What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 178

“What do you mean by that…”

Sir Johann, who always maintained his composure, began to tremble. I was startled and stood up.

Emperor Frederick made a ‘huh’ sound, and Christel’s jaw dropped.

“Prince, come here.”

Cardinal Boutier calmly called me over after withdrawing the divine power.

I slowly approached the sofa so as not to startle Herritt, and the little one lying there smiled brightly at me.

I was relieved that he didn’t seem to be in pain since arriving in Riester.

But to think he has Ether inside him… I don’t know what to say.

Sir Johann also looked like he was hearing it for the first time.

“What’s going on?”

I stood next to my teacher and asked quietly.

She pointed to her healing circle and gazed at me.

“Look there. Can you recognize the basis of the pattern?”

I carefully examined the place her fingertip was pointing.

An incredibly complex pattern was layered, creating an extremely elaborate shape.

However, my teacher always advised me to approach it the same way whenever she taught me a new circle.

‘Start by finding the simplest picture that is the basis of the circle. Then you can easily tell what symptoms the circle is about.’

“…Soul. It is a basic circle for looking into the form of a ‘vessel’.”

I answered. She nodded and looked at the child’s father.

“That’s right. But if you look here, the reaction is very weak. There is nothing wrong with the vessel itself… but the thickness is very thin.”

“Is that a problem?”

Sir Johann asked, holding Herritt’s hand.

His voice was so desperate that I felt bad.

My teacher drooped her eyebrows as if she felt sorry.

“If Herritt had been born normally, it wouldn’t have been a problem at all. But there is a tiny amount of Ether inside the vessel.”

“…”

“If he had the power of a priest, I don’t think he would be sick either. Pure Ether has static properties, so it doesn’t put much strain on the vessel. But…”

“It was a special Ether.”

Sir Johann said almost groaningly and buried his forehead in Herritt’s palm.

Christel, feeling sorry for him, came over and stroked his back.

Then she turned her head and asked the Cardinal.

“Then is Herritt a Paladin? But… we didn’t feel anything. Neither the teacher nor His Highness the Crown Prince would have either.”

That’s right.

Paladins could sense the Ether of other clerics, and if the other party didn’t actively hide it, they could also grasp their physical condition or emotions.

But none of the three Paladins in the Empire noticed Herritt’s Ether.

I quickly understood the situation and opened my mouth.

“Because the Ether has never come out of Herritt’s soul. Since a vessel weaker than ordinary people might break at any moment, it is the result of instinctively protecting himself. He didn’t let the Ether come in and out, but kept it inside.”

“Wait a minute, special Ether has the property of being emitted outside the body…”

Christel trailed off. ‘So the child has been sick all along,’ she muttered.

The Cardinal lowered his gaze with a sad face.

Special Ether keeps trying to get out of the body, but Herritt’s fragile vessel has been doing its best to stop it.

The flow of Ether itself puts a burden on the vessel, so he chose to block it completely for survival.

That lonely fight caused pain in his soul.

Naturally, his body growth slowed down and his stamina weakened.

How hard it must have been.

“Then… there’s no way to get better.”

Sir Johann said with a collapsing face.

He looked like he was crying even though he wasn’t shedding tears.

There is no way to fix a natural vessel, and the Ether in the body cannot be removed, so his words were correct.

This was a congenital [present from birth] incurable disease.

The Cardinal chose to remain silent instead of hurting him more with an answer.

I sat down in front of the sofa and made eye contact with Herritt.

The child, who had eaten a lot of delicious food today, taken his medicine, and played excitedly with Chestnut in the garden, was now looking sleepy.

I smiled and patted the little one’s chest.

That’s right. When you’re this small, you don’t care whether adults are talking about your business or someone else’s.

“You felt that there was something wrong with Uncle’s Ether without me even telling you. That’s why you shared the medicinal tea.”

Nod, nod. The little head moved slowly. He’s so kind.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, I’ll get stronger soon. Our Herritt is so smart.”

I whispered. His smiling face was very pretty.

