Chapter 509.1: Unbreakable Promise (1)
There was a common saying that all medicine contained some degree of poison in them. Having a medicine that worked wasn’t enough; it had to have minimal negative side effects too. No one would take fever medicine that gave them heart failure.
In Roel’s previous world, most medicine simply contained small amounts of toxins that impeded the normal functioning of the body in high concentrations, but things were far more complicated in the Sia Continent. Medicine here could have the weirdest side effects, so it was of utmost importance to take prudence.
That being said, how in the goddamned world was I supposed to know that ‘heatiness’ had a deeper connotation to it?!
Watching as the bright-red Charlotte squirmed uncomfortably on the spot, Roel felt blood gushing into his head. Not even in his wildest dream could he have imagined ‘Lobor High Potency Revitalization Serum Type IV’ having such a side effect!
Now that he thought about it, the function of the revitalization serum was to re-energize a body that had atrophied from a long period of mana depletion. The high potency of the serum greatly reduced the recovery time, but it also generated a fierce rebound effect.
The extent of rebound could range from mild to extreme depending on the degree of atrophy for individual physical functions.
This heralded an important question—Which one of Charlotte’s physical functions had atrophied the most over the course of her affliction?
The answer? Her reproductive function.
Contrary to how it was shown in melodramas, a patient languishing from a terminal disease rarely had the strength for their thoughts to run wild. Their body would divert energy away from nonessential functions so that it could focus on recovering from the ordeal.
One of these nonessential functions was reproduction.
Having a child was the last thing anyone needed when they were already knocking on death's door. Furthermore, one’s reproductive ability directly correlated to one’s life force. Charlotte’s reproductive ability was bound to be affected when her life force was withering from Flooding Death’s curse. That also led to a lower sex drive.
In fact, Roel and Charlotte hadn’t had any unions since their night of passion. It was not that there was a problem in their relationship but rather that their bodies simply didn’t allow for it.
So, when Charlotte downed the serum and revitalized her physical functions, her natural instincts as a woman kicked in stronger than ever, instilling in her an unbearable urge to reproduce. One could say that this was an inevitable side effect of the serum.
Roel gulped down his saliva, tempted by the charming woman before him.
There was just one teeny tiny problem—his body was depleted on the inside. He hadn’t even recovered from his severe blood loss yet, so how could he do it in his current state?
“Darling, I’m feeling really hot in here. I…” Charlotte said with a furious blush.
“Don’t worry, I understand. Leave it to me.”
Even so, Roel accepted the mission with great resolve.
All men should understand how severe blood loss undermined their ability down there, but he couldn’t turn a blind eye when Charlotte was suffering. He had to grit his teeth and rise up to the occasion.
I was the one who gave the serum to Charlotte, and she drank it without any hesitation out of trust for me. It’s only right for me to settle the problem I’ve caused.
It belatedly dawned on Roel that it was no coincidence that ‘Love God’s Kiss’ appeared in the shop listing along with the serum.
The System intentionally bundled them together knowing that this would happen!
While Roel didn’t pay close attention to the other kinds of medicine in the shop, he had a strong feeling that their side effects were similar to ‘Lobor High Potency Revitalization Serum Type IV’.
Before Charlotte’s eyes, he took out the heart-shaped bottle and gulped down half of it. Its taste was nowhere as pleasant as the Loborian serums—it had an iron taste due to the infusion of unicorn blood—but its effects were immediate.
His blood started to race as soon as he swallowed the fluid. A gush of searing heat flowed into his brain, causing him mild light-headedness. Looking at the beautiful woman standing before him, his intense feelings for her overflowed before running wild like an unbridled unicorn.
“D-darling, what did you just drink?” asked the innocent Charlotte.
“It’s an antidote,” Roel replied with a smile.
His answer only further confused her.
“An antidote? For what?”
“For your side effect.”
Roel stared lovingly into her emerald eyes as he caressed her cheek. Then, without any warning, he hoisted her up.
A night of unbelievable wonders was about to begin.
…
It was no secret that Charlotte wanted a child—she had already said so herself.
There were many reasons behind that, be it her desire to form a family or to earn Carter’s acknowledgement, but the most important factor was her deep love for Roel. It was because she loved him that she wanted to have his child.
But that wasn’t something easy for them.
