Chapter 56 Promises
Sion returned to her residence.
The living room was dark, the fire long dead and only a table and one chair as furniture. The candle she had left burning before leaving had long since flickered out.
Although it was one of the more luxurious houses in Rigved, there was no one to welcome her home.
Her teacher had left for the holy city, where the saint resided, during Sion’s entrance examination and had left only a letter behind, citing an urgent matter.
With her teacher away, Sion was always left alone. She was long accustomed to the silence. She had no family to welcome her, nor did she have any friends to exchange letters with due to her lack of sociability.
Swallowing loneliness was not difficult for her, for she had grown up alone since childhood.
It was a resilience forged in the days when she had to beg for food in the slums.
Sitting in front of the fireplace, Sion started a fire. Then she took out the rye bread she had bought on the street.
Even though it was wrapped in paper, rain had seeped in and made it soggy.
It wasn’t brought for enjoyment anyway, so the sogginess didn’t bother her.
And so Sion sat, observing the flames while biting into the bread.
Outside of practicing her sword, this was how she spent her remaining time – silently, in solitude.
She preferred this to meaningless stimuli and interaction.
Her daily life was set to remain unchanged.
At least until the entrance ceremony.
***
The servants loaded more luggage onto the carriage.
Piled neatly into a corner of the carriage, the abundance of herbs meant that I would be steeped in their scent for the return trip.
Ella had generously made sure all of the expensive or rare items on the list were included.
Liria appeared in front of the carriage, her hair tousled as she rubbed her eyes and yawned.
I finished my preparations and looked towards the gate.
Despite the early hour, Ella had come out to see us off.
I approached her to say farewell.
“I’ll be off then. I owe you much for your help.”
“Take care. Your teacher will be busy for a while. If you need assistance and she’s not available, come find me.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“And please tell Silveryn to write back regularly.”
“…I will.”
I bowed to Ella and climbed aboard the carriage.
It was full of luggage, and I had to squeeze in and sit shoulder to shoulder with Liria. The carriage moved slowly over the wet cobblestones as we left Rigved behind.
After about an hour of nodding off, Liria finally leaned her head on my shoulder and fell into a deep sleep.
It was noon by the time we reached the estate.
Liria alighted from the carriage and stretched.
The manor felt even quieter than usual today.
It seemed like the guests who had come for unpleasant reasons were gone, but the somber mood lingered.
I helped the servants carry the luggage into the workshop and categorized everything for immediate use.
After a rough tidy-up, I went to see Silveryn in the master’s room.
I knocked on her door, but there was no response. The butler informed me that Silveryn had briefly stepped out and would not return until the evening.
Making use of the spare time, I took Liria into the workshop and began the potion-refinement work right away. I felt a bit sorry for Liria, but I did not want to lose even a day’s work.
I copied the parts I needed from Zverev’s recipe and handed them to Liria.
This operation involved ingredients and methods that even Liria had not seen before; therefore, great care was essential.
We toiled for a while, struggling with unfamiliar alchemical symbols and purification techniques, consulting texts on alchemy.
As the evening approached and after much time had passed, I had thought Silveryn would join us, but she didn’t come to dinner.
I asked the butler again.
“Where is the teacher?”
“It appears she has no intentions of dining. And she has ordered that nobody disturb her in her room.”
When did she return to the estate? This was unusual for Silveryn.
“Should I not seek her out either?”
“She hasn’t mentioned anything specific regarding that.”
If she said that no one should visit her, I suppose I am included in that as well. What could have happened to trigger such an emotional change in Silveryn?
But she always greeted me when I returned and always welcomed me back.
After dinner, I returned to my work on potion manufacturing and alchemical study.
I sent Liria home early and stayed in the workshop myself until the moon had risen. All the while, I found it difficult to concentrate with Silveryn on my mind.
As midnight approached, I stepped out to the courtyard to stretch my legs.
I raised my head and looked up towards where the master’s room was located.
A faint light seeped out from her window.
Could Silveryn still be awake?
I watched the window for a while before making up my mind and striding back into the manor.
I climbed the stairs to Silveryn’s room.
Taking a deep breath, I knocked.
“Knock, knock.”
Silence ensued.
“It’s me, teacher.”
After a moment, Silveryn’s voice came through.
“…Come in.”
