Chapter 52
Chapter 52
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Bell (1)
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"She's entered the city."
The butler reported to the old man gazing out the window.
The old man didn't turn around. He simply clasped his hands behind his back and looked up at the sky.
"It's been seven years."
The old man, Marquis Bell, let out a short sigh as he stared at the heavens.
It had been over seven years since he had sent his daughter off in marriage.
And that time had also been a time of separation from her.
'Daddy!'
The voice calling out to him still echoed in his ears.
The marquis gave an order to the butler.
"Tell them to prepare a grand welcome."
"Understood."
As the butler left, Marquis Bell sat down.
On one corner of the desk sat a small portrait of a girl.
He gently stroked it.
"It's been a long time since we'll see each other."
What expression should he make?
Marquis Bell recalled the face of his firstborn daughter, whom he hadn't forgotten for even a moment in those seven years.
"The timing isn't great, though."
The marquis looked at the report placed in front of the portrait.
His expression had hardened slightly compared to before.
The carriage entered Appton.
Passing through the gates was no issue at all.
The soldiers, seeing the Welton crest, opened the gates wide without a single question.
"This is Appton!"
Riki stuck his head out the window, taking in the expansive view of Appton.
"I want to see too!"
"You'll see it soon!"
Anna puffed out her cheeks as she spoke, and Riki patted her head to comfort her.
With the Pyro Church's main temple here, the darkness covering Anna's eyes would lift like a lie.
"Wow! Wow!"
Sara was excited too, jumping up and shaking Vena this way and that.
-M-Master...
Vena, tormented for a week, looked on the verge of death.
Of course, Jamie pretended not to hear.
Sears asked Jamie, who was quietly looking out the window.
"Aren't you excited, Jamie?"
"I am."
He wasn't showing it outwardly, but among them all, Jamie was by far the most thrilled.
'Pyro is here.'
What was the purpose of coming to Appton?
To have an audience with Pyro, one of the 12 Gods.
He didn't know how the audience would turn out, but one thing was certain: this would be a step closer to his goal.
On top of that, the location 'Garmon' mentioned in Gannon's diary was likely near Appton.
'I might gain a lot here.'
This place had to become a major turning point for his future plans.
The carriage stopped at a fork in the road.
Here, the path split toward the marquis's residence and the Pyro Church.
"I'll head on first."
Ras loaded Riki and Anna's luggage onto his horse and spoke to Sears.
"You've had a hard journey this far."
"No hardship at all. In fact, I'm grateful. The grace Count Welton has shown is more than enough, and you even let me travel with your group, making it so comfortable. I won't forget this favor."
"No need. We'll meet at the church later."
"Yes. You two should say goodbye too, right?"
Ras brought the sniffling boy and girl forward from behind.
Riki was desperately trying not to cry, his chin wrinkled in effort, while Anna had no intention of holding back and had been sobbing for a while.
"Why are you crying?"
Sears knelt down and gently hugged the siblings.
"It's not like we're parting forever."
"Th-Thank you. I-I'll... sniff! I'll never forget..."
"Thank you... sniffl..."
Sears stroked the crybaby siblings' heads and lightly kissed their cheeks.
"If you need help, come find Auntie anytime. Got it?"
"“Yes!”"
She comforted them a bit more, then called Jamie and Sara.
"You two should say goodbye too."
Jamie and Sara approached the Riki siblings.
Unlike the impassive Jamie, Sara was already a mess of tears and snot.
"S-Sister..."
Sara sniffled as she approached Anna.
Anna groped for Sara's hand and gripped it tightly.
"C-Can't you stay?"
"We'll see each other again."
"Eek..."
"Don't cry."
Even so, Anna, as the big sister, comforted Sara.
The two girls stayed hugged together for a moment.
Jamie watched them, then turned to Riki.
"Sara still has no interest in you."
"Shut up."
"Why are you crying like it's gross?"
"...Cold-hearted bastard."
