Limited Extra Time - Chapter 98

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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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Recently, a peculiar rumor began spreading from the Capital.

It was said that the paintings created by an obscure painter named Carina Leopold were remarkably beautiful and vivid.

That painter, afflicted with art sickness, who rendered the world as seen through their eyes—renowned collectors had begun purchasing their works at exorbitant prices.

Such tales spread far and wide.

Standing before the paintings, viewers spoke of feeling as though they had stepped into those very landscapes. The rumors multiplied endlessly.

The energy spread endlessly in all directions.

Carlos held an exhibition at his gallery for those who had criticized him, saying “Where in the world would you find a painting like that?”

It was an unprecedented exhibition where he presented only three works.

Despite this, people were drawn in by curiosity. On the first day, only a small number of fewer than 50 people came to view it.

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I’m here.

On the second day, three times as many people came, and on the third day, three times the number from the second day came flooding in.

Within just a week, people flocked to exhibitions for three-star paintings, from villages around the Capital to regions not far away.

People who visited on the first day couldn’t stop raving about it, and thanks to that word-of-mouth, the praise continued through the second and third days.

The fervor was so intense that even the Emperor of the Empire took notice, so there was no need to guess how heated things had become.

People made all sorts of speculations about The Painter.

Carina Leopold must be using an alias, so she’s probably a woman. Or perhaps a young girl. Or maybe a young person just coming of age. The rumors were rife.

The Kalos Family kept their mouths shut about any questions. In truth, it was also because they didn’t really know themselves.

The lord, who had said he was leaving for the Northern Territory, suddenly returned and gave a few orders before disappearing again in a flash, so there was no way to ask him about it.

Some who stood before the paintings wept, while others gaped in silent awe.

Some spoke of witnessing a landscape—a biting winter’s night, where they sat upon the sprawling boughs of an ancient tree and gazed upon the rising sun.

One recalled a lonely past; another, days suffused with joy.

All three paintings were landscapes devoid of human figures.

The first depicted a massive, verdant tree standing sentinel, with the sunset descending behind it.

The gloaming—settling slowly earthward—arrested the eye. The entire background blazed with the hues of dusk. At first glance, it seemed a warm scene.

Yet all who beheld it spoke of winter. Nowhere could one find

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snow falling or any sensation of cold, and yet.

The second painting was an empty room—barren and void.

Dust gathered thinly upon the desolate space, and an old child’s desk sat within. Beside it lay a pair of brown indoor slippers—unmistakably adult-sized, not a child’s.

Opinions scattered like leaves. This is a child’s room. No, an adult’s.

No one arrived at a definitive answer, yet many wept before it, speaking only of loneliness.

The third painting was a nocturnal landscape where moonlight cascaded through a window.

The composition depicted only the window and what lay beyond it. Rendered from a perspective of gazing upward from below, all who witnessed it were transfixed.

From the heavens, moonlight seemed to scatter like powder, pouring forth with a gentle luminescence.

The shadow of the window cast on the floor was barely visible, and a cold-looking silver full moon filled the entire window in my view. The dark night blanketed the sky.

And something impossibly small—winged—scattered light-dust as it soared away.

One observer deemed it the pure fantasy of a child, suggesting that a young one had gazed upward through the window and dreamed of fairies.

Another imagined The Painter, now grown, had collapsed in despair upon the floor and looked upward at that window.

The brief exhibition held by the Kalos Family concluded amid countless assessments from various quarters and stringent security measures.

The Kalos Family answered all the mounting questions with silence.

And within mere days, the Kalos Family announced the existence of six previously unrevealed works and declared the commencement of an auction.

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From art merchants to countless traders, nobility, and wealthy patrons—all expressed their intention to participate in the auction.

Overwhelmed by the sheer volume of applicants, the Kalos Family found themselves genuinely troubled.

Ultimately, the Kalos Family was forced to divide the merchants, nobility, and wealthy patrons according to appropriate ratios and their economic capacity to participate in the auction.

Thus, a total of one hundred final participants were determined.

“Mmm….”

Carina Leopold let out a low moan as she shifted restlessly in bed.

Another episode at dawn had left my eyelids heavy. I groaned softly, squirming deeper beneath the blankets.

‘I should get up….’

How much time had passed?

It must surely be noon by now.

I wished it were still morning instead. With such thoughts drifting through my mind, I blinked slowly beneath the blankets.

‘It’s warm.’

I instinctively writhed toward the source of warmth, then suddenly went rigid.

Why is it warm?

It shouldn’t be warm.

Blinking beneath the blankets, I suddenly thrust my head out from under them.

