Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health - Chapter 223

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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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223
Episode

In the Black Market’s Auction Hall.
Mehren felt cold sweat trickle down his spine as he caught an intense gaze fixed directly on him.
At first he’d wondered if one of his enemies had shown up, but after his eyes met Fession’s by accident, he’d forced himself to ignore it.
‘Surely he hasn’t recognized me.’
Mehren couldn’t possibly fail to recognize Fession. It wasn’t the kind of aura that could be hidden just by changing hair and eye color.
‘But what business does he have in a place like this?’
For all its gaudy decoration, the auction hall felt unmistakably illicit—the dim lighting and strict surveillance made it abundantly clear.
Treasures that had supposedly vanished years ago, Magical Artifacts of unknown provenance, Artifacts that had disappeared along with extinguished noble houses.
Items that had bypassed every legitimate channel flooded onto the block, each commanding astronomical prices.
“One million!”
“Two million!”
“Five million Gold!”
The scale rivaled the Domel Auction House, perhaps surpassing it. And since no taxes were paid here, the profits were all the sweeter.
“Business really does run easy here…….”
Ciel nodded in agreement with Mehren’s murmur, carefully committing to memory who was buying what.
Though masks concealed their faces, distinctive physical features—exceptional height, a protruding belly—couldn’t be hidden so easily.
“Mehren, what was it that Arelin needed to acquire?”
“An Artifact…but it hasn’t come up yet.”
“Still hasn’t appeared? Hmm. It must be quite valuable.”
Several Artifacts had already been auctioned. Simply not the one Mehren and Arelin were after.
“If I purchase it for her, I suppose I could at least impress her a little, couldn’t I?”
“That should be possible, yes.”
Mehren couldn’t fathom why Ciel would burn millions of Gold just to show off, and frankly, he had no desire to understand—so he let the remark pass without comment.
‘Though whether we’ll actually manage to acquire the Artifact safely is another matter.’
For some reason, he had an ill-boding premonition.
‘But more to the point, where in the world is Arelin?’

* * *

Fession’s mind was tangled.
‘What could Mehren possibly be doing here?’
A man who should be in El Sionel.
After what happened with Arelin, hadn’t he moved to El Sionel, saying he couldn’t remain in the Capital? Abandoning his post as Halbern’s representative and all.
The low-quality rumors that the Black Market had connections to Halbern weren’t worth considering. So there shouldn’t be any reason for Mehren to be here.
But that he was here at precisely this moment, and with Ciel no less—it gnawed at him like a splinter under his skin.
As if he were missing something crucial.
That’s when it happened.
Boom—!
A massive explosion rocked the auction hall.

