The Fallen Church’s Genius Perfumer – Chapter 16
Prim pressed her lips tightly, clearly displeased. She understood why Rozien had chosen this place to work—as a stablemaster’s servant.
Since the day she had believed she took on his curse in his stead, he had acted as if letting her go was not an option. Always.
Even now, perhaps, that was the case. What gnawed at her was that he had even dyed his red hair for that purpose.
The world had always considered red hair the color of demons, something to fear and shun—but Rozien had never been ashamed of himself.
Yet now, for her sake, he seemed to have accepted that red hair was something to be embarrassed about.
Prim didn’t want to scold him further, so she only pressed her lips together and spoke:
“…I like your red hair.”
Rozien’s eyes widened, then he silently broke into a smile. Prim’s voice rose in mild protest.
“Why are you smiling?”
“Just… it made me laugh. Ta-da!”
Rozien, as if changing the subject, suddenly presented what he had been hiding behind his back.
“Huh? This is….”
It was a simple bouquet made of silver blossoms.
“They were blooming all over the villa. They smelled nice.”
Prim widened her eyes and examined the bouquet. She knew the flower well—it was Argentum, used to make Luna Ether.
‘How did this get here?’
But on closer inspection, something was different. Unlike the cold silver petals of usual Argentum, this flower had a bluish tint along the edges, and its scent felt warmer.
—That’s…! That’s precious! Extremely rare and expensive! Truly hard to make!
‘So he made it himself?’
Prim could read his thought process at a glance.
Ordinary, simple-minded people tend to mistake their baseless hopes for logical truths.
Since genuine Luna Ether cannot simply be bought with money, Rozien had likely purchased some Argentum seeds at a high price and tried planting them. A plant—who knows if it would even grow properly?
Usually, such attempts fail, but the strong winds of the Silver Ash Forest had nurtured the Argentum, creating a new variant.
‘So that crude fake Luna Ether he made… came from this.’
Prim was impressed. Sometimes, a certain ignorance could lead to new discoveries.
With a properly run distillation, this could produce far better Luna Ether, with a warm, distinct character.
Lost in thoughts of perfumery, Prim suddenly lifted her head. Rozien was watching her face.
“…Do you like it?”
“Huh? Yeah? Yes, I like it. Really.”
Rozien smiled in relief, then glanced around the room inside the window.
Having experienced life on the streets and then in a destitute orphanage, this place might have seemed like a palace to him—but rather than marveling at the glittering surroundings, he simply looked around to see the doors and make sure she was safe.
Prim subtly leaned back. Normally, she wouldn’t have minded, but now she did. If he saw her crying from the sudden headache, he might worry.
“Prim, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
Prim answered quickly. Rozien’s eyes narrowed. He slightly leaned forward, glancing at the area under the chair where Prim sat.
Prim deliberately wiggled her unharmed, smooth toes, silently relieved that she hadn’t foolishly activated a curse when the headache surged.
“Are you really okay? Why are your lips torn?”
“I said I’m fine. What’s not fine? Maybe it’s just the cold weather.”
“You always say you don’t know.”
Rozien hesitated briefly, then cautiously reached out his hand. His fingers brushed Prim’s cream-colored hair, slightly damp.
Prim quickly turned her head. Her hair slipped from his hand.
At that moment, the stablemaster’s call for Rozien reached them.
“Hah, the Baron is back! I’ll go see him. If anything happens, you really have to tell me!”
Before Prim could nod, Rozien dashed off.
But after a few steps, he returned, partially closing the open window. He leaned his head through the half-closed window and said:
“It gets cold quickly at night! Even if you like the outside wind, still.”
He smiled as if saying, “I won’t close it fully because you like it,” then hurried off again.
Prim instinctively rose but stopped when she felt her toes prick.
At that moment, she realized clearly: Rozien had always tried to protect her. Ever since the day she took his curse in her place, he had been unwavering.
This curse was both her shackle and his anchor—a heavy anchor that prevented her from going too far.
Prim slowly inhaled, sensing the fiery warmth of the sunset. In the color of that twilight, she imagined Rozien’s red hair.
Without cutting the anchor, no matter how strong the wind, she could not go far.
She had come back through time to be the strong wind that would carry him to distant seas—and to cut that anchor.
“Ah, Prim!”
Shortly after Rozien left, Baron Corbas entered loudly, flinging open the door.
He scooped up Prim, who was sitting on a chair, without hesitation.
“I brought incense to Lethemor this time, and I immediately received a blessing! The scent you helped with!”
Baron Corbas spoke enthusiastically.
Prim blinked. It was almost a given that a scent she made would receive a blessing from the deity, so the blessing itself didn’t surprise her. What astonished her was that Baron Corbas had the audacity to say, without raising an eyebrow, “the scent you helped with.”
“What blessing did you receive?” Prim asked.
“Uh, a dream blessing. Helps you sleep well, or something like that.”
Prim’s eyes widened.
Blessings that aid sleep come in many forms, but the dream blessing is considered quite high-level.
In her previous life, her first step into wealth was also thanks to the Veil’s Blessing from Lethemor.
“Really! The scent Prim made received a blessing right away?”
The Baroness ran over in a fuss. Prim also glanced at Vianna, who was peeking from behind, observing quietly.
The girl’s face showed neither sadness, unease, nor pain.
“You might not be spectacular, but you’re not without talent. Keep assisting with my perfumery diligently, understood?”
Prim nodded impassively at the Baron’s childish attempts at coaxing.
The Baron, clearly unsettled by Prim’s unshakable composure, cleared his throat several more times before finally setting her back in the chair.
“Then, rest for now. Come to the perfumery tomorrow morning.”
With a whistle, Baron Corbas left, the sneaky Vianna scurrying away.
Prim sat alone in the chair, rubbing her forehead.
One thing had changed from her past life.
She had, at her age, offered a scent to Lethemor that she had never done before. Even if it went under the Baron’s name,
she had temporarily prevented Vianna’s sacrifice.
‘Could it be because I changed something?’
There were mountains of things she still needed to change, but if that was really the case…
Recalling the pain of that moment, Prim clenched her fists.
But she could not stop here. Prim’s eyes shifted to the vase on the bedside table.
