The Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health Chapter 269

He hadn’t even sensed anyone’s presence.

Was it really possible for someone to approach without being detected by a Sword Master’s perception?

So far, only one kind of being could do that……

‘Immortals.’

As if he had read the change in Pession’s eyes, the other person smiled.

“There’s no need to be so hostile.”

Light sky-blue hair swayed in the wind. The appearance and voice made it hard to tell whether the person was male or female, but for some reason, Pession felt certain it was a man.

“Who are you?”

“Me? Does it matter who I am?”

“Then what was that thing you said earlier? What do you mean by Arellin’s fate?”

Despite the rude question, the man only smiled, showing no sign of irritation.

“Exactly what it sounds like. ‘This’ is the fate arranged for this child.”

The man said so while pointing at the stone coffin.

“Because the world decided it that way.”

Pession’s face twisted.

What was this man saying?

Was he trying to say that the world had intended Arellin’s death?

“You understood correctly.”

The man replied as if he had read Pession’s thoughts the moment their eyes met.

“The ending of the world is already decided. There are those who try to change it… but I see. Has my contractor ‘failed again’ this time?”

The man smiled bitterly and placed something on top of the coffin.

‘A mass-produced sacred relic…….’

It was a cheap souvenir sold in Lemren, an item containing a trivial, one-time blessing.

“The predetermined ending will come. Mortal, enjoy your finite life until the world falls silent.”

Pession grabbed the man, who was about to leave after saying things he couldn’t understand.

“What do you mean by the world falling silent?”

“How many meanings could there be? It means everything ends.”

The end of everything. The apocalypse.

The crushing weight carried by the word ‘end’ made Pession groan.

“Don’t worry. Mortals won’t remember it anyway, and when the end comes, ‘that one’ will just turn back time again, like nothing ever happened.”

“That one?”

“When that happens, this moment will return too. You will lose your memories, and I will carry only vague ones.”

Hearing the man speak so calmly, as if it were all familiar, Pession frowned.

“Is there really no way to change a predetermined ending?”

An apocalypse felt too distant and overwhelming to fully grasp.

More than that, Pession focused on something else.

That Arellin might die again.

‘If what he’s saying is true, then even the current Arellin could die at any moment.’

“Even if the world decided it, is there really no way to change a fixed fate?”

Pession knew the answer would realistically be that it was impossible. Even so, he couldn’t stop himself from asking.

Because he couldn’t lose Arellin.

As the man quietly observed Pession’s desperate expression, his own face shifted subtly.

“……?”

Then, as if he had realized something, the man exclaimed in admiration.

“I see. You aren’t a being from this world.”

Pession stiffened. He had no idea what the man was seeing that led him to say such a thing.

Whether Pession was wary or not, the man examined him closely with shining eyes.

“I see now. You were unlucky enough to drift into this place. I can feel that your origin isn’t here.”

“…….”

“What an overwhelming blessing. This is my first time seeing something like this. Hmm, I see.”

The man clapped his hands.

“The entire world loves you.”

No matter how he thought about it, it was a completely out-of-place thing to say.

“Loves… me?”

The world loving him?

After hearing that the world had killed Arellin and was heading toward a fixed ending, the word ‘love’ brought him no joy at all.

When he thought of love, all that came to mind was the strange power he had possessed since birth.

“Is it because of my ability?”

“Ability…… yes, is it because of that? That you can remain intact despite receiving this much blessing.”

As if he were looking at something new and fascinating, the man kept observing Pession.

“Everything must have been easy for you so far, right? With talent this abundant, how could it not be? No matter what you tried, things went smoothly. Without doing anything special, people loved you, cherished you, liked you. You lacked nothing, so you probably didn’t have any particular desires… and with nothing you truly wanted, you just went along with life, blending in, living without color or scent.”

Words poured out that sounded like both praise and insult.

“The world worked very hard to make you happy.”

