＜ mutual aid (3) ＞
Central Medicines Agency.
As if preparing for the apocalypse, the medicine storage room where all kinds of medicines are stored in a vacuum.
Narsha and I wandered around the herbal medicine storage room and picked out medicinal herbs for the project. Since there were 17 kinds of medicines needed, the staff in charge followed suit.
“This, this, and the fragments of the Overlord Tree on the other side, please.”
“I! And the tail of the Zach lizard.”
Don’t miss it, Narsha said urgently. At first, he didn’t seem to believe it, but now he trusted my words completely.
Narsha scratched the back of her head and asked.
“What did plan B say?”
“The root of the Magunghwa, the vinyl of Wonder Shark, the horn of the perforated goat, and the cornea of Ralph Plug.”
“yes. Please give me that.”
A, B, C, D A total of 4 plans.
Of these, option B is finally adopted. All remaining unaccepted measures and drugs are discarded. What I was looking for was this part.
After adopting the plan, the researchers will be busy concentrating on development.
Taking advantage of that gap, he plans to secretly steal medicines that will be discarded. So, the medicines needed for the pain relief potion and the magical power boosting potion were poured into room D.
“Kissnets’ fur, Zeldinov’s bodily fluids, Tarofman’s spine, Eyepatch’s deadly venom, and Chazik’s tears, please.”
“All right.”
Could it be because of the Mage Tower permit and Leonard’s reputation? The staff in charge checked the list without any reaction.
Eventually, after choosing all the medicinal materials, I came out to the lobby. In front of the entrance stood the manager Rohak and his secretaries. As I approached, Rohak reached out to me first.
“Thank you very much for visiting in person, Mr. Leonard. The medicinal materials will be sent to the laboratory of B-2902 in the Mage Tower by tomorrow. And this is a gift to commemorate the visit.”
The secretaries came out and handed Narsha a paper bag. Inside is an encyclopedia of herbal medicines, a map of the distribution of imperial medicines, and medicine-flavored candies. It contained all kinds of medicine-related things.
I smiled lightly and took Rohak’s hand.
“I am grateful to you for welcoming me like this.”
“no. As a manager, it is a natural duty to do. So, by the way, I would appreciate it if you could look over there first. Researcher, move aside for a moment.”
Rohak pointed to the side without letting go of his hand.
On one side of the lobby, a man presumed to be an employee was aiming at the camera, the secretaries moved away from the angle, and Rohak was smiling artificially at the camera lens.
Also, there was no kindness without reason.
Click – click –
After taking commemorative photos several times, I was able to get out of the Central Medicine Management Center.
The sky where the red sunset is setting.
The sound of cicadas that had been heard in midsummer no longer resounded, and the cool breeze of early autumn brushed the tip of my nose. I saw a sedan approaching from the parking lot far away.
Narsha and I quietly waited for the sedan.
“·······”
A languid silence subsided between the two.
Narsha stretched out her arms for no reason. Then he looked at the sunset and said.
“Thank you. I help with projects, and I get gifts as well.”
“·······”
I laughed nonchalantly.
It was on my side that I was thankful. Thanks to that, I was able to get the medicines I needed.
Narsha confirmed my smile and muttered quietly.
“… what are you laughing at?”
Just then, a sedan stopped in front of the entrance. Ergon got out of the driver’s seat and hurriedly opened the back seat door.
“Thank you for your hard work, Master.”
I got into the sedan. Narsha also crossed over to the other side and sat in the seat next to her.
Soon, the sedan started smoothly.
boo woo woo-
medicines that were eventually obtained.
Moreover, this incident has greatly restored her relationship with Narsha. I don’t know what exactly it was for, but Narsha’s mentality also seemed to have improved a lot. This was enough to reassure me. The problem is that Yerina’s condition is not serious.
What happened is that if one person gets better, the other person is in trouble.
I looked up at the sky without saying a word. There is no way to comfort Yerina right now…
Yerina has to come out first so that I can comfort her or comfort her by swearing at Karios together.
With my mouth shut, I had no idea what to do.
However, I couldn’t leave Yerina in sorrow.
Not only are there still medicines left to get, but she’s Leonard’s wife in the original work.
He’s a character who should have become a stranger, but no matter how hard he was, there’s something about being human.
I don’t know if this will comfort you, but I should buy you something delicious.
Would it be the most famous artiblanc strawberry cream puff in the empire?
