TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 8
Kraush is the younger sibling who resembles Charlotte, with fierce eyes just like hers.
It was impossible not to be drawn to him.
“Ahaha! So, what business does the offspring of Balheim have with me? Maybe you fell in love at first sight?”
Kraush ignored her words and got straight to the point.
“It seems you’ve been quite curious about the World Erosion Beings lately.”
At that moment, Darling’s shoulders twitched.
The gaze that had only been filled with a radiant smile slowly began to change.
As others showed signs of confusion, Kraush flashed a provocative smile.
“Isn’t this enough to pique your interest?”
Darling soon began to laugh slowly.
“You’re quite the provocative little one.”
She approached and stood in front of Kraush.
“You’ll have to pay dearly for catching my attention.”
Don’t worry.
‘Because I’m the expert on the information you’re curious about.’
Kraush nodded and turned away.
The king of alchemy, known as the greatest alchemist of the future world.
Alchemy Castle Lord Darling Danphelion.
It was time to build a connection with her.
* * *
Kraush and Darling later found a room to be alone in.
As soon as Darling entered the room, she casually flopped onto the bed and smiled at Kraush.
“Coming to a room like this already, aren’t you a bit too precocious?”
“Don’t sexually harass a child.”
“A child wouldn’t understand what I just said.”
That’s probably true.
As Kraush pulled out a chair and sat down, Darling rested her elbows on her knees and propped her chin on her hands.
“How old are you?”
“You should know my sister’s age.”
“Thirteen, right? But you don’t look it at all. You have a baby face.”
That was an unavoidable fact.
Because inside the body of a thirteen-year-old was Kraush, an adult who had graduated from the academy.
“Does that have anything to do with what we’re discussing now?”
But that didn’t mean Kraush had to humor her.
It was now winter.
Only two years until enrollment at Rahelrn Academy.
There was a mountain of things to do before then.
He didn’t even have time to waste on wordplay with her.
“That’s irrelevant. Go ahead and tell me. Since you’ve been talking about the World Erosion Beings, you must have learned something from Balheim’s information, right?”
Darling wasn’t particularly interested in Kraush.
Because she thought, what could he possibly know?
“The method of neutralizing curses by using curses against each other.”
But the moment Kraush hit the nail on the head, Darling’s smile froze.
“Research on erasing the curse of the World Erosion Beings, which the Curse Masters have yet to solve, using another curse.”
Now, Darling’s eyes began to slowly widen.
“Has there been any progress on that research recently?”
Kraush asked.
“Hmm.”
And Darling slowly brushed her hair back.
Darling was a born genius in alchemy.
Despite being only fifteen, she had obtained a Second-Class Alchemist certification, which even adults find difficult to achieve.
Recently, she had been researching curse neutralization at the Danphelion Alchemy Workshop.
It was a thesis she had ambitiously started to obtain the First-Class Alchemist certification, but no matter how much she researched, she couldn’t produce results.
That was only natural.
‘Because there are no test subjects.’
No matter how much she studied the theory, there were no test subjects to experiment with.
Thus, her research was stuck.
And it would remain stuck for the foreseeable future.
Eventually, she would give up, suffer a blow to her pride, and proceed with other research to finally obtain the First-Class certification.
But her research would be resumed later.
That would be due to her meeting with Kraush.
‘I owe this kid a debt.’
Because he was the one who somewhat reversed the damage caused by the curses she had recklessly stolen.
“I’ll help with your research.”
When Kraush said that, Darling’s gaze turned icy in an instant.
“Don’t take alchemy lightly.”
Had he touched her pride as an alchemist?
She sharply reacted, telling him not to presumptuously discuss her research as an outsider who knows nothing.
Even though Darling usually maintained a light demeanor, her reaction was genuine when it came to alchemy.
“Don’t worry. What I’m offering to help with is the test subject you think you’re lacking.”
Doubt flickered in Darling’s eyes.
Because Kraush had brought up something she hadn’t expected at all.
“Test subject?”
“I can steal curses.”
For the first time, a light other than mischief flickered in Darling’s eyes.
It was the reaction of an alchemist discovering new material.
“Kid, are you serious about that?”
“I made a contract with a god. Isn’t that enough to help with your research?”
“More than enough, it’s overflowing.”
Darling mumbled and then slowly smiled again.
“I feel like you want something from me. What do you want? A girlfriend, perhaps?”
Kraush paid no mind to her sly remark, despite her liking women.
“I’m going to acquire a few curses. I want to ask you to make a medicine to reduce those curses.”
Kraush now knew he could steal skills.
But that alone was not enough.
Even the Skyborne Generation, with their exceptional skills, couldn’t prevent their own destruction.
So Kraush intended to use every shortcut available.
He was already tired of using curses against each other.
“…….”
After hearing the story, Darling quietly looked at Kraush.
Those eyes filled with ambition.
Those were not the eyes a thirteen-year-old boy should have.
What could have driven this kid to such a state?
Darling had heard about Kraush before.
The Half-Penny of Balheim.
Not chosen by a god, and showing no strengths in any weapon, a failure.
And the youngest, most compared to Charlotte, the brightest star of Starlon.
‘Normally, one would crumble under such circumstances.’
But some rise above.
And the boy before her had risen.
