Blooming Petals (1)
"Evan, have you heard the news?"
"News? What news…?"
"That a god has descended upon the Empire. Apparently it's the first time in three years since the Continental War ended?"
"Haha. How fascinating."
Fascinating didn't begin to cover it. I was the one who'd carried that god here.
Even if Violet was my fiancée, the matter of transporting a deity was classified, so I couldn't tell her. If she really wanted to know who had brought the god down, she'd find out on her own eventually.
"And the fact that the one who descended this time is the God of Astrology makes it even more intriguing, don't you think?"
"Have you ever seen a god, Violet?"
"Hmm… Not really. They only appeared on the battlefield from time to time, after all."
"Fair enough…"
When the Empire declared war on the other kingdoms and the Continental War began, some of the celestial gods, displeased with that decision, descended to the mortal realm.
There were two of them in total: Shalle, the God of Peace, and Keyal, the God of Discord.
According to what Shalle later shared, only she had originally been meant to come down from the heavens—but for the sake of the world's balance, Keyal had been forced to descend as well.
Gods cannot lend the mortal world the strength of their own arms, so they used their powers and intellect instead: Shalle aided the Allied Nations, and Keyal aided the Empire.
Naturally, having fought in the Continental War myself, I'd had the chance to see both of them. Shalle was the concept of Peace given form—literally. As for Keyal… well. That was a shape I preferred not to remember.
"Are you curious about the future, Violet?"
"Hmm… Of course I am. There's the matter of the family, for one…"
The reason Violet had gone so far as to become engaged to me in order to solidify her house was, according to my father, that Duke Denil—the original head of House Lailia—had finally collapsed. That had sent the ducal house's already ambitious external factions lunging for the seat of power.
By "external factions," he meant the collateral bloodlines within House Lailia who had aligned themselves with other families. Born of concubines or the casual indiscretions of distant ancestors, they had always lurked in the Lailia shadow, waiting for a chance to surface. And the moment the duke fell was, without a doubt, the opportunity they had been waiting for.
"And more than anything… I'm most curious about how you and I are going to live, Evan."
"Ahem… Even if you're only saying that to be kind, thank you."
"Oh my? Why do you think it's empty flattery?"
With a soft rush of movement, Violet closed the modest distance between us in a single step. A dizzyingly sweet fragrance clung to her—nothing like the masculine scents that usually filled my nose. It was feminine, and it set my heart hammering.
"You look even more handsome today than I imagined, all dressed up like this."
"Ahem…"
Violet was tall for a woman, yet standing beside me she only came up to my shoulder, and her soft body brushed against my arm.
"I'm embarrassed…"
"I just couldn't help myself. You're too dashing today."
"Haha…"
Today, of all days, Violet seemed determined to bewitch me. Even on the short walk to the office she never released my arm, radiating a seductive, sensual air. The cloak that had been draped over her shoulders had vanished somewhere along the way, leaving only a thin shirt that clung to her body and a pair of black shorts that traced every curve without mercy.
…How did she know I like women in garter belts and shirts?
Creeeak—!
"…I present myself before one of the Empire's Five Stars. Acting Head of House Lailia."
"It's an honor to meet you, Father-in-law."
Even as acting head, Violet was the master of a ducal house; there was no real reason for her to use formal speech with my father, the head of a marquisate. She wasn't addressing him as a family head, however—she was addressing him as her fiancé's father. That left Father looking faintly uncomfortable, but since a duchess was offering him respect, he had no grounds to object and simply let it pass.
"First of all, thank you for accepting my inadequate son as your fiancé."
"Hehe. I'm the one who should be grateful. To think such a fine groom was still available."
She licked her lips as she looked at me.
"…Does the Acting Head know all of our circumstances?"
"Of course. I heard that because of the strength of the bloodline, conceiving a child is difficult—and that after the age of twenty-five, the ability can no longer be passed on."