Riki wiped his nose as he spoke, and Jamie chuckled.
"See you later."
Jamie held out his fist, and Riki, staring at it blankly, grinned and bumped his own against it.
Like it or not, they shared a secret.
Unless something major happened between them, they'd stick together until their goals were achieved.
"Bye!"
Sara waved vigorously at the departing Riki, Anna, and Ras.
Of course, the waving hand was Vena's short arm.
-My arm!!
Jamie shook his head at Vena, being manipulated like a doll in Sara's hand.
He felt a twinge of regret for inviting her along.
"Let's get going too."
Sears stroked Jamie and Sara's heads and led them back to the carriage.
The Welton carriage set off again.
Its destination was the massive Bell family mansion, now right before them.
Sara had cried herself out and fallen asleep hugging Vena.
-Do I look alive now?
-...I thought I was dying earlier.
Right after parting with the Riki siblings, Sara had wailed in the carriage as if the sky were falling.
Sears couldn't even stop her heartbreaking cries.
The sorrow of parting with her first friend must have hit her hard. Vena had suffered for it.
Vena's fur, clutched in Sara's arms, was soaked with tears and snot.
-Sorry. I didn't think it'd be this bad.
-For someone who didn't know, you ignored me for a whole week.
At Vena's sharp remark, Jamie cleared his throat awkwardly.
What was he supposed to do?
He couldn't just take her away from the kids in that situation.
Besides, thanks to Vena, Sara's obsession with him had eased somewhat.
'She was such a headache.'
He was sorry to her, but she'd have to sacrifice for him again on the way back.
Jamie chuckled, then looked out the window.
In the distance, he saw a group of soldiers gathered.
'What's going on?'
With ordinary eyesight, he couldn't make out expressions, but with the eagle-like vision from the Orb of Life, Jamie could.
The soldiers were talking with serious faces.
Unfortunately, he couldn't hear what they were saying.
'Some incident must have happened.'
In a major territory like Appton, big and small events happened all the time.
Jamie ignored it and closed his eyes.
They had entered Appton, but it would still take time to reach the marquis's residence.
He decided to rest until then.
Before long, the carriage arrived in front of the grand mansion.
Jack, captain of the Pierce Knights serving as escort leader, exchanged brief words with them, and the gates opened.
"I missed this."
Sears gazed at the opening gates.
She smiled faintly.
"This is where Mama lived. It's been a full seven years."
Her voice held a hint of excitement.
Jamie looked at Sears.
Her face was filled with deep nostalgia.
This was her hometown she hadn't visited in seven years, so it was only natural.
The carriage passed through the gates and headed toward the distant mansion.
Sears looked over the vast grounds and spoke to Jamie.
"Darling, Mama used to play there a lot."
"See that big tree? Grandma always read books to me there."
"The lake looks the same. We swam there a lot on hot days."
"The garden is still beautiful. Father must have put a lot of care into it."
"They must have rebuilt the maids' dormitory. It was pretty old."
She started by sharing childhood stories with Jamie, but soon drifted into reminiscences only she knew.
Each time, Jamie could only smile awkwardly.
'She must miss it a lot.'
Seven years wasn't a short time.
Jamie didn't know why she had never visited her hometown.
She hadn't mentioned it first, and he hadn't been particularly curious. Surviving infancy had been enough to keep him busy, let alone curiosity about his maternal family.
Even now, if not for the connection with Pyro, he wouldn't have come.
"We're here."
At Sears's words, Jamie looked outside.
The massive mansion was now right in front of them.
He glanced at Sears—her excited expression was gone, replaced by a tense, rigid face.
The carriage stopped.
The sun was nearly setting in the west.
"Father must have aged a lot."
Sears murmured to herself before descending.
Jamie looked at her, and she gave him an awkward smile.
A servant from the marquis's household opened the door. Sears let out a soft sigh and stepped out, carefully lifting her sleeping daughter.
"Are we there yet?"
