Chapter 21
Creaaak. Deneb pushed open the bathroom door of the room they were staying in after finishing his shower. With only pants on and his upper body bare, he looked extremely casual—perhaps still not used to his status as a civilian rather than a castaway.
“Oh my God. Please put on some clothes. This isn’t a deserted island anymore.”
Arin dug through his bag and tossed him a proper shirt. Deneb caught it midair, looking displeased.
“This is uncomfortable.”
“Deal with it. You’re not an animal like Yello. Hurry up and put it on.”
“If we’re being technical, humans are animals too.”
When Arin’s face twisted like a yaksha in response, Deneb reluctantly put his arms through the sleeves. Seeing him half-naked, Arin shook her head.
“If you’re done, come sit here. I need to talk to you seriously.”
She intended to tell him about the system upgrade. When Deneb sat on the bed Arin had patted, the cheap mattress creaked and sagged under his weight.
As her body tilted toward him, Deneb grabbed her arms to steady her. Suddenly face-to-face with his bronzed chest, Arin flusteredly sat upright and slapped his firm pecs with her palm.
Not because she had any naughty thoughts—just an instinctive, modest reaction.
“Button up. All the way to the neck.”
Deneb looked down at Arin’s crown as she buttoned his shirt one by one. Her round, small head looked like it could fit perfectly in his palm.
When she finished, Arin looked up.
“Ugh…”
His broad shoulders and firm arms and chest muscles were now snugly hidden beneath the shirt, which made him look even more dangerous. As she fidgeted, debating whether to unbutton it again, Deneb spoke.
“Didn’t you say you had something to talk about?”
“Oh, right…”
She had completely forgotten because of those irresistible chest muscles.
“What was it?”
“Remember the upgrade?”
“…”
“I think I can use it to heal your mana circle.”
「System」
Upgrade Status
Synchronized with the strongest person the system holder has met
Can replicate absorbed items (Cooldown: 10 years)
System transparency completed
With feature 2, she could replicate the two mana flowers absorbed on the island.
Since she was synchronized with Deneb and had even experienced his withdrawal symptoms, Arin fully understood his pain and was determined to help him as quickly as possible.
She slowly explained about the mana flower and her updated system status, then used the system to duplicate the flower.
「System: Survival Backpack」
Mana Flower: The only known cure for a broken mana circle.
Raises mana by 500 when consumed by a normal person.
Unripe Mana Flower: Same effect, but raises mana by 300.
Cooldown for both items: 10 years
“If you eat this, you’ll be completely healed.”
Arin handed him the larger of the two flowers. Deneb carefully held the stem.
“A cure, huh…”
Arin nodded enthusiastically, eager for him to eat it. But seconds passed, and he just stared at the flower, glaring as if it had insulted him. He looked deeply dissatisfied.
‘Seriously? After everything we’ve been through, you’re suspicious of what I give you? Sure, it looks a little poisonous, but still. That hurts.’
Arin conveniently forgot she’d once suspected Yello too.
‘Fine, look at this!’
She stuffed the unripe mana flower into her mouth and munched it. A true mana flower mukbang.
It was her way of showing it wasn’t poisonous. As the flower entered her system, a familiar sensation arose and the system window appeared with a clear chime.
「System」
Unripe Mana Flower absorbed orally. Poison symptoms fully cured.
Status Window
Name: Arin Yang (Human)
Health: 3,500
Intelligence: 2,150
Mana: 6,100 (5,280/820)
Total Mana (Magic Use Mana / Upgrade Mana)
Abilities: System, Magic Swordsman (Synchronized)
Only she could see the system window, but now she was sure she was cured. She took Deneb’s long fingers in hers.
“This really works. Scan my mana.”
Deneb’s mana flowed from her fingertips through her body, making Arin’s skin prickle. Despite the only contact being their fingers, the tingling sensation made sweat bead on her nose. When his mana traveled from the base of her spine to her shoulder blades, she quickly pulled her hand back.
“See? I’m all healed, right?”
“I haven’t finished scanning yet.”
“Oh… really?”
