Chapter 123 – Father
The night Eve left Ernest’s estate.
Ian suddenly received a call from his father.
Tristan’s face has a deep look.
Ian, who was seeing his father like this for the first time, was naturally nervous.
I can’t help but ask.
“What’s going on? “Father.”
“Uhm. Okay. You came. Isolde told me not to tell her, but… Still, I think you should know what you need to know.”
“Yes? “What?”
“It’s a story related to Eve.”
At that moment, Ian felt a little ominous.
She didn’t just have a feeling. There’s no way my father would call me this night and tell me something so serious with such a serious face.
What made Ian most uneasy was the fact that Eve’s name was mentioned in it.
Tristan, who briefly observed Ian’s reaction, continued speaking.
“Have you ever heard of a family called Alchemia?”
“Nothing except when my father asked Eve the other day. “I only heard that at first glance.”
“Okay. I guess so…”
What are you trying to say that’s why you’re taking so much time?
Ian felt a little tightness in her chest.
“Then what about the great fire?”
“I’ve heard that a few times.”
It was a great disaster for the empire.
A great disaster in which a fire that occurred for reasons whose cause could not be determined burned down the territory, including the empire’s breadbasket.
“The place where it occurred was the territory of Alchemia.”
“I didn’t know.”
“I guess so. For that crime, Alchemia forfeited her title and was unable to leave her name in history.”
“Are you saying it’s a crime, then the big fire wasn’t an accident?”
“Okay.”
Tristan seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then he finally spoke.
“… “It was the Spirit King’s act.”
“Yes?”
“That is what the investigation team revealed. It is said that a blue flame, clearly different from ordinary flames, engulfed the earth and sky. Such flames can only be seen in spirits, and the only person who can create a flame of that scale in the blink of an eye is only the Spirit King.”
“This is my first time hearing this.”
“His Majesty the Emperor issued a silence order. How could I reveal it? The fact that this is a country that incurred the wrath of the Spirit King. Ian, it was a country that was caught up in various events until just before you were born. His Majesty the Emperor probably did not want to leave a single trace of anxiety in the peace he had achieved by enduring and overcoming all those events.”
“Is that so?”
“There were only two survivors.”
Ian’s brilliant mind suggested the possibility that one of the two was Eve.
But before he could say it, his father continued speaking.
“One is Rohan Alchemia. “I am Alchemia’s only successor.”
“The one and only… ?”
“Okay. And the remaining one is the one who started the great fire. “She is the head of Alchemia.”
“For a moment. Then what about Eve?”
“…”
Ian felt that something was wrong.
Eve called Rohan, a professor of elemental science, her brother.
It was clearly not an attitude to just call an acquaintance.
If he is Alchemia, Eve must also be Alchemia,
Was it just somewhere else when the great fire occurred in Alchemia?
“As far as I know, there was definitely one adopted child. She was a girl with black eyes and black hair.”
“Eve… Is it?”
“Under the circumstances. And there is no record of her ever leaving the territory after adoption… “He must have suffered disaster during the great fire.”
“…”
“I don’t even know how this happened. But since this is the child you decided to take as your wife, I thought you should know about it.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
“One more thing. I know the head of Alchemia. He’s an ambitious man. Especially when it comes to alchemy, which is his specialty. He is a person who does not care about any means. It is said that he pursued immortality through fire all his life, and the reason he was elevated to the title was because His Majesty the Emperor was interested in immortality through fire.”
“So?”
“He was imprisoned on charges of causing the great fire. When I searched the records, I found that he readily admitted that he had caused it. However…”
“Yes.”
“I escaped from prison. Not long ago. And the entire unit organized to capture him was annihilated.”
“…”
It was an unpleasant story in one way or another.
Especially now that it is almost certain that there is some kind of relationship between him and Eve.
Ian could not hide his discomfort.
“If he wants to know more about what happened to Eve, he can go to his brother and ask him. He is the successor to Alchemia and also a survivor of the great fire.”
“He left the academy. “I don’t know where he is now.”
“Like that.”
Tristan clicked his tongue.
“You can ask Eve directly later.”
“Okay. That would be a good idea. Anyway, that’s all I’m going to say. Ah. Just know that I have no intention of opposing your marriage just because Eve was the adopted child of Alchemia, a family that committed high treason. However, as I just said, it feels like a story you should know.”