Sara, still half-asleep, clutched Vena in one hand and rubbed her eyes with the other.
"Yes."
Sears smiled with her eyes as she surveyed the mansion.
Seven years since she'd been here.
Nothing about the mansion had changed.
Her heart felt like it would burst. She hugged Sara tighter and looked at those who had come to greet them.
At the center stood a face she knew well.
"Welcome home, little miss."
The white-haired old butler, his face wrinkled with age, greeted her with a smile.
Sears held back tears that threatened to spill and forced a smile.
"...It's been a while, Uncle. You've aged a lot."
"The common point between children and the elderly is how their appearance changes day by day."
The Bell family butler, already old seven years ago, had aged even more now.
That fact pained Sears's heart.
Head butler Phil looked at Sara in her arms and Jamie standing beside her, smiling.
"The young master and miss have grown so splendidly."
"Yes. I've tried to pass on to them what I received."
"That's commendable."
"It's been forever since you praised me, Uncle."
Sears's eyes reddened. She roughly wiped away the tears threatening to fall and spoke to her two children.
"Say hello. This is the one who's taken care of Mama since she was a baby."
"Mama was a baby?"
"Yes. Mama was a baby once, just like you, Sara."
"Wow!"
Sara let out a shocked little sound.
Hearing that her always-adult mama had once been a baby surprised her.
Jamie stepped forward past Sara and gave a brief bow to the butler.
"I'm Jamie Welton."
"I'm Phil, head butler of the Bell Marquis household. Pleased to meet you, Young Master Jamie."
"Please take care of us."
Phil nodded in satisfaction at Jamie's polite demeanor.
"Sara, you say hello too."
"Hewwo. I'm Sara Welton."
"Yes, hello to you too, Miss Sara."
Phil gently took Sara's little finger and shook it carefully, making Sara giggle delightedly for some reason.
"She looks just like you did as a child, miss."
"Yes. Sara takes after me a lot. Jamie takes after his father."
"So it seems."
Phil nodded contentedly.
He stepped back one pace and courteously gestured toward the mansion interior.
"Please, come in. The master is waiting."
"Father..."
Seven years.
She hadn't visited once since marrying.
Only Count Welton had come to Appton alone.
She could have gone together, but somehow she couldn't.
It felt like she wasn't fulfilling her duties. She didn't know why she thought that, but she felt she didn't have enough time to pass on the love she'd received to her own children.
One year passed, then two, three, and before she knew it, seven years had flown by.
'Your foolish daughter has finally come.'
Following Phil, they arrived in front of the marquis's study.
She gazed at the familiar yet strange door, old memories surfacing one by one.
She'd played so many pranks in front of that door. Each time, her father had laughed and hugged her.
'Old memories.'
The unfamiliarity felt unfamiliar.
It made her realize how much time had passed.
But Sears smiled. Though the space felt strange now, it had always been her playground.
And Phil knocked.
"Coming in, Master."
"Enter."
Sears flinched at the voice from inside.
The door opened. Following Phil's guidance, they entered, and an old man stood there.
His proudly squared shoulders were the same as ever, but his graying hair and wrinkled skin were very different from what she remembered.
She couldn't say a word. She just covered her mouth.
The old man, Marquis Bell, looked at his daughter with affection and called her name.
"Sears."
"Daddy!"
At his call, his daughter ran to him without looking back. She buried herself in her father's shrunken embrace.
For now, not as someone's parent, but as someone's daughter, she sobbed.
The guilt built up over seven years tore at her heart.
"I'm sorry... I'm really sorry, Daddy. Your foolish daughter has finally come... I'm so, so sorry."
Sears kept apologizing to her father.
The marquis gently patted the back of his daughter, who had grown so much in those seven years.
"No. It's fine. You've come now, and that's enough."
At her father's forgiveness, Sears collapsed to the floor.
Like marking the end of a long parting, they embraced silently, heedless of others' gazes.
Everyone quietly kept their places for the father and daughter reuniting after seven years.