The Genius Perfumer of the Fallen Cult - Chapter 34

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

The Genius Perfumer of the Fallen Religious Order Episode 34

“They said if I endure not eating today’s bread, I’ll get a gold ingot tomorrow, but if I don’t eat today’s bread and starve to death, what good is tomorrow’s gold ingot?”

“….”

“Even if I starve today and receive a gold ingot tomorrow, it’s not like I can eat that gold right away.”

“If you sell that gold…!”

“You can stuff bread in your mouth, but gold gets stolen, doesn’t it? When orphans like us carry gold ingots, even the people who buy gold just take it away.”

We part today saying we’ll be together tomorrow, but today that we parted never comes back.

Parting today might be the last time….

Rozien’s deep green eyes were calm like a forest whose depth was hard to fathom. Sebardo couldn’t say anything as if he’d been struck on the back of the head.

However, Sebardo didn’t give up and gripped Rozien’s shoulders tightly.

“I understand what you’re saying! I get it! I understand, but still, let’s think about it.”

How many untold stories must there be among the children until one survives carrying a curse on their leg and reaches the temple orphanage.

How many things must have happened to them until tomorrow became not just uncertain but close to nonexistent.

Sebardo realized he would never be able to fully understand that and felt momentarily frustrated, but still didn’t give up.

You don’t have to understand and comprehend everything with your heart to be together.

“Hm? Don’t just say no, you won’t do it without thinking. Let’s consider it.”

When Sebardo persisted, Rozien didn’t refuse more firmly either, and eventually nodded with an awkward smile.

* * *

When Prim suddenly said she wanted to find stones, Rozien asked back as if pleased.

“What kind of stones?”

“Stones that were thoroughly soaked by rain that fell on a day when lightning struck.”

“Hmm, a day with thunder and lightning…. Not long ago, it did strike pretty hard around here too.”

“Yeah.”

Back then, people whispered excitedly that the gods were punishing Baron Crobas for his sins.

If you distill stones soaked in thunderstorms with lightning, you can obtain ‘Pluvia Lacrima’ that has a cold yet sharp scent with a hint of winter sea air.

There are famous production areas for Pluvia Lacrima, but they’re far away at the eastern edge beyond the Imperial Capital, so there’s no way to obtain it now.

She had made several bottles mixing fragrance materials excluding Pluvia Lacrima, but none were satisfactory, so after much deliberation she decided to try this old workaround.

“Should we look for them in this villa garden?”

“There’s a forest behind the garden. I think we’ll need to go around that area.”

This villa was completely surrounded by silver aspen forests, so it wasn’t too difficult a task.

Rozien got thick cloth from the dining room to use as a picnic mat and picked up Prim. The untended garden was soggy and overgrown with weeds in a mess, perhaps because there had been a torrential downpour with thunder and lightning just a few days ago.

After laying the cloth near a tree trunk and seating Prim on it, Rozien came back with a basketful of wet stones.

“Let’s see if what you’re looking for is among these. If not, I’ll look again.”

Prim brought each stone to her nose. The pebbles, each about the size of a child’s fist, had different scents.

The faint, cold scent of minerals embedded here and there, the smell of rainwater that had seeped into the cracks of those stones, some had a strong earthy smell while others had a bitter fragrance like carrot root.

While about half the pebbles in the basket passed by Prim’s nose, Rozien sat beside her humming and wiggling his toes.

Rozien’s humming, being an excellent choir member, sounded like beautiful bird chirping. And the birds seemed to think so too, as they flew over to them.

Prim enjoyed the melody while scratching the heads of the birds that had perched nearby, and finally found the stone she wanted.

Rozien smiled brightly and made eye contact.

“Do you like it?”

“Um, Rozien.”

“Don’t you like it much? Should I look again?”

When Prim hesitated for a moment, Rozien jumped up. He looked ready to go search again immediately. However, instead of answering, Prim grabbed Rozien’s wrist and made him sit back down.

