Chapter 126: [Side Story] Abundant
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 126: [Side Story] Abundant
"Why would I learn a spell to forget pain?
Not when I have you."
* * *
Tranquility.
No, laziness.
Yes. If he had to choose, it was laziness. The people of Libern were, for the most part, lazy.
The people of Kairis were calculating and extravagant, the Secritians were vicious beyond measure, and the Tensilians were empty husks hiding behind their faith.
And the warriors of the Great Desert were either sly or cruel.
They said another continent lay beyond the Great Desert, or across the vast ocean guarded by the Sea Dragon Arnayzel, but he had never felt the urge to embark on such a long and arduous journey.
"Maybe I'll just head to a southern country and spend the rest of my days there."
When Alan announced he was leaving Tensil for Libern after their short stay, his son, Ronil, replied with a smirk. "I didn't realize so few places were vying for your attention, Father."
It was a silly joke.
Ronil knew all too well that the invitations from Kairis and Secritia had long since been used as kindling.
His dark blue hair, a trait inherited from Alan's late wife, fluttered handsomely in the wind. In every other way, Ronil was the spitting image of his father.
"Why aren't you going to Kairis? You're close with Duke Siegfried."
"It's boring. I'm not going."
If Suleiman had said, 'My eldest son is ill. Could you help me find a cure?' Alan would have gone in a heartbeat. After all, Ronil was a highly capable apothecary.
But at the time, Suleiman had omitted that detail entirely, merely asking him to come and stay for a while. Because of that, Alan had declined, only learning of the prince's illness after he had passed away.
In any case, he hadn't known the truth back then. And with the 7th Circle nearly within his grasp, he saw no reason to travel to some rural corner of the world just to drink himself into a stupor. So, he had refused to go to Kairis.
And so, the place he chose was Libern.
"Will you come with me?"
Tensil was not a particularly good place for an apothecary. It was a nation of healers, and those who couldn't afford a healer certainly didn't have the money to buy medicine. There was no money to be made.
The same went for Ronil's wife, Rachel. For any mage other than the highly capable Alan, the Holy Kingdom was a difficult place to live. Thus, Rachel, who had followed Alan to Tensil to broaden her horizons, was struggling needlessly.
"We'll go too."
And so, Alan left Tensil with his son, his daughter-in-law, and his granddaughter, Veronica. They headed for Libern.
* * *
Are you not going to drink it?
Oh, is this a sweet wine?
Give it to me. Father absolutely hates sweet things.
I'll take it home and...
I'll...
...drink it.
* * *
Elinne, the King of Libern, was always slacking off.
"No. I'm not doing it right now, so leave it."
"Then what do you plan to do with all this?"
"If it's so urgent, you can do it yourself."
Not long after arriving in Libern, Alan reached the 7th Circle. But before he could even bask in the joy of his achievement, he found his precious time being exploited to stamp documents.
No wonder she had insisted he sign a ten-year contract the moment he arrived, promising to support him in every way. As soon as a document containing even a hint of the word 'magic' appeared, she dumped it all on Alan and went off to play.
"Why on earth did you bring me here just to sit at a desk?"
"If I have an old but young-looking, handsome Archmage by my side, no one will dare say a word even if I don't work."
What kind of madman would dare speak ill of you anyway?
Alan swallowed the words that had risen to his throat.
Elinne was a powerful monarch who was lazy, foul-mouthed, and always a little unhinged. And she had summoned Alan to keep in check the one man who coveted her power.
King Consort Teian.
He was Elinne's husband.
That was why she was slacking off, setting aside all the tasks related to the nobles who sided with Teian.
"It's fine," she would say, dozens of times a day. "Everything those bastards want processed only benefits Teian anyway."
Yet, she was uncannily quick to seek out and handle anything that benefited herself. In the end, Alan, caught in the middle of a power struggle between husband and wife, was the only one working himself to death.
He endured it for the first two years.
For the next three years, he held out, citing his friendship with Elinne.
In the sixth year, he finally exploded.
"Please, terminate the contract. I cannot endure this any longer."
Teian had grown suspicious of the relationship between the King and the Archmage. Since they were almost never apart, the fact that he had restrained his suspicion for so long was a miracle in itself.
Ultimately, driven by his greed to grasp both power and his wife, Teian committed the unthinkable.
He sent poisoned wine to Alan.
Alan did not drink it.
But Ronil...
* * *
Helpless. Utterly, completely helpless.
[...Abundant]
There was
nothing
he could do.
* * *
On a small plot of land in Libern.
In a heart even smaller than that plot of land, he buried his only son.
The accident was reclassified as an incident, and the case was closed.
He did not leave Libern.
Everyone expected him to.
But Alan could not bring himself to leave.
Elinne apologized.
Teian was executed.
Before Alan could offer forgiveness.
Before anyone could ask for his.
Everything ended, just like that.
He could neither grant forgiveness nor seek it for himself.
Because there were so many things left undone, he could not easily leave Libern.
It was the same this time.
He endured for the first two years. For the next three years, he held out, citing his friendship with Elinne.
Since I have already lost him, I will never let the same thing happen again. Comforting himself with that single truth, he endured.
Only when he felt everything had finally been buried deep within him...
Did he at last leave Libern.
And then, he met him.
* * *
That was how they met.
At long last, they met.
And so, he willingly made a vow.
"Calian Rain Kairis."
I, Alan Manasil,
Will...
"I pledge my service to you, Master."
...keep you alive.