Chapter: 03
“What…? A gardener?”
Perhaps it was something he had never expected to hear, because Wayne’s brows furrowed.
“You’re converting the Viterad Mansion, where you’re currently living, into a memorial space for the fire attribute, aren’t you?”
“…How do you know about what I’m doing with my mansion?”
“You’ve been buying up huge amounts of land around the mansion and purchasing every item belonging to people with the fire attribute. There’s already a widespread rumor that the Duke is preparing something.”
How did I know?
Because I had seen it myself.
Before his death, Wayne had proposed to the Imperial Palace that they create a place where the people with the fire attribute could be remembered, but his proposal had been rejected immediately.
So he had tried to create a place to honor them by himself, but he died from a magical-power outburst before it could be completed and was unable to finish it.
His remaining aides, butler, and employees tried somehow to fulfill Wayne’s dream, but they failed as well, and the mansion eventually became the worst eyesore in the Empire.
As though they had been waiting for that failure, the Imperial Palace quickly began erasing the fire attribute from history.
It was a decision they made because the disappearance of an entire attribute was equivalent to saying that the Empire had become weaker.
“I suppose you’ve been busy racking your brain trying to find out all sorts of things about me. Did the Imperial Palace send you?”
“No. I found out everything myself. I want to help you complete the memorial space as your gardener, Duke.”
The biggest reason Viterad Mansion had become such an eyesore was its desolate garden.
There wasn’t a single small flower or even a well-maintained fence around the enormous mansion.
That was why it felt like a cemetery.
Even if it had been beautifully decorated, it would have been difficult to maintain. But Viterad Mansion already had such a gloomy atmosphere that once the caretakers started quitting, it became even more impossible to deal with.
Strange rumors had spread throughout the Empire, claiming that the dead people with the fire attribute appeared as ghosts inside the mansion or that anyone who entered would contract an incurable disease.
Because of that, the Empire immediately ordered the mansion to be demolished.
It was a merciless decision, even though Wayne had been the commander of the special forces who had devoted his entire life to protecting the Imperial Family.
Unaware of all this, Wayne crossed his arms and looked down at Vally with a skeptical gaze.
“Why would you?”
His tone seemed to ask, Why would you, someone with a different attribute, help me?
“I also… know very well how meaningless death can feel.”
Vally had never once forgotten her death in her previous life.
“You’re afraid that even though you want at least one person to remember you, you’ll eventually be completely forgotten.”
“You speak as though you’ve actually died before.”
“…Because I’ve lived a similar life. That’s why I want to help you, Duke.”
She looked directly into his red eyes as she spoke, wanting to convey her sincerity.
At that, Wayne’s guard seemed to weaken slightly, and his sharp gaze became a little gentler.
“The garden is already sufficient.”
“Didn’t you stop hiring new people because you’re afraid journalists might sneak in, and you’re barely managing to maintain it?”
Perhaps she had hit the nail on the head, because Wayne subtly looked away and ran a hand forcefully through his hair.
Wayne’s death was a major subject of interest throughout the Empire.
Not only was he the last remaining flame, but he was also the commander of the Empire’s special forces, Zero.
The power of ordinary attributes was classified into Grades 1 through 5.
But the members of Zero were stronger than even Grade 1, making them beings who couldn’t be assigned a grade.
They were responsible for eliminating monsters that appeared without warning.
Being chosen for the special forces itself was difficult, and their commander could be considered the strongest person in the Empire.
They were the most reassuring people when they were allies, but the most frightening when they became enemies, so no one dared to provoke Wayne.
His presence alone was already overwhelming, but he had also inherited the assets of all those with the fire attribute, making him a person who possessed both power and wealth.
Because of this, the other attributes continued to place unspoken pressure on Wayne to return his remaining fortune to the Empire after his death.
Among the countless rumors, there was even speculation that his will was already inside the mansion, which eventually led to an incident where journalists attempted to sneak inside.
After that, Wayne stopped hiring new servants and wouldn’t allow anyone into the mansion without permission.
The only way to enter the mansion whose doors had been firmly locked was with Wayne’s permission.
That was why Vally had to open his heart today.
“I can help you as a gardener, Duke.”
“How could the daughter of a count possibly do that?”
It was as if he were saying, How could someone like you, who has servants waiting on you hand and foot, possibly be a gardener?
“Would you touch this flower?”
Vally removed the fresh flower she had been wearing in her hair and held it out to him.
The tips of the blue petals of the plumbago flower had wilted slightly compared to when it had been in the mansion.
“Are you making fun of me right now?”
“I know that it’s difficult for you to control your magical power, and that even touching something causes it to burn.”
