Time Healer Ceres - Chapter 119

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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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Seres had still been racking her brain for a way to slip out unnoticed when so many more people than expected turned up to participate, but when her name was called, she had no choice but to step forward.
At least there was one small mercy: people’s attention had already scattered considerably.
When Princess Nailia had approached the spring, the crowd had been brimming with anticipation, but it was easy enough to spot those quietly drifting away as failure followed failure.
‘Of course.’
Did anyone really think the owner of a Tamer Artifact would reveal themselves so easily?
She’d heard that in the neighboring kingdom over there, no owner had surfaced in more than a decade.
This bracelet seemed destined for the same fate.
“You need only immerse your hand in the water here.”
At the Pope’s words from beside her, Seres rolled up her sleeve and dipped her hand into the clear spring.
The strange thing was that despite the spring not looking particularly deep, the bracelet the Pope had thrown in moments earlier was completely invisible.
As if it had dissolved into the spring water and vanished.
‘How long am I supposed to keep it in?’
Around five minutes like the others, maybe? Or would pulling it out right away work……?
Whoooooom—
“…Huh?”
“Look over there!”
“That’s……!”
Whoooosh!
‘Wait, hold on.’
This was not happening.
The spring, which had been perfectly still just moments before, began to vibrate with a sound like the air itself was singing, and suddenly a brilliant light came pouring out from the water.
The light was so intense that Seres could hardly keep her eyes open and was forced to squeeze them shut.
She wanted to pull her hand from the spring immediately, but that proved impossible. Some powerful force held her submerged hand firmly in its grip.
Flash!
The moment the brilliant light faded, Seres was able to withdraw her hand from the spring.
She looked down at her wrist, now different from before, and felt a wry laugh bubble up inside her.
‘Didn’t you pick the wrong owner?’
Around her wrist sat a silver bracelet—the Tamer Artifact itself.
And embedded in what had been a plain silver bracelet was a single green gemstone, gleaming like a jewel.
Seeing something alive and shimmering within that stone, Seres could not deny that she had become the owner of the Tamer Artifact.
‘Just like the Family Head’s ring.’
The red jewel containing the Fire Spirit King Juberios always rippled like this, as if alive.
“The owner of the Tamer Artifact……!”
“That young lady……!”
The people who had been dazed by the brilliant light began to comprehend the situation one by one, their murmurs rising.
Everyone stared at Seres with gaping mouths as she withdrew her hand from the spring, the bracelet now clasped around her wrist.
“So the owner of the artifact has appeared.”
The Pope, standing closest, made no effort to hide his astonished eyes before breaking into a warm smile of congratulation toward Seres.
“What power have you gained?”
At the Pope’s follow-up question, Seres’s gaze shifted back to the bracelet.
The moment the bracelet had wrapped around her wrist, a name had been branded into her mind with the force of a hammer blow.
“Airien.”
The moment Seres spoke that name, a warm wind blew around her—utterly out of place in this season of bitter cold.
Whoooosh!
“……!”
The crowd’s mouths opened wider and wider. The trees surrounding the spring, which had held nothing but bare branches, began to transform.
“Flowers…….”
It wasn’t just the trees. The grass that had been withered and yellowed turned green again, and all manner of flowers sprang up from the earth, filling the entire area with blooms.
While everyone gazed in wonder, unable to tear their eyes away, Seres herself let out a brief internal observation about the power she had gained.
‘Maybe I should go into the flower business?’
* * *
“Miss Seres, daughter of Baron Drow, we’d so love to invite you to our home.”
“Seres! My daughter attends the same Academy as you. She speaks so highly of you all the time.”
“I believe I’ve met Baron Drow once before.”
Seres fell into thought as people crowded around her.
Should she use the Movement Magic Book Chaien had given her to escape?
She suppressed the urge to open the subspace pocket containing the book right then and there, forcing herself to take a step. She reminded herself that magic was forbidden inside the Temple.
‘I should have brought Kainel along.’
If he’d been here, the noise around her wouldn’t have gotten this bad.
I never thought I’d become the owner of a Tamer Artifact…….
Besides, I’d already told Kainel not to follow me today.
‘No. Don’t come.’
‘Why?’
‘Because if you’re there, I can’t keep things quiet. I’m planning to slip in and out without drawing any attention today. So absolutely no following.’
‘…….’
I left him behind with that very disgruntled expression on his face and came to this place.
‘Well, this commotion will die down soon enough.’
The Imperial Court had said they’d keep everything about the Tamer Artifact and its owner strictly confidential.
They couldn’t let other nations who were already eyeing the Tamer Artifact get wind of it before I’d even begun to understand my own power.
They’d probably bind everyone here to absolute silence.
“Take it.”
Seres slipped away from those who kept trying to speak to her and approached where Princess Nailia stood. Then she held out the bracelet to her.
Even though Seres had been chosen by the Tamer Artifact, Nailia had been the original owner of the bracelet, after all.
She just wanted to hand it over and slip away.
“It’s not mine anymore. The bracelet chose you.”
…Of course, that was a futile hope.
Once a Tamer Artifact had chosen its owner, if someone else tried to take it, it would be nothing but metal.
But wasn’t this situation different?
“It was your mother’s keepsake.”
You shouldn’t give something like that to someone else.
“It’s a Tamer Artifact before it’s a keepsake.”
Princess Nailia refused to accept the bracelet Seres was offering, as though she had no regrets whatsoever.
“The Imperial Court wouldn’t want the chosen owner of a Tamer Artifact to refuse that selection.”
Crown Prince Aseraian, who had been standing silently beside them the whole time, finally added his voice.
Faced with the resolve of both royals, Seres had no choice but to put the bracelet back on her wrist.
‘Ugh, this is such a burden.’
Seres looked down at the bracelet with cold eyes, as though she’d been forced to accept something utterly vexing.
“Then.”
Seres gave a light bow to Princess Nailia and Crown Prince Aseraian, then turned to leave.
“……? Where are you going?”
“Home.”
“…Home?”
“Is there anything else you need me to do?”
Aseraian’s eyes widened slightly before he let out a short laugh.
“No. There isn’t.”
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
Seres gave another light bow and fled the place as though afraid someone might grab her. She moved like she was terrified of being stopped.
Watching her hurried departure, a small smile played across Crown Prince Aseraian’s lips.
‘She doesn’t seem happy about this at all.’
Here was the owner of an artifact that had appeared after such a long time, and her reaction was rather strange.
Normally, wouldn’t someone be moved to tears or unable to contain their excitement?
But from Seres, he felt none of that emotion—rather, it seemed she found the entire situation tremendously bothersome.
“She’s in the same class, you said?”
“…….”
At Crown Prince Aseraian’s question, Princess Nailia’s brow twitched.
“Why are you curious about that?”
“Is it wrong to be curious?”
Looking at Crown Prince Aseraian’s face as he smiled gently and narrowed his eyes, Princess Nailia clicked her tongue lightly.
People said that Aseraian, her older brother, was a benevolent and capable crown prince whom everyone liked.
‘But.’
She knew well that his true nature was nothing like what others saw.
‘All these bloodlines are like that.’
Gleaming on the surface, with no way to know what lies beneath.
‘Though…….’
There was one exception.
“She’s my person. Don’t take interest in her.”
“Your person?”
“You know I hate it when people touch what’s mine.”
And she herself did not belong to that exception.
Princess Nailia delivered her warning with an icy edge, then turned sharply on her heel and departed.
“Our bloodline certainly does share similar tastes.”
Watching her go, he allowed himself the faintest smile—but did not forget that he had come to represent the Imperial Court, and he made his way toward the gathered crowd to bring matters to a close.

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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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