How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love Chapter 203

“Hahaha! Now I’ll become the Emperor. Once I obtained the symbol of Estroa!”

 

‘If she had just said she would become Emperor, I might’ve thought she was just insane.’

 

But what did she mean by obtaining the symbol of Estroa?

 

The blue-eyed wizard was camped near the Tower of Mercy and Healing, and chased the red-eyed wizard out of the tower.

 

The place she went to was the White Land. There, the blue-eyed wizard witnessed a very shocking sight.

 

“What? I killed the one with power, so why doesn’t the power come to me? Could it be that it went to someone other than me?”

 

Even though the opponents were barbarians, the red-eyed wizard killed even newborn babies without hesitation.

 

She even killed all the barbarians who tried to stop her.

 

“Strange. I already killed all the bloodlines of Sesto… Oh, there’s still one in the tower, isn’t there? Maybe it was passed on to that one?… I’ll leave it for now. I’m more interested in the power of Estroa.”

 

The red-eyed wizard, with her expressionless face before the corpses she had killed, no longer looked human.

 

The blue-eyed wizard thought that she should make public what the red-eyed wizard had done.

 

But then, the red-eyed wizard turned her head and looked at her.

 

Under her eerily glowing red eyes, her dark lips twisted grotesquely.

 

“Still alive?”

 

The blue-eyed wizard immediately cast her spell as goosebumps ran down her spine.

 

Fortunately, the teleportation was successful.

 

However, as if she knew where she was going, the red-eyed wizard followed her immediately.

 

“Hahaha! Come on out! Let’s have a little chat, shall we?”

 

The red-eyed wizard boasted more powerful magic than before and appeared ready to bring down the Silver Frost Tower.

 

The blue-eyed wizard used all of her magical power to cast a powerful defensive spell on the tower.

 

Fortunately, the disciples who were unable to go outside and were gathered inside the tower helped.

 

With everyone working together, the red-eyed wizard couldn’t break the barrier, and she teleported away with an annoyed expression on her face.

 

“I’ll come back next time.”

 

The blue-eyed wizard had to admit.

 

Her friend had become a monster, and she was the one who created the monster.

 

She has to stop it somehow.

 

But she didn’t dare to go out of the tower.

 

Then it seemed as if the red-eyed wizard would appear right away and kill her.

 

‘If I die, fine. But who’ll stop her after that…?’

 

As the red-eyed wizard had declared, the red-eyed wizard had become the strongest wizard on the continent.

 

Of course, with the Emperor of the Empire, the powerful dukes, and the knights and wizards under their command, it wouldn’t be difficult to subdue her.

 

But the real danger was what the red-eyed wizard would leave behind.

 

She had learned how to gain strength by absorbing monster blood, and now she sought to extract power from humans through their blood.

 

If this method becomes widespread, the empire will be thrown into chaos by those who seek to gain power.

 

“It must be stopped. No… it must be nullified.”

 

Not just her, but anyone who might try to carry on her will—must be prevented from abusing that power.

 

‘I have to do it. This all started because of me.’

 

Having made up her mind, the blue-eyed wizard shut the gates of the Silver Frost Tower.

 

She explained the situation to her disciples and told those who wanted to leave to return home.

 

After a few left and only the loyal ones remained, she cast concealment and invisibility spells on the tower.

 

To make sure the red-eyed wizard could never find her.

 

‘I’ll create a magic to nullify powers obtained from other blood. A magic that purifies blood itself.’

 

She believed she could complete the magic quickly.

 

But the process was not easy.

 

In addition, she was badly injured and had used up all her magical power to protect and hide the tower, so her lifespan was greatly shortened.

 

In the end, she asked her direct disciple to take care of the rest and passed away.

 

“Please. For me… you must complete this magic.”

 

She never imagined that neither her disciple nor that disciple’s disciple would succeed—and that the burden would pass to future generations.

 

With deep regret, the blue-eyed wizard closed her eyes.

 

* * *

 

“When the Silver Frost Tower closed its doors and vanished, it wasn’t long before the Tower of Mercy and Healing also fell.”

 

“I heard about that. It disappeared overnight without leaving a trace.”

 

“Because the red-eyed wizard went berserk.”

 

“Berserk?”

 

Felix nodded.

 

“It wasn’t just one monster—she took in six or seven. Plus, she was injected with blood containing power, so it’s an obvious result.”

 

Rather, it was amazing that she had endured it that far. Felix hated to admit it, but the red-eyed wizard was truly a genius.

