Chapter 161
Chapter 161
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 161
Chapter Title: Spring Snowflake Festival
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"A snowflake festival in spring? I'm so curious!"
"Yeah."
"Look, Nil! It ends today! Good thing I found it this morning."
"Lucky us."
The corners of Nihil's mouth curved into a sly red line.
Unaware of Nihil's meaningful smile, Lianus read the festival pamphlet he'd discovered that morning with sparkling eyes full of anticipation. Then he poked his head out of the carriage.
The streets were bustling with people. Sir Evan watched the excited Lianus fondly before chiming in.
"This is my first time at a festival this big too. I'm looking forward to it."
"Really? Glad we came out! Me too, I'm so excited!"
How had the festival pamphlet caught his eye so perfectly? You know, snowflakes are actually snowflake flowers! I wonder if they feel all fluffy if you touch them. There's a superstition around here that if you catch a flying snowflake with your hands, good luck will come. I'll catch one for sure and give it to everyone!
The kitten was meowing nonstop, unable to hide his excitement. Any trace of the quarterly evaluation had been wiped clean from his mind.
Nihil thought he'd have to brew some extra tonic for the butler who'd completed his mission in record time, smiling proudly.
"Nil, look! So many street vendors!"
"Shall we walk from here?"
"Yeah!"
After hopping out of the carriage, Lianus immediately grabbed Nihil's hand and trotted around. Spotting something, he dashed over.
"Nil! Let's try this!"
"...Hmm."
"Come on, pop in a coin and pick the cup with the... no, doll grabber! One out of three chance! Heh, looks like we got some little customers."
"......"
...Of all the games for my kid to pick first, it's this scam shell game.
Nihil read the sign saying 'Just 1 silver for a cute doll?!' and reluctantly pulled out a silver coin with a sour expression.
"What the hell are you even buying?!"
Sir Evan snatched the coin away.
"...Is it that bad?"
"Of course it is!"
But it's his first festival, and he wants to try it... and he's looking at it with those big, hopeful eyes...
As Nihil wrestled with the thought internally, the vendor smirked and spoke up.
"Heh heh, big bro's being picky. This is legit, fully permitted. Can't you see? Songsoni dolls you can only get at the Snowflake Flower Festival! Spend 5 silver or more, and I'll give you one for sure."
The vendor proudly showed off the 'Songsoni doll'—a fist-sized fluff ball with beady black eyes.
"...Paying 5 silver for that junk..."
"Can't...?"
"Here, 1 silver."
Just as the kitten's brows drooped in defeat, Sir Evan quickly handed over the coin.
"Ner, just once."
"Okay!"
The shell game hustler's hands began shuffling the cups. Lianus went "Huh? Huh?" as the movements sped up, eventually losing track of the cup with the coin. His eyes spun in circles.
"Um... this one?"
"Oho, really? This one?"
"Uh-huh..."
"For real, for real?"
"No...? But it feels right..."
As the hustler grinned slyly and kept pressing, the kitten pondered.
Nihil slapped away the hand reaching for the cup again and lifted the one Lianus had chosen.
The coin was inside.
"No funny business. Hand over the doll."
The hustler's eyes went wide.
'What? How? They were all empty!'
But he couldn't say that, so he just gaped. Then a small hand thrust out in front of him.
"Gimme."
Under the hood, the corners of a mouth curved up.
"Ah, that was fun!"
"Yeah?"
"Yep!"
After thoroughly enjoying the festival, Lianus sat on the fountain's edge, swinging his legs.
The flying snowflake flowers in the sky were pretty, and the waffles and chicken skewers were delicious. Oh, the dart game was fun too. Weirdly, some cans fell over even without the darts hitting them...
Must've been the wind!
"I had fun too."
Nihil agreed, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe the chicken skewer sauce from Lianus's mouth.
At that moment, something cottony floated down and landed on Lianus's head. It was already his tenth snowflake flower.
"Ner, looks like the snowflake flowers really like you."
