Chapter 16: Health (1)

In this world there are many things that can be bought with money, but also many that cannot.

Health, the heart, time.

Most of them are abstract concepts, but they occupy an enormous place in life.

Among all of them, health is directly linked to one’s own “life”, which is why it is so important.

It doesn’t matter if someone has high status, great wealth, or fame.

If health is bad, everything else becomes useless.

Most people live without understanding the importance of health, and only realize it when it is already too late.

And even if they try to cling to it then, the moment has already passed.

Even an emperor who rules with dignity is nothing more than a simple human in the face of health.

And once health deteriorates, it is extremely difficult to recover.

As time passed, medicine and technology advanced, and new methods to preserve health appeared, but even so they remain limited.

Many times, when someone feels discomfort in one part of the body, the problem lies in another completely different one.

And there are also those who are born with ailments from the beginning.

Human beings are structured in such a way that their health can only gradually deteriorate from the moment they are born.

Because upon receiving life, they are also promised death.

However, cruelly, there are people whose cycle is extremely short.

Even people who are sentenced to die from the moment they are born.

“Cough! Cough!”

On a bed, a young woman let out a harsh cough.

She quickly covered her mouth with a handkerchief.

Snow-white hair.

White eyes.

Pale skin.

Altogether, she seemed like the personification of pure snow, radiating an almost mystical aura.

“Ha…”

The young woman who had coughed violently slowly lowered the handkerchief with which she covered her mouth.

On the white cloth were stains of dark blood.

At first glance her condition was severe, but she did not seem to give it importance and handed the handkerchief to the side.

There stood a young maid with brown hair.

“Mary. Take care of this.”

“Miss.”

The brown-haired girl alternated her gaze between the bloodstained handkerchief and the young woman, with a worried expression.

Her eyes resembled those of a deer.

The white-haired young woman seemed to notice that pure gaze and gave a faint smile.

Or rather, she tried to smile.

But she couldn’t.

Her expression was rigid and cold, as if it were hardened.

“Wouldn’t it be better to tell the duke again…?”

“It is something frequent. Don’t exaggerate.”

“But lately the coughing is too…”

“I told you I’m fine. Just bring more.”

Her voice was cold and dry.

Mary hesitated for a moment before picking up the handkerchief and placing it in a basket on the drawer.

The basket was full of bloodstained handkerchiefs.

That said everything about how much blood she had been coughing up.

“We are running out of handkerchiefs. I will go get more.”

“Good. If there aren’t any, bring paper.”

“Yes.”

Mary left the room unable to hide her concern.

The white-haired woman remained expressionless.

When the maid finally left, the young woman turned her face forward.

The atmosphere became as cold as her expression.

“Ha…”

The young woman, Selena, let out a long sigh and let herself fall onto the bed.

Her expression remained stiff, but now soaked with darkness.

She raised her arm and looked at her wrist.

It was so thin that it seemed it could break with a simple blow.

Her skin was so white that it looked as if it were covered with dust.

The blood on the handkerchief confirmed it:

Selena’s health was terrible.

No, saying terrible was an understatement.

‘There isn’t much time left.’

Selena thought that without changing her expression.

A congenital incurable disease.

It wasn’t that it shortened her life.

It had decided it from the beginning.

She would inevitably die upon reaching adulthood.

According to the doctor who came from the central continent, it was the so-called Obstruction of the Nine Yin Meridians, the worst of diseases.

An extreme excess of yin energy that completely breaks the balance of the body and slowly destroys it.

Its main characteristic is that the meridians, that is, the mana circuits, become blocked one by one.

Mana circuits are essential for a person to live.

Especially for something Selena desired so much health.

Sometimes people suffer cardiac arrest.

That occurs when the mana circuit near the heart becomes blocked by illness or deterioration.

In the past there was nothing to do in the face of cardiac arrest, but recently at least cardiopulmonary resuscitation could be applied.

‘How unfair heaven is.’

But the Obstruction of the Nine Meridians was different.

It is not that a single part becomes blocked.

It is as if the entire system of the body becomes obstructed.

It is like if a container had a limited capacity, but too much content is introduced into it until it breaks.

In exchange, it grants a power that surpasses that of an ordinary person.

While she was able to move, Selena was called a genius.

Especially in magic, her talent was incomparable.

Even her mind was brilliant to the point that her own father, Theodore, came to her for advice.

‘All of it is useless.’

With time, all of that lost meaning.

She was born into the most prestigious ducal house of the Messiah Empire.

She possessed extraordinary talent.

And yet she was dying without being able to do anything.

In the face of health, everything became insignificant.

