Chapter 305: Sienna Merdein (1) [Bonus Image]
After passing through the Trade City in Samar, they reached the border of Kiehl, where Eugene would part ways with Cyan.
“Make sure to explain things properly to the Patriarch and Lady Ancilla,” Eugene instructed Cyan.
Before leaving, they hadn’t told the Lionhearts anything about the war in Samar. However, with how large the scale of the battle had been, and since the eyes of the Lionheart clan weren’t completely blind, news of the war in the Rainforest should have already reached them by now.
Ancilla’s eyes might just roll back into her head in a faint once she heard that the next Patriarch of the family, her son whom she cherished so terribly, had been to such a dangerous battlefield. So Eugene had requested that Cyan make his way back to the Lionhearts before that could happen and tell them about the spoils from their victory in advance.
“It’s not like I’ve been sent back with any injuries, and I’m returning with plenty of spoils, so Mother and the Patriarch should be overjoyed instead of concerned,” Cyan scoffed.
After Eward had left for Aroth and Eugene was adopted into the main family, Ancilla had turned into a very soft-hearted mother. However, before that, during the days when Cyan’s rights of succession had been at stake, Ancilla was just as overbearing a mother as Tanis had been.
Cyan still had clear memories of that time, and even now that he had become an adult, his body still froze up whenever he imagined the sight of an enraged Ancilla. Honestly speaking, Cyan was still afraid of her. So even though his earlier words might have been said with a calm expression, on the inside, Cyan was still worried that Ancilla might be angry with him.
“Don’t be afraid, man,” Eugene encouraged him. “Just the spoils you’ve received from Ivatar alone could exceed the Lionheart clan’s budget over the next several years, and the corpse of an Ancient Dragon is something that an emperor wouldn’t be able to purchase even if he sold off his entire empire.”
“That’s… that’s right,” Cyan said hesitantly.
Eugene continued his persuasion, “Then there’s the other thing, you know, apart from all of the material stuff. You’ve also received a different kind of benefit, haven’t you? After all, didn’t you say you’d reach the Fifth Star soon? I’m sure the Patriarch and Lady Ancilla will be more excited about your achievements than anything else.”
“That… makes sense,” Cyan said slowly as his stiff face relaxed under Eugene’s encouragement. Soon, Cyan nodded with a broad smile overflowing with confidence, “You can count on me. I’ll take care of everything such that none of the sparks from us going off without permission will land on you.”
There was an old saying that enough praise could even make a bear dance. As Cyan walked off at a brisk pace, Eugene sent him away while waving his hand, thinking of that proverb.
Well, it wasn’t like Eugene had lied about anything. It was true that Cyan had grown greatly over the course of this war, so even Ancilla couldn’t be too angry if he returned home while carrying plenty of loot.
After seeing off Cyan, the rest of the party traveled through the warp-gate that took them straight to Aroth. After that, Eugene’s party of four naturally parted company with Lovellian and Melkith.
The two Tower Masters had promised that they wouldn’t inform Aroth’s Royal Family, or anyone else, about Sienna’s recovery in advance. Eugene saw them off as they both returned to their respective towers, then he headed to the downtown area of Aroth along with Kristina.
“Let me ask you this just in case, Hamel,” Anise suddenly spoke up, using Kristina’s mouth. While handing a lollipop to Raimira, who was holding on tightly to her other hand, Anise turned to look at Eugene and asked, “When you leave for your meeting with Sienna, I hope you don’t intend to go there looking like that.”
Thanks to making haste on their return journey, they arrived a day earlier than the thirty days Sienna had promised.
While scanning Eugene’s appearance from head to toe, Anise continued, “No matter what you might look like, that chick Sienna is sure to greet you with a happy smile, but if at all possible, I would prefer it if you try to dress up a bit fancier before you meet with her, Hamel.”
“And what’s so wrong with my current appearance?” Eugene protested. “I don’t feel like I’m lacking anything, no matter what angle you might look at me from.”
