Chapter 795 Our Family
Jayra was feeling more than excited as she and Bartos followed behind Lera's steps. After her sister went and introduced her to her friends and family as her long lost sister, they then made their way to a parcel of land just a bit out of the usual path in Helion. When she asked her, Lera told her that she was planning on showing them their lands and holdings, and that meant also visiting the graveyard where both of their parents were currently resting.
It was a cathartic feeling, she supposed. To know that she came from somewhere instead of simply being an orphan. While she was dying of curiosity about it when she was younger, nowadays, it was more about the closure than for any sort of benefit that she could get from knowing her origins. So what if she came from a rich family? The only family she cared for now was who she was with now, and nothing could ever change that.
[Are you ready for all of this, Jayra?] Bartos asked her. [Seeing your parents like this might be too much.]
[I've been ready for this for years now, Bartos,] Jayra reassured him with a warm tone. [I'm not going to break down crying just because I saw my supposed parents' graves. I never even knew them, but despite that, I'd at least like to know more about them.]
It was the least she could do to the people that allowed her to exist, after all. While they never had a hand in raising her, they were still her parents. They deserved at least her knowing who they were and what they contributed to her life.
[If you're sure, Jayra. If all else, I'll be here for you if you need me,] he hummed as he nodded at her decision. [Now, you should probably walk up to your sister. She might have a few words for you that I'm not privy to at the moment.]
[Thank you, Bartos. I appreciate it,] she smiled at him. [I'll tell you everything later if it's something that needs to be shared.]
With a reinforced sense of determination, Jayra walked up to Lera's side, leaving Bartos to follow behind them as she smiled at the older woman.
"Oh, is there something wrong?" Lera asked her.
"I just wanted to catch up to you," Jayra chuckled. "You're taking us to our parents right now, right?"
"That's the plan," Lera nodded. "After that, we'll be making our way to the manor. Well, what's left of it anyway. Either way, I'm sure you'll appreciate what our family used to have."
Jayra nodded back as she followed her sister's lead. Eventually, they arrived at a set of tombstones that looked far more taken care of than the rest of the other graves around them. Clearly, someone was taking care of them, and she could only guess as to who it was that was doing the deed.
"Hello, Mother. Father," Lera began as she kneeled down in front of the graves. "Surprisingly, I found someone we hoped to be well after all these years."
As Lera gestured to her, Jayra took her cue and gave her parents a curt bow. "Uhm… Hello. I'm Jayra. Well, I'm sure that's not the name you gave to me, but here I am," she awkwardly stated. "I'm here with my husband Bartos, and I was… just… right…"
Jayra bit her lip at her awkwardness. She actually never thought this day would ever come. She didn't even know what she was supposed to say to them.
"Excuse her for her lack of words," Lera chuckled. "At least she's alive, right? I… I didn't think she was out there anymore even…"
Standing by the sidelines, Jayra felt her husband's support as she kneeled by Lera's side. Placing a hand on her older sister's shoulder, she gave her the support she needed as she smiled at her.
"I'm here now, alright?" Jayra reassured her. "I'm not leaving."
Lera turned to stare at her, her eyes watering with tears as she began to sob into her hands. Still smiling, Jayra moved to wrap her sister into a hug, gently stroking her hair and back as she comforted her.
"It's going to be alright," Jayra hummed to her. "Why don't you tell me about them, actually?"
"W-What? Jayra-"
"I want to know more about my parents," Jayra cut her off, making sure to distract Lera by making her talk more about other things. "What were they like?"
"A-Ah… Our father, Maza, was a high-ranking demon that did King Azarel's dirty work," Lera began. "He's his brother, you see, so he was obligated to do exactly that…"
Jayra blinked, focusing instead on soothing her sister as opposed to learning that her father was possibly a monster. Still, she hoped that there was more to this.
"H-He's not evil though. Our father was devoted to our mother, Rara, and he did his best to protect all of us," Lera continued, still sobbing as she did her best to compose herself. "You were too young back then, but he was a good father to us, and Mother always did her best to keep us all happy."
"I'm happy to hear that," Jayra smiled. "I'm assuming that I got some of my demonic heritage from him then."
"That's right," Lera weakly nodded. "That's why when Devon's rebellion succeeded and instructed everyone to purge all who had demonic blood in them, we had to send you away to someplace safe. We almost thought that I was going to be with you, but miraculously, I never inherited any of our father's blood."
Jayra simply nodded as she soothingly hummed at Lera's ear.
For a few more minutes, the two sisters stayed there, simply basking in each other's comforting presence. Eventually, the two of them stood up, and Lera dried her tears as she smiled at her.
"That was… unbecoming of me," Lera weakly chuckled. "Sorry if you had to see that."
"It's alright. It happens," Jayra reassured her with a loving smile. "It's nice to hear that I came from a loving family."
"I'm sure our parents would be proud of you, Jayra," Lera stated with a sincere tone. "They might not be here now, but I'm sure they're smiling at us right now."
"I agree," Jayra smiled. "Also, I'm sure they're proud of you too, Lera."
The two sisters shared a loving smile before giving each other another hug. For a few seconds, both were reluctant to let go, but eventually, they both broke away as Lera let out a cough to grab her attention.
"We should go to the manor," Lera suggested.
"Lead the way," Jayra beamed.
And with that, the three of them made their way to what was once their family manor. Jayra didn't know what she was expecting, but she wasn't surprised when she saw the ruins of what was obviously once a massive mansion.
[That's honestly impressive,] Bartos told her through the bond. [I'd say that at its height, it would rival any other minor castle in some kingdoms.]
Jayra couldn't help but agree. True enough, even in its ruined state, the manor stood tall above them, imposing its presence on all of them even if it was currently incapable of housing them.
"Right, while it doesn't look as impressive now, I'm sure it'll look better once it's been rebuilt," Lera noted. "The other properties are being rebuilt now as well, and they'll probably be done in a few months depending on how things go."
"Only a few months? That's fast," Jayra complimented. "Is our family that rich?"
"Our lands are too important to be left undeveloped, Sister," Lera chuckled. "Once everything's rebuilt, the local economy will be quick to recover since we can start working the lands again."
"That's impressive," Bartos whistled.
"Right? Some of the guest houses have already been rebuilt too, so that's something," Lera absently mumbled. "Also, some of the properties here are yours, Jayra."
"What?"
"A few of the buildings that were already rebuilt were left to you by our parents," Lera chuckled at Jayra's surprise. "So… you own property here now."
Jayra didn't know what to say. She didn't think that she'd end the day being a property owner at all. At best, she expected to see a manor or something, not actual business ventures that were apparently now in her name.
"To add to that, you two should feel free to stay here whenever you want," Lera offered to both her and Bartos. "This is just as much your land now as it is to our family's. If anything, I wish you'd be able to stay and help me manage it all."
"A-Ah…"
Yet again, Jayra was speechless. She didn't think she'd get this far just reconnecting with her family. To think that… she now had a land to call her own…
"T-Thank you, Sister," Jayra sincerely smiled, a few tears prickling in her eyes. "We'll see what happens, but I promise we'll always remain in contact, no matter what happens."
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