Chapter 79
Chapter 79
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 79
Chapter Title: The Guardian's Past
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As Arsen and Eloise stepped into the house, Irene's voice rang out right away.
"Would you come up to the second floor? It's hard for me to move right now."
The interior was desolate. Household items were scattered about, but most were covered in thick layers of dust, as if they hadn't been touched in ages.
"This way."
"Yeah."
They climbed the dusty stairs and opened the door, finally coming face-to-face with the real Irene.
She sat feebly in an armchair, waving a weak hand.
"It's nice to meet you in person like this. Come, have a seat."
In the flesh, Irene looked a good ten to twenty years older than she had in the phantasm.
There, she had seemed spry for her age, but now her complexion was so poor she could pass away at any moment.
The armchair trembled faintly with her weakness.
"You don't look well."
"I can't help it. I had to control the phantasm twice today. While you were on your way here, the lord of the east sent more troops—knights included."
Exhausted, her shadowed eyes met theirs as Arsen and Eloise sat in the chairs opposite.
"So, shall we talk... no, the reward first? Getting on in years makes me forgetful. Which would you prefer?"
"Wouldn't it be better if you rested a bit first?"
"I rested plenty while you were having your meal. At my age, I don't even need sleep. Not that I'm that old yet..."
Irene chuckled as if she'd told a grand joke.
"Then let's start with the story."
He didn't admit that he'd chosen it hoping sharing memories with Luden would build rapport and yield a better reward.
Irene nodded.
"Now that I think of it, how did you two end up engaged? A knight and a mage—it's unimaginable."
"Oh, we..."
Eloise started to reply but turned to Arsen. After a moment's thought, he told the truth—skipping the nonsense about succession and simply stating he had a rare constitution that didn't repel mages.
"I've heard the rumors. So you're that...?"
"Yes."
"Good heavens, I thought it was just a fairy tale dreamed up by desperate mages. And it doesn't bother you at all?"
"That's right."
Irene extended her bony hand. Arsen stood, grasping it without a hint of hesitation or discomfort.
A complex mix of emotions flickered across her face at the sight.
Envy, regret, pity—they flashed by before her features settled back into the calm smile of age and wrinkles.
As she gently withdrew her hand, Arsen released it and returned to his seat.
"Come to think of it, back then, you had that mage girl in your arms. Without a care. I'm truly envious."
Before Arsen could wonder what exactly she envied, Eloise spoke up beside him.
"Eloise."
"Hm?"
"Eloise. That's my name. And this is Arsen."
Irene's eyes widened briefly at Eloise's words, then she burst into hearty laughter.
"I'm sorry. It's been so long since I called anyone by name... I can't even remember the last time."
Muttering to herself, Irene turned back to Eloise.
"No need to ask how you got engaged, then. It's a match made in heaven. So, Eloise—how did you meet Luden?"
Eloise inwardly sighed with relief at dodging the most awkward question, one she might have had to fabricate.
She began recounting her time with Luden in detail, answering Irene's query.
It wasn't hard. Luden had been Belluan's mage since before she was born; she'd spent nearly her whole life with him.
Arsen chimed in from the side, adding details.
"Wonderful, just wonderful. Hearing news of him from afar like this fills me with joy..."
Every time they described Luden's life in the territory and the respect he received, Irene alternated between laughter and tears.
She nearly choked laughing at the part where, furious at a knight for breaking things, he'd swung a hammer around threatening to give him a thrashing.
In the midst of her prolonged laughter, Irene suddenly clapped her hands. Three glasses flew in from the corner of the room.
"Oh dear, we've talked so much my throat's parched. Have some tea."
"Tea?"
Reading from Eloise's puzzled question that she didn't even know what tea was, Irene smiled and explained.
"It's a drink made by steeping dried plants in hot water. Seeing you don't know it, your homeland must be quite remote. Probably with good water, too."
Something like dried leaves floated into the glasses, followed by globs of water drifting in from beyond the window.
Arsen guessed it came from the well he'd glimpsed beside the house.
Eloise gaped in shock.
"How...?"
"Hm?"
"How can you do that? You just used telekinesis to fetch water from somewhere you can't even see, right?"
It struck Arsen as impressive too, but to Eloise, it seemed nothing short of a miracle.
She stared wide-eyed, poised to leap from her chair.
From her reaction, Arsen realized Irene was a mage beyond imagination, even if she couldn't grasp the full extent.
Irene just grinned vacantly without answering, placing a hand over each glass containing water and leaves.
Soon, steam rose warmly from them.
With a light gesture, two glasses floated slowly toward Eloise and Arsen.
"Here you go."
Eloise rose slightly to catch them, then let a faint light flow from her hands.
