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My Male Lead is in the Process of Being Corrupted (11)
Adele gave me a cryptic smile.
“Those words must have come from a terribly incompetent and lousy scholar.”
“Ha ha… D-do you think so?”
Kylis had said those words and I had simply repeated what I could recall of them, but somehow I felt like I was the terribly incompetent and lousy scholar.
Ah, no! Kylis was the original source!
Adele looked me in the eyes.
“Please try not to feel pity for him.”
My conscience was stabbed in another way. He had noticed that I had been thinking about Kylis.
“He is a murderer who has slaughtered countless people. He laid ruin to other countries as well as his own and he is the one who brought about the end of an era. Had he not brutally massacred people in the first place, he would not be endlessly wandering the earth, unable to die. Nor would he have been able to steal part of your life.”
Everything that Adele said was correct. History itself stood as testament to his words.
“It’s not that I pity him. It’s just… there’s something I’m stuck on.”
What if he’s actually related to you in some way? Should I use this opportunity to find out for sure? Or… maybe letting it go is the right thing to do.
“Anastasia, please look at me.”
With some difficulty, I raised my head.
“… So, what about that incompetent and lousy scholar is bothering you?”
He steered the direction of the conversation for me. I hesitated before making an open confession.
“Nothing much, I was just wondering what he looked like when he was alive.”
“Well, not much is known in regard to that particular subject, so it is difficult to say.”
He was someone who died in a long forgotten past. Even if I said that I wanted to know what he looked like, no one but the person himself could tell me.
Hmmmmmm. Resting my chin on my hands, I groaned.
“You said he was never married and had no children. Then I guess his family line was cut off… So unless there’s some grand secret that we don’t know about, there’s no way he could be anyone’s ancestor, right?” I asked, looking for confirmation.
In the past I had once, very briefly, suspected that Kylis could be one of my ancestors. Moreover, I had also questioned Kylis directly, asking if we had been lovers in a past life or siblings that had transcended through time after being separated by death. But he’d openly ignored me.
“I suppose.”
I turned everything over in my head.
Kylis wasn’t an ancestor of mine and there was no way he was one of Adele’s.
So then there must have been some other connection… But I had no idea what it could be. The gap between our generations was simply too vast.
“If you are curious about my lineage, I’d be happy to go over it in detail. The genealogy of the Magnus family has been well preserved.”
Feeling guilty, I hastily rejected his offer.
“N-no! I didn’t ask because I thought one of your ancestors was someone like that! I was just curious about Kylis’ family tree.”
But Adele didn’t dismiss what I said.
“Well you never know. Perhaps you had good reason to harbor such suspicions. I do not believe your hunch was entirely unfounded.”
Uwahhhhh…
I was close to tears.
“Actually, the reason I went to that place yesterday was because I mistook Kylis for you. I heard your voice, so I blindly followed after it… I really thought it was you…”
Besides, I was feeling uneasy about the bad effect Kylis’ belongings seem to have on you and plus the inexplicable things that Chester Frey said… Anyway, there was too much.
“Is that so.”
“Are you upset?” I asked with a bitter smile.
“I like it.”
“Uh… What?”
Did I hear him wrong?
Adele spoke normally, as though it was strange that I was apologetic.
“Your interest in Kylis is related to me and you acted out of concern for my well-being. So how could I be upset?”
Tears threatened to fall from my eyes. Unable to hold back the tide of rising emotions, I muttered under my breath.
“Adele, you’re the one who’s an angel…”
“That’s enough of that.”
… What’s with that look of blatant dissatisfaction? It’s super cringey, right?
He ignored my pointed look.
“I am monitoring Kylis’ movements, checking his location every 10 minutes or so. Although it is probably unnecessary as his destination is clear. In any case, he has already destroyed two unoccupied temples that were scheduled for demolition. At some point he will attack a temple where priests are residing and from there it will only be a matter of time before the cause is determined to be more than a simple accident. However, as this is an unprecedented situation, the office of the church will be unable to respond quickly.”
“Is Kylis going to kill the priests?”
“His aim is the holy relics, so they should have enough time to escape. I will also provide some assistance.”
I was listening intently, but my head suddenly started ringing.
“… Ugh.”
The shock was intense, like a blow from a hammer. I clutched my head. I could faintly hear Adele’s voice calling out to me. With some effort, I managed to open my mouth to reassure him.
“I’m… I’m okay. I’m just a little dizzy.”
The pain gradually subsided, but tears had gathered in the corners of my eyes. When I blinked, they formed into droplets and spilled over.
“I will take you back to the Count’s residence.”
“… Just a second.”
I bit my lip and tried to shake my head. I hadn’t had a headache like this before.
