Side Story 20: Lover (3)
Boom-!
With gigantic noise, light shot up into the sky.
“Wow!”
Abel was just stepping out of the dining room and shouted at the sight of the beautiful lights sparkling across the sky out the window.
Beyond the dining room door he was already a few steps away from, he could hear Aisha’s voice.
“Ack! Roxa! Why is he shooting that up already?!”
What is that about?
Tilting his head, Abel looked back out the sky and halted.
‘Priestess Deborah?’
Deborah was heading somewhere seemingly in a rush for some reason.
‘That way is…’
Abel thought he could guess where Deborah was headed to, seeing how she was running in between the main castle and the mansion.
He left the castle in haste.
The small pond in the castle was somewhere Abel used to visit a lot since he was little.
Ever since he had met Aisha, he no longer went there because he no longer felt lonely.
It was also the place where he had met Deborah for the first time. Indeed, he found her there.
“Priestess.”
Squatting before the frozen pond, Deborah turned around in surprise.
Looking at Deborah’s face covered in tears, Abel came running in surprise.
“Why-why are you crying?”
“C-Childe…. sob.”
“What’s the matter? Are you hurt?”
Seeing Abel asking, looking worried, Deborah shook her head.
“Then why…”
Deborah could not answer and continued to cry for a long while. Abel merely stayed by her side until she stopped.
Finally calming down, Deborah carefully opened her mouth, sniffling.
“The grand priest…”
“Yes,”
“He says he’s going to die soon.”
“Huh?!”
Abel was surprised, then thought it over carefully.
It was odd how he was able to predict his death in advance, but since it was coming from Michael who had led a different life from any ordinary man, he shouldn’t be lying.
After much hesitation, Abel barely managed to speak.
“Still… this won’t be the end. You know that too, Priestess.”
“Yes, I do. But it’s so, so sad. My heart hurts. It feels like it’s being ripped apart.”
“…”
“I thought that we would finally be able to be happy, and now, now… I am once again, all by myself…”
Tears welled up in Deborah’s eyes once again.
Though he wanted to say something, he didn’t want to give a thoughtless consolation. Abel kept hesitating as he bit his lips.
“I hoped that no one would ever leave me again anymore… Is it because I am bad girl? Was I too…”
“No.”
Abel took out Aisha’s gift from the inner pocket.
Deborah stared at the handkerchief with Abel and her own face embroidered side by side in silence.
As he wiped away Deborah’s tears slowly, Abel continued.
“I know there is no one who can replace the grand priest. I also know that he is the person you love the most, priestess. Still…”
“…”
“It’s not that you’re going to be alone. I-I won’t go nowhere and stay by your side. All your life.”
Deborah stared at Abel in silence with her wet face.
His face slightly red from embarrassment, Abel continued.
“I am indebted to you in a way I would never be able to repay you back all my life. If it wasn’t for you, whether it’s me, the grand priest or mother, the three of us would still be suffering misfortune.”
“…”
“I still feel indebted to you about what you did back then.”
Deborah had bravely driven the blade into Gaionia’s heart.
Recalling her unforgettable action, Abel spoke.
“I know saying thank you and sorry is never enough. So since then, I thought.”
“…”
“I will protect you, so that I will never have to ask you to do such things ever again, and…”
Abel gently put his hand on Deborah’s head.
“Though I cannot be a replacement for the grand priest, I promise that I will never leave your side, priestess. I hope that would be enough to make you happy.”
“Re…ally?”
“Yes. I will be by your side no matter what. So please don’t cry.”
Pouting and tearing up, Deborah ran into Abel’s arms.
Though he soothed her to stop crying, it was impossible for her to not cry.
With her voice drenched, Debora managed to give an answer.
“T-thank you. F…for just one last time. I will… cry just once… for the last time.”
“Sure.”
Answering, Abel carefully hugged Deborah.
Under Abel’s caress, the small child cried to her heart’s content for one last time.
* * *
An evening with a beautiful night sky.
A night that would bring a joyous encounter for some and a dreading farewell for others.
* * *
The rooftop of the mansion.
The fireworks were planned to run for about an hour and the mana required would require him to sleep for an entire day like a corpse for Roxa to handle alone.
And so, the magicians of the association who have volunteered to be the mana supply assisted Roxa from the side, while the seasoned troops of Louvremont were placed throughout the area for safety reasons.
Since fireworks did not exist in the empire just yet, those who couldn’t understand the principle of what Aisha meant by ‘explosions of fire up in the sky’ sounded quite dangerous to them.
“Ten minutes left. Are you even ready?” Azar asked as he approached the unreliable Roxa.
He heard that Aisha was extremely looking forward to fireworks or whatever this was, but this magician who was to be displaying the performance, seemed dazed for about a few hours now.
