fresh materials Nanakda had procured, then tossed them one by one into the alchemy cauldron. When I added Mother’s keepsake that Grandmother had brought, rainbow-colored smoke began rising from the cauldron. Once I placed Father inside and let the materials properly infuse, the alchemy seemed destined to succeed.
“Are we boiling Chiron in here?”
“Don’t call it boiling!”
“But no matter how I look at it, it really does look like laundry being boiled, doesn’t it?”
I thought the same thing! But don’t say it out loud! I snatched Father away from Choco and plunged him into the cauldron. Father didn’t breathe, so his expression didn’t change, but somehow he looked incredibly displeased.
“As I mentioned before, I have no divine power to contribute, so if the Kisomalos divine rank drops, that’s not my problem?”
“It’s fine! We have plenty, so let’s use it generously!”
“Hey, descendant! Use it sparingly!”
I picked up my alchemy staff and stirred Father in the cauldron like I was doing laundry. His expression didn’t change, of course, but Father looked absolutely furious.
“What logic are you even talking about? Don’t decide these things on your own!”
Irritated, I smacked Father’s head a few times with my staff, then poured out my Kisomalos divine power. Since Lorowi-style alchemy uses something precious from the practitioner as fuel, my Kisomalos divine power—the source of my identity and belonging—was an excellent energy source. If olive oil were the measure, it would be extra virgin grade.
“Whoa!”
“Is it a success?”
“His complexion seems to be returning, doesn’t it?!”
When the billowing rainbow smoke made a popping sound, Father merged with all the materials and emerged complete. He didn’t breathe and his heart didn’t beat, but remarkably, his previously pallid complexion had returned to normal.
“It’s a success, right Lorowi? I did succeed properly, right?!”
“Well, we did achieve the desired result. I’ve made it so artificial blood is generated and pumped throughout.”
“In other words, he’s in a state of brain death right now.”
Sigh… I don’t like the term brain death, but it seems I’ve successfully restored and preserved Father to the point just before death.
As the tension released, a sigh escaped naturally and I collapsed into a sitting position. I realized I was still in my pajamas with my hair disheveled. Just like when I’d used alchemy recklessly before, my hair had turned white again. Noticing my concern, Choco and Nanakda tried to offer reassuring words.
“Wool is naturally white anyway, so in a way, didn’t you just find your true color?”
“A white-haired princess has a certain charm to it, doesn’t she?”
Just jokes. Now that I think about it, had Nanakda never seen my hair turn white before? I laughed and told him we matched, and the man smiled awkwardly as he took my hand and helped me up.
“So. What’s your plan after this?”
“Huh?”
“Say anything you need. I’ll prepare whatever is necessary.”
“Uh… huh?”
Oh dear, I… don’t actually have any concrete plan right now. I just focused on preserving Father and pushed forward without thinking much beyond that.
As I stammered and failed to find an answer, everyone gathered in the room looked at me with expressions that said, “I knew it—typical Kisomalos.”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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