“Hamel, I’m well aware that your face is a lot more handsome than it was in your previous life, but it’s also a disadvantage because you tend to evaluate yourself too generously. Ah, but then again, you were just like that in your previous life, weren’t you,” Anise said, cocking an eyebrow with a smirk.
Then she sighed, “Though the truth is, the most frustrating thing about this argument we’re having is that even I can’t really think up a reasonable response to refute those arrogant words of yours. However, the important thing right now isn’t my mood and opinion on the matter; it’s what Sienna’s will be.”
Anise narrowed her eyes as she scanned Eugene from head to toe once more.
Unfortunately, it was just as Eugene had said. Even though they had been traveling at a brisk pace for nearly a month, there still wasn’t the slightest flaw in Eugene’s appearance. If she really had to pick one thing, it might be that Eugene’s disheveled hair looked a bit shaggy?
However, even with shaggy hair like that, as long as one had a handsome face, it would come off looking like a wild style instead of feeling unkempt. His clothes, which had been cleaned every day with magic, also looked a bit frayed, but instead of looking slightly shabby, they instead seemed vintage….
“...Ahem,” Anise let out a low cough as she shook her head.
With how cool Eugene looked in her eyes, he should also look the same in Sienna’s, but since they had the opportunity… Anise wanted to do something special for their reunion, which was taking place after three hundred years, that would make Sienna even happier.
[Sister, strictly speaking, it’s not like this is really their first time meeting each other after so long, right?] Kristina pointed out.
‘That might be the case, but the previous encounters between Sienna and Hamel were always coincidental, miraculous, sudden, and unusual. However, this time, aren’t they finally meeting each other after actually setting a date?’ Anise argued back.
Kristina hesitated, [That… what you’re saying is… this means… that Sir Eugene and Lady Sienna’s next meeting is going to be a d-d-date….]
‘Even if it is, it definitely won’t be as fun as the date we enjoyed together,’ Anise reassured her. ‘According to my research, Aroth doesn’t have anything like a fireworks festival scheduled for tomorrow.’
[Thank goodness that’s the case,] Kristina said with a heartfelt sigh of relief.
“First of all, Hamel, let’s start by tidying up that messy hair of yours. It might look pretty good currently, but with just a little overall trimming, it will look much better,” Anise proposed.
Eugene wasn’t given any right to veto her decision. And when it came to things like this, Anise was as deliberate and thorough as ever. Anise had approached Melkith for help even before they had arrived at the city, so she had her pick of the most skilled hair salons in all of Pentagon.
Under the usual circumstances, it would have been impossible for them to enter one of these salons without a reservation. But with Melkith’s letter of introduction, Eugene found himself in one of the salons’ chairs without going through any complicated procedures.
In his entire life, this was Eugene’s first time coming to a place like this. So what did he usually do to take care of his hair? Nina took care of his hair whenever he was at the main estate, and while he was studying abroad in Aroth, Eugene had just haphazardly cut it by himself.
“Here, cut it right here. But don’t cut anything over there. We have to retain a bit of that wild feeling,” Anise instructed.
Although Anise was just as much of a stranger when it came to hair styling, she insisted on clinging to the hairdresser’s side and kept interfering throughout the haircut.
Even so, a pro was still a pro. The hairstylist managed to accommodate all of Anise’s requests without ever revealing any trace of displeasure.
After Eugene’s hair was cut, his eyebrows were trimmed, and even his scalp and face received attention. The cosmetic essence that was created through a combination of magic and alchemy gave a soft glow to Eugene’s already naturally clear skin. Seeing his new appearance, Anise unconsciously clutched at her chest while Kristina had to swallow back a gulp.
Before leaving the hair salon, they were also given a single-use magic comb that would allow Eugene to recreate his current hairstyle by brushing the comb through his hair.
The next place they headed to was a tailor that was also recommended by Melkith. This time, Anise and Kristina watched, chewing their fingernails in intense focus, as Eugene tried on various outfits.
