The Male Lead Is Obsessed With My Health Chapter 354 - illustration

As Valer reached out while using his ability, ripples spread through the empty air, shimmering in different colors along the waves.

Halbern’s ability, [Key Successor], was intuitive and simple.

Open a door.
Close a door.

The only difference was that the door led to a space no ordinary human could ever force open.

“Normally, using such a crude method without coordinates or a marker would be dangerous. But this is an emergency, and a special situation, so we’re doing it raw. Don’t ever try to copy this, got it?”

The abilities used simultaneously by the two Halberns created an even greater ripple, influencing the world itself.

A strange sensation came rushing in—one I wouldn’t have noticed before. I understood, instinctively, why abilities were considered degraded versions of the authority held by Immortals, and why they were treated as fragments of divinity.

If this tightly woven world had command codes that moved certain parts of it, then abilities were the act of using those commands—even if one couldn’t create them personally.

No wonder abilities are hard to reproduce with magic…

Half awe as an ability user, half irritation as a mage.

And mixed in was a lingering question:
Why was Halbern the only family to possess such a fundamentally alien type of ability?

Wasn’t my reincarnation as a Halbern daughter somehow connected to this power?

Was it really a fate decided from the very beginning?

As those thoughts crossed my mind, the “door” fully revealed itself.

A crack appeared like a pitch-black hole.
Calling this a door felt strange—no matter how you looked at it, it was closer to a hole.

That was when—

“Arellin.”

Pession called my name.

His expression was full of worry, as if asking whether we really had to go somewhere this dangerous. I couldn’t help but smile.

“We have to save Mom.”

As I took Pession’s hand, a thought crossed my mind.

Fate, huh.

If fate means being together with you… that might not be so bad.

 

 

****

 

 

Mehen had already been overwhelmed by an avalanche of information. And now, he heard something he absolutely could not ignore.

Valer… will break?

As if admiring a finely crafted artwork, Morden looked at Mehen’s distorted expression and graciously explained.

His voice sounded almost like that of an author personally describing his own creation.

“I wanted to turn my son into a god. Halbern’s ability is already special—qualitatively different from other families. Inheriting my blood and fully awakening his power, that child was the perfect material.”

Mehen shuddered at the dry, emotionless tone—unbelievable for someone speaking about his own son.
Now he understood why Shione had been so openly hostile toward his father.

“Shione’s older sister… did she know as well? About… all of this?”

“As expected of a sharp mind—you caught on immediately. Shione didn’t bother me because he opposed me. Nor because he told his mother the truth. He simply interfered with my work.”

Looking at the head of the family speaking such chilling words with a face identical to Valer’s, Mehen opened his mouth—but no words came out.

“My son could have become a god.”

Crushed by the overwhelming madness, Mehen stopped breathing for a moment before forcing out words.

“How… how can a human become a god…?”

“Your thinking is too narrow, Mehen. In a world where gods were killed by humans, why should humans be forbidden from becoming gods?”

“That’s just… mythology, isn’t it?”

Even in this irrational, illogical, blind fanaticism, Mehen desperately tried to cling to reason.

“It’s not mythology.”

Morden scoffed.

“All of it truly happened here, in the past.”

Reality slipped away.

Even while thinking Morden’s words were absurd, Mehen was drawn in—instinctively knowing they were true.

His gaze wavered.

“Then… the reason Valer is considered a failure is…”

Morden shook his head with a regretful smile.

The blood drawn from Zilo was processed in his hands. While continuing his work, Morden whispered gently in a calm voice.

“To become a god, one must ultimately achieve ‘transcendence.’ But that child was bound by too many things.”

His serene tone delivered cruel words.

“My fellow researchers and I hypothesized that a child’s purity would make transcendence easier. We were wrong. His obsession and dependence exceeded our expectations.”

“Obsession and dependence…”

“Obsession with his older sister. And with you.”

“You were my last shred of humanity.”

Why did Valer’s face—smiling lightly as he once said those words like a joke—flash through Mehen’s mind now?

“The fate of a failed product is simple. Disposal. Though I didn’t expect him to strike first. Or rather… Shione did.”

Morden laughed, calling even that an amusing diversion.

At this point, Mehen no longer saw Morden as human.
That thing was a demon wearing human skin.

“Why… why are you doing this? You already had everything… truly everything.”

To Mehen’s plea, Morden replied calmly.

“You already know the answer. I didn’t have everything. In the end, I still had to die.”

A desire for immortality.

And beneath it, a deeper emotion that drove Morden forward.

“I will bring back the one I loved—who escaped me through death—back into my arms.”

He was completely insane.

Morden’s eyes burned with a madness Mehen could not comprehend—one that craved violent, absolute possession.

Strangely enough, Mehen felt no fear now.
No—something else was stronger.

The friendship and loyalty he held toward Valer as a member of Halbern rose up.

And as a guardian, the responsibility and love he felt toward Arellin.

I can’t die here.

Mehen’s eyes shone sharply.

There was still something he needed to learn from Morden.

“Then… what happens if Valer breaks?”

As he asked, Mehen recalled the underground of the Halbern estate he had burned months ago—the fate of the test subjects who had all become monsters.

Morden answered calmly, as if it were obvious.

“That child will go berserk.”

Berserk.

As Mehen’s expression twisted, Morden sensed movement and looked outside.

“It seems an uninvited guest has arrived.”

 

 

****

 

 

My first impression upon entering the black mages’ base was simple.

This feels like a dungeon.

And my personal thought was—

I feel like a hunter who just entered a gate to clear it.

I didn’t know if this reverse world could be “cleared,” but that was how it felt.

“This place is huge.”

“Yeah.”

“The design looks like some old mansion, but the inside’s completely remodeled. Wait—can people even live in the reverse world? Or does this place have an owner? I lived in my master’s domain for a while, so maybe it’s possible if someone owns it…”

I felt like someone was watching us, but there was no hostility.

And this familiar sensation…

“So it really is Cheyen.”

Now I was certain. Every bad thing led back to that bastard.

“Who’s that?”

Pession asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Someone awful.”

“…I see.”

“He was my master’s top disciple, screwed up, went dark, and became a bad guy.”

Pession looked confused by my summary. Probably couldn’t grasp how bad it was—but I didn’t want to explain.

Pession only needs to hear good things!

But… why is Dad so quiet?

It felt oddly empty. Whenever I was close to Pession, I should be feeling Dad’s sharp glares or hearing him pick a fight—but nothing.

When I looked back, Dad was standing far behind us, staring at the mansion.

“……?”

When I pulled Pession back toward him, I noticed Dad’s breathing was slightly uneven—like a mild PTSD or trauma response.

Was this a place he knew?

“Dad, are you okay? Are you hurt?”

When I reached out and covered his forehead, his long, elegant lashes trembled.

Those violet eyes—gleaming like amethyst—looked at me, filled with turmoil.

“Arell.”

With beauty that somehow felt even more refined today, Valer made a suggestion.

“From here on, let’s split up.”

His gaze was… unstable.