The Obsessive Male Lead Is Obsessed With Me! - Chapter 124

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 124

Chapter 10

The only place for you is by my side

They say time flies like an arrow, and indeed another year passed quickly and a new year dawned again.

Throughout the Empire’s territories, including the capital, various festivals were held to celebrate the new year, and this was no different here in the Frost Duchy.

Before the monster wave struck, Rotman Castle, located at the entrance of the Northern Mountains, was a large village that could be called a city, if not quite a major city.

However, after taking a direct hit from the monster wave, the entire city was devastated and most of the territory’s residents died.

Having become complete ruins and only recently begun reconstruction, they weren’t really in a state to celebrate New Year’s festivals or anything like that.

…Or so everyone thought.

“Hello, please stop by for a moment! We’re currently giving out bird figurines carved from snow-scented wood to commemorate the new year!”

“Come, come! New Year’s special whole roasted wild boar!”

“Special spicy sauce! Challenge human limits! If you finish the entire wild boar steak grilled with our 10-level sauce, you’ll receive a small golden pig as a prize!”

The Northern Mountains, located at the Empire’s northernmost point, were so cold that farming was unthinkable.

The Duke and Duchess of Frost, who were assigned here six months ago, worked hard exploring the Northern Mountains while rebuilding the ruined village, searching for specialty products that could revive this city. What they found were sturdy timber adapted to the cold climate and large mountain beasts.

-If you migrate to the Frost Duchy, we’ll make sure you at least won’t face cold frost and won’t go hungry!

At the Duchess’s confident declaration, wanderers scattered throughout the northern regions began gathering in the duchy.

Thanks to this, the city that had become a complete ghost town, now renamed Frost Castle, was beginning to show signs of life again.

“Wow… I heard it was completely ruined, but there are quite a lot of people here?”

Perhaps deciding to completely renovate everything since all the buildings had collapsed anyway, new buildings were continuously being erected along streets laid out in neat squares centered around the widely paved main road.

In the large commercial district, there were more temporary stalls using carts and tents than proper buildings, but people’s faces were full of vitality.

“Lucky draw! Test your luck! The first prize winner gets a magic item exchange voucher usable at the Frost Tower!”

“Lucky draw?”

Roil, an apprentice mage who was looking around while chewing on honey candy received at the entrance to Frost Castle, headed toward the lucky draw stall with sparkling eyes.

He intended to test his luck before an important exam.

“How much does it cost to try this once?”

“It’s free, free. It’s the new year after all. But by any chance, are you a mage here to take the Frost Tower’s exam?”

“Hmm, do I look like one?”

Roil, full of superficial vanity, tried to nod while patting his shoulders, pretending to dust off his newly bought mage robe.

But before that, the young woman who owned the stall spoke first.

“Ah, no. The exam was yesterday, that’s right.”

“…What?”

“That, what was it? The exam for recruiting new mages at the Frost Tower. That was yesterday…”

“What? Whaaaat?”

Roil, his mouth agape, grabbed the young woman’s shoulders and questioned her.

“The exam ended yesterday? Not today?”

“What? Yes… It was yesterday. Yesterday was the first written exam, and today is the second practical exam, I heard…”

“Noooooo!”

This wasn’t the time for lucky draws or anything. Roil rushed toward the Frost Tower.

The Frost Tower, which had moved to the northern part of Frost Castle, halfway up the Northern Mountains, was tremendously tall—so tall you couldn’t see the top—and was covered in blue frost, befitting its name.

And in front of it stood a large sign.

[Exam finished. No additional applications accepted. Don’t give me bullshit about mistaking the exam date and go back. We don’t open doors for idiots who don’t even know the date.]

“Noooooo!”

Roil collapsed on the spot and cried out in despair. But there was no one halfway up the mountain who could hear that cry.

A moment later, Roil began knocking on the Frost Tower with the desperation of a drowning man grasping at straws.

“Please, just give me one chance! I came from the southern part of the Empire. I practically crossed the entire Empire. I couldn’t properly check the schedule because I traveled such a long way… I couldn’t, but! Please show some leniency, okay? I’m begging you!”

