“What is this……”
Lucas wore a blank expression, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. He couldn’t understand why Regina was using her ability on Iberis.
“Gasp, Miss!”
“Oh my, what should we do!”
Thomas and the employees who followed were equally surprised. While they were in a state of confusion, Iberis called out to Lucas for help.
“Luke! Get Regina off me! Quickly!”
“Ah.”
Lucas, finally coming to his senses at Iberis’s shout, quickly assessed the situation. The last time Regina had used this much power was 12 years ago, on that day. Remembering this, he felt a chill run down his spine as if all the blood had drained from his body.
“Don’t come, oppa! I’m treating the Major now!”
As Lucas took a step closer, Regina, drenched in sweat, yelled. She couldn’t be interrupted here.
“Treatment……”
Lucas hesitated, pushed back by Regina’s intensity. Knowing that he shouldn’t disrupt her concentration, he found it difficult to approach carelessly. He looked back and forth between Regina and Iberis with confused eyes.
Given Regina’s ability, she must have noticed that Iberis’s physical condition wasn’t good. Given her personality, she wouldn’t stand by and watch someone in pain, so she must have offered to treat him.
Also, judging by Iberis’s attitude of sending him looks to do something, it was clear he didn’t agree with Regina’s proposal.
“Regina, you…!”
Lucas, who had been calmly organizing his thoughts, soon discovered something and was shocked. Regina’s hair, which was constantly emitting a brilliant light, seemed shorter than it had been in the morning. The ends of her hair had also turned white as if covered in frost.
Feeling a chill down his spine, Lucas reached out towards Regina. Her hair becoming like that meant she was drawing on her life force, just like before.
“Don’t touch! I’m almost done!”
Regina snapped irritably at Lucas’s attempt to interfere again. If she could just do a little more, she could revive at least some of the dead nerves, muscles, and mana circuits in Iberis’s body, if not all.
“Stop! It’s too dangerous! Withdraw your mana now!”
“No, I’m still fine! I’m already struggling to death, do you want me to keep talking?”
Regina furrowed her brow, exploding with irritation. She didn’t intend to use her ability to the point of endangering her life like before. That wouldn’t make Lucas or Iberis happy.
But it was awkward to stop here half-heartedly. After coming this far, shouldn’t there be at least some results?
Filled with determination, Regina gritted her teeth and suppressed the rising nausea. Then, squeezing out every last bit of strength, she poured as much mana as possible into Iberis. As she did so, her hair turned white all the way to her collarbone.
“I said stop!”
“It’s done… Finished!”
Just as Lucas, unable to watch any longer, reached out his arm, Regina let go of Iberis’s hand. Immediately after, her body swayed precariously.
“Regina!”
A startled Lucas hurried to support Regina. Then he hastily examined her. At this moment, he didn’t have the luxury to look after Iberis as well. He was also confident that if Regina had used her healing ability, it wouldn’t harm him.
“Why, why on earth did you do such a thing……”
“Haa, it’s a gift for the Major while repaying my debt to oppa.”
Regina raised the corners of her mouth while panting heavily. Although her body ached and hurt all over as if someone was pounding her, she couldn’t help but grin at the sense of achievement that her plan had succeeded.
“What?”
“It’s payback for raising me. Hehe, this is all I can do for you… Ugh, my head hurts.”
Regina groaned, clutching her throbbing head. It felt like someone was hammering her head. Following the headache, dizziness set in, making the world spin even though she was in Lucas’s arms. It was the price of overusing her ability.
“When did I ever ask you to repay me?”
“It’s my choice… Ugh, cough!”
Lucas turned pale as Regina retched and coughed.
“Are you okay?”
“Heh, oppa, ugh, you still think I’m always young and, urk, stupid?”
“Regina.”
“This time, I didn’t act without thinking. I did it because I could.”
Regina said, examining her hair that had turned white almost to her shoulders. Her originally waist-length blonde hair had lost its vitality and was broken off in places as if gnawed by mice.
“I don’t know about other parts, but hair can always grow back, right? So don’t make that expression.”
Regina, who had lightly touched her now dry and stiff hair that had become as coarse as a broom, smiled broadly at Lucas, who was looking down at her with a deeply troubled face.