"That is so. I don't know which god is the source of the Farcion family ability, but that god's power is so formidable that bearing children is hard, and once one turns twenty-five, the ability can no longer be inherited. So, Acting Head—how do you intend to handle this?"
"Handle it? We'll just have to try very, very hard. And if it doesn't work… well, until it does."
Watching Violet press herself against me as she said it, Father let out a sigh.
Right… if Violet comes at him like this, even Father will get angr—
"I'm relieved."
?
"My wife said something very similar when she first married into the family… Hearing those words from you puts my heart at ease."
"You should look forward to it, Father-in-law. I have no intention of stopping at two or three."
"…."
Even if we married a month from now, only five years remained until I turned twenty-five. In other words, I had suddenly been sentenced to five straight years of being wrung dry until Violet conceived.
"V-Violet? Even so, two or three would be plenty, wouldn't it…?"
"Not at all. Isn't that right, Father-in-law?"
"Naturally. As many as the Acting Head desires."
"You heard him, Evan."
"A little… mercy, please…"
"Haa… Lake Calion really is beautiful."
"It is. And being morning makes it even more so, I think."
Lake Calion. Long ago, a god who had descended to the lower world broke the celestial taboo by joining a human war in person—and the single strike he unleashed carved out this lake.
How powerful must that blow have been, dealt with a human body, to strike the deep underground waters and create a lake? Just imagining it sent a shiver through me.
"Shall we walk for a bit?"
"Gladly. Only—please walk on my right."
"Because of the fairies?"
Lake Calion had been formed by a god who violated the unspoken law. Feeling remorse for that fact, the gods of the heavens had bestowed their blessing upon the lake.
Thanks to that divine blessing, freshwater fish and shellfish thrived here of their own accord—creatures crafted by the celestial gods themselves, renowned for tasting like heaven.
In the past, that had drawn illegal poachers hoping to catch and sell them at a fortune. The Empire, however, made an example of one such man with a punishment so brutal it defied description, and after that criminals wouldn't go near Lake Calion.
As a result, the lake became famous as a place of beauty where spirits frolicked freely without fear of crime—and people began to gather.
The only problem was that the fairies' pranks were relentless.
They would snag the ankles of passersby and drag them into the water, or hold a swimmer's face underwater and refuse to let them up, endlessly attempting what they considered amusing little tricks. No one was ever seriously hurt, but once those pranks were distributed with perfect equality to every visitor, Lake Calion became a destination only for those who could endure the fairies' mischief.
"Evan. What's my family name?"
"Well, Lailia… Ah. I forgot for a moment there."
"Hehe… Even that side of you is cute."
The ability of House Lailia was Bloom—a power of many facets. It was utterly different from my own Conductor, which was devoted to a single extreme. One of Bloom's gifts was the favor of the fairies.
"Somehow, even though it should be a little chilly, only a pleasant breeze is blowing and everything is so quiet… I suppose I have you to thank for all of that, Violet."
"That's right. Ah—Evan. Over there."
"What's over there? As I recall, there was nothing… Ah…"
The place Violet pointed to was a circle of flowers blooming by the tens of thousands. White, blue, pink—petals of every color fluttered on the cool breeze, creating a scene both majestic and overwhelming.
And as the crowning touch, at the very center of that floral garden, only purple violets bloomed in a round stage of their own, as if waiting for an audience.
"I made it yesterday. What do you think?"
"It's… truly beautiful."
"Come on, then."
"Ugh—?!"
Pulled along by Violet's hand, I was drawn into a place my feet hardly dared to tread. Soft earth underfoot, petals brushing against my cheek, and Violet's laughter lingering at my ear.
"Here, Evan."
The exact center of countless flowers. It felt as though every blossom was bowing toward us.
As if receiving their blessing, Violet opened her palm before me. A great lotus flower formed there; she unfurled its bud and revealed what lay within.
"Evan Farcion. Will you… marry me?"