The Snow Leopard Baby of the Black Leopard Family - Chapter 173

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 173
“You’ll be staying at the Eberard Mansion in Arcadia. The mansion has finally been completed.”
Cassius replied. Tiel recalled the kind Illum, the inhabitants of Arcadia, and Karl Eberard.
‘I wonder how Karl is doing.’
When Tiel first met Karl, he had been smaller and younger than she was.
Considering that Tiel was barely seven years old at the time, Karl had truly been just a small boy.
Yet at that tender age, he had learned he was the Eberard family’s sole heir, and had been thrust into the enormous task of rebuilding Arcadia.
‘Karl must have had such a difficult time.’
Tiel had always felt sorry for him. The burdens placed on that young boy’s shoulders were simply too great.
Fortunately, thanks to Asterian and Arne supporting the Eberard family in every way, Arcadia had become a quite pleasant place to live, or so she had heard.
‘But he must have suffered greatly through all of it.’
Tiel resolved that when she saw Karl again, she would tell him how grateful she was for all his hard work.
And now she imagined what Arcadia must look like, transformed beyond recognition from its past state.
The last image Tiel had seen of Arcadia was beautiful — golden streams flowing and flooding the land.
Would it still look like that?
Tiel had not visited Arcadia since then, so she couldn’t know how it had changed. Yet one thing she could say with certainty:
Those who saw Arcadia now could never imagine what it had been like in the days when it was a Cursed Land.
And the Temple was probably holding this festival in Arcadia for that very reason.
To sing of past glory in a land that had swept away all traces of its curse and reclaimed its former magnificence.
A Carriage blessed by Wolfgang sped along at great velocity, rocking gently side to side.
Tiel leaned against Ferdi’s shoulder and carefully closed her eyes.
Warm sunlight tickled her cheek softly.
***
Tiel, Ferdi, Ludian, Cassius, and Alpheus arrived in Arcadia after a week of continuous travel, day and night.
Thanks to Ferdi and Ludian carefully monitoring Tiel’s condition throughout the journey, she was able to travel comfortably.
“This is Arcadia?”
Tiel stepped out of the carriage with wide eyes, turning to look at Ferdi and Ludian.
Ferdi and Ludian had once come to Arcadia before on Cassius’s orders.
Ferdi and Ludian nodded.
“Yes, this is Arcadia.”
Tiel’s eyes widened further. Arcadia was far more beautiful than she had imagined.
All the trees that had been dead and blackened and twisted were completely uprooted, and fresh, tender green trees were growing in scattered places throughout the land.
Across the vast meadows, wildflowers bloomed in abundance, swaying gently in the breeze.
In the distance, clear and transparent water flowed abundantly from the waterway, and smiles never left the faces of the people.
Tiel felt a swell of emotion at the sight of Arcadia, which was far more beautiful than her memories.
Ferdi and Ludian were equally astonished.
Arcadia had developed far beyond what it had been when they last visited. The transformation was all the more striking when compared to the memory of “the land where the sun never rose.”
But then.
“Over there…….”
“Could that be……her?”
“Yes, I think it is.”
The inhabitants of Arcadia whispered excitedly, craning their necks through the ranks of the Asterian knights.
Tiel, who had recently been receiving considerable criticism from the inhabitants of Crasion over the Day-Night Length Problem, felt her spirits sink and quietly averted her gaze.
Just as she was about to slip back into the carriage and gently caught Ferdi’s sleeve,
“It’s her, it’s really her! It’s Tiel!”
“It is! Tiel has come!”
“They said Tiel would come for this festival, and it’s true!”
The inhabitants of Arcadia cheered and rushed toward Tiel.
The Asterian knights were startled and tried to move to surround and protect Tiel, but held back at Cassius and Alpheus’s command to let them through.
Tiel herself was equally surprised. She opened her eyes wide and stepped back a couple of paces.
“Yes…… yes?”
“Tiel!”
“Tiel has come! Quickly, bring out the finest fruit!”
“Tiel! I have nothing much to offer, but please accept this! Fresh bread!”
The inhabitants of Arcadia exclaimed with delight and pressed various things into Tiel’s hands.
Tiel found herself enveloped in their warm, tender touch, bewildered as she accepted the fruits and bread they offered.
“Tiel! You are our Benefactor!”
“Without you, we could never have dreamed of a life like this!”
“The Benefactor of Arcadia!”
“The people of Arcadia do not forget kindness! Tiel!”
More and more inhabitants of Arcadia gathered around.
Among them were those who earned their living farming with the sunlight Tiel had brought, those who conducted their trade in the land that had regained its mornings, and young children of Arcadia born anew in the land that had recovered its dawn.
Tiel, overwhelmed by the warm attention and cheers directed at her, blushed as she struggled to respond.
“Well, I…… thank you. I mean, what I did wasn’t really anything special…….”
As Tiel, whose spirits had been greatly dampened by recent events, blushed and fumbled for words, the merchant standing at the forefront pressed a basket overflowing with sweets into her arms and spoke.
“Don’t say such things! Without you, we would all have died that day a decade ago! We could never have survived without you and Karl!”
His voice was filled with such conviction that it made the hearts of those who heard it swell with emotion.
Another inhabitant of Arcadia nodded in agreement and continued.
“Exactly! My husband was among those you saved that day. Without you, my husband and I would not have lived much longer! You are our Benefactor!”
The inhabitants of Arcadia spoke cheerfully and cheered in joy.
The Asterian knights, Ferdi, Ludian, Cassius, and Alpheus did not prevent the inhabitants of Arcadia from showering Tiel with food and expressing their gratitude in their own ways.
This was what Tiel needed right now.
She needed people who would ease her burden, remind her of the great accomplishments she had achieved, and make her remember how remarkable she truly was.
The inhabitants of Arcadia all at once pointed to one place and pulled Tiel by the hand.
Tiel found herself swept along among them, pulled forward as she looked to Cassius and Alpheus for permission.
Cassius, seeing the Salamander poking its face out from Tiel’s embrace, nodded to say she could go and enjoy herself.
The Salamander was somewhat foolish and dull-witted, but as it had been created with Cassius’s Ability, its power was certain.
Even if something unexpected happened, it would protect Tiel without fail.
However, Ferdi and Ludian were still uneasy, so they followed their younger sister by weaving through the crowd of Arcadian inhabitants.
Tiel was led by their hands toward the center of the Plaza.
The hands and arms that held hers didn’t hurt at all. The inhabitants of Arcadia gripped her gently and kindly to ensure she would not be harmed.
Or perhaps it was the warm, generous hearts they possessed that made her feel no pain.
Either way, it was not something unpleasant. Tiel felt her heart fill with warm light for the first time in a long while and smiled radiantly.
Only when they reached the center of the Plaza did the inhabitants of Arcadia release Tiel and step back.
And as if by prior agreement, they all pointed upward at once.
Tiel lifted her head.
And she gasped softly in wonder.
“……Wow.”
There stood a sculpture of Tiel as she had been at seven years old, captured in perfect detail.
Beside it was carved a younger figure of Karl. From the hands of the two children flowed water that shone with golden light, cascading down abundantly.
“The water that flows from this Fountain spreads throughout all of Arcadia.”
An inhabitant of Arcadia standing beside Tiel whispered softly.
Tiel stood in silence for a long time, gazing at the Fountain.
A faint rainbow appeared and vanished above the cascading water.
From Tiel’s hand, tiny fish leapt forth, and sparks of light popped and scattered in all directions.
The flowing water of Arcadia flooded into Tiel’s heart, filling the emptiness that had lingered there for so long.

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