“I’ll wake you up before dinner. You can sleep for a while. You’ve worked so hard in the meantime.”

The child closed his eyes obediently.

Christel carefully covered Herritt with her blanket, and David put more firewood in the fireplace.

The Crown Prince, who had come close, said.

“…Sun Halo Herb eliminates the pain of the soul.”

“Yeah. It helps the vessel, or it helps the Ether. Or both.”

“Even though he has been taking the medicine for a long time, he complains of pain again if he stops, so he can’t enjoy a permanent effect.”

I added quietly. Christel’s eyes lit up.

“If there are no side effects, why don’t we feed him as much Sun Halo Herb as possible? Then maybe the child’s burden will be reduced. We will help.”

Sir Johann looked back at her. The protagonist continued to speak without hesitation.

“It’s not fair to just make him drink medicinal tea. Sun Halo Herb pudding, Sun Halo Herb cake, Sun Halo Herb duck parmentier.”

‘Shall we make Sun Halo Herb kimchi too?’ She muttered seriously.

We ended up laughing softly. Only I could understand the last words though.

“Werner Fenetian is a damn bastard.”

The Emperor, who had been listening silently, said abruptly. Everyone’s eyes turned to her leaning against the windowsill.

Her red eyes were churning with anger and disgust.

“There’s no way someone who is even royalty wouldn’t know the details of this ‘divine disease’. The common people are too busy making a living, so they have no choice but to be ignorant, but the upper class is different.”

“…”

“How could a parent…”

The Emperor stopped there and closed her mouth.

For a moment, her treasured sword Durandal seemed to tremble.

Then Sir Johann stroked his son’s hand and began to speak.

His face was much calmer than before.

“If what Your Majesty says is true, children suffering from divine disease like Herritt cannot become Paladins. It is no different from being born with a soul disorder, and even relieving the pain is difficult due to lack of medicine.”

“…”

“So the Fenetian royal family would have considered them unnecessary beings. If they were noble children suffering from the same disease, they could obtain Sun Halo Herb and grow up smoothly, but that would be it.”

I couldn’t find anything to say. It was shocking.

Even if the absolute amount of herbs is lacking, even if sick children cannot grow up to be ‘competent’ personnel…

Still, they are people living together. How can you neglect the people like that, knowing the disease?

I heard Christel uttering swear words. The Emperor gestured to the chamberlain.

“Laura, reconvene the Noble Council within a week. We need to find out if there are similar patients in the Empire. Tell the Imperial Palace librarian to search the archives for related records. Tell them that they can call a royal physician if necessary. We will also need people to decipher old documents.”

“I will follow your orders, Your Majesty.”

Laura bowed with a flawless gesture and stepped back.

Meanwhile, Sir Michel, with the cooperation of Benjamin and Ganael, prepared a large amount of warm Sun Halo Herb tea.

I quietly organized my thoughts and looked up at Crown Prince Cedric.

The firm and sharp jawline came into view.

“…”

That guy also had severe Ether depletion since he was a child.

He’s still not in good condition enough to turn into a child these days…

Could he be suffering from a similar disease to Herritt? If so, could he get help?

“Now, check my soul, Your Highness. I want to be of help too.”

I said, turning my gaze to my teacher.

Then the Cardinal looked a little surprised, but soon smiled kindly.

*

As a result, the situation became huge.

Since the Emperor did not return to her residence after sunset, all reports began to come to the Juliette Palace.

Then, manpower was also put in from the Romero Palace, and the reception room became a kind of open-type business center… or a playroom.

In the real playroom, Dduk-ssim, the divine beasts, and Chestnut are playing, anyway.

“Anyone want more?”

Servants with large gold trays full of Pan Bagnat [Provençal sandwich] and Olyomza juice walked around the room, asking.

Under the Emperor’s orders, we decided to have a simple dinner.

I raised my hand brightly and counted the numbers in my head.

Sant just arrived, so he’ll eat two more, Christel and the Crown Prince will eat one more each, Sir Johann had a hard time today, so he’ll eat more, and I’ll eat some more too.

