Fixing a Ruined Ending C4

Chapter 4

#4

Before long, word spread throughout the Department of Magic that Blen had become Rainer’s new assistant.

His fellow department members all looked at him with sympathy.

But when they learned that Blen had volunteered for the position himself, they were utterly dumbfounded.

“Blen… are you feeling alright?”

Luwen asked with genuine concern.

“Or are you planning to quit?”

“Luwen, I’m perfectly fine.”

“And no, I’m not planning to resign.”

“No.”

Luwen shook his head firmly.

“The fact that you volunteered to become the Minister’s assistant already proves something’s wrong with you.”

“Maybe you should see a doctor.”

Luwen wasn’t the only one worried.

Even the Grade 2 members began expressing concern for their junior colleague.

Of course, thanks to Blen becoming Rainer’s assistant, they themselves were finally free from being the minister’s primary targets.

Even so…

The most unbelievable sentence anyone could utter in the Department of Magic was:

“I want to become Minister Rainer’s assistant.”

“Actually…”

Blen scratched his cheek awkwardly.

“I want to earn my promotion as soon as possible.”

“And honestly… it was hard watching all of you seniors being sacrificed one after another.”

“So I figured I’d volunteer instead.”

He knew perfectly well that simply saying I wanted the position wouldn’t convince anyone.

He needed a believable explanation to clear everyone’s suspicions.

Naturally, his real objective was preventing Rainer from dying of overwork.

But there was no way he could tell them that.

So the most convincing excuse was also the safest one.

“Blen, you…”

The senior members stared at him with touched expressions.

One by one, they placed their hands on his shoulder and nodded solemnly.

As though silently promising—

We’ll never forget your noble sacrifice.

“Still…”

Luwen sighed.

“I think you’re amazing.”

“I’m scared just being in the same room as Minister Rainer.”

“I can’t imagine actually becoming his assistant.”

Most members of the Department of Magic were, by default, afraid of Rainer.

He was their superior.

More than that…

Everything about him felt like a frozen lake in the middle of winter.

Cold.

Solid.

Every time he spoke, it felt as though an icy wind swept through the room.

And when Rainer criticized someone…

It was enough to crush their confidence.

Being afraid of a superior like that was only natural.

But Blen was different.

He remembered his previous life.

He knew the contents of the original novel.

He knew that this supposedly untouchable genius—

The great Minister of Magic—

Would meet an absurd death simply because he couldn’t even take care of his own health.

Knowing that made Rainer seem far less frightening.

Besides…

Blen knew a future far more terrifying than Rainer himself.

Could Rainer really be scarier than the future where the entire empire fell into ruin?

If he failed to keep Rainer alive…

Something far worse awaited everyone.

Compared to that, there was hardly anything left to fear.

Just then—

The door to Rainer’s office opened.

Everyone who had been chatting quietly hurried back to their seats.

“Incompetent.”

At the single word that left Rainer’s mouth, everyone looked around in confusion.

Only one person reacted.

Blen.

As though he’d been expecting it, he immediately stood.

“Yes, Minister.”

“Follow me.”

Blen followed Rainer into his private office.

The office consisted of two separate rooms.

The first room, immediately beyond the entrance, was where the minister’s assistant worked.

Beyond another connecting door lay Rainer’s own office.

The other departments followed the same layout.

“Move your desk here on your own.”

Rainer spoke without looking back.

“And there’s something you need to do immediately.”

“Understood.”

“…But Minister, my name isn’t ‘Incompetent.’ It’s Blen—”

“Do you see those documents?”

Completely ignoring him, Rainer pointed beside the assistant’s desk.

Blen turned to look—

Then froze.

The mountain of paperwork stacked there was enormous.

“I’ve finished reviewing everything over the past three days.”

“Sort the documents by category and file them in the archives.”

“Wait a second—”

But before Blen could finish speaking…

Rainer had already disappeared into his office.

The door shut behind him.

Blen squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fists.