“Yes. Even if something like that happened, my relationship with Eve wouldn’t change.”
“I guess so. “Just go out now.”
…
…
…
The road up to the capital where the academy is located.
I was sitting alone in the rickety carriage, thinking about the past.
As for the old thoughts, it was mainly what happened in Alchemia… My thoughts naturally fell on a person called my father.
What are you doing? I heard you escaped from prison…
The reason my father was imprisoned was all because of me.
I remember. The blue flame that covered the heavens and earth. Everything that is burned due to the manifestation of phoenix.
At the center of the overflowing flames, I was there.
And the next moment, I opened my eyes anew in a place other than the Alchemia territory.
“…”
To be honest, I don’t really remember what happened at Alchemia.
To be more honest, I didn’t have much to remember.
My daily life ended with receiving various education from my father in a damp and dark basement.
When I was young, I was a bit of a tomboy… I remember going against my father, who was restraining me, so I couldn’t go anywhere, and Brother Rohan, who felt sorry for me, got angry and rebelled against my father.
When I think about it now, I don’t know why I did that.
I am grateful to him for raising me, feeding me, and allowing me to live a worry-free life compared to when I was in the orphanage.
One of the reasons why my heart was heavy was because I had repaid the debt I owed to that grateful person in the worst possible way.
Whether I wanted it or not, it was me who caused the conflagration.
I hindered my father’s great work and made him lose everything he had achieved.
The worst thing was that I didn’t even have a chance to apologize.
So I,
When I think of my father, my heart becomes heavy.
“Ugh… ?”
While I was thinking that, I felt a sudden vibration.
It clearly wasn’t natural.
The horses pulling the carriage began to hysterically and run in all directions with foam in their mouths,
Soon, the carriage overturns.
“Ahh… !”
Just when I hit my head hard and was moaning,
Wow, I hear the coachman screaming.
It was clear that someone had attacked the carriage.
I was so shocked that I lost my fear.
Still, I know that the situation won’t get better just by staying quiet.
At least I had to understand the basics of what was going on.
To do that, get out of the overturned carriage.
I whined a little, but I was able to do it somehow.
And the next moment,
I got to see the face I miss.
As time has passed, I am a little older than I remember,
He looked thin and emaciated, probably because he had suffered a lot,
That person clearly…
“Father… ?”
Just what I was thinking about,
He was the head of Alchemia and my father.
…
…
…
My father comes closer and strokes my hair.
Almost instinctively, I got down on his knees and looked up at him.
I didn’t realize that the floor was made of bad clay, but even if I had known, my behavior wouldn’t have changed.
“Eve. “You’ve grown a lot.”
You seem to be in a pretty good mood.
A faint smile appeared on his still solemn face.
The hand that was stroking my hair comes down and touches my ear and jawline with the back of my hand.
The hand came down further and eventually grabbed the tip of my chin, turning my face this way and that to check its condition.
My father was carefully examining my face to see what he was so curious about.
He spoke with his eyes wide open, as if the emotion was new.
“As expected, it was well-made.”
Move your hand again and place your finger near my eye.
As I closed my eyes as my fingers got closer than necessary, my father stroked my eyeballs over my eyelids.
And he must have felt something, and he spoke with joy.
“Luckily, you are doing well. “It looks like your brother didn’t do anything harsh, right?”
“That’s harsh… ?”
“Like tearing out your eyes. “I thought it might be like that for Rohan.”
Your father is right.
There was actually an attempt like that.
But my brother finally withdrew his hand as if he couldn’t bear it.
The professors also tried hard to dissuade my brother.
That happened not long after I entered the academy.
Let me tell you what happened at that time,
My father burst out laughing, as if he was extremely happy just imagining that.
“Stupid. If you care so much, you should know how to make decisions. It’s not even real, it’s just a doll at best…”
“…”
“But thank goodness. Eve. You don’t know how worried I was that something was wrong with you. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of you. “Every day, every moment, for the past few years!”
“It’s an honor. Father…”
“Okay. Behave so obediently, you’re pretty. You grew up so beautifully. Ruler. Let’s go.”
My father extended his hand to me.
After hesitating for a moment, I brushed off my skirt and legs covered in soggy dirt, stood up, and held his hand.
