It’s Been 500 Years as an Extra, and the Original Story Still Hasn’t Begun - Chapter 78

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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500 Years as Just an Extra,

The Original Story Still Won’t Begin

Episode 078

“It’s a long story, well.”

Ailesia, who had started speaking vaguely, explained the situation as briefly as possible.

Today, the third day of the New Year banquet, she and Elenora had been touring the Imperial Palace when they entered this place and discovered Kalior sleeping like the dead.

His physical condition looked so terrible that she had given him an elixir and taken a series of measures before returning at night.

Finally, that the Retis Grand Duchy was planning to sponsor Kalior soon.

After hearing the entire story, Kalior showed a sharp reaction unbecoming of a child.

“You expect me to believe all of that?”

“What’s not to believe?”

“…I don’t believe in kindness without reason. If you intend to use me as an excuse to interfere in Imperial affairs, I must decline.”

“Us? In Imperial affairs? What for?”

“Pardon?”

“What would Retis lack that we’d need to approach the Imperial family using you as an excuse? If we really had ulterior motives, there are so many faster and easier methods than this.”

“That’s…”

“And do you know how much one bottle of elixir costs? We fed you medicine that can’t be bought even with money, and this little thing has the nerve to frown at us.”

“Ugh.”

When Ailesia deliberately spoke in a stern voice, Kalior looked at her with a startled expression, gauging her mood.

No matter how smart and dignified he tried to act, a child was still a child. How hard must his life have been for him to be like this.

Ailesia reached out and gently stroked Kalior’s head.

His hair, which had become dry and brittle from not being properly washed for a long time, tangled around her fingers, but she showed no sign of caring.

“You’ve had a hard time.”

“…”

The boy’s body froze like ice at this unexpected situation.

He couldn’t even remember when someone had last extended such an affectionate touch to him.

“Children should eat well and sleep well as children should. Our Elly cried and cried saying she wanted to help you. So just quietly follow along.”

Upon hearing those words, Kalior’s eyes widened for a moment. The boy roughly swatted away Ailesia’s hand and pulled his body back into the bed.

“I don’t need that kind of pity.”

“Hmm…”

Ailesia tilted her head while keeping her hand suspended in mid-air.

Perhaps because he had been neglected for so long, he would listen obediently but then quickly put up his guard again.

“Do you hate it that much? Why?”

Then, Elenora, who had been quietly listening, approached Kalior.

The child blinked her large eyes and firmly grasped the boy’s hand.

“Elly just wishes the Prince wouldn’t be in pain. Is that wrong?”

“…It has nothing to do with you.”

“If it has nothing to do with me, do I have to pretend not to know? Even when you can’t eat properly and sleep in such a messy room?”

Perhaps unable to be harsh even to a girl younger than himself, Kalior could only bite his lips, not knowing what to do.

“Why are you doing this to me? We don’t even know each other.”

“…Hic, hic.”

“W-wait…?”

“Huuuk…!”

“Wh-wh-what…?”

Ah, it finally burst out. Elenora’s ultimate technique. Crying as if the world had wronged her, regardless of reason.

Remembering how long it took to comfort her during the day… this probably won’t be easy to handle.

“S-sorry! I was wrong!”

“Huaaang!”

“I-I’ll eat well! Sleep well! Listen well! Stop crying! Okay? Okay?”

Sure enough, Kalior was frantically trying to comfort Elenora, his wariness and everything else forgotten. Before he knew it, he had pulled Elenora into a tight embrace and was clumsily patting her shoulder.

‘You two are really meant to be.’

How could they be so tender toward each other when they still knew nothing about one another? It was a heartwarming yet bittersweet sight.

‘…This time, you won’t have to part in that way.’

Because I’ll never let that happen.

Ailesia pulled both children into her arms with a gentle smile.

Support for the Second Prince proceeded faster than expected.

However the Grand Duchess Dowager had persuaded the Emperor, approval came in less than half a day after requesting an audience the next day.

As Termion had said, the plan to provide a suitable justification seemed to have hit the mark.

‘I thought the First Imperial Consort would oppose it, but she was surprisingly quiet.’

Well, even the First Imperial Consort couldn’t openly oppose Iolene.

There’s a saying that arms bend inward, but in situations like this, it actually works as poison.

