Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health - Chapter 163
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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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Episode 163
The Sky Tower.
The floating island of Sky Tower should have risen back into the upper atmosphere by now, to those heights nearest the stars, once Foundation Day had concluded as planned—yet for some reason, it remained suspended above Albrecht.
There were several reasons for this state of affairs, but…….
“Groan, Arelin is the best.”
The greatest reason everyone agreed upon was a different matter entirely.
“How can she be so adorable?”
From an Image Crystal no larger than a palm came music as gentle as a soft breeze.
It was music that soothed the heart no matter how many times one heard it. And the petite girl who played it with such dexterity was extraordinarily cute.
That was right. The rising idol of the Magic Tower.
The legendary existence that had captivated every High-ranking Mage—Arelin herself was the star.
“Wait, where did you get that Image Crystal?! Are you selling copies?”
“No? I filmed this myself.”
“You’re allowed to film her?”
“Hehe. I cornered Mehren and begged and pleaded to keep it for personal collection. He allowed it on the condition that I wouldn’t leak it externally!”
“Ahhhhh! I should’ve gotten one too! Last time she played that completely vibrant, refreshing, crisp, and adorable piece—!”
Mages who didn’t know the first note about music had recently—without exception—become absorbed in music appreciation.
Though the original purpose had been to purify the Corruption accumulated within their bodies, now they competed as if collecting tickets to popular concerts, debating among themselves: “Who’s going to the lunch recital today?”
Some had even thrown themselves into developing new Magical Tools.
Ting-ting-ting—
“Hmm, this isn’t it. It was something more crisp, clear, and beautiful.”
“Ah, this is harder than I thought.”
I want to recreate the emotion I received……!
Whether eating meals, falling asleep, or conducting research, they could not forget that melody—and so some of the mages set about crafting Automatic Music Boxes with figurines of a small girl playing the violin, determined to reproduce it.
Yet music was not a world so forgiving that beginners could hastily assemble music boxes by ear alone, without even sheet music.
“Ah, I want to hear that music again.”
“She plays different pieces every time.”
“How does she do that? Isn’t she a genius?”
“Of course she’s a genius! What are you talking about? With talent like hers, how could she be anything but?!”
The mages, though they themselves were not the performers, spoke with pride of Arelin’s music, raising their voices one after another.
Arelin was extraordinarily adorable and the god of music, the genius of music, the emperor of music, the fairy of music, and the daughter of music—this was an undeniable fact. Those who disagreed were to be considered enemies of the Magic Tower.
Thus Arelin had accidentally acquired over a hundred devoted personal fans, though she herself remained unaware.
“Ah, I wish I’d had a daughter.”
“Aren’t you old enough to be a grandfather by now?”
“Raise a disciple at least. She’s so cute.”
Was this a side effect of being in close contact with a creature so unbearably adorable and lovable?
These days, mages young and old were agonizing over wanting to marry late and have daughters.
Not that marriage was the priority—they simply wanted a “daughter.”
And one who resembled Arelin.
“Ah, I should get myself an Image Crystal too.”
“Because it’s an Image Crystal, my body doesn’t get purified, but my heart certainly does.”
“So cute, so cute.”
Thus, thanks to Arelin’s adorability, the mages’ feelings toward the humiliating and unfair contract they’d struck with the Grand Duke of Halbern shifted to “not so bad after all.”
“Ah, just thinking of that Grand Duke of Halbern makes my blood boil.”
“My pride…….”
“How dare he treat High-ranking Mages like that!”
The content of the unfair contract between the High-ranking Mages and the Grand Duke of Halbern was roughly as follows:
First: Mages must do their utmost to protect Arelin above all else.
Second: All mages affiliated with the Magic Tower are forbidden from using magic that directly or indirectly harms Arelin.
Third: Except in special circumstances (attacks, etc.), mages may not initiate conversation with Arelin.
Fourth: Mages must establish the Arelin Recovery Prayer Alliance and pour every ounce of their capacity into contributing to Arelin’s return to health.
Fifth: Any kindness received from Arelin must be repaid in full, in any form (labor, provision of Magical Tools, sharing of knowledge, etc.).
Beyond this, they had also made an additional personal contract requiring disclosure of all information they learned about the Grand Duke of Halbern and Arelin.
The mages shuddered at this contract, which reeked of the Grand Duke of Halbern’s determination to make resourceful use of these elite personnel who had fallen into his lap for free.
“What choice do we have? We swore the Oath of Stars.”
“Sob, sob. Star of Knowledge and Wisdom, we are sorry. We swore by something this foolish.”