Without an answer, Roxa muttered, looking up at the right sky.
“Oy, firehog…”
“What.”
Answering by mistake, Azar winced.
Just why did he answer naturally despite being called a firehog?
Azar was about to hit the back of Roxa’s head in irritation, then halted at continuing mutter from him.
“Wot would love be…?”
“What, what?”
Goosebumps…
Azar freaked out and stepped backwards.
“What nonsense are you on about?”
“Ahh… wot should I do about meself?”
“What are you on about all of a sudden?!”
“Seems dat I have fallen in love…”
Looking at Roxa muttering dreamily, Azar’s jaw dropped open. It seemed that spring had arrived for this man.
Roxa reached his arm up at Azar’s shoulder way above him. Azar awkwardly lowered his body for him.
“Ye see, love, tis something dat beats away at a man’s heart from da mere scent o’ her wafting through even da slightest o’ wind!”
“Ugh…”
“Oy, oy. Ye hear? Dis fiery heart o’ man dat would pop out at any minute?”
Roxa opened his narrow eyes wide, which he had never done so for quite a long time. Huffing from excitement, he slammed on his chest.
“Magician! We have five, five minutes left, are you all prepared?!”
“Aye~!”
Perhaps he managed to smell ‘da mere scent o’ her wafting through even da slightest o’ wind’.
Roxa turned to look at Anne coming up to the rooftop.
Raising his index and middle finger up and sticking it to his forehead, he gave a wink with his barely open eyes. Azar crumpled his face at the sight of it.
“Ohh, S-Sir Roman. You were here too.”
“Yes.”
Noticing Azar beside Roxa, Anne halted and gave out a dry cough.
For some reason, she turned her round eye to the side and reddened her face suspiciously.
“Master Roxa! One minute!”
“Hey! I said, are you prepared!”
“M-Magician!”
“Come now~ wot do ye al’ take me fer…?”
With a shrug, Roxa looked up at the sky full of starlight and snapped his finger once.
In an instant,
with a boom, lights of all colors vibrantly embroidered the dark night sky.
* * *
“Whoaaa…”
The rooftop of the main castle.
The finale I asked Roxa to do filled the night sky beautifully. Abel was overjoyed by a scene he has never seen before.
Sat around a petite tea table, we watched the extravagant fireworks.
“Is it pretty?”
I asked and Abel kept nodding his head with excitement on his face.
Boom- ba-boom- boom-
An array of vibrant sparks of all colors across the black canvas-like-sky.
Michael and Deborah were with our family too.
They must have never seen fireworks before.
Even Michael and Deborah could not take their eyes off the magical scenery.
“It’s stunning. Do they show something like this in festivals held in the world you were in before?”
Hades seemed to have taken quite a liking to it as well.
“Pretty often. But the fireworks we see here would be more beautiful and surprising.”
The scenery made just as the genius magician thinks it to be, would be more fun than a basic firework done with gunpowder.
I awaited the scene that would follow soon after with a proud expression on my face.
[~Cutie pie o’ house Louvremont~]
[Congratulations fer ye 14th birthday, Childe Abel Louvremont~!]
“Wow!”
The sparks embroidering the night sky formed a birthday celebration message.
Unlike Abel, who was moved, I flared up.
“Ack! What is that? How could he write it in his speaking style?! I’ve given him a note with what to say, oh geez!”
[Happy birthday, darling son! I love you!]
The comment I have requested for had sadly shown up second, trumped by Roxa’s first celebration message. Holding my trembling arm, Abel laughed out loud.
“Ah, mother… thank you.”
[Congratulations for my son’s 14th birthday. Kudos for growing more handsome day by day just like me.]
It was Hades’ celebration message this time.
I told him to write down what he wants to say to Abel in one liner…
It’s a secret but I was torn whether to take out the part about growing handsome like me and what not.
“It’s really pretty…” Deborah looked up at the night sky, mesmerized.
“Indeed. It’s truly beautiful.”
I felt pleased seeing how satisfied Michael’s grin looked.
Abel wrapped his arm around mine and stuck his cheek onto my shoulder next to me.
“This is a truly wonderful birthday gift. Thank you, mother, father.”
“This is not the end though.”
“Huh?”
I snickered mischievously. Hades too, raised the tips of his lips at Abel who was looking curious.
Boom-!
Once more the flame shot up into the sky to form the last congratulations.
[~Great happy news of Louvremont~]
[A most sincere congratulations ter da duchess Louvremont for her pregnancy~!]
Seeing the surprising message, the whole castle was bustling once more.
The exclamation coming from those inside the castle was so loud that it hurt one’s ears. Even far off in the duchy, happy yells were audible.
It was our Abel who was most surprised of all.
He turned to look at me, eyes wide and his mouth agape.