The infertility of high elves was a high hurdle to overcome, which was why the Primordial Earth Goddess had offered her help. She knew that if she didn’t intervene in the matter, this couple that had gotten together under her watch could very well live out their lives without having a child.
“Did it not work this time too?”
“… Mmhm.”
On a sofa in the study room, Charlotte lowered the magic tool in her hand, her face clouded with disappointment. Roel heaved a quiet sigh.
Under the additional drive of medicine, the two of them went at it for the entire night. With the help of ‘Love God’s Kiss’, Roel was able to showcase his usual prowess, striking with a ferocity that left Charlotte bed bound for quite a while.
That satisfying night they had filled Charlotte with expectations.
The rebound effect from consuming the revitalization serum had vastly improved her condition, and her life force was much higher than their first time too. Theoretically speaking, she should have stood a much better chance this time around.
She was so excited that she did a test as soon as she got out of bed, hoping for some good news. Unfortunately, reality was never that convenient. Her constitution wasn’t a problem that could be overcome with love and passion.
Knowing that words wouldn’t be enough to assuage Charlotte’s disappointment, Roel walked up to her and tightly embraced her. She was initially dazed by his silent embrace, but she soon buried her face into his neck.
“I’m sorry, darling. I…”
“Don’t apologize. There’s nothing for you to apologize about. We both knew from the start that it wouldn’t be easy.”
“But… we worked so hard for it. It might have already been a success if it had been anyone else.”
“Charlotte, you are the person whom I want to have a child with. Besides, have you forgotten that we both took medicine last night? A child born under such circumstances might not turn out healthy.”
“Well, that’s true…”
Charlotte slowly nodded her head, having found Roel’s argument convincing. That alleviated her disappointment a little. Seeing that, Roel heaved a sigh of relief. He gently stroked her auburn hair and continued consoling her.
“You shouldn’t put too much stress on yourself. I haven’t been able to restore my connection with the ancient gods due to my mana deficiency, but once I’m in a better state, I’ll talk to Peytra and figure out a solution.”
“Are you talking about Lord Peytra’s blessing?”
“Mmhm. It should significantly boost our chances. You should know that you aren’t the only one anxious about having a child; it’s the same for her too,” Roel replied with a laugh.
He gently pulled her up to her feet and led her to the dining room for breakfast. Following that, the two of them had their medical check-ups as demanded by the medical team.
Both of their conditions had more or less stabilized, meaning that it was time for them to advance to the second phase of treatment. Medical experts from all over the Sia Continent would be carrying out localized treatments to speed up their recovery.
Thanks to the serum she drank the day before, Charlotte’s condition was much better than the medical team had expected. In comparison, Roel wasn’t recovering as well, particularly due to overexerting himself the previous night.
The keen-eyed medical team figured out what had happened, and they subtly advised him to focus his energy on recuperating until he fully recovered.
Roel cooperated without any complaints, being the one who had requested to hasten their recovery. He was in a rush, and the reason for that lay in the swirling black vortex outside the window.
Days had passed since Roel defeated Flooding Death, but the curses left in its wake showed no signs of dissipation. On the contrary, they had started to spread outward, blighting nearby lands.
While this was a disaster in the making, it also spelled an opportunity to Roel. The vortex of curses was a potential Crown’s Stone in the making, containing the power of Flooding Death. He had even received an option from the System to assimilate it, but he had been in a terrible condition ever since he defeated Flooding Death.
It would be too risky to attempt an assimilation until his body was faring better.
To make an analogy, it was as if he had a spread of delicacies laid out before him but he was too ill to eat them.
To make things worse, there was a chance that this spread of delicacies could draw flies over.
Based on what he had previously theorized, Flooding Death’s demise could potentially draw the other calamities over, be it through telepathic communication or under the Mother Goddess’ orders.
He knew he wasn’t strong enough to deal with the other members of the Six Calamities yet, especially Shrouding Fog, so he wanted to avoid a confrontation with them. Thus, he intended to quickly assimilate the Crown’s Stone and make a getaway.
He relayed his intention to the Sorofyas’ medical team, who adapted their plans to fit his needs.
We’ll do everything we can to heal you up to the minimum threshold required for you to safely assimilate the Crown’s Stone. As for the other problems, we’ll slowly deal with them afterward.
Under the professionalism of the Sorofyas’ medical team, Roel soon recovered enough to proceed with his plan.