The Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health – Chapter 330

Author: Asternkm

“Pession!”

Seeing Pession after quite a long time, my body reacted on its own. I sprang up and ran over, and the sharpness in Pession’s eyes immediately softened.

But why is Pession here?

The joy only lasted a moment.

Wasn’t Pession currently going through the busiest period of his life, working in Emperor Edward’s place?

“What brings you here? Weren’t you supposed to be stuck in the Imperial Palace for a while?”

Ahem.

Pession cleared his throat.

“Something came up.”

He avoided my gaze—then suddenly glared at Noel, who had been standing beside me.

Noel awkwardly raised both hands with a forced smile.

“But what was that about earlier? Someone liking someone?”

“Ah.”

Noel’s expression immediately soured.

Should I explain? I looked to Noel for permission, but he was desperately avoiding both of us.

Well, it wasn’t like it was a full confession anyway.

“Noel says he likes me.”

“What?”

Pession’s face instantly turned fierce. The way he glared at Noel looked dangerous—but it was so identical to how he’d been as a kid that I couldn’t help laughing.

The idiot. Jealous over nothing.

“So I said I like him too.”

“…What?”

Pession reacted half a beat late, like he’d just heard something he shouldn’t have. I tilted my head at him.

“Noel’s my friend, you know? Of course I like him. Is today some kind of special day…? Why do both of you look like that?”

“…….”

I was about to mention that Ciel had said he liked me too, but their expressions were strange.

Noel was clutching his forehead like he’d bitten into something awful, and Pession—after a brief moment of shock—looked at Noel with a strangely complicated, pitying expression.

“Poor bastard…….”

“…….”

Silence fell between Pession and Noel.

Just a moment ago, Pession looked ready to eat someone alive—so what is this now?

“Well, figures.”

Muttering like someone who’d already been through it, Pession patted Noel’s shoulder.

“Arell, you really never change.”

“Huh?”

Do you know what babies and animals have in common? Even if they don’t understand words, they’re incredibly good at noticing when they’re being insulted. And I wasn’t a baby—I was an adult.

So there was no way I wouldn’t notice someone insulting me!

“You just insulted me, didn’t you?”

“No.”

“You totally did. That tone was absolutely insulting.”

“Absolutely not. Anyway, Arell—can you leave right now?”

Pession shook his head and hurriedly changed the subject.

“Right now?”

“Yeah. Right now.”

Thanks to Ciel, I’d already greeted all the key figures—but the highlight of the party, the charity auction, hadn’t started yet.

“I think I should at least stay for the auction. Mehen told me to spend a lot since it’s for charity.”

Pession turned to Noel.

“You can handle it instead, right?”

Handle what, exactly?

“Uh… yeah, I can. But where are you taking Arell?”

“Somewhere nice.”

Where exactly are we going?

Noel shot Pession a look, then made a strange face.

“Fine. I’ll do it. But I can buy whatever I want, right, Arell?”

“Huh?”

“You heard him. Let’s go, Arell.”

“Wait—excuse me?!”

Was I the only one who didn’t understand what was going on?

Just moments ago there’d been killing intent in the air, and now the two of them had reached an agreement in seconds.

What is this situation?!

* * *

Pession and I slipped out of the party hall. I thought someone would stop us, but no one did.

Come to think of it, Pession’s arrival should have stirred the place up—but why had no one reacted?

Pession answered my question casually.

“I’m wearing a perception-blocking artifact.”

“Oh.”

It was my first time seeing one.

Holding onto Pession’s arm, I examined the bracelet-shaped artifact engraved with formulas and asked,

“So that’s why you don’t have any attendants?”

“Yeah.”

“You didn’t sneak out of the Imperial Palace, did you?”

“…….”

No answer.

This bastard definitely snuck out.

I almost shoved him back toward the palace, but since it’d been so long since I’d seen him, I pretended not to notice.

“But Pession, why did you suddenly come to a charity party?”

“Because I wanted to see you.”

“Out of nowhere? Me?”

“Out of nowhere? I want to see you all day, every day.”

Hearing something so embarrassing said without a change in expression sent chills down my spine—in a good way.

If anyone else had said that, I’d have punched them for being creepy. Maybe it was because it was Pession.

