Chapter 3
Chapter 3
I couldn’t believe my eyes.
Theodor in front of me was, as described in the original story, a handsome man with jet-black hair and odd-colored eyes. But that only applied if you were looking at his face.
The state of his body was a complete disaster. His thin shoulders and hunched back were severely deformed, and the imbalance in his posture was alarming. His legs were as thin as chopsticks, to the point of looking pathetic.
‘He looks like he’d fall over if you so much as tapped him.’
He seemed so fragile, like he’d be blown away by the wind. His muscle mass was noticeably low compared to others his age. It was the result of having locked himself away here for so long, obsessing only over awakening.
Even his face, while still attractive, was a mess. His cheeks were sunken, his lips dry, and his skin rough and clear signs of poor nutrition.
I glanced at the table and saw the food left untouched by the maid. He had clearly skipped meals to immerse himself in awakening.
I let out a deep sigh internally.
‘That’s the worst physical condition I’ve ever seen, even back when I worked as a trainer.’
In the original novel, it was only mentioned vaguely that he grew physically weak from over-focusing on his awakening. But seeing it in person was far worse than I imagined.
‘How did he even manage those intimate scenes with Annie in that condition?’
For reference, intimacy between a man and a woman is considered highly intensive physical activity. It’s said to be equivalent to sprinting a full 100 meters at top speed.
Of course he lost control of his mana after that kind of exertion with a body like this!
‘And to think he’s wasting that handsome face like this!’
As I inwardly lamented, he looked at me and asked,
“Are you the new teacher responsible for my awakening?”
His voice was calm, yet carried a subtle defensiveness that pushed others away. His eyes, too, were unnaturally dry and eerily still.
Theodor had learned to suppress his emotions from a young age. Even when his father hurled verbal abuse at him in disappointment, or when other royal family members scorned and tormented him, he swallowed it all without expression.
The more he suppressed, the more rotten he became inside. And his behavior grew more violent.
‘Before meeting Annie, he couldn’t express a single genuine emotion.’
That’s why his love manifested only as obsession and cruelty. I bowed with proper courtesy, then raised my head to look at him. Though his gaze was devoid of warmth, his pair of odd-colored eyes were breathtakingly beautiful.
I found myself mesmerized by those eyes, when suddenly his sharp gaze narrowed. His parched lips curled into a twisted smirk.
“Another useless novice, is it?”
Well, maybe if you didn’t drive away every instructor who came near you. Theodor’s voice was laced with something off. Beneath his calm tone, I could sense deep-seated anger.
With an icy voice, he said to me,
“I won’t waste words. Awaken me; here and now.”
Right now? Did I hear that right? Awakening takes time. No matter how skilled a mage may be, no one can trigger it instantly.
Not even the heroine Annie could manage that!
And Theodor, more desperate for awakening than anyone, should know that better than anyone. I stared at him in disbelief at the absurd demand. And in that moment, I felt an unsettling dissonance.
There was no expectation in his expression. Rather than desperation, he looked bored and indifferent. That’s when I realized why he gave such a ridiculous order.
‘He doesn’t expect anything. He just wants to get rid of me quickly and move on to the next instructor.’
I knew he’d look down on Rosalyn, a novice with no background. But I didn’t expect this level of disdain. As I stood there speechless, he smirked as if he had expected nothing less.
“If you can’t do it, just say so. I’d rather not waste time. I’ll let you go quietly.”
As he finished, he gestured toward a corner of the room.
Shh.
From the previously empty shadow of the room, a figure emerged. A man with long brown hair and piercing, slit eyes. His face was covered in scars. Upon seeing him, I widened my eyes.
‘That person’
Theodor’s mute assassin, Arch.
He was a loyal servant of Theodor and a mysterious figure who appeared in the original story. Due to Theodor’s physical limitations, Arch served as his hands and feet. He was even the one who kidnapped Annie when she tried to escape from Theodor’s obsessive grip.
Arch’s hand had already reached for his sword.
‘So that’s what he meant by quietly.’