Nihil chuckled lowly as he plucked it off and showed it to him.
Lianus's eyes widened, then he grinned broadly. He was about to blow it away when he spotted a young man eating a late lunch nearby and paused.
The young man wore somewhat shabby clothes, with a violin slung on his back. He seemed like a street musician wandering the roads.
His upturned hat was empty— no earnings today, apparently.
"Want it?"
"Huh? Oh, nah. Don't need it."
The young man glanced at the proffered snowflake flower and turned away, a bit disappointed.
"They say catching a flying snowflake brings good luck."
"I didn't catch it."
"I'll share my luck with you."
"Pass! If you pity me, just give me money. This sandwich is my first and last meal of the day."
The young man snapped irritably, taking a big bite of his ciabatta sandwich. He'd only just earned enough for this one after a long delay.
'Was that too much...?'
Still, snapping at a kid offering to share his luck didn't feel right. He turned to apologize— only to see the kid shaking out an empty pouch.
"Um, big bro, are we out of money now?"
"Looks like it."
The kid looked glum at the empty pouch and apologized to him.
"Sorry, guess we don't have any money."
"Why are you apologizing to me?"
"Um... 'cause we're broke?"
"......"
The young man's face twisted oddly. What a weird kid.
Then the even weirder kid next to him stared at his back and spoke up.
"Lend it to me for 5 minutes."
"What? Are you nuts? That's my whole fortune."
"Lend it for 5 minutes, and I'll give you 30% of the earnings."
"Hah, you think making money with this looks easy?"
The young man scowled, forgetting his apology. Being looked down on by a kid like this felt pathetic. Memories of his academy classmates mocking him when he dropped out to pursue free music flooded back.
"You think you can play the violin better than me?"
"Even squeaky noises are cute coming from you. They'll pay."
"......"
He couldn't argue. As a kid, even his rough playing got him called a prodigy.
"...Still no. What if you break it?"
"It's cheap junk anyway."
"Wh-what?!"
"Half the earnings. Deal? You haven't made any today anyway."
"......"
The young man scratched his head. It felt shady, but as long as the violin didn't break, it was a no-lose deal.
"Just 5 minutes?"
"Yeah."
"No breaking it?"
"If it breaks, I'll pay."
"...You just said you're broke."
Grumbling, the young man set down the violin case anyway.
If it breaks... he'll just give up and go home clean, he thought.
"Nil, you can play the violin too?"
Lianus's eyes went wide. He hadn't imagined his best friend could play violin on top of everything else.
My best friend really can do anything...!
"No, you play."
"...?"
"Here."
The violin was thrust toward him.
"Wh-what?"
"Hold it."
Lianus took it hesitantly. It was adult-sized and a bit big, but if he focused, he could probably manage.
"B-but I'm not ready to perform in front of people..."
"It's fine."
"What if I mess up..."
"Try it here. If you can't, we'll skip the birthday party performance."
Right, better than ruining Kara's birthday party.
Lianus rolled his eyes, then asked cautiously.
"What... should I play?"
"Something popular."
He had to hesitate again. He'd only learned classical music, and he knew just one popular tune.
But his friend wouldn't know that.
"First, make some noise to draw attention."
"......"
After agonizing, not wanting to worry his friend, Lianus plucked the strings a few times, then slowly tuned the pegs.
'...Can I do this?'
"Alright... here goes."
With tuning done, Lianus raised the bow. But as he went to play, the tip trembled.
"...Ner, you don't have to push yourself."
A small hand wrapped around his.
"No, I can do it."
If he didn't now, his friend would blame himself needlessly.
He didn't want to be haunted by the past anymore, or worry the kind people around him.
'But that was the song you wanted to hear from me.'
Keeing-!
Shaking off the hallucination, Lianus slashed the bow down fiercely, as if to snap the string.
A piercing vibration sharp enough to hurt the ears rang out from the body, spreading wide.
It cut through the rowdy festival atmosphere uniquely, making revelers whip around.