This was how the High-ranking Mages—the elite among elites—had come to set aside their ongoing research and be deployed to the El Sionel construction site and automobile development project.
“Was the construction enjoyable?”
If one thing was unexpected……
“Oh, but it was fun, actually? This time I got to use Triple Compression Magic! Man, I developed this spell but never got the chance to use it until now.”
…it was that the mages’ satisfaction was high.
“The automobile thing—the development is going well?”
“Oh, that! It was genuinely fascinating. They made such a fuss about setting the standard for vehicles of a new age that I thought—what’s so impressive about that?—but the structure is completely different from carriages. The Magical Engine was interesting to take apart too. They released the design recently—want to see it? It looks amazing!”
“Hm.”
“Not bad?”
The sleek, streamlined automobile design gave the mages, who had imagined “a fancy carriage,” a fresh shock.
“But why does it look so impressive? Didn’t you say it was being used for transportation?”
“Who knows? Apparently when you debut new technology, it has to look as impressive as possible? The Sperom group said they’re going to make something big, flashy, and impressive first, then start promoting from there.”
“Ugh, I want one too. Can we buy them?”
“If you have the money, I suppose it’s possible.”
…….
The break room fell suddenly solemn at the mention of money.
Just then, a new mage entered the room. Hege, with a weary expression, gathered the mages together.
“The investigation results from the Capital Terror incident have come in.”
“Finally?!”
While Albrecht itself—where key institutions of the Capital had been attacked—was also conducting its own investigation, the Magic Tower, which had seen a High-ranking Mage kidnapped, was far from idle.
They had merely been delayed while pursuing Arelin.
In any case, Hege announced the investigation results immediately.
“Our suspicions were correct. The perpetrators of the terror attack were Apostates.”
Sighs escaped from various quarters.
“And our concerns have become reality. It appears highly probable that the Apostates have discovered a method to accelerate Corruption.”
Muti, a mage who had barely escaped with his life on the brink of Berserk thanks to Arelin’s grace, nodded with a solemn expression.
Everyone’s expression darkened.
“Insane.”
“And they’re mages themselves.”
This was the fundamental reason the High-ranking Mages had rushed so urgently to find Arelin, why they had signed onto Halbern’s unfair contract without hesitation.
“So then……we.”
“We have to treat Halbern better.”
……?
A moment of silence fell.
“What’s the conclusion?”
Everyone found it absurd, but not a single mage raised an objection or counterargument to this conclusion.
“Ha, you dimwits. I’ve already bet my entire fortune on the young lady Arelin!”
“Hehe. Don’t you see these Image Crystals? I’m a devoted fan of the young lady Arelin. From this day forward, any attack on Arelin is an attack on me.”
“Ah, you fools.”
In times past, when there was no solution in sight, it would have been one thing—but as long as they had Arelin as their cheat code, they were invincible.
“So anyway, how’s young lady Arelin’s condition? Do you have any sense of what’s actually ailing her?”
A mage who had remained silent until now, merely listening to the others chatter, lifted his head at the new topic.
“Well, the thing is, it’s not an illness, strictly speaking.”
“Not an illness?”
The mages, who had understood it to be a rare disease, expressed their confusion.
Hali, a mage with noticeably dark circles under his eyes, downed an Energy Replenishment Potion in one shot before speaking.
“The Immortal’s Authority is protecting her, so analysis is difficult, and even beyond that the whole situation is extraordinarily complex, so I can’t say with certainty, but…….”
“Your preamble is long. So is it a curse?”
“No, it’s not a curse either.”
“Then what is it?”
The mages’ attention fixed upon Hila. Having earned everyone’s notice, she chose her words carefully before answering.
“A sort of…side effect of some kind.”
?
“That is to say, like the price of having too much power?”
……?
* * *
“Father is wounded.”
Was the fact that his favorability rating had fallen below Fession’s really such a shock? Father had launched facial attacks all day long.
It was funny and cute, admittedly.
As I watched with a sense of helplessness, Mother stepped in and vanquished Father.
“Stop it. This is pathetic.”
“My dear, do you know what kind of humiliation I’ve endured?”
“If you don’t want to suffer further humiliation, shut that mouth of yours.”
The moment Mehren dragged Father away, I let out a sigh of relief.
“Finally, I’m alone.”
I had waited long for this.
[Please input a question.]
I posed the question I had been preparing for and eager to ask at the glimmering screen.
“So I can understand how to live longer, let me know what information I can’t currently comprehend—tell me my own information!”
[Multiple pieces of information have been confirmed.]
[Displaying user information.]
My head tilted of its own accord as the information filled my field of vision.
……?
What on earth is this?
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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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