I’m Sick of the Kind Protagonist, so I Might as Well Just Die - Chapter 31

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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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#31
—…lia. Aurelia?
Drawn by the voice, I opened my eyes. An unfamiliar ceiling greeted me first. My senses had returned, yet I couldn’t move a single finger. My heart lurched, but I soon found myself relieved to discover that the terrible pain that had been spreading from my waist and shoulders was completely absent.
‘Since this isn’t the ceiling of Estella’s Room, I suppose I haven’t died yet. How fortunate.’
—Fortunate? Your spine and shoulders have been damaged beyond recovery.
‘It hurt so much I naturally assumed I’d die if I closed my eyes. But I didn’t die, and it doesn’t hurt either. I’d call that fortunate enough.’
—Ha….
Perenustus exhaled such a profound sigh that I could feel his breath reverberating through the folds of my mind. Finding that sensation oddly peculiar, I let out a silly laugh, and his prolonged sigh deepened with melancholy.
‘I must have been lying here for quite a while. My vision is incredibly sharp and my mind feels clear—I seem to have recovered considerably—yet I can’t move at all.’
—I just told you your spine was damaged beyond recovery. Ha, Aurelia…, you are listening to me, aren’t you?
I didn’t answer, merely rolling my eyes about. There was once a time in the Village when I’d investigated a Cave where dragons dwelt alongside the villagers and had taken a nasty tumble that severely injured my lower back. Even a sneeze had brought tears streaming down my face then.
‘I don’t understand. If a region so sensitive that even a slight twist causes excruciating pain has been shattered, why doesn’t it hurt?’
—…Do you remember when the body’s owner twisted her heart and suffered massive hemorrhaging, losing consciousness?
‘Yes.’
—The body’s owner found it quite shocking. She wept and pleaded, saying it was her fault.
‘Huh…? Estella? She’s reacting strangely to strange things, isn’t she?’
Displeased with my comment, Estella, who had been subtly welcoming from the depths of my consciousness, suddenly flared with irritation. Perenustus sighed once more in response.
—Aurelia. Most people don’t stubbornly endure pain the way you do.
‘Why…? Does screaming in agony make it hurt less?’
—It’s relatively beneficial for mental health. Because you ignored your pain and kept moving, the original owner of that body was losing her sanity.
‘Oh, really?’
—In such a state, panic seized her, and she proposed a bargain with me. She said she would surrender complete control of her body to you if I would only spare her from pain.
‘…So you really did make it so she wouldn’t hurt?’
—Yes. I blocked a portion of your sensory perception so you wouldn’t feel pain.
‘Listen. Estella was begging for a miracle—for a dying person to become perfectly lucid. You’re the Creator, after all!’
—I understand. Through this incident, you’ve learned that prayers to the divine must be precise, and bargains with the divine must be made with caution.
At those words, Estella bristled again. Fearing she might lose her temper and speak disrespectfully to Perenustus, inviting his wrath, I quickly changed the subject.
‘I’m grateful, but should the Creator really intervene to this extent?’
—Rules are already broken. Breaking them once or a hundred times makes no difference.
He let out a self-deprecating chuckle at his own words, then cleared his throat with a soft cough before continuing.
—In any case, congratulations, Aurelia. The fact that your vision is sharp and your mind is clear means the data resolution of the character you inhabit has increased.
‘I don’t know what data resolution means, but I’m grateful regardless. Truth be told, I hate pain—I just don’t show it.’
—I noticed. During the voyage, the tragedy gauge was rising, so I conducted a data analysis. The tragedy metric doesn’t correlate with your pain itself, but rather with the ‘solitude’ of enduring pain alone without revealing it.
‘Is that so! Did the gauge fill up a lot?’
—…It filled to a fairly significant level.
As his sigh spread through every corner of my mind, Bilateia entered carrying a tray, with Leonas Hagpethar Yuletanis clinging closely to her side. They both noticed me.