“My head is… ringing a little… a lot right now, so… I need a moment…”
My whole body was trembling. Adele sat down beside me without saying anything more and covered my forehead with a hand. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Amazingly, after resting against his shoulder for a few minutes, the pain completely disappeared.
“Ah… What was that? I feel fine now.”
I tilted my head this way and that.
Am I really alright?
“I’m glad that you are feeling better.”
It was pretty strange, but the symptoms had disappeared right away, so I decided to chalk it up to being tired.
I ate some dessert to wipe the unpleasantness from my mind. In an effort to be good, I tried to eat less than I usually would, but Adele kept putting more and more into my mouth. In the end, I stuffed myself with dessert until my stomach was ready to burst.
As we got into the carriage to return to the Count’s residence I staggered and stealthily slid into the seat next to Adele.
“Ah. I’m feeling a little dizzy again, so I’ll probably need your shoulder.”
He pretended to be fooled by my clumsy act.
“Anastasia.”
“Hm?”
“How did you know where I was?”
“Ash told me. He brought me here, then promptly abandoned me.”
Adele laughed along with me, but the air about him seemed a bit somber.
“If he had actually acted as a guide, then I could have talked to him a little more.”
Oh!
I rubbed my cheek unconsciously.
We arrived in front of the Count’s residence, but Adele didn’t get out of the carriage right away.
His words were like a farewell as he said, “Tomorrow night I will do everything in my power to get the part of your life that was stolen back.”
I was puzzled.
“Th-that soon?”
It was only one day away. Not to mention, it didn’t seem like he had prepared properly.
Did he have enough time to prepare?
He was with me until dawn and then he had gone about his normal routine during the day. He wouldn’t even have had time to sleep.
Adele reassured me in his usual bright tone of voice.
“Please don’t worry. Everything will be fine.”
The Adele that I knew was the strongest person in the whole world. He was my male lead and he always protected me, no matter the time or the location.
So why do I feel so anxious?
“I’ll go too…”
Just as I was about to ask if I could at least watch from afar, he lowered his head. His lips touched my cheek and then fell away. But instead of straightening up, he whispered into my ear in a voice that only I could hear.
“Even if this fails, you won’t die. There are other alternatives.”
With a hint of laughter in his voice he said, “I am not talking about other people’s lives, Anastasia.”
“Th-then what?”
“Well, who knows. Try to think about what that could mean.”
It sounded extremely important, but it was hard to take everything in at once. My heart was beating like crazy.
Saying that he hoped I would be able to get some rest tonight, Adele departed. My mind was in chaos.
“Did you enjoy your outing?”
My mother had come out to meet me, but I could only muster up a feeble response.
“Yeah. Thanks for allowing me…”
I tottered unsteadily up to my bedroom. Collapsing on my bed, I closed my eyes.
Is this really okay?
Really?
I grabbed Kylis’ helmet that I had stashed under my bed. The worn-out helmet made me feel even more frustrated.
“How the hell are you connected to Adele? There’s just too much that’s suspicious.”
Close to despair, I received an unexpected reply.
[You are never quiet.]
“Heup.”
Startled, I nearly flung the helmet away in surprise, but I managed to pull myself together.
Th-that was Kylis answering me just now, right?
Did he hear my voice?
I took a deep breath and spoke once again.
“Can you hear me? Really?”
But no further reply came.
What the heck is this? Is he ignoring me like usual? This guy… seriously.
“Hey. Do you know how dangerous your current situation is? Why does your voice sound so calm?”
More silence. I set the helmet down in front of me and tapped it with a finger.
“Come on! Don’t ignore me!”
It was completely ridiculous. I was more anxious than he was. You’d almost think I was the one in danger of being sealed for a second time, not him.
Tired of waiting for an answer, I was just about to give up when Kylis suddenly spoke.
[You have too much of an effect on me. Both the me who is dead and the me who is alive…]
After mulling over his words a few times, I openly confessed, “I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
[It is better if you continue that way.]
“I don’t want to.”
[Then come see me.]
For a moment a few choice curses climbed up my throat, stopping just before they poured out of my mouth. But it was impossible for me to remain calm any longer.
“Are you kidding me? Do you have any idea of what almost happened to me after you deceived me yesterday? And you didn’t even come to save me.”
My voice was sharp. I still had a lot to say, but Kylis lapsed into silence once more.
“Excuse me? Kylis?”
Hey! Do you even have a conscience?!
Ugh.
I lay down with a sigh.
“Even if this fails, you won’t die. There are other alternatives.”
The cryptic words that Adele had left me with swirled around in my mind.
He had said something similar in the past. Although at that time he had been referring to a living sacrifice.
But at some point he had decided against it.
“I am not talking about other people’s lives, Anastasia.”
Then?
What are you going to use as a substitute?