How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love Chapter 202

“You have something to say, what do you mean?”

 

Leonhard asked Felix, though his mind was clearly elsewhere.

 

‘Nell will be waiting for me.’

 

Beyond the glances outside, his inner thoughts were clearly visible.

 

Felix did not waste time.

 

“Take it.”

 

It was only thanks to his reflexes that Leonhard was able to catch the bottle Felix threw at him.

 

But even if it had been dropped on the floor, it probably wouldn’t have broken.

 

The material of the bottle, which he had been holding tightly without thinking, felt closer to stone than porcelain or glass.

 

Only then did Leonhard check the bottle in his hand.

 

Inside the pitch-black bottle, whose contents could not be guessed, he could feel the texture of the rippling liquid.

 

Leonhard tried to pull out the cork to check the contents for himself, but Felix stopped him.

 

“Don’t pull it out now. The bottle itself is a magic tool, so it will lose its effect the moment you pull the cork out.”

 

“What effect?”

 

“The liquid has a powerful effect, so it must be opened at least an hour before use.”

 

“So, what effect does it have?”

 

A slight annoyance appeared on Leonhard’s face, who didn’t like the vague answers.

 

Felix looked at his face for a moment and then slowly opened his mouth.

 

“It purifies the blood.”

 

It was a voice so small that it was drowned out by the noise of people chatting in the distance.

 

But Leonhard heard it clearly.

 

“Purifies blood?”

 

“Just as it sounds. It removes the monster’s power from the bloodstream. If Noah receives this, he might no longer be considered a barbarian.”

 

“What?”

 

Even after hearing Felix’s explanation, Leonhard did not understand what he was saying.

 

“That sounds like you’re saying drinking this would turn a rabbit into a human.”

 

“Barbarians aren’t outsiders. If anything, they’re a mutated form of humans. You don’t know the origin of the barbarians?”

 

“I don’t know. How would I know?”

 

“Well, Louise didn’t know that either……”

 

At the mention of Louise’s name, Leonhard flinched.

 

Felix, unaware, leaned against a pillar.

 

“Looks like I’ll have to explain from the beginning. A hundred and twelve years ago, my master’s master’s master closed the gate to the Silver Frost Tower after discovering a single book.”

 

“Why are you telling me this all of a sudden…”

 

“The first barbarian was a human woman who conceived using a monster’s blood as a seed. Power resides in the blood. A twisted desire for strength birthed the barbarian race.”

 

‘A human being becomes pregnant with monster blood? Is that possible?’

 

Leonhard’s eyes wavered at the horrifying fact that he could only imagine.

 

Felix did not stop talking even after seeing his eyes that were greatly shaken.

 

“That book, with all its horrific details, was shown by my master’s master’s master to a friend.”

 

And that was the beginning of everything she would come to regret hundreds—no, thousands—of times until the day she died.

 

* * *

 

120 Years Ago

 

The blue-eyed wizard, then master of the Silver Frost Tower, purchased an ancient book at an auction.

 

The book contained the hidden history of the barbarians.

 

They weren’t born barbarians. They were children conceived by humans using monster blood.

 

If this is true, then her hypothesis that all power resides in the blood is proven true.

 

She took the book and went straight to her old friend.

 

Master of the Tower of Mercy and Healing.

 

A wizard recognized as a sage who developed formulas and magic circles that can achieve extreme efficiency with little magical power.

 

However, she is a genius who is not a genius but is secretly ignored because she has little natural magical power, and she feels inferior because of that fact.

 

It was only natural that the red-eyed wizard would be interested in the book her friend showed her.

 

“Look at this. This book will serve as evidence to support my theory!”

 

“If it’s true, yes. But there’s no way to verify it.”

 

“We can verify it another way! What if we refine the blood as it says and make it into a magic stone? Wouldn’t that let us use the monster’s power?”

 

And so, the bloodstone, long lost to history, was reborn.

 

“Success! I knew it—I was right!”

 

The blue-eyed wizard was more delighted with the fact that her theory was correct than with the fact that the bloodstone had been completed.

 

But it wasn’t the red-eyed wizard.

 

She noticed that if she had blood, she could use the monster’s power.

 

‘What if I absorbed the blood myself?’

 

While the blue-eyed wizard was busy formulating her theory, the red-eyed wizard took the book and locked herself in her tower to conduct experiments.

 

An experiment that involved injecting monster blood into one’s own veins.

 

As far as the results go, she succeeded.

