Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health - Chapter 259

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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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259
Chapter

The time has come to make a sad confession.
I don’t know how this novel ends.
Why, you ask?
‘Because Part 2 was never serialized—not once—from the end of Part 1 until the author’s death!’
To be honest, it wasn’t something I’d worried about until now.
The male and female leads were bound to end up together, after all, and the ending would surely be happy.
It’s a well-known fact that serialized novels rarely conclude in tragedy unless the author makes some extraordinary resolve.
So I was confident that nothing catastrophic would actually occur—but…….
“The author really did make that resolve.”
The situation in this world was far graver than I’d anticipated.
The additional information I’d gleaned while being treated as an oddity by Luca was this:
Albrecht was on the verge of total collapse, and Fession was barely keeping the empire breathing in his capacity as emperor.
Even that much counted as relatively stable, apparently.
The Southern Empire had already fallen and become a land of monsters, while the Northern Lands had turned into wasteland after the war between dragons and Mages.
The Yuyo Alliance had fractured under the tyranny of the Beast King, ushering in a new age of competing kingdoms, and the Shugra Empire, unable to withstand the catastrophe of the World Tree burning, had sealed its borders and enacted a magic barrier.
“The whole world’s in chaos.”
And what, pray tell, is our heroine doing in the midst of all this?
‘Surely she’s not so caught up in romance that she doesn’t care what happens to the world?’
The thought of Chloe made me sigh.
“For now, I’d better do what I can.”

* * *

Luca was beginning to regret his decision.
‘Maybe I shouldn’t have picked this person up after all?’
He’d only rescued her because he’d seen her standing vacant-eyed at death’s door, but now it seemed he’d picked up someone decidedly strange.
“Luca.”
“What is it now?”
“What would you think if this world you live in were actually inside a novel?”
“You’d want to know how it ends, wouldn’t you?”
“That’s all? That’s it?”
“What else would there be?”
“I’m not some fictional character! What kind of question is that?”
Luca no longer felt inclined to continue the conversation with Arelin.
“Whether it’s a novel or not, what does that matter? My reality is harsh enough as it is.”
“Fair point. You’re right.”
Arelin was persuaded at once.
With a face lovely enough to make anyone slack-jawed, Arelin proceeded to say something utterly bizarre.
“So then, what are you planning to do?”
“Chase after the demon at the Ruin—not my father, the demon.”
“Are you insane?! Do you actually want to die?!”
“No? My life is precious to me.”
When there’s someone determined to kill themselves standing beside you, the humanitarian thing is to try to stop them first.
Even as Luca invoked his humanity, he was terrified of what kind of disaster this crazy woman might cause.
“I can’t believe it—despite the danger, you already went to investigate the shattered Ruin, and now you’re talking about chasing after the demon there?!”
“There was a reason I had to go see it.”
“If the Ruin backlashes and drags you into the Alternate Dimension, you’re just dead!”
“It’s fine. I won’t die.”
“Everyone who said that died!”
“Luca, but do you know where the demon in the Ruin went—not my father, the demon?”
“How would I know that?!”
“What do you actually know, Luca?”
Watching Arelin grumble, Luca struck his chest.
This crazy woman!
‘Should I just abandon her and leave?’
He’d already saved her once—didn’t that fulfill his human duty? What reason did he have to do anything more?
Luca seriously considered it, but leaving Arelin behind again… he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
“The Sky Tower… ah, you said it was destroyed. What about the Magic Tower…….”
“The Magic Tower was completely demolished in the dragon attacks.”
“Really? Then what are the Mages doing?”
“Well, it’s the Self-Reliance Era now.”
“Ah.”
Arelin sighed theatrically.
She wasn’t even a Mage—why was she mourning?
“So where is Master? This is exactly the kind of problem Master would handle best.”
“?”
“Anyway, we should head to the Capital.”
At Arelin’s conclusion, Luca’s brow furrowed.
“Did you hear a word I said? The Magic Tower’s destroyed! Obviously the Gate is also demolished. There are no Mages left who can cast such high-rank magic. To get to the Capital from here now, it’d take over a month by carriage. Do you have any idea how many monsters are crawling around?”
“A carriage? Oh, right. This is that primitive world without automobiles.”
Luca bristled at being looked at with such pity, but Arelin moved so quickly that he missed his chance to snap back.
It seemed Arelin intended to make good on her words—she was heading toward the site of the old Gate.
“Wait, didn’t you hear me? The Gate’s destroyed! There’s not a single high-rank Mage left who can operate it…….”
As Luca fired off words in rapid succession, his mouth fell open mid-sentence.
Whirrrrr—
The moment Arelin’s hand touched it, the shattered Gate’s magic circle flared to life with brilliant light, completely restored. Luca blinked hard at the sight of the newly repaired Gate.
‘What exactly did I just witness?’
High-rank magic of that caliber—magic that only a Star-rank Mage with at least one star could operate…….
“Would you like to come too, Luca?”
Watching Arelin casually ask the question from before the Gate, Luca found himself nodding without thinking.