To avoid repeating the same tragedy, and to clearly know her own limits, Regina often used her power to the point of mana overflow during her Esper training.
It would be best if there were no need to use life force at all, but no one can predict what might happen in life.
The Esper teacher who had been in charge of Regina’s education for a long time focused on training her ability control, preparing for situations where she might have to use her special ability unavoidably. The method they came up with was to sacrifice hair, a body part that wouldn’t cause problems if issues arose, just like now.
Regina, who didn’t want to lose any more precious people, actively agreed with the teacher’s opinion. Through years of steady education, she became proficient in mana control and ability use. Two years ago, she began training to heal by burning the life force of her hair multiple times. She did this with the sole intention of helping Lucas if the opportunity ever came.
And finally today, the opportunity Regina had been waiting for nearly 10 years arrived. She decided to sacrifice her hair for her oppa’s precious person.
“It looks like I dyed it, right?”
Regina smiled brightly as she examined her hair, now different colors from top to bottom. It would be a lie to say she hadn’t overdone it, but she couldn’t help but smile widely, feeling proud.
“How can you smile now?”
“Why not……”
“You really…… I won’t live out my natural lifespan because of you. My heart can’t take it. Even when you cause trouble, how can you……”
“No. Both oppa and the Major should live happily ever after like the Snow Queen and the Prince of Spring. That’s why I… Ugh, hup, cough!”
Regina couldn’t finish her sentence as she coughed up dead blood. Although she had been careful to avoid a disaster like before, she couldn’t prevent the symptoms of mana overflow.
“Regina!”
“Hoo, I’m okay. This isn’t an injury, just expelling bad blood from my body.”
“Damn it. Just hold on, I’ll guide you right away……”
Lucas wiped Regina’s mouth, wet with dark red blood, with a handkerchief. Feeling her internal mana fluctuating unstably, he placed his hand over the back of hers. He needed to calm it down before Regina went into full mana overflow.
“Don’t, I won’t accept it from oppa.”
“What?”
“Oppa is the Major’s guide.”
Regina glanced at Iberis and slowly pulled her hand away from Lucas’s grip.
“You two are a pair, right? Then you shouldn’t guide anyone other than your own Esper……”
“Is this the time to worry about that? And you’re my sister, so it doesn’t matter!”
Lucas raised his voice, upset by Regina’s refusal of guidance.
“That’s right, Regina. Quickly, let Lucas guide you.”
Iberis, who had hesitantly approached, also urged Regina to accept the guidance. Her complexion was terribly bad.
“No, cough, ha…… I’ll be guided by my own guide.”
“What?”
“Jamie.”
Regina, stubbornly shaking her head, called out to someone. At that, the gazes of Lucas, Iberis, Thomas, and everyone else present turned towards the back.
“…Ah!”
“You are……”
A boy who had been standing nervously at the doorway, having arrived at some point, flinched greatly when all eyes turned to him. Lucas narrowed his eyes as he recognized the child.
“Come here.”
“Re, Regina noona……”
At Regina’s call, a boy who looked slightly younger than her approached. Jamie was the son of Mari, who oversees the family’s kitchen, and had been Regina’s friend and guide for the past five years.
“I told you earlier, didn’t I? Huff, ugh, that there would be a need to guide me today. I’m in so much pain, do it quickly.”
Regina weakly held out her hand towards Jamie. Before breakfast, she had contacted Jamie and told him to come to the annex in about two hours. As Regina’s guide, he was exempt from the mansion access ban that had been imposed yesterday and today.
“Jamie.”
Lucas grabbed Jamie’s shoulder, who was unable to hide his bewilderment at the unexpected situation. He looked straight into the wide brown eyes and spoke with an urgent voice.
Although he wanted to guide Regina himself, he judged that Jamie would be better as he had a higher matching rate with Regina.
“I’m entrusting Regina to you.”
“Ye, yes!”
Jamie responded energetically to the request from the ‘real head of the family’ whom he had rarely met. The boy, taking Regina into his arms in place of Lucas, proceeded with the guiding carefully but quickly.
“Major.”
Lucas, finally having a moment to spare, approached Iberis, who was still half-dazed. Seeing his uncontrollably trembling eyes, it seemed he hadn’t fully recovered from the shock yet.
“Are you alright?”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