"......!"
Lianus froze at the startled or annoyed faces. Now that he thought about it, playing for so many people was a first.
New tension made his hands shake again.
Staring holes into the fingerboard, gripped by the urge not to delay, he raised the bow once more.
"Rian."
As he drew it down, Nihil whispered beside him.
"Look around. It's okay. Meet their eyes one by one. That's it. Slowly, slowly. Let it build. Performing isn't just playing— it's psychological warfare. Don't let the audience overwhelm you."
Lianus glanced around, pausing as advised.
"Start slow. Make it resonate deep and wide."
Lianus took a deep breath, raised the bow higher, then drew it down very slowly.
The knight's song, who gladly gave his life for his beloved lady.
Lianus didn't like this song much. But the masses adored its sacrificial pure love.
Even Isabelle, his wet nurse.
Does she resent me?
It was the only piece he'd practiced solely for her. He'd arranged the lyre tune for violin himself.
He hadn't played it once since that day, but how could he forget?
'Goodness, our prince is a prodigy!'
No, no. He wasn't that great.
It was the only piece he could play back then. Unfamiliar with reading music, but he'd practiced for her.
'What are we gonna do with our prince...'
Even vomiting blood from the poison he'd given her, she'd worried for him first.
'...Not your fault, prince. Rian, listen. Not your fault.'
'...Nu... rse...'
Through blurring vision, he saw olive-green hair and a yellow dress stained red.
That red was her blood— and his own, cradled in her arms.
I ruined her new dress. She loved how nicely her hair was curled.
'So... rry... Nurse... sorry...'
'No, no, Rian, don't speak. Not your fault.'
If his birthday had come first, or if he'd gotten the elixir from the Grand Duke after...
Could he have saved her?
Just before the climax, Lianus halted the bow and lifted his head.
The fountain area was now packed. Yet silent.
As the pause dragged, confusion rose on faces. Some hesitated to leave, wondering if it was over.
Does she resent me?
Was there a stupider question?
'Listen, Nurse.'
Just as the crowd began to disperse—
Keeing-!
The intense melody rang out again, shaking the square.
Sunset had already fallen. The carriage crawled slowly through the crowd. Lianus gazed blankly out the window, feeling just a bit lighter.
Then he noticed his friend fiddling with a bulging money pouch.
"Didn't know making money was this easy."
His friend's movements froze at the mutter. A low call followed.
"Rian."
"Hm?"
Something about the tone felt heavy, so Lianus tensed unconsciously.
"Know how much we made today?"
"Uh... 7 silver?"
Half went to the young man, so total 14 silver. Commoners earned about 5 silver a day, so 5 minutes equaled three days' wages.
"You think 14 silver in 5 minutes?"
"Uh... isn't it?"
Wondering if he'd miscalculated, Lianus counted on his fingers again. Same result.
"How long did you study violin?"
"Um... around 4 or 5... so about two and a half years..."
"I see."
Silence fell. Puzzled why, Lianus tilted his head. Then the soft voice resumed.
"Rian."
"Yeah?"
"In two and a half years, you earned just 14 silver."
Ah...
Something struck his head.
"Don't think it's easy. That belittles your effort."
Lianus looked at his hands. Calluses from pressing strings dotted his fingertips.
'Prince, don't forget your hard work.'
"Yeah..."
A smile crept up unbidden. What to play for Kara's birthday?
"Waaah, snowflaaake~"
A child's whiny voice came from outside. A two-year-old in a yellow dress passed in her mother's arms.
Her olive-green hair felt familiar. Unthinkingly, Lianus stared, then rummaged in his pouch.
Something fluffy filled his hand.
"I'll catch a snowflake for you next year. Time to go home now."
"Eeeeng~"
Lianus tossed the fluff out the window. It landed perfectly in the child's arms.
"Songsoni!?"
"Whoa~ A Songsoni fell from the sky? Now we're full of luck. Right?"
"Ung!"
Ah, what a tall feeling.