How to Live as the Terminally Ill Younger Sister of the Villain - Chapter 32
“So the innkeeper is also a mage, which means he could know Haley. Haley is from the Magic Tower, you see.”
“Is that so.”
“Yes. I heard she was kicked out for causing trouble, but she said she still keeps in touch with her seniors.”
“I see.”
Perhaps they were more attentive because she was the lady served by their former junior mage.
“Then Miss Flaubert must receive a lot of help from her maid.”
“Ah, that’s not the case.”
Angelina immediately denied this when Blake thought things might have been easier due to Haley’s connections.
“The gates are entirely under the Tower Master’s authority.”
“I’ve heard as much.”
“In the Magic Tower, the Tower Master’s word is absolute, so no matter how much Haley and her senior mages try to ‘pull strings’ for me, the Tower Master will judge based on his own criteria.”
“The Tower Master’s criteria… you say.”
“I heard that even if a mage’s family comes to visit, it’s impossible without the Tower Master’s permission.”
In one of the novel’s episodes, one of the male lead’s subordinates goes to the Magic Tower to meet his younger sibling.
Worried about not being able to meet, the sibling deliberately switched shifts to come down to the gate.
But after that, that sibling was permanently expelled from the Magic Tower.
The charge was that the sibling had violated the rule that there should be no favoritism at the gates.
This incident made the male lead, who already didn’t think well of the Tower Master, dislike him even more.
Of course, it was all part of the novel’s story, so these events wouldn’t happen for at least two years…
‘Thinking about all these little details, the Tower Master… is truly a mysterious figure.’
Most readers cursed at the Tower Master in that episode, calling him petty.
But Angelina was one of those who believed that established rules should be followed unless they were unfair or wrong.
‘Eternal expulsion seems like a bit harsh punishment, but still, looking at things like this, he seems like a person who adheres to principles…’
But to say he’s just a principled person doesn’t quite fit either because in the latter part of the novel, he suddenly reversed his own standard of “not getting involved in politics” and went on a hunt for the Sun God’s Order.
Or was it that he didn’t get involved in the power struggles of the nobles, but only targeted the Sun God’s Order, so it still counts as not getting involved in politics?
If you look at it that way, he might still be a principled person who keeps his word…
‘But considering the gate procedures, it seems like principles don’t matter at all…’
Is there a more arbitrary and willful method than judging the motives for visits and the fees without any particular standards, just based on his whims at the time?
A truly obvious yet simultaneously jumbled character. Even in the novel, he was constantly mentioned without ever directly appearing.
He seems mysterious, yet his will to not engage in politics is clearly known to everyone in the world.
He was truly a difficult person to define.
‘…Am I supposed to persuade such an eccentric person to side with my brother?’
Just as Angelina let out a groan, suddenly realizing the difficulty of this journey, Blake spoke up.
“You seem to know a lot about the Magic Tower.”
“Pardon?”
Angelina came to her senses at Blake’s observation.
His sharp analysis left her momentarily speechless, but she soon replied calmly.
“Haley told me a lot.”
“I see.”
It was a hastily made excuse, but Angelina felt relieved as Blake seemed to believe it.
However, that was only on the surface.
Blake couldn’t shake the thought that Flaubert might be engaged in some kind of deal with the Magic Tower.
He was curious about what she had been thinking earlier while tapping the fish with her fork, but it was obvious he wouldn’t get a proper answer even if he asked.
So Blake asked a question that she could answer without discomfort.
“Does that maid know the Tower Master well too?”
“I don’t think she’s even met him. I heard that even among the Magic Tower’s mages, few know the Tower Master’s face.”
Angelina stated what was common knowledge among the people of this world.
But in fact, she knew.
‘As if. The first thing you do when entering the Magic Tower is to take an oath not to reveal the Tower Master’s identity.’
At least according to the novel, all mages knew the Tower Master’s identity, and they were magically bound by contract not to disclose it elsewhere without his permission.
The oath is triggered not just by actual disclosure, but even by the intention to disclose.