 

“But my master’s master assumed her disciples must have inherited the experimental data. That’s why we continued researching purification magic.”

 

“And the result is this medicine?”

 

Felix nodded to Leonhard’s question.

 

“I don’t really care what research someone does now. I completed it because it was my master’s will.”

 

“But why are you giving this to me?”

 

“It would be nice if someone could use what I’ve already made. You don’t have to worry about stability, because I tested it myself.”

 

“Tested?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Felix tapped his ear with his index finger.

 

“Give it a try.”

 

Leonhard had no difficulty understanding what that meant.

 

He stared blankly at Felix’s unreadable face, then spoke calmly:

 

“My sister called Noah ‘my child’.”

 

Felix’s pupils shook like water.

 

Leonhard knew this reaction had nothing to do with Felix’s ears, and he simply shrugged.

 

“That’s why I decided to raise that child.”

 

Felix stared intently at Leonhard’s face, as if trying to determine whether what he said was true or not.

 

But in the end, his gaze drifted into space, as if he had not found any clues.

 

After a while, the voice coming out of his mouth had a bitter tone just like his gaze.

 

“When I first found Louise, she didn’t beg me for her life even though she was dying.… It was like she was just waiting to die.”

 

And maybe that’s exactly why he saved her—Felix murmured in a small voice.

 

“When I revealed that I was half-barbarian, I planned to tell her. That once I finished the medicine, I could make the baby in her womb not be a barbarian.”

 

“You didn’t tell her?”

 

“I couldn’t. She left before I even got the chance to speak.”

 

Did he not chase after her, or couldn’t he?

 

Strictly speaking, it was the former. He was also hurt at the time.

 

He truly believed they had connected. But did her hatred for the barbarians run deeper than any feelings she had for him?

 

The frustration soon turned to anger.

 

He swore he would never go after her until she came back on her own.

 

He did sometimes regret that. But even that regret slowly faded over time.

 

The reason he hadn’t recognized Noah as his child right away was because he had never imagined Louise would have a child.

 

He had told himself, over and over again, that she was probably living happily somewhere, not even thinking about him.

 

“You said she died, didn’t you?”

 

Felix asked as if talking about someone else’s story—or perhaps he hadn’t fully accepted the truth yet.

 

“What was Louise’s last moment like?”

 

Leonhard couldn’t help but think about that question.

 

The last look she had shown him.

 

“My older sister….”

 

Leonhard answered, chewing over each word so that his voice would not contain his emotions.

 

“She looked like she didn’t want to die.”

 

“I see…”

 

Felix murmured the words, his face contorting slightly—as though he were about to cry.

 

Leonhard looked up at the sky.

 

No, maybe he was the one who wanted to cry.

 

“I suppose… I was the one depending on her all along.”

 

“What?”

 

Instead of explaining, Felix smiled faintly.

 

“It’s a relief you’re not the type to lie.”

 

“You’re sure of that? What do you even know about me?”

 

“Louise said so. That her little brother wasn’t good at lying—couldn’t even manage empty flattery.”

 

“That’s ancient history…”

 

As he muttered like that, Leonhard suddenly wondered.

 

What kind of expression did his sister have and what kind of voice did she use when she told that story?

 

He couldn’t picture her speaking fondly or wistfully about him.

 

More likely, she looked tired of even thinking about him.

 

Nevertheless, Leonhard felt as if the dust of old longing had cleared a little.

 

Maybe now, he really could let go of her shadow.

 

“I’ve declared the opening of the Silver Frost Tower, so I’ll be busy from now on. I won’t be leaving the tower for a while.”

 

As he said that, Felix took out a crystal ball from his robe and threw it at Leonhard.

 

‘Couldn’t he just hand it over properly?’

 

Leonhard thought as he caught it lightly.

 

“What is this?”

 

“If anything happens to Noah, call me.”

 

Leonhard raised an eyebrow at the unexpected words.

 

“I thought you had given up on being a father.”

 

“Because he’s Louise’s child.”

 

“Did you love my sister….?”

 

Leonhard finally asked the question he’d always believed had a clear answer: No.

 

Instead of answering yes or no, Felix shrugged.

 

“If we ever meet again, I want to tell her that I am no longer a barbarian.… That’s it.”

 

But it was enough of an answer for Leonhard.

 

Because at that moment, Felix’s face looked oddly like Louise’s in her last moment.

 

* * *