“Then couldn’t you just see me after you finished work? Did you really have to rush over today?”

“…….”

Did I hit a nerve?

Pession stared at me silently.

This guy always tries to get by on his looks whenever he’s got nothing to say… like I’d fall for that?!

When I hardened my expression, Pession grabbed my arm with pitiful eyes.

…Ugh. I really shouldn’t let this become a habit.

“I’ll let it slide just this once.”

At my surrender, Pession broke into a bright smile. Seriously. I really shouldn’t keep falling for this beauty tactic.

I glared at him, but it was useless. How am I supposed to win against that face?

Still smiling, Pession casually asked,

“Arell, nothing happened with Ciel?”

“Ciel?”

“Yeah.”

Now that he mentioned it, Ciel had been acting a little strange today.

“Oh, I didn’t tell you earlier. Ciel said he likes me too. Must be some kind of special day.”

“Really? Then you said you like him too, didn’t you?”

“Wow, how did you know?”

Was he eavesdropping?

When I looked at him in surprise, Pession replied with a slightly smug I knew it expression.

“The twins are precious friends to you too, right? I figured you’d say that.”

“Oooh.”

“I’ve known you for years. Of course I’d know that much.”

He spoke confidently, but something about his expression suggested he wasn’t entirely pleased.

“You’re right. I gave them some lip service.”

They get lonely pretty easily, after all.

Loneliness in a crowd, maybe.

Even though they were always surrounded by people, I’d never seen the twins truly open up to anyone.

At most, there was me, Pession, and Harun.

With a fifteen-year gap, I’d thought more people might’ve appeared—but from what I’d seen, that wasn’t the case.

There’s no way they seriously confessed to me.

I considered the possibility for a brief moment, but……

Yeah, no way. Those lunatics genuinely loving someone was impossible.

Exactly.

“So where are we going?”

“Somewhere nice.”

“?”

So where is that nice place?!

Instead of answering, Pession put me up on the horse he’d ridden in on.

“Can’t we just take a car? I have one—ahhh!”

Having lived a life far removed from driving or horseback riding thanks to ether, I clung tightly to Pession to avoid falling. Above my head, he laughed quietly.

Maybe he was being spiteful—the horse seemed to speed up, so I pounded on Pession’s chest to tell him to slow down. He wrapped an arm around my waist.

“I’m going to fall!”

“You won’t.”

“Can’t you just tell me the coordinates? I’ll teleport us!”

“That area prohibits magic.”

“Hey! It just shook! It shook!”

“Arell, you’re more timid than I expected.”

“I don’t want to die now!”

After finally getting halfway out of a terminal lifespan and recovering my health, dying from a fall would be absurd!

“It’s fine. We’re here. Open your eyes.”

“…You bastard.”

Even the ether hummed in agreement. Ignoring it, Pession urged me to look around.

“Ah.”

A wide-open view—gentle hills, a forest and small lake under a sky overflowing with stars, and beyond them, a city glowing with light. My chest felt refreshed just looking at it.

Ah. I knew where this was.

“You can see this place from the Empress’s Palace, right? The Imperial Forest.”

“You noticed right away.”

Of course. I’d always thought, That’s what power looks like.

The massive forest, lake, and hills stretching from the palace gardens were famous even in a capital filled with skyscrapers rivaling the modern world.

I never thought I’d come here myself.

Pession dismounted first and held out his hand.

“You should get down.”

“You think I’ll be grateful for this?”

“But aren’t you glad?”

His confident tone annoyed me, but he was right.

The cool breeze brushing my face, the air thick with phytoncides, the scent of grass rising with the night dew—all of it felt like it was clearing my chest.

I stared blankly at the scenery below the hills, then looked up at the star-filled sky above.

Why were the stars I could barely see from our estate so vivid here?

Even knowing the vast universe beyond, even knowing what those stars really were, the emotion swelling inside me didn’t fade.

“I wanted to show you this since we were kids.”

His voice was low.

“My body was complete trash back then. I couldn’t have made it here.”

“That’s why I couldn’t show you.”

Pession nodded and looked at me—as if I alone existed within this beautiful scenery.

“Whenever I missed you, I always came here.”

“Why?”

“Because from here, you can see the Halbern estate clearly.”

Did Pession know—