“And knowing that, you want me to burn the flower?”
The other people with the fire attribute were also filled with excessive heat because they couldn’t control their magical power, causing everything they touched to burn.
That was why other people were even afraid to approach Wayne.
He was no different from a living time bomb.
Knowing what kind of body he had and still telling him to hold the flower naturally made his tone sharp.
“I can save flowers that you’ve burned.”
Vally stared straight at him as she said it.
There wasn’t even a hint of falsehood in her expression.
Wayne looked at her suspiciously before grabbing the stem of the plumbago, making sure that their hands came as close to touching as possible without actually doing so.
The blue leaves, which had been fresh and full of moisture only moments ago, immediately began to dry out.
The petals twisted and fell downward one after another, and smoke even began rising from the part of the stem he was holding.
“That’s enough. Give it back to me.”
Wayne dropped the flower into Vally’s palm as though throwing it there.
There was even a hole in the lower part of the plumbago’s stem, and the entire flower had completely dried out.
Wayne bit down hard on the inside of his mouth when he looked at the flower.
Naturally, it didn’t feel good to kill a living thing with his own hands.
Every time he was reminded that he was a person who could take a life simply by touching something, a bitter taste filled his mouth.
“Now I’ll bring it back to life.”
Wayne watched the flower in Vally’s hands with a gaze that seemed to be evaluating how capable she really was.
She held the part of the stem he had just grasped with both hands and squeezed her eyes tightly shut.
She bit her lip, her hands trembling as she concentrated on her magical power.
But despite the amount of effort she was putting into it, even contorting the muscles of her face, nothing happened.
“It’s not working.”
“W-Wait a moment! Please be quiet for just a little while. I have to concentrate really hard.”
Startled by Wayne’s single remark, Vally stammered and added three more sentences.
Sensing how desperate she was, Wayne decided to keep quiet for the time being.
Time passed in silence.
The leaves that had been completely dried out slowly began absorbing moisture again.
Water droplets formed along the bottom of the parched stem.
The plumbago, which had been drooping as though unconscious, slowly lifted its head and came back to life even more vibrantly than before.
Wayne couldn’t take his eyes off the astonishing sight, even though he was witnessing it from only inches away.
“Haa… It’s done.”
Vally wiped the cold sweat covering her forehead and held the plumbago out to him.
The new stem hadn’t filled the hole that had formed in it.
Nor had new leaves grown to replace the petals that had fallen.
But aside from those things, it had come back to life perfectly, looking completely fresh.
Wayne couldn’t take his eyes off the flower.
“…So it was true.”
“With my magical power, I replenished the moisture in the flower after it burned.”
“Is this an ability all water attributes possess?”
“Yes, everyone can do it.”
“Then I should hire a Grade 1 water attribute rather than you.”
“I wouldn’t ask you to hire me for an ability as insignificant as this.”
Vally was panting while clutching her waist as though she had just sprinted at full speed.
Wayne waited for her next words with a look that seemed to ask, Is there something more?
“Touch it again… and see.”
She was telling him to touch the flower that had barely come back to life again.
It was practically the same as telling him to kill it twice.
“No.”
“This time, it won’t die… Please believe me.”
Even though Vally was so exhausted that speaking itself was difficult, she urged him on with her sparkling blue eyes.
At that gaze, Wayne reached out once more and grasped the stem.
“…It isn’t burning.”
No matter how tightly he squeezed it, the flower didn’t scorch in the slightest.
“That’s right. The things I’ve revived are like that.”
“You mean they don’t die?”
“No. It only means they can live longer. It doesn’t mean they can’t die.”
It had been an extremely long time since Wayne had held a flower that didn’t die when he touched it.
The sensation of having a living thing in his hands that was still vividly alive made his heart tremble, and he couldn’t bring himself to let go.
“I think this is an ability only I possess. Things touched by my magical power seem to… survive longer than those affected by the magical power of other water attributes. And the magical power of other attributes can’t… reach them either.”
“It’s a special ability. Why isn’t it known?”
“Because they only live a little longer. Besides, other people can infuse magical power into ten thousand flowers at once, but I can still only do it one at a time…”
“And it takes a tremendous amount of time.”
“Because I’m Grade 5… Still, with my ability, I can create a flower garden where your touch won’t cause the flowers to burn.”
“……”
“Do you think you might… consider hiring me as a gardener now?”
Wayne still had the flower clasped tightly in his hand as he turned his gaze toward Vally.
But sweat was pouring down her face like a waterfall.
“Wait, your sweat… Ah!”
Before Wayne could even finish his words after belatedly noticing it, Vally swayed heavily and collapsed to the side.