“·······”
As I pondered over and over again, I arrived at the academy before I knew it. I instructed Ergon to stop at the magic tower. Soon after, the sedan stopped in front of the magic tower.
“We have arrived, Master.”
“Good work.”
After saying that, he got off the sedan. Narsha, who got off first, asked curiously.
“Why are you getting off here?”
“To walk a little. I have something to think about.”
“······You’re?”
Then I looked at him with suspicious eyes. Like a cat that found a stranger, it slowly backed away. It seemed to be guarding me somehow.
It was then.
A familiar voice came from nearby.
“Narsha! uh? Professor Leonard is there too.”
It was the voice of the music box.
Narsha and I turned our heads at the same time. A small park built next to the magic tower. A music box and Meriel were walking out of the entrance.
The music box looked at us with a happy face, and Meriel looked at us with a rather stiff face. Meriel came to me first.
“Hello professor.”
“yes.”
I responded to her awkward greeting with a light silence. Meriel, who hesitated for a moment, spoke carefully.
“I texted you yesterday about the drinking part, but you didn’t get a reply… You must be very busy.”
Was it? I do not know. Since there were so many missed messages piled up, it was unreasonable to check them one by one.
I was vaguely evasive.
“I’ve been a bit busy lately. I’ll go back to the office and check.”
“yes? Now is
“
In the meantime, Narsha and the music box chatted while bickering. I lowered my voice so that only the two of us could hear it, but my hearing with the “sensitive five senses” did not miss a single whisper.
The conversation between the two could be heard clearly.
─Ool~ What are you two doing?
─What are you saying? We only met briefly for a project.
-Are you sure? Who doesn’t get even one of those common replies, but you and I go on a car date alone?
─Ah, will you continue to annoy me? It’s because of the project.
＊＊＊
next day.
Around the time the sun rose in the mid-sky, Yerina also woke up. I stared blankly into space with my eyes wide open.
Every time the same ceiling, the same bed, the same silence and… the same emotions.
As usual, Yerina sighed. My whole body seemed to be submerged in the devastation that came along with the weather.
“Ehh…”
Every day after Jeniel’s wedding was painful.
My heart felt empty, as if I had lost something precious, no, as if I had been taken away. I was lethargic to the point that I couldn’t even lift a hand, my appetite was significantly reduced, and I was confused by dizziness for no reason. One day I was depressed enough to die, and the other day I was slightly sad.
I thought that love sickness was a disease that only the main characters in novels suffer from, but now I am exactly that.
“·······”
Yerina covered her head with the blanket.
I wish I had someone to talk to about my worries.
Homosexuality is prohibited by law, so I couldn’t even talk about it with others. I felt like I was about to collapse, but there was nowhere to lean on.
I had no choice but to cut myself.
Maybe all the unhappiness right now is my fault.
Even if I wasn’t weird, even if I had the same tendency as others, it wouldn’t have been this hard.
Yerina surrendered to the falling gravity.
It was a time when I was lying still like a corpse in the morgue.
smart-
A knock rang in the bedroom.
Soon after, the voice of the Ministry of Magic agent was heard.
─A guest has come.
Yerina said while still covered in the blanket.
“Who are you?”
—This is Professor Leonard of the Imperial Academy.
“Again?”
─That’s right.
It came yesterday, and it comes again today.
It’s not an attendance check, and you won’t get anything by keeping your face stamped.
why do you keep coming
Yerina quietly pulled down the blanket. Still, it was nice to have someone who cared about me. But if you show off too well, you’ll see me as a complete idiot, right?
He left the house with a depressed expression on his face. In front of the yard, like yesterday, Leonard was standing. Leonard handed over a paper bag without a word.
“·······”
“What is this?”
Yerina looked at the contents without much thought.
Luxurious white box filled with paper bags. ‘Artiblance’ written in pink letters above it.
It was Artiblanc’s Strawberry Puff Cream Bread, which only sells 50 pieces a day in Archinia, and is said to be hard to find even if you want to.
For an instant, Yerina’s pupils shook. Saliva was welling up in his mouth.
Great······
I really wanted to try it…
Yerina, who swallowed a gulp, asked, alternating between Leonard and strawberry puff cream bread.
“Are you giving it to me?”
“That’s right.”
“Really? why?”
“I think you will like it.”
Leonard said nonchalantly. Then he looked at Yerina.
“I’m glad you seem to like it.”
“yes? no. Not very good…”
“That’s why it got stuck in your mouth.”
