The Genius Perfumer of the Fallen Cult - Chapter 63

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Genius Perfumer of the Fallen Religious Order Episode 63

When night fell.

Prim cut her toe to draw blood, covered it with a towel, and created a makeshift altar.

She placed a water bowl on the lamp borrowed from the Temple of Yulberon and dropped fragrant oil into it, spreading a sweet rose fragrance. It was the scent of ‘Rose Hedge’ that Prim had gifted to Rozien.

— How did it go!

The fragrance was as if she were truly in the middle of a rose garden, and as Bell inhaled the scent while rolling over on the towel and purring contentedly, Varin’s voice suddenly boomed in Prim’s ear.

— How did the exam go!

Prim startled and hunched her shoulders before answering.

“It’ll take about a week for the results to come out.”

— You answered everything, right?

“Of course I did. But the questions were too easy… I’m afraid it’ll be hard to stand out like you said, Varin. I’m sorry.”

— Why! How is the questions being too easy a problem?!

Varin, who didn’t understand human exams well, exclaimed.

“Probably all the test-takers will get perfect scores? Then no one will stand out…”

— Ahhh…

If Varin had been in front of her, he probably would have collapsed and buried his face in his hands.

— Then there’s nothing we can do. Let’s do well on the next exam! You must! Become a perfumer in first place!

“Yes.”

— What are you planning to do after you pass the exam, my lily of the valley?

“Well… I’ll probably contract with a trading company for work, won’t I? Uncle Luciano’s Aurum Vena trading company.”

Originally, contracting directly with a religious order was the greatest glory and honor.

Even when they had their own perfumery, renowned perfumers gladly contracted with various religious orders to create fragrances.

Even Prim in her past life had contracted with the Temple of Yulberon and handled the extremely small amount of remaining Perum Rosa Absolute.

However, if Prim were to contract with any religious order for perfumery now, that order would only be Varin’s order.

But that order was currently so impoverished that keeping the children from starving was the best they could manage. Naturally, they couldn’t even afford to pay for fragrance materials.

Since she wasn’t in a position to contract with other orders either, if she wanted to earn money immediately, she would have to contract with trading companies or prestigious nobles.

However, no matter how outstanding her grades were when she became a perfumer, nobles wouldn’t readily accept a ten-year-old orphan.

So properly fulfilling the sponsorship contract with Luciano—that was the work prepared for Prim.

— Humans are foolish. Such an excellent perfumer is prepared, yet no one recognizes her.

“There will be people who recognize me. Just like you recognized me, Varin.”

— Hmph! It’s only natural that I, a celestial god, would have such insight. Speaking of which…

Varin spoke with great momentum but trailed off at the end.

“Varin?”

— …Sigh, go visit Levitia once. He has something to tell you.

“Levitia, you mean Levitia of revelation and freedom?”

— Yes! That arrogant one. How dare he order my child around!

Varin spoke with a voice full of displeasure.

Prim tilted her head. He probably didn’t mean to just go to that temple, but rather to offer fragrance and listen to a divine oracle.

“Would it be alright for me to go?”

— Yes! He said he’d welcome you as soon as you come, so don’t worry about anything.

“No, not that… are you okay with it, Varin? If you don’t want me to go, I won’t.”

— …

Varin fell silent for a moment. Prim waited for Varin’s answer. Varin only breathed for a while before speaking in a small voice.

— …No, go ahead. He seems to want to give you a revelation. It will surely help you.

Gods are not omnipotent. If there are things they can do, there are also things they cannot do. Varin could present a path and shine starlight before someone contemplating which way to go, but he couldn’t show the future.

— Tsk, if he could, he should give revelations to his own children! That guy just wants your fragrance too! No matter what sweet words Levitia says, don’t fall for them, my lily of the valley!

“I only have Varin.”

— …

Varin hesitated a little before sprinkling some star dust on Prim’s hair.

* * *

“Oh! The second son of the Schneider family is finally taking the perfumer exam. I know well how seriously he’s been preparing all this time.”

One of the exam supervisors grading the answer sheets said. When he passed the answer sheet to the person next to him, a smile appeared on that person’s face as well after checking the name.

The answer sheet had Julian Schneider written on it. He had shown exceptional knowledge of fragrances since childhood and was famous even in the Empire’s social circles.

Whenever he smelled any fragrance, he could identify what was in it, so everyone had been expecting him to become a great perfumer.

Rumors were rampant that the Schneider family’s warehouse was lined with fragrances he had made during his training, waiting for blessings.

“The answers are excellent too.”

Since it was an exam that asked about almost every area a perfumer should know, he had done his best to write even the parts that would be difficult for anyone but a working perfumer to answer.

This answer sheet showed how diligently he had prepared.

“There are parts he couldn’t answer, but as expected, there are no shortcomings.”

“He passes, of course.”

However, there were plenty of answer sheets where grading was meaningless. No matter how vast the scope, how could this work with so many blank spaces!

After pushing those aside, only half of the meaningful answer sheets remained.

“This one has good answers too.”

“Oh, let me see. The name is Masinisa? Hmm, he got a recommendation letter from Curresen Temple in Sangbertal. Not bad for a commoner.”

“Oh, that’s surprising? Hasn’t that parish been sending the priest’s nephew to take the exam all this time?”

“That talentless…”

“I’d say he simply wasn’t bright enough.”

“Did the priest want to do that? His brother the lord was asking him to take care of his son, so he had no choice.”

“How can a priest be swayed by worldly connections like this!”

“Isn’t the human heart not so simple to bind and sever? But how did he send someone different this time?”

“Looking at this sponsorship by Luciano Valderia, well…”

Everyone was aware that priests in some parishes sold recommendation letters.

“Hmm? Aurum Vena? Wasn’t he from that… scary priest’s side at Varin Temple? Luciano and that priest, no, ahem. His Eminence the Cardinal, the two of them together caused quite a stir.”

What does someone who follows a god with nothing left have?

Madness…

A few days ago, they had all confirmed that fact.

Anyway, writing recommendation letters was a right given to the priest in charge of the parish. Rather than getting bitten by a mad dog for no reason, it was naturally wiser to choose not to infringe on that right.

“That family has more money than they know what to do with, so sponsoring one or two more wouldn’t matter.”

“Hmm, let’s take a look at that ten-year-old’s answer sheet while we’re at it.”

“Though I doubt it’ll be meaningful…”

“But where is it? I don’t see it. What was the name again? Fren? Frin?”

“Prim? That was the name…”

The priests and perfumers rummaged through the piled answer sheets but couldn’t find it in the end. Now there was only one answer sheet whose name they hadn’t confirmed.

The answer sheet that perfumer was holding, who hadn’t participated in this conversation at all.

“Um… Lord Mennellik, by any chance, is what you’re looking at…”

The moment the priest next to him asked cautiously, he suddenly stood up abruptly. Everyone was startled and stepped back.

“Lord Mennellik?”

“This is impossible…”

“What, what do you mean?”

Mennellik was the only disciple of Vittorio Alquezia, the greatest living perfumer, and he too was renowned as an excellent perfumer. Rumors were rampant that he would take one of the next Perfuma Etheria’s 12 seats.

Therefore, he was in charge of creating the fragrance for the second task of this exam, and the priests and other perfumers who came as exam supervisors all had to lower their eyes before him.

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