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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Wait, stop, hold on.”
“Hm?”
“Are you trying to take credit for the work I’ve already done?”
A battle of nerves broke out between Arwen and Sylphia, with a sleeping Rudrick caught in the middle.
Naturally, after hours of painstaking effort and intense concentration to complete the first stage of the procedure, Sylphia wasn’t pleased with Arwen’s attempt to take over the final step.
On the other hand, Arwen also had something to say.
“If I left it to you, something big would have gone wrong. Stop being stubborn and step aside. Even the Lord of your clan would yield in this situation, so what are you doing?”
Sylphia was clearly annoyed, while Arwen, in contrast, responded nonchalantly.
Arwen added, tucking up her sleeves,
“It would be better for me to do it than to leave it to you and risk a mistake.”
Who could dare to say such presumptuous words to a dragon, who are even called the masters of magic?
However, Arwen was in a position to say such things even to a dragon.
After all, Arwen was a True Ancestor.
Although there was a past incident where Sylphia’s thoughtless magic destroyed Arwen’s familiar, in terms of seniority, Arwen was on par with the Lord of Sylphia’s Red Dragon clan.
It wasn’t clear who was superior since they hadn’t fought to the death, but there was a slight gap between Sylphia, one of many dragons, and Arwen, the True Ancestor, the root from which all vampires stemmed, also known as the Elder Vampire.
“But this isn’t right! I prepared the whole meal, and you’re just waiting to add your spoon? What’s the difference?”
“Your analogy is flawed. If I had known from the beginning, would I have left it to you? I would have just done it myself.”
“Are you saying you don’t trust my skills?”
“You understood immediately.”
Sylphia glared at Arwen, but Arwen responded as if she had just realized it.
Upset by this, Sylphia forgot that they were in the middle of a procedure, stood up abruptly, and said,
“Well, why don’t we just have a go right here and now to see who’s better?”
“I have no objection.”
Arwen was also becoming increasingly emotional.
Normally, they wouldn’t have quarreled to this extent, considering Rudrick’s presence.
However, ironically, it was because of Rudrick that the fight was escalating.
If Sylphia’s procedure went wrong, even if he survived, Rudrick’s completely damaged mana circuits would be difficult to restore. In that case, Rudrick would be forever separated from the mysteries of magic.
A mage with broken circuits obviously couldn’t wield mana.
Therefore, Arwen believed that she should take over the remaining steps. It was true that it would be foolish to compare the magical abilities of Sylphia and Arwen.
There was no clear indicator to definitively conclude who was more superior.
However, in terms of magical perfection, Arwen, with slightly more experience, believed she was better.
So, even though Sylphia had overcome a dangerous hurdle, Arwen believed it was better for her to handle the rest.
Arwen held firm in her belief.
Simply put, this was all happening because they both cared for Rudrick.
“…Why is it so noisy when I was sleeping so soundly?”
Thanks to the commotion, Rudrick, who had been fast asleep, opened his eyes. He habitually glanced at the clock on the bedside table.
It had been about three or four hours since they started. Seeing Sylphia right next to him and Arwen standing outside the bed, both with their arms crossed, Rudrick asked,
“Is it over?”
“It’s not over yet. Try to move your mana consciously. You probably won’t be able to.”
“…It’s true. Something feels strange.”
As soon as Sylphia spoke, Rudrick tried to activate his mana, but since his circuits were completely gone, he couldn’t move his mana even when he tried.
It wasn’t a mistake made in his drowsy state, as this sensation was completely new to Rudrick.
Although it was impossible to physically explain the magical aspects, the fastest analogy was to understand that all the problematic mana circuits had been surgically removed with a scalpel.
The strange sensation Rudrick felt, as if his body wasn’t his own, was because his body hadn’t yet adapted to the absence of his mana circuits.
Even though he had prepared himself, Rudrick couldn’t help but feel a little nervous now that he was in this situation.
“…This hasn’t gone wrong, has it?”
He asked cautiously.
If this were his past life, where he had never used magic, it would be different. But now, from the moment he first started learning magic through self-study, he had always been accompanied by the mysteries of magic.
It was common for ordinary mages to become despondent if they were unable to use magic due to pushing themselves beyond their limits or due to illness. Rudrick, as an archmage, had achieved a level of mastery dozens of times greater than ordinary mages.
The sense of loss he would feel if he were unable to use magic was indescribable.
