Chapter : 03
“…What? A gardener?”
Wayne frowned deeply, clearly not expecting that answer at all.
“You’re currently remodeling the Biterad estate into a memorial space for the fire attribute, aren’t you?”
“…How do you know about my estate?”
“There are already rumors everywhere. People say the Duke has been buying huge amounts of land around the estate and collecting everything related to the fire attribute because he’s preparing something.”
How would I know? Because I saw it myself.
Before Wayne died, he asked the imperial palace to create a place where the fire attribute people could be remembered, but they rejected him immediately. So he tried to build a memorial space by himself, but before it was completed, he lost control of his magic and died.
His aides, butler, and servants tried somehow to fulfill his dream after his death, but even that failed. In the end, the estate became the Empire’s worst cursed place.
As if they had been waiting for that failure, the imperial family quickly began erasing the fire attribute from history.
Because the disappearance of one attribute meant the Empire had become weaker.
“You seem to have spent a lot of time digging into my business. Did the palace send you?”
“No. I found out everything myself. I want to help you complete the memorial space as a gardener.”
The biggest reason the Biterad estate became so dreadful was because of its empty garden. In such a huge estate, there wasn’t even a single small flower or properly maintained hedge.
It felt more like a graveyard.
Even a beautiful garden was difficult to maintain, but the gloomy atmosphere of the Biterad estate made even the caretakers quit one after another.
Rumors spread throughout the Empire that the ghosts of dead fire attribute users appeared there or that anyone who entered would catch an incurable disease. Eventually, the palace ordered the estate to be demolished without hesitation.
Even though Wayne had devoted his entire life to the imperial family as the captain of the special unit.
Not knowing any of this, Wayne crossed his arms and looked down at Valley with crooked eyes.
“Why would you?”
His tone clearly meant: Why would someone from another attribute help me?
“I also… know very well how meaningless death can feel.”
Valley had never once forgotten the death from her previous life.
“You hope at least one person will remember you… but you’re afraid everyone will completely forget you.”
“You talk as if you’ve died before.”
“…I lived a similar life. That’s why I want to help you.”
She looked straight into his red eyes to show her sincerity.
Then Wayne’s guard lowered slightly, and the sharpness in his gaze softened a little.
“The garden is already good enough.”
“Aren’t you only barely maintaining it because you can’t hire new people out of fear that reporters might sneak in?”
It seemed she had hit the exact truth. Wayne glanced away and roughly pushed back his hair.
Wayne’s death was one of the Empire’s biggest concerns. Not only because he was the final flame of the fire attribute, but also because he was the captain of Zero, the Empire’s special unit.
Normally, attribute powers were ranked from Grade 1 to Grade 5. But the members of Zero were beyond Grade 1, beings too powerful to even classify.
They fought monsters that suddenly appeared without warning. Becoming part of the special unit itself was difficult, and its captain was considered the strongest person in the Empire.
As an ally, he was the most reliable existence.
But as an enemy, he was the most terrifying.
That was why nobody dared to provoke Wayne.
On top of that, all fire attribute users had left their inheritance to him, giving him both enormous power and wealth.
Because of that, the other attributes constantly pressured him silently to return his wealth to the Empire after his death. Among the many rumors, some even claimed his will was already hidden inside the estate, which led reporters to secretly infiltrate it.
After that, Wayne stopped hiring new servants and refused to let anyone into the estate without permission.
The only way to enter that locked place was through Wayne’s approval.
That was why Valley absolutely had to open his heart tonight.
“I can help you as a gardener.”
“How could the daughter of a count family possibly do that?”
His tone meant: A noble lady raised by servants, how could you?
“Would you touch this flower?”
Valley removed the fresh flower attached to her hair ornament and showed it to him. The blue plumbago flower looked slightly wilted compared to when it had been at the estate.
“Are you making fun of me right now?”
“I know you can’t control your magic properly and that anything you touch burns.”
“And knowing that, you still want me to burn the flower?”
