Chapter 388: The Burden Cari Carried
Lian laughed happily as if it was obvious, while Qiong Xing wore a rather complicated expression.
He probably wanted to praise her sincerely for being impressive, but at the same time he seemed a little saddened that his efforts had been unnecessary.
"Um... then what about Rui and Yue—"
"They are beastmen. You can tell by smell, right?"
"......"
Please do not look at him with such a disappointed expression.
He muttered that hide-and-seek might not be possible like this, but that was not really the point.
"Ah, see? Even if you get lost, we can find you right away!"
"That is... me, I suppose."
He tried to reassure him, but that did not work either.
Even he realized it was not a good thing after saying it.
"What about Lingxiao... no, that would not work either."
Lingxiao resembled Iseul in personality, somewhat simple but not dull.
He received Qiong Xing’s magic power as food every day, so there was no way he would not notice.
"Well, I guess it cannot be helped. I will give up."
That immediate acceptance made him sigh, but if he was not bothered by it, then it was fine.
If he pushed the teasing too far, he would be subjected to a tickling punishment, so he stayed quiet.
"More importantly, have you seen Cari? I have something I would like to ask him..."
"I have not seen him, but he is probably in his room. It seems like he has been shut in there doing something recently."
He did not know exactly what Cari was doing, but knowing him, it was probably not anything bad.
If anything, he might be practicing magic for the sake of his family or Qiong Xing.
He had previously taken several magic-related books from the castle after defeating his father, so perhaps he was reading those.
Albe also did not ask further.
"Then I will go check on him. What about you, Albe?"
Since there was no particular reason not to follow, he said he would go as well.
With Lian still holding her picture book, the three of them headed toward Cari’s room.
"Cari? May I come in?"
He knocked on the door, but there was no response from inside.
Up until now, Cari had never failed to respond to Qiong Xing’s voice, so assuming something was wrong, he did not wait for an answer and hurriedly opened the door.
"Cari!"
Qiong Xing rushed into the room first, his voice tense with alarm.
When Albe followed in, wondering what had happened, he saw Cari lying face down in the middle of the room.
They rushed over and checked on him, and although his breathing was rough, he was still alive.
That realization brought a sigh of relief.
"Why? He was fine just a moment ago."
He had seemed a little tired, but he had eaten normally.
So why?
"Albe, calm down. For now, please carry him to the bed. If we leave him like this, he will catch a cold."
Still shaken, Albe followed the instructions and moved him to the bed.
They laid him down, and seeing Cari’s complexion improve slightly, he let out a breath of relief.
After calming the panicking Albe, they checked for any problems.
His breathing was rough, but there did not seem to be any serious physical issues.
It appeared to be a case of unstable magic.
They asked whether there was any risk of it going out of control, but it seemed to be safe.
"Did Brother Cari do ouchie again?"
"Again? Lian, has Cari collapsed like this before?"
Hearing Lian gently stroking Cari’s head in concern, Albe asked what she meant.
She said she had seen him before, curled up in pain inside his room.
When she asked him why, he did not said anything, he just said...
"Don’t to tell Mama, because it would make Mama cry."
It sounded exactly like something Cari would say.
He must have told her not to mention it so as not to worry Qiong Xing.
"Did he say where it hurt?"
"Here and here."
Lian pointed to his chest and hand.
Qiong Xing looked to Albe who nodded as if understanding and examined him more carefully.
However, Albe was not a doctor either, so he could not determine anything in detail, though he confirmed there were no obvious abnormalities as described.
Then it might have been something mental.
When he asked Lian when it had started, she said it was around the time Cari reunited with their father.
At that point, there was no choice but to confirm it with Cari himself and everyone quietly waited for him to wake up.
"...Hah."
"Qiong Xing?"
Albe looked at Qiong Xing in confusion as he let out a small breath and sat down on a chair.
"What is wrong?"
"Nothing is wrong... but why are you sitting so far away—ah."
At that moment, when Cari’s eyelids trembled, he stopped speaking.
From a distance, he watched Albe and Lian approach Cari with worried expressions.
Relief washed over him when he realized he had woken up.
"Cari? Cari, are you okay? Does anything hurt?"
"Brother Cari, does it hurt?"
"......I am fine."
Although he still seemed somewhat dazed, Cari answered more clearly than expected, and Albe also looked relieved.
After that, Cari lay there blankly staring at the ceiling for a while.
Just as Albe, who had been silent, was about to ask again what was wrong, Cari suddenly jolted upright in panic.
"Mama!"
"Cari! It is dangerous to sit up so suddenly. Slowly, slowly."
Albe supported Cari as he swayed from dizziness and helped him sit up properly.
Cari looked as if he might cry at any moment.
"Mama..."
"Is there anywhere that hurts?"
However, Qiong Xing did not rush over.
He remained seated on the chair and quietly asked.
Cari shook his head while holding back tears.
"Is that so... Do you understand what I want to say?"
"I am sorry."
Unable to hold back, Cari apologized as tears spilled out, but Qiong Xing still shook his head.
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