The Nightmare of Cherry Blossoms
Cherry blossom petals were scattering everywhere in full bloom.
The moment he opened his eyes and saw that sight, Heredin instinctively realized.
It’s a dream.
A dream he had seen countless times over the past ten years—so much that he could now recite even the next scene.
Next would probably be his father’s voice.
“Heredin.”
It was a voice that once made him turn around with anticipation and happiness, but now it was far from welcome.
But inside the dream he had no resistance, so Heredin could only watch the scene before him like a play following a script.
In front of him stood Kasion holding a sword stained with the blood of demonic beasts, and the young Heredin sitting on the ground before him.
“Heredin…”
Kasion had lost control while fighting the approaching beasts and had been consumed by his power.
His blue eyes—so similar to his son’s—were unfocused.
Mana that his body could not contain seeped out of him.
“…Father?”
The father who would normally smile gently in his usual quiet way silently raised his sword.
The frightened child could only stare blankly up at him.
The present Heredin watched the scene with emotionless eyes.
He knew nothing could change the past no matter what he tried.
Next came his mother.
“No, Kasion!”
At the moment Kasion swung his sword toward young Heredin, Eloise rushed forward and wrapped her arms around the child, taking the blade in his place.
“…Mother?”
The young Heredin held her collapsing body, and his palms were soaked with red blood.
The cherry blossom petals piled on the ground like snow were stained red.
The boy’s hands began to tremble.
At the same time, his eyes trembled violently.
What filled those eyes first was fear.
Next came loss.
And finally…
Young Heredin cast a spell.
The boy facing his father was no longer afraid.
The last thing that filled his eyes was a furious rage that had lost reason.
Heredin attacked Kasion with magic.
Like Kasion, Heredin had been born with the power of the divine beast and had trained in magic since childhood. His magic was by no means weak, and Kasion knew that as well.
Even so, he did not avoid his son’s magic.
It seemed he had no rationality left.
When Kasion staggered after being struck by the spell, Heredin seized the moment and grabbed a sword dropped by a fallen knight nearby.
The moment Kasion swung his sword, Heredin barely managed to block it and deflect the attack.
But the strength of an adult and a child could never be equal.
Heredin fought Kasion using both sword and magic.
Kasion did not actively use magic, but the sharpened mana swirling around him cut everything nearby.
Heredin rushed at him without caring about the wounds accumulating on his body.
He had no reason left to care.
In an instant Heredin unleashed a powerful spell and struck him.
For a moment, Kasion hesitated.
In that brief opening, Heredin thrust his sword into Kasion’s heart.
Using the sword technique his father had taught him.
The raging mana surrounding Kasion faded.
Kasion collapsed onto Heredin.
His fading voice fell beside his son’s ear.
“Here… din…”
At the same time, light returned to Heredin’s empty eyes.
Only then did the child realize what he had done.
His eyes shook violently.
“Father…?”
He had often wondered.
On that day, did his father recognize him before he died?
Or was it simply a name he called unconsciously out of habit?
Some days he believed his father had regained his senses at the end and recognized him.
After all, the greatest magic swordsman in the empire could not have truly been defeated by a mere child even if he had lost control.
Perhaps his father had recognized him and intentionally lost.
Perhaps he had wanted his son to kill him.
Perhaps he had felt relieved…
But on other days he thought that belief was just self-justification.
Perhaps his father never regained his senses until the very end.
Because realizing that he had almost killed his son, had killed his beloved wife with his own hands, and would finally die by his son’s hand would have been too cruel for him.
His thoughts changed day by day in whatever way eased his heart.
Eventually he stopped thinking about it entirely.
What was the point?
The fact that he had killed his father with his own hands would never change.
A very small number of trusted retainers buried the truth of that day to protect Delmark and strengthen the position of the young duke Heredin.
Thus, publicly it was said that Kasion lost control after Eloise’s death and took his own life.
But no matter how deeply it was hidden, he could not deceive himself.
“Ah… ugh…
Aaaah!”
Heredin watched his younger self from more than ten years ago, sitting in a pool of blood and crying like a wounded animal.
His eyes were dry.
As if tired of it all, he slowly closed his eyes.
