Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health - Chapter 72

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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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Chapter 72

“It’s been a long time, Your Majesty.”
“Indeed it has, Grand Duke Halbern.”
The two fell silent for a moment. Halbern simply smiled, while Azeni the Empress barely managed to soften her stiffening expression.
The atmosphere had already gone to pieces.
Holding a tea party here would only make it worse.
And the culprit stood right before her.
‘If you were going to show up, why not come earlier.’
Azeni’s eyes grew sharp of their own accord.
“How resourceful of you to come. I confess I didn’t expect to see you.”
“Hmm.”
Halbern laughed without offering any explanation. Azeni’s expression finally hardened completely.
“You’ve returned after so long—have you paid your respects to His Majesty?”
“What do you think?”
“The Empress was the first to inquire, Grand Duke.”
“His Majesty won’t even know I’ve arrived. Does that answer suffice?”
……
Azeni fell silent. That meant this man had come straight here the moment he entered the Imperial Palace.
‘So he cares for his daughter that much. I had no idea.’
She had sent an invitation to the Northern Castle bearing the Imperial Seal, never expecting the man himself to actually appear. The reality of it felt distant, unreal.
Azeni would have liked nothing more than to strike that composed face once.
How could the daughter of such a man be so endearing? Her own son had fallen completely for that child, and as the Empress found herself staring sideways at the thought, she caught herself holding back a sigh.
“You should go see His Majesty.”
“Should you say so?”
“Of course—one must present oneself to the Emperor before all else upon returning. Surely you know the protocol?”
Never mind the exhausting rules of court that weren’t worth mentioning. Azeni simply wanted this unbearable, infuriating man gone from her sight.
She couldn’t fathom what he was thinking, couldn’t even begin to guess—dealing with a man so impenetrable consumed her patience relentlessly.
‘How does Mehren manage to get along under someone like this?’
“I shall obey Your Majesty’s will.”
Even at the Empress’s dismissal, Halbern showed not the slightest sign of displeasure.
“It’s such a shame to see you go so soon after we’ve met again, Grand Duke Halbern.”
“Well, there will be other chances. Your Majesty.”
“The Foundation Day Celebration approaches—I trust you’ll grace us with that celebrated face of yours.”
“My face comes at a premium, I’m afraid. Still, if it’s your wish, I shall give it consideration.”
A brief standoff between an Empress who felt no regret whatsoever and a Grand Duke who seemed not the slightest bit reluctant.
The others in the room held their breath without meaning to.
Halbern, though the last to arrive, was the first to leave.
The tea party dissolved entirely.

* * *

“【Breaking News】Grand Duke Halbern Returns!”

Word of Halbern’s return spread swiftly that very day as an extra edition of the Albrecht Times.
The single word “returns” alone sold out so completely that the newspaper offices were screaming with delight.
The next morning, the front page headline read nothing less than “Dragon Hunting: Success.”

“【Saren Knights Become Dragon Slayers!】”

Mehren gave up trying to understand.
‘What in the world is happening.’
No point. Best to stop thinking.
Surrender brings peace.
– Mehren! Listen! Our liege abandoned us and went ahead on his own?!
– We’ve been abandoned!
The Saren Knights had returned to the Northern Castle without a single casualty, laden with the dragon’s corpse and countless monster materials as spoils of war.
The first thing this greatly accomplished order did was not boast or rest—it was to lodge a complaint.
Mehren, having drawn the short straw as the complaint’s recipient, felt a sudden urge to smash the Communication Device to bits.
– We didn’t know we’d been abandoned! We thought our liege was in danger and dug through that place for twelve hours! Twelve whole hours!
– And he abandoned us to go play at a tea party?
– Our liege is the worst!
So what was he supposed to do about it?
Mehren pressed his throbbing temples firmly.
– We’re coming back! We’re definitely coming back!
– Anyway, tell our liege we’re on our way home!
– You understand, right? We’re counting on you, Mehren?!
“Sigh……”
He couldn’t even pass the message along until he saw the man himself.
Mehren sighed lightly, watching the disconnected Communication Device. They wouldn’t listen to reason anyway, so he let it be.
Dylan chuckled.
“The knights remain quite spirited, don’t they.”
“Pointlessly energetic, more like.”
Now that he thought about it, there had been bloodstains on Halbern’s uniform that day. Mehren’s frown deepened at the memory.
This infuriating bastard.

“Will you be returning to the Northern Castle?”
“I couldn’t say—that’s not a decision I make.”
“?”

The last exchange Mehren had managed to have with Halbern before he vanished, having grabbed him briefly.
Halbern had simply smiled and continued spouting incomprehensible nonsense that turned one’s insides upside down.
“What are you even trying to do?”
When had he acted as though he’d be stuck there forever, and why was he like this now?
All the times Mehren had cursed him for never answering—now that he’d finally laid eyes on him again, his heart had tangled itself up in confusion.
“It appears he used Spatial Movement.”
“What? From there to here?”
The records from all Warp Gates and Warp Magic usage in the Capital had been pulled up and checked, but there was no trace of Halbern using any of them.
Yet given the distance, it couldn’t have been on foot. The same held true for other records—they were all clean.
That left only one possibility.
“Halbern’s got all manner of strange Artifacts. He probably used some odd Relic.”
“Ah……”
For all that Mage Engineering had advanced so splendidly as to enrich life itself, limits still existed.
The distance between the Northern Castle and the Capital couldn’t be overcome with current Mage Engineering or Spatial Movement Magic.
“I wondered if he’d taken a mage with him, but the Magic Tower’s been quiet, so it must be an Artifact or Relic.”
And he’d possessed something like that all this time without so much as showing his face?
Mehren’s mood soured further, and Dylan laughed in disbelief.
“Hah. Well.”
“What is it, Dylan?”
“Oh, just… it’s remarkable. Halbern really does have many secrets.”
Mehren’s expression was familiar.
Since childhood, there’d been occasions when Halbern would bring back strange Relics or Artifacts from unknown sources and cause trouble.
“You two seem to be quite close.”
“Who are you talking about—me and Halbern?”
“Yes.”
……
Mehren’s expression turned genuinely displeased. The very thought that he might be close to Halbern, whom everyone tried to cling to so persistently, seemed to amuse him even as he made such a face.
“Stop talking nonsense. Since there’s no telling when our liege will return, see that preparations are made without slacking.”
“Yes, the steward is already making thorough arrangements.”
“And Miss Arelin?”
Dylan’s smile vanished.
“Well, since she returned from the tea party, she’s been in her room constantly. The nanny says she seems to have suffered quite a shock…… Did something serious happen there?”
Many things had happened.
Far too many.
Mehren rose from his seat, his heart unsettled. He meant to go see the lovely, precious Arelin.
It was then.
“Mehren, sir!”
The steward summoned him with unwelcome news.

* * *

The runaway child had returned home.
‘I wondered why Mehren called me with that expression.’
Only after grasping Mehren’s hand tightly and stepping out before the Manor Entrance did I understand.
I’d been wondering why the manor had suddenly grown bustling.
“Welcome home.”
At Halbern’s return, not only Mehren but every servant and retainer had lined up to greet their master.
The man in question had ditched his formal uniform somewhere—he wore only light clothing with a coat draped over it, and he was smiling.
“Did you come to greet me yourself?”
“…You’ve been gone so long.”
“But your expression says you want to grab me by the collar and hit me.”
Mehren’s face twitched slightly.
“Stop talking nonsense and come inside.”
“Nonsense, is it? I was just saying how glad I am to see you.”
Halbern, who had been conversing cordially with Mehren, suddenly turned his gaze toward me.
Our second meeting.
Those strikingly handsome features still felt surreal, and I shrank back under the dissecting weight of his stare.
“Not even a greeting for your father, our little girl?”
Despite the wounded words, his voice was utterly dry—not a shred of warmth in it.
Rather, his detached, curious gaze scanned me as though he meant to take me apart.
Flinch.
I startled and hid behind Mehren in an instant.
“Mother.”
As I cowered while gripping Mehren’s sleeve tightly.
“?”
Halbern tilted his head as though he’d misheard.
“Hm?”
Mehren pressed his palm to his forehead with a look of realization.
“Mother.”
Mehren looked as though he wished he could simply vanish from the spot, his eyes shut tight.
……
……
A sudden, heavy silence.
Then Halbern burst into loud laughter.
“Stop laughing, you bastard!”

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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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