[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-how-to-survive-as-the-second-son-of-a-mage-famil":3,"chapter-how-to-survive-as-the-second-son-of-a-mage-famil-how-to-survive-as-the-second-son-of-a-mage-famil-chapter-223":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","How to Survive as the Second Son of a Mage Family",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1474129,1923,"Chapter 223 (2)","how-to-survive-as-the-second-son-of-a-mage-famil-chapter-223",223,"\u003Cp>Crash—!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fragments of their broken barrier flew at me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clang—!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My staff, now a white blade, blocked their sword inches from my neck. I glanced at their blade, 5 cm from my eyes, holding firm. They held the stance, laughing softly. “Not number one for nothing… right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Flattering me when I’m aiming to lose? Guess I looked like I went all out. I’ll take it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Staring blankly, they smiled. “Drinking that drug and attacking me…? No, you stopped. For me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And… how’ll you handle this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing them move as I wanted, I nearly smiled but played the right expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘How do I confirm their hidden info, buy time for my strategy, and lower their guard?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They could escape, and I could call friends since I shared my plan, but…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having met them, I can’t waste this chance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Creating a submissive position, physically and emotionally—that’s my answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud— Crash!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Knocked down by Vitriol, my vision tilted. Feeling black Vitriol from my head coil around my hand, I thought, ‘In short, stall until I can execute my plan.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stifled a hollow laugh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This situation’s absurd—reality hitting hard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Anyway…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their behavior when their desires aren’t fully met.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’ll learn their info in the process. What artifacts block my Divine Power, who knows I’m Nicolaus, how they found out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the Grand Hotel targeted Korea, how’d they connect me to it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Find that out, then rewind time.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their method to achieve their goal won’t be something I can just walk away from.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Black Vitriol, like with Strauch and Ainsidel, started choking my neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They smiled, grabbed their skirt, and knelt on one knee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then chanted a short spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—Blessed are those who hope to find peace in the sea of temptation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With dwindling air, their Magic Power fully trapped my mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>* * *\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Opening my eyes, I was shockingly on my bed. They’d used space magic to isolate the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I slowly raised my arm. No blood drawn, no Magic Power restraints, ear artifact intact.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nothing had changed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Feeling questions surge, I turned my head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A Leo ancestor-lookalike, trespassing in Leo’s family home, stared down at me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a tense stare-off, I focused on their appearance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Where the hell’s this guy from?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if it’s not their real body, their origin’s intriguing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Really a Wittelsbach Old Human ancestor?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, probably not.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wittelsbach Old Human ancestors have dark hair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Matching beauty standards makes people look similar, so maybe just a coincidental lookalike. But why do New Humans all look different?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They smiled, eyes crinkling. “Like this look?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No one dislikes this one. Surprising a New Human likes Old Humans.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not like I prefer Old Humans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I just stared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Got a lot of questions, huh? You didn’t drink that drug and come at me with Divine Power confidence, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They sat beside me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I glared with contempt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They’d played into my hands, so I wasn’t mad—more amused—but to deny them everything, I had to act repulsed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why that look?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They tilted their head, puzzled. Their long hair brushed me. Pressing my carotid artery, they stayed still.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beyond their sociopathic behavior, they were…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Raising an eyebrow smugly, they smiled. “…You want to find a way to drive me off. How much do you hate me to drink a love drug to meet me? I’m right, aren’t I?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the notes, they wouldn’t admit this outright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My heartbeat probably tipped them off that the drug worked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking they could mold me with a bit of sweet-talk, my current state didn’t matter to them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, absurd words came. “I followed you to help you, and it hurts that you hate it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Help?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I nearly laughed, forgetting to act.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What’s this bastard saying? Their signature mental victory now justifies stalking?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah. Can’t you tell? Why’d I be in this estate, where an attack could break my space magic, with you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s surprising.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fleeing to an unknown city earlier, now back in Berlin?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No idea what you’re misunderstanding, but I just wanted to help you survive. Still do.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Help from who? I’d live better without a criminal watching my every move.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ll understand why I said this in time…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Struggling to explain, they ended with two words. “Too bad. You won’t get it now.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I narrowed my eyes, staring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nonsense. Sounds like nonsense, but…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Gotta remember this.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I pressed the suspicious point. “If you’re such a saint, why steal my stuff?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Haha~”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They laughed, dodging the topic. “What, don’t trust my protection as an Old Human? No need. My real form’s probably bigger than you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What does size have to do with protection? I didn’t want to picture them as a New Human, so my face naturally twisted in disgust. Unfazed, they reached for my face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let’s hear what you want to negotiate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They mumbled, sociopathically touching my eyelid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I slapped their hand away. “You got what you wanted. I followed your song lyrics. Stop bothering me. I’ll meet when you want.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Blinking big eyes, they said, “Not enough…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their face twisted into a sly smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My “meet when you want” didn’t carry enough affection. Even a stage 10 drug wasn’t enough, huh?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Grinning, they said, “Wanna see an opera?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>* * *\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching the lavish stage, I glanced beside me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The still-nameless stalker was engrossed. Unlike earlier, their hair was tied up, adorned with a purple velvet hat and flowers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They didn’t bite on negotiation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Didn’t matter. Why?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I just need to stall. Negotiation was always about buying time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Stall to extract info and strike.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Honestly, like Abraham’s goons did to me, I expected a beating despite incomprehensible reasons, or their madness leading to crazy experiments with my blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t tell my friends, but I was prepared for insane possibilities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘What?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All they wanted was *this*?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Floored, I stared blankly at the stage. A velvet glove touched my elbow. Wearing an ornate mask like at a masquerade, they smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I pulled my arm free and walked out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the clearly Pleroma-run theater, masked Pleroma pairs roamed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Following me, the stalker eyed a wall poster. “What’s next? Salome? Elektra? Saw Fidelio recently, so not that…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“……”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How’s Elektra? It’s the closest, day after tomorrow.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I just stared down instead of answering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They glanced between the poster and me, urging a decision. “Why so quiet? Was it boring?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let’s wrap this up.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If it was like Abraham’s case, I’d extract info efficiently, though bad for my mental health.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this? It’s just wasting time. What info do you get from this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Gotta pick another fight.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As I checked my watch, mulling crazy ideas, another insane comment came. “It’s Monday, so that’s why? Don’t worry, I’ll get you back to the estate before 5 a.m.”\u003C\u002Fp>",1127,"2026-06-06T03:11:08.304Z",1,"novelbin.me","e6d5e632c7e6563e630a15e0cb2e35e5a8e009445c9334e792c409631c97b1e9","how-to-survive-as-the-second-son-of-a-mage-famil-chapter-224","how-to-survive-as-the-second-son-of-a-mage-famil-chapter-222",367,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fhow-to-survive-as-the-second-son-of-a-mage-famil-cover.jpg"]