After casting purification, she bowed her head slightly.
"If you don't mind, I have bad memories."
"I understand. Always be cautious out there."
Irene smiled indulgently, pleased.
Arsen took his glass and blew on it gently before sipping, savoring it.
Warmed deliberately to that temperature, it was just hot enough to be pleasant without burning.
It carried the nutty aroma unique to roasted grains.
"You must know about the lord's miracle, right?"
"More or less."
"You can tell from the purification zone in this forest—it's a kind of territory here too. The concept's a bit different, but... I swore to become the guardian of this forest, and in return, I can control all the mana dwelling within it. With this power, I can see and hear anywhere in the forest and exert influence there."
Irene gave a wry smile.
"Of course, I can't wield it freely. Simple spells like brewing tea are fine, but interfering with the forest's magic takes a toll on the body. Do it twice like today, and I'll be bedridden for days. And..."
Mid-sentence, Irene broke into a coughing fit.
Only after a dozen or more coughs did she catch her breath, ragged, and continue.
"That's not all. Don't I look far older than Luden? We're both orphans, so exact ages are unknown, but we're not that far apart. I might even be younger."
From her words, Arsen understood that one cost of wielding great magic as forest guardian was rapid aging.
Luden, who looked barely fifty; Irene, who seemed over seventy and near death.
For peers, the difference was stark.
Without thinking, Arsen spoke.
"That's tough work."
"It is. But someone had to do it."
"Never thought of letting it go?"
"It's not something I can relinquish. My life is bound to this forest. Until death, I can't pass on the contract or leave. This place is my world."
Irene chuckled and took a sip of tea, her throat dry.
"Did I mention I was Luden's lover?"
"You did."
"I came from a village of mages. Know about it?"
"I've heard stories."
"The reputation's poor, but it was just a refuge for mages fleeing worldly threats. Old mages would occasionally bring young ones from nearby citadels, and those youths would later fetch more discarded old ones... Living in forests or caves sometimes—we were no better than bandits."
It matched what Luden had said, so Arsen felt little surprise, but Eloise's eyes went wide.
"No complaints, though. That's how it was from the start; I knew no other way. Then one day, a young mage arrived from afar—with his master."
Irene's voice grew dreamy, wistful.
"They wanted to stay and share magical knowledge. I clicked with the master, so in exchange for teaching village magic, I learned under him. With Luden."
She covered her mouth, giggling shyly.
The gesture didn't quite suit her aged face, but it wasn't off-putting.
"Before long, our hearts connected. Luden was like a wild beast, but charming. He easily stole the heart of a girl tired of the village's scrawny youths."
"But how did you two part ways?"
At Eloise's question, Irene grimaced, as if recalling it soured her mood.
"Embarrassing at my age, but back then, no other girl in the village compared to me. They were all too young or too old. A few suitors grew jealous of Luden and tried to kill him... He only defended himself, but accidents happened. Two of them died."
Arsen recalled Luden confessing to once setting fire to the Atar territory.
That and this—Luden often sparked trouble through excessive self-defense.
Though he hadn't started either.
"Anyway, the elders insisted we couldn't keep the killer of promising youths. The master and Luden were exiled. Luden asked me to go with him, but... I refused."
"Why?"
"I was scared. Abandoned by my parents in early childhood—too young to remember—I'd grown up in that tiny community my whole life. Leaving for the wilds was terrifying to even imagine."
Arsen glimpsed decades of regret in her chuckling smile.
"Anyway, if that's where it ended, I wouldn't be here now. Not long after Luden left, my belly started swelling. Naturally, it was his child."
Eloise sounded baffled.
"You never mentioned marrying Luden?"
"Children don't require marriage, dear. When hearts and hips align, they come naturally."
Irene grinned sheepishly at Eloise's scandalized expression.
"Luden and I were young and foolish. Too immature for responsibility. Just a few years older than you two."
She took another sip of tea and continued.
"Anyway, it was an emergency. The village wasn't purified and unfit for a newborn. I had to steal a riding beast and sneak out. The elders would've said to birth it there and let it die."
"Ah..."
Eloise let out a pained groan.
"Wandering for a territory or citadel that would take a mage—or at least the child—facing death multiple times, by the time my belly was fully swollen, I reached these dark woods. The previous contractor accepted me on condition I inherit the guardianship. I birthed the child safely here and became the guardian."
"So, Luden's son or daughter is here now?"
"Of course. You've already met the child and know their name."
At that, Arsen and Eloise thought of the same person.
Among those they'd met here, only one name had been exchanged.
"That proxy...?"
"Yes, Jisharan. That's my daughter—and Luden's."