“It hasn’t gone wrong yet. In fact, only the mana circuits have been cleanly destroyed, without any negative effects on the body.
Now, all that’s left is to regenerate the circuits that were once broken, and you’ll be fine.”
Arwen, who had been glaring at Sylphia with her arms crossed, answered instead. She didn’t forget to add a few words.
“So, it would be best if you stopped being stubborn and left it to me. They say that stubbornly clinging to your own way is called obstinacy.”
“…No, I mean, like you said, I managed to destroy the circuits without any problems, so why are you insisting on doing it yourself because you don’t trust me?”
“Isn’t it just as difficult to properly rebuild something as it is to properly destroy it? This time, by a stroke of luck, you managed to finish it without any issues, but there’s no guarantee that the reconstruction phase will go the same way.”
“So, are you saying I’m like some kind of quack doctor? That this time it was just pure luck that there wasn’t an accident?”
“Your comprehension isn’t bad, seeing as you understood immediately, so why are you being so unnecessarily stubborn…?”
“Argh! This crazy bitch, I’ve had enough!”
In the end, Sylphia exploded, and Arwen responded with a frown.
“How vulgar.”
“W-w-what? Vulgar?”
“Yes.”
Arwen had always been old-fashioned in her speech, and when she wasn’t with Rudrick, she exuded an air of elegance.
Unlike Sylphia, who was completely enraged by the continued insults, Arwen methodically criticized Sylphia without losing her composure.
“Why don’t you stop being obstinate and quietly concede? You lizard, don’t you think so too? In this situation, where it’s right to eliminate even one uncertain variable, it would be more likely, judging calmly, to leave it to me rather than to you.”
“I mean, really, what, you’ve lived a little longer than me and used magic a few years earlier, so why are you lording it over me? When I was gritting my teeth and working hard alone, you were just watching with your arms crossed, and what? You don’t trust me, so step aside? Are you crazy?”
“That’s why I’m saying you were reckless. If you had told me your plan in advance, I would have taken care of everything from the beginning.”
Their conversation was a parallel from the start.
Sylphia was asking why Arwen kept making her feel untrustworthy when she was doing well, and Arwen was saying she would do it herself because she was uneasy watching.
If neither of them cared for Rudrick, this argument wouldn’t have happened, but that was why their conversation continued on parallel lines.
And in the middle of it all, listening to their argument, Rudrick muttered.
“…I shouldn’t have done this.”
It was a difficult situation.
Originally, if it weren’t for the connection they had through Rudrick, all five wives should have been like oil and water, unable to mix.
Even just looking at Sylphia and Arwen, who were growling at each other now, there was a history of bad blood between them because of a familiar.
If they met without Rudrick, it was obvious they would either bicker like this or just pass by each other without acknowledging the other’s existence.
In other words, this situation was triggered by Rudrick, and he had a duty to somehow take responsibility and resolve it.
‘The seeds of discord must be removed in advance.’
He had no intention of just standing between them and awkwardly laughing like the insensitive male protagonists in the novels or animations he had often seen in his past life.
After all, in his past life, he had seen such sandwiched male protagonists and thought to himself,
‘What an idiot.’
Just as Alexander the Great cut the Gordian Knot with a single stroke instead of untangling it, Rudrick immediately proposed a very bold and direct solution.
“Then just do it together.”
“Huh?”
“What?”
The two, who had been arguing just a moment ago, simultaneously turned to look at Rudrick.
Rudrick, with a ‘What’s the problem?’ expression, responded nonchalantly.
“Instead of just bickering like that, just do it together. You can both hold hands and do it together, so why are you fighting?”
It was a high-difficulty task to completely destroy and rebuild a person’s mana circuits.
If Sylphia and Arwen weren’t a dragon and a True Ancestor, they wouldn’t have even attempted it.
It was a magical task that required extreme meticulousness and high concentration, and Rudrick suggested they do it together.
“…I’ve changed my mind. You lizard, just finish it.”
“…No, I’ll step back this time. It’s right for you to do it.”
Both Arwen and Sylphia quickly surrendered, waving the white flag.
Even while they were verbally yielding to each other, they were both carefully watching Rudrick, wondering if he was angry.
They looked like typical wives under their husband’s thumb.
When they had been growling and fighting just moments ago, and now, as soon as he spoke, they were both backing down and observing him.
Rudrick sighed.
“…Sigh. This is all just my karma.”
And it really was Rudrick’s karma.
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