I had to stop him from killing me here. I couldn’t die before I even had a chance to try.
In desperation, I shouted,
“Your Highness! I can awaken you! Please, just give me a little more time…!”
“A novice like you? Don’t make me laugh. Why should I believe you?”
Theodor’s eyes, filled with distrust, bore into me. The dry sneer at his lips had vanished. His voice now held years of pent-up frustration and fury.
‘He won’t listen to reason.’
Theodor was in far worse condition than I imagined. With a blank expression, he nodded toward Arch. His signal was basically to end my life right now.
Shrrk.
Arch drew his blade. The cold glint of steel sent a chill up my spine. I felt my strength drain away. My mind raced in panic.
If I wanted to survive, I had to show him something here and now.
‘If I can just activate a bit of his mana…!’
Until his coming-of-age ceremony, Theodor had failed not only to awaken but even to activate his mana, something even a child could do. That failure crushed him more than anything.
If I could just make his mana stir, it would prove there was still hope. He’d have to look at me differently. But to activate his mana, I had to make contact. Not just physical contact, rather, emotional impact was necessary too.
Theodor’s pure mana responded to intense emotional stimuli.
This was a unique setting revealed in the middle of the original novel. That’s why he awakened after his first, intense encounter with Annie, which later led to his mana spiraling out of control.
Of course, I couldn’t make him fall in love with me and touch him like that right now.
‘But the emotion doesn’t have to be love.’
That meant I still had a way. I swallowed hard, tension etched across my face. Arch was now approaching me, with his sword drawn. At this rate, I had three seconds before death.
I dashed toward the table beneath the window, risking everything. The table was cluttered with scattered papers.
A quick glance told me they were reports and research on awakening. But that wasn’t what I was after. I set my eyes on the small frame beside the papers.
A silver frame holding a portrait of a beautiful woman with blonde hair and violet eyes. A faded, pressed sunflower was tucked beside it.
She was Theodor’s mother. His mother was his greatest weakness and the person he cherished most in the entire story. Despite the table being messy and covered in candle wax, the frame was spotless.
‘He must have cleaned it every day out of longing for her.’
Theodor, true to his role as a tragic male lead, had an extreme mother complex. She was the only one who had ever shown him love in his childhood. While his father rejected him and the royals ridiculed him, she protected and cared for him.
After her death, young Theodor locked himself away in the imperial crypt where she was buried, refusing food and crying for days. Even the way he fell in love with Annie at first sight, he saw traces of his mother in her. Annie even had the same blonde hair.
His later obsession with Annie wasn’t just love, instead, it was grief.
Thinking of all that, I picked up the frame.
‘I never wanted to use this.’
It meant touching his deepest wound but I was left with no other choice. I must live. The moment I lifted the frame, his ever-calm eyes shook violently. Then, a terrifying surge of murderous intent burst forth from his mismatched eyes. His gaze alone could have killed.
“Put that down, now!”
His voice trembled. The emotions he had suppressed for so long were starting to erupt. From his frail, hunched body exploded a fury so vast it could engulf the entire annex. Even Arch faltered at the sight.
Now, he began walking toward me.
And in that moment, visions of his childhood flashed through my mind.
Theodor, abandoned by his father, crying quietly in the shadows. When he endured torment and prayed desperately for awakening. When he froze while waiting for his mother, refusing to do anything at all.
As he approached me, I couldn’t help but feel apologetic. Beneath all that rage was sorrow. I had seen it all. In the novel, yes, but still, I had watched over him for so long.
‘I’m sorry, Theodor. Truly.’
But I had to live. I would survive and awaken him. With resolute eyes, I looked at him as he approached. Then, I slammed the frame onto the floor with all my strength.
Crash!
Theodor’s eyes widened in horror.
(TN: And we love the female lead for doing exactly as I wanted! Panyaa here guys, thank you for showing love for my other translation here in Coral and I couldn’t be more happier. The genre and theme of this novel seemed rather the exact opposite of the other one I have but yes, we love angst, right? I hope you get to like this novel as much as I will. See you in the next chapters ~ 😍)
