Unfortunately, I'm an Evil Villainess

Chapter 30 - A Mad Mage

I lifted my head from my book to see Zoe entering my room. She was quiet as a cat and otherwise unnoticeable, like maids were supposed to be, but I was keeping an eye out for her as I didn't know where she had been the whole morning.

"My lady, I have found some things on mana madness."

"Oh? Tell me."

I had sent her to read up on mana because I just couldn't find enough time between all the lessons and social gatherings. It seemed I was right to trust her efficiency.

"In general cases, it is caused by an excess of mana present within extremely powerful mages. Magic's nature is to desire, and in moderation, it helps its users to achieve those desires. When there's too much mana, it causes desire, which becomes obsessive."

That might explain why Damian wasn't interested in any other girls in the novel. They were throwing themselves at him, there was nothing to desire. The obsessive part was already beginning to become evident.

"This obsession is typically with a cause, like power, money, a kingdom, or religion. However, there have also been cases of love, obsession with an individual. It develops throughout childhood, and the insanity hastens if a subject is not found. The mage wants to have as much of the target of their obsession as possible, but they will never have enough."

Of course, Damian's target would be the female lead. Could I successfully lead him to be obsessed with me instead? But that could be dangerous. Besides, theoretically speaking, he would be able to possess more of the female lead, romantically and sexually, while his common sense would keep him from having that kind of relationship with me.

"Are there cases of two targets?"

"There is one. She was a foreign empress that was obsessed with power and her husband. Eventually, she had to sacrifice her husband for her empire, but in exchange, she conquered numerous kingdoms and expanded her empire."

That didn't sound too good. Would Damian pick me over the female lead, or would he toss me aside like in the novel? I must do everything I could to make him choose me.

"These mages usually died in their pursuit of their target, or were driven mad by their mana and succumbed to insanity. The empress I mentioned was overthrown at twenty-two because of how cruelly she treated her people, and the one that lived the longest was twenty-nine when he dismembered himself. Many don't live past twenty."

I swallowed. In the original, Damian was twenty when he tried to commit double suicide with the female lead. He was two months away from twenty-one, but he never made it.

"Is there any way to cure it?"

"The ones that lived the longest put themselves under sleeping spells, but they broke eventually, overpowered by the desires their mana manifested into, and the mages woke up on the verge of insanity. Keeping them from pursuing their desires quickened the descent to madness."

I frowned, my heart sinking. But I couldn't give up.

"Anything at all?"

"A long shot, my lady, but have you heard of the ifyeffier flower?"

Confusion overcame me and I looked at Zoe, puzzled. I definitely knew the name, but not from the novel. The knowledge was lumped together with all the other books I had read.

"Something to do with the temple?"

"Yes, my lady. It's a legend among commoners' that God gave the first saint a flower that she planted. It blooms every few hundred years and can cure any sickness, and even bring a dead man back to life. Some texts mention it, but it's never stated what happened to it."