Chapter 95 "Don't—die—"
Zebulun sat quietly in the stands, and politely said thank you to the flattery from people around him.
He was already a little annoyed, but the etiquette he had learned since childhood did not allow him to treat people who showed no ill will with a tough attitude. He could only smile and raise his hand, saying that he was going to go out for a walk.
He left amid the reluctant gazes of the crowd surrounding him, walked to the back of the stands, and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
So tired.
Fortunately, the match from 13 to 7 was passed smoothly. The next step will not be a high-intensity battle where one game decides the outcome. Although losing one or two games is still not a good look, at least I will not be directly disqualified.
Zebulon looked up and sighed.
Why did Ursula look so easy in the competition back then?
He always thought that the only difference between him and her was age, but as he grew older, he began to doubt his own abilities.
"It would be nice if I could use a rare potion..."
Zebulun once wondered why his mother didn't take out some materials and potions that could guarantee good results since she wanted them to always be number one - he was one of the heirs and had the richest collection of items in the entire kingdom, so he should use them.
The day before yesterday, he was really nervous and pretended to casually ask his court teacher questions about luck potions. Unexpectedly, the usually kind teacher suddenly frowned and severely rebuked his idea, even though he did not say it out loud.
"The kingdom doesn't need an heir with bad luck." His voice was hoarse and his breathing was rapid. "I remember I didn't teach you to get something for nothing."
So in the end I didn’t know what the teacher was angry about.
Zebulun loosened his collar. The collar button given by his mother was made of so much fine material that it was so heavy that it made him breathless. He raised his head and looked at the clock tower not far away. There, the hands were quietly pointing to the next hour.
The next one seems to be... Edith?
He closed his eyes, turned over the memory from his still tense brain, and nodded: It was Edith.
Come to think of it, she has disappeared from the academy for almost a week since her last competition with Celeste... It seems that time has not been able to suppress the discussion, but has made the students' enthusiasm even higher.
Before, he could only hear this name among the first grades who were crowded together noisily. Later, the third grades around him gradually began to talk about it. The group of people around him had been avoiding, or rather disdaining to say her name in the first two rounds, but recently they couldn't help but mention it once or twice in their conversation. Although they were quickly covered by the mouths of the people next to them, he still heard it clearly.
If the discussions among people around me could be attributed to curiosity, then what happened the day before yesterday was a little puzzling.
Zebulun pressed both sides of his forehead, and the feeling of irritation rose from the bottom of his heart again.
...Why did Ivan take the initiative to mention Edith.
There was a regular family dinner once a month, with only his mother, him, Ursula and Ivan.
He hated the occasion.
It was called a family dinner, but it was cold and dull. All of his mother's topics revolved around state management, and he had to answer questions from time to time, and he couldn't taste anything.
But the day before yesterday was different. Ivan, who usually listened to them quietly, took the initiative to speak for the first time and talked about his college experience.
He and Ursula both enjoyed it. If Ivan didn't speak, his mother would definitely ask them questions, both explicitly and implicitly. It was really exhausting to think about responses while eating.
The mother doted on her frail little son. It was rare for him to speak up, so she immediately stopped the discussion about the new law and looked at him with a smile: "So, has Ivan made any suitable friends?"
Both Ursula and he couldn't help frowning.
The term "right" friend... may sound fine to most people, but it has a special meaning when spoken by a mother.
However, with Ivan's naive nature, he probably couldn't hear the hidden meaning of his mother's words. Zebulun lowered his head and drank a mouthful of soup, seizing the time to enjoy the food.
"I met a lot of interesting people." Ivan smiled brightly. "Come to think of it, not long ago, I chatted for a long time with some people from the same grade who were participating in the league in the campus stands."
"clang--"
Zebulun's spoon hit the wall of the bowl, making a clear, crisp sound.
Unable to control his facial expression, he raised his head and met the eyes of Ursula, who was equally surprised.
Ivan took the initiative to get to know Edith?
Ivan actually mentioned Edith at the family dinner in front of his mother, the head of a country?
Ursula was older after all, so she showed almost no flaws. She lowered her head and drank a sip of tea with a normal expression.
For a moment, Zebulun suspected that it was she who instigated Ivan, but after thinking for two seconds, he decisively killed the idea.
Impossible. Although Ursula wanted to take the position of heir, she definitely looked down on such means. If he lost in the league, it would not only damage his reputation, but also the reputation of the entire royal family.
Ursula, who had a strong sense of honor, would not bring this up. Her mother also valued the royal reputation more than her personal reputation and would not allow someone who gloated over her brother's misfortune to inherit the throne.
Ursula understood this and would not let it bring bad luck upon her.
That was Ivan's personal behavior.
"Alan, what's wrong?" His mother turned her kind eyes towards his hands that made the noise: "Are you feeling unwell?"
"I'm sorry, mother." Zebulon bowed his head quickly to apologize, "...I've been using pens a lot lately, so I've lost my manners."
The Queen likes children who work hard. Although she knew what was going on, Zebulun's explanation still satisfied her: "Remember to rest. Nothing is more important than health."
Speaking of health, she turned her attention back to her youngest son, a trace of guilt flashing in her eyes: "Ivan, go on, what new friends did you meet?"
"Ah, those students who participated in the league." Ivan had an excited smile on his face, "Edith, Amy, Hedda... I have never made so many friends."
Even Ursula couldn't control herself this time.
She raised her head and looked across with a sharp gaze, with a hint of inquiry in her eyes.
For the first time, this younger brother whom she had loved since childhood felt like a stranger to her.
She knew that the group Edith was active in had seven members, three of whom were nobles, and only two of them lived in the capital. The three names Ivan had mentioned were exactly the people who were "suitable" in his mother's opinion.