Leonard pointed at the corner of Yerina’s mouth. Yerina bowed her head in embarrassment.
I tried to hide it as much as possible, but I couldn’t control my emotions. It’s sad that Jeniel got married, and apart from that, I really like Artiblance.
Yerina bit her lip and tried to hold back her smile. After maintaining a poke face for some time, he raised his head again.
“It’s because it’s a smiley face. Because it’s a smile.”
“I was crying until yesterday-”
“Ah done. Come on in.”
Yerina, who cut her words firmly, pointed to the mansion gate.
Seeing that the busy man came for two days in a row, it was clear he had something to say. Why don’t you go to work at the magic tower? What are you up to these days? No matter how hard it is, people have to be sincere—it must have been an obvious nagging like that.
The thing I hate the most in the world is nagging, but Leonard’s nagging was an exception. It’s not because I bought Arti Blanc’s Strawberry Puff Cream Bun.
With a gift like this, I could listen to nagging for an hour. No, what is an hour? It could have been an entire day.
Yerina tried to guide Leonar into the mansion.
But Leonard didn’t follow. still standing in the same spot.
Yerina asked.
“What are you doing, won’t you come in?”
“Thank you for the invitation, but I will accept it next time. I have a different schedule at the Mage Tower right now.”
“yes?”
You have a different schedule. What kind of nonsense are you talking about? Then why did you come all this way?
It was a word that Yerina could not understand at all. It was a completely inconsistent action.
Yerina, who was dumbfounded for a moment, tilted her head.
“Then did you really only come to give me bread?”
“That’s right.”
“why······?”
“You said that. I think you will like it.”
After saying that, Leonard turned his back. The sedan moved to where it was parked, and soon the sedan started slowly.
Yerina muttered quietly, looking at the place he had left.
“what······”
＊＊＊
The public meeting room of the Magic Tower.
“Then, I will make the final decision with option B.”
“”yes~””
After a long discussion, plan B was adopted as in the original. The decision was made unanimously without disagreement, and after the meeting, the members praised Narsha in unison.
“Did you research this all in one day yesterday?”
“It’s really great. Indeed, he is the only conference entrant in the Mage Tower!”
“There are a lot of them, and it must have been difficult to find them individually. I really respect you.”
“yes? Oh, that’s it…”
Surrounded by the crew, Narsha looked at me with puzzled eyes. It sounded like a signal for help, but I left the meeting room as it was.
I walked down the aisle silently.
“Did you hear the news? Pharmacy major Jeniel. Well, I was kidnapped on my honeymoon.”
“really? is that real? I heard that too, but I thought it was just a rumor.”
“What is nonsense? Terios, the leader of the Immortal Knights, also went to Furuoka Island yesterday. Go find Jeniel.”
Rumors are slowly spreading in the Mage Tower.
Furthermore, I heard that even the commander of the knights, Terios, was mobilized. I don’t know if it’s just a rumor that came from exaggeration, or if it’s the truth, but it’s not my business to know for sure.
That’s something you have to solve, and I have work to do.
I headed straight to the office. After checking my surroundings, I took out the handwritten text I had brought from home.
Yerina, who is still living a life of being a shut-in in the corner of the room.
He looked fine today, but he was such an erratic character that he didn’t know how it would change tomorrow. I had to keep taking care of her.
Judging from today’s reaction, it seems like you’re weak against gifts.
Would you like to do well like now?
It was a time when I was looking through all the episodes related to Yerina to find out what she would like.
Geeing-
The crystal ball placed on the desk emitted a blue light. It was a voice connection request. The sender is Karios. Soon after, his voice came out.
—Leonard. Can you hear me? I’m Karios.
“I can hear. why?”
I read the text and answered.
—That’s it… Jeniel was kidnapped on the island of Furuoka.
“really!? Is that true?”
A startled voice.
Anxious trembling breathing.
A sense of urgency as if they would run away at any moment.
Ha Jung-woo also had acting skills that could not be surpassed.
—It may be hard to believe, but it is true.
Today is the 3rd day of our honeymoon.
He had to return to the academy tomorrow, so he must have found it by now. It seemed that there was nothing special, so I contacted him to be relieved.
I said, still looking at the text.
“So how did it go? I found it?”
I was sure I would have found it. Karios had enough ability to do that.
But the answer that came back was…
─No, I couldn’t find it. I can’t… I can’t really find it.
“······What?”
-That’s why I want you to help me.