Chapter 94
Chapter 94
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: The Genius Who Lost His Light (3)
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Alpheas loved that about her. Even with the intellect of a ten-year-old, her thought process wasn't that of a child. He was moved to tears by her consideration, thinking first of how he might be heartbroken if he hadn't won the award.
“Honey, I…”
With a trembling hand, Alpheas took out the gold medal.
“I did it! I won! It’s the Gold Circle Award!”
Erina was always calm and composed, but this time, her brilliant eyes, which seemed to hold the world, couldn't help but tremble. The day Alpheas had talked about endlessly had finally come.
“Congratulations. I knew you would win.”
“Erina, it’s all thanks to you. You’re the one who did all this. Come here. I’ll put it on you.”
Alpheas believed the true owner of the Gold Circle was Erina. Of course, the straightforward Klumpf didn't understand. He thought Alpheas was the remarkable one for deciphering the true meaning behind Erina’s childlike words. But Alpheas knew. He knew that the small idea from Erina’s mind would become the core code responsible for humanity’s future.
“This is your award. Your idea astonished the world.”
As Alpheas leaned in with puckered lips, Erina shyly pulled away like a new bride and said.
“We need to eat. Hurry up.”
“Ah, sorry. Klumpf is throwing a party, so I think I have to go. I’ll eat later.”
“Oh, okay.”
This time, even Erina couldn’t hide her disappointment. At that, Alpheas grinned like a mischievous boy and lifted her into his arms.
“That just means we have to save every moment, even the time we'd spend eating.”
“Aah!”
Carrying Erina, Alpheas bounded up the stairs to the second floor.
“Wait! The bread will burn!”
“Let it burn! Otherwise, I’ll be the one on fire!”
After Alpheas won the award, dozens of invitations arrived daily. Every single one was from a prominent noble or institution. To associate with everyone is to associate with no one. By declining all but essential connections and thus raising his value, his reputation spread rapidly. As part of that strategy, Alpheas left home today to attend a banquet hosted by the Alchemy Foundation. It was an event he absolutely could not miss, as the institution handled forty percent of all magic material distribution.
However, unaware of this, Sarope and his friends had been staking out Alpheas’s house since before sunset. As they waited for evening, their anxiety was palpable.
Sarope sighed and said.
“Haa, this hurts my pride.”
“Is pride the issue here? His stock has risen far too high. I’m talking about Alpheas. He wasn’t just some guy who’s good at magic. We should have seen this coming.”
Sarope was also filled with regret. He should have swallowed his pride and resolved their lingering animosity amidst the crowd when Alpheas won the Gold Circle Award. Only a month had passed since the award, yet Alpheas’s reputation had soared to intimidating heights. This was all thanks to his outstanding political acumen. Now that Alpheas was being selective about his company, the opportunity for Sarope to squeeze in had become even smaller.
*‘Damn it all. I tried not to bow my head, and now I might have to get on my knees. Why does nothing ever go my way?’*
It was a problem with no solution, no matter how much he thought about it. If there was any consolation, it was that having his friends with him made the embarrassment slightly more bearable.
“Let’s head in. I’ll do the talking.”
Sarope took the lead and knocked on the main gate of Alpheas’s house.
“Is Alpheas here? It’s Sarope.”
The person who opened the door was, unexpectedly, Erina.
“Who is it?”
“Ah, the lady of the house. I’m not sure if you remember me, but I’m Sarope, a classmate of Alpheas. Is he home?”
“No. My husband went out. To the Alchemy Foundation.”
He knew there was a banquet at the Alchemy Foundation. But it wasn’t a drinking party, so it shouldn’t take long. Thinking this was for the best, Sarope spoke politely.
“I see. If it isn’t too much trouble, could we wait inside? We’re concerned about attracting attention…”
It was embarrassing enough to have come all the way to his house; loitering at the gate would surely start rumors.
“Yes, please come in.”
Sarope and his friends sat in the living room, nervously wringing their hands. Seeming to take pity on them, Erina called them to the dining table and served them snacks and drinks.
“Please, have something to eat. My husband will be eating there.”
“Thank you. You are very kind.”
Feeling quite embarrassed, Sarope regretted not bringing a gift. He had bought one just in case, but when it came time to actually bring it, his pride stung too much to bear.
*It wasn’t a matter of skill.* Sarope believed that even if both Alpheas’s and Erina’s families had disowned them, the value of their First-Class names must have influenced the evaluation to some extent.
As he drank with such thoughts, he quickly became intoxicated. At first, he held back nervously, but the moment he viscerally perceived Erina’s intellectual level, he unwittingly let his guard down.
“Let me tell you! I may not look like it, but I was once called a genius. Me, that’s right, me!”
“Who’s denying it? The world is so unfair! Hard workers get nothing, while some people use their connections to get ahead! Magic is already dead!”
At his friend’s words, one of Sarope’s eyebrows twitched upwards. The person his friend was targeting was none other than Alpheas. But he let it be. After all, Erina probably wouldn’t understand what they were talking about. Suddenly, the alcohol tasted sweet. Was this perhaps the first time he had ever beaten Alpheas? To be able to criticize him so loudly in front of his wife.
*‘Hmph, after all the insults he threw at me. This is nothing, nothing at all.’*
Sarope took it a step further and spoke to Erina.
“Isn’t that right, sister-in-law? You see, magic isn’t something you can succeed at with skill alone. You agree, don’t you?”