As time passed, she only desired one thing.

To get out of bed and run freely on her own feet.

She knew it was impossible.

She had received every support imaginable, but her health showed no improvement.

The methods to treat the Obstruction of the Nine Meridians were three.

Consume a sacred spirit filled with yang energy.

Have a doctor manually unblock the meridians.

Or receive yang energy directly from a man.

The first was practically impossible even with the power, wealth, and information network of her family.

In the black market they only found drugs and human trafficking.

Never a sacred spirit.

The second all the doctors gave up.

It was a surgery of extreme difficulty and no one wanted to assume the responsibility.

The third…

She preferred to die.

Before joining with an unknown man, she would rather bite off her tongue.

She did not want to prolong her life by sacrificing her dignity.

‘Besides, a man like that almost does not exist.’

For it to work, it would have to be someone worthy of the title of the strongest.

But the names circulating in that debate were almost all women.

Perhaps Kadir remained, the so-called King of Magic, but he was elderly.

And he had a reputation for being eccentric.

‘I don’t want to die like this…’

Death was frightening.

That is why she gathered knowledge desperately.

She studied alchemy and medicine on her own.

But the more she learned, the clearer it became that there was no cure.

There was a time when she cried until she lost her voice.

Her parents, aware of their helplessness, gradually faded as the days passed.

And the emotions also disappeared from Selena’s face.

She was no longer in the stage of waiting for a miracle.

She was learning to accept despair.

She did not even remember the last time she laughed sincerely.

‘It is better than doing nothing.’

She did not want to simply wait for death.

Selena raised her gaze toward the void.

And before her eyes a window appeared.

The gallery.

Only after accepting death did she decide to connect.

‘Before, I didn’t even want to look at it.’

The gallery allowed access to anyone who met the conditions, regardless of age or gender.

That very thing was what made many people avoid it.

It was a place soaked in human desires.

Selena was one of those people.

But when her health began to worsen rapidly, she changed her mind.

‘How much time has passed…’

Her addiction to the gallery began when her health deteriorated severely.

Since she could not get out of bed, she spent the entire day browsing there.

At first, since she had nothing to do, she only read silently.

Later she thought that perhaps she should at least leave a record, and began to upload posts counting the days.

Five months have already passed.

In other words, it means that for five months her health has worsened.

‘It’s not that there are only horrible people there.’

When she received criticism and mockery, she felt disappointed thinking, I already knew it.

But as the days passed, perhaps because they noticed she was not just a character but that she was speaking seriously, more people began to appear who supported her.

Moreover, although the main moderator was somewhat strange, he was fair.

When the criticism crossed the line, he applied bans immediately.

Thanks to that, she was able to enter the gallery with more peace of mind than before.

They say that when a person accepts death, they become infinitely free.

Selena also gradually became accustomed to that pit of desires called the gallery, until she became quite a competent user.

The emotions that had dried up inside her returned, even if only slightly.

Curiously, most of those emotions were envy or jealousy.

‘Even people like those live with intact bodies and why do I…?’

It was ironic.

Even so, she could not leave the gallery.

Especially because recently a peculiar user had appeared who captured all her attention.

‘WildGrills why did this person fall into the Forest of Four Seasons?’

When one explores the gallery, one inevitably witnesses things that defy common sense.

Recently someone had appeared who fell into the Forest of Four Seasons.

A place where space constantly changes and where it is supposed to be impossible to connect to the gallery.

And yet he could connect without problem, and had even carried out several verification tests.

That is why he was receiving so much attention.

Title) Anyone betting according to Grills’ time?

I say he lasts half a month haha

ㄴ Half a month is already generous haha

ㄴ He might even die tomorrow lol

ㄴ Genuine mayfly life

ㄴ I think God hates Grills

ㄴ WildGrills) Hey, bastards. I’m going to survive until the end

ㄴ Then what did you eat today?

ㄴ WildGrills) Three fasting pills…

ㄴ Have you tried meat? Haha

ㄴ WildGrills) No…

ㄴ Should I give you some?

ㄴ WildGrills) Start by changing your nickname haha

At first she thought he was simply someone worthy of pity.

But after making a trade with him, she changed her mind.

He could have kept the compass without any problem, but he returned it until the very end.

That meant that at least he was not a bad person.

‘The fact that he has a mayfly life also creates a strange feeling of affinity.’

If Selena was someone with a fixed life deadline, Grills was someone who lived on the edge of death at all times.

That strange dynamic slowly began to settle in the gallery.

Sometimes debates arose about who would die first, but they disappeared quickly.

The moderator probably banned them.

