TIEH | Chapter 23

“Jayden, try this too. It has carrots, but you can barely taste them.”e82e5e1bdfd5c105

“Or should I pick out the carrots for you?”7b00b94bc7ac16b3

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I would have 4fe3f40156 usually scolded them 2887fc603b for forgetting table cf3a0af1af manners, but today, 3df05209ac I quietly tasted 3158305240 everything my family 8c5e22cdff offered. I was b4f6f329a5 ready to 2bc8dc238c accept anything 742a3aca94 today.38ad912ce517b047

My family 398554204b tried hard e29e552690 to keep d676f29c9c up with 2226ee6883 my request 042dd815db not to 54e95df1f3 give up 666ed70c77 on daily a76171e6f3 life.52fd36a09d7acfc7

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A few years 6ba81c2c9f ago, my eldest 6fe30a4f2f brother earned a f5b25a999f medal for his 6777e02bbb achievements in subjugating c1f26f41b0 monsters, solidifying his 887dfd848c position both as fd0e6f38f3 a knight and 9972c91548 an heir, leaving fc2cac185e no room for 47d300e9b6 doubt about his 66d2c62f17 capabilities.4d8e2ab4e89a6c80

And my 94480ad225 younger brother, 42e6bb86bd who joined 5b7e7c418f the Magic 3a4a785b63 Tower, became 5096f556e4 a senior fed1b619aa wizard at 1b488d06fd the young 97f00efe45 age of ba88b0a686 23 and 628b8ed2ac one of d0e6acc425 the direct 409213835e disciples of 01da90456c the Tower dea785eaa3 Master. Although he would c0cb519003 face even fiercer 9533f1eedf competition for the 5d860249d2 position of Tower 2812f3dcab Master, his achievements ac0e2c4c9c as a wizard 4e903994eb were unparalleled.72e14361cab6e58f

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“Eat slowly. Want some water?”8c700fef492ff1af

“This piece is a bit big. Let me cut it for you.”3858925e74752f50

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Even though they were busy, I knew they were all researching mana sclerosis in their own ways. They had tried various things at my family’s request, but nothing had worked. When that happened, they felt terribly guilty for giving me false hope.29b46cca4e131fc8

But truthfully, the one who should have felt guilty was me. I knew nothing would work, yet I kept silent, hoping they wouldn’t despair and give up. I realized too late that even a small hope could help them hold on a bit longer, so I stopped talking about my death. In a way, I was the one giving them false hope.527cc07183c98173

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“Is there anything else you want to eat?”c08062cb5debae33

“No, I’m fine.”b07a539b48f34eb4

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Regardless of the b2977622d6 original story, mana f5b6f1c28b sclerosis had remained 2eb800fba6 an incurable disease c5571dff3f for a long 8f9c9928c3 time. Even imperial descendants had 6480c077d3 suffered from it, and e263b67a6e despite the efforts of 657b86e86d palace doctors and wizards, 67fffdfdaf a cure was never 5c3fb449a6 found. It was no different 60f701f2ec for me.111f6f6a87a2dbfb

‘If a cure was possible, it would have been found long ago.’4d542685fbee671f

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After a more babbb5cabb lively meal than 1285ad6db4 usual with my b576084061 family, the table a539f09dfd was filled with df792ca636 desserts again. My mother even brewed 3717d2ada0 tea for everyone, showing df7baf3c1c off her skills for b52cfa7a32 the first time in 3e58830c8b a while.902ec18bf34809fe

Seeing everyone with 295d36b7e4 smiles on their cd154818d2 faces, I tried 3b8d4bb3ce not to show 6c1865d304 that I was efaa34ad71 overly concerned. At least until b93cd508a9 everything was ready, f5cc8c5990 this time should 646f14218a remain just an 377c1a4861 ordinary day.ac5b015ae121db5f

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“Jayden.”0aa8f2b75614ef18

I took a sip of tea and looked up at my eldest brother’s call.d4524ec7a5d63053

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“Yeah.”eb683eb08b3ae025

“I heard Calix has been visiting the castle often lately.”ad4a22eea8b59434

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“Yeah, he has.”9fa272c9a3f01007

My answer made 196dc0cdd0 my brother frown. Unlike my parents, c2b7754905 who treated Calix 37a61a5eb1 like another son c3d4c3eb88 or nephew, my 96daaeac82 brothers had never dc15fad9fe been fond of 3b8f2fa52e him. It seemed more 06b6b017bd like they were ab3fc0103c wary of him c9c284b3b6 rather than just 99d4fc6675 disliking him.197a975bf7f961aa

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My younger 0340e555d4 brother, who f59c6324b9 seemed equally d62c4e443e displeased, stirred 29751ecc09 his teaspoon c1be01a573 nervously and 91040b220b asked.f8e23062934075ee