And when the oath is triggered, the Circle Core, which mages value more than their lives, shatters.
If they don’t stop talking, they lose their voice, sight, limbs one by one, and finally their life…
‘No, thinking about it again, that Tower Master… he’s not in his right mind, is he?’
He puts such a terrifying spell on all the Magic Tower mages just to hide his identity?
No wonder all the mages keep their mouths shut, saying they don’t know.
‘Maybe I shouldn’t have come…’
The more she thought about it, the more unsettling it became to meet the Tower Master.
Just as she was starting to regret mentioning something like “the black lake containing the shadow of the sun” that might overly stimulate his curiosity,
“I came to meet the Tower Master.”
Blake made a bombshell declaration.
A surprised Angelina looked at him.
“As you saw that day when I tried to borrow a hand because I didn’t have 10 billion, you probably already know, but the Kadenhart Duchy has fallen on hard times.”
Although it was a fact she already knew, she hadn’t expected him to state his purpose so openly.
“The rumors circulating in social circles about ‘the fall of the Duchy’ aren’t entirely false. It’s at a level where it’s embarrassing to even call ourselves a Duchy anywhere.”
“Your Grace.”
Flustered by the sudden confession, Angelina called his name.
“The Duchy will bloom gloriously again. It will rise more splendidly than anyone else.”
You’re going to be the male lead who shines more brilliantly than anyone else in just a little while.
Perhaps because she knew his future, words of encouragement flowed easily.
“The day will come when those who spread such rumors will be ashamed of their past.”
“I’d like to believe that too. But the Duchy is in worse shape than you can imagine.”
“……”
Why is he suddenly like this? Does he have something he wants to say?
Angelina closed her mouth, unable to grasp his intention. Too much encouragement might seem like deception.
“That’s why I came to meet the Tower Master.”
“…Joining hands with the Magic Tower would solve a lot of problems, wouldn’t it?”
“Yes.”
Angelina smiled awkwardly at his honest statements.
But what could she do? She already knew this journey would fail.
He came to this difficult path with such hope, but it seemed he would return with only frustration.
“But they say the Tower Master rarely deals with nobles. So my steps might be in vain.”
Feeling sorry for Blake’s twisted smile, Angelina reflexively said,
“He will meet you.”
Blake, who had been staring at the empty plate, raised his gaze.
Meeting his deep blue eyes, Angelina thought it would be a shame to see them filled with disappointment.
“You might not get what you want, but he will meet you, so your steps won’t be entirely in vain.”
She shared a bit of what she knew from the novel.
It shouldn’t be a problem to let him know a little earlier since he’d find out anyway.
“Do you think so?”
“Isn’t it strange that the Tower Master isn’t showing interest in the mana stone mine?”
“So you knew.”
Angelina knew he had come to negotiate with the mana stone mine. But honestly, knowing that wasn’t such a surprising thing.
“I may stay at home, but I’m not completely closed off from the social world.”
Angelina made up an excuse.
‘Actually, I am closed off.’
Angelina, who didn’t particularly enjoy mingling with people, had no interest in worldly affairs. She had always lived that way.
It was only after her last birthday, when she recalled the novel, that she unwillingly came to know about the world’s affairs.
“When you say I might not get what I want, do you think he won’t get involved in politics after all?”
“Probably…”
Angelina held back her words.
The Tower Master didn’t show any political color until the end of the novel.
If anything, he disliked the entire empire that followed the Sun God.
But as she reached that thought, Angelina had to look at Blake again.
‘But isn’t that the same for the male lead?’
Not now, but after meeting the female lead, he becomes hostile to the Sun God’s Order.
It was because he learned that the Order had not only exploited the female lead by confining her from a young age but was also taking children from the slums and offering them as ‘sacrifices’ to the Sun God.
The upright male lead couldn’t tolerate the fact that they were pretending to be benevolent while committing such terrible acts behind the scenes.
‘If it’s going to happen anyway, wouldn’t it be okay to bring it forward a little?’
Angelina thought about the latter part of the novel.
