The Elixir for a Slimmer Waist

"Wh-what kind of medicine is that? Besides, Lionel isn't the kind of woman who judges people by their looks. She'll love me just the way I am..."

"Only a hopeless loser spouts that garbage about wanting to be loved for who he really is."

At Adrian's defensive posturing, the man clicked his tongue.

"Inner beauty? Of course it matters. But your problem comes long before that. Look in a mirror and think about it objectively. Does the face you have now make anyone want to peer inside and discover your inner self?"

Adrian averted his eyes at the man's words. He stared at the enormous figure filling the full-length mirror from edge to edge.

"Not just Lionel—what woman could fall in love with you? Want to kiss you? If she runs away screaming 'how disgusting,' you should count yourself lucky."

The man was right. He'd done his best to ignore it all this time, but the truth was that his current appearance wasn't merely unattractive—it was repulsive.

Who could possibly fall for a man with a double chin and a belly that jiggled with every step, dull vacant eyes, a face full of acne, and cake smeared thick around his mouth?

"Then... what am I supposed to do?"

Adrian's voice wavered on the edge of tears.

"I have an ugly face, a fat body, a cowardly personality... I'm disgusting and..."

"That's exactly why I brought this. The slimming medicine."

The man held out a glass vial, then pressed his case again in a voice brimming with certainty.

"Press it against your belly. Within a few weeks, you'll see results. I guarantee it."

Adrian took the vial in a daze and lifted it. The pointed, capped glass tube held a clear liquid.

"So if I really do as you say... I'll actually lose the weight?"

"Of course. I'll guarantee the results. Lionel's a physician, isn't she? She knows how hard losing weight is—so she'll see you in a whole new light."

It wasn't that Adrian had never tried dieting. But every attempt had failed, and each failure sent him into another binge that made him fatter still.

And now, all he had to do was use this one little medicine? It wasn't just tempting—it felt like salvation.

"...What do you want from me?"

The man smiled pleasantly.

"Nothing. No payment necessary. Instead, I'll simply watch from afar as you slim down. Seeing that is satisfaction enough for me."

"Really? Truly, that's all?"

"Yes. Truly, that's all."

With those words, there was nothing left to hesitate over.

Adrian pried off the cap. He grabbed a fistful of his thick belly fat and turned the vial upside down.

"...For Lionel's sake!"

Without a moment's hesitation, he pressed the vial against his stomach. The spot where it touched glowed red, and the liquid inside sank into his body and vanished.

"Well done, Adrian. Everything will fall into place now."

The robed man smiled broadly. Beneath his billowing robe, a flash of red light flickered for an instant—then disappeared.

"Wow, this place is incredible. It's so much bigger than I imagined!"

I marveled at the endless rows of shops and market stalls, and Everlein, walking beside me, gave a light nod.

"That's thanks to Port Lumiere nearby. Goods from all over the world gather here, which is why the shopping district has grown so large."

"It could rival the capital's market. So where's the macaron shop we're looking for?"

"Just a little farther along, then the alley on the right."

Yesterday, I had declared that the Accelerated Aging Diet was officially over. The Duke, who had spent four grueling weeks executing a Speed-of-Light Aging regimen, had still been nibbling on chocolate and biscuits right up until the moment of my announcement.

"It was a rather enjoyable time."

I gave a wry smile at his brief reflection. "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself so much. I, for one, was rather deeply disappointed."

"At least the people of this household don't feel that way."

The Duke was right. The Carseido Dukedom had finally escaped its three-meals-a-day dried meat hell—because the master of the house had gotten his appetite back.

The servants, insisting it was all thanks to me, bowed and scraped at the sight of me every time I passed.

Well, I didn't achieve my original goal, but I should count it a blessing. It's thanks to that that I'm off buying expensive desserts again today.

Lily, whom I'd grown close with over the Accelerated Aging Diet, was as knowledgeable about desserts as any teenager could be. When I relayed her recommended shop to Kaylen, he suddenly declared he would collect payment for it—

and so I had ended up buying macarons for every single servant in the household.

Thanks to the Duke's consideration, Everlein had also come along as both my escort and guide.

"Sir Everlein, what is that?"

"That is called a tapestry, my lady. It's a woven textile work, made by interlacing threads."

"Ohh! Do you like it, my lady? You have a discerning eye."

At our conversation, the merchant came out from his stall.