Like Wayne, the other fire attribute users were also unable to control their magic. Their bodies were constantly filled with heat, so everything they touched burned.
That was why others were afraid even to approach Wayne.
He was practically a living time bomb.
Knowing all that, she still asked him to hold the flower, so it was natural his voice became sharp.
“I can revive a burned flower.”
Valley spoke while looking directly into his eyes.
There wasn’t even a trace of lies on her face.
Wayne looked at her suspiciously before grabbing the plumbago stem carefully so their hands wouldn’t touch.
The fresh blue leaves instantly dried out.
The petals twisted and fell one by one to the ground, and smoke even rose from the part he was holding.
“That’s enough. Please give it back to me now.”
Wayne tossed the flower back into Valley’s palm.
The lower stem had a hole burned through it, and the flower was completely shriveled.
Seeing the flower, Wayne bit the inside of his mouth hard.
It naturally didn’t feel good to destroy life with his own hands.
Every time he realized he was an existence that killed anything alive just by touching it, bitterness filled his mouth.
“Now I’ll revive it.”
Wayne stared at the flower in her hands as if evaluating her ability.
Valley tightly grabbed the part Wayne had touched with both hands and shut her eyes firmly.
She bit her lip and even trembled while focusing her magic.
But despite straining so hard that even the muscles of her face twisted, nothing changed.
“It’s not working.”
“J-just wait! Please stay quiet for a moment. I need extreme concentration.”
Startled by Wayne’s comment, Valley even stuttered while hurriedly adding more words.
Feeling her desperation, Wayne stayed silent.
Then, in the quietness, time passed.
The dried leaves slowly began regaining moisture.
Water droplets formed beneath the dry stem.
The plumbago, which had been hanging lifelessly like a fainted person, slowly lifted its head and became even fresher than before.
Even seeing it right in front of him, Wayne couldn’t take his eyes off the unbelievable sight.
“Haa… it’s done now.”
Valley wiped the cold sweat covering her forehead and held the plumbago out toward him.
The hole in the stem had not completely healed.
And new petals hadn’t grown where the old ones had fallen.
But aside from that, the flower looked perfectly alive again.
Wayne couldn’t stop staring at it.
“…So it was true.”
“With my magic, I restored moisture to the burned flower.”
“Can all water attribute users do this?”
“Yes, everyone can do… this much.”
“Then I should hire a Grade 1 water attribute user instead of you.”
“I wouldn’t ask to be hired… for just this level of ability.”
Valley bent over, breathing heavily as if she had just run at full speed.
Wayne silently waited for her next words.
“Touch it… again.”
He was being asked to touch the flower that had barely survived.
It sounded like she was asking him to kill it twice.
“No.”
“It won’t die this time… Please trust me.”
Even speaking seemed difficult for Valley now, but her blue eyes still sparkled as she urged him.
Seeing that gaze, Wayne reached out once more and grabbed the stem.
“…It’s not burning.”
No matter how tightly he held it, the flower didn’t scorch at all.
“That’s right. The things I revive… become like this.”
“You mean they can’t die?”
“No. They can simply live… longer. They’re not immortal.”
It had been such a long time since Wayne had touched a flower that didn’t die.
Feeling a living, breathing life in his hands made his heart tremble so much that he couldn’t let go.
“I think this is an ability unique to me. The things touched by my magic survive longer than with other water attribute users’ magic. And other attributes’ magic can’t affect them either.”
“It’s a special ability. Why hasn’t it become known?”
“Because they only live a little longer. And while others can inject magic into ten thousand flowers at once, I can still only do it one at a time…”
“And it takes an extremely long time.”
“Because I’m only Grade 5… But even so, with my ability, I can create a garden where flowers won’t burn even if you touch them, Duke.”
“……”
“So… are you finally considering hiring me as your gardener?”
Wayne finally looked away from the flower he was still holding tightly and turned toward Valley.
But sweat was pouring down her face like a waterfall.
“Wait, your sweating— huh?!”
Before Wayne could even finish speaking, Valley suddenly staggered heavily and collapsed to the side.