An Emperor who values appearances would naturally be conscious of the nobles’ public opinion.

Perhaps he was secretly celebrating. After all, wasn’t this practically an opportunity to check the First Imperial Consort without lifting a finger?

Iolene said she would stay in the Imperial Capital for a while, so the remaining work could be left to her with peace of mind.

“That aside… what do I do about this?”

Ailesia narrowed her eyes and glared at the flower in her hand.

It was the flower that had been emitting demonic energy in the Second Prince’s room. Strictly speaking, it was a magic tool made in the shape of a flower.

She had discovered two facts about this flower: it absorbed the life force of living beings within a certain radius, and based on that, it forcibly injected demonic energy into a specific target’s body.

There was no need to guess who had dared to place such a vile object in the Prince Palace. Of course, they probably didn’t do it personally.

‘I can’t understand why the First Imperial Consort would go through such trouble…’

If she had been determined to assassinate him, there would have been plenty of easier and simpler methods.

With dark magic available, there was no need to worry about evidence. Just a little modification to this flower would have made it entirely possible.

‘To watch Kalior suffer? That’s also unclear.’

If that had been the intention, she would have somehow dragged him to official occasions and subjected him to every possible humiliation. Leaving him alone without properly checking if he was dead or alive didn’t make sense.

Moreover, the life force the flower absorbed and the demonic energy it injected were balanced with truly exquisite precision.

It weakened a person just enough not to die, and injected demonic energy at a level the body and mind could barely endure.

Judging by the circumstances alone, it didn’t feel like simple torture but rather like some kind of experiment.

‘Yes, just like experimenting with the effects of a curse… wait?’

Hold on, a curse?

Come to think of it, what else could this be if not a curse?

Eating away at a person’s life force, corrupting them with demonic energy.

It hadn’t reached the point of seizures yet because the severity wasn’t that bad, but it was no different from what was mentioned in the original story.

‘I think I’ve been misunderstanding something.’

Ailesia fell into serious contemplation, carefully retracing the contents of the original story.

The fact that Kalior was infected with Termion’s curse was revealed through his inner monologue.

The symptoms appearing in him were similar to Termion’s seizures, and he had been covered in blood while fighting to subdue him – the evidence was quite clear.

‘But it wasn’t confirmed by narration. It was all just cleverly conveying Kalior’s thoughts.’

Perhaps Kalior’s curse was completely separate from Termion’s curse?

What if Termion’s demonic energy was merely a kind of trigger that activated Kalior’s curse, and the foundation of the curse itself existed separately?

“…This isn’t a problem I can judge alone.”

But there wasn’t anyone suitable to discuss such matters with.

Kubera also knew many things about dark magic, but frankly speaking, his level was lacking.

With skills at most at the High Mage level, proper research into this level of curse would be difficult.

Moreover, she had heard he would be stationed at the advance base in the Gardbale Mountains until spring. That meant there wasn’t enough time either.

‘But to consult with Iolene about this…’

Setting aside her abilities, Iolene also had far too much to do.

While staying in the Imperial Capital, she had to manage the retainers and servants, and she would need to frequently visit the Imperial Palace because of the Second Prince she had just begun supporting.

In the end, the person that came to mind naturally narrowed down to just one.

Someone who had no direct interests with the Imperial House, had outstanding abilities as a mage, and would generally take her side.

“Ugh, I don’t like it though.”

Ailesia glared at the ring she had taken out from her subspace with a sulky expression.

Even knowing it was the best choice, she really didn’t feel like doing it.

The face and voice of Magic Tower Master Melbarik came to mind, making her shudder involuntarily. While it wasn’t at the level of absolutely hating it, it seemed like it would still take some time to get used to.

“Ailesia, are you inside?”

“Come in!”

Just then, hearing a voice calling for her, Ailesia brightened up. She didn’t forget to quickly put away the ring either.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

That flawless handsome face without a single flaw, that deep yet clear voice, those perfect proportions from head to toe.

Just looking at him made her feel like her mind was clearing, so she couldn’t hide her pleased smile as she nodded.

“Yes, this is right.”

“Pardon?”

…Why on earth was this woman acting like this from the morning? Suddenly grinning like that the moment she saw him.

Unable to understand what was going on, Termion blinked with a bewildered expression.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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