“…You’ve reviewed all of this?”

“In only three days?”

He couldn’t help letting out a laugh.

Even if someone worked twenty-four hours a day without sleeping…

Without resting…

Without eating…

There was no way they could read through this much paperwork in just three days.

“…Maybe he only skimmed it.”

Blen muttered to himself.

“Who said I skimmed it?”

“…!”

Blen nearly jumped out of his skin.

Rainer’s voice had suddenly come from nowhere.

Thinking the minister had come out of his office, he quickly looked around.

He hadn’t.

Only then did Blen notice the communication crystal sitting on the assistant’s desk.

Apparently, it had been left in constant transmission mode.

Without wasting a second, he switched it to selective reception mode, allowing him to choose whether or not to receive incoming communications.

For a moment, he worried Rainer might contact him again.

Fortunately…

Nothing happened.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Blen decided to start with the task he’d been assigned.

It didn’t take long for him to realize something.

Rainer hadn’t skimmed the documents at all.

On the contrary—

His review was astonishingly meticulous.

Everything had already been neatly organized and annotated.

“…No wonder you worked yourself to death.”

The words slipped out before he realized it.

His eyes immediately darted toward the communication crystal.

Thankfully…

It remained silent.

Blen resumed sorting the documents.

The work itself wasn’t difficult.

If anything, it required stamina more than intelligence.

And that made a troubling thought occur to him.

Is this really enough… to stop Rainer from dying of overwork?

The Department of Magic handled an overwhelming number of responsibilities.

It researched new magical theories.

Interpreted ancient magic and forbidden grimoires.

Maintained the magical barriers protecting the nation.

Developed magical tools and magic circles.

Sealed and managed dangerous magical artifacts.

Oversaw all licensed mages within the empire.

Whenever an incident involving magic occurred…

The Department of Magic was responsible for investigating and resolving it.

They also managed captured magical beasts.

Updated the nation’s monster encyclopedia.

Administered the national magic certification examinations.

In short…

The department oversaw virtually everything related to magic.

Because of that, the Department of Magic employed more members than almost any other department.

The workload was infamous.

Although it was one of the Imperial Palace’s most important departments, people often said it never operated particularly smoothly.

That criticism disappeared completely after Rainer became minister.

His work capacity was so extraordinary that it was as though one man could do the work of a hundred.

But that very ability was also what led to his death.

If only Rainer had taken care of himself while working…

Things might have been different.

Instead…

He was a hopeless workaholic.

To him…

Work always came before his own life.

Which meant there was only one solution.

Blen had to reduce Rainer’s workload.

Knock. Knock.

Someone knocked on the assistant’s office door.

Peeking inside cautiously was none other than Luwen.

“Blen…”

“Aren’t you going home?”

Luwen’s voice finally made Blen check the time.

7:00 p.m.

It was the usual time the members of the Department of Magic finished work.

Considering that most other departments left between four and five in the afternoon, they were already working much later than everyone else.

“I’d like to go home…”

Blen let out a helpless smile.

“…but I don’t think I can.”

He hadn’t even realized how much time had passed.

Besides, he still hadn’t finished sorting the documents Rainer had assigned him.

“Hang in there.”

Luwen didn’t ask why.

He simply looked at his friend with sympathy before leaving.

Once Luwen was gone, Blen stretched.

At this rate, he’d be working late into the night.

He figured it would be best to eat dinner first.

After all, it would be ridiculous if he worked himself to exhaustion trying to stop Rainer from dying of overwork.

That would completely defeat the purpose.

If he expected Rainer to take care of himself…

Then he had to set the same example.

And that applied to Rainer as well.

“Minister Rainer.”

Blen knocked before entering the office.

Rainer didn’t even bother looking up.

His nose remained buried in the documents covering his desk.

“I’m going to the dining hall for dinner.”

Only then did Rainer raise his head.

His expression looked even harsher than it had that afternoon.

“…Am I your mother?”