Pession’s expression hardened at the man’s words. How much could this man possibly know about him to make such claims?

And what?

He had nothing he wanted?

‘That can’t be true.’

The only sweet disaster to ever crash into his peaceful life.

From childhood until now, there had been only one thing Pession wanted.

To be with Arellin.

Even now, he had come all this way simply chasing after Arellin.

“Maybe because I’ve never seen a life so deeply favored, it’s fascinating. It wouldn’t even be wrong to say the whole world revolves for your sake.”

That was when doubt surfaced on the man’s face.

“But then… why can you see me?”

It was an expression as if he were looking at something that should not exist.

“You should be a being who wants nothing. So how is it that you can see me?”

“Do you need some kind of condition just to see you?”

“Yes. Of course you do. Those are the rules.”

A being that cannot be met by those who want nothing.

“To meet me, you must have a desperate wish—something you desire so strongly that you would stake your entire existence on it.”

The surroundings blurred. The world around Pession and the man collapsed in an instant.

A distorted background appeared, and a completely different scenery greeted Pession.

“This place is…….”

“A crack in the world. Well, calling it the reverse side of the world might make it easier to understand.”

The man smiled.

“I’d like to help with this accidental meeting too, but unfortunately, you’re already receiving more than enough protection.”

For some reason, Pession felt like the man genuinely looked pleased.

“You asked me earlier if there was a way to change a predetermined fate. I can answer that now.”

The man gazed at the warped background, as if something lay beyond it.

“The true nature of fate is forcing a particular ‘choice’ at a specific moment, no matter when or where.”

That was how the countless fates surrounding them moved.

“But what if someone escapes that compulsion and changes their choice? What if they’re given a different option?”

Then fate could be changed.

“Finding that tiny possibility is the answer to your question.”

People called that hope.

“I like hope. I like happy endings.”

A wanderer who searched for hope.

A wandering hope.

With warm eyes, he looked at Pession.

“Do what you want. Fulfill what you desire. Then fate will change naturally.”

“…….”

The man vanished the moment he finished speaking, and a path appeared.

A single, clear path forming within this unstable world.

Pession looked around, but the man—who had said what he wanted and disappeared—was nowhere to be found.

He didn’t know what had happened exactly, but—

“Just do what I want.”

That part, at least, sat well with him.

“Then let’s go back.”

To find Arellin.

Pession stepped forward onto the path before him.

 

 

 

*****

 

 

 

 

The world is filled with many kinds of sounds. I had lived my whole life hearing all sorts of noises ever since I was born, but this was the first time I had heard the sound of the world going wrong.

Creeeak.

As if something had broken, the world stopped. And beyond it, there was another world.

In the brief moment it took to blink, I had arrived in a completely new place.

“A hidden space inside the ruins.”

This place, where everything was white, felt extremely unnatural, as if someone had created it with a clear purpose. More than anything, the energy wrapping around this place felt familiar.

“It’s the same energy I felt in the ruins earlier.”

The thing that wasn’t magic or a special ability, which I had assumed activated the ruins.

The difference from before was that, unlike earlier when it felt like it wanted to swallow and destroy me, now it was calm and peaceful.

“Why did it suddenly become so quiet?”

After breaking one ruin, shouldn’t it be going even more wild?

On top of that, from somewhere far away, I could hear someone’s soft and beautiful singing voice. An aria echoing alone, without any orchestra.

I closed my eyes and listened to the song, which naturally made the listener feel reverent, and thought to myself,

‘This sounds like something you should pay money to hear.’

That was when it happened.

The energy surrounding the white space began to stir.

What now—what was about to happen this time?

“Ha, what, you want to fight again? Fine, come at me.”

I had already beaten it once, so I didn’t think I would lose.

I was grinding my teeth, ready to show the difference in our strength this time, when suddenly the gathered energy in front of me turned into clear letters.

[ I have been waiting for you ]

“……?”

What kind of trick is this now?