Chapter 45

Prios (2)

Translated by CleiZz

Edited by Lumiere

“Are you sick?”

Cassion asked quietly.

“Are you not feeling well?”

Aris looked at Ruel anxiously.

“No, it’s the same as usual.”

Cassion carefully examined Ruel.

Breathing, fever, trembling, everything was similar to usual as he said.

“Cough, cough.”

The familiar cough sound was also the same.

Cassion couldn’t help but ask questions that came late.

“What do you think Ruel-nim is resting for? Isn’t he the one who can move even if there are two sides of the sky?”

“What are you talking about?”

It was a joke that wasn’t even funny.

Looking back on Ruel’s own actions, wasn’t it simple?

He had, of course, been running around a bit with his condition, so he was thinking of taking a break.

‘A day or so?’

“Then I’ll get a tailor. I’ll also put off the meeting later.”

“No, I need clothes to wear, and I’m going to show my face for a minute at the meeting.”

Cassion’s smiling face hardened.

The meaning of resting was different from that of himself.

‘Well then.’

Cassion answered, letting go of the food.

“Okay. I’ll tell them separately.”

***

The tailor closed his eyes tightly and was happy that the size did not decrease as much as expected, and the barons including Minart watched Ruel’s eyes throughout the meeting, so they could not even say the ‘ma’ of marriage.

Since the warp device will not be made overnight, it has been decided to discuss it one more time at the next meeting.

Flop.

Ruel lay in bed and coughed.

Is it because it was harder than I thought to catch a rat?

I was tired even though I didn’t do anything.

“Change your clothes and lie down.”

Cassion held back his anger while carrying a change of clothes.

“Let’s do it roughly.”

Isn’t it my room anyway?

It doesn’t matter what I wear when I sleep.

Leo pressed Ruel’s back hard.

—It is full of filth again. This body will eat you!

“Wait!”

But before Cassion could even speak his words, Leo had already touched Ruel’s body.

Looking at the black things emanating from Ruel’s body, Leo swallowed his mouth.

Ruel groaned and gripped the duvet tightly as his heart had been removed without preparation.

His hands trembled.

Cassion hurriedly took out his handkerchief and put it in Ruel’s mouth.

Yum. Yum.

Black blood flowed from Ruel’s mouth with the sound of teeth clashing.

“Beast, from now on, get my permission before eating Ruel-nim’s disease. The duvet I put on today will get dirty.”

Teary-eyed.

As if appealing to his disappointment, Ruel vomited black blood.

I’m glad I supported it with a magic handkerchief, otherwise I would have almost gone for a new blanket today.

Cassion looked proudly at the handkerchief and was relieved.

“… Cassion.”

Ruel was dumbfounded and looked at Cassion.

“Please understand that I take care of everything, including bloody clothes, blankets, and pillows.”

There were servants in charge of laundry.

However, we can’t just leave the blood-stained laundry to the servants.

No matter how much Billo cracked down on the rumors, there was no guarantee that such a big event wouldn’t leak out.

Ruel quickly averted his gaze.

I was poked inside.

“Thank you for your generous understanding.”

Despite Cassion’s intentionally twisting and sarcastic remarks, Ruel was desperate to endure the pain from what just happened.

How embarrassed he would have been if he hadn’t been sick.

“… Go.”

“I’ll come whenever you call me.”

Cassion raised the corners of his lips and walked away.

After he left, Ruel put down the blanket he had been holding for a long time.

Chomp. Chomp.

Leo, who was still chewing something, looked cheeky, but he was feeling lighter.

Leo jumped twice in place when Ruel held the cane.

—Ruel, are you playing with this body today? Are you doing the same thing you did last time?

“Yes.”

—It was fun because Ruel stumbled. Do I just have to push it with the wind again today?

“That’s right.”

Ruel opened the window.

Only after creating an environment where the wind can flow well, Ruel got up from his seat.

Ttak.

He put down the cane.

By the time Ruel failed to balance and was falling, Leo pushed his back with the wind.

The cane was what he needed, but he shouldn’t rely on it.

How helpless he was when he lost his cane to Flenn.

He told others to be strong, but it was himself who cannot do it.

‘I have to be able to walk without holding a cane. I have to be able to run.’

I kept walking in place leaning on my weak body.

To withstand mana, he had to develop resistance and learn magic.

He couldn’t just throw away this talent.

‘Let’s be strong. So I can protect myself.’

Hearing Leo’s bashful laughter, Ruel continued moving forward.

***

Tweet. Tweet.

Ruel opened his eyes at the clear sound of birds ringing in his ears.

“Did you sleep well, Ruel-nim?”

Cassion’s gaze was somehow high.

When he looked around him, there was only a blanket on the floor of the room, covering him.

It was not as cold as I thought, but several stones with thermal insulation magic were placed around him.

“What did you do yesterday that made you faint?”

I didn’t remember exactly.