The terrible dream always forced him to watch it until the very end before allowing him to wake.
When he opened his eyes, he saw the familiar ceiling.
Turning his head, he saw a familiar face.
A woman softer and sweeter than marshmallows.
Heredin looked at Blair’s sleeping face for a moment, then turned his gaze toward the window.
Cherry blossoms were falling like snow.
Just like that day in the dream.
Because of those flowers.
That was why he had this dream every year around this time.
After staring at the dreadful scene outside with emotionless eyes, he slowly rose.
Climbing out of bed, he put on his robe and walked to the table where his cigars were placed.
As he reached for the cigar and lighter, he paused when he noticed something beside them.
It was the bowl that had held the marshmallows.
Three unroasted marshmallows remained inside.
Blair had left them there the night before, saying she would eat them in the morning.
“If you want some, you can eat two.
You didn’t eat any.”
His wife had said it as if she were generously sharing food she had carefully saved.
Remembering her voice, Heredin let out a quiet laugh.
Then he placed one marshmallow in his mouth—the one his wife had allowed him.
The soft texture wasn’t particularly appealing, but the sweetness was better than he expected.
A small smile appeared.
Savoring the sweetness she had given him, Heredin placed the cigar and lighter into his robe pocket and left the bedroom.
* * *
In the afternoon, after lunchtime.
Walking down the corridor, Blair looked out the window at the garden filled with cherry trees in full bloom.
Behind the fountain in the center stretched an artificial canal, lined with cherry trees on both sides.
According to Mason, the current landscaping had been personally designed by Heredin’s mother, Eloise.
He had told her that since a new mistress had arrived, she could change it however she liked.
But Blair did not want to.
Partly because she did not want to leave her mark on a mansion she would soon leave.
And partly because she liked the garden as it was.
And above all…
‘For Heredin, it must be one of the traces his mother left behind.’
She didn’t want to erase that.
Thinking of him again without realizing it, Blair naturally remembered what she had realized the previous night.
Blair understood that she could no longer avoid or deny these persistent feelings.
Instead of denying or running away, she decided to accept them.
‘I still love Heredin.’
But accepting that did not mean she intended to stay by his side.
When their goals were achieved, she would leave as he wished.
Even if their relationship would eventually end, she wanted to properly conclude what they had never finished in her previous life.
I hope you won’t remain a painful memory for me.
I don’t want to hate you again like before.
I don’t want to remain tied to you again.
So she decided to pour out all of her remaining feelings.
So that they would not remain as regrets.
“Pippi.”
Blair called out as she entered the room where Pippi was playing.
“Pi!”
The young sable popped out from somewhere.
It had grown enough to almost be considered an adult now.
Recognizing its owner, Pippi ran over and jumped up in greeting.
Blair laughed and crouched down, extending her hand.
Pippi responded by lightly biting her hand.
“Were you playing hide-and-seek alone?”
“Pi.”
“Since the flowers have bloomed and the weather is nice, should we play outside?”
Blair took out the walking harness from a drawer.
Melly had made it with her skillful hands.
But Pippi seemed to want to keep playing and hid in a corner of the room instead.
With its long body, even the smallest gap was enough for the sable to hide.
“Hmm, do you want to play hide-and-seek with me?”
Instead of answering, the sound of rustling came from the narrow gap.
Blair approached the corner where Pippi had hidden.
Several frames covered with cloth were stacked there.
Peeking inside the gap, she saw Pippi hiding between the frame and the wall.
“Found you!”
“Pi!”
Pippi jumped out of the gap.
In the process, the cloth covering the frame was pulled down.
The cloth fell directly over Pippi.
“Pi?”
The cloth covering the sable moved in confusion.
Blair burst into laughter.
But when the cloth fell away and revealed the frame, her laughter stopped.
Inside the frame was a portrait of a boy she had never seen before.
He had the same black hair as Heredin, but his eyes were green, so it wasn’t him.
And his face didn’t resemble him either.
Heredin’s father, Kasion, had the same black hair and blue eyes as Heredin, so it wasn’t him either.
‘Who is it?’
Just then, there was a knock, and Mason entered.
“My lady.”
As he approached Blair, he noticed the portrait she was looking at and froze