* * *

Luca’s demeanor had changed completely.
“Were you a Star-rank Mage, ma’am?”
His tone became respectful.
“I wish you’d mentioned that earlier!”
What happened to all those casual insults?
When he met my glare, Luca laughed awkwardly. He clearly knew he’d messed up.
‘I’ll let it slide.’
Without Luca, I would’ve been utterly lost—wondering why my father was like that, why things were this way, before dying in confusion. So I decided to be generous and forgive him this once.
Sensing my eyes relax, Luca quickly changed the subject.
“But why did you come to the Capital?”
“It seemed like the fastest way to gather information.”
If I couldn’t reach the Sky Tower, then the next best place would be Halbern’s secret archives, wouldn’t it?
‘Though I’m not sure I’ll actually be able to get inside in this world…….’
If I wanted to find out what happened to my father, I’d need to visit the archives at least once.
“Information… yes, the Capital is definitely the fastest for that.”
Luca seemed to be drawing his own conclusions.
The Capital looked much the same as I remembered it.
Well, perhaps there were more people, no automobiles, everyone’s expressions were darker, no Sperom Hotel…….
‘Scratch that—there are actually quite a few differences.’
And the central Magic Tower in the Capital was completely destroyed as well.
Seeing the Tower I’d entered and exited dozens of times reduced to nothing but ash, I felt something stirring in my chest.
Even if this wasn’t the world I’d come from…….
“Let’s move on.”
I would have examined it further, but Luca was signaling me to leave. It seemed to be because of the people watching us, and when I scanned the area with mana, there didn’t appear to be anything important, so I simply withdrew.
“You shouldn’t let anyone know you’re a Mage if possible.”
“Why?”
“The public perception of Mages isn’t good.”
“Why is that?”
“People believe that Mages are responsible for the dragons attacking humans and destroying the Northern continent.”
“……?”
How is that the Mages’ fault?
I could understand if I didn’t know Mages well, but they were absolutely not the kind of people to start conflicts. Unless they were caught meddling in some research and got beaten for it.
‘Is that actually what happened?’
Even so…….
Would they really face retaliation of this magnitude?
Knowing Master’s character, it didn’t make sense. Master was never the type to fight with anyone.
As I walked, mulling over the mystery of why Mages and dragons would go to war, Luca asked me.
“But where are we actually going?”
“Halbern Manor.”
“……?”
Luca made a strange expression.
“Huh? What? Wait—really?”
His face clearly showed the conflict between believing in a Star-rank Mage’s abilities and the bizarre rumors surrounding Halbern Manor.
“I mean… is that really safe?”
“It’s fine.”
“What if someone sees us?!”
I hadn’t planned to go in through the front entrance anyway. Halbern Manor, being ancient, had plenty of hidden and secret passages.
‘Though I wonder if I’ll be the only one able to get inside?’
I was walking while thinking about the various magical wards placed on Halbern Manor.
“Arelin!”
Luca called out to me urgently. I turned my head and saw a carriage rushing toward me.
“Ah.”
Was I about to be struck down?
The moment I thought it.
Someone suddenly grabbed my arm and yanked me back.
After realizing the carriage had safely passed in front of me, I reflexively turned my head—and my mind went blank.
A pleasant, low voice asked me softly.
“Are you alright, lady?”
“…Yes.”
What a terrible coincidence.
It was Fession.

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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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