 

Of course, it wasn’t an instant success.

 

The experiment failed and many side effects occurred in her body, but fortunately, she was a healing wizard—one who had reached the rank of Sage.

 

She either healed herself completely or used the side effects as material for her next experiments. She injected her body with various monster bloods:

 

Acidic blood that can melt even the hardest stones in an instant.

 

A voice that can control people through song.

 

Arms that can extend long like a snake’s body.

 

Wings that can be spread out whenever desired to fly into the sky.

 

Through repeated experiments, the red-eyed wizard perfected the art of drawing power from the blood of monsters.

 

At the same time, she had such a thought.

 

‘Is there a rule that only monster blood can be absorbed?’

 

Some humans also inherited great power through blood.

 

Divine Power.

 

‘If I absorb their blood… could I obtain their power?’

 

Trembling with thrilling joy, the red-eyed wizard immediately went out of the tower to kidnap the one with the bloodline of power.

 

It was natural for her to head to the White Land, just as she had been looking for monsters to experiment on.

 

Even as a Tower Master, kidnapping children of emperors, dukes, or high nobles wasn’t exactly easy.

 

“Did you come today because you needed a monster?”

 

“No. Not monsters this time.”

 

To obtain the monster’s corpse more easily and quickly, she was making a deal with the barbarians at the time.

 

Specifically, with the royal bloodline of Sesto, who ruled over them.

 

“Didn’t you just have your tenth child? Can I take one you don’t need?”

 

“What?”

 

“In return, I’ll give you something great. A bloodstone—I made something really fun.”

 

Sesto, intrigued, accepted. He used his own blood to create bloodstones, turning barbarians into shamans.

 

In return, the red-eyed wizard brought the child with Sesto’s blood to the tower and began her experiments again.

 

But then, the blue-eyed wizard, worried by her friend’s silence, came to visit the Tower of Mercy and Healing.

 

It was only then that the blue-eyed wizard realized what kind of experiment her friend was conducting, and how her body had changed as a result.

 

It didn’t end there, she even brought in innocent children for experiments.

 

“You’re insane! Completely crazy! Do you even understand what you’re doing?”

 

“Of course I do. I’m proving your theory—better than you ever could.”

 

“Theory? Proof? No—you’re no longer a scholar. You’re a criminal who kidnapped a child!”

 

“I never expected you to understand me in the first place. How could you possibly understand me? You, who were born with an enormous amount of magic power!”

 

“What does the amount of magic matter? Even without something like that, you’re already good enough…”

 

“Something like that? Something like that! Would you still say that if you were in my position? Just something like that!”

 

Reacting to the explosive surge of magic, wings sprouted from her back, her arms elongated like snakes, and poison dripped from her now-extended fangs.

 

The blue-eyed wizard was horrified at the sight of her friend’s hideous appearance, which could no longer be called human.

 

But there was something even more terrifying.

 

This was the friend she had learned magic with since childhood, the one they called each other soulmates.

 

And now that friend attacked her with murderous intent.

 

“Are you out of your mind? You’re trying to kill me? You of all people?”

 

“Why? Can’t accept reality? How sad. I’ve been dreaming of this day for so long!”

 

“What…?”

 

“If I crush you here, everyone who mocked me will know—the strongest wizard in the world is me!”

 

She had always been a powerful wizard, even with her limited magic power. Now, she had gained the strength of a monster as well.

 

But the important thing was that even though her friend had become like that, and even though she had heard that she had not considered her a friend for a long time, the blue-eyed wizard could not attack the red-eyed wizard.

 

“Please stop!”

 

In the end, her voice did not reach the red-eyed wizard.

 

It wasn’t until she tried everything to persuade her and sustained fatal wounds that the blue-eyed wizard had no choice but to accept it—she had lost her friend.

 

Using the last of her strength, the blue-eyed wizard barely escaped to her own tower.

 

When she returned in a near-death state, the Silver Frost Tower was put on high alert, and all the wizards were busy trying to heal the tower’s master.

 

Poison. Petrification. Burns. Excessive bleeding. The sight alone was horrific. It took a full month of intensive treatment for her to finally recover.

 

Everyone shouted that they would take revenge on whoever did this to their Master.

 

But knowing it was impossible, the blue-eyed wizard declared a temporary closure of the tower to prevent her disciples from acting recklessly, then went to find the red-eyed wizard again.

 

Not because she still hoped to persuade her.

 

But because she couldn’t stop thinking about the last words she heard before ran away.

 

* * *