Published at 25th of January 2021 06:09:20 AM
Chapter 158: 158
Evan D . Sherden at the Party (4)
The next afternoon, Evan headed to the secret garden with Shine and Belois . They would meet her at the party that would be held soon, but he was rather grateful they had the chance to speak with her alone . He knew what Shine was thinking, but things wouldn’t go the way he wanted them to .
“Princess, I’ve brought the master . ”
“Shine, you’re here . And…ah . ”
Black hair and purple eyes . A beautiful girl who gave off the impression of being delicate awaited him in the flower garden as promised .
“Nice to meet you, Princess Anastasia . I am Evan D . Sherden, the second son of the Sherden family . ”
Evan greeted her calmly, but his insides were fluttering . His training so far seemed to have worked in keeping his face straight .
“Nice to meet you; I am Anastasia L . Leonine . ”
“Thank you for inviting us to the tea party . Oh, and thank you for taking care of Shine . ”
“No…it was me that was taken care of . ”
The flowers and fountain in the center of the garden were vibrant and colorful . A white table was placed a little distance away so that the water wouldn’t splash on them, and she was sitting in front of it . It looked like a portrait of a fairy, with this mysterious beauty sitting front and center in this magical garden .
“Ah, please sit down . ”
“Yes . ”
The chairs were pure white, much like the wooden table .
“I…this . ”
But as soon as Evan sat down, Anastasia carefully handed him a note . It had been folded carefully two or three times, so he couldn’t check what was inside .
“What is this?”
“Now…can you confirm it?”
Evan shrugged, and Anastasia had a desperate expression on her face . On the other hand, Shine just looked blankly from his seat . He had wanted Anastasia to direct her attention toward Evan rather than himself, but she had prepared a note in advance . Of course, that would make him feel a little weird .
“Then, let’s see . ”
With both of their eyes on him, Evan unfolded the note so only he could see the tense handwriting within .
[Give me Shine . ]
“Pfft . ” As soon as Evan read it, he sputtered out loud . He was glad he hadn’t touched the teacup yet .
‘How innocent this one still is…! It’ll be difficult for her in the future!’
He couldn’t help but be surprised . How was this child’s education going? Just through that one sentence, he could sense the pure heart that had written it .
“Well . ”
“…Answer . ”
Evan looked at her distantly, then laughed at Shine, who was puffing up . He wanted to show Shine what the note said, but if he did, the princess would be furious . Putting the note back down, he faced the princess head-on .
“I’m sorry, but I can never give it to you . ”
His voice was firm .
“Ah…”
The princess was clearly discouraged .
“No matter what, the answer will be the same . It’s mine, and I can’t give it to anyone . ”
“…Sorry . It was a rude request . ”
“No, I understand your heart . ”
At Evan’s gentle response, the princess blushed and bowed her head . Shine was even more unsure of what she had asked for . It was so funny that it felt hard not to laugh at him .
“Then, even if we could exchange in the future…”
“If that’s what you want, I have no right to stop it . Feel free to write a letter or come directly to the dungeon city . You’re welcome anytime . ”
“Ah…!” The princess’s face brightened again . She was so beautiful that the world seemed to brighten with her when she smiled . That wasn’t all . The flowers around her were in full bloom, the water in the fountain soared higher, and now butterflies were gathering around her…wait .
“Are you a druid?!”
“Uh, how did you know? I was hiding it!”
When Evan stood up and yelled, the princess grew frightened . However, Evan was the one who was stunned .
“Only a druid can change the natural environment according to their emotions . It seems like you’re not even trying to hide it now . ”
“About druids…how did you know?”
The princess’s eyes went wide, causing Evan to groan . Had she not known? Looking over to Shine, he nodded without hesitation . She had done something similar before .
“What is a druid? I’m hearing the word for the first time . ”
“It’s definitely a very rare aptitude, but that’s…?”
“I only heard of them from an old book . Tell me, please, are you familiar with druids?”
The princess’s previous timidity vanished, and now she was staring at Evan with burning eyes .
“I know to an extent . ”
“Amazing…as Shine said, you’re amazing . ”
“Right? Our master is aware of everything . ”
Druid was, as Evan said, a very rare aptitude . They were able to manipulate the forces of nature to assist allies and fight enemies . It was a job that could only be obtained by being born with talent and overwhelming aptitude, so it was a job often compared to an alchemist .
‘Though a lot of people mock alchemy for being so rare yet nowhere near as useful . Grandpa Bernard showed them wrong .