After he had tried on several different clothes, Anise and Kristina jointly decided that the one that fit Eugene perfectly was a neat-looking tuxedo.
Anise hummed thoughtfully, “With this tuxedo… you should slightly reduce the size of your cloak and reshape it to look like a coat — yes, that’s it! Perfect, let’s go with that.”
But was there really a need to go this far?
At some point in the middle of the chaos, Eugene had lost track of why they were doing all of this, but even so, he didn’t reject any of Anise’s suggestions. This was because he knew full well that, at times like this, it would just be easier on his mind and body to quietly go along with her orders.
By the time they had finished all their preparations, night had already fallen.
When they arrived at the hotel they had booked for their accommodation, Anise glanced at Eugene right as she was about to enter her room and asked, “What are you going to do for the present?”
“What present?” Eugene asked in confusion.
Anise gasped, “No way! Hamel, were you really intending on showing up empty-handed?!”
Mer also chimed in, “Sir Eugene, really?! Were you really going to go there without bringing anything? Even though you gave Lady Anise a necklace as a gift!”
“That’s… that’s because it was Anise’s birthday…,” Eugene defended himself weakly.
“It’s true that it was my birthday at that time, but your meeting tomorrow will be just as important and exciting to Sienna as if it were her birthday,” Anise lectured.
“Yes, that’s right,” Mer chimed in.
This time, even Mer couldn’t help but feel grateful to Anise. Standing by Raimira’s side, Mer stopped eating her ice cream to glare at Eugene.
“How about a bouquet?” Eugene awkwardly proposed.
“You should think about it yourself, Hamel,” Anise ordered. “After all, you did come up with the idea of giving me my necklace all on your own.”
She had already given him more than enough help. Or at least that was what Anise thought as she headed into her room.
“What do you think about giving her ice cream as a present?” Raimira, who had entered Eugene’s room along with Mer, suggested.
Just as Eugene had expected, Raimira didn’t feel depressed or resentful of Eugene due to Raizakia’s death. This was because there hadn’t been anything like fatherly affection between them, and it had been a great shock to Raimira when she was swallowed whole by Raizakia.
Raimira cheerfully continued, “Ice cream is sweet, refreshing, and delicious, don’t you think? No matter who it is, if they receive a lot of ice cream as a present, they’re sure to be happy.”
“Do you really think Lady Sienna is a simple little girl like you?” Mer scoffed.
Raimira retorted, “Even though you say that, Mer, you’re the one who stole and ate more than half of the ice cream that originally belonged to this Lady.”
“Food that you’ve stolen from someone else always tastes more delicious,” Mer professed without feeling an ounce of guilt.
There was no point in listening any closer to the conversation between those two. As Eugene sat down in a chair, he pondered what kind of gift he should prepare for Sienna.
The first thing that came to mind was a bouquet of flowers. He had thought that was a perfectly fine present to give. However, was it really a bit too simple? Then next up was… since Sienna was a wizard… how about a staff? But she already had Akasha, didn’t she?
“Ah,” Eugene gasped as he suddenly recalled something.
* * *
Her first reaction was anger.
Sienna had just arrived at her mansion in Aroth. The mansion had been erected on a site personally chosen by Sienna and had been built to reflect Sienna’s ideal vision for her future.
Since two hundred years had passed, she had thought that it might have changed a bit. However, even though she had expected some changes, hadn’t things changed a bit too much? The peaceful and quiet forest had become a bustling plaza, and the river that glistened in the sunlight and was filled with the stars at night had been completely filled in.
As for the mansion? Fortunately, the building itself remained intact.
‘But what’s with that statue?’
At the center of the Merdein Square, which had been named after her, stood a statue of Sienna holding up a staff. When Sienna saw this statue, her whole body shuddered as she cringed.
