I’m Sick of the Kind Protagonist, so I Might as Well Just Die - Chapter 50

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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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#50
‘I don’t know what’s happening, but I should lie still like a puppet for now.’
So the moment I flopped onto the bed, thinking at least the poison’s effects had worn off, the door burst open and a crushing weight pressed down upon my entire body.
“Hah.”
Along with an irritated exhale that grazed my skin, Leonas Hagpethar Yuletanis set his teeth against my neck. His ragged breathing transferred through my compressed chest. His large hands, worn from handling documents until his fingerprints faded, carried the faint scent of paper and ink.
I let whatever possessive drivel Leonas Hagpethar Yuletanis was muttering into my ear go in one ear and out the other. My mind was already complicated enough calculating the original sequence of events and what would unfold next.
‘If things proceed in order, Leonas Hagpethar Yuletanis comes, then Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike throws tea water. But with the carriage accident happening suddenly, does this order change too?’
When uncertain, the best course was to proceed as before. For now, to do nothing at all.
‘Like I’ve done until now, I’ll pretend to be a puppet without thought or will, drain the steam from this crude play, and watch how it unfolds.’
The moment I made that resolution and let my body go limp, I realized something.
I was inherently incapable of doing nothing. Even as I was drawn this way by Leonas Hagpethar Yuletanis and that way by Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike, my mind churned with ten thousand stray thoughts. Just like now.
‘This cursed nature of mine… if I leave my body still, my mind must bustle or I won’t be satisfied.’
I knew that reversing a curse required intense willpower, and I knew what would happen if that willpower inverted, but the fact that these stray thoughts wouldn’t cease in my mind was truly a grave problem.
Once I grasped the situation, conclusions formed. Once conclusions formed, I wanted to act. Among that flow, I had no way to distinguish which thoughts constituted the ‘intense willpower’ the curse would respond to.
‘It’s hopeless. Doing nothing seems impossible in this lifetime too.’
The moment I clicked my tongue at myself, clear laughter bloomed in my mind.
‘…Perenustus? Were you listening?’
Instead of answering, Perenustus’s deeper laughter seeped in. That laughter, ringing not from my ears but from the very center of my mind, burrowed into every corner as if my body were its home.
As the laughter spread, I suddenly felt embarrassed that even my innermost thoughts would be exposed. Just as I was about to snap something back, a voice tinged with amusement beat me to it.
-Do as you wish, Aurelia.
‘That’s similar to what Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike said. About drawing the attention of the Ancient Gods, something like that?’
-That’s included in what I’m saying.
‘What?’
-A world that changes according to Aurelia’s will. That’s the goal I desperately desire while causing this accident, so do as you please. Whatever Aurelia does, I’ll take responsibility for it.
‘Why is he taking responsibility for me…?’
Just those words, and suddenly heat rushed to my ears.
I couldn’t fathom why the promise to have my back struck so deeply into my heart and took root so instantly. For a being as grand as the creator of worlds to show such tenderness toward a mere error seemed too delicate.
Perhaps I alone was accepting and interpreting it excessively.
“Heh.”
Leonas Hagpethar Yuletanis, draped across my body, let out a low chuckle before sharply setting his teeth against my earlobe.
“Ah!”
“You’re flushing over another man while nestled against me. How amusing.”
His voice was unusually cold today. I was incredulous that just a slightly reddened earlobe earned me such words.
‘This man, who harbors not a shred of rational feeling toward me…’
The moment our eyes met—mine filled with reproach—Leonas Hagpethar Yuletanis bit down harder out of spite. My fist, which I’d clenched to strike, was helplessly caught in his grip. Here I was, a former hero no less, being pinned by one hand by a boy who hadn’t even graduated from the Academy, and the rage that surged was unbearable.
“Grand Duke. The guest is here, yet the chamber’s host abandons his post. How is that proper?”
It was Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike.
She snapped her fan shut with irritation and approached us without hesitation. Though the situation repeated itself each time, today—perhaps because the contact between our bodies was more extensive—I felt more embarrassed than usual.
“I wasn’t aware that my every schedule was being reported to you.”
“Then you should take note of it from now on.”
Leonas held me close, turning only his head to regard her with a burning gaze. Watching this couple exchange words with such casual composure, I realized I was the only one drowning in embarrassment.
The moment Leonas let out a derisive laugh and set his teeth against my neck, Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike reached for the vase sitting on the bedside table. Without hesitation, she hurled its contents—ice-cold water—directly upon us.
“…!”