“Yes, I don’t really know.”
“Hahaha! Of course. You wouldn’t know. But it’s the truth. Everything I’m saying is the truth.”
Sarope savored the taste of victory. He had criticized Alpheas and even mocked his wife. His friends, catching on to Sarope’s intent, joined in by pounding on the table.
“Sister-in-law, since the mood is right, how about you sing us a song?”
“That’s right! Sing us a song to celebrate Alpheas’s success.”
Erina’s smile stiffened. People assume that if someone has a lower intellect, they won't understand anything. But reading the emotions of others was always the role of the weak. Erina, too, knew that Sarope and his companions were not being friendly. Nevertheless, she was trying her best to accommodate them because they were her husband’s friends.
“When the wheat ripens in my hometown…”
As Erina began to sing, Sarope’s group clapped and whistled. Even so, she steadfastly continued the song in a trembling voice.
But before she could sing three lines, a cold voice came from the living room.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Without exception, everyone turned their heads. Alpheas stood there, his face flushed and his fists clenched. Sarope sobered up in an instant. As his senses returned, he finally realized what he had been doing.
“S-Sorry. It seems we had a bit too much to drink.”
“You son of a bitch!”
Alpheas strode forward and threw a punch. Struck squarely in the face, Sarope tumbled to the floor. His friends jumped to their feet and shouted.
“Alpheas! What is this violence! No matter how angry you are…!”
“No, that’s enough. Stop.”
Sarope raised a hand to stop his friends. He was ashamed of himself. *Was this all I amounted to? Just a loser who finds solace in harassing his rival’s wife?*
“Get out, before I kill you. Get out of this house now!”
“I’m sorry about today. I won’t be coming back.”
Sarope and his friends were thrown out of Alpheas’s house. Silence filled the living room after the unwelcome guests had left. Alpheas couldn’t contain his surging anger. He knew why they had made Erina sing.
“What happened? Why were those bastards here?”
Terrified, Erina couldn’t say a word. It was the first time her husband had ever been this angry.
“Tell me! Why did you let those bastards in!”
“I’m sorry. They’re your friends, so I thought you’d be happy…”
“What are you talking about? Why would a bastard like that be my friend? Can’t you even tell the difference between a real friend and someone like that? And then you just sing for them? Are you really that stupid!”
Alpheas turned away violently. His face, now bowed, was contorted with regret. The word he should never have used, the word he had vowed never to say, had slipped out of his mouth.
*‘You piece of trash. I’m not even human.’*
He wanted to turn back time, but it was already too late. No, even if he could, he might have said the same thing. He was going mad, unable to suppress his anger.
“Forget what I just said. I made a mistake.”
“Honey, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.”
Erina’s words stabbed his heart even more deeply. She had nothing to apologize for. But if that was the case, where on earth was he supposed to direct this resentment?
“I’m going to get some air. I’ll be fine after some time. I’m sorry. You should go to bed first tonight.”
Alpheas left the house. It was the only rational way to handle the situation.
He went to the inn where Klumpf was staying and drank all night. He couldn’t get drunk. The more intoxicated he became, the more Sarope faded from his memory, leaving only the thought of the pain Erina must have felt.
“Damn it. I’m trash. I don’t deserve to be a husband. She’s a woman who followed me, trusting only me. I can’t believe I said something like that to her.”
Klumpf wore a pitiful expression. As a man himself, he could understand Alpheas’s anger. But that didn’t change the fact that he had made a mistake.
“They say a lovers’ quarrel is like cutting water with a knife. You have a bright future ahead of you, and the hard times are over. Couldn’t you use today as a chance to grow closer?”
When Alpheas remained silent, Klumpf brought up something he had been thinking about for a while.
“Instead of dwelling on it, why don’t you try having a child?”
For a moment, a glint appeared in Alpheas’s eyes. But he soon shook his head, his expression turning gloomy.
Guessing something, Klumpf’s eyes widened in surprise.
“What, you, surely not? Not even once…?”
“What nonsense are you talking about? We’re a married couple. No matter how childlike Erina is, she knows what’s what.”
“Tch, who said anything about her? I was thinking you might be the impotent one. You’re so scrawny. Hehehe.”
Not in the mood to laugh, Alpheas stared into his cup before bitterly downing the drink.
Klumpf sighed and said.
“Good grief. Then what’s the problem? Just have a kid and live happily ever after.”
“I don’t know if Erina… can give birth to a child.”
“Why? Is she unwell?”
“No. It’s just… you know. Childbirth is excruciatingly painful. I don’t know if Erina can endure it. And there’s the issue of raising the child, too.”
Klumpf mulled over Alpheas’s words and sighed. In the end, it was a question of whether a woman with the intellect of a ten-year-old could endure the pains of labor. Intellect is a powerful force that controls a person. There was a world of difference between suffering while understanding the pain and suffering without understanding it.
“Alpheas, it’s a bit harsh to say this, but you knew, didn’t you? Ever since you thought about marrying her…”
“Yeah, I know. I don’t regret it. No, I truly don’t. I can’t live without Erina. Without her, no glory has any meaning.”
Klumpf downed two glasses in a row. If he felt this frustrated, how much worse must the person involved feel?
“So what are you going to do? It’s not like you to just sit around complaining. You’re a smart guy, what’s with this?”
Alpheas swirled the cup in his hand, lost in thought. Then, at some point, his eyes, resisting the intoxication, began to shine with intelligence.