Chapter 10: Return to Baral

When I arrived at my parents' house in Baral, my grandfather and the others came running out of the front door.

My grandfather, Catherine, and Arnold were the usual crew.

"My Lady!　I haven't seen you for a while, and you've become more beautiful again!"

Catherine put her hands on my arms and shook them lightly. Arnold, who followed her, quickly took my bag from my hands.

"I'm sure the capital is an amazing place. Every year, the young lady is transformed more and more into a sophisticated woman with a big city style."

"Arnold, as I told you before, the National Academy of Magic is located in the outskirts of the capital. It's not a big city at all."

I smiled wryly but was somewhat happy to be praised.

My grandfather narrowed his eyes at me and said,

"Ethan's not here right now, you know. He's at the Count's house on an apprenticeship.

"Yes, I read about it in his letter."

The Count's mansion was located in the same state, but it was a very large and magnificent house. 

Ethan, the future heir to the Crow family, is being taken care of by the Count's family to learn aristocratic manners and behavior, and how to run a household.

It has been a long-standing custom for the legitimate son of a noble family to go to the mansion of a higher class nobleman in the neighborhood to study.

The next day, I went to the magic branch in Baral for an interview.

The magic branch was a three-story brick building, although small in size, it had a lovely appearance with ivy entwined around it. It somehow had the atmosphere of something out of a fairy tale.

The young man who guided me inside and the middle-aged woman who explained the operations were both very pleasant. 

They were both soft-spoken, and the rest of the staff was calm, giving the whole workplace a friendly atmosphere.

The person who interviewed me was an elderly man, and he was the branch manager.

"We're so far from the capital, so it's been years since we've had a student from the National Academy of Magical Arts come to apply!"

The interview ended in a friendly atmosphere, with smiles on both our faces throughout.

Anyway, I was attracted to the peaceful and homey atmosphere of this branch.

And I succeeded in getting a job offer that day.

This promised me a future living with my grandfather and working as a sorcerer.

When I reported that I had gotten a job offer, everyone in the mansion was overjoyed.

Arnold seemed to have a hard time hiding the joy in his muscles, so he swung the liquor barrel in the kitchen and let out a yell, for which my grandfather scolded him.

At dusk, I went with my grandfather to my parents' gravesite behind the mansion, as I had always done as a child.

The graves of my parents, which I had not visited in a long time, were still surrounded by my grandfather's magical flowers. 

The amount of flowers seemed to have increased even more since I hadn't been here for a while, and they were blooming all around the gravestones, rustling in the breeze.

"The amount of flowers has increased again. Grandfather, if you put any more flowers here, father and mother will be buried under them."

I chuckled and spoke to my grandfather standing next to me. He stared at the flowers for a moment and was silent.

"Liesel, do you remember? I told you that I could make these flowers because I love your mother and father."

"Yes, I remember."

"These flowers are made of love. I've been making them for you and Ethan."

My grandfather dropped to his knees and crouched down in front of the gravestone. 

He reaches for a single flower that glows orange in the setting sun. With his fingertips, he stroked the delicate petals, which resembled roses in their many layers.

"Water flowers are made from the memories of love. They are the memories of your parents. I've left you with as many memories as I can remember, little by little, like this."

"Memories?"

"You guys were too small to remember anything about your parents. I left them here so that you can remember your mother and father even after I'm gone."

"What do you mean?"

Touching the stem of the flower blooming in his hand, my grandfather looked up at me.

"Come on, pick a flower."

As I was prompted, I picked up a clear magic flower and pulled it out of the ground, feeling uncomfortable with its soft touch.

As soon as it was pulled out, the petals spread widely as if they were in full bloom, and each one of them was colored.

I wondered what was happening, and when I looked closely, I saw a small image on the petals. 

On the surface of the transparent petals, I could see people, as if the scenery was reflected in the water.

A small, waddling child is walking on the grass, his black hair blowing in the air. 

A thin arm is spread out in front of him, picking up the child.

The woman holding the child up has the same black hair as the child, and she is lovingly rubbing her cheek against the child.

"Mother..?"

The image suddenly disappeared.

The stem of the flower in my hand bent languidly and the petals wilted all at once. 

Before I could raise my voice, the flower turned from a solid object with the texture of a real plant back to its original form of water, spilling out of my hand.

The magic that had been cast on it was broken, and it turned back into water.

My grandfather gently rubs my back as I look down at my wet palms.

"You saw you and your mother a long time ago."

I reminisced on what I just saw in my mind: my mother holding me up in her loving, gentle arms.

She was rubbing her cheek against me like that. 

She was smiling loving, with the corners of her eyes lowered.

I gazed passionately at my fingertips, which were cool and dripping with water.

"Liesel, if you touch it with all your heart, you can lock memories into the water flower."

I had no idea that this water flower was filled with memories.

This flower was filled with memories, all because of my grandfather's love. I was so moved that I hugged my grandfather.

"Thank you, grandfather. When I return to Baral, I'll create water flowers every day."

I won't let the memories die.

My grandfather gently patted me on the shoulder and thanked me.

That night, dinner at the Crow household was a celebration, with several dishes on the menu.

In my family, everyone, including the maids and the horse boy, gather around the table on such occasions.

The old, large, stone-framed dining room was lined with large tables, which was usually a lonely space in the small Crow house, but tonight, with the use of the finest tablecloths and napkins, and the flowers that Catherine had picked in the forest arranged in vases, the atmosphere was very glamorous.

The young horse groom, whose eyes lit up at the amount of food, was popping bread into his mouth at a tremendous rate.

My grandfather, eating his stew, said.

"Liesel will graduate from the academy next year. That's early."

Catherine, who had drunk some wine, wiped her mouth with a napkin embroidered with pink roses and said with deep emotion.

"And to have a sorcerer who graduated from the prestigious National Academy of Magic is truly a source of pride for the Crow family."

While praising me, she put a generous portion of sautéed vegetables on my plate.

Arnold nodded his head in agreement as he nibbled on a piece of bread.

Next to him, the young horse groom coughed violently. 

He seemed to have choked on the bread. 

Catherine hurriedly rubbed his back, but when that didn't seem to relieve the problem, Arnold, unable to take it any longer, slapped the boy on the back with the palm of his hand. 

A lump of bread flew out of the boy's mouth with the force of the blow.

My grandfather cut me a piece of roast beef and then said in a sincere tone.

"I'm looking forward to next year, when we can all live together again."

With a warm heart, I savored the warm meal. 

It was the best night of my life.

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