"This piece was crafted stitch by painstaking stitch by a master who spent forty years in the Kingdom of Crimina making nothing but tapestries. That creature there is the wyvern, a monster known as the guardian of the kingdom."

"Oh..."

The Kingdom of Crimina.

It was a name I knew all too well. It was the birthplace of the original novel's male lead, after all—and a fallen kingdom, long since absorbed into the Riesenberk Empire and erased from the map.

That was when the Duke was fatally wounded helping a princess who didn't want to be married off to the Empire make her escape.

Even with her nation's very existence on the line, being sold off like merchandise to some old man—married into the position of second wife, no less—must have been something she'd rather die than accept.

Having once stood in a similar position, I could understand the princess's anguish a little.

"The Kingdom of Crimina vanished ages ago. How does something like this still exist?"

Well, history was history. When I asked with suspicious eyes, the merchant narrowed his brow.

"Look at these lovely colors, this tight, exquisite weave! No one but a true Criminan master could ever imitate this craftsmanship. This must surely have belonged to someone within the royal court... Ah—no. This is not merchandise for someone who cannot recognize its worth. You needn't buy it!"

Fine, then. If I don't buy it, that's that. But as I turned away, Everlein abruptly stepped in.

"I'll take it."

"Pardon?"

"I will purchase it for her."

"Oh! The knight has a discerning eye as well. One moment, please!"

Before I could stop him, Everlein had already paid. He then handed me the carefully rolled-up tapestry.

I floundered, trying to give it back. "But why? Why would you buy this for me?"

"It's an instruction from His Grace the Duke. He said that if you find something at the market you'd like, we're to buy it for you."

"Yes, but why?"

"Because you saved Kaylen's life, and because of all your hard work in the household since then. I, too, am grateful."

But I'd only done my job. As I fidgeted awkwardly, Everlein spoke again.

"I observed closely what you took an interest in, Doctor. You didn't spare a single glance at the jewelry or the clothing. But the moment you saw this, your eyes changed."

"You were watching me that closely?"

"So please accept it. I've already paid, and there are no refunds."

After his repeated urging, I finally gave in. Clutching the tapestry tightly to my chest, I gave a small bow.

"Thank you, Sir Everlein. I'll hang it up beautifully in my examination room."

Everlein returned my nod with one of his own. Watching his precise, measured movements, I found myself regretting his fate all over again.

Ah, a young man this handsome and upstanding deserves to find happiness in this life...

In the original story, it had ended in failure, but now that things had changed, I sincerely hoped my male stock could end up with the heroine and find happiness together.

I'm already twisting the original plot as hard as I can, so it's not such a far-fetched dream, is it?

After the Duke died, if I introduced the heroine to my male stock, love might blossom quite naturally.

And at that thought, a question popped out of me. "Sir Everlein—you have a younger sister, don't you?"

His eyes went wide at my sudden question. "How did you... know that?"

"Your aide told me. He said she's the same age as me."

Of course, it was a lie that Kaylen had told me. Fortunately, he let it slide easily.

"Yes, that's right. She's currently recuperating far away for health reasons."

Even that backstory is identical to the original. I chose my words carefully. "By any chance, is your sister..."

—BOOM!!

My words never reached their end, scattering in every direction. A blast threw me sideways to the ground.

"Aack...!"

A blinding red flash stung my eyes, and I ducked my head. Across the market, which had descended into utter chaos in an instant, someone screamed:

"A Black Mage!! A Black Mage has appeared!!"

A Black Mage?

As I struggled to open my eyes, someone appeared before me—a man wrapped entirely in a black robe.

"Hello, Lionel Frencia."

He knows me?

A chill ran down my spine at his unpleasantly low voice. As I staggered backward, Everlein leapt in front of me.

"Stand back!"

Everlein's sword cleaved through the air. The Black Mage retreated leisurely, then rose into the sky.

"The pleasure is mine, Lionel. Until we meet again."

Another powerful red light swept over everything around us. And by the time I opened my eyes, the mage was already gone.

"Doctor, are you unharmed? Are you injured anywhere?"

I nodded at Everlein's words, checking myself over in case any trauma had slipped my notice—and that was when I realized something was missing from my trouser pocket.

"...I'm not hurt anywhere, but I think I lost something."

"What did you lose?"

I answered with a short sigh.

"My pocket watch."