She had no choice but to let him continue. After thoroughly checking her condition, Deneb finally pulled back coolly. Arin felt oddly drained by the experience.
“You’re fine.”
“Told you so. Deneb, if you eat this, you’ll be healed too. Hurry and take it.”
“I’ll… pass.”
“What?!”
“I have someone else to give it to.”
Arin was too stunned to speak.
“Who are you giving it to?”
“My father.”
Arin quickly took back all her internal insults.
“…”
“He was poisoned by the same stuff. He’s on the verge of death.”
In the original story, Deneb’s father was the only one who waited for him until the very end. In year three of Deneb’s island life, Altair, his father, died from poisoning while longing for his son.
But Arin had changed that future. She realized Deneb had returned early and reunited with his father because of her.
In the novel, Deneb had misunderstood and resented his father. When he learned the truth, his hatred toward the imperial family grew—and that anger led to his descent into darkness. Thanks to Arin, one of the causes of his villainous transformation was gone.
Though judging by his willingness to give the flower to his father, maybe they weren’t totally out of the minefield yet.
Since Arin had just eaten one flower, only one remained. Two patients, one cure. A difficult situation indeed.
“If you give it to your dad, what about you? Like I said, the cooldown is ten years.”
“You can just give me medicine like on the island. Nothing changes.”
“…”
“You’re staying with me anyway, aren’t you?”
He lowered his eyes and met her gaze. His long lashes cast shadows around his eyes. Even that seemed beautiful to Arin, like she was being completely enchanted.
She knew she still didn’t fully understand this world. And she had recently learned, through painful experience, that she truly needed his protection.
“Yeah. I’ll stay with you.”
Their eyes locked deeply.
[I’m staying with the Overlord too! Raaawr. My crew is the best. I’m so touched.]
Yello’s sudden intrusion made Arin clear her throat and hop off the bed.
“Okay, enough of that. We need to get to the duke’s territory fast if your dad’s sick.”
Feeling embarrassed, she quickly got up to pack.
Arin’s body bounced rhythmically. Her sore muscles ached from pushing her hips forward. She wasn’t used to horseback riding.
Even though her physical stats had skyrocketed after syncing with Deneb, things like horseback riding or swordsmanship were still unfamiliar. People complimented her posture, but riding a living creature still felt strange.
Just as she was getting the hang of it, Remain raised his right hand, signaling to slow down. They gradually pulled their horses to a stop.
“You can see the Hakley territory now.”
Hakley was a county close to Roen, the capital of the Procyon Empire. Anyone traveling from the northern Cosmos continent to Roen had to pass through here, which made it one of the empire’s top five developed regions.
“This way.”
Remain led them toward the territory’s gate. Seeing the long line made Arin curious. She trotted her horse closer to Deneb.
“Can’t we use your status to get in faster?”
“I can’t let them know who I am.”
“Oh… if that’s the case, then never mind.”
Seeing Deneb bend slightly to match Arin’s seated height shocked Remain. It was strange to see their cold commander acting so gently.
Before meeting Arin, Deneb had only ever spoken when necessary and always exuded an aura of hostility. His mercenaries often complained:
“Captain, did we do something wrong? Feels like he’s gonna kill us.”
“We found a clue… Can you report it instead, Captain Remain?”
Their leader, who once treated the world like an enemy, was now whispering sweetly to a woman. Remain averted his eyes to the sky, feeling like he was witnessing something indecent.
After a couple of hours, it was finally their turn. Remain handed over some documents and a mercenary badge to the guards.
“These are members of the Black Mercenary Corps, and we’re escorting a merchant.”
Since Arin had a mercenary badge, she was easily disguised as a Black Corps member. But Deneb looked far too noble to be just a merchant.
Sometimes, noble sons would pretend to be merchants while traveling. The guard assumed that was the case and didn’t press. Still, he couldn’t just wave them through without a bribe. He silently held out his hand.
Remain smoothly handed over a pouch with ten silver coins. That was about a quarter of the guard’s monthly salary, so he smiled.
“Have a safe journey.”
Once they passed the gate, Remain’s cheerful face returned to its usual seriousness. He figured this bought them a few days of anonymity.