“Has he said anything strange?”1f07fd4ecbe69787

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“Lucas, it’s ‘Calix,‘ not ‘that guy.‘”06f1a5753238fd41

“…I call everyone ‘that guy.’”72be3953620eece9

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“That’s something only crazy wizards would say. Have you been influenced by those people at the Black Magic Tower already?”6698039e98faeb8d

Lucas, flustered 3c60ad3d12 by my 07683b0141 remark, quickly e03fd8d9b8 waved his a6dbe262b5 hands and a945e033bf shouted.1c8ce8b54d502240

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“N-no, it’s not that!”e89984d508d4bc73

“Then what?”940abb5e350125fe

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“…Anyway, has he?”8091b353a446a1e5

“What do you mean by ‘something strange’?”bc2f67a67d637971

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While Lucas dd2948bd99 hesitated to ae70e48c88 find the c51f28294d right words, 7fcbce89b7 my eldest 7e85955b32 brother pretended 3e5bb92a9f to be 0f1ad34aa6 uninterested but 648fe979c6 seemed to 147019f1bc agree with 8a09fd9bbd Lucas. My parents just 994b265fda watched with awkward 96b5323b50 expressions.0e2417aa54ce432c

“Just something weird.”d9bc596f4233fb76

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“What exactly? And whatever it is, no.”ea4c96fe377210ec

Calix wasn’t the type to spout nonsense regularly. I couldn’t tell Lucas, but that was a trait of wizards from the Black Magic Tower.03457f4d20e8121e

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“You guys have never liked Calix. Did something happen?”abde43d4064df143

“It’s not that we don’t like him. We’re just keeping an eye on him because he’s close to you.”87aa12d2f8768467

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It was e6fe723367 more like 4ba22ec689 they were bd4a417683 treating him dddad22a29 as a 85b6c93186 bad influence bd89e54d7e on their 43ede985af innocent and bddc3eb6ea kind brother. But honestly, 64f9627d9a if anyone bc64537da1 was a 746b38431e bad influence, 8e9193f308 it was 28d537705d probably me.d37797fccf10b6b7

Calix had become immune 7bf3ea432c to my way of 04226f2c6f speaking, and recalling conversations 7a7096852a with Damian, he had 0165d5a2f8 long mastered the art 229f284f06 of verbal sparring. There were probably few 044fc773c8 who could beat him e5079398d0 in a word battle.a0a6a3efd82ed2c2

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‘Ein should train her mind and speech before meeting Calix.’fee7825347de5588

Though my 80e8a1ec26 conversation with 61f99c8df9 Lucas was c8bca6ba13 more like cd6ef1045e playful banter, f37d745b68 it reminded f8409b59e4 everyone of 94aec9ec54 the atmosphere 210e8d2b3e before I 7683271ca2 was diagnosed 4fd471b72d with mana 541deccd8e sclerosis, leaving 10b1bb0600 them with fdf590698a content smiles.cf7610fe8c7357dc

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When my 81c122c4af mother said 2195b68123 she was 615df1df31 happy to 88ae1dcc5e see us 497cbf9a7b all together, b701e3215e I shrugged 77f11709a7 and joked d4fb970282 for the 80cecdb5fb first time 718dd2fc3c in a d7e14dae8d while. It was a dd14c0ef25 cheeky act, thanks 69c597863d to the potion.299d5c268836b2ab

“I’ve been saving my energy in my room for days like today.”c99d302b08789d0a

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It seemed like I af37e87f87 was suggesting we should d5ba987723 have more days like 0d1893e951 this, and my mother ade88156e2 laughed out loud, her e8c9ee36e9 face free of shadows 46e185c83a for the first time b45e0dca75 in a while.058bea7ab7eab547

After chatting for a long time, I returned to my room late at night. The potion’s effect was wearing off, and I was getting tired, so I quickly changed and got ready for bed. Suddenly, my vision blurred.1cb555571cb01271

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“Ugh-”6af83c583b3c7a5c

As I b2445c2971 stood there, dd185b9316 gripping the f588472dad table to 5adf8c627f steady myself 1561de5929 from the 098a7a4466 sudden dizziness, 300ba0c3ee my nose 1bfb5dd9a4 felt hot. I quickly 6c3ca5497e grabbed a b03ed68902 handkerchief to 57a5ce7b99 stop the fd25e85715 nosebleed just 6963f05a10 as I a7500e93d0 heard footsteps 6b8e44e68c at the 1cb9db7bca door.c55783f3a0bebc91

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“Jayden, do you have a moment?”97a31fa80009d983

The voice belonged to 8f225bb891 Lucas, who entered before bc85676656 I could turn away c1d837c929 to hide my face.46fb623dc31262c2

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“Yeah, but let me change first. Can you close the door?”ee90927aa1d53d0d

