Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health - Chapter 8

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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 8

Mehen had developed a new routine in his day: lingering outside Arelin’s door, then turning back.
“Why am I doing this?”
Even he found his own behavior bewildering.
Yet whether he was working, resting, or walking in a daze, he’d snap to attention only to find himself near her door again.
He’d grasp the handle, then leave without turning it.
“I’m drowning in work, and this is what I’m wasting time on.”
How many enterprises did he oversee? How many institutions fell under his management?
He was the one who kept this vast household running without a single hitch.
Ten bodies wouldn’t be enough.
“Ugh…….”
Never in his life had he felt so burdened. These days were relentless.
In the first place, Halbern—the man who’d thrust this enormous responsibility onto him without a moment’s hesitation—was simply strange.
He could only wonder what lay behind that man’s eyes.
‘Has there ever been a time I understood him?’
“What’s the word from the Northern Fortress?”
“Still no contact, I’m afraid.”
“……Damn.”
He muttered a curse under his breath, then pressed his fingers against his temples.
Between the mounting work and his exhaustion, adding Arelin’s situation had robbed him of sleep entirely.
He’d always been sharp; lately he’d grown brittle as glass, and the whole household felt the tension radiating from him.
“The young lady?”
“She remains in her room all day.”
“Is she reading, at least?”
“According to the Childcare Unit, she simply sits in silence or lies in bed.”
“…….”
The tapping of Mehen’s fingers stopped. His expression hardened—clearly displeased. Yet he held himself back, as if aware he had no right to meddle.
‘He shouldn’t have to restrain himself.’
Dylan, who had served Mehen for years, could only feel pity at this stalemate.
“Fine. Let’s get back to work.”
Mehen sank into his chair, rubbing his temples, looking every bit as worn as a man could be.

* * *

Butlers and maids trained at Ernst International Academy.
The six talented individuals known collectively as the Childcare Unit were oddly out of place in the Halbern Estate.
The Halbern clan—among the highest of the Five Great Ducal Houses—had always maintained hereditary vassal families to serve them.
They were so particular that they wouldn’t even hire outside help for menial work, much less entrust the care of the young lady to outsiders. For the stuffy nobility of the Imperial Capital, it was unthinkable.
“How was the young lady today?”
“She woke earlier than yesterday, but her breathing seemed labored—strenuous activity should be avoided.”
“I’ll prepare something easier to digest.”
Yet the professionally trained maids and butlers had proven invaluable to Arelin’s upbringing.
Yuni especially, the health-focused maid, possessed knowledge rivaling that of a physician. She monitored Arelin’s condition constantly, administered medicines on schedule, and coordinated with her personal doctor on prescriptions.
“Young lady…….”
Yuni’s shoulders sagged.
Today, as every day, Arelin remained shut away in her room, lying down the whole time.
‘She used to talk so much, always eager to listen.’
How had she become like this?
Having raised her since infancy, Yuni felt a special affection for Arelin—as did the entire Childcare Unit.
“It seems something has happened between Mehen and the young lady.”
An emergency meeting of the Childcare Unit.
“……It’s all our fault for not noticing sooner.”
A solemn mood settled over them.
“Perhaps we simply aren’t enough?”
“It’s our sacred duty to fill the gap left by the ever-busy Duke and Mehen, to care for the young lady perfectly and ensure her happiness! Rena, don’t speak such weakness!”
“But no matter how well we serve, we can never replace family, can we?”
“That’s true. The young lady does have family…….”
“Ugh.”
Gregory’s expression darkened.
“More than that—I’m curious why the young lady has been distant with us lately. Does anyone know?”
Ember, the maid responsible for meals, spoke up from where she’d been sitting quietly.
From the moment they noticed she’d changed, Arelin’s manner toward the Childcare Unit had shifted too.
A subtle distance. An atmosphere she wouldn’t let them cross. Though they were people and felt the sting of it, what truly worried them was Arelin herself.
The sight of her choosing solitude was far too fragile to bear.
“Ha. Thirty years as a butler, and this is my greatest crisis yet.”
“I’ve staked my whole life as a maid on this!”
“All of you, stop your whining! We are professionals.”
“That’s right! Exactly! We are professionals!”
“Even if the young lady comes to hate us, we must follow her to the very depths of hell to serve her!”
“That is what professionalism means!”
Their resolve steeled—or so they thought.
“But… I really don’t want to be disliked……”
“Me too, young lady~!”
“Pathetic fools! But… so do I!”
The emergency meeting dissolved into tears.