It was certainly an accurate depiction of her. However, when she thought about the countless people who came looking for her statue every day to stand and pray in front of it, Sienna couldn’t help but feel embarrassed.
“Just how much money have they made from selling my image?” Sienna grumbled
Admission prices for entry to Merdein Square and Sienna’s mansion were exorbitant. Even so, there was an endless flow of tourists and examinees taking the Public Recruitment Exams of the Towers of Magic, streaming in, so much so that there were even lines.
“Do they really think I picked this country to research magic just so they could make money off of me and fill their own treasuries?” Sienna growled, clenching her fists in anger before turning her head to one side.
Focusing her gaze on the center of the Capital City of Pentagon, she could see the Royal Palace of Abram, which had been built in the middle of a lake. Even without witnessing all of this, Sienna had been thinking of visiting them sooner or later in order to discuss the issue of their treatment of Mer, but seeing as she had finally returned to Aroth, Sienna felt that it wouldn’t be enough to just rely on her words alone.
But she couldn’t allow herself to go there and pick a fight right away, as now wasn’t the right time. Sienna took a deep breath and turned her head back once more.
Looking at a clocktower erected nearby, the time was a little past 11:30.
‘Everything is fine,’ Sienna tried to tell herself.
Her heart, which had just been pounding in rage, was now racing for a different reason. Sienna spun around while covering her own burning cheeks.
She tried to calm herself, ‘I’ve completely reconstructed my body and my clothes…. I’ve made sure to put on new clothes.’
The clothes she had worn before being sealed within the World Tree were already all worn out. As such, Sienna had made new clothes for herself to wear. Just in case he might think that she looked strange, as soon as Sienna had arrived in Aroth early this morning, she had looked around the city and taken references from the clothes of the passersby.
Everything was fine.
With all her preparations, she had done enough research to blend in nicely with the current era without giving off the feeling of someone from the past. Although she had already confirmed this, why was her heart still pounding so fast? While taking a few more deep breaths, Sienna headed towards her mansion.
Her mansion was swarming with people. There were some people who couldn’t get in in time and were now standing in line outside. Then there were all the employees who guarded and maintained the mansion.
These were far too many people. In her heart, Sienna really wanted to kick everyone out, but…. she just let out a sigh and shook her head.
‘Still, these people came all the way here because they truly respect me and want to pray to me. They’ve even had to pay a lot of money to do so.’
Such thoughts softened Sienna’s heart. In the end, Sienna didn’t drive any tourists away and entered her mansion without raising any sort of fuss. Naturally, she didn’t pay the entrance fee. The guards and the tourists weren’t able to pick up on Sienna’s presence even as she passed right in front of their noses.
There was still a bit of time left before their promised meeting time.
Sienna was going to take a look around the mansion in an attempt to calm her loudly racing heart. Although all of the scenery surrounding her mansion had undergone changes, the structure of the mansion and the furniture inside had been preserved to look just as they had been two hundred years ago; nothing had changed.
After taking a walk through the halls, Sienna headed for her study in the annex.
There were two study rooms in her mansion. The study in the annex, where Sienna had often dreamt up plans for the future, only stored books meant for casual reading. Books that were related to magic had deliberately been excluded from this library.
Thanks to that, there were fewer tourists in the annex study. That being said, it still wasn’t anything close to quiet, but Sienna was able to tolerate at least this level of noise.
Sienna’s footsteps came to a stop in front of her rocking chair by the fireplace.
This fireplace had never seen much use. Especially in the two hundred years since Sienna had disappeared, this fireplace had never once been used, so it was perfectly clean without any trace of ashes.
Upon seeing this sight, Sienna let out a snicker. Even the rocking chair in front of the fireplace — seeing how tidy it was without any sign of wear, it seemed that no one had dared to sit in it.
‘There’s an alarm spell on top of the preservation spell,’ Sienna observed. ‘I guess it’s meant to stop tourists from sitting on it.’
Such spells had been placed all over the mansion. Sienna snickered as she stretched her fingers out towards the fireplace.