“Six Pan Bagnats, please. Just fill the empty glasses with juice.”

“Yes, Your Highness. I’ll give you ten.”

My teacher, who was watching the conversation between the servant and me, laughed out loud.

I was embarrassed and straightened my posture.

Her clear healing circle was slowly revolving around me.

“Did I break the flow by talking?”

“No, no. When Your Highness eats delicious food, the Ether flow becomes very strong.”

…Is that good? It must be good. I nodded and took a big bite of the Pan Bagnat.

Under the crispy texture of the whole wheat bread, the savory tuna, tomatoes, boiled eggs, and olives were mixed in order.

Chef Laurence’s vinaigrette sauce always boasts a fantastic ratio.

The celery and bell peppers create a perfect balance, making it just the right amount of refreshing and clean.

It’s really amazing. It was perfect even though it was made in a hurry.

There should be a web novel with Laurence as the main character.

“This is the first time I’ve had this experience.”

“Right. I don’t think we’ll be able to do it again in the future.”

Sant and Christel, who were sitting on the sofa eating sandwiches, said.

The priest, who had received the message and rushed over, burst into tears after hearing the whole story.

He also said that whenever he opened the sanctuary, Herritt liked it like a puppy chasing butterflies.

He seemed to have grown fond of taking care of the young altar server and teaching him this and that.

Herritt, sitting side by side with his father across from me, glanced at the window while sipping juice.

I unconsciously followed the little one’s gaze.

The Emperor, who had taken off her jacket and loosened her cravat, was sitting casually on a one-person sofa, reviewing documents.

The atmosphere was serious, but it seemed like the first time I had seen her in such comfortable clothes.

“She’s cool, isn’t she.”

I whispered. Herritt nodded his head.

“She’s even cooler when she smiles.”

Then the child’s eyes sparkled.

I was wondering if I should tell him the story of the day I received the marquisate, but the Crown Prince, who was sitting at the head of the table, shot me a hot look.

Why again?

“I guess he’s worried that Your Highness will become his stepfather.”

“Cough! Cough cough! Cough!”

What! Hey! I writhed in agony from the pain of hearing such an absurd statement and choking at the same time.

While I was covering my mouth with my sleeve and coughing, I could see Christel and the Crown Prince having a tremendous staring contest.

In the meantime, the teacher, who was carefully examining my soul, was sobbing so much that her ears turned red, perhaps because she liked the protagonist’s ad-lib [improvised line].

Damn it…

“Aurelie? What’s wrong?”

The Emperor asked from over there. The Cardinal quickly composed her expression and adjusted her monocle.

Wow, she’s really an adult.

“It’s nothing. Your Highness’s Ether is reacting vividly.”

“You’re such a fool for your nephew.”

“Yeah, I’m happy. Strength is being generated in the heart slowly but surely. When he collapsed, he was just like an ordinary person.”

She explained, looking at me. I smiled awkwardly, rubbing my heart.

The wish-fulfilling orb that had been dwelling here had finished its cool time and started working again.

It seems that the time has been greatly shortened thanks to the Sun Halo Herb.

“Your Highness, would you like to drink some medicinal tea now? Let’s capture the change with a circle for sure.”

“Yes.”

Natalia, the Cardinal’s servant, handed me a glass in time.

I put the sandwich down on the plate and received the teacup.

It was then.

-Knock knock

“Your Majesty, Your Highness.”

Sir Elizabeth hurriedly entered the room.

All eyes were focused on the unusual momentum.

Laura, who was quick to notice, sent those carrying food out.

The captain of the guard looked around the room. The Emperor gestured directly.

“They’re guys who don’t mind hearing. Speak.”

“It’s an urgent report from the Imperial territory, Aitz Village.”

She cleared her throat.

“Skeletons were found during the excavation of the Holy Stone. It seems that there are at least dozens of them. They don’t seem to be recently buried remains, and judging from the accessories that came out with them…”

Her gray eyes shook slightly. I gripped the glass tightly with unnecessary tension.

“They are presumed to be priests of the Holy Kingdom who died in battle on Imperial soil.”