* * *

Who am I? Where is this place?
Griam looked up at the sky. It was utterly transparent, utterly clear—as if mourning his fate.
“Griam, snap out of it!”
“Ah.”
He didn’t want to return to reality.
Standing before the Halbern Estate, dragged here against his will, Griam felt the weight of his predicament.
‘There’s a madman living in this estate.’
There had been no time to prepare.
“What exactly…… is happening…….”
All he could do was follow along. He hadn’t even managed to send a letter ahead to the Halbern Estate.
Crown Prince Fesion had always been unpredictable, but never quite this reckless.
“Your Highness?”
The guards stared at Fesion in confusion.
“What are you waiting for? Open the doors.”
Fesion spoke with complete confidence.
“My head is going to explode…….”
The embarrassment fell squarely on Griam’s shoulders.
“Sh-shall I announce your arrival?”
“Go ahead.”
He nodded casually, then paused. A sudden thought delighted him.
‘She’d be even happier if I surprised her, wouldn’t she?’
“Wait!”
Watching Fesion stop the guards, Griam stared off into the distance.
The sky really was beautiful today.
“Griam, come on!”
“Yes, yes.”
Managing the aftermath would fall to him anyway. Griam had resigned himself to fate—hoping only that the Crown Prince wouldn’t cause disaster beyond repair.
Fesion moved forward, ignoring Griam’s perfunctory answer.
‘She’ll be so happy to see me.’
Delighted by the thought of surprising her, Fesion walked without hesitation. Surely she wouldn’t collapse again just from being startled—Arelin wasn’t that fragile, he was certain of it.
Last time he’d wandered around lost, but this time it was different.
‘It was that direction.’
That room from before. It probably wasn’t Arelin’s actual chamber, but there seemed to be rooms nearby.
But then.
‘What’s this?’
In just two weeks since his last visit, the estate’s atmosphere had transformed entirely. The air hung tense and sharp.
“Hmm?”
‘The estate feels strange.’
Fesion, who had been walking freely, stopped. As Griam watched his confusion, he grew puzzled himself.
“Your Highness, what is it?”
“Griam, shh.”
Ignoring Griam’s cold stare—whatever scheme he was hatching now—Fesion focused on something.
His Ki Perception, still limited in range, nonetheless picked up a clear approach from somewhere.
As silence fell, he heard voices drawing near: the lowest-ranking maids, those who handled the estate’s menial labor.
“Seriously? You heard that?”
“Yeah, and when I asked, the half-wit just stared at me like it was none of my business, can you believe it?”
“Wow, totally rude. What’s their problem?”
“Exactly. There’s definitely something going on between them and Mehen.”
“Now that you mention it, Mehen’s been hanging around outside half-wit’s door scowling all the time!”
“Yeah, I saw him too when I was cleaning that area.”
“Like they actually matter or something. Without Mehen they’d be nothing—just a half-wit.”
“Even a half-wit is still nobility, though. Mehen’s a commoner, after all.”
“Right? Pathetic.”
Half-wit? Half-something?
The women’s gossip flowed without restraint. Sensing something amiss, Griam immediately frowned and moved to cover Fesion’s ears, but the Crown Prince held him back.
It was a feeling, nothing more.
A certainty that he needed to hear this.
“And the Ernst people fawn all over Young Lady Arelin—oh, young lady this, young lady that—like it’s so funny.”
“Right, they were making such a fuss about it.”
“Money’s gotta be nice, huh?”
Giggling laughter.
“……?”
What exactly am I hearing?
Fesion turned to look at Griam. His face had gone rigid. Seeing that, Fesion knew his instinct had been right.
“Like she has so many people looking out for her. Mehen’s the only one.”
“Honestly, if Mehen didn’t take care of her, she’d just be a burden, right?”
“Yeah, who actually cares?”
“What’s the point? She’s useless anyway. Everyone knows she’s going to die soon.”
“That’s what I’m saying. Doesn’t even know her place.”
Cackling.
Laughter echoing through the halls.
Then.
“Who doesn’t know their place?”
A voice, cold as ice, descended like a blade.

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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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