A crescent moon began to form in Darling’s pupils.
‘Hmm, I like it.’
Darling categorizes the people she likes into two types.
One is the overwhelming genius.
A genius standing at the pinnacle, seemingly unattainable by anyone.
And the second type is the stubborn person.
Someone who, lacking even a speck of talent, uses any means necessary, fair or foul, to reach the top.
‘How can siblings be so alike?’
How can they be so charming?
Darling’s eyes, having licked her lips once, shone seductively.
“Kid, can I ask you just one thing?”
Kraush looked at Darling as if it didn’t matter.
To such a Kraush, Darling posed the question she had been holding back.
“Are you going to the newly established Rahelrn Academy?”
Upon hearing the question, Kraush blinked once before showing a look of obviousness.
With so many skills to steal there, why would he not go?
“Good. That’s all I needed to know. I’ll do anything for potion-making. Curses are always welcome.”
Seeing Darling laugh with a giggle, Kraush felt relieved.
Fortunately, Darling’s personality was the same as before.
“Oh, come to think of it, can I ask for one more thing? It’s related to potion-making.”
At that moment, Kraush decided to make a request he had forgotten.
“You said you’d do anything for potion-making earlier, so what is it?”
“You know about Discoloration Disease.”
It’s definitely an incurable disease where the skin turns a deep black-blue and gradually leads to death.
Though a rare incurable disease, Darling knew of it and tilted her head, so Kraush spoke.
“Make a cure for that disease.”
Hearing the sudden request for a cure, Darling momentarily wore a dumbfounded expression.
“……You know it’s an incurable disease, right?”
“I know.”
“Don’t you know why it’s called an incurable disease?”
Because it can’t be cured, it’s called an incurable disease.
“But you can do it.”
If Darling seriously researches it, it wouldn’t be difficult.
Later on, she cured hundreds of incurable diseases.
Among them was definitely Discoloration Disease.
When Aliod swallowed the poison soup and committed suicide, Kraush clearly remembered the reason for his death and his daughter’s illness.
When he heard that Darling had created a cure for Discoloration Disease, he felt a sense of regret in many ways.
“That’s quite a challenge to my pride.”
Though he didn’t know why she trusted him so much, it didn’t feel bad.
So, Darling lightly got up from the bed.
“Is that all you needed?”
“Yes, contact Green Pine Mansion in Balheim once the cure is ready.”
“Will you come in person? That’s a big deal. I’ll have to clean the room.”
“Do you want to say that to a thirteen-year-old?”
“Even if you don’t understand what a kid is, I have to clean because it’s hard. I’ll come myself.”
What a strange woman.
As Kraush was about to leave the room after finishing his business, Darling approached him and poked his side.
“My boyfriend position is open, so let me know anytime.”
Kraush frowned as if he had heard something he shouldn’t have.
“Don’t you like my sister?”
“I like Charlotte a lot. But that doesn’t mean I can’t like someone else, right?”
That doesn’t even make sense.
“……But before that, don’t you like women?”
As Kraush, knowing her sexual orientation, said this, Darling blinked before slowly breaking into a full smile.
“I like men too.”
“Huh?”
“So, I like both men and women.”
Darling, looking at Kraush, licked her lips slightly.
Seeing her eyes as if she had spotted prey in the wild, Kraush immediately kicked the door open.
“Where are you going! My future boyfriend!”
“Crazy Woman.”
Having learned about Darling’s new preference he didn’t want to know, Kraush returned to the Party Hall in horror.
Fortunately, Darling didn’t chase after him with full force, perhaps it was somewhat of a joke.
‘She definitely asked about Rahelrn Academy.’
It feels ominous.
Originally, Darling didn’t come to Rahelrn Academy following Charlotte, but for some reason, it seemed like she would enroll this time.
‘It’s done.’
Still, the purpose of the meeting was achieved.
Deciding not to worry about it anymore, Kraush was returning to his seat, running his hand through his hair.
Bianca came into Kraush’s view.
She was being grabbed by the wrist by someone, and seeing this, Kraush’s eyes gradually narrowed.
At the same time, Kraush, who had somehow kicked off the ground, reached Bianca in an instant.
“Mr. Kraush?”
As Bianca called out to Kraush with wide eyes, Kraush immediately kicked the man.
“Aagh?!”
With a scream, the man rolled on the ground, and Kraush grabbed Bianca, who was about to be dragged away by the man.
Then he checked her wrist.
It was slightly red, showing she had been forcibly pulled.
“Mr. Kraush.”
As Bianca called him again, Kraush turned to her and sighed.
“Let’s go get some medicine.”
Just in case it bruises.
“I’m fine. More importantly.”
Bianca looked ahead.
Following her gaze, there was a boy who had somehow gotten up, staggering.
He glared at Kraush with a huff and frowned.
“You dare kick me!”
“You’re the one trying to drag someone else’s fiancé away. What are you thinking?”
“What, f-forcibly?”
Kraush looked the boy up and down, who seemed to be in his mid-teens, and soon began to show a look of contempt.
“Bianca is still young. She’s only twelve. Are you into that kind of thing? It’s disgusting.”
“I’m not young.”
Though Bianca said something beside him, Kraush only looked at the man in front of him as if he were trash.