Comparing people’s lives as if they were weights on a scale deserved a ban.

‘If the first thing he had found had been another medicinal herb…’

It was something she thought every time she read Grills’ posts.

The rare herb he had found by chance, New Moon Spirit Herb.

Unfortunately, that plant specialized in stabilization, not in providing a specific energy.

She did not know how much that had hurt.

If it had been a herb full of yang energy, she would have done whatever was necessary.

‘In that case… would HeavenlyDemon have been in danger?’

It was enough to look at the behavior of HeavenlyDemon, who supposedly received the New Moon Spirit Herb.

HeavenlyDemon was a fairly famous user in the gallery.

Selena had already more or less identified her pattern of behavior.

‘The fact that someone with such a strong ego treats another person like that proves that she definitely received the New Moon Spirit Herb.’

HeavenlyDemon was known for constantly posting nonsense.

She did not care what others said.

Because of that, Selena could deduce her personality.

A person with extremely high self-esteem and confidence.

Especially her self-esteem stood out remarkably.

Judging by how she posted whatever she wanted without caring about anything, the answer was clear.

‘Gal meant reprimand in the language of the central continent?’

A person like that showed urgency during the New Moon Spirit Herb incident.

And after receiving it, she treated Grills with unusual courtesy.

That made it clear that HeavenlyDemon was not physically well and that she had received help from Grills.

‘This Grills seems a bit naïve.’

Selena analyzed him with her usual expressionless face.

His personality could be summarized in one sentence.

If you speak well to him, he responds well.

And his actions matched that.

In the Forest of Four Seasons, where survival was what mattered, he still tried to repay everything he received.

‘What strange creatures exist in the world.’

Selena constantly checked Grills’ posts.

Partly because of that sense of affinity, but mostly because of unease.

If his posts stopped, it would mean that he had died.

‘That’s why it makes me even more curious.’

She wanted to know what other creature he would encounter and how he would overcome adversity.

She even began leaving comments, something she almost never did before.

Small ripples began to form in her heart.

“Cough! Cough!”

Chuak—

If it weren’t because her body was getting worse day by day.

Selena hurriedly covered her mouth with her hand at the sudden coughing fit.

Mary had just gone out to get handkerchiefs, so she had no other option.

“……”

Overcoming the dizziness, she lowered her gaze to her hand.

It was not a handkerchief.

It was blood pooling in her own palm.

Death felt more real than ever.

It was a sign that she was reaching her limit.

Click.

“Miss. I brought the handkerchiefs… M-Miss!?”

Mary returned at just the right moment.

When she saw her, she ran toward her in terror.

“……Mary.”

“I will call the doctor right now. Today the blood is…”

“No. It’s fine. There is no need anymore.”

“Miss?”

At the order not to call the doctor, Mary looked at her in disbelief.

Selena nodded.

“I think there really isn’t much time left.”

“M-miss, you can’t give up so soon…”

“I also know medicine. I know the state of my body better than anyone.”

She had studied everything related to medicine in order to survive.

But she obtained nothing.

Only the certainty that she had a time limit.

Mary looked at her with trembling eyes.

But Selena remained firm.

“Thank you for the handkerchiefs. Go rest. I will call you if I need you.”

“……Miss.”

“I want to be alone. Go.”

At the cold order of dismissal, Mary left reluctantly.

Until the very last moment, she did not stop looking at her with concern.

Selena felt her heart warm at that kindness.

Even though her face remained frozen.

‘I will have to ask them to adopt Mary as a daughter.’

That would be her will.

Her way of rewarding the one who stayed by her side until the end.

She lay back on the bed.

The dizziness lessened a little, but her body became heavier.

She could not even take a single step outside the bed anymore.

‘Mr. Grills… will he be alright?’

When death felt closer than ever, someone came to her mind.

If she was infinitely close to death, he lived walking right in front of it every single day.

With blurred vision, she barely managed to connect to the gallery.

‘Adult… mandrake? What is this now?’

As expected of Grills.

He had found another strange thing.

It was not an animal this time, but a plant.

And that interested her even more.

‘I understand that mandrake contains yang energy…’

If that was the case, couldn’t it improve her condition even a little?

With that thought, she left a few comments.

And then she discovered something surprising.

‘Couldn’t adult mandrakes cure it?’

But there was a condition.

And moreover, an extremely cruel condition.

At least six adult mandrakes were needed.

Seeing even one in an entire lifetime was already difficult and they were asking for six.

It was torture disguised as hope.

Just when she was about to give up completely, a comment appeared that was impossible to ignore.

ㄴWildGrills) There are a ton of them here, you know?

