The Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health Chapter 345

[The World Tree says that you still cannot properly handle divinity.]

Before I even had time to think, the World Tree continued.

[The World Tree emphasizes that divinity is a power that must be handled very! extremely! carefully.]

[The World Tree firmly states that your body cannot withstand divinity at this moment.]

“Huh? Then what am I supposed to do?”

You said I could heal him, and now you’re saying this?

Without realizing it, I glared at the World Tree branch with a rather disrespectful look.

[The World Tree actively offers to help.]

…Ah. So the World Tree really did have a plan all along.

“Then how are you going to help me?”

Before I even finished asking, the light the World Tree spread swallowed me whole.

Again with this pattern…….

Unlike when I was pulled into the World Tree’s domain, this time it felt incredibly gentle.

So when I opened my eyes and saw a single star falling from the sky, drawing a long tail—followed by countless more stars—I was left speechless.

The meteor shower fell and became a sea of stars. As I stared at the waves of stars rippling beyond the horizon, I wondered what kind of place this even was.

-This is the inner world of the First Star. It is also called a “mental world.”

The will of the World Tree answered my question.

“A mental world?”

-Any life that awakens to mana naturally possesses its own mental image. Sometimes it remains simple, but sometimes, like this, they gather together and form a single world within.

“Is forming a world a good thing?”

-In most cases, this mental world becomes the root of a being’s power. The larger and clearer it is, the stronger the power they possess.

Then the scenery of this world—filled with nothing but countless stars—finally made sense.

-Here, you and I exist only as parts of the soul. So even if I help you use divinity, your fragile body will not be harmed.

This was completely different from my master’s “domain,” where only endless space and stars stretching into infinity could be seen.

The sound of the star sea swaying, mixed with faint and sorrowful crying from somewhere, made me think of Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27.

Especially the first movement, with its deep and dark mood—it felt just like this.

‘It was the part that carried Rachmaninoff’s despair after the failure of Symphony No. 1.’

The third movement was the most famous, but I liked the despair of the first and second movements more.

It felt like how I felt when my mom abandoned me.

As I drifted into those faint memories, the World Tree broke the mood.

-The First Star should be somewhere within this mental world. We must find them.

The World Tree spoke as if this were a very difficult task.

“Hmm. I think I know where they are.”

-?

Where the “sound” began.

Luckily, my hearing was very good.

“Over there.”

With the World Tree’s help, we crossed the sea of stars—and an overwhelming sight awaited us.

My master, crying alone on an island piled high with corpses.

-This is not real.

“I know that much.”

This island made of corpses was probably a manifestation of the deaths my master had been forced to watch helplessly.

Guilt, loneliness, and anger had taken form as countless black hands stretching out from the ground, grabbing hold of him.

‘Even where I’m standing, his emotions are leaking over.’

If my mind were any weaker, I would’ve been swept up instantly, crying helplessly alongside him.

He was always expressionless and quiet, so I never imagined his inner world was this much of a mess.

Well… you’d need this much turmoil to actually act on wanting to die.

‘And this mental world looks unstable even to me.’

I wanted to rush over and save him immediately, but an unknown force pushed me back.

The World Tree let out a sorrowful sigh.

Maybe because this was a mental world, but the emotions the World Tree felt flowed into me as well.

Even if he had become an immortal equal in rank, at his origin he was still its child. The World Tree genuinely seemed heartbroken over my master’s state.

‘Though, being a tree by nature, it probably can’t fully understand the loneliness and suffering of sentient beings.’

-The situation is severe. I cannot resolve this with my authority alone.

My master’s legs were already blackened. It felt like something was eating away at him—an unpleasant presence.

That must be the erosion.

Strangely enough, that aura felt familiar. A power that devours everything and rushes only toward destruction.

‘Cheyen.’

That had to be it.

I briefly imagined a future where my master completely fell and turned dark.

First, the Sky Tower would collapse.

The stars, having lost the archmage’s protection, would become prey for the Black Star—and naturally, all the high-circle mages would be killed as well.

The future of another timeline I’d seen at the Gairen ruins would unfold exactly as it was.

‘I refuse.’

I couldn’t let a future like that happen.

“So… what do I do now? Do I play something?”

Remembering how I once saved the high-circle mages from corruption, I reached for Ethere to turn into a violin—

Ah. This was a mental world. There was no Ethere here.

Then what?

As I fidgeted with empty hands, lost in thought, the World Tree advised me calmly.

-It is not yet time to use divinity. There is something you must know first.

“There’s a prerequisite?”

[The World Tree asks if you know the epithet of the ‘First Star.’]

Why was it suddenly speaking through the status window?

Confused, I answered anyway.

“What was it… the Star That Longs?”

[The World Tree asks if you know what the First Star longed for.]

“Knowledge?”

[The World Tree clicks its tongue, saying it is not something so simple. It explains that this longing was the source of the First Star’s ascension—and that we must awaken it within the First Star once more.]

I was about to complain about how I was supposed to awaken something I didn’t even know—

When the status window appeared with perfect timing.

[The World Tree wishes to share its memories with you. Do you accept?]

As expected of you, World Tree.

I trusted you.

 

 

****

 

 

 

Late at night, in the Crown Prince’s palace.

Pession frowned as he read the report sent by the shadow he had assigned to Arellin.

「Target’s current location: Mage Tower」

Though the report said Mage Tower, she was surely in the Sky Tower.

This made it the third day since she’d entered.

“Why hasn’t she come out at all?”

Had something happened inside? Was she caught up in something else?

Countless worries and questions filled his mind in an instant.

As Arellin’s absence dragged on, Pession’s mood worsened, and by the third day, the atmosphere in the Crown Prince’s palace had turned icy.

‘Lady Halbern, please come back.’

‘His Highness needs you.’

It had gotten so bad that Pession’s aides and attendants had gathered together to perform a full-on “summoning ritual” for Arellin.

The current political situation didn’t help his mood either.

To the east, the Uyo Alliance was in civil war. To the west, Shugra had suddenly sent an envoy.

The south and north seemed quiet—for now—

“Your Highness! Another reinforcement request has come in from the northern fortress—!”

Guess that was wishful thinking.

The north was always a mess.

As if the international situation wasn’t bad enough, the internal state of the Albret Empire was also a disaster.

The imperial investigation team announced that the Gremwart family’s will had been lost for “unknown reasons,” but one fact had been deliberately left out.

‘The seal box was intact. The paper itself was probably enchanted. It wouldn’t be strange for Gremwart to own an artifact or relic.’

Because of this, the succession of the Gremwart family was spiraling into chaos.

Naturally, the imperial family was keeping an eye on the safety of Derek, the legitimate eldest grandson of the Gremwart line—but the real problem surfaced elsewhere.

“What about the disappearance of Madam Olivia? Any leads?”

“Well…”

At Pession’s question, the aide shook his head.

“By Your Highness’s order, Sir Harun has taken personal action. There should be progress soon.”

“Useless.”

Pession could understand why Emperor Edward was so eager to hand over the throne.

No matter where you looked—abroad or at home—there was never a quiet day.

Still, the real reason Pession was suffering was something else entirely.

‘I miss Arellin.’

If there was one small comfort, it was that even while drowning in work, Pession had forced his subordinates to gather the “best possible ideas” and had completed his proposal plan.

Finally.

At last.

Now all that was left was to see Arellin……

“Should I just storm the Mage Tower?”

“Please restrain yourself, Your Highness.”