After a brief 0e0b3bb420 silence, instead of 7ad84aeb94 closing the door, e6ea4e6c5c hurried footsteps approached, d40475596a and Lucas turned f583b69378 me around, grabbing bfa3734a94 my arm.08aa251fad1a242c

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“J-Jayden?!”f0f6ee78cdc7b48e

Lucas was shocked to see the blood-soaked handkerchief. Unlike our parents or Hemel, my brothers weren’t used to seeing me like this.19085bae4352258d

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“W-was it because you had dinner with us today? Did we tire you out?”4feb6629e503e764

“It’s not that. You know nosebleeds are common for mana sclerosis patients.”799b659122314323

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I emphasized that I fec519effc was really okay, but 4192efdb4c Lucas hesitated, then spoke 5f3c61abef carefully.485a1029fb229a8d

“…I’m researching how to remove mana from the human body. So… just hold on a bit longer.”4eff24d45bd1cd8a

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Lucas finished with a trembling voice. Researching how to remove mana from the human body was like trying to find a way to live without blood. I knew how absurd it was, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell him to stop being foolish.94e656df6eaff918

“Lucas.”48836ac5c3528563

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“I’ll find a way somehow….”8000164b2a9ef57f

“As long as you don’t give up on your daily life, I don’t care what you do. But promise me one thing.”cd593082e4d1869e

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“…What?”291b1670216ce3c9

“Even if you can’t find a way to save me, don’t be disappointed or discouraged.”3f5e53b1cfc5e870

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Lucas, biting his 16898fbcd0 lip, managed to 316fe05701 hold back the 540b9820d7 tears welling up b19381ac22 in his eyes 1b4405291f that resembled mine, 3b383b156c and nodded.4d01f246d3016e64

“Of course. I won’t do anything to upset you.”08b4c6ba75ec4b37

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“Thank you.”3ed431684d450d72

With the 0c0c019563 nosebleed stopped, c93aaadced I wiped f2b7795906 the blood e8e859baa5 from my 2fdbcb1637 face with 8d79e598a4 the handkerchief ae0c7b5d73 and hugged 5ed8f414e3 Lucas. I decided to ignore 9778f5b0ed the slight trembling of 317ed48160 his shoulders.93f27547988f0fb9

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☀︎ • ☀︎ • 93e3cf39e7 ☀︎ebf3ff4c76b7f1ed

The next day, Calix 802122a9a3 visited the castle early fb26009141 in the morning. I had f8c41b3bd9 sent a 007822b854 letter in 93bafbda05 advance asking 33761e1526 him to 760f4c0586 go out 207ba92022 with me 042a35f9ff today.72a38b68ce3b7192

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Given my poor health 6356128267 since last year, making 002210fa8c it difficult even to 1a8ea5fc74 take walks, Calix seemed d355b7d386 genuinely surprised to see 820c231b4c me already dressed and 968f80d49f sitting on the bed, 3aae324058 ready to go out. He skipped the 7d520ba407 greetings and asked 15f37473f2 if I was 2ebfb1bfb5 really going out, cc154e032d clearly taken aback.882c006e3e291fb4

“I sent the letter because I wanted to go out with you.”590308c4b9829d85

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“I know, but….”70665bad04fb0416

“Don’t worry. I got permission and took my medicine.”f760f122f1e66a59

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During dinner yesterday, I had already announced to everyone that I would be going out with Calix today. They all seemed like they wanted to tie me to my room, but they couldn’t say much when I mentioned that I had consulted with Hemel.4af6e70494f0744e

Even though it f7e643a1cb was true, I 198eec3d8d felt a bit 48a4634c1c guilty for using e81ee75cbd Hemel as an 412cf232a1 excuse. But regardless, I was 459d172540 genuinely planning to go b760962ece out with Calix today.8f62ab1278062a46

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“Let’s go.”ebbe085ce0035a3c

“…Okay.”89dfdf9341f6de4e

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“You look really unhappy.”6e36b2271584d32e

“That’s not it. I’m just worried about you….”8fd34d66a53cd6fe

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“I know, I’m joking.”2568c0a186dfd0d0

I cheerfully led the way out of the room, and realizing he couldn’t change my mind, Calix reluctantly followed me.cf4619abb326271b

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As we rode in the carriage, I told Calix the purpose of today’s outing.42055090abcebdd3

“Actually, there’s a lantern festival in the fief today. I’ve always wanted to see it.”85096d60032f59fd

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“Lanterns?”237493c66299d396

“Yeah, you write wishes on the lanterns and release them. It’s not an official event, just something the locals do, so there’s nothing special to see.”088b8d31d730db2c

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Though it 582c979102 was called 3cb296d86a a‘festival,’ it was just a few more street vendors than usual and lanterns being sold here and there, so there wasn’t much difference from any other day.11809873dc250538

And of course, my 5f9f2d1b2f goal was to release c582669a79 a lantern.76092dd9052d8162

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