As I entered the room, Silveryn was in front of a mirror, combing her hair in a sheer nightgown.
“What brings you here?”
“I realized I hadn’t properly greeted you since returning.”
Silveryn gave a feeble laugh.
“You’re coming to see me only now?”
“…Did something happen, teacher?”
“Why, have you been that concerned about me? Is that why you’ve come?”
She seemed not to want to talk about it.
Perhaps my existence isn’t helpful at all.
“Do I… bother you, teacher?”
“No…”
Silveryn took a moment to collect herself and then said,
“I’m proud of you.”
“…”
“I’m going to sleep now. I’m tired.”
Silveryn opened the drawer of the dresser and took off her rings and earrings, placing them all inside.
Only her necklace remained around her neck.
“I will be retiring as well.”
As I was about to say goodbye and leave, the door suddenly slammed shut with a loud bang.
“No, you stay here too.”
Silveryn had closed it with magic.
For a brief moment, my mind raced with all sorts of thoughts.
She staggered to the bed and crawled under the covers.
Lying on her side and looking towards the edge, she tapped it with her hand.
“Come here.”
I slowly approached Silveryn.
Then I sat down beside the bed on the floor to meet her eye level.
Her face was close enough for me to feel her breath. From this close, I could see her cheeks were slightly flushed and the scent of wine wafted from her exhalation.
There was a faint drunkenness in Silveryn’s eyes.
It’s unimaginable that Silveryn would drink.
“Stay there, just like that.”
“Yes.”
“What did you do today?”
“I concocted potions.”
“Ella didn’t give you too hard a time?”
She did, but considering Silveryn’s mood seemed off, I didn’t want to stir things up with any strange talk.
“She treated me very well, even provided some expensive ingredients.”
“…That’s good.”
I have never seen her looking so devoid of energy. Just watching her quietly made me feel uneasy.
Silveryn, with languid eyes, stared at my face then spoke.
“My student…”
“Yes. What is it?”
Silveryn’s hand slowly approached as if a caterpillar were inching its way.
“I can’t seem to fall asleep… Will you stay here till I do?”
Silveryn’s eyelids were slowly fluttering. Her words suggested wakefulness, but her face hinted she could fall asleep at any moment.
“I’ll stay right here.”
Silveryn’s right hand gradually wedged into my left, which rested on the edge of the bed.
Her fingers pushed in slowly yet assertively, intertwining with mine.
“…”
I felt the warmth and softness of her touch. She interlaced her fingers with mine and said,
“Promise me. Promise you won’t leave before I fall asleep…”
“Yes.”
“Say it out loud.”
“Before you fall asleep, I won’t leave.”
“Say it again…”
“Before you fall asleep, I won’t leave.”
“That’s good… My student…”
The strength drained from Silveryn’s voice.
“Or else… if you don’t, I’ll take you… to Weisel and lock you… in the dungeons…”
“What?”
Silveryn’s words trailed off as she closed her eyes. Soon, she was breathing peacefully and deeply, lost in slumber.
***
Silveryn woke up with the soft morning light dazzling her eyes.
The first thing she noticed as she came to her senses was a numb feeling in her fingers.
“…”
Damian lay at the edge of the bed, fast asleep, still holding the hand she had grasped last night.
Silveryn recalled what she had said the night before. Although slightly inebriated, she could remember most of it.
To think he would really stand guard over her all night for those words…
She was aware of Damian’s tendency to act recklessly, but she hadn’t expected it to manifest in this way.
“You really are a fool…”
No doubt about it, he was daring. There were few in the world who could fluster Silveryn like this.
She quickly grabbed Damian’s arms and pulled him up onto the bed.
She laid him down beside her and entwined herself with him under the covers.
Using her body heat, Silveryn thawed his chilled body from the cold night.
His foolishness somehow made him even more endearing.
After warming him up for several minutes, she got out of bed first.
Standing in front of the dressing table, she tidied her tousled hair with light strokes of her hand.
Then she gazed vacantly at the mirror, lost in thought.
Suddenly, as if something occurred to her, she opened a box containing red makeup.
She took some with her little finger, applying it liberally to her lips.
After pursing her lips several times in front of the mirror, she turned to look at the bed.
Damian lay there, still in a deep sleep, oblivious to the world.
As Silveryn watched him, a smile slowly spread across her face.
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