The two children froze momentarily with wide eyes, then practically threw down the tray and rushed off somewhere.
“What? There’s no way the young lady could have regained consciousness…. Well, I’ll be.”
The elderly man being dragged along by the children’s hands stopped in his tracks with a foolish expression. It wasn’t merely surprising that I’d opened my eyes—he looked as though he’d seen a ghost. Adjusting his spectacles, he blinked rapidly before suddenly rushing over and thrusting his face close to mine.
“Good heavens! Young lady! Can you see me! If you can see me, would you blink your eyes once? If that’s too difficult, perhaps just move your pupils—”
“I can answer you with words.”
My voice emerged metallic and strange, as though it belonged to someone else entirely. Though I spoke with confidence, with each sentence my entire body twisted in an unsettling way.
-Wait! You’re not feeling pain, but that doesn’t mean your body isn’t actually injured!
Perenustus’s voice suddenly shrieked inside my mind. Simultaneously, the Physician’s expression shifted to something akin to shock as he checked my pulse, his wrinkled fingertips trembling visibly.
“It’s a miracle. Heavens, a miracle bestowed by the Divine!”
“A miracle bestowed by the Divine… I suppose that’s accurate.”
“This old man speaks only truth! The Princess has opened her eyes after a fortnight! She survived after a poisoned arrow completely shattered her spine!”
“No wonder my condition felt so strange. So the arrow was poisoned….”
“My assistant lost consciousness merely from handling that poisoned arrow. It’s a miracle!”
The Physician spoke of miracles while simultaneously pressing his fingers to my forehead in disbelief, releasing hollow laughter repeatedly.
“It appears the prayers of the Empress and the Crown Prince have reached the Divine.”
The elderly man gently gestured toward Bilateia and Leonas, then pointed to the bedside where two gleaming stones rested. The subtle golden light flowing from them seeped into my wounds like gossamer threads—a sight of extraordinary beauty.
“These are supreme-grade ancient magical stones, difficult to obtain anywhere in the Empire. The Empress secretly gave them to the Princess and Crown Prince, and they placed them at your bedside.”
“Are these children out of their minds! You should preserve those for your own safety, not waste them like this! Take them back at once!”
I cried out in shock, and Bilateia’s eyes flashed sharply. Leonas went further, pushing the magical stones even closer to my body.
-How does it feel to witness such excessive sacrifice? Do you finally understand my heart when I watched Aurelia’s death?
Already exasperated, Perenustus’s irritating voice echoing in my mind only amplified my frustration.
“How much longer you can endure depends entirely on your will. Speaking coldly as a physician… you are in a state where it would be no surprise if you stopped breathing at any moment.”
The Physician whispered softly, checking my temperature and pulse, his expression a peculiar blend of melancholy and relief. Though he seemed to take care that the children wouldn’t hear, both Bilateia and Leonas stared at me with devastated expressions.
“You can’t die! Use all the magical stones if you must, but don’t die!”
“…You’re making quite an unreasonable request of a dying patient.”
“Don’t die! That’s an order!”
Bilateia’s face looked ready to burst into tears as she shrieked desperately. Rather than respond to her powerless command, I sent the Physician away.
“Fine, I understand. It seems you won’t be much help with my wounds anyway, so leave. Go tell the steward to dress the children properly, even if it requires some effort.”
“…Pardon?”
“Regardless of how long we’ve been wandering away from home, these are the Princess and Crown Prince of the Empire. What’s this state they’re in? I don’t know what Noble Family this is, but surely you’re not so impoverished that you can’t provide proper clothes for children?”
“Ah… I understand, young lady.”
The moment the Physician withdrew, I somehow managed to push myself up on my hands.
“Well, now it’s just us. Come here. Let me first check that everyone is truly well.”
Even as I gestured for them to approach, the children hesitated and remained at a distance. In that brief moment, tears already glistened in their eyes.

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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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