“If you’re hungry, then go eat.”

“You don’t need my permission.”

“Exactly.”

Blen nodded.

“I’m going to eat.”

“So you should come with me.”

“…What?”

“Dinner.”

“Let’s go together.”

“No.”

“I don’t have time to chat with you.”

“Get out.”

Just as expected.

It was common knowledge that Rainer rarely ate his meals properly.

Suppressing a sigh, Blen glanced at the documents spread across the desk.

“Are those the revisions for the barrier magic circle?”

Rainer answered with silence.

“I’ll help.”

“So let’s have dinner first.”

“…You?”

“Yes.”

“I’m your assistant now.”

“I should be helping with your work too.”

After all…

That was the only way he’d be able to change Rainer’s future.

Simply sitting around doing miscellaneous errands wasn’t going to save him.

“And why…”

Rainer replied coolly,

“…would I entrust my work to someone incompetent who’s never accomplished anything worthwhile?”

“Go eat.”

In the end…

Blen was practically kicked out of the office.

As he walked toward the cafeteria, he silently cursed Rainer the entire way.

“This isn’t going to work…“

He’d succeeded in becoming Rainer’s assistant.

But unless he earned Rainer’s trust and started assisting with his actual work…

Nothing would change.

The same went for Rainer’s terrible lifestyle.

The funny part was that despite barely eating…

He somehow maintained that physique.

It was hard to believe someone who probably hadn’t even drunk enough milk growing up had ended up so tall.

The cafeteria wasn’t very crowded at dinnertime.

Blen absentmindedly chewed on a piece of bread while looking around at the other unfortunate souls who’d also be working overtime.

Still…

He’d already decided to change the novel’s doomed ending.

That meant he had to try everything.

At that very moment…

Rainer continued moving his pen tirelessly across the page.

His goal for the night was to finish revising the reinforcement formula for the barrier magic circles protecting the empire’s borders.

Then—

A sharp ache shot through his eyes.

“…”

With a quiet groan, Rainer pressed his fingers against his eyelids.

Once the discomfort eased, he reached for his pen again.

Knock. Knock.

Another knock sounded from outside.

“…Haa.”

Never before had so many people knocked on his office door in a single day.

He already had a bad feeling about it.

Sure enough…

The person who entered was his assistant.

Blen.

“Have you still not changed your mind about dinner?”

“No.”

“Leave.”

“I figured you’d say that.”

Blen smiled brightly and set a plate on the table.

On it sat something resembling a sandwich.

Two slices of bread overflowing with filling.

“You’ve never tried this before, have you?”

“If you ask the cafeteria staff for some sliced bread, they’ll give you a few pieces.”

“Then you just add today’s sautéed mushrooms and roasted meat…”

“And you’ve got a special sandwich.”

Rainer frowned.

The way Blen kept enthusiastically rambling about a meal everyone in the palace had eaten at least once was incredibly noisy.

“If you’re that interested in food…”

“Why don’t you quit the Department of Magic and go work in the cafeteria instead?”

“I think it’d suit you.”

“Then you should personally judge whether I’m good enough to work there, Minister.”

“…What nonsense are you—”

Rainer raised a hand, intending to tell him to take it away.

Before he could finish speaking—

Blen shoved the sandwich straight into his mouth.

“…”

“You’ve already taken a bite.”

“So you have to finish it.”

For a brief moment…

Rainer completely forgot how he was supposed to react.

No one had ever treated him like this before.

“Oh, right.”

Blen smiled as though nothing unusual had happened.

“You keep calling me an incompetent man with no accomplishments.”

“So if I achieve something that even you acknowledge…”

“…then you’ll let me help with your work.”

With that final declaration, Blen left the office without losing his smile.

Even after the door closed…

Rainer remained sitting there.

A sandwich still hanging from his mouth.

“…Where exactly did that weirdo come from?”

he muttered in disbelief.

…

Surprisingly…

The special sandwich tasted pretty good.