Math Is Magic Chapter 24: CHAPTER 24: Do Not Give Up on Yourself

Read chapter 24 of Math Is Magic by iminchoo on NovelPedia.

It was around 6:00 PM. Under normal circumstances, as he had diligently done in the past few months, Mirac would have spent this time studying or engaging in something productive. However, that late afternoon, he decided to stay in his room. His tired body, marked by intense training, forced him to remain lying on the bed, curled up on his right side, immersed in thoughts he couldn't shake off. The stern gaze of his father continued to haunt him, like a nightmare that refused to fade away. 'I'm not enough...' Mirac kept repeating to himself, letting the sense of failure overwhelm him. Every effort, every drop of sweat shed during training, seemed to have lost any value in the face of that impenetrable indifference. His heart throbbed painfully in his chest, tight in an invisible vise, as if someone were crushing it mercilessly. Each beat in his chest was an unrelenting and painful reminder of what he lacked: his father's approval. "Tsk!" A light knock on the door broke the oppressive silence. "Come in…" Mirac murmured, lacking energy. His voice sounded weak, faint. No longer as determined as it had always been. The door slowly opened. The red-haired servant entered with delicate steps, carrying a silver tray on which rested a lid of the same material. Her presence was always accompanied by a sense of calm, capable of transmitting serenity. However, that afternoon, it was not enough to dispel the cloud of sadness that enveloped Mirac. "I've brought you a snack, young Prince," she said in her usual sweet and measured tone, gently placing the tray on the desk, positioned against the wall opposite the bed. Mirac didn't move, nor did he respond. His gaze was fixed on the sunset, on the sky painted with red and orange. The glow of the setting sun, which he usually found comforting, now seemed to only emphasize the emptiness he felt inside. Carmen observed him closely, immediately sensing the distress in his downcast eyes. "Young Prince, has something happened?" she eventually asked, with a sweetness that sought to slip past the barriers of his silence. Mirac sighed, avoiding her gaze. "No, nothing, Carmen." Carmen wasn't deceived. "Are you sure?" she insisted, with the patience of someone who doesn't get discouraged easily. "Yes… Nothing important…" Carmen slightly shook her head, letting out a melancholic smile. "You know, young Prince, it's very easy to read your mind. In my eyes, you are an open book. So much so that all I need to do is look into your eyes to understand what's going through your mind. And that's precisely why, young Prince, you should stop shamelessly lying to me." At that point, Mirac understood: it was useless to try to hide the obvious truth. He slowly rose from his lying position, feeling the blue blankets sink beneath his weight, and sat on the edge of the bed, his elbows resting on his knees and his hands intertwined. His gaze remained fixed on the horizon, where the sun was disappearing behind the walls, leaving the sky immersed in fiery hues. "Today my father watched the training," he finally said, breaking the silence. "Yes, I knew," Carmen replied calmly. "After all, His Majesty the King does that on the first day of every month." "Exactly!" Mirac continued, and frustration began to rise in his voice. "But in all these months, not once has he smiled at me. Not a single spark of pride in his eyes. Sometimes I think I'm not enough for him. And today… today I got confirmation of that. He himself told me!" He took a moment to clench his fists and grit his teeth, his body tense like a rope about to snap. "Other times, I wonder if I'll ever be able to meet his expectations..." Mirac confessed, his voice trembling with emotion. "If things keep going this way, if I never manage to see a proud smile on his face... what's the point of continuing to push myself and train so hard?!" Carmen watched him for a moment, still standing by the desk. Then, without saying a word, she clasped her hands in front of her and, w