The frigid water drenched my dress and Leonas’s shirt in an instant. As he jolted upright in shock, Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike spoke with cutting precision.
“They say cold water is the cure for a dog in heat.”
“You have no right to insult my consort simply because you share my name, Princess.”
“I could say the same to you. What I’m witnessing right now is profoundly insulting to me.”
Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike’s fury remained unabated. She hurled the empty vase onto Leonas’s coat, which lay discarded on the floor. The shattering crash echoed violently through the chamber.
I found myself inwardly marveling at how this theatrical scene continued to escalate in increasingly dramatic fashion. The vase was a hundred times more impressive than the teapot from last time.
“Consider this carefully. Is this the scene the great ones envisioned for the Grand Duke? I certainly don’t think so. Not in the slightest.”
Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike fixed Leonas with an unwavering stare, her words dripping with meaningful mockery. Yet her gaze was directed at me.
‘So the Ancient Gods have issued separate orders to Leonas alone. Those orders don’t seem to entangle him with me in the way I thought.’
To be honest, I couldn’t fathom the narrative preferences of either the Ancient Gods or Perenustus. Whether they genuinely enjoyed this vague, cryptic posturing or deliberately issued ambiguous instructions to pressure Leonas and Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike further, I found it all equally exasperating.
Either way, it was deeply unpleasant.
“I am fulfilling the will of the great ones far better than you ever could.”
“Is that so?”
Rather than answer, Leonas tightened his grip on my wrist. A thread-like white light flowed from his hand, coiling around my right arm before bursting apart with a soft pop.
“I came here because I was told the meeting place had changed…”
At that very moment, Perenustus stepped through the doorway and froze entirely in the threshold.
“You certainly know how to welcome a guest.”
The instant Perenustus’s eyes fell upon my skirt, hiked up to my thighs, and the soaked bedsheets, his expression turned to ice. This was no mere figure of speech—the very air in the chamber grew palpably cold.
A tangible chill swept through the room, entirely different in quality from the taut tension Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike and Leonas had created. The Creator’s profoundly restrained fury caused even Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike and Leonas to stiffen, their words dying in their throats.
‘…He’s absolutely furious.’
It felt strangely unfamiliar—and somehow… welcome—to see a clearly identifiable expression on Perenustus’s face, when his thoughts were usually so inscrutable. Though I suppose it’s odd to feel glad about someone’s anger.
“The Duke came to meet my husband, so I showed her here.”
“My appointment with the Grand Duke was originally tomorrow, but the Princess summoned me urgently.”
“Whatever the case, I trust you’ll understand this unintended discourtesy.”
At Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike’s brazen words, Leonas let out a derisive snort and deliberately draped himself over me again. Perenustus’s eyes narrowed with barely contained fury. He handed a scroll he’d been holding to Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike. Her gaze sharpened.
“What? You’re sending me on errands now? Should I deliver this to my husband, tangled up over there?”
“No. This is something the true master of the Empire should see, so I’ve given it to the master.”
The temperature in the chamber plummeted. It was an unmistakable declaration: I will not acknowledge you as Emperor, you worthless rake.
Leonas ran a rough hand through his hair and slowly rose. The water Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike had thrown dripped from his arms and jaw onto my body.
“Duke. Don’t forget who granted you your title. Always remember that a title given freely can be revoked in an instant.”
“Princess, is my title in danger?”
Perenustus directed the question not at Leonas, but at Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike. She twirled the scroll in her hand with satisfaction and smiled.
“Since the Duke has just made me very happy, it seems your position will be quite safe for some time.”
Bilateia Fernichiosa Venisike spun the scroll deliberately, keeping her gaze fixed on Leonas as she gave a subtle nod.
“It’s rather embarrassing to say this before the Duke has even taken his seat, but… I’ve just remembered something urgent I need to discuss with my husband.”
“My purpose was to convey the Nobility Assembly’s will to the master of the Empire. That purpose has just been accomplished.”
“I appreciate you saying so. I feel terrible for having you come a day early and not even offering you tea.”
“I shall eagerly await your tea invitation.”
“I’ll contact you soon enough. For now, I’d appreciate it if you took your wife and stepped away for a moment.”
It was a brief, unambiguous command. Rather than respond, Perenustus draped his coat around me, drawing me close.
Leonas Hagpethar Yuletanis let out a scornful laugh as though the notion were absurd, extending his arm. But his limb and the white light that poured from it were effortlessly repelled by Perenustus’s hand.
“Perhaps you weren’t aware, but I am far more capable than whatever you might imagine. Considerably so.”

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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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