In Yo-ma Great War 2, there was a regular that was an active druid . Although he had a pretty good rivalry with Bernard, he tended to be pushed back by Bernard’s personality .
‘Oddly enough, neither monster tamer nor druid appeared as regulars in Yoma Great War 3 or 4 . ’ It would be a lie if he said he didn’t recall the first meeting with Serena in the game, which felt similar to this . However, then she had been a brainwashed enemy officer, whereas this one was just an extra . Wait, had she appeared in the sequel?
“Young master, what are you doing?”
“Evan…?”
“Oh, nothing, excuse me . ” Evan cleared his throat awkwardly, having been lost in thought once more . Well, whether or not she appeared in Yo-ma Great War 5 or Yo-ma Great War Global Online, there was no way for him to confirm .
“Then…what would you like to know about druids, Princess?”
“I’m…I want to use this ability better . ”
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“Uh?”
“I heard it from Shine . Grasping a person’s talent…giving him the opportunity to show it off . Evan, can you teach me too? Please…!
Evan looked back at Shine . Shine swung his head to avoid Evan’s gaze, but he couldn’t avoid the elbow attack . It was a clean hit .
“Ugh, it hurts! I’m really dead, master!”
“This child really talks about everything . Where did that silent butler, you promised to be, go?”
“Ah…no, can’t I say that much?! The people in the dungeon city know about it anyway!”
“Ah, don’t bother Shine, because I asked . ”
The princess hurriedly defended Shine from Evan . He had gotten so excited he had forgotten all about her .
“Whoo, sorry . I showed you a sight I shouldn’t have . ”
“I’m…”
As Evan sighed, she spoke up once more .
“Looking at Shine’s eyes…I thought you would be a trustworthy person . The reason I asked you to meet today was actually because of this . But even before I told you, you noticed my abilities, and now I’m convinced . ”
“Indeed…” Evan nodded . This had been the main point from the beginning; asking for Shine was just a bonus shot . Of course, she had been sincere about
“Please…can’t I?”
Evan considered it coldly, facing the princess’s purple eyes . It could be an issue to let knowledge related to the druids out, although the duke was a good man as far as he was aware . Serena had some genuine talent, too, that could be a useful asset in the future .
“By the way, princess Anastasia . ”
“Yes?”
“Alright, I will, only if you promise me something . ”
It was fine if he got the right price for it .
“Young master, are you really okay?” Shine asked him as they headed back to their room after a pleasant tea party . Evan motioned that it was okay .
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“Because the druid’s promise borrows the power of Mother Nature, she can never break it . It was a fair deal . ”
Evan taught her how to practice as a druid on the condition she would pay him appropriately . And with the druid’s unique ability, they swore it to Mother Nature . Things had turned out rather well, all in all .
“No, not that . ”
However, Shine puffed up .
“Doesn’t this mean we’re on their side? Wouldn’t you normally say something about a death flag at this time?”
“It was too late by the time you met her . ”
“Was it?”
“That changed a lot . But the princess is very different and will only continue to change in the future . ”
“That’s…it was just a few meetings, won’t we all soon forget?”
“Huh . ”
Evan laughed at him . Had he not realized the expression she had made while looking at him? Perhaps he would realize one day, soon .
“You’ll see it later; no need to worry too much . If I were worried about the death flags that came from meetings like this, I would’ve never left my room . Could you call that a life?”
“…I see . ”
He didn’t want to be holed up in his room, avoiding death . He liked people; it was really fun to interact with so many different people . It was scary to receive excessive attention from Serena and Arisha, but at the same time, it was enjoyable to be appreciated by them . The same went for Maybell as well . Her affection felt a bit heavy at times, but he was happy to see her talents blossom . She shined so brightly whenever she put her all into her work, no matter how scary she was sometimes . That was why he had to try and control the relationships around him without avoiding them, even though he was afraid of an uncertain future . It was natural; he couldn’t give up this joyful life entirely to avoid death .
“So, Shine, don’t blame yourself . Don’t avoid the princess because of that . You have to do whatever you want . Even if you make me some enemies, you’ll protect me, no?”
“Young master…” Shine laughed at the sight of Evan, trying to be considerate of him boldly . He was really worthy of serving . Shine clenched his fists, thinking so .
“Absolutely . Even if a guy named Matthew invades, I will try to stop it . I will protect you . ”
“Okay, now you’re talking like the name Silent Knight . ”
“… What the hell is that? Even if you avoid explaining what the game is and what Yo-ma war something means, can’t you explain that? I’m really worried about it!”
Evan, of course, didn’t answer .
The very next day, the party was finally held .