“Ugh…”

The morning sunlight was absolutely merciless.

I squeezed my eyes shut, then slowly opened them in sync with the adjustment, as though accustoming myself to the brightness.

Yet my eyes still stung, refusing to open properly.

In that moment, a shadow fell across my vision. Something blocked the sunlight, and finally I managed to open my eyes completely.

—— Page 5 ——

“Good morning, Carina Leopold.”

“…Millaiyen.”

I let out a soft gasp. Ah, that’s right—Millaiyen was here.

It had already been four nights since that day… Millaiyen came to my room every evening.

I had allowed it the first night, thinking he seemed particularly melancholy… but after that, he kept coming back, ever so subtly.

‘His embrace is so warm that whenever I let him hold me, I simply fall asleep.’

I told myself each time that I absolutely would not sleep, that I wouldn’t—yet the moment I regained consciousness, it was already morning, noon, or the night had simply ended.

More than anything, I had suffered episodes several times, mortified with apologies, but each time Millaiyen drew me into his arms and whispered ceaselessly against my ear that everything was all right.

“You perspired heavily before dawn. Are you not thirsty?”

“…A little.”

To my hoarse reply, worn thin by the night,

Millaiyen tilted a pitcher as though he had anticipated this, filling a glass with water.

He extended it toward me.

I rose from the bed and accepted it with both hands.

‘No matter how I look at it, this doesn’t seem normal.’

We weren’t in a relationship, nor was there anything particularly strange about our situation either.

Though the frequency of our kisses had increased somewhat

beyond what it had been.

But aside from that, all Millaiyen did was hold me as we slept.

“I’m thinking of departing this afternoon.”

“This afternoon? What time is it now?”

“Nine o’clock.”

“Wow, we’re not running late then.”

Carina Leopold answered quickly, her eyes wide with surprise.

I had thought noon must have long since passed,

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yet it was still only nine in the morning.

Carina Leopold nodded.

“We’re going to the Forbidden Forest?”

“Yes. To be precise, I’m the vanguard and will depart shortly. You’ll join the Support Unit with Winston and Periel Kalos.”

“Ah… I see.”

So we weren’t departing together after all.

Millaiyen chuckled softly as he watched Carina Leopold’s eyes droop with disappointment.

If he could have, he would have placed her in his pocket and taken her with him.

“I need to check if our garrison location is suitable and clear the surrounding area. I’ll come to meet you before you arrive.”

Carina Leopold nodded at Millaiyen Pestellio’s explanation.

In truth, given her considerably poor stamina, she should have been content merely that he had permitted her to accompany him.

Carina Leopold knew full well that she had been throwing a tantrum. She would be nothing but a burden to him.

Yet still, she wanted to be greedy. She knew that he would grant her requests without much resistance.

‘…How shameless of me.’

She was not a good person.

She had decided not to live virtuously.

But if he had truly refused her, she would not have pressed further.

“Very well, I’ll prepare and depart shortly. I’ll see you this evening.”

“Yes, please be careful.”

“You be careful as well. Stay close to Winston and Periel Kalos. And don’t remove that bracelet or necklace under any circumstances.”

“Yes, and thanks to it, it seems the frequency of my episodes has decreased. They also seem to subside much faster now.”

Millaiyen Pestellio suddenly bent forward and pressed his lips to her cheek.

A soft kiss—still an embarrassing sound she hadn’t grown accustomed to—and Carina Leopold’s face flushed crimson.

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Regardless, Millaiyen Pestellio tilted his face slightly and offered his cheek to her.

“…Do we really have to do this?”

“You might collapse from exhaustion on the way.”

At his brazenly added remark, Carina Leopold’s cheeks puffed out indignantly. There were lies one should tell and lies one should not.

“This isn’t even proper food—I’m so weak I might collapse.”

Even as she spoke, Carina Leopold straightened her posture and

pressed her lips to Millaiyen’s cheek as he bowed his head, then pulled away quickly.

No embarrassing sound escaped, but the sensation of his skin against her lips lingered unmistakably.

Millaiyen chuckled softly and kissed the nape of her neck once more before rising from his seat.

“You are far more important to me than any meal.”

“…I shall see you shortly.”

“Yes, do not overexert yourself.”

Carina Leopold nodded.

Millaiyen gazed at her intently for a moment, then strode forward and drew her into an embrace. With that, he slipped from the room.

‘…What was that?’

Wondering what had just transpired, Carina Leopold let out a soft laugh and buried her face in the pillow. Truly, I was so happy I thought I might die.

“This isn’t a dream, is it?”

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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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