However, as if he wasn’t the only one like this, no response came from inside the Frost Tower.

To begin with, what Roil was knocking on wasn’t even a door. There was no door at all.

He never knew that “only qualified individuals can enter the tower” would have such a literal meaning.

Roil continued knocking on the tower until he finally made a sobbing sound and slumped down in place.

“I bragged that I would definitely, really pass the exam this time…”

How would he go home now, with what face would he meet his parents? Roil sat slumped on the ground, staring blankly at the sky.

But then, a small window-like opening appeared in the tower’s wall, and a hand popped out from inside, throwing what looked like a flyer.

The fluttering flyer landed on Roil’s face.

Startled as his vision suddenly turned black, he screamed, then belatedly discovered the content written on the flyer, and Roil’s face filled with puzzlement.

“What’s this now…?”

[☆Magic Item Crafting Academy Open!★

You who want to become a mage! Perhaps you have talent in magic item crafting?

Register now and get two months of tuition free! Inquire right now!]

* * *

“Magic Item Crafting Academy! To commemorate breaking thirty students! Cheers!”

Lionel lightly clinked his glass against the beer mug I held high.

Today’s meal menu was also whole roasted wild boar.

Having eaten wild boar as a staple for six months now made me feel like I’d become a wolf, but still, being able to eat meat to my heart’s content in this midwinter, in this cold region, wasn’t bad at all.

With a grateful heart, I stabbed the well-grilled wild boar meat with my fork and brought it to my mouth. At least it was fortunate that this cold region had various spicy sauces developed.

“We were really lucky, weren’t we? Most of the people who failed the tower exam and those who couldn’t take the exam at all because they missed the timing registered for the academy.”

“Do they seem to have some enthusiasm?”

“So far? The first assignment is hand warmers and flashlights. When I said we’d teach basic magic first to people who can’t use light magic or fire magic yet, the response was pretty good.”

This Magic Item Crafting Academy I established myself had many special benefits.

First. If students’ magic items receive passing grades, they can take all the profits except material costs and commission fees by selling them at the academy’s directly managed store.

Right now we’re only selling here in Frost Castle, but when we have more students, I planned to sell in other regions through connections with the Roheim Trading Company.

And second. If students who have attended for more than a year want to develop their own magic items, we’ll help them through a mentoring system, and if those magic items are completed, we’ll also help register the blueprints with the tower.

Magic items with blueprints registered at the tower can be made and sold by the tower or directly made by other mages, but each time they must pay a commission to the blueprint creator.

If you’re in a situation where you can directly make and sell many magic items yourself, it’s advantageous not to register the blueprints, but usually it’s more advantageous to spend that time developing other magic items.

Moreover, if you register blueprints with the tower, it can become an opportunity for other mages to look at those blueprints and think ‘this person seems useful’ and scout you.

Then you’d acquire a direct pass to the tower.

“I still get inquiries asking me to be their disciple a few times a year.”

“Don’t other people know that Liri is the Frost Tower Master’s disciple?”

“Only a few of Master’s direct disciples? Other people think my being Master’s disciple was when I was young. And when I register blueprints with the Frost Tower now, I use a pseudonym, so people don’t know I’m the magic item creator.”

“What pseudonym did you use?”

“Albert. My brother’s name.”

The reason for using my brother’s name was simple.

I’ve registered over 100 blueprints so far! I didn’t want to reveal to the outside world that I’m the genius magic item creator with enough wealth to live a lifetime just receiving commission fees.

“Mother’s philosophy is that women must always have one back pocket they can use secretly from their husbands after marriage.”

“I see.”

“But well… Lionel wouldn’t ask for money even if I received it separately under my own name. Right?”

“Yes. I’m not that incompetent.”

Right. A male lead who touches the female lead’s assets can’t exist!

‘It’s really nice to remove just the obsession from an obsessive male lead and leave only the male lead part.’

While looking fondly at Lionel, who was dining elegantly even at a table full of nothing but pork, in this cold region, I suddenly had this thought.

‘He’s not still thinking about starting a rebellion or anything, is he?’

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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