“Why didn’t you say you’d do it?”

“No, he said he’d look for it right away?”

“I’m not talking about the stones.”

“…Ah.”

Rozien’s expression became a bit awkward. In fact, he had known from the beginning what Prim was talking about. He just wanted to pretend not to know.

“Did you hear?”

“Yeah, I knew.”

“That’s…. Well, it’s deciding my future, so I can’t just say I’ll do it right away without thinking. Besides, it’s not like I’d become a holy knight. No holy knight has ever become a grand lord, right?”

Rozien said with a wink. Prim pressed her lips together before responding.

“He didn’t tell you to become a holy knight.”

“He didn’t say it in words, but that’s how it is, isn’t it? Besides, I follow Varin, so I can’t just go follow Yulberon’s inquisitor!”

“But Varin said it was okay?”

“…Varin already said that?”

“Yeah.”

“….”

Rozien fell into an embarrassed silence.

Being able to communicate directly with gods isn’t always just good….

Prim stared at him quietly while clutching a pebble. Rozien avoided her gaze.

When Sebardo asked if he wanted to learn swordsmanship, it didn’t mean he would stay here and teach.

It would mean learning in his homeland of Gratia Territory, or the Imperial Capital, or Luminoxia Aila.

Then what about Prim in the meantime?

Would she have to walk getting pricked by thorns every day, or ask others for help?

Until when?

Until he becomes a knight in the future and returns to this child’s side?

And even if Prim hadn’t had a curse, his decision wouldn’t have changed.

How frightening it is to be far apart. How scary it is to not be there when this child is sick, when she reaches out her hand, when she’s hungry, when she looks for water in the middle of the night, and not know about it.

Being separated like that, even if he barely becomes a knight, things wouldn’t be easy afterward either. Even after being knighted, there are many who can’t find a decent master and wander as wandering knights.

He had also seen mercenaries who boasted of their knight titles. They roamed countless places trying to make a living somehow.

Then what’s the point of becoming a knight?

For some unknown future, to be together comfortably?

There had never been room for the future to intrude in their lives.

When Prim talked about the future, he nodded simply because he thought answering that way would make Prim happy at the time.

“Ah, I’ll take it slowly. Really. But for now, I need to think about it.”

“Why?”

“I’m a bit busy right now.”

It wasn’t something ten-year-old children should be saying together, so if there had been someone eavesdropping, they might have burst into laughter. However, Prim was serious.

“What are you busy with?”

“Just busy anyway.”

“Tell him you’ll go do it later.”

“Should I go find more stones?”

Rozien changed the subject, but Prim asked again.

“Why exactly don’t you want to?”

“Should I find a few more as spares?”

“It’s because of me, isn’t it?”

“No!”

At those words, Rozien, who could no longer pretend otherwise, hardened his expression and jumped up.

The pebbles he had gathered rolled and scattered.

A fierce wind from the silver aspen forest blew over, scratching past the boy and girl.

Rozien swept back his hair that had been messed up by the wind and barely managed to speak.

“…It’s not like that.”

“If it’s because of me, then you should become a knight and earn money. You can earn money and buy me a wheeled chair.”

“What about while I’m earning that money, what about when I’m not here!”

He wanted to become strong.

However, Prim’s absence was not factored into that process. And himself not being by Prim’s side was also not factored in. This was true regardless of whether Prim’s curse existed or not.

For him, it would always be that way.

“…Rozien, I’m fine.”

Prim had planned to talk about this after her curse was broken, but she decided not to postpone it any longer.

Even if her curse wasn’t broken right away, it was right for Rozien to seize this opportunity now.

“I’m going to be fine now.”

“…What does that mean?”

“Now I can break my curse….”

Rozien’s eyes widened. That’s when it happened. The sound of all the gathered birds suddenly taking flight and fleeing echoed loudly.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————