I left myself to Leo and just walked.

‘No, I didn’t walk. Because I stumbled.’

Ruel pulled the blanket up to his nose.

“If you see something that has fallen on the ground, shouldn’t you put that person on the bed instead of leaving him there?”

“Don’t you have to think about how I feel when you did not show up for lunch and dinner?”

“Does it work properly?”

It was questionable whether Mana’s oath worked properly.

Cassion smiled vigorously.

“It works well.”

Ruel laughed despondently at Cassion’s answer and inhaled Breath.

Usually, I woke up to inhale Breath because I was often suffocated at dawn, but today I didn’t have that at all.

“I inherited it. So it’s working fine.”

‘I thought I got healthier.’

“Why did you faint so much that you couldn’t even breathe properly? There was no sign of vomiting blood.”

“Pretend you don’t know.”

“I don’t know.”

Cassion said firmly.

In the past, it was not safe, so I would have attached my guild members to guard him, but now there is no need for that.

“What’s for breakfast today?”

“They say Liberan is secretly gathering people.”

Cassion answered Ruel’s question differently, took the documents out of his pocket, and handed it over to Ruel.

Ruel, who quickly received the documents, read them as they were.

Liberan didn’t know if Flenn was caught.

He deliberately kept in touch without killing Flenn.

The contact only asked if he was collecting drugs well and asked him to overturn Setiria.

But he got another call today.

[We’re going to move it. Buy the guard at the gate of Setiria in advance.]

Ruel put down the note that was sandwiched between his documents and turned his gaze to the letter.

‘Are you secretly gathering adventurers to transport things?’

There were quite a few people recruiting considering it being conducted secretly.

It seemed that he was going to move things by pretending to be a merchant.

“Cassion, how did you get this information?”

“It’s simple. Everyone’s mouth is light in front of death.”

“Buy one of the adventurers and change the list of adventurers to us.”

“Are you also going, Ruel-nim?”

“I won’t do reckless things like when I was catching Flenn. I have to meet the head of Prios as well.”

Cassion sighed instead of answering.

“We’ll leave in 5 days.”

The goods were scheduled to be shipped a week later.

Shouldn’t we go to Prios in advance and prepare various things?

“Call my uncle. You don’t have to come to me after.”

“Okay.”

From the smile on Ruel’s face, Cassion sensed that he was up to something.

A moment after Cassion left, there was a knock on the door.

“Did I interrupt your research?”

“No. You’re calling, and of course I should come.”

“Uncle, I have a favor to ask of you.”

Tyson wondered why Ruel was sitting on the floor, but smiled broadly at the request of his nephew.

“Tell me anything.”

“Please strengthen this to the point where I can stand while using it.”

I handed over the bracelet I received from Ganien.

It was a magic item that made me walk better.

“… Ruel, magic items are less than direct mana, but it’s easy to strain your body.”

“So you only have to strengthen it to a level that I can tolerate.”

“May I ask why?”

“I want to move as much as I can.”

I couldn’t leave my body alone forever using my illness as an excuse.

That item was the foundation for that.

“I want to be strong, too.”

Ruel inhaled the Breath.

“It’s two different things, not getting better and being strong.”

Tyson shut his mouth tight.

He’s afraid he’ll say something that will make Ruel lose his expectations.

“Red Ash is aiming for me. I don’t know the identity of the enemy. But they knew very well what was going on around me.”

He manipulated Carbena, reached out to Hale, the eldest son of the Lumina family, a baron of the Lumina family, and Matyros that trafficked people.

And he threatened Setiria by handing over the secrets of the Prios family to the baron Liberan.

All of this is not just a coincidence, Ruel thought.

It must have been a long and painstaking preparation.

“Everything they have done so far, all of them are directed towards Setiria and me. Cough, cough.”

Ruel frowned and let out his cough.

“Someday, they will also target those around me and will remove the obstacles one by one. I can’t even move at will, so should I just watch the situation?”

With a firm look, Tyson saw the bracelet Ruel gave.

It was dangerous.

If he creates an item that exceeds Ruel’s tolerance, he will break again like before.

He was scared.

He wonders if he’s hurting Ruel again with his own hands.

“Uncle, I know what you’re worried about. But I’m fine. I believe in my uncle.”

“Ruel, it’s not a hasty decision. Your existence is much bigger than you think.”

“I know. So I can’t stay still like this. My existence shouldn’t be a weakness. I have to be strong.”

Ruel has already made up his mind.

With that firm will, Tyson felt like his heart was breaking.

He wanted to shout asking why he had to walk on the thorny path right away.

“Uncle, even if my body is weak, I don’t want to be as weak as my mind. Can you help me?”

Ruel laughed.

Tyson couldn’t say anything more about the sad smile.

A guy like my son wants to be strong, and he wants to fight.

I can’t do anything about it.

“I got it.”

Tyson struggled to accept it but looked at Ruel and smiled.