ㄴStarlightLady) Huh?

Out of surprise she wrote a strange reply.

It was impossible for her to believe it.

Even if it was the Forest of Four Seasons, wasn’t that too much?

That was the first thing she thought.

But shortly afterward, when she saw the post and the photos Grills uploaded, she changed her mind.

‘What if…?’

What if with Grills’ help she could free herself from this infernal disease?

Selena had also made elixirs before.

She had dedicated her entire life to trying to cure herself.

And right at that moment, Grills seemed to prefer elixirs rather than money.

If she recovered completely, she could supply him with elixirs whenever he wanted.

‘Did HeavenlyDemon also receive help in this way?’

Suspicion of a scam?

No.

There was HeavenlyDemon as living proof, treating him like a benefactor.

Of course she did not know whether the adult mandrake would be effective against the Obstruction of the Nine Meridians.

But it was like clinging to a straw.

That expression fit perfectly.

‘Will Mr. Grills be able to gather them in time?’

It was not a matter of one or two days.

She could die tomorrow.

If Grills had found them a little earlier, she would have had more time.

‘Collecting mandrakes takes time… will it be alright?’

Just when anxiety enveloped her, she received a trade request.

[User WildGrills has sent you a trade request. Accept?]

It was him.

Selena blinked while looking at the window.

Did he gather them all in such a short time?

For a moment she had hope, but she shook her head.

‘Surely he will give me the ones he had already collected.’

That was logical.

Don’t get your hopes up.

With moderate expectations, she accepted.

[WildGrills: Hello, StarlightLady. I gathered 7 adult mandrakes.]

[StarlightLady: Huh?]

As soon as she accepted, she was stunned.

Outwardly she only blinked without expression, but she was completely surprised.

‘He already gathered them all? How?’

She thought it would take at least a day.

It was completely beyond expectations.

[StarlightLady: You already gathered them? Is that possible?]

[WildGrills: Before they screamed, I punched them and they calmed down. I also stuffed dirt into their mouths, so it should be safe.]

[StarlightLady: ….]

Selena was speechless.

She blinked a couple of times.

Was that how mandrakes were supposed to be collected?

Normally the ideal method was to use silence or sleep magic.

‘Is this what they called magic (physical) in the gallery?’

Anyway.

If he said he had already gathered them, then she had to accept them.

She swallowed and continued the conversation.

Although her face was rigid, her words showed different emotions.

[StarlightLady: Is it really alright? It is something so valuable… can you give all of it to me…?]

[WildGrills: It just seemed like it hurt you a lot.]

[StarlightLady: What if I am lying?]

[WildGrills: Then next time we stop trading.]

A truly naïve thought.

Or perhaps simply a mentality of if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t matter.

Selena let out a soft exhale before recovering her impassive expression.

But the corner of her lips lifted almost imperceptibly.

No wonder HeavenlyDemon sought him so much.

Even if he did strange things, deep down he was a good person.

[StarlightLady: Thank you very much. But it was so sudden that I will not be able to give you the elixir immediately. Is that alright?]

[WildGrills: Make the request next time. That is enough.]

[StarlightLady: Thank you. Truly, thank you.]

The small ember of hope that remained began to grow slowly.

Selena filled her heart with hope and suddenly felt curious.

Grills was someone who lived as close to death as she did.

A body that could die tomorrow.

[StarlightLady: Mr. Grills. May I ask you something?]

[WildGrills: What thing?]

[StarlightLady: If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would you do?]

There is a saying.

Even if the world ended tomorrow, I would plant an apple tree today.

An answer repeated so many times that it had already become cliché.

She thought Grills would say something similar.

But his answer exceeded all her expectations.

[WildGrills: Why think about dying tomorrow?]

[StarlightLady: Then…?]

[WildGrills: You have to think about living today.]

“……”

Think about living today.

Those words pierced Selena’s heart.

She had also wanted to live once.

But her cursed body destroyed that desire.

Since then, she had only waited for the day of her death.

‘But now…’

She stared at her lap.

There, after the trade, several red adult mandrakes rested.

‘I want to live.’

Ding!

Without hesitation, she pressed the bell.

Mary entered immediately.

“Do you need something, miss?”

“Mary. Take me to the laboratory.”

“To the laboratory?”

“Yes.”

At Mary’s confused gaze, she added.

“And take this as well.”

She pointed at the adult mandrakes.

Mary tilted her head.

“What are those ugly plants? Where did they come from?”

“Mm…”

Selena hesitated for a moment before answering quietly.

“Let’s say they appeared.”

For now, she had no choice but to evade the explanation.