In a Female-Dominant World with a 5:1 Gender Ratio, I Saved a Girl as a Kid, and She Said She Wanted to Be My Bride—Who Would’ve Thought She Was a Princess… - 28

Chapter 28: History Speaks of the ‘Curse of Twenty’

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(Alto’s POV)

“Haah, haah, haah…!”

Ignoring the sensation of my lungs burning, I ran through the stone corridors. Students I passed frowned when they saw me—covered in mud and drenched in sweat—and moved out of the way. But right now, I couldn’t have cared less about their stares.

Leonardo’s words kept echoing in my head like a curse.

『She’s short-lived.』

『There’s no guarantee she’ll even make it to twenty.』

If that was true, then this wasn’t just a personal problem for Lilianna. If a royal fiancé could state it so definitively, didn’t that mean there were precedents in the past?

“…I’ll confirm it.”

I shoved open the heavy doors and burst into the academy library. Ignoring the irritated voice of the librarian at the counter, I headed straight for the History and Lore section. First, I needed to verify the facts. With trembling hands, I pulled out a thick, leather-bound volume titled Royal Genealogical Records: Complete Edition and spread it open on a reading desk.

“Please… Tell me this is a lie.”

Starting from the page of the current king—Lilianna’s father—I flipped backward through the pages, tracing history in reverse. But my wish was mercilessly crushed. The first thing that caught my eye was the record of the First Princess, who had died thirty years ago. Princess Marianne. Possessed an unparalleled talent for magic and was beloved by the people, yet passed away in the winter of her nineteenth year due to a mysterious fever.

Nineteen.

My heart began to pound violently. I flipped back another page. Princess Sophia. A beautiful Ice Witch with silver hair and lapis-blue eyes. After the war, her physical condition deteriorated rapidly, and she passed away peacefully without reaching her twentieth birthday. 

Sixty years ago—age nineteen.

One hundred years ago, Princess Ellis. Age twenty-one. Cause of death: heart failure. One hundred thirty years ago, Princess Katarina. Age eighteen. Cause of death: unexplained physical decline.

“…What the hell is this?”

Without exception, their portraits and descriptions shared common traits. Translucent silver hair. And an enormous amount of magical power, praised as “on par with the heroes of the kingdom’s founding.” Not a single princess born with such overwhelming magic had lived out her natural lifespan. It was as if the power dwelling within them devoured their lives, like a guillotine named ‘Twenty’ awaited them all.

What Leonardo had said hadn’t been mere slander or intimidation. This was an inescapable historical fact, carved into the bloodline of the royal family.

“…Then that means Princess Lilianna’s mother, too…”

I finally opened the page detailing the most recent past, the record of Lilianna’s mother. Lilianna was sixteen now. I had heard her mother passed away when she was still very young, but…

Queen Eleanor. Possessed magic akin to that of a saint. Thirteen years ago, when Princess Lilianna was three, she died suddenly due to the cessation of bodily functions. Age twenty-two.

Thirteen years ago… She had survived childbirth, yet even so, she hadn’t lasted long. Twenty-two. Far too young. It was hereditary. Lilianna had inherited the royal blood more strongly than anyone else. As a result, she had been born with the greatest power of all and the most fragile vessel. I closed the genealogical record and stood there, stunned.

So “short-lived” was a predetermined future. That meant the time left to sixteen-year-old Lilianna was only a few short years. Was that why Leonardo had spoken the way he did?

“…No. Wait.”

I forcibly steadied my heart as it teetered on the brink of despair. I understood the historical facts now. But why did they die?

“Mysterious fever,” “physical decline,” “heart failure,” “cessation of bodily functions”—the causes were far too vague. Were they truly unknown? Or deliberately concealed? If I didn’t know the cause, there was no way to save her. I bolted from the history section and ran to the shelves labeled Magical Medicine. The one thing all the princesses had in common was excessively powerful magic. Then the answer had to be here.

『Physical Effects of Excessive Magical Power』

『Modern Magical Pathology』

I scanned the spines frantically, pulling out any book that seemed relevant and flipping through them. Nothing. In ordinary medical texts, there was no mention of people dying simply because they had too much magic.

“Damn it… Where is it? What’s the cause?!”

Driven by impatience, my eyes caught sight of an old, dust-covered book with a black cover, tucked deep on the lowest shelf. The lettering on the spine was nearly worn away.

『On the Price of Divine Blessings and Magical Erosion』

Magical erosion…? I pulled the book out and opened it. There, written plainly, was the cruel truth I had been searching for and never wanted to know.

『—Magical power is the blood of the stars and the source of life. However, magic that exceeds the capacity of its vessel transforms into a deadly poison. Those rare individuals born with magic beyond human comprehension. Their bodies cannot withstand the vast magical power produced by their own souls, and they slowly collapse from the inside. The name of the disease was Magical Saturation Failure. Commonly known as Magical Erosion. There is no established cure. It is possible to slow its progression using magic-suppressing artifacts, but that is nothing more than a life-prolonging measure.』

“…Ice within a raging fire…”

That was how the book described it. Ice that melted itself with its own heat. That was the true nature of Lilianna’s magic. Her mother—and all the princesses before her—had been killed by this. History proved it. Medicine pronounced the verdict. She could not be saved.

“…Don’t screw with me.”

I clenched the book tightly. The aged pages crumpled with a dry sound. Had everyone simply given up? The princesses of the past. Their families. The doctors. Had they all accepted it as “fate” and died? Surrounded by people like Leonardo, who mocked them as mere diversions until they broke?

“I won’t accept that.”

I lifted my head.

My reflection in the library window was a mess. I was caked in mud and looked utterly miserable, but my eyes alone were burning. The cause was clear: too much magic destroys the vessel. Then if I could overturn that logic, there had to be a way to save her. No one had ever succeeded? That didn’t matter. 

I will do it.

Burning the contents of the two books—the historical record and the medical text—into my mind, I clenched my fist and headed for the library exit. That bleak truth only hardened my resolve.

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