Chapter 26

Upon arriving in the capital, I immediately began investigating the self-destructive disease. After my training ended, I rushed to the library, gathered the few available documents, and read them thoroughly. As I collected information, a question began to surface.

To resolve this question—I am now lying in wait in front of Arnold's dorm room. I had run here right after my training ended, and it seemed to be the right decision. Soon, Arnold appeared in front of his room.

"Mr. Arnold,"

Despite being slightly surprised by my ambush, Arnold remained calm and prompted me with a simple "What is it?" He probably already had an idea why I was here.

"Can I ask you one thing?"

Judging that the hallway was not suitable for a conversation, Arnold invited me into his room. This silent gesture was a clear affirmation. To my surprise, Arnold's room had the same layout as Chelsea's and mine. Although it was a room we usually shared, it didn't feel cramped with just one person using it.

Leaning against the door, I asked Arnold, who was standing by the window:

"Mr. Arnold, you don't have the self-destructive disease, do you?"

Arnold's eyes widened slightly, but he quickly answered in a clear tone:

"No. By the way, Elvira developed the disease at the age of three. She already had strong magic power, but it was slightly weaker compared to me at that age."

From his answer, I realized that my question had been seen through. The fact that Arnold, who usually gave brief responses, had added that he had stronger magic power, suggested something more.

"...Why don't you have the self-destructive disease?"

"I don't know."

Despite being aware that my question might be considered rude, I asked straightforwardly. Arnold shook his head firmly. His black eyes, which seemed to glare at me, were so intense that I felt a bit reassured that my question was not entirely off the mark.

Taking a deep breath, I continued:

"I read all the literature on the self-destructive disease. Every document concluded with the same sentence."

--- The self-destructive disease is a tragic illness caused by a small body containing too much powerful magic, as a form of self-defense. When a young child's body contains more magic than it can handle, the body, in an attempt to avoid the limit, begins to release the magic externally without the owner's will. However, the owner is unaware of the movement of the magic and cannot release it properly—resulting in the magic wandering inside the body, causing the self-destructive disease.

Indeed, all past data showed that patients had above-average magic power. The onset of the disease was mostly before the age of five, and the "cause" described in the literature seemed plausible. However, I couldn't help but think of my senior, who was the youngest royal alchemist and a knight's magician.

If the cause is too much magic power, why hasn't Arnold developed the disease?

"Is Elvira weak in any way? Does she have allergies?"

"No, not at all. Elvira, despite having the self-destructive disease, is more active than I am. In fact, her body is stronger compared to her peers."

Arnold's words deepened my confusion. Why did Elvira develop the disease, but Arnold didn't? Was it because Elvira was a girl and had a smaller body than Arnold? Or perhaps Arnold had a special resistance to the disease?

No, it wasn't just about the siblings. While it was true that the self-destructive disease affected children with strong magic power, the strength of the magic varied. Some patients were exceptional, like Elvira, while others were just above average. There were many such magicians in the Schvaria Knights, yet they didn't develop the disease. Why?

"--- From the past patients of the self-destructive disease, it seems that those without above-average magic power do not develop the disease."

Arnold's words pulled me out of my thoughts.

"60% of the patients are female, and 40% are male. Given the small sample size, it's hard to say if there's a gender bias. The onset is mostly before the age of five, and the time from onset to death ranges from 9 to 42 years, which is quite broad."

Arnold crossed his arms, deepened the wrinkles on his forehead, and pulled his chin down, causing his gaze to fall to the floor. His tone was slow, as if he was trying to organize my jumbled thoughts.

Guided by Arnold's pleasant voice, I reconsidered the self-destructive disease.

"--- Besides, the possibility of it being caused by a virus is low."

The residences of the patients were scattered across various regions. Some were found in snowy areas, while others were in deserts, with no environmental commonalities. Moreover, there were no cases of family members who cared for the patients being infected. As for the treatment, attempts with recovery potions and experimental methods to consume excess magic through magic use were ineffective. The predecessors had tried all possible treatments and failed.

--- This was the information available from past cases. Silence fell between us, and I became even more confused.

"I think the strong magic power is definitely the cause. But why did Elvira develop the disease, while you, who have stronger magic power, didn't? Is it because you're a boy and have a larger body? Is it because you're more robust? Is it a matter of constitution? From the past data, there doesn't seem to be a common factor among the patients. Also, the number of patients seems unusually low. There are many magicians with stronger magic power than the past patients in the Schvaria Knights. Why don't they develop the disease? Perhaps there is a constitution that makes one more susceptible to the disease..."

Questions overflowed one after another. Solving this mystery would be ideal, but with limited resources and time, I had no confidence in doing so. Perhaps the patients were simply destined to have this fate.

Moreover, a voice in my head whispered that even if there were unexplained points, the cause was almost certainly the individual's magic power. If that could be controlled, the problem would be solved. This was a brute-force solution, and it took some courage to voice it.

"The magic power is indeed hurting the body. If there was a way to suppress or temporarily remove it... A more fundamental solution would be to take the magic power away from the individual, but of course, such a treatment hasn't been found yet."

It seemed Arnold had reached the same conclusion. He had spent more time investigating the self-destructive disease than I had. If this was his answer, perhaps our thoughts were more aligned than I thought, or we were both stuck.

However, I couldn't agree with the fundamental solution of taking away the magic power. If Elvira's magic power was completely removed, she couldn't accompany Lucash as a magician. Suppressing it might be acceptable, but completely removing it would be problematic.

However, this might be the most suitable method. Even if the magic power could be suppressed or temporarily removed, as long as the individual had magic power, there was a possibility of recurrence. Most importantly, nothing is more important than life. If this was the only solution, it should be implemented without hesitation.

Still, completely removing someone's magic power, as Arnold had hinted, seemed unrealistic. Suppressing the magic power seemed more feasible.

--- With these thoughts, the only two paths we could take, given our current lack of answers, were to suppress or remove the magic power. Even if we found the answer, if the cause was indeed the individual's strong magic power, we might have to take such measures.

This seemed more aligned with the field of magic rather than alchemy. Perhaps I should study that area as well. In terms of alchemy, toxic plants might be more appropriate than medicinal herbs. There are potions that temporarily amplify magic power, but the reverse does not exist.

"Yes... Thank you for your time. I'll do more research."

--- Suppressing or removing the magic power.

The direction was set. With this decision, I had no choice but to read more literature. I needed to find anything that might help.

As I opened the door to leave, Arnold called out from behind, "Ampeire!"

"Please."

I nodded firmly at Arnold and ran off.