Fwooosh!
Inside the clean and tidy fireplace, a flame suddenly erupted.
“Ah!”
“Wh-what the?”
The tourists let out cries of surprise as the guards came rushing over. They immediately tried to extinguish the fire in the fireplace, but it was impossible for them to extinguish the flames ignited by Sienna’s magic.
Sienna giggled as she left the annex in an uproar.
The place in this mansion that attracted the most tourists was the magic study room in the basement of the mansion. Sienna had spent most of her life researching magic within that study. Perhaps because of that, she didn’t really feel like going there right now.
‘Isn’t it noon yet?’ Sienna thought impatiently.
Why does time have to pass so slowly? While rubbing her still-pounding chest, Sienna climbed the stairs in the hallway. This place was the second-most crowded place within the mansion — the landing on the stairs connecting the main hall to the second floor.
This landing was placed right in front of the portrait of the “Wise Sienna” that was hung on the wall in the middle of the hall.
“I need you all to be quiet for now,” Sienna muttered as she lifted a finger.
She didn’t have Akasha or any other staff on her, but that didn’t pose any problems for Sienna. The spell she cast was activated without alerting any security spells in the mansion.
The people gathered in front of the portrait began to leave one by one. Without even thinking about why they were doing it, they either headed down to the hall on the first floor or went up to the second floor. Finally, the landing in front of the portrait was left completely empty and silent.
Standing in front of her own portrait, Sienna stared right into it.
It had been two hundred years ago… that this portrait was painted. The king of Aroth at the time had personally requested that it be made, saying that it should be left as a record for future generations. When she refused to do so, even her disciples were driven to come to her and beg her to reconsider.
Left with no choice, Sienna reluctantly agreed. Wearing her formal robes, Sienna had sat down in a chair in front of the painter. She hadn’t even wanted this portrait to be taken, and she — no, the Sienna from two hundred years ago — usually found it difficult to smile. The rare times that she felt able to smile were when she was talking to Anise or her other comrades. Apart from that, the few other times she found herself smiling came after she had created Mer.
The painter responsible for painting her portrait had banged his head against the ground, begging Sienna to smile, even if it was ever so slightly. Since the portrait was meant to be left for future generations, he said they shouldn’t leave behind a cold expression like the one Sienna had on at that moment.
This request just made Sienna feel tired and annoyed. Since she found herself incapable of smiling, Sienna just told him that if he really wanted to leave behind a portrait of her with a smile, he should just draw it on his own.
That was how this portrait had been created. She had a soft smile that was different from her usual expression. The painter had done his best to infuse a sense of benevolence into Sienna’s expression.
A Living Legend, an Archwizard who had left her name in Myth, and a Goddess of Magic; these were the titles that had been attached to Sienna in that era. He had wanted the future generations to be able to see Sienna, look up to her, and respect her, just as they did. So the painter had drawn a portrait of the Wise Sienna with a benevolent smile.
“It really doesn’t suit me,” Sienna said as she chuckled at her own portrait.
She had had the exact same thought when she first saw this portrait two hundred years ago.
Sienna tried to smile like how her face in the portrait was smiling, but she couldn’t make it work. As her awkwardly raised lips returned to their usual position, she stretched her hand toward her portrait.
A gust of wind suddenly blew in.
There were no open windows, but the wind that blew through the mansion was as fresh as if it had just come from a forest.
Sienna turned her head, surprised by the sudden gust of wind. At that moment, the wind picked up ever so slightly and blew past Sienna.
Her hat was blown away. Sienna lifted her head as she pressed down her fluttering hair with both hands. She saw her hat, which had flown away in the wind, was caught in somebody’s hands.
The hairstyle and clothes worn by the man who caught her hat were so stylish that they captured her attention with just a glance. Sienna’s eyes widened into circles as she took in his appearance.
“I’ve found you,” Eugene said with a grin as he waved the hat that he had caught in his hands.