* * *

“Harun, look at this.”
All manner of rare creatures sat caged and silent, watching us in return.
From small birds to large beasts of prey.
Why on earth would anyone sell such things?
Leaving aside their incomprehensible world, there was another presence that kept pulling at my attention.
“The rumors about the Black Market having mages on staff seem to be true.”
Inside the cage, which bore signs of various magical treatment, lay one blood-soaked person and one animal side by side.
“……!”
Harun’s eyes widened.
“This is…….”
A young white tiger, sensing human presence, bared its teeth at us and growled.
Beside it lay a small child, who appeared to be Beastkin—pointed ears, a tail, fur of brilliant silver-white…….
“Huh?”
That distinctive marking—I’d heard about it somewhere. Isn’t that characteristic of the Beastkin Royal bloodline?
Considering the Divine Beast beside her, my guess felt certain.
‘Such a precious person—why is she in this squalid place?’
That’s when it struck me—a memory I’d completely forgotten.
There had been such an episode in the original novel.
The Beastkin Princess of the Yu-Yo Allied Nations was kidnapped and later discovered as a corpse in Albrecht.
A Slave Mark had been branded on the body, and while the empire clarified responsibility, relations between the empire and the Yu-Yo Allied Nations fractured entirely. The ripple effect of this incident led to Empress Azeni’s assassination, and her death marked the turning point—the beginning of Fession’s first tragedy, the moment when the heroine comforted him and they grew closer.
It was the core of their story—a tragedy that had been unnecessary in his otherwise peaceful, unblemished life.
‘Could this be the Beastkin Princess who died back then?’
I couldn’t hide the bitter taste that brought.
In the novel, the main storyline had revolved around Chloe’s desperate struggles to win over Harun, Fession observing and quietly helping as they bickered—their closeness blooming without either realizing it.
“……So it’s not over yet.”
“What?”
“Nothing, really. Never mind.”
Harun looked at me strangely, but I couldn’t afford to pay attention to that.
My fate, which should have ended as a minor extra, had been twisted; Chloe appeared but nothing changed, so I’d thought the novel’s story would end as written.
‘Now that I think about it, where did Chloe disappear to?’
Come to think of it, I hadn’t seen Robert, her master at the Sky Tower, either. Was she in the Star Realm?
‘I’ll have to look into it later.’
Right now, the important thing was saving this girl.
“This cage—I don’t think we can open it normally.”
The problem was that disabling the Layered Magic on this cage would mean I couldn’t use Magic for the rest of today. That wouldn’t do.
“Harun.”
“Yeah?”
“Can you cut through this cage?”
Instead of answering, Harun unleashed a Sword Aura.
Clang!
His Sword Aura dissipated against the translucent shield that flared into visibility, sparks erupting across it.
Harun seemed to hesitate, lost in thought.
“I could…….”
“You could break it, but they’d be in danger too if you did, right?”
A nod.
“Ugh, can’t have that.”
If Harun couldn’t do it, then I had to.
“I’ve been reckless, relying only on Spatial Movement Magic…….”
The confidence that I could escape anytime had made me cocky, but if I saved her, I’d become dead weight—a mage without Magic.
One protector, three dependents to guard?
‘But I can’t leave her behind.’
I know what becomes of the future if this girl dies.
Emperor Edward, driven mad by Empress Azeni’s assassination, becomes a tyrant of legend—a despot who abuses his power at every turn, takes offense at the slightest provocation, and torments Fession relentlessly as a side effect of his madness.
“Arelin.”
Voices came from outside.
Harun, sensing something, looked at me with eyes urging me to run—but…….
“Harun, you can protect me, right?”
“…….”
“I trust you.”
I took a deep breath and placed my hand on the cage.
Whooooom—
In an instant, another sense unfolds.
A world made of nothing but Magical Formulas and Mana.
‘It reminds me of when I first learned Magic.’
The magic my master originally intended to teach me remains preserved in every Magic Tower in the form of a Grimoire—the most fundamental Magic imaginable.
If one merely followed the rigid format and procedure of an Incantation that met the standards of Star-rank Mages, anyone with Mana could cast it.
Its simplicity meant there was no risk of error, and it demanded no deep understanding of Magic from its caster—though that very simplicity was why Common Mages aspired to become Star-rank Mages.
The greatest difference between a Common Mage and a Star-rank Mage.
It was the fact that Star-rank Mages could create Magic.
Mages who could only learn Magic already created by others, versus mages capable of crafting entirely new Magic of their own design.
Naturally, wouldn’t anyone prefer the latter?
‘If people could simply choose to be that way, Star-rank Mages wouldn’t be so rare.’
Every mage must possess their own language.
Whether it be letters, numbers, images, or sound.
My master said that every mage must have a means to express and project their will.
In that sense, I had passed.
My world had been made of sound since long ago.
Ting—
Sounds only I could hear.
Among the faintly resonating complex tones, I touched precisely one sound.
Click.
The moment something unlocked, all the various magics that had enveloped the cage vanished simultaneously.
Whoosh—
As the Magic dissipated, the resulting gust made Harun’s eyes go wide.
“What did you just do?”
I smiled at Harun’s question.
“Shh, good boy. I came to rescue you.”
Yelp-yelp.
The young white tiger, which had been baring its teeth and growling to keep itself in check, immediately showed friendliness the moment its restraining magic dissolved.
“That’s right, I see you understand. Thank you.”
I looked at the girl, who appeared to be about nine years old, then handed her to Harun.
“What are you doing? Grab her, quick.”
Harun stared at me with an expression that said he still didn’t understand the situation, then obediently hoisted the girl onto his shoulder.
“Harun, you do have a way to get us out of here, right?”
Without my Spatial Movement Magic, Harun was my only hope for escape.
My last salvation!
Harun looked at me with exasperation.
“What are you staring for? Lead the way. Let’s get out of here, fast!”

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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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