It doesn't seem like something he said casually.
"Really? Amy... Amy Walker, right?" the Queen asked with interest. She didn't seem to notice anything wrong with her youngest son, and was happy that he had made friends - or rather, allies.
"Joyce is a nice person, but she's not very obedient." She wasn't interested in the friendship between the children, so she turned the topic directly to the one with the most say in the Walker family. "She wants to completely separate the royal family's power from the Magic Association... Ivan, look at what you like and join the corresponding association directly after graduation."
"Do whatever you like", this is really rare in the palace. Mother really dotes on Ivan... Although Zebulun knew that this was compensation for his poor health, he still felt a little jealous.
Ursula was thoughtful. This was the first time her mother made plans for Ivan's future in public. She had thought that given her mother's attitude towards Ivan, he would only be kept as a mascot in the palace, but she didn't expect her mother to have other plans.
She wants Ivan to be a nail in the Royal Control Society.
Ursula took another sip of tea and calmed down a little.
But having said that, it can be concluded once again that Ivan has no chance of becoming king.
"I don't have a favorite major yet." Ivan held his face and continued, "But it looks like Amy plans to specialize in magic circles."
"Joyce is also incomprehensible. She majored in magic, but she supported an heir who likes magic circles." The queen's attention was indeed diverted back, and she said lightly, "She tore up the marriage my father arranged for her and held on to the power of the Walker family but still has no children. I thought she was going to perish with the family... She actually chose her nephew as the heir."
But it was precisely because of this that she had not fallen out with the other party until now. The Walker family did not look like it would last long.
"Come to think of it, you just mentioned Hedda?" The queen thought the name sounded familiar, but she couldn't remember exactly. "Whose child is it?"
"She is the eldest daughter of Duke Turner," Ivan replied.
The queen frowned: "Turner... Oh, I remember, there is an old wizard in her family, but his health is not very good, and the status of the Turner family has declined... Why haven't I heard that their family has another wizard apprentice?"
She didn't like the influx of fresh blood into the old aristocracy.
"Hedda's father didn't seem to like her very much." Ivan looked at his mother's face and slowly adjusted his words, "Her mother passed away, and the current Mrs. Turner was married later."
The Queen understood: "No wonder I haven't heard of it much."
"Mother, have you never heard of Hedda?" Ursula said with a smile, "Edith went to the academy as Hedda's companion."
Zebulon and Ivan paused at the same time.
The former couldn't understand why Ursula would take the initiative to mention the name that her mother deliberately avoided, and the latter didn't expect her sister to take the initiative in her hands. She was so flustered that she even forgot to close her mouth.
"Oh, Edith." The queen chewed on the name and looked at her smiling daughter, "...You are familiar with her?"
"I'm not familiar with them." Ursula said calmly, "I just helped pass on the message during the promotion competition, but in the end they escaped on their own. It had nothing to do with me."
"You haven't seen me since then?"
“I haven’t seen him since.”
Ursula remained calm and pretended not to remember the pile of school rules that were stuffed in the drawer of her college dormitory.
"I have a good relationship with her!" Ivan raised his hand and almost overturned the table. "Edith is amazing. I didn't expect to be in the same class with such an amazing person. The pressure is so great—"
Zebulun, the only one at the table who was truly under great pressure, silently stuffed a piece of lamb chop into his mouth.
It's all cold.
Today's family dinner was really long.
,,,,,,,
"Why does Ivan want to act like he has a good relationship with Edith?" Zebulon muttered to himself. There was no place for him in Edith's group. He saw his brother talking to them last time, but he was probably just passing by.
"Remember not to use too much force later. If you get seriously injured again, you will be expelled from Beyounis!"
A stern scolding was heard, and Zebulon looked up and met Edith's gaze.
Zebulon: “!”
"Hi." Edith seemed to be in a good mood and waved to him with energy. "Are you done? I'm next."
She had just come out of the lounge and was on her way to the field to play against Palmer.
Nursing teacher: "......"
He wanted to warn Edith again, but because Zebulon was there, he dared not speak loudly and could only glare at the girl.
Edith shrugged indifferently and passed by Zebulon. After taking two steps, she suddenly turned around and looked into Zebulon's eyes.
"You look very tired." Edith pointed at her eyes and said, "You must have used a lot of energy replenishing potions, right? Others may not be able to see it, but I can see that the luster in your eyes is not normal at all."
Who is she? She is the chief researcher of the Pharmacy Association! Who uses what medicine will definitely not escape her eyes!
Edith continued kindly, "That thing may improve your spirits, but it can't reduce your fatigue. If you use it too much, you may become dependent on it. I suggest you take a good rest."
Zebulon was stunned: "...Thank you, no need."
Although he did feel that he was on the verge of collapse both physically and mentally.
Edith took a breath when she saw that he had no intention of going back.
Although she was not a professional doctor, she could see that Zebulun was in a very bad condition.
She was really afraid that Zebulon would die in the stands.
Celeste has already died. If I take the life of another heir to the kingdom, I don’t know how long I will be forced to stay in the dormitory.
After all, Zebulun's psychological endurance is so poor, and the beginning of her next game is likely to cause a heart attack, so there is a possibility that she will die from the stimulation.
"Please go back and rest." She said sincerely.
"--Time is up."
The nurse looked at her watch, frowned, and pushed Edith to the center of the field. Edith did not forget to turn around as she walked, and waved to Zebulon from a distance: "Don't-die-"
Zebulon: "......"
He hesitated for a moment, turned slightly, and walked out of the practice field.
…Then take a short break.
It shouldn't be a big deal to take a short break in the afternoon, right?
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