CHAPTER 43: 憧 — WISTERIA WITHOUT SHADE [1]

Family.

They called it an unbreakable bond, something sacred, something worth bleeding for.

’What a joke.’

In the Valentine household, family was nothing more than a gilded cage, painted with words like ’honor’ and ’duty’.

Love? Warmth? Those were luxuries reserved for the "worthy". Leon of course was always the unworthy one.

His siblings were praised as prodigies, while he was paraded as the family’s disgrace, a living reminder that even a noble blood could birth something useless.

Family dinners were less meals and more trials for him, where every word stabbed him like a knife.

But Veronica...

She never bothered with such things.

She never really cared.

Born the eldest in the family, yet a girl... she, too, was looked down upon at first.

Until the day she showed traces of miracles.

She was called a prodigy. A genius of the century.

Where most humans awakened only after a certain age. She came into the world already awakened.

Leon recalled her story in fragments, which were deeply buried in his memories... or rather original Leon’s memories.

He sneered at the thought, until Myra’s voice broke in.

"Lady Veronica has invited you for a private dinner tonight."

Leon showed no surprise. Instead, he faintly smiled at the invitation.

Looking down at his hands, his thoughts drifted to his past life.... he had no siblings, he had no friends.

As an only child, Haru never carried the sense of responsibility others often shouldered.

Taking care of parents, getting married, raising a family, securing a stable job...

Those things never mattered to him.

It was not arrogance, nor his pride.

He simply believed such things were the bare minimum, it was a duty, and a taboo if ignored.

Haru wanted more. Much more. After all, he had only one life.

A heaviness touched his chest as he remembered his mother’s bright smile, his father’s proud stance, whether at a press conference or standing beside him when he met the president.

Small moments, perhaps, but for Haru, those were the results he sought.

The outcomes he wanted to give.

"..."

"Young master?"

Myra’s voice broke his silence.

"Ah, is that so?" Leon lifted his head, getting back to the topic. "...Where exactly did she invite me to?"

"To the Blood Tower."

"Hm." Leon acted as if he were thinking it over.

"I could always inform her to postpone, if you are still unwell, so—"

"Alright. I will go."

His words cut her off.

She blinked, processing the words.

The look on Myra’s face changed. Flaunting a brief smile, she lifted both sides of her skirt and bowed in courtesy.

"As you wish young master,"

From her cloak, she took out a miniature jute sack, and extended towards Leon.

"This is something I prepared for your complete recovery," she added, "I once again apologized for my absence, young master."

Leon blinked towards her face, then towards the sack she was presenting.

’What’s with her today?’

She was acting way too different as she used to, or maybe it was just Leon who truly noticed her personality today.

’Heh,’ he inwardly chuckled, taking the present.

No one had ever given Leon anything before.

’This was my first.’

The first present he received in this world was from her personal maid.

Myra peeked at him, as he inspected the jute pouch tied with a white ribbon crafting a flowery knot.

At a glance, one could tell that she had made it with her own hands.

Leon noticed her gaze falling towards his hands as his fingers played with the ribbon.

Understanding the meaning, he asked.

"You want me to open it now?"

Myra nodded her head one time.

"Alright..."

He began untying the ribbon carefully so as to not accidentally tear it in the process.

’It’s heavy, I wonder what’s in it.’

As the ribbon slipped free, a small strand of pale wisteria flower unfurled before him.

Its petals seemed ordinary at first, but the moment Leon’s fingers brushed them while taking it out, a faint purple glow stirred to life at its edges.

—Zttt—Blink—

"...?"

Leon didn’t get it at first, so his Analyze triggered.

A shimmer flashed before his vision, as a familiar screen appeared.

[Item]

〈藤の灯〉 (Fuji no Hi)

[Rank: D]

His breath caught.

Its name was written in Japanese, the mother tongue of Haru.

"Fuji no Hi..." Leon muttered to himself.

The words etched themselves into his mind, as he gazed toward Myra.

Before he could speak, Myra’s quiet voice followed.

"The flower glow wanes when it gets touched, yet it endures eternally otherwise. Its light shall only fade the day no one in this world wishes for the bearer’s longing."

Leon looked up at her, wide-eyed.

’藤の灯... or simply the light of Wisteria.’

Leon knew it well. Back on Earth, he had tucked it into the game as an easter egg, something with hidden meaning, something only the obsessive would ever find.

A flower that bows forever, reaching for a touch it may never have. It was a symbol of yearning.

In Rebirth of the Fivefold Calamity, it bloomed at the root of the World Tree, glowing only when someone, somewhere, still wished for the bearer’s longing.

And now... it glowed in his hands.

"It’s... glowing."

The words slipped out before he realized

He had never expected it to respond to him—him, of all people.

Not in this cold family that called him worthless, not in a life where affection was a luxury.

Leon had always lived without warmth, without anyone to say "I wish for you."

No.

And yet now...

"It means there is someone." He stated.

There exists someone who longs for his existence.

"..."

Placing his hand on his lips which wanted to laugh, to sneer at the absurdity of it. The other half... wanted to clutch the fragile strand and never let go.

’Ah... what is this feeling?’

It was a first for him. The way his heart was beating, the way every strand of hair on his hands stood up.

"How do you like it?"

Myra asked quietly.

"...Beautiful," he whispered, the word escaped his lips before he could stop it.

Hours passed.

After the short interaction between Myra and Leon, she went to the dorm’s shared kitchen and prepared a light breakfast for him before he set foot outside to meet his elder sister.

But before that...

"Do I have to wear this?"

Leon said, feeling suffocated as Myra tightened a necktie around him.

Earlier, Myra had genuinely requested him to dress in formal attire before meeting her.

’I’m just going to meet my elder sister, who also happens to be the most powerful person in the entire kingdom.’

There was no need to prepare this much.

Which brother in their right mind would visit his sister in such a formal outfit?

Certainly not him.

But after what she had given him, there was no way he could refuse.

"It’s done," she said, stepping away.

Lifting his gaze, Leon finally looked at himself in the mirror.

Well-combed hair, a white shirt topped with a black three-layered blazer, a long coat bearing the Valentine crest, and a black tie around his neck.

"..."

He looked as if he were about to attend a job interview.

"The carriage has arrived, young master."

Leon nodded and turned around.

"Haaah..."

’Guess, it’s time to face her.’

There was no running from it. Knowing his sister, Leon was certain she was already aware that he was behind the incidents that had recently occurred.

’Well, I was the one who hinted at it.’

With a grin, he turned and followed behind Myra.

[A/N]: The character arts or Myra, Professor Esther, and Veronica, are in my discord

https://discord.gg/qk82MbmH

https://discord.gg/yS2dtTmBP5