Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health - Chapter 73

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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 73

“Time really has passed, hasn’t it.”
Mehren sat and mused on this.
“The estate is unchanged, but the capital has altered quite a bit.”
What was he trying to say?
Today, those violet eyes shone with transparent brilliance, brimming with amusement as they fixed on Mehren.
“Suddenly philosophical, Mother?”
Mehren did not answer.
After dissolving into unrestrained laughter and finally receiving a blow to the forehead that left it flushed, Valere still looked impossibly handsome as he continued to tease Mehren with a satisfied smile.
“I haven’t seen you in ages, and now you’re a mother? Time truly is fleeting. Who would have guessed—Mehren, of all people, becoming a mother.”
“Push any further and I’ll kill you.”
“Now that’s a direct assassination threat. How exhilarating.”
“What makes you assume it’s assassination?”
“Then you’ll kill me fair and square? That’s refreshing in its own way.”
“Spare me the nonsense.”
“So who’s the child’s father? Surely it’s me?”
Poof.
It was an unexpected blow. Watching the maids and butlers burst into uncontrollable laughter without resistance, Mehren could scarcely bear the shame rising in her face.
“Then are you my wife, Mehren?”
“Would you like to die?”
At this swift response, Valere laughed as though he might expire from it.
“Why so cold, darling? Your husband’s missed you.”
“Be quiet.”
“When did we get married anyway?”
“Quiet.”
Veins rose visibly on Mehren’s forehead. Had Arelin not been beside her, she would have surely lost all reason by now and beaten him senseless with whatever lay in her hand.
‘I cannot do that.’
It would not be good for the child’s upbringing, nor for her emotional development.
Mehren desperately suppressed the urge to kill.
“Ah, this is amusing.”
“Is that so?”
Sensing that one more provocation might actually result in him being strangled, Valere reluctantly cradled his chin, swallowing his regret.
His peculiar gaze, which had remained fixed on Mehren until now, shifted to the small child who hid behind her like a shield.
Flinch.
The moment the child felt his attention, Valere’s eyes darkened as he watched the tiny figure shrink further behind Mehren’s back.
“Hmm.”
Noticing his obvious interest and the sudden tension, Mehren let out a weary sigh, barely suppressing her mounting irritation.
‘This bastard.’
“Arelin, why don’t you go rest now.”
Arelin, who was almost completely buried against Mehren, peeked her head out.
“Is that okay?”
“Yes.”
In this ruined first meeting between mother and daughter—or rather, a reunion after far too long—Mehren did not wish to encourage Arelin to remain.
Not while her father was carrying on like this.
“Um.”
Arelin glanced at Mehren, then at Valere. The directness of his stare seemed to trouble her.
Watching the small head furrow with genuine concern over whether she should leave, something shifted in Valere’s expression.
“It’s fine. You may go.”
At the gentle, affectionate tone, she smiled with relief and rose.
“See you later.”
In that soft whisper lay complete trust and faith.
When Mehren embraced her once, the child left without hesitation, not even glancing back at her father as she took the maid’s hand and departed.
Valere’s gaze remained unbroken, lingering on her as she left, his head tilting slightly.
“Darling, our daughter is afraid of me.”
A cushion flew without warning.
“You’re reaping what you’ve sown, you fool.”
Mehren’s pent-up fury burst forth.

* * *

“So.”
Mehren pressed her temples firmly and opened her mouth.
“Where exactly have you been all this time?”
“An interrogation the moment I arrive?”
Valere drew down his handsome eyes, feigning a pitiful expression.
“I’m exhausted.”
“Don’t change the subject.”
“That won’t work on me.”
With a pouting lip that suggested offense, Valere propped his chin on his hand.
“Go on. Try.”
When Mehren hurled the morning’s Albrecht Times onto the table, Valere’s head tilted sideways.
“What exactly have you done?”
“It seems that emptying the Northern Castle is not a simple matter.”
“So you hunted a dragon?”
“Were you worried about me? Don’t be—I have no injuries, sweetheart.”
“Say ‘sweetheart’ one more time and I will file charges for workplace sexual harassment and defamation.”
“Quite a ferocious reaction.”
He trembled as if terrified, yet continued smiling, entirely unconvincing in his fear. The conversation only exhausted her further.
Mehren fought down the urge to strangle him then and there.
She had to endure. Blessed are those who bear with patience……
“How did you even become a mother?”
“That’s none of your business, you irresponsible wretch.”
“That’s harsh, truly.”
She wanted to lash out further and glared at him, but realized she’d only fall into his trap, so Mehren barely managed to cool her temper.
“How did you even get here?”
“Isn’t it obvious? You already know.”
Does such an artifact actually exist?
Mehren’s eyes narrowed sharply. So if it exists, why hasn’t he come back once in all this time?
Valere, sensing her displeasure, tilted his head, still sprawled lazily across the sofa.
“I’m not going anywhere, so there’s no need to stare at me so intently.”
“May I hit you?”
“I won’t let you land it.”
She threw a cushion. Valere dodged it with merely a tilt of his head, annoyingly graceful, and smiled.
“You have no questions? Surely you’re curious about much.”
“Ha.”
Questions? There were certainly many. So many she didn’t know where to begin.
Her mind reeled with innumerable concerns flooding in all at once, yet there was only one thing she needed to ask first.
“Why did you come back?”
Those violet eyes blinked. Long lashes fluttered, then he gazed downward.
“You gave me your counsel, didn’t you?”
“Just for that?”
“Do I need another reason?”
She thought he was joking, but his eyes held no laughter—only something deeper left unspoken. Mehren did not wish to know it, nor did she want to acknowledge it.
“You should have come sooner then! I asked you to return for years, and you never showed your face once, and now you appear like this?! Do you want to die by my hand?!”
“If I’m to die, let it be by your hand. It would be an honor.”
“Don’t jest.”
“Does it seem like a jest?”
Mehren drew a deep breath from the depths of her core.
“Enough. Let’s stop talking.”
Valere laughed.
“You’re laughing? Now?”
“Why are you so angry?”
“Why shouldn’t I be angry?!”
There were limits to thoughtlessness, and at minimum some decency to how much cleanup one could demand.
“Why did you even go to the Northern Castle in the first place?”
“A deal.”
“A deal? What kind of deal?”
Mehren’s expression grew uneasy.
Valere pressed his index finger to his handsome lips and shook his head.
“I cannot tell you what the deal entailed. I’m bound by the Oath of Silence, unfortunately.”
Mehren’s face hardened.
The Oath of Silence was the highest level of binding covenant. A seal that made breaking it impossible even if one wished.
Mehren let out an involuntary sigh as her mind spun rapidly.
The Oath of Silence. The Imperial Palace. Valere.
“Why?”
Why would Valere—who already possessed so much—bind himself with the Oath of Silence for some deal? Especially under conditions that forced him into seclusion in the Northern Castle?
She demanded a satisfactory answer, but as always, Valere merely offered a cryptic smile.
“Is the medicine being administered regularly?”
“…….”
“It’s rare, you know. You must see that she takes it properly. All right?”
Mehren’s face grew rigid.
Only then did Mehren comprehend the causality behind his evasive reply, and she groaned audibly.
“If you hadn’t traced the origin of that Unidentified Medicine delivered once a month, you wouldn’t be the Mehren I know.”
“Yes, I traced it.”
“Where did it come from?”
His voice was unbearably gentle in its inquiry.
She thought that striking him just once would be worth any price.
“The Imperial Palace.”
Unable to blindly trust an unknown medicine, she had begun her investigation.
The trace of Arelin’s medicine had led through some hidden channel, terminating at the Imperial Palace—though from which quarters, she could not determine. The location remained obscure and veiled.
‘I decided to leave it buried. Digging further seemed too troublesome.’
Exhaustion deepened. Pressing the darkened area under her eyes, Mehren spoke with measured calm, and a moment of respect for her absent lord returned to her.
“Was the medicine arranged by you, my lord?”
“Who else would it be?”
His low voice carried a gentle remonstration. Mehren’s expression immediately twisted.
“So you’ve been confined to the Northern Castle all this time because of that medicine?”